Do you know: I have a different surname: Wang, uncle Minglan.

Chapter 309 Command a million troops and conquer the world!
When Wei Yuan arrived at the court hall, all the officials had been waiting for a while.

At this moment, everyone's eyes were focused on him.

In their opinion, if there is someone other than the emperor who can be considered the man of destiny, then that person must be Wei Yuan.

Born in a farming family, he was just a young general on the frontier in the past. However, in just a few years, he has grown into a big man who is second only to the emperor. How can we not envy him?
When Wei Yuan arrived in front of the crowd and was about to kneel down to Zhao Xi, they heard the new emperor slowly speak:

"Wei Yuan, you are wearing armor, no need to be polite!"

"Today, I will not waste my words with you, nor will I discuss how you want to fight this battle. In short, I only care about the results!"

Having said this, Zhao Xi suddenly stood up, looked at the ministers, and finally looked at Wei Yuan, and said seriously:

"From today on, during the Northern Expedition, all troops within the Great Zhou will be under your control."

"Drive out the Tartars and recover the lost territory!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Yuan clasped his fists solemnly, "Your Majesty, I obey your order!"

In the past, when a new emperor ascended the throne, he would never dare to launch a war recklessly. If he was defeated in the war, it would easily lead to the tragedy of the overthrow of the country.

Therefore, everyone believed that after Zhao Zhen's death, Zhao Xi would adopt a conciliatory policy and try to force the Liao army to retreat through negotiations.

But no one expected that an emperor who was less than ten years old would have the courage to fight the Liao army to the death.

Even on the day he ascended the throne, he sent troops to the north.

In Wang Anshi's view, these were all manifestations of Zhao Xi's precocity.

The so-called excessive wisdom and early death is not a good sign.

On the day.

Zhao Xi ordered Wei Yuan to ride on his dragon chariot and head to the outskirts of Bianjing City.

On the way, Zhao Xi was in high spirits and talked a lot with Wei Yuan. He was eager to recover the lost territory immediately.

Inside the dragon chariot.

Wei Yuan looked at the emperor in front of him and smiled helplessly.

In front of all the officials, Zhao Xi was an emperor, but in front of Wei Yuan, he let down all his guard and acted more like a child.

He didn't know how long the master-disciple relationship between him and Zhao Xi could last.

If we can hold out until we recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun and achieve the unification of China, then we will have no regrets.

Zhao Xi obviously didn't think that much.

"Master Wei, if you kill Yelu Renxian, you must bring his head to me. I want to make a Cuju with his skull!"

"Master Wei, I'm not asking you how to fight this battle, I'm asking you, are you sure?"

"Master Wei, it doesn't matter if we can't win. We can take our time to recover the lost territory. I am still young, and Master Wei is in his prime. There is no need to rush."

"Master Wei, if we are defeated, I mean if, just in case, you must protect yourself. As long as you are alive, there is hope. The old thief Yelu is already old!"

"Guardian."

"."

The young emperor did not seem to think that he talked too much, nor did he feel bored.

He really wished that it was he, instead of Wei Yuan, who was leading the troops into battle.

Zhao Xi always called him "Master Wei". He had never called him "Wang Anshi" so enthusiastically.

If we talk about who had a greater influence on Zhao Xi, Wei Yuan or Wang Anshi, it was undoubtedly the former.

Without the former, Zhao Xi today would not have become so warlike, and would not have clamored to recover the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun all day long.

Outside the dragon chariot, the streets were lined with kneeling people wearing white cloth, still mourning for Zhao Zhen.

They kept chanting 'Long live the emperor'.

But Zhao Xi didn't care about these voices.

This emperor, who seemed only slightly lovable in appearance, was obsessed with defeating the Liao army.

"Guardian."

Zhao Xi was still talking.

Wei Yuan suddenly interrupted, "Your Majesty."

Zhao Xi asked: "Master Wei, do you have anything to say? If you have any requests, just ask, and I will do my best to satisfy them."

Just as he said this, Wei Yuan shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, we have reached the city gate."

Zhao Xi was stunned for a moment, smiled, and then, with the help of everyone, he got off the dragon chariot.

Wei Yuan stood behind him.

Zhao Xi climbed up to the top of the city wall, and Wei Yuan walked out of the city.

Outside the city, Chen Daniu had assembled 150,000 troops, including 50,000 anti-Lu troops.

The remaining 100,000 were a fictitious number, including the Jiangnan troops that had already bypassed Bian Jing and headed for Tangyin.

When Wei Yuan left the city and mounted his horse, Zhao Xi was already standing on the top of the city wall. Looking at the soldiers of the Great Zhou who were already lined up in battle formation, he suddenly felt heroic.

He, who had never drunk alcohol, suddenly asked Manager Zhu to bring him a glass of wine and said loudly:

"You are all heroes of the Great Zhou!"

"This glass of wine is for you!"

"I wish all the generals a successful start!"

"I am in Bianjing, waiting for your good news!"

After saying that, he drank the wine in the glass.

A burning sensation instantly started burning in my lungs, and in an instant, my face turned red.

He wanted to cough twice, but fearing that he would lose the dignity of an emperor, he forced himself to hold back the urge to cough.

Wei Yuan sat on the horse, looked up at Zhao Xi, clasped his fists and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"Long live your majesty, long live the Great Zhou!"

As soon as the words fell, all the soldiers responded one after another. They raised their weapons above their heads and shouted:
"His Majesty."

".Ten thousand years!"

"."

The sound is like a series of mountains, rising and falling.

Later, Zhao Xi watched the army set out.

Just as Wei Yuan was about to leave, Zhao Xi couldn't help but speak again, "Master Wei!"

Wei Yuan looked back.

Zhao Xi said: "Master Wei, take care!"

Wei Yuan raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a smile, clasped his fists towards Zhao Xi, and left.

This scene reminded Wang Anshi, who had been standing next to Zhao Xi, of some unofficial historical records about Liu Chan sending Zhuge Liang to war.

However, he knew that Zhao Xi was not the hopeless person.

As for whether Wei Yuan was Zhuge Liang, he was not sure.
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In addition to the 300,000 troops in Yanbian that were in a stalemate with Western Xia.

At present, the army of the Great Zhou is relatively scattered in the Central Plains.

First of all, in Daizhou, the old general Qin Lie led an army of 200,000 to guard the border towns of Daizhou as solid as a rock.

To be honest, with an army of 200,000, the enemy they faced was not the main force of the Liao Kingdom. If they could not defend Daizhou, they could die as an apology.

On the main battlefield of Daming Prefecture, Qin Zhen had an army of 400,000 under his command.

Xu Changzhi, the main general guarding Qizhou, has 150,000 troops.

Yang Huairen, who originally guarded the Gaoyang area, had an army of 200,000. His main responsibility had shifted from resisting Yelu Renxian to cutting off the Liao army's baggage route.

Moreover, about 80,000 more troops were sent to the Damingfu area.

Therefore, Yang Huairen only had about 100,000 troops under his command.

Lin Zhaoyuan was rushing here with an army of 200,000 recruited from Fujian.

In this battle, the Great Zhou had no more idle troops. In other words, in order to fight this battle, the Great Zhou mobilized all the troops in the country. It can be said that the whole country was mobilized, and it was a battle that gambled the country's destiny and national strength!
Now, Yelu Renxian is stationed in Xiangzhou area, planning to take action when the time is right.

This time, Wei Yuan sent troops to Tangyin.

Tangyin is the nearest town to Xiangzhou. This move was intended to block Yelu Renxian's offensive, thus enabling the army of the Great Zhou to switch from defense to offense.

Before going to Tangyin, Wei Yuan discussed some things with Xiao Yuming and others.

During this time, Chen Daniu said excitedly: "Counting the soldiers from Daizhou, Damingfu, Qizhou and the south, there are a million troops, and now they are all under the command of big brother."

"Han Xin once said that the more soldiers he led, the better. I'm afraid he can't compare with my brother!"

In the Song Dynasty in Wei Yuan's previous life, not counting the factor of redundant soldiers, the number of troops reached about 1.3 million at its peak. This is data that can be verified and recorded in history.

What about those not included? If all the above are added up, the number of troops during the Northern Song Dynasty would probably reach an astonishing 1.6 million.

Today, the Great Zhou of this era has almost the same number of troops as the Song Dynasty at its peak in previous history.

To be honest, any commander would be extremely excited to command an army of millions.

However, what gave Wei Yuan a headache was that among this army of over one million, excluding the old, the young and those with low combat effectiveness, the elite force was probably only around 300,000.

In other words, the main force to fight against the Liao army will depend on the 300,000 elite troops.

And among the 300,000 elite troops, I am afraid that the number of brave and combative cavalry is less than 100,000!
This is the disadvantage of the Zhou Dynasty's redundant troops.

If Wei Yuan was commanding the army of the previous dynasty, three hundred thousand would be enough to sweep across the world without a million!

"Brother seems to be commanding a million troops and is in the limelight, but each army is now fighting on its own. The only troops that Brother can fully command are the soldiers he brought from the south."

"The Danglu Army is our foundation. We cannot send them out unless it is absolutely necessary. This battle is far more difficult than we thought."

Xiao Yuming spoke slowly.

Now, besides Xiao Yuming and Chen Daniu, the only general staying by Wei Yuan's side is Shen Qing.

In other words, all the generals who followed him to participate in this battle were his confidants and direct subordinates.

"Yuming is right. If we want to win this battle, we must gather our troops together. If we fight separately, we will be defeated one by one by the Liao army."

At this point, Wei Yuan looked up at Shen Qing and said, "Qin Zhen still wants to insist on having a decisive battle with Yelu Xinxian's troops in Daming Prefecture?"

The latter nodded and said, "General Wei previously suggested that Qin Zhen only leave 100,000 soldiers in Daming Prefecture, but he still insisted on having a decisive battle with the enemy in Daming Prefecture. He also said that if General Wei was just suggesting it and not giving a military order, he would still march according to the previous deployment."

Chen Daniu said dissatisfiedly: "Brother wants to save his face. Otherwise, if he sends a letter of order, he will send more troops to Xiangzhou!"

Wei Yuan glared at him. "Don't you have a good memory? I always tell you to call your position when marching."

Chen Daniu immediately said, "I know I was wrong."

Wei Yuan shook his head.

Xiao Yuming joked: "Qin Zhen is your brother-in-law after all, why don't you like to give him face?"

Chen Daniu chuckled and said, "That will only count after I marry the Qin family's daughter."

Wei Yuan pretended to cough twice and said solemnly: "Okay, let's get down to business."

"Shen Qing, send someone to tell Qin Zhen immediately that this is an order. There is no room for bargaining. Anyone who disobeys the order will be killed without mercy!"

Since Qin Zhen doesn't listen to my advice, we have no choice but to take real action.

Chen Daniu also knew that Wei Yuan was serious.

Although he is obsessed with the girl from the Qin family, he will never speak up for Qin Zhen because of such things.

"Xiao Yuming, please remember this."

Wei Yuan's face was serious, and he said solemnly: "First, order Xu Changzhi to gather the troops and station them in Bozhou. Deploy troops in Tangyi, Shenxian and other important towns to prevent Yelu Xin from moving north first."

"Second, order Qin Zhen to lead 100,000 troops to garrison Daming Prefecture. Without orders from the commander, no troops may be moved out of the city."

"Third, order Yang Huairen to go through Jizhou to recapture Quzhou and strictly guard against the Liao army in Mingzhou."

"Fourth, please ask General Qin to transfer another 100,000 troops from Daizhou and march south to recapture Wu'an."

"Fifth, order Lin Zhaoyuan's troops to rest quickly after arriving in Tangyin, and then march to Linzhang and Yonghe."

"The above order is top secret."

Hearing this, Xiao Yuming and others were all deeply moved.

In an instant, millions of troops were mobilized in an orderly manner.

It is extremely difficult to achieve this.

I'm afraid that among the younger generation of generals, only Wei Yuan can do it.

The ability to command large-scale military operations is a great requirement for a qualified commander.

Like Qin Lie, although he has rich experience, he is unable to command large troops in battle, let alone launch large-scale campaigns.

Therefore, he, who had been designated as the commander-in-chief to fight against the Liao army, has been trapped in Daizhou until now.

As for the situation in Daizhou, no one knew it better than Wei Yuan. Leaving 100,000 soldiers garrisoned there would be more than enough as long as the commander was not too stupid.

One Yanmen Pass is worth a million soldiers.

Although this statement may be exaggerated, it can also show the uniqueness of Yanmen Pass.

"promise!"

After Xiao Yuming bowed solemnly, he went downstairs to arrange everything.

During the march, he and Shen Qing thought of Wei Yuan's deployment more than once.

The more I thought about it, the more surprised I was.

Mingzhou is the rear base of Xiangzhou. If Mingzhou can be occupied first, the retreat and strategic depth of the Liao army can be blocked.

Wu'an, Linzhang, Yonghe and Tangyin are all important cities, all around Xiangzhou. Only Xiangzhou is halfway between Xiangzhou and Mingzhou, and Wei Yuan has not set up defenses there.

In other words, surrounded on three sides, Wei Yuan intended to launch an offensive in Xiangzhou.

But they were a little confused.

Bozhou, Tangyi and other places are located in the northeast of Daming Prefecture.

If the battle of Xiangzhou breaks out, Yelu Xinxian will have to bypass Damingfu and march into Linzhang and other places. At that time, the person who will be under the greatest pressure will be Lin Zhaoyuan.

But Wei Yuan didn't let Qin Zhen lead the army without permission. Why?

Wouldn't it be that the garrisons in Bozhou and Tangyi were deployed in vain and were of no use at all?

They couldn't figure it out, but there was one thing they had to admire about Wei Yuan, who could easily command hundreds of thousands of troops and directly surround Xiangzhou on three sides.

For a battle as big as this, Wei Yuan, as the commander-in-chief, would not dare to launch it if he did not have a strong heart.

"We surrounded Xiangzhou on three sides and cut off Yelu Renxian's retreat. Such a large-scale battle will surely go down in history."

"It's really exciting to think about following Marshal Wei in a battle that can be described as world-shattering."

At night, in the camp, Xiao Yuming was talking to Shen Qing.

The latter nodded in agreement and said, "General Wei always uses the overall situation when deploying troops, leaving no way for the enemy to survive, and he has endless backup plans."

"I have only seen a few people in history books who used such similar methods of warfare."

Xiao Yuming asked curiously: "Which people?"

Shen Qing said bluntly: "Cao Cao and Guo Ziyi, these two are the ones I can think of for now."

Xiao Yuming nodded, "Hearing what you said, these two people do have something in common with Wei Shuai."

"Where?" Shen Qing asked.

Xiao Yuming said seriously: "They all have great courage and determination, and dare to take on the world."

Dominate the world?

The more Shen Qing thought about it, the more terrifying it became.

The weight of these four words, "dominating the world", is really too heavy.

Interestingly, Cao Cao and Guo Ziyi can be said to be two completely opposite people.

Cao Cao is a traitor, Guo Ziyi is a hero. Cao Cao is a traitor who appears loyal, while Guo Ziyi is a loyal person who appears traitor.

(End of this chapter)