The prince is more stable

Chapter 555: Three Groups of Generals
"The advantage is mine" is not sarcasm, but the truth.

What matters in war is not the number of people, but the combat power, tactics and strategies of both sides, as well as the quality of their weapons.

Although the Song army was relatively small in number, Zhao Xiaoqian was confident of victory.

The biggest source of this confidence was not weapons, but the morale of the Song army.

It is undeniable that after following Zhao Xiaoqian for several years, the Longwei Battalion has become an elite division with high morale.

It may be a bit of an exaggeration to say that this army can defeat ten with one, but it is no problem for them to defeat four with one. Their biggest advantage is not the flintlock rifles in their hands, but the stimulation of several victories and the influence of Zhao Xiaoqian. Each of them is like a tiger or wolf that has just been released from a cage.

Even without firearms, the soldiers of the Dragon Guard Battalion can use their teeth to bite off a piece of enemy flesh. This is what an elite army should be like.

Zhao Xiaoqian had always stubbornly believed that it was the people, not the weapons, that determined the outcome of war. Over the past few years, he had consciously or unconsciously guided the soldiers of the Dragon Guard Battalion to believe this, encouraging them to believe in their own combat power and potential, rather than relying solely on the firearms in their hands.

After figuring out the enemy's troop movements and deployments, Zhao Xiaoqian had an idea in mind.

So Zhao Xiaoqian asked Chen Shou to bring a map.

A huge map was slowly spread out on the floor of the main hall. The generals gathered around it, and everyone stared at the cities, terrain and mountains on the map.

At this moment, Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly felt a sense of heroism in his heart.

We are chasing the lost deer together in this beautiful country. Ahead are fame and territory, and behind are comrades and brothers.

Sharing life and death, honor and disgrace, is enough in life.

"All generals, listen up!" Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly shouted.

There was a sound of armor clashing, and all the generals in the hall clasped their fists in unison: "Here!"

Zhao Xiaoqian stared at the map, pointing to Xijin Prefecture in Nanjing, Liao, and said slowly, "Order, Zhong Jianzhong will lead 20,000 troops from the Dragon Guard Battalion. At 3:00 PM this afternoon, cross the Juma River to the north and march quickly towards Xijin Prefecture."

"I'll only give you one day. You must set up camp fifty miles south of Xijin Prefecture before noon tomorrow. Is that a problem?"

Zhong Jianzhong hesitated for a moment and said, "Just setting up camp?"

Zhao Xiaoqian nodded. "That's right. We're just setting up camp, waiting for the Liao army to attack. The movement of 20,000 soldiers and horses is impossible to hide from the Liao army's scouts. A surprise attack is meaningless. It's better to fight head-on."

"Your Highness, what if the 40,000 Liao troops do not fight a decisive battle with our army and retreat to Xijin Prefecture to defend it?" Zhong Jianzhong asked again.

"Our army does not need to attack the city, but only to besiege it. Once we have dealt with the Liao armies from the east and west, the Liao army in Xijin Prefecture will either choose to leave the city and fight a decisive battle with our army, or abandon the city and flee north."

Zhong Jianzhong said excitedly, "Then isn't it possible for us to take over Xijin Prefecture this time?"

Zhao Xiaoqian shook his head: "We won't take it this time. What we need to do is to effectively annihilate the Liao army. We don't need to care about the gains and losses of a city or a place."

Zhao Xiaoqian looked around at the generals and said, "You must all remember that the purpose of this battle is to effectively annihilate the Liao army and deplete their manpower. My strategic goal is to severely damage the Liao Empire after this battle, and its military strength will never recover."

"If we achieve this goal, it will greatly reduce obstacles for us to recapture Yanyun and even capture the Liao mainland in the future. This is the purpose of this battle."

"Don't think you've gained something by taking advantage of others, thinking that capturing a few cities is a great achievement. Capturing a city today and taking it away tomorrow, what's the point other than wasting the lives of our soldiers?"

"I only care about the number of enemies you kill. Your achievements are measured by numbers!" Zhao Xiaoqian paused, his eyes filled with a fierce look as he slowly said, "In this battle, try not to take prisoners. Kill those who deserve to be killed. Don't be soft-hearted."

Looking around at everyone, Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said, "You are all generals of the Song Dynasty, and you are all talented killers. It won't be a big deal if I let you kill a few more people, right?"

Zhong Jianzhong hesitated and said, "If we encounter Liao soldiers surrendering during the war and kill them, then Bian Jing..."

Zhao Xiaoqian interrupted, "Are you crazy? What do you mean by killing the surrendered? Who killed the surrendered? No matter who it was, they were just pretending to surrender! Those who pretend to surrender should be killed! Do you understand?"

Zhong Jianzhong was determined in his heart and said loudly: "I understand!"

Zhao Xiaoqian looked at Zhe Keshi again and said, "Old Zhe, I'll give you 20,000 soldiers and horses, including 5,000 from the Dragon Guard Battalion and 15,000 from the Imperial Guards brought from Bianjing. The veterans will lead the new recruits and familiarize them with the Dragon Guard Battalion's tactics. We'll set out west this afternoon to intercept the 30,000 Liao troops invading Taiyuan Prefecture. Is that okay?"

Zhe Keshi clasped his fists excitedly and said, "No problem! If I lose, I will bring my head to you!"

Zhao Xiaoqian waved his hand and said, "There's no joking in the army. Go back and sign the military order before setting off again. If you fail, come back and wash yourself clean and get slaughtered."

Zhe Keshi said with a smile: "Yes, I will make sure it is cleared."

The generals from the central and western routes had been sent out, leaving only the eastern route. The generals in the hall were anxious, and their eyes, like those of hungry wolves, glowed green as they stared at Zhao Xiaoqian.

Di Zi was the first one who couldn't help it. He volunteered to go to the battle just to gain fame and honor. Now a great opportunity was in front of him, and it was the last chance, so of course he had to fight for it.

So, while the generals were silent, Di Zi was the first to speak up: "Your Highness, I will fight! The Liao army on the east route is in my hands. If we are defeated, I will take the punishment from the military."

Di Zi took the lead, and the other generals woke up as if from a dream, clamoring to stand up and ask for battle.

These generals were all rough and rude men. They started cursing as soon as they opened their mouths. The dirty words were unbearable to hear, and the hall was suddenly filled with smoke and chaos.

Zhao Xiaoqian was overwhelmed. He scanned the crowd several times and finally his eyes fell on Zong Ze.

Due to the policy of emphasizing civil affairs over military affairs for many years, the Song Dynasty has lost many famous generals and lacks talented people. There are not many famous generals who have been given a single page in history books, but Zong Ze is undoubtedly one of them.

This battle is very important, Zhao Xiaoqian cannot afford to lose, Zong Ze is the best choice.

"Zong Ze, listen to my orders." Zhao Xiaoqian said slowly.

The hall fell silent, and everyone looked at Zong Ze jealously.

Zong Ze was quite surprised. After all, the Dragon Guard Battalion had many skilled generals under its command. Zong Ze had never expected that this piece of cake would actually fall on his head. After the surprise, Zong Ze was overjoyed and quickly stood up and clasped his fists: "I am here!"

"I will give you 5,000 soldiers from the Dragon Guard Battalion and 15,000 soldiers from the Bian Jing Imperial Guard. This afternoon, march eastward and approach Hejian Prefecture. You will intercept the 30,000 Liao troops invading Daming Prefecture."

Zong Ze said excitedly: "I obey your order!"

Before Zhao Xiaoqian could finish his words, Zong Ze blinked and suddenly thought, "Your Highness, I am not up to the task of leading the army alone. I would like to ask General Di Zi to be my deputy commander and accompany me on the expedition."

When these words were spoken, not only the generals were shocked, but Zhao Xiaoqian was also stunned.

He is worthy of being a Jinshi granted in the sixth year of Yuanyou. Look at the mind of this intellectual, wow!

Di Zi was not selected and was originally disappointed. However, a word from Zong Ze, a guy with high emotional intelligence, immediately excited Di Zi and looked at Zong Ze with gratitude.

Zhao Xiaoqian, however, crumpled up a piece of white paper on the table and threw it at Zong Ze's head, saying, "I'm f*cking mobilizing troops here, and you're f*cking trying to play favors with me?"

Zong Ze was not annoyed at all, but said innocently: "What's wrong with me finding a comrade to be my deputy general?"

The generals immediately showed contempt, and Zhong Jianzhong and Zhe Keshi also secretly regretted it.

What the hell, if I had known it could be done this way, I should have asked Di Zi to come over as deputy general.

His Highness said that everyone is treated equally and fairly, but... who can refuse a lively and vigorous father-in-law as deputy general?
It was obvious that I could have gotten closer to you, but I missed the opportunity. What a fool!

The generals stared at Zong Ze with unfriendly eyes, but they were still somewhat convinced in their hearts. It was really hard to win when playing tricks on a cultured person!
Zong Ze, however, looked calm, as if his proposal just now was completely selfless and entirely altruistic.

Zhao Xiaoqian sighed and waved his hand, saying, "Just let him be deputy general. The same goes for Zhong Jianzhong and Zhe Keshi. Whoever you like can be temporarily appointed as deputy general. In short, I only care about the results, not the process."

After sending generals to discuss the matter, Zhao Xiaoqian waved his hand to drive them away, and the generals had to disperse.

Before everyone left the main hall, Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly called out to Zhe Keshi and asked him to stay.

"Your Highness, do you have any other instructions?" Zhe Keshi asked.

Zhao Xiaoqian lowered his voice and said, "Lao Zhe, you are responsible for intercepting the Liao army from Taiyuan Prefecture in the west, but you cannot use too much force in this battle..."

Zhe Keshi was stunned: "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is, I want you to let them go and at least leave half of the Liao army so they can escape."

Zhe Keshi was unhappy and looked unconvinced: "Why should we let him win? Those are all military achievements!"

Zhao Xiaoqian was so angry that he kicked him on the butt and said, "Because I asked you to let me go! So much nonsense, if you don't want to do it anymore, I'll replace you."

Zhe Keshi became obedient, but still said with an unwilling look on his face, "Your Highness, you must let me know the reason, right?"

"There's no reason. This is a military order. Just follow it. Any questions?"

Zhe Keshi sighed: "No problem, I will do whatever Your Highness says."

"get out."

Zhe Keshi left embarrassedly.

Zhao Xiaoqian sat in the main hall with a slight smile on his lips.

Giving discounts can be a way to loosen up liquidity and make plans for the future.

Because the leader of the Liao army in the west was Xiao Wuna.

This is Zhao Xiaoqian's chess piece. He intends to let Zhe Keshi go so as to leave some credit for Xiao Wuna.

If the three Liao armies in the east, west and center were all defeated, Xiao Wuna was still relatively capable. Although he was defeated, he was able to save some troops and escape. In comparison, Xiao Wuna had already made a contribution.

This achievement was not great, nor was it anything to be proud of, but it made Yelu Hongji look at him with a higher regard, and he would pay more attention to him in the future, so the weight of this chess piece would naturally become even more important.

…………

At noon, the soldiers of the three armies had a hearty lunch, and the generals gathered their troops and left the camp.

There was order amidst the chaos in the camp. The generals cursed and called on their soldiers to bring enough dry food, feed their horses, and organize their weapons and ammunition.

At 3:00 p.m., Generals Zhong Jianzhong, Zhe Keshi and Zong Ze gathered their troops and left the camp, each heading in a different direction.

The South Bank camp had a total of 60,000 soldiers and horses, all of whom were sent out within an hour. Now there are only 2,000 soldiers left in the camp, as well as hundreds of imperial guards such as Chen Shou and Jia Shi.

The camp was empty, and Zhao Xiaoqian's mood also became empty.

Zhao Xiaoqian wasn't too worried about the outcome of this battle. Whether it was a skirmish or a full-scale frontal engagement, the Song army's current strength was no match for the Liao army.

As I said, if you don’t see it with your own eyes, you can’t understand the feeling of shock and even despair when the new civilization crushes the old civilization.

An hour after the 60,000 Song troops left the camp, a soldier came to report outside the gate.

Xu Jiang, the deputy envoy of the Western Hebei Route Administration, has arrived.

(End of this chapter)