Jiuxi

Chapter 88 087 [A young man came to the Governor’s Mansion]

In this era, military books were strictly controlled by the imperial court. Ordinary officials did not dare to keep them secretly, so there was a saying that they were the descendants of generals.

For Lu Chen, this was not a problem. With Xiao Wangzhi's permission, he could consult any military book at any time. But when he opened those thick pages, fragments of his memory seemed to be awakened - thanks to Lu Tong's training, he I have indeed read most of the military books, and it is not difficult to pick them up now.

However, the contents of the military book cannot be of immediate help to him, because the words on paper are very detailed and there are not many specific war records.

Lu Chen read through a large amount of content and recalled the ancient battle cases he had learned in his previous life. At the same time, he sorted out the troop allocations of both sides, possible reinforcements, and the terrain of the north.

He was originally very anxious and worried, but when Lin Xi stayed with him quietly every night, his thoughts were like a spring, and a large-frame strategy that encompassed the whole gradually took shape in his mind.

On this day, he was escorted by Li Chengen and others to the Governor's Mansion as usual. As soon as he walked into the vestibule, he saw the marching commander Huang Xianfeng waiting with a smile.

"I've met Huang Sima." Lu Chen stepped forward to greet him.

Huang Xianfeng returned the courtesy and said: "Captain Lu, the Governor ordered me to wait for you here and take you to the Festival Hall to discuss matters."

"Festival Hall?"

Lu Chen's expression remained unchanged, but his tone became a little more serious.

Huang Xianfeng said as he walked: "Yes, today the commanders of the three armies of Nanya are here, and the governor summoned the chief generals of the armies in Huaizhou to hold the first military meeting on the upcoming counterattack. The governor said, this is This is a rare opportunity for you to learn more, so I invite you to participate.”

Lu Chen said: "I see, I'm waiting for you, sir."

Huang Xianfeng shook his head and said: "Although you and I were not familiar with each other in the past, now that we are both working under the command of the Governor, we should be closer."

Lu Chen knew that this Marching Sima was a very trusted confidant of Xiao Wangzhi, and must have received Xiao Wangzhi's advice, so he smiled and said: "Thank you for not taking it personally, I will definitely ask for advice from time to time in the future."

The smile on Huang Xianfeng's face became more sincere, and he said gently: "Don't take advice seriously. Brother Yu can help you very little, at most it's just some process matters. By the way, today except for the three commanders of Nan Ya, the others We are all old subordinates of the Grand Governor, if the Grand Governor asks you to express your opinion, just say it boldly and there is no need to be cautious."

"I understand, thank you Brother Huang for your guidance."

While chatting and joking, the two of them had arrived near the Festival Hall, and they both suppressed their smiles and walked into the heart of the Huaizhou Governor's Mansion.

There were not many people in the hall, so Huang Xianfeng took Lu Chen to a chair by the wall and sat down.

After about half a stick of incense, a group of tall and round generals came in one after another, and the atmosphere suddenly became noisy.

Huang Xianfeng whispered in Lu Chen's ear: "The person sitting first on the left is Chen Lanyu, the commander of the Zhenbei Army. He comes from a family of generals, but he does not have those arrogant habits and is trusted by the governor. At that time, the governor When he came to Huaizhou, he took over the command of the Zhenbei Army and trained this army into an iron army. At that time, Chen Lanyu was a captain under his command."

Lu Chen nodded in agreement: "I heard General Duan mention it in Guangling. He said that Commander Chen is the number one tiger general under the Governor, and he is especially good at attacking tough battles."

Huang Xianfeng said: "This is true, but more importantly, the governor laid a solid foundation for the Zhenbei Army. In the Battle of Qingxia, the Zhenbei Army was responsible for the main attack and defeated the Jing Dynasty veterans hidden in the puppet Yan army. , which contributed to the great defeat of the enemy."

Lu Chen could only see Chen Lanyu's back, which was slightly different from the others. This person seemed to have a normal body shape and was not very burly.

Huang Xianfeng added: "The second person from the left is Panlong Army Commander Pei Sui, the third person is Feiyun Army Commander Song Shifei, and the fourth person is Lai'an Army Commander He Gui."

Except for Qi Tai, the commander of the Guangling Army, all the chief generals of the Sixth Army of Huaizhou were already present, and Huang Xianfeng introduced them one by one.

At this moment, three more generals walked into the festival hall. Their faces were cold and slightly arrogant, and they sat directly on the row of chairs on the right.

After these three people came in, the Huaizhou Army generals still turned a blind eye, as if they didn't see each other at all.

Lu Chendeng understood immediately. He had long heard Duan Zuozhang talk about the relationship between the frontier army and the Beijing army. This could be seen from this small detail.

Huang Xianfeng added: "These three are the commanders of the three armies of Nanya, and they are also close associates of Uncle Xiangyuan and General Li Jingda."

While Lu Chen listened to his story, he quietly observed the faces of the three people opposite him.

He was suddenly worried for Xiao Wangzhi, because in the subsequent counterattack, the [-] Beijing troops would not be able to sit back and watch. They would definitely have to undertake very important battlefield tasks.

However, this scene in front of me...can the generals of the Beijing army really cooperate with the generals of the border army?

After a while, a loud "The Commander-in-Chief has arrived!" sounded outside the door, and everyone in the hall stood up and stood in awe, including the three commander-in-chief of Nanya of the Beijing Army.

Xiao Wangzhi strode in, glanced at Lu Chen in the corner, then looked around at everyone, and said calmly: "Everyone, sit down."

Everyone still stood upright, and they didn't return to their seats until Xiao Wangzhi sat down on the commander's seat.

Xiao Wangzhi looked at Huang Xianfeng, who immediately stood up and briefly stated to the generals the causes and consequences of the Huaizhou War, as well as the current confrontation on the border.

"...to the northwest of Panlong Pass, there are [-] troops from the Pseudo Yan Moyang Road, stationed in Liyang and Dingyuan. To the north, there are [-] troops from the Puppet Yan Dongyang Road, stationed in Qianshan and Yongyang respectively. Feng and other places. Farther away, the main force of the Puppet Yan cavalry is stationed. Once our army chooses to leave from the north of Panlong Pass, it will soon be surrounded by the enemy."

"To the northeast of the Lai'an defense line, the enemy has Yongquan Pass as the core and has established a defense line of three villages and four forts. Even if our army can break through this line of defense, Yongquan Pass will be a very hard nut to crack."

"To the northwest of Juyang County, the Puppet Yan's Qingtian City is the only way to pass. This military city also has a peripheral defense system, and the Puppet Yan and Jing Chao armies can come from behind to support at any time."

"To sum up, without considering the several ancient roads in the Shuangfeng Mountains for the time being, if our army wants to counterattack northward, it can only choose among the three roads of Panlong Pass, Qingtian City and Yongquan Pass."

Huang Xianfeng finished speaking unhurriedly, and then bowed to Xiao Wangzhi.

Xiao Wangzhi nodded, and then said to the generals: "Let's discuss it." There are only three counterattack routes. It seems that sending troops from Panlong Pass will encounter the least obstacle, but in fact it is the most dangerous.

In comparison, both Qingtian City and Yongquan Pass are still battlefields for infantry. Due to terrain restrictions, there is not much room for the Northern Army's cavalry to display their strength.

Panlong Pass is different. Once you choose to send troops from here, you will inevitably be harassed or even surrounded and annihilated by Beiyan and Jingchao cavalry.

The commander of the Panlong Army, Pei Sui, therefore remained silent. He knew very well that his duty was to guard the great pass. It was impossible for Governor Xiao to transfer the Panlong Army to the security line to serve as the main offensive force. In this case, his attitude was actually Doesn't matter.

In the silence, Song Shifei, the commander of the Feiyun Army, said decisively: "To the Commander-in-Chief, I am willing to lead the Feiyun Army to attack Qingtian City!"

The commander of the Lai'an army, He Gui, was unwilling to be left behind, and immediately said: "Captain, the last general is calling for battle!"

Xiao Wangzhi nodded slightly and turned his eyes to the three generals from the capital.

Sitting first on the right, Yuan Xingqin, the commander of the Nanya Huwei Army, felt Xiao Wangzhi's gaze, coughed twice, and said calmly: "I'd like to report to the Commander-in-Chief, I don't know much about this general." The situation on the border, but judging from the current situation, the Puppet Yan should not have lost control of the strategic key points on the border."

Xiao Wangzhi looked indifferent and said leisurely: "Are you trying to say that counterattacking the northern front is unwise?"

"The end will not dare."

Yuan Xingqin leaned forward slightly and then said calmly: "The general is just worried that the enemy has already prepared and is waiting for our army to attack. Both Qingtian City and Yongquan Pass are places of death as military strategists say. The so-called quick battle will lead to survival. , Those who do not fight quickly will die. To attack these two dangerous places, our army must form an elite formation, which requires paying a huge price."

Song Shifei said in a deep voice: "General Yuan, don't worry. The Feiyun Army can take the lead in this battle, and it won't be too late for the Huwei Army to wait until they are well rested."

Another Beijing army commander sitting next to Yuan Xingqin asked: "What does General Song mean? Since our army is going north, will we still be afraid of the enemy and fight?"

He Gui, the commander of the Lai'an Army, sneered and said: "I heard that the three armies of Nanya were stranded on the south bank of the Hengjiang River for more than ten days. They must have been unable to find enough ships to cross the river, right?"

This means that when Xiao Wangzhi is in front of him, he will still pay attention to his words. If they met in private, he would have spoken bluntly and ridiculed him.

Yuan Xingqin's face darkened slightly, and there was obvious anger in the eyes of the other two people.

Song Shifei, He Gui and others were naturally not afraid. For more than ten years, the frontier army and the Beijing army had never been able to pee in the same pot. At the moment, this kind of battle was not worth mentioning.

Xiao Wangzhi glanced left and right, and everyone immediately stopped verbally arguing.

However, at this time, Chen Lanyu, the commander of the Zhenbei Army, suddenly said: "The Commander-in-Chief, I feel that General Yuan's advice is reasonable."

There was a sudden silence in the hall.

Even strong men like Song Shifei are convinced of Chen Lanyu's status. Some people even think that Chen Lanyu is the successor Xiao Wangzhi has cultivated.

Chen Lanyu also lived up to Xiao Wangzhi's high regard. He fought very well in the battle at Qingxia, which played a decisive role in the final victory.

At this moment, even Huang Xianfeng was slightly startled. He thought that even if everyone did not support Xiao Wangzhi's decision of the Northern Expedition and counterattack, Chen Lanyu would unswervingly follow him. He did not expect that he would side with the Beijing generals at this moment.

Lu Chen watched quietly, and he suddenly understood why General Chen wanted to oppose Xiao Wangzhi.

Xiao Wangzhi said calmly: "Tell me your reasons."

Chen Lanyu looked at the middle-aged man on the handsome position, with a pleading flashing deep in his eyes, and said slowly: "Grand Governor, Yongquan Pass is a line of sky, and Qingtian City is the defense hub that Pseudoyan and Jingchao care most about. It is difficult to attack everywhere. The general has conducted deductions these days. If we focus on attacking one place, we will need at least 12 soldiers. If we advance on two fronts, our army needs to prepare 20 troops. Let’s not mention the pressure of logistical equipment, but it can be considered satisfactory for the time being. , but our army is seriously insufficient in strength."

He stood up and said in a deep voice: "Unless the imperial court continues to send more reinforcements, this battle will be unsustainable. I would like to ask the Governor to think twice!"

There were some words he just couldn't say in public.

Once the war does not go smoothly, many people in the court will have the opportunity to criticize Xiao Wangzhi, and his previous achievements will be directly wiped out.

The atmosphere in the hall was solemn.

Many people are gradually coming back to their senses.

Lu Chen sighed softly in his heart. In fact, he also felt that Chen Lanyu's considerations were reasonable.

Are Qingtian City and Yongquan Pass important?

This point needs no discussion.

However, Xiao Wangzhi did not need to take this risk.

Even if the status quo is maintained, he is still the governor of Huaizhou who is as stable as a mountain. His position in the army is unshakable. A few gossips in Yongjia City can't hurt him at all, not to mention that his contribution in the Qingxia battle is enough to get him promoted. Lord.

But...as Xiao Wang said to him a few days ago, some things have to be done by someone after all.

While he was deep in thought, Xiao Wangzhi's calm tone sounded again, but Lu Chen's heart was suddenly shocked.

"Lu Chen, come here."

(End of this chapter)