Four hundred and fiftieth eight chapters differences
At the end of January, Lanzhou also felt a bit like spring. Although the Yellow River had not yet thawed, the ice and snow on the land had begun to melt.
The Xixia Army camp on the north bank of the Yellow River stretches for more than 20 miles. 70,000 Xixia troops are stationed in the military camp. In November last year, Emperor Li Qianshun responded to the request of his commander Cao Baozong and sent an additional 20,000 troops to Lanzhou. This time, the Xixia Army was determined to capture Gongzhou. It is inevitable to win.
That morning, the gate of the military camp opened, and a group of cavalry rushed towards the Yellow River.
The leading general is Cao Baozong. He received a top-secret express message from Dou Qing. The Song army will officially send troops to Gongzhou on the fifth day of February. There are still seven days to go. If the time spent on the journey is included, then the main force of the Song army will be There are still ten days to reach Longxi County.
Cao Baozong came to check the freezing conditions of the Yellow River. He could faintly see sleds gliding on the river. There were also several vendors by the river who rented sleds across the river to attract customers.
The Yellow River is more than ten miles wide. It takes at least an hour to walk on the ice. The huge cold air can easily freeze people's internal organs. Many traders came up with the idea of sleighing. The sleds were padded with thick old sheepskins and pulled by horses. By dragging it, you can quickly cross the Yellow River. This method of crossing the river is very popular, and the business of several shops is quite prosperous.
Cao Baozong came to a shop surrounded by cavalry. The shopkeeper and his waiters quickly came forward and kowtowed in salute.
"Let me ask you, when will this section of the Yellow River thaw?"
"Reporting to the general, the complete thaw will not be until around mid-February, but we will not be able to leave in a few days. The ice will break, and freezing floods will occur soon. There will be loud noises heard in the past two nights, which is the ice breaking. the sound of."
"To be more specific, how many days will it take for me to leave?"
"I can't say for sure, but the day after tomorrow is the last day we will be open for business."
Cao Baozong nodded, turned back to Shang Dongyan and said, "We can't delay it any longer. We must send troops south to Longxi County tomorrow."
Shang Dongyan sighed and said: "I have said it countless times, but I still need to make it clear that we cannot rush into the war this time. We need to get comprehensive intelligence to evaluate how we should fight? Should we send troops to Gongzhou or send troops to Gongzhou?" Qinzhou?”
It was a cliché again. Cao Baozong had long been tired of hearing it. He glared, "I built four logistics military cities in Gongzhou, but in the end I attacked Qinzhou. Did I build them all in vain?"
Shang Dongyan suppressed the anger in his heart and said: "I'd like to say it again, I am not against attacking Gongzhou, but I want to see the intelligence. If Qinzhou is empty, why can't we take the initiative and attack Qinzhou instead? That can Let Chen Qing fall into a passive position. Isn't that what war is all about? Whoever takes the initiative will have the upper hand."
"That's nonsense. Qinzhou is Chen Qing's home base. How could he not leave heavy troops for defense? Just like when has our Xingqing Mansion been empty? Since we have made a plan, we should implement it according to the plan. Chao Qin Muchu, plan It’s going to change, so what’s the point of making plans?”
"But the battlefield is changing rapidly..."
“That’s why we must remain unchanged in response to all changes!”
The two quarreled again, and Shang Dongyan's anger could no longer be restrained.
"But the general's plan is not perfect, and is even full of loopholes. Our opponent is Chen Qing, who is best at seizing the enemy's loopholes. Has the general forgotten the lesson he learned last time?"
Cao Baozong's eyes showed murderous intent, and he narrowed his eyes and said: "If you dare to do the following again and resist my military orders, I will kill you!"
The words had reached the point of committing crimes, and Shang Dongyan finally despaired. He sighed and said, "I dare not commit crimes, but can the general allow me to guard the Lanzhou camp?"
"Okay! You can stay!"
Cao Baozong said angrily, turned around and left.
Shang Dongyan gritted his teeth with hatred. How could the emperor send a scholar with high ambitions but low abilities to be a general? What is the difference between this and the useless civil servants in the Song Dynasty?
Two more words need to be said here.
There has always been a chain of mutual contempt within the Xixia army. The hereditary generals despised the frontier generals for their low status and lack of background, while the frontier generals in turn despised the hereditary generals who only talked high-spirited words and had no practical experience.
Cao Baozong is a typical hereditary general. He is the eldest son of Prime Minister Cao Jie. He achieved success at a young age and relied on his father's influence to become a general step by step. The so-called great military achievements in his resume are just a layer of gold on the edge of the battlefield.
But Shang Dongyan was just the opposite. His father was from Tubo and his mother was from Dangxiang. He was appointed as Zhuoluo and deputy commander of the Southern Army Division. He guarded the border all year round and had almost no status in the Xixia court.
Shang Dongyan has rich actual combat experience. The first time Chen Qing was deceived by enemy tactics was in the hands of Shang Dongyan. Shang Dongyan used a fake move to move westward in Didao County and deceived Chen Qing.
He left the city and led three thousand troops to the silver mines.
Chen Qing spent all his efforts and used Yang Qi to deliver false news, largely to deceive Shang Dongyan. Otherwise, there would be no need to put so much effort into dealing with Cao Baozong.
Shang Dongyan fundamentally opposed Cao Baozong's method of building military cities to hoard supplies and food. This was tantamount to telling the enemy early that I was going to attack Gongzhou. If the enemy only had one target, they could use this method, but they could not only attack Gongzhou.
You can also attack Qinzhou!
Shang Dongyan has been persuading Cao Baozong to build plank roads openly, covertly build a military city in Gongzhou, and finally attack Chengji County, but Cao Baozong rejected it.
Cao Baozong's thinking is very clear. In war, good and evil must complement each other, but the good must assist the good, not the good assisting the good. The priorities cannot be reversed.
Cao Baozong only agreed to make a fuss around the main line of attacking Longxi County and use some strange military tactics.
The two had disagreements and had been arguing. On the eve of the dispatch of the army, the two finally had a showdown. Shang Dongyan's attitude was clear. If you insist on going your own way, then I will stay behind. The final defeat has nothing to do with me.
...........
The Xixia Army's 50,000-strong army crossed the ice of the Yellow River the next day and headed south in a mighty manner. All their grain, grass and baggage had been transported south in advance, such as siege weapons and transport carts, which were stored in Tongxi County.
They rushed the light troops to Tongxi County to rest for two days, and then headed south with the heavy troops, so that they could march in large numbers and save time.
In a sense, Cao Baozong's method was not wrong. He worked step by step and learned the lessons of the last time he went deep alone.
But as Chen Qing said, this kind of step-by-step approach is suitable for large-scale battles. For example, when Wanyan Wushu attacked Dashan Pass, he used this step-by-step approach and finally succeeded in capturing Dashan Pass.
Cao Baozong only had 50,000 troops. Compared with the Song army, his military strength was not superior. He could not use heavy troops to protect the military cities along the way. He used medium troops to carry out large-scale operations, and there was an inconvenience in using small horses to pull large carts.
Be realistic.
Cao Baozong learned a lesson well, but his direction was wrong. He should not attack Longxi County. Instead, he should attack Qinzhou, occupy Ganquan Fort, and use Jichuan County or Qingshui County as important logistics areas to open up Xingqing Prefecture-Baochuan County-
Ganquan Fort, an important strategic channel, was directed at Chengji County. At that time, Chen Qing was very passive. He had to temporarily abandon Longxi County and try his best to protect Qinzhou.
But Cao Baozong did not see this. He still insisted on standing up wherever he fell. He believed that his strategy was wrong last time and he should not go deep alone, so this time he changed to step by step.
That's why Chen Qing said he talks on paper.
However, even if Cao Baozong was slightly inferior, Chen Qing did not dare to take it lightly. He sent out twenty scout teams to closely monitor the enemy's whereabouts.
At the junction of Qinzhou and Gongzhou, there is a hill that stretches for dozens of miles, running north to south. This hill is called Hematite Ridge. Hematite is produced here in Qinzhou, and 22,000 Xixia prisoner-of-war miners are also found here.
It will be managed after it is given to the children.
At this time, the mining of the mines was temporarily suspended, and 22,000 Xixia Army prisoners of war were transferred to the Chengji County Prisoner of War Camp, where they were gathered to build roads and cut trees.
At noon that day, about fifty miles north of the official road on the north bank of the Weihe River, which is also the northernmost part of Chitie Ridge, a 20-member Song Army scout team was resting in the mountain forest. On the tallest pine tree, a scout sentry was
Watch your surroundings warily.
A soldier easily lit a piece of briquettes and clamped branches into a simple stove made of stones. The soldier placed a pot filled with spring water on the stove.
This is an order issued by Chen Qing. All scouts must use hot water to soak cakes. Although this is a small detail, it is extremely important. Chen Qing has been a scout. He knows that the biggest challenge for scouts is gastrointestinal disease, which is also related to their long-term diet.
Raw and cold water is related to food. The food for scouts is dry biscuits and bacon, which are usually soaked in mountain spring water. Not to mention that the water is not clean, and many soldiers suffer from chronic enteritis and are always in a state of stomach pain.
, seriously affecting combat effectiveness.
However, if wood is used, it has fire points and high smoke, which can easily expose the target. Honeycomb briquettes made of anthracite solve the problem of exposing the target. They are convenient, fast, and have high calorific value. One briquette can boil two pots of heat.
Water, soak dry biscuits and bacon in boiling water, add oil and various seasonings, and you can have a good lunch, which is of great benefit to improving the gastrointestinal function of soldiers.
The soldiers were chatting and laughing while eating, when the sentry on the big tree suddenly shouted in a low voice: "Lin Dutou, there is enemy sentiment!"
