"War is nothing but the continuation of politics by another means." - Clausewitz's "On War"
Sitting in Zhangye City, Yu Chixin said to Zhang Guangde, the artillery regiment commander who had just arrived in Zhangye City:
"In my opinion, what Clausewitz said is not entirely correct."
Although Zhang Guangde looks like a rough guy, in real life he is also a retired artillery commander, and he has naturally read "On War".
Zhang Guangde ate the leg of lamb and said, "It still lacks cumin, otherwise the leg of lamb would be more fragrant. What's wrong with you, Yuchi? When we were in the tribe, the chief of staff used this sentence as a motto!"
"
Yu Chixin also grabbed the leg of mutton and said: "That nerd Chief of Staff has never experienced actual combat. When he enters the game, I must give him a good education!"
Zhang Guangde wiped the suet from the corner of his mouth and said: "Come on, come on, this guy just likes to make excuses. He didn't ask us for an account until the ninth test. I obviously posted it on Moments to show off."
Yu Chixin put down the leg of mutton and said, "You kid took me away again. I said this sentence is wrong because it is only half of it."
"half?"
"War is indeed a continuation of politics. Problems that cannot be solved through normal peaceful political means will accumulate and be solved together with war."
Yu Chixin grabbed the leg of lamb and said: "It's like the Anlushan Rebellion. On the surface, it was the Anlushan Group's dissatisfaction with the Tang Dynasty. In fact, behind it was the gradual closure of the upper class of the Tang Dynasty. Ordinary people from poor families had no way to rise, and the border
The officers and soldiers were squeezed out by the increasingly corrupt old military aristocracy. These factors formed irreconcilable conflicts, and this was how the Anlushan Rebellion broke out."
Zhang Guangde smiled and said: "Yuchi, why are you studying these things like the chief of staff now?"
Yu Chixin sighed and said: "When you command tens of thousands of troops, you will naturally want to think about these things."
Zhang Guangde put down the leg of lamb and cursed: "Okay, I thought you were inviting me to have a late-night snack, but I didn't expect you were going to put a fork in front of me! What's wrong with my artillery regiment being short of people? You still don't ask me to come and guard it for you?"
city?"
Yu Chixin smiled, and Zhang Guangde asked again: "Since you agree with the war theory, why do you say that he is only half right?"
Yu Chixin said: "Because Clausewitz did not understand war, his discussion of politics was correct, but his understanding of war was not deep enough."
"Oh? What do you have in mind?"
Yu Chixin said: "War is the last resort to resolve political disputes, but once it enters a war, politics will be completely subsumed by the war and become a vassal of the war."
"What does this mean?"
Yu Chixin said: "Politics can be controlled. Li Linfu and Yang Guozhong suppressed An Lushan. Politically, they were far stronger than An Lushan. Before resorting to rebellion, An Lushan had no way to suppress the prime minister.
He even tried to bribe Concubine Yang to reduce the court's suspicion of him."
"If this continues, An Lushan will be suppressed by the court for the rest of his life, but when he resorts to war, the situation will change."
"An Lushan won the battle all the way to Xijing. The once high-ranking prime minister Yang Guozhong was killed by the soldiers of the Maweipo mutiny. After the war, politics immediately took a back seat, because only fists speak on the battlefield."
Yu Chixin added: "But war is unpredictable. Countless powerful legions will be wiped out due to small mistakes. A weak party can also create miracles to defeat the strong."
Zhang Guangde took a sip of kumiss and said: "Don't you mean what the political commissar often said? 'Going to the battlefield is equivalent to being on the gambling table, and any result will not be surprising.'"
Yu Chixin nodded and said: "That's what I mean, and because the uncertainty of war is too strong, war can reshuffle politics."
Zhang Guangde saw the map on the wall, which was a war map near Xijing.
He then said: "So you are studying the battle to recapture Xijing. No wonder you have so many emotions. I remember it was said on the forum that the Tang army was defeated again in the Battle of Qingqu?"
Yu Chixin nodded and said: "If we follow the historical development of our time and space, the Tang army was defeated again in the Battle of Qingqu. This time, the Tang army lost a lot of food, grass and baggage, and delayed the time to recapture Xijing."
Zhang Guangde sighed and said: "This Tang army is too weak. There are 150,000 troops stationed in Qingqu, right? With so many people, they can't attack Xijing?"
Yu Chixin said: "This battle was a politically led war, but it suffered a disastrous defeat because of politics."
"Elaborate?"
Yu Chixin said: "Recovering the capital is of great significance to the Tang Dynasty. Both the emperor of Fengxiang Mansion and the crown prince of Qingqu, Guangping Wang Li Chu, are anxious to defeat An Qingxu and recover Xijing."
"Speaking of which, the commander-in-chief of this war is Guo Ziyi, deputy marshal of the world's soldiers and horses. However, the current crown prince of the East Palace and the general marshal of the world's soldiers and horses, Guangping Wang Li Chu, are also in the army. With the character of this crown prince, he will definitely urge Guo Ziyi to recover as soon as possible.
Xijing.”
"The Tang army underestimated the enemy and advanced rashly, repeating the defeat of Geshu Hantong Pass once again."
Zhang Guangde also became depressed. He said angrily: "The three generations of the old Li family are all principals in their previous lives, right? Why do you like micro-management so much?"
Yu Chixin also took a sip of kumiss and said: "Forget it, let's focus on Wuwei City. This time I asked for the artillery to be brought in because I'm worried that Fang Guan, a fool, will do something stupid."
Yu Chixin walked to the map of Hexi and said: "Liangzhou is the most critical place among the four counties of Hexi. This place must be in our hands! If Liangzhou cannot be conquered by political means, I will need the artillery regiment
Come here to increase your military leverage!"
Zhang Guangde's eyes lit up: "Can we fight again?"
Yu Chixin shook his head and said: "I hope there will be no war. War is the last resort."
At the same time, the news that the four counties of Hexi were divided and that Fang Guan and King Jianning were competing for Hexi also reached the ears of Shang Qi Xin'er, a great scholar in the east of Tubo.
Upon hearing the news, Shang Qi was overjoyed!
Now Fang Guan is nominally the governor of Hexi Province, but he can only control one state, Liangzhou.
Li Yan, the king of Jianning, was determined to win Liangzhou again, which made Shang Qixin'er see an opportunity!
If you capture Liangzhou, you can cut off the connection between Datang and Longyou! Then use Wuwei as a springboard to gather troops to attack Hexi.
The Tang Dynasty dispatched a large number of troops from Hexi to Guanzhong to suppress the rebellion. If Tubo swallowed up such an empty Hexi, the whole of Longyou would be in its pocket.