On the same day that Kublai Khan of Mongolia announced the change of the country's name, the first batch of the Luzhou Army of the Jianghuai Military Region, about 2,500 soldiers, was stationed in Suizhou under the leadership of General Wang Sheng, the eleventh commander. On the 26th of August, a thousand naval officers and soldiers from the East China Sea Fleet arrived in Yingzhou. Fleet Establishment Commander Li Zengbo arrived with the ship and took over the command of the Yangtze River Fleet Establishment Commander Chen Yi in the Han River Basin. According to the Military Affairs Council's instructions According to the order, Chen Yi went to Chongqing to take command of the main force of the fleet along the Yangtze River stationed in Chongqin. At noon on March 1, Zhang Shijie, commander of the Second Division of the Yulin Army, led about 2,000 troops of the Sixth Brigade to Yingzhou and stationed himself in Yingzhou. In the former military camp of General Zhang Shun.
When the flag of the Royal Forest Army appeared in Yingzhou City the next day, it immediately caused a sensation in the Mongolian military camp outside Xiangyang City. The generals were surprised and speculated on the reason for the appearance of the Royal Forest Army. After receiving the news, they immediately Here, Marshal A Shu summoned a group of generals to discuss the matter.
"Does the arrival of the Imperial Guards of the Southern Dynasty mean that the Emperor of the Southern Dynasty will come to Xiangyang in person?" A Shu asked the question with excitement.
"This, this is unlikely," Atahai objected at first.
"If not, then what explanation should be given," Zhang Hongfan said.
"Commander, I think that the emperor of the Southern Dynasties will send some of his imperial troops here to try it out first. If there is no risk, the emperor may actually come here to supervise the formation," said the vanguard Arakhan.
Shi Tianze said: "Commander, please report this matter to the Great Khan immediately. At the same time, many scouts are sent to inquire about the news. In recent days, the Southern Dynasty's troops have been mobilized frequently, and it seems that they have made big moves. General Liu Zheng, you are familiar with the Southern Dynasty. For What did you see about the Royal Forest Army appearing in Yingzhou?"
Liu Zhengdao: "Commander, Shi Jianjun, the Imperial Guard Army of the Song Dynasty was only formed after the last general left. Therefore, the late General did not know the purpose of establishing the Imperial Guard Army in the Song Dynasty. However, since it was the Imperial Guard Army from Lin'an, then according to the Imperial Guard Army Judging from the practice of generally staying with the emperor or members of the royal family, this possibility exists. Although the general does not dare to assert, he intuitively believes that this possibility is not small,"
Ah Shu said softly, "Yeah", lowered his head and looked at the map on the table, and then thought for a while before saying: "Fellow generals, judging from the recent movements of the Southern Dynasty's armies, Zhang Shun's army entered Junzhou, and Wang Sheng's army entered Suizhou. , Navy Li Zengbo's troops reinforced Yingzhou, and coupled with the appearance of this imperial army, can we infer that the Southern Dynasty wanted to surround our army outside Xiangyang City?"
Shi Tianze nodded and said: "The commander-in-chief is right. Our army is implementing a strategy of siege and reinforcements, while the strategy implemented by the Southern Dynasties is counter-siege. It seems that this battle is becoming more and more interesting."
"Yes, the intentions of the Southern Dynasty court and the idea of the Great Khan seem to be quite close. They both want to use the two cities of Xiangfan. In this way, the battle between Song and Mongolia may become easier, but the battle of Xiangyang will be unprecedentedly fierce. ," At this point, Ah Shu's face suddenly became a little serious and said, "Everyone, the Great Khan once said that the Imperial Guards of the Southern Dynasties mainly relied on firearms, but I don't know how powerful these firearms are, and whether they will be harmful to me. It will have an adverse impact on the military,"
"Commander, don't bother with this," a gruff voice came from outside the door.
"Ali Hague,"
"I've seen the commander-in-chief," Ali Hague, who had just arrived from outside Fancheng, said with a smile.
"The last general, Kong Yuan, has met the commander-in-chief," Kong Yuan said with clasped fists in salute.
"Well, two generals, please take a seat,"
Ali Hague sat down and said: "Commander, I think that the so-called firearms in the Southern Dynasties are just a gimmick, nothing more than muskets, watermelon guns, or similar to the Jin Dynasty's thunder, iron artillery and the like. I am in charge of this. In the battle to destroy the Jin, I also encountered the Jin people using it, but what was the result? It still couldn't save the Jin Kingdom from being destroyed. It's okay to bluff people with this kind of weapon, but if it wants to fight against my invincible army, it seems that it is still far away. , As for the Emperor of the Southern Dynasties, it would be better if he came, so that we don’t have to go to Lin’an to find him.”
Zhang Hongfan agreed: "Commander, General Ali Hague is right, it is people who decide war, not weapons,"
Liu Zheng frowned and stopped talking.
Ah Shu said: "The words of the two generals are reasonable, but in war, if you cannot know yourself and the enemy, it is really a taboo for military strategists. In short, once there is news about the use of firearms by the Southern Dynasty army, report it to me immediately."
"Yes, Marshal,"
"General Arkham,"
"The end will be here,"
"Your department will dispatch a team of 1,000 men to be stationed in the Longweizhou and Guanzitan areas south of Lumen Mountain. You will also send additional scouts to see if there is any chance of detecting the situation of the Imperial Guards of the Southern Dynasties."
"Yes, I will obey the order,"
"General Shi, you draw up a battle report. It will be expedited for six hundred miles, no, it will be expedited for eight hundred miles. Report the appearance of the Southern Dynasty Imperial Army in Yingzhou to the Great Khan,"
"Yes, Marshal,"
"Everyone, this is the end of today's meeting. General Liu Zheng, please stay."
After the generals left, A Shu smiled slightly and said: "General Liu, the first batch of warships will be built soon, right?"
"Come back to the Commander-in-Chief, two medium-sized warships and ten small warships can be delivered first by the end of this month,"
"Well, General Liu, the naval commander who lived in Yingzhou in the Southern Dynasties was changed from Chen Yi to Li Zengbo, the commander of the East China Sea Fleet. Do you understand this Li Zengbo?"
"Commander, Li Zengbo is a man with deep connections in the city. Although on the surface, he and Jia Sidao are on good terms, secretly they have a very bad personal relationship. Li Zengbo once stationed at the border and knew the military well, so he has achieved great results. He is good at poetry and is also unique in water battles. His abilities should be above Chen Yi's."
"General Liu, I once heard someone say that you commented on the deployment of the four major fleets of the Southern Dynasty, and Li Zengbo ranked third. Is this the case?"
"Yes, Commander. Among the naval generals of the Southern Dynasties, Li Beiyang is the leader, Ruan Sicong is the second, and Chen Yi is the last."
Ah Shu smiled and said: "Haha, General Liu, with your ability, if you were still in the Southern Dynasty, you would be ranked first among the four major envoys. It is a pity that the Southern Dynasty court was so incompetent that you actually defeated the leading naval eagle in the world." To force rebellion is the tragedy of the Southern Dynasty, but it is also the blessing of our country."
Liu Zheng smiled and didn't know how to answer. He just listened to Ah Shu and continued: "General Liu, I saw that you seemed to have something to say just now. Now it's just you and me, can you tell me?"
Among all the Mongolian generals, Liu Zheng still respected Ah Shu very much.
"Commander," Liu Zheng said after hesitating for a moment, "the general's understanding of the Southern Dynasties is still limited to the Lizong period of the Song Dynasty, so the general once proposed to the Great Khan to take Xiangfan first, and then go straight to the hinterland of Jiangnan. Today, the Southern Dynasties have undergone tremendous changes. Since its new emperor ascended the throne and made determined changes, its national power has gradually increased. What puzzles the most generals is what the new emperor has done. It seems that what he is capable of is not under the control of the Great Khan. Judging from the layout of the Battle of Xiangyang Look, the Southern Dynasty army is obviously implementing anti-encirclement tactics. This tactic has been thought about for a long time. Logically speaking, our castle outside Xiangyang City has been completed. With the capabilities of the Southern Dynasty army, there is no way to conquer our army's fortress. Its encirclement strategy is bound to fail, but its army is still the same as before. If the general's prediction is correct, the Southern Dynasty must have some support, and this support is probably its so-called firearms."
Ah Shu couldn't tell whether what Liu Zheng said was reasonable, so he said: "General Liu, have you heard of the theory of firearms before?"
"Commander, I know that the Southern Dynasty had a gunpowder department a long time ago, but it has always done nothing. The most it can do is make some fireworks and firecrackers for people to play with."
"I once heard the Great Khan mention the firearms of the Southern Dynasties. Although I have inquired carefully about them, I only know that they are divided into muskets and artillery. It is said that muskets were developed on the basis of the original muskets, although they are somewhat powerful. , but its firing speed is slow and cannot be compared with a well-trained archer. As for the artillery, I only hear its name but don’t know what it is.”
"Commander, it's useless for us to speculate here. The general thought we could divide our forces to attack Yingzhou to see if there was a chance to try the Southern Dynasty's firearms."
"Well, I am also considering this matter,"
Liu Zheng praised: "The commander-in-chief asked Achahan to send troops to Longweizhou. Did he have such a plan?"
Ah Shu smiled and said, "The one who knows me is General Liu."
Liu Zheng was quite pleased, but he still said humbly: "Thank you, Marshal. Although there is an uncertain factor in the Southern Dynasties, firearms, General Zhang Hongfan is right. It is people, not weapons, that determine war." , However, our army must not be careless and must understand the power of the firearm before taking further action,"
"Well, I understand this,"
Since ancient times, almost all military strategists have agreed that the outcome of a war depends on the people on both sides. However, if these ancient military strategists knew the process of the United States' attack on Iraq in later generations, they might change their minds. The United States and Iraq During the war, the Iraqi Republican Guards, known as the elite division, were completely defeated by their opponents' modern technological weapons before they even touched the ground.
Of course, the modern scientific and technological weapons of the United States are also developed and invented by people, so it is people who determine the outcome of the war, but it does not necessarily refer to the soldiers of both sides.
Dadu Imperial Palace.
"What, the Imperial Guards of the Southern Dynasties are also dispatched," Kublai Khan said in surprise after reading Ashu's battle report.
Boyan nodded and said: "Your Majesty, Marshal Ashu did indeed say so in his battle report, and it was an urgent matter of eight hundred miles, so there must be nothing wrong."
Like the generals of the Mongolian Middle Route Army outside Xiangyang City, Kublai Khan's first reaction was also that the Southern Emperor wanted to personally conquer Xiangfan. Is this possible?
"Bo Yan, map,"
"Yes, Your Majesty,"
Kublai Khan pointed to Yingzhou on the map and said: "Since the Yulin Army is stationed in Yingzhou, if the emperor of the Southern Dynasties goes on a personal expedition, he will use Yingzhou as his temporary palace to direct the battle of Xiangyang."
Boyan asked: "Your Majesty, does this possibility exist?"