The smoke on the battlefield has not completely dissipated. There are many bodies of people and horses scattered on the ground outside the camp posts, and some people are treating the wounded soldiers. Zhang Ning climbed up the hillside to the north of where he was shelled, and as expected, he took a look at the previous battlefield. All in sight.
Although hundreds of people died or were injured in the army, the generals still could not hide the joy of victory. People would inevitably die in a war, it was just a normal thing. But Zhang Ning couldn't be too happy. He looked back at the counselor Looking at Zhu Heng, Zhu Heng also had no expression on his face. He was stroking the beard on his chin and looking away. "Please search Piao Tian Literature, the novel is better and updated faster!"
Their goal was to seize and completely defeat the Southern Route Army as soon as possible. This battle obviously failed to achieve their goal, but they were ambushed, although it was unsuccessful. During the ambush battle, the cavalry of the Southern Route Army was not injured; the infantry and artillery troops fled. , but the main force of the infantry did not participate in the battle, and the camp in the east was responsible for luring the enemy deeper. The Suzaku Army had to attack its main force offensively again to achieve its strategic goal.
More than ten intact general cannons were captured on the mountain, but they were of no use to the Suzaku Army and had to be destroyed to avoid falling into the hands of the army again. This kind of cannon not only required heavy transportation, but also had low gunpowder utilization rate due to its crude design and consumed ammunition. It's so huge that there's not much gunpowder to use in the army.
Zhang Ning stood on the hillside for a long time, and suddenly felt a sense of excitement, so he said to zuoyou: "Yu Qian is coming to Changsha?"
No one could answer his question, and the generals could only look at each other in confusion. The Guards Bureau did not have any information about Yu Qian's whereabouts, and the Senate had no way of knowing.
The commander who directed this ambush battle was definitely a talented person. Even Zhang Ning had never thought of the tactics of combining cavalry and artillery before. It was not until this battle that he suddenly realized that this kind of tactics had indeed been used in the later Western military.
The successful application of meiyou in the army is actually due to the limitations of artillery performance; therefore, it can be guessed that the person is a civil servant who does not know enough about firearms, but is very intelligent. Such a person should not be just an unknown person. Zhang Ning can only think of It's Yu Qian, he is the most capable.
Zhang Ning silently deduced as he pleased. Ruguo's cavalry and artillery tactics were based on using the long-barreled field cannon he owned, plus a sufficient number of cavalry like the official army. I'm afraid it would be invincible in the open field, and it was completely enough to defeat an infantry formation like the Suzaku Army. .
The sun was half setting, and the setting sun was like blood, which was in perfect contrast with the brutality on the battlefield. Today we can only camp nearby to rest. The soldiers all need some rest. It is estimated that Feng Youxian's cavalry will be back after one night.
Sure enough, Feng Youxian came back before dark. He came to the Chinese army to apologize for not participating in the battle in time. Zhang Ning did not blame him, but praised him: "General Feng rushed to the enemy's rear and successfully destroyed the pontoon bridge. The cavalry regiment returned intact. What's the crime?" Is there any?"
After hearing this, Feng Youxian quickly thanked him.
At this time, Zhou Mengxiong followed the words and said: "The water surface of the Xiang River is wide. The government and army will consume a lot of ships to build three pontoon bridges. Now that they have all been burned, the enemy's main force may not be able to cross the river. Maybe we can catch up with their camp tomorrow and will Its main force was defeated."
After hearing this, everyone agreed and nodded in agreement.
"Yu Qian is in the South Route Army." Zhang Ning said calmly. He paused and asked Zhou Mengxiong, "General Zhou is now the commander of the South Route Army. How should we deal with this situation?"
Zhou Mengxiong frowned and pondered for a long time, "The South Route Army has suffered a defeat, and its morale is definitely not as good as before. If we open up and fight, we should not be able to win, and we can't run away. The cavalry can evacuate northward, but the infantry camp cannot do anything; Changsha Mansion defends
It doesn't matter, with the Xiangshui barrier, this kind of Shihou Suzaku army will not waste time attacking the big city... Yes, there is a mountain called Yuelu Mountain near Juzhou in the Xiangshui River. You must have heard of the world-famous Yuelu Academy, which is located in this mountain
.”
Zhang Ning said: "Yu Qian...if General Zhou takes command, will he go to Yuelu Mountain to defend it?"
Zhou Mengxiong said: "There is no other way. You can't win if you can't run away. It's not optimistic if you go to the mountain. If you go up, you will be trapped and die. Sooner or later, you will be eaten... But relying on terrain defense can delay the attack.
"
At this time, Zhu Heng said softly: "Even if the South Route Army is defeated, delaying the attack will be extremely beneficial. Our Changde Mansion is empty, and the North Route Army has assembled and marched before."
Zhang Ning suddenly felt a little heavy when he thought about it. He thought that Yu Qian would definitely do this, or Yu Qian could come up with a better way. As long as it can be delayed for a while, the weather is fine and the road conditions are good, it is very possible for the North Road army to approach Changde Mansion.
kěnéng.
But should we give up the meat that reaches our lips? Unless we completely defeat the South Route Army, this piece of meat will have to be eaten from the back.
The important officials in the big tent discussed Ziji's ideas from time to time. After a long time, Zhang Ning said: "We should make a decision early and let the Changde Mansion transport the heavy artillery and the Ordnance Bureau workshop to Chenzhou as soon as possible... As a last resort...
At that time, we abandoned Changde Mansion and exchanged strategic depth for shijiān; we first defeated more than 20,000 people on the South Road to reduce the pressure on our army in the future."
Zhou Mengxiong is now very active in military discussions, probably because of Guānxi, who is married to Zhang Ning. He reminded: "Chenzhou was destroyed by military disasters during the Miao rebellion, and the harvest was not good. By the end of this year, we will need to start from scratch."
Changde Prefecture is adjusting grain to provide disaster relief; if we only have Chenzhou Prefecture left, and more than 10,000 troops and horses are living there, I am afraid it will be difficult to sustain it given a little time."
Zhang Ning thought in his heart: "Changde Mansion has few incompetent soldiers to defend it. Be careful to prevent accidental fall... We must not let the field artillery fall into the hands of the official army! We would rather have no field artillery when fighting the North Route Army in Changde Mansion than bear the risk of the artillery being destroyed."
The risk of capture. I have ordered the officials in Changde Prefecture to organize manpower to transfer the artillery. I have made up my mind. Changde and Chenzhou are far away, so without further delay, I will send a fast horse to deliver the order tonight."
Zhu Heng asked doubtfully: "Your Majesty, do you think the officers and soldiers will risk their lives to defend themselves?"
"There is no solid evidence for confirmation yet, but I judge that this matter is very close. Yu Qian should be in the army. This person should not be underestimated." Zhang Ning said.
Everyone was a little puzzled. Some even thought that Zhang Ning's performance today was very bad. He decided on major military matters without the support of credible intelligence and evidence. Is it possible that major matters are decided based on one person's intuition? Is decision-making considered child's play?
Everyone doesn’t think Yu Qian, the governor of Huguang mentioned many times by Zhang Ning, is very powerful. This man completed the imperial examination before he was thirty years old and was promoted to the right minister of the Ministry of War and a senior official. Perhaps he is quite accomplished in officialdom.
But apart from that, there is something special about Shime; at this time, Yu Qian didn't have much fame, and no one had heard of him before.
But the people present heard the words "I have made up my mind" and could no longer say it. Because the Zhang Ning Group has a streamlined structure and lacks a system of diversion and decentralization, he is actually a dictator, and it goes without saying that he has military and political power.
Supreme power. Coupled with Zhang Ning's status as a prince within the Jianwen Party, and the fact that he organized the Suzaku Army from scratch; there is simply no one within the party with similar strength to compete with it.
However, everyone was convinced by the next morning, and the forward scout Ma Yijing reported the movements of the South Road camp, which was really heading towards Yuelu Mountain. People had to admit that Zhang Ning was very accurate based on his intuition.
The movement of the South Route Army is mostly to go up Yuelu Mountain, and there is no way to go at this time. As long as the Suzaku Army does not take the initiative to withdraw, most of this army will perish here. There is no depth and room to go up the mountain, and it can only be a dead end.
Zhang Ning reviewed Zuoyou during the march and said: "Yu Qian must be in the South Route Army! Apart from him, none of the generals and bureaucrats in Huguang would dare to issue such an order and send several guards and horses to death, and no one would dare to take this responsibility; and no one dared to take this responsibility;
It is obviously a temporary decision to go up to Yuelu Mountain. Ruguo Yu Qian sent the order from the north and cannot mobilize the troops from the south overnight."
He also ordered the generals in the army to strictly guard the various passes after capturing Yuelu Mountain, and be sure to capture Yu Qian, the governor of Huguang. If he could not be captured, he could be killed.
Zhang Ning also has no personal grudge against Qian. On the contrary, he admires him very much. However, he must not be merciful to such a capable person who opposes Qian when necessary. When his "father" Jianwen fought against the Northern Army of King Yan, he was blocked by the enemy.
Uncle and nephew Guanxi issued a no-kill order, which allowed King Yan Zhu Di to escape death. This was a huge mistake. Of course, Zhang Ning did not want to follow in the footsteps of his father and would continue to regret Ziji's mistakes in the future.
When the Suzaku Army followed them to the Xiang River, they saw that the main force of the army had gone up the mountain. From the Xiang River bank, you could directly see with your eyes that there were people on the main peaks. Calculating, the number of people and horses on the mountain should be close to two.
Ten thousand, and Yuelu Mountain occupies not a vast area, many people are deployed on it, and the troops are quite dense... That scene reminded Zhang Ning of the May Day and National Day scenic spots, hǎoxiàng this mountain is originally a "scenic spot"
”.
Zhang Ning looked east again and saw the Orange Island in the middle of the river, which was also known as the "Orange Island" in later generations... In the cold autumn, heading north to the Xiangjiang River, at the head of the Orange Island. He saw that the mountains were all red, the forests were dyed, and the river was flooded.
The blue sky is clear, and hundreds of boats are vying for the current. Eagles strike the sky, fish fly in the shallow bottom, and all kinds of frosty sky compete for freedom. I feel lonely, asking who is in charge of the ups and downs of the vast earth... This poem is written about the scene here! Zhang Ning, who does not believe in mystery, also
Suddenly, I felt that this place was magnificent and had the aura of an emperor.
On the other side of the river, Changsha City has as many as four towers in the West City alone, towering toweringly as far as the eye can see. This city is worthy of being the important town of the Ming Dynasty's Huguang Chief Envoy, and its momentum is worthy of its reputation.
After struggling and running around in the world, he suddenly came to such a beautiful difāng. Unfortunately, the timing was wrong. Zhang Ning was not in the mood to appreciate it at this time. He only wanted to annihilate the army on the mountain. If he went there
Later, when I arrived in a different mood, my feelings must have been quite different.
At this moment, suddenly a horse came to report. The messenger came from Changde Mansion. Zhang Ning hurriedly opened the lacquer seal to read it. He saw the seal of the Council of Ministers stamped on it, which read: The messenger came to report, the Council of Ministers confirmed, Lizhou
Fifty miles to the north, a large cavalry was found. The official road was covered with dust and mist, and the tail of the army could not be seen. There may be more than 10,000 soldiers and horses.