Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 207: Marching into Susong
"Whoo~"

Hearing the metaphor of Lu brocade's gourd waist, Feng Guoyong breathed a sigh of relief. He was afraid that Lu brocade would win battles all the way and get carried away by the victory, and would rush towards Jiangxi in the southwest regardless of everything.

At that time, not only will they have to fight with the Yuan army, but Xu and Song might also interfere. A fight between the three parties will definitely not have a good result.

It would be different if they attacked Jiangnan according to the original plan. Jiangnan was rich, with sufficient food and population. The key was that the political situation in Jiangnan was relatively simple. To put it bluntly, there were only enemy troops there and no other rebel forces. As long as they could conquer them, they could become their base.

If we attack Jiangxi now, it will only be a meaningless waste of resources, and eventually all the wealth that the Shengwu Army has worked hard to accumulate over the past six months will be lost, and we will be making wedding clothes for others in vain.

But now it seems that his lord is not arrogant at all. He is extremely calm, and his analysis of strategy and judgment on the direction of the war are extremely accurate.

Thinking of this, Feng Guoyong suddenly laughed and said, "Since the Marshal has not changed his original intention, why do you need to ask me for advice?"

"Hahahaha, sir, you still understand me." Lu Jin immediately laughed when he heard that.

Feng Guoyong saw this and said, "The Marshal wants to take over the entire Anqing Road and then turn to defense in the south. He asked me for advice just because he wanted someone to support him and help him strengthen his determination."

"Yes, that's right. Do you have any suggestions, sir?" Lu Jin nodded in agreement.

Feng Guoyong then took out the map and began to analyze it with Lu Jin.

"If we only take the Taihu and Wangjiang lines, there is no natural pass to block them. The two counties are too far apart to help each other. It is very easy to be defeated one by one and we will definitely not be able to hold on.

"So if you want to occupy the two counties for a long time, you must continue to march south. As for taking Susong, you can use the Leishui River and the Dalei Pond as the boundary to hold it for a long time. And you don't need to station too many troops in the rear. You only need to station troops in Susong, Taihu, Wangjiang, and Anqing. You don't need to station troops in Qianshan and Tongcheng counties at the back. You can push all the troops to the outer lines."

Lu Jin looked at the map, thought for a while and then said, "If we station a regiment in Susong, then Taihu Lake will become the rear area. There should be no need to station too many troops in Taihu Lake, right? Are you worried that someone will attack from the west of Taihu Lake?"

"That's right." Feng Guoyong nodded in agreement.

Taihu County on Anqing Road is located at the southeast foot of Dabie Mountains. A branch of Dabie Mountains extends here, forming a "土"-shaped canyon between the branch and the main body of Dabie Mountains. Taihu County is located at the bottom of this "土"-shaped canyon.

In later generations, this canyon was flooded, forming a huge lake, which is now called "Huating Lake Scenic Area".

However, Huating Lake had not yet been formed at this time, and there was no water in the canyon, which was completely sufficient for the army to pass through, thus suddenly appearing on the west side of Taihu Lake.

If this gap is not blocked, then either the Yuan army in Jiangxi or the Xu Song in Hubei may suddenly emerge from this canyon and go straight to the empty rear of the Anqing defense line. Therefore, this canyon must be blocked. Otherwise, the number of troops cannot be too small.

Unless a bastion is built at the narrowest part of the canyon, the opening can be blocked with the least amount of manpower.

Just when Lu Jin was thinking about how to use up less manpower, Feng Guoyong helped him analyze the situation.

"To hold this line of defense, Susong must have at least one main force regiment stationed there. In addition, a bastion must be built at the waist of the Great Thunder Pond, and a water fort must be set up in the Thunder Pond. When the enemy attacks, the navy can rush to the Thunder Pond to provide support and launch a surprise attack on the enemy's flank.

"In this case, at least two regiments of troops will be deployed along the Leishui, Susong, and Leichi lines alone. Wangjiang will be used to defend against the enemy in Jiangdong, and also to defend against the possible movement of troops from Jiangxi or Xusong down the river, so at least one regiment will also be deployed.

"Then there is Taihu Lake. A bastion can be set up at the narrowest point of the mountain valley to the west of Taihu Lake. Only one battalion of troops is needed to prevent tens of thousands of enemy troops from going east. But Taihu Lake cannot be left empty. A regiment must be left there to guard the mountain pass. Secondly, if there is a crisis in Susong and Wangjiang ahead, Taihu Lake can also send troops to support. If you follow the Marshal's words, then Taihu Lake is the reserve force.

"The last one is Anqing. Anqing is the capital of Anqing Road and is of utmost importance. At least one regiment of troops will be stationed there.

"Therefore, if you want to hold this place for a long time, you must prepare four to five regiments of troops, and it cannot affect the actions in other directions. If you can provide these troops, you can defend it. If you can't provide these 20,000 troops, then I suggest you retreat to the Wanshui line and arrange defenses according to the original plan."

After hearing Feng Guoyong's analysis, Lu Jin stood up and paced in the hall, thinking as he walked. If he wanted to hold this line of defense, four to five regiments of troops would obviously be appropriate. But how many troops could he possibly mobilize now?
Almost all members of Liao Yongan's 101st Regiment were dispatched this time, including Hua Gao's 103nd Navy Regiment and four infantry regiments. In addition, Zhang Wen's th Regiment, which was seconded from the rd Division, was in the rear to guard the grain road and help them defend the newly captured Tongcheng.

According to Lu Jin's current deployment, Liao Yongan's Third Regiment will be stationed in Anqing, Guo Zixing's Eighth Regiment is now in Taihu, Lu Ding's 16th Regiment is in Qianshan, Han Qinglu's 15th Regiment is in Wangjiang, Zhao Yong's 11th Regiment and Miao Daheng's 12th Regiment are also in Anqing. If it is necessary to attack Susong, Lu Jin will also bring them with him as the main force to attack Susong.

In addition, there are several thousand prisoners in the city, and another regiment can be expanded. There are also four thousand prisoners in Tongcheng. Lu Jin originally planned to use them to expand his own guards. However, strengthening the guards can also enhance the overall capabilities of his own side, which is not bad.

Then there is Susong. I heard that there are still 6,000 defenders there. Even if there are some casualties after the siege, it is estimated that the remaining prisoners can be organized into another regiment. Conservatively speaking, he can even organize two more regiments.

Now the sequence of the 101st Division will be the 3rd, 8th, 11th, 12th, 15th, 16th, 17th, and 18th, a total of eight regiments. If five regiments are used to defend the southern front, he can still take three regiments away, and his own guards can also expand into a second synthetic firearms unit.

In this way, manpower will not be a problem.

So Lu Jin immediately told Feng Guoyong about the current troop deployment situation, and also analyzed the possibility of expanding a regiment with the prisoners from Susong. If all these goals were achieved, even after the defense on the southern line was deployed, Lu Jin could at least take away two regiments for future attacks on Jiangnan.

Feng Guoyong calculated the military strength and found that it was similar to what Lu Jin said, but he added, "Marshal, where is the Leichi navy? We are still short of a navy, have you made any arrangements?"

Lu Jin thought about it again. The Lei Chi navy did have ships. This time they captured more than 300 ships from the Anqing navy. Although there were fewer large ships, they were enough for fighting in the Lei Chi Lake. Lei Chi was not as big as Chaohu Lake. What they lacked now was a naval commander.

Another is the geographical feature of Lei Chi. The only water source of Lei Chi is the Lei River flowing from the Dabie Mountains upstream, and there is only one river downstream that flows into the Yangtze River through Wangjiang County. The river estuary in Wangjiang County is in their own hands. As long as they guard the river estuary and prevent the ships of hostile forces from entering Lei Chi, then Lei Chi will be a closed water area. The enemy can at most collect some fishing boats on the lake, and their strength cannot compete with the Lei Chi navy.

Therefore, the general of the Lei Chi Navy does not need to be too strong, but he must be reliable. It would be bad if this person was suddenly stabbed, surrendered and rebelled by the enemy, and then used the navy's ships to launch a surprise attack behind the Susong defense line.

Therefore, when selecting a naval commander, reliability should be put first.

The best way, of course, is to transfer people from the original naval generals, but the two naval regiments are already short of people. With the same regimental organization, the two naval regiments each have only three thousand-householder battalion commanders. It's not that they are reluctant to give up the official positions, but they are short of people.

When we attack Jiangnan in the future, they will need navy even more, and it will be even more impossible to transfer people from there.

At this moment, as if they saw Lu Jin's embarrassment and hesitation, Yu Tongyuan and Liu Chuanyi immediately stepped forward and said, "Marshal, let me go." As soon as the two said this, Lu Jin and Feng Guoyong both looked at them.

"You two?" Lu Jin shook his head. "You two are learning artillery. I have high hopes for you. How can you give up halfway through? No way."

Both of them retreated in disappointment, but Lu Jin started to think again. Since ability is not the most important thing, and loyalty is more important, can't we just choose people from the reliable army? Why must we choose people from the navy?
Thinking of this, Lu Jin suddenly said, "After taking Susong, let Miao Daheng's 12th Regiment garrison Susong, and transfer Miao Youzhen from the 11th Regiment to take charge of the Leichi Navy. What do you think? As for the vacancy in the 11th Regiment, just fill it with a general from the Land Division."

Feng Guoyong's eyes lit up immediately after hearing this. "The Marshal's arrangement is extremely clever. The father guards Susong, and the son commands the navy to provide flank protection. This is what is meant by father and son fighting together in battle. This arrangement is bound to be foolproof. The Marshal knows how to use people well. He is a wise ruler."

"That's settled then. Come, call Zhao Yong, Miao Youzhen, and Shao Yongjian." Lu Jin made the decision immediately.

"Yes."

After a while, three people arrived, and Zhao Yong immediately asked in confusion, "The Marshal is looking for me? Are you going to send troops to Susong?"

"We do need to send troops to Susong, but there is still one thing we need to do." After Lu Jin said this, he looked at Shao Yongjian.

Zhao Yong also glanced at him, then looked at Miao Youzhen who was following him, and immediately understood, "The Marshal wants to replace Youzhen?"

"Haha, you guessed it right." Lu Jin laughed immediately.

Zhao Yong sighed and touched his nose, "Then I'm really reluctant to let you go. Youzhen is young and good at fighting, but he is the battalion officer I rely on the most."

Lu Jin said helplessly, "That can't be helped. Youzhen has a more important mission now. I will give Shao Yongjian to you. You two know each other well. Since Shao Yongjian surrendered voluntarily and served different masters before, I will forgive him. You two should get along well in the future."

"Yes, I will listen to the Marshal." Zhao Yong immediately expressed his opinion.

Upon hearing this, Shao Yongjian also stood up and saluted first to Lu Jin, then to Zhao Yong. "In the future, please take good care of me, Commander Zhao. As long as you give the order, I will certainly do my best."

"Hahahaha, what's the point of taking care of each other? It's all about helping each other, just helping each other." Zhao Yong also laughed and said.

These two people got into the state quickly, only Miao Youzhen stood aside stupidly. Seeing that the three people ignored him, Miao Youzhen hurriedly asked.

"Marshal, what about me? What important mission do I have?"

"You? Come and look at the map."

"Oh."

Lu Jin pulled Miao Youzhen to the side of the map, then pointed at Susong and said, "We must continue to advance to Susong. After we capture Susong, I plan to have your father's 12th Regiment garrison Susong. However, the minefield on the flank of Susong is a huge loophole. Once the enemy uses the navy to go around Susong, Susong will be lost.

"So I plan to set up a new navy regiment, also called the Leichi Navy, and let you be the commander to personally guard your father's flank. What do you think?"

"Me? The commander of the Third Regiment of the Navy?" Miao Youzhen widened her eyes. She didn't expect Lu Jin to assign her such a task.

Although he thought there was nothing wrong in covering the flank for his own father, he was not good at fighting a water battle.

"Why, you don't have confidence?" Lu Jin seemed to be able to read his thoughts and asked immediately.

Miao Youzhen hesitated and said, "It's okay to cover my father's flank, but Marshal, I have never led a navy, nor have I fought a naval battle."

"What's the big deal? Who is born knowing everything? If you don't know, can you learn? Besides, that is your father's flank. I don't feel safe handing it over to others. Can you feel safe? What if this person leads the navy to rebel, and the enemy suddenly goes around your father's back by boat, then your father will definitely die. Therefore, this naval commander must be reliable enough, do you understand?" Lu Jin encouraged.

"I understand, but." Miao Youzhen said with some concern.

"No buts. The lower reaches of Lei Chi flow into the river in Wangjiang County, which is our territory. Therefore, there is only your navy in Lei Chi. The enemy can at most collect some small boats along the lakeshore. Unless they can sail on dry land, carry large ships up from the Yangtze River, and walk dozens of miles to Lei Chi, you will not have any strong opponents, and there will be no naval battle. You only need to cover your father's flanks and cooperate with him in defense.

"There are more than a thousand naval captives and more than three hundred ships in Huaining City. They will all be yours from now on. Incorporate your own battalion into the fleet and make them the backbone force. I will also let Liu Chuanyi from the naval regiment help you for a while. If you don't know something, ask him more. Chuanyi grew up on a ship, so you should be open-minded and ask for his advice."

Lu Jin looked at Liu Chuanyi and said, "Chuanyi, you have to stay and help Youzhen for a while. At least you have to help him choose a good location and set up a water fort. Then come back to Luzhou and report to me. Got it?"

"I understand, Marshal. Don't worry, I'm good at this." Liu Chuanyi agreed immediately.

When Miao Youzhen heard Lu Jin's arrangements, including soldiers, ships, and even instructors, she felt there was nothing to refuse, so she agreed.

"Since you are so thoughtful, I will have no problem. Don't worry, I will definitely keep Susong safe with my father."

"Well, that's more like it. You two can go and train the navy now. Then you don't have to worry about other things. Once you have organized the team and handed in the roster, you can go to Lei Chi to find a place to set up camp."

"Yes." The two men immediately clasped their fists in agreement, accepted the task and then left.

"Marshal, what about us?" Zhao Yong also asked at this time.

"You and Mr. Miao should prepare. Your two regiments should prepare to march south to Susong."

"Yes."

(End of this chapter)