Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 357 The Disagreement Is Determined by the Supreme Being

Although history has changed, Yuan Shao's advisers still have many contradictions about the military strategy. For example, Shen Pei and Xu You hope to decide the winner through a decisive battle with Zhang Yu; Ju Shou and Tian Feng see the gap between Zhang and Yuan's strength and hope to fight a protracted war.

However, in reality, there is no difference between the two strategies, they just use different perspectives. Even Ju Shou and Tian Feng, who prefer protracted wars, have different specific military strategies. Therefore, the monarch needs to have a clear judgment on which strategy to adopt.

Now, in fact, not only Yuan Shao had differences within his organization, but Zhang Yu also had differences within his organization on the strategy of using troops.

In the lobby, a map was hung on the wall like a wallpaper, and the civil and military officials under Zhang Yu sat on stools, expressing their own opinions.

Zhong Yao paced back and forth, holding his sword, pointing at the map, and said, "It is not the right way to send troops out of Shangdang. If Yuan Shao divides his troops to station in Jingxing and Yecheng, our army will be blocked at the mountain pass. Our army's food and supplies have to be transported thousands of miles away, while Yuan Shao has Jizhou behind him, so he has an endless supply of food and grass. Therefore, for the sake of military considerations, we might as well send troops to Henei, break Chaoge, and approach Yecheng."

"If Yuan Shao leads his troops to defend us, we can send our cavalry out of Jingxing and Hukou to plunder Hebei, making the counties along the mountainous regions restless. When the enemy is exhausted, we can fight a decisive battle with him, defeat Yuan Shao, and take Yecheng, then we can seize the counties along the mountainous regions."

Zhao Zi frowned and said, "If we send troops from Henei, we need to use Henei to transport food and grass. Now that Yuan Shao has Heji, won't our army's food route be exposed to the troops of Yanzhou? In my opinion, you might send troops out of Luoyang, first attack Dongjun, then go out of Henei and approach Yecheng."

"To attack Dongjun first and then Yecheng is a waste of effort!"

Guo Tu straightened up, bowed to Zhang Yu, and said, "You are the leader of the people of Shanxi and have the strongest army in the world. Why should you be afraid of Yuan Shao? In my opinion, it is better to fight him in battle array and attack him with cavalry. After the victory is decided, we can seize the counties around the mountains."

"Do you have any different opinions?"

"George!"

Xin Pi was originally the governor of Taiyuan County. Zhang Yu took into consideration that Xin Pi had initially served under Yuan Shao and that he would be dispatched to Jizhou later and needed the assistance of someone who was good at governing. Therefore, he transferred Xin Pi to the General's Office and Sima Lang was transferred to the post of governor of Taiyuan County. However, since everyone had different opinions, Zhang Yu simply asked everyone to express their opinions one by one.

Xin Pi bowed and said, "Although there are eight passes between Bingzhou and Hebei, only Jingxing, Taihang, Fukou, and Baixing can be used to march to attack Yuan. Of the four passes, the one that goes east from Fukou can take Zhao and Wei, but it is adjacent to Yecheng. So you may be able to take Jingxing instead, and send troops and food out of Taiyuan. When the troops reach Jingxing, they can go north to Youzhou, and send other troops out of Fukou to harass Yecheng."

Zhang Yu was sitting on the couch. Seeing that everyone's words had merit, he nodded as if to encourage everyone to speak, but he did not express his opinion.

Xun You stroked his beard and thought, and said, "Your Excellency's victory lies in your well-trained troops, while Yuan Shao's victory lies in his large number of troops and sufficient food. Therefore, it is difficult to say that we will win in a battle with Yuan Shao. Therefore, if you want to win, you need to weaken Yuan Shao, and then send troops to decide the outcome. In my opinion, it is better for you to mobilize troops and confront Yuan Shao in Zhao and Wei, and actually go out of Youzhou, defeat Gongsun, drive back Wuhuan, and then mobilize the troops of Youzhou to go south and attack Yuan Shao in Zhao and Wei together."

"Where's Wenhe?"

Seeing Zhang Yu's name being called, Jia Xu said, "Your Excellency is a master of military tactics, and you have selected officials and generals to the best of their ability. Yuan Shao is not good at using troops, and is slow to see things through. He is no match for you. However, Yuan Shao has many soldiers and generals, and is backed by Jizhou, so he can be easily supplied with food. Therefore, in my opinion, your Excellency might as well send troops to Wu'an to confront Yuan Shao in Zhao and Wei."

"You said that Yuan Shao has many soldiers and generals, as well as abundant food and grass. Why can we confront him for a long time? Isn't it using our own weakness to attack the enemy's strength?" Zhang Yu asked doubtfully.

Jia Xu smiled and said, "As I said before, you have won four victories over Yuan Shao. You led your cavalry into battle array and killed the generals. This is called victory in bravery and martial arts. You selected officials and generals to make the best use of their talents. This is called victory in employing people. You fought in the south and the north and were defeated everywhere. This is called victory in strategy. You have excellent soldiers and brave generals, and both Han and Hu people are at your service. This is called victory in military and generals."

"Your Excellency has four victories, and Yuan Shao has four defeats. After months of confrontation, how could Yuan Shao use his troops correctly? When his troops are at risk, Your Excellency will seize the opportunity and fight, and you will be able to defeat him in no time."

Hearing this, Zhang Yu glanced at Jia Xu and said, "Victory or defeat in war depends on a moment. How can we win now? I hope Wenhe can give me some advice!"

To defeat Yuan Shao, Zhang Yu did not need some illusory motivation, but rather some practical strategies.

Jia Xu said slowly, "In the past, Emperor Gaozu fought a decisive battle with Xiang Yu in Xingyang. He persuaded Ying Bu and Peng Yue to rebel against Chu and used Han Xin to take Hebei. The battle lasted for 28 months and dozens of battles, big and small, finally Emperor Gaozu took over the world. Now you are going to attack Guandong. Lu Bu of Yanzhou, Zhang Yan of Heishan, and Liu He of Youzhou are your Bu and Yue."

"Your Excellency may wish to strengthen your wings and weaken Yuan Shao. If the three invade Jizhou, Yuan Shao will surely be worried, and that will be your hope for victory. Therefore, in my opinion, your choice of the way to send troops is not the key, but how to weaken Yuan Shao and strengthen your wings may be the key."

It is not difficult to understand Jia Xu's strategy of using troops. He told Zhang Yu his advantages. For example, Zhang Yu had more advantages than Yuan Shao in diplomacy. Therefore, in order to ensure a high probability of victory, Jia Xu suggested that Zhang Yu should not rush to fight a decisive battle with Yuan Shao, but pay more attention to other battlefields. If other battlefields can make progress, Jizhou's terrain will be transformed into a place for four battles.

Perhaps the amount of information was too much and Zhang Yu needed time to sort it out, so he picked up the water cup and took a sip of water.

"Everything you said makes sense!"

Zhang Yu pondered his thoughts and said, "Our army wins because of its elite cavalry, so we need to send out more surprise troops when fighting Yuan Shao. Zhang Yan, Lu Bu, and Liu He are the wings of our army and must be used. If these three can defeat the enemy, the flat terrain of Jizhou will be a place where our elite cavalry can gallop across the world."

As he spoke, Zhang Yu stood up from the couch, walked to the map, pointed and said: "To spy on Jizhou's strength, you can send cavalry out of Zhuxing, plunder the baggage and investigate the enemy's situation. After the spring plowing next year, lead the troops to choose a route out of Hebei. Recently, we have been in contact with Heishan and Youzhou, and gave horses to Lu Bu." "Which general do you want to send to lead the cavalry to plunder Hebei?" Xun You asked.

Zhang Yu pondered for a moment and said, "Let Ke Bi go out of Jingxing, Ma Chao go out of Fukou, Zhang Jun go out of Henei, and Yan Xing plunder Dongjun, each with 2,000 cavalry. Go out in September, and retreat when encountering a strong enemy."

"promise!"

Ma Chao looked delighted and bowed before leaving.

While Zhao Zi was writing the military order, Guo Tu said, "Lü Bu was invited by Tao Shang to lead his troops to support Xuzhou. If Lü Bu is trapped in Xuzhou, he may not be able to harass Yanzhou."

Zhang Yu looked at the map and said, "The people of Yanzhou are tired. This is the first place that Yuan Shao has conquered. With Yuan Xi's ability, there is no need to worry. Qingzhou has been under Yuan's rule for many years. Now Gao Gan is leading his troops south, which will divide the troops of Qingzhou. Therefore, if Lu Bu can contain Gao Gan or lead his troops to win, it will be a relief for our army. The only troops that Yuan can use are those in Jizhou."

After a pause, Zhang Yu pointed to Youzhou and said, "Judging from the situation, the key to the battle lies in Youzhou!"

"I'm afraid Yuan Shao will send troops to attack Youzhou first in order to resolve the crisis in the northern border!" Zhao Zi said worriedly.

……

In order to persuade Yuan Shao to take the initiative, Shen Pei advised: "Mingshang, Youzhou can use tens of thousands of soldiers and horses. If we fail to take Youzhou first, it may be a disaster for our army!"

"Don't take Youzhou first!"

Tian Feng said in a firm tone: "Although the Youzhou cavalry is famous throughout the world, the people are not united. If we attack Youzhou first, the people of Youzhou will be united in this crisis and will not surrender suddenly. Besides, Liu He is the son of Liu Yu. Both father and son have done favors for the people. If we attack him now, the people will support Liu He!"

"otherwise!"

Shen Pei said, "Gongsun is good at riding, and Wuhuan and Hu are numerous. The two should attack Youzhou first. If they can defeat the enemy and capture the city, you can transfer the cavalry to the south. At that time, you will not have to fear Zhang Yu's cavalry. You can also send troops to Jingxing or Feihuxing to harass the counties in Bingzhou."

Ju Su objected, saying, "Our army has been fighting continuously and is exhausted. Zhang Yu's army has been resting for nearly a year. It is not the right way to let the enemy escape while we are exhausted. We should rest and recuperate first. If the enemy attacks us, we can use the strong cities of Zhao and Wei to resist them and wear down their morale. When they withdraw, we can lead our troops to pursue them and win."

Xu You sneered and said, "The Wuhuan have been invited to send troops. If our army can besiege Youzhou, we may be able to force Zhang Yu to lead troops to rescue. Our army has trained in square formations and repaired many bows and crossbows, so there is no need to fear Zhang Yu's cavalry. On the contrary, if we let Zhang Yu lead the army, he will use the elite cavalry to mobilize and send other troops to plunder Hebei. Our army will suffer terribly."

Tian Feng's eyes widened, and he said in a deep voice: "Shanxi has little food for our army. If we fight them, it will be no different from Zhang Yu's plan. The plan of plundering Hebei can be defeated with a wave of his hand."

Tian Feng bowed to Yuan Shao on the couch and said, "Mingsir, Zhang Yu is raiding Hebei, and Feng has a plan to defeat him. The road between Bingzhou and Hebei is rugged, but it is smooth after passing through Taihang. So if Zhang Yu sends cavalry to raid Hebei, Mingsir will send troops to cut off the mountain pass, so that the enemy cavalry will not be able to return west."

"The people of Youzhou are divided, and there are Wuhuan attacks. Gongsun guards the northern border, so you don't need to worry about Youzhou. Your Excellency is now fighting with Zhang Yu, which is related to the gains and losses of the world. You should not rush to use troops. It is best to use them slowly."

"Tian Feng, don't you think Zhang Yu is a fool?" Xu You said, "There are many small paths through the mountain pass. If the enemy cavalry find out, they can take another path. Besides, Zhang Yu will definitely leave troops at the mountain pass to support the enemy cavalry."

Ju Su took the opportunity to say, "That is why we should send our best troops to defend the mountain passes and clear the plains, so that the enemy will gain nothing. If we go out to fight, the outcome will be hard to predict, and we will be taken advantage of by the enemy cavalry. Yecheng and Handan are strong cities in Hebei. If Zhang Yu wants to take them, he must lead a large army to encircle them. If you lead your troops to station far away, you can make Zhang Yu unable to advance or retreat."

"If Lord Ju uses the military in this way, it will hurt your prestige~" Feng Ji suddenly spoke.

"All right!"

Yuan Shao could not stand the noise of his advisers, so he waved his hands and said, "In any case, our army needs to mobilize troops, so we will stockpile military supplies first. Regarding the dispatch of troops to Youzhou, let me consider it for a few days and then discuss it with you gentlemen."

"Your Excellency may need to make a decision soon!" Shen Pei said, "If Zhang Yu sends troops next year and our army wants to attack Youzhou first, we will have to use the troops at the beginning of the year."

Yuan Shu was troubled and said, "Let Chunyu Qiong stay in Yecheng first, and let Gongsun Zan prepare his troops for battle. Let's also send scouts to explore Shangdang to see if they can find out where Zhang Yu is sending his troops."

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)