Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 112 This Child is Extraordinary
The lecture hall fell silent for a moment, with only the occasional chirping of birds coming from outside the window.

Liang Dujian's question was like a stone thrown into a deep pool. Although it did not echo in the lecture hall, it stirred ripples in everyone's heart.

Why did the Tang army dare to pursue? Did they think they could win a great victory by pursuing? Why were the Song army always ambushed when they pursued?
This question directly addresses the hidden pain these young students felt about the weakness of the nation and their confusion about the frequent defeats in war.

Lu Beigu took a deep breath. The crisp scent of grass and trees in summer seemed unable to completely dispel the gloom rising in his heart. Seeing that his classmates were silent, he slowly stood up, bowed, and greeted them.

"Student Lu Beigu, daring to attempt to answer Supervisor Liang's question."

All eyes immediately focused on him, and even Mr. Jiangwu nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

"After the great victory at Qianshuiyuan, Li Shimin personally led two thousand cavalry in pursuit. It seemed like an easy advance, but the key to his success was threefold."

Lu Beigu's voice was exceptionally clear in the quiet lecture hall.

"Firstly, he knew himself and his enemy. Li Shimin held out at Gaozhi for several months, confronting Xue's army. He had a thorough understanding of Xue's troop deployment, the personalities of his generals, the consumption of food supplies, and even the surrounding terrain. Xue's army, on the other hand, was the one that actively sought battle because of its lack of food supplies. After the head-on confrontation, Zong Luohou's entire army was defeated, and its morale plummeted. Its strength was exhausted, and it was difficult to leave enough troops to organize an effective ambush or counterattack."

"On the other hand, in the Battle of Haoshuichuan, Ren Fu, the deputy commander of Huanqing Road, and Sang Yi, the garrison commander of Jingyuan, led several thousand light cavalry as the vanguard, with Zhu Guan, the commander, and Wu Ying, the garrison commander, leading infantry as the follow-up. Completely unaware of the Xia army's troop deployment, they only heard that Chang Ding, the patrol inspector of the western route of Zhenrong Army, was fighting the Xia army at Zhangyibao, so they crossed the Longshan Mountains and led their troops there. Did they know the exact movements of the Xia army's main force? Did they know the terrain west of the Longshan Mountains? They were probably completely in the dark. This is a case of knowing only oneself but not the enemy!"

As Liang Dujian's gaze swept across the area representing Longshan on another sand table, he seemed to see the bewilderment of the Song army at that time.

"Secondly, he held the initiative. Li Shimin's pursuit was not a blind advance. He personally led two thousand elite cavalry, the sharpest spearhead of the Tang army, and his goal was very clear—to seize the south bank of the Jing River and cut off the connection between Zongluohou and Zhezhi City! This was a move to choke the enemy, preventing the defeated soldiers from entering the city to rest and the defending army from coming out of the city to provide support."

"Li Shimin always maintained the initiative on the battlefield, forcing the enemy to follow his rhythm. Ren Fu, seeing the enemy's feigned retreat, thought victory was assured. His greed for merit was so great that he became like a donkey with a carrot dangling in front of him. He couldn't care about anything else and only focused on pursuing the Xia army's feigned retreat. As they advanced deeper into the enemy territory, their supplies fell behind, and their infantry and cavalry became separated. In the end, they fell into Li Yuanhao's carefully designed trap. From the very beginning of the pursuit, the initiative was lost. How could they not be defeated?"

Lu Beigu's voice began to grow heavy.

At this moment, Liang Dujian also picked up the small red flag representing the Song army cavalry on the sand table and gently placed it down in the valley at Haoshuichuankou, which symbolized death.

The sand table shows Song cavalry surrounded by blue Xia army flags.

"Thirdly, he considered defeat before victory. When Li Shimin launched his attack, the main force of the Tang army, Pang Yu's troops, had not suffered heavy losses despite fierce fighting. They were not at a disadvantage in terms of troop strength and could be reinforcements at any time. Li Shimin dared to pursue them precisely because he had a large number of reinforcements behind him. On the other hand, regarding Li Shimin's bravery, his own statement, 'I hold a bow and arrow, and you hold a spear, and we are together. What can a million men do to me?' may be an exaggeration, but he had two thousand elite cavalrymen by his side. Even if they were ambushed, they could calmly break out without losing their main force. This is what is meant by knowing oneself and knowing one's enemy."

"Look at Ren Fu, his light cavalry has broken away from the main army's supplies, and the number of reinforcements behind him is small. Once he is ambushed, the other three routes of troops in the northwest will not be able to arrive in time. Even if the several thousand infantrymen led by Zhu Guan and Wu Ying come to his aid, they will also be isolated. So as long as he falls into the ambush, he will be doomed regardless of whether there are reinforcements or not!"

Lu Beigu finally pointed to the location representing the Shallow Water Plain high ground on the sand table: "Therefore, the Tang army's victory in this battle relied on the terrain to wear down the enemy's morale, and then seized the opportunity to counterattack. Li Shimin's actions had a clear objective. The defeat at Haoshuichuan, on the other hand, was due to Ren Fu's eagerness for merit, which led him to deviate from the pre-planned battlefield and Han Xianggong's battle plan, penetrating deep into the enemy's pre-planned ambush area with his infantry and cavalry separated. The reason for the huge difference in the results of the two battles was not due to the timing or terrain, but rather to poor planning!"

As Lu Beigu finished speaking, the lecture hall fell silent; you could hear a pin drop. The old scar on Supervisor Liang's face seemed to twitch slightly. He stared at Lu Beigu without speaking immediately, but slowly raised his calloused hand, its base tinged with a bluish-black, and slammed it forcefully onto the teacher's desk!
"Snapped!"

A muffled thud made all the students in the lower dormitory jump.

"Good!" He strode up to Lu Beigu, his eyes burning. "What a brilliant 'know yourself and know your enemy'! What a brilliant 'hold the initiative'! What a brilliant 'consider defeat before victory'! Your words don't sound like theoretical discussions, but rather like someone who has personally experienced battle. Every sentence hits the nail on the head!"

Liang, the military commander, had a loud and clear voice. Although the soldiers were not very educated, his resounding voice revealed great appreciation.

Mr. Jiang Wu stroked his beard and smiled, nodding repeatedly: "What Lu Sheng said is clear and logical, and he has indeed grasped the essence of 'predicting the enemy and responding to changes' in the 'Complete Essentials of Military Strategy'."

A buzz of discussion erupted in the lecture hall, and all eyes were on Lu Beigu, filled with surprise, admiration, and a touch of disbelief.

Lu Guangyu, Huang Jingji, and Zhu Zhen, his three roommates, were dumbfounded. They knew that Lu Beigu was knowledgeable, but they did not expect him to be so knowledgeable in military affairs as well. He was able to speak eloquently in front of the military supervisor of Luzhou in the military class at the state school and even received such high praise!

At the back door of the lecture hall, the look of surprise on Prefect Liu Yong's face had not yet faded. He turned his head to look at Li Pan beside him and said in a low voice, "Judge Li, I did lose this bet. It is indeed as you said. This boy is extraordinary."

Li Pan still wore that smile, but the satisfaction in his eyes deepened.

He gently rubbed his hands together inside his sleeves: "I told you earlier, this young man has great potential."

"You'll have to go and talk to Fan Jin Gong about that."

"Yes, sir." Li Pan readily agreed.

Liu Yong nodded, glanced at the tall, upright young man in the center of the lecture hall, lingered for a few moments, and then quietly left through the back door.

Afterwards, Mr. Jiangwu, based on the "Complete Essentials of Military Strategy," gave a detailed account of the two battles and went on to discuss other military matters such as supply lines and city defenses. The students listened with great interest.

Time flew by, and before everyone had had enough, the morning martial arts lesson was over.

After bidding them farewell, Supervisor Liang left the lower dormitory lecture hall on his own. When he passed by the back door, he saw Li Pan and quickly bowed and greeted him. Li Pan whispered a few words to him, and only stopped when he saw Lu Beigu coming.

"Come with me, I have two things to say to you."

(End of this chapter)