Do You Know?: I, the Little Cabinet Elder, Regent of the World

Little did they know, he was the one who should be in a hurry.

"The Western Xia's national strength was simply insufficient to support a long-term expedition of 100,000 troops."

Jiang Zhao waved his hand and said slowly, "Attack Datong and Xunhua gradually, and surround and trap Longzhu and Hei. Once the city is captured, hold a grand celebration and reward the city in a timely manner."

"Gathering 70,000 soldiers, they captured a city in a month, and successively took down Datong and Xunhua."

"After that, five thousand men were assigned to set up camp around Longzhuhei, surrounding the city without attacking, which would be enough to besiege the enemy forces."

Of the three cities, Datong and Xunhua are located on the route leading directly into Miaochuan, and they must be captured.

As for Longzhuhei, it is relatively biased towards the north, so there is no need to conquer it and waste troops for nothing.

Just surround them with five thousand soldiers.

Five thousand men against three thousand men—it's nothing short of a pipe dream to try and capture a city.

However, it is not difficult to surround people.

Those three thousand Western Xia soldiers would definitely be no match for five thousand once they left the city.

Five thousand people surrounded them, but they wouldn't attack.

By attacking one less city, the casualties among soldiers will certainly be less.

"The remaining 60,000 soldiers marched straight into Miaochuan."

"By maintaining the morale of the soldiers, we can achieve unstoppable momentum and be invincible in every battle."

With the strength of the Western Xia, it could not sustain a prolonged war.

As time went on, internal conflicts within the Western Xia would become more apparent.

In contrast, the Great Zhou army could not afford to lose more than 10,000 soldiers in such a short period of time.

Otherwise, morale will be severely damaged.

Therefore, we should try to "delay" and prolong the process.

Of course, dragging it out for too long will also damage morale.

The key to maintaining morale lies in the use of several cities and the control of the time intervals between capturing them.

A city is captured in about a month, and the emperor rewards the soldiers. The intervals are neither too long nor too short, giving the soldiers something to look forward to and helping them to get rid of their fatigue.

It took about two months to capture two cities.

If we include September and October, then the war lasted for four months. The Western Xia could not afford to lose so much, and internal conflicts arose one after another.

This gives us hope of defeating the enemy in one fell swoop.

"The commander-in-chief is wise," Zhong E echoed.

Jiang Zhao nodded calmly and ordered, "The army will rest for three days, and then march straight for Datong City."

"promise!"

The seven men bowed and then withdrew.

After the others left, Jiang Zhao took out a stack of letters from his former students, officials, and cronies and began to examine them.

Ouyang Xiu and Lü Gongzhu actually took advantage of his absence on a military campaign to submit a memorial requesting that relatives of the empress be allowed to enter the border region to divide his power.

They even intended to unite the officials to submit a memorial, thus coercing the emperor.

That's incredibly bold!

Jiang Zhao read through each and every letter.

After about two incense sticks' worth of time, Jiang Zhao put down the letter in his hand and shook his head inwardly.

Since you've chosen to coerce the new emperor, be prepared to face retribution!

Miaochuan City.

Li Liangzuo frowned, staring at the dozens of memorials on the table, his face so gloomy it could drip water.

The dozens of memorials were either about supplies or about the war situation.

Some memorials expressed concern about the food supply problem, lamenting that the food was running out, while others hoped for peace and a postponement of the southward advance. As for those advocating war, there were very few.

The nobles are used to a life of ease; how could they possibly advocate for war?

Even within the royal family, there were voices of opposition.

Li Liangzuo stared for a while, and his heart sank.

Since marching south in August, the 100,000-strong army has been constantly depleting its food supplies.

These provisions couldn't possibly have appeared out of thin air.

Part of it is grain and fodder stockpiled from previous years.

Part of it was collected temporarily for the following year, or even the year after.

Only by combining both methods could the provisions for an army of 100,000 be gathered.

However, as the war dragged on, these two supplies could not last much longer.

Some memorials were then submitted.

The reason for this was that they were worried Li Liangzuo would target the powerful nobles in the country to replenish the military supplies.

In fact, Li Liangzuo did indeed show signs of doing just that.

Unfortunately, someone guessed it.

In short, it all means the same thing.

Either advocate for peace, or simply avoid war altogether.

Without war, there is naturally little expenditure.

Alternatively, they could levy taxes on ordinary people again, bleeding them dry.

In any case, we can't target the high-ranking nobles.

The entire court was more united than ever before.

"A bunch of scourges to the country and its people!" Li Liangzuo cursed in a low voice.

Not only do they not go to the front lines, but they also dare to hold others back.

Having won a great victory in this campaign and entered the capital with great momentum, he will surely have to deal with a group of pro-peace ministers, eliminate dissidents in the court, and consolidate imperial power.

November 9th.

"kill!"

"The city has fallen!"

"Today is the day to break through the city and achieve merit!"

The clash of metal and the sounds of battle echoed continuously.

Bloodstains were frequently seen flying everywhere, staining the city walls and sending a chill down one's spine.

About a thousand paces away, Jiang Zhao stood with his hands behind his back, observing everything.

Just then, a crystal snowflake fell.

Jiang Zhao was taken aback, letting the snowflakes fall into his palm.

"It's snowing!" Zhong Shidao exclaimed from three steps away.

Since receiving permission, Zhong Shidao has always stood by Jiang Zhao's side as a disciple.

On one occasion, with Jiang Zhao's approval, he took on the role of the commander-in-chief's bodyguard and concurrently held a portion of the military power.

At seventeen, he commanded an army of over ten thousand!

Jiang Zhao glanced back and shook his head slightly.

No prospects!

After a long pause, he slowly recited: "The scenery of the Northland is magnificent, with thousands of miles of ice and ten thousand miles of snow!"

As the words fell, Jiang Zhao couldn't help but sigh.

Who would have thought that a dynasty confined to a corner of the country would have the opportunity to recite this poem?

"Sir, you truly are a celestial being descended from the heavens, your every word is a classic masterpiece." Zhong Shidao exclaimed in surprise, and quickly echoed.

He finally understood why Jiang Zhao was shaking his head.

Saying "It's snowing" is a bit too casual.

Jiang Zhao smiled and shook his head.

The God of Literature, does that seem to be exclusive to the top scholar in the imperial examination?

It feels both familiar and strange.

Since he rose to prominence in officialdom, no one has called him the God of Literature for many years.

More often, he was referred to as "Young Grand Secretary".

I wonder if, after this battle, there will be a chance to remove the word "small" from the title?

After about half an hour, the sounds of fighting gradually subsided.

The attack of 50,000 to 60,000 soldiers on a city defended by only 3,000 men was destined to be a bloody battle with no suspense.

The difference lies in the issue of damage.

Before long, a man wielding a spear, covered in blood, arrived and bowed respectfully.

"Reporting to the commander, Datong City has fallen."

Guo Kui, the one who broke through city walls and charged into battle!

Jiang Zhao glanced at him, threw down the reins, dismounted, and reached out to help him up.

"Zhongtong's charge into battle and defeat of the enemy is truly the greatest achievement in capturing the city," Jiang Zhaowen said gently.

Zhongtong was the courtesy name of Guo Kui.

"Thank you, Commander!" Guo Kui was overjoyed and bowed again.

Just for that one sentence, his desperate fight was worthwhile.

"Your subordinate will go and wipe out the remaining rebels."

Guo Kui stood up, clasped his hands in a salute, and mounted his horse.

"Kill the Western bandits!"

"Kill!"

The sound of metal clashing was incessant.

It's January again, early December.

Xunhua City fell.

Xunhua City, Central Military Tent.

Civil and military officials stood in rows on the left and right.

In the main seat, Jiang Zhao held a secret letter and watched intently.

"Lord Zhongjing raised his troops and marched north, directly attacking Xiping Prefecture, thus drawing away the Western Xia soldiers from the Shaanxi direction."

"Marquis Ningyuan launched a surprise attack on Xiliang Prefecture, cutting off the enemy's retreat!"

As soon as the words were spoken, the morale of the dozens of people soared, and a wave of jubilation swept through the crowd.

Is the final battle finally about to begin?

Jiang Zhao pressed his hand down, and the tent fell silent.

"Reward the army, and three days later, march straight into Miaochuan."

"promise!"

Bianjing, the Imperial Study.

In the main seat, Zhao Ceying held a report of victory and paced back and forth.