Chapter 319 The prologue is about to begin

After a long story, Jiannu decided to use Shansect to launch a sneak attack on Shanhaiguan to reverse the strategic initiative of the Mingjin battlefield in one fell swoop, and to force the Ming court to recognize Jiannu's independence and sign a peace agreement. In fact, the possibility of success is quite high. There are two reasons for this. The first is that Shansect's inside line in the canal transport army is very hidden and sudden. Even the cunning young master Zhang did not expect this. As well as Zhang's father-in-law Xiong Tingbi, who is so arrogant, he would definitely not have thought that the army that the canal transport yamen delivered to him would be the inner support of Jiannu and Shanzong. At that time, Jiannu and Shanzong followed the plan, even the old bird Xiong Tingbi on the battlefield would suffer a great loss.

The second reason is the backward transportation conditions and communication methods in the Cold Weapon Age. According to the fastest calculation at that time, the detailed work arranged by the Ming Dynasty court in Ningyuan City was discovered in early April that Shanzong and Jiannu were about to join forces to attack Shanhaiguan, and they successfully sent the news to Shanhaiguan through carrier pigeons or fast horses. Shanhaiguan sent the news to the capital. The Ming Dynasty capital issued the news to the capital city again with an emergency of 600 miles. It would take at least twenty days! In this case, it has not been included whether Xiong Tingbi asked for help from the Ming Dynasty court. The Ming Dynasty court discussed whether to mobilize the slave army to reinforce Shanhaiguan and distinguish the authenticity of the information!

Taking a step back, even if the military emergency report was sent to Xi'an without any obstacles, Master Zhang would have to spend at least ten days gathering the main troops scattered in the prefectures in Shaanxi and Gansu, and take more than one month to bring the main troops to Shanhaiguan. If we count the time to assemble Xuanda's army, as well as the preparation time for food, supplies, ammunition and weapons, Master Zhang would have to waste at least ten days. This means that Master Zhang's army was able to rush to Shanhaiguan to participate in the war in early July, which is basically the limit. During this period, Jiannu and Shanzong will not only form a quantity and quality advantage to Xiong Tingbi's Shanhaiguan army, but will also have the opportunity to wait for the reinforcements of Master Zhang to wait for work. The degree of disadvantage to Master Zhang can be imagined.

The world did not meet people's wishes. Jiannu and Shanzong, who had such favorable opportunities, never dreamed that a detailed work of Ming army code-named "North Wind" shattered their dreams. On the evening of April, Yuan Chonghuan had just agreed to the plan of open flag change and sneak attack on Shanhaiguan on behalf of Shanzhou. At noon the next day, Yuan Chonghuan and Fan Wencheng discovered through the double-sided spy Zuo Liangyu that this mysterious north wind knew their target. In the evening of that day, Shanzong sent Shanhaiguan to monitor Xiong Tingbi's army's detailed work, and sent another news that made Yuan Chonghuan and Fan Wencheng even more stunned. As early as March 30, the Liaodong governor Xiong Tingbi announced

The entire Bu army entered a state of emergency, and both inside and outside Shanhaiguan were martial law. While Zhao Rujiao's army stationed in Qiantun was preparing for the war in full, he was also ready to transfer and retreat to Shanhaiguan at any time. At the same time, Xiong Tingbi also issued an order to Denglai Governor Sun Yuanhua and Tianjin Governor Bi Ziyan, ordering Denglai and Tianjin Navy to go north and reinforce Shanhaiguan. There is also the army of Jimen Governor Yan Mingtai, who also ignited the beacon tower of Dongjiakou in the Great Wall, and mobilized and gathered to rush to Shanhaiguan for reinforcements. Although these second-rate troops were not opponents of the Jiannu army in field battles, if they only fought against the Ningyuan army or only fought against the Ningyuan army in field battles, there would be no big problem.

"Who is the mother? How is it possible? How is it possible?" After listening to Shan Zong's detailed investigation, Yuan Chonghuan screamed like crazy, "Old Xiong was confused and mobilized the entire army on March 30th? Are you wrong? How could he know our plan so quickly?"

"There is only one possibility." Fan Wencheng analyzed with a pale face: "Our plan has been leaked in the two days of March 28 or 29, and it was given to Xiong Tingbi by the barbarian. In order to prevent it, the old barbarian Xiong Tingbi first prepared for the war in advance, and warned us not to act rashly at Shanhaiguan!" After that, Fan Wencheng roared at Yuan Chonghuan with red eyes and said, "Remember to me quickly. Those people know our plan in the past two days of 28 and 29? Oh my God, I really don't know how you survived over the years, why haven't you been killed by the barbarian? Such confidential news was leaked so quickly. I really don't know how many secrets of our big gold have been leaked to the barbarian over the years!"

Although Fan Wencheng scolded him badly, Yuan Chonghuan didn't care about him at this time. He just recalled: "On March 28th, Mr. Fan, you just arrived in Ningyuan. At that time, the only people who knew about this plan were you and me, as well as my personal soldiers and deputy captain. On March 29th, I summoned the core members of the Shanzong to discuss, and all the more than 20 people who attended the meeting knew..." When he recalled this, Yuan Chonghuan's face changed again, and he murmured: "At the three-day top secret meeting, Zu Dale was present. Could it be him?"

"Aren't the three brothers of the Zu family your hardcore confidants? How likely is it?" Fan Wencheng asked in confusion. Yuan Chonghuan swallowed his saliva and said hesitantly: "If it was him, the possibility was very high. On the morning of March 29th, he knew about this. He had enough time to pass the news when he was resting for lunch. The old man Xiong Tingbi issued a martial law order at noon on March 30th, and the time was just right. Moreover, he only knew that our Shanzong was preparing to change his flag and attack Shanhaiguan, and did not know the specific time and specific action plan of our action. It was completely reasonable to send Zuo Liangyu to inquire about these two secrets..."

Fan Wencheng thought carefully with a blue face. After a long time, Fan Wencheng said with a gloomy face: "Although the explanation makes sense, don't forget that Zuo Dale is suspected. The other twenty people attending the meeting also have such suspicion, and they may also instruct Zuo Liangyu to spy on our specific action plan and action time. I suspect that Beifeng, a cunning barbarian, may have calculated everything in advance. Knowing that Shanhaiguan is ready to fight, we know that there is a traitor within the Shanzong. We are afraid that we will closely screen him and find him, so he deliberately framed Zu Dale and diverted his attention and confused our suspicion. He could take the opportunity to escape from this leak incident!"

Yuan Chonghuan was reminded by Fan Wencheng. After careful analysis, he felt that Fan Wencheng's words were indeed very reasonable. These suspicions on Zu Dale were also reasonable for other members of the Shanzong who attended the meeting. However, Yuan Chonghuan suddenly remembered something again and said: "Wait, first, I have already carefully investigated. This morning, only Zu Dale entered the backyard of the governor's yamen. The second and most important point is that when Zhang Haogu's little mad dog came to Liaodong for the first time, because all the Liaodong generals thought he was a little white-faced climbing up by flattering, even the Liaodong generals who were not Shanzong ignored him. Only Zu Dale was the first to toast him - I was there at the time and remembered it very clearly!"

"There is this?" Fan Wencheng was stunned, frowned and murmured, "So, the suspicion of Zu Dale is always the greatest." After thinking about it for a moment, Fan Wencheng gritted his teeth and said, "This matter is very important, so it is better to kill a thousand people by mistake than to miss one! From today on, you have to arrange reliable personnel to secretly monitor Zu Dale, and prepare for it whenever there is any abnormal movement. There are others, so you have to be careful and let the real barbarian escape."

"Of course, although Zu Dale is the most suspicious, I still hope he will not be a masterpiece of the barbarian." Yuan Chonghuan nodded repeatedly and asked tentatively: "Mr. Fan, the news has been leaked now, and the old barbarian Xiong Tingbi has also made strict preparations. Do we need to follow the plan for our sneak attack on Shanhaiguan?"

"What's the matter! Will the Dajin soldiers die in vain?" Fan Wencheng cursed and said viciously: "The plan to attack Shanhaiguan is temporarily put on hold. I will tell you when I report to my master and the Four Beile. Don't be busy opening up the flags. First, I will take out all the barbarians in Ningyuan City." Yuan Chonghuan nodded repeatedly, and Fan Wencheng added: "Also, hurry up and hurry up and carry out the matter of Wu Sangui. No matter what means you use, you must bring him back to Ningyuan for a trip."

……………………

Although the plan of Jiannu and Shanzong's sneak attack was forced to abort due to the murderous Ming army spies, the preparations for the Ming army did not relax at all, but were greatly strengthened. First, after the 8,000 elite troops from Jimen Military Region arrived at Shanhaiguan, Xiong Tingbi directly discussed with Yan Mingtai, demanding that Yan Mingtai be kept in Shimen City less than ten miles away from Shanhaiguan for a long time. Given that the Tatar tribe in the north of Jimen had been severely injured by Master Zhang and the pressure was greatly reduced, Yan Mingtai also agreed to Xiong Tingbi's request. At the same time, Xiong Tingbi ordered the expansion of Qin.

The Huangdao Wharf asked the Denglai Navy and Tianjin Navy to draw elite troops to station for a long time in case of call at any time. This request was approved by the master and servant of the Ming Xizong and Wei Zhongxian, who attached great importance to the battle situation in Liaodong. As a result, not only did Shanhaiguan's defense force greatly strengthen, Liaodong Jiannu and Ningyuan Shanzong also gradually died of their desire to sneak attack Shanhaiguan. Although Xiong Tingbi's old bear is not as perverted as his son-in-law, it is not a good character to mess with. Unless he is absolutely sure that he can successfully attack and attack head-on, regardless of manpower and material resources, Jiannu and Shanzong cannot use up the old bear Xiong Tingbi.

It is not only the Shanhaiguan defense line that actively prepares for the war, but also understands that the Ming Dynasty and Jiannu's decisive battle is likely to be the first time this year. In order to provide strong support for his own son, Mr. Zhang, all the firearm bureaus in Beijing have been fully utilized, and they seized time to produce weapons and ammunition day and night. The grain and grass plundered from all over the country were also sent to Tongzhou through the canal artery, and they piled up in Tongzhou, striving to provide at least one year of food and grass for the Ming and Jin decisive battles. At the same time, Wei Zhongxian sent a special envoy to Shaanxi to meet Mr. Zhang, introducing the latest military information in Liaodong to Mr. Zhang, and delivering the information of the Jiannu Mountain Sect collected by the Dongchang Town Fushi Department through various channels, consulting Mr. Zhang's opinions to see when the Shaanxi-Gansu Xuanda Army will be dispatched to Liaodong to participate in the war.

Wei Zhongxian's special envoy was Wu Chunfu, the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Works, the right deputy censor, and one of the five eunuchs. When Wu Chunfu arrived in Xi'an, Shaanxi, Master Zhang was taking advantage of the opportunity to distribute relief grain to win the hearts of the people and fully implement the Ten Card Law. This unethical law was the ultimate trick of Wang Yangming, the number one old hooligan of the Ming Dynasty, to suppress bandits. The people used ten bandits as units to guarantee each other and supervise each other. Ten bandits were unlucky to eradicate the chaos in Shaanxi and Gansu. If this move was used a few years ago, it would not only have no effect in Shaanxi and Gansu territory, but it would definitely be useful.

On the contrary, because the people are almost starving to death, using this trick, isn’t it forcing the common people to escape bandits and ten families become bandits? But now it’s different. The high-yield crops promoted and planted in Shaanxi and Gansu are about to harvest. Master Zhang holds the lifeline of the hungry people and the armed forces that are enough to suppress all rebellions. The people who see hope for survival will naturally not risk the rebellion at the risk of beheading. Therefore, the implementation of the Ten Card Law was very smooth and it has achieved great results. So when Wu Chunfu saw Master Zhang, there were no thieves in the entire Xi'an Prefecture.

After Wu Chunfu and Master Zhang met and spoke polite words to each other, Wu Chunfu quickly took out Wei Zhongxian's letter and said politely: "Zhang Shaobao, this is the letter from Jiu Qiansui. Jiu Qiansui asked the officials to ask you, the Slaughter Army and Xuanda, the main force of the Shaanxi-Gansui army, can they be drawn to reinforce the Liaodong battlefield? Jiu Qiansui and the court judged from all signs that Jiannu will likely launch a full-scale attack on the Ming Dynasty within this year, and the Ningyuan rebels may openly change their flags and rebel to the slave at any time. Shaobao you are the biggest military reliance of Jiu Qiansui and the Ming Dynasty. If you are not prepared, the pressure on Shanhaiguan will probably be too great."

"Mr. Wu, don't worry, wait until I finish reading the letter first." Master Zhang agreed with a smile, picked up Wei Zhongxian's letter and carefully read the sealed lacquer and envelope records. After verifying it, he opened the letter to read it. After carefully reading the letter, Master Zhang picked up the Dongchang brought by Wu Chunfu and the information collection of the tutoring department, and studied hard. After reading it for more than half an hour, Master Zhang raised his head and smiled at Wu Chunfu, who had been waiting impatiently while tasting the tea, and said, "Mr. Wu, my father and the court have correctly analyzed that Jiannu will not only launch a full-scale attack on Shanhaiguan this year, but also likely will be after the autumn harvest, that is, in August this year!"

"How can I see it? As far as the officials know, Jiannu is afraid of the heat, and usually chooses to attack in winter?" Wu Chunfu asked quickly. Master Zhang smiled and replied: "Mr. Wu must not be accustomed to it. To say arrogant words, Jiannu violated the usual rules and chose not to launch a full-scale attack on Shanhaiguan in winter because of the younger generation! Jiannu was afraid that the younger generation would withdraw from the Shaanxi-Gansu battlefield, and even more afraid that the younger generation would launch a counterattack on Liaodong with the elite Ming savvy who had already been trained on the Shaanxi-Gansu battlefield, so he chose to go out and attack Shanhaiguan before winter. Because according to common sense, if the younger generation wants to withdraw from the Shaanxi-Gansu battlefield, at least after the drought-resistant crops in Shaanxi-Gansu territory are harvested, the situation in Shaanxi-Gansu has basically stabilized before they can calmly withdraw to attack in Shanhaiguan. All of this will take at least two to three months of preparation time."

"In this way, if Jiannu chose to send troops in winter, the younger generation would have enough time to gather troops to rush to the Liaodong battlefield, so the best time is to choose the attack in early August after the autumn harvest." Master Zhang shamelessly boasted: "Why is the best time for Jiannu? Because this has two benefits for Jiannu. The first is that the autumn harvest has just ended Shaanxi and Gansu. The main force of the Ming Dynasty led by the younger generation did not have time to adjust and assemble, and it is difficult to provide timely support to the Liaodong battlefield in time for the Liaodong battlefield.

And with strong reinforcements, once Jiannu successfully seizes Shanhaiguan, it can also create a favorable situation for me to wait for work. Second, Shaanxi and Gansu have just ended the autumn harvest, Liaodong, North Korea and Ningyuan have just ended the autumn harvest. For a considerable period of time, the Jiannu army would not have to worry about the shortage of military food. With the guarantee of military food, the old Jiannu Nuerhaci can even launch an emergency mobilization order to recruit all the troops that can be recruited to fight the Ming army to fight to the death, and strive to gain strategic initiative."

"It makes sense." Wu Chunfu nodded slowly and said in a deep voice: "For the Ming Dynasty, once Shanhaiguan falls into Jiannu's hands, there will be no danger in the northern Zhili and Shandong areas, and they will be passive in one place, and they will be passive everywhere." After that, Wu Chunfu asked again: "Zhang Shaobao, then do you plan to suggest Jiuqiansui and the court to deal with it? Jiuqiansui asked you a blank order for the Ministry of War this time. When necessary, you can send troops to reinforce Shanhaiguan without asking for an order from the court."

"About this, let me think about it first." The drought-resistant crops in Shaanxi and Gansu have not been taken down and the situation has not been completely stabilized. Master Zhang did not dare to act rashly. If he demolished the east wall to repair the western wall and made the Shaanxi-Gansu thief victory become more powerful, then Master Zhang would lose face. After a moment of calculation, Master Zhang pondered and said: "There are two ways to solve the problem. The first is to use a delayed military strategy to design and delay the general attack time of the Jiannu army, so that the Jiannu army will send troops again in winter. Although this is difficult, it is not hopeless. In the eight-year-old Shanhaiguan War, the Liuzhou River, which will not freeze in winter, will not suffer enough. In the autumn, the Liuzhou River will not freeze, but also in the large and small Linghe River, which can pass through sea boats, will not freeze. Nuerhaci, the old Jiannu, has rich experience on the battlefield, will not weigh the consequences."

"Zhang Shaobao, since you have a way to delay Jiannu's attack, then use the method quickly." Wu Chunfu interrupted excitedly, "You said just now that when it comes to winter, your Slaughter Army, Shaanxi and Gansu's main force can calmly reinforce the Liaodong battlefield. If Jiannu's attack is delayed, will you be much more relaxed?"

Master Zhang did not answer immediately, but fell into deep thought again, and there was a little hesitation on his face. Song Xiance, who was next to him, understood Master Zhang's vicious intentions and whispered: "Mr., you don't understand the thoughts of the villain's boss. For the boss, using a delayed strategy to delay the general attack time of Jiannu to winter, it is indeed much more relaxed for the boss. The Slaughter Army and the troops of the northwest provinces also have enough time to prepare for the war calmly, without risking the risk of reducing combat effectiveness and military morale. However, after using this delayed strategy, in winter, the Ming Dynasty's navy wanted to go north from the sea and cut off the rear route of Jiannu's food route. Therefore, for the boss, if he wanted to implement the tactic of closing the door and annihilate the main force of Jiannu in one battle, the best fighter jet would also be in the autumn of this year."

"Oh, it turns out that the Young Guard has considered this." Wu Chunfu suddenly realized, but scratched his head and said, "But Xiaguan thinks that it is better to be more cautious in this kind of national affairs. Even if the main force of Jiannu cannot be wiped out immediately, you can still take it slowly. Why take the risk and hurry up?"

"Sir, this is the boss's foresight." Song Xiance smiled and said, "If the Ming army can annihilate the Jiannu main force in one fell swoop in the narrow area of ​​the Liaoxi Corridor, then the next step of restoring the entire Liaodong area would be like a good deal, and the difficulty would be reduced a lot. However, if the Jiannu main force ran away, the boss's family would be stubbornly resisted by the Jiannu main force. At the same time, the Ming court will also pay ten times the manpower and material cost for this - Lord Wu, you are the Minister of the Ministry of Works, and you are often responsible for river engineering and engineering. You should know how many times the money, grain and supplies to send enough food to a construction site thousands of miles away? Then, the Ming army with more than 100,000 and 200,000 Ming army will fully counterattack Liaodong, and what a huge number will the money, grain and supplies required for the war?"

Just like what Song Xiance said, although Wu Chunfu, who was from the Ministry of Works, did not understand military affairs, he was often responsible for managing projects such as the Hebei University of Technology that required a lot of manpower and material resources. Of course, he knew the difficulty and huge demand of logistics support, so Wu Chunfu quickly understood, stuck out his tongue, and sighed: "Shaobao is worthy of being a young man and a mature man, and he is able to make a country with such a long-term vision? But in this way, Zhang Shaobao's second choice should be to not use delaying the army. Now he will draw the main army to Liaodong to prepare for the August decisive battle with Jiannu?"

"Yes, Lord Wu is right." Song Xiance replied in a deep voice: "For the boss, the second choice now is to bet with Jiannu. Taking advantage of the time left, we will immediately mobilize the main force to rush to Liaodong to welcome the August decisive battle, strive to determine the overall situation of Liaodong in one battle, and lay a solid foundation for the future restoration of Liaodong. However, this move can be said to be very risky. The traits in Shaanxi and Gansu have not been completely quelled. The boss will now draw the main force to rush to Liaodong. What if the remaining traitors will give the remaining traitors a chance to make a comeback? And it is the end of April. If you want to rush to the Liaodong battlefield in time before August, it will be too difficult. Sun Tzu said: Those who seek the profit of a hundred miles will have to slap the general! The boss will take the risk of a thousand miles of profit, which is a taboo for military strategists! That's why the boss is so hesitant. Otherwise, the Dong family will have made up his mind with the Dong family's character of making good decisions."

Wu Chunfu, who was fooled by Song Xiance, stuck out his tongue again. Knowing that he was not a military material, he honestly picked up the tea bowl and did not dare to disturb Mr. Zhang's thinking. And as Song Xiance said, Mr. Zhang, who had always been good at making a decision, was extremely hesitant for a long time, and he couldn't make up his mind to bet on the national destiny with Jiannu for a long time. At this time, the last person present, Shi Kefa, who was also the most loyal and honest under Mr. Zhang, suddenly muttered in a low voice, "If there is a way, it would be great that Jiannu's time to send troops to September."

"Xianzhi, what did you say just now?" Master Zhang suddenly looked up. Shi Kefa was stunned and answered honestly: "The student just said that it would be great if there was a way to delay Jiannu's military service time until September."

"Why?" Master Zhang's eyes shined. It was rare to ask Shi Kefa for military insights - because Shi Kefa was too honest, it would be strange if he listened to his suggestions to fight and not be killed by the enemy. Shi Kefa was also very strange. He thought he had said something wrong again, so he could only blush and replied with a blushing face: "Because the students think that if Jiannu sent troops again in September, then Zhang Shaobao, your main army can send troops to reinforce Liaodong after June. June is the season for dog potato harvest. With food, the situation in Shaanxi and Gansu will be much more stable. Zhang Shaobao, you don't have to worry too much when you leave the battlefield in Shaanxi and Gansu. In addition, in Liaodong, the rivers in September and October have not frozen and frozen. Although the north wind is gradually rising, there is still some southeast wind from time to time, which is conducive to the Ming Navy rushing from the sea to the blocking battlefield. Zhang Shaobao, if you want to close the door and fight the dog, you still have a chance."

"Zhang Shaobao, did the student say it wrong again this time?" Shi Kefa peeked at Master Zhang's face and asked uneasy. Master Zhang stared at Shi Kefa for a long time, and suddenly smiled on his handsome face, who had lost a lot of weight in Shaanxi and Gansu, and said with a smile: "Xianzhi, you are not only not wrong, but also you are too right. Haha, I am also stubborn. Why didn't I expect that there would be a third choice besides these two choices?"

"Really? Students... Students are lucky, I happened to think of it." Shi Kefa was so excited when he saw that Master Zhang had rarely adopted his military advice. Song Xiance next to him poured cold water and said, "Boss, Xianzhi, don't think too beautifully. We know that Jiannu sent troops in September is the most beneficial to us. Can the old fox Nuerhaci not know? There is also the more treacherous Huang Taiji, who will wait for us for a month, so that the boss, you can sharpen the knife quickly and then deliver it to the boss to chop you?"

"This... is true." After being hit by Song Xiance's cold water, Shi Kefa, who was already lacking in confidence, was first discouraged. Wu Chunfu next to him also interrupted: "Zhang Shaobao, although the subordinates do not understand military affairs, they also think that Master Song's words make sense. Nuerhaci, the old Jiannu, is famous for being treacherous and sloppy, and it is probably not easy to listen to our arrangements."
Chapter completed!