Zhang Shigui was also a veteran on the battlefield. He fought in the north and south throughout his life. Although his reputation was not as famous as that of Li Jing, Li Ji, and Cheng Yaojin, his achievements were not inferior. He rose up in troubled times and was unparalleled in bravery, but he did not have extravagant hopes of conquering the world and separatist power. Instead, he "waited for the auspiciousness of the hegemon", looking forward to a figure like Liu Bang, the great ancestor of the Han Dynasty who stationed troops and hegemony... …
Until the Sui and Tang Dynasty, Li Yuan, the Duke of Tang Dynasty, raised troops in Jinyang and occupied Chang'an. He then "sent envoys to lose money" and led his rebel army to defect. From then on, he became a general of Li and Tang Dynasty, with great fame and outstanding military exploits.
People at the time praised him for his "heroic and elegant calculations, which are a metaphor for the turning of Fubo; decisive victory and push forward, and the formation of Changshan Mountain". This shows that even if Zhang Shigui's military strategy is not the best in the world, it is probably only inferior to that of a few people such as Li Jing. under……
At this moment, standing on the Xuanwu Gate, I looked down at the Youtun Guards battle formation, and I could see at a glance the strategy adopted in arranging the troops: "Your Highnesses, please see, generally speaking, although artillery is powerful, it needs to be heavily guarded, otherwise once Being bullied to the front by the enemy, not only the power will be lost, but also very likely to be destroyed by the enemy, so they all put the gunpowder in the rear array and heavily guard it. But now the right camp guard has pushed out all the artillery in the camp and lined up in a line. Putting it under the enemy's eyelids and letting the enemy see it clearly is beyond expectation."
Princess Jinyang lay on the arrow stack and looked forward. After looking for a long time, she couldn't see any mystery. She turned her head, blinked and asked, "Why is this?"
Zhang Shigui obviously loved the little princess very much. His eyes were fascinated. The smile on his face was as warm as charcoal fire, and his tone was as gentle as the spring breeze. He said warmly: "Judging from the performance, this is a shock to the enemy." There were so many artillery pieces in the Youtun Guards, so they retreated in spite of the difficulties. In essence, they were just being strong on the outside and doing things on the inside."
Princess Li Jing was puzzled: "Why is this? The artillery is so powerful. With so many artillery lined up, the rebels must be afraid!"
"hehe!"
Zhang Shigui stroked his beard and smiled. He had no trace of the demeanor of a general who guarded the imperial city and commanded the Beiya Imperial Army. He was like an old country man with kind eyebrows and kind eyes: "Although the veteran knows little about artillery, he also knows that although it is extremely powerful, its lifespan is limited and it can fire a certain amount of fire." After the shell is fired, the barrel will be damaged, and if it cannot be replaced in time, there is a danger of exploding the barrel.”
The implication is that most of these artillery pieces have been scrapped, and the reason why they are pushed out in front of the array at this moment is just to deter the enemy.
Princess Jinyang turned back to look at the majestic artillery outside the Youtunwei camp. The enemy in the distance had obviously stopped moving forward. She was particularly confused and said: "But Mr. Guo, how do you guess that these artillery have actually been disabled? Are the guards just trying to scare the rebels?"
Zhang Shigui smiled even more happily: "Of course the old minister is not sure, but the rebels are not sure either. If the old minister guesses wrong, it will at most make a joke in front of His Highness, but if the rebels guess wrong, they will risk being cannoned The risk of an indiscriminate bombing.”
Princess Jinyang suddenly realized, stroking her hands and smiling sweetly: "That's it! This idea must have come from Lady Wu, only she can be so cunning!"
Princess Changle on the side said angrily: "How can you talk like this? You are uneducated! In fact, it may not be just to scare people. You see, although those artillery are lined up in a row, they are just in front of the infantry array. If the enemy launches a charge, these The artillery can just stop the impact of the enemy's cavalry, and the effect is much better than those of the horse-rejecting and deer villages."
Zhang Shigui praised: "Mrs. Wu is proficient in the art of war and has extraordinary strategies, and His Highness is as clear as a mirror and extremely intelligent. She is truly a woman who cannot be outdone by others. The Youtun Guards may not be afraid of these rebels, but after all, the camp is empty of troops. How can we not fight?" This battle will naturally make the rebels retreat in the face of difficulties. If not, these artillery can also be used to frighten the enemy and block the cavalry, which really kills two birds with one stone."
The leaders nodded repeatedly, feeling that this cunning strategy must have come from Wu Meiniang. The little lady was beautiful, but full of conspiracy and calculation, and very cunning. This was much better than Princess Gaoyang.
Li Junxian, who had been silent all the time, suddenly said: "The rebels have retreated!"
*****
Can you not withdraw?
Since the day when the Guanlong clan launched their troops, they have really suffered from too much artillery. Originally, he mobilized heavy troops hoping to capture the Foundry Bureau and seize the firearms in the warehouse to attack the imperial city. However, the academy students entered first and resisted desperately. Then Xin Mao broke through the encirclement and reached Kunming Lake, sailing warships on the lake and carrying artillery. The bombardment of the rebels who besieged the foundry caused heavy casualties to the rebels, which directly led to the final explosion of the warehouse full of gunpowder.
The Zuo Tun Guard, the only fully-staffed army in Guanzhong, suddenly launched an attack. They joined forces with the royal army commanded by Li Yuanjing and stormed the Right Tun Guard camp with an overwhelming force. However, they were blown away by artillery and their armor was thrown off. Corpses were scattered all over the field. Lose or lose.
The power of artillery was vividly demonstrated in this military remonstrance. Its power of breaking mountains and cracking rocks was beyond human power, and it made the rebels frightened.
General Guan Long, who was in charge of this army, saw the Youtun Guards pushing out all the artillery pieces and opening them in a row in front of the camp. Naturally, he was frightened and had many guesses in his heart, but how could he dare to take a gamble? Once the bet is wrong, so many artillery fire at the same time, so many of my own troops will be turned into ashes in an instant...
In desperation, they could only play it safe and lead the army to retreat slowly until it was determined that the artillery of the Youtunwei was out of reach. Then they stopped and asked for instructions from the city while being careful about the movements of the Youtunwei. After all, the most important task at the moment is to prevent Fang Jun's army from crossing the Wei River to attack Chang'an. Anyway, the Youtun guards dare not leave Xuanwu Gate without permission, so there is no need to be embarrassed.
…
In the Youtunwei camp, Colonel Ashina Daozhen watched the rebel flags slowly retreating in the wind and snow from a distance, admiring Wu Geng: "Mrs. Wu is extremely resourceful, I will admire her so much!"
Gao Kan led an elite force to the west to meet Fang Jun's army. Naturally, the troops in the Youtunwei camp were empty, and most of the artillery was damaged. Once the rebels desperately launched a fierce attack, even if they could hold the camp, they would suffer heavy casualties, and ten thousand Once a camp is lost, the rebels will face the Xuanwu Gate, and the situation suddenly changes.
Ashina Dao really "went through the back door" to enter the Youtun Guard. Although he was the son of the famous general Ashina Sheer after the Turkic Chuluo Khan, he lacked merit and prestige in the Youtun Guard. Although his official position was only below Gao Kan, But when Gao Kan led his troops out, how could he dare to make a decision at a critical moment?
Even if he dares to make a decision, he must be convinced by everyone in the army... He can only turn to Princess Gaoyang, who is temporarily living in the army.
Strictly speaking, this move is suspected of passing the buck...
However, Princess Gaoyang will not care about this at such critical times. The question is how does she know how to arrange her troops? Fortunately, Wu Meiniang was cunning. Although she had never led an army, she had read several military books in her spare time. In addition, she was indeed talented in this area, so she proposed to use such a strategy of "making something out of nothing" to remove all the scrapped artillery. They lined up in front of the camp, betting that the rebels would not dare to charge with artillery.
Even if the bet loses and the rebels still charge regardless, these scrapped artillery can also play the role of blocking horses and deer villages, blocking the charge of the rebel cavalry and gaining more strategic space for the infantry of the Youtun Guard.
Moreover, there are still more than 20 artillery pieces that have not been scrapped, and there are also some artillery shells. Bombarding them at critical moments can deter the morale of the rebels and cause great damage...
At this time, after hearing Ashina Daozhen's praise, Wu Meiniang, who was dressed as a man in military uniform, had a serious and calm face and said crisply: "Although the rebels retreated, they did not withdraw. It is obviously to monitor our army."
After just a brief thought, he guessed the key: "Order the scouts in the army to go west to the vicinity of the Zhongwei Bridge, mark the artillery to shoot at the various elements, and if there are rebels who come to intercept when Lang Jun returns to help, they can use it from a long distance." Fire the artillery, bombard the enemy array, and lend a helping hand to Mr. Lang!"
In the army of this era, the influence of the commander is extremely serious. Those commanders with strong strength and extraordinary charisma can often turn a court army into a private army. The whole army only obeys the orders of one person. If you change the commander, you will not be able to do it immediately. .
Since the day when Youtun Guards was reorganized, Fang Jun had put all his efforts into it. The whole army was imbued with Fang Jun's will and style, and the lieutenant generals and soldiers were obedient to orders. Therefore, Wu Meiniang was able to give orders as a woman. , No one in the army is dissatisfied.
Regardless of these identity factors, Wu Meiniang's wisdom alone has shocked Ashina Daozhen into a world, and she happily accepted the order at this moment.
The scouts were all out, and at the same time, the remaining twenty or so artillery pieces in the camp quietly moved to the west side of the camp, and under the cover of the army, aimed their muzzles at the Zhongwei Bridge in the northwest.
(End of chapter)
