The spring night is too short to cover up the beauty's sorrow. Slow singing and slow dancing will eventually come to an end.
In September, Handan's preliminary preparations were complete, and Zhao Yong officially led the expedition in person.
The accompanying army is mainly the standing army, that is, the three battalions in the east, west and north that are stationed outside Handan City all year round.
But these more than 30,000 soldiers of all kinds can only be regarded as the main battle force to support the Dai Dynasty. In addition, there are also heavy baggage troops.
Although the war took place in Zhao's homeland, Handan was more than a thousand miles away from Dai, and it was possible for the army to go north to the frontier to chase the Hu. The troops going out for the expedition were mainly infantry. At the speed of infantry marching, it would take half a month to reach Daidi at the fastest. The food consumed during this journey alone would have cost several thousand dan.
Zhao Yong ordered Wu Guang to mobilize 30,000 soldiers from the nearby cities of Handan to provide logistical supplies for the main battle force. At the same time, he also ordered Jinyang, Shangdang and other places to send heavy food troops to support the defenders of Daidi.
The grain reserves of the past two decades were mainly used to supply the daily losses of the local military and civilians. Although there was peace on the border in the past two years, the current grain reserves can never supply the losses of this war.
Now it happens that the eastern plains of Zhao State, which has the most abundant grain production, are hit by floods.
Zhao Tian, the internal historian, made some statistics based on the grain tax data reported by various counties, counties, and cities... Zhao State's annual grain harvest this year totaled less than 150,000 shi (about 9,000 tons). It may seem like a lot at first glance, but this is the total annual income across the country. The expenses for maintaining various places are usually sufficient, but once a war breaks out, it will be a bit stretched.
Just like the current Northern Expedition to Dai Di, the Zhao State needed to concentrate its forces to fight. Naturally all the troops were piled up in Dai Di, so the food supplies in Dai Di would definitely not be able to keep up with the loss of the army. If the food supply is insufficient, it will be necessary to transport food from various places.
Today's transportation is extremely inconvenient and generally relies on human and animal power. Especially transporting food to the army requires a large number of logistics troops, that is, heavy supplies.
In addition to transporting grain and grass, these logistics troops are also responsible for defending against enemy grain robbery along the way. And they are not perpetually moving. They also need to eat. Not only people need to eat, but the animals being transported also need to eat. This results in the food to be transported not only to meet the supply of frontline troops, but also to meet the consumption of transportation troops. Ten thousand shi of grain is transported to the front line, and half of it would be good.
If it weren't for the initial results of the farming strategy, Zhao Guo would really have to break his muscles after this battle.
Zhao State now also has a household registration management and household registration system, but in today's situation, slavery and feudalism coexist, land annexation has begun, and many slaves and lowly people attached to noble families are not included in the population statistics. Since then, the original household registration system has become somewhat primitive and crude.
Therefore, Zhao Yong did not know the exact population of Zhao State, but according to his estimation, the number of soldiers Zhao State could fight at present would not exceed 200,000.
The main battle force of 30,000, plus the accompanying baggage soldiers, plus the 20,000 soldiers who were stationed in the previous generation, this is less than 100,000 troops, which is all the wealth that Zhao can dispatch at this time, and it can be regarded as a nationwide battle.
If they were defeated, the consequences would be disastrous, and the advantages they had just established over other countries would collapse in an instant.
After Zhao Yong discussed with his ministers, he tried his best to completely defeat the Hu people and end this war before the end of the year. In the cold winter, the water and grass withered, and numerous cattle and sheep were killed and injured. The Hu people were mainly nomadic, and their lack of successors was bound to be unsustainable.
After the expedition, Prime Minister Zhao Bao stayed in the capital to maintain the operation of state affairs. His body had recovered somewhat, and the cold had been cured by Bian Que. At the same time, he was assisted by Handan Order Wu Guang to prevent Zhao Bao from overworking.
Wu Guang and Nei Shi Zhao Tian were jointly responsible for coordinating the supply troops.
The army marched out of Handan from the North City in mighty force. There were two gates on the north wall (Desheng and Yonghe), and the main force went through Desheng Gate. The spacious Baima Street was used by the army. There were many people on both sides of the road, eating and drinking in a grand atmosphere of loving and supporting the army.
Since Zhao Yong succeeded to the throne, the State of Zhao first outsmarted the five kingdoms and then reformed the land administration. Now it seems that the reform of land administration has really brought a lot of blessings to the people at the bottom.
Of course, the main reason is... the people on the roadside are mostly soldiers.
Needless to say, there is no need to mention the local soldiers in Handan. In addition, the standing army of the three major battalions are all stationed near Handan, and most of the family records are also here. When a soldier goes out to fight, the family members, young and old, will naturally be worried and worried, and they will often crowd the roadside to say goodbye with tears.
Zhao Yong's ceremonial guard at the front was quite clear and neat, but the troops behind him were not as beautiful. They brought too many things to make the procession messy, that is, flags, armor, and weapons can prove that they are an army.
In addition to the food and baggage, ordinary soldiers also have to carry a lot of things. In addition to their own armor and stomach, they also have long and short weapons issued by the arsenal. These two items alone weigh more than ten kilograms, as well as iron sheets for eating and drinking. Cylinders, broken hammers, hatchets, and most importantly, rations.
Therefore, when it comes to war, countries compete with each other based on their knowledge, while soldiers compete with each other on physical strength.
When Zhao Yong's guard of honor reached outside the city, a high platform was built on the vast land at some point, and all the sacrificial items had already been arranged on the high platform. On it, the high priest of Zhao State was kneeling and praying for something.
The originally noisy farewell team behind him suddenly became quiet, and they knelt down devoutly.
Under the command of the commander, the soldiers formed an orderly formation, waiting for the king's review.
Zhao Yong got off the chariot and walked slowly up to the high platform with a solemn expression. Si Yue, Meng Rou, Luo Huanhuo and other concubines from the harem followed closely, followed by Zhao Cheng, Zhao Bao, Fei Yi and other important ministers.
The great affairs of the country lie in sacrifice and military affairs.
Before a war, the country must be fully prepared militarily, economically, and strategically. In this era, due to the uncertainty and cruelty of war, people naturally feel a sense of fear and helplessness.
The way people eliminate this fear is to place their hope on the protection of the gods and pray for their blessings. This behavior is also called military sacrifice! There are many types of military sacrifices and complex rituals, which run through the entire process of war. According to the time of military sacrifices, they can be divided into sacrifices before the expedition, sacrifices before the battle and sacrifices after the war.
In the army of the State of Zhao, there was a 'team' dedicated to pre-war sacrifices, called the 'junshe', which contained priests and sacrificial soldiers who specialized in operations.
Today's era is an era where divine power and royal power coexist. In the eyes of the common people, the monarchs of various countries have to accept the destiny of heaven before they can rule all the people. The relationship between the concept of ghosts and gods and the patriarchal system is inseparable. Military sacrifices not only played a role in inspiring military morale and fighting spirit, but also a means of restraint.
According to Zhao Yong's previous concepts, this kind of behavior is undoubtedly backward, ignorant, and ungiveable. But when he really entered this cruel and real world, he realized how naive he was before.
The pre-war sacrifices include: offering sacrifices to the gods, offering sacrifices to the ancestral temple, and offering sacrifices to the country.
Zhao Yong knelt down in front of the sacrificial tripod and heard the high priest murmuring in his ears: "It's all like God, all created by you (here you refer to the ancestral temple), all the way to the society..."
The sound of murmuring made Zhao Yong confused.
But God seemed to sense the piety of the high priest. The west wind roared, the fire in the sacrificial cauldron suddenly became fierce, and the military flags under the stage were blown loudly.
After a moment of silence, the high priest slowly turned around and bowed deeply to Zhao Yong, then turned and retreated towards the audience.
Taibu, who was standing aside, knelt down and whispered a few words in Zhao Yong's ear.
Zhao Yong nodded slightly, then stood up and walked slowly to the front of the stage. The concubines and important ministers behind him also stood up immediately and stood behind him, their faces solemn.
Zhao Yong held his long sword in his hand, glanced at the armies in the audience, and said word by word: "Today, Lou Fan and Lin Hu betrayed our alliance and betrayed our righteousness, and invaded our northern border! They wantonly provoked a war, killed my comrades, and kidnapped them. My wife and children have destroyed my home! Today I will take you and others to the land of Dai, and you and I will follow me across the Great Wall to eliminate the troubles from the northern frontier of our Zhao Kingdom!"
"My king will live for ten thousand years, and the Kingdom of Zhao will live for thousands of years! My king will live for ten thousand years, and the Kingdom of Zhao will live for thousands of years! My king will live for ten thousand years, and the Kingdom of Zhao will live for thousands of years..."
The soldiers in the audience immediately shouted in unison, and the shouts were drowned out by the howling wind, echoing in the sky and lingering for a long time!
"Come here! Get some wine for my warriors! I will personally serve our Zhao country's warriors!"
…
…
Three days later, the Zhao army arrived at Yanyu (now Heshun, Shanxi). Handan was three hundred miles away from Yanyu. The Zhao army arrived in three days. It can be said that it was marching at full strength.
Zhao Yong only dared to order the whole army to speed up and move forward after running for eighty miles in one day, that is, within the territory of Zhao State.
Yanyu is a large city located at the junction of Han and Zhao. It is built on the Taihang Mountains in the east, Jinyang in the north and Shangdang in the south. It is also the only way to go north from Handan. It originally belonged to Han. During the period of Zhao Xiangzi and Obtained in exchange for Han.
Yan and the guard general called him Xuncheng, who were already waiting outside the city to reward the army.
Zhao Yong had already ordered that the towns the army passed along the way should be used to supply the army with food and supplies for the day.
In order to prevent the army from disturbing the people, it was also ordered that the army should be stationed outside the town.
At the same time, Zhao Yong set an example for the soldiers of the three armies and spent the night with the soldiers in the military camp for several days.
As the autumnal equinox approaches, the days become shorter and shorter.
Before the hour passed, the night quietly covered the day, and the moonlight did not know when to replace the setting sun.
Outside Yanhe City, Zhao's camp spread out in all directions with Zhao Yong's royal tent as the center, covering an area of more than ten miles in a dark mass. The faint moonlight shone, and the entire camp was reflected like a blazing fire dragon.
The auxiliary tent next to the central king's tent was brightly lit with candles.
On the table in the middle of the big tent, a carefully drawn map of Kan was spread across the table.
Zhao Yong sat cross-legged at the top, staring at the drawings and tapping a few words irregularly with his fingers.
"Your Majesty, there is no movement at Loufanren on the border of Guodi. With the marching speed of the soldiers, it will take at most ten days to reach Daicheng. Do we, the Zhao army, need to divide some of our troops to stay in Yan and Zuojin?" Beiying Captain Zhang Yuan spoke up.
At noon today, news came from the scouts of the advance troops that the main troops in Loufan, which had originally gathered at Guodi and Fenshui, suddenly disappeared, leaving only a few thousand remnant troops to continue the harassment.
As for whether they went north or retreated to the hinterland to wait for opportunities and plot east of the river, Zhao Yong and others were not sure for a while.
"The division of troops is inappropriate, and Jinyang's troops are strong. I believe that Jinyang's troops alone are enough to defend the land east of the river." Zhao Cheng said.
During this northern expedition, Zhao Yong was afraid that his good third uncle would cause trouble by staying in Handan, so he ordered him to go north with the army. At the same time, he also wanted him to see the combat effectiveness of the new army. After all, practice is the best proof.
"I agree with what Grand Sikou said, even if Lou Fan's army goes south, it will not be able to defeat Lang Meng (Yangqu, Shanxi) for a while. And if our army is divided, once Lou Fan's army goes north to join forces with Lin Hu, the whole country will be in danger. Niu Zan, the captain of Xiying, agreed.
When Zhao Yong heard this, he glanced at him subconsciously.
Niu Zan openly opposed the reform of the military system when he was conducting military exercises at Handan Camp. Now that he thinks about it, he must be the backbone of the conservative faction.
Zhang Yuan bowed his head again and said: "If Loufan joins forces with the Qin army, Qin will take the opportunity to cross the Luoshui River and attack us at Dingyang (southeast of Yan'an, Shaanxi), Pingdu (Zichang County, Shaanxi), Lin and Lishi." The city is in danger."
Zhao Yong nodded slightly, turned to look at Fei Yi, and asked, "What do you think, Captain Guo?"
Fei Yi was dull for a moment, and then carefully analyzed: "I think it is not necessary to divide the troops. Now that the Qin State's movements are unknown, and it has not started a war with our Zhao State, hastily dividing the troops may not be conducive to the war situation. Besides, even if Lou Fan goes south, he will not go to war. It is most likely that they will join forces with the Qin army, and Loufan's raids southward have always been based on Langmeng, unless they cross the Luliang Mountains eastward, but that is obviously unlikely."
Zhao Yong nodded slightly, and then said to Zhang Yuan: "I am very relieved by your concern. However, the situation is not yet clear, so let's not mention the division of troops for the time being."
"Here!" Zhang Yuan could only bow his head.
Zhao Yong waved his hand and then said to everyone: "Please go down and have a rest first. We will continue to march north tomorrow morning and try to get there as soon as possible..." Before Zhao Yong finished speaking, anxious reports from the guards came from outside the tent: " Your Majesty, there is an urgent report from Wei Wen."
Weiwen? Lin Hu launched an offensive? The ministers present were all shocked.
"Hurry up!"
The active range of the Linhu clan has always been in the Guping (Datong) and Hetao (Ulanqab, Inner Mongolia) areas, which is the north of Zhao State today.
Lin Hu has been silent since the news of Erhu's southern invasion in the Mid-Autumn Festival, which even made the Zhao monarchs and ministers think that Lou Huan's information was wrong.
As soon as Zhao Yong finished speaking, a cavalryman with a plume on his helmet broke into the tent. After entering the tent, the cavalryman immediately knelt down on one knee and gave a military salute to Zhao Yong who was at the head. Then he tremblingly stepped out of his arms. He took out a steaming silk book.
Chen Zhong hurriedly stepped forward to take it, then turned around and handed it to Zhao Yong.
Zhao Yong couldn't wait to unfold the silk book and carefully scanned the contents of the letter. The further he looked down, the more solemn his expression became. After a while, he folded the brocade silk slightly, turned to the messenger and said, "Your mission has been completed. You can go down and rest peacefully for the night."
"Here! Thank you, Your Majesty." The messenger bowed deeply, then lowered his head and stepped back out of the tent.
