In the evening, Zhao Yong had already had his finely forged armor moved to Longtai Hall.
The armor resting on the wooden frame looked like an imposing general from a distance.
Seeing each other again after a few months was really like meeting old friends again.
Since Zhao Yong succeeded to the throne, his weapons have been changed countless times, but his armor has never been changed. There are obvious repair marks and dents on its body, which are badges marking the battlefield.
Such a pair of finely forged armor is the dream of all soldiers in this era. Coupled with the formidable helmet and the terrifying face armor, they will be the nightmare of the enemies on the battlefield.
Zhao Yong picked up the silk cloth on the side and wiped the oil stains on it himself. The armor has been well maintained and apart from some oil stains on it, there is no problem at all.
The army was about to set out for battle, and he had a lot more to think about in the past two days.
Qi, Qin, Yan, Chu, Wei, South Korea, and even Song, Yue and other countries... from the initial battle for fame to the current battle for land.
People have gradually figured out the rules of this new era.
However, new rules naturally require new protagonists.
In the previous battles, it can be said that Zhao Jun participated in the battle passively.
Only this time, it was Zhao who took the initiative.
Although he has been working hard to change the direction of history.
But there is always a hidden worry in Zhao Yong's heart. The fate of starving to death is the nightmare that Zhao Yong wants to escape from deep in his heart.
Zhongshan Kingdom, that coveted fertile land, may be the most critical step for him to escape his fate.
"Your Majesty." At this moment, a gentle call suddenly came from behind.
Zhao Yong's tense hands slowly released the ferocious visor that he was holding tightly. He turned his head to face the visitor and said with a smile: "Rong'er, there's no need to be polite. Get up."
The person who came was none other than Ji Yao's concubine Teng, one of King Zhao's nine concubines, Ji Rong. Recently, the rules of the harem have been gradually formed. The concubines and female officials generally follow the order of yin, qing and wan, and tonight it should be Ji Rong's turn.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Ji Rong said with joy on her face.
Ji Rong seemed to have seen Zhao Yong's armor for the first time. She walked over with curiosity on her face and whispered: "When we get to the battlefield, will the king wear this armor?"
Zhao Yong turned back and glanced at her. Every time he looked at this face, he would feel a sense of guilt in his heart. All he saw was that Ji Rong in front of him looked like a little loli. Although Ji Rong is Ji Yao's niece, her actual age should be seventeen years old, but her face looks only fourteen or fifteen years old, especially with her current expression. I really don’t know how I was able to do it at that time.
He retracted his thoughts, smiled at his mother, nodded and said: "Generally, a set of soft armor is worn inside the lining, and this set of piercing armor is worn on the outside. In this way, the enemy's arrows, swords and guns are protected. Not easy to break.”
"Will Your Majesty go to the battlefield in person?" A look of worry appeared on Ji Rong's face.
Zhao Yong explained impatiently: "Zhao has thousands of chariots, one hundred thousand cavalry, hundreds of thousands of armored men, and countless generals who are capable of conquering and fighting. Under normal circumstances, a few people do not have to go into battle to kill the enemy in person. "
Ji Rong's little face suddenly showed a look of understanding.
"But if there is a real crisis, in order to protect the people of Zhao and Ronger, I will still stand up and personally repel all invading enemies." Zhao Yong continued with a serious face.
Ji Rong raised her pretty face, stared at the person in front of her with her beautiful eyes, and said infatuatedly: "Your Majesty... I haven't seen your majesty in battle yet..."
Zhao Yong smiled, did not reply, turned his head and started busy with the movements in his hands.
The young lady seemed to be moved by love, and said in a faint tone: "I have been looking forward to seeing the king every day in the palace. After waiting for many days, I finally saw him. But... the king is going on an expedition again, and I don't know when we can see him again. ?”
"If the battle goes well, we can return before mid-autumn." Zhao Yong blurted out.
Perhaps seeing that Zhao Yong was very careful and conscientious in wiping his armor, Ji Rong murmured and asked, "Does the king like to fight?"
Zhao Yong was stunned for a moment, and stopped wiping his hands. He suddenly sighed, put the handkerchief on the shelf next to the armor, turned back to look at Ji Rong and said seriously: "Rong'er, you know, the stronger the country, the better." If a country becomes strong, it will perish. In this time of great chaos, war can only be stopped.
I don't like fighting, but this is the way the world is. If you don't fight him, he will attack you. Now the countries are attacking and fighting, rituals and music have collapsed, and there is no morality at all among the princes. A few people fight not because they like it, but as a way to bring order to chaos. It is precisely to stop killing with killing and to rule the world with law. "
Ji Rong looked at him in surprise, speechless for a moment. What Zhao Yong said obviously touched on her knowledge blind spot.
Zhao Yong exhaled again, why is he saying these big things to a little loli.
Waving his hand, he stopped tinkering with his iron knot. Wouldn't it be lonely to watch the spring night alone with the beauty by your side?
He took the silk handkerchief on the side and wiped his hands, then asked Ji Rong to take a bath and go to bed.
Compared with the military life that is about to be rough and rough, living in a quiet and luxurious country is really unforgettable.
However, happy and comfortable days are always short-lived.
Time is like sand, spring is getting stronger, and on March 27th, the army goes out to worship.
Zhao Yong reviewed the last 20,000 cavalry at the Grand Campus south of Yonghe Gate, and then prayed to heaven under the leadership of the high priest, declaring the justice of the use of troops, hoping to get God's permission. Finally, I went to the Zhao family's ancestral temple to worship the souls of the Zhao family's ancestors. It was also to report the expedition to the ancestors and seek the blessings of the Zhao family's ancestors.
As usual, Zhao Yong is familiar with the prayer process, but every time he worships, he has different insights, from the initial shock, to the later doubts, and now to the piety.
After paying homage to the ancestral temple, he took off his gorgeous and noble crown clothes and put on his unattractive armor again.
With a big belly, Ji Yao led the concubines to the gate of the Zhao Palace.
Zhao Yong, wearing heavy armor, took the reins from the guard and mounted his horse.
Although Ji Yao and other concubines said a lot of blessings, they had already secretly wiped away tears.
A touch of warmth flashed in Zhao Yong's eyes. He sat on the horse and shouted loudly: "Zhongshan is unjust. He repeatedly invades the territory of our Zhao country, invades our borders and kills our Zhao people. I lead the army to go out to do justice for heaven." "
The guards and soldiers inside and outside the palace shouted: "Do justice for heaven! Do justice for heaven!" In an instant, the shouts of "do justice for heaven..." echoed endlessly inside and outside the palace.
Zhao Yong turned his head and looked back at Yingying Beauty. "Please wait for the good news of my victory!"
After saying that, he stopped looking at the expressions on their faces and rushed out of the palace gate first. The sound of the hoofbeats of a group of cavalry immediately echoed on the brick floor of the corridor.
Tens of thousands of people gathered along the cross streets and near the city gates in Handan City. At this time, they bowed their heads on both sides of the street, sincerely praying to heaven for Zhao's victory.
The guards came out of Handan City and met with the cavalry brigade outside the city. The armor on the road was like a torrent, the flags were like clouds, and the formation was very large.
The two knights at the forefront were holding a hunting flag facing the wind, with the word "Justice" written on it.
... In this battle, Zhao State dispatched more than 100,000 regular troops, except for the 25,000 soldiers in Hejian who were defending Qi State.
About 80,000 people participated in the Battle of Zhongshan: 25,000 cavalry and more than 60,000 infantry and chariots.
There are also more than a hundred civil servants and military officers, and tens of thousands of county citizens have been recruited; war horses, mules and donkeys are even more useless.
The total number of people participating in this battle exceeded 250,000. If in later generations, it could be called 500,000.
The scale of this battle is not small. You must know that in the past two years, even if Zhao State gathered all the troops in the country, it might not be able to come up with 200,000. But now just by gathering Handan, Taiyuan, and Dai, the three counties can easily mobilize 250,000.
The ability to raise troops depends on population, food and financial resources. In addition to frequent wars that have caused serious population losses in various countries, Zhao's land administration reform should be the first contributor.
Now that Zhao has all three, the country's army will naturally increase in number.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development at the beginning of the year, the total population of the country exceeded three million, and this is still the number of registered residents.
Among them, there are especially the Handan Internal History Department, which has the most extensive and fertile land; Taiyuan County in the Hedong Basin; and Dai County, which has abundant water and grass. These three counties have the largest population, accounting for two-thirds of Zhao's population, with a household registration of more than 400,000 and a population of 2 million.
There are 21 counties in Neishi, with 200,000 households, and one million; Taiyuan's thirteen counties, with 100,000 households, and 600,000; Daijun and ten counties, 70,000 households, and 400,000.
Since Shangdang County is located on the dividing line between the three Jin Dynasties, the actual territory controlled by Zhao State in the Shangdang Plateau is not much. There are only 30,000 households and 200,000 people in five counties. In addition, the Shangdang County just captured, the newly established Yanmen, The population of Jiuyuan and Yunzhong counties is not very large.
But no matter what, with Zhao's current national strength, it is not difficult to mobilize the entire country's troops and assemble 150,000 regular troops.
The direct distance from Handan to Hacheng is only more than 200 miles. Twenty thousand cavalry can go all the way north along the Chi Road. There are no obstacles in the plain area, and they can arrive in two days at the normal speed of the cavalry.
This battle is fought quickly, and the situation in Zhongshan must be stabilized before the dust of the war between the countries is settled.
In order to avoid congestion on the Chi Road, Zhao Yong divided the 20,000 troops into four groups. Marching within the country's borders poses no threat, but marching by separate routes makes it easier to obtain local supplies.
In the past two years, the situation in various countries has become more and more tense, and wars have become more and more frequent. Since Zhao Yong succeeded to the throne, he has accompanied the army on numerous expeditions. Anyway, he did not stop for too long during this period. As for marching and camping in the wild, living in tents, dining and sleeping in the open, he I'm used to it. However, during this expedition, I could sleep comfortably on the bed every night, but I suddenly felt uncomfortable.
From Handan to the north, pass through Xingxiang and Bairen to Haocheng. Since the Zhao State established its foothold in Haocheng, the Southern Great Wall built by the Zhongshan State along the Huaishui River was in name only for the Zhao people.
When he arrived at Zhongshan, Zhao Yong did not go directly to Haocheng to gather with the generals. Instead, he took three thousand escort cavalry and detoured around Haocheng to the Zhongshan city around the house.
This was his first visit to Zhongshan Kingdom, and presumably it would also be his last.
Outside the scope of Zhao Guo's control, Zhao Yong can clearly feel that the atmosphere has become solemn. The farmland passed by the riding brigade is all black and scorched. The millet that has just been sown has been burned again, and the nearby villages have already been burned. There were no people around, and the air was filled with a smell of decay.
After walking west for about two-quarters of an hour, a towering city wall appeared in people's sight.
"Your Majesty, you can't go any further." The guard beside him shouted as he quickly galloped his horse to follow.
Without the reminder from the guards, Zhao Yong knew that he could not go forward. Although he was still several miles away from Fangfang City, the arrow clusters on the city head that reflected the cold light had already shown that the people of Zhongshan did not welcome Zhao's arrival.
Zhao Yong took a deep look at Gaocheng, then galloped back on his horse.
The straight-line distance from Fangfangcheng, Hebei Gaoyi to Haocheng, Hebei Guchengdian should not exceed twenty miles. At the speed of cavalry, they can make a round trip in an hour.
Returning eastward from the house, climbing over several earth slopes, you can see the miles-long military camps and the towering rammed earth city wall behind them in less than a moment.
Before Zhao Yong could approach, Zhao Zao, the commander of Haocheng, and the Feiyi generals who had arrived at Haocheng first came to greet him. Everyone bowed to each other, and the group headed towards the city.
The land of Ha has experienced wars for a long time and has been repeatedly fought over by Zhao, Wei and Zhongshan since hundreds of years ago.
Finally, three years ago, the construction of Ha City was completed, and Zhao State began to move people in, and finally decided on the ownership of this place.
Because it is on the front line of the war between the two countries, the scale of the city of Haocheng is completely built in the shape of a frontier fortress. It is divided into two gates, the east and the west. The city wall is about two feet high and at least more than one foot thick. The city is not very large, with a depth of about three hundred feet from east to west.
There is a building on the southwest side of the city that is significantly higher than other houses. This is the county government office of Haocheng.
It was also Zhao Yong's residence for the next few months and the Zhao army's headquarters.
Zhao Yong led the crowd into the county government office and saw that a map of Zhongshan had been laid out in the room.
According to the original strategy, before Zhao Yong's 20,000 cavalry left Handan, the right army led by Li Tong had already taken the lead in launching an attack on Zhongshan. Otherwise, the camps seen outside the city would have covered a radius of ten miles.
According to the original plan, the Zhao army needed to first capture Xiyang City and Donghuan City, which were guarded by the Zhongshan Army on the south bank of the Hutuo River, in order to form a siege on Manjia, and the most important thing was to block the Zhongshan Army's reinforcements on the north bank.
The Zhao State was so powerful in this battle that there was no way to conceal the movements of the army.
Zhao's military attack on Zhongshan is already a certainty.
However, through the secret message from the Metropolitan Procuratorate, in this case, there were still ministers who were pro-Zhao at the Zhongshan court, advising the King of Zhongshan, hoping to have peace talks with Zhao.
Therefore, we must quickly cut off Zhongshan's supply lines before it can react, and turn the south bank of the Hutuo River into an enclave.
The war situation was urgent and the situation had changed. Without much exchange of greetings, everyone began to lay out a new strategy.
