A huge map of Meng and Shu hangs in the military meeting hall.
On the map, the surrounding areas around Shuzhong, especially the circle of icons representing mountains in the north, were undulating. The generals in the White Tiger Festival Hall looked a little solemn.
Since the Western Han Dynasty, heavy rains and earthquakes in the upper reaches of the Han River caused the Han River to be cut off, which has become a problem whether entering or leaving Shu.
Before this, Shuzhong could reach Tianshui directly from Hanzhong through the Western Hanshui River, the upper reaches of the Hanshui River.
In history, whether Sima Cuo attacked Chu from Longyou via Shuzhong, or Liu Bang secretly built a plank road to Chencang, they all transported heavy troops through this golden waterway.
But now, after the West Han River was forced to change its course, it has become the upper reaches of the Jialing River.
The name of Jialing River sounds nice, but it is really not a good waterway. Zhang Hao vaguely remembered that before he crossed, the entire Jialing River was not navigable, let alone now.
This is completely the same as the Han River in the pre-Qin and early Han Dynasties.
At this time, there are generally five roads that can be taken to defeat Shu.
The easternmost part takes the Ziwu Road directly from Zhongnan Mountain south of Chang'an. Historically, Wei Yan's dream of Ziwu Valley refers to this road.
However, during the Shu-Han period, this road was almost as difficult as hell. Cao Zhen walked through it, and the whole army was exhausted and could not get out of the valley.
This period is a little better. Due to climate reasons, the precipitation gradually moves southward. As a result, the Ziwu Valley is not as muddy and prone to flash floods as it was during the Three Kingdoms period, and the difficulty of walking has decreased.
The most important reason is that the Shu army passed through here three years ago. Not only did it pass by, but it was not just a few thousand people, but an army of more than 20,000.
Meng Chang was really pissed off by Zhang Yan's deception and cheating, so he stabbed Zhang Shengren's chrysanthemum in order to seize Guanzhong via Ziwu Road.
Meng Chang recruited more than 100,000 civilians in Xingyuan Prefecture (Hanzhong) alone. In the end, at least three to four thousand people died in corvee work to dredge Ziwu Road.
However, when the Shu army was defeated by Liu Zaisheng in Guanzhong, the panicked Shu army destroyed the channel for their people and money to recover.
After careful consideration, Zhang Gao gave up the idea of taking the Ziwu Road because this road only had two entrances, namely Zikou south of Chang'an and Wukou in Yuanzhou (Yang County, Hanzhong).
Over the years, Meng Shu had been preparing for Zhou to attack them. Wukou Pass had been repaired several times and more than a thousand elite Shu troops were stationed there.
Such a natural danger cannot be conquered in a short time, let alone more than a thousand people stationed, even if it is stationed with 500 people, the Shu army will block Wukou Pass and starve the Zhou army.
To the west of Ziwu Road is the famous Tangluo Road. From the late Han Dynasty to this time, this road was an extremely important route in and out of Hanzhong.
Moreover, it is the shortest distance and the relatively wide plank road. Tang Dezong and Tang Xizong all used the Tangluo Road to go to Shu.
It's just that the Tangluo Road is fast. Unfortunately, it has to cross the Taibai Mountain and cross rivers such as the Luogu River, the Black River, and the Tang River. The requirements for the quality of the soldiers and the organization ability of the army are quite high.
To the west of the Tangluo Road is the more famous Baoxie Road, which is relatively easier for the Zhou army.
Because three years ago, Zhang Chang used the cession of Qin and Feng states as bait and asked Meng Chang to transport 300,000 shi of grain to him, most of which was transported through Baoxie Road.
To the west of Baoxie Road is Chencang Road, which was basically abandoned at this time and completely impassable.
These four roads are all ancient plank roads leading from Guanzhong to Hanzhong. As for the fifth item, take the Qishan Road south from Tianshui Mansion.
After the West Han River was rerouted, although it is no longer possible to reach Tianshui directly from Hanzhong, from Tianshui to Xingzhou (Lueyang) it is not possible to go against the current, but it is still possible to travel along the river for a while.
Therefore, Zhang Zhou currently has two options. One is to attack Hanzhong via the Baoxie Road or the Tangluo Road. The other is to take the Qishan Road south from Tianshui and attack the Chengdu Plain.
Zhang Yan sat at the top and first rejected Ziwu Dao's plan.
Now Zhang Zhou has half of the country, and its population is five times that of Meng Shu. The quality and quantity of the army have an overwhelming advantage. There is no need to take a gambling passage like Ziwu Road.
However, after rejecting the Ziwu Road plan, Zhang Yan did not interfere too much in the military discussions.
Because he did not plan to go to Shu by himself this time. The road to Shu was not just a joke. If he went to Bashu, who knew how long it would take to get out of Sichuan.
And now that Pei Yuan is asked to help him withstand the thunder and destroy the Buddha, Zhang Yan naturally has to stay in the safer base camp of Longyou, Hexi, so that he can quickly come out to put out the fire if there is any trouble.
. . . .
Yin Zhengqi Yin Yaozi coughed lightly. After so many years of working in logistics and supporting everywhere, he finally took the position of the head coach this time during the expedition to Shu.
In the White Tiger Festival Hall, in addition to Yin Yaozi, there were also Li Cunhui, Luo Yuer, Fan Quan, Zhe Deke, Li Rong, Wu Xingde, He Fujin, Zhao Hui, Feng Hui, Gao Huaide, Wang Quanbin, Yue Saonu, Murong Yanzhao, Shi Kuangwei and other generals.
Of course, Zhang Shengren's eagle dogs Zhang Zhaozhong, Zhang Zhaojiu, Wang Tongtong, etc. were also there.
Yin Zhengqi picked up the riding whip, pointed at Tianshui Mansion on the map, and said to Zhang Yan.
"Sage, take the Qishan Road from Tianshui Mansion southward to Xingzhou. Most of the territory in between is under the control of our army, so it is suitable to dispatch large armies.
On the other hand, looking at Baoxie Road, Tangluo Road, etc., the plank roads have been in disrepair for a long time and were destroyed by the Shu army. If you want to go to these two places, you must repair the plank roads and attack at the same time.
Not only was the delay time-consuming, but after taking Xingyuan Mansion (Hanzhong), we still had to take the Jinniu Road and pass through the Jiange to get to Shuzhong. Therefore, I suggested that we should go south from Qishan Mountain with the main force and attack directly in Shuzhong. "
Yin Zhengqi's strategy was exactly what Zhang Yan had in mind. He first made a grand gesture to attack Xingyuan Mansion, and then sent out troops from Qishan.
However, some people had different opinions. Li Cunhui stood up and crossed his hands and said to Zhang Yan and Yin Zhengqi: "The saint, the Duke, and the servant think that it is not the best choice for the main force to go south via the Qishan Road.
Although the Shu army was severely beaten by our army last time when they invaded Guanzhong, their foundation has not been damaged.
Zhang Qianzhao has been guarding Lizhou (Guangyuan) for a long time. He is familiar with the geography and can make soldiers use their lives. He is not an incompetent person.
After Sun Hanshao occupied Fengxiang Mansion last time, his Shu army made no mistakes in Qiu. They advanced and retreated in a well-organized manner. In the end, they were able to retreat despite being extremely disadvantaged.
With him guarding Xingyuan Mansion, if I only sent a partial army to attack, it would be like missing a step and unable to contain the Shu army.
In this way, Sun Hanshao can calmly mobilize his troops from Xingyuan Prefecture and march westward. If the main force of our army cannot attack Xingzhou or Lizhou, it will be too dangerous to be attacked by the Shu army from both sides. "
Yin Zhengqi touched his chin thoughtfully, not at all sullen after being questioned by Li Cunhui.
The first is that Zhang Zhou's military discussions have always been open to the public, and the second is that Yin Zhengqi has always been very open-minded, able to listen without commenting, and even ask questions without shame.
This is also the reason why Zhang Hao felt relieved to let him be the commander-in-chief of the expedition to Shu. Now in this army to conquer Shu, there are ghosts and monsters from various factions. Only Yin Zhengqi, the emperor's cousin, can listen to all parties and suppress them. Gotta keep them.
"The saint, the Duke, and the last general also believe that the main force should be used to attack Xingyuan Mansion."
Zhe Deke also stood up. It seems that after receiving Zhang Gao's order to lead his army into Guanzhong, Zhe Deke was thinking all the way.
"Sage, please see, although the plank road of Baoxie Road is in disrepair for a long time, it is not completely decayed. Many places only need simple repairs to pass the army.
Moreover, there is still a section of Baoshui River that can be used by boats. There is an old city from the Tang Dynasty in the middle of the river section. Our army can use this as a place to store military supplies and supplies.
In this way, the five-hundred-mile Baoxie Road is divided into two sections, and the advance and retreat are all in my hands, so it is safe.
Therefore, we should use our majestic divisions to attack Hanzhong on the Baoxie Road, and then use our elite partial divisions to go south on the Qishan Road as a countermeasure. "
The place Zhe Dehu mentioned was the seat of Liuba County, Shaanxi Province in later generations. This was the only place with a large town among the four roads leading to Hanzhong, and it could indeed be used as a temporary place to store supplies and luggage.
Yin Zhengqi nodded slowly, then looked at Zhang Yan and said: "I proposed to use a large army to take the Qishan Road because this time I conquered Shu, we, Holy Week, are not going to bring an overwhelming army.
If we take the Baoxie Road to attack the Tangtang formation, I am afraid it will be delayed for a long time. If we cannot attack Shimen Pass at the entrance of the valley, we will have to return without success.
And if they choose to take the Qishan Road, the army will use the Western Han River to catch the boatmen unexpectedly and rush to Xingzhou. As long as they can capture it, they will have a foothold.
With the strength of our armies and horses in the Great Zhou Dynasty, we could defeat the Shu army outside Xingzhou City and kill many of the Shu army's brave and capable men. The whole country of Shu must be frightened. Maybe Meng Chang, the leader of Shu, would imitate An Legong of the Shu Han Dynasty. "
After Yin Zhengqi finished speaking, the officers in the White Tiger Festival Hall began to express their opinions. Those who agreed with Yin Zhengqi's quick solution were only slightly less than those who agreed with Li Cunhui's prudent and prudent plan.
Zhang Yan thought about it and found that Yin Zhengqi's plan could not be said to be unreasonable. On the contrary, it was very reasonable. This was also the reason why Zhang Yan also supported this approach.
And he vaguely remembered that when the Northern Song Dynasty destroyed Shu, Wang Quanbin took the Qishan Road southward, and then conquered the Kingdom of Shu in a little more than two months.
Huh?
Wang Quanbin?
Isn't Wang Quanbin in the festival hall?
So Zhang Hao waved to Wang Quanbin, "Wang Erlang, please tell me how we should attack Shu."
ah! Wang Quanbin, who was fishing in the corner, was so frightened that he almost screamed.
At this time, Wang Quanbin was not the famous minister and general who was one of the ten brothers of the Yishe in the Northern Song Dynasty.
On the contrary, when his family entered Tokyo, the poor had to sell their ancestral armor to make ends meet.
It was Zhang Zhang who promoted Wang Quanbin to the capital of Hanshan because of his contribution to protecting Emperor Zhuangzong of the Xingjiao family, and the Wang family became rich.
But compared to other people in the festival hall, Wang Quanbin could only be regarded as a lowly, so he didn't expect Zhang Yan to order his general at this time.
However, Wang Quanbin was not completely unprepared. As a military general, who had not deduced countless times how to pacify the world.
In particular, big countries like Meng Shu and Southern Tang will definitely be the focus of attention.
"I agree with the opinions of Duke Shouchang and Duke Zhe." After hesitating for a while, Wang Quanbin said what he meant. As a warrior, there are not so many twists and turns.
"After the last disastrous defeat of the Shu Army, there are currently only more than 30,000 forbidden troops and various Zhenya soldiers. If they are suddenly recruited, they can only have 30,000 more at most. Moreover, they lack armor, bows and crossbows, and their training is insufficient. They can only be used for Strong momentum cannot really affect the situation of the battle.
Today, I, the Great Zhou Dynasty, can recruit at least 50,000 troops in Guanzhong. With the strength of our army and the strength of 50,000 people, why should we fear a mere 30,000 Shu army? We will attack with a large army at Baoxie Road.
If it succeeds, it can occupy Xingyuan Mansion and make Shu lose its gate. If it fails, it can retreat calmly. How can the Shu army dare to pursue it.
On the Qishan Road, the water of the Western Han Dynasty can go with the current but not against it. If the army at Lizhou City is attacked again by the Shu army from Xingyuan Prefecture, if it cannot be maintained, the losses will be huge. "
Zhang Hao waved his hand to Wang Quanbin to sit down, and then fell into silence. Why did Wang Quanbin also say that?
So Zhang Shengren thought about it carefully. Historically, the Northern Song Dynasty destroyed Meng Shu almost twenty years later.
At that time in Meng Shu, Meng Chang favored a group of sycophants who only knew how to brag. He himself was extravagant, even decorating the urinal with gems, and completely lost his enterprising spirit.
In the army, all the senior generals left by Meng Zhixiang to Meng Chang died, and the entire Shu army was in the same state of ruin as Meng Chang.
Even Gao Yanchou, who could at most be a Marquis of Yu in Zhangzhou, became a rare talent among Shu generals.
That's why Wang Quanbin was able to attack Shu very quickly. He took the Qishan Road from Tianshui all the way south and destroyed countless fortresses of the Shu army in fifty days.
It even took less than ten days to defeat the sword pavilion that one man could guard against ten thousand men. The Shu army basically collapsed within a few hits after taking over the formation.
In the end, after another ten days, Meng Chang surrendered without even seeing the shadow of the Song army.
But this time it was different. Meng Chang was seven years younger than Zhang Yan. He was only twenty-eight now and was still in the stage of wanting to do something.
At the same time, Meng Chang is actually quite skillful. As long as he doesn't mess up, the civil servants and generals of Shu can still be determined to do something.
In terms of generals, Sun Hanshao, Zhang Qianzhao, Shi Kai and others left by Meng Zhixiang to Meng Chang, and even Li Tinggui, who made a fool of himself in history, are still available.
At this time, Meng Shu was not completely lying flat and unable to fight back as he was in the Northern Song Dynasty.
And the most important thing is that when Wang Quanbin attacked Shu, the reason why the Song army even risked their lives to attack natural dangers such as Jiange was because Zhao Kuangyin said when the army set off that he was willing to reward the soldiers with the wealth of Shu.
The reason why Zhao Kuangyin did this was because although Shu at this time was known as the land of abundance, in fact it was difficult to transport the wealth out of Shu due to the blockage of the ancient Han River.
Even if it is reluctantly transported out, if it is transported to Hanzhong, at most 10% or 20% of the 10% transported to the Central Plains will be left.
If we take the water route, if the boat does not capsize when crossing the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River, we may still have a 30% to 40% chance of reaching the Central Plains.
If the boat capsizes, not only will there be no profit, but the boat and the boatman will also have to take a hit.
So Zhao Kuangyin simply used the wealth of Shu to reward the soldiers, and the soldiers' fighting power increased sharply because they could free up looting after conquering Shu.
Therefore, in history, Wang Quanbin could not control the army at all after entering Shu. The Song army looted the middle of Shu, and finally broke out a huge uprising of the entire army.
This is not Wang Quanbin's problem at all. In other words, Wang Quanbin can only bear secondary responsibility. The main responsibility lies with Zhao Da.
From this incident, we can also see that Zhao Da’s pattern is just like that.
Although it is difficult to transport the wealth in Shu out of Shu, it does not mean that it can be wasted at will!
Because it has a better purpose, which is to arm the army with the wealth of Shu, and then go south to recover Nanzhong.
As long as Shu has wealth and elite soldiers, the Zangzhou barbarians will have no choice but to surrender, and Dali will naturally be unable to resist.
Zhao Kuangyin asked his soldiers to plunder Shuzhong, but apparently he had no intention of recovering the land in Nanzhong.
Therefore, it is impossible for Zhang Zhang to plunder Shuzhong to boost morale.
First, it will destroy the good discipline of Zhang Zhou's army. If this thing starts, it will be difficult to stop it.
Second, Zhang Yan still wants to use Shuzhong's wealth to pacify Dali. Zhao Da does not want Nanzhong, but Zhang Yan needs it very much.
After thinking about this, Zhang Hao also understood that it was too risky for him and Yin Zhengqi, mainly because he instilled in Yin Zhengqi's army to take the Qishan Road to attack unexpectedly. The best plan was to follow the instructions of most generals. Agree with the method.
The army entered Hanzhong via the Baoxie Road, and openly fought with the Shu army. Then the elite troops went south from the Qishan Road to sneak attack.
There are only more than 30,000 elites in Shuzhong. If most of them are attracted to Hanzhong, the elites of Qishan Road can play a big role.
If the army takes Hanzhong, the elite troops of Qishan Dao will advance eastward and completely capture the north of Jiange. Meng Shu, who has lost its natural protection, will be destroyed on a day-to-day basis.
If the main force failed to capture Hanzhong, the elite troops of the Qishan Road would follow Wang Quanbin's historical strategy of motivating the soldiers after capturing Xingzhou. They would use the elite troops to cross mountains and ridges and take small roads to directly attack the Chengdu Plain, or block the city. The retreat route of the Shu army in Hanzhong.
With Meng Chang's fragile heart, and the fact that Ma Zhaoyuan, Guo Rong, and Zhao Kuangyin had already taken the water route to Jiangzhou (Chongqing), Meng Chang should be ready to surrender.
