In Ningyuan City, Liaodong Province, in the lobby of Governor Ji Liao's residence, everyone's spirits were lifted, waiting to watch a wonderful show.
Governor Hong Chengchou had just finished his trick of killing chickens and trying to make monkeys out of him, and with extremely strong momentum, he suppressed a few people's criticisms of Liaodong's military.
At this moment, Zhang Cheng actually mentioned the Xingshan grain road again.
Although Zhang Cheng's words were also extremely clever. He first talked about the shortcomings of slaves and bandits, then agreed with Governor Hong's military plan to advance the army, and then mentioned the importance of food routes out of concern for the safety of the army.
But in the eyes of everyone, this is already a bold move!
Just when everyone was full of criticism and waiting to see how Hong Chengchou would deal with Zhang Cheng's misfortune, they saw Hong Duchen saying with a smile: "The whole army is advancing, especially the food and grass. It affects the morale of the army. General Zhang's concerns are correct." It’s the key to my army.”
Everyone in the hall was shocked. He had just sternly reprimanded Zhang Dou, but when he arrived at Zhang Cheng's place, he started to speak again. In fact, Hong Chengchou was already very angry. He secretly cursed: "You are a young boy who dares to question me. Military strategy is really reckless!"
But he also knew in his heart that Zhang Cheng was favored by the Holy Master, and his own soldier Chen Xinjia was supporting him, but he could not take it lightly.
Not to mention Zhang Dou, since the military supervisor Zhang Ruoqi exists as Chen Xinjia's military spokesperson in Liaodong, he also dare not underestimate Zhang Cheng. The more people are confused and elusive, the more powerful he becomes.
Zhang Cheng exists in this way in Hong Chengchou's eyes.
Therefore, it was impossible for him to distract the general with the most troops from him just for this matter, not to mention that he had just scolded Zhang Dou to remind Zhang Ruoqi and let out that bad breath.
While everyone looked surprised, the governor Hong Chengchou said with an elegant and gentle smile: "General Zhang's ability in running the army and fighting wars needs no words, and his outstanding achievements are proof.
I wonder what you can teach me about the Xingshan grain road? "
Zhang Cheng stood up and clasped his fists in salute and said: "Zhang Cheng is a warrior. It is his duty to lead troops to fight for the country, but he does not dare to take credit for it. Today, I only have some superficial opinions. I would like to ask Governor Hong and you to correct me."
After he bowed and sat down, he continued: "According to previous sentinel inspections and torture of Tatars, the slaves and thieves changed their ranks this time. Only the old, weak and tired soldiers were withdrawn, and their strong and brave soldiers were still stationed outside Jinzhou. ,
Including the soldiers who came with the slave chief Dorgon, the number was about 60,000 to 70,000.
The most worrying ones are the nearly 10,000 soldiers and horses led by the three thieves Kong, Geng, and Shang. Not only do they have numerous firearms, but they also have sixty red cannons, which were recently made by the Tatars and should not be underestimated. "
After hearing what Zhang Cheng said, everyone in the hall looked stern. Everyone had fought against slaves and bandits. Although they were not as good as in field battles, they could still maintain a balance of power with the help of firearms and cannons.
But if, as Zhang Cheng said, the three thieves Kong, Geng, and Shang really brought an army of nearly 10,000 firearms, plus 60 red cannons, then the situation would really not be optimistic.
Zhang Cheng continued: "Based on my humble opinion, our division will rush into Songshan with strong troops and strong soldiers. If we can push back the slaves with one blow, not only will the siege of Jinzhou be relieved, but we may also be able to take advantage of the situation to cover up the killing and force the troops to force Yizhou." It can be known.
However, in military terms, we always have to consider the worst case scenario. If our army gathers in Songshan, the first attack will be unfavorable, and we will be in a stalemate with Nu.
He will definitely bring reinforcements from the rear, and it is even more likely that the slave chief Huang Taiji will come in person and even gather all the slave soldiers in the country to attack Jin.
His words made everyone dumbfounded. After thinking about it carefully, everyone felt that this possibility was not impossible!
I heard Zhang Cheng continue to say: "If the slave thieves are at odds with my master, they will inevitably not make a big fuss in the direction of Xingshan.
If they use most of their slave soldiers to fight fiercely with our division in Songshan and fight against our army, and then send another detachment of captive cavalry to come along the Nvnu River and attack fiercely all the way, how long can the defenders of Xingshan be able to hold on?
Furthermore, after the slave thieves captured the cavalry, a large group of handymen Aha accompanied them, and even dug several long trenches outside Xingshan Fort to block our division's food route.
What does Governor Hong think? "
All the officers and generals in the hall felt a chill in their hearts. If Zhang Cheng described this situation, the food route would most likely be completely cut off by slave thieves. From this point of view, there are indeed too few defenders in Xingshan. Hong Chengchou, the governor of Jiliao, also immediately fell into deep thought.
At this time, a strange voice sounded. It was Ma Ke, the commander-in-chief of Shanhaiguan Pass. He said with a smile on his face: "Commander Zhang's words are a bit sensational. How can slaves and traitors come to invade the country?"
Zhang Cheng said seriously: "The military strategist said, 'As a general, you should not worry about victory before thinking about defeat, so you can fight a hundred battles without danger'. When we march to fight, we must consider every possibility."
Marco then continued:
"In this way, as General Chen said just now, our army will be divided when it enters Xingshan.
General Zhang, there is a saying that a divided army is weak. The defeat of Saarhu is right in front of us, so we must guard against it. "
Zhang Cheng smiled and said: "If the food route is controlled by slaves and thieves, and the morale of the army is shattered, it will also end in a huge defeat."
Ma Ke smiled and said flatteringly: "I finally feel that the possibility of the grain road being enforced by General Zhang is very small, and I will support Governor Hong's proposal."
Bai Guangen, the commander-in-chief of Jizhen, also said carelessly: "We haven't yet found out exactly how many slave thieves there are.
General Zhang said that the slave thieves would come to attack our Xingshan...
Hehe, it is indeed sensational. When the slaves and thieves don't come, the soldiers are divided again. Isn't this giving food to the Tatars? "
His rough voice echoed in the lobby, and the burly man shook his head and laughed wildly: "You bitch, you're so ridiculous!"
He slapped his thigh hard, making a loud "pop" sound. His behavior was so rude that all the civil servants across from him frowned.
Zhang Cheng only smiled. He would not be as knowledgeable as this man and lose his own worth.
"Hmph!"
Chen Jiugao couldn't stand how others treated his brother. He snorted loudly to express his extreme dissatisfaction with Bai Guangen. Of course, he also meant to show his kindness to Zhang Cheng.
I saw him shouting loudly: "I think General Zhang's concerns are very reasonable. Fortresses such as Xingshan really need to be guarded by more generals."
Wang Pu, the commander-in-chief of Datong, also said: "Oh, have you started to engage in 'criminal crimes' again?
General Zhang was only considering the safety of our army's retreat. It was really a precautionary measure. However, it became a discussion among some people about dividing the troops. I really can't even understand what people are saying. "
The commanders of the town were suddenly divided into three factions. Since Yang Guozhu, Zhang Cheng and Wang Pu, belonged to Xuanda, he naturally wanted to express his support for Zhang Cheng's side. He believed that to prepare for a rainy day, the retreat path must be left with heavy hills and Miyun soldiers. Tang Tong and Bai Guang'en, the commander-in-chief of Jizhen, did clearly support Ma Ke's opinion and believed that there was no need to keep more troops in Xingshan. They unconditionally supported Hong Duchen's military strategy and seemed to be specifically coming to oppose Zhang Cheng and others.
Then there are generals such as Wu Sangui, Cao Bianjiao, Wang Tingchen, Zuo Guangxian, etc., who are all concerned about the matter. They are all old subordinates and confidants of Governor Hong Chengchou, and they naturally support Hong Chengchou in their hearts. Military strategy, but he did not express his position on the surface. Seeing the fierce debate among the generals in the hall, Hong Chengchou couldn't help but frowned and looked at Zhang Cheng with complicated eyes.
