Chapter 21 Strategic Direction
He Xi said: "There are hundreds of thousands of Southern troops along the Yellow River, and Xu Da is the commander. Not to mention, it is difficult for Xu Da to fight. Even if we can defeat it, how much will our loss be? And we have to absorb the Battle of Hejian Our experience is to open up more battlefields. The battlefields we open up can keep the scale of firepower from declining, but even if the southern army has manpower, it is difficult to have comparable firepower."
"We are holding a stalemate with the Southern Army along the Yellow River and opening up another battlefield? What battlefield to open? Shanxi?" Zhu Xiongying asked.
He Xi said: "We haven't thought this through yet. However, opening another battlefield is the best strategy for us."
There are some things that are not suitable in the Shanxi battlefield.
Shanxi is surrounded by many rocks and barriers. We only need to defend a few passes, but no matter how many troops there are, they cannot be used.
Not to mention that it was Geng Bingwen who guarded Shanxi.
Although Geng Bingwen did not perform well against King Yan in history, what Geng Bingwen is best at is not offense, but defense. He is an expert in defensive warfare and used his own force to contain Zhang Shicheng's main force.
Not everyone can do this.
There is also a plan to directly attack the northwest region instead of attacking Shanxi. There is a problem with this too.
That's the logistics.
From Beijing to Shaanxi, the closest route is through Shanxi, and after entering Shanxi, you can also use water transportation on rivers such as Fenhe River. However, it is not impossible to bypass Shanxi and directly cross the Yellow River from Datong into northern Shaanxi.
It's theoretically possible.
Without him, the efficiency of land transportation would be too low.
For thousands of miles of transportation, the freight is several times, even ten times, that of the transported materials. It's simply not worth the gain. Especially in the age of firearms, the military's reliance on logistics was completely different. In the age of cold weapons, it is possible to rely on the enemy for food and fight without a rear.
But in the age of firearms, it was almost impossible.
From Datong to northern Shaanxi, this offensive route is almost impossible to maintain an army with full firepower. In other words, bypassing Shanxi and entering Shaanxi to fight would certainly make it difficult for the Southern Army to resist, but it would also make it difficult for the Northern Army to maintain it, not to mention whether Shanxi Geng Bingwen would take action on the logistics line.
The overall idea of creating another battlefield is certain. It's not that they won't fight along the Yellow River, but they just don't seek a decisive victory along the Yellow River. He Xi is even worried that if the army crosses the Yellow River, someone will use water to replace troops.
Don't overestimate the bottom line of generals in this era.
In the chaotic times of the late Yuan Dynasty, sometimes the lower the bottom line, the better able to survive and achieve success.
But now, everyone has become famous and rich. But corner them. They may not return to their old business.
"Will the military expenses for the Zhangde Mansion battle be allocated?" Yang Shiqi asked.
He Xi was stunned and said, "The money hasn't been distributed yet?"
The Battle of Zhangde Mansion was actually the Battle of Northern Henan envisioned by Sheng Yong. Zhangde Mansion is the Anyang of later generations. Ye Chen and Tie Xuan had long wanted to continue fighting south and conquer this area. Although Tie Xuan is now just the governor of Hebei. But the land in Shandong, Henan, Yellow River and north was all under his control.
Now Tie Xuan is the governor of Hebei Province.
In the future, when the world is unified, Tie Xuan, a cabinet bachelor, will be indispensable.
In fact, after the Battle of Hejian, Changde can be defeated by taking advantage of the situation. It's just that there are always a lot of endings to the Battle of Hejian. This matter was delayed.
Yang Shiqi said: "The pressure below is fierce, but I always have to leave some margin for the court."
Yang Shiqi's mind was also very simple. After the Battle of Hejian, the court spent a lot of money. There are even some expenses, but Yang Shiqi doesn't know how much they are before they are spent. At this time, the cash you can grab is the most important.
Strategically speaking, the battle of Zhangde was a ripe peach that could easily be obtained. The longer you delay, the bigger the problem becomes. However, in Yang Shiqi's view, the immediate victory or defeat on the front line is not more important than the financial health of the rear.
He Xi said: "Then give it. The sooner the better."
Yang Shiqi said: "Yes."
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He Xi finished all these things and returned home.
The following people came to report, and a contact came to visit him many times.
He Xi asked calmly: "Is there anything special about this person?"
As He Xi's status increased, it was not easy to see He Xi. There are countless people who want to see him. No matter how many days they wait or how many times they visit, if there are no special circumstances, the people below will not come forward.
"Sir, this person is from the Southwest Guild Hall."
"Southwest Guild Hall?" He Xi said.
"Exactly." The person below said.
He Xi secretly thought: "Mu family."
He Xi naturally knew the background of Southwest Guild Hall. He Xi didn't care about this person, but he had to care about the Mu family. It goes without saying that the Mu family's status in Yunnan is high. Today, the status of the Mu family in Yunnan is not as good as that in the later period of history, when the Mu family had been guarding Yunnan for several generations.
Now the Mu family is only the second generation in Yunnan.
Even the Mu family themselves did not realize that the Mu family would rule Yunnan forever.
From a historical perspective, Mujiashi Town in Yunnan seems to be a matter of course. But in fact, there are many coincidences in Mujiashi Town Yunnan. Among them, the Battle of Jingnan was a big coincidence. After Jingnan, during the Yongle period, although Southwest surrendered to King Yan, there was a lot of uncertainty in it. Otherwise, Yongle would not have been looking for Jianwen Yudang all his life.
The Mu family became an important tool for Yongle to stabilize the southwest.
In addition, Southwest Tusi is indeed a mess and needs someone to guard it.
As time passed, Mujiashi Town became a reality. Later, the court followed suit.
If the subsequent dynasties intend to continue the situation of the Mu family's world town, then the Mu family themselves may not have the idea of this world town at the beginning.
However, this is all for later.
He Xi paid attention to the Mu family because of their strength. Although Beijing has some advantages over Nanjing, generally speaking, the situation in which the north is weak and the south is strong still exists. So at this time, someone can be pulled over from Zhu Yunwen's camp. It not only weakens the enemy, but also strengthens oneself.
Why not?
He Xi said, "Have you checked?"
"I checked, and it turns out it's from the southwest. But I don't know exactly what the situation is in the southwest." The person below answered.
He Xi also understood that his intelligence network could not reach the southwest region yet. It's normal to not understand. But knowing that the other party is from the southwest is enough.
He Xi said: "Let's meet."
After a while, Zhao Zongshou came over. When he saw He Xi, he immediately saluted and said, "The common people have met Mr. Chief Assistant."
He Xi said: "Get up. What did the Mu family send you to do?"
Zhao Zongshou said: "The grassroots are not sent here by the Mu family. But they can also be regarded as sent by the Mu family."
It's not that Zhao Zongshou hasn't thought of other ways, but after thinking about it, there is really no way. He was unfamiliar with the place in Beijing and could not get through He Xi's door on his own. I can only think of ways to borrow someone else's name. The only one who can borrow a name is the Mu family.
After all, the Mu family is the largest hilltop in the southwest.
But borrowing the name means borrowing the name, but there are some things that cannot be done too blatantly. If he now says he is from the Mu family. He Xi didn't even need to come forward. As soon as He Xi's people met Mr. Bai, their secrets would be revealed.
At that time, I don’t know how to die.
This is why I said it a bit vaguely.
He Xi didn't talk at all, just listened coldly. Let's hear what Zhao Zongshou has to say.
Zhao Zongshou originally wanted to wait for He Xi to ask, but when He Xi did not ask, he could only continue: "The common people are Zhao Zongshou, the magistrate of Longzhou, who was saved by the Nanjing puppet government. Today, the chieftains in the southwest have been suffering in Nanjing for a long time. Please also ask Mr. Chief Assistant will uphold justice."
When He Xi heard about Zhao Zongshou's official position, he couldn't help but think about it, and finally remembered who the magistrate of Longzhou was.
He thought for a moment, thinking about many things in his mind, thinking about his southwest policy, and finally decided
We must give Zhao Zongshou a chance. After all, in He Xi's view, it is certainly good to have the southwest be transformed into a king in history. But if you calculate the cost and output, it is not very cost-effective. If the help from Southwest Chieftain is big enough, He Xi won't mind making some concessions. Said: "Since you have an official position, don't call yourself a commoner."
Zhao Zongshou was overjoyed and said, "I obey your orders."
