Zhang Yi suddenly woke up from deep thought after hearing this. When he saw His Majesty looking at him doubtfully, he hurriedly reported back:
"Your Majesty, I was just recalling what Your Majesty said. I was so lost in thoughts that I forgot to reply."
Li Shimin nodded slightly, and then said:
"In that case, please ask Bo Gong to continue explaining to me what you have discussed."
Seeing that His Majesty was not impatient, Zhang Yi calmed down for a moment. After sorting out his thoughts, he straightened up and said:
"Reporting to your majesty, King Ma Yao, the co-lord of Ranshan Yi here, has friendship with the Hanjia, Yueyong, Guanghan, Wudu and other Qiang and Hu people, and has contacts with many Yi and Yue tribes.
Not only did he know crops and farming, he was also good at hunting and herding, and he often had trade contacts with surrounding ethnic groups.
It can be said that their method of survival is similar to that of our Han people, and even better than that of our Han people among the high mountains or on the vast grasslands.
We cannot defeat them in weapons, armor, etc., nor can we have an advantage in physical strength, bravery, etc.
For the current plan, it is only advisable to use stratagems to outmaneuver, and to place more suspicious soldiers in the mountains, and then choose one or more routes to attack them, in order to have a chance of winning. "
When Li Shimin heard this, he couldn't help but frown and asked:
"According to your words, the barbarians here are so powerful, then why were they willing to join me as a big man before?"
Seeing that Zhang Yi failed to reply in time, Pang Hong quickly took over His Majesty's words and said:
"Your Majesty clearly knows that the barbarians here have surrendered or rebelled many times. In my opinion, the reason for this cannot be circumvented by a 'geographical advantage'.
The living conditions here are relatively harsh. Whenever there is a cold winter, the barbarians here go south to escape the cold, and then when midsummer is approaching, they go back north to escape the heat here.
When the Han people are strong, they can still live in peace and harmony. Once the court is in turmoil or becomes weak, they will inevitably rebel and threaten the court to allow them to expand southward.
Once the imperial court agrees, the barbarians here will control the land south of Pingkang that originally belonged to the Han people.
Since then, we, the Han people, have been deeply disturbed by this, and we are definitely dissatisfied with the imperial court.
If this continues, the barbarians will only gradually control most of the fertile land in central Sichuan. As time goes by, the barbarians will become more powerful, and the court will be even more unable to control the situation in Wenshan County.
Therefore, if there is any abnormal movement by the barbarians here, we will suppress them with all our strength and cannot let them get bigger!
In this case, the barbarians often do not get the advantage of the geographical location, so they naturally surrender and rebel again, and so on. "
When Li Shimin heard this, he nodded in agreement at first, and then thought about how to solve this situation once and for all.
Seeing that His Majesty was deep in thought, everyone waited silently and did not dare to interrupt His Majesty.
While Li Shimin was thinking about it, he suddenly remembered that he wanted to implement the New Deal, so he combined the two things.
After thinking about it, Li Shimin asked Zhang Yi and others:
"I want to implement some new policies after stabilizing the center of Shu, and among them are ideas related to the barbarians everywhere.
Today I will briefly talk to you. You can make a judgment on my idea and see if it is feasible. "
Everyone had heard that His Majesty was planning to implement a new policy. Seeing that His Majesty wanted to reveal his thoughts in advance, everyone pricked up their ears and listened attentively.
When Li Shimin saw that everyone was listening attentively, he couldn't help but smile, and then said seriously:
"In addition to the reasons you know, there is another reason why I attach so much importance to counterinsurgency.
I often think about it, there are many barbarians in Sichuan, and many barbarians intermarry with the Han people.
There are many barbarians, and it is impossible that no one will rebel forever, but the main goal of the imperial court in the future is the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains.
As a result, barbarian rebellion in Shu has become a major hidden danger.
If the rebellion subsides here, I would like to relocate some Han people and send troops to mix with the barbarians here.
The army guarded various fortresses to intimidate and supervise the barbarians so that they would not dare to rebel easily.
The Han people intermarried with the barbarians and strengthened their ties. Over time, they would merge with the barbarians.
With the military deterrence above and the harmony of the Han people below, this place will sooner or later be under the control of our Han dynasty.
At the same time, I will also order the large tribes here to move some of their people into central Sichuan and even to the lands occupied by the Northern Expedition in the future.
Small tribes will be ordered to relocate their entire clan or part of it as appropriate.
This move can not only control the situation of barbarians in these high mountains, but also replenish households in Sichuan and even newly occupied areas.
Although this move is slightly similar to that of the former Prime Minister, my main purpose is to make the barbarians live under the supervision of the imperial court. I do not want to be like the Prime Minister, who only appease or quell the rebellion, but do not send troops to supervise and let them govern themselves.
Do you think this is possible? "
Everyone was shocked at first when they heard this, and then they all began to think deeply.
Li Shimin was not in a hurry, turned around and looked at the terrain map behind him, quietly waiting for everyone's reaction.
Not long after, Zhang Yi took the lead and said:
"Reporting to Your Majesty, I am convinced that this method is feasible, and I would like to seek convenience from Your Majesty.
If your Majesty wants to control the barbarians in this way, he will recommend himself to the imperial court to guard the key points and deter the barbarians! "
When Ma Cheng and Liu Lin saw Zhang Yi volunteering, they were not willing to lag behind and each recommended themselves to His Majesty.
Li Shimin was overjoyed when he heard this and said happily:
“I am very pleased that there are people like you who are willing to put aside personal interests and contribute to the country.
It's just that I still need to consider who to guard here. Besides, one day, wouldn't sending troops north to the Central Plains with me be a way to contribute to the country?
As long as you always stay with me and do your best for the country, I will naturally not favor one over the other or treat anyone badly. "
After everyone heard this, they all felt His Majesty's kindness, and they all left their seats and knelt down to show their loyalty.
With a smile on his face, Li Shimin helped everyone up, then walked back to the handsome case and said seriously:
"Now that I know what's going on here, it's time for you to show off your talents.
Zhang Yi and Pang Hong, I order you two to summarize what you have planned and submit it to me for review later.
The rest of the generals just need to make a plan and then act accordingly! "
Everyone took the order and got busy.
Zhang Yi and Pang Hong were now in full swing, making final additions and summaries of what they had planned in the tent.
Not long after, Zhang Yi came to Li Shimin with a counter-insurgency plan drawn up with Pang Hong.
"Your Majesty, we have compiled the plan into a book. Please check it out."
Li Shimin took the plan handed over by Zhang Yi and read it carefully based on the topographic map of Wenshan County behind him.
Zhang Yi was beside His Majesty, pointing out some details for His Majesty from time to time.
By noon, Li Shimin had the entire plan in mind.
It turned out that Zhang Yi and Pang Hong saw that the barbarians here were accustomed to building fortresses with stones, and that the barbarians here were well-equipped with armor and weapons, so they did not dare to attack head-on.
We had tried a detour and raid before, but because the opponent occupied a dangerous position and defended the city from a high position, the raid was ineffective.
Now the two decided to lure the enemy into battle head-on, ambush the skilled soldiers in the mountains on both sides of the opponent's camp, and wait for the opportunity to attack the soldiers leaving the camp with boulders, thunderwood and other objects from high up.
Send another group of elite soldiers, carrying ropes, hooks and other climbing objects, to go behind the enemy's stronghold.
When a frontal battle breaks out and the enemy's troops cannot see each other, they can climb down from a high place behind the enemy's stronghold and attack the enemy's rear.
The soldiers from the three places cooperated and covered each other, mobilizing the barbarian soldiers into the mountains and fields, making them exhausted from running around to deal with them.
When the enemy's troops are exhausted, take the opportunity to gather the troops on the left, right and front together to attack the enemy's stronghold.
Coupled with the surprise troops from behind, we will surely win under a two-pronged attack.
Even if they lose, this battle will frighten the enemy chieftain.
At this time, all you need to do is send a good argumentator to state the enemy's interests to the chieftain, and at the same time surround and coerce the enemy.
There is no reason why the enemy chiefs will not surrender.
Li Shimin generally agreed with these plans, but he did not agree with some details.
So Li Shimin called the other generals and expressed his suggestions.
"After carefully reviewing this plan, I am very pleased. Zhang Yi, Pang Hong and others are talented generals who can attack shortcomings with long attacks and make full use of various tactics.
There are just some shortcomings in it. I will try to say that we will discuss it together and strive to be foolproof and capture the rebels in one go. "
When everyone saw that His Majesty first confirmed his plan, he also wanted to propose a decree to make amends and improvements for everyone to discuss together.
Everyone was greatly encouraged, nodded in agreement, and then sat quietly waiting for His Majesty to speak.
Li Shimin coughed lightly and said:
"I think there are two things that are wrong. First, since winter is coming, the barbarians will sooner or later abandon the city and come out to fight to the death with us, so the method of luring the enemy in this plan needs to be improved.
Since the barbarians are going to leave the city in search of life after all, it would be better for us to lure the snake out of the cave and retreat by pretending that they cannot withstand the cold here.
After the barbarians became suspicious and tested a few times, we then sent the soldiers who wanted to make a surprise attack to various places to ambush in advance as planned.
Once the enemy is completely reassured, they will definitely come out in force and move south to avoid the cold.
At this time, when the barbarians are about to cross the fierce river in front of our village, our rear army will turn around and attack them halfway across the river, which will definitely cause the barbarians to chaos.
Then the soldiers who had been ambushed earlier rushed out at the same time, either cooperating with the large group in encirclement and suppression, or raiding the enemy's empty stronghold from the rear. A total victory is possible! "
When everyone heard this, they couldn't help but nod in agreement, and they admired His Majesty's strategy even more.
Li Shimin took a breath and continued:
"As for the second part, it's about the ambushing soldiers on both sides.
Since the terrain here is dangerous, I don't think there is any need for the soldiers to carry them or to prepare rolling stones and thunderwood from local materials.
Instead, use lighter hay branches, etc., combined with kerosene and other materials to make a 'fireball', ignite it, roll it down the cliff, and attack it with fire. This is not only more powerful, but also easier to operate.
In other places, I think there is nothing wrong with it. I wonder what you guys think about these two points? "
