Dutingyi, located in Guanghuafang near the state bridge, was the place to receive Khitan envoys. Fu Bi was the envoy of this reception, and greeted Yelu Xiantong and Wu Zhan from the train station, and arrived at Dutingyi to set up a banquet to wash the dust.

After drinking a glass of wine, Yelu Xiantong said: "Taiwei, now the confrontation between hundreds of thousands of troops on both sides of Ma Yi is not a trivial matter. We are here to renew the old friendship with your country and to withdraw our troops. This matter is urgent, I don't know when I will see the holy face? ”

Fu Bi said: "What's the hurry." The two of them came from afar, and first played in Kaifeng City for a few days. Now that spring is blooming, it is the best time of the year when the city of Tokyo brings the old and the young out of the city. The two envoys came from afar, how could they miss it! ”

Yelu Xiantong hurriedly said: "Hundreds of thousands of troops in front of each other, after a long time, I don't know what big things are going to happen." At this time, where is the mood to play? Tai Lieutenant, state affairs are important, so let's meet you as soon as possible. ”

Fu Bi groaned: "The Holy Lord is busy with state affairs, I can do it on my behalf, but when you go to the temple, you should listen to the edict." ”

Yelu Xiantong and Wu Zhan glanced at each other, both helpless. When I went out of Datong Mansion at that time, I thought that everything was going well, but I didn't think that Yelu Hongji's army would attack and fall into Mayi. Now that the two sides have been facing off for nearly a month, the Khitan grain and grass are no longer able to support, and they can't wait.

Fu Bi didn't say a word about the war in advance, just said some poems and articles, and the wind and snow.

In the Chongzheng Palace, several ministers were there, discussing the battle ahead with Emperor Zhao Zhen.

Du Zhongxiao said: "The day before yesterday, it was reported that Yang Wenguang had occupied the Ninety-Nine Springs, and the north of Datong Mansion had fallen into the hands of the imperial court. You can order Fu Bi to delay the Khitan envoys for a few more days, so that they can calm down first. When the Yelu Hongji army in front can't support it, it's not too late to talk. ”

Han Qi said: "The Khitan civil war has been fought for five years, and Hongji's 300,000 army can be said to be the army of the country. Can we all come out and destroy this enemy first. In this way, the Khitan is really greatly reduced, and it will be much easier to fight again in the future. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Xianggong, Yelu Hongji's department is not the main force of the Khitan. The attack on Datong Mansion this time was only a part of the palace soldiers, as well as the men and horses of Youzhou and Pingzhou. Once we defeat them, the Khitan troops will inevitably send troops to help, and at that time, the 200,000 forbidden troops on the front line can hardly cope. If you want to fight a decisive battle with the Khitan, it is far from enough without five or six hundred thousand well-trained elite soldiers. ”

Wen Yanbo said: "The five-year civil war of the Khitan was just a battle between some of Hongji's palace soldiers and Chongyuan's Xijing Dao soldiers and horses, and the Khitan departments did not participate, at most echoing each other from afar. At this time, the two countries fought a decisive battle, and the imperial court was not prepared, so it was not a good time. ”

Han Qi won a big victory on Hequ Road, and his heart rose. Now seeing that the Khitan soldiers and horses on the front line are at a disadvantage, I can't help but think of a decisive battle. Du Zhongxiao knew that the main force of the Khitan in Ma Yi was not the main force now, and even the emperor's palace soldiers were not complete, let alone the various departments. The Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun have been destroyed in the past five years, but the other Khitan departments are still intact. If the forbidden army does not complete the training, it will not have the conditions to completely defeat the Khitan. Ma Yi is because of the special terrain restrictions there, and the Khitan's combat power cannot be exerted, otherwise it would not be so passive.

Zhao Zhen said: "Occupy Shuozhou, and take Dezhou, Baishuiluo and Ninety-Nine Springs, how can the Khitan be willing?" ”

Du Zhongxiao praised the wat: "It is to give the Khitan suitable conditions." The Privy Council thought that after Yelu Chongyuan was captured, he had been unwilling to surrender, and it was of little use. It's better to hand over Chongyuan to Hongji and change those places. For this dynasty, it is still more practical to have land. As for the Khitan, Chongyuan is the one who competes with Hongji for the throne, a thorn in his side and a thorn in his flesh. ”

Zhao Zhen said: "Once Chongyuan is in my hands, and then sent back to the Khitan, will it be criticized?" ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Shuozhou is offered by Xiao Ge, as long as Xiao Ge is treated well, who can say anything." If Chongyuan does not fall, it will be useless in the hands of this dynasty, so it is better to give it to the Khitan. With Chongyuan, the land lost by the Khitan this time has also been explained to them in the country. ”

Wen Yanbo said: "What if we release Chongyuan and the Khitan still attack these places? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Xianggong, the Khitan can attack, so let's attack now." These places were occupied by the imperial court, and it was extremely difficult for the Khitan to take them back. There is no way unless we start a big war before we are ready. ”

Tian said: "That's true. The power of the Khitan, the battle of Mayi this time has also been seen. As long as the right place is chosen, the Khitan has no advantage over the army of this dynasty. Hequ Road now has an army of 200,000, and the Khitan does not have 350,000 people, so it is difficult to do anything. ”

Hearing this, Du Zhongxiao said: "The Khitan army is not good at attacking and defending cities, and it is the best at crisscrossing thousands of miles and coming and going without a trace. Even if there is artillery now, in fact, except for the time when defending the city, the Khitan is not easy to use. The same is true for fighting with the Khitan in the future. If you want to restore Yanyun, you must have enough cavalry to suppress the Khitan cavalry with cavalry. If this is not the case, even if the forbidden army is stronger than the Khitan, it will be difficult to do anything. When the two armies were fighting, the Khitan was always able to avoid the front and constantly harass the back road, how could the battle be fought? ”

Zhao Zhen said: "But the current forbidden army, with guns, cavalry is not convenient for this. ”

Du Zhongxiao praised the wat and said: "Your Majesty, banning military guns is naturally the right way. However, the interior can be like this, once you get to the steppe, it is difficult to capture the main Khitan force. If you want to really defeat the Khitan and restore Yanyun, it is actually not enough. The Khitan troops still come from the various departments of the steppe. Without the ability to control the grassland, it will be difficult for the Northland to be peaceful after all. The Khitan provinces of Zhongjing and Shangjing have a small population, but the people are all soldiers, and they are millions at every turn. Without a strong cavalry, it would be difficult to completely defeat the Khitan there. ”

Du Zhongxiao thought about this question for a long time. In the end, I figured out that with firearms, it was not enough to completely overwhelm the nomads. In order to stabilize the north, the Central Plains Dynasty itself must have strong cavalry, preferably the most powerful cavalry in the world. With the same population, the forces of the whole army are obviously more threatening. Once the time is right, it can often form a huge pressure on the Central Plains Dynasty.

In northern China, there are a large number of areas suitable for farming and grazing, such as the Hetao, such as the northeast. These regions were in the hands of the Central Plains Dynasty, and they were able to rule steadily and maintain a strong cavalry force in order to overwhelm the nomads further north. It was only at this time that it was possible to trade with the nomads, so that they could get the necessities of life without having to plunder at every turn.

Trains could divide the prairie, but it would be too expensive to do overnight. What is really useful is to build a strong cavalry. With its own cavalry troops, the key to the stability of the north is to completely overwhelm the nomads in terms of force, directly intervene in their internal affairs, and prevent them from forming a unified large tribe.

The Khitan was a very different force, not only with the agricultural areas of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, but also with the entire northern grassland. Up to now, the Khitan rule over the steppe was very effective, and the various ethnic groups obeyed orders. Its military strength comes from the prairie. You can't use the example of the Jin Dynasty's destruction of the Khitan in history to see the current Khitan, the internal affairs of the Khitan are far from being so corrupt, and the combat effectiveness of the army is still there.

Du Zhongxiao has been on Hequ Road for three years, and would rather run to the Western Regions thousands of miles away than cross the Yin Mountain. Because of the nomadic steppe, for the current Song army, it is still too big. The land is vast and sparsely populated, the migration is uncertain, and the number of tribes is very large, and it is difficult to control it now.