For the war in the northwest, Du Zhongxiao thought that the most ideal was that after the destruction of the party, the Khitan still stood side by side. The main force of the party was distributed on Hequ Road and Hedong Road, and when Yelu Chongyuan was defeated, no matter what reason was used, Xijing Road was taken first. As long as you take Yunzhou, it will be much easier to take Youzhou later.

The biggest problem with Di Qing's steady and steady strategy in the Zhenrong army was that he did not consider the urgency of the Khitan situation. In other words, there is a lack of overall strategic thinking. For Song Jun, it may be a bit more demanding to require them to have such an overall thinking.

After talking about the big strategic situation, Shisanlang and Yao Shouxin explained the tactical thinking of cavalry and infantry respectively. When Du Zhongxiao built the Tianxiang Army, it was not built according to the current war situation, but by memory. One characteristic is that special attention is paid to the use of firepower and to artillery. In this era, artillery accounted for nearly a third of the total strength, which made everyone else feel that it was too much.

Yao Shouxin said: "Judging from the several battles on Hequ Road, the number of artillery now is indeed too much for the time when advancing lightly. The transportation was difficult, the artillery could not keep up with the rapid advance of the light infantry, and only a part of the light artillery could follow. However, for large corps operations, especially the confrontation between the two sides, artillery can give full play to its might. Relying on the railway to advance, with the railway as the center, the artillery is infinitely powerful. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "At that time, the artillery of this scale was against the main army. Now it seems that there is not much need for the main army, and in addition to this, the imperial court should also need some light infantry equipped with more light artillery. ”

Zhao Zhen said: "Although the artillery is slow, there are really many benefits. At that time, the first battle of Tanglong Town relied on artillery to kill the Khitan lord. With such merit, everything is worth it. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Your Majesty, the big army fights, of course." If Captain Di attacks the direction of Lingzhou this time, he should be equipped with more artillery. But like Captain Han on the West Road, the most important speed is not to bring heavy artillery. Weapons are determined by the combat mission, and they cannot be coveted only for power. ”

Ouyang Xiu on the side said: "Now the three yas are divided, but there is a lack of artillery, do you want to set up a new one in the future?" ”

Zhao Zhen said: "This matter will be discussed later." Now there is a shortage of officials in the three yayas, and it cannot be changed for a while, so it can only be done for the time being. ”

Du Zhongxiao knew in his heart that Zhao Zhen was trying to ensure that the old forbidden army did not fall apart, and at the same time added new elements. Although it is very rough, it is actually the limit of this era. Du Zhongxiao used 200,000 battalions of Tianxiang troops, plus selected people from the localities, to train 30,000 troops. With more than 800,000 forbidden troops, how many new armies can be trained? With a large elimination rate like the Yingtianxiang Army, there are simply not so many people in the current forbidden army. Another point is that even if bad money drives out good money, the last remaining forbidden army is the easiest to reform.

Shisanlang explained the cavalry and said: "Now in the army, the artillery and even the infantry are attacking amazingly, and there is no need to use cavalry to charge the formation. The most important thing for cavalry is that it is light and easy to maneuver. Used in the army, one is pre-war reconnaissance and battlefield covering. This is very demanding for the cavalry, which must be an elite source of soldiers and be able to move on a small scale. The other is to cover the two wings in wartime, at which time it is necessary to form a large formation and be well-trained. Finally, after the victory of the army, they chased the fleeing soldiers, demanding swiftness and courage. It is very demanding to be familiar with both skirmishes and formations. ”

Ma Jun Sidu commanded Wang Kai and said: "This is what makes the forbidden army unaccustomed. In the past, although the cavalry of the forbidden army practiced more bows and arrows, the most important thing was to fight in large formations. And the new cavalry, first of all, requires a small force to fight, and can also form a large formation. ”

Thirteen Lang said: "Therefore, among the soldiers and horses on the river meander, the cavalry is second only to the infantry, and it is the essence of the army. Pre-war reconnaissance, chasing the dead after victory and chasing the north are what he is good at. The cavalry of the forbidden army could learn to use a gun, but these were not satisfactory for a while. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "These are all details, and there is no need to delve into them. The Holy Majesty and the ministers, as long as they know what the cavalry can do and what they do in the army. General Wu made it clear that the role of cavalry is to reconnoiter and pursue the router, and at the same time cover the flanks for the infantry when arraying. After knowing the role of cavalry, you will have a general idea of how much territory an army needs to carry out in battle. The range covered by its reconnaissance cavalry is basically the scope of an army. With the battalion as the basic and maintaining close ties between the battalions, 50,000 people can control the frontal width of 1,200 li. ”

Zhao Zhen couldn't help frowning when he heard this: "In this way, the 300,000 army of the Zhenrong Army should be 500 miles to 1,000 miles wide in front?" ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded: "Not bad." The current army, normally speaking, should be. Therefore, the most important task of the Zhenrong army is to quickly get out of the Huluchuan River Valley and face Lingzhou. To the west to the West Shoujian Military Division, to the east to Yanzhou, are its combat range. In the middle, heavy troops were used to go straight to Lingzhou. In this area of about seven or eight hundred miles, there can be no party soldiers and horses that can threaten the army. ”

Zhao Zhen looked at the rest of the ministers and was silent for a while. He knew that Di Qing was conservative in combat now, but he had no idea where it manifested itself and how serious it was. Listening to Du Zhongxiao's words, I realized that it was so serious.

The current military does not attach much importance to the connection of command. In fact, the cavalry of the Song army had not been able to go so far before. Therefore, when fighting against the party, it is often surrounded suddenly. Di Qing was also afraid that after the division of troops, the various armies did not cooperate closely and their forces were scattered, and the party found an opportunity to take advantage of. Like the meandering road, a large number of reconnaissance cavalry were dispatched, and the various units of the advance operation kept in touch, which was unfamiliar to him.

Ouyang Xiu said: "The whole army is so widely distributed, won't it leave a gap for the enemy to take advantage of?" The party is the best at sudden encirclement, and if one is not careful, it will be difficult to seize the opportunity. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Nehan, such a distance is to prevent this kind of thing from happening. First, the reconnaissance cavalry was widely distributed, and a large number of enemy troops were not allowed to enter the vital areas. Once the other one is attacked, it can be defended on the spot, and the army next to it can be quickly rescued. The 300,000-strong army was deployed, and no matter how many troops the party was attacking, they were besieged by several troops. ”

Ouyang Xiu nodded and said to Wang Kai: "Captain, now the cavalry of the forbidden army, can it do this?" ”

Wang Kai thought for a while and said, "Over the years, the heavy training has been much stronger than before. It's just that if you can do it, you haven't tried it, who knows? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "To determine the war strategy, you can ignore the details, but you must be familiar with the army's advance speed, attack speed, and control range. Knowing this, you know how to organize tasks. It is also necessary to know how far a large army can advance and how many people it will have to support logistics and transportation under the condition of ensuring combat effectiveness. Just like the battle of attacking Lingzhou, the supply base camp of our army is in the Zhenrong army, so how many troops should be transported and logistics on the front line under the city of Lingzhou. The new army, except for special cases to organize the population, needs its own transportation capacity. ”

After listening to Shisanlang and Yao Shouxin talk about the characteristics and combat forms of artillery and cavalry, everyone present could feel that the army arrangement of the Zhenrong Army was very bad. The cavalry control range was too small, the artillery could not control the front, and the actual large army was nested together.

Xu Huaide, the commander in front of the palace, said: "How can the commander know everything in such a battle? If you want to command, you have to have a large number of people. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Of course. Therefore, in the new military system, there are a large number of generals in the army who specialize in general affairs, as well as a large number of staff officers. Unlike in the past, there were only a few people waiting for the counselor and Jiyi writing. Only when the command system is complete and everyone is useful can command such a huge army to carry out operations. The army unfolded, as long as it was not a mistake in the calculation, it would not be too far apart. ”

For Zhao Zhen and several Hanlin scholars, today is the first time to know how the current army fights. The three generals of the three yas are outside the command system and do not know much about it.

Zhao Zhen thought for a while and said, "It's not early, let's do it tonight." After Zhongqing returned, he paid more attention to the war ahead and gave advice to the imperial court. Now it seems that defeating the party should not be a big problem, just how to play better. ”