In the Privy Council, Du Zhongxiao is carefully considering the follow-up military reform arrangements. Fu Bi hurriedly came in, holding an official letter and said: "Taiwei, Xiao Ge has surrendered to the city, and Zhao Zi has gone down to Shuozhou!" ”

Du Zhongxiao got up, took the official document and read it, nodded and said, "Xiao Ge has nowhere to go, so he can only surrender." Although I knew this matter, I was a little worried when I didn't take Shuozhou for a day. It's best to take the city, arrange the armies, and prepare to fight Hongji. ”

Fu Bi said: "Taiwei thinks that Yelu Hongji will lead his troops south and fight with this dynasty?" ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "The newly unified Khitan, if you don't fight with this dynasty, Yelu Hongji will always be willing?" If you don't fight, you don't know each other, you have to fight, and he will be honest. After five years of fighting, the Khitan can no longer support a long-term war with this dynasty, and it is always possible to fight for a short time. ”

After speaking, the soldiers took the map of the Daizhou area and spread it on the table.

Looking at the map, Du Zhongxiao said: "The intelligence of this dynasty is too omission. This map was drawn by someone I sent when I was on Hequ Road, and after so many years, it is still the same, and there is not much detail. ”

After speaking, he ordered the soldiers to invite Tian Jing, Zhang Sheng and Zeng Gongliang to discuss the Shuozhou war together.

After a while, the three of them arrived, and saw Du Zhongxiao and Fu Bi lying on the table, studying the map in detail. Tian said: "In the end, Captain Du Taiwei is a person who has fought on the front line, and in the Privy Council in the past, where did he have the habit of looking at maps in wartime?" The ministers only knew the general geography and records in ancient books, but they did not study the map in detail. I don't know geography, how to fight? ”

Du Zhongxiao straightened up and said with a smile: "What the captain said is right, I don't know geography, how can I command the battle?" In the past, the map only had a general direction, and the distance of the road was not very detailed. It is of little practical use to really command operations. The generals don't investigate in person, in fact, they only have an approximation. We won't be like that when we fight in the future, we all need maps, and we make battle plans according to them. ”

After speaking, he invited those people to the table, pointed to the map and said: "Yanmen Pass is a natural danger, and it has been a place for soldiers since ancient times. Here in Shuozhou, for the first time in history, it is about the strategy of Mayi. Zhao Zi occupied Shuozhou, and Jia Kui led his troops to occupy Mayi, so there would be no surprises. Yelu Hongji went south, it should be in the county town of Mayi, and the two armies fought. ”

Tian said: "Mayi County, it's better to give up and let the Khitan soldiers come down to Shuozhou City." Relying on Shuozhou Jiancheng, the Khitan will inevitably do nothing. ”

Du Zhongxiao shook his head: "Zhao Zi's army of 50,000, Jia Kui's army of more than 30,000 people, no matter how strong the city is, it can't let go of so many troops." Just stick to Shuozhou City, as long as 10,000 people are enough. This time, more than 80,000 of us, as well as tens of thousands of Liu and 50,000 people in the mountains, threatened the back road of the Khitan, and we should have a good fight in Mayi, so that they can remember it for a long time. ”

Tian said: "Yelu Hongji commanded an army of 400,000 to attack Chongyuan, even if he will not bring all the troops and horses to the south, there will be at least two or three hundred thousand people. Zhao Zi and Jia Kui have a total of more than 80,000 people, are they opponents? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Tai Lieutenant, why are we set to 50,000 soldiers and horses all the way?" Because according to the current weapons, military system, and combat methods, 50,000 is the limit, and no matter how many people there are, it is useless. Whether the Khitan is 300,000 or 400,000, it will take a long enough time to fight and a sufficient number of personnel on the front line to be truly useful. How can Yelu Hongji have this time? This battle was a short-term battle, and more than 80,000 people were enough. ”

Fu Bi said: "What the captain said is good. Here in Mayi, there is a mountain on the right and the gray river on the left, and the battle line is actually not long. 80,000 men was enough to block the route, so that the Khitan had to fight. The soldiers and horses of the two armies should be enough. ”

Tian Guo, Zhang Sheng and Zeng Gongliang were all unfamiliar with Hequ Road, and they looked at each other for a while, and they didn't believe it.

Du Zhongxiao said: "The formation of the army, how many soldiers and horses there are in a mile, in fact, there is a fixed number. If the number is exceeded, it will not be able to help the front line, so it can only be constantly rotated and drag the other side down. Therefore, the soldiers and horses of Zhao Zi and Jia Kui's armies are enough in this matter, and Liu Ji is eyeing him from behind, which is enough to let the Khitan know that it is powerful. When Han Wu wanted to use troops against the Xiongnu, it was a strategy of Ma Yi at the beginning, wanting to lure the Xiongnu into this place and surround them on all sides to destroy their elite. Yelu Hongqi would not be unaware of this story, and when he brought a large army here, he always had to guard against the same thing. ”

Tian Guo nodded: "This area is in the valley in the end, if the army is blocked and the way back, it is indeed a place of death." ”

The Mayi of the Mayi Strategy, of course, is not the current Mayi County, but it is roughly this area. The military minister Shan Yu discovered it in advance, and finally led his troops to retreat, and Emperor Wu of Han's plan failed. The terrain at that time was slightly different from now, and the most important thing was that it was sparsely populated and the roads were not as smooth as they are now. However, the terrain has not changed, and if Yelu Hongji leads a large army to the south, he will really be blocked by the Song army, and several large armies will surround him, and the consequences will be worrying.

Du Zhongxiao decided to take Shuozhou, also because of the terrain here. To the north, there is a road leading to Datong Mansion, if the Khitan army comes to attack, the Song Dynasty can threaten the enemy army from three sides, and it is relatively easy to defend. Shuozhou crossed the Yanmen Gate and laid the foundation for the future attack on Datong Mansion.

Several people gathered around the map and talked for a while. Tian said: "It seems that it is not difficult to hold Shuozhou. Pang Ji brought 30,000 soldiers and horses on the Hedong Road, and also crossed the Yanmen Pass, preparing to enter Shuozhou. With several large armies, plus Liu Ji and Yang Wenguang in the north, the Khitan should not be able to make up their minds and fight with me for a long time in the Shuozhou area. If not, Liu Ji can block his way back. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "The key is that our troops are sufficient, as long as Yelu Hongji does not go crazy, he will not die in Shuozhou." The most important thing in this battle is not how to start, but how to end. If Zhao Zi and Jia Kui defeat Hong Ji, where are we going to occupy it? ”

Several people looked at the map and were silent for a while. Shuozhou is the southern gate of Datong Mansion, and nearby is Yingzhou, and after occupying it, it divided the Datong Mansion Basin with the Khitan. However, if it is just a place to attack Datong Mansion, is it necessary?

Zeng Gongliang pointed to Yingzhou and said: "If you defeat the Khitan, you shouldn't be able to take Yingzhou again." Is it necessary, though? ”

Du Zhongxiao shook his head: "There is no need." We took Shuozhou, just to have a place that could facilitate the attack on Datong Mansion in the future, not to occupy territory. With Shuozhou, Yingzhou has become a chicken rib. ”

Zeng Gongliang was a little puzzled when he heard this: "What does the Taiwei say end and what does it mean?" ”

Du Zhongxiao pointed to the north: "In addition to Zhanshuozhou, Yang Wenguang's troops will attack Dezhou." There were no heavy troops stationed in Texas, so it was not difficult to capture. I mean to the north, after Yang Wenguang occupied Texas, did he continue to advance eastward and occupy Baishuiluo. ”

A few listened and went to the map to look at it. I only saw the name of the place in Baishuiluo, but the surrounding terrain was not clear.

Tian said: "Taiwei, why do you want to occupy Baishuiluo? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "This place is an important place for the Khitan, and the prairie north of Datong Mansion must pass through here to go south." When we occupied Baishuiluo, we cut off the route of the Khitan steppe army to support Datong. In the future, it will be much easier for the two countries to fight. ”

Several people nodded together as they listened. finally understood that Du Zhongxiao not only occupied Shuozhou this time, but also formed an encirclement of Datong Mansion. This encirclement is large, but in time of war, it can quickly blockade Datong Province.