In the afternoon, Su Song came to the editing bureau as usual.

Even if he now took over the errand of being in charge of the Qin Tianjian to revise the calendar, Su Song would still come to the Compendium of Materia Medica Editing Bureau here in Taichang Temple. The people in Qin Tianjian were floating and smoky, but it was a little easier to discuss it with Han Gang.

But seeing Han Gang today, Su Song was surprised: "There was such a big thing, I thought that Yukun would be summoned to the Chongzheng Hall to ask the right ......."

This is said by someone else, but it is obviously ironic, but Han Gang is familiar with Su Song's character, so he will not misunderstand, and he doesn't care, but smiles: "Maybe it was possible in the past, how can it be possible now?!" ”

Privately asking Han Gang for expert opinions, and openly letting Han Gang participate in the deliberations of the Son of Heaven and the Rulers, are two completely different concepts. If it is said that when Han Gang's official position was not high, he didn't care too much about such details, then as Han Gang's status became higher and higher, especially now that he was about to become the prince's master, even if it was a trivial matter, he had to pay attention to it. Zhao Ji definitely didn't want to give people the misunderstanding that Han Gang could intervene in the important affairs of the military state at the moment.

“…… That's right. Su Song nodded, this kind of truth is easy to understand, "But after all, the Son of Heaven still has to come to ask Yukun for your opinion." ”

"It's the same whether you are summoned or not." Han Gang said: "Anyway, among the two prefectures, there should be no one who is confused enough to fight the idea of Liao at this time." ”

"What, Yukun, are you against attacking Liao?" Su Song asked with a smile.

"The Liao people have been prepared for a long time, and this advantage is not easy to take advantage of." Han Gang didn't believe it, Su Song couldn't think of it, "Why did Yelu Yixin choose to kill the monarch at this time?" The timing he chose for himself must have been in his best interest—at least in the eyes of Jeruethin and his rebels. It's the middle of winter, and the snow is heavy in the north, and the swallows are only getting worse. Hebei and Hedong can't send troops, and the baggage can't keep up - in a big battle of more than 100,000 people, the capacity of the sled car can only be made up - if you want to use troops in the north, it will take at least three months, and you can wait for the snow to melt in mid-spring. For the Liao people, winter is the best season. ”

Han Gang's tone was low again: "This is externally speaking, internally, Yelu Yixin's choice of this time is not bad. Before that, he took half of the Western Xia without much effort, and also destroyed the Western Border Blockade, and his prestige in his country was unparalleled for a while. A few days ago, the news came back from Hedong, and the men and horses under his command have arrived in Montenegro one after another, including tens of thousands of fine horsemen and thousands of craftsmen. His control over the Liao court must have been tighter, isn't this the best time for him to rebel? ”

"In fact, it is also possible that the young lord of Liao really died of illness, right? is only five or six years old, and there are not a few people who die of illness at this age. Cowpox doesn't prevent all diseases. ”

"That's right, but the enemy is lenient, and everything is still bad for the worse." Han Gang laughed: "I have been in battle so many times in the past, no matter what accidents I encounter, as long as I think about the worst, I am right. ”

Su Song didn't laugh along, and his expression became a little more serious. Han Gang's words seemed to be joking, but as long as he thought about his past experience, he definitely didn't know how much he paid, how many setbacks, and how many adversities he encountered.

"It seems that this time the Son of Heaven will not be able to get his wish." Su Song sighed loudly.

"Isn't that obvious?" Han Gang shook his head, "The defeat of the Sorghum River. Although it was defeated in the haste of using troops, after capturing Taiyuan, he took Youzhou directly without resting, but in essence, he was defeated by underestimating the Liao. How can the land of all vehicles be neglected? With the decline of the Chu State, it will take 600,000 Qin troops to destroy Chu. ”

Anyone who sees Zhao Ji's expression at today's court meeting can know what his idea is, but the reality does not depend on people's hearts. After the Battle of Pingxia, the Great Song Dynasty was not prepared for the attack on Liao, and the elite soldiers were still placed on Hedong Road, as well as the newly established Ganliang Road and Ningxia Second Road. Strategically, it is mainly defensive, and strives to digest the land it has seized as soon as possible. It is only a fantasy to want to switch from a defensive position to an offensive in a short period of time, with the current ability to govern the eastern and western governments.

"It's not okay to go to war. However, if you can learn the old tricks of the Liao people, make a big show on the border, and send eloquent people to the Liao State, take the opportunity to recapture some of the land ceded to Lu, or force it to cut the annual currency, it will also be a good thing. ”

"There is no point in intimidating falsehoods, the reality of the Liao people, the Great Song Dynasty can see it very clearly, but the reality of the Great Song Dynasty can also be seen by the Liao people. In the past, he was bullied by the Liao people, which was forced by the situation, and the fear of Liao was deeply rooted in the country. But this is not the case in the Liao State, if the imperial court learns the old tricks of the Liao people, I am afraid that the people who are clamoring to raise troops to fight across the border can force Yelu Yixin to invade the south immediately. ”

Su Song listened to Han Gang's words, and after a moment of silence, he suddenly smiled: "It seems that I am too worried." ”

"Brother Zirong should have concerns." Han Gang smiled nonchalantly.

Su Song asked so much, in fact, he wanted to determine Han Gang's position - as Su Song said at the beginning, there were only a few courtiers in the world, and in military affairs, the Son of Heaven must consult Han Gang's opinion, if Han Gang fully supports the use of force against Liao, with the weight of his words, it is not impossible for the emperor to insist on going his own way. Fortunately, Han Gang's answer was nothing to blame, which made Su Song feel that he was indeed thinking too much.

Han Gang also understood this, so he would take the trouble to explain his intentions to Su Song in detail. Su Song is not belligerent, if the imperial court intends to use force against Liao, he will definitely resolutely oppose it, so there are some words that are better to be clear.

After clarifying some things, Han Gang and Su Song devoted themselves to compiling the pharmacopoeia again. It's just that after a while, an attendant came to the small courtyard of the Editing Bureau, saying that the Son of Heaven had a summons and ordered Han Gang to go to the temple to meet him.

Exchanging a sure look, Han Gang resigned Su Song and followed the chamberlain into the palace. It's just that the place where Zhao Ji met Han Gang was not in the Chongzheng Palace, but in the Wuying Palace.

In the Wuying Palace, there is no figure of the important ministers of the two prefectures. The situation that had been guessed in advance, Han Gang would certainly not be surprised.

Zhao Ji stood behind a huge sand table with his hands behind his back, and he couldn't see joy or anger on his face when he looked down at the sand table. However, his expression has already explained the answer that Zhao Ji got from the deacons before. I'm afraid that no one supported the war against Liao—even obedient courtiers like Wang Qi and Cai Qu would not go crazy with Zhao Ji—and none of them were stupid.

In Han Gang's opinion, unless Yelu Yixin suddenly dies, in a few years, Da Song will not have any chance, and all he can do is wait and see. But there is still much that can be done between waiting and waiting. For example, increase investment in science and technology, such as repairing the track through Hebei.

The track that runs through Hebei is the key to the invincible position of the Great Song Dynasty during the Song-Liao war. In the past few years, Zhao Ji has paid more attention to the progress of skills on the track than Han Gang, and under the supervision of the Son of Heaven, the wisdom of skilled craftsmen has burst out like spring water.

The railroad tracks used in the Bianhe water transport wharf in the capital and the iron four-wheeled chassis on the rail vehicles, this series of inventions and applications perfectly continue the technical development route set by Han Gang before leaving office.

Now that railroad tracks have become popular on the docks along the Bianhe River, new iron wheels are indeed more suitable for running on rails than wooden wheels, and steel axles have also appeared in the iron yards of the Ordnance Superintendent.

So Han Gang asked Zhao Ji sentence by sentence, "The minister dares to ask Your Majesty, whether the money and food are sufficient, whether the ordnance is neat, whether the military will be available, I heard that there is a war with the Liao State, whether the people's will is stable, and whether the court is ready for more than ten years of war?" ”

Zhao Ji's face became gloomy a little bit, and Han Gang's questioning made him feel more embarrassed than the opposition of the Zaizhi: "Could it be that it will take more than ten years just to recover Yanyun?!" ”

Zhao Ji's voice changed a little when he asked rhetorically, but Han Gang was not afraid: "Liao is a great country with millions of elite soldiers. Even if it is not a battle to destroy the country, just for Yan Yun, there will be two or three decisive battles with hundreds of thousands of horses and horses, seven or eight battles at the level of 100,000, and tens of thousands of battles. How can you succeed without more than ten years of accumulating success? ”

"How is this calculated?!" Zhao Ji asked in a dark voice with a calm face.

Han Gang said eloquently: "Just replace the situation of the past to wipe out the Western Xia." In order to destroy the Western Xia, only from the first battle of Hengshan in the third and fourth years of Xining: the battle of Pingxia used more than 300,000 soldiers and millions of people, which was the largest decisive battle. The second battle had two battles of Yokoyama before and after; the battle of the river that broke the right arm of the thief; Xining's ten-year recapture of Fengzhou and Jialuchuan can also be counted together because they cooperate with each other. There were four battles with 100,000 men. The battles below, big and small, have not been broken every year. The Western Xia was extremely militaristic, but its strength was less than one-fifth of that of the Liao. The account is only about one-tenth - even if only Yanyun is counted, Ding Kou can only reach half at most. Based on this calculation, to recapture Yanyun, it is necessary to prepare for almost twice the number of battles. ”

Zhao Ji frowned and didn't speak. He didn't expect Han Gang to calculate it like this. It's just that Zhao Ji is not ignorant of military affairs, although Han Gang's words are biased, but Nanjing Xijin Mansion and Xijing Datong Mansion, if they want to recover the two core cities of Yanyun Land, two large-scale decisive battles are indeed indispensable. And in Yanshan Pass, Yuguan [near present-day Shanhaiguan], as well as Fengshengzhou [present-day Zhangjiakou], Shengzhou, and even Xing and Ling, there were also several major battles. In this way, Han Gang's calculation is not bad at all.

And Han Gang continued to expound his point of view: "In these battles, the decisive battle must not be defeated, once defeated, it is irretrievable, and the last defeat will require several times the effort, and smaller battles must also be won more and defeated less, in order to continuously consume the military strength of the Liao." ”

Regarding the plan to attack Liao, Han Gang has never supported sending troops from Hebei. With the topography of the Hebei Plain, it was too advantageous for the cavalry of the Liao people. However, with the terrain of Hedong, it can give full play to the combat advantages of the Song army's foot soldiers. Moreover, the Western Army, the most elite of the forbidden army, was able to give full play to their strength in chasing down the Tanguts between the peaks and valleys. But if they are arranged on the Hebei Plain, I am afraid that they will be very unsuitable in terms of tactics.

However, Yelu Yixin placed his Huludo in the Hetao Plain under the Black Mountain, not only for the sake of the fertility of the land, but also for geostrategic considerations. When there was an elite cavalry of up to 20,000 under the Black Mountain, whether it was the Divination Blocker on the northwest side or the Xijing Road on the southeast side, it was within the range of its attack.

The Song army sent troops from Hedong to conquer Datong and recover the land in the clouds, which was much more difficult than a few years ago. It must be a large-scale decisive battle to decide the belonging of the counties in the clouds.

"Is this the only way to win?!" Zhao Ji shouted angrily, "Yelu Yixin has killed kings one after another, do the Liao people have no loyalty?!" ”

"Your Majesty!" Han Gang said: "Those who are good at fighting in the past are invincible first, and then they are invincible when the enemy is invincible. You can't win against yourself, but you can win against the enemy. If the Great Song Dynasty attacked Liao, who could guarantee that the Liao people would not have the same hatred for the enemy? Instead of expecting Yelu Yixin to betray his relatives and leave, it is better to prepare for the unity of the Liao State. If the Liao people are serious and resist, they can also win. If the hearts of the Liao people are not aligned, it is the icing on the cake. ”

Zhao Ji was silent for a long time, hanging his head and looking at the sand table in Hebei, and the persistence in his heart turned into a long sigh, "Han Qing is resolutely opposed to the use of troops against Liao."

"Your Majesty. Wei Wuping Jizhou, Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang fled north to Liaodong. Wei Wu did not send troops to attack the Gongsun clan, but instead garrisoned the troops. But the head of Er Yuan was automatically delivered. ”

Zhao Ji's voice softened a little: "Wei Wu annihilated Yuan, how is it similar to now?" ”

"The strategy of the temple, the use of the wonderful, is in one mind. Slow and urgent, in essence, is the same. Yelu Yixin had been in power for 20 years before killing the king, and now he is over fifty years old, and when he dies of illness, or even only needs to be seriously ill, unable to control the government, the Liao State will inevitably be in turmoil. It's a few years, but it's only a decade or two. His Majesty is only thirty years now, and at that time, the Spring and Autumn Period is in full bloom, and the national situation should be twice as strong as it is now, so why not destroy Liao in one fell swoop? ”