Standing in front of the tent and looking at the starry sky, Li Li was thoughtful.

In fact, he is also restless these days, but he never comes out, his worries are not visible, and he seems calm.

As Dian Wufang, Ma Yunluo and others thought, this Northern Expedition is very important, because this is not an isolated war, but a prelude to an unprecedented war, or a prelude to the coming war.

Prologue, it may seem inconsequential, but it is not.

A glimpse of the whole leopard. Since ancient times, those who have made good use of soldiers have never let go of any detail, and even dredged the veins from the chaotic clues, so as to make accurate judgments for decision-making. The prologue is not a tidbit, but a blindfold to cover the vision, and once someone despises him, he will inevitably pay a heavy price subsequently.

No war can be won overnight, and there are often many hidden secrets behind the war. This is the case with the Northern Expedition of the Western Liang Army.

As the commander of the army, Li Li personally took command of the expedition, and should have gone to the front line to direct the war. But he used Zhou Yu in the initial army as the main general, led the army to the Xiongnu steppe, and stayed in the rear to sit in the rear. In this move, he is called the commander-in-chief, but in fact he is a logistics shopkeeper who escorts grain and grass and baggage, as if he is out of the way, sitting and watching success or failure.

Dian Wuflaw and Ma Yunluo's two daughters both said that he trusted Zhou Yu too much, so that Zhou Yu's burden was too great and he was at a loss, so that he would suffer continuous failures and lose more than 20,000 soldiers in vain. After all, Zhou Yu had never led so many soldiers and horses to fight before, and he had never encountered so many barbarian war horses, and he had been living in a rich land along the river, and he was not familiar with the northern war cavalry charging and killing formation at all, so defeat was inevitable, and it would be abnormal if he won.

Li Li knows the worries and concerns of Dian Wuflaw and Ma Yunluo. As the second daughter said. He really trusted Zhou Yu very much, admired his people, and valued his talents, so he entrusted him with an important task and entrusted tens of thousands of troops to Zhou Yu. Because Li Li always believed that Zhou Yu was not only good at water warfare, but also land warfare, which was not inferior, or even better than water warfare.

Historically, Zhou Yu was in Jiangdong, and the most elite troops were naturally the navy. And he must be good at water warfare when he is in charge of the army. But this does not mean that he does not understand land warfare, and when he goes ashore, he will become a mediocre man who talks on paper, and is incapable of commanding war cavalry battles. Since ancient times, warfare has been interconnected, whether it is water or land warfare. It's all soldiers fighting, and it's mainly people. If someone is outstanding in a water war. When you go ashore, you will become a mediocre. This is absolutely a fallacy, nonsense. The reason why a land general is not good at water warfare is not that he has no talent for water warfare, but that he does not have soldiers and warships who are good at water warfare, or he does not understand water conditions; Other than that, there is no other reason.

Although Li Li firmly believes that Zhou Yu will definitely live up to the trust. In the end, we will win. But it is a matter of life and death for tens of thousands of soldiers in the Xiliang Army, if Li Li is not worried or anxious at all, it is definitely talking nonsense with his eyes open and duplicitous.

These days, Li Li sits in the rear. But he was not idle, and successively sent thousands of meticulous workers to investigate intelligence, and he knew the front-line war well. At the same time, the reason why he used Zhou Yu as the main general was not only to give Zhou Yu, Lu Su and a group of new generals the opportunity to show their talents, but also had a deep-seated intention. This is to entrust the battle to Zhou Yu, so that Li Li can calmly think about the next battle, so as to prepare in advance, so as not to mess up the battle at that time.

What Dian Wuflaw and Ma Yunluo didn't know was that the situation in the Central Plains had been confusing in the past month, and the princes of various towns had frequently mobilized troops and horses, with unclear intentions. But one thing is certain, that is, these princes have great plans, and the target is Li Li and the three states of Xiliang under his command.

Li Li would receive secret reports from all the states of the world every day, and these messages were recorded in his mind, and after removing the chaff, he would sort them out smoothly, so as to prepare to judge the situation in the world and the next fierce battle that the Xiliang army would face. Because of this, Li Li has limited energy after all, and it is impossible for him to personally lead the army into battle, but also take care of other things and think hard about the next big battle. Therefore, it is undoubtedly the right choice to hand over the Northern Expedition to Zhou Yu with full responsibility, so that he can withdraw from the war and make overall arrangements for the upcoming battle of the Central Plains.

However, Li Li did not tell anyone about these secret reports and messages, all of them were accumulated in his heart, and he was repeatedly considering the coping strategy every moment, weighing the pros and cons.

However, since the oath of the army, in more than a month, except for the first big victory, the Xiliang army has made no achievements, but has repeatedly lost soldiers and horses. This made Li Li secretly worry about himself, although he was sitting on the surface like a mountain and immovable, in fact, he was thinking about the contingency method, and had already prepared a coping strategy in case the expedition failed. Although this sentence is not very popular to say, those who are handsome should have this kind of consideration, and the so-called precautions are like this. However, he did not give up and still believed in Zhou Yu's ability to command the army.

And Zhou Yu's several defeats since he led the army are also quite strange, each time he has not lost many soldiers and horses, and he has not been defeated but not defeated, the real intention of this, Li Li can also guess the approximately. It was because he had been waiting, waiting for the latest battle report ahead.

If the battle of the Green Wolf Valley is still lost, then Li Li will change his strategy, mobilize heavy troops to the Xiongnu grassland, sweep the barbarians with the overwhelming momentum of Mount Tai, and end the war as much as possible. Otherwise, if this battle drags on like now, the situation will be extremely unfavorable to the Xiliang Army, and the consequences will be unimaginable.

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Wow!

A brisk footstep interrupted Li Li's thoughts, and then a tall and sturdy figure appeared in his sight, striding towards the handsome tent.

This figure is very familiar, and for Li Li, it is very familiar. Because the person who came was not an outsider, but his younger brother, Li Xian, the Taishou of Beidi County.

"Ugh! Brother? Li Xian, who came in a hurry, saw a tall and familiar figure standing at the door of the handsome tent from a distance, and when he got closer, it turned out to be his brother Li Li.

"My brother is here late at night, so he already knows the news of our army's victory?"

"A great victory for our army? Brother Siam is talking about the battle of the Green Wolf Valley? Li Li was stunned when he heard this, and asked suspiciously.

While speaking, Li Li pulled him into the big tent without waiting for Li Xian to give a salute, and waved his hand to signal the maid to serve tea.

Then the two brothers sat down side by side, and Li Xian smiled and said: "I thought that my brother was unpredictable, but it turned out that my brother didn't know." Hehehe! ”

"Listen to what you say. Could it be that you have already learned about the battle in the Wolf Valley? Li Li groaned and continued: "The front-line battle report has always been sent to me as soon as possible, why did you know it before me today?" ”

"Hehehe!" Li Xian smiled: "Brother doesn't know. Today, I rushed from the county government to discuss with my brother on an important matter, but I didn't expect to meet a sentry rider who came to report the victory half an hour ago, and I learned from him that the victory in the Green Wolf Valley was great. And the sentry was already tired from running hundreds of miles overnight, so I asked my entourage to take care of him, while the foolish brother took the lead with good news and came to report the victory to my brother.

In the past, at this time, the elder brother had already rested, otherwise the sisters-in-law would definitely not follow. I didn't expect my brother to stay awake late at night today. Standing at the door and waiting for the battle report ahead, this move was really unexpected by the foolish brother! ”

"Hehehe!" Li Li laughed when he heard this, and scolded with a smile: "You kid is getting more and more bold now, and you actually talk about your sister-in-law in person, be careful that the wall has ears." Then make you look good! But you're now an adult, and you've been a county warden for more than two years. Much more mature and stable than before. You can't be treated like a child anymore. Tell me, what is the important thing you are doing here? Don't be taboo in front of me, just say whatever you want, as long as you do what your brother can do, you will be satisfied! ”

"Ugh!" Li Xian was stunned when he heard this, and said in surprise: "Brother, the affairs of the younger brother are all trivial and private matters. The battle ahead is the big deal! Why don't you ask about the war, but ask about the little brother's private affairs first? ”

Li Li shook his head slightly, looked at his younger brother with a smile, and asked teasingly, "You really want to know." Don't regret it? ”

"Hmm!" Li Xian nodded with a puzzled face and looked at Li Li, waiting for the reason why he was anxious to know.

Li Li said with a smile: "Because you are my younger brother, you can distinguish priorities and public and private at any time." So I don't have to ask about the battle ahead, you will also say it first, otherwise you will not be Li Xian! In that case, why should I bother? Hehehe! ”

"Oh, I see." Li Xian suddenly realized.

Li Li personally poured hot tea for Li Xian and said with a smile: "Our two brothers have depended on each other since childhood, so there is no distinction between public and private affairs between us, and there is no real sense of business and private affairs. For me, as an eldest brother, no matter how big or small your matter is, it is a big deal and must be resolved first. Besides, if you came to the camp late at night, you must have something important to discuss with me. Tell me, what the hell is going on? ”

Li Li's words moved Li Xian to a mess, tears flashed faintly in his eyes, and his face was full of gratitude.

Indeed, over the years, Li Li has taken care of Li Xian in every possible way, like a brother and a father. Since Li Li led the army alone, he has never let him go to the front line in person, and has always left him in the rear to guard the city. Even if he went out with the army, he would inevitably go out with Li Li, and he would be protected by at least hundreds of personal soldiers around him, and there was no danger at all. Therefore, Li Li himself has been in a desperate situation several times and almost died, but he Li Xian has never had such an experience, and he has always been under the protection of his brother Li Li, safe and sound.

Two years ago, Li Xian was ordered to serve as the general of Anbei and lead the Beidi County Guard, but the garrison stationed in Beidi County was Dian Wei and his Tiger Battalion. Li Xian didn't understand what this meant at first, and it wasn't until he once explained the truth that he knew that his brother had good intentions and cared for him. Who is Dian Wei, that is a fierce general who once served as the commander of his brother's personal guards, and sent him to garrison the border of Beidi County, although it is true to defend the territory and protect the territory, but the real intention is to protect his Li Xian's safety.

From the moment he knew what was going on, Li Xian really realized that his brother had loved him in every way over the years, thinking about himself in almost everything, never being ambiguous about big and small things, and trying to do his best. Because of this, after Li Xian took office as the county guard, he did not dare to slack off for a moment, and while being diligent in government affairs, he led the Huben camp to plunder the surrounding barbarian tribes to protect the territory and the people. In addition, he also had the help of Fa Zheng by his side, so in the past two years, Beidi County has quickly recovered its vitality, its population has increased dramatically, and its political achievements have been remarkable.

However, there are pros and cons to everything, and it is precisely because of Li Xian's frequent use of troops against the barbarian tribes that the Southern Xiongnu and Beidi Qiang live in difficulty, and every year is not as good as a year, which prompts them to actively respond to Yu Fuluo's call and jointly send troops to attack Beidi County. These barbarians were forced by Li Xian to have no way to retreat, so they could only fight hard, which was equivalent to fighting back desperately. These things naturally couldn't be hidden from Li Li's eyes, but he was quite appreciative of what his younger brother did, so this time most of the counties of Beidi County fell, and Li Xian was not punished in any way, and all the people who were punished were the generals of the Tiger Camp.

This kind of thing seems very unreasonable, and it is difficult for Li Li to escape the suspicion of favoritism, but it is indisputable nowadays. If Li Li severely punished Li Xian, it would make people feel unreasonable, thinking that Li Li was impersonal, and the six relatives did not recognize him. In addition, the whole Xiliang army knew that the lord Li Li loved his younger brother very much, which was a well-known fact, so that all the princes in the world had heard of it.

In fact, Li Li's love for Li Xian can no longer be summed up, and it can even be said to be doting.

For Li Li's care, Li Xian was ignorant before, but he only knew that it must be right to obey his brother's orders. But now it's different, he regards Li Li as his father and brother, on the surface, he is becoming less and less big in front of Li Li, but in fact, he is deeply buried in his heart this brotherly love that is as heavy as Mount Tai.

At this moment, the tears in Li Xian's eyes rolled for a while and finally did not fall, and gradually disappeared under his eyes. After forcibly calming down, he grinned and said, "Brother Mingjian, let go of the foolish brother's affairs first, please take a look at this good news first." ”

"Hehehe! It's up to you. Li Li smiled, took the letter and put it on the desk, and said with a smile: "I'll read the battle report later, you can briefly talk about it, how the battle in the Green Wolf Valley was won, and how was the battle going?" ”

"Well, I've asked the Sentinel about this." Li Xian nodded happily, and said with a very excited expression: "Brother knows people well, and it is really wise to use Zhou Yu as the main general of the expedition!" ”

"Oh? Your sister-in-law was still persuading me to change generals a few days ago, and it is best to go to the front of the battle to direct the battle in person! Li Li said with a smile.

"This 、、、 when I didn't say, hehehehe!" Li Xian was stunned when he heard this, then smiled and waved his hand repeatedly, turned his head to look at the door of the back tent, and said in a low voice: "Don't hide it from my brother, the two sisters-in-law have lost their eyes this time." Zhou Yu is really not a mortal, he destroyed hundreds of thousands of barbarian soldiers and horsemen in one battle, tsk, it's too powerful, it's really a god! ”

While speaking, Li Xian was amazed, and his admiration for Zhou Yu was beyond words.

"Wiped out hundreds of thousands of barbarian troops in a war, is this true?" Just as Li Xian Gu was amazed, Li Li was shocked and asked urgently.

Seeing his brother's expression, Li Xian immediately stopped selling Guanzi, nodded in response, and said, "Here's the thing." A few days ago, the enemy leader Yu Fuluo invited me to fight a head-on battle with the army, and the location was in the Green Wolf Valley, which was the fattest grassland of the Southern Xiongnu Tu tribes, and the center of the depression formed a huge valley, which was enough to accommodate more than 100,000 troops to fight. ”

"Well, I know this, yesterday there was a war report from the front, and there was a war report from the barbarian Yu Fuluo." Li Li said.

―――――――――――――――― (To be continued)(To be continued......