SWDnovel Chapter 46 The True Dragon Emerges from Its Nest!
Chapter 46 The True Dragon Emerges from Its Nest!
"My father once said that Li Jun has Taiyuan as his backing, which gives him a natural advantage as he can both defend and attack."
"But what if Taiyuan is too busy to help itself? What if Li Jun's supply lines are cut off, and Taiyuan is unable to provide reinforcements?"
"Li Jun will then fight like a cornered beast, his so-called advantage will completely disappear, and the situation between the two sides will inevitably reverse!"
The more Zhao Dezhao spoke, the brighter his eyes became.
He knows where he went wrong!
His earlier analysis of Li Jun's weaknesses was correct in some ways, but not entirely! Ultimately, his vision was limited to the outcome of a single battle, rather than the overall situation!
He recalled why, in history, Zhao Kuangyin had attacked the Northern Han several times but failed to conquer it.
Is the Northern Han difficult to defeat?
No, no! What difficulty could a small place with only 40,000 to 50,000 troops pose to Zhao Kuangyin, the most powerful man of the Five Dynasties?
The difficulty lies in securing reinforcements from the Liao Kingdom.
Li Jun is the same; he only has 30,000 troops, which is not a threat at all. However, the key is that he is backed by Taiyuan. Therefore, if we want to defeat Li Jun, we must make Taiyuan unable to take care of itself.
Therefore, he was certain that Zhao Kuangyin's next tactical focus would not be on Li Jun, but on Taiyuan in Northern Han!
"Your ability to think of this truly surprised me as your father."
Zhao Kuangyin did not hold back his praise. He had not expected that his son's military strategy had improved so much in just one or two months.
Zhao Dezhao was right; Li Jun's weakness did not lie within himself, but in the Northern Han.
His next plan was to have Murong Yanzhao lead 20,000 troops from Xiangzhou to Luzhou, encircling Li Jun from the east and west and cutting off his retreat.
But this is not his core tactic.
"In the southwest, there is a military governor of Yong'an Army named Zhe Deyi. You may not have heard of his name, but he will keep the Northern Han army firmly tied down in Fuzhou for me."
(The location of Zhe Deyi.)
Zhao Kuangyin pointed to the northwest corner of the Northern Han on the sand table, then traced his finger eastward, finally stopping at the lands of Xingzhou, Mingzhou, and Chanzhou, and said:
"At the same time, I will also set up defenses here to prevent the false Han from advancing eastward."
Zhao Dezhao followed his father's finger and couldn't help but show a look of amazement.
What the old man didn't know was that, thanks to many novels from later generations, he had actually heard of Zhe Deyu's great name.
Fold, pass She.
The famous Old Lady She of later generations was Zhe Deyu's biological daughter!
In addition, the She family army was the only powerful army in the entire Northern Song Dynasty that could rival Li Yuanhao and the Liao Dynasty!
As early as the third year of Xiande in the Later Zhou Dynasty, Zhe Deyi led the She family army to capture Heshi, an important town of the Northern Han Dynasty.
With him in charge, they can easily divert the Northern Han's attention.
Furthermore, after blocking the three prefectures of Xing, Ming, and Chan from the east, the Northern Han would inevitably be unable to spare a large number of troops to come to Li Jun's aid.
With Shi Shouxin in the southwest, Murong Yanzhao in the north, and the Taihang Mountains as a natural barrier in the east, Li Jun will be like a caged beast, unable to advance or retreat, with no choice but to defend Zezhou to the death!
(A map illustrating Zhao Kuangyin's military campaign.)
Looking at the overall situation, Zhao Dezhao couldn't think of any way for Li Jun to break the deadlock.
A true general is never defined by the gains or losses of a single battle, but rather by his grasp of the overall battle situation, just like Zhao Kuangyin!
It has to be said that my father's military capabilities truly stood at the pinnacle of all emperors throughout history!
"He who cannot plan for the whole cannot plan for a part. Your subject has truly learned a great deal today..."
"He who cannot plan for the whole cannot plan for a part..."
Zhao Kuangyin glanced at his son in surprise, stroked his beard and smiled, "That's well said. Since ancient times, those who wish to accomplish great things have not only observed the present, but also considered the overall situation."
"A general without long-term strategy will miss opportunities in battle; a ruler without long-term strategy will lose the foundation of the nation."
"Since the late Tang Dynasty, people have often said that power and strategy can be relied upon, or that wisdom and tactics can be depended upon."
"But political maneuvering is like branches and leaves, while strategic planning is like the trunk; clever tactics are like fireflies, while strategic planning is like the sun and moon."
"A ruler of a nation should possess a grand vision, a broad perspective encompassing vast distances and a mind that considers the long term; only then can he remain invincible and achieve unparalleled feats!"
After laughing heartily, Zhao Kuangyin looked at his son and said these profound words.
The expectation in those words was quite obvious.
Understanding his father's good intentions, Zhao Dezhao bowed deeply again and said earnestly:
"Your subject will remember your father's teachings."
……
May 2nd, the first year of the Jianlong era of the Song Dynasty.
Zhao Kuangyin once again appointed Murong Yanzhao, the commander of the palace guards, as the commander of the eastern route army, and Wang Quanbin, the military governor of Zhangde, as the deputy commander, leading 10,000 troops from Hebei to Luzhou.
At the same time, Guo Jin, the defense commissioner of Mingzhou, was appointed as the patrol inspector of Xishan to prevent the Northern Han from launching a surprise attack from the northwest. Han Lingkun, the commander of the Imperial Guards Cavalry and Infantry, was ordered to garrison troops in Heyang as a reserve force, while also preventing Li Jun from crossing the Yellow River to the south.
At this moment, if we look at the map and consider the two continents of Ze and Lu where Li Jun is located as a fierce tiger, then this tiger is surrounded by vicious wolves that are eyeing it covetously!
Zhao Kuangyin has already cut off all of this tiger's escape routes!
Now, it's time to completely eliminate this ferocious tiger!
To slay a tiger, of course, we need a real dragon!
The 14th day of the fifth month of the first year of the Jianlong era.
Zhao Kuangyin officially led the expedition in person!
……
Early that morning, before dawn, the drill ground outside Kaifeng was already packed with people.
Zhao Kuangyin, dressed in military attire and with a sword at his waist, stood on the command platform, his majestic gaze sweeping over the imperial guards below.
More than 10,000 imperial guards stood ready, their eyes burning with fervor as they gazed at the high platform.
"Soldiers! Li Jun, that scoundrel, has colluded with the false Han to invade our territory and defy the Mandate of Heaven! Today, I intend to personally lead the army to quell the rebellion. Are you willing to fight alongside me?"
"I am willing to follow Your Majesty to quell the rebellion!"
"I am willing to follow Your Majesty, even unto death!"
The soldiers shouted in unison, their voices shaking the heavens, their morale soaring!
Seeing this scene, Zhao Dezhao couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
My father's control over the army was simply unparalleled!
After all, this was the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period!
During this period, the army had no loyalty whatsoever; they only recognized money and not people. Zhao Kuangyin was able to establish such military prestige in the army during this era. Other emperors could only manage to do so in two or three people at most!
Li Shimin is one of them.
Zhu Yuanzhang is one of them.
Besides him, Zhao Dezhao couldn't think of any other emperor who could have done this.
Looking at the thunderous cheers from the training ground, Zhao Dezhao felt a surge of pride!
"What man doesn't dream of becoming a general on the battlefield?"
"Big brother is right!"
Li Jilong, standing to the side, also had his eyes shining and was filled with excitement.
Zhao Dezhao glanced at him. To be honest, he hadn't expected his father to let Li Jilong and his son go on the expedition with him. But after a moment's thought, he understood.
Li Jilong's father couldn't possibly be unaware of his military talent.
If one were to use them, one would naturally bestow favors and cultivate their loyalty to the royal family from a young age. That is why they were kept by one's side and personally taught military strategy.
At this moment, Zhao Kuangyin withdrew his gaze from the Imperial Guards and turned to look at Zhao Pu and Zhao Guangyi beside him, whose expressions were solemn.
He said with a solemn expression:
"If I win this campaign, that goes without saying. If I lose, you two should divide your forces to defend Heyang and make separate plans."
Even if he was very confident, war is unpredictable, and no one can completely avoid all unexpected events. Therefore, it is still necessary to make arrangements for a way out.
During this expedition, Zhao Pu and Zhao Guangyi stayed behind in the capital. If something were to happen to him, it would at least leave a glimmer of hope for the Zhao family.
Zhao Guangyi and Zhao Pu's expressions tightened, and they both cupped their hands in greeting:
"Your Majesty, rest assured, your subject (your brother) will certainly obey Your Majesty's command!"
Zhao Kuangyin was slightly relieved. He turned around, drew his sword, pointed it north, and let out a long roar:
"By my decree, the three armies shall march forth!"
"Cross the Yellow River, traverse the Taihang Mountains, and head straight for Zezhou!"
The dragon has emerged from its nest!