The Grandmaster Strategist

In August of the 19th year of Xian De, Southern Chu formed an alliance with Dayong. On behalf of Emperor Yong of Qi, he made a bloody alliance with the ruler of the country. Prince Zhao Jue of De was appointed as the Grand Governor and was ordered to go on an expedition. Before leaving, Zhao Jue ordered Jiang Zhe to serve as the governor. At that time, the king was worried that Prince De had too much power, so he ordered the eunuch Wang Hai to supervise the army.

--"History of Chu in the Southern Dynasties Biography of Jiang Suiyun"

Damn Zhao Jue, he really asked me to join the army. I originally wanted to ask for help, but Zhao Jue is now the governor-general with one person under one person and more than ten thousand people, so I had to hand over the Imperial Academy job with tears in my eyes and join the army. Shu, but what comforts me is that Xiao Shunzi also set out with the army. Before leaving, the king sent Wang Hai, the superintendent of ceremonies and supervisors, to supervise the army. Although using eunuchs to supervise the army is really an internal danger to defeat, Thinking that Xiao Shunzi came with Wang Hai, I couldn't help but thank God for blessing. With Xiao Shunzi's protection, I shouldn't encounter too many dangers, but it's best to find more guards. I I'm going to talk to Xiao Shunzi. When I choose the candidate, Xiao Shunzi will help me evaluate their martial arts skills to prevent me from finding a bunch of losers.

This time to attack Shu, the Southern Chu troops were divided into two groups. One was by water. Zhenyuan Hou Lu Xin led an army of 10,000 sailors out of the Baidi Wu Gorge and went up the river. The other group was led by Prince Zhao Jue, the governor of the country, who led an army of 50,000. They attacked Benba Prefecture by land, and the two sides agreed to meet in Luocheng. I am a staff member of Prince De's tent, so I naturally have to follow the army. However, I can't get rid of my resentment. During the march, I have been hiding in the car of Wang Hai, the supervisor of the army. Wang Hai and Wang Guanshi of the Royal Study Room are from the same clan, so he is not interested in me. Not bad. On the way, I mentioned from time to time that Manager Wang’s health has improved greatly since he took the medicine I gave him. I naturally agreed to prepare one or two similar medicines for him. Xiao Shunzi was waiting on the two of us obediently. Wang Hai looked at Xiao Shunzi happily and said with a smile: "This boy is the slave that Zhuangyuan Gong once rescued. Xiao Shunzi is good at everything and is diligent in his hands and feet. He is sharp-tongued and literate, but he is not good at all and not motivated at all. Other slaves can fight for a job and want to surround themselves with the king. Only this boy is willing to give up that good job. , follow our family to the army and suffer."

I couldn't help but glance at Xiao Shunzi, feeling a little guilty. This guy was thinking about me. Xiao Shunzi said obediently: "What are you talking about, father-in-law? Father-in-law and father-in-law Wang are relatives. They always reward slaves when they see them. This time The father-in-law is appreciated by the king and serves as the supervisor of the army. Once he returns to the court in victory, it will be a great achievement, and the slaves who follow the father-in-law will also benefit from it. Otherwise, why do people say that wealth is gained through danger?" Wang Hai laughed so hard that he couldn't even open his eyes. opened. The three of us were having a nice conversation. At this time, a messenger ran to our car and said loudly: "Master Jiang, the prince has summoned you to discuss matters." I got out of the car helplessly, took the horse rein from the Ouchi guard brought by Wang Hai, and shook it. I galloped forward. My riding skills are not very good. I just learned it on the fly these past few days. Finally, I reached Zhao Jue who had stopped his horse and was waiting for me. I clasped my fists on the horse and saluted, "Your Majesty, I have been ordered to come here."

Zhao Jue looked at my embarrassed appearance and said with a smile: "Master Jiang, you should learn more about riding horses, otherwise it will be difficult for you to join the army."

I almost gritted my teeth. Am I willing to join the army? But people under the eaves had to bow their heads, so I had to say respectfully: "I obey your orders. If you have anything to do, please give me your instructions."

Zhao Jue urged the horse to move forward slowly, gesturing for me to follow him, and I hurriedly urged the mount. The two of us walked side by side for a while, and then Zhao Jue said, "Master Jiang, is he still resentful of me?" I said with a smile, "I don't dare. I am receiving a salary from Nanchu. How dare you?" Refuse the appointment from the imperial court." Zhao Jue smiled bitterly and said: "It's not that this king is embarrassing you, it's just that in attacking Shu this time, we must obtain maximum benefits while preserving our own strength. Marching and fighting are my internal affairs, and I will not do it. I don’t dare bother you, Sir, but after defeating Shu, we must discuss with Dayong how to distribute the results of the war. If there is no wise and decisive person like Mr. Jiang who understands the reality of our two countries,

I'm afraid that we will suffer a big loss, so we have to embarrass Mr. Jiang. "

I thought angrily: "It's just a division of the spoils after the robbers succeed. Wouldn't you wait until you win before letting me go?" Zhao Jue seemed to have read through my mind and said: "Besides, I think Mr. is so smart. Jue also wants to listen to advice every day. Now that the country is in danger, I also hope that Mr. Jiang will spend more time on military affairs so that he can contribute to the country." After listening to Zhao Jue's words, I thought about it carefully. It makes sense. Since I am already in the military, I might as well take advantage of it. Let’s learn more about military affairs. Thinking of this, I bowed low to express my acceptance of his opinion. Zhao Jue smiled slightly and gave the horse a whip. My horse seemed to want to gallop, and twisted its body impatiently. It scared me so much that I swayed from side to side. Fortunately, a personal guard of Zhao Jue who was following me helped me. I thanked him with a blushing face and vowed to learn how to ride a horse.

Putting down the pen in my hand, I rubbed my shoulders. I have been dealing with these military affairs since I set up camp. After talking to Zhao Jue, I began to participate in handling military affairs. From the initial stumbling to the current ease, I did not spend too much time. Commander, from how to set up camp, how to organize the army, how to reward and punish, and of course the most important thing is document processing and intelligence compilation, the difficulty of these military affairs is no easier than my work in the Hanlin Academy. Among Zhao Jue's staff, the Montenegrin Confucian scholar Rongyuan who had been following him was the most important. He often followed Zhao Jue as counselor. As for these trivial military affairs, other counselors handled them. My joining reduced their workload. In particular, it didn’t take long for me to become familiar with most of the document processing methods. Relying on my strong memory and keen judgment, I quickly became a leader among them, especially in the intelligence analysis work. Originally, they just asked me to try it out. Unexpectedly, researching and verifying information from just a few words is my strength. I don’t need to record it in writing. No matter how trivial the information is, I can figure out the context as long as I read it once. So later, the staff simply handed over the intelligence analysis work to I asked him to sort out the documents and submit them to Zhao Jue for review. It was only then that I truly became a highly valued counselor around Zhao Jue. Apart from Rong Huan, I already came out on top.

Look at the sky, it's already late at night, and I have to travel tomorrow. I collected the information and prepared to send it to Mr. Rong. I felt a little thirsty, so I picked up the teapot on the small table, but it was already empty. He shook his head with a wry smile. At this moment, a cough came from outside the tent, and then Xiao Shunzi walked in, holding a food box and said calmly: "Master Jiang, Wang Jianjun knows that you are busy with military affairs, so he asked me to deliver it. Late night snack, and I want to thank you for the medicine you gave him yesterday."

As soon as I heard Xiao Shunzi's tone, I knew there was someone outside, so I smiled and said, "Please thank Wang Jianjun for me. In fact, Mr. Jianjun is just used to being pampered. He has been too tired and not well rested these days, so he can't help but feel uncomfortable. I The medicine is just to allow Lord Supervisor to rest better and regain his energy quickly." Xiao Shunzi put the things on the table and said, "Please eat it while it's hot." I shook my head and said, "I'll put it first The paperwork has been sent over. You can go back and rest first. We have to march tomorrow." Xiao Shunzi thrust a small note into my hand, then bowed and left.

I opened the note, and there was a beautiful line of small characters written on it: "It is inconvenient to come and go in the army. There are many masters around Zhao Jue. Rong Yuan seems to be a little jealous of you. Today, he slandered Zhao Jue, saying that he has close contacts with the King of Qi and may be colluding." , for the sake of safety, try not to let the adults get close to important military affairs, Zhao Jue is dubious."

I smiled lightly, such things are always inevitable. It is no wonder that Rong Yuan is jealous of me because of my sudden rise. However, if his slander succeeds, it doesn't matter. Anyway, I have no reason to be favored by Prince De. I walked out of the tent and asked the sergeant under the tent to accompany me to the tent where Rong Yuan handled military affairs. I handed the documents to him. He accepted them and encouraged me a few words, full of trust and appreciation for me. It's true that a person cannot be judged by his appearance. -I sighed in my heart and left the tent. Outside the tent, the moonlight was like frost.

After more than half a month of marching, we arrived at the border of Shu. After that, the siege operation went very smoothly. However, we arrived at Bajun in ten days. At first, I was wondering why the resistance of Shu was so weak. After asking, I found out how many soldiers there were in Shu. It is not enough, so we do not deploy heavy troops in other places except for key and dangerous passes. Bajun is the first pass we face. After passing Bajun, there are difficult and dangerous paths ahead. There are more than 20 passes in a row, all of which are easy. The situation is difficult to defend and the war is about to begin.

On August 23rd, the Southern Chu Army arrived at the gate of Bajun City. I rode on the docile horse specially selected for me by Prince De, and looked at the Bajun City where the city was high and the pond was deep. There were forests of swords and guns on the city towers, and countless Shu troops stood there. He looked solemn in the city, and it was obvious at first sight that he was a powerful force. Prince De led his horse slightly, stood in front of the army, and looked at the city wall coldly. Among the many sergeants on the city stood a general wearing red armor. With my eyesight, I could tell that this man was about fifty years old. He had a heroic appearance, a short stature, and a curly beard. The man shouted loudly: "Nanchu and our country, Shu, are in good alliance. Why did we break the alliance for no reason and come to attack us secretly?"

Prince De smiled faintly and raised his voice: "The Kingdom of Shu is peaceful in a corner and is ruling the world. Today, the Great Yong Dragon is rising in the Central Plains. The Kingdom of Shu still refuses to become a vassal. What's the reason? We, the subjects of the Great Yong of Southern Chu, have been ordered to attack. In honor of the emperor's order, I would like to wash away the resentment of the oppression of the Shu Kingdom for many years. I, the children of Southern Chu, have heard that the Shu Kingdom, taking advantage of its terrain, often bullies our border people, and takes advantage of the trade period to raise prices and plunder my people's gold and silver. Today we are raising troops from Southern Chu. We must succeed in a battle and avenge our hatred." After saying that, he pointed his whip forward, and the Southern Chu army shouted in unison. The drums thundered, and a team of a thousand people began to advance forward with a shout, each holding a shield and a ring. The first sword protected the many ladders that rushed towards the city wall. Taking advantage of the fact that the archers on the wall could not stretch out their heads to shoot arrows downwards, the Nanchu army leaned the ladders against the city wall and began to climb up. Twenty or thirty others pushed They drove the chariot to the city gate, and the huge crash overwhelmed the sound of war drums and horns. Before a few collisions, war drums sounded on the city, rolling logs and rocks rained down, the ladders were also pushed by the rods, and the body of the Nanchu sergeant fell from the mid-air, bloody and bloody, and the rushing car was also hit seven times by huge rocks. Bits and pieces.

I felt uneasy, but I saw Prince De and other generals and staff looking at the battlefield with indifferent expressions, without any nervousness at all. Then there was a sound of gold, and the sergeants gradually retreated. I looked carefully and saw that most of the sergeants had not climbed up yet, so there were not as many injured people as I thought. After a while, the second wave of the Nanchu army began to attack the city. Kamiya began to fight back.

On this day, the Nanchu army made more than twenty attacks in total, but they were all in vain. The defenders on the city were also very cautious and did not abuse wood and stone. When it was almost dusk, the Nanchu army launched a fierce attack. The offensive was in full swing. The sergeants risked their lives to climb up and even climbed onto the city wall. They started a bloody battle on the city. However, in the end the Nanchu army was still defeated.

My mind was shaken as I looked at it. Today's attack on the city should have killed or injured two to three thousand people. The losses were not huge, but the terrifying momentum made me unable to calm down for a long time. That night I tossed and turned in the camp. The losses in the siege were so great. I heard that there were so many cities below. Wouldn't it be too miserable for every city to be like this?

The next day, the siege of the city was very fierce. The sun had just risen. The sergeants came out with a rumble pushing more than a dozen catapults. With an order, huge boulders rose into the air and hit the city wall heavily. Although the city wall did not waver because Bajun City was high and the pond was deep, gravel splashed from the city tower and the city wall trembled amidst the roar. My eyes shrank and I saw flesh and blood flying everywhere under the impact of the boulders, and then those The defenders in the city braved the arrows and began to penetrate the stone. The trebuchets on the city were powerful and hit our battlefield. Although they were difficult to aim, only half of our trebuchets were broken, but our front positions were completely destroyed. It was smashed to pieces, bloody and bloody, and piles of bones. The stone-throwing battle lasted for two sticks of incense. In this short period of time, my hands and feet became cold, and my eyes were full of blood and flesh. My eyesight was so good that I even I saw the miserable and sad expressions on those soldiers' faces before they died. Then, probably due to insufficient stones, the offensives of both sides slowed down and gradually stopped. The Nanchu army pushed the arrow tower and carried the ladder to attack the city again. Although the height of the arrow tower was not as high as the city wall, it could barely withstand the counterattack in the city. The sharp arrows from both sides drew beautiful arcs in the air, passed through the strong flesh, and splashed out dazzling blood flowers. The blood of both sides was swayed in front of the city wall. When the Nanchu army charged upward again under the rain of arrows, this time the city wall was hit with hot oil and lime. When the battered Nanchu sergeant fell, countless straws and torches were thrown on the city wall, and the city suddenly became a There was a sea of ​​fire, and only a few agile sergeants escaped. The rest of the soldiers were surrounded by the sea of ​​fire and burned horribly. The miserable screams in the sea of ​​fire were earth-shattering.

When I saw this, I really hated that my six senses were so sensitive. I couldn't bear it anymore. I quickly galloped to the back, found a secluded place and vomited loudly. I didn't stop until I vomited out bitter bile. When I straightened up, I saw Xiao Shunzi wearing a sergeant's armor standing in front of my horse. He handed me a pot of water and asked me to rinse my mouth. When I calmed down, I asked, "Why are you here?" Aren't you accompanying Eunuch Wang?" Xiao Shunzi whispered: "I told Eunuch Wang that I didn't know what the situation was like on the battlefield, so I came out to take a look. Eunuch Wang was also very worried, so he agreed." Wang Wangyuan I was on the battlefield, and I said with lingering fear: "It's too terrible, I'd better go back." Just as I was about to ride my horse, Xiao Shunzi grabbed my horse's reins and said: "Sir, you can't. Although I am ignorant, I also know that if you If you are timid now, you will never be able to hold your head high in front of the generals in the future, and you will have to go to the battlefield in the future, why should you avoid it again and again?"

I felt a little ashamed after hearing this, thinking that it seemed that my determination was far less tenacious than that of Xiao Shunzi. I looked at him gratefully and rode back to the front line. When I returned to Zhao Jue again, the generals and staff around him looked at me, who was as pale as paper, with approval. Zhao Jue praised him and said: "Sui Yun's courage is really good. When I first went to the battlefield, I was even more miserable than you. Don't worry, I will fight more battles." I bowed on the horse and asked: " Your Majesty, if you are a low-ranking official and don’t have military knowledge, it seems that our attack on the city will not go smoothly, right?"

Zhao Jue smiled bitterly and said: "Yes, Bajun is an important town in the Kingdom of Shu. Not only are the generals good at fighting, but also the soldiers are brave, and there are sufficient defensive equipment and food and grass, so it is very difficult to attack, which makes me heartbroken. Fortunately, if Bajun is captured, The more than twenty cities below will be much easier.”

I asked again: "So, according to what the prince sees, we need to attack for a few days."

Zhao Jue thought about it and said, "It would be great if we can attack Bajun within half a month."

I calculated that Dayong would have to go through several dangerous passes to attack Jiameng Pass from Yangping Pass via Dongchuan. However, Dayong’s soldiers were well-prepared. If we in Nanchu wanted to take the lead, we had to use strategies. I recalled in my mind what I had seen How can the current impasse be resolved based on past war examples?

I couldn't think of anything for a while, so I thought about the information about Bajun again, recalling them one by one. Looking at the city wall in the distance, the red-armored general was commanding on the city. I saw that his command was determined, and the defense of Bajun was watertight. We went south. If Chu had the slightest flaw, he would see through it at a glance, and then he would chase after him and beat him without mercy.

Slowly, pursue and fight fiercely, without mercy. I remember the information about the general who defended the city: Tian Wei, strict in military control, brave and good at fighting, good at defending the city, defending like a mountain, especially good at intercepting strongholds. No wonder Prince De guarded the camp so tightly. It turned out that he was good at intercepting strongholds. Slowly, a conspiracy takes shape, but will it work? After much deliberation, I rode up to Prince De and whispered my opinion to him. Prince De hesitated at first, then gradually became interested. After a long moment, he smiled and nodded, and then ordered the troops to retreat. The bloodiest day of the Battle of Berkshire finally came to an end.