HLnovel Chapter 262 Guarding Talent!
Chapter 262 Guarding Talent!
The commotion on the north bank of the Juma River was quite big. The mixed infantry and cavalry formation led by Zhang Qiao also reacted at this moment and began the final preparatory movements.
For the generals of the Song army, this was the first time they had fought such a large-scale war against the Liao since the Battle of Chanzhou during the reign of Emperor Zhenzong.
Most of the old generation of generals who fought against Liao were either dead, injured, or retired, and few of them are still engaged in military careers.
Now, the only general in the entire army who has been fighting on the front line is Yang Wenguang. Even Duke Yingguo Zhang Wenbi has shifted most of his energy to the court.
So now, facing the Liao cavalry that once gave their fathers headaches and fear, the new generation of Song army generals basically have no experience and rely entirely on improvisation on the battlefield.
As the second son of Zhang Kang, a famous general of the Song Dynasty, Zhang Qiao's combat experience mostly came from his father's verbal instruction, and he had no systematic learning.
His military talent was highlighted, mainly when he served as the military prosecutor of Xinzhou.
The so-called military prosecutors refer to the envoys of Jiedu, Guancha, Tuanlian and Defense who are all appointed as staff members to assist in military and political affairs.
That is, an official position that serves as a staff member to local military generals and assists in military and political management.
While serving in Xinzhou, Zhang Qiao combined some military books and notes left by his father Zhang Kang with official documents handled by the army to study and compare them, and finally formed his own command and combat style.
During Han Ming's first "Jiangxi Rebellion", Zhang Qiao demonstrated his military talent and ability, and his defense of Xinzhou was exceptionally good.
When the rebels swept through the major cities of Jiangxi with impunity, Xinzhou was the only city that had not been captured.
As a result, Zhang Qiao caught Han Ming's attention and joined the "Jinglüe Anfu Si" at that time to assist Cai Ting and others.
Later, after Han Ming left, Cai Ting and Zeng Fengxian worked together to govern Jiangxi. Zhang Qiao's military talent allowed him to stand out and become Cai Ting's deputy.
Later, when Emperor Yingzong ascended the throne, he expanded the armaments of the imperial guards. Zhang Qiao first served as a disposal envoy in the local garrison imperial guards, and later further served as the defense envoy of the Nan'an Army to resist the rebels in Guangnan East Road.
The repeated battles with the rebels made Zhang Qiao grow at a gratifying rate. At the beginning of the second year of Zhiping, he was transferred to the Central Imperial Guard to serve as the chief officer of the Imperial Guard Infantry Division.
This time, the general who went north to defend against the Liao was appointed by Han to defend the city. Together with the attacks of Gu Tingye and others, they formed a border defense lineup with both offensive and defensive capabilities.
Looking at the Liao cavalry rushing towards them from the other side of the Juma River, Zhang Qiao immediately ordered all the troops to keep their formation unchanged, and to send out their bows and crossbows to prepare to defend against the enemy.
As a result, we saw Cao Ping leading hundreds of people to step onto the ice of Juma River, and then they began to work on the ice.
"Why don't you go and ask General Cao what he means?"
Although Zhang Qiao understood what was going on, he was most afraid of letting his imagination run wild on the battlefield. Only those who could effectively use intelligence could be a qualified general.
The deputy general received the order and rushed out of the army, running towards Cao Ping who was shouting orders.
"General Cao!"
Cao Ping looked up and saw Zhang Qiao's deputy general. He immediately broke into a wide grin and said, "The Liao army has no moral principles and suddenly attacked with their entire army."
"I, under the orders of General Yang, will deploy defensive firearms on the ice of the Juma River first to teach them a lesson."
"Please tell General Zhang that his defenses will not be breached. Everything will remain as it was before!"
Cao Ping gave a quick explanation, and then told his men to quickly bury various "firearms".
Deputy Commander Zhang Qiao came and left in a hurry. He basically said two sentences: "I have received your order" and "General Cao", and then ran back to the army.
After briefly retelling the story, Zhang Qiao nodded slightly and immediately shouted, "Hold the attack!"
"Xu Zhen, take a cavalry unit and help General Cao deploy his 'firearms' first. If time permits, deploy the caltrops and spikes from the general's army as well!"
Zhang Qiao immediately saw a good defensive opportunity, which might have caused considerable damage to the Liao army.
"Yes, I will arrange it immediately."
Xu Zhen, the deputy general, had just returned and rushed out with a team of cavalry to quickly set up a defense line.
. . . . . .
Looking at the Song army that had returned and was helping him with the deployment, Cao Ping immediately showed an expression that showed he was a teachable child.
"Your general has good vision!"
Cao Ping greeted Xu Zhen in a familiar manner.
"But what are those bags and door panels you carried down?"
Xu Zhen looked at the curious General Cao and grinned, "These are the caltrops and spikes that our general requested. They're for fighting cavalry."
Cao Ping's eyes lit up instantly when he heard this. Compared with firearms which were expensive and complicated to use, these small hidden weapons were not only cheap and durable, but also had amazing lethality.
"Let me take a look!" Cao Ping said as he was about to take action, but was immediately stopped by Xu Zhen.
"Wait a minute, General! This is coated with a layer of poison. Don't use your hands directly!"
Xu Zhen was frightened by Cao Ping's actions and a cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Cao Ping secretly swallowed his saliva and finally gave a thumbs up and praised: "Your general is a ruthless man!"
Then he turned around and quickly packed up, leading his team to retreat. Xu Zhen also breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly asked people to leave.
After a while, Yang Wenguang led the remaining vanguard troops to the banks of the Juma River. Following the opening reserved earlier, everyone quickly crossed the Juma River and returned to the south bank.
"Old General!" x2
Zhang Qiao and Cao Ping came forward at the same time.
"The main force of the Liao army has arrived. Zi Xin, the second line of defense is now in your hands. If you need anything, just let me know. I and my three thousand soldiers are at your command!"
Yang Wenguang quickly handed the situation on the scene over to Zhang Qiao.
"Okay, then I'll ask General Lao and General Cao to lead the vanguard army to the west of the Juma River. If they see the Liao army entangled with our army, they can lead their troops to attack the grain camp in the rear."
"When I saw the fire in the north, I immediately rushed in with my entire army. Then the old general came from the rear, killed the generals, seized the flag, and captured Yelu Hongji and Xiao Boyu!"
Zhang Qiao quickly expressed his thoughts, causing everyone to lose face.
They did not expect that in such an extreme situation, Zhang Qiao actually wanted to use a mixed Song army of 10,000 infantry and cavalry to resist the nearly 100,000 iron hooves of the Liao army.
Then he had to fight back. For Zhang Qiao, who was known for his defensive talent, this style of play was really unexpected.
"Isn't it a bit of a stretch to have 13,000 men against the Liao army's main force of 80,000?"
Although Cao Ping was the youngest person present, he was the most stable one among them.
Compared to Yang Wenguang, whose temper became more and more volatile as he got older, Cao Ping was mature beyond his years and would only act after carefully calculating every step.
"As long as I can block the enemy's first wave of sprints, I can quickly force them into a foot battle. This way, my chances of winning are not zero!"
Bold!
This idea was quite bold. Even Yang Wenguang, who had been in the military for many years, had rarely seen examples of the Song Dynasty defeating a larger force with a smaller one.
It has happened on a small scale, but this is the first time it has happened on a large scale.
Zhang Qiao's idea was brought up by Han Ming. In Han Ming's military philosophy, the quality of soldiers is more important than their quantity.
If ten thousand people can achieve the same result as one hundred thousand, the value that can be realized is beyond imagination.
Han Ming is not Han Xin. "The more the better" is good, but the current situation of the Song Dynasty is not a problem of military strength, but the creation of an elite army and the problem of national strength.
After balancing national strength, finance, people's livelihood and other aspects, the most suitable thing for the Song Dynasty is to build several fixed elite troops to consolidate national defense and expand territory.
If the Song Dynasty eventually turned into a warmongering society like the late Emperor Wu of Han, the entire society would probably return to the military dictatorship of the Five Dynasties period.
Han Ming didn't want the people of the Song Dynasty to go hungry to support a country's goal of expanding its territory and fighting against foreign races.
The expansion of external borders must be achieved on the basis of ensuring national stability, sufficient finances and prosperous people's livelihood.
Han's idol, Erfeng, gave a good expression and answer to this question.
What does it mean that the more you fight, the richer you become, the stronger your country becomes, and the more you fight, the richer your country and the more prosperous your people become?
The Zhenguan Administration is the best example of a feudal dynasty. It is no longer a dream to achieve both civil and military success!
And his idea of elite troops was constantly passed on to his unparalleled generals, and the first thing they did was to have an elite team.
As for the number of people, it is not a problem. The veterans will lead the new recruits, and the ideas will be passed on, and the lineup will be expanded little by little.
Zhang Qiao now has the confidence to say that his 10,000 mixed infantry and cavalry are an elite force that can withstand the enemy's attacks and counterattacks.
"As the saying goes, you can't get a tiger cub without risking the tiger's den. If we don't act boldly, how can we defeat these battle-hardened armies?"
"Old General, I feel that it is time to change our previous tactics."
"Facing the Liao army, we must not only defend ourselves, but also have the courage to attack!"
"Although we failed in the Yongxi Northern Expedition, we also saw what it means to dare to 'draw the sword'!"
"The Liao army is also human, and we have fought back and forth with them before. This battle is to prove that our Song army is still as strong and powerful as it was when the country was founded!"
Zhang Qiao's words made everyone feel excited. They nodded continuously and smiled at each other.
"From now on, I think it's time to hand over the affairs of this battlefield to you children!"
Yang Wenguang smiled with relief and waved his hand to call everyone: "Let's go!"
"Let the Liao army see what changes our Song army has undergone over the years!"