The Song Dynasty has been deliberate for 16 years, only to know that it is the Water Margin

Returning to the Chinese army's tent, Zhao Tao looked at the generals: "There is no flaw in the defense of Shichuan City. Today, we can even keep calm and use crossbows. Our number is too small. Not to mention the losses if we continue to attack, it may not be effective in the end." .”

Everyone was silent. They only had [-] troops, which was not enough to siege the city. If they continued to attack by force, it would be like what Zhao Tong said, and the city would not be taken down in the end, and there would be heavy damage.

Du Bo said: "My subordinates see that the Shichuan general knows the art of war very well. When defending, every step of the reaction is just right and unhurried. He does not waste weapons and equipment, and can hinder the rhythm of the siege. If we continue to attack, It’s really not the best idea.”

Zhao Tong nodded: "Then let's all come up with ideas. It doesn't matter whether it succeeds or not. Just open up your mind, speak it out and think about it together."

The following immediately started a low-pitched discussion, and then began to speak enthusiastically. They talked about all kinds of weird things, but most of them were of no practical use.

Zhao Tong leaned on his chair and listened, nodding his head from time to time and giving some words of encouragement.

These guards chiefs had hardly read any military strategy books and had little literacy. They could only understand military orders and the like. He did not expect these people to come up with any clever strategies, but the purpose was to let them use their brains and not just know how to read. Instead of charging into battle, be flexible, sharp and resourceful on the battlefield.

These people became more and more enthusiastic as they spoke, and their voices became louder. They lost the restraint before, and Zhao Tong did not stop him. He watched the two guard chiefs arguing, and thought about the opinions they insisted on in their words.

At this moment, a dull thunder suddenly came from the sky outside, and the warm atmosphere in the tent immediately came to a halt.

Zhao Tong raised his eyes and looked outside the tent. Because of the hot summer, the tent curtain door was not blocked, but rolled up high.

At this time, I saw dense clouds in the sky in the distance, and it suddenly became dark. It was obviously not evening yet, but it seemed that night had suddenly fallen, and the sky and the earth were dim.

Then streaks of lightning illuminated the sky, as if a golden sword cut through the round house, opening up another world.

The delicate sound of thunder sounded from far to near, and then suddenly exploded above, and the sound of "boom" was heard endlessly.

A cool breeze suddenly hit, even blowing into the tent. The guard captain sitting at the back subconsciously wiped his face, but felt moisture on his hands.

It was going to rain. Zhao Tong slowly stood up from behind the case and walked towards the tent door.

People on both sides hurriedly followed, and Zhao Tong came to the door with his hands behind his hands. At this time, he could only hear the whistling sound of the branches and leaves of the trees in the distance, and the sky seemed to be moving towards him as if thousands of horses were galloping. In just an instant, raindrops the size of beads fell rapidly.

The rain came in a hurry, but in the blink of an eye the front turned into a mist, making it difficult to distinguish people from near and far.

Zhao Tong remained silent and squinted at the heavy rain. The tents were always set up on high ground, especially in summer, so there was no rainwater backflow.

As for the leakage from Lingbo Mountain, it will flow into Dulan Lake. Even if it overflows, it will not reach the Yingpan side. The Yingpan is located on the southern protrusion of Dulan Lake, facing the west gate of Shikawa City, while Lingbo Mountain is on the south side of Dulan Lake. North side of Dulan Lake.

The rain was getting heavier and heavier, with no sign of stopping. Zhao Tong sighed: "With such heavy rain and the subsequent muddy ground, I'm afraid we will have to stop fighting for a few days."

At this time, there was a guard commander of the regular infantry behind him. He suddenly said: "Your Majesty, it is the rainy season and there is a lake in front of Shikawa City. Can we use a water attack strategy?"

Water attack plan?Everyone was stunned when they heard this, and Zhao Tong said slowly: "How did you come up with this plan? Tell me in detail!"

The guard captain had just mustered up the courage to speak up, but when Zhao Tong asked him to speak, he stuttered.

Zhao Tong said: "Let's just discuss it. There's no right or wrong, no rewards or punishments. Just say what's on your mind."

The chief of guard then became more accommodating: "Your Majesty, my family is from Huangzhou, but it is not in the city, but in the county. When I was a child, I was willing to listen to stories and legends. Later, I went to Huangzhou for business, and I happened to see someone telling a story at a tea shop. I just listened to the book for a while, it was about Guan Yunchang who flooded the Seventh Army and shocked China. My subordinates have been deeply impressed by this for so many years."

"Oh?" Zhao Tong smiled: "Go on."

The chief of guard nodded, and his words became smoother: "At that time, my subordinates heard that Guan Yunchang was saving the Han River, and then breached the embankment to counterattack, flooding the seven armies, so he thought that there was water in front of Shichuan City. I wonder if we could divert the water from Lan Lake. To flood the city, after all, Shikawa's moat is drawn from Dulan Lake, and there are both water channels and ready-made dams."

"Dulan Lake..." Zhao Tong narrowed his eyes slightly: "I'm afraid the water in Dulan Lake is not enough!"

Chief Wei said: "Your Majesty, my home is in the east of Huangzhou, close to the Qinwang River. Every year at this time, it rains for a few months, and the mountains and rivers are likely to break out at this time. This is far from my hometown. It’s not far away, and it’s probably raining quite a lot. When it comes, it will wash down from Lingbo Mountain, and I’m afraid Dulan Lake won’t be able to hold it at all.”

"You mean it rains a lot at this time every year? Does it rain so much in the northwest?" Zhao Tong turned back and looked at the Chief of Guards.

The captain of the guard said: "My lord, this is the only time this month. Other times it will be fine. There are also soldiers from Huangzhou in the army below, and they all know about this. Your lord, please call over and ask."

Zhao Tong thought deeply: "According to your statement, Dulan Lake can't hold so much rainwater, wouldn't it mean that it will flood backwards?"

The Chief of Guard said: "My subordinates think this is so. Shikawa River is not in trouble under normal circumstances. There is a dam from outside the Shikawa moat to Dulan Lake, so the water will only go south and not towards Shikawa River."

Du Bo said from the side: "You mean to dig the dam and divert water to Shichuan? But Shichuan is not a small town. How much water will it take to flood Shichuan?"

The Chief of Guard said: "That's why my subordinates brought up the matter of Guan Yunchang flooded the Seventh Army. Now that the rain has just come, we can take the opportunity to build water. How big the dam is, how much water can be stored. When it can no longer be stored, open the sluice gate." , dig open the mouth of Dulan Lake and let the water rush through. Even if the waves are not three feet high and flood the Shikawa River, the city wall will be broken down. Even if the city wall cannot be broken down, the masonry will definitely loosen when such a large amount of water comes. The city gate will also deform, and it will be much easier to break the city."

Zhao Tong thought for a while and said: "It will indeed be so...and after the flood, there will definitely be some epidemic diseases, because animals and birds on the mountains, snakes and insects on the ground are drowned by the water, and accumulated under the city, they will spread viruses and diseases."

Du Bo said: "Your Majesty, how much water does it need to accumulate to achieve this effect? ​​It may not be effective in a day or two."

Zhao Tong said: "It won't be completed in a few days, but it doesn't matter. I will personally measure the terrain tomorrow and draw the drawings. You can just send people to do the construction. The project should be done as quickly as possible, but there is no need to stop day and night and injure the soldiers. "

Du Bo said: "Your Majesty, Dulan Lake is so close to Shichuan, won't the Xixia army in the city notice that we want to attack with water?"

Zhao Tong glanced at him, shook his head and said: "Jiande, you are too honest, why are you afraid that they will notice? You just want them to see it!"

"My lord, this is..." Du Bo looked embarrassed, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he said: "I have thought of it, I have thought of it!"

Zhao Tong smiled slightly: "It's good to think about it. This is a conspiracy. Won't the Xixia army not come out? Then let them see us digging water channels, building dams, and storing water to flood the city!"

"That's right, that's right!" Du Bo said: "They are defending Shichuan and will not go out of the city to fight. They just watch us try to flood the city. There is nothing they can do in the city to stop it. , and there is no way to protect them. If you just keep watching, you will definitely suffer in the end. But if you don’t want to be flooded, then go out of the city to stop it. Once you go out of the city, it will play into our hands."

"What a clever plan, what a conspiracy!"

"Your Majesty has a clever plan, and my subordinates admire it!"

"This kind of strategy is really a divine help!"

"This time we will succeed immediately and capture Shikawa!"

Everyone stood up respectfully, and Zhao Tong waved his hand: "This plan is not what I thought, so there is no need to flatter me."

He looked at the guard who offered the plan and asked, "What's your name?" The guard was also excited at this time. Seeing that Zhao Tong was determined to carry out this plan, he hurriedly saluted: "Back to the prince, my subordinate calls me Li Xiaozhong, also known as Shaoyan. "

"Li Xiaozhong, also known as Shaoyan?" Zhao Tao was slightly startled when he heard this, and looked the guard up and down: "filial piety, loyalty Zhong?"

The chief of guard was puzzled by Zhao Tao's reaction and said nervously: "Exactly..."

Later, Yang Zhi said at this time: "Your Majesty, Shao Yan came here when Liu Duhu was recruiting troops in Huangzhou. Because he brought five to six hundred villagers to join the army, he was always good at martial arts and a heroic hero, so Liu Duhu went directly to A guard captain was appointed.”

Zhao Tong stared at Li Xiaozhong and said: "Okay, very good!"

Li Xiaozhong didn't know what he said was good, and thought he was praising the flooding strategy. He couldn't help but said with shame: "Your Majesty, you are so complimentary. My subordinates only thought of this strategy accidentally when they saw it raining outside. It's just a coincidence."

Zhao Tan walked up to him and patted his shoulder. Li Xiaozhong was of medium height but looked very strong. Zhao Tan touched his shoulder and knew that he had a strong foundation in martial arts, and it was not shallow.

"It's not Miao Zan. As the saying goes, if you don't accumulate strategies in the past, how can you make a living in the future!" Zhao Tao looked at Li Xiaozhong with a smile, feeling very comfortable.

Not only is he short of soldiers, he is also short of generals, especially generals who are both strategic and good at martial arts.

General Lu was considered to be extremely resourceful, but it was a pity that he was a scholar, not to mention incompetent in tying a chicken. Zhao Tong was really afraid that he would be accidentally hacked to death in front of the battle one day.

The remaining Zhang Xian is too young, sometimes impulsive, and needs to be tempered.

As for Liu Suiyun, although he is also good at strategy, he is actually better at internal affairs. If he is asked to lead the army, who will handle a lot of things in his territory?Who can coordinate all miscellaneous taxes, grain, grass, and trade?Zhao Tong's head felt as big as a bucket just thinking about it.

There are no other strategists. They are all rough men, and there are no talented people like Wu Jie, Liu Qi, Han Shizhong, Yue Fei, etc. who are both civil and military.

But now he suddenly discovered one, and that was Li Xiaozhong.

Li Xiaozhong, courtesy name Shaoyan, was born in Ning County, Longxi Province. He had few ambitions and was a gallant knight. He practiced riding and shooting. Because he lived on the border, he often observed the situation of mountains and rivers, and would seize the best horses when they were grazing in Xixia.

After the Jingkang disaster, the family was destroyed to relieve the disaster. He recruited troops to serve the king and sent 3000 people to the capital to supplement Chengjie Lang.

At the end of Jingkang, he wrote a letter to impeach Li Gang for not knowing how to fight, and he was ordered to be hunted down. He had to change his name to "Li Yanxian" and fled into hiding.

Later, he joined the army again. After the Jin soldiers occupied Hedong, he joined the army in the Zhong division on Hedong Road. Because he successfully spied on the intelligence of the Jin army's northward retreat, he was able to serve as a lieutenant. He then changed battlefields several times and made outstanding achievements, which are rare in more than [-] large and small battles. After defeat, Shaanzhou, Hezhongfu, Zhongtiao Mountain and other places were recovered.

Emperor Gaozong learned that Li Yanxian had repeatedly won victories against the Jin people and was so happy that he couldn't sleep. He appointed Li Yanxian as the magistrate of Shaanxi Province and as the pacification envoy, promoted to Wujielang, Gemen Xuanzansheren, and gave him robes, belts, spears and swords.

Later, Wang Shu, the economic envoy to Yanyan, had a feud with Qu Duan, the commander of the Zhizhen Rong Army and the Economic Strategy Department, and Shaanzhou became an isolated city.

When the Jin army went south, everyone advised Li Yanxian to abandon the city. However, Li Yanxian believed that Shaanzhou was located to the east of Hangu Pass and south of the Yellow River. It was the gateway to the east of Guanzhong and had a very important strategic position. No matter whether the Jin army wanted to attack from Bian or Luoxi, Entering Guanzhong, or wanting to go down to Guanzhong from the south of Henan, it was difficult to avoid Shaanzhou, so I decided to stick to it.

Wanyan Lou's army arrived at the city and was defeated in several battles. The Lou family respected Li Yanxian's talents and tried to send an envoy to persuade him to surrender, promising him the position of Marshal of the Henan Army. Li Yanxian flatly refused and killed the envoy. Later, the Lou family sent someone to persuade him to surrender. At the foot of the city, he said, "As long as you surrender, you will immediately be granted the official rank promised before." Li Yanxian told the envoy: "I would rather be a ghost of the Song Dynasty, and I will use your wealth and honor."

After guarding the isolated city alone for a year, the food and grass were finally exhausted, and the Jin soldiers broke into the city. In the fierce street fighting, Li Yanxian's left arm was chopped off but not broken, and his whole body was shot like a hedgehog. The residents of Shaanzhou had no second thoughts, even the women He also went up to the roof and hit the golden man with tiles, and cried endlessly for Li Yanxian.

Wanyan Lou's family cherished his talents and ordered his subordinates to capture Li Yanxian alive. The winner would receive ten thousand gold.

In order to avoid being captured by the Jin people, Li Yanxian threw himself into the river and died at the age of 36.

The more Zhao Tong looked at Li Xiaozhong at this moment, the happier he became. He had no future famous generals under his command. Most of the famous generals came from the Western Army and were difficult for him to use at present.

It seems that with such reckless origins, the people who became famous in the end were probably Li Yanxian and Yue Fei. However, they did not expect that Li Yanxian was already a general under his command.

He smiled and said: "If this is completed, Shaoyan will be remembered as the first one!"

Li Xiaozhong said hurriedly: "My subordinates are just giving some opinions. It is a blessing to be able to share the prince's worries. It is not a great achievement."

Zhao Tong shook his head: "Tomorrow I will measure the terrain, draw the drawings, and leave them to you. I grant you the right to dispatch five thousand infantrymen. If you need any equipment, you can go directly to Marshal Du and ask for it."

"Ah!" Li Xiaozhong was a little confused when he heard this. He had just joined the army not long ago. Although he brought some people over, they were all dispersed in the army. He had never done anything else in terms of merit. I don't know why he was so trusted?

The other guards chiefs all showed envy. The prince was trying to support Li Xiaozhong. Once he captured Fuchuan City, he would definitely be promoted to an official position!

Yang Zhi touched Li Xiaozhong at this time: "Shao Yan, why don't you thank the prince quickly!"

"I would like to thank you, Your Majesty, for your trust!" Li Xiaozhong saluted hurriedly: "I am willing to repay Your Majesty with all my heart and soul, even if I am broken into pieces!"

Zhao Tong touched his chin and suddenly said: "Shao Yan, I think your name is hard to pronounce, so why not change it to another one?"

Change your name?Li Xiaozhong couldn't help but be stunned, what does the prince mean?
"I see... Shaoyan, just change your name to Li Yanxian!" Zhao Tong said with a smile.

ah?Li Xiaozhong was shocked when he heard this. How did the prince know that he was also named Li Yanxian?No one knows about this except those close to him. Doesn't it count if the prince can pinch him?

"What do you think of this name?" Zhao Tong saw him in a daze and couldn't help but ask.

"Subordinate, I think it's very good...Thank you, Your Majesty, for giving me the name!" Li Xiaozhong hurriedly saluted again.

"Hahaha, in that case, Shaoyan, you will measure the mountains and lakes with me tomorrow, and then start building dikes and prepare to flood Shichuan!" Zhao Tong couldn't help but smile with his palms.

The rain stopped the next day, and Zhao Tong took Li Yanxian to the bank of Dulan Lake to observe the water situation. Then they followed the original mountain and water channel to the foot of Lingbo Mountain to check the dry ditches and canals going down the mountain.

These ditches have been washed out over countless years. The water in the mountains is almost always found in these places, and there is no other way.

It took a full day to complete the inspection, and then Zhao Tong returned to the camp to draw the drawings.

This may seem complicated to others, but it was not difficult for him. It didn't take long to complete the drawing, and then someone copied it, one for Li Yanxian and one for Du Bo.

Early the next morning, Li Yanxian got up to mobilize his troops, received fortification equipment from Du Bo, and began to work on the water storage project in full swing.

(End of this chapter)