Great Ming Dynasty Wen Chao Gong

Chapter 66 How to deal with the Mongols

"My father's conquest against the Jurchens was thorough enough, but there was not much we could do against the Mongols. It was said to be a great victory, but in fact it was the Mongols who withdrew themselves. In the past few years, we have won less and lost more in the fortress. Zhang Shi Since you know so much, you should have some plans on how to deal with the Mongols, right?" Li Rusong said.

Was the conquest of the Jurchens really thorough enough, or did it accidentally have the opposite effect? ​​Zhang Xiao secretly complained in his heart. However, I couldn't say much in front of his son. I just answered Li Rusong's question: "The way to use the army is to adapt to the situation. I dare not say anything about how to fight the Mongols. But when it comes to dealing with the Mongols, , I have some ideas about what kind of equipment and logistical support we need." Zhang Xiao said.

"I would like to hear the details. Let Zhang Shidu talk about the equipment first. How to deal with the Mongolian cavalry? Do we need artillery? But the artillery is too heavy and heavy, so how can we easily pull it to the grassland?" Li Rusong asked.

"Actually, in grassland operations, artillery is still needed, as well as firecrackers. If the current firecrackers and artillery are to be adapted to grassland operations, they need to be improved. Firecrackers can be equipped with fixed gunpowder, change the ignition method, etc. , artillery can be transformed into portable ones, such as camel-carrying artillery. Anyway, there are basically no fortresses on the grassland that are difficult to conquer, and heavy artillery for sieges is not needed. Of course, these transformations require the efforts of craftsmen. I Just some personal thoughts.”

"Logistics and supplies are very important when fighting on the grassland. The Mongols fight when they can, and flee if they can't. The Ming Dynasty's army is easily surrounded when there are fewer people, and when there are more people, the logistics cannot keep up. So in the long run Look, you still need to build fortresses at key points on the grassland, and they are not simple fortresses. You can use new strong fortresses. Although the cost is high, once it is built, even 10,000 Mongolian cavalry cannot conquer it. Of course, if you want to take a longer term The solution is to build roads, but these are expensive things. In the short term, it is to train an elite cavalry as a reserve force, spend more money to repair the Great Wall defense line, and win over a few Mongolian tribes who are interested in the Ming Dynasty. As an internal response, if more forts are built along the border, it will be difficult for them to launch a large-scale invasion, whether it is the Tuman Khan in the west or the Shunyi King Shelik in the east," Zhang Xiao said.

"This is a perfect strategy, but it's too slow. Can't we just go out and attack the nest?" Li Rusong asked.

"If it is a small-scale conflict on the border, it can be handled flexibly. But if you take thousands or even tens of thousands of people out of the border, the risk is too great. It is difficult to predict what changes will happen on the grassland. Since ancient times, Wei and Huo have The achievements of each general were praised, which shows that this is not an easy thing to do. Even during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Li Guang, Li Ling, and Li Guangli all suffered defeats in battles with the Xiongnu, and even the whole army was annihilated. If you rush out of the fortress, you will be surrounded. , that is doomed. Even with the power of firecrackers and artillery, if the supplies are cut off, we will not be able to hold on." Zhang Xiao explained.

In fact, if you want to control the grassland, a better way is to build railways. However, according to the current technical level, Zhang Xiao decided not to talk too much yet.

"Why is it that repairing the Great Wall, building roads, and assembling heavy troops are still the way they were done during the time of Qin Shihuang? It costs too much, and the court probably won't agree to it easily. I'm afraid the princes in the court still want to do something good by destroying the nest. If it's in Ji Town, forget it. As a commander-in-chief in Liaodong, it would be unjustifiable for the imperial court to not have some merits for going out to the fortress," Li Rusong said.

"General Zimao, if we really want to send troops outside the Great Wall, we must do a good job in intelligence work and find a good marching route. The grassland is so vast that even Bowang Hou Zhang Qian may get lost, so we must have a reliable guide. We must attack The Mongolian tribes must be in a weak or unprepared state in order to hit with one blow. If it is delayed for a long time, or is detected in advance, and is directly surrounded by the Mongolian tribal alliance army, it will be completely annihilated. Back then, General Qiu had fought on the battlefield all his life and made great military achievements. However, he lost his reputation after dying in the grassland battle, and was demoted and seized by Emperor Chengzu. We must be on guard against him." Zhang Xiao said. There is no other way. For the sake of acquaintance, I can only say this to this extent. It would be disrespectful to say more.

Sure enough, Zhang Xiao was already unhappy when he saw Li Rusong's expression, but the unpleasant expression quickly dissipated from Li Rusong's face.

"Since Zhang Shidu doesn't agree with going out to invade the nest, Li can't ask any more questions. Can I change the question? Why was Mr. Zhang so angry about the Japanese when he was in the Imperial Academy that day? He looked like the Japanese were my Ming Dynasty. Like the number one enemy. Is it just because the Japanese pirates and Toyotomi Hideyoshi might invade Korea? Or is there something special about the Japanese army's combat power that makes Zhang Shidu so fearful?" Li Rusong asked.

Zhang Xiao was a little dazed for a moment. He was giving a lecture at the Imperial College that day. When he talked about Japan, he suddenly remembered the history that happened later. He was a little too excited. He suddenly forgot that it was still the end of the 16th century AD. Japan's rise in the original time and space was still there. It will take another two to three hundred years. At that time, when I was giving a lecture, I looked like I would never give up on Japan. Although everyone felt quite passionate when I was giving the lecture, when everyone thought about it, they felt something was wrong and what I said was inappropriate. Something out of a molehill. After all, Japan at this time did not have much of a presence in the eyes of Ming Dynasty people. The biggest enemy of the Ming Dynasty for a long time was the Mongols, their old rivals who had been attacking each other since the founding of the People's Republic of China and basically never stopped. There must be a better explanation for why I attach so much importance to Japan. However, Zhang Xiao sorted out his thoughts and felt that he could still answer this question with Li Rusong.

"General Zimao, during the Spring and Autumn Period, Jin and Chu fought for hundreds of years, but the real decisive battles between Jin and Chu were only a few battles, and there was victory or defeat for each other. Later, in order to deal with the Chu people, the Jin people fought thousands of miles away He formed an alliance with the State of Wu and specially sent people to teach the State of Wu the art of battle formation, so that the State of Wu could go to war with the State of Chu and disperse the military power of the State of Chu. Although the military strength of the Japanese State is not strong yet, it has also had contact with the Western Yi such as Fo Langji. Wan A Western country also gave its shipbuilding, gun and artillery technology to the Japanese, supporting the Japanese to harass our Ming Dynasty. Even if they may not be able to invade with a large army, if they harass everywhere on the sea or even go ashore to plunder, it will be great for our Ming Dynasty. Threat." Zhang Xiao thought for a moment and used the Anglo-Japanese alliance that happened behind the original time and space as a prophecy.

(End of this chapter)