Xu Zhiqing was silent for a moment before she said, "This place is called Kizil, located eight hundred li northwest of Xingqing, close to Jianshui and Sayan Ridge. It is where the Turkic tents and the royal court are located. Simply put, Kizil is the capital of the Turks."
Gao Qiu sucked in a breath of cold air, not daring to blink his eyes, "Brother Lin, are you joking? To attack the Turkic royal court from so far away? That's the lair of the Hu! Are you dreaming? I, Old Gao, don't even dare to think about it. "
Lin Wanrong nodded with a smile, "The art of war is deceitful, only by catching the enemy off guard can one strike achieve victory. Brother Gao, think about it, if even a wise person like you doesn't dare to think about it, do you think the Hu can think of it?! "
"That's true," Gao Qiu nodded and muttered to himself, "Alright, we will attack Kizil, steal their horses, steal their women!"
This old fellow, he never forgot to steal women! Lin Wanrong laughed heartily.
Launching a sneak attack on the Turkic royal court!! Lin Wanrong's idea was extremely bold, and it could also be said to be extremely arrogant. It carried a bit of heroic adventurism, and there was also a faint trace of romanticism. It also reflected his superior strategic vision and courage. Hu Bugui and Du Xiuyuan did not dare to make a sound, but there was a wild look in their eyes. Da Hua had been bullied by the Hu people too many times, why couldn't they give the Hu people a thrilling shock for once?
The two looked at each other, their eyes filled with hope. It was clear that Lin Wanrong's shocking words had deeply moved them.
"This is not a good idea." Advisor Xu shook his head, directly rejecting everyone's expectations, "If a large number of troops were to launch a long-distance attack, they would most likely be wiped out by the Turks before they could even enter the grasslands. How can we even talk about attacking the royal court?"
Advisor Xu's opinion could be said to have hit the nail on the head, Du Xiuyuan and Gao Qiu were a little disheartened, until they saw General Lin's calm eyes that they gathered some hope.
"Don't look at it like that," Lin Wanrong said unhurriedly, "What is a sneak attack?! That was to deliver a fatal blow to the Turks without anyone noticing. In a sneak attack on a Hu tent, the key was not quantity, but quality. Eight thousand or ten thousand elite cavalrymen are more than enough! "
Ten thousand men dared to attack the Hu's tent? Gao Qiu was scared silly and muttered, "Brother, isn't the number a little too little? We need at least a hundred thousand elites!"
His question was also what Hu and Du wanted to know. Lin Wanrong laughed heartily and said, "If it were a hundred thousand men, I'm afraid that we would be discovered by the Turks before we could even leave Xingqing City. Like I said, what the Hu can't think of is what we need to do. We need to have elite soldiers, but we can't have too many. Otherwise, it will only produce the opposite effect. "
"What's there to be afraid of," Hu Bugui, who was aroused by Lin Wanrong's words, roared like a tiger, his eyes glowing with excitement, "Give me ten thousand elite cavalrymen, and I will dare to go deep into the grasslands, destroy the Turks' tent, and capture that bullshit Pijia Khan alive. I will let those bastards know that the men of China are also men made of hot blood!"
Hu Bugui had been on the battlefield for many years, and had fought with the Hu countless times, but this was the most exciting time. There was a kind of heroic feeling that his blood was boiling.
Xu Zhiqing, as the military advisor of the three armies, could not be so impulsive. She shook her head and said, "General Hu, you must not be impulsive. Just now General Du has already said that it is difficult to attack a single Turk tribe, let alone the Hu's tent — — "
"We are attacking the Hu's tent." Lin Wanrong smiled, cutting off Xu Zhiqing's words. "Just now I said, if the effort is not proportional to the gain, then it is not worth fighting. And when the gain far exceeds the effort, even if it hurts your head, you still have to fight. Attacking the Turkic royal court is a major event, we cannot treat it as an ordinary battle. On the contrary, we should look at it from the perspective of the overall situation. "
The overall situation? Xu Zhiqing was taken aback, her white teeth biting her bright red lips, her eyes focused, deep in thought.
Lin Wanrong said in a clear voice, "There is a strategy to attacking the Hu's tent, it can be fake, but it can also be real. Quietly approaching Kizil, catching him off guard, and destroying the tent in one fell swoop, this is the best result, this is real. "
"Then what is fake?!" Xu Zhiqing unconsciously asked.
"Even if we did not reach Kizil, but every step we take closer to the Turkic royal court, is a great victory. Miss Xu can imagine, on the boundless grasslands, a mysterious China cavalry suddenly descending from the sky, and only a few steps away from the royal court, what kind of psychological blow would this cause to the Turks? To the soldiers of China, what kind of encouragement would this be? "
Lin Wanrong vigorously waved his hand, his heart boiling. He let out a long sigh, glanced at Hu Bugui and said, "Brother Hu, you have fought with the Turks for so many years, if such a day really comes, how would you feel?"
Hu Bugui's eyes were red. "Damn it, our China has been suppressed by the Turks for more than a hundred years, if we can really fight to our heart's content in the Hu's lair, I, Old Hu, am willing to die a hundred times over. My tens of thousands of brothers who died in battle, they fought against the Hu all their lives, but they did not even see what a Turkic tent looked like, they died unjustly! Old Du, feel my blood, it's hot! "
Hu Bugui's words represented the wishes of the tens of thousands of soldiers fighting against the Hu. China had been bullied by the Hu for long enough, if the China cavalry really penetrated a thousand miles deep, even if they only raised their hooves and roared at the Turkic tent, it would be enough to make countless soldiers proud, their blood boiling, and sweep away the many years of weakness that China had accumulated. The power of encouragement in this could not be underestimated. This was the 'fake' that Lin Wanrong spoke of.
Gao Qiu carefully thought it over and said in shock, "Brother Lin, if we fight according to your plan, these ten thousand soldiers will be surrounded by the Turks regardless of whether they are real or fake. I'm afraid there will be only a slim chance of survival."
"Wrong," Lin Wanrong shook his head, gritting his teeth, "It's a road of no return! This is a road of no return! But there are some things that must be done, not you, it's me — — Hey, why are you all looking at me like that?! What are you thinking of — — "
Seeing Hu Bugui and the others staring at him with wide eyes, their faces filled with admiration and pity, Lin Wanrong suddenly thought of something, his face turning pale with fright, cold sweat pouring down his body. He hurriedly waved his hands, saying angrily, "Let me say this first, I am only making a suggestion, the other matters have nothing to do with me. Don't count on me, I won't do it even if you beat me to death, I still have a bunch of wives at home waiting for me to go back and earn money — — What are you looking at?! If you keep looking I'll dig out your eyes, you're not allowed to look at me! Hu Bugui, let's eat, let's eat! "
He was like a rabbit whose tail had been stepped on, patting his butt and running as fast as he could. His legs were really nimble now. After a few steps, he could not help but sneakily look back, afraid that Miss Xu would be persuaded and appoint Lin Wanrong as the commander of the army. That would be like shooting himself in the foot. He shook his head in annoyance, his heart filled with regret.
Coward! Seeing his retreating figure, Miss Xu could not help but scold him. She was both angry and amused at the same time. She took out the pencil that Lin Wanrong had left behind, drew a few lines on the map, and snorted, "General Du, General Hu, please pass on this message to Vanguard Lin, tell him to study more maps in the future. His plan to attack the royal court of the Turks, whether it is an army of a hundred thousand or ten thousand elite cavalry, will not work."
"Advisor, please speak your mind." Du Xiuyuan said with a cautious expression.
Miss Xu sighed faintly, her slender fingers pointing to the simple map, "Look, this is Xingqing Prefecture, currently two to three hundred li away from us. If we want to attack Kizil, we must go deep into the grasslands. But, how do we enter the grasslands?! Everyone, please take a look, from the east of Xingqing to Dingbao and Yanmen Pass, it stretches for eight hundred li. The Hu people have stationed a large number of troops, once we enter rashly, we will fall into their claws, this is not a feasible place. Look at the other side, west of Xingqing, the Qilian Mountains, is the gathering place of the Hu cavalry, we will not be able to pass through. Further west of the Qilian Mountains is the Dunhuang Caves and the Desert of Death, Lop Nor. If we really want to attack Kizil, this is the only way. But this vast desert is deserted, birds and beasts have disappeared, no one has been able to walk out of it since ancient times. Not to mention ten thousand, even a million soldiers will be trapped in the desert, leaving behind only a pile of bones. "
She shook her head helplessly, smiling bitterly, "So what if we can pass through Lop Nor? We still have to cross the Tianshan Mountains and Altai Mountains before we can get close to Lake Wubu Sunuoer, gazing at Jianshui and Kizil. Since ancient times, this route has always been the gates of hell, crossing the desert, crossing the snowy mountains, how many passes are there in between?! It is not without reason that the Hu people dare to set up their tent in Kizil. With such a natural barrier, other than deities, who can pass through it?! "
Xu Zhiqing was indeed knowledgeable. Not only did she know the borders of China like the back of her hand, she even knew the names of the places in the Turkic Khaganate. No one in China could match her ability.
After listening to her explanation, Du Xiuyuan and the others couldn't help but turn pale. Indeed, as Miss Xu said, it was almost impossible to sneak attack the Hu people without alerting anyone. General Lin had too little battle experience. Although he had great foresight and the idea he proposed was great, the possibility of success was basically zero.
"I understand, I will go and report to General Lin." Hu Bugui could not conceal the disappointment on his face. The moment of pride he had dreamed of had finally disappeared.
"Wait," Xu Zhiqing hesitated for a moment, her face blushing slightly. She took out a small bottle from her sleeve and handed it to Hu Bugui, "Give this to General Lin. Although the injury on his leg has healed, the medicinal powder cannot be stopped."
She paused for a moment, then softly said, "Tell him not to misunderstand, this is what the Great General gave him, it has nothing to do with me. The Great General is worried that he will act recklessly and when the time comes, his old injury will relapse. That will be a great loss to our army. "
The High Chieftain nodded with a smile. It was unknown where General Lin had disappeared to. Among the soldiers that covered the mountains and plains, there was no sign of him.
The blood red setting sun shone on the forest and fields. Xu Zhiqing's face was like jade as she stood there silently for a long time. Her petite shadow formed a long straight line. Her expression was calm and a faint glint of tears flashed in her eyes. No one knew what she was thinking.
"General Lin, Brother Lin, what are you hiding here for?" Laughter rang out from behind Lin Wanrong. A young soldier patted him on the back, but Lin Wanrong jumped in fright.
General Lin hurriedly turned his head and roared at the boy, "Li Wuling, how dare you sneak attack an officer from behind. Tie a hundred-pound sandbag to yourself and run ten miles, then I'll let you off. "
Li Wuling glanced in the direction of General Lin's gaze and saw Xu Zhiqing leaping onto the back of a horse and galloping away. He could not help but let out a long 'oh' before laughing heartily. "I was wondering why you wanted to punish me, so it was because you were hiding here and peeking at my Aunt Xu. I caught you red-handed. I'll carry the sandbag and run ten miles, then tell Aunt Xu that someone is peeking at her — "
"What do you know, I wasn't peeking at her," General Lin said in annoyance. "I was afraid that she would listen to someone else's suggestion and send me to do something stupid."
Li Wuling gave a disdainful smile. "Don't worry, my Aunt Xu is such an intelligent person, why would she send someone to do something stupid? But the person who made the suggestion is a little too stupid. "
Fortunately, this boy did not know that I was the one who made the suggestion. Lin Wanrong chuckled and did not say anything. Hu Bugui scuttled over and said, "General Lin, so you're here, I've been looking for you for a long time."
"Isn't it easy to find me? Wherever there are people, I'll be there," Lin Wanrong said with a smile.
Hu Bugui gave an embarrassed smile. "General Lin, the suggestion you made just now, military advisor Xu said that it was completely impossible."
Li Wuling's eyes widened, looking like he was about to burst into laughter. Lin Wanrong's face turned red, and he hurriedly used his hand to hit him. "Go, go, quickly go train after you've finished eating. We're high-ranking officers talking, lowly lackeys quickly leave."
"I understand," Li Wuling said with a smile. "When you talk to Aunt Xu, even high-ranking officers like my grandfather will have to leave, haha —"
Lin Wanrong only came back to her senses after the boy had run out of sight. She laughed and said, "This boy is quite interesting. Big Brother Hu, what did you say just now?"
Hu Bugui took out a map, carefully explaining what Xu Zhiqing had just said to Lin Wanrong, the annoyance on his face clear for all to see.
This Miss Xu's geographical knowledge was quite rich. Lin Wanrong gave a faint smile, patting Hu Bugui's shoulder. "Brother Hu, there are no absolutes in this world. As long as you're willing to work hard, there will always be more solutions than problems. In a few days when I have time, I'll tell you the story of the Silk Road. "
Silk Road? What Silk Road? Hu Bugui was also confused. Sir Lin immediately closed his mouth, not willing to reveal a single word to avoid being captured by young miss Xu and sent to do something that would send him to his death.
… …
From Salt River to the north, the army marched day and night, hurriedly heading towards Xingqing.
The further north they went, the more arid the weather became, the more sand and wind blew. Sometimes in a day, they would encounter four or five large sandstorms. The people stopped and the horses rested, everyone squatting on the ground. When they stood up, their entire body, hair, eyes, nose, ears, everywhere was covered with sand and wind. Everyone was grey.
The hardships of the frontier fortress were indeed extraordinary. This was spring, they had not even left the fortress, but they had already experienced the power of the desert sandstorm. It was unknown what kind of life the three hundred thousand soldiers were living.
What was most unbearable was the temperature difference between day and night. During the day, they would be drenched in sweat, as if they had been soaked in water. At night, the temperature was so low that it could freeze people into popsicles.
Lin Wanrong was like a naturally strong person. Along the way, the weather was constantly changing, even Gao Qiu could not help but sneeze a few times. Only he was like nothing had happened, every day he would wrap himself in a robe and face the sandstorm, not forgetting to hum a few songs of 'Travelling in the Sky'.
Xingqing Prefecture was the most important town in the northwest of China, adjacent to the Helan Mountains. It was known as' the safeguard of the north, the throat of the desert '. The land was fertile, the canals crisscrossed, and irrigation was convenient. It once had the reputation of 'Jiangnan on the Frontier'. The city walls were tall and thick, majestic and mighty, showing the prosperity of the past. However, Xingqing Prefecture had been ravaged by the flames of war during the past few years. The population had plummeted, and the common people had fled. Vast tracts of fertile land had gradually become barren and covered by the endless yellow sand. Lin Wanrong could not help but sigh at the sight.
"Such a big river, such a tall mountain, Xingqing Prefecture, Helan Mountains, endless grassland.
Such a big river, such a tall mountain, Xingqing Prefecture, Helan Mountains, the people have no food to eat or wear every year! "
It was unknown where the woodcutter's song came from, but it was long and sorrowful, slowly drifting into the ears, mixed with the endless sand, creating an indescribable desolation.
Seeing that he was about to enter Xingqing Prefecture, the people on both sides of the official road gradually increased.
Lin Daren looked to the east, looked to the west, and was walking leisurely when he heard the sound of hooves in the distance. Suddenly, there was a shrill noise, "Run, the Hu people, the Hu people are coming!!!"
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