Son of Song Dynasty

Chapter 119
The next day, Zhao Dezhao and Pan Mei led the vanguard of the army to leave Yuezhou, marched all the way to Lingling, and then stayed here for several days, waiting for the rear troops to arrive.

Further south is the enemy territory of the Southern Han Dynasty, so the entire army needs to rest and reorganize in Lingling to recover from the fatigue of the soldiers caused by the long march, and to replenish military supplies and replenish the equipment on the spot.

"If you go further south, it will be your homeland. What do you say?"

Taking advantage of this leisure, Zhao Dezhao summoned Fang Zhengqi, the fugitive Southern Han general he had recruited by the Bian River in Tokyo, for questioning.

After the southern expedition was agreed upon, Zhao Dezhao sent someone to secretly take Fang Zhengqi from a farm in the countryside to the prince's palace. He had secret conversations with him from time to time and inquired about the internal affairs of the Southern Han Dynasty.

However, Fang Zhengqi followed the Southern Expedition this time and was not awarded any title. He only had the Weiwei status of a general under his command. Therefore, other generals in the Chinese army did not know his origin. Even Pan Mei, who was the deputy commander-in-chief, did not know his origin. They were all kept in the dark and did not know that there was a "Leading Party" from the Southern Han Dynasty in their military tent.

At this moment, being called to the front by His Royal Highness, Fang Zhengqi naturally knew what he was thinking. After pondering for a while, he replied: "In response to Your Highness: there is nothing to worry about before the Five Ridges!"

Wuling refers to the five mountain ranges: Yuecheng Ridge, Dupan Ridge, Mengzhu Ridge, Dayu Ridge, and Qitian Ridge. They all belong to the Nanling Mountains and are the watershed between the Yangtze River Basin and the Pearl River Basin. The entire mountain range stretches thousands of miles from east to west. It is the main geographical obstacle between the Song Dynasty and the Southern Han Dynasty.

Zhao Dezhao understood what Fang Zhengqi meant. North of the Five Ridges, the Southern Han Dynasty had no danger to defend. With the weak combat power of their army, they would naturally be defeated by the wind and there was nothing to worry about.

"What about after Wuling?" Zhao Dezhao asked again.

"After the Five Ridges, there is nothing to worry about." Fang Zhengqi replied without hesitation, while pointing out the situation for Zhao Dezhao on the map: "Once the Great Pass of the Five Ridges is broken, the puppet dynasty of the Southern Han Dynasty will inevitably shake up and down. Although there are mountains and rivers to the south, but If there are no more important passes to block the way, Liu Yun and his ministers will have nothing but a desperate struggle."

Zhao Dezhao lowered his head and thought. According to what Fang Zhengqi said, before and after the Five Ridges, there was nothing to worry about. Then the only thing that was "sufficient to worry about" was the Wuling pass itself.

"In your opinion, is the Five Ridges hard to break?"

"It's hard to break, but it's not hard to break."

"Where is it difficult to break, and where is it not difficult to break?"

"The Qitianling pass is steep and guarded by heavy troops, and the guards are also outstanding people. It is difficult to break through; as for Yuechengling and Dayuling, although the roads are also very rough and difficult, there are some old and weak troops guarding them, and there are a few of them. There are not many, and the guards are also incompetent, so it is naturally not difficult to break."

Zhao Dezhao laughed: "Liu Yan is not a fool."

Qitianling is the closest passage from Hunan to Guangdong. After passing through the pass of Qitianling, the army can go south along the Qinshui River and use the Pearl River system to march directly to Panyu, the capital of the Southern Han Dynasty. Taking this route to attack can be said to be fast. It is also convenient, like a sharp knife that goes straight into the heart of the Southern Han Dynasty; in contrast, Yuechengling enters Guangxi from Hunan, and Dayuling is from the Jiangxi area. If it is too far away, it will take a long time.

From the side of the Song Dynasty, it is naturally the most trouble-free and convenient to be able to walk Qitianling and then go south along the Qinshui River.

Therefore, whether it was to defend against the enemies of the Later Zhou Dynasty and the Later Han Dynasty, or to defend against the enemies of the present Song Dynasty, the small court of the Southern Han Dynasty must regard Qitian Ridge as its top priority.

If we take a long detour from Hunan to Guangxi or from Jiangxi to Guangdong, the army will need to travel long distances in the mountains and forests, and there will be no water systems and rivers to use. Soldiers' diseases and logistical pressure will be a great test.

In Zhao Dezhao's view, if the Central Plains Dynasty can understand this truth, the emperor and ministers of Liu Yu will naturally understand it better. Therefore, they have deployed elite soldiers and generals in Qitianling, betting the most capital, and the forces invested in other passes will be much weaker. .

Therefore, what needs to be faced right now is to choose one of the two.

Either face the difficulty, penetrate Qitian Ridge, and go south along the Qin River. You can get a "quick" result, but the risk is not small. Attacking the pass is never an easy task;

Either take a detour, cross Chengling or Dayuling. The management of the Southern Han court there must be far inferior to that of Qitianling. You can get the word "stable", but there are also risks. Right now It was June, and it was not uncommon for half of the soldiers to die if a disease spread during a long trek in the southern mountains and forests.

Fang Zhengqi waited for a long time, but never saw Zhao Dezhao make a decision or show any tendency. He couldn't help but tentatively said: "In my opinion, it is better to go across the city ridge. Although it is more troublesome, it is better. Be sure to be sure to win..."

"Seeking a certain victory?" Zhao Dezhao turned his head to look at Fang Zhengqi, and said with a smile, "This king never knew that there is such a thing as a certain victory in this world!"

Fang Zhengqi knew that he had spoken too much, so he quickly lowered his head and said:

"As long as the weather is not in the way and the food and supplies can keep up, even if the army travels long distances, it won't be a big problem to take a long detour."

"As long as the Heavenly Soldiers of the Song Dynasty reach Yuecheng Ridge, they will be defeated and vulnerable to a single blow!"

Zhao Dezhao heard what he said categorically, and it seemed that he was not completely flattering. He couldn't help but ask: "How can you be sure that the defenders of Yuechengling will be defeated?"

Fang Zhengqi showed a look of disdain on his face: "The guard of Yuechengling is a self-castrated man who wants to advance. Your Highness, think about it, how can such a general who doesn't even have balls conquer the crowd and defeat the enemy?" Winning the battle?"

Zhao Dezhao couldn't help being stunned, and immediately burst out laughing. A strange thought suddenly came to his mind: "Historically, eunuchs led troops in command. This kind of thing has never happened before and after. Liu Yun of the Southern Han Dynasty? What a coincidence that he almost appeared in the same era?"

Fang Zhengqi laughed a few times and said tentatively: "Your Highness, did you agree to Wei Jiang's proposal and take a detour across the city?"

But Zhao Dezhao slowly suppressed his smile, shook his head and said: "How to enter the army to fight is a national matter, involving the life and death of tens of thousands of people and the general trend of the world. You must be cautious when making decisions. Many aspects must be considered. Where can we go?" Just looking at whether a person has balls or not? It’s not like fighting with half the body!”

Zhao Dezhao had a serious face when he spoke, but Fang Zhengqi couldn't hold it back and burst out laughing.

Zhao Dezhao smiled slightly and said: "Okay, this matter will be discussed between the king and General Pan."

Fang Zhengqi was stunned when he heard this. According to his observations over the past few days, His Highness has always been a very thoughtful person. Now he actually claimed that he would make a decision after consulting with others. This was because the sun was rising in the west. ?

(End of this chapter)