At night.
Warships sailed on the sea.
The sea is calm, with no wind or waves.
The night sky is dotted with stars and the moon is high in the sky.
Ning Que continued to use the wooden board to observe the stars.
At the same time, have someone record all the information.
He had set the rules in the beginning.
You have to write a logbook every day when you go out to sea.
The main thing is the sea surface hydrological conditions.
Wind direction, weather...these are all important.
"Your Majesty, the sand table battle report is ready."
Bai Yu walked slowly over and raised his hand to bow.
He is not very good at swimming.
I really can't stand being on the boat for a long time.
Ning Que asked him to do some odd jobs these two days.
Fortunately, I adapted to it.
He is responsible for preparing the battle report.
It is equivalent to the chief of staff in the army.
Ning Que walked along the deck.
Come to the command room.
Inside was filled with generals of the rank of thousand households in the army.
In the middle is the sand table that was set up early.
There is also a huge map hanging at the back.
"We have met the prince."
"Please sit down."
Ning Que smiled and raised his hand.
Looking at the sand table, he nodded with satisfaction.
The sand table made by Bai Yu is really good.
Using the known information and the intelligence provided by Choi Keun-suk, the entire Goguryeo region was included. Various terrains were also marked, as were mountains, rivers, and streams.
"Bai Yu, you should speak first."
"promise!"
Bai Yu raised the document he had prepared in advance and pointed at the sand table, saying, "Currently, the Duke of Zhenguo has captured Buyeo and Wugut in the north. The two cities are interconnected, making them easy to defend and difficult to attack. With a full 200,000 troops, they could threaten the Goguryeo capital to the south. They are currently blocked by the Taedong River, but they can cross the river and move south at any time."
"According to Choi Keun-suk's intelligence, Su Gae-wen has assembled 150,000 elite troops to defend the royal city. If the civilians are included, this would total at least 300,000 infantrymen. They are also said to have a vast stockpile of food, fodder, and military equipment. They currently have no plans to leave the city, but the future remains unclear."
Bai Yu distributed the prepared letters to them.
He had these all copied down in advance.
All this information comes from Choi Keun Suk.
Don't underestimate Lao Cui. He's from the Cui family after all. Even if he's five generations removed from the throne, he's definitely not an ordinary person to be able to organize such a large-scale sea-travel caravan.
Ning Que and Cui Genshuo have discussed it.
Goguryeo is currently under the full control of Su Gaimun.
Even their king has to look at his face.
As for the Cui and Jin families, they were even worse off.
Completely controlled by Su Gaiwen.
They had no say in the court.
I could only look at Su Gaiwen's expression.
In other words, they were giving them some face, allowing them to continue doing business. After all, going out to sea to trade was no easy feat; a single mistake could lead to death at sea. Just like Choi Keun-suk, he had weathered countless storms over the years and seen countless people die before his eyes. The most dangerous time was when he lost his way. Fortunately, there was still some fresh water on that island, which allowed him to return in time.
After Ning Que's persuasion, Choi Keun-suk decided to serve Ning Que. Goguryeo was now in name only, controlled by Su Gae-mun. Su Gae-mun could ascend the throne at any time if he so desired, something neither the Jin nor the Choi families wanted to see. It wasn't impossible to eliminate Su Gae-mun with the help of Dae-bong.
They actually thought a lot about it. Rather than letting Su Gaiwen continue to control the government, it would be better to break it before building it. Moreover, if they did not cooperate with Dafeng, would Dafeng not attack Goguryeo?
Over the years under Su Gae-mun's rule, Goguryeo was shrouded in lies from top to bottom. Their self-confidence was overflowing, and they believed that Goguryeo was a kingdom in heaven. They even believed that they were the origin of civilization, and that Dafeng and even the Kyushu countries were all blessed by Goguryeo.
Under the influence of this sentiment, Goguryeo drifted away.
Since they were going to be destroyed anyway, it would be better to sell them for a good price. The main reason was that Goguryeo was far away from Chang'an, so it would definitely have a high degree of autonomy. For them, this was actually a good thing.
Bai Yu flipped through the documents and continued, "Also, General Hai and his men have already captured the Five Bailing Islands. There were heavy casualties in the battle, and they only have around ten thousand remaining soldiers. Including the forty thousand elite troops we brought this time, that adds up to almost fifty thousand. While it's a little less, it's more than enough."
"If we use Baengnyeong Island as a springboard, we can then attack Hansan Fortress. However, according to Choi Keun-suk's intelligence, Hansan Fortress also has a garrison of tens of thousands. This fortress is easy to defend but difficult to attack. That's how the old King Ning was trapped in Hansan Fortress. With insufficient supplies and the freezing weather, they were forced to withdraw."
After reporting the situation, Ning Que raised his hand.
"Commanders, what are your thoughts?"
"Although Hanshan City is only a small city, it is of vital importance. After passing through Hanshan City, there is the Han River. Many of our warships can sail through it, and then we can use water to control land. Now that we have so many warships, the only place suitable for large-scale landings is Hanshan Port."
Song Ci stood up.
He had already started researching when he was in Linzi.
Over the years, Daebong had already studied Goguryeo thoroughly, and with Choi Keun-suk's full support, he was also prepared.
"I don't think so." Chunlun stood up and whispered, "According to the intelligence, the enemy must have a large force stationed in Hansan City. General Hai only has a remnant of his troops, and he also needs to garrison the Five Islands as backup. In other words, we only have 40,000 men to attack Hansan City. If we attack by force, it will most likely take a long time. In addition, Baekje City is a hundred miles south of Hansan City. It's a large city and must be heavily guarded. If they rush to Hansan City's aid, we will be in danger."
Ning Que looked at them with a smile.
He actually already had a battle plan in mind.
I just want to hear what these thousand commanders and generals think.
Moreover, Ning Que needs them to think for themselves.
In the future, everyone must have the ability to stand on their own.
Including Chunlun, the progress is also obvious.
He was originally a surrendered soldier from the Liao Dynasty, but since following Ning Que, his performance has been quite outstanding. He can now speak fluent Feng language and can also read and write.
"Chun Lun is right."
"We can actually bypass Hanshan City."
"But there is no suitable port."
Song Ci shook his head firmly.
He studied the map of Goguryeo carefully.
Now only Hanshan City is a suitable landing point.
“Unless we make a big circle and land at Jinshan City.”
Song Ci raised his hand and marked the city.
"If we take a detour, it will be troublesome."
"Even if Goguryeo doesn't intercept us, we'll waste at least another half a month. The food and drink for our 30,000-man army will also reduce the weapons we can carry on our warships."
"this……"
The generals looked at each other in bewilderment.
Looking at the map, everyone fell silent.
Seeing them like this, Ning Que raised his hand.
"So, we only have one choice now."
"Capture Hanshan City as quickly as possible!"
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