"yes."
Han Shizhong, who was holding the belt, took the lead and answered straightforwardly.
"Is this terrain beneficial to the Jin army or to us?" Zhao Jiu did not move, his expression unchanged, and continued to look ahead and ask.
"Neither of them can be considered advantageous." Han Shizhong, who turned to the side of the sand table, blurted out. "Let the emperor know that such a flat land is convenient for the Jin cavalry to travel north and south, but it is too narrow from east to west, especially since the Fen River has not frozen yet, and it takes a lot of effort for the cavalry to cross the river. And it divides this place into two, which makes the terrain even narrower and longer... As long as our army has sufficient troops and is well deployed, the Jin army will not be able to make much use of its cavalry."
"Does our army have enough manpower?" Zhao Jiu suddenly asked again.
Han Shizhong was stunned for a moment, and then he looked back at the people in the yard. He didn't know how to respond for a moment. Even the others were stunned for a moment.
"Let me ask you this in a different way." Zhao Jiu continued calmly, "According to what Han Qing just said, the number of Jin troops deployed in the four counties of Linfen is at least 40,000, and at most 60,000 or 70,000, and they are deployed along both sides of the Fen River. Is that true or not?" Zhao Jiu continued to point at the wooden sand table and asked.
"Yes." Han Liangchen nodded quickly.
"Is it possible that the Jin people will continue to send more troops?" Zhao Jiu continued to ask.
"It shouldn't happen." Han Shizhong shook his head. "And even if they do send more troops, we won't be afraid, because in Fenzhou, between Yangliang North Gate and Yangliang South Gate, the Shuque Valley is narrow and long. How can we provide more logistics in such a narrow area of thirty or forty miles?"
At this point, Han Shizhong seemed to have thought of something, and could not help but say one more sentence: "If we consider this general direction, the terrain of Linfen is actually beneficial to the royal army and not to the Jin army... If I were the commander of the Jin army, I would never dare to fight a life-and-death battle here."
"When I was in Wenxi, I heard Wang Sheng's urgent military report saying that Hedong City had been breached. Therefore, south of the Huishui River, our army already has the entire left army of the Imperial Camp, the entire central army, and another 10,000 cavalry, and at least 30,000 to 40,000 Taihang Mountain volunteers. Is that true or not?" Zhao Jiu did not comment, but continued to point at the sand table and asked without expression.
"Yes." Han Shizhong was inexplicably a little panicked.
"How much is that?" Zhao Jiu continued to ask, as if he couldn't do arithmetic. "Except the Eight Character Army guarding the Chenguan Pass, and the necessary fortresses stationed along the logistics line."
"Although there are casualties, there are also surrendered soldiers and reinforcements. The difference is not much compared to before the war. If we remove some necessary garrisons..." Han Shizhong estimated in his mind and gave a number that made him even more flustered. "The main force of the Imperial Camp, including cavalry and infantry, is at least 110,000 to 20,000. There are also 30,000 to 40,000 Lianghe righteous troops who can serve as auxiliary troops... And if we count the rear troops of the Imperial Camp..."
"Don't count the Imperial Camp Rear Army as one of them." Zhao Jiu immediately interrupted him, but he used his eyes to find Wu Lin, the brother sent by Wu Jie, and then calmly confronted him. "The Imperial Camp Rear Army is the general reserve force, and it will never be used lightly until the decisive battle. Besides, Wu Jie has gradually gathered troops in northern Shaanxi, which is enough to tie down the Jin army in Datong, and it is also useful."
"Yes." Wu Lin hurriedly stepped out and responded.
"Since we came across the river, do you know the local geography?" Zhao Jiu's expression remained unchanged, but the questions he asked became more and more outrageous.
Perhaps realizing something, Prince Han simply stopped talking with Emperor Zhao and just stood there in a daze, as if thinking about something. It was unclear whether he was recounting the number of troops.
"Your Majesty, although the Jin army has occupied Hedong for ten years, they cannot change the geography of the mountains and rivers." Li Yanxian looked at them coldly for a long time, then suddenly stepped out and answered proudly. "Not to mention President Wang (Wang Yan) and Deputy General Jie (Jie Yuan), both of whom are from Hedong, even General Ma (Ma Kuo) is not from here, but he has been lingering in Taihang Mountain for many years... Even if we take a step back, there are still tens of thousands of Taihang Yijun and tens of thousands of Ba Zijun here. In terms of understanding the local geography of the mountains and rivers, I'm afraid the Jin army is not as good as us."
Zhao Jiu nodded, still without comment, and continued to ask: "The weather is getting colder, and the logistics transportation capacity is insufficient. I am afraid that we have to give priority to transporting winter clothes and suspend the transportation of military equipment... Is the current military equipment sufficient?"
"The early stage of transportation and garrison will be enough to advance into the four counties of Linfen." Li Yanxian simply put it clearly, making many civil and military officials who were still guessing suddenly realize it.
“As winter gets colder, how do we solve the fuel problem?”
"Hedong has been producing coal since ancient times. There is enough coal and wood around. As long as there is enough manpower, we can get it locally."
"Where are the siege engines?"
"There are big trees in the mountains and craftsmen in the army. Let's do whatever we have to do." Li Yanxian remained stern.
"Okay." Zhao Jiu nodded. "I already know the situation. The terrain here in Linfen is long and narrow. At least before it freezes, it won't cause us much harm. Then, the main force of our imperial camp is twice as large as the main force of the enemy's western army. At the same time, our army is familiar with the local terrain. The logistics and auxiliary troops are also sufficient for the time being. Moreover, it is not yet the real winter... Is it true or not?"
"Yes." Li Yanxian spoke in a high-pitched voice with a straight posture.
"Can we immediately fight the Jin army for the four counties of Linfen?"
"Yes!" Li Yanxian was about to speak when Wang De suddenly appeared from the opposite side, and his voice was so loud that it temporarily overwhelmed everyone else.
"Well, I'm at Tieling Pass now." Zhao Jiu sat motionless behind the sand table, looking around, and knew everything. "There is one marshal, five military governors, nine generals, chief officers, and deputy generals in this pass. Including Wang Sheng who is cleaning up the situation in Hedong City, there are ten people. Outside, there is Wu Jie leading the 50,000 main forces of the imperial camp, plus tens of thousands of Tangut auxiliary troops, as well as Khitan and Mongolian reinforcements, who are tying up the Jin army in Hexi and Hewai... Who of you is willing to stand up, command the entire army, and take these four counties for me?"
"I am willing to go!" Li Yanxian responded immediately.
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