Chapter 51 Section 1 Xianyang Palace Monarch and Minister Combine

When the Allied Forces of the Six Nations were gathering, the Qin army was also secretly moving. Sima Cuo is not a general who only knows "soldiers come to generals, water comes to soil", but a commander who judges the situation and prepares for battle.Most of the "Sima Law" of this Jiangmen family is about the basic principles of war, that is, the "way outside the war", and there is very little space for the discussion of specific tactics and formations.This is the special feature of the Sima military strategist: focus on tempering the overall vision of the generals, do not deviate from the general trend, and do not simply fight. The final conclusion of "Sima Fa" is "to make good use of the original, followed by the use of the end, to stick to the small, to only have power at the end, and to fight." It is said that a good commander should be good at using strategy (the original), and secondly be good at using tactics (the end) ), to be able to firmly implement the strategy and subtly grasp the tactics, and to weigh the merits and use them on the battlefield, this is the most brilliant method of warfare.Sima Cuo is extremely talented and has won the essence of the ancestors' art of war. Naturally, his Lantian general account will not let go of the slightest movement outside Hangu Pass.

Before the soldiers and horses of the six countries left the country, the secret scouts scattered in various countries reported back the news like meteors, which was confirmed by the news of the Black Ice Platform sent by the Prime Minister Zhang Yi's mansion. Sima Cuo generally knew the situation of the soldiers and horses of each country .He gave an order to Sima of the Chinese Army who was in charge of scouting horses: "Check the military situation of the six countries immediately: the main general, the strength of the troops, the weapons, and the supplies. Be detailed and report as soon as possible!" The details of the incomplete weapons and supplies!"

After two orders, Sima Cuo was not in a hurry to mobilize troops, but rushed to Xianyang on a flying horse. Sima went to Xianyang by mistake, not to meet King Hui of Qin, but to meet Zhang Yi.Sima Cuo knew very well that war was only a part of Qin's alliance, and he had to be aware of the general trend of the alliance, so that he could fight with proportion; It is extremely unwise to fight without consulting such a person. As a general, Sima Cuo is almost equal to the title of prime minister.According to the tradition of the Warring States period, except for military affairs such as supplies, food, fodder, and military pay, the general is completely independent in warfare, and he does not need to consult the monarch for "high opinion" or the prime minister's "pointing".This is "the general is outside, and the emperor's order is not accepted", which is the limit of the general's power.However, there is no limit to the general's active consultation with the monarch and prime minister.Since ancient times, generals have had a hard time controlling this kind of power. When encountering a self-willed monarch and insisting on independence, the general will often be killed; defeat.Only in this way, countless tragedies of famous generals have been born.During the Warring States Period, when people judged whether a country was stable and strong, one of the important signs was whether the two powers of the general and prime minister were in harmony?In the era of endless swords and soldiers, the general independently established the government to govern the military, and his power was almost equal to that of the prime minister. The monarch-the prime minister-the general were the three pillars of national power.If the generals are at odds, the country will inevitably be in chaos.Of course, Sima Cuo didn't think of this. He only knew one thing: meeting Zhang Yi was necessary and beneficial for this great war.

Zhang Yi was discussing the battle with Chi Lijiu when Sima Cuo came, so he was very happy.Sima Cuo explained his intentions in the future, and Zhang Yi and Liji laughed at the same time.Sima Cuo said: "The two prime ministers have a plan, and Sima Cuo would like to hear good advice." "How does the general plan to fight? Can you tell me?" Chi Liji asked with a smile. "The army has not moved, and there is no final decision." Xi Liji knew Sima's wrong character, he would never speak out rashly if he was not mature in thinking, so he didn't ask any more questions, he just took the case and said with a smile: "I just have one word: let go and fight, you can guarantee a big victory!"

"Good idea." Sima Cuo smiled lightly: "The king's life is normal, but he didn't say anything." "Didn't say anything?" Chi Liji teased, "We're waiting for your opinion, and you want our opinion, who has the opinion?" The three of them laughed, and Sima Cuo said: "It's better for the prime minister to give some advice first." Come on, clarify the general situation, and there will be a way to fight." Zhang Yi laughed and said: "On the battlefield, the general is my teacher. What Zhang Yi can say is the general trend of the seven kingdoms, and the general just listens to it." For Zhang Yi who is extremely arrogant by nature, this kind of tone is very rare.The reason is that Sima Cuo's surprise attack on Fangling caused Zhang Yi to suffer a major setback in military planning for the first time. Zhang Yi naturally admired Sima Cuo's military talent.However, Sima Cuo always believed that the success of Fangling's surprise attack was due to the lack of frontier preparations in Chu State, and that Zhang Yi's failure in planning was not fundamental. On the contrary, he believed that Zhang Yi's military vision was extremely rare among celebrities.Seeing that Zhang Yi was so self-effacing, Sima Cuo hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "I dare not take what the prime minister said. As a general, it is important to judge the overall situation. The prime minister is all over the world, and he has insight into the six countries. He can be a teacher in battle. Sima Cuo deserves to accept teach."

"It's all from the bottom of my heart, so I'll say it." Zhang Yi waved his hand, "This is the first time that He Zong has formed an army, and it is also the first time in the past century that the six kingdoms of Shandong have joined forces to attack Qin. For the Six Kingdoms, this battle is determined to win. They want to defeat or even eliminate the main force of the Qin army in one fell swoop. Even if they cannot force Qin to shrink, at least they will lock Qin in Hangu Pass and eliminate the threat of Qin. For Qin, this battle It is the key to whether we can break the alliance and drive the Central Plains. If Qin wins, the old grievances of the six countries will be revived, and Lianheng will have a great opportunity to break the alliance. If Qin is defeated, Lianheng will be greatly hindered. The next series of actions will be put on hold, and the six kingdoms of Shandong will also get a stable breathing opportunity. During this period, if there are those who take advantage of the trend to reform and strengthen the country, the world will fall into the chaos of the warring states again, and Qin will rule the world, and it will be far away."

"Hey hey hey, we can't give them this chance, we can't let these boys take a breather!" Chu Liji hit the long table with his fist. "The Prime Minister thinks, what are the pros and cons of the six-nation coalition?" Sima Cuo wanted to hear the actual military situation. "The Allied Forces of the Six Nations have two advantages and three disadvantages." Zhang Yi knocked on the table: "Let's talk about the two advantages first: first, the first coalition forces, the grievances and grievances are temporarily put aside, the soldiers are united, and there are many synergies. For example, the soldiers and horses of the Six Nations do not bring food and grass The supplies will be supplied by the Ao Cang of the Wei State, and then shared among the six countries. In the past, this would have been impossible. Second, the army is strong, with 480,000 troops, more than three times as large as mine. Let’s talk about three shortcomings: first , they are unfamiliar with each other. The six countries have been fighting each other for a long time, their respective militaries have blocked each other, and there is no joint combat drill. They are different, infantry, cavalry, chariots and soldiers are mixed together. Third, the generals are mediocre, and there are many constraints. The general of the Chu army, Zi Lan, is the commander of the coalition army. The noble son has no hope, and it is difficult to control the army. In addition, besides the commander of the six armies, there is also a general account of the six countries. Su Qin and the four princes are in charge, supervising the armies and making decisions. With such a structure, it is inevitable that the actions will be slow. There are many gaps."

"Hey, there is one more thing: Except for the 50,000 iron cavalry of the Wei State and the 30,000 iron cavalry of the Qi State, which are new troops, the Allied Forces of the Six Nations are all old-fashioned infantry and chariot soldiers. Our army is all new cavalry troops!" Li quickly inserted one. "In the opinion of the prime minister, how should our army fight this battle?" Zhang Yi said with a smile: "If the general asks this question, he must have a plan." "The prime minister always takes advantage of others." Sima smiled wrongly and said, "What do the two prime ministers think of this way of fighting?" Then he moved to sit in front of Zhang Yi's case, took a goose feather pen, and wrote on the case written four big characters.

"Wonderful!" Zhang Yi couldn't help clapping his palms and laughing. After pondering for a while, Zhang Yi said: "The key to this plan is to consider the land first. 'Knowing the heavens and the earth, victory is everything.' I don't know if there is any general in the army who knows this place?" You have to rely on the scouts and the effective village guide." Li Ji said: "The lone army goes deep, and the idle village guides are all foreigners. I'm afraid there will be mistakes, can you ask the effective general to do a reconnaissance in advance?" Sima Cuo said: "I will try to figure this out. , the two prime ministers don’t need to be distracted.” Zhang Yi said with emotion: “I’m coming! Zhang Yi is familiar with everything in Hanoi.”

"How so? You can't do it!" Chu Liji exclaimed in surprise, "I'll go! Fatty Hei has fought a few battles." "You?" Zhang Yi smiled and said, "Draw a picture of the Ao Cang in the Tiger Prison first." Sima Cuo bowed his hands solemnly: "The prime minister is in danger, the old Qin people have no place to be ashamed, Sima Cuo must not accept it." "Where did you come from?" Zhang Yi suddenly stood up: "Although Zhang Yi is not from the old Qin, the Qin State is the hope of ending the world's continuous swords and soldiers, and it is the foundation for breaking the alliance and unifying China! Zhang Yi's loyalty to Qin is no different from that of the old Qin people." Even if you sacrifice your life, what's the point?" Seeing Zhang Yi's emotion, Sima felt guilty, stood up and bowed solemnly: "Sima made a big mistake, please forgive me, Prime Minister."

Xi Liji laughed and said: "The general must have taken it seriously. Brother Zhang is using your mourning hall to call himself wronged. What is he doing? Can't go or can't go." Zhang Yi laughed loudly: "It's still Brother Xili, One needle pierced my airbag." After saying that, he cupped his hands solemnly and said, "General, the leader of this battle must be Zhang Yi, so you accept the last general." Sima Cuo was heavy-handed and not good at humor, and when he saw that Chi Liji was shaking his head and winking, he thought to himself: "The matter is very important, I have to enter the palace, please allow your majesty to make a decision." "Of course." Chi Liji shook his head and said, "Sima Cuo is also a good general." Sima Cuo couldn't help laughing: "It's too easy to be a good general like this." Zhang Yi didn't seem to hear it: "Okay! I will also enter the palace, let's go." The three immediately went to the palace to meet King Qin Hui, and each gave a reason.King Qin Hui said with a smile: "It was not uncommon for the monarch and important officials to go to the battle in person. In the Warring States period, it was quite common in Qin. The prime minister's invitation did not come out of nowhere. The right prime minister's general stopped him, and it was also out of concern." Zhang Yi laughed and said, "Your Majesty didn't say anything." Chi Liji chuckled: "Your Majesty is suspected of being confused. It is not uncommon for a monarch and his ministers to lead the army to fight. However, it is unheard of for an important minister to be a village guide, and it really came out of nowhere! Your Majesty should categorically reject it." "Why can't important ministers be village guides only if needed for war? There is a saying in "Sun Tzu" that if you don't use township guides, you can't get a good location. I know Hanoi well, and I will definitely get twice the result with half the effort." Zhang Yi is extremely persistent. King Qin Hui had been pacing thoughtfully, and at this moment he waved his hands and said: "General, can someone who understands the six kingdoms like the prime minister be of benefit to the war?" Sima Cuo has benefited a lot." "That's good." Qin Huiwang waved his hand: "How about asking the prime minister to be your military advisor?" "Your Majesty is wise!" Sima Cuo was very pleased. "Your Majesty is wrong." Zhang Yi waved his hands urgently and said, "Is it not the opposite of what I wanted if I disturbed the General for no reason?" Qin Huiwang's smile faded away, and his face became solemn: "When the report came, I thought about it over and over again. This battle is of great importance, and Ying Si wanted to come to the army in person. However, the general and the two prime ministers agreed together, which made Ying Si quite emotional: The same heart is the foundation of the country. Now that Qing and others have such a climate, why should the six countries be afraid of it? However, according to the facts, Qin's military strength is much smaller, and if it wants to win, there must be no fault in one link. Weapons, horses, clothing, armor, etc., must be smooth and sufficient; the detection of the military situation of the six countries must be accurate and timely. All these must be supervised by someone, and carefully checked, in order to ensure that an elite army can exert its combat power to 12 points But this is what I mean: the prime minister goes to the army in person, assists the general in supervising the military affairs, and praises the military aircraft; Ying Si and the right prime minister supervise the rear, so as to ensure that the military supplies and emergency affairs are quickly resolved. "Sun Tzu" says, those who want to go up and down Sheng. I wait for the monarch and ministers, but if we want things to happen, there is no need to have him in our hearts." After speaking in one breath, he smiled: "Ying Si has never had a military career, and in general, we will make a resolution together. What do you think?" The three of Zhang Yi were silent for a moment.Before entering the palace, what the three of them discussed was, after all, a kind of consultation for each of them to perform their duties.Zhang Yi's invitation to be a township guide is only a simple action to assist.From the bottom of their hearts, none of the three people regarded this battle as a national war, and naturally they did not regard it as a common event between the three of them.However, King Qin Hui sorted out the outline and fundamentally integrated the power allocation of the monarch and ministers in one fell swoop, which really touched the key point, and immediately strengthened the foundation of the Qin army's operations!The three of Zhang Yi are all heroes in the world, so they immediately weighed their weight, and they admire King Qin Hui's dispatch from the bottom of their hearts; what's more commendable is that King Qin Hui didn't have the slightest self-willedness, but thought that "no "Military battle life" is just a joint decision. Compared with the monarchs of the six countries, it really makes people feel a lot. "Your Majesty's words are absolutely true!" The three of them agreed with each other loudly. "But to achieve success, there is no one else in mind." Zhang Yi smiled and repeated Qin Huiwang's words: "Your Majesty's finishing touch, Zhang Yi has it in mind!" "The subject is also engraved in my heart." Sima Cuo also generously added. King Qin Hui laughed loudly: "Okay! We are waiting for the monarchs and ministers like this, what can the six kingdoms of Shandong do to me?"