The revival of the Han Dynasty must start with Dong Zhuo

Chapter 52: Attack with troops
The Art of War by Sun Tzu

"The shape of the army is like water. The shape of water avoids high places and moves toward low places. The shape of the army avoids the solid and strikes the empty."

The law of employing troops is like water. The law of water flow is to avoid high places and flow to low places. The law of employing troops is to avoid the enemy's strong points and attack its weak points.

Where is the enemy's weakest point now?

It must be Hedong, which is closest to Guanzhong and is only blocked by a big river.

Moreover, the Hedong Basin is much flatter than Hangu Pass and Lantian, making it most suitable for Dong Zhuo's cavalry to perform well.

Use your own edge to pierce the enemy's weak points, this is the way to win the war!
"Although Hedong has 100,000 soldiers and horses, most of them are Xiongnu knights and Hedong bandits. In terms of elite troops, I'm afraid they are far inferior to the local warriors under Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu."

"Moreover, Hedong is isolated and not connected to the Central Plains. Even if we send troops from Hebei, the roads are difficult and it is difficult to get support."

Hedong and Jinyang to the northeast of Hedong are actually, to a certain extent, integrated with Guanzhong.

The connection between Guanzhong and Hedong is even closer than that between Guanzhong and Luoyang.

The ferry crossings leading to Hedong, such as Xiayang, Longmen, and Puzhen, have much gentler water flows than the ferry crossings after the confluence of the Yellow River and the Wei River.

The gentle river level means it is easy to deploy troops and convenient for operations.

Compared with passing through Hangu Pass in the east and Tongwu Pass in the south, going to Hedong is undoubtedly the most advantageous arrangement for our side.

Moreover, Hedong is like a natural battlefield carved out by mountains and rivers with the magic of nature.

There is a big river in the west, Luliang in the north, Wangwu in the south and Taihang in the east!
The closed terrain meant that if the battle in Hedong failed, it would be a most horrific defeat, with no chance to breathe or escape.

Therefore, both Liu Xie and Dong Zhuo regarded Hedong as the most advantageous battlefield for their war.

"So, the tone of this battle is set. Attack in the direction of Hedong, while the troops stationed in Hangu and Wuguan adopt a defensive position!"

Dong Zhuo decided on the strategy at this moment.

Seeing this, even Dong Min did not dare to disobey Dong Zhuo on this matter and had to bow his head in disappointment.

Just as Dong Zhuo was about to discuss tactical issues, such as mobilizing troops and appointing generals, Liu Xie's voice rang out again.

"Grandmaster, temple calculations can do more than just this."

This time, even Dong Zhuo was a little surprised, and there was a look of surprise in his eyes when he looked at Liu Xie that showed that the younger generation was better than the older generation.

"Sun Wu once said: To win every battle is not the best of all skills; to defeat the enemy without fighting is the best of all skills."

Being able to win every battle is not the best way.

The truly best way should be to defeat the enemy without fighting.

With this sentence, Xiang Yu, the Overlord of Western Chu, and Liu Bang, the first emperor of Han, truly taught future generations a vivid lesson through their actual actions.

"So the best military operation is to attack their plans, the next best is to attack their alliances, the next best is to attack their troops, and the worst is to attack their cities."

Liu Xie pointed out the enemy's greatest weakness:

"Although they are allies, they actually have their own agenda."

"The dirty deeds between the two brothers Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu are known to the world. How can they join forces to attack them now?"

"Yu Fuluo, Han Xian, and Li Le are all just scattered soldiers. How can they work together as one?"

Liu Xie's words resonated with all the generals, especially those who had participated in the first coalition war against Dong Zhuo.

Although the coalition forces were large in number, they lacked unified command.

There was even a farce in which Yuan Shu withheld food and supplies from his own subordinate Sun Jian. It would be foolish not to divide and disintegrate such an enemy.

"Your Majesty, this is absurd!"

It’s Dong Min again.

Dong Min stood up and asked, "Although Guandong is a coalition army, they did not set up a camp in one place."

"Last time, there were three armies, from Suanzao, Hanoi, and Luyang, attacking Luoyang together. Although the three armies could not be mobilized in a unified manner, their power remained undiminished and their momentum was huge!"

"Now, if the three directions of Hedong, Zhongyuan, and Nanyang join forces to attack, they will naturally form their own armies just like last time. Therefore, it is not important whether we attack them or not!"

What Dong Min meant was that although the opposing forces were called the coalition forces, they were actually each their own army, with different commanders and generals, so there was no need to split up at all.

Unless the situation of suspicion between Yuan Shu and Sun Jian occurs like the last time, the so-called "attacking the enemy's plan" is actually meaningless.

"I understand."

What Liu Xie meant by "attacking the enemy's plans" was not just this.

"General Zuo, why don't you broaden your horizons?"

"What I'm talking about is not just within the coalition forces."

"The coalition forces are concerned about more than just Guanzhong."

Dong Min still didn't understand what he meant, but Dong Zhuo and Jia Xu were both cheered up!
Broaden your horizons, and think about more than just Guanzhong.
The current situation of the world immediately emerged in their minds.

Although Yuan Shao controlled Hebei and had the support of the reputation of the Yuan family in Runan, many Hebei scholars flocked to him. However, Yuan Shao was not completely untroubled.

Gongsun Zan!
Zhang Yan!

The White Horse Volunteers are feared by the world!
Black Mountain Flying Swallow, dominating the Taihang Mountains!
These two men, one in the north and one in the west, are almost like swords hanging over Yuan Shao's head!

There is no need to stab it down. Just wave it gently and the cold light on it will be enough to make Yuan Shao dare not act rashly.

Yuan Shu, who owned the richest Nanyang County in the world, also controlled the rich areas of Runan, Jianghuai, etc. with the help of his family's students and former officials. It seemed that he had unlimited glory.

But the one who is in charge of Jingzhou now is Liu Biao Liu Jingsheng, one of the Eight Horses and a relative of the Han royal family.

Liu Biao was a completely unexpected surprise for the Han court.

In the past, Sun Jian, due to personal grudges, designed a scheme to force the death of Jingzhou Governor Wang Jun (not the Jingzhou Governor who destroyed Sun Wu during the Western Jin Dynasty), causing Jingzhou to lose its chief officer and forcing the court to send a governor to take office.

But what was the situation at that time?

The road between the imperial capital Luoyang and Jingzhou was blocked by Yuan Shu who occupied Nanyang, so it was impossible for anyone to take his troops or staff to take up the post. For Yuan Shu, Jingzhou was a ripe peach that he could take at any time without wasting a single soldier.

But Liu Biao rode into Jingzhou alone, stabilized the situation in Jingzhou, and became a governor with real power!

The importance of Jingzhou is self-evident.

By sending troops from Shangyong in the north of Jingzhou, it is easy to block the passage from Nanyang to Guanzhong.

Sending troops from Xiangyang can directly cut off the connection between Nanyang and Runan, and cut off Yuan Shu's food supply.

Now Yuan Shu was like a big man riding on Jingzhou. He looked strong and powerful, but as long as Liu Biao moved his hips slightly and pushed upwards, Yuan Shu would be worse off than dead.

As long as the strategy of defeating the enemy is used, it is easy to limit the two biggest forces, Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu. With such a good method, why not use it to gain the upper hand?

　Thank you all~~~ I have advanced to the second round of recommendations. Thanks to everyone for reading and voting, (`)
　　

(End of this chapter)