Chapter 00188: The Inference on the Sickbed
# The Inference on the Sickbed
Chapter 188
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 188: The Inference on the Sickbed
"Do you want to be General Ke's advisor?" This person is quite interesting; where does their confidence come from? "Have you been to the front lines? How much do you understand about leading troops in battle?"
"I was originally a border resident of the Northern Region. Before I turned twelve, war and migration were the focal points of life for the locals."
Sun Hongye smiled, "Later, I served as a companion reader in Lord He’s household, and I had already gone through the entire collection in the library early on. Even in the National Studies Institute of the capital, I spent four winters and summers there."
"Only four years?" Sitting idly was boring, so He Lingchuan casually popped a strawberry into his mouth.
"I heard that renowned scholars dedicate themselves to their studies until their hair turns white. If their hair is already white, it must be more than just four years."
It’s not that he was nitpicking; just looking at four years of study wasn’t enough to accumulate the qualifications to be a military strategist.
Strawberries were not in season, and He Lingchuan guessed that the locals must have used a greenhouse to grow them.
However, although the fruit looked bright red and juicy, it lacked the unique fragrance of seasonal strawberries.
"If you want to excel in your studies, you must have good books to read."
Sun Hongye shook his head, as if feeling a bit regretful, "Although the National Studies Institute in the capital covers a large area, its collection is full of errors and omissions. No one has maintained or updated it for a long time, so there aren't many readable books. When I went there to find books, some were missing pages, some were dirty, and some fell apart as soon as I opened them, leaving me with a mouthful of dust!"
This kid really has a big mouth, even criticizing the National Studies Institute.
But He Lingchuan thought about the current situation of the Great Yuan—"You speak with such conviction; you are right."
He Lingchuan switched to eating a jujube.
Seeing him eat so happily, Sun Hongye unconsciously swallowed and reached out to pick a red jujube as well.
He hadn’t eaten fruit in a long time.
Once he started, he couldn’t stop.
He Lingchuan asked him again, "So, did you manage to persuade General Ke?"
Sun Hongye hesitated for a moment, "General Ke is also somewhat skeptical and used the situation on the Wuzhou battlefield to test me. However, my proposed strategies differ from his views, and he does not agree. Therefore, I wrote down my insights on the Wuzhou conflict and submitted them to General Ke."
"Oh?" He Lingchuan became very interested, "Can you share them with me?"
The newly appointed Governor of the Summer Prefecture had been quite prominent in the capital and the royal court these past few months.
Sun Hongye had already taken note of this, but he was not very clear about the character of the He family’s eldest son, who was not well-known.
However, judging from the counterattack during the attack on Luming Garden last night, the young master He was not lacking in courage and strategy, and he could adapt to changing circumstances.
It was not surprising for someone like him to be combative, capable, and eager for battle.
So Sun Hongye did not think too much and said:
"Alright. Since General Ke did not adopt it, I don’t need to keep it a secret."
He then dipped his finger in water and drew the terrain of mountains and rivers on the table.
"Due to the narrow terrain in the southern part of Wuzhou, the imperial army can only split into two routes, west and east, to conquer Wuzhou. As for the eastern route, let’s not discuss it. The western army led by Generals Wu Di and Ke Jihai initially had a smooth campaign, capturing three small cities in a row, but completely stalled after encountering Gucheng, and it remains so to this day."
He drew a circle in the center of the map:
"This is Gucheng, aptly named. Dong Haoming has long harbored intentions of rebellion and has quietly reinforced the important city gates within his territory over the past few years. Gucheng boasts high walls and deep moats, making it the first major obstacle the imperial army encounters when attacking Wuzhou."
He Lingchuan pointed to the circle east of Gucheng: "What is this?"
"This is Luyun Lake."
In order to offer advice to Ke Jihai, Sun Hongye had done his homework thoroughly, "Upstream is the Qingbai River in the northern part of Gucheng, which is one of the main tributaries of Hongchuan, with abundant water flow."
"This lake seems very close to Gucheng, making it difficult to cut off their water supply."
In the past few nights, besides practicing martial arts in Panlong City, He Lingchuan had also attended lectures at the Wensian Hall.
The officials of Panlong City frequently invited experts to give public lectures at the Wensian Hall, covering a wide range of topics.
One of the lectures happened to analyze military strategies, and He Lingchuan listened intently, noting that basic siege tactics included cutting off water supplies as one of the methods.
His original self had a blank slate in this regard, and he had to start from scratch.
"Yes, Gucheng and the basin where Luyun Lake is located are not short of water. Even if General Ke can cut off the road between the city and the lake, I’ve heard that Gucheng has many wells that can supply enough water for the troops."
Sun Hongye pointed again at the location of Gucheng, "Its city walls are built on bedrock, so they won’t collapse due to flooding from the lake, making tactics like diverting water to attack the city or besieging the city by cutting off water supplies ineffective."
"The two generals have been attacking Gucheng for over thirty days. Prolonged assaults without success will affect morale, and with the increasing pressure on logistics, the situation will become increasingly unfavorable."
He Lingchuan nodded: "This should be within Dong Haoming's expectations. He has been in the royal court for a long time and should know the characteristics and shortcomings of the imperial army like the back of his hand."
"To be honest, the combat strength of the imperial army is not as good as that of the Wujun. This time, they are fighting on the enemy's territory, which puts them at a greater disadvantage."
Sun Hongye said seriously, "Dong Haoming is not reinforcing Gucheng; he is solely focused on sending troops to the eastern front, which shows he has great confidence in Gucheng, believing it can hold back Generals Wu and Ke. Because of this, the eastern front is also particularly difficult."
"Once the imperial army fails in their attack and has to retreat to find another way, Dong Haoming may begin to counterattack. This hidden danger was clearly stated by General Ke at last night's banquet."
He Lingchuan understood.
"So what strategy do you propose?"
"Let go of Gucheng, this tough bone to chew, and turn to attack the western Baoguan!" Sun Hongye dipped his finger in water and lightly pointed at the area west of Gucheng, "Baoguan is about forty miles northwest of Gucheng, right by the Qingbai River, which is a more upstream position compared to Gucheng."
"What’s good about this place?"
"The garrison stationed at Baoguan is mainly guarding the Qingdi."
Sun Hongye explained, "Before the Qingdi was completed, the Qingbai River often flooded from Baoguan, submerging fertile fields; thirty years ago, the local governor built the Qingdi, successfully blocking the water. Since then, the Qingbai River has basically not disturbed this area, instead impacting the downstream Luyun Lake."
"The terrain of Baoguan doesn’t seem special either, unlike Gucheng, which has many routes. Capturing it wouldn’t cut off vital land and water routes."
He Lingchuan crossed his arms, "What’s the point of taking it?"
"If Gucheng withstands the imperial army's winter offensive, once spring arrives, the water level of the Qingbai River will rise dramatically, and ninety percent will flood into Luyun Lake, causing the lake to expand rapidly, turning the entire basin into a marshland, making it nearly impossible for people to pass through."
"The optimal route for the imperial army would be to traverse the basin northward, as this would be the shortest and easiest path to the capital of Wuzhou, Hechong. It would also facilitate a later rendezvous with the eastern front troops to jointly attack Hechong."
He Lingchuan looked at the table: "Since this route is the best, why doesn’t General Ke take advantage of the frozen winter lake to march northward?"
"It’s still because of Gucheng."
Sun Hongye sighed, "Even if the imperial army can cross the frozen lake to the north, they probably wouldn’t be able to capture Hechong within two months. By then, once the spring floods arrive, the Qingbai River will overflow and submerge the basin, directly cutting off the imperial army's supply route. Advancing alone without logistics is a major taboo in warfare. At that time, Gucheng can calmly send troops, and the odds of victory will be very high."
"So the strong assault by Generals Wu and Ke on Gucheng is to seize the entire basin, allowing them to advance northward without worry?"
"Exactly, the eldest young master has hit the nail on the head! For the two generals, Gucheng is like a thorn in their side; if they don’t remove it, there will be endless troubles."
Sun Hongye pointed at Baoguan, "But I prefer to capture Baoguan and then blow up the Qingdi!"
He Lingchuan was taken aback, studying the map closely, and suddenly clapped his hands: "Brilliant!"
Finally, someone affirmed him, and Sun Hongye let out a sigh of relief: "The eldest young master is clever."
"Blowing up the Qingdi would be equivalent to preemptively diverting the flood from Luyun Lake. After all, before the Qingdi was built, the downstream Luyun Lake rarely expanded, indicating that the original natural flood discharge was effective."
He Lingchuan continued along the line of thought, "After blowing up the Qingdi, as long as the lake’s expansion is limited during the spring floods, it won’t submerge the entire basin, allowing people, carts, and horses to pass through."
Sun Hongye spoke urgently: "The army and logistics can proceed northward as originally planned, greatly reducing the necessity of capturing Gucheng. At that point, it will depend on the two generals to adapt to the situation. This way, they can also conserve their forces and reduce losses."
"I think this plan is good; why wouldn’t General Ke like it?" At the banquet in Luming Garden, He Lingchuan indeed saw Ke Jihai shake his head, clearly disapproving of this plan.
"Baoguan is also difficult to capture. There are Wujun cities to the west and south, and Gucheng is to the east. If it cannot be taken quickly, it will be surrounded by the Wujun; furthermore—" Sun Hongye whispered, "There was a reason the previous officials built the Qingdi. If the Qingbai River breaches here, it will flood countless fields, and the number of disaster-stricken commoners in the affected counties will be at least in the tens of thousands. It is said that before attacking Wuzhou, the king warned the imperial army that the commoners of Wuzhou are also subjects of the Yuan Kingdom and must not be harmed or plundered. If the two generals actively blow up the dam, that would be a deliberate crime, going against the king's orders. Given the temperament of that one in the court, even if they achieve great success in the battle for Wuzhou, they would still face punishment upon returning."
He asked He Lingchuan: "If the eldest young master were in General Ke's position, what choice would you make?"
On one side was victory or defeat, and on the other was the common people.
He Lingchuan thought for a moment: "If we don’t attack Gucheng and Baoguan, is there no other way to win?"
"If neither is attacked, the imperial army can only bypass the northwestern mountains, which would take twice as long as advancing eastward, and the journey would be through rugged mountains and wilderness, making it very difficult."
Sun Hongye frowned, "The sole objective of war is to win! If you bind your own hands and feet, how can you go far?"
He Lingchuan shrugged: "I will go back and ponder this carefully. First, I wish Brother Sun success in your endeavors."
Sun Hongye smiled bitterly.
"What's wrong? Do you lack confidence?"
"It seems hopeless. I saw General Ke hand the book to his subordinate, but that subordinate has already died in last night’s Ghost Ape ambush, and the corpse was thrown down the mountain along with the carriage. I think General Ke won’t specifically retrieve the book."
Sun Hongye let out a bitter laugh: "I am insignificant, and he doesn’t care."
"By the way, why did you say earlier that staying in Shihuan would only lead to a dull wait for death?" He Lingchuan still remembered this statement, "On my journey here, I have seen countless people suffering from hunger and cold. Those who can live in the capital and Shihuan City are already the happiest people in the Great Yuan."
(End of Chapter)