Chapter 94

In less than half an hour, Dou Ying, Tian Fen, and other important ministers arrived at the place. When they saw the lifelike sand table, they were greatly surprised. After Li You explained the purpose of the sand table to them, they immediately realized how important it was for the Han army. Dou Ying immediately submitted, "Your Majesty, please seal this place! Except for the ministers and generals who have been granted permission, anyone who dares to enter shall be executed!"

"Wei Qing! From now on, this place will be under your watch! You must not be negligent!" Liu Che also reacted and entrusted this matter to his most trusted brother-in-law, Wei Qing!

"Your subject obeys the imperial command!" Wei Qing was overjoyed. This was not only a sign of Liu Che's trust, but with the duty of overseeing the sand table, he could spend a lot of time studying the terrain of the Hexi region. Once he understood it thoroughly, when the formal western campaign began next year, he would surely get a chance to join the army! This was absolutely good news for him, who was not content with just being a close attendant.

"Prime Minister Dou, Grand Commandant Tian, if you have free time, you can also come here to discuss the western campaign!" Although they were now only marquises living in retirement, Liu Che still habitually referred to them as Prime Minister and Grand Commandant.

"Thank Your Majesty for your kindness! We will not辜负您的信任！" These two old foxes were much calmer than Wei Qing. Liu Che was entrusting them with the planning of the western campaign, and after this victory, there would be nothing to stop them from returning to the court! They could even use the great victory over the Xiongnu to force Empress Dowager Dou to allow the emperor to take personal control of the government!

The battle had not even begun, and these two old foxes were already thinking about deeper political struggles! And Liu Che, standing beside them, was not without such thoughts. Empress Dowager Dou often used his youth as an excuse to prevent him from taking personal control. Now, if he could achieve a great victory over the Xiongnu, she would no longer have any excuses, right?

Then his gaze swept over Li Guang, Cheng Buren, Gong Sun Ao, and other generals. As his eyes met theirs, their hearts raced. They all knew this was a great opportunity to establish their careers! "Li Guang, Cheng Buren, Gong Sun Ao, you may also enter to view the sand table and study the western campaign! In half a month, I want you to present your strategies for the western campaign!"

"Your subjects obey the imperial command!" The generals all knelt down to thank the emperor. They knew that if nothing went wrong, the commander of next year's western campaign would be chosen from among them!

"These few days, I will also be here to await your arrival. If you have any questions, I will do my best to answer them!" Li You also stepped forward to say.

"Hmm, Minister Zhang is well-versed in the geography of Hexi and Xiongnu affairs. You must seek his advice more often!" Liu Che nodded in satisfaction. This was something he had already thought of.

The generals naturally expressed their gratitude again and then began to study the sand table intently! After a moment, Wei Qing was the first to ask, "May I ask, Doctor Zhang, why are the tents in the Xiongnu territory of different sizes and numbers?"

"General Wei truly has keen eyesight!" Li You praised him first, then explained, "General, please look. There are three sizes of tents. The smallest represents five hundred people, the slightly larger one represents one thousand people, and the largest represents two thousand people! Once you understand this, you can see at a glance how many Xiongnu are in a given area!"

"The same applies to the Han soldiers. Different sizes of Han soldiers represent different numbers!" Li You picked up the soldier models on the sand table and explained, "Additionally, the mountains and rivers on the sand table are made to scale according to real dimensions! One inch on the sand table is approximately one li in reality! This will make things clearer for you!"

"Doctor Zhang is truly thoughtful!" Liu Che picked up the ruler next to the sand table, "This way, can't we measure the distance between two places with just a ruler?"

"Your Majesty is wise! Measuring on the sand table can indeed give an approximate distance, but since this sand table covers a vast area, some small mountains and rivers are not marked! If you want to determine the exact marching time, it is insufficient!" Li You continued, "Therefore, I have also had some smaller sand tables made, limited to the Hexi region and the territory of the Xiutu King! On these sand tables, perhaps five inches equal one li, which will make the strategies of the generals more precise! In addition, I have prepared plenty of maps for the generals to carry with them during the campaign!"

"This way, we can use this large sand table to formulate strategies, and the more detailed small sand tables to plan specific tactics! We can carry the maps with us during the campaign!" Dou Ying and Tian Fen also couldn't help but praise Li You's meticulousness.

In the following days, these important ministers and famous generals, who had been granted permission by Liu Che, spent day and night in the sand table room. Under Li You's guidance, they also learned to use the sand table and soldier models for simulated battles!

Li Guang, Wei Qing, Cheng Buren, and Gong Sun Ao took turns playing the roles of the Xiongnu and Han soldiers, engaging in fierce battles on the sand table! These generals also displayed different combat styles.

Li Guang's movements were like those of a celestial horse, often advancing along routes the enemy could not anticipate, frequently defeating the currently less experienced Wei Qing and Gong Sun Ao. However, his tactics did not work against the steady and methodical Cheng Buren! Cheng Buren was cautious in his use of troops, and although he might lose the chance for a great victory due to indecision, it was impossible for anyone to defeat him.

This was also related to their personalities! Li Guang's talent was unparalleled, and he was proud and fond of taking risks in battle. If he led the army, it would either be a great victory or a great defeat, and, well, he might even get lost and accomplish nothing!

On the other hand, Cheng Buren was very strict in his military discipline, training his troops with the strictest discipline, dividing them into units with clear hierarchical command systems. His troops were always on high alert, with soldiers never taking off their armor and horses never being unharnessed. No one could gain any advantage from him, but achieving a great victory was also difficult for him.

In other words, Li Guang was a genius-type general, relying on his natural talent in battle, while Cheng Buren was a commoner-type general. He lacked the "spark" that Napoleon said was necessary to become a famous general, but he was also very difficult to defeat on the battlefield.

Historically, Li Guang lost several opportunities to be enfeoffed as a marquis due to unnecessary mistakes! Although Cheng Buren never lost a battle against the Xiongnu, he also never achieved great merit! Neither of them was enfeoffed as a marquis for life!

Wei Qing and Gong Sun Ao initially suffered repeated defeats, but their ability to learn and grow was very fast. After a few days, they could fight Li Guang to a draw, though they still lost more often than they won. This made Dou Ying, Tian Fen, and the other old ministers very happy. It seemed that after the Hexi campaign, the Han would have several outstanding young generals!

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