Chapter 55: The Doctrine of the Mean in Military Strategy

Chapter 55: The Doctrine of the Mean in Military Strategy

Chapter 55: The Doctrine of the Mean in Military Strategy
The two men walked between the tents and soon arrived at the central tent of the front army, where Wang Bi, Marquis of Dingyuan, was.

Soon he entered the military tent under the guidance of his personal guards.

The furnishings in the military tent were very simple, still with a huge map and a sand table, but different from the central military tent,

At this moment, there were four figures standing around the sand table of the front military camp. The one leading them was Wang Bi, Marquis of Dingyuan, who he had met once before.

When Lu Yunyi walked in, the four people in the military tent all looked over at him.
Wang Bi smiled slightly, while the other three looked strange.

"Everyone, this is the leader of the front army scouts, Lu Yunyi."

Wang Bi smiled and pulled Lu Yunyi over. While introducing him, he also introduced the other three people in the military tent to Lu Yunyi.

He pointed to a thin middle-aged man and said with a smile:

"This is the former army commander Lu Baochuan, who came with me to Qingzhou first."

"Meet General Lu."

Lu Yunyi was naturally respectful, even though they were both commanders.

But they had tens of thousands of soldiers, and he only had two thousand.
Lu Baochuan nodded slightly, with a hint of surprise in his eyes. He was too young, as young as his son.

"These two are Ma Changsheng, the deputy commander of the front army, and Wan Shangyi, the garrison commander."

The other two were of ordinary appearance, with stocky and dark bodies, and were somewhat similar.

Although the two looked surprised, they still bowed respectfully:

"Meet Mr. Lu."

Both of them were in their thirties, and they inevitably felt a little weird bowing to a kid who was not even twenty years old.

Fortunately, Lu Yunyi was very tactful and waved his hands repeatedly:

"Generals, there is no need to be so polite. We are both in the military, so there is no need to be so polite."

Seeing this scene, Marquis Dingyuan, who was standing by, nodded with satisfaction, a peaceful look on his face, which was in stark contrast to his rough appearance.

He held a wooden pole in his hand, pointed at the sand table in front of him, and said softly:

"Lu Yunyi, I asked you to come here because I want to discuss military matters with you."

Lu Yunyi raised his eyebrows, looked in the direction of the voice, and immediately frowned.

That is Leishanpo in the northwest of Gyeongju. At this moment, a sign belonging to the enemy has been placed there.

After thinking for a moment, he spoke in a deep voice:
"May I ask Lord Dingyuan, are there any enemies at Leishanpo?"

Dingyuan Hou looked solemn and nodded:

"This morning, we received news from Peking that the elite Tatars encountered by our scouts during our last expedition have not returned.

Instead, they headed eastward and reached the vicinity of Leishan Slope.
After a few more days of running, we will reach the north of Gyeongju."

"Tatar?" Lu Yunyi frowned even more. The Tatar tribe was thousands of miles away from Qingzhou. What were these troops doing here?

Dingyuan Marquis Wang Bi sighed:
"We have not yet figured out the purpose of the Tatars' eastward advance.
But we cannot rule out the possibility that he wanted to march from the north of Gyeongju to Buerhae to tip off the enemy.”

At this time, Commander Lv Baochuan looked solemn, looked at Lu Yunyi, and spoke in a deep voice:
"I asked you to come here to ask your opinion. Should we intercept or just sit back and do nothing?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the four people present turned their eyes to Lu Yunyi, causing him to feel puzzled.

In his opinion, there were only a thousand people, so there was no need to ask him about this matter. Perhaps it was just a test.

Lu Yunyi did not hide anything, a sharp look flashed in his eyes, and he spoke directly:

"The Tatars belong to the Northern Yuan Dynasty and are the enemy of the Ming Dynasty.
If we allow it to be paraded around, wouldn't it be a disgrace to the Ming Dynasty?
In my opinion, it is best to kill him in Gyeongju.
It is better to catch him and ask him why he came than for us to guess blindly here."

A smile appeared on Dingyuan Marquis Wang Bi's dark face, and he shouted:
"Well, you are indeed a young hero. When I was mobilizing troops in Fengyang, I saw your name frequently appearing in the military reports.

By the time I arrived here, you were already the commander-in-chief.
Now he has made great contributions and has been appointed as a commander. He has been promoted quickly and his sharp aura has not been lost. Very good!"

The three people on the side looked at each other silently and nodded.

No matter what Lu Yunyi's abilities are, at least he dares to fight and is very courageous.

"In that case, let's solve it in Gyeongju.
These grassland people are ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth and act recklessly. Let them have a taste of the might of our Ming army.

Lu Yunyi, Lu Baochuan!"

"I am here!" The two men looked serious and shouted in unison.

Dingyuan Marquis Wang Bi looked solemn and said loudly:
"The enemy has about 2,000 troops. We will send 3,000 troops to this battle, mainly the vanguard led by Lu Baochuan.

Lu Yunyi, you must also bring the vanguard scouts with you to assist.
I have heard that you have an unparalleled talent in battle formations, and you never get lost on the grasslands. You defeated the enemy twice in snowy weather.

The key to this battle is how to find the elite Tatars, and this depends on you."

Lu Yunyi stood tall and straight, his tone firm:

"I will fulfill my mission and find the best Tatars and let them rest here forever."

Dingyuan Marquis Wang Bi smiled lightly:
"In this battle, the scouts are just for support. The real fighting will depend on the two thousand vanguards. They have been rusty for a long time, so they need to see blood and sharpen their swords in advance."

"May I ask Lord Dingyuan, when shall we set out?"

Wang Bi showed a trace of doubt in his eyes: "I heard that you are good at taking advantage of the weather. Do you have any idea when you will send out the troops?"

Lu Yunyi's face froze, then he smiled awkwardly and scratched his head lightly:
"I thought that the New Year was coming soon, so I left early and came back early.
I dare not deceive Lord Dingyuan. I have just distributed food and expenses for the New Year to the army. I don’t know how to face the soldiers later.”

Wang Bi was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter:
"Hahahaha, you are so impatient.

But the enemy was an elite force of Tatars, and their cavalry were extremely skilled in battle formations.

Moreover, the area around Leishanpo is hundreds of miles in radius. It is extremely difficult to find them. I am afraid you will not be able to come back before the New Year."

As he spoke, Wang Bi glanced at Lu Yunyi and found that he was staring at the sand table with a thoughtful look on his face. He immediately smiled:
"Lu Yunyi, what do you think? You are from Qingzhou and are familiar with the place. Do you have a way to find them quickly?"

Lu Yunyi raised his head, thought for a moment and said:
"May I ask Lord Dingyuan, when did you discover that the elite Tatars appeared in the northwest? And when did you discover that they appeared in Leishanpo?"

At this time, Ma Changsheng, the deputy commander standing on the side, picked up a document from the side of the sand table, handed it over, and said with a smile:

"Master Lu, please take a look. This is the military report document that was delivered."

Lu Yunyi also took it with a smile, opened it and examined it carefully, his eyes full of thought.

After a while, he raised his head, looked at everyone present, and said loudly:
"There is indeed a simple way to find the elite Tatars."

"Tell me about it." There was a hint of surprise in Marquis Dingyuan's eyes.

Lu Yunyi pursed his lips and said:
"Reporting to the Marquis, although the enemy is present at Leishan Slope,

But whether he wanted to go north to Buir Lake, or cross Gyeongju to Liaodong, or stay in Gyeongju,

They all need to pass through Feiquan Valley, which is located between the mountains and has a narrow terrain.

There are not many roads available.
As long as we block them there in advance, we can defeat them without bloodshed."

"We have just mentioned this place. From Leishan Slope to Feiquan Valley, there are more than ten places that can be passed.

If we block them here, our forces will be too dispersed and we may not be able to send a message in time." Another commander, Wan Shangyi, said in a deep voice with a serious expression.

At the same time, pick up a bamboo pole and tap it gently on the sand table.

Dingyuan Marquis Wang Bi nodded and looked at Lu Yunyi with a question in his eyes:

"Yes, although judging by the time, we are likely to block them in Feiquan Valley.

But it is not easy to confirm the enemy's whereabouts."

If this is all Lu Yunyi is capable of, he will probably be disappointed.

However, Lu Yunyi's next words made everyone present frown. Lu Yunyi picked up a bamboo stick from one side, pointed to the west side of Leishan Slope, and said loudly:
"My Lord, please look, the northern part of Leishanpo is Xinghua Bay, where the terrain is flat.

There are many sandy swamps, few water sources and streams, and a lack of reference for identifying directions. It is easy to get lost when marching here.
But it is not impossible to go. Compared with Leishanpo, it will save at least three days to go from here.
The Tatars did not choose to walk here.
From this, we can preliminarily conclude that the leader of the Tatar army is a person who seeks stability.
Or maybe what they are doing is not so urgent, and there is no motivation for them to hurry on."

After the words fell, everyone present looked at each other and saw the surprise in each other's eyes.
Commander Wan Shangyi frowned and nodded thoughtfully:

"That makes sense, but what does this have to do with Feiquan Valley?"

Lu Yunyi did not answer immediately, but first looked at the sky outside the military tent, then pointed the bamboo pole towards Feiquan Valley and continued:

"My Lords, please take a look. There are twelve roads in Feiquan Valley to be exact.
Seven of them are located between the mountains on the northern slope.

The cliffs there are steep, and snow must accumulate every winter. Judging from the current weather, the wind and snow will not stop in the short term.
It is very dangerous to take these seven roads. If more than 2,000 cavalry run through them, an avalanche will surely occur.

If there is strong wind, it will form a through wind.

By then, not to mention two thousand cavalry, even twenty thousand cavalry would be unable to move forward.

If I were the leader of the Tatars,
After finding out the way, they will definitely not go here, but choose the five roads to the south.
Although there is snow here, it is much safer because it is protected by the northern slope.”

This time, not only Wan Shangyi frowned, but also Dingyuan Hou and others.

Although it is just empty talk, it does make some sense.

"That still leaves five passages, right? There are still some risks if three thousand people want to block five passages."

Ma Changsheng spoke thoughtfully, with some dissatisfaction in his voice.

Dingyuan Hou also looked over, with a smile on his face.
He is the commander of an army and has many choices to make.
Since three thousand people are too few, why not send five thousand people to guard the five passages?
But at this time Lu Yunyi smiled mysteriously and shook his head slowly:

"Instead of five channels, there are three, or even only one."

"Hurry up and talk. Why are you taking so long?" Seeing that he was slow to speak, Marquis Dingyuan urged him.

Lu Yunyi said quickly:
“When faced with multiple choices, people tend to choose the middle option.

So although there are five channels, the one closest to Gyeongju will be excluded first.
This place is too close to the Ming Dynasty and is not safe.

Similarly, the passage closest to the north slope can also be ruled out. The leader must act cautiously and stay as far away from danger as possible.
So..now there are only three paths before us.

If you think about it further, there is only one way left, the middle one.

But no matter what, there are at most three routes. Even if we split our troops into three, we will still have enough time to report for reinforcements after engaging them."

The people present frowned and fell into deep thought, staring at the sand table for a long time without saying a word.
After a while, they brought themselves into the shoes of the Tatar generals and found that they might make the same choice!

Involuntarily, a trace of shock appeared in the eyes of several people.

For Lu Yunyi, it doesn't matter how bravely he fights on the battlefield.
Because they are rare battle geniuses, otherwise they would not be able to reach this position.

But, the plot inside the military tent will shock them even more.
At this moment, in their minds, Lu Yunyi did not look like a brave and courageous scout general in the front army, nor was he suitable to wear armor.

Instead, he is more suitable to be a strategist, wearing a white robe and looking ethereal.

"You are quite interesting, kid. Why did you choose the middle path?" Ding Yuanhou couldn't suppress his smile.

Judging from the ability Lu Yunyi has shown now, even if he is not a good general, he is still a good strategist.

For these generals, no matter whether the method proposed by the counselor is feasible or not,
As long as you can expand your thinking and expand your thoughts, you will be a good strategist and will add countless possibilities of victory on the battlefield.

Lu Yunyi thought for a moment and said:

“People often compare their options with other options to determine the best choice.

The extreme options may feel overwhelming or undesirable, while the options in the middle are more acceptable.

So the middle option is often seen as the safest option.

Because they don’t lean too heavily towards either side, they reduce uncertainty and the sense of risk.

It’s like.”

Lu Yunyi scratched his head, a gleam of light flashed in his eyes, and he said slowly:

"I have one thousand subordinates named Liu Heiying. They are brave and valiant. So far, they have killed thirty-nine people.
His family ran a business selling fruits and vegetables from Peking.

He once told his subordinates that in order to quickly sell some fruits that are not easy to store, they would usually be priced at three levels: medium, high, and low.
As long as you set the price of the fruits you want to sell in the middle, you can sell at least 40% more every day.
Similarly, the location of the goods also has this consideration.

There are three floors: upper, middle and lower. The items sold in the middle floor are often much more than those in the upper and lower floors, at least 30%.

Once the two are combined, the sales speed of fruits and vegetables may increase several times.

The Analects of Confucius mentioned the doctrine of the mean, which we Han people have always followed.
For example, you can attack when you advance and defend when you retreat, this is the way.

Although the Tatars were people from the grasslands, they had been absorbing Chinese learning since the Mongols seized the Song Dynasty, and had also learned the doctrine of the mean.

Therefore, it is not difficult to determine the location of the elite Tatars. If we leave the camp now, it will be quick.
I will definitely be back before the New Year, maybe I’ll have two more days to spare.”

The military tent suddenly became so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

Several people present wanted to refute, but this statement was well-founded and even they themselves thought so.

Dingyuan Hou was a high-ranking official in the imperial court, and he thought further.

When the imperial court appointed officials, it often chose those who were neither conservative nor radical.
This is the proper way, and it is also a kind of golden mean.

After thinking about it carefully, Dingyuan Hou suddenly became alert.
The doctrine of the mean is already ingrained in the bones of these Han people, but are there some other marks that he is not aware of?

If the enemy controls this kind of seal, they can use it during marches and battles.
There was a glimmer of fear in Marquis Dingyuan's eyes. This move could keep the enemy away from thousands of miles away and drive the enemy within reach.

The real battle against the Tatars has just ended, and all that needs to be done next is to finish it off.

"Good! Good! Good! Lu Yunyi,
Everyone in Qingzhou knows you, and many people in the army think you are a person who seeks fame.
But now it seems that they were all wrong. There is no false reputation.

This technique of repelling enemies thousands of miles away is not something I have never seen before, but this is the first time I have seen it explained so clearly."

Dingyuan Hou looked at Lu Baochuan and suddenly shouted:
"Lü Baochuan, what do you think?"

Lu Baochuan was still thinking deeply. He shuddered when he heard it suddenly and said quickly:
"I have never seen such a military strategy before. I don't know how to describe it. I admire it."

"Okay, then Lu Yunyi will be the leader of this battle, and you will be the assistant. The two of you should leave the camp quickly and stop those Tatar soldiers for me!"

Lu Yunyi was stunned and couldn't help but open his mouth. He had thought that if the sky fell, there would be tall people to hold it up and he could just take it easy, but how come this task fell on him again?

Before he could speak, Lu Baochuan on the side shouted:
"I will definitely kill the enemy and return!"

Dingyuan Hou nodded vigorously with a firm look in his eyes, then looked at Lu Yunyi.
Lu Yunyi's dull look disappeared in an instant, replaced by determination:

"Please rest assured, my Lord. We will definitely win this battle!"

"Okay, let's go!"

After the two men left, Marquis Dingyuan looked at Ma Changsheng and Wan Shangyi, who were looking at each other in bewilderment.

He was so angry that he slapped her twice.

"You two are still the commanders, but you are not as good as the local troops in Qingzhou.
Find me that damn Analects and read it carefully.
The doctrine of the mean is applied in the art of war. If others can do it, why can't you?"

As he said this, he walked out of the tent while talking to himself.

"Can the wild words of these wimpy scholars be used as military tactics? That's really strange."

"My Lord, where are you going? There are still military reports to deal with." Ma Changsheng shouted hurriedly.

Dingyuan Hou waved his hand and said impatiently:

"Don't bother me, I'm going to ask the general for someone!"

(End of this chapter)