Liu Ji and Zhang Ji got off the horse, and a soldier pointed to the tavern in front and said, "Taiwei, this is General Ding's tavern."

Look at Zhang Ji and Liu Jidao: "This is the ferry crossing. When the Khitans check the terrain, they must walk from here. General Ding chose this place, but he really chose the right place. Let's go in and see how General Ding has gained these days."

After saying that, when I entered the tavern and the door.

Ding Lingde was leaning against the counter and was napping. When he heard the movement, he opened his eyes and saw Liu Ji and Zhang Ji coming in, he hurried forward to salute.

Liu Ji said: "The Jumahe has been frozen, and the Khitans are coming soon. Today, Taiwei Zhang and I were looking around. I heard that you are doing a great job here, so I came here together. How about it, is there any news about the Khitans?"

It was not dinner time, and there was no customer in the store. Ding Lingde called the servant and asked them to pay attention to the surroundings. He said to Liu Ji: "Taiwei, let's go to the back, and the subordinate will tell you in detail."

Several people followed Ding Lingde to the back of the inn. Ding Lingde pointed to an inconspicuous house in the courtyard and said, "This is the place where we discuss things on a daily basis, and it is convenient inside."

While talking, he brought a few people to the front door and opened the door and went in.

The room was a little dark. Ding Lingde came in and lit an oil lamp. The flames were turned up and placed on the table. He took a scroll from the cabinet next to him and said, "This is a map of the border with the Khitan. I originally wanted to confirm it for the last time and send it to Taiwei Zhang, but I didn't want to arrive today. This is a place where the Khitans might attack and the routes they will take, which can be used for reference and deployment by the Taiwei."

While speaking, he laid the scroll on the table. With the light, it was clear that it was the map from Xiongzhou to Zhuozhou. This map was very simple, but it was marked with place names, lakes, rivers, and roads, and the number of miles was also stated on it.

With the lights, Liu Ji and Zhang Ji stepped forward and carefully studied the map. The map is different from later generations. According to the customs of this era, it is to go up, south and north. It is Xiongzhou above, and there is a Juma River in the middle, passing Xincheng County, and going to Zhuozhou below.

Ding Lingde said: "The Khitan troops and horses have already been sent from Xijin Prefecture to Zhuozhou. The officials have already visited them, with about 6,000 people, all of them are cavalry. There are still two or three thousand soldiers in Zhuozhou, and about 10,000 people are the Khitan troops that will cross the river. In other words, the Khitans will send troops from Zhuozhou this time, and Yizhou will not participate. This map is a situation of crossing the river from Zhuozhou to attack Xiongzhou."

The map marked the important places and wrote the distance. Liu Ji read it and said, "There are more than 30 miles from Zhuozhou to Xincheng County, from Xincheng to Jumahe. If the Khitans want to come, they should rest in the territory for a night and cross the Jumahe on the next day."

Ding Lingde nodded: "What the Taiwei said is that the Khitan soldiers and horses are now gathered in Zhuozhou City. If you want to come south, you should rest at the border for a night first and cross the river in the early morning of the next day. Just monitor carefully and from the place where the Khitans rest, you can tell where they want to cross the river."

Liu Ji nodded and asked, "Where are you going to come across the river?"

Ding Lingde pointed to the place west of Xiongzhou on the map and said, "The Khitans must attack here. If possible, I marked the map. There are three military camps north of the Yishui River in the north, and the Khitans may attack. Of course, the most capable one is to cross these three military camps to the bank of the Yishui River in the south. Then cross the river and plunder the fleeing people on the south bank of the river."

Looking at the place where Ding Lingde pointed in the picture, Liu Ji said to Zhang Ji: "Have you deployed defenses against these places?"

Zhang Ke said: "The court ordered the Khitans to have a way out and no way out. These days, I have been sending people to observe the terrain here, and the troops stationed in Ansu Army and Xiongzhou. When the Khitans crossed the river, they immediately sent people to intercept their return and encircle them."

Liu Ji pondered: "Ten thousand Khitan cavalry, how many people do you plan to use to surround them?"

Zhang Ji said: "Thirty thousand people. Now 10,000 are in Xiongzhou, and there are still 20,000 arranged in Ansu army. If the Khitans cross the river, they will immediately send 10,000 cavalry to advance eastward and cut off their retreat. The other troops will be surrounded by Xiongzhou and Ansu army, one left and one right, and they will be surrounded by the Khitan army between the two rivers."

Liu Ji nodded: "This arrangement requires the Khitans to go deep into the border. If you only cross the river for more than ten miles and your army is dispatched, they will have a chance to escape the river. Ten thousand cavalry will come forward, and it will not be easy to hide from others."

Zhang Ke said: "That's right. So the location chosen by General Ding is very important. When the Khitans cross the river, they have enough distance to stop them as long as they go to Nanyishui. However, the more informed the news, the better. If they are late, they are afraid they will return."

Ding Lingde said: "The Taiwei said it is right. This time, it is best to calculate where the Khitans are coming. The sooner the army prepares, the better. When the Khitans travel south, they can calmly cut off their retreat. The officials are doing this these days."

After saying that, he pointed to the map and said, "These days, the Khitan sent five people across the river to explore the way. Needless to say, east of Xiongzhou, between Xiongzhou and Ansu Army, three people were sent. Two times were to explore the north of Nanyishui, especially around the newly built station, and they were very careful. Another time, he found a commoner living by the Juma River, named Shi Yiming, and took them all the way to Nanyishui. The place they went was the place where the people fled to the south in Xiatian."

Liu Ji nodded: "This matter has arisen because of these people. The Khitans have come. How can I be content if I don't have to take a trip here?"

Ding Lingdedao: "The same is true for the officials. According to the routes that the Khitan spies have taken these days, the places they have seen, and the words and deeds along the way, if the Khitan soldiers cross the river, the most likely places to attack are two. One is the place where the people live in the south, and the other is the station that is being built now. Based on the words and deeds of the spies, we estimate that the Khitans are likely to attack these two places at the same time."

While speaking, Ding Lingde pointed out the locations of the two places on the map. At the same time, he pointed to several places on the map and said, "This was all viewed by the Khitan spy Jiayi, and it was the way to come from the south."

Liu Ji and Zhang Ji looked at the map, remained silent for a while, and thought secretly. After a while, Liu Ji said, "The station is about thirty miles away from the Juma River. The cavalry crossed the river in a flat and clear way, and they could arrive at the station before it was dark. If you didn't make arrangements early, it would be difficult for the station to defend against the Khitans."

Zhang Ji said: "This is a bit difficult. If we had arranged troops early, it would have caused suspicion from the Khitans. Otherwise, we would stop the station for the time being and dismiss the people working there in the cold?"

Liu Xiang shook his head: "How can that be? The station stops, and the Khitans must be suspicious. So, you should send troops to protect the station. First, protect the place safely and not attract attention."

After hearing this, Zhang Ji looked at the map and frowned. This was easy to say, but it was so difficult to do. The station was not stationed in the city, and in the wilderness, if you want to stop ten thousand cavalry, you must send a large army. But if you send a large army, the Khitans will get news.

Ding Lingde said: "The Xiaguan thought about this for a long time, but after thinking about it, it was unreliable to guard it. It would be better to immediately withdraw the people from the station after the Khitans crossed the river. As long as they were not hurt, how much could the Khitans rob? Later, they stopped them, and they could not move back to the Khitan."

After hearing this, Liu Ji thought for a moment and nodded, "Okay, that's it! I got the news that the Khitans crossed the river before, and immediately asked the people from the station to withdraw! Let the Khitans move some supplies! When the army gathered, where can they move?"

Zhang Ke crossed his hands and said, "In addition to the station, there are many people along the way, so what should we do?"

Ding Lingdedao: "The officials have already found out that most of the people in this area are two households. Most of the people in this dynasty live by the Nanyishui River. Therefore, this time, the defense of Khitan should be based on the Nanyishui River. The Khitans crossed the river, intercepted their way back from the north, and guarded the Nanyishui River from the south."

Liu Ji looked at the map and thought for a while and said, "The spies found that the Khitans gathered on the border and immediately returned. On the second day, when the Khitans crossed the river, they set out from Ansu's army, mainly cavalry, blocking the Khitans' way back. The other one set out from Xiongzhou and blocking Nanyishui in front. Just near the newly built station, they surrounded and annihilated the invading Khitan troops!"

Zhang Ke crossed his hands and said yes.

Ding Lingde pointed to the map and explained in detail to Zhang Ji where the Khitan might cross the river and what route to take. Ten thousand cavalrymen must go quickly and go straight and flat. There are many water and reeds in this area, which is actually not many routes suitable for this requirement. Ding Lingde sent people to carefully investigate and has determined the possible routes that the Khitans may take.

Zhang Ku nodded repeatedly. With the location where the Khitan crossed the river, their marching routes, their goals, and he had sufficient troops in his hands, he could not explain it if he could not block it.

Du Zhongxiao sent Ding Lingde here, not only was he good at intelligence, but he was also very familiar with military affairs. Based on the information obtained, he could predict the enemy's marching route in advance. This matter was difficult, but in fact, as long as he was careful and familiar with the marching, it was not too difficult. Ding Lingde has been keeping a close eye on the Khitans who crossed the river these days, and based on their routes, it was speculated that it was not difficult.
Chapter completed!