When the ti cos, apart from needing to provide so military supplies such as arrows, bows, crossbows, swords, spears, helts, and armor, the Chu State’s heartland and rear will be able to supply the other necessary provisions locally.
This significantly reduces the pressure on logistics by over ninety percent, which can be said to be extrely convenient.
How could Lu Yuan not be attentive to such a beneficial matter?
Gao Mingtao was ticulously selected by him to accomplish this task; upon completion, he will return for a promotion.
A reward so substantial is naturally ant to ensure that this person will work with all his heart and effort, cooperating with the recently reorganized Yongzhou Camp led by Huang Xin, to get this job done well for himself.
Looking at it now, the effects seem to be quite good.
This capable subordinate of Lu Yuan’s has been inspired with a fighting spirit and confidence; with these blessings, it seems that he will soon be able to take care of this matter.
’Now, we just need to wait for the next year to arrive, and the Yongzhou Defense Line can begin to be established.’
After giving guidance, Lu Yuan thought to himself as he allowed Gao Mingtao to leave.
However, he quickly shifted his focus away from this matter.
With Huang Xin in charge of Yongzhou and a capable officer to assist him, as long as they don’t make mistakes, there shouldn’t be any problems.
Moreover, the Chu State is now formally engaged in the struggle for supremacy in Central State, and the matters involved are not limited to Yongzhou alone.
The entire Nine Provinces are the Chu State’s target.
The Western Defense Strategy is more or less set in stone.
As a result, Lu Yuan turned his attention to the Eastern Stability Strategy.
Compared to the Western front, which only requires the construction of defenses, land reclamation, and garrisoning troops for a purely defensive stance,
the Eastern battlefield in Yu State for Chu is undoubtedly much more complex.
’Eastern Stability,’ as its na suggests, indicates that stabilizing the current situation in the East is the priority.
So, what is the current situation in Yu State?
The Chu Army occupies the four southern counties of Yu State, the Tang Kingdom’s massive army is marching southward, actively engaging in fierce battles with Zheng and Jin, and beside them Xu State is showing signs of eagerness to join the fray.
Aside from the regions controlled by Chu, the entire Yu State has already beco a chaotic ss.
From the current situation, after a year of recuperation, Tang’s strength remains very formidable.
With its thirty million population and two million soldiers, it faces the now destitute Zheng Kingdom and a weakened Jin Country without any hesitation or fear, even holding the upper hand.
After all, the combined population of Zheng and Jin doesn’t exceed seventeen million, and although their current military force seems large—surpassing Tang by several hundred thousand—it has been hastily conscripted from Zheng’s citizenry.
They only have an appearance of overwhelming force.
But in reality, when confronted with a truly strong army, their true foundation is exposed.
Facing Tang’s elite Southern Expedition Army of a million soldiers, Zheng and Jin, despite having assembled two million troops to resist, are still retreating steadily on the frontline.
The gap in underlying strength between the old hegemon and the minor hegemon is fully displayed at this mont.
However, behind Zheng and Jin, there is Xu State standing by.
Although Xu State’s power falls short compared to Tang, it is still considered a veteran major power on the sa level; its strength is not to be underestimated.
If Zheng and Jin truly can’t hold on anymore, Xu State will certainly not stand idly by and will inevitably send troops to their aid.
At that point, facing a triple threat, how Tang ends up is hard to predict.
It might even suffer another disastrous defeat.
If Tang were defeated, that would not be a positive developnt for the Chu State.
Without Tang to hold them at bay, the current three states in Yu—Xu, Jin, and Zheng—would be able to focus entirely on dealing with Chu, which has extended its reach into Yu and ambitiously seeks expansion at every turn.
Tang might even beco a vassal to Xu after its defeat, similar to Zheng and Jin, turning into a ’little brother’ to Xu.
Then, an alliance led by Xu would erge on the lands of Yu.
The situation would mirror the coalition led by Wei Country, with Zhao and Xu States banding together to fight Liang; only this ti the coalition would consist of Xu, Tang, Zheng, and Jin against Chu.
Facing a coalition of four major powers, even Lu Yuan would find it sowhat burdenso and would headache.
Therefore, preferably, this scenario should not unfold.
Tang cannot afford to lose, or at least, cannot afford to lose so badly that it becos a vassal to Xu—that is a baseline.
At the sa ti, Tang also cannot win.
Because if Tang were to win, it would sweep through Yu State.
What would then erge is not an alliance led by Xu but rather a coalition in which Tang envelops the other three states of Yu to lead an offensive against Chu.
Regardless of which side triumphs, neither outco is favorable for Chu.
The best scenario would be for both sides to be locked in a stalemate, exhausting each other, leading to mutual defeat.
However, achieving this balance is far from easy.
It requires highly sophisticated balancing acts, diplomatic maneuvers, tily and extensive information networks, acute judgnt of the situation, and a formidable military intervention capability, among other skills.
Even Lu Yuan dare not claim to be capable of executing all these perfectly.
Thus, for matters in Yu State, he can only do his best and leave the rest to fortune.
Still, while fortune is a factor, it is essential to possess the necessary strength and equipnt.
Fortunately, on the Eastern frontier battlefield, Huang Lin has just achieved a great victory, annihilating more than two million Zhao troops and thoroughly crippling Zhao Country.
For the next ten years, and perhaps even for a decade in Northern Hebei’s Ji Province, no power will be able to pose a threat to Henan.
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