Mythical Qin: I, Gao Yao, will never be a eunuch!

As Fusu successfully ascended the throne, Gao Yao keenly noticed that Yi Xiaochuan had undergone a huge change. Although he had already secretly colluded with Beiyanshanren, Gao Yao never expected that it would evolve to this extent. Yi Xiaochuan actually launched a fierce attack on the southern border without regard for the consequences, which Gao Yao could understand. But playing with other people's lives like this was really too much.

Today's imperial army looks majestic and powerful on the surface, but in fact it is plagued by internal and external troubles. According to common sense, the southern border should not be the primary target of attack. When Qin Shihuang was still in power, the national treasury was almost empty and the income was not enough to cover the expenditure. Two consecutive years of large-scale conscription of civilians for labor, coupled with the implementation of various political measures, the financial consumption was extremely alarming.

Although the Qin Dynasty claimed to have hundreds of thousands of strong troops, in fact, if the battle in the southern border dragged on for more than half a year, the imperial army would probably face the dilemma of running out of food and starving. The reason why this war could be barely maintained was that it was only by forcibly collecting and allocating food and grass that the army needed to gather the food.

Gao Yao and Xiao He walked and talked, and before they knew it, they had returned to the prefectural governor's mansion. At this moment, the prefectural governor's mansion was crowded with people inside and outside, and it was very lively. Many officials and soldiers had been waiting here for a long time, hoping to see Gao Yao return as soon as possible. Seeing this scene, Gao Yao did not delay at all. He hurriedly stepped into the mansion and waved his hand to signal officials at all levels to come in and discuss matters together.

After everyone was seated, Gao Yao was naturally concerned about whether the defense deployment in various places was tight, whether all kinds of weapons and equipment were sufficient, and the crucial food and logistics support. After all, as the old saying goes, "War is fought with economy and logistics." If there are omissions or deficiencies in these aspects, the entire war may fall into a passive or even failed situation.

"Everyone must follow orders and not make mistakes! If there is any delay, there will be severe punishment!" Gao Yao stood in the hall of the county governor's mansion and shouted loudly. The officials in the hall responded in unison: "Yes!" The voices were uniform and echoed in the county governor's mansion.

"Okay, Xiao He stays, and the rest of you can leave for now." Gao Yao waved his hand, signaling others to leave.

The officials responded respectfully again: "Yes!" Then they left the county magistrate's mansion one after another, and the huge hall suddenly became quiet.

Gao Yao finally breathed a sigh of relief at this time, and he slowly took off his heavy armor. Seeing this, the attendant beside him hurried forward to help.

"Xiao He, please tell me. I know you must have some thoughts in your mind that you haven't expressed yet." Gao Yao stared at Xiao He with a sharp gaze. He knew that this resourceful strategist would not be unprepared.

Xiao He smiled slightly, bowed and said, "Sure enough, nothing can be hidden from the lord. I know that the lord does not want to fight this war in his heart, but he is forced by the situation. Therefore, I have come up with a brilliant plan for the lord. If it can be implemented smoothly, the 300,000 troops of the court will be useless. However, although this plan is brilliant, it is also full of dangers. It must rely on the black gunpowder carefully developed by the lord to succeed."

"Oh? What do you mean?" Hearing what Xiao He said, Gao Yao was slightly startled, with a look of surprise on his face. Thinking back to when he asked Xiao He how to deal with the pressure from the court, Xiao He also thought hard for a long time but could not come up with a very good plan. In the end, he had no choice but to choose to support Prince Gao to become the King of Qin. However, at this moment, facing the 300,000-strong army of the court that was already approaching, Xiao He actually claimed that he had thought of a brilliant plan, which really surprised and curious Gao Yao.

If Xiao He really had such a brilliant plan, why did he send Cao Shen to Zhentuo? Gao Yao was expecting Xiao He to come up with some unique strategies or tricks against the imperial army, but he didn't expect that Xiao He's plan was to annihilate the entire 300,000-man army in one fell swoop! Such bold words seemed alarmist and unreal to Gao Yao.

Let alone other things, just the 300,000-man army itself includes not only the powerful Northern Border Army, but also the elite guards specially deployed by Qin Shihuang around Xianyang. These are all the most brave and combat-savvy troops of the Qin Empire!

Furthermore, the Qin crossbows in the hands of the Qin army were not ordinary weapons, and their power should not be underestimated. Even though there was a certain gap between the two sides in terms of weapons and equipment, if they wanted to defeat the 300,000 strong imperial army in a blink of an eye, it would be impossible to do so easily unless they could produce magical weapons with overwhelming advantages like modern weapons.

This was definitely not the same group of Chu troops that they had encountered in Kuaiji before! In the Chu army, apart from the tens of thousands of elite soldiers led by Xiang Yu himself, most of the rest were local soldiers from various counties, and many were even soldiers recruited temporarily.

If they were to compete with the Northern Border Army and the Imperial Guards, there would be a huge difference. Not to mention the uneven quality of the soldiers, the number of veterans alone was already very impressive. Among the middle and low-level generals, there were many veterans who had participated in the war to destroy the six kingdoms. These veterans, whether in terms of personal strength, combat experience or combat quality, were beyond the reach of ordinary armies. In this way, it was no wonder that Gao Yao could never be completely sure that he could win.

Not only that, but Li Xin, Wang Li, Zhang Han and other powerful generals have not been taken into consideration! These people are all famous generals in the world today. Any one of them can be called a famous general. Even Han Xin, who has just emerged in this era, may not be able to defeat them.

At this moment, Xiao He even swore that he had a brilliant plan to defeat the huge enemy army of up to 300,000. Gao Yao couldn't help but feel deeply suspicious. It was not that he was completely unwilling to trust Xiao He, a resourceful man, but it was because Xiao He's words sounded a little too confident and exaggerated.

"My lord, in fact, I am not the only one who can come up with this plan. This plan is also very simple and easy to understand. You can figure out the mystery behind it as long as you use your brain a little. It's just that most people don't think about it in this direction at all." Xiao He's tone was calm but with a hint of mystery.

"Oh? What does it mean? Tell me in detail!" Gao Yao asked impatiently.

"My lord, please think about it, where did the army sent by the court set out from?" Xiao He persuaded.

"Of course it's Xianyang!" Gao Yao answered without hesitation.

"So where will they go after leaving Xianyang?" Xiao He continued to ask.

"Go straight to Hanzhong, and then divide the troops into multiple routes to attack my southern border... Could it be that... you are not thinking of Hanzhong?" Under Xiao He's clever guidance, Gao Yao suddenly realized and finally understood the plan that Xiao He mentioned - it was Hanzhong.

The three armies of the imperial court attacked the two counties of Bashu, Dongting and Cangwu respectively, thus forming a three-sided attack on the southern border. However, the key premise of all these military actions was that Hanzhong must be firmly controlled by the imperial court and shoulder the responsibility of providing logistical support for the entire imperial army.

If Hanzhong was really lost, the consequences would be just as unimaginable as Xiao He said! This 300,000-man army would collapse in an instant. Once Hanzhong, an important strategic location, was lost, the imperial army would immediately face the dilemma of supply interruption. Not only would they be unable to obtain subsequent food and grass support, but even the road to withdrawing to the imperial court would be completely cut off.

After Hanzhong was occupied by the enemy, the only option for the imperial army to return to Xianyang was to go around the outside of the Great Wall. However, at this moment, almost all the areas outside the Great Wall were already controlled by the rebels. In this situation, the imperial army could not even obtain the food needed to survive. If they dared to take the risk of passing under the noses of the rebels, then there was no doubt that these hungry and exhausted soldiers would become fat meat in the mouths of the rebels and be easily swallowed up.

"My lord, you are right. It is true. As long as Hanzhong falls, the imperial army will fall into chaos. Many people may even come to you without hesitation!"

"Haha, is this what you call a brilliant plan?" The corners of his mouth twitched slightly involuntarily. Although every word Xiao He said was true, the actual feasibility of this plan was very small.

If they want to seize Hanzhong, they must attack with heavy troops to achieve their goal. The most effective strategy is to defeat the Qin army stationed in Ba County or Shu County in one fell swoop, so that they can attack Hanzhong. However, this is only a theory. If someone really dares to do this, how could Yi Xiaochuan, Li Xin and Wang Li be so stupid? Once the southern border army dares to rush to Hanzhong, the enemy will definitely turn around and fight back at the first time.

Moreover, it is the Southern Border Army, not the Imperial Army, that is currently short of manpower. Although Xiao He once mentioned black gunpowder, it should be noted that black gunpowder is by no means omnipotent. Once it is used once and the other party becomes alert and takes precautions, it will be extremely difficult to succeed again.

Furthermore, Hanzhong is a majestic and dangerous pass. It is not easy to blow it up with black gunpowder. Even if it can be successfully blown up, how to repair it later will become a new and difficult problem. By then, before the repair work is completed, the imperial army may have already returned, and it will still be difficult to resist. Therefore, if you want to capture Hanzhong directly without the imperial army noticing, the difficulty is beyond imagination!