Chapter 1047: Conquest the World Plan
"There really is."
Zhang Qi smiled when he heard that.
Li Shimin's eyes instantly lit up.
He knew all too well how valuable the things in Zhang Qi's hands were.
Whether it was gunpowder, new ironmaking techniques, or hot-air balloons, those three things together had forcibly turned the Tang Dynasty's army into a meat grinder.
Now that Zhang Qi said there was more, Li Shimin felt even his breathing grow heavier.
"Before we look at the new toy, Your Majesty, Master Xuanzang, what do you think is the most important thing in war?"
Seeing this, Zhang Qi kept them in suspense.
"Commanders' deployment and soldiers' bravery?"
After thinking briefly, Xuanzang gave his answer.
"Brave generals and strong soldiers can indeed win local battles, but they cannot determine the outcome of a major war."
Hearing that, Li Shimin pulled over another chair and sat down with imposing ease.
He was an emperor who had climbed out of heaps of corpses on horseback. He knew this question well. "What truly determines victory or defeat is provisions. Before the three armies move, provisions must go first.
"Without food, no matter how strong the soldiers or how brave the generals, they cannot cut off the enemy's heads.
"When I fought Wang Shichong, I cut off his supply route and wore him to death."
Li Shimin spoke with considerable self-satisfaction.
Xuanzang nodded. That was indeed true.
"Provisions are certainly the lifeline. No one can hold out without food. But if you say they are the most important thing, the thing most capable of determining a battle's outcome, that is still not quite right."
However, Zhang Qi gave a completely different answer.
Li Shimin frowned and fell into thought.
He stared at Zhang Qi for a while, unable to think