At this time in Linxiang, Zhang Xian, the governor of Changsha, was inspecting the city.
This is a man who is about forty years old and in his prime. He is actually quite ordinary in both stature and appearance. If he took off the brocade armor and threw it into a crowd, at first glance, no one would notice it.
It turns out that this person is actually a frontier official who is in charge of all military and political affairs in Changsha, and his influence extends to most of Jingnan.
There is not much written about Zhang Xian in the history books of later generations. His personal characteristics can be summarized in three sentences: he has a strong and unyielding personality, which is very popular among the people, but he is at odds with Liu Biao.
Qu Qiang means stubborn. It is actually normal for a person with such a character to be "very popular with the people" but "at odds with Liu Biao".
Because to put it bluntly, when you face people with a lower status than you, if you show a "flexible" side, that is, you are resolute and very independent. But if you face your superiors, you also show a "flexible" side.
On the other hand, it will only be considered as being ignorant of the truth, not knowing how to advance or retreat, or even showing no distinction between superiority and inferiority.
But having said that, if you only dare to stand up for your opinions in front of subordinates, but are submissive when facing superiors, it is not really a sign of a strong character.
Characters like Zhang Xian were actually quite common during the Han Dynasty. Guan Yu, who was arrogant but could not bear to be subordinated, was one of the representative figures. However, compared to Guan Yu, Zhang Xian's behavior was actually more like that of the famous general Li Guang of the Western Han Dynasty.
It is suitable to describe it as "arrogant and flattering".
And his style of running the army is very similar to Li Guang. Li Guang runs the army and his soldiers are happy to do what they can. Zhang Xian's army is almost like this. The requirements for his subordinates are not strict, but very loose. Under such circumstances, Changsha
The military's combat effectiveness is not bad, but military discipline is not strict.
When Zhang Xian came to inspect the city, many of the soldiers guarding the city were standing loosely. Some had their spears tucked into their arms and stood lazily against the wall; some were simply sitting in the crenels, in small groups.
, chatting noisily, Zhang Xian passed several crenels in a row, some stood up, some did not, but no matter who was talking to Zhang Xian, they were all casual and close, which was very unusual among generals and soldiers.
The same is true for soldiers, and the same is true for Zhang Xian. Looking at familiar people, if he meets someone who is down-to-earth and willing to work, Zhang Xian may comfort him with a few words; but if he encounters a scoundrel with a thick face, he may simply kick him over, laugh and curse a few times, and his posture
He placed it very low, as if he was enjoying mingling with the soldiers.
Linxiang is the capital of Changsha, and the area at the top of the city is naturally quite large. There are sheds on the inside, which are usually used as a resting place for generals and garrison soldiers. After a long inspection, Zhang Xian and his entourage moved into a shed for a while.
rest.
"yes!"
"Since he came well prepared, his subordinates are also the most powerful army in the world. Even if Jianchang has a dangerous terrain, it is just a small county town after all. How can it resist it? So I can only explain one thing, that is, in attacking Jianchang
, the Xuzhou Army is not going all out!"
"So even if I have a personal relationship with Hua Xin, for the sake of the overall situation, hey, I can only do nothing to save him!"
Of course, this is actually impossible. At such a long distance, not to mention Zhang Xian, even a monster with extraordinary physique like Wang Zheng would definitely not be able to do it. So after a while, he laughed dumbly and shook his head.
He took the water bowl handed to him by his own soldiers, drank it down in one gulp, burped loudly, walked back to where he was sitting in the shed, invited everyone to sit down, and asked: "Is there any latest news on the front line today?"
Military intelligence report?"
"Oh?" Fan Ling asked in surprise: "What point are you referring to?"
"How could a person like Wang Yukou not know that changing orders from day to day is a taboo for military strategists?"
"First, there is no room for loss in Linxiang. Once this city is lost, the whole county of Changsha will be in ruins, and the overall situation in Jingxiang will become uncontrollable!"
"I heard that Gan Ning is now a high-ranking official in Yangzhou, and he can use his head to replace me with a captain!"
County Lieutenant Fan Ling said: "The Gansu and Ning tribes in Yangzhou have not stopped attacking the city. They have launched six offensives in a few days. Hua Xin, the prefect of Yuzhang, has once again sent people to ask for help, saying that the city wall on the west has collapsed in many places. If our army is still
If we just sit on the sidelines and don't send troops to rescue, I'm afraid the city will be breached in the near future."
After hearing Zhang Xian's analysis, everyone was convinced and responded in unison: "What the prefect said is true!"
At this time, the sun was in the square, and the visibility of the light was very good. Zhang Xian looked far away, and seemed to be able to vaguely see some fireworks rising straight in the direction of Yunju Mountain. He listened carefully, and seemed to hear the sounds of killing and fighting.
The sound of fighting and fighting.
"You can't count. Let me help you count them. Let's start with the most recent battle. Last year, the water thieves in Dongting Lake made trouble. The general ordered us to attack and fight three times. In the first battle, you killed two people.
Formation, you cut off half of it."
As soon as Zhang Xian finished speaking, there were boos all around, and someone shouted: "Uncle Han Du, the general said you are a fool. I see you are not muddy at all, but you are very smart."
He pinched his throat and imitated his speaking voice and said: "Did you see? With just this knife, I can chop off countless enemies' heads, at least more than a hundred!"
"Gan Ning originally attacked the city in the north of Yuzhang, and was victorious all the way. However, when he saw the success, he withdrew his troops halfway and turned south to raid Jianchang. Why is this?"
The quarrels between these soldiers were completely different from those of famous scholars, but they also had a different kind of humor. Zhang Xian listened with great interest and laughed loudly. It took a long time before he led people to pass by and walked elsewhere.
"Furthermore, Jianchang is the main road. As the ancients said: One man can guard the gate, but ten thousand men cannot open it. Isn't it a pity that such a city should be abandoned on its own initiative?"
The person who spoke was surnamed Sun, and he was quite short, so Han Dubo said he had three-inch nails, but Sun Shichang didn't make any fuss, he just laughed and said, "Look, I just suffer from this stature."
, I have obviously killed more thieves than you, but I haven’t harvested as many heads as you, doesn’t this give you an advantage like Uncle Dub?”
Hearing this, Zhang Xianxun went to the prestige and recognized him immediately. He was a powerful uncle under his command. He immediately laughed and cursed: "Although Gan Xingba is a traitor general, he is extremely brave and is a tiger general."
, what? Even a fool like you, Han Erluzi, wants to use him in exchange for military honors? "
His analysis was reasonable and reasonable, and everyone on the side couldn't help but agree. However, Zhang Xian smiled and shook his head: "No, no, you only saw this point, but ignored the other point."
"The prefect is saying." Fan Ling thought for a moment and said uncertainly: "Is the Xuzhou Army intending to "encircle the point for reinforcements"?"
"You are my captain of Linxiang County. When we face the enemy in the future, we must remember three things."
Another person said: "Yes, I also heard that the one who attacked Jianchang this time was Gan Ning, our former rebel general in Jingzhou. If we go to rescue Jianchang or capture this man, wouldn't it be a great achievement?"
Having said this, Zhang Xian looked at everyone, smiled and asked: "We want to attack the city, but we don't go all out. Why?"
Zhang Xian said seriously: "It is clear that I have received instructions from the superior officer and adjusted the military strategy. In my opinion, it is most likely due to the personal instruction of Xuzhou Mu Wangzheng. Do you agree?"
"What the prefect said is true, but"
"Probably not yet." An assistant officer next to him replied: "Calculating the distance, it will take at least two days to arrive. It will take ten days to arrive back and forth."
Zhang Xian laughed self-deprecatingly and said: "I have made up my mind. Before the reinforcements from Xiangyang arrive, I will not send out any troops or soldiers. I will only defend the city. The walls of Linxiang City are high and there is a moat to rely on. As long as
If there are enough soldiers, even if Jianchang falls, Wang Zheng will raise a large army, gallop out, and approach the city, but it will be difficult to make an inch of success and make an inch of progress!"
Through the shed door, you can see the blue sky and white clouds. Looking as far as the eye can see, you can vaguely see the towering Yunju Mountain in the distance, reaching into the clouds.
Everyone thought for a moment and nodded, "But what does this mean?"
"Great kindness." Zhang Xian nodded slightly, thought for a moment, then turned to Fan Ling, and reminded him again: "Wang Zheng, although he is young, is already one of the famous generals in the world. His military use in recent years has become even more cunning.
, insidious and vicious, Liu Bei and Sun Ce are both heroes of the world, and this is evident from the fact that both of them were defeated by their hands, so when facing such cunning enemies, you must not be negligent in the slightest!"
Zhang Xian solemnly said: "Secondly, the Xuzhou Army has fought hundreds of battles and is very sharp. In addition, it has achieved outstanding results in recent years and has strong morale. Therefore, the first battle is extremely critical. It is better to hold on and not to fight in the wild.
Either don’t fight, or if you want to fight, you must win!”
"you"
"As for the third one, again, use your strengths and avoid weaknesses. Xuzhou's army is strong in land warfare, and we are strong in water warfare. Changsha has many waterways. Think more about how to make use of our local fighting location!"
"Report to the prefect."
"Alarmism is a common tactic used by Confucian scholars."
Having said this, Zhang Xian paused, then looked sideways and asked, "Has our messenger arrived in Xiangyang now?"
"The knife went down, but it didn't cut off the thief's head. It was hit in the pocket, and bounced back, almost wiping off my own neck. If you kill a thief, you almost lose half of your own life, isn't it just one and a half?"
"That's enough." Zhang Xian said: "As long as we can hold on, Linxiang will not suffer any losses. According to my calculations, Jianchang can hold on for at least ten and a half days thanks to the favorable geographical location. After removing this nail, the main force of the Yangzhou Army will
Only then can they go out in force, set up camp in the plains outside the city, and lay supply lines. When they are ready, it will probably be the end of April."
Fan Ling nodded solemnly: "Please tell me, Prefect."
"How can the general look down upon others?"
Zhang Xian said: "So there is only one explanation. Originally, he planned to attack Jingxiang along the Jianchang route. He was just trying to create suspicions and make a false shot. This means that he must have been well prepared, and he is very confident that this is the case.
Marching is more conducive to the war situation."
"Even if the messenger can return in ten days, General Cai's troops and horses will not be able to arrive together. According to my calculations, it is estimated that they will not arrive until the end of April."
Someone heard this and asked jokingly: "Why is there still one and a half?"
There was a burst of laughter on the top of the city, and Han Dubo became angry with embarrassment. He glanced at the person who was talking. He was just a senior official, but he dared to arrange for me, a Shangguan, to come? He was really no big deal! He had the intention to scold him, but he thought of Zhang.
Xian was right in front of him. He, the governor, and the general didn't put on any official airs. How could he do it himself?
He could only snort and sneer: "Hey, even if Nai Gong cuts off half of his body, it still cuts off the thief's head. I'm afraid your three-inch nail knife can only touch the thief's waist at most, right?"
"Of course." Zhang Xian said: "The enemy is better at land warfare and has a strong army in the world. Even though we have gathered more than ten thousand troops in Linxiang City, if we go out to fight with them in the field, the chance of winning is not great, and even more proactively
To give up geographical advantages is to use our shortcomings to counter the enemy's strong points."
The uncle surnamed Han was very angry and shouted: "Don't forget, I can be this uncle, but I also got it with my head!" He took out the steel knife and flicked it, "Did you see that?
?With just this knife, I can chop off countless enemies’ heads, at least over a hundred.”
"Besides, Jianchang is a mountain city. If you want to conquer it quickly, you can only take it by surprise and seek a surprise attack. Since Huaziyu has supported the offensive in the first few days, no matter how hard the Yangzhou army attacks,
It will take at least a full month of effort,"
Zhang Xian shook his head slightly: "Is this the third wave of messengers sent by Huaziyu?" Seeing Fan Ling nod, he said: "The terrain of Jianchang is already narrow. If the Yangzhou Army's offensive is really so fierce, how can they let it go?
How could his messenger break through so easily?"
Some soldiers were brave and shouted loudly from a distance: "General, I heard from the brothers on the front line that the fighting in Jianchang is in full swing and is almost turning into a mess?"
Fan Ling hesitated for a moment, then said: "Wouldn't it be better if we sent troops to help each other, kept Jianchang intact, and did not give the Yangzhou army a chance to cross the Yunju Mountains? Isn't this exactly what General Cai said?"
"Defend the enemy outside the country's gates"?
Fan Ling accepted the order solemnly, but after hesitating for a while, he still asked: "General, the general will not dare to be careless. However, when I inspected the city today, all the troops were very enthusiastic. If the enemy comes to the city at that time, they will show off their power and show off their power."
Excited and active, what can you do if you take the initiative to fight?"
Since Fan Ling can be a county captain, he is certainly not an incompetent person. There is no problem that he cannot even control his own soldiers. However, there are now more than ten thousand people in the city, and not only the original defenders of Linxiang, but also Zhang
The number of soldiers and horses transferred from other places is even increasing.
"The people are happy, which shows that their morale is high and they are eager to fight. Isn't this a good thing?"
Zhang Xian glanced at Fan Ling when he heard this, smiled faintly and said: "Soldiers are like swords, and running an army means sharpening the sword. The higher the morale is, it means that our efforts in the past were not in vain. So what is the commander-in-chief of the three armies?
That is the person who holds the scabbard. The general holds the sheath. When he wants to kill someone, the blade will be unsheathed. Since I have ordered all the troops from all counties to enter Linxiang, I naturally have the ability to coordinate various ministries and appease the soldiers.
Their morale is not low, but they still obey orders, otherwise how can they be the governor of Changsha and live above everyone else?"
These words were said in a domineering and overwhelming manner, but they actually did not say how to appease or coordinate at all. However, the generals all responded loudly, obviously not worried at all, and fully convinced of Zhang Xian's ability.