Chapter 677 Northern Expedition and Southern Expedition
Yan Liang's plan was not yet mature, so he did not propose it on the spot.
The next day, Yan Liang summoned the civil and military officials in the palace to discuss the next strategy.
According to the original strategic policy, the Chu army would adopt a pincer attack strategy from the north and the south, first destroying Liu Bei who was entrenched in the two rivers, and then move his troops westward, entering the pass and destroying Cao Cao.
But now, Liu Bei's defensive strategy of building a large area of no man's land in Qingyan and Qingzhou has obviously hindered Yan Liang's original plan to a great extent.
Since ancient times, fighting deep into the enemy's territory and collecting grain and grass on the spot has been one of the important means to solve the problem of supply. Liu Bei's policy of clearing the country means that the Chu army will have to cross hundreds of miles of no-man's land and will not be able to collect a grain of grain on the spot.
It is also impossible to requisition civilian power.
This means that all the grain and grass, and all the men who transport the grain, must be provided by the Chu State, which will undoubtedly greatly increase the economic burden on Chu.
Furthermore, Liu Bei changed the comprehensive defense to focused defense, concentrated his troops and horses in important towns on the south bank of the Yellow River, and stood firm without fighting.
In this way, the Chu army will not be able to annihilate the Yan army's effective forces in the wild, and when it goes deep into the plains, it will face the wanton harassment of the grain roads by the Yan army's cavalry.
On the other hand, the Yan army is close to the Yellow River in the north, and a natural barrier along the Yellow River can effectively ensure the smooth flow of its food routes. Reinforcements and supplies from Hebei can be transported across the Yellow River to the towns in Henan at any time.
Yan Liang had to admit that the huddle defense strategy designed by Zhuge Liang was indeed quite powerful.
The opinions of all the civil and military officials were unanimous. After some discussion, many ministers believed that the strategy of the Northern Expedition should be changed.
Some ministers believe that since the difficulties of the Northern Expedition have increased, they should cease their activities from now on, recuperate, and build up strength. When the weather changes, it will not be too late to start the Northern Expedition again.
Most of the people who put forward this view were Gu Yong, Yu Fan and other ministers from Jiangdong. These Jiangdong people originally tended to favor one side. Although this view did not mention separatist rule, Yan Liang knew that their proposal was equivalent to a disguised form of separatism.
partial security policy.
It is absolutely impossible for Yan Liang to adopt such views.
Yan Liang, who is familiar with history, knows that since ancient times, political power based in the south has always retreated if it does not advance militarily.
Once the southern regime stops its Northern Expedition and engages in so-called recuperation, giving the northern regime a chance to breathe, the recovery of the southern military and economic strength will never be as fast as that of the north.
When the north, which was seriously damaged by the war, recovered from its ruin, the regime in the south also reached the moment of destruction.
Stopping all activities and recuperating is equivalent to sitting around eating and waiting to die!
"The established strategy of the Northern Expedition must not be changed. No matter how difficult the road ahead is, no one can stop me from unifying the world." Yan Liang slammed the case and expressed his determination to the ministers.
Seeing Yan Liang's determination, the ministers who had previously advocated recuperation and recuperation did not dare to mention the matter of calling off the troops again.
There was silence in the main hall for a moment.
After a while, among the ministers, someone suddenly coughed a few times.
Yan Liang raised his eyes and saw that the old man with clear cough was none other than the poisonous scholar Jia Xu.
For a long time, Jia Xu rarely offered any suggestions. Now, at the critical moment, he suddenly coughed like this, which was obviously a hint that he had a plan.
"Wen He, just say what you want to say, I am listening." Yan Liang said loudly.
While coughing, Jia Xu stood up and said with cupped hands: "I feel that your Majesty's Northern Expedition strategy is right. If we are to recuperate and recuperate, we will never be able to compete with the North. If we delay, the weather will only become more and more favorable to the Northerners. This
I think the strategy of the Northern Expedition cannot be changed."
After a pause, Jia Xu added: "However, as for the targets of the Northern Expedition, I think it can be adjusted appropriately."
Adjust the objects of the Northern Expedition?
All the ministers present looked shocked, as if Jia Xu's words had suddenly awakened them.
Yan Liang's eyes flashed with joy, because he could hear a like-mindedness in Jia Xu's words.
"Wen He, do you mean to attack Cao Cao first and then attack Liu Bei?" Pang Tong asked curiously.
"That's right." Jia Xu nodded slightly, "Our army attacks from the south to the north. Liu Bei is blocked by the Yellow River, and there is a large no-man's land in the middle. It is naturally not easy to attack. But if Cao Cao is destroyed first,
When we attack Liu Bei again, we will attack from the west to the east, turning our upward attack into a downward attack, and all the advantageous terrain will be owned by our army. At that time, what else can Liu Bei use to block the king's army?"
Jia Xu spoke eloquently and revealed his plan, which immediately caused a heated discussion in the hall.
A knowing smile appeared at the corner of Yan Liang's mouth.
What Jia Xu said coincided with his thoughts.
In fact, in the past history, the powerful Wei State first destroyed the weakest Shu State and seized the benefits of the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, and then the Jin State destroyed Wu.
The current situation is very similar to that of the Three Kingdoms in the past, except that the Wei State in history has become his Chu State, and its location has also changed from the north to the south.
If we follow historical experience, then Cao Cao would like to be like the Shu Kingdom back then, which was the weakest but located upstream of the second weakest Liu Bei.
So, based on this consideration, after it became difficult to attack Liu Bei, Yan Liang suddenly thought, why not change his thinking and destroy Cao Cao first, and then use the power of the upper reaches of the Yellow River to destroy Liu Bei.
Yan Liang's strategy was just brewing in his mind at first, but he didn't expect that Jia Xu had already proposed it today.
As soon as their thinking changed, the ministers' vision immediately broadened. Pang Tong, as the chief counselor, expressed his agreement with Jia Xu's strategy after thinking for a long time.
After some thought, most of the other ministers agreed to attack Cao Cao first.
The ministers had no objections, and Yan Liang had no problem. He immediately decided to destroy Cao first and then Liu.
"Your Majesty, although the plan to destroy Cao Cao has been decided, we will have to wait until the severe winter has passed before we can implement it. I believe that before we attack and destroy Cao Cao, we need to do one more thing to enhance our strength."
Pang Tong spoke again.
"The important thing mentioned by the military advisor is..." Yan Liang looked curious.
Pang Tong gently stroked his beard and said four words clearly and neatly: "Get Jiaozhou from the south."
Jiaozhou!
If Pang Tong hadn't mentioned this familiar yet unfamiliar name, Yan Liang would have almost forgotten the existence of this remote state.
At this time, Pang Tongyong reminded Yan Liangcai that he suddenly remembered that there was such a big piece of fat just to the south of the Chu Kingdom. How could he sit idly by and refuse to take it?
There are seven counties in Jiaozhou, including Nanhai, Yulin, Cangwu, Jiaozhi, Hepu, Jiuzhen and Rinan.
Because these seven counties in Jiaozhou were located in the extreme south of the Han Dynasty and were in remote areas, they were not originally valued by the world, and the population of this county has always been around 1.5 million.
Before the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the Han Dynasty had a population of 40 to 50 million. This population of 1.5 million was not even enough for a large county. No wonder it was despised by the world.
However, since the Dong Zhuo Rebellion, the princes have been fighting each other, and some of the people in Cedingkou have died in the war, or have been adopted as tribes by powerful families, and the population controlled by the government has dropped sharply.
Because Jiaozhou was far away from the war, many people from the Central Plains went to seek refuge. As a result, the number of residents in Jiaozhou increased unprecedentedly to about two million.
Such an astronomical number is even hundreds of thousands more than the most populous Yizhou controlled by Yan Liang.
A remote place like Jiaozhou didn't have much strategic value. Of course Yan Liang looked down upon it, but the population of two million in the state was like a huge piece of fat. How could he not make Yan Liang's eyes sparkle?
Today, Pang Tong reminded Yan Liang that he immediately made up his mind to capture Jiaozhou before destroying Cao Cao.
By taking Jiaozhou first, firstly, it can greatly increase the population of Chu State; secondly, it can completely relieve worries; thirdly, it can also obtain the salt-producing land in the South China Sea, thereby increasing the government's income.
The plan was decided that day, and Yan Liang decided without delay to send troops south to capture Jiaozhou.
In order to conquer Jiaozhou in the south, Yan Liang decided to appoint Wei Yan, the central guard army, as the general to conquer the south, and Ma Liang as his army counselor. He led 10,000 Jingzhou soldiers to conquer Jiaozhou.
Most of the generals under Yan Liang who have the ability to command have already commanded troops to guard the country. As a monarch, Yan Liang naturally does not need to go out personally to conquer a place like Jiaozhou.
Looking at the ministers, only Wei Yan has the qualifications to be a commander. Naturally, he was the one to choose as the commander-in-chief for this campaign against Jiaozhou.
Ma Liang had been the governor of Guiyang for many years and had collected intelligence on the customs and customs of neighboring Jiaozhou for many years. With him as his deputy, assisting Wei Yan in his expedition to Jiaozhou was absolutely foolproof.
Although Jiaozhou has a population of more than two million, its soldiers are not elite and have not experienced any real combat. Yan Liang believes that 10,000 elite Jingzhou soldiers can quell the state.
Before setting off for the expedition, Yan Liang summoned Wei Yan to the palace to give him instructions.
The two counties of Cangwu and Yulin in the north of Jiaozhou are controlled by Wu Ju. This Wu Ju is Liu Biao's old corps and is an old friend of Liu Bei. Over the years, he has always respected Liu Bei.
Nanhai, Jiaozhi and other southern counties to the south of Jiaozhou were controlled by Shi Xie, who was from a local wealthy family. This Shi Xie was appointed by the Han court controlled by Cao Cao. Although he was the local emperor of Jiaozhou, he still ostensibly respected the Han court. .
Yan Liang gave Wei Yan the opportunity to send his army to Guiyang first, pretending to attack Nanhai County controlled by Shi Xie, and then quickly move to Lingling, enter Jiaozhou from Lingling, destroy Wu Ju, and capture Cangwu and Yu in the north. Lin Erjun.
When Wu Ju died, his lips were dead and his teeth were cold. Shi Xie was so frightened that he would pretend to return to the Chu State.
What Wei Yan has to do at this time is to quickly gain a firm foothold in Jiaozhou, and then attack Jiaozhi directly, capture the heart of Jiaozhou, wipe out the Shixie, and by the time of Jiaozhou, the entire Jiaozhou will naturally be at peace.
After the opportunity had passed, Yan Liang stroked Wei Yan's shoulder and said earnestly: "Chang Wen, this is the first time that my king has appointed you as the commander-in-chief of an army to conquer a state. You must not disappoint my high expectations."
Wei Yanteng stood up, cupped his hands, and said with emotion: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, I will live up to Your Majesty's expectations. Within a few months, Yan will wipe out all the ministers and incorporate Jiaozhou into my great Chu territory!" (To be continued! .Please search Piaotian Literature, the novels will be better and updated faster!)
