The Jishui River is surging, and the mountains and rivers are picturesque. It is the early summer season, and the scenery of the Central Plains is just right.
Orioles are flying in the wilderness, grass is growing, birds are singing and flowers are fragrant. The mountains and forests are full of green color and rich vitality. This is the most comfortable season of the year. Even the most picky tourists will feel lingering and no longer care about the world.
The flies and the dogs are troubled.
Of course, exceptions always exist.
Liu Bei was wearing a plain robe, standing on the shore of Heze Lake, looking into the distance, he looked no different from a tourist on an outing. But if you look closely, it is not difficult to see the deep melancholy between his eyebrows.
.
"When is it?"
Standing behind Liu Bei, Yuan Huan, dressed as an aide, looked up at the sky and replied softly: "It's too late. My lord, there is no need to worry. The longer Xianhe stays in the camp, the greater his chances of success. He
We set off as soon as the hour passed, and we talked with General Guan for at least an hour or two, so I should..."
After Yuan Shu was annexed by Sun Ce, the civil servants and generals under his command were naturally scattered. The one who gained the most from it was Jiangdong. In addition to the large land in Huainan and the garrison everywhere, Zhang Xun, Chen Ji and their subordinates were also recruited as a whole.
of thirty thousand soldiers.
In addition, Cao Cao also recruited another elite Huainan army by instigating Liu Xun's rebellion.
If things end here, these two people will undoubtedly gain the most, but their luck is not very good.
Liu Xun's army was targeted by Lu Bu and Wei Yan long before they arrived at their destination. A surprise attack at the foot of Xiangyi City nearly wiped out the entire army. Liu Ye and Liu Xun only escaped with their lives. Cao Cao's recruitment
In the end, the operation was in vain.
Jiangdong was not much stronger. Sun Quan and Huang Gai could not stop the combination of Zhang Jaw and Pang Tong. They lost consecutive battles. The biggest loss was the Huainan Army that had been recruited. By the time Zhou Yu came to rescue, the casualties and the rout of the army totaled 30,000.
It has already lost nearly half of its value, and the income has been greatly reduced at once.
The person with the highest actual income should be Liu Bei.
Before Sun Ce took action, Liu Bei was just doing secret work under Yuan Shu. In later generations, he was doing the dirty work. Except for his old friend Jian Yong, he was basically alone.
But in the changes in Huainan, he showed his true character of a hero who was able to change everything. When Yuan Shu, the big tree, fell, Sun Ce was eager to go north, and Sun Quan was busy dealing with Zhang Jia's offensive situation, he secretly lobbied in tandem and successfully defeated Yuan Shu.
A large amount of political capital has been captured from the inheritance.
Yuan Huan is one of his achievements. Yuan Huan was born in a noble family in Yuzhou and is quite famous in the local area. By recruiting this person under his command, Liu Bei once again gained a certain reputation among the powerful people in Yuzhou. There may still be some distance between him and his complete recovery.
But compared to a few months ago, there have definitely been earth-shaking changes.
In addition to Yuan Huan, he also recruited two military generals, Lejiu and Li Feng, plus the general Liao Hua who he recruited during his exile. Liu Bei suddenly went from a dog in desolation to a prince with over ten thousand troops.
Of course Liu Bei would not be satisfied with this.
This great war sweeping the world has certainly provided an opportunity for a comeback, but with the strength that has been gathered now, let alone fighting for supremacy in the world, it is impossible to separate one side from another. There are tens of thousands participating in the war, which side does not have tens of thousands of troops?
Ten thousand, a good general with a thousand troops? With his current strength, if he collides with any party, it will be an egg hitting a stone.
If he wanted to gain a foothold, he had to let the war continue until a new balance was reached. It was in order to achieve this goal that Liu Bei gave up continuing to expand or consolidate his power in Huainan, and instead quietly led a group of close relatives northward to plot a big plan.
What he wanted to do, and what he could do, was to mobilize the two major generals from the past - Guan Ping, who led the army to garrison in Dingtao, and the Gaotang garrison general Chen Dao.
Today is the day when Jian Yong secretly meets with Guan Ping.
Liu Bei cannot be regarded as a person without a city, but at this moment, his heart is still full of anxiety and uneasiness. If he can instigate Guan Ping to rebel, the balance of victory will undoubtedly tilt heavily.
"It's difficult." Liu Bei shook his head and sighed.
He didn't expect this, but how could things be so easy? He and Guan Ping were actually separated by one layer. Even if he came forward in person, it would be difficult to convince the other party.
What's more, with Qingzhou's military system, it would be difficult for Guan Ping to directly lead the army in rebellion. Wang Yu's military management and political governance are very special. Even ordinary soldiers have a certain ability to distinguish right from wrong, let alone those low-level officers.
.
Even if a general is in charge of a single party, if he wants to issue an order that is obviously unreasonable, he must explain the reason in detail to the generals and majors in the army. If the explanation is not clear, he may be taken down on the spot.
However, as long as he can instigate the general, even if he does not defect directly, it can still play a considerable role. However, Liu Bei is really not sure whether he can instigate Guan Ping. Jian Yong has not returned yet, and he would rather believe that he has been imprisoned.
Ping took it and sent it to Puyang as a token of his gratitude.
What Yuan Huan said just now was just to comfort Liu Bei. Even he himself didn't believe it. Talking for an hour or two? What is there to talk about? Isn't it good to reminisce about the past?
While he was speechless, Liao Hua on the other side suddenly raised his hand and shouted: "Look, someone is coming!"
Liu Bei raised his head in excitement, and when he looked intently, he saw a wisp of smoke coming from far away, approaching rapidly along the official road on the north bank of Jishui River. He couldn't help feeling a little panicked.
Fortunately, Liao Hua quickly communicated with the lookout, and then shouted again: "Master, don't panic, there are not many people coming, only four or five horses, and there is no trace of the large group of people in the distance. It should be Mr. Xianhe."
Back! Yes, the leader is none other than Mr. Xianhe!"
"Huh!" Liu Bei let out a long breath, and his heart finally fell back into his stomach.
"Congratulations, lord!" Yuan Huan reacted faster, with a smile on his face, and congratulated him: "Since Brother Xianhe has returned, we can see General Guan's friendly attitude. Even if we don't reach an agreement this time, things are still promising!"
"It's not that easy. Let's listen to what Xianhe says first." Liu Bei's face remained calm, but actually his heart was filled with excitement. As Yuan Huan said, at this time, the fact that the envoy could come back unscathed is enough to explain a certain problem.
Already.
Qiang suppressing the excitement in his heart, Liu Bei led Yuan Huan and Liao Hua to greet them quickly.
"See my lord." Jian Yong dismounted and paid homage. Liu Bei supported him while observing Jian Yong's expression. It didn't matter if he didn't look at her. Once he looked at it, his heart skipped a beat and became confused again. Jian Yong's face looked very bad. Apparently something was wrong.
Not good.
"Xianhe, are you okay?" Liu Bei suppressed the worries in his heart and tried to put on a caring look on his face. If you want to be a benevolent master, you must first give priority to the safety of your subordinates at all times, at least on the surface.
Come out like this.
"Thank you for your concern, my lord. I am deeply grateful. I feel ashamed." Jian Yong's face was full of shame.
"Did he be rejected by General Guan?" Yuan Huan rushed to say: "That's okay. For such a big thing, maybe it can be done with just a few words? From my point of view, although General Guan refused on the surface, he was not completely disappointed.
If you are tempted, as long as the lord perseveres and shows sincerity, the chance of success is still very high."
"Oh?" Jian Yong was surprised, and Liu Bei was also a little surprised. They all looked at Yuan Huan and asked, "How do you say this, Yao Qing?"
"This is wartime. General Guan met with Xianhe in private. At best, it was a meeting with old friends. At worst, it was liaison with the enemy!" Yuan Huan pinched a long beard on his chin with two fingers, hehe.
He smiled and said: "General Guan was originally a surrendered general. To be used in such a high position, he must not be informal. My lord, please think about it. Doesn't he know the reason for this and how to avoid suspicion?"
"It makes sense." Jian Yong and Liao Hua both nodded in approval, and the shame on the former's face also faded a lot.
Liu Bei's expression was still heavy. He just nodded noncommittally and asked Jian Yong: "Xianhe, you have been gone for so long, what did you talk to Tanzhi?"
"It's nothing, I'm mainly just reminiscing about old times..." Jian Yong hesitated for a moment before replying. It wasn't anything else. He just felt that today's meeting was not a good summary. After thinking for a while, he continued: "So
I saw that he was making insinuations both inside and outside his words, as if he was spying on our army's intelligence, and more like he was asking about the whereabouts of the second general..."
"Sure enough..." Liu Bei's voice was low, with a hint of sneer on his face. The smile was very cold, so different from usual that it made Jian Yong and others feel slightly shuddering.
After pondering for a moment, Liu Bei suddenly waved his hand and ordered decisively: "Let's go. The Qingzhou Army in Dingtao can only be defeated by General Qinglu."
"Lord," Yuan Huan became anxious and asked in surprise: "General Guan is spying on our army's military situation, perhaps to judge the situation. Asking the second general shows that he has deep feelings and righteousness... Is this okay?
Discuss one or two?"
Liu Bei and his two surrogate brothers have been separated for a long time. In the past two years, despite Liu Bei's overt inspections and secret visits, he could not find the whereabouts of these two people. If not, Liu Bei might not have taken a huge risk and traveled north this time.
He has occupied several counties in Huainan and has more than 10,000 soldiers and horses, but he does not have any generals who are good at training and fighting. If Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are still there, he can take advantage of Jiangdong Army and Cao Cao to fight Wang Yu endlessly
, working hard in Huainan to train elite soldiers, expand their strength, and look for opportunities to take advantage.
But he can't do it now. Without an elite soldier in hand, whether Wang Yu is defeated or Jiangdong Army is defeated, he has no strength to take advantage of the situation. In troubled times, big fists are the key.
Guan Ping asked about Guan Yu, and it was obvious that his loyal target was the latter. If the latter was here, it might be much easier to persuade him to surrender. But having said that, although Guan Yu could not be found for the time being, he could still work hard, and he would give up after hearing one sentence.
, seems a little too rash, right?
Yuan Huan felt unable to understand.
Liu Bei stopped and said with a wry smile: "Yao Qing, you only saw one of them, not the other." He frankly asked about the second brother's news. Although Xianhe did not answer directly, the more this happened, the more it proved that the second brother
Not in the army. Besides, he didn't embarrass Xianhe, and he wasn't necessarily hesitant. If he was really shaken, why not simply... Alas, in short, it won't work here!"
Jian Yong and Liao Hua both seemed to understand, but they didn't dare to ask questions. However, Yuan Huan was born in a family and was quite knowledgeable in tactics. After thinking about it for a while, they understood Liu Bei's unfinished intentions.
On the surface, Guan Ping did not embarrass Jian Yong because he meant to leave a way out. But thinking more deeply, if Guan Ping really wanted to rebel, he should have taken Jian Yong back to win the trust of Jia Xu and his colleagues in the army.
Then the message was sent to Liu Bei through Jian Yong's entourage.
Jian Yong seems to be very important under Liu Bei and is a confidant, but in fact he is just an errand boy. Whether it is Xu You in the past or Yuan Huan himself now, he is entrusted with important responsibilities as soon as he joins Liu Bei's command, and his status is far higher than that of Liu Bei.
Jian Yong.
Dingtao is a war zone, and there are many spies of the Qingzhou Army in this area. Jian Yongben is not a special scout. No matter how secretive his actions are, it is difficult to ensure that no news is leaked. According to Liu Bei, Guan Ping is a cautious person.
If he really had the intention to rebel, would he not have thought of this section?
Instead of letting Jian Yong go back and forth and encounter suspicion, how could Guan Ping, who was familiar with Liu Bei's army's personnel structure, not think of Jian Yong's value?
To put it bluntly, Liu Bei sent Jian Yong out to ask for directions. Guan Ping happily went to the appointment, and then talked with Jian Yong for a long time, and finally refused sternly, which meant that he was open-minded and not afraid of suspicion. Maybe after he returned, he
I will write the contents of the conversation into a letter and report it to Jia Xu, the governor of the entire army.
Of course, the truth behind this cannot be explained to Jian Yong, the person involved.
Yuan Huan also sighed in his heart, feeling that he had finally followed the right person this time. Liu Bei was indeed a rare hero in the world. It was just that his luck was a bit bad and he never had the chance to show off. Otherwise, there might not be only three strong men in the world: Wang, Cao, and Sun.
Fight for supremacy.
Of course, success depends on God, and planning depends on people. If God fails to provide for it at the right time, it may not be possible to rely on manpower to make up for it. Now, the plan is just the beginning, and it is far from the time to determine the success or failure.
Regardless of whether they had figured it out or were ignorant, everyone followed Liu Bei closely. This was their master. No matter what the future, they must always be loyal to him.
The next target is Gaotang!
…
That night.
Puyang City.
"Master, there is a letter from Puyang, Jian Yong made an appointment with Tanzhi, and Liu Bei is indeed here!" Diao Chan hurried into the meeting hall with the latest military information.
"Hey, we're in trouble now." Jia Xu's round face was elongated, and his expression was very ugly, like a bitter gourd.
Diao Chan was already very anxious. Seeing Jia Xu's lazy look, she became even more angry. She stamped her feet and said coquettishly: "Master, please stop complaining. My husband has entrusted the affairs to you before leaving."
, you have to make an idea."
"How can this idea be made casually?" Jia Xu spread his hands and said with a wry smile: "It seems very simple, just change the generals, but Cao Cao and Sun Ce divided their troops into the east and west. How do you know that their
Where is the target? If Sun Ce and Xia Houyuan join forces, Wen Yuan and Han Sheng may not be able to stop them. It would be too dangerous to change generals at this time!"
For more than a month after Wang Yu left, Cao Cao kept his troops stationary. It seemed that the remaining troops were relaxed, but only by actually sitting in Jia Xu's position can you truly feel the feeling of fear.
An unsheathed sword is more terrifying than a sword that has been slashed out, because you don't know from what angle and with what force the sword will strike, and whether there will be any new changes during the slashing process.
This is the so-called lack of awareness. Because you are not sure, you are very scared.
Although the current front is divided into several parts, the area of Yanzhou is not large, only three to five hundred miles from east to west. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses from the three sides are crowded in such an area, and any point on the defense line
, are all likely to suffer the strongest attacks.
This is the shortcoming of the defensive side. There is no initiative. If the enemy makes a slight move, the side must respond accordingly, otherwise it will be easy for someone to catch the flaw.
If Cao Cao and Sun Ce launch an offensive, it will be easier to deal with it. Anyway, Wang Yu left behind a predetermined defensive strategy before leaving. At worst, they can trade space for time, and just fight and retreat.
According to Wang Yu's instructions, if necessary, the remaining troops could even cede all of Dongjun to Cao Cao, and then build a new line of defense by relying on the dangers of the river to the west and the dangerous roads of Mount Tai to the east.
It is easy for the Qingzhou Army to defend the Yellow River because of the advantage of the navy. Cao Cao has been working hard to narrow the gap with Qingzhou in the past two years and has made achievements in various fields. However, the navy has made no progress.
There are few tasks and high costs. For Cao Cao, who is financially strapped, the priority must be at the bottom.
Wang Yu has always emphasized that to ensure that both Zhang Liao and Huang Zhong are on the eastern front, they must be prepared to retreat to Mount Tai as a last resort.
While Jia Xu was in Puyang, the work of fortifying the walls and clearing the fields was going on. Anyway, the people of Yanzhou who were affected by the war could not farm with peace of mind, so there were still many people who responded.
But the problems caused by Liu Bei are very difficult. The positions of Guan Ping and Chen Dao are too important. Whether they change generals or stay in their posts, there are considerable risks.
Although Jia Xu saw the problem, he did not dare to make a hasty decision. The news from Wang Yu was too late, and he was anxious for a while.
Flying pigeons are not a panacea for delivering messages, and the security is too poor. After the technology gradually became popular, intercepting and killing homing pigeons became the latest task of the scouts. These capable warriors are everywhere, and whenever they see pigeons, they will blow the signal. If they find that they are not belonging to
On your own side, just take action directly.
It's okay to just convey the message. If it is intercepted, it will be intercepted. Anyway, if you put a few more pieces, you will always be able to reach the destination. But decision-making letterheads must be transported in a safer way.
The journey from Bingzhou to Dongjun is more than a thousand miles, and it has to go through many difficulties and obstacles. It takes ten and a half months at least to pass messages back and forth. It takes even longer to send messages back and forth, and there is no way to control it remotely.
"It will take two days for Liu Bei to go north to Gaotang. It may be too late to rush there now. But what will happen to Yanzhou after I leave? Will it shrink in advance? And there is another question, why did Liu Bei contact Tanzhi first?
?Previously we just speculated that he might have an idea for Uncle Zhi. If he does it like this, wouldn't it reveal his purpose?"
Jia Xu was talking to himself, troubled.
Diao Chan watched quietly from the side and did not interrupt rashly, so as not to disturb the talented master's thoughts. She believed that the master would find a proper way to deal with it. This was not her own judgment, but because the other party was
The person your husband trusts the most. Your husband’s vision of people is unparalleled in the world and there is absolutely nothing wrong with him.
As expected, Jia Xu quickly calmed down, held up the tea cup, and smiled: "Maybe he wasn't sure, so he used a trick to scare the snake away? Liu Xuande is indeed a hero, and his scheming is really powerful.
However, even if you are as evil as a ghost, you still want to drink our foot-washing water, so I will give you a trick..."
"Report..." Before he finished speaking, a burst of noisy footsteps suddenly came from outside the hall. When Jia Xu and Diao Chan hurriedly turned their heads to look, a personal guard hurried in, out of breath, high He said in a loud voice: "Military advisor, something bad has happened. General Lu...General Lu suddenly left Lihu and led his army to the west!"
"What?" Jia Xu was shocked. He dropped the tea cup in his hand and smashed it to pieces on the ground paved with blue bricks! (To be continued. Please search Piao Tian Literature, the novel will be better and updated faster!)