Chapter 9: Chapter 16 of the Central Plains

"My lord, Liu Zhang, who is now in the west of the state, has Sun Ce and Zhou Yu in the east coveting Jiangxia, once the adults go north to the Central Plains, Jingzhou will be in danger." Cai Mao briefly analyzed the situation in Jingzhou and advised Liu Biao not to rush north for the time being.

Liu Biao looked up to the sky and sighed, "If I don't rush to the Central Plains, Jingzhou will be in danger." In the near future, I am afraid that the rivers and mountains of the Han Dynasty will become the bag of others. Under the nest, will there be no eggs? ”

"My lord, if Jingzhou is lost, not only will there be no chance of winning the Central Plains War, but the last hope of Zhongxing Sheji will also be shattered." Cai Mao persuaded bitterly, "My lord, please think twice......"

Liu Biao shook his hand again and again, "Compared to the Han Sheji, what are the seven counties of Jingzhou?" I have made up my mind, don't persuade anymore. ”

"Adults are worried about the safety of the community, and they can't step into the Central Plains to face Li Hong, this mood is understandable, but they can't lose Jingzhou because of this." Kuai Yue stood up, bowed down and said, "Although the top priority now is to go north to the Central Plains, before we go north to the Central Plains, we must think of a foolproof plan to ensure the safety of Jingzhou." ”

Liu Biao was worried, "Now that Yuan Shao's army is being dragged in Henan by Hebei rebellion, Cao Cao and Liu Bei's army is still on the way back to the Central Plains, and the Hebei rebels are leaking down, who can stop them?" It's better to rush north. ”

"Your Excellency is too worried." Don't drive Liu Xian and said, "The Central Plains is like life for Yuan Shao and Cao Cao. For Liu Bei, his lips are dead and his teeth are cold, and he can be saved if he is not saved. With the resistance of these three people, Li Hong even succeeded in the early attack and took Dingtao and Changyi. But then, they will gradually lose their advantage in terms of strength because of the elongation of the battle line, and it will become more and more difficult to transport grain and grass. Once the invincible edge of the Hanoi rebels disappears, the situation in the Central Plains will be reversed, so ......" Liu Xian looked at Liu Biao, who was frowning, and whispered, "Your Excellency, it is completely too late to wait for a while to go to the Central Plains, and there is no need to be in such a hurry." ”

Liu Biao smiled bitterly, "Despise Li Hong, let us suffer enough during the Jizhou War, and almost wiped out the whole army, you haven't learned a lesson yet?" ”

"I know what is in your heart, and you look out for your own interests. I always think that Jingzhou is thousands of miles away from the Central Plains, and no matter how brave Li Hong is, it is difficult to threaten Jingzhou's safety in the near future. But have you ever thought about it, compared with Li Hong, what are Liu Zhang in Yizhou and Sun Ce and Zhou Yu in Jiangdong? The three of them together are not enough, and Li Hong is powerful on one finger. Liu Biao pointed to the north and said excitedly, "Once the Hebei rebels gain a foothold in the Central Plains and Cao Cao is defeated, how long can Yuan Shao and Liu Bei hold out?" As long as Li Hong leads the army to conquer Luoyang, the iron cavalry of northern Xinjiang will roar down, how can Jingzhou support it? At this moment, in order to protect the Dahan Society, everyone must give up their grievances, work together from top to bottom, and join forces to resist the enemy. Otherwise, a few years later, the 400-year-old inheritance left by the ancestors will become the private property of the leopard Li Hong. ”

Liu Biao's hoarse cry echoed in the hall.

A group of civil and military officials looked ashamed and sat silently on the seats.

"I'll take 20,000 horses and horses to the north first." Liu Biao looked at Kuai Yue and pointed to the map, "After the soldiers and horses of the counties and counties arrived at Xiangyang and assembled, you immediately rushed to the Central Plains with the follow-up 30,000 troops and grain and grass baggage to join me." ”

Liu Biao's gaze then turned to Cai Mao, Huang Zu and Kuai Liang, "The three of you stay in Jingzhou. ”

The three of them bowed down to receive the order.

"My lord, after the Hebei rebels move south, Cao Cao and Liu Bei will definitely withdraw their troops quickly, so Yuan Shu can get a chance to breathe." Huang Zu said, "But at this time, Sun Ce and Zhou Yu are bound to continue to attack Jiujiang in order to completely eradicate Yuan Shu, an opponent, and the Jianghuai war will definitely continue." Once Yuan Shu was defeated and Sun Ce and Zhou Yu occupied Jiujiang County, their strength increased greatly, and they would immediately take advantage of the opportunity of the main force of the Jingzhou army to go north to the Central Plains to attack Jiangxia again and plot to occupy Jingzhou. Therefore, now it is necessary for us to help Yuan Shu, so that Yuan Shu can contain Sun Ce and Zhou Yu's army in the Jianghuai area, so that they are unable to attack Jiangxia. ”

Liu Biao looked at the map carefully, "Okay, this method is good." You immediately rushed back to Jiangxia and led the naval army to attack Chaisang and Peng Ze in Yuzhang County, forcing Zhou Yu to withdraw his troops from Jiujiang. Although Yuan Shu is very despicable, these two boys are even more shameless, and they have done one thing after another, and sooner or later they will be retributed. Liu Biao looked up at Huang Zu and waved his hand fiercely, "Give me a hard beating, don't show mercy to these despicable and shameless juniors, kill those who should be killed, burn those who should be burned, and beat them until they lose their souls." ”

Huang Zu was very excited, and promised loudly, "Don't worry, as long as I, Huang Zu, am in Jiangxia, Sun Ce and Zhou Yu, the two boys, will never want to set foot in Jingzhou." ”

"Zirou, you are sitting in Nanjun, do you have a good plan to deal with Liu Zhang in Yizhou?" Liu Biao turned his head to look at Kuai Liang.

"After Liu Zhang lost Huya Mountain last year, the loss was not very large, but because Liu Zhang was not in Chengdu for a long time, there were many problems in Yizhou." Kuai Liang calmly replied, "If you want to ensure the safety of Jingzhou, the way is very simple, that is, to start from the inside of Yizhou. ”

At the beginning of the year, news came from Chengdu that Zhang Lu in Hanzhong had become closer and closer to Yuan Shao, and he disobeyed Liu Zhangyang and even paid taxes. After Liu Zhang returned to Chengdu, he invited Zhang Lu to Chengdu several times, but Zhang Lu refused. Liu Zhang was very angry, and at the instigation of Zhao Wei and other Yizhou officials in Zhengdong Zhonglang, he killed Zhang Lu's mother and younger brother. Zhang Lu then raised troops to take revenge. Yizhou general Pang Yi led the army to block the attack, defeating Zhang Lu in a row, and the two sides fought fiercely.

Liu Zhang is a loyal and honest person, and the reason why Zhao Yun and others strongly supported Liu Zhang as the lord of Yizhou after Liu Yan's death has a lot to do with his character. It stands to reason that Liu Zhang, who has a gentle personality, should not take the initiative to provoke a war, why has he been uncharacteristically used against the outside world in the past two years? The reason is that there is an ambitious Zhao Wei by his side.

When Liu Yan came to Yizhou, he was accompanied by two friends from Yizhou, Dong Fu and Zhao Wei, the Taicang Ling. Zhao Wei was originally from Ba County and had a deep relationship with the Yizhou Gaomen family. After Liu Yan's death, it was with the help of Zhao Wei that Liu Zhang took the position of Yizhou pastor.

At that time, the Chang'an Imperial Court sent Yingchuan people to Yizhou to assassinate Shi. The officials of Yizhou Mansion were divided into two factions, one faction was headed by Zhao Wei, who supported Liu Zhang, and refused to recognize the new assassination sent by the imperial court, and the other faction was headed by Liu Qi, who was determined to obey the holy decree. The two factions immediately fought. Liu Wei was defeated and died, and the generals Shen Mi, Lou Fa, Gan Ning and others fled to Jingzhou. After Hu Mao arrived in Hanzhong, he heard that Liu Zhang was going to kill him, and hurriedly returned to Chang'an.

Zhao Wei helped Liu Zhang govern the counties of Yizhou very well, won the hearts of the people in Yizhou, and his prestige was very high, and Liu Zhang trusted him very much. It was Zhao Wei's idea to send troops to attack Jingzhou last year, and Liu Zhang specially named him as the general of the expedition to the east and made him the commander of the army.

Now in Yizhou, Zhao Wei actually has military and political power, and his power is extremely powerful, and what he is going to do next, in addition to Yizhou Mu Liu Zhang, many officials in Yizhou Mansion know.

"Last year, he sent troops to fight Jingzhou, and this year he sent troops to fight Hanzhong, Zhao Wei's purpose is very simple. It was to take advantage of the opportunity of the expedition to weaken as much as possible the Dongzhou forces that supported Liu Zhang (generally referring to the scholars who fled to Bashu from Nanyang, Yingchuan, and Chang'an), and prepare for their killing of Liu Zhang and the capture of Yizhou. Kuai Liang arched his hand at Liu Biao and said, "If the adult agrees, I want to write a letter to Zhao Wei in the name of the adult, secretly supporting him to start a rebellion." ”

Liu Biao, Kuai Yue, Cai Mao, Deng Yi and others looked at each other, their faces suspicious.

"Zhao Wei has been carefully preparing for so many years, he still needs our support?"

"Of course." Kuai Liang said, "Zhao Wei's power has seriously threatened Liu Zhang's life. Liu Barrier for various reasons, although he still has no vigilance against Zhao Wei and obeys his words, but what about Liu Zhang's subordinates? Liu Ji (qi), Pang Yi, Zhang Ren and others don't have a little precautionary strategy? Pang Yi was appointed as the Taishou of Bajun at the beginning of the year, which was the counterattack of the Dongzhou forces against Zhao Wei. If Zhao Wei wants to seize Yizhou, it seems that there is no vicious battle, and it is difficult to get his wish. ”

"Once Yizhou falls into war, with Liu Zhang, us, and Zhang Lu in Hanzhong all turning against each other, Bashu is very likely to be attacked by the north and the south. Therefore, if Zhao Wei is not absolutely sure, he will never rashly launch a rebellion. ”

The lord wrote to Zhao Wei, telling him the news of Li Hong's southward trip to the Central Plains, and explaining the reason why Jingzhou was willing to form an alliance with him. With this, even if Zhao Wei didn't believe in the sincerity of the alliance, when Li Hong went south to the Central Plains and Yuan Shao and the adults were already too busy to take care of themselves, he had no worries at all, and he could let go of his hands and feet. ”

Liu Biao hesitated for a moment, "Zhao Wei's ambition is so big, it's not a good thing for us. If he gets Yizhou, his ambitions will swell sharply, and Hanzhong and Jingzhou will be his targets in the future. ”

"My lord is reasonable, we would rather let the loyal and honest Liu Zhang continue to be his Yizhou pastor, and we must not let Zhao Wei's rebellion occupy Yizhou and dominate the side." Kuai Liang smiled slightly, "Didn't my lord find out that this is an important opportunity for us to form an alliance with Liu Zhang?" ”

"You mean...... Liu Biao suddenly realized, "Good plan, good plan." However, Liu Zhang trusts Zhao Wei very much, will this plan be self-defeating? ”

"Liu Zhang doesn't believe us, but Liu Ji, Pang Yi, and Zhang Ren believe in us." Kuai Liang said, "As long as they are allowed to take precautions, the possibility of Zhao Wei intending to kill Liu Zhang and occupy Chengdu is very small, after all, Pang Yi and Zhang Ren have an army in their hands." As soon as the two sides fought fiercely for a long time, we could go up the river, enter Jiangzhou, and give him a heavy blow from behind. In this way, Liu Zhang is grateful to the adults, and Jing and Yi can maintain long-term stability. ”

Without thinking, he waved his hand and said, "This matter will be entrusted to Zirou." ”

Then he slowly stood up, pointing to the generals Wenpin, Pang Ji, and Liu Hu, "Order all departments, early tomorrow morning, to rush north." ”

On April, Hanoi, Ly Thanh.

Li Cheng is on the south bank of the Jishui River, thirty miles away from Pinggao City on the north bank.

At the end of March, Zhang Zan and Hao Meng led their troops to cross the Jishui River, attack the city, and approach Wen County. This place is only forty miles away from Wen County, once lost, Wen County has no danger to defend. Zhu Ling asked to go out of the city several times to support, but Guo Tu refused, and the city was quickly lost.

Losing Li Cheng is equivalent to losing the Jishui River, Zhu Ling was very angry and had a fierce dispute with Guo Tu. At this moment, Yuan Shao's order arrived, Guo Tu was transferred to Chang'an, and the battle in Hanoi was commanded by Gao Rou. Before Gao Rou arrived in Hanoi, the Hanoi army was temporarily led by Zhu Ling. On the afternoon of the day Zhu Ling received the order, he gathered an army of 5,000 and launched an attack on Li Cheng.

As the battle became more and more intense, more and more troops were put into the battlefield of Li Cheng. Zhu Ling wanted to divide his troops to garrison Heyang and Wenxian, and the attack force was obviously insufficient, so he asked Luoyang for help several times.

At this time, Fu Zhu had already left Luoyang, and Xun Chen was temporarily in charge of military affairs. He wrote to Zhu Ling to postpone the attack, and wait until Yuan Wei and the two adults arrived in Luoyang, and then decide whether to support Hanoi.

The next day, Yuan Shao's letter was delivered to Luoyang. Yuan Shao ordered Xun Chen to immediately send troops to support the Hanoi battlefield.

Lu Hong and Zhao Rui immediately led 10,000 troops to cross the river overnight and rushed to the battlefield in Hanoi.

In early April, Zhu Ling gathered an army of 20,000 to attack Li Cheng.

Li Cheng was very small, and under the overwhelming attack of 20,000 troops, he could not bear it, and he groaned in pain.

On the tower of the west gate, there was a river of blood and corpses.

To the deafening sound of war drums, the enemy roared like a tidal wave.

Captain Hao Meng staggered on the city wall with a bloody spear in his hand, dragging a wounded leg, ignoring the enemy troops swarming under the city, "Throw the corpse down to me, empty the city wall, hurry up, hurry up ......"

"My lord, this is our own brother...... "how can we throw him outside the walls, holding a scarred corpse?" cried out excitedly, "my lord?" ”

Hao Meng's face was expressionless, and he bent down and grabbed the already stiff corpse, "Drop it down, hurry up and ......"

"Adult ......"

"I'm dead, throw my body down too." Hao Meng said in a hoarse voice, "The corpses on the city wall must be emptied, otherwise we will die faster." ”

The soldiers on both sides of the attack and defense were like hungry beasts, tearing at their prey and drinking scarlet blood to their heart's content.

Fresh lives are lost in the blink of an eye.

Hao Meng's spear broke, he smashed open the enemy's corpse with one punch, snatched the enemy's sword with his hand, stepped on the corpse horizontally, and fought bloodily.

"Kill, kill ...... me"

The spear cut through the chaotic crowd and stabbed into Hao Meng's thigh accurately. Hao Meng let out a terrible scream, and the sword slashed across the enemy's cheek like lightning, and then slashed into the chest of another enemy. In the burst of blood, the archers behind the enemy soldiers fired a fatal arrow in an instant.

Hao Meng fell backwards again and again, the war knife in his hand fell to the ground weakly, and the heart-rending pain made his cry extremely miserable.

Spears flew like they came, one, two, three......

Hao Meng's body was lifted high and flew out of the city with a sky full of blood. Jump to