With Han Jianluan's arrival in Jiangdu, the war between the North and the South has reached the point where it is on the verge of breaking out.

Su Tingxia first stationed 20,000 troops to Yuzhou, and regarded himself as the vanguard commander of the Linjiang King under Han Jianqin's order, and then there were 60,000 soldiers from Yuzhou who could go south with him. In the direction of Jiangdu, Han Cui's and Han Zhao's are the main commanders, and the soldiers and horses are mainly Jiangdu's soldiers, and there are more than 50,000 soldiers and horses.

These hundreds of thousands of soldiers are the main force of the Northern Dynasty, expensive but not expensive, and there are still the soldiers and horses of Beiguan who are brave and good at fighting in the north, plus the militia and logistics men recruited by Yuzhou and Jiangdu, and the Northern Dynasties have prepared more than 400,000 men and horses for this war alone.

The Southern Dynasties could not deal with it, and the main soldiers and horses of the Southern Dynasties to defend the Northern Dynasties gathered in various parts of Yangzhou, but the officers and soldiers in Yangzhou City fled, and even Yangzhou City could not protect itself, not to mention to form an effective defensive front, and by April, through a series of measures to calm the people, the land of Yangzhou was relatively calm and orderly, but it was still unable to curb the southward movement of the Northern Dynasties' soldiers and horses.

In the Jiangjiang area of the main direction of the Northern Dynasties, Zhu Tongjing, the king of Linjiang, claimed to have 200,000 soldiers, but in fact, there were less than 50,000 soldiers and horses who really had the ability to fight, and the rest were either old, weak, sick and disabled, or people's husbands, and they could not be stationed in the south of the town, because of the antagonistic relationship between Zhu Tongjing and the court of the Southern Dynasty, it was difficult for the court to send reinforcements to assist, that is to say, the soldiers and horses of the Northern Dynasty going south may need the soldiers and horses under the command of the King of Linjiang to resist on their own.

Even when the war was about to start, the Southern Dynasty still did not know the exact movement of the northern army, but at this time, even the ordinary people felt that the main direction of attack of the Northern Dynasty's soldiers and horses was in Jiangjiang rather than Yangzhou, because the emperor of the Northern Dynasty announced that the emperor's edict against thieves in the world directly pointed to Zhu Tongjing, who had sent troops to invade Yuzhou, and said in the edict to fight against thieves that he would coordinate with the Southern Dynasty, "After the thieves are destroyed, the soldiers and horses will be withdrawn." The people of Jiangnan did not commit any crime in autumn".

Although this edict is not credible, it is to let the ordinary people settle down, especially after Han Jian's edict was announced to the world, the local soldiers and civilians in Yangzhou have returned, knowing that the soldiers and horses of the Northern Dynasty will not take Yangzhou as the main direction of attack, and the Yangzhou people who have left their hometowns to be refugees around Jinling. On the contrary, they all think that it is not bad to go back to Yangzhou, even if the soldiers and horses of the Northern Dynasty are killed, because they want to beg for thieves, they will also "have no offense in autumn" to the people, even if they die in their own homes, it is better than being a lonely ghost outside.

On April 26, news came from Yuzhou that Su Tingxia personally led his 20,000 soldiers and horses to the south, and the soldiers and horses began to advance towards the Jiangjiang region. Su Tingxia's soldiers and horses seem to be raising troops to cross the river from the Jiangling generation, which is not in Jiangjiang. It's Hunan. Su Tingxia even sent a letter to the local Taishou of the Southern Dynasty stationed in Hunan to discuss with him the matter of crossing the river by boat, but was directly rejected by the local Taishou of the Southern Dynasty. The news reached the ears of ordinary people, but the people of Hunan also joined the ranks of refugees.

In the past, in order to publicize and encourage the people to resist the enemy, the Southern Dynasty did its best to scandalize the soldiers and horses of the Northern Dynasty, and the most publicized by the local officials of the Southern Dynasty was the evil deeds of the Northern Dynasty general Su Tingxia. "For the people of the Northern Dynasties, it is still like this, and I don't have to have a single tile in my territory?" This is almost the same argument as all the Anmin notices.

The result of this is not that the people of the Southern Dynasty are angry about defending their homes and defending the country, but that the people hear the news that the soldiers and horses of the Northern Dynasty are going to be killed. That would be tantamount to being sentenced to death, and I don't care if I leave my hometown.

In the days after learning that Su Tingxia's soldiers and horses were about to cross the river from Jiangling. The people around Jiangling were scattered, and there were not even many soldiers left, so the local Taishou could only report to the imperial court for reinforcements, and at the same time hoped that the Qi Dynasty's naval army could be transferred westward, relying on the Yangtze River to prevent the Northern Dynasty's soldiers and horses from crossing the river.

But in the next few days, Su Tingxia's soldiers and horses were stationed in Jiangbei and did not move. did not cross the river, nor did they attack the city, so that the remaining soldiers and civilians in Gangneung City were panicked all day long.

At this time, in Yangzhou City, the local people were surprisingly stable, after learning that Jiang and Jiangxi would be the main battlefield for this invasion from the north to the south. Yangzhou receives a large number of refugees returning from the south every day. With people, there is vitality in the city, the imperial court must pay attention to Yangzhou City, before the imperial court has been in arrears of Yangzhou local military salaries and food salaries have also been sent to send ships over, so that the soldiers who defend the city will be more motivated, to the end of April, even Yangzhou Taishou Sui Hua began to come out to comfort the people, in front of the people pretending to be sympathetic to the people.

Although it is a fake to buy people's hearts, but the effect is surprisingly good, the people in the city see Yangzhou City from top to bottom united, but also feel that this Yangzhou City is impregnable, but also forget who once made them worry, who fled south to cross the river as a refugee.

On April 29, there was still no sign of a large-scale invasion by the soldiers and horses of the Northern Dynasties, but the urgent documents around Jiangling City quickly reached the various passes of the Yangtze River defense line.

Since the emergency in Jiangling City, Li Shanye stayed in Yangzhou City as Sima Yi's "military advisor", originally Sima Yu was also in the Southern Dynasty as a military adviser, but now Li Shanye wants to stay to give him advice, in fact, the two are more often to discuss. Sima Yi is relatively straightforward, Li Shanye likes to hide and pretend to be unfathomable, but Sima Yi also has to admit that in some things, Li Shanye is indeed more long-term than him, and his control of the situation is also in place.

On the afternoon of 29 April, Sima Yi, accompanied by Li Shanye, inspected the city defense again.

After climbing the north tower of Yangzhou City, Sima looked at the north, but he could not see the territory of the Northern Dynasty, nor could he see the northern soldiers who went south. From the day he was assigned to Yangzhou, Yangzhou became the safest place for the Southern Dynasties, located on the front line, but it was impossible for the Northern Dynasties to use soldiers. Even Li Shanye said that it was precisely because of Sima Yi's friendship with Han Jian that Yangzhou was saved from war. Sima Yi was reluctant to admit it at first, but in the end, he had to admit that some things were unavoidable, just like his friendship with Han Jian, and even if he had been from the Northern Dynasty from the beginning, even he himself didn't know why he agreed to stay in the Southern Dynasty instead of returning to the Northern Dynasty.

He also asked himself often, and the final answer was that he had not fulfilled his original promise to Xiao Ling, the king of Hui, and wanted to assist him in achieving great things. It's a pity that now King Hui doesn't have the trust he had at the beginning, and this promise has been postponed indefinitely, and he doesn't even know that he is working for Xiao Ling. is still working for Xiao Zhan, or both.

"Brother Sima, Su Tingxia sent troops to Chudi, this war is a little delicate, but so far, only Su Tingxia has sent troops, don't you think it's a little strange?"

Sima Yong's eyes were still looking at the vastness of the north. Sighing softly, he said, "What about the strangeness?" Now that I know that Yangzhou is stable for the time being, it is futile to think about the rest. ”

"Brother Sima can't be blindly optimistic or pessimistic, I dare to say that with the strength of the Southern Dynasty and the ability of talented people, it is simply impossible to resist the annexation of the Northern Dynasty. If you want to say that you can save the Southern Dynasty, you must be Brother Sima. ”

Sima Yu smiled bitterly: "Sir thinks highly of me, but I think that Sir can save a country in the Southern Dynasties." ”

Li Shanye suddenly laughed and said: "I am a reckless person in the rivers and lakes, and I am not a person in this world. Whoever becomes emperor is the same for me, so why should I save it? Besides, I don't look at fame and fame, and I don't have the luxury of fame and fortune, so why do I do that futile thing? ”

Sima Yi looked at Li Shanye and wondered, "Why is that gentleman doing now?" ”

"I'm helping you, Brother Sima, because what I want to see is that there is not only one supreme king in the world, and now he can still keep the people and himself. But when he sits on the four seas and no one can match him, then he will go on a rampage. They will even raise troops to go around to conquer and bring disaster to all the people. ”

Sima Yu didn't speak, he knew very well that the "supreme king" in Li Shanye's mouth was Han Jian, and it was not unreasonable to think about it carefully. Now that Han Jian of the Northern Dynasty has monopolized power, and the imperial power has reached its peak, Han Jian has no intention of stopping to rest after the southern and northern wars. This launched a southern invasion when the national strength of the Northern Dynasty was empty, or if it waited a few more years, when the national strength of the Northern Dynasty recovered slightly, the conquest of the Southern Dynasty would be invincible, but it was precisely because of Han Jian's urgency. Only then did it give the Southern Dynasty a slight chance.

Sima Yi also did not want to see his former friend become a war machine, causing the people to suffer. But he still doesn't know why he wants to stay to help Xiao Zhan or Xiao Ling, in terms of relationship, his relationship with Han Jian is even better, and he is just a friend to Xiao Ling or Xiao Zhan.

"That gentleman thinks that this time the northern dynasty is heading south, but he is ready to capture the south of the town and withdraw his troops?" Sima asked after thinking about it.

Li Shanye said thoughtfully: "Everyone knows that the emperor of the Northern Dynasty is just fooling the people of the world by begging for the edict of thieves, and it is the world that he wants to fight, not Jiangzuo." If the king of Linjiang and the court are united at this time, it is not what the Northern Dynasty wants to see, so the soldiers and horses of the Northern Dynasty hit Jiangzuo first, which is also to make the Southern Dynasty court watch the fire from the other side, but if so, once Jiangzuo is lost, the jackal enters the backyard, and then it is not easy to drive the jackal away. But at the moment, it will be very difficult for the imperial court and Linjiang Wang Bing to release their previous suspicions to resist the Northern Dynasty, and it may also give the Northern Dynasty a reason to use troops against the generals, so Her Majesty the current Empress should also be hesitant. ”

Sima Yi nodded, and Li Shanye's analysis was very good.

Even if he knew that Han Jian's sending troops to Jiangzuo to fight Zhu Tongjing was an excuse, Xiao Zhan couldn't easily say that he would help, before the Northern Dynasty sent troops, Zhu Tongjing and the Southern Dynasty court were all known to women and children, and Zhu Tongjing once led the use of troops against Yuzhou, and it was also a fact that the Northern Dynasty attacked Jiangzuo in the name of begging for thieves, in fact, it put the Southern Dynasty court in a dilemma, and sending troops to rescue would be regarded by the Northern Dynasty as a nest of snakes and rats.

So that after the edict of the Northern Dynasty was announced to the world, the court of the Southern Dynasty did not have any statement to this day, did not say war or not war, and did not mention that Zhu Tongjing, the king of Linjiang, did not know a word, war or not war, even the court did not know, and the people naturally thought that the court was mediocre, but when they heard that the soldiers and horses of the Northern Dynasty were coming, the people fled, and the city was not a city, and there was no way to defend it.

It is not terrible for soldiers to send troops to fight, but it is terrible to send troops and not know who they are fighting for. Even if they win, they may not necessarily have merit, and they may be condemned by the imperial court, and even the soldiers defending the city can't see a way out, so why let them throw their heads and spill their blood to defend their home and country?

Sima Yi looked at the city for a long time before he said slowly: "But I guess that Your Majesty's holy decree to transfer troops is also about to arrive. ”

"Oh?" Li Shanye smiled, "Why did Brother Sima have such a guess? ”

Sima said earnestly: "Since we know that the Northern Dynasty sent troops to fight Jiangzuo, even if we don't send troops to help, we must garrison Jiangzuo and garrison it, so as not to wave our troops eastward after the Northern Dynasty soldiers and horses capture Jiangzuo." But at present, there are no ships carrying troops and horses to cross the river, which is also what puzzles me, if it is said that the use of troops against the south, the Northern Dynasty should have been prepared, why did Su Tingxia's men and horses arrive at the generals, but they didn't even see a boat? ”

Li Shanye suddenly laughed and said, "Brother Sima finally got to the point. ”

"Huh?" Sima Yi looked at Li Shanye with a bit of weirdness in his eyes.

"The Northern Dynasty used troops against the South, which seemed hasty, but the Northern Emperor did not fight unprepared wars. The ship must have been prepared a long time ago, and it will suddenly go south, killing the Southern Dynasty by surprise, and now Su Tingxia has entered Chudi, in my opinion, it is also just a trick, and the Northern Dynasty is not prepared to send troops south from Chudi. ”

Sima Yu didn't speak, because there were many things he hadn't thought about yet. He believed that even if Li Shanye's analysis was the Tao now, it was just Li Shanye's unilateral speculation, because Li Shanye had said more than once that Han Jian's mind was not something ordinary people could guess.

Li Shanye said again: "I heard that a month ago, in the Yangzhou Taishou Mansion, Dousheng, a counselor under the command of the Southern Wangfu of Yuzhou in the Northern Dynasty, once said to Yangzhou Taishou, saying that the Northern Dynasty would carry troops in boats, and suddenly appeared anywhere in the rear of our court. Everyone present at the time laughed about it, but now it seems that it may not be a joke, but it is true. From the first war 20 years ago, Yuzhou was sent to Jinling to build hundreds of warships, in the battle of Jinling, the soldiers and horses of the East Wangfu were completely damaged, but the soldiers and horses of Yuzhou retreated, and even the warships were not damaged. In the past two years, the Northern Dynasties have used troops, and there are no warships in the river, so the whereabouts of these warships are a mystery, and now the Northern Dynasties are using troops against the South, not to mention the warships, and even the boats are rarely seen, so it can be seen that the Northern Dynasties still have confidential deployments behind their backs, and they want to use warships to sneak attack our rear. ”

Sima Yi thought about it, and finally shook his head slightly and said: "It's also said in the past, but I always feel that things are not so simple. The drawings of the warships of Yuzhou have been seen below, which is not enough to resist the waves, if the warships cross the sea, even if the troops are dispatched, the soldiers are not more than thousands, and there is no supply of reinforcements, which is equivalent to self-destruction. (To be continued.) )