Silver Fox of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 433 Sun Quan Conspiracy, New Situation

At the end of June in the sixth year of Zhang Wu, for the people of Xiangyang, the biggest news was of course the frequent success of His Majesty's Northern Expedition.

Guanzhong on the western front is recovered, and the great Han is still in the old capital. Many people are talking about it, saying that His Majesty may move the capital to Chang'an, but some people think that now is not the time to move the capital to Chang'an, so His Majesty will not move the capital immediately.

This point of view is indeed correct for those with a discerning eye. Recently, there has been no rumor from the imperial court that has contributed to the move of the capital to Chang'an. The people of Xiangyang are still the people of the imperial capital.

But soon another piece of news spread throughout the south. After the western battlefield, the general Guan Yu also won the Huainan battlefield on the eastern front.

Although he did not regain Guanzhong like General Hushi, he defeated Cao Xiu and continued to besiege Hefei. This made the city of Hefei crumbling, and the recovery of Huainan was just around the corner.

For a time, the people of the Han Dynasty were extremely optimistic about the situation of the Northern Expedition.Everyone was in high spirits, and the young and strong who wanted to join the army were like crucian carp crossing the river.

It's just that ordinary people tend to look at the surface, while those with real insight look at things at a deeper level.

For example, Cao Wei's true background.

Xiangyang Anlehou Mansion, Anlehou, who used to be leisurely in the past, is sitting in the backyard and looking at the mansion newspaper. There is an article written by Zhuge Liang on it, and the "Northern Expedition Table" is quick and thoughtful, with more than a thousand words eloquently, which fully describes the current situation of Liu Bei Group.

There is another person beside Sun Quan, this person is Fu Jun, the housekeeper of Anlehou Mansion, who was also Sun Quan's housekeeper in Jianye Wuhou Mansion before, and he is a confidant of Sun Quan's family's inner house.

Since the Sima family betrayed their faith and before Liu Yu killed the emperor of the previous dynasty, the end of the Han Dynasty was still relatively friendly to the princes and royal families who surrendered.

Like Zhang Xiu, Zhang Yan, Liu Cong, Ma Teng, Zhang Lu and other princes accepted by Cao Cao in history, except for Ma Teng who was killed because of Ma Chao's rebellion, the rest ended well.

There is also Cao Pi's treatment of Liu Xie, Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty, and Sima Zhao's treatment of Liu Chan after that, both were okay.

It can be seen that at the end of the Han Dynasty, there was still faith and righteousness in the world. Facing the old monarchs and ministers of the previous dynasty, the new dynasty often did not kill, but focused on appeasement.

The same is true of Sun Quan.

Liu Bei was originally benevolent and righteous, so naturally he would not harm him. Not only did he give him a mansion, but he also allowed him to bring all the servants from Wuhou's mansion to Xiangyang to serve him.

Those old ministers from Jiangdong who were willing to surrender became officials in the Han Dynasty, and those who were not willing to submit were also given mansions and fields so that they could enjoy their old age in peace.

Like Zhang Zhao and Zhang Zibu, he was unwilling to become an official. He is currently living in a courtyard in the west of Xiangyang City, just like Sun Quan.

At this moment, the Anlehou's mansion was completely quiet. It was raining in Xiangyang recently, and the pattering raindrops hit the pavilions, making a crisp sound.

Sun Quan's complexion was rosy, and after recuperating in Xiangyang for the past few years, he became more plump. He ate and drank a lot every day, and he didn't have to think about those messy things, which made him healthy.

Fu Jun knelt down beside him, frowned and said, "Marquis Wu, Cao Pi has been defeated in a row, and Liu Bei is gaining momentum. I'm afraid he will really rule the world in the future."

Sun Quan shook his head with a smile and said, "You only saw that Cao Pi was defeated on the surface, but you ignored that Cao Pi owns the whole north. He has sent less than 30 troops now. Do you think this is all the soldiers and horses of the entire Cao Wei?"

"What does Marquis Wu mean?"

Fu Jun was surprised: "Cao Pi is hiding his strength?"

"He's not hiding his strength."

Sun Quan said: "He is just consuming Liu Bei's troops. Now it seems that both sides are defeated, but even if Liu Bei gets Guanzhong and Huainan, so what? There are no people in the two places for thousands of miles. Continue to go north to attack Henan. The main force of Cao Wei's rear is exhausted. Liu Bei is It is impossible for the Northern Expedition to succeed."

This is a situation that anyone who has participated in the battle for hegemony can analyze.

It looks like Cao Pi is now in a disastrous defeat.

The problem is that Cao Pi still has a large number of reserves in Luoyang, Henan, and Hebei, and the main force has not suffered any losses in Henan.

The current situation is just that Cao Pi lost the defense line of Guanzhong, Cao Xiu was defeated on the east front, but Hefei is still embedded in the hinterland of Huainan like a nail, and Guan Yu has not yet obtained the entire Huainan area.

Therefore, Liu Bei has exhausted his old life, but Cao Pi only dispatched less than two-thirds of his troops to hold the line of defense at his own border, waiting for Liu Bei to spend money, food and troops for the Northern Expedition.

Even if the western front is defeated now, can Shen Chen really be able to attack Tongguan from thousands of miles away?
Obviously too difficult.

With all the background information of Cao's army and the fact that he was waiting for work with ease, no matter how powerful Shen Chen was, if he forcibly attacked Tongguan, he would probably only be frustrated.

Therefore, Sun Quan believes that even if Huainan is lost, Cao Pi still has the opportunity to fight all over the country.

At that time, it was the time when the Southern Han Dynasty and the Northern Wei Dynasty fought to the death.

"That Cao Pi"

Fu Jun hesitated and said: "Cao Pi sent someone to look for me and asked me to talk to Marquis Wu about contacting the old department."

Sun Quan stroked his beard and pondered for a moment, then said with serious eyes: "This matter must be done."

"Really want to do it?"

Fu Jun said: "But now the south has been fully controlled by Liu Bei, what if he finds out?"

Sun Quan sighed: "This is Gu's last chance. If Gu can seize the opportunity, Gu can return to Jiangdong and sit on the whole southeast."

"Really? Would it be too risky?"

Fu Jun was a little worried.

Although he is a prisoner now, at least he has no worries about food and clothing, and Liu Bei didn't restrict him too much.

In addition to not being able to go back to Jiangdong, at least you can still walk around Xiangyang.

"nature."

Sun Quan said: "Think about it. Originally Cao Pi fought Liu Bei, and Cao Pi waited for his work with leisure. With the large number of soldiers and horses, the outcome was roughly three to seven. Cao Pi won seven and Liu Bei won three."

"Ah."

Fu Jun nodded in agreement. It is generally accepted that the north's heritage and national strength are stronger than those of the south.

"But now that Shen Chen and Guan Yu are victorious, Cao Pi's way of consuming Liu Bei is no longer applicable. He will definitely want to repel Liu Bei's main force as soon as possible, and then rush to help Guanzhong and Huainan to regain the defense line."

Sun Quan analyzed and said: "Then once Cao Pi is eager to start a war and transfers all his troops from the north to the south, the two sides will conduct a thorough competition of national power, and the victory or defeat will only be five or five. Once Liu Bei wins the final victory, he will live forever If you can't stand up, how can you just sit and wait for death? Only by letting Cao Pi win can Gu have a chance to return to Jiangdong."

Fu Jun said: "But now many of our old troops in Jiangdong are officials of Liu Bei, such as Zhuge Jin and Lu Xun, who have now become Liu Bei's servants and often accompany him. Who can find the Jiangdong gentry we can find?" Work for us?"

Zhuge Jin, Lu Xun?
When these two people were mentioned, Sun Quan's face changed slightly, and a trace of hatred flashed in his eyes.

Zhuge Jin was actually okay, because he surrendered only when he was in a desperate situation, and it was because of Zhuge Liang that Liu Bei didn't embarrass him.

But Lu Xun, a villain, prepared early and buried his last soldiers and horses, so that even if he wanted to flee north, when he went to join Cao Pi, he had no army protection and was captured alive by Guan Yu.

Now every time he thinks of Lu Xun, Sun Quan can't wait to kill him.

However, Lu Xun is indeed talented, and he is like a fish in water under Liu Bei's command. Now he has mixed into the middle-level officials of the Shangshu Province, and he is valued by Liu Bei for his advice and advice.

So even if Sun Quan wanted to kill him, he couldn't kill him.

"It's okay."

Hearing Fu Jun's words, Sun Quan gritted his teeth and said, "There are hundreds of powerful families in Jiangdong, and these people regard the land as their life. Isn't Liu Bei always looking for excuses to strip their land? I don't believe it, there is no one among these people who doesn't hate Liu Bei .”

Fu Jun thought for a while and said, "Marquis Wu, I do know that there are quite a few people who are unwilling to become an official of Liu Bei. Liu Bei is now exchanging his official position for land. If he becomes an official in the south, he will have to hand over a lot of land and population. Some aristocratic families would rather not be an official. They stick to their ancestral property and don't hand over their land and population. But Liu Bei still robbed them of a lot of land, and there may indeed be many people, but "

"Just what?"

"I'm just thinking, if I go to contact these people, how can I guarantee that these people will not betray Marquis Wu?"

Fu Jun said: "Think about it, Marquis Wu. Now that Liu Bei is in the critical moment of the Northern Expedition, if there is a big chaos in the rear, it will definitely affect him. If Cao Pi says otherwise, he may win a big victory. So it is very important whether there will be chaos in the rear. If If we want to start an incident, those aristocratic families may report the matter to Liu Bei if they don’t agree, which is a great achievement.”

Betrayal?
Sun Quan suddenly fell into deep thought.

Fu Jun is right. The stability of Liu Bei's rear is related to the Northern Expedition, so he must attach great importance to it.

If he starts a rebellion at this time, it will indeed be detrimental to the situation of his Northern Expedition, and it may even allow Cao Pi to take advantage of the situation to win against him.

Therefore, if someone can report the rebellion in the rear, that person will definitely be rewarded heavily. Therefore, under such interest entanglements, some people will still choose to defect and rebel even if they are dissatisfied with Liu Bei.

After all, there are three people who are dissatisfied with the Jiangdong family. One is that the Liu Bei Group exploited their land and population and suppressed their basic base.

The second is that the Jiangdong family joined too late and their political status was too low.

The third is that Liu Bei doesn't pay much attention to them. There is a Jingyi family, and there is no need for a Jiangdong family.

Therefore, it is normal for some Jiangdong aristocratic families to have resistance to the Liu Bei Group.

But if Sun Quan is reported, the three will naturally become different.

Liu Bei will definitely promote the whistleblowers, and at the same time relax their fields and population, and improve their political status. By then, will they not be much stronger than Sun Quan, who has already collapsed?

It can even be said that if this is really done, there must be many families who say that they will not serve Liu Bei and miss the Sun family and choose to defect.

As the leader of the Sun Wu regime with the highest degree of integration with the family, Sun Quan understands the urine of the family better than anyone else.

Thinking of this, Sun Quan's face suddenly became serious, he nodded seriously and said, "That's right, what Bo Liang said is true, Gu was almost impatient and ruined the big thing."

Fu Jun then asked: "According to Marquis Wu, shall we still contact them?"

"connection!"

Sun Quan said in a deep voice: "But not in the name of Gu, I will make a list of a few people who are loyal and loyal people who can be trusted by Gu. When the time comes, let them come forward and contact them in the name of Cao Pi, and this matter should be kept as secret as possible. The less people know about it, the better."

"Yes."

Fu Jun complied. Now that Sun Quan is imprisoned in the mansion, he is the only one who can use the opportunity of buying to go out of the mansion to contact people.

When it came to the next day, Fu Jun immediately left the Anlehou Mansion and began to act according to Sun Quan's deployment.

In July, the situation in the north changed again.

After Cao Xiu's defeat, Cao Pi knew that it was obviously impossible to keep a low profile and wait for work, so he could only mobilize the reserve troops in the rear and increase troops to the south.

Cao's soldiers on the front line in Henan have reached 15, and Huainan has also increased by [-]. In addition to the defenders in Tongguan, Hedong, and Bingzhou, Cao Wei's army of more than [-], except for some left behind on the northern border, almost All dispatched.

Even the soldiers and horses used to suppress the rebellion in Hebei, Qingzhou and other places were transferred back, so that the civil unrest in the rear intensified. There were more than ten forces, large and small, in the rear of Cao Wei, making his rear very unstable. .

It's just that compared to large-scale rebellions, these rebellions are only small-scale civil unrest in various places.Now the northern aristocratic families basically support Cao Wei, so these minor troubles Cao Pi are handed over to the aristocratic family.

Although this is undoubtedly another opportunity for the aristocratic family to grow stronger. After all, after the aristocratic family put down the rebellion, the captured population and the land they seized will not be nationalized, and will eventually fall into their pockets, but it is better than letting the civil unrest develop more and more. fierce, the threat to Cao Wei's rule is much stronger.

So in a sense, this is also impossible.The imperial power can't suppress the aristocratic family too much, it can only barely achieve a balance.

Now that Cao Wei's background has been fully revealed, he and Liu Bei have officially launched a desperate battle between national power.

The two sides are too big, and almost both of them will spend their lives.

The most intuitive manifestation is that since the second half of this year in the South, the work of recruiting soldiers has become more and more arduous. Every day, many young and strong recruits are recruited into the army, and then they are incorporated into the team to start training.

Too many young and strong enlisted in the army will inevitably hinder the development of agriculture, making the quality of life of the people at the bottom relatively worse than the previous two years, and survival is becoming more and more difficult.

The only good news is that Liu Bei has accumulated a lot of food and grass in the past few years to recuperate, and the logistical pressure is not great, but in general, the number of people directly used by both sides has exceeded one million, and a large number of young and strong laborers have been sent to the front. The national strength of the two countries is a serious loss.

Until the sixth year of Zhang Wu and the second half of the seventh year of Huang Chu, that is, November 226 AD, the two sides were still at a stalemate.

Shen Chen sent all the cavalry to Henan, and took tens of thousands of infantry to occupy Chang'an and threaten Hedong.After Guan Yu defeated Cao Xiu, he continued to encircle Hefei. The city of Hefei was crumbling, and it was already at risk of being breached.

In the Henan direction, both sides increased their troops to varying degrees, especially after Shen Chen sent [-] to [-] cavalry, Liu Bei's mobility on the plain was greatly enhanced, and his strength increased by leaps and bounds.

This made Cao Pi's eagerness for a decisive battle gradually calm down. At the end of the year, his body had problems instead, and he often coughed constantly.

At the moment of tense confrontation between the two sides, Jingzhou Nanjun, the capital of the Han Dynasty, Xiangyang Prime Minister's Mansion.

Zhuge Liang got a secret report.

(End of this chapter)