Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1005 Everyone has their own thoughts

After that, some things that could only be expected happened in the study, and the hot and turbulent emotions were slightly calmed down, and then the autumn rain started to fall.

Mi Fang went to sea the next day. Mi Zhen held a bamboo umbrella on the pier and watched the big ship carrying Mi Fang go away. She thought that it might be difficult for her to see her second brother again in her lifetime.

On the rolling river in the distance, the big ship gradually disappeared into the gloomy mist. Mi Zhen turned around and got on the carriage and headed for the Mi family's warehouse.

She didn't have much time to be sentimental, because the war was about to happen, and the frequency of mobilizing supplies and supplies in Shouchun City was many times higher than usual. All merchant ships were temporarily requisitioned for military use to support the supply of warships and infantry that came in and out of the city every day. logistics.

Now, many small-scale wars have broken out in the area hundreds of miles around Shouchun, and the entire Lujiang River has turned into a huge war zone. As Cao Cao and Sun Quan continue to increase their troops, the combined strength of the three parties in the Jianghuai area has More than three hundred thousand people.

Regardless of others, Cao Cao and Sun Quan had a very profound foundation in terms of the number of generals. Yuan Xi and Liu Bei combined could not match this point. Cao Cao and Sun Quan divided their army into several groups, and each group was protected by several generals, giving Yuan Xi There's a lot of pressure here.

This disadvantage is also reflected in the strength of the troops. Although the elite rate of Cao and Sun is not as good as that of Yuan Xi, their numbers are real. Ordinary soldiers cannot fight, but they are more than enough to ensure logistics and defend the city, and it seems that the two sides have discussed it. , step by step, gradually encroaching on Yuan Xi's territory, leaving Yuan Xi's army with less and less space to move around.

In this regard, Yuan Xi had to mobilize troops from Youzhou, Qingzhou and other places to make up for the loopholes in his defense line. In fact, when he and Guo Jia, Zhuge Liang and others were planning before, they still underestimated Cao Cao's determination. He did not expect that Cao Cao would So decisively throwing its remaining troops into the Jianghuai battlefield.

This led to Yuan Xi's troop mobilization being stretched thin, and he began to be forced to recruit civilians to build cities for defense. All the ships belonging to Yuan Xi's forces on the Huaihe River were mobilized, transporting troops and food day and night.

Fortunately, the transportation network based on waterways that Yuan Xi had previously constructed has taken initial shape. He relies on the control of several important waterways such as the coast, the Yellow River, and the Huai River in his territory to quickly mobilize soldiers and food in the shortest time. Transport it to the places where it is most needed. However, Cao Cao and Sun Quan have not gained control of these waterways and cannot intervene for the time being.

As a result, in battle after battle, the battle line gradually stabilized. The area along the Yuzhou River north of the Huai River was recaptured by Cao's army, and all Yuan Xi's troops withdrew to the south bank of the Huai River.

But Cao Cao's army stopped here. The Huai River was controlled by Yuan Xi's navy. Cao Cao's navy was not enough to reverse the weak situation. Even under the threat of Yuan Xi's navy, it was difficult to cross the river.

So Cao Jun focused his infantry attack on the Dabie Mountains and Funiu Mountains west of Shouchun, on the upper reaches of the Huai River. Cao Honglejin led the troops. If he wanted to break through, Yuan Xi would naturally not let him break through. He sent Xu Huang to defend it. Here, Zhuge Liang acted as a supervisor to prevent Cao's army from advancing even an inch.

To the southwest of Shouchun is Yunmengze, which is eight hundred miles away. This place is inaccessible and there are few people living there, let alone marching. Therefore, Cao Jun naturally did not choose to march from here, but chose Jiujiang County further south as his base. Breakthrough.

The leader here was Xia Houyuan, who took a boat from the upper reaches of the Han River and passed through Xiakou controlled by Jiangdong, and then landed in the Forbidden Army. They traveled all the way north to the north of Wancheng, trying to bypass the west of Chao Lake and find a route to break into Shouchun. Yuan Xi sent Zhang He to stop him. The two sides fought several battles and suffered heavy losses, so they reached a stalemate.

Cao Cao's navy, on the other hand, merged with the Jiangdong navy from Xiakou and arrived near Wankou, completely blocking the passage from Chaohu south to the Yangtze River, waiting for the opportunity to go north and invade Chaohu in one fell swoop.

The total number of warships on both sides exceeds more than 2,000. The densely packed ships almost block the entire Yangtze River channel. This has become a troublesome thing because so many ships moving at the same time will definitely affect each other and increase the speed of the Yangtze River. The two sides were not on the same page, so when to send troops and how to arrange the march route have become issues that the two sides are arguing about.

The Jiangdong side is naturally led by Zhou Yu, but the composition of Cao Jun's side is quite complicated.

For the first time, Cao Cao did not use the generals of the Cao family and the Xiahou family to lead this naval force, because Cao Cao also knew that in terms of foot warfare, these generals were able to stand alone under his training, but in terms of water warfare, they were among the laymen. A layman.

So Cao Cao simply activated two of Zhang Lu's subordinate generals, and Yang appointed Yang Ang as the commander of the navy. When they were in Hanzhong, they both trained the navy on the Han River, and they were barely competent.

Of course, Cao Cao did not completely delegate power. He sent Xinpi as the supervisor of the army. As Yuan Shao's former subordinate, Xinpi also urgently needed to prove himself, and when he supervised the army in Jizhou, he was not much worse than Tian Feng and others, and he was indeed enough to take on this role. Location.

Xinpi did not care about the specific military affairs of the navy, but he had the right to make decisions about the coordination and mobilization with the Jiangdong Army. Now he and Zhou Yu were arguing about how to invade Chaohu from the Yangtze River.

What Xin Pi means is that Cao's army marches to the west bank of Ruxu River, and Jiangdong's army moves to the east bank of Ruxu River. The well water on both sides does not interfere with the river water, and they advance together.

Zhou Yu sneered at this and thought that marching was okay. If the enemy attacked, the entire river would be a battlefield. When the three parties were fighting, who would know whether they were friends or enemies?
What Zhou Yu meant was to divide into several teams and enter one after another. One team was responsible for opening the way, and the other team was responsible for the main attack of the Chinese army. Although Xinpi thought this method was feasible, he understood that Zhou Yu's words were a trap, because the ones who opened the way were basically Who is willing to go there if he is going to suffer the first wave of enemy attacks?

However, with the current strength of Cao Cao's navy, it seems that the chance of winning as the main offensive of the Chinese army is not good. Thinking of this, Xinpi couldn't help but feel a little bitter. The other side was sure that there were too few generals on his side, so he came to squeeze him. As for myself! Xin Pi's guess was correct. Zhou Yu shook his feather fan lightly and looked at the hesitant Xin Pi leisurely. He sneered in his heart. The navy generals in Jiangdong were second to none. No one in the world dared to admit that Cao Jun was the first. Here I want to take advantage of myself, how can there be such a cheap thing in the world?

Over the past few days, Zhou Yu has fully understood Xinpi. He has advantages in road battles, but in terms of water battles, Zhou Yu is as good as any strategist in Cao Ying!
Thinking of this, Zhou Yu smiled even more. However, at this moment, he inadvertently discovered that the young man standing behind Xin Pi had a somewhat sinister face and a somewhat playful expression. He looked towards himself.

The moment the two people's eyes came into contact, Zhou Yu actually had the urge to look away. The other person's eyes showed a stern look, which actually gave off a somewhat dangerous aura.

Zhou Yu was shocked. He had been in battle for a long time. How could the other party, a young scholar who had never fought in a war and whose family connections made him wary?
When he saw the young man looking away as if nothing had happened, he couldn't help but turn his eyes coldly, and turned to Xin Pi: "The supervisor doesn't want Jiang Dong to march alone, but he doesn't want to be the vanguard. It's hard for me to handle it."

"I, Jiangdong, have tried my best to cooperate with Duke Cao in raising troops this time, so the preparations are not sufficient, and a lot of food, grass and baggage are insufficient."

"The supervisor wants Jiang Dong to be the vanguard. It's not that Yu can't agree. It's just that the crossbows used to charge into the formation are not fully equipped yet. It will take some time, but this will delay the important event."

"If the supervisory army can support some arrows, I, Jiangdong, can cooperate with us to break into Chaohu."

After hearing this, Xinpi asked, "How many do the governor want?"

Zhou Yu opened his mouth and said: "Two hundred thousand."

Xinpi secretly scolded you why you didn't grab it, two hundred thousand. Have you, Jiangdong, done so many in all these years?
He frowned and said: "This is not a small amount. Even for me, it will be difficult to collect it in just a few months."

When he said a few months, he was refusing. It would be winter in a few months, so why fight?

Zhou Yu smiled and said: "The supervisors are too humble. The rich land of Jingzhou is not like the savages everywhere in the east of the Yangtze River. They can only do small businesses."

"If 200,000 is not enough, 100,000 can be used reluctantly, and any less will not work. After all, I have tens of thousands of naval troops, and I can shoot them all with two or three per person. I can't fight naked."

Hearing this, Simpi had no choice but to say: "Let me go back and count the number of arrows, and help the governor as much as possible, but I can only do my best."

Zhou Yu smiled and said: "Then there will be labor inspectors, but please understand that the best time to start the war is these days. If it is later, it will affect the overall situation."

"I heard that Cao Gong's two infantry armies are blocked in the mountains to the west of Shouchun, unable to advance or retreat. As long as Chaohu is captured, Shouchun will definitely shrink its defense and revitalize the situation. It all depends on the decision of the supervisor."

After hearing this, Xinpi felt more and more pressure on his heart, so he stood up to say goodbye and went all the way back.

When he arrived at his camp, he thought that Zhou Yu was thinking of beauty, so he emptied his own armaments. After the war with him, what would he take to rob him?

Moreover, Jiangdong are all capricious villains. If he is not careful, what should he do if they compete with him for his longevity and turn against him?
Xinpi became more and more confused. He accidentally raised his head and saw the silent young man on the side. He wanted to ask, but then he burst into laughter. He was really stupid. Although the other person was the son of Sima Fang, he had never been on the battlefield after all. He had an excellent reputation. It was blown out of Chengdu that he had a disease and went to the doctor indiscriminately?
But as Sima Fang was half the leader of the Yingchuan faction, Simpi had to give the Sima family some face, so he casually said: "What does Zhongda think of Zhou Yu's request today?"

The young man accompanying the army was Sima Yi.

He had been pretending to be stupid and sick at home before, but after thinking about it, the assassins sent by Cao Cao might not have noticed the clues, and Cao Cao was suspicious and would not let it go afterwards. If he continued to pretend like this, how many more times could he keep pretending? Year?

So he finally made up his mind, announced to the public that his wind paralysis had been cured, and came to Xudu to meet Cao Cao to become an official.

What surprised Sima Yi was that Cao Cao did not give him a civilian position, but instead asked him to join the army directly!
(End of this chapter)