Three Kingdoms: Prosper Han from the beginning of brushing favorability

Chapter 271 Reverse Mobilization
Northern Expedition.

This incident is a big mountain that has always weighed on Liu Chan's heart after the Battle of Jingzhou.

If we say that the failure of the Battle of Jingzhou and the subsequent Yiling Fire in history were the result of a series of small-probability events that were superimposed on each other, they were a blow.

You can also change certain key points to finally leverage the general trend and reverse the outcome.

So the Northern Expedition to Cao Wei was a complete collision of strengths, and it was almost impossible to use a weak enemy against a strong one.

The opponents that Lao Liu faced were much more difficult to deal with than the enemies of his ancestor Liu Bang.

Of course, this does not mean that Cao Pi can kill Xiang Yu in a single fight, but that compared to Xiang Yu's group, Cao Wei is a complete political entity.

Xiang Yu's ability to control the guys he entrusted was not strong, and the strength of various countries could not be condensed into a fist.

With just this difference, the situation between their father and son was much more difficult than that of their ancestors.

What's more, although Cao Wei had many internal problems at this time, they had not yet exploded.

Even though the nine-rank Zhongzheng system favored aristocratic families, at this stage it was influenced by Cao Cao's meritocracy when he was still alive. The Wei State still valued talents the most when selecting officials.

Power was completely controlled by the wealthy families, so that "there were no poor families in the upper class, and no noble families in the lower class." This resulted in mediocrity running rampant and talented people not being promoted. This was already the case after the Jin Dynasty.

The problem Liu Chan faces now is that if he wants to wait until Cao Wei is really in trouble before heading north, such as the Gaoping Ling Incident and Sima Yi seizing power, he will have to wait for nearly 30 years...

In 30 years, no matter how hard we try to popularize education, reform government, recruit talents, improve productivity, and even develop firearms... the land and population will always be flaws.

Unless you can put something like a machine gun on the battlefield in 30 years, even if you build some rudimentary guns, you still won't be able to make up for the huge gap in resources.

And 30 years of peaceful development environment were given to Cao Wei, which was enough for him to develop into a behemoth that he could not reach...

Liu Chan agreed with Lao Liu that the Northern Expedition must be carried out as early as possible.

This year, with the vigor brought by several victories, the advantage of the armored soldiers, and the negative impact caused by Cao Pi's usurpation of the Han Dynasty, we are holding high the banner. If we can achieve important results in one fell swoop, we will have a fulcrum for a comeback.

The so-called major victory, the most ideal result in Liu Chan's heart, is of course to imitate Gaozu, send troops out of Hanzhong and capture Guanzhong in one fell swoop, and then march to the Central Plains...

The land in Guanzhong is highly developed, has huge political significance, and is economically connected in all directions, which has many benefits for improving morale and rallying people's hearts.

But think about it, Cao Wei's civil servants and generals are not idiots, so the defense of the Guanzhong area will naturally be the top priority.

Not to mention the difficulty of defeating Guanzhong, Ma Qian of the Taishi Company had already said: "It is surrounded by mountains and rivers, and the four fortresses are solid. If there is an emergency, millions of people can stand up."

Although this is an exaggeration, whether it can defeat millions of people depends on the specific situation, but its difficulty can also be seen from this evaluation.

Guanzhong Guanzhong, among the four passes, Dongtong Pass, Xisan Pass, Nanwuguan, Beixiao Pass...the four majestic passes plus the natural barriers of mountains and rivers, it is almost an impossible task to attack without any special advantages.

Compared with Guanzhong, there are two more likely places, one is Nanyang and the other is Yongliang.

Nanyang not only had a large population and produced a lot of grain, but according to Pu Yuan, it was also the largest iron smelting center in the country at this time.

During his original trip to visit famous craftsmen, he gained the most in Nanyang.

Its scale is far from comparable to Linqiong.

One of Longzhong's routes, the so-called sending troops to Wanluo, Wan refers to Wancheng in Nanyang.

At that time, with its advanced smelting technology, farming methods, and economic policies, Nanyang's role can be magnified several times!
The population can also be replenished, further reducing the disadvantage.

The geographical location will also pose a huge threat to the capital of Cao Wei.

However, if we want to capture Nanyang, we must capture Xiangfan, and we must also prevent Sun Quan, the old man, from jumping back again.

Moreover, Nanyang is also one of the heavily defended locations of Cao Wei, so the difficulty is not low.

The one with the highest success rate is actually sending troops to Yongliang and completing the destruction of Long.

Cao Wei's attention and defensive strength in the western region are naturally much worse than those in Guanzhong and Nanyang.

Because the Yongliang land is sparsely populated and lacks food, it really can't be said to be a good place.

But Yongliang also has the advantages of Yongliang. In addition to providing a route choice for attacking the Central Plains, the most important thing is that Yongliang has good horses!
Before the advent of powerful firearms, the best way to deal with cavalry was always to defeat magic with magic.

Liu Chan's experience is that unless you are in a special terrain that is unfavorable to the cavalry, do not be superstitious about spear formations that can defeat the cavalry. It is a last resort and is the last stubbornness of the infantry in the face of the cavalry.

If the spear array could really achieve the effect of "restraining" the cavalry, Liu Chan would have died several times in Jingzhou and Shangyong.

Therefore, good horses are particularly important in this era. The more good horses, the stronger the military power.

Although the land in Yongliang is barren, Jingzhou has not been lost now. With two grain producing areas in hand, Ji Han, who has improved farming technology, will not be as short of food as before.

Of course, if we take Yongliang, the consumption along the way is still too huge.

Either don't attack Yongliang, or if you want to attack, you must win it at once.

These three offensive routes are destined to be used only as feint attacks in Guanzhong.

Even if Sima Yi, Liu Ye and others knew that this was a feint attack, they would never dare to be careless. This was a conspiracy. It was impossible for Cao and Wei to separate the two armies.

As for Nanyang and Yongliang, which side will be the main direction of attack... will depend on the situation at that time. "Prince...Prince?"

"Huh?" Liu Chan came back to his senses and saw that Qian Duo was wearing a new type of armor, holding a strange long-handled sword in his hand, and was looking at him worriedly.

"what happened?"

Qian Duo scratched his head and smiled: "The prince's expression is serious and silent. I wonder if there is anything wrong with us..."

Liu Chan's conquests have been going on for a long time, and his majesty has become stronger. Especially the people of the Red Star Army worship him extremely, so that his every move will greatly affect everyone.

Liu Chan looked around, and sure enough, everyone who was so happy to see the new equipment stopped at some point and looked at him silently.

He thought for a while, why not take this opportunity to let them understand the opponent they were about to face.

"Li Er, the entire army must assemble."

"Yes!"

Soon, everyone in the Red Star Army was assembled. The speed, the neatness of the military appearance, and the strict military discipline were the best under Old Liu's command.

"You have been fighting alone for the longest time. It has been four years now."

Li Er's expression warmed, and he thought of the first time he met the prince. At that time, he was still a refugee with only one breath left.

If someone had told him at that time that one day he, Li Er, could become a general, he would have thought that person was crazy.

"The enemies we faced in the past were all mobs."

As soon as this statement came out, there was an uproar.

Fortunately, these people here are all members of the Red Star Army. If others heard it, I'm afraid the reaction would be even more intense.

Liu Chan looked around. Although the faces of the soldiers were full of surprise and disobedience, no one made a sound or moved. He nodded with satisfaction.

"Perhaps some of you are dissatisfied and think that you have never seen any soldiers in the north and south.

"But unfortunately, we have not faced any strong enemies, nor have we ever encountered a truly desperate situation.

"The bandits and grass bandits, the Soochow Army, the thousands of Wei troops trapped in the mountains, and the barbarians who don't even have clothes on... Do you really think these people can be called elites?"

Liu Chan had a hint of disdain on his face, and his words were merciless. Although he was deliberately exaggerating, it did make sense to everyone at this time.

Let the prince say this... It seems that they have never encountered any elite army.

Everyone gradually put away the arrogance on their faces and became equally serious.

Victory brings high morale, but it also breeds pride.

"After several battles, the stone tablet erected at the gate of the camp only has the names of less than a hundred people engraved on it. This is an honor that you should be proud of.

"But if we follow Gu's Northern Expedition, the names on the stone tablet may increase tenfold or a hundredfold... and no one will even be able to come back alive."

Everyone finally changed from their previous too relaxed state. The soldiers in Liu Chan's eyes once again showed the same determination to fight to the death before the battle of Jingzhou.

Mobilization before a war is used to boost morale. We should try our best to exaggerate the enemy's weaknesses and amplify our own advantages. Only in this way can our own morale be improved.

Liu Chan's operation can be called an epic reverse mobilization. If it were an ordinary army, their fighting spirit would be half extinguished by this move, and all they could think about would be how to escape...

It's just... Just like Uncle Wang treats people, the same disease requires different medicines according to different patients.

At this time, the soldiers of the Red Star Army listened to Liu Chan's counter-mobilization, but instead of being discouraged.

Instead, he restrained the arrogance that had gradually been exposed recently, and "refined" it into a burning fighting spirit with the fire in his heart.

Li Erping said calmly: "The prince's and the king's royal flags point to where our troops are heading. Even if we die, we will not give up."

"Wherever the king's flag points, and where the troops are directed, we will fight to the death!"

Liu Chan looked at Li Er with a subtle expression, and thought to himself that your name is not for nothing... Why do you always say such nonsense without changing your expression?

But no matter what, the effect was achieved.

"Before that, don't engrave your name on it. You must seize the time to adapt to the new equipment and new tactics!"

"Yes!"

Only then did Qian Duo remember the question he originally wanted to ask. He raised the Mo Dao in his hand again: "By the way, Prince, I dare to ask... what is this knife used for?"

"Good question." Liu Chan smiled mysteriously.

This is also the helpless struggle of infantry when facing cavalry...but it is a struggle from 500 years later.

For the cavalry at this time, the struggle may be just a little bit more intense...

(End of this chapter)