At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 328 Dilemma

Even with Lu Xun's pride, during the time he spent with Pang Tong, he couldn't help being amazed by him and amazed by his talents.

He believed that with Pang Tong's wisdom and emotional intelligence, he would be able to see the current situation clearly and find ways to appease the prince's heart.

After listening to Lu Xun's words, Zhou Yu couldn't help but feel relieved.

In the current situation, as long as the prince remains in chaos, Yizhou will not be in chaos.

After feeling at ease, Zhou Yu couldn't help but secretly scold Lu Xun for being treacherous. Since he had already understood all this, he was the first to propose returning to Chengdu to aid.

Lu Xun can take the lead in making this suggestion. No matter where the situation in Yizhou goes in the future, the other party will at least be in an invincible position.

But Zhou Yu couldn't blame Lu Xun.

He asked himself, if his and Lu Xun's identities were reversed, he might make the same choice.

At that time, it was Lu Xun who was caught in a dilemma.

Although Lu Xun could not be blamed, Zhou Yu wanted to deliberately make things difficult for the other party, and immediately said in a deep voice: "The so-called good medicine by Boyan can only alleviate my illness, but there is no way to eradicate it."

"All the generals are urging me to bring troops back for reinforcements. If I ignore it, even if the prince is able to defend Chengdu, I am afraid he will be attacked in the future."

"If we withdraw our troops and return reinforcements, I am afraid that Hanxi County will not be safe. I wonder how Bo Yan can teach me?"

Zhou Yu's worries are not wrong.

As a minister, sometimes you consider not only gains and losses, but also loyalty.

If Zhou Yu ignored the siege of Chengdu, Zhou Jiming might not say anything on his face, but he would inevitably not have a grudge in his heart, thinking that Zhou Yu, the governor, did not pay attention to his own safety.

As the successor of the Chu State, Zhou Ji, if Zhou Yu makes the other party feel like this, life may not be easy in the future.

When Lu Xun heard this, he smiled and said: "This is easy. The governor can first appease the generals, and then send people to rush to Chengdu to ask for orders from the prince."

Zhou Yu's eyes flashed, and then he laughed and said, "It is indeed a good medicine!"

Chamber.

When Zhou Yu was helped out by Lu Xun, all the generals looked concerned and asked, "Is the governor feeling better?"

Zhou Yu waved his hand and said: "It's okay, it's just that the weather is sultry and the anger attacks the heart, so I feel a little uncomfortable. After taking the medicine prescribed by the medical officer, I feel much better."

After hearing this, the generals felt relieved.

At this critical moment, if Zhou Yu, the governor-general, falls ill, the three armies will inevitably be leaderless, and the consequences will be unpredictable.

Wei Yan said: "I wonder what the commander-in-chief thinks of the general's previous proposal?"

Zhou Yu nodded and said, "Long words are very good."

Wei Yan looked happy, thinking that Zhou Yu would adopt his suggestion and lead troops back to support, and left 10,000 troops for him to guard Hanxi County.

Wei Yan prided himself on being talented, but he lacked the opportunity to lead troops alone.

If we can stop Cao Cao with 10,000 troops this time, we will definitely become famous all over the world.

Just when Wei Yan secretly rejoiced, Zhou Yu said again: "Although I have the intention to return to Chengdu, the order I received before was to guard Hanxi County and guard against Cao Cao."

"It is extremely inappropriate to lead troops to Chengdu without receiving orders from the Crown Prince."

When the generals heard the words, they couldn't help but look at each other and thought in their hearts: "At this time, why are we waiting for orders? Haven't you heard that the generals are not accepting the orders of the emperor? If Chengdu is really in danger, don't you send troops as soon as possible at this time? If we want to send back reinforcements, if we wait until we send envoys to ask for transfer orders, I am afraid that Chengdu has already fallen before the transfer orders reach Hanxi County."

Although everyone was thinking this, they did not dare to speak out.

Just because what Zhou Yu said may seem pedantic, but he was indeed acting in accordance with the rules and regulations. If he led his troops to Chengdu without an order, it would not be an exaggeration to think that he would be charged with conspiracy.

Seeing that the generals were looking at each other in confusion but no one spoke up to object, Zhou Yu pretended to have a headache again and covered his head. Then he said feebly: "Leave it to Boyan to send the envoy to Chengdu."

"I am not feeling well, so I will leave the military affairs to Chief Wen for the time being. At this time, we must prepare our troops vigorously to guard against Cao's army's invasion."

"With the fall of Baishui Pass, Hanxi County has been exposed to the rebel forces and must be on guard. Ziyuan leads three thousand troops to Mianyang, so we must be careful to guard against a sneak attack by the rebels!"

Lu Xun, Wei Yan, and Wu Yi took orders one after another, but Zhou Yu himself returned to the house.

Chengdu.

Although the rebels stormed the city for several days, they were guarded by the fierce general Xu Chu, assisted by Chen Wu and Ling Tong, and even Pang Tong was beside them to make suggestions. Therefore, even if Guo Jia tried his best, they were still unable to enter the city.

Seeing that Chengdu cannot be captured for a long time and food and grass are not in supply, many rebels have gradually become restless, and Guo Jia can't help but feel anxious.

He originally thought that there were only Zhou Ji, a young boy, and Xu Chu in Chengdu. If the army suddenly besieged the city, Zhou Ji, who was not in battle formation, would abandon the city and flee.

However, he did not expect that the other party would be so calm and calm. Not only did he mobilize the people in the city to help defend the city, he even ordered many counties in Shu County and Guanghan County to fortify their walls and close the city to defend themselves.

Many counties and cities were on guard, and the rebels had no way to plunder food and grass. Logistics and supplies soon became a little tight.

He looked at Ma Chao and asked, "Has there been any news from Hanxi County? Did Zhou Yu bring troops back to Chengdu?"

Ma Chao shook his head and said: "The soldiers and horses from Hanxi County showed no sign of returning to aid Chengdu. Instead, Zhou Yu sent Wu Yi to lead troops to guard Mianyang, obviously to guard against Yu Wenze."

Hearing this, Guo Jia couldn't help but sigh: "It seems that I underestimated Zhou Ji, and also underestimated Zhou Yu."

Thinking of this, Guo Jia couldn't help but feel bitter in his heart.

It is reasonable for Zhou Qi, Xi Zhicai, Dian Wei, and Xu Chu, the generation who conquered the country, to be good at fighting, otherwise they would not have laid such a big foundation.

But now, Zhou Ji, Zhou Yu and many other important officials in Yizhou are obviously the second generation of the Chu Kingdom. Guo Jia originally thought that Zhou Qi was trying to gild them, but he did not expect that these people could actually take charge of their own affairs.

If you can't beat the first generation, you can still hope for the second generation.

But the strength of the second generation of Chu State shocked even Guo Jia. So where will the future of Qin State go?

Forcibly suppressing the bitterness in his heart, Guo Jia cheered up again and said: "General, please send scouts to block all roads to Chengdu and arrest anyone who approaches Chengdu to inquire for information."

"Then he sent a message to the nearby counties, saying that Chengdu has been defeated, the prince of Chu has been captured, and those who surrendered in the counties can still receive their previous official positions!"

Seeing Ma Chao about to take the order and leave, Guo Jia suddenly stopped him, and said after a little hesitation: "Spread another rumor, saying that Zhou Yu thinks that the prince is not talented enough to inherit the foundation of Chu State, and then he knew that Chengdu Even though we were surrounded, we still insisted on not leading troops to return for reinforcements.”

When Ma Chao heard this, he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

Military generals kill with blood, but civil servants kill without swords.

This news seems to be full of loopholes, but if it really spreads, and Zhou Yu does not send troops to come back for reinforcements, even if it is something that Zi Xu did not do, Zhou Yu will be roasted on the fire.

As the saying goes: Many words make gold, but accumulation destroys bones!

Many times, rumors can kill people. Guo Jia walked outside the camp, looked towards the north, and murmured in a low voice: "If this news reaches Hanxi County, I don't believe Zhou Yu will not withdraw his troops!"

Guo Jia had not asked anyone to completely blockade Chengdu before, in order to deliberately spread the news to Hanxi County so that Zhou Yu could lead troops to return reinforcements.

I never thought that although Zhou Yu was young, he was not easy to get along with, and he was not fooled at all.

In this case, let's force Zhou Yu again.

In the cell, several messengers were beaten to pieces, and it was obvious that they would not survive.

These people were the envoys sent by Zhou Ji to Hanxi County, but they were stopped by Ma Chao's cavalry.

If not, Zhou Yu might have received the order from Zhou Ji from Chengdu at this time.

Unfortunately.

When Zhou Ji sent out the first wave of messengers to deliver orders to various counties and Guo Jia got the news, Guo Jia urgently ordered Ma Chao to seal the news tightly and capture the messengers from Chengdu.

Since Chengdu was besieged, the envoy could only sneak out at night. He had no horses at all and could not go fast.

On the other hand, the rebels were almost all cavalry and blocked the only way to Hanxi County, so they were able to capture all these messengers.

"Military advisor, we caught another spy disguised as an ordinary citizen. After interrogation, we found out that he was the messenger sent by Zhou Yu!"

Not long after, Ma Chao strode over again.

Guo Jia asked: "Do you know why the messenger went to Chengdu?"

Ma Chao said: "Zhou Yu wanted to bring troops back to help, but he didn't get orders from Zhou Ji, so he didn't dare to act rashly, so he sent people back to Chengdu to ask Zhou Ji."

Having said this, Ma Chao asked with some anxiety: "Has the capture of this man by the general ruined the military advisor's plan? Should I return this man to Chengdu?"

Guo Jia thought for a moment, then smiled bitterly, then shook his head and said, "It's not necessary."

Ma Chao asked a little strangely: "Since the military advisor wants Zhou Yu to bring troops back for reinforcements, why not let the messenger enter Chengdu? How dare Zhou Yu dare to act rashly if the messenger cannot get Zhou Ji's order?"

Guo Jiadao: "We will be out here, and you will not accept your order. If Zhou Yu really has the intention to return to Chengdu, he will do so even if he has not received the order."

"He did not want to return to Chengdu to aid, so he deliberately sent a messenger to ask Zhou Ji. This was to appease the emotions of his soldiers and to find a legitimate excuse for himself not to return to Chengdu."

When Ma Chao heard this, he suddenly realized.

Zhou Yu's actions are similar to Zhuge Liang's last Northern Expedition in history. In order to provoke Sima Yi to fight him, he even sent people to give Sima Yi women's clothes, which made all the Wei generals furious and asked for a fight.

Sima Yi, an old fox, pretended to be angry in order to appease the anger of the generals and prevent the morale of the generals from being low, but he deliberately went to Emperor Wei Ming to request a decisive battle with Zhuge Liang.

Emperor Wei Ming saw through Sima Yi's intentions, so he cooperated very well and sent Xin Pi with a staff, and ordered Sima Yi to "refuse to defend the wall and wait for work in leisure" and not to fight Zhuge Liang.

Every time Zhuge Liang led his troops to challenge, Sima Yi would pretend to go out to fight with him, but Xinpi would appear at the gate of the military camp at the right time, holding a staff and driving Sima Yi and his generals back.

In this way, it can not only calm the anger in the hearts of the generals, but also prevent the generals from thinking that the general is afraid of Zhuge Liang and dare not go to war. It can also avoid a head-on confrontation with Zhuge Liang. It can be said to kill three birds with one stone.

Zhou Yu deliberately sent people to Chengdu to seek transfer orders, which also had the same purpose.

The difference was that the envoy sent by Zhou Yu was captured by Ma Chao's scouts and failed to return to Chengdu.

In Chengdu City, Zhou Ji and Pang Tong did not know that the envoys sent to Hanxi County were all captured by the rebels.

In Nanzheng City, Zhou Yu and Lu Xun did not know that the envoys they deliberately sent to Chengdu were also captured by the rebels.

At this time, Chengdu has been completely blocked. People outside do not know the latest situation in Chengdu, and Zhou Ji and others do not know the situation outside.

Therefore, when the news spread that Chengdu was captured and the crown prince Zhou Ji was captured, officials in nearby counties were panicked.

Guo Jia took the opportunity to send people to instigate some aristocratic families to rebel. They worked together internally and externally to break through several county towns and finally robbed some food and grass.

Although these grains and grass cannot solve the logistic supply problem of the army, they can also solve the urgent need.

Guo Jia asked people to distribute all the property in the county government to the various rebels, which immediately boosted the morale of the rebels. In addition, the food and grass problem was temporarily solved, so they did not make a fuss about withdrawing their troops.

On the other hand, Zhou Yu, who was far away in Nanzheng, was originally waiting for the envoy sent to return.

Since Lu Xun spoke so highly of Zhou Ji and Pang Tong, they must have known his deep intentions. After the envoy returned to Nanzheng, he could justifiably stand still.

What made Zhou Yu uneasy was that the envoys sent out had not returned to Nanzheng for a long time.

At this time, Zhou Yu couldn't help but feel a little suspicious, thinking to himself: "Could something happen in Chengdu, or maybe the prince is dissatisfied that I didn't send troops to come back for reinforcements?"

But soon, Zhou Yu murmured to himself: "If the prince is really angry that I don't send troops to come back for reinforcements, he will definitely let the envoy return to convey the military order, and I won't detain him in Chengdu."

Excluding the latter, it is very likely that there is a problem in Chengdu.

Just when Zhou Yu was worried every day, the news came that Chengdu had been destroyed and the prince had been captured.

Zhou Yu was shocked when he heard this and hurriedly summoned all the generals to discuss the matter.

After Lu Xun heard the news, his expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly asked: "Where did the news come from, and is it accurate?"

Zhou Yu suppressed the uneasiness in his heart and said: "The news came from the mouths of refugees near Chengdu. It is difficult to distinguish the authenticity for the time being."

Wei Yan, however, was anxious and restless. He stood up and said, "I would like to lead 30,000 troops to recapture Chengdu and rescue the prince!"

When the other generals saw this, they also asked for battle, with anxious looks on their faces.

At this time, even Lu Xun had doubts about whether he had made a wrong judgment before.

If Chengdu really fell and the prince was really captured by the rebels, the consequences would be disastrous.

Not only could the northern counties of Yizhou be saved, but even if everyone present was not punished, their future career would be over.

Especially Zhou Yu, as the commander-in-chief, has to bear all the responsibilities.

Seeing that Zhou Yu was still hesitant, Dong Xi couldn't help but persuade him: "The Governor should return to the army to rescue the Crown Prince. There are already rumors in the public that the Governor deliberately did not rescue Chengdu because of a rift with the Crown Prince."

"If you still insist on not sending troops to rescue, the governor will inevitably be punished in the future."

(End of this chapter)