Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 293
In the 16th year of Jian'an, July.

Zhang Fei led his army into Hanzhong, surrendered to Zhang Lu, beheaded Han Sui, and defeated Ma Chao. He completely occupied Hanzhong and shocked the Badi.

Yizhou, Chengdu.

Liu Zhang looked at the contents of the battle report and gasped.

Zhang Fei also became stronger. In just a few months, he actually defeated Han Sui and Ma Chao, and surrendered Zhang Lu, helping him to pacify Hanzhong. Wouldn't it be even more terrifying for Guan Yu and Huo Jun, who were stronger than Zhang Fei?

Huang Quan was also frightened and said: "Your Majesty, Zhang Fei surrendered to Zhang Lu and captured Hanzhong. Your Majesty has already asked Liu Bei to come to Shu. Now there is no need for Zhang Fei to stay in Shu. From the perspective of power, it is appropriate for him to do so." Don't send Zhang Fei out of Shu, and appoint good generals and talents as the governor of Hanzhong."

"No!"

Zhang Song stopped him and said: "Your Majesty, when Zhang Fei first came to Hanzhong, we sent him out of Shu in a hurry. Such a move may not be the courtesy of an ally, and may also anger Da Sima (Liu Bei). Song thought that I, Yizhou, should take it easy. Do it slowly, don't rush it, send someone to reward Zhang Fei, and send someone to send an envoy to Da Sima."

"Your Majesty, Zhang Song will harm me, Yizhou."

Huang Quan was excited and said: "Liu Bei and Cao Cao are currently facing off in Jiangxia and have no time to take care of Bashu. If we don't take the opportunity to claim Hanzhong now, and let Liu Bei free his hands and feet after Cao Cao's troops retreat, he will definitely go west to Bashu. At that time, Zhang Fei's troops left Hanzhong, and Liu Bei went up the river. Going up, Yizhou will be in danger!"

Zhang Song's face changed slightly and he said: "Why did Huang Gongcao say this? The great Sima is beyond your imagination."

With that said, Zhang Song raised his hand to Liu Zhang and said: "Your Majesty, Da Sima has an alliance with me in Yizhou and sent troops to Bashu. In order to drive you, he was ordered to conquer Hanzhong in the north. This shows that he has no intention of seizing my Bashu."

"As Huang Gongcao said in the past, Zhang Fei entered Shu with the intention of Yizhou. If Da Sima really wanted to seize Shu, why not let Zhang Fei restrain his troops from advancing. When Cao Cao's troops retreat, raise Wu and Chu troops to march westward. With Zhang Fei inside and Liu Bei outside, wouldn't my Yizhou be in danger?"

Zhang Song spoke eloquently in front of Liu Zhang, refuting Huang Quan's doubts about Liu Bei's intentions, and said: "Why bother to go to great lengths to conquer Hanzhong for Bashu? If Yizhou closed the pass and cut off the road to Shu, Zhang Fei and Wu Chu would be thousands of miles apart. , wouldn’t it mean to exterminate Hanzhong? This is not the way to use military force.”

Huang Quan sneered a few times and said: "How dare Zhang Biejia talk about the current situation? How dare he talk about the use of troops? There are three Shu roads connecting Hanzhong and Bashu, and there are also two Shu roads connecting Jiangzhou. Zhang Fei occupied Hanzhong, and his hands With the army and food in hand, we can send troops southward to occupy Jiangzhou."

"Jiangzhou (today's Chongqing) connects Sanjiang above and reaches Jianghan. If Jiangzhou is defeated by Zhang Fei, our door to Bashu will be wide open, and Liu Bei can inspire the troops of Wu and Chu to pour into Yizhou. I dare you to say goodbye, but don't do it now. Hanzhong, do you want to wait until Zhang Fei takes control of Hanzhong before asking for it?"

As a true Ba native, Huang Quan saw the significance of Zhang Fei's northern expedition to Hanzhong, and how Zhang Fei would echo Liu Bei's methods in the future.

The only smooth road between Yizhou and Jingzhou is the Yangtze River water transport.Yizhou can only rely on layer-by-layer defenses at the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River, Baidi, and Wu counties to defend against Jingchu's invasion.Jiangzhou is the last line of defense in the Yangtze River.

Once Jiangzhou is defeated, Wu and Chu soldiers and horses can use Jiangzhou as a base to enter Chengdu from the inner, middle and outer rivers. They can not only destroy the fortress along the way, but also capture and surrender Yizhou counties.By then the three armies will gather in Chengdu, and Liu Zhang's rule in Yizhou will be declared over.

Zhang Song wanted to speak to refute Huang Quan, but Liu Zhang stopped him.

Liu Zhang was troubled by the noise among his men. He stopped everyone and said: "Zhang Fei captured Hanzhong and surrendered Zhang Lu for my Yizhou. His achievements were not small. Now that he has arrived in Hanzhong, he drives people out of Shu." , Losing his solitary demeanor. He also sent people north to reward Zhang Fei's troops, and also ordered people to go out to find the Grand Sima and inquire about the reward."

After saying that, Liu Zhang said in a deep voice: "Now that Da Sima has received the reward, he can let Zhang Fei leave Shu and not allow him to stay in Shu."

"promise!"

Liu Zhang was neither a fool nor a political idiot.He was able to invite foreign troops into Shu to quell the rebellion. On the one hand, he was worried about the rebelliousness of the internal generals and was afraid of repeating Zhao Wei's old story. On the other hand, Zhang Song and Fazheng had been brainwashing and admonishing for a long time, so Liu Zhang had Got this idea.

Now that Zhang Fei had spent several months to get Hanzhong for him, Liu Zhang naturally couldn't let Zhang Fei stay any longer to avoid another disaster.Of course, with Zhang Fei's honest act, Liu Zhang was not so suspicious of Liu Bei's intention to seize Shu.

Wang Lei was worried and said: "If you want to do the etiquette, it is not impossible to live in harmony with Da Sima. However, Lei thought that a talented person should be appointed as the prefect of Hanzhong and take over the military and administration of Hanzhong. Moreover, Zhang Lu was very popular in Hanzhong, so he should be moved now. Go to Chengdu, kill or imprison, and must not be used by Zhang Fei and others."

After saying this, Wang Lei was afraid that Liu Zhang would not listen, so he kowtowed and said: "I beg my benefactor to accept Lei's words, so that Hanzhong will not be left without a master, but will be taken advantage of by thieves."

Liu Zhang sighed and said: "Since the king has such a suggestion, how can I not accept it? I ordered the second son Liu Chan to be the prefect of Hanzhong and take over the military affairs of Hanzhong. He brought drinks to reward Zhang Fei's troops, and General Yan Yan escorted him."

"promise!"
-
It was said in advance that Cao Cao and Liu Bei each deployed [-] troops in Jiangxia and Jiangling to confront each other across the Yangtze River.

Cao Cao lured Liu Bei to cross the river to fight, but Liu Bei adopted Zhuge Liang's strategy of holding on and using the two fortified cities of Gong'an and Xiakou to drain the morale of Cao Cao's troops and wait for work.

However, Cao Cao was not a fool. How could he not know Liu Bei's plan? He surrounded Xiakou City with troops but did not attack. Instead, he sent a large number of scouts to explore the north of the Yangtze River to understand the layout of the Yangtze River defense line.

Gan Ning, who was in charge of the navy, did not dare to slack off. He patrolled the Han River and the Yangtze River in boats, and even sometimes approached Xiakou City to boost the morale of the defenders.

For several months, apart from the tens of thousands of people who had forcibly moved several hundred miles from Xiakou to Suixian, Cao Cao and Liu Bei stared at each other across the Yangtze River.

Of course, Cao Cao did not forget to show off his literary talents and wrote to Liu Bei to express his true feelings, hoping that Liu Bei would return to the Central Plains and stop doing evil.

Liu Bei also replied to a few letters. In addition to recalling the past in Luoyang, he also cursed Cao Cao a few times.

As time passed, the news that Zhang Fei killed Han Sui and captured Hanzhong also reached Cao Cao.In the big tent, Cao Cao listened to the news from Longyou, with an expression of surprise and joy on his face.

"Prime Minister, Han Sui raised his troops to attack Yangping Pass and was killed by Zhang Fei's army. Yan Xing stayed in camp, gathered the defeated army, ambushed and killed all the generals, and now he has joined forces with Cheng Gongying. In order to respect Han Sui's youngest son, he raised his troops and surrendered to the Prime Minister."

Sima Yi summarized the contents of the letter and said: "Ma Chao led his troops to defeat Nanzheng and obtained Hanzhong's decades of money and grain savings. He also defeated Zhang Fei's men and was extremely brave. Now he will lead his troops into Longyou to fight for Han Sui's old territory. earth."

"Based on the situation in Kansai, the Prime Minister should make plans early!"

Cao Cao paced in the tent and sighed: "Zhang Fei, relying on his bravery and lack of strategy, is able to kill Han Sui and repel Ma Chao in Hanzhong. It is really unpredictable."

As he said that, Cao Cao looked to the left and right and sneered: "Zhang Fei has occupied Hanzhong, and Liu Zhang is raising tigers, and there will be a backlash in the near future. As I expected, Liu Bei has already planned to plot Bashu."

Cao Cao was already filled with fear. Liu Bei, who had been wandering around in the Central Plains, entered Jingchu like a fish entering the sea.Later, it became a trend to occupy Wu and Chu, but it was difficult to check and balance without the navy.

Next, what will happen if Liu Bei takes Bashu again?

It is bound to threaten the Central Plains and create a dangerous situation with itself, forming a confrontation between the north and the south.

Pacing and thinking deeply, Cao Cao asked: "The dramatic changes in Guanxi, Zhang Fei moved into Hanzhong, do you have any advice?"

Sun Quan spoke actively and said: "Although the Prime Minister unified China with soldiers and horses, Guanlong was surrendered by Jisi. Ma Chao, Han Sui, Yang Qiu, Hou Xuan, Cheng Yin, Li Kan and other Guanlong generals held military power and relied on their strength. Not inferior. Among the generals, only Ma and Han are the most respected."

"Looking at it from the perspective of power, today Han is dead, and Ma Chao wants to enter Long to seize the territory, so it is time to use troops. The prime minister can take advantage of this opportunity to lead his troops to defeat Guan Long and take the cold soil into China. When the northwest is calmed down, build a navy, and then attack Liu Bei ."

Cao Cao nodded slightly and agreed with Sun Quan's suggestion, but he was not satisfied. He hoped to find a way to both pacify Guanxi and restrain Liu Bei.

Sima Yi noticed Cao Cao's thoughts and asked, "Does the Prime Minister know that he can go to Long to visit Shu?"

"How could you not know?" Cao Cao replied.

Sima Yi organized his thoughts and said: "Long's upper right reaches Liangzhou, reaches Guanzhong in the east, and reaches Bashu in the south. Nowadays, there is chaos in Guanzhong, and Liu Bei has the intention to conquer Shu. If the Prime Minister can quickly pacify Guanxi, he can attack Bashu southward."

Cao Cao narrowed his eyes slightly and said: "Zhongda asked Gu Su to pacify Guanxi, and when Liu Bei attacked Shu, he took advantage of the civil strife in Yizhou to conquer Bashu in the south? Yizhou, defeated Liu Bei, and settled in the upper reaches of the river to attack Wu and Chu."

"Exactly!"

Sima Yi deduced: "If Liu Bei wants to establish his foundation, he must capture Yizhou. Now he orders Zhang Fei to enter Shu to prepare for seizing Shu. From Yi's perspective, there will be a battle between Liu Bei and Liu Zhang. At that time, Bashu was in civil strife. It’s time to use force for the Prime Minister.”

Pacing and thinking, Cao Cao looked at Jia Xu and asked, "Does Wen He have any good ideas?"

The success of Jia Xu's two tigers competing for food strategy made Cao Cao extremely happy.No matter how the process went, Han Sui was at least dead, which made it easier for him to pacify Kansai.

Jia Xu stroked his beard and said: "The prime minister lacks boats and can hardly cross the Yangtze River. It may be a feasible strategy to take the route of Bashu and compete with Liu Bei for supremacy. However, Xu thinks that Liu Zhang is weak and Liu Bei is cunning. It will be difficult for Liu Zhang to compete with him for a long time."

"What about Wen He's opinion?" Cao Cao asked.

Jia Xu smiled and said: "The prime minister has sent people to Shu to spread rumors that Liu Bei wants to seize Yizhou. Why not send a letter to Liu Zhang from Longyou when Liu Bei seizes Shu? He said that the Central Plains army will march south to Hanzhong. , and came to Wu and Chu, and vowed to be allies with them."

Cao Cao's eyes lit up, he laughed a few times, and said: "Wenhe's strategy is not bad. In the past, many states were close to Gu, but after Chrysostom, Liu Zhang and Liu Bei formed an alliance. If Liu Bei captures Shu, Liu Zhang will be isolated and helpless, and Gu will take action. Supporting him should make him determined to resist Liu."

Although Liu Zhang is weak, it is true that he is sitting in Yizhou.If he is determined to resist Liu Bei and pull Wu Chu soldiers into the battle in Yizhou, then Cao Cao can enter Shu from Longyou.Maybe he can defeat Liu Bei and capture Bashu.

"Ok!"

Cao Cao's eyes lingered on Sun Quan, Sima Yi, and Jia Xu, and he was very satisfied with the strategies offered by the three.

Putting his hand on his belt, Cao Cao smiled and said: "With such a talented person, why worry about the injustice in the northwest? The world is difficult to determine."

After a pause, Cao Cao said: "Ma is greedy and has little foresight. If Ma wants to enter Long, let him enter. Let Yan Xing lead Han Sui's old troops to fight Ma Chao. Miao Miaocai is ordered to lead the troops and horses to the west. Guanzhong, a lone pioneer."

"Prime Minister, what about our army?" Cao Hong asked.

"After the arrangements are completed, take the Wuguan Road and enter Guanzhong." Cao Cao ordered.

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)