Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 476 Three Northern Expeditions
Xiangfan and the Seventh Army, which Cao Cao longed for, are now in Liu Bei's hands.

When Liu Bei heard that Xiangfan was captured by Pang Tong, his smile was as bright as a flower.

"Shi Yuan is worthy of the name Feng Chu. He actually faked his own death to deceive Cao Ren and lured him into sending troops. He then took advantage of the situation and defeated him. Now that Xiangfan is in my hands, I have no internal worries!"

Liu Bei held the scarf tightly in his hand and said with a smile: "Yun Chang defeated Cao Ren and surrendered to Jin. Zi Ming retired Zhang He and promoted the wise men. Shi Yuan came up with a clever plan and went to Xiangfan. Although this campaign lasted for more than a year, many soldiers were lost. But fortunately, we finally defeated Xiangfan."

The Battle of Xiangfan involved so many generals and the number of troops far exceeded that of the Battle of Chrysostom.

The only difference is that the leaders are different. In the Battle of Chrysostom, the coach is Huo Jun. The battle of Xiangyang was fought by all the generals of the Southern Han Dynasty. The commander was Liu Bei, and the executors were Guan Yu, Lu Meng, Pang Tong, Liao Hua, Meng Da and other generals. Everyone contributed, but only Huo Jun suffered.

For Liu Bei, the significance of this battle was not only to capture Xiangyang and severely damage the Northern Wei Dynasty, but also to reduce Huo Jun's influence in the Southern Han Dynasty and strengthen his authority in the country.

It's not that Liu Bei is afraid of Huo Jun, but that weakening Huo Jun's influence is not only beneficial to Liu Bei, but also to Huo Jun. After all, no matter how much Liu Bei trusted Huo Jun and was willing to share power, the two of them were always king and subject.

The two armies suffered losses in the battle. On the Cao and Wei side, Cao Ren was dismissed from his post and became a commoner, Xu Huang was injured, Yan Xing and Zhu Zhi were killed, Yu Jin, Hu Xiu, Fu Fang and Lu Chang surrendered to the Han and captured more than 48,000 Wei troops. , a great victory second only to the Battle of Chrysostom.

However, unlike the last time when Jing Xiang surrendered his soldiers as consumables, this duel directly damaged the strength of Cao Wei, Jingzhou and the Chinese army, causing Cao Cao great pain.

Liu Bei pondered for a while and said: "Cao Cao's troops are no less than 200,000. Now, even if he has defeated seven armies and Jingxiang's troops, there are still 150,000 or 60,000. Together with the Wuhuan and the Southern Xiongnu, they have overwhelmed the country. , they can still send 200,000 troops. They have many cavalry and strong infantry. The troops in this water lake are not as good as the Chinese infantry and cavalry!"

Fa Zheng stroked his beard and said, "Your Majesty, what do you think of the strength of Cao Cao and his men?"

Liu Bei handed the letter to Fazheng and asked excitedly: "Xiaozhi, now that Xiangfan has been conquered, I want to gather troops from all sides to break the enemy's momentum and then fight Cao Cao decisively. How about that?"

Fazheng quickly scanned the letter and asked: "Your Majesty said to break the enemy's power, I wonder why?"

The Battle of Xiangfan lasted for a year and a half. Not counting the food, grass and baggage, the soldiers and horses who had previously fought with Guan Yu were already exhausted. Not many people have high morale today, only Liu Bei has troops under his banner. However, the number of soldiers and horses under Liu Bei's account was far less than that of Cao Cao, otherwise he would not have been suppressed by Cao Cao.

Compared with the losses in the Northern Wei Dynasty, in the Southern Han Dynasty, Guan Yu was seriously injured, Shiren was killed in battle, and Meng Da was disabled. The nearly 20,000 soldiers lost due to the defeat of Wancheng, siege, and battles were less than the losses in the Northern Wei Dynasty.

Fazheng nodded sternly and said in analysis: "Your Majesty should underestimate China's power. It has been twenty years since Cao Cao pacified Henan; China has been safe for twelve years since Hebei was established. China's household registrations are becoming more abundant, and the number of soldiers and civilians is increasing. It is expected that if we look at it correctly, China will send troops and horses, no less than 300,000 in total."

After being reminded by Fazheng, Liu Bei became more awake and asked: "Does filial piety mean to withdraw the troops?"

Fazheng poured cold water on Liu Bei and said: "What does it have to do with the soldiers to defeat Xiangyang? I can only make your majesty and the generals happy. The soldiers of Jianghan and Han worked hard on the expedition and followed Guan Junhou for a long time. They have already defeated Xiangfan. I'm afraid The generals hope to return home with great reward!"

The military strength and combat effectiveness are not as good as those of Cao Wei, and the morale of some soldiers is not high. Liu Bei wants to change from passive to active, thinking that defeating Cao Cao may not be that easy. If Cao Cao seizes the opportunity, the Southern Han Dynasty will suffer a loss.

Liu Bei did not hesitate and said: "How can we not boost morale by defeating Xiangfan?"

"Your Majesty went to the east of the Yangtze River to support Jingchu and conquer Bashu. He fought every year. Every year he started serving, and the soldiers and civilians were exhausted. Today, your Majesty's troops are not as numerous as those in China, and their infantry and cavalry are not as strong as China's. How dare you say that you are tired of your troops?" Did the old army defeat the enemy?"

Liu Bei stroked his gray beard and thought about it and said: "What Xiaozhi said is reasonable, but Cao Cao knew that Xiangfan was captured by me, so he was unwilling to withdraw his troops. Cao Cao hung his troops in the north, and it may not be easy for me to withdraw my troops."

"How can your Majesty not know the geography of Xiangfan?"

Fazheng smiled lightly and said: "Cao Cao raised a hundred thousand troops to surround us, but he still sighed when he faced the city and the river. If Cao Cao does not withdraw after a long siege, your majesty will wait until his troops are tired and attack with the navy, and he will definitely be defeated. His army can attack Wancheng at this time, and can look forward to Xu and Luo!" After a pause, Fazheng said: "Now Xiangfan has been captured by our army, so if we take a closer look at it, Cao Cao also has the intention to withdraw his troops. What are the specifics? You can tell in ten months."

"good!"

Liu Bei hesitated a little and asked for advice: "Now that Xiangfan has been conquered, I don't know how to be filial. What path can I take to achieve success in the next Northern Expedition?"

Hearing this, Fazheng frowned and thought for a long time, then said: "I have three opinions: upper, middle and lower. I wonder if your majesty is willing to listen?"

"Please speak!"

Liu Bei sat upright and extended his hand to invite Fazheng to speak.

Fa Zheng stroked his beard and thought, and said: "The best strategy is for your Majesty to join forces with Huo Du to surround and attack Shouchun. Under Shouchun City, it connects Xiangfan to the west and Huaiyin to the east. There is no screen in Yuzhou at that time, and the Central Plains can be seen. Your Majesty will return the troops. In Wancheng, the central government is frightened; Huo Du sends troops to Henan, and the Central Plains is shaken. If Your Majesty can go to Luoyang, and Huo Du goes to Yan and Henan, Cao's thieves can be wiped out!"

"In the middle strategy, I ordered Huo Du to lead the partial army out of Huainan. Your Majesty will lead the army to break through Wancheng, cross Xiong'er, knock on Yique Pass, and take the old capital Luoyang. After the first battle, we marched to Luoyang and forced the thieves to move to Yecheng. At that time, your Majesty Dong Ke Looking to the south of the river, we can reach Guanzhong in the west. If we cross the river twice, we can bring peace to the world!"

"He made a plan. Your Majesty went against Xichuan to attack Wuguan, and ordered Bashu to send troops to attack Guanzhong. The two armies marched to Guanzhong together, and the old capital Chang'an was restored. The second expedition left Wancheng, the first general left Guanzhong, and Huo Du entered the Central Plains. The three armies swept through Henan, and then If Beiping is quiet and peaceful, the world will be at peace!"

With Xiangfan, the army marches out of the middle. Just as Zhuge Liang said to the enemy on the river in the past, they can respond from left to right, wait and see the Central Plains, and revive the Han Dynasty.

Although the above three strategies of Fa Zheng are simple to say, no matter which one is implemented, they are difficult to implement. Most of the pressure must be placed on Liu Bei, which places extremely high demands on Liu Bei's military talents. After all, he had to fight all the way and defeat all the troops of Cao Wei before he could capture Chang'an or Luoyang.

Liu Bei frowned slightly after listening to Fazheng's suggestion. There are almost no tricks in the upper, middle and lower strategies. The only one that made him relaxed was the top strategy, joining forces with Huo Jun to defeat Shouchun. However, Liu Bei had some concerns about Jianghuai, and the last Jianghuai epidemic left a deep impression on him.

The middle strategy, taking Luoyang seemed convenient and fast, but he had been to Luoyang in the early years, but he knew that Luoyang had eight passes. How could those eight passes be so easy to defeat. Moreover, he will lead the main force to fight face to face with Cao Cao's army. This is not easy, and he may easily be defeated.

The next best thing is to take Wuguan and enter Guanzhong, and with the cooperation of Hanzhong, the probability of success is not small. But if Cao Wei's army keeps a close eye on the army, let alone entering Guanzhong, he will not even be able to get out of Nanyang. But to be honest, if both armies can enter Guanzhong together, the probability of winning Guanzhong is really not low.

Liu Bei hesitated for a long time and said: "The plan is that Shouchun is not as strong as Xiangfan, and it is even more difficult than Xiangfan. I and Zhongmiao joined forces to make the Northern Expedition, but it failed in the end, and even the generals were lost. I fell in the plan. Luoyang is difficult and dangerous, and Xiong Er is difficult to overcome. If the bandit soldiers If we attack together, the army will be easily defeated."

"The next plan is that Wuguan is long and narrow, and Wancheng has not been conquered, so it is difficult to advance westward. However, if we can conquer Wancheng with troops and get the support of Hanzhong's soldiers and horses, we can work together to defeat the enemy and encroach on Guanzhong. Looking at the pros and cons of the three strategies, it is said that each has its own advantages and disadvantages , I have thought deeply about it and it is difficult to decide, and I will be allowed to return home and discuss it in detail with all your ministers."

Not to mention that it was difficult for Liu Bei to decide, even Fazheng, who offered these three strategies, was still hesitant. Now that Liu Bei has decided to return to the country for discussion, Fazheng is deeply grateful. After all, he is most afraid of Liu Bei being too hot-tempered to choose any one option.

"Your Majesty, the war in Xiangfan is about to end now. We should send messengers to the west and east to inform Huo Du and General Yide to withdraw their troops. In case our army returns south and the two armies are defeated by Cao Cao," Fa Zheng suggested.

"good!"

Liu Bei ordered the troops around him and said: "According to what Fa Qing said, I ordered the Second Division to return to the army. I said that Xiangfan has been attacked and it is not suitable to fight for a long time."

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)