People in the Three Kingdoms: Starting from Preaching

Chapter 350 Zhou Yu Treats Huang Gai

"Our army has been trying to quell the bandits for quite some time, but we still have not seen any results. General Zhou, aren't you worried at all? If you keep wasting food and fodder, I think our army will be unable to continue before the bandits are quelled."

In the temporary camp, an old veteran hurried to the main tent. When he saw Zhou Yu who was reading peacefully, he glared at him and then questioned him.

As an old man who followed Sun Jian around the country in his early years, Huang Gai has always looked down on young boys like Zhou Yu.

However, Sun Ce had relied heavily on Zhou Yu before, and Zhou Yu did have some abilities. He helped Sun Ce occupy Jiangdong, which forced Huang Gai to accept the reality that Zhou Yu's status was gradually rising.

However, this kind of submission has a prerequisite, that is, Zhou Yu cannot make mistakes, and now he feels that Zhou Yu is making mistakes.

"Our army has tens of thousands of well-armored soldiers, but it is simply a waste of talent to deal with a few bandits. Could it be that General Zhou, with his powerful army, does not even have the courage to fight the bandits head-on?

If that is the case, then let me fight. I am willing to sign a military order. If I cannot get Lü Meng's head back, I will leave it to General Zhou to deal with!"

While he was speaking, Huang Gai sat aside, glanced at Zhou Yu and snorted coldly, with no dissatisfaction and sarcasm on his face at all.

Zhou Yu put down the book, saw Huang Gai's expression, and just smiled helplessly.

These veteran generals from Sun Jian's period were very experienced, so it was difficult for Zhou Yu to get angry at them. However, problems of this magnitude were nothing to Zhou Yu. How capable a boss is depends largely on whether he can handle the relationship with his subordinates well.

This kind of troublemaker who is not easy to discipline but difficult to deal with would be a headache for most people, but Zhou Yu is confident that he can handle it.

"Does Gongfu really want to challenge me to a fight?" Zhou Yu looked at Huang Gai with a smile.

Huang Gai raised his head and said proudly: "Why should I be afraid? Just let me lead 20,000 troops and I will defeat the enemy in one battle. If you can't do it, I will bring my head to you!"

The best thing to do for such a request is of course to satisfy him.

Zhou Yu immediately raised his head and cheered loudly: "In that case, let Gong Fu lead 20,000 troops into the mountains to defeat the bandits!"

Huang Gai was overjoyed when he heard this, and his expression towards Zhou Yu softened a bit: "I obey your orders, General Zhou, just wait for good news from me!"

So Huang Gai turned around and left. Soon, he led his army and the 20,000-strong army marched into the mountains in a mighty force.

Zhou Yu continued to look at the book in his hand as if nothing had happened.

Not long after, a scholar walked into the tent. It was Zhou Yu's friend and subordinate Lu Su. However, Lu Su had a worried look on his face at this time.

"Why did Gongjin order General Huang Gai to lead the troops to attack at this time? Although the bandits' combat effectiveness is weak, they have been roaming in the mountains for many years and are more familiar with the environment. If a real fight breaks out, General Huang Gai will definitely suffer a setback, and it is not impossible that he will even be defeated." As soon as Lu Su came in, he became confused and worried.

However, Zhou Yu smiled and shook his head when he heard this: "Zi Jing can be bolder. Gong Fu will definitely lose this battle."

Lu Su was even more surprised: "Since Gongjin knew that he would lose, why did he insist on fighting?"

Zhou Yu said: "Although we will lose this battle, it will not be a big defeat. Although Gongfu is angry, he is a veteran general after all. Once the situation is not right, he will wake up. With the ability of the old general, it will not be difficult to bring the army back safely. After all, the enemy soldiers are of low combat effectiveness and are not a big threat."

When Lu Su heard this, he still found it difficult to understand for a moment. Even if this was the case, why should he rush to suffer defeat?

However, looking at Zhou Yu's calm expression, Lu Su slowly came to his senses.

It was no secret that Huang Gai, the old general, was disobedient. After a little thought, he guessed Zhou Yu's purpose: "Could it be that Gongjin wanted to use this to warn Huang Gai?"

"Zi Jing is the one who knows me best. That's exactly what he said." Zhou Yu laughed, and then changed the subject: "But it's not just that. A small defeat can also paralyze the enemy, which is not a bad thing."

Hearing this, Lu Su also nodded and said, "It seems that everything is under Gongjin's control. Now the defenses of the nearby counties are slowly tightening. We just need to completely lock down the enemy soldiers and we can defeat them in one fell swoop."

Zhou Yu returned his gaze to the book and said calmly, "Yes, they don't have much time."

Zhou Yu and Lu Su's judgments were very accurate. Huang Gai had only led his army on the expedition for three or four days when they returned covered in dust. However, there was no Lu Meng's head in Huang Gai's hands.

On the contrary, many soldiers' morale was slightly low when they saw the wounded. One could tell what the result would be by looking at their miserable appearance.

Fortunately, the army was still intact, which means that what Zhou Yu said finally came true. Although Huang Gai was defeated in this battle, it was only a minor defeat and did not cause too serious consequences.

Zhou Yu and Lu Su looked at each other, shook their heads and smiled.

"General Zhou, I have lost the battle and I am willing to accept the punishment!"

Huang Gai returned to the camp with a very ugly look on his face. When he thought of the military order he had received before the expedition, he felt embarrassed and ashamed.

As soon as he saw Zhou Yu, he knelt on the ground, then smiled bitterly and accepted the punishment. Zhou Yu smiled, then pretended to be serious and said, "I have to be punished for not doing well in the battle. Come, punish him with a whip!"

When Huang Gai heard this, instead of getting angry, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Lu Su looked at Zhou Yu again, and couldn't help but admire Zhou Yu's way of controlling his subordinates. His ability to judge people by their abilities was truly amazing.

At this time, although Huang Gai could be given a break, he might not appreciate it. Given Huang Gai's competitive nature, he might even feel that Zhou Yu was looking down on him.

By punishing Huang Gai impartially and impartially, Huang Gai's guilt for the defeat could be eliminated and he would feel more relieved.

The final result was that Huang Gai completely disappeared from then on.

Zhou Yu didn't need any extra comfort or flattery, and he even suppressed Huang Gai's arrogance by simply complying with Huang Gai's unreasonable request.

Although Zhou Yu was young, he was a master at taking advantage of the situation and he easily defeated Huang Gai.

Of course, simply judging someone by his faults will not completely convince them. Zhou Yu also knew that Huang Gai was being honest now not because he was convinced by him, but because he had to hold his anger because he failed to defeat Lu Meng in this battle.

In this situation, only by doing better than Huang Gai and fighting more beautifully than Huang Gai can Huang Gai be completely convinced.

After all, strength is what matters in this world. As long as you can win the battle that Huang Gai cannot win, Huang Gai will naturally be convinced.

Soon, Zhou Yu waited for the time to win. As the nearby counties tightened their defenses, the living space of Lu Meng's army had been compressed to a certain extent, and this was the time to take the initiative to attack.

The reason why rebels like Lu Meng are difficult to suppress is that once local officials respond, Lu Meng will hide in the mountains, making it difficult for officers and soldiers to clear them out, not to mention that Lu Meng is still roaming around, which makes it even more difficult for officers and soldiers to suppress them.

Once the officers and soldiers withdrew, Lu Meng would lead his troops out of the mountains and occupy nearby counties and towns, posing a great threat to the local area.

For a long time, Lu Meng's force has caused unbearable suffering to the nearby counties and prefectures, and now it is finally time to fight back against Lu Meng.

Of course, Zhou Yu did not lead his army to attack immediately. Instead, he took enough time to complete the encirclement and contraction of Lu Meng.

After the alliance, different states and counties can also obey unified military arrangements. Now the nearby counties and counties have been strictly guarded. No matter where Lu Meng goes, he will encounter strong obstacles.

Without enough space, Zhou Yu can take the initiative to attack. If he doesn't attack, it's fine. But once he attacks, it will be a fatal blow!
Sure enough, after sufficient preparation, Zhou Yu's proactive attack this time immediately showed results.

After entering the forest, Zhou Yu led his troops to advance step by step in an effort to maintain stability. His cautious style of play soon made Lu Meng's army suffer.

Naturally, Lu Meng would not sit still and wait for death. He ambushed and blocked the enemy in the forest several times, but Zhou Yu was able to respond every time.

Although Zhou Yu's army was advancing in the forest in divided forces, they always kept in touch with each other and could support each other at any time. Every time they took action, they would send out scouts to gather information. Although the march was slow, the forest here was not very deep, so it was only a matter of time to completely clear it out.

With such a foolproof fighting style, Lu Meng tried to attack several times, but they were all resolved by Zhou Yu one by one, and he was defeated every time.

The combat advantage that the officers and soldiers did not exert against Huang Gai was fully demonstrated against Zhou Yu. When encountering Zhou Yu, a real tough guy, Lu Meng immediately felt that he had no idea where to start.

After several days of advancement, Zhou Yu's army won victory after victory, and Huang Gai had to admit defeat.

Now seeing Zhou Yu's flawless fighting style, and then thinking about his previous crude approach, it is obvious who is superior and who is inferior. After this, Huang Gai finally bowed his head completely.

After all, he was a veteran. When he saw this situation, he knew that as long as he continued to keep moving forward at a steady pace, it would not be a fantasy to completely wipe out the enemy troops.

Runan is mostly hilly, without many high mountains. After sending troops to guard the dangerous mountains, the space available for Lu Meng to move around is relatively limited. As long as these few mountains are cleared, Lu Meng can be forced out naturally.

Either fight head-on or run out of the mountains to find another way out, but no matter what Lu Meng chooses, Zhou Yu has a response.

Huang Gai could hardly see any hope for Lu Meng to turn the tables. Zhou Yu's tactics were far more brilliant than his own reckless rush. He had no choice but to accept it.

Although Huang Gai's fighting was not very beautiful this time, his judgment was still quite accurate.

While Zhou Yu was making great progress, Lu Meng was naturally in depression.

Li Zheng, who was tied up by Lu Meng's army, clearly felt this depressed and uneasy atmosphere. However, Li Zheng was not in a hurry, but chatted with the soldiers who were guarding him.

"Brother, why did you follow your leader to start a rebellion? This is a serious matter that could cost you your life. If we are stopped by the soldiers this time, I'm afraid you will be dead for sure."

(End of this chapter)