Can I get to the other side?.

Chapter 442: Flooding the Seven Armies! Defeat Cao Ren!

Jingzhou, Changsha.

The news that the imperial army was marching south was immediately learned by the spies sent by Cao Cao, who then sent it back to Changsha at full speed.

"Report——!"

A dusty soldier broke into the lobby of the prefectural government.

Because he ran too fast, the soldier fell headfirst to the ground, his face covered in blood, looking extremely miserable.

But he didn't care about his injuries, he quickly got up and said in a hurried tone: "Sikong, urgent news from the front line!"

In the hall, Cao Cao was discussing matters with Xun Yu and others. Upon hearing this, he turned his gaze to the soldier and asked, "What news? Read it!"

The soldier said anxiously: "The false emperor sent out troops five days ago and personally led the army to fight. Now they are going down the Han River and have entered the territory of Jingzhou!"

Han River is one of the important rivers in Jingzhou.

If there is no obstruction along the way, the army will go down the Han River and reach Jiangxia area in just ten days at most.

As soon as this news came out, everyone in the hall's faces changed.

Cao Cao's pupils couldn't help but shrink.

The emperor...actually led the army in person?

For a moment, Cao Cao felt the pressure in his heart doubled again, and his head began to ache again.

But he suppressed his physical discomfort and asked calmly, "How many troops did the false emperor send out this time? How many armies were there in total?"

The soldier said, "We don't know the exact number, but according to reports from spies, the number of troops entering Jingzhou this time is no less than 80,000, including both land and sea forces."

"In addition to the troops heading south to Jingzhou, there are two more troops heading towards Yanzhou and Yizhou respectively."

Cao Cao's mood suddenly sank after hearing this.

The 80,000-strong army is just one of the routes.

The other two armies must be heading for supporting Yizhou and attacking Jiangdong. The emperor is planning to fight on three fronts!

"Sikong, the false emperor has sent troops so quickly, we must also send troops to Xiangyang as soon as possible to stop the false emperor's army from moving south."

"After the pseudo-emperor's army enters the Han River, they will definitely choose to attack Xiangyang. This is the first pass and must be firmly defended!"

Xun You said with a serious expression.

The reason for moving from Xiangyang City to Changsha is because of Xiangyang’s unique geographical location. If you go along the Han River, you will inevitably pass through Xiangyang.

Therefore, they arranged the defense lines in Nanyang, Xinye and Xiangyang this time, with the aim of watching each other and controlling the water and land routes.

This time the imperial court gave up the land route and chose to go directly south by water, which put great pressure on the defense of Xiangyang and required strengthening of the defense.

They had no time to waste.

Cao Cao naturally knew the importance of Xiangyang. After taking a deep breath, he gave the order: "Send a message to Cao Ren, order him to rush from Xinye to Xiangyang to take charge. At the same time, order Xiahou Yuan and Xiahou Shang to lead troops to ambush along the Han River and snipe at the false emperor's army!"

"We must stop the pseudo-emperor's army outside Xiangyang and never let them take Xiangyang City!"

Cao Cao quickly issued the order.

Xun Yu and others took the order and retreated.

After they left, Cao Cao looked at the gloomy sky outside the window, feeling very heavy.

Now he has no time to care about the situation in Yizhou and Yangzhou. This time the emperor leading the army in person is both a pressure and an opportunity for him.

The battlefield is unpredictable. If something happens to the emperor on the battlefield, or even if he accidentally dies...

Cao Cao's eyes flickered and his heartbeat suddenly accelerated.

This may be his best chance to turn defeat into victory!
……

After the southern expedition army set out from Chang'an, they marched by water, heading south along the Han River towards Jingzhou.

The army’s first goal of this trip was very clear.

That is to capture Xiangyang!
Xiangyang City is located on the east side of the Han River, bordering the Han River to the west and Nanyang County to the east. It is connected to the Huai River and forms a horn with each other.

As long as Xiangyang City is captured, it means that we have gained a firm foothold in Jingzhou. With the first stronghold, logistical support can arrive continuously.

It is no exaggeration to say that as long as Xiangyang is captured, it is equivalent to taking half of Jingzhou, which is of great significance.

On the Han River.

Countless ships stretched for miles, so vast that one could not see the end of the line.

Ships of all sizes were sailing along the Han River, with large Han dragon flags fluttering in the wind on the ships. Anyone who saw them could not help but admire what a mighty army they were!
On one of the Dragon-class warships, Liu Xie stood on the deck and looked out at the scenery on both sides of the strait and the mighty navy, with his heart filled with pride.

"Your Majesty, we will reach Xiangyang City in five days. The spies we sent out have already discovered traces of Cao's army."

Zhao Yun came to report to Liu Xie.

Liu Xie withdrew his gaze upon hearing this, and then asked: "What is the movement of Cao's army? I believe they have already made preparations for resistance in advance."

Zhao Yun nodded and said, "According to the spies, all the docks along the Han River have been destroyed. Heavy troops have been deployed in Xiangyang City, and the city has been fortified and cleared."

Zhao Yun told all the information he had collected one by one.

After listening to him, Liu Xie nodded slightly, then turned around and returned to the cabin. Inside the cabin, Zhuge Liang, Lu Bu, Zhou Yu, Chen Gong, Yang Xiu and others were discussing something in front of the feng shui map. When they saw him come in, they all stood up and saluted.

"No need to be so polite. How did you discuss it?"

Liu Xie raised his hand to signal them to sit down, then he sat down in the main seat and asked.

It won't be long before the army reaches Xiangyang City.

But Xiangyang City is a tough nut to crack, and it is not easy to capture Xiangyang. During this period of time, Zhuge Liang and others have been discussing countermeasures.

"Kong Ming, please tell me about it."

Liu Xie turned his attention to Zhuge Liang. This time, Zhuge Liang was appointed as the chief strategist in the army and was given full responsibility for formulating strategies, while he was only responsible for nodding.

As an emperor, you just need to be a good mascot in the army. Don't imitate a certain micro-control master who is bad at playing and eventually leads to defeat.

Professional things are left to professional people to do.

"Your Majesty."

Zhuge Liang bowed slightly and then said, "The Cao army will surely notice the movement of the army heading south after entering Jingzhou."

"According to the intelligence we collected before the war, Cao's army is mainly deployed in Xiangyang, Nanyang, and Xinye. Now that we have given up the land route and are taking the water route, Cao's army will definitely gather in Xiangyang."

"We are still quite far from Xiangyang. After discussion, we believe that Cao's army is likely to set up an ambush near the Han River."

"Therefore, we believe that we should temporarily stop our march."

Liu Xie raised his eyebrows and said, "Why? Are you worried about my safety? If so, there is no need to worry. I can just stay behind."

He was not a man who cared much about his reputation. He did not want to see the army being forced to change its strategy because of his presence.

"Your Majesty's safety must of course be considered, but it is also for strategic reasons."

Zhou Yu said, "It is now June, the rainy season. The Han River is located in the south, and it has been raining continuously recently, causing the water level of the Han River to rise."

"Xiangyang is located on the bank of the Han River. It is the only place with docks and ports in the entire Han River basin."

"The reason for this is that the Jingzhou navy is stationed here. Apart from this place, all other docks and shipyards have been destroyed." "In other words, if the army wants to land and attack Xiangzhou City, it has to defeat the navy stationed in Xiangyang City first."

"So I think we should stop marching and build a dam upstream. Then we can carry the overwhelming water downstream and destroy the entire navy!"

This was the decision they came to after some discussion. Using the water power to defeat the enemy was the best strategy.

As for ambushes... once the dam is destroyed, all the ambushes will be submerged in the flood.

After hearing Zhou Yu's strategy, Liu Xie was very satisfied and agreed without hesitation: "Then let's act according to this strategy."

Upon hearing this, all the ministers bowed their heads and accepted the order.

……

More than ten miles outside Xiangyang City, the mighty Jingzhou navy was stationed here.

Jingzhou has been an important military location since ancient times and its geographical location is extremely important. As a large province with many waterways, the scale of Jingzhou’s navy is also very large.

At this time, more than a hundred large and small warships were lying on the Han River, looking extremely majestic.

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On one of the main ships, Cao Ren was looking at the map intently, his brows furrowed and his eyes full of confusion.

"It shouldn't be like this. Why hasn't the false emperor's army arrived yet?"

Cao Ren said to himself, his tone was doubtful.

According to the speed of the pseudo-emperor's army, they should have arrived in Xiangyang half a month ago. For this reason, he had already made preparations to deal with it.

Not only did he send troops to ambush along the coast, but he also ordered the navy to prepare for combat and set up numerous blockades on the Han River.

At that time, as soon as the imperial court's troops arrived, the ambushes on both sides would attack the ships, and then he would lead the navy to destroy the enemy in one fell swoop!
But not long ago, spies reported that the pseudo-emperor's army stopped going downstream and stationed along the coast, which made him feel a little uneasy.

Could it be that the other party has already noticed the ambush?

So you plan to take the land route instead?

If this is true, then it would be difficult for him to inflict heavy damage on the enemy by relying on the advantage of the navy.

"General, are we still going to ambush along the coast?"

Xiahou Yuan at the side asked, "If the false emperor's army changes its route by land, Xiangyang City may not be their first target."

"We should withdraw our troops to garrison in Xinye and Nanyang."

Hearing Xiahou Yuan's words, Cao Ren couldn't help but sigh and said, "Send a message to Bo Ren and ask him to lead his troops back to Xiangyang City first."

Xiahou Yuan nodded, turned and left.

Then Cao Ren walked out of the ship, stood at the railing and looked into the distance, with a lot of thoughts in his mind.

The sky was covered with dark clouds and a light drizzle was falling.

The rainy season in the south is the most unbearable. There is no sun all day long, and it is very humid everywhere. All clothes feel wet.

Just as Cao Ren was thinking about the enemy's plan, he suddenly heard a roar coming from a distance, getting closer and closer.

Immediately afterwards, a line of white tide appeared in his sight.

Seeing this line of white tide, Cao Ren's pupils instantly shrank to the size of a needle tip. Then he turned around without hesitation and shouted: "Flood! It's a flood!"

"Quickly secure the ship! Notify the garrisons on both sides to evacuate! Quickly!!"

Cao Ren almost roared as he spoke these words.

However, it was already too late.

The mighty flood came rushing in with the force of an overwhelming sea, making a deafening roar. In just a moment, it submerged everything on both sides of the Han River, turning it into a swamp!
The garrisons stationed on both sides of the river had no time to react and were directly submerged by the flood!

What made Cao Ren feel even more horrified and his scalp tingling was that there were countless pieces of driftwood floating in the water!

The front end of each piece of driftwood was sharpened, and under the turbulent flood, they became death warrants of the God of Hell!

The soldiers who were scattered by the flood hit the driftwood and sank into the water forever.

But the biggest crisis is still faced by the Jingzhou Navy!

The ships of the Jingzhou navy were all anchored on the Han River at that time. When the flood came, many ships were washed away and collided with each other.

What’s even more terrifying is that these logs will make a big hole in the bottom of the boat when they hit it!
In an instant, at least a dozen ships were directly hit and sunk by the driftwood, and countless naval soldiers fell into the flood!
"Steady! Steady quickly!"

Cao Ren held on to the railing tightly to steady himself while shouting orders at the top of his lungs.

He no longer had time to think about how the flood came. Now the situation of the entire Jingzhou navy was extremely dangerous!

But their nightmare doesn't end there.

Because in the upstream direction, huge warships were sailing down the Han River, and on all of these warships were flying the dragon flag of the Han Dynasty!

It's the enemy!
On one of the Dragon-class warships, Zhou Yu stood in the drizzle, looking coldly at the chaotic Jingzhou navy below, his eyes filled with hatred.

"attack!"

Zhou Yu waved his hand and gave the order.

As his orders were given, the catapults equipped on the warships were launched one after another!

"Boom——!"

"Boom——!"

A stone bullet the size of a millstone shot out and hit the lake surface in front of a Jingzhou navy warship, causing waves several feet high.

Suddenly, the warship shook violently, and the Cao army soldiers on the ship held on to the railings tightly, fearing that they would fall into the water.

However, before the soldiers on the ship could catch their breath, they heard one of them screaming, "Here they come again! Here they come again!"

Everyone subconsciously raised their heads and saw small dots faintly appearing in the sky ahead. Then, the small dots gradually became larger and larger in their sight.

"No!"

Amid the panicked shouts of Cao's soldiers, stone bullets as big as millstones fell from the sky.

Hit these navy warships again and again!

The Cao army soldiers on the boat only felt a violent tremor, and the whole boat was shaking and slowly sinking!

"The ship is sinking!"

Amid the exclamations of one soldier after another, many soldiers who had not yet recovered from their shock looked fixedly at the middle of the ship.

Only then did they realize that the stone bullet had actually broken the entire ship and smashed it into two pieces!
"Abandon ship! Abandon ship! Everyone abandon ship!"

Xiahou Yuan shouted and jumped into the lake first, swimming desperately towards the friendly forces on both sides.

Under his leadership, the Cao army soldiers on the boat jumped off the boat and fled, and for a moment they seemed like dumplings in a pot.

But even so, some of Cao's soldiers were still a little slow in their actions.

These people were either swept to the bottom of the lake by the whirlpool formed when the ship sank, or their heads were covered by the sailboat and pulled to the bottom of the lake.

And the same situation is happening throughout the Han River!

(End of this chapter)