Chu and Han contend for the throne

Chapter 196 Political Wisdom
Xiang Zhuang did not stay in the old camp of Dabie Mountain. After picking up Yu Ji and more than 5000 women and children, he went all the way east out of Dabie Mountain, joined the cavalry army stationed by Shou Lake, and then passed Quyang and Yinling along the Chidao Going straight to Dongcheng, due to the addition of more than 5000 women and children, the marching speed was greatly affected.

From the old camp in the Dabie Mountains to Wujiang Town on the north bank of the Wujiang River, it took less than [-] miles, but it took more than half a month!

Although the Chu army walked extremely slowly, Li Zuoche, who was entrenched near Quyang, Yinling, and Dongcheng, did not act rashly. Li Zuoche also knew that Xiangzhuang now has tens of thousands of cavalry, and it is no longer the bereaved dog of the past!When the army reached Wujiang Town, Xiang Zhuang immediately sent troops out to collect ships and prepare to cross the river.

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With the wind blowing in the river, Xiang Zhuang was walking along the river accompanied by Wei Liao and Bai Lixian.

Huyan Zhengde and Jin Xiang followed the three of them step by step, and there were hundreds of Huyan warriors guarding in the distance, which was also what Bailixian told him. Seeing that the political vortex in Jiangdong was approaching, the protection of Xiangzhuang was also important. It must become more rigorous and comprehensive than before. The so-called open guns are easy to hide, but hidden arrows are hard to guard against. Don't be careless!

On the other side of the river, in the bay of the river, there are still a few fishing boats casting nets in the middle of winter.

Behind that river bay is a fishing village. It is noon at this time, and a few faint smokes are rising from the fishing village. You can faintly hear the sounds of children playing, roosters and dogs. This is in stark contrast to the "white bones exposed in the wild, and no rooster crowing for thousands of miles" in the Wei Dynasty of the Central Plains.

Obviously, Jiangdong has not suffered much damage.

Although both Guan Ying and Zhou Bo's armies had fought against Jiangdong, the military discipline of the troops commanded by these two men was not bad. , but most of the people he killed were clan armed forces who gathered to make trouble, so they were very sympathetic to ordinary people.

Jiangdong was not destroyed by the flames of war, which made Xiang Zhuang not only rejoiced, but also felt a lot of pressure.

Along the way to the south, Xiang Zhuang heard more or less news about Jiangdong, especially the hunter who was said to have moved from Jiangdong to the six counties he met in the Dabie Mountains half a month ago, and even said a lot about Jiangdong Recently, Xiang Zhuang doubted that the Orion was specially sent by Zhou Yin, governor of Jiujiang County.

The current situation in Jiangdong is truly a turbulent undercurrent.

With [-] troops, Xiang Tuo occupied the entire county of Zhangjun and a dozen large counties in the north of Kuaiji County, and received the support of the Kanto gentry. Years of operation, although it is not considered a deep-rooted tree, it is still quite influential.

Xiang Guan has [-] soldiers and controls more than [-] counties in the south of Kuaiji County. Moreover, almost all the local clan forces support Xiang Guan's succession to the throne of King Chu. These clan forces are deeply rooted in the local area and have great influence!There are many things that the county guards and county magistrates cannot solve, but as long as the clan elders come forward, they can be easily settled.

There is also Xiang Ta, Xiang Ta is the real descendant of the Xiang family, unlike Xiang Tuo and Xiang Guan, who are just fake sons.

I have to start with Xiang Yan, the old general of Chu. Xiang Yan had three sons, the eldest son Xiang Chao, the second son Xiang Liang, and the third son Xiang Bo.

Xiang Chao has two sons, the eldest son is named Ji, the second son is named Tie, that is, Xiang Yu, and Xiang Liang also has a son, named Ji, that is, Xiangzhuang; among them, Xiang Ji is much older than Xiang Chan and Xiang Ji. , and Xiang Ta is the only son of Xiang Ji, who is only thirty years old.

Therefore, if starting from Xiang Yan, Xiang Ta is the real eldest grandson of the Xiang family, and his bloodline is purer than that of Xiang Zhuang!

Therefore, even though Xiang Ta did not have a single soldier in his hands, he still received the full support of the entire Xiang clan and a dozen other old Chu clans. Shi has a great influence in Jiangdong.

In today's Jiangdong, Xiang Ta, Xiang Tuo, and Xiang Guan each have their own territories and supporters. The throne of the Chu king has already entered a fever pitch. It is foreseeable that once Xiang Zhuang leads an army across the Wujiang River, Then the struggle for the throne of the king of Chu will inevitably become more complicated and confusing, more turbulent and treacherous.

According to Xiang Zhuang's behavior style and temper, he has no patience to engage in political struggles with others. Xiang Ta, Xiang Tuo and Xiang Guan, you all want to be the king of Chu, right?Okay, if it's a mule or a horse, don't you know if you pull it out for a while?Still the same sentence, whoever has the hardest fist and the strongest strength is the king!
Xiang Zhuang also has enough confidence to crush Xiang Ta, Xiang Tuo, and Xiang Guan into powder.

Although Xiang Tuo has 2 people, Xiang Guan also has [-] people, but Xiang Zhuang really didn't pay attention to these tens of thousands of people.

However, the peaceful scene on the other side of the river he saw just now made Xiang Zhuang hesitate for the first time. If he went to war with Xiang Ta, Xiang Tuo, and Xiang Guan, then Jiang Dong would definitely suffer from swordsmen. The second is the battle for the throne, and its cruelty is by no means comparable to Guan Ying and Zhou Bo's crusade across the river.

In other words, if there is a war, even if Xiangzhuang gets Jiangdong, it will only be in ruins.

After walking for several miles along the north bank of the Wujiang River, Xiang Zhuang finally stopped, let out another long breath, and turned around to ask Wei Liao, "Military Master, do you have any good ideas?"

Wei Liao wrapped the white tiger skin cloak around his body, stretched out his right hand and raised up three withered fingers, and said leisurely: "I have three strategies for the general to choose: one strategy is to use all my energy to persuade Xiang Ta and Xiang Tuo And Xiang Guan, take over a complete Jiangdong; second strategy, win over one faction, isolate another faction, destroy one faction, and take over a broken Jiangdong; third strategy, defeat three factions with thunderous force, and take over a dilapidated Jiangdong!"

Xiang Zhuang remained silent, he knew that Wei Liao hadn't finished speaking.

Wei Liao retracted his fingers, and continued: "These three strategies have their own advantages and disadvantages!"

"The first strategy can help the general receive a complete Jiangdong, and can also preserve Jiangdong's vitality to the greatest extent, but it will take a lot of time and patience to do a lot of appeasement work. I conservatively estimate that there is no such thing as more than 20 years old. To appease and divide, it is impossible for the general to have all the land in Jiangdong."

"The third strategy can help the general to calm down Jiangdong in the shortest possible time and control the overall situation. However, after the war, Jiangdong's population will drop sharply and its vitality will be severely damaged. Moreover, the general will control Jiangdong by force, and people will not accept it. From now on, the general will govern Jiangdong. It will definitely be more difficult, so without 20 years of recovery, don't even think about sending troops abroad!"

"No, neither of these strategies will work!" Xiang Zhuang shook his head decisively, "Twenty years is too long!"

"Then there is only the second strategy." Wei Liao said after a pause, "The second strategy is a compromise, which can help the general receive a relatively complete Jiangdong in a relatively short period of time, but it is very important. Compared with the general's political wisdom, marching and fighting, the general has both courage and strategy, which is unmatched, but politics and military affairs are completely different things, and the old man doesn't know if the general is ready?"

"Prepare?" Xiang Zhuang asked with a frown, "What preparations do I need? You and Ziliang, the military advisor, are by my side, always alert, always supporting me, isn't it all right?"

Wei Liao shook his head, and said leisurely: "No, no, the general thinks the problem is too simple."

After this pause, Wei Liao continued: "Although military struggles are extremely dangerous, there is a clear distinction between the enemy and the enemy. It is easy to identify and judge. Political struggles are much more complicated. Maybe one day, Ziliang and the old man will know each other." Involuntarily getting involved in it, at that time, the general needs to identify and judge by himself. "

Xiang Zhuang said solemnly: "Military Master, is it so complicated?"

Although Xiang Zhuang has been a man for two lifetimes, he is still very unfamiliar with politics.

In his previous life, Xiang Zhuang was just a veteran of special warfare, very smart, but he was only smart in war, but he really knew nothing about politics. In this life, Xiang Zhuang is just a general of Chu State, and he is not proficient in politics, let alone his father and brother At that time, it was not his turn for Xiang Zhuang to dictate the political affairs of Chu State.

Moreover, Xiang Zhuang is not like Liu Bang, who has super high political understanding!
Therefore, when Wei Liao said this, Xiang Zhuang's heart was really agitated. Politics is much more complicated than military affairs!

Wei Liao nodded, and said earnestly: "General, you must remember what the old man said, when you are not sure about a certain matter, don't rush to make a decision, you can Wait, take a look, wait for all forces to show their heads, and wait for the situation to be basically clear before making a decision!"

Xiang Zhuang nodded silently. This sentence is almost the condensation of Wei Liao's lifelong political wisdom, right?
Wei Liao said again: "General, Mrs. Yu was the former king's Aiji. Although the former king appointed her as his queen, her status is actually no different from that of the queen. She still has a lot of influence among the Xiang clan and the old Chu family. As for the influence, the Yu clan itself is also one of the noble families in Jiangdong, the general must win Madam Yu's support..."

As soon as the words were finished, Baili Yishui suddenly ran over out of breath, and reported: "General, madam, madam, she passed out."

"Huh?" Xiang Zhuang asked hurriedly, "Who passed out, Yue Niang or Zhen Niang?"

"Uh, not at all." Baili Yishui said anxiously, shaking his small hands, "It's Mrs. Yu."

"Ah?!" Xiang Zhuang was taken aback when he heard the words, thinking that Xiang Yu committed suicide by the Wujiang River, and Yu Ji probably thought of others after seeing things, but at this juncture, she must not come out. It's good to have an accident, otherwise, the three chips that Xiang Zhuang left him to prove his status would be the lightest stepping on the snow, the black horse.

When Wei Liao also said: "General, this old man has some medical skills, let's hurry... yawn! yawn!"

Before he finished speaking, Wei Liao suddenly yawned twice, Xiang Zhuang's heart skipped a beat, and he asked with concern: "Military Master, what's wrong with you?"

"Oh, it's okay, it's okay." Wei Liao waved his hands and said with a smile, "It's just that I'm old and can't blow the wind anymore. Oh, I'm old, and I can't compare to you young people..."

(End of this chapter)