The war reached a stalemate, and the princes' allied armies advanced in five directions, but they were all blocked by the Han army, and they did not expect to make a breakthrough in a short time. Seeing that the war was developing in the direction of fighting for consumption, Zhou Yu, Sun Ce and others were anxious, because if they only fought for their own strength, they would not be able to consume their opponents.

Just when everyone was tied, Liu Bei, who had always been criticized before, made a move. I don't know what kind of madness Liu Bei had, he was cowering in Jingnan before and refused to move lightly, but at this time he took the initiative to attack and led the army across the river to attack Jiangling. However, in order to ensure the smooth crossing of the river by the Jingnan Army, the Jingnan Navy suffered heavy losses, and it was unable to play its due role in a short period of time. In other words, Liu Bei crossed the river this time with the consciousness that if he did not succeed, he would become a benevolent, and he would not retreat from the battle.

In the face of Liu Bei's sudden rise, Xu Shu and Wenpin in Jiangling were almost stunned, but fortunately, Jiangling was originally a heavy place for Jingzhou to hoard materials, and after nearly a year of preparation, the city was full of materials, and there was no fear of being besieged. And Liu Bei did not entangle after finding that Jiangling was hopeless to be breached, and turned to the army to turn around and rush to Yiling to join Zhang Fei and Zhuge Liang, who had crossed the river before.

After learning that Zhao Yun and Sima Yi of the Han army rushed to the White Emperor City, Liu Bei also ordered Zhuge Liang and Zhang Fei to lead 30,000 troops to cross the river to confront them. This time, Liu Bei came in person, and it can be said that he took out all the family resources of Jingnan, and after the army, the number of men and horses reached 120,000.

The Han'an army is 50,000, the Jiangling garrison is 40,000, and the naval army is 30,000, and the two sides are equal in numbers, but the difference in combat power is not the same. The Han army is basically a man in the prime of his thirties, who has experienced the tempering of the war, and the cooperation between them is also tacit. On Liu Bei's side, in order to achieve a numerical advantage, Liu Bei was reckless, and almost none of the men over the age of fifteen or under the age of fifty ran away, and they were all pulled into the team by Liu Bei. But even so, in the end, Liu Beijun's number was only equal to that of the Han army.

Whether it is from the perspective of the quality of soldiers, the quality of weapons, the level of morale, etc., the Han army has the advantage, but there is a Zhuge Liang in Liu Bei's army, which makes it possible for Liu Bei to defeat the strong with the weak.

Zhuge Liang is very good, Zhuge Liang in Romance is almost demonic, even if it is Tomb Tiger Sima Yi, in the end, he relied on procrastination to kill Zhuge Liang. But Zhuge Liang at this time is not the Zhuge Liang in the romance, although this Zhuge Liang is also very smart, but compared with the romance, this Zhuge Liang is not as important as Liu Bei in the romance.

The reason why Zhuge Liang in the romance can be reused by Liu Bei is that Zhuge Liang has solved the problems encountered for Liu Bei one after another after coming out of the mountain, so that Liu Bei recognized Zhuge Liang's ability. But now Zhuge Liang, Bashu didn't take it, not to mention, but also folded Guan Yu, although Liu Bei still trusts Zhuge Liang, but he doesn't entrust everything to Zhuge Liang like in the romance.

Compared to Zhuge Liang, his opponent Sima Yi was significantly happier. Liu Xie was willing to delegate power, and since he appointed Zhao Yun and Sima Yi to take over the Han Anjun, he has hardly interfered in the internal affairs of the Han'an Army, which gave Zhao Yun and Sima Yi enough space to give full play to their strengths.

A soldier bears a nest of bears. Zhao Yun is brave, Sima Yi is resourceful, and the Han'an army led by the two of them is even a little stronger than the previous general Huang Zhongzai. As for the problem of self-respect for the troops that others are worried about, Liu Xie is not worried at all, Zhao Yun is loyal and will not betray Liu Xie. And even if Sima Yi has different intentions, no one will be willing to listen. Because don't look at the commanders of the Han'an Army, Zhao Yun and Sima Yi, but all the needs in the army are allocated by the imperial court, and not only those soldiers who are on active duty are under the control of the imperial court, but also the follow-up living guarantee of those soldiers who are killed and retired are also responsible for the imperial court.

It is natural for a soldier to be paid. The monthly salaries were all allocated by the imperial court, and they were never in arrears, and those big-headed soldiers naturally knew who they should be loyal to, and how could they be bought with a few promises or a few benefits. And after discovering that the "rebellion" is hopeless, those who are ambitious and intelligent will naturally make a wise choice.

Liu Xie is not worried that the current court will still have the situation of the princes, this time the Han is no longer ten years ago, after Xun Yu, Du Ji, Zhong Xuan and other ministers, the current Han people live and work in peace and contentment, although they dare not say that they have entered a well-off, but at least there are no poor people who will die of cold and starvation.

But compared with the people living under the rule of the Han Dynasty, the life of the people under the rule of the princes was more miserable, especially in Xuzhou and Jingnan, which were already exhausted at this time, most of the men had already gone to the battlefield, and the old and weak women and children who stayed at home not only needed to worry about the safety of their relatives, but also had to bear the burden of supporting the family.

The four princes knew that they could not continue to let the imperial court grow and develop, and the longer it dragged on, the more unfavorable it would be for them. It is precisely because of this realization that the existing four princes will temporarily put aside their enmity with each other and join forces against the imperial court. It's just that the truth is beyond their expectations, even in the face of the joint attack of the princes of the four routes, the court still seems to be at ease.

None of the goals set before the war were achieved, and all of them were blocked by the Han army, whether it was Yuan Xi in Hebei or Cao Cao in Xuzhou, or Sun Ce in Jiangdong, it was difficult to make achievements at this time, and the only hope fell on Liu Bei in Jingnan.

Liu Bei didn't know that he had become the only hope to break the impasse in front of him, and he was forced to send troops out of desperation. The annihilation of Feng Xi and Zhang Nan's entire army made Jingnan's water defense line stretched. Liu Bei had to adopt Zhuge Liang's suggestion, take the initiative, and turn the passive into the active.

120,000 people is already the limit of the soldiers and horses that Liu Bei can take.

……

Gangneung Fortress

"Bun Chang, your proposal is too risky." Wen Ping frowned and said to Wei Yan.

Liu Bei crossed the river, the Han army was in full array, and Xu Shu, Wen Ping and others in Jiangling naturally had to discuss countermeasures. Wei Yan was bold, so he put forward his idea at the military meeting, wanting to lead an army across the river and enter Jingnan. But Wen Ping felt that it was too risky to go deep alone.

"Zhongye, wealth and danger are sought, now Liu Bei leads the army across the river, Jingnan must be empty, if the army is sent across the river at this time, it will be able to disturb Jingnan and make Liu Beijun's heart unstable."

"But what if this is a plan by Liu Bei?" Xu Shu suddenly spoke.

Seeing everyone looking at him, Xu Shu explained slowly: "Liu Bei is not afraid, but Zhuge Liang under his account can't be careless. Its humanities and martial arts are all excellent, and if you are not careful, you may fall into its trap. Wen Chang, now is not the time to take risks, it is better to think long-term. ”

"Yuan Zhi, I don't like to hear what you say. What does it mean that there is no need to take risks, and now that the war is at a stalemate, it is the time for us to find a way to break the situation and solve the problems for the main public. Raise soldiers for a thousand days, use soldiers for a while, if I don't take risks at this time, then when will I take risks? Wei Yan retorted dissatisfiedly.

"But the surprise attack on Jingnan is a lone army, even if Liu Bei leads the troops across the river, he will still leave some soldiers and horses in Jingnan. And if our army crosses the river, the number of people cannot be too large, if it cannot win quickly, there is a possibility that the whole army will be annihilated, Wen Chang, have you considered all this? Xu Shu asked.

"Of course I have thought about it, and I don't just have the courage of a horseman, I only know how to fight bravely. This time I crossed the river, I was prepared to buy and win over, supplemented by swords and soldiers. ”

"Oh, the plan will be released?"

"Kou Feng." Wei Yan confidently mentioned a person.

Kou Fengben was Liu Bei's adopted son in Changsha a few years ago, and changed his surname to Liu. Later, Kou Feng joined the imperial court and changed back to his original surname. Six years ago, Kou Feng was ordered to guard Jiangxia, and Guan Yu's request for help after his defeat was refused, causing Guan Yu to venture south and eventually commit suicide. After Guan Yu's death, Kou Feng followed Liu Xie with all his heart. But his ability is not enough to serve as a general in the army, so Liu Xieliang used it and transferred him to the command of Wen Ping, who has done a good job in the past few years, and has achieved the position of deputy general.

In the previous time, the Jiangling Navy attacked Feng Xi and Zhang Nannan, and Liu Feng stayed in the camp and repelled two attacks sent by Li Yan to test the reality of the Jiangling Navy Army.

"Wen Chang, you plan to use Kou Feng's identity to buy Changsha Haoqiang?" Xu Shu looked at Wei Yan and asked.

"Exactly. Yuan Zhi, what is the face of Haoqiang in those places, you must know better than me. The word loyalty is just an excuse for them, and their main concern is only their own interests. ”

"And what benefits are you going to give them?" Xu Shu asked again.

"Huh...... What qualifications do they have to claim benefits. For example, the general trend is clear today, and the revival of the Han family is unstoppable. If they want to keep their existing interests, they can only hug the thighs of the court, and now that I have gone, it is to give them a chance to curry favor with the court, if they don't know how to cherish it, then they should let the court clean it up in the future. ”

"Don't be careless, there are not a few people in this world who don't know the current affairs, why do you think that the local heroes in Jingnan will choose to assist you? What if they are stubborn and think that the mountain is high and the emperor is far away? ”

"That's not afraid, the Kou family is also a powerful person in Changsha, as long as Kou Feng persuades the elders of the Kou family in person, it will not be a problem to take Changsha as a foothold."

"The stakes are high, let me think about it." Xu Shu did not immediately reply to Wei Yan, and after sending Wei Yan away, Xu Shu immediately ordered someone to convey Wei Yan's plan to Sima Yi of the Han An Army.

Xu Shu and Sima Yi are classmates, and the two are known as the four friends of the water mirror with Pang Tong and Shi Tao. At present, Shi Tao is serving as Xun Yu's deputy in the center of the imperial court, and Pang Tong is far away in the party to give advice to Zhang Liao, and Sima Yi is the closest to Xu Shu. In the case that Xu Shu is a little difficult to decide, it is understandable to listen to the opinions of his most trusted friends.

And Sima Yi, who was trusted by Xu Shu, was thinking hard about a good way to break the enemy at this time. Zhuge Liang and Sima Yi, enemies in the previous life and opponents in this life, the two did not deal with each other as early as when they were studying at Shuijing Academy, and they often quarreled. Later, the two went out one after another, Sima Yi voted for the imperial court, and Zhuge Liang accepted Liu Bei's solicitation.

Belonging to different camps, the hostile relationship has not changed, and Sima Yi and Zhuge Liang still need to distinguish a winner or loser. It's just that compared with Zhuge Liang, Sima Yi's life is obviously much more comfortable. Liu Bei's subordinates lacked talents, and they were angry with the Ma brothers because of the massacre of the city, so that Jingnan's political affairs were piled up on Zhuge Liang. Although Jiang Wan, Lou Gui and other capable people were on his side to assist, compared to Sima Yi, who only needed to concentrate on military affairs, Zhuge Liang was much more tired.

A person's energy is limited, Zhuge Liang and Sima Yi are already in between, but in five years, one has no distractions to specialize in camp military strategy, and the other has to be an all-rounder, worrying about everything. Under the elimination of each other's strengths, there is no gap between Zhuge Liang and Sima Yi at the moment.

But it is precisely because there is no gap that they can guess each other's intentions, so neither of them dares to act rashly, so as not to lose the lead. The news sent by Xu Shu seemed to clear the clouds above Sima Yi's head, since Zhuge Liang couldn't help it on the front, why not find another way? Maybe there will be a turnaround.

……

When Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang were thinking hard about a good way to break the enemy, the Jiangling Navy quietly moved, and Wei Yan led 5,000 men and horses to sail into Dongting Lake by boat and kill Changsha.

Changsha was originally guarded by Liu Qi's navy, but later Liu Qi led his troops to take refuge in the imperial court, and Changsha's defense was handed over to Li Yan, the new governor of the navy. It's just that what Li Yan took over at that time was also a mess, and there was no extra manpower to take care of Changsha, so he asked Feng Xi and Zhang Nan to recruit troops in Changsha by themselves. This time, Feng Xi and Zhang Nan were defeated, and most of the sailors captured by the Han army were also born in Changsha.

5,000 young and strong means 5,000 families, and the failure of Feng Xi and Zhang Nan also means the loss of Changsha's local population. Although Liu Bei sent people to express condolences in time, the hatred of the Changsha people who lost their relatives towards Liu Bei did not weaken a little.

At present, the number of sailors guarding Changsha is not large, and most of them are old and weak soldiers transferred from other places, just with this person, they can't stop the five thousand elites under Wei Yan's command at all, and Wei Yan has ordered Kou Feng to return to Changsha in advance. As soon as the Han army soldiers and horses arrived at the city, Kou Feng in the city immediately responded to the outside and opened the city gate.

Unexpectedly, Gao Xiang, the defender who had changed in the city, was fighting fiercely with Wei Yan, and when he saw that the city gate was lost, he couldn't help but be in chaos, so Wei Yan took the opportunity to cut down the horse with a knife. After Gao Xiang's death, Liu Du, the county guard of Changsha, saw that the situation was not good, and wanted to flee with his son Liu Xian, but he didn't want to ask Kou Feng to block the mansion with people, so he had to surrender.

"Kou Feng, if you can win Changsha, you should be the first credit." Wei Yan said happily to Kou Feng.

"General Wei is polite, if there is no General Wei, how can Kou Feng have merit." Kou Feng said modestly.

Wei Yan was greedy for merit, and this time Xu Shu made him in charge, which can be regarded as allowing him to seize the opportunity to perform. After exchanging a few words of praise with Kou Feng, Wei Yan asked Kou Feng to stay in Changsha, and he led 3,000 troops, falsely claimed 50,000 horses, and killed Guiyang County. I don't expect to take the three places, as long as Jingnan is in chaos and the people are panicking, Wei Yan's goal will be achieved.

In fact, as Wei Yan expected, not long after he led his troops to leave Changsha, the people in the four counties of Jingnan were in turmoil, and rumors spread everywhere, which directly affected the morale of Liu Beijun, who was confronting the Han An Army in Yiling.

The four counties of Jingnan are the roots of Liu Beijun, except for most of the people who were born in the four counties of Jingnan, most of the remaining small people also married wives and had children in Jingnan. Now that a Han army has entered Jingnan to take Changsha lightly, and is advancing towards Guiyang, how can people whose families are in Jingnan not worry.

"Strategist, what should I do?" Liu Bei asked Ji Zhuge Liangdao.

Zhuge Liang also frowned, and after Liu Bei couldn't wait to ask twice, he said: "Don't worry, my lord, Liang is sure that the number of Han troops who are making trouble in Jingnan at this time is not large, and he can order Li Zhengfang to lead 10,000 troops to clear it." ”

"Okay, then so-and-so will order Li Zhengfang to lead the troops."

"The lord is slow, and there is one more thing that needs to be reminded of Li Zhengfang, let him take Changsha first, and then seek Wei Yan. At the same time, the navy was mobilized to ensure that Changsha was unharmed. ”

"Okay." Liu Bei nodded without hesitation.

Li Yan, who was sad about the heavy losses of the navy, immediately set off after receiving the general's order and rushed to Changsha, Li Yan was very smart, and he was a master of art and bold, he ordered people to play his own banner and send troops from the public security to Wuling, and he took the main force to Changsha by water.

The Jiangling Navy was careless, Wen Ping didn't expect Li Yan to have such courage, and after the defeat of the Navy Army, he still had the courage to drive a boat on the river, so that Li Yan's plan to secretly Chen Cang succeeded, and it was not discovered until the Jingnan Navy arrived at Baling.

……

"What to do? What to do? "The Changsha County Guard has learned that Kou Feng, who was killed by Li Yan and led the army, is thinking hard about how to deal with it. Wei Yan only left 2,000 people for himself, but with only 2,000 people, Kou Feng really didn't have the confidence to hold Changsha. Once Changsha was lost, Wei Yan, who was on the expedition, became a "lonely ghost", and his dream of making contributions came to naught.

"Feng'er, why panic?" Just when Kou Feng felt helpless, an old man's inquiry came from outside the door.

"Second uncle, why did your old man come?" When Kou Feng saw someone coming, he hurriedly stepped forward and asked.

"Huh...... I'm here to help you. The old man said with a smile.

"Second uncle, will Ji An's out?" As if grasping at a life-saving straw, Kou Feng hurriedly asked.

Kou Feng's second uncle is highly respected in Changsha, and this time Kou Feng was able to control the city gate so easily, thanks to the help of this second uncle.

"Feng'er, what you are worried about is just a lack of troops, but Changsha is not without soldiers, it is just not in the hands of the government."

"Second uncle, do you mean those private soldiers of each family? How could they lend me soldiers at this time? ”

"Huh...... You think the situation is unclear at the moment, so they won't help. But why don't you think about it, if they were willing to send someone to help Liu Du defend the city, how could you open the city gate so easily. ”

"What does the second uncle mean that those people also have their hearts set on the court?"

"It's not that their hearts are towards the court, but they know in their hearts that relying on Liu Bei can't keep their family business, and only by relying on the court can they ensure that their own interests are not harmed. The gain or loss of temporary interests is not what they are concerned about, what they think about is the future. The second uncle patiently explained to Kou Feng.