Guan Yu looked at Cao Cao's retreat, and was a little stunned in his heart. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 Although he also heard the loud noise that erupted here at first, because it was something that happened in Cao Cao's array, and it was blocked by tens of thousands of heads, he couldn't see what was going on there. Naturally, he didn't know that Cao Cao's military spirit was already in chaos before his arrival, and as long as there was any turmoil, their retreat would be inevitable.

However, he was stunned, looking at the retreat of Cao Cao's army, Guan Yu was still a little happy in his heart. He knew that his eldest brother had escaped again. "Cao Cao retreated in such confusion, with his caution and the current situation of his troops, I am afraid that it will take several days to recover. But by that time, the eldest brother's team was already in Jiangxia. "Although Guan Yu's men and horses appeared here at the right time, it can be regarded as a coincidence, but there is always a special person in contact between him and his brother Liu Bei. Yes, he also knew that his brother Liu Bei had completely given up his attempt to go south to Jiangling and was ready to go east towards Jiangxia.

This change in plan is said to have been the result of a joint suggestion by the military advisor Ma Tan and his brother Ma Liang. But no matter whose idea this is, as far as Guan Yu is concerned, it is very practical at the moment. Although Cao Cao suffered a great loss due to a successful sneak attack on his side at Changbanpo, but with the integration of Chen Zhi and the help of Zhao Yun, such losses were not so great that Liu Bei worked hard. The more than 100,000 people who followed Liu Bei southward are still 60,000 or 70,000 at the moment. With his brother Liu Bei's thoughts, he was bound to not abandon them and go south, so it was inevitable to take them on the road again. The march of the team with the people is bound to be slow, although the number of people following has decreased a lot, but Guan Yu still does not think that the speed of his side can be increased to what extent, it is obviously impossible to go to Jiangling and Cao Cao to fight for the place that must be passed, only to go to Jiangxia to get the support of the eldest prince Liu Qi is the safest and safest way.

With such an idea, Guan Yu quickly waved his army to catch up with his eldest brother. After nearly a month apart, the two met again. Of course, it was a tearful emotion, Liu Bei knew everything that happened on his side, including the situation of his own surprise attack, Li Shengjun's sudden reinforcement, and Zhang Fei's break and Ma Liang's various arrangements. However, Guan Yu also reported the situation of his side to Liu Bei. Liu Bei's army, which had reunited, slowly headed eastward with Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei as the lead. They're going to Jingcheng. It was the territory controlled by Guan Yu's army. From there, they planned to take a boat along the Han Water Trail to Xiakou and station. Xiakou, that is Liu Qi's current station.

There were a lot fewer people with the army, and the bottles and cans that were extremely dragging down the march of the army were also lost under the surprise attack of the Cao army in Nagasaka, and there was a threat from the Cao army in the rear, who might rush up at any time, but Liu Beijun, who set off again, was much faster than at the beginning. They traveled more than 40 miles a day for six days, and finally arrived at the city where the military flag with the word "Liu" was still hung.

Jingcheng is a small city, but because of its close proximity to the Han River, this small city also has its own port, and there are no longer a few merchants, so it can be regarded as prosperous. Liu Bei stayed here for three days before everything was done: because the boat was not enough to carry everyone, Liu Bei divided his army and the people into two parts, one part was led by his third brother Zhang Fei, and led most of the troops and people to cross the river by boat and go to Xiakou by dry road, and the other part was led by his own side together with Zhao Yunbu, who came to help, and the old and weak women and children among the people took Guan Yu's sailor to Xiakou by waterway.

This can be regarded as a huge project, if you are not afraid of ten days and half a month in normal times, it will not be rectified, at that moment, under the strong pressure from Cao Cao's side, everyone silently cooperated with each other, and everything was completed in three days. During this period, Liu Bei naturally also got the latest information about Cao Cao's side: "Cao Cao named Liu Cong as the pastor of Qingzhou, Cai Mao and Zhang Yun as the chief and deputy governors of the navy, Feng Wenpin as the general of the protector army, and Kuai Yue as the governor of the Prime Minister's Mansion. Cao Cao is currently reorganizing his army in Jiangling, and there is a possibility of advancing to Jiangxia at any time. ”

"Then we're not in danger?" Hearing the information that Cao Cao might attack at any time, Liu Bei suddenly frowned tightly. He knew that Cao Cao's five-way army had now arrived in Jiangling. With these horses and horses integrating the 150,000 Jingzhou army in Shangjiangling, Cao Cao's total strength reached about 400,000. This is a definite figure, although it is much less than Cao Cao's claim, but for Liu Beijun, whose total strength is less than 50,000, the enemy of 400,000 is still very terrifying.

"Danger? I can't say the same either. Ma Tan, an unusually young military advisor, shook his head with a smile when he heard that Liu Bei was so worried about Cao Cao's eastward advance, and took out another piece of information from his arms. Although there were as many as 150,000 military horses in Jiangling, that was the number before Cao Cao's southern expedition. When Cao Cao marched south to Xiangyang, the surrender of the people in Jingzhou caused the military spirit of Jiangling to be in turmoil. Among them, there is a person named Su Fei, who is the general under Huang Zu and has a good reputation among the navy. Huang Zu Jiangxia was defeated, so he led the army back to Jiangling and transferred to Cai Mao's tent. At this moment, when the Jingzhou incident started, he led more than 30,000 Jiangling sailors and more than a dozen Jiangling soldiers to know what happened, and before leaving, he burned the Jiangling camp with a fire, and Cao Cao was annoyed by this. The so-called Jiangling army is just a way to let the soldiers and horses from the north practice on the one hand, and rebuild this Jiangling village on the other. Because this is a technical task, it takes a lot of time, because Cao Cao is fierce on the surface, but in reality it is impossible to attack us in a short time. Ma Tan smiled, quite complacently told himself about the reassuring situation, let him temporarily concentrate on completing the transfer of his troops, and transfer all the precious power in his hands to Jiangxia.

"Is this news reliable?" Liu Bei still asked with some concern, he didn't know where Ma Tan got the news.

"No problem, my brother told me the news. In fact, Su Fei took the people away but took refuge in Changsha Taishou Li Sheng. Because Gan Ning, the general of the navy under the account of Changsha Taishou Li Sheng, was Su Fei's friend. Ma Tan knew Liu Bei's doubts, so he directly told his lord about his intelligence source.

"Oh? So Li Sheng's strength over there should be very strong? Liu Bei's eyes widened when he heard Ma Jian say this, showing a little curiosity.

"Can you borrow some troops from Li Shengtaishou?" Liu Bei asked his military advisor.

Seriously, Liu Bei was not afraid of Cao Cao. The reason why he has been backing down until now is because his own forces have not been able to defeat Cao Cao. If one person can't compete with Cao Cao, then he is looking for a few more people. Liu Bei believed that even in Jingzhou, which had already decided to surrender to Cao Cao, there were people who wanted to resist. After hearing that Li Sheng, who had always been good friends with him, had such a strong strength, he had the idea of pulling Li Sheng into his camp. Of course, at first, he felt that he couldn't show too eagerness, so he first wanted to ask the other party through the relationship between his military advisor and whether he also meant this.

"Borrow? Why borrow? In fact, Lord Li Sheng had already intended to start a war against Cao Cao. He had already told me through my eldest brother that he had raised a large army and was ready to join the main guild with Jiang Xia. Ma Jian broke such a fierce news to Liu Bei again.

"Is this true?" Liu Bei was stunned by this sudden good news, he blinked and still couldn't believe that his luck was so good, so he was thinking about how to win over Li Sheng as his ally, and Li Sheng actually made such a suggestion directly.

"Of course." Ma Yan nodded intently.

"Youchang, since your brother is an important minister under Zixu, you should understand what Zixu's strength is. I wonder if he told you about it? "Liu Bei and Li Sheng, one in Xinye, the other in Changsha, can be regarded as the north and south of the world, coupled with the kind of low-key that Li Sheng has consistently shown in recent years, so that Liu Bei does not know too much about Li Sheng, he does not know Li Sheng's strength, although Li Sheng's surprise to him these days is too big.

"This ...... I don't know. My brother left home at an early age, and he joined the account of Lord Li Sheng, and later I became the lord. Although we are in Jingzhou together, we haven't seen each other for several years, and my brother hasn't told me about these things. Ma Jian frowned and said distressedly.

"Is that so?" Liu Bei sighed: "Because of the troubled times, each of them is the master, this may be our sorrow." He stretched out his hand and patted his military advisor on the shoulder: "Young Chang, don't take this matter too seriously. Anyway, we will meet Zixu's army in a few days, and we won't be able to see how big the other party will be when the time comes. ”

That's true. Thank you, Lord. After receiving Liu Bei's comfort, Ma Yan's mood slowly improved, and a comfortable smile gradually unfolded on his face.

At a time when all of us are facing this crisis of annihilation from top to bottom, only when all of us are of the same mind and work together in weal and woe will we have a chance to overcome this difficulty. Perhaps because he had already suffered hardships a long time ago, Liu Bei had some experience in how to unite the majority of people in a crisis situation. He was afraid that such a military advisor he had found with great difficulty would leave him, so he stayed with him for a long time after Nagasaka, and had a heart-to-heart with him. This undoubtedly made Ma Tan's heart completely turn to him. This is Liu Bei's sincerity and Liu Bei's means.

It is now the beginning of October, and the gloom of autumn has quietly come to the world, and although the land to the south is slightly hotter than the north, it is undoubtedly much cooler than the previous two months. This is especially true in Egami. The gentle Han River became extremely wide in this section near the Yangtze River, and the cool water vapor mixed with the oncoming soft breeze made everyone on the boat feel comfortable. Without the stuffiness of being on land, the whole person is in a good mood. In addition, on the first day after entering the Han River, he encountered Liu Qi on the river to meet the water army, which made Liu Bei's face smile a lot more all of a sudden. The expansion of his forces gave him the confidence to fight Cao Cao again.

"Well, with all this help, we should be able to get through this." Liu Bei looked at the rippling river and was silently distracted.

At this time, the military advisor Ma Tan suddenly ran over with hurried steps. His still somewhat childish face showed a slight flush from running. It seems that something big has happened, otherwise he would not be so disrespectful of his face. is different from Liu Bei's almost civilian family, Ma Yan's Ma family is more or less a wealthy family in Jingzhou. As wealthy families, they must have some etiquette that they need to maintain.

"Lord...... The military envoy, the military envoy of Eastern Wu came. Ma Jian ran in front of Liu Bei and said breathlessly.

"The military envoy of Soochow? Isn't Soochow always hostile to our Jingzhou? They...... How did they get here? Liu Bei's eyes widened, and he also looked incredulous.

"This ...... I don't know. It was discovered by the soldiers who guided the ship in front, who claimed to be Lu Su, the special envoy of the Eastern Wu side who came to send a letter to Lord Liu Biao. Ma Jian shook his head and reported to Liu Bei.

"Lu Su? Was he an important minister of Soochow? Liu Bei was stunned for a moment, and then came to his senses, it is definitely not a simple matter for Dongwu to send an envoy at this time, in addition to hanging the letter, he should also shoulder other tasks. Go and invite the eldest prince. Although Lu Su came here mainly to talk to us this time, since he used the excuse of hanging the letter for Lord Liu Biao, it must be justified by the existence of relatives like the eldest prince. Liu Bei turned around and instructed Ma Yan. Under what circumstances, what kind of response to make, although Liu Bei is not all-accessible, but he is also clear-like at this moment.

The meeting of everyone was in the hall of Liu Bei's ship. Liu Bei and Liu Qi sat on the top separately on the left and right, and the staff and generals under Liu Bei sat on the left and right, and Lu Su, who came to visit, sat opposite Liu Bei and Liu Qi on the other side, living with his back to the gate. This is not a very cordial meeting, but it is very formal, Liu Bei and Liu Qi completely treated Lu Su who came as a regular messenger, as if he was not here to pay a letter, but to discuss important matters with his side.

The matter of worshiping Liu Biao had already been done by Lu Su before he came here. In a hastily arranged simple mourning hall, Lu Su bowed a few times towards the location of the spiritual seat, and said a few words to Liu Qi, who was a relative, and it was considered the past. Of course, this is not very formal, but no one has gone back to accuse Lu Su of being irregular, because everyone knows what Lu Su's purpose is for coming here - "I'm afraid I'm just here to spy on information about Jingzhou." ”

Although Dongwu and Jingzhou have always been considered a "feud", at the critical moment of life and death, knowing that a single existence could not resist a strong enemy from the north, uniting the forces of Jingzhou has become the idea of some people of insight in Dongwu. And Lu Su, who is a captain of the Zan Military Academy, is a member of this faction. As a courtier who was deeply trusted by Sun Quan, the lord of Wu, Lu Su persuaded Sun Quan to take on the task of coming to Jingzhou to find help. His initial goal was to set Liu Cong, who would inherit the lord of Jingzhou after Liu Biao's death.

However, I didn't want to hear the news that Liu Cong was instigated by Cai Mao and Zhang Yun to surrender before he arrived in Jingzhou. Since Liu Cong had surrendered to Cao Cao, it was certainly impossible for Lu Su to unite with him. Therefore, Lu Su originally wanted to return to Jiangdong, but halfway through hearing that Liu Bei, the general of Yuzhou Muzuo who lived in Jingzhou, had brought nearly 50,000 people to Jiangxia after the defeat of Changsaka, and joined Liu Qi, the Taishou of Jiangxia, so he refocused his joint goal on Liu Bei.

In Lu Su's view, although Liu Bei does not have his own territory, his status, his appeal, and the forces he still has in his hands are all necessary things for Jiangdong at the moment. It is very beneficial to unite with Liu Bei, both for Liu Bei and for Jiangdong. Lu Su saw through this, and hurriedly caught up with Liu Bei.

In this hall, he met Liu Bei, and also met the world-famous generals under Liu Bei. Although no one spoke at first, in the mutual scrutiny, Lu Su could tell that they were not disappointed in the future, even in such a failed situation.

"It seems to be a play." Seeing such a situation, Lu Su's heart was secretly happy. Faced with the solemn atmosphere created by Liu Bei Keyi, he asked very inappropriately: "Now, where is Lord Liu Bei going?" ”

"Oh? I'm going to Cangwu. In response to Lu Su's sudden and inopportune question, Liu Bei blinked his eyes and said his destination very clearly.

"Cangwu? That's a wild place far away in Jiaozhou! General Zuo is very familiar with that Wu Ju? Lu Su thought that Liu Bei didn't want to give up all this, and he should give himself a satisfactory answer. The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment, Liu Bei actually said that he wanted to go to Cangwu, didn't he plan to completely give up the affairs of the Central Plains? If this was in normal times, it would make Lu Su very happy, but at this moment, Liu Bei's stay away is undoubtedly not in the interests of Jiangdong. Therefore, Lu Su involuntarily frowned, and lowered his eyes in disappointment.

The conversation continues.

"In the second year of Jian'an, I got acquainted with him in Xuchang. At that time, I was still under the seat of Cao Gong. There is nothing to do, eating meat in large pieces and drinking in large bowls, and it is comfortable to live. Liu Bei replied, with a somewhat nostalgic look in his tone, as if he still longed for that kind of life.

"That was ten years ago." Lu Su responded, and felt that there seemed to be some hope in his heart.

"Well, it's been ten years. But I guess he'll remember me. He is a very bold person, he has no scheming, and he is still a good person...... However, there are still some worries......" Liu Bei hesitated and said. It can be seen that he is still a little uncertain about going to Cangwu in his heart.

"Well, that's true. Maybe he's a really good person, but I don't think he would like the general to go to his side. Lu Su said categorically.

"Why?" Liu Bei asked puzzled.

"The general will definitely not give up these people under him when he goes to Cangwu. The general will definitely bring his own soldiers over. This is very worrying for the other party. The other party probably thinks that the general has some intentions. It's a very simple thing, I'm afraid anyone would think so. Lu Su persuaded Liu Bei.

"So what to do?" Liu Bei frowned and said with a sad face: "I can't just abandon the soldiers who share weal and butter with me?" ”

"If the general is like this, then why not stand on his own feet? With such a general's bearing, isn't it strange to go to a nobody like Wu Ju? As long as Cao Cao can be defeated, Jingzhou should have a foothold for generals. At that time, the general can use Jingzhou as the foundation to gallop across the world. Lu Su worked hard to persuade Liu Bei. In order to make Liu Bei's heart move, he analyzed the whole thing for Liu Bei from Liu Bei's point of view.

"Self-reliance?" Hearing Lu Su say this, Liu Bei's eyes widened, as if he had heard something funny, the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, forming an arc, of course, this arc was full of bitterness: "Defeating Cao Cao is a bit of a whimsical thing." You know, we've just been defeated by Cao Cao. ”

"One person can't beat Cao Cao, but multiple people can come. As long as the general has this intention, the lower lord will also help. That's the key to everything. In my opinion, all the heroes in the world who regard Cao Cao as a thief should join hands at this moment. Lu Su sat up straight and talked in front of everyone. He tried his best to persuade Liu Bei.

"It's not for nothing that Cao Cao means. It's just Cao Cao's powerful ......, we have just been defeated, and the soldiers are apprehensive about Cao Cao's terror. Liu Bei frowned and said as a matter of course. In Lu Su's opinion, he was exactly the one who wanted to do it, but was afraid.

"The general is worried about this? There's nothing to worry about at all. In the following opinion, Cao Cao will become weaker and weaker in the future. The fatigue of the expeditionary army, the unstable morale of the people who first arrived in Jingzhou, the unadaptability of the northerners to the south water, and the neglect of the expeditionary army's ......training in water warfare will all become problems that plague Cao Cao. If Cao Cao intends to continue the war, then it is foreseeable that his defeat is imminent. In order to strengthen Liu Bei's confidence in fighting Cao Cao, Lu Su directly spread out Cao Cao's weaknesses. These are not blind words and the like, but he analyzed the information obtained from the reconnaissance of Cao Cao by the spies on the Jiangdong side in these days. Under all kinds of powerful testimony, and heard that Cao Cao was making large-scale repairs in Jiangling, so that Lu Su finally got the judgment that Cao Cao's army was already weak.

"Is it really that easy? As far as I know, Cao Cao is a strong man. For what we know, Cao Cao will definitely know. Do you think as he would have not considered these issues? I heard that Cao Cao dug a lake and built a ship to train a navy in the land of Yecheng last year. He also probably thought about the problem that the northerners were not adapted to the south water. Liu Bei still hasn't made up his mind about this, and he's still worried about Cao Cao's strength.

"It's just a toy boat, a toy lake. The naval army that Cao Cao trained in Yecheng is simply not worth mentioning in the eyes of our Jiangdong. If Cao Cao dares to claim to have the strongest cavalry in the world, then we Jiangdong dare to say that we have the best navy in the world. Lu Su said confidently. For his Jiangdong side of the water army, he has 100% confidence, especially now after defeating Huang Zu's water army at the beginning of the year.

"Oh? Do you really think so? Liu Bei shook his head, with a look of disbelief on his face.

"Of course!" Lu Su nodded with great certainty, "Presumably you haven't fought with the captive general, right?" He asked Liu Bei.

"Yes." Liu Bei nodded heavily.

"That's your luck. I think my Jiangdong Navy has never been defeated once since its establishment. Lu Su said solemnly, his calm tone and honest face made people more and more convinced.

"So General Sun is very good at water warfare?" Liu Bei muttered softly, as if he was admiring, but there was no follow-up. It can be heard that Liu Bei is still not a little moved by this.

"Liu Yuzhou." Lu Su's tone became a little serious, and he seemed to be a little impatient: "The key at the moment is not to say what the combat power of my lord is, but to say that your own will must be strong." If you don't have this mind in mind, we're afraid that no amount of talk here will be meaningful. To be honest, aren't you still there? Why give up just like that? Although you have suffered certain losses in Nagasaka, the second general Guan Yu's naval army does not have any problems, and you have also received the help of the eldest prince Liu Qi, just in terms of the strength of the naval army, you have reached 20,000 people, this is not the capital left by God to fight against Cao Cao? In the past, Emperor Gaozu was repeatedly defeated by Xiang Yu, and then those who succeeded in the next battle relied on the courage that never turned back? Although Cao Cao is strong, he is still not as strong as Xiang Yu's level in the past. ”

Although he felt that it was disappointing that Liu Bei was always so cold-hearted, Lu Su still lobbied desperately, and he wanted Liu Bei to cheer up, so he directly mentioned the information he knew.

However, it was good that he didn't mention it, and as soon as he mentioned it, he realized his mistake: Liu Bei's loss was not as serious as outsiders said. Liu Qi's 10,000 men in Jiangxia were not hit by Cao Cao, and Guan Yu's Xiangyang naval army that came from the Han River also did not suffer Cao Cao's blows. With such combat power, it is said that he will give up casually, which is probably not like Liu Bei's previous practice. He didn't give up when he was down in Xuzhou to that point, let alone now?

"I'm afraid that Liu Bei had the idea of preserving his troops and luring Cao Cao into the south completely. Well, that's definitely the case. Otherwise, it would not be possible to explain why Liu Bei came out of Xinye and immediately ordered Guan Yu to divide his troops to take Xiangyang lightly and seize control of the Xiangyang Naval Army. Speaking of Liu Bei's current strength, Lu Su suddenly flashed such a thought in his heart, and he immediately realized: "Maybe Liu Bei is more like making this alliance a success than himself." After all, Liu Bei was not a fool, and he also knew that his own strength alone was not enough to fight against the powerful Cao Cao, so he may have had the idea of forming an alliance with his side from the beginning. The reason why he has been showing a lack of interest in what he said is just to make his side feel that it is not him who is begging him, but begging him. It's also a way to get more out of yourself. Lu Su was stunned. He looked at Liu Bei above with a hint of enlightenment, and inadvertently caught a smile from the eyes he looked at.

"That's definitely the way it is." Lu Su can finally confirm it.

After understanding Liu Bei's intentions, and then persuading Liu Bei, Lu Su no longer became impatient. He didn't care about what Liu Bei said, but used more practical interests to impress Liu Bei. He promised Liu Bei that if he succeeded in driving Cao Cao back to the north one day, he would come forward to persuade his lord Sun Quan to give Liu Bei one or two counties of Jingzhou as a reward - this was what Liu Bei wanted most at the moment. Although for Liu Bei, he can only get this place, but he can't get the entire Jingzhou, it is inevitable that some of them are not only satisfactory, but now he is in a weak position, but he is helpless.

Liu Bei has his own thoughts on this matter, but it is not good to say much at the moment. After all, everyone knows that defeating Cao Cao now is the first major event on their side.