Hanzhong, the fief of the former king of Hanzhong, was raided by the Shu army and almost the entire territory of Hanzhong was occupied by the Shu army, but with the anger of the king of Hanzhong, after putting the army of Zhao State, the overlord of the north, the situation here quickly changed.

The Shu army and the Han army fought in Hanzhong for more than three months, and both sides spent countless money and food, and even lost their troops. But with the addition of the new force Zhao Jun, the results soon came out, and Hanzhong was finally occupied by the Zhao army two-thirds. The remaining third was held by the Han army. And the rich land in Hanzhong basically fell into the hands of Zhao Jun.

Subsequently, the Shu army was naturally unwilling to get the fruit that was picked by the Zhao army, so in less than a month, the Shu army launched a counteroffensive against Hanzhong again under the condition that the Shu army's own preparations were insufficient, the reserves of grain and grass materials were insufficient, and the mobilization was inconvenient. But at the critical moment when both the Zhao army and the Shu army in Hanzhong were competing to consume money and food and fight a war of attrition, the Han army, which was defeated by the Shu army and retreated to most of the jurisdiction of Hanzhong, suddenly went south and attacked the Qi army occupying Wuling Mansion in the southwest of Jingzhou, and attacked and captured Wuling Mansion in one fell swoop, washing away the shame of Hanzhong, where the king of Hanzhong lost his title, and was defeated by the Shu army.

Wuling Mansion in the southwest of Jingzhou was originally a subordinate place of Jingzhou, when the Han army and the Luo army jointly attacked Jingzhou and seized Jingzhou, the Shu army located in Yizhou and Ningzhou suddenly attacked and occupied this place from the mouth of the Han army and the Luo army. At the beginning, the Han army and the Luo army were far inferior to the Shu army, and the Zhao army did not approach the south, so that the Shu army had no strong foreign enemies, so the Luo army and the Han army had to give up Wuling Mansion.

But now the Zhao army has a deep influence on the Shu army in the land of Hanzhong in the north of Yizhou, of course, this is not a good influence. Therefore, the Shu army cannot ignore the pressure of foreign enemies as usual. The Shu army had fought against the Han army and the Zhao army several times before Hanzhong, which caused great problems in the logistics and troop mobilization of the Shu army.

Therefore, after the king of Hanzhong raided Wuling Mansion and occupied Wuling Mansion, Situ Che, the king of Shu, had to let his subordinates defeat Situ Fei, the king of Hanzhong, counterattacked him and took Wuling Mansion. Although Situ Che, the king of Shu, was very annoyed, although he was eager to immediately wave his army to counterattack the king of Hanzhong, but Situ Che was now very aware of the current situation of the Shu army, and the troops had suffered heavy losses. In addition, the Shu army fought with the Han army and the Zhao army three times, and successively used a total of more than 100,000 troops, and the consumption of grain and grass materials was countless.

Therefore, there are also problems with the logistics of the Shu army. Even if Situ Che, the king of Shu, wanted to retaliate and fight back, he didn't have that ability at the moment. Of course, if it was just the Han army, Situ Che would not be afraid. However, to the north of it, the Zhao army is also approaching him, and he has the ability to go south at any time. Compared with the one province governed by Jingzhou and the whole Yizhou, the land of Jingzhou is naturally not worth mentioning.

Therefore, after the Han army occupied the land of Wuling Mansion, Situ Che could only give up the counterattack against the Han army and sit back and watch the Han army take the land of Wuling Mansion from him. This battle not only made Situ Che's original tactical plan to fight with Zhao Jun fail, but also made him lose face. You must know that this Han army is the enemy that his Shu army defeated before, but this enemy who has just been defeated by him is now taking a place from him with a group of defeated soldiers. What's more, although he defeated the Han army, he did not get any benefit from it.

The extremely angry Situ Che held back the anger in his heart, resisted the idea of counterattacking the Han army, gave up the battle for Wuling Mansion, and deployed his army in the south of Jingzhou. At the same time, Situ Che also began to order his subordinates to step up the stockpiling of grain, grass, supplies and armor equipment, and at the same time recruit new soldiers to prepare for training.

Of course, for Situ Che, the Han army did not pose much threat to him, at most it made him lose face. For the Shu army, the greater threat was not the Han army, but the Zhao army, which occupied the land of Hanzhong. Zhao Guo is strong, and now I am afraid that a normal person knows it. Although I don't dare to say that if I am strong now, I will definitely be strong in the future, but at least the strength of Zhao State now is no longer something that his Shu army can fight against.

Therefore, when he launched an attack behind his back because of the Han army and played the banner of alliance with the Zhao army, Situ Che had to give up continuing to fight with the Zhao army, withdraw the army to Yizhou, and beware of the Zhao army moving south from Jingzhou and entering the eastern part of Yizhou.

And Situ Che also knew very well that at the beginning of the order to withdraw the army, the land of Hanzhong had been lost to him. He still had thoughts about Hanzhong before, and that was because Zhao Jun had newly entered the land of Hanzhong, and the foundation in the land of Hanzhong was insufficient, and Zhao Jun was also short of food. Therefore, he dared to launch a counterattack against the Zhao army in the land of Hanzhong, and even fought with the other party. However, with his withdrawal, the Zhao army in the land of Hanzhong will inevitably get time to ease and repair. Then, the consequence is the complete stability of the Zhao army in the land of Hanzhong.

The new policies and systems of Zhao in his own jurisdiction, Situ Che was very clear. Mo said that the territory of Zhao State is the territory of his Shu State, and he is also using many things of Zhao State. The army restructuring implemented in the army when Situ Che was still fighting back was actually the army system from Zhao State. After this defeat, Situ Che accelerated the process of implementing the army restructuring among the Shu army under his command.

"Ladies and gentlemen, what do you say, what should we do now? After the Zhao army occupied Yangping Pass, our attack on Hanzhong was basically impossible. And the attack of the northern Zhao army on us will be much smoother. Now our Shu army is the Zhao army in the north, the Han army in the northeast, and the Qi army in Jiaozhou in the southeast. We are enemies on three sides, but I am afraid that we will not be able to deal with it! Especially now that a large amount of grain from the Zhao army has begun to be transported into Hanzhong, so that the Zhao army can gradually gain a foothold in Hanzhong, the problems we need to face in the future will be even more serious. I don't know what your opinions on the next move of our Shu army are? In the side hall, Situ Che, the king of Shu, asked Lin Shiwen, Li Mingzhan and other important ministers with a solemn face.

Lin Shiwen and the others did not speak, but their faces were the same as Situ Che's, and they were also solemn. Because their fine work in Hanzhong has sent back the news, in the past month or so, the Zhao army in the north has continuously transported a large number of grain and grass materials to the territory of Hanzhong, and it has not stopped to this day.

Now, Zhao Jun's predicament in Hanzhong has been completely lifted, and he is no longer worried about the food problem of Zhao Jun in Hanzhong. In other words, Zhao Jun has completely established himself in Hanzhong. According to the system and policies implemented by Zhao Jun in Hanzhong, it was not a problem at all for Zhao Jun to take over Hanzhong and stabilize this land in Hanzhong.

Moreover, for the Shu army, a bad news also came in. That is, the remnants of the powerful clans in the land of Hanzhong, and the meticulous spies of the Shu army in Hanzhong, were basically eliminated by the Zhao army. Moreover, the Zhao army in Hanzhong and the Zhao army in the south of Liangzhou began to converge and converge in the south of Yinping Mansion, which had the intention of converging and going south to Yizhou, so that the officials and powerful families of Yizhou were all trembling.

Zhao Jun, who solved the food dilemma, is now capable of counterattacking Yizhou. In other words, the Zhao army in Hanzhong can now take revenge on the previous Shu army's attack on Hanzhong at any time. However, although the Zhao army in Hanzhong still had the intention of going south, it did not take action for more than a month. Especially in the last ten days, after the Zhao army in Hanzhong had completely stopped worrying about logistics problems, he still did not take action, which made Situ Che's worry more and more intense, and he had to convene important ministers every other day to discuss the northern issue.

"What? Don't speak? Are you afraid of the Zhao army in the north, or do you think that our Shu army has no hope? Looking at the important ministers in the hall who didn't speak, Situ Che's face couldn't help but be gloomy.

Seeing that Situ Che was angry, the courtiers in the palace couldn't help lowering their heads. In the middle of the night, before the disaster relief Situ Che was about to get angry, Lin Shiwen spoke: "King, for the Zhao army in the north, we don't have to worry about it at all now. Although the Zhao army continued to transport grain and grass materials from Yongzhou to the south, the not smooth passage between Yongzhou and Hanzhong seriously restricted the transportation volume of the Zhao army. In other words, it seems that the Zhao army has transported grain and grass materials for a month, but in fact, they have just solved the dilemma of the Zhao army in Hanzhong. Even if they had a surplus of food, it would not be enough to provide them with a war war. ”

"In addition, if Zhao Jun really intends to go south, he will never make a large army gather, but suddenly go south and take us by surprise. Now his actions are clearly just to hit our scouts' eyes on them and add pressure to us. Therefore, we don't need to worry about this matter, all we need is to defend the border areas tightly. ”

Situ Che said suspiciously: "Really? However, the Zhao army that went south from Liangzhou has already converged with the Zhao army in Hanzhong in the northern part of Yizhou, and can come to Yizhou at any time. Moreover, they are still preparing to attack at the same time, how can we be careless? ”

Lin Shiwen's face remained unchanged, and he said in a deep voice: "King, Zhao Jun is doing this to let us know that they are going to attack us, so that we have to gather heavy troops in the land of Yizhou. The real purpose of the Zhao army was nothing else, just to allow the Han army in the east to occupy Wuling Mansion, so that we had to give up the counterattack against the Han army. The Han army is not only an ally of the Zhao army, but also another team of the Zhao army that threatens our flank. With the character of the king of Hanzhong, I am afraid that we will be the number one enemy in this life, even if it is Zhao Jun, we will be ranked behind us. Therefore, the Zhao army needs the Han army to stand firmly in Wuling Mansion, and the Han army needs to be able to go south to the Yangtze River and attack our eastern region at any time. When necessary, together with the Zhao army in Hanzhong, we were flanked on the east and west. ”

Hearing Lin Shiwen say this, Situ Che's face changed for a while, which made him feel both annoyed and regretful! Annoyed, the Zhao army was clearly mobilizing them by doing this, but they had to transfer heavy troops to Yizhou, and gathered a large number of people in the Yizhou area. After all, if the Zhao army really went south, Yizhou would bear the brunt and become the primary target of the Zhao army.

What made Situ Che regret it was that he should have listened to Lin Shiwen's words and not do anything to Hanzhong. Even if it is against Hanzhong, it will have to wait until the Han army is in crisis, or when the Han army and the Zhao army fight first. However, he did not listen to Lin Shiwen's persuasion at the beginning, and finally took a sneak attack on Hanzhong, which resulted in him destroying the entire alliance of southern princes, and making him a mortal enemy with the Han army, so that the king of Hanzhong would rather let Hanzhong fall into the hands of Zhao Xun, the prince of Zhao, than fall into the hands of his Situ Che.

It was nothing to provoke the king of Hanzhong, and it destroyed the alliance of the southern princes, and the situation was very bad for the southern princes. In the past, Situ Che thought that he was located in the southwest corner, and he had no contact with the Zhao army, and would not be attacked by the Zhao army, so he never took the alliance of princes to heart, which was also a reason why he insisted on attacking Hanzhong. But now, Situ Che finally understood the feelings of the former kings of Hanzhong and Luoyang. However, now when he wanted to rely on the alliance of princes to fight against the Zhao army, he found out that he had destroyed the alliance of princes with his own hands.

What's the point of regretting, so Situ Che could only sigh secretly in his heart, and at the same time began to carry out reforms in Shu, devoting his energy to the reform of the army and the people's livelihood. It's funny to say, in the past, after the Zhao army attacked other princes, he Situ Che did not rectify the internal situation well, but instead attacked in the east and west, and now he found that he was defeated by the Zhao army, so he began to rectify the internal situation.

Seeing Situ Che's ugly face, Li Mingzhan hurriedly said: "Don't worry, the king, although we were pinned down in Yizhou by Zhao Jun's means, it is also beneficial to us. After all, we are now in the process of restructuring the army, and the gathering of heavy troops here is also very convenient for us. At the very least, during this period of time, we have basically completed the various restructuring of the armed forces. The combat strength of the army has now increased a lot. Because of the actual payment of soldiers' salaries and rewards for their military achievements, the soldiers are no longer only worried about war. Therefore, at this time, we don't need to pay attention to anything else, as long as we deal with the affairs of the people's livelihood and pull up the combat effectiveness of the army, then we have already gained a lot. ”

"In addition, the minister suggested that we should give up our intention of recovering Wuling Mansion at this time, and instead immediately contact the Luo army and the Qi army, and form an alliance with them to resist the Zhao army. Now that the Zhao army is powerful, neither of us can fight against the Zhao army alone, so joint alliance is our best way out. ”

"Unite the Luo army and the Qi army? Will they say yes? Situ Che's face suddenly changed. At this moment, the Shu army did need allies, but since the time of his surprise attack on the Han army, this so-called alliance has long ceased to exist, and there is no longer any connection.

Li Mingzhan said in a deep voice: "King, they will agree, and besides, they must also agree." ”

"The Luo army, located in the south of Yongzhou, is in the same state as the Han army. Although the Luo army was not attacked by the Zhao army, the land of Jingzhou was now greatly influenced by Yongzhou. And why was the Han army able to go south to capture our Wuling Mansion this time? Why did Zhao Xun choose the Han army to contain us from behind us and support the Zhao army in Hanzhong, instead of sending the more powerful Luo army, which had a deep trade relationship with Yongzhou, to dispatch? The Han army can succeed, can't the Luo army? ”

"No, it's not that the Luo army can't do it, and it doesn't have to be the Han army. It's that the Zhao army doesn't want the Luo army to be strong, and he doesn't need the Luo army to monopolize the land of Jingzhou. Therefore, the Zhao army provided food and grass materials, provided armor and equipment for the king of Hanzhong, who was almost beaten by us, and formed an alliance with the Han army, and at this moment he is still containing our army for the Han army. The purpose of the Zhao army is obvious, which is to make the Han army strong again and have the ability to share the land of Jingzhou with the Luo army again. For Zhao Jun, it is much easier to deal with the division of Jingzhou by two princes than the monopoly of Jingzhou by one prince. ”

"This point, King Luoyang can naturally understand. The king of Luoyang provided a batch of grain and grass materials for the Han army in a bright and bright way, what was its purpose? It's not to suppress the Han army and make himself the lord of Jingzhou. However, Zhao Jun's actions this time made the king of Hanzhong rise again, and once again had the intention of sharing Jingzhou with his king of Luoyang. What's more, the now weak Han army has become an ally of the Zhao army. In this way, it has seriously hindered the ambition of the king of Luoyang to Jingzhou. Therefore, the king of Luoyang now also hopes that someone can fight against the Zhao army, and someone can work with him to suppress the Han army. ”

"As for the Qi army, not to mention, the now more and more powerful Jieyi army is obvious proof. The Jieyi Army is from the Zhao State, which is something that everyone knows. Although there may be an accident in this, it was not Zhao Jun who made a move, but there is no doubt that Zhao Jun was deeply involved. ”

In addition, the Zhao army of Xuzhou, north of the Qi army, made preparations to go south many times when the northern garrison of the Qi army was preparing to go south to encircle and suppress the Jieyi army occupying the eastern part of Yangzhou. So that the Qi army had to be stationed in place, ready to face the battle. This must have annoyed the King of Qi, so now, like us, he needs the support of the princes. So, we are in alliance with them, and this is the inevitable time. After a pause, Li Mingzhan said again: "No matter what happened in the past, but we should look at the present, the king, the minister and Lord Lin have discussed, and they all think that it is better to send an envoy to contact these two families immediately and ally with them." ”

"Even if you can't form an alliance, you have to have a closer relationship. If we reach an alliance with these two princes, or reach an agreement against the Zhao army, then we will be able to draw a lot of garrisons from the northwestern part of Jiaozhou that border them, and we will be able to reduce the garrison here, and then have more men and horses to call upon. ”

Situ Che thought for a while, nodded and said, "What Aiqing said is very reasonable, this king understands, and there is naturally no problem in forming an alliance with them." In this way, you and Lin Aiqing are responsible for this matter, and it is best to form an alliance, even if it can't, let the three of us have the intention of fighting against Zhao Jun together. ”