"Don't blame the general for disturbing the night!" With the sound of the always light and breezy, Zhuge Liang walked into the tent with the goose feather fan that had not changed for thousands of years.

"Why do you want to see Kong Ming, sit down!" Zhao Feng hurriedly greeted, Zhuge Liang took advantage of the situation to pick up a mazha next to him and sat down, but he also said secretly in his heart: Sitting on this thing is indeed much more comfortable than sitting on the ground.

"Kong Ming, you came to me so late, there must be something important, let's talk about it!" Zhao Feng didn't talk to Zhuge Liang either, and spoke directly. Zhuge Liang knew that he was always quick to talk, so he didn't delay at the moment, and asked Zhao Feng directly: "General, when do you think the lord will start the Northern Expedition and compete with Cao Ying for the world?" ”

"If it weren't for this year's flood, I'm afraid that we would have fought Cao Ying in the Central Plains now!" Zhao Feng thought about it and said, he didn't expect Cao Ying to play so ruthlessly, and actually sent people to dig a dam to drown people, unscrupulous means to this point, it can be regarded as the spirit of "I'd rather bear the people of the world, and stop teaching the people of the world to bear me" to the extreme. In comparison, Xun Yu's death Zhao Feng didn't feel too surprised.

"That's true, I don't know what General Zhao's outlook is for the battle between the lord and Cao Ying, which will determine the ownership of the world?" Zhuge Liang didn't seem surprised by Zhao Feng's answer, but asked further.

"The odds are four or six open, and the lord has a slight advantage." Zhao Feng thought for a while.

"Why does the general think so?" Zhuge Liang couldn't help but wonder, it seemed that he didn't expect Zhao Feng to be so optimistic about Liu Bei.

"First, Cao Ying's previous digging of the Xiangjiang embankment has already boosted the morale of the two states of Jingyang, and even all the soldiers and civilians who hate the enemy; Moreover, we occupy the rich land south of the Yangtze River, and the abundance of grain and grass is far greater than that of the northern states of Cao Ying; Third, the military ministers under the command of the lord are talented, although Cao Ying has Guo Jia and Jia Xu, but Guo Jia has been sick for many years and is dying, how can Jia Xu alone fight wits and courage with Kong Ming, you and Shiyuan and Yuanzhi? The rest of the people like Cheng Yu are far inferior to you; Fourth, and the most important point, Cao Yingsheng's surname is suspicious, this is a taboo in the use of soldiers, and the master's knowledge of people and the art of employing people is far better than Cao Ying! Zhao Feng thought for a while.

As a leader, in fact, any other skills are not too important, but you must be able to recognize and employ people. After all, a person's strength is limited, and it is a fool's dream to want to do everything with his own ability. can only exhaust yourself to death.

"What the general said is true, but the general can't help but see the open gun, not the hidden arrow!" Zhuge Liang has something to say in his words. Zhao Feng couldn't help frowning when he heard this, and after a moment of silence, he asked Zhuge Liang, "Kong Ming, what do you mean by this?" ”

"General, don't you really feel it at all?" Zhuge Liang not only did not answer directly, but asked Zhao Feng rhetorically. Zhao Feng was silent, and said after a long time: "Now that the major events have not been decided, only half of the country under the rule of the lord is already busy fighting for power and profit, so it is inevitable that he will be in a hurry." ”

"What the general said is also what Liang thinks, but unfortunately not everyone has this thought!" Zhuge Liang sighed, Zhao Feng knew the meaning of his words, at the moment in Liu Bei's group, the Jingzhou faction and the Xuzhou faction are still fighting openly and secretly, basically Pang Tong is the head of the Jingzhou faction, and Zhang Zhao and Lu Su are the heads of the Xuzhou faction. And the most embarrassing of them is Zhuge Liang, he is a native of Langya County, Xuzhou, and Zhuge Yiyi is also a famous family in Xuzhou, but he studied in Lumenshan Academy in Jingxiang, and basically people from both factions can have a relationship with him.

And Liu Bei is also very set in the appointment of people from the two factions. At present, among the dozens of county guards in the five states under Liu Bei's rule, half of them are Jingxiang celebrities. Among them, Jingzhou was legally inherited from Liu Biao, and Liu Bei retained almost all the original officials of Jingxiang's hometown. Most of the county guards in Jiaozhou and Yuzhou are also from Jingxiang, among which Shi Guangyuan even served as the pastor of Jiaozhou. From this point of view, Liu Bei still attaches great importance to the Jingxiangshi people.

However, some Jingxiang scholars led by Pang Tong were not satisfied with this, what they wanted was the right to hold the military power and sit on one side, not just to be a strategist or a county guard. In order to obtain greater benefits, they and the Xuzhou faction are also quite ruthless, especially on some major decision-making issues, and the people of the two factions often have opposite opinions for their own interests. Just before, Su Fei, the former deputy governor of Jingxiang Water Division, died of illness, and Pang Tong finally installed his cousin Pang Lin in the position of deputy governor of the Navy through the relationship of civil employment, but he was not under the jurisdiction of Gan Ning, the governor of the Water Division, and only trained the water army in Poyang Lake, which was also the first army that Pang Tong began to master.

Another typical example is the question of the direction of the Northern Expedition. The Jingzhou faction hoped to attack Xuchang directly and avoid Jingzhou, a close confidant; The Xuzhou faction tended to attack Liang County and capture Yanzhou to ensure Xuzhou's security. This is true for big decisions, not to mention small appointments. Zhao Feng himself inadvertently became a thorn in the side of the Jingzhou faction, and under the premise that Zhang Fei and Guan Yu couldn't move, Wei Yan and Zhao Feng became more realistic targets for the Jingzhou faction.

As for Pang Tong's impatience, Zhao Feng was a little surprised, but after thinking about it carefully, he was relieved. Pang Tong's eagerness for quick success and the pursuit of fame and fortune determine that he is a person who will not miss his old feelings, not to mention that he is never willing to be a strategist. Although he has the grace of knowing him, as a person, he will not give up the pursuit of fame and fortune because of this little favor.

"Kong Ming, although Shi Yuan is a little aggressive, I still won't worry too much about him at the moment. First of all, the lord is not an unreasonable person, and among the Jingxiang scholars, I don't think there are many people who are willing to follow him, and they are too enthusiastic about internal friction. Most of the priorities can still be distinguished. Zhao Feng thought for a while.

Zhuge Liang nodded, and finally said with some regret: "Shi Yuan is too conceited, but his mind is not broad enough, I hope he is not too short-sighted, otherwise he will definitely bring disaster upon himself!" ”

"I hope so!" Zhao Feng sighed, whether Zhuge Liang was a pure-hearted person in history or not, Zhao Feng couldn't tell for a while. Judging from his poems, he did want to return to the acres after pacifying the world. It's just that judging from his hands-on approach, he seems to be a person who values fame and fortune more seriously. It's hard to say what he was like. A person's surname is inherently complicated, and it is even more difficult to say for a wise man like him.

Throwing away these messy ideas, Zhang Fei wrote back to inform Lu Xun the next day, asking him to go south to attack Chengdu as soon as possible. From this point of view, at this time, the triumvirate lineup of Zhang Fei + Zhuge Liang + Zhao Feng is equivalent to helping Lu Xun cover up. Fortunately, the three of them don't attach much importance to these people, and if it were Pang Tong, I am afraid that they would have to think about how to break through the city in order to snatch the first credit. It can even be boldly assumed that if Pang Tong entered Sichuan this time, and the Luofengpo incident could not be done, it would have been staged nearly ten years earlier than in history.

Without further ado, after receiving Zhang Fei's reply, Lu Xun immediately ordered 20,000 horses to go south along the Dianjiang River to Chengdu. accompanied by Meng Da, Fa Zheng and Lei Tong, and even Pang De, who came to help in the battle. In addition, the trebuchet did not miss anything, and it was best to scare Liu Zhang into surrendering first. I really can't do it, so let's make another plan.

Five days later, Lu Xun's 20,000 horses were killed under the city of Chengdu. Although Xichuan has not been very peaceful in recent years, there was civil strife a few years ago, and it was ten years with Zhang Lu, but it was the first time that the soldiers came to the city of Chengdu. As a result, the hearts of the people in Chengdu City began to panic.

What does it mean to be in the city? It means that as long as Chengdu is lost, the foundation of Xichuan will be completely put into water. Although there are still 30,000 defenders in Chengdu, these people have been lacking training for many years, and many of them have never even been on the battlefield.

"My lord, Fa Zheng and Meng Da still have letters from Lei Tong, please take a look at them." In the Yizhou Pastoral Mansion, Zhou handed Liu Zhang a letter tied to an arrow, and the latter, who was pale and pale, took the arrow, untied the letter and looked at it, and his face suddenly changed greatly.

"Fa Zheng and Meng Da are traitors seeking glory, but now they are still open to the enemy, it's really hateful!" Huang Quan on the side gritted his teeth after reading the letter handed to him by Liu Zhang. Unlike Huang Quan's righteous indignation, the rest of the Yizhou officials had different expressions, some were angry, and some were rolling their eyes, as for what they were thinking in their hearts, it was not enough for outsiders.

"Lord, now that the army is besieging the city, I don't know what the lord wants?" Looking at the somewhat chaotic crowd, Chen Zhou finally asked cautiously. As soon as these words came out, almost everyone looked at Liu Zhang in amazement to see how he would respond.

"Lord, do you see?" At this time, the new Yizhou Beijia Wang hurriedly walked in and handed Liu Zhang another letter tied to an arrow. Liu Zhang opened it and took a look, but this time it was Lu Xun's ultimatum, claiming that as long as Liu Zhang surrendered within two days, he would not be blamed for the past and would not embarrass anyone. If it resists stubbornly, once the city is broken, Chengdu will be looted.

"Lord, this is Lu Xun'er's plan to attack his heart. I still have tens of thousands of defenders in Chengdu, and I also have enough weapons and food, so why be afraid of Lu Xun? After Huang Quan finished reading it, he first said sharply.

"That's right, my lord, I'd rather everyone die in battle and lose Chengdu than surrender!" Wang Lei echoed. Liu Zhang looked at the two people in front of him with a generous and resolute face, and the expression on his face looked a little better, but he was still worried.

"If everyone dies in battle, won't they be trapped in the fire and water of the people of Chengdu? This is very inappropriate! When Qian Zhou heard this, he frowned.

"What is the high opinion of Chen Zhengnan?" Huang Quan couldn't help but ask when he heard this, his tone was very unkind, but he heard it thoughtfully: "One night when I watched the dry elephant, I saw the stars gathered in Shu County; The star will shine, and the star of the Lord will be dim. This is an omen, and it cannot be reversed. The surrender of the lord to the city may save his life, otherwise, the jade will be burned, and it will be too late to regret! ”

Huang Quan and Wang Lei were furious when they heard this, and they hated to kill Qian Zhou on the spot, but they were stopped by Liu Zhang. Looking at the messy crowd in front of him, Liu Zhang also felt confused. At this moment, another person hurriedly came to report: "Father, something is wrong!" But it was Liu Zhang's son Liu Xun.

"What's so alarming?" Liu Zhang saw that his son's face was pale, and knew that something bad had happened, and his voice trembled a little when he asked.

"Shu County Taishou Yang Hong, just led thousands of soldiers under his command to open the city gate and surrender to Lu Xun!" Liu Xun sweated profusely and said, "What? This news made the atmosphere in the already chaotic hall even more chaotic. Liu Zhang sat stunned on the ground, muttering to himself, but he didn't know what he was talking about.

(To be continued)