In order to spend the night in Fancheng on the north shore of the city, Sixizi specially crossed the Han River by ferry at dusk.

Unless there are special circumstances, the personnel exchanges between Xiangyang and Fancheng, especially the retrograde crossing to the north, need to take a boat - although it is faster to take the pontoon bridge, but the grain transportation is big, and Sixizi does not dare to openly break the rules of Azig.

It was only in the middle of October, when the autumn was getting colder, the ferry boat approached the pier, and there were yellow leaves on the shore that blew off to the wind, floating and falling on the bow of the boat.

"General Chen, what kind of wind blew you to the north shore?" The garrison military academy on the north shore dock came to greet Sixizi and stretched out his hand to carry Sixizi Wings across the trestle.

Sixizi is a Han Chinese, and his family's surname is Chen, but he has been taken into slavery for three generations by the Nahe clan, and now he has become the domestic slave of the Nahe clan. Chen Xi grew up with Azig since he was a child, and he was a companion slave and was trusted. Azig led the army, and he also served before and after the saddle horse, fought in the south and north for many years, and accumulated a lot of military merits, and asked for an official official title as a nomadic lieutenant.

According to the Yanjing official system, he is a military attache from the eighth grade, and he is not as good as Fu Chacheng, the military academy guarding the dock on the north bank, but Chen Xi relies on the identity of the domestic slave of the Xiangfan town guard general Azige, that is, Shen Haobo, the prefect of Xiangyang, and Puama, the commander of the Fancheng guard, have to give him three points of face, and Chen Xi naturally accepts Tong Cheng's flattery.

"The king of Xiangyang pushed back a few days ago, and this time he sent grain and grass and Lifu so simply, General Azig was afraid that the king of Xiangyang would take some old grain and rotten grain, old and weak women and children to perfunctory here, so he specially called Chen to come over to inspect the school, if this is the case, he will send them back......" Chen Xi raised his head and said.

"It turns out that General Chen came to the north bank on the order of General Azig, brother, I don't dare to delay General Chen," Tong Cheng carried Chen Xi to the dock, hugged his arm affectionately, and said in a suppressed voice, "Then General Chen is done, don't rush back to the south bank, ask my brother to prepare a few pots of wine on the dock, and then find a few people from the brothel camp to sing a little song to catch up with the old ......"

The establishment of prostitute camps in the army, and the captivity of women's women was also one of the means for the Northern Yan to collect the looted property in the hands of the generals to make up for the lack of finances, ordinary soldiers could have fun in the prostitute camp during the specified period of time, and the officers had the privilege to take the prostitutes out to stay overnight, but they had to pay more silver.

It's just that Azig is bent on seeking military merits and is very strict, and Chen Xi doesn't dare to indulge in greed too much by Azig's side.

Chen Xi picked up this time to the river, thinking that he would stay in Fancheng at night and have a good time, but thinking that the commander of Fancheng, Puama, would inevitably have hospitality, how could Tong Cheng find any good goods? But he couldn't block this road, so he said: "After inspecting the grain and grass, maybe I will have to discuss the military with Pu Azuo, and then look at the sky......

"That's, that's, it's business!" Tong Cheng said, sending Chen Xi and eight soldiers to the south gate of Fancheng......

*************

It was basically the same as Azig's prediction in Xiangyang, and the grain and grass transported from Chaishan and the 3,000 people who accompanied him were indeed temporarily transferred from Suizhou to Fancheng.

Before the war, Wang Xiang spoke viciously to each other, making Luo Xiancheng angry and ashamed, and he wanted to tie Wang Xiang over and whip him a few times. However, with the development of the war, the materials in Suizhou and the surrounding places such as Lishan, Zaoyang, and Xiaochang were almost exhausted, and Luo Xiancheng had to think about the benefits of Wang Xiang again.

Due to the wartime, a large number of garrisons and people were transferred from Suizhou, Lishan, Zaoyang, Xiaochang and other places, so that the agricultural affairs in these places were seriously affected. In summer, it is waterlogged and cannot be drained in time, and the weeds in the field grow and cannot be removed in time; By the time the autumn was ripe, due to the lack of young and strong labor, even large tracts of rice and wheat had not had time to be harvested and rotted in the ground - the overall harvest of Suizhou's autumn maturity was less than half of that of previous years.

In the past, even if there was only half of the harvest, it would not be a problem for the Suizhou soldiers to support it for half a year, squeeze more grain taxes from the people, and survive the spring famine.

However, since the Battle of Jingxiang, the harvest south of Xiaochang has to support the consumption of Tiemen Mountain and Fengshan Mountain; The harvest around Dahong Mountain will be exported to Shicheng; Zaoyang's autumn grain was requisitioned to Xiangyang; Luo Xiancheng's soldiers and horses at the northern foot of Huaishan Mountain in Suizhou could only rely on the supply around Suizhou City and Lishan, which was extremely tense, and even the grain reserves of the military fortress at the northern foot of Huaishan were not enough for more than a month.

The grain storage is insufficient, once the Shouzhou Army and the Fengli Army are called to encircle, how can the soldiers in the military fortress at the northern foot of Huaishan Mountain be supported?

Luo Xiancheng had to bow his face and give an order to the prime minister that in addition to the grain due, Chai Shan should transfer another 100,000 stone grain and grass to support Suizhou.

In terms of geographical location, Chai Mountain is closer to Fengshan Mountain and Tiemen Mountain, and the straight-line distance is only more than 100 miles, but this more than 100 miles is across the remaining veins of Siliu Mountain, which is born from the Huaishan branch.

Siliu Mountain is high and water-risked, and there are occasional dangerous trails to walk, and there is no channel for large-scale grain transportation, so it is simply realistic to transport grain from Chai Mountain to Fengshan and Tiemen Mountain; After Wang Xiangzhi Chai Mountain, he vigorously opened up the passage to the northwest to connect Lishan, and it was quite convenient to enter Suizhou from Chai Mountain through Lishan.

Wang Xiang and Zhou Bin personally led a team of 2,000 soldiers to recruit three or four thousand people to escort the first batch of grain and grass to Suizhou, intending to take Suizhou City and cut off the back road of Luo Xiancheng first; Before entering Suizhou City, it was learned that Yeji Luorong had sent an envoy to Suizhou to raise food and dignitaries, Wang Xiang and Zhou Bin contacted Cao Ziang and Zhou Tong, who were lurking in Lishan, and temporarily changed their plans.

At that time, Luo Xiancheng personally supervised the battle at the northern foot of Huai Mountain, and Ma Zhen presided over the political affairs of Suizhou. Ma Zhen couldn't make a decision, and wanted to send someone to the northern foot of Huaishan Mountain to ask Luo Xiancheng for instructions, but Wang Xiang took the initiative to hand over the grain and grass transported from this mountain.

Ma Zhen originally didn't follow, but Wang Xiang promised that Chaishan could make up an extra batch of grain and grass, and Ye Ji Luorong's messenger was extremely vicious and urgent, so he reluctantly agreed to give up this trip of grain and grass.

Wang Xiang and Zhou Xiang originally wanted to take the opportunity to sneak attack Shicheng.

Although Shicheng is closer to the defense line of eastern Hubei and the battlefield of Jingzhou, and Shicheng is only more than 200 miles away from Suizhou, there is a big flood mountain between Shicheng and Suizhou. For a long time, Dahongshan has always been the outer area of Suizhou, and it confronted Shicheng, which was still controlled by the Jinghu Army at that time, how could the condition of the road through Dahongshan be good?

It is still possible to ride through Dahong Mountain on foot, but it is much more difficult to pass through the grain and grass cart carrying more than ten stones.

From Suizhou to Fancheng has always been the hinterland controlled by Suizhou, and the road conditions are good, so it is more convenient to transport grain and grass to Fancheng through Zaoyang, and then take the waterway to Shicheng downstream, which is more convenient than directly to Shicheng......

Therefore, Wang Xiang returned to Chaishan to transfer grain and grass to "support" Suizhou, while Zhou Bin and Huang Zuyu took the opportunity of escorting grain and grass to lead 2,000 Chaishan troops and 3,000 "people" to escort more than 2,000 truckloads of grain and grass to Fancheng City smoothly.

Since the Nanyang War, Yanhu and the newly attached luxury family and Suizhou soldiers and horses have been busy with the war, so that Ye Ji Luorong has no time to integrate the luxury family and Suizhou military horses, and there is no time to sort out the Jingxiang area, and the control of the area occupied by Jingxiang is generally divided into three parts: the luxury family, Suizhou and the Northern Yan directly under the central government.

Ye Ji Luorong was good at military administration, but not good at civil affairs, and he did not sort out the Jingxiang area in a timely manner, which made the hinterland of Jingxiang governed differently and issued different government orders. There is no unified system for the transmission of documents, and it has become the norm for the transmission of documents in various places to be seriously incorrect, and Azig is also troubled by it, but there is nothing to be done.

Therefore, Azig did not receive an official letter from Luo Xiancheng in Xiangyang, and Zhou Bin, the captain of Chaishan, had already rushed to Fancheng City to pay grain and grass to the people, and he didn't think it was strange, but he sent Chen Xi to the north bank to urge Fancheng to strictly review the delivery of Puama, afraid that Luo Xiancheng would casually get some old grain and rotten grain to perfunctory him.

The delivery of grain and grass is not so simple, first of all, the guards will not be stupid enough to directly put the two thousand soldiers and horses escorting the grain and grass into the city, as for the people, it is possible to enter the city directly after the delivery, but they will also be subject to strict temporary control, thus losing the opportunity to contact the weapons.

The convoy and escort troops and horses were parked ten miles away from the east gate of Fancheng, and Puama sent more than a dozen military discipline officers to monitor and restrain them. It's not suspicious, it's just a necessary procedure.

Zhou Bin first took the grain transporter Bo Guan into the city to meet the guard general Puama, presented the documents he had brought with him to be signed by Ma Zhen in Suizhou, and made an appointment for the inspection and delivery. The generals of the Yanhu clan generally despised the generals, and after negotiations, Zhou Bin went directly out of the city and returned to the temporary camp outside the east gate.

Huang Zuyu, who pretended to be the head of the people's husband, squatted on the ridge, saw Zhou Bin riding over, stood up, made the people around him scatter and be vigilant, and asked, "How is the situation in the city?" ”

"I'm not alert at all," Zhou Bin dismounted and said, "I have made an appointment to send someone to deliver the ...... tomorrow afternoon."

"Okay," Huang Zuyu clenched his fists and said, "We will temporarily camp outside the city, and at night we will equip the soldiers with armor, and tomorrow I will lead the team to fight Qiaodu, Zhou Ye, you are responsible for attacking Fancheng, and then send to bribe the enemy army guarding the city gate, just say that the brothers have worked hard all the way, and it is rare to encounter a big city, so if you want to go in to eat, drink and have fun, send a group of people in first, and cooperate with the capture of the city tomorrow morning!" ”

The armor was hidden in the baggage carts, including the 2,000 men who were escorted, that is, ordinary military uniforms and spears, and only a few men were armoured, so as not to arouse unnecessary vigilance. Obviously, the men and horses who escorted the grain and grass were better equipped than the armor soldiers, and they could not hide it from the eyes of those who had a heart. Everything has to wait until the city is under the city to change clothes.

Zhou Bin nodded, sent someone to lead thirty or forty of his subordinates into the city to eat, drink and have fun, and together with Huang Zuyu, carefully observed the situation around the camp to prevent any accidents.

More than a dozen military discipline officers sent by Puama to monitor and restrain the grain transportation team had already asked Huang Zuyu to send people to invite them to eat and drink in the camp tent, and there were enough men outside the camp tent for eating and drinking; Nearly 2,000 grain trucks were enclosed in the camp, and the scale of the camp was very large, and the secret posts had been dispersed to guard to prevent others from unintentionally approaching the camp and discovering the secrets in the camp.

Zhou Bin and Huang Zuyu changed to a higher soil slope to speak, called the generals above the battalion generals, and connected with the map on the spot to further study the terrain around Fancheng and discuss tomorrow's tactical arrangements.

Fancheng is not built on the waterfront, but it is only two miles away from the riverbank.

There are four battalions of infantry cavalry stationed in Fancheng on the north bank, and three battalions of infantry cavalry are directly stationed in Fancheng City, but the bridge such as the iron pile wharf and the pontoon bridge in the upstream position is the key guard location on the north bank, and there is a small base built on the east and west wings to guard the entrance, and a battalion of elite is stationed in total.

In order to prevent sabotage by the secret agents lurking in from the Vietnamese Dynasty, the defenders of Qiaodu were very vigilant and strictly forbade civilians to approach.

In addition to these, in the upper reaches of Qiaodu, there is a water village in the northwest corner of the mouth where the Huai River flows into the Han River, with more than 1,000 sailors and 30 warships.

The water village located in the upper reaches of Qiaodu is naturally to prevent the soldiers and horses of the Cao family in Hanzhong from going down the Han River and sneaking up on Xiangyang. However, the main line of defense of Xiangyang to defend the soldiers and horses of Hanzhong is the Danjiangkou and Baiyang Pass further upstream, and there are 3,000 water infantry troops stationed. In addition, Danjiangkou and Baiyangguan are also the key places where Hanshui connects with Danjiang and Wuguan rivers, and connects Wuguan and Danfeng County, Shangzhou Prefecture in the north.

Fanxiang is the key road between Jingzhou and the north, but it does not mean that the gate of Jingxiang can be completely closed when Fancheng is occupied, and the actual gap is calculated from the Danjiangkou and Baiyang Pass in the west to Zaoyang in the east, and the Jingxiang gate can be completely closed when the land of more than 200 miles is completely controlled.

Huang Zuyu squatted on the ground, slurped the leaves, and said: "If you can take down Baiyang Pass and Danjiangkou, the plan to close the door can be considered perfect!" ”

"Difficult," Zhou Bin said, "from Fancheng to the east to Baiyang Pass and Danjiangkou, it is the defense area of the Yanhu lineage of Azig; Moreover, from Fancheng to the west, along the Han River, the terrain on both sides of the strait is narrow and dangerous, usually the waterway is connected, and it is difficult to send people to climb the mountains and sneak up on Baiyang Pass. If the pole master can lead the troops to come in time, he may also fight a dozen Baiyang Pass......"

Huang Zuyu pointed to the map and said: "From Xiangyang to the west, the terrain on both sides of the Han River is extremely dangerous, and the enemy army in Jingzhou wants to retreat westward on a large scale, and flee to Guanzhong from the Danjiang River and Wuguan River, so they can only take the Han River to trace the river. If we keep the pontoon bridge between Fancheng and Xiangyang and don't burn down, then the pontoon bridge will be a direct obstacle to the enemy's westward escape along the Han River......"

"That's ......" Zhou Bin frowned, if he didn't destroy the pontoon bridge, after they attacked Fancheng, the defenders of Xiangyang City on the south bank would use the pontoon bridge and ferryboat to frantically counterattack the north bank......

didn't allow Zhou Bin to think too much, at this time, a group of people from the east gate of Fancheng rushed here, there were more than 100 people, Zhou Bin stood up, asked Huang Zuyu and the other generals to go back to the camp to get ready, he took two soldiers over to greet him, to see what was going on.