Taifu Lu Zhi, who is already sixty-four this year, looks much older than when he led the army to quell the Yellow Turban Rebellion, but it is most appropriate to describe him as old and strong.

Liu Bei served as the prime minister and Cao Cao's official worship general, if it were not for Lu Zhi's strong support behind the scenes, who helped persuade Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun, the two bigwigs in charge of the army, how could it be so easy. In Lu Zhi's opinion, instead of making Cao Cao and Liu Bei become the second and third Zhao Xing, it is better to tie these two heroes who are really capable of tying these two heroes to the Han family on the ship of the Han family to jointly resist the threat from Zhao Xing in the north.

Facts have proved that Lu Zhi's magnanimity and decentralization were right. If it weren't for the series of strategies implemented by Cao Cao and Liu Bei after they took charge of the military and political power of the imperial court, perhaps the imperial court would not have been able to support this year. It's not that Cao Cao and Liu Bei don't care, it's that the opponent they are facing is too strong. Whether it is the means of dividing Jiangdong, annexing Jingzhou, or uniting the Sima family, there is no problem, but unfortunately it is always impossible to achieve it in the end, which makes the situation deteriorate step by step to the point where it is today.

Lu Zhi thought that if it was all planned by himself, he would be at most at the level of Cao Cao and Liu Bei, and even just matching Cao Cao and Liu Bei together would be a huge problem.

Now, the famous "wine general" in Luoyang City has reached the point of winning the world. Lu Zhi remembered the scene when he met Zhao Xing in the mansion, and the situation when he met Zhao Xing outside the city, and he only felt that life was really full of unimaginable variables. Up to now, Lu Zhi actually doesn't see much hope of reversing the general trend in his heart, but he still unswervingly adheres to his principles and is ready to stop Zhao Xing's southward steps.

Although the emperor and his ministers all withdrew to the capital Xuchang, the 100,000 troops defending Luoyang were all left to Lord Taifu. In this matter, no one stood up against it. Let Lu Zhi stay in Luoyang is already very inauthentic, if even the troops have to be transferred to Xuchang, then everyone will be in Xuchang for a few more days at most, once Luoyang is taken by Zhao Xing, how long can Xuchang last?

Of course, leaving 100,000 troops to Lu Taifu may not be able to stop the Jin army's southward crossing of the Yellow River, but at least it can buy you a lot of time. With this time, you can be prepared for a lot of responses. For example, secretly getting in touch with the Jin state to show the sincerity of cooperation, such as scattering wealth and hiding it in the cellar of the hometown in the countryside, such as seizing the time to send their children to Jiangdong or Xiliang, and so on.

All the people who left Luoyang firmly believed that Lu Taifu would not defect to the enemy, but no one expected that Lu Zhi would launch an earth-shattering counterattack shortly after they arrived in Xuchang. If it weren't for the Liaodong Army, which arrived in time, under the hard command of Zhao Zhenbang, blocked the gap in Jiguan, maybe the army under Lu Zhi's personal command would have been able to come to Crouching Tiger City!

At that time, the Crouching Tiger Army, which defended the security of the Jin Kingdom, scattered its forces in Jiguan, Huguan, Zhongyang and Guyuan, while the Dingyuan Army defended the southern invasion from the Mobei ethnic groups such as Ding Ling and Jiankun in the northern region, and the Liaodong Army, which had just helped the Eastern Route Army capture Yecheng, was still resting near Yecheng. Lu Zhi took advantage of this gap and suddenly raised an army of 100,000 troops, crossed the Yellow River north overnight, and launched a decisive attack on Kei Pass, which is known as the most dangerous pass in the world.

During the campaign, Lu Zhi used the new weapon "Bombardment Car" manufactured by the imperial weaponry development unit, and used the violent impact force generated when a large amount of gunpowder approached the Kei Pass, and forced the stone iron barrier to blow up the Kei Pass, and then engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the soldiers of the Crouching Tiger Army guarding the pass.

It is said that this powerful "city-bombing car" is designed by Huang Yueying, Zhuge Liang's wife, and is somewhat similar to the "ironclad car" made by the Crouching Tiger Equipment Institute in principle. The "Bombardment Car" is even bigger than the ironclad car, with four wheels on the left and right, and the roof and four sides of the car wall are made of pure steel, which is not afraid of the fierce attacks of catapults, bed crossbows and thunderbolts on the city. Inside the car, several powerful soldiers pushed the "bombing car" forward, and when they reached the city wall, these soldiers, knowing that they were going to die, ignited the gunpowder placed in the car, and it was destroyed in the violent explosion.

This kind of automobile/bomb attack similar to the self-killing style of later generations, once or twice for the tall and powerful Keiguan is not very damaging, but if hundreds of cars rush forward and crash into it, especially near the door hole, it is a very terrible destructive force.

Lu Zhi watched expressionlessly as the loyal veterans who had been selected by himself and had followed him for many years disappeared under Jiguan, and after paying more than 300 "city-bombing vehicles" and 5,000 soldiers' complete sacrifices, Jiguan finally couldn't withstand this crazy attack, and collapsed a gap several zhang wide.

Looking at the Kei Pass, where there was already a gap, Lu Zhi still ordered the remaining "city bombing vehicles" to continue to fill in this gap with an almost cold and resolute attitude, and died together with the hoplites of the Crouching Tiger Army who were blocking in front of the army. Lu Zhi's almost suicidal combat mode shocked the generals guarding Jiguan, and also shocked Zhao Xing in Crouching Tiger City, not far from Jiguan.

In Zhao Xing's view, the defensive operations of the soldiers of the Crouching Tiger Army were already crazy, at least in the face of this kind of enemy like a madman, there was no sign of rout. But there is still an essential difference between madness and madness, he didn't want the entire 10,000 Crouching Tiger soldiers to be blown to powder by Lu Zhi in Jiguan, so he immediately ordered the remaining less than 5,000 Jiguan defenders to quickly withdraw to Crouching Tiger City.

In fact, as long as Zhao Xing was willing, he could not give the order to retreat but let the remaining nearly 5,000 Crouching Tiger hoplites continue to defend Keiguan, waiting for the Crouching Tiger Army, which had already returned from other places for urgent reinforcements, and the Liaodong Army, which was rushing to support from the direction of Huguan. In fact, the soldiers who defended Keiguan were ready to die with their lives.

These Jin soldiers who may be sacrificed are not related to him, and he doesn't need to be sad and entangled in them. Didn't he pay for so many troops to let everyone fight for him? Wasn't it just to resist Zhao Xing's attack when the imperial court paid for so many soldiers?

However, there are some things that should not be considered simply and crudely. Before Zhao Xing came to this time and space, he had grown step by step from an ordinary soldier to a reconnaissance battalion commander in the army, and he could best understand the inner feelings of every ordinary soldier.

Although he has an army of nearly one million under his command, most of these people are impossible for him to remember in his life, but these officers and soldiers are all living people, not killing machines with knives and guns, they have souls, relatives, and children, and each of them should not dedicate their lives to him Zhao Xing for the so-called "imperial hegemony". The lives of soldiers are truly valuable and meaningful when they are dedicated to defending their homes and loved ones from infringement.

Zhao Xing has never forgotten a story he read in his previous life: after the tide receded, a large number of fish were stranded on the beach. Seeing this, a little boy began to pick up the fish and throw them into the sea one by one. A passer-by did not understand, "Can you save so many fish?" The little boy replied while saving the fish, "This fish cares!" and threw another fish back into the sea.

How many people in the world are not stranded on the beach after the low tide? Zhao Xing, who has been a fisher, hopes that he can save a few more fish. It was out of such a simple feeling, so Zhao Xing always couldn't see too many deaths of soldiers.

For Zhao Xing, as long as he had a little more patience and did not rush to the pinnacle of power, it would have prevented thousands of soldiers from dying, and for a soldier, as long as there was no sacrifice, he would have the world.

Since the remaining 5,000 Crouching Tiger soldiers who were defending Keiguan had withdrawn, Lu Zhi did not hesitate to lead the remaining 90,000 troops to rush into the southern gate of the Jin Kingdom, and the soldiers were pointing to Crouching Tiger City!