It was done.

After listening to Bai Mengyang's words, Lu Yuan instantly revealed this thought in his heart, and then he was overjoyed.

However, he didn't show it on his face, just looked back at the other party, and said solemnly: "This is just what it should be." This time, if I capture the counties of Hanzhong Prefecture and fail to keep them, I will naturally go to Jihui Holy Monk and the Qiao family master to ask for the three eastern mansions of Xichuan County. ”

The premise of the exchange is that you have the land of Sanfu, so it can be said that you can use it to exchange the land of Sanfu with others.

If you don't even have this bit of territory, where do you have the face to find someone to exchange territory?

Therefore, Ji Hui and Qiao Kangquan put forward this condition, which is basically equivalent to the tacit transaction between the two people.

Hearing this, Bai Mengyang twitched in his heart and lamented greatly.

In the past few days, he sent a messenger to Wushan Mansion, wanting to make his last effort to win over Jihui and Qiao Kangquan.

However, the final result was not satisfactory.

Although Ji Hui and Qiao Kangquan were in their words, they still assured him that even after the country was sealed, he would respect the court and obey the orders of the court.

But the result after this was that both of them euphemistically said that Xichuan was dilapidated and poor, and the population was withered, which was really not a good place to build a country.

Later, the two sent back a letter, saying that Hanzhong County was rich and had a large population.

If they can take this place, not only will the two of them be stronger, but they will also be able to sort out more taxes, recruit more strong soldiers, and then serve the imperial court.

Therefore, they agreed to the proposal of the king of Changsha in principle, and then asked the Marquis of Wu An to convey it on his behalf.

Well, yes, in the face of the temptation proposed by Lu Yuan, Ji Hui and Qiao Kang did not hesitate, and chose the most practical interests between the imperial court and Lu Yuan.

People will always choose their own position to stand in line, rather than the so-called friendship.

Feelings always seem vulnerable in the face of interests.

At this time, Marquis Wu An, as well as the imperial court, deeply realized this.

Suppressing the helplessness in his heart, Wu Anhou looked at Lu Yuan, who was full of energy in front of him, put his attention on business, and then said: "Since the Holy Monk Jihui and the Qiao family master have agreed to exchange the territory, is the matter of the King of Changsha going on an expedition also settled?" ”

When Lu Yuan heard this, he said happily: "My condition has been fulfilled, so there is naturally no problem in going on the expedition." ”

"Okay, then this matter is settled."

Bai Mengyang nodded, and then said solemnly: "This expedition is a surprise attack. Especially when you go to fight thousands of miles, you must travel day and night, travel lightly, and do not stop on the road.

Therefore, it is advisable to send less soldiers and horses.

As I said before, 30,000 or 50,000 people are enough this time.

Moreover, in the past few days, the Zhou people have increased their troops, and in just five or six days, there have been more than 10,000 soldiers and horses in Xiangyang City.

Even according to the report from the outpost, within the Zhou people's Beijing division, there were already 100,000 forbidden troops heading towards Xiangyang. Moreover, the town soldiers of Henan County, Nanyang County, and Guannei County of Zhou also began to gather and prepare to go south.

In addition, the three counties of Hexi, Longxi, and Shuofang of Zhou Guo, because of the distance of thousands of miles, I don't know if there is any movement.

But even if it doesn't, just rely on the three counties that have begun to gather troops at this time, and then make up 100,000 soldiers and horses.

With the arrival of 200,000 troops, counting the 100,000 troops in Xiangyang County, the Zhou people had 300,000 troops.

In the Zhou people's country, there are also three generals of the Zhu Kingdom, and I don't know if there will be one or two more reinforcements this time.

And all of the above, at most, in the rest of the month, will all arrive at the city of Xiangyang.

But on the side of our army, except for the headquarters of the king of Changsha, the whole army is up and down, there are still 50,000 soldiers and horses left in the imperial court, 40,000 in the South China Sea, and less than 50,000 in Ninghai, adding up to only 140,000.

With 140,000 against 300,000, especially our 140,000 army, not all of them are elite, and there are many people mixed in. ”

Speaking of this, Bai Mengyang turned his head to look at Yan Wangqiu and Su Xuange, both of whom showed embarrassed expressions.

No way.

On this expedition, Lu Yuan and the imperial court brought elites who could fight well. It's like the two of them, what kind of crooked melons and cracked dates they bring, and they can't fight hard at all.

Feeling ashamed in his heart, Yan Wangqiu just wanted to end this big war as soon as possible, and then return to the country, and no longer mix this mess.

Su Xuange secretly made up his mind that the 20,000 elites of the Zhou Kingdom that had been collected in Dangyang City last time must be put together and rectified.

In this chaotic world, even if he is the lord of the country and has a noble status, there is no elite soldier who dares to fight, and he can't speak hard.

Otherwise, look at Lu Yuan, Wu Anhou talked to him, he came politely, and even bargained, and could make all kinds of requests.

But for the two of them, he sneered at them from time to time, and when he needed to help others, he also gave orders directly, without discussion at all.

This difference can be said that as long as you have experienced it, it is really uncomfortable for yourself.

Not to mention, the two of them are still kings, commanding a country.

After a slight knock on Yan Wangqiu and Su Xuange, Bai Mengyang didn't spend much effort on the two of them, but continued: "With my 140,000 good and bad army, I will face the 300,000 elites of the Zhou people.

Although this battle is not completely unfought, if it is really engaged, it will inevitably be a stumbling force, and it is impossible to attack at all, so it has to defend with all its might.

Therefore, on this expedition, the general could no longer allocate additional soldiers and horses to the king of Changsha.

The king of Changsha needs to take his own troops and horses to carry out this plan and attack Xichuan. ”

This time to deal with the reinforcements of the Zhou army, Bai Mengyang's core plan did not rely on the uneven soldiers and horses under his hands.

What he really relied on was himself, plus the innate grandmasters of Yang Jing, Yan Wangqiu, and Su Xuange.

With the strength of the four innate grandmasters, dealing with the pressure of the Zhou people's soldiers is the real key to this battle.

The 140,000 army, as long as you don't lose your brains, open the formation and start a head-on decisive battle with the Zhou people, and find death by yourself.

So if they just guard the camp, then those ordinary people under the command of Nanhai and Ninghai, with the city as the backing, the gap between them and China's elite soldiers will be greatly eliminated.

After all, in the siege battle, an arrow goes down, a stone is thrown down, and a boiling of bronzing juice is poured down, no matter whether you are strong in martial arts or not, as long as you win, most of it is a dead word.

All they had to do was shoot arrows, throw stones, and pour gold juice.

There are not many places where they really need to fight directly with the Zhou people.

As for what to do if the Zhou people send martial arts masters?

This one is even simpler.

Don't forget the origins of the South China Sea and Ninghai.

The original bodies of these two countries are all innate factions from the martial arts of the rivers and lakes.

You ask them to come up with an elite army that can fight well, but maybe they can't take it.

But let them show martial arts who are strong in martial arts and are accustomed to personal private fights, this is a good show.

In this expedition, the two countries each had an army of 100,000, and the generals and officers at all levels in the army were all filled by the disciples and elders of the original two innate sects and the masters of the vassal sects.

In terms of martial arts masters, there is still no shortage of armies of the two countries, and it can even be said that they are too abundant.

As for the imperial court, although the masters are not as sufficient as those of the two countries, they also meet the general standard.

Therefore, if you really start a siege war, it's okay that the Zhou people don't shoot the surprise attack of martial arts masters, they really send it over, and the coalition side can definitely surprise them.

Of course, having said all this, Bai Mengyang actually has only one meaning.

On the side of the main battalion of the coalition army, the situation is already very difficult, and it can even be said that it is critical.

In this case, I really can't give any help. If you want to run thousands of miles, you can only rely on yourself.

Well......

Well, that's speechless indeed.

It's obviously a big guy's business, but he wants Lu Yuan to contribute alone.

However, thinking that he would be able to get the reward of the land of Sanfu in the end, and the two countries of Ninghai in the South China Sea, and even the imperial court, did not have any hair.

Thinking about it this way, it makes sense again.

Therefore, after Lu Yuan heard this, he thought about it in his heart, and still nodded and said, "Yes, this time I will attack with my own troops and horses." I will lead an army of 50,000 to gallop to Xichuan and besiege Wushan Mansion. ”

Considering that if the coalition camp is defeated miserably, then not only the three western mansions of Xiangyang County that have been in hand will not be able to be saved, but even the Tianmen Mansion in Jiangbei will be lost again.

And the Zhou people are likely to drink the Yangtze River again, and once again threaten Lu Yuan's Changsha Jiangnan land.

Faced with this predictable and terrible consequence, he finally decided to suffer this small loss himself.

After all, some time ago, he had killed the two pillars of the Zhou State one after another, and destroyed the two congenitals of the family, which was already a blood feud.

At this time, if you want to take refuge in the other party, don't say whether the Zhou people will agree.

Just said that they agreed, and Lu Yuan didn't dare to throw it over.

This kind of thing is not uncommon and new, so he doesn't dare to gamble.

Therefore, compared with before the Northern Expedition, Lu Yuan had a lot less choice of paths at this time. There is only one left to fight to the end with the Zhou people and completely subdue them and defeat them.

Now, it's time to help.

"Okay, then this surprise attack depends on the power of the King of Changsha."

Bai Mengyang was relieved to hear that Lu Yuan agreed to this arrangement and did not mention any other conditions. Then he stood up and saluted him: "This time, the survival of our coalition forces is tied to the king of Changsha. I hope that the king will be able to win consecutive battles this time, recover Xichuan, and send a great victory. ”

Yan Wangqiu and Su Xuange also got up and saluted: "I hope that the king will be able to win a series of battles this time, recover Xichuan, and send a great victory." ”

When facing the Zhou people, whether it is the national hatred and family hatred due to historical factors, or the actual interests of personal factors, the representatives of the interests of the four countries present do not have much good impression of the Zhou people.

The southerners in the south of the Yangtze River and the northerners in the north of the Yangtze River can't go together.

Now, it is the time for a strong man to die with his life.

Several people have these realizations.

……

On the seventh day of the first month of the eighth year of Hongdao, after Lu Yuan handed over the large camp outside Xiangyang City, he led 50,000 soldiers and horses to the west.

It took three days to go all the way up the Han River and arrive at Fanglingfu City. Then he joined Lan Cai'er, who had arrived, and continued westward.

The reason why Lan Cai'er was summoned was mainly because of the previous agreement.

Only by holding the results in the southern part of Hanzhong County can you make territorial transactions with Jihui and Qiao Kangquan.

Therefore, for the sake of insurance, it is necessary to arrange a congenital grandmaster to guard the territory in the southern part of Hanzhong County.

As for Guining, Fangling, and Xicheng, what to do?

Now that Xiangyang is besieged and the Zhou soldiers in Wushan Mansion are shrinking, the Zhou people in these three places, as long as their brains are not stupid, who dares to jump out and make trouble at this time?

Therefore, Lu Yuan only left 5,000 guards in each of the three prefectures, responsible for maintaining law and order on weekdays and suppressing some small riots, so he did not arrange more guards for them.

On the tenth day of the first month, the army arrived in Xicheng Mansion.

On the thirteenth day of the first month, the army arrived at Xixiang Mansion in Hanzhong County.

At this time, Chu Wei, another of his personal disciples, was taking over the previous responsibilities of Zhou Qing and led 10,000 troops to attack this mansion.

After Lu Yuan joined him, he and Lan Cai'er personally led the troops to attack the Xixiang Mansion City, which had been holding on for half a month.

In the face of the thunderous blows of the two innate grandmasters, Xixiang Mansion City naturally couldn't hold on, but it lasted for half an hour and was immediately broken.

Of the more than 4,000 defenders in the city, more than half were killed in the battle, and the rest surrendered.

Then it took another day for Lu Yuan to divide his troops and capture the counties of Xixiang Prefecture.

Then leaving 5,000 men to guard the town, he continued to lead an army of 55,000, and it took another three days to arrive at Nanzheng Mansion in Hanzhong County.

Nanzheng Mansion is the county seat of Hanzhong County, and the south of Zhengcheng is the county seat.

Therefore, when Lu Yuan's soldiers arrived, the entire Nanzheng Mansion was shaken.

At this time, in Nanzheng City, in fact, the news that the Yue people had marched into the army and the Xixiang Mansion had been lost.

But helplessly, in the entire Hanzhong County, whether it is the county government or the town soldiers, they have all been sent south to fight in Wushan Mansion.

At this time, the only soldiers and horses that could be mobilized in the county were those who only knew how to hunt down thieves and oppress good people, as well as the guards of various large merchants in the city.

These forces mobilized by the Hanzhong County Guard recruited more than 10,000 people, and made up more than 13,000 people to defend the city.

However, this kind of power, if it is Lu Yuan's opponent?

Under the attack of him and Lan Cai'er, it only took a day of hard work, and the county town of Hanzhong had fallen.

At this point, on the seventeenth day of the first month of the eighth year of Hongdao, since the Northern Expedition, the coalition army finally captured the first county town, and the Zhou people ushered in the greatest loss.

After breaking the city, Lu Yuan left Lan Cai'er and 15,000 people for her, and then ordered her to collect the wealth and food in the county in the following days, and continue to attack the remaining territory of Hanzhong County.

In addition, he began to move the population of the Hanzhong Prefecture and sent them to all parts of Changsha Kingdom.

Now the ten prefectures of Dongting County in Changsha State, as well as the three prefectures of Xichuan County that are about to be acquired, are all places where the population is withering.

These thirteen prefectures, compared to their heyday, are almost two million less people.

If you want to make up for such a large population loss, relying on natural birth alone is afraid that forty or fifty years will be enough.

Therefore, if you want to restore the potential of your territory as soon as possible, the best way is to plunder it from the outside.

Whether it's plundering wealth, or plundering population.

On the side of Hanzhong Mansion, although the county government has been defeated at this time, it is not much of a problem to directly defeat the whole county even by taking advantage of the empty defense of the Zhou people here.

But Lu Yuan knew that even if he fought this territory and wanted to defend it, it would be impossible.

Because the Zhou people will never sit back and watch such an important southwest town as they are lost.

This is a county territory!

The Zhou people only had a total of eight counties, and at this time Xiangyang County lost more than half, and if Hanzhong County was lost again, then he would have lost almost a quarter of his territory.

Such a heavy loss, how could the Zhou people accept it.

Therefore, even if they do their best, they will send troops south to retake this county.

I'm afraid that if the news from here comes back, then what Wu Anhou said before, the three counties of Hexi, Longxi, and Shuofang of the Zhou State, I don't know if the soldiers and horses will move, I am afraid that they will also move at this time.

And the target of the movement is none other than Hanzhong County.

Lu Yuan didn't have much energy at this time, and he had a decisive battle with the hundreds of thousands of troops of the Zhou people to decide the ownership of Hanzhong County.

And to be honest, in fact, even if he can win this decisive battle, he doesn't want to fight.

The reason is simple.

Even if Hanzhong County is defeated, with his current strength, he will not be able to hold it.

First of all, in Changsha, the southern part of Dongting County, if you want to hold this territory, you need a congenital grandmaster.

And the land of Jiangbei includes the three western mansions of Xiangyang County that have already been acquired, the three eastern mansions of Xichuan County that are about to be acquired, and the land of the seven mansions of Tianmen Mansion.

If you want to keep these territories, you also need an innate grandmaster to watch.

In this way, the whereabouts of Lu Yuan and Lan Cai'er have basically been decided.

The husband and wife, looking at the land south of the Yangtze River and the north of the river respectively, have no spare energy to care about anything else.

Therefore, even if Hanzhong County is defeated, for Lu Yuan, it is simply a chicken rib, beyond his ability, and there is no benefit at all except for attracting burdens and disasters.

Therefore, no matter how good and rich Hanzhong County is, he has no interest in such a territory.

At this time, there is nothing else except the thought of grabbing a handful and running.

Of course.

If he can hold more territory in Hanzhong County after the arrival of Zhou Bing, then he may be able to exchange more territory in Xichuan County from Jihui and Qiao Kangquan at that time.

This is another great thing for Lu Yuan.

Therefore, after conquering the city of Nanzheng, he sent an order to the country.

Let the Jiangnan side transfer another 20,000 soldiers and horses over and go to Hanzhong County to listen to it.

In the land south of the Yangtze River, counting the 5,000 people who had previously escorted the Zhou people to capture, Lu Yuan still had 65,000 soldiers.

Therefore, at this time, the dispatch of 20,000 people to the north will weaken the domestic repression pressure a lot, but it can barely be maintained, which is not a big deal.

And after having 20,000 people, on the side of Hanzhong County, count the 5,000 people from Xixiang Mansion, and the 10,000 people that Lu Yuan will leave in Nanjiang and Baishi Mansion next.

The number of soldiers and horses that Lan Cai'er can mobilize in his hands will reach 50,000 people.

This kind of soldiers and horses, led by an innate grandmaster, if it is just to defend the city, then even if the Zhou people have an army of 100,000, they don't want to easily recapture Hanzhong County.

After making these many arrangements, Lu Yuan continued to lead his troops south.

Then on the twentieth day of the first month, Kenang Province.

After leaving 5,000 soldiers to guard, he arrived at Baishi Mansion on the 23rd, and then conquered it, and also left 5,000 soldiers.

On the twenty-fifth day of the first month of the eighth year of Hongdao, Lu Yuan commanded 30,000 soldiers and arrived at the Jiange Mansion in Xichuan County, and officially approached Xichuan.