"Han Shun and King Xichuan have already led their troops to break through from Xiangcheng and fled back to Yuzhong Mansion across the river together?"

Lu Yuan finished reading the secret letter that was urgently sent in his hand, and then looked at the messenger who was in the dust below, oh no, it should be said that it was a junior colonel in the army.

From the smell of blood on the other party's body that didn't have time to wash away, it is not difficult to guess what the other party has experienced along the way.

It will not be easy to live to bring this letter back.

"Back to the king, yes."

The junior colonel below felt the king's gaze falling, and he felt a little pressure in his heart, and he didn't dare to look at him, so he hurriedly lowered his head and replied: "Ten days ago, the news from the rear of Xichuan Kingdom came back, and General Zuo and King Xichuan were shocked. In the end, the two discussed together and decided to withdraw their troops from Xiangcheng to break through.

The resolution was made and implemented that night.

At that time, the general broke out with General Zuo, fought several times, and finally escaped from Xiangcheng.

Then General Zuo ordered the last general to personally guard and send this urgent letter to the starry night.

And General Zuo led the remnants and followed the road with the king of Xichuan and killed them towards Xichuan County.

According to the deployment at the time of departure, General Zuo was ready to lead his troops back to Yuzhong Mansion, but whether he could return now is not clear to the last general.

When we led the army to break through, those Jianchuan Yi troops seemed to have expected it, and they were prepared early.

On the way, the army has been ambushed and pursued several times, and the corresponding arrangements seem to have begun a long time ago, and they are not hastily deployed......"

The junior colonel told the layout made by Han Shun after breaking through, as well as the details of his breakthrough along the way.

And the more detailed and in-depth he said, the deeper Lu Yuan's eyes couldn't help but become.

Although his expression was still calm, the oppressive atmosphere gradually enveloped the room as things were said.

The little colonel noticed the change in the atmosphere, and knew in his heart how bad the news he had brought was, and for a while, he couldn't help but be taken by Lu Yuan's momentum, and a trace of sweat appeared on his forehead.

"Okay, your news came in a timely manner, if you don't have anything to do, go down first, this time you desperately sent the news, Lone wrote it down, and there will be a reward later."

Sensing the slight unnaturalness of the small smile below, Lu Yuan glanced at him, slightly restrained his breath, and said expressionlessly.

"Yes, the last general will retire." The little colonel breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this, and he didn't care about wiping his sweat, so he quickly retreated and left as if he had fled.

And after the people left, a terrifying aura broke out in the room.

The chill seemed to freeze everything.

"Nan Zhaoguo, it's really lonely, I underestimate you......"

The low, muffled voice turned into a murmur in the room, wafting back and forth.

The two guards outside the room, feeling the terrible pressure coming from the room, couldn't help but tremble slightly, and looked at each other, revealing a trace of fear and fear.

I don't know what the man said to the king just now, and it made the king exude such a terrible aura. ’

The thought came to them in their hearts, but soon the dreaded aura in the room subsided again, and the king's voice rang out.

"Someone."

Ignoring his continued curiosity, one of them quickly went in after hearing the order.

"There is a military order here, which will be sent to Xiangyang County immediately and handed over to the general."

In the room, Lu Yuan, who had regained his calm, handed over the letter in his hand to the guard.

"Yes."

The guards who entered the room hurriedly took it, and then left in a hurry with this urgent letter in their hands.

Lu Yuan looked at the back of the departure, his expression silent.

The hinterland of Xichuan Kingdom was raided by Nanzhao Kingdom, to be honest, this matter was indeed a bit unexpected by him, and it should even be said that he was caught off guard.

No one would have thought that the Nanzhao Kingdom, which had originally gathered troops in the capital and had not made any moves, would be able to make such a surprise attack for thousands of miles.

I have to say that the other party's move really hit him, or rather, on the sore spot of Xichuan Country.

Taking advantage of the emptiness in the rear of the Xichuan Kingdom, he directly dispatched a large army to travel thousands of miles in the lofty mountains and mountains, concealing their ears and eyes, and slaughtering into the hinterland of the Xichuan Kingdom in one fell swoop.

This unbridled blow was the same as the two times when Lu Yuan led the army to attack Xiangyang and Xichuan seven years ago during the Northern Expedition, and directly hit the enemy seven inches above the enemy's expectations, and pinched the opponent's death hole.

Now the Nanzhao army has raided Jinguan City and captured the capital of Xichuan State, which is no worse than Lu Yuan's two surprise attacks.

At this time, the two armies of Jihui and Han Shun, who lost the rear, were forced into a dangerous situation of flanking the front and rear, just like the Zhou Shu coalition army that was blocked at Wushan Pass that day.

The only thing they are better than the Zhou-Shu coalition army is probably that the back road is not completely blocked.

The Xichuan Kingdom was lost, but Lu Yuan's Xichuan County was still there, and for the time being, it would not end up with a single territory lost, and there would not even be a place to settle down.

But even so, at best, it is only a little comfort in the face of all this bad news.

This time, the Nanzhao army raided Xichuan State, and the troops used were not small.

Although there is no exact number, judging from the secret letter sent back by Han Shun just now, the news from the mainland of Xichuan Country has at least fifty or sixty thousand, or even more.

That's a terrible amount.

You must know that during the heyday of the Xichuan Kingdom, counting some militias, there was only this number of troops. And after Lu Yuan's Xichuan County took 10,000 county soldiers, there were only 6,000 county soldiers left.

With the number of armies on both sides, it can be said that it is quite difficult to resist the surprise attack of Nanzhao State, and it is even dangerous.

An accident.

Then the Xichuan State is at risk of extinction, and the Chu State is also in danger of losing the three prefectures of Xichuan County.

And no matter which of the above is, it is difficult for the Chu State to accept.

"I have already sent a letter to Xiaoqing, asking him to withdraw a forbidden army from Xiangyang County and go west, and rush to Xichuan County to rescue.

However, from Xiangyang County, it will take 20 days to transfer troops to Xichuan, even if they travel lightly. Hopefully this will be in time. ”

Lu Yuan's fingertips tapped lightly on the table, and his eyes were thinking with some worry.

……

Since Han Shun led the army to break through the siege and sent people to risk death to send back the news, before Lu Yuan could make more arrangements in time, bad news came one after another from Xichuan and Nanzhao.

On the fifth day of the seventh month, the Xichuan branch of the Imperial City Division rushed to report that a large number of Nanzhao troops poured out of the mountains in the west, and in just half a month, they captured a large area of territory in Xichuan.

Now the two mansions of Chengdu and Anyue in Xichuan are lost, and Jinguancheng has fallen.

And the Nanzhao army that suddenly appeared, after seizing the above territory, also divided several troops to capture the remaining three prefectures of Xichuan State.

Now that Xichuan is empty in the country, and there is no master in charge, I don't know how long it can last.

On the seventh day of the seventh month, Han China received the news of the fall of the capital of Xichuan, and Qiao Kangquan was shocked.

After perceiving the possibility that he might be attacked by the enemy, he immediately made a decision to transfer 20,000 soldiers and horses and 10,000 Hanzhong troops sent by Xichuan to assist in the defense from the front line of confrontation with Zhou, and urgently rushed back to Xichuan to guard against the invasion of the Nanzhao army.

Now Qiao An'an is leading these 30,000 people to garrison in the area of Jiange Mansion, containing and monitoring the Nanzhao army that is raging in Xichuan.

At the same time, Hanzhong County also sent a flying report, urgently asking for reinforcements from the Chu State.

On the eighth day of the seventh month, the news from the Jianchuan Kingdom of Nanzhao came back. King Xichuan and Han Shun broke through with their troops, but encountered stubborn resistance from the Jianchuan army on the way, and they encountered many ambushes on the way.

Moreover, after breaking through the encirclement, those Jianchuan troops also continued to pursue, biting tightly, and there was a posture that would not stop if this coalition army was not destroyed.

In desperation, Xichuan Wang Jihui had to lead 5,000 soldiers and horses, and after the first line of the Nuoyi River was broken, he desperately blocked the Jianchuan army.

However, in this back-to-back battle, the king of Xichuan failed to exert his might.

Because among the chasing soldiers, there is Zhao Zhenshui, the king of Yongchang of the Southern Zhao Kingdom.

This Yongchang King Zhao Zhenshui, who was also born in the royal family of Nanzhao, is the uncle of the current lord of Nanzhao, and is the innate grandmaster of the older generation.

can only be hidden in the Jianchuan army all the time, even when the city was attacked before, it was not exposed.

It wasn't until now that the news of the Nanzhao army's invasion of Xichuan came and Ji Hui fled with his men and horses, that he finally started to do it.

Therefore, when Ji Hui wanted to rely on his innate strength to block the Jianchuan army for the army, the king of Yongchang, who was hidden in the army, directly came to a sneak attack.

Unprepared, Ji Hui fought with him and was immediately seriously injured.

In the end, if it weren't for the desperate use of a few secret techniques, and barely managed to kill a bloody road, I am afraid that this king of Xichuan will have to confess to the Nuoyi River.

But even so, after Ji Hui was seriously injured, the situation was very bad. Although he saved his life, he couldn't do it again for a short time.

And the Jianchuan army, after defeating Ji Hui, did not give up the pursuit, and still pursued the breakthrough army all the way, and there was a posture of not giving up.

On the tenth day of July, Xichuan County reported again.

Han Shun, the left general, led more than 3,000 remnants of the army, and retreated to Yuzhong Mansion in Xichuan County in embarrassment.

At this time, in Xichuan County, because Han Shun also sent an urgent letter back before, he had already mobilized at this time. 50,000 militia groups gathered in Yuzhong Prefecture and began to deploy defenses in the border towns bordering Nanzhao's sphere of influence in the south and near Xichuan in the west, to prevent Nanzhao from attacking.

With these 50,000 militias, as well as the remnants of nearly 10,000 county soldiers in the county, and 60,000 soldiers and horses stationed in Yuzhongfu, they should be able to protect this territory for the time being.

On July 12, a letter came from Nishikawa.

After the First Battle of the Nuoyi River, Jihui, the king of Xichuan who was missing, led more than 5,000 remnants of soldiers and fled back to Panshi Mansion in Xichuan Kingdom.

However, at this time, more than half of the prefecture and county of Panshi Mansion had been occupied by the Southern Zhao army. Even though Jihui brought back 5,000 soldiers and horses, it was still not enough to see the tens of thousands of troops pressed by the heavy troops of the Nanzhao Army.

Now he can only retreat in the palace city, surrounded by tens of thousands of troops from the other side, and he can't get out of the city at all.

At the same time, Xichuan Guo's urgent letter for help was also sent to Chu State quickly. Ji Hui asked Lu Yuan to fulfill the covenant and help him repel the Nanzhao Kingdom and recover the country.

Ghost Festival.

Xichuan Kingdom sent news again, and the 100,000 troops of Jianchuan Kingdom went north, drove into Panshi Mansion, joined the Nanzhao army, and officially joined the army sequence besieging Fucheng.

At the same time, news also came from the north that Xuanwu Mansion in the north of Xichuan had been captured by the Southern Zhao army.

There is only one Nanchong Mansion left, because the Hanzhong army went south to assist in the defense, it only occupies a small half, and now the two sides are caught in a tug of war there, attacking and defending each other.

At this point, only most of Nanzhong Mansion and half of Panshi Mansion were left in Xichuan Kingdom, less than the territory of one Prefecture.

The fear of losing the country has already appeared.

July 20.

After a long journey in January, a forbidden army of 20,000 people transferred from Xiangyang County finally arrived in Yuzhong Prefecture. Then there was no time to rest, so he went to the front line, fortified in various places, and guarded the Nanzhao army together.

Then Han Shun tentatively sent 5,000 soldiers and horses, wanting to go to Panshi Mansion to rescue Ji Hui.

However, on the way, the Nanzhao army was encountered, and the two sides fought fiercely, and finally because the enemy had too many troops, after losing more than 1,000 people, they had no choice but to retreat.

The strategy to rescue Nishikawa failed.

And the Nanzhao army, because of this incident, strengthened the defense of the Chu State.

In the area at the junction of Panshi Mansion and Yuzhong Mansion, 50,000 troops were stationed to prevent the Chu State from interfering in Xichuan state affairs.

At the same time, in the south of Yuzhong Prefecture, he once again collected 50,000 soldiers and horses from Nanzhao and sent them to the border between the two countries, making a posture of wanting to attack, and immediately restrained Han Shun's hands and feet.

Faced with the pressure of 100,000 troops, he was under unprecedented pressure, and he had no spare energy to do anything else.

"I've finally stabilized my position."

In the Shicheng Palace, Lu Yuan put down the latest news in his hand, and breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

Although the news from Xichuan County is still very serious, the situation is not optimistic.

However, after the 20,000 forbidden troops arrived in Yuzhong Mansion, the soldiers and horses of the Chu State in Xichuan County reached 80,000. Of these, 30,000 were regular soldiers and 50,000 were militia groups with some training.

This kind of strength should not be underestimated.

Although it is wishful thinking to rely on this to enter the Xichuan Kingdom and completely drive out those Nanzhao troops.

But with these 80,000 people guarding, it is also impossible for the Nanzhao army to enter Xichuan County of Chu State.

Now, with the continuous exploration, the number of soldiers and horses of the Nanzhao army in the area of Xichuan County and Xichuan County of Chu State has gradually become clear.

The enemy, including the vassal Jianchuan army, has about 2340,000 people, including two innate members of the royal family of Nanzhao Kingdom, which can be said to be a very powerful force.

In the territory of Xichuan, only a large number of conscripts were held back, and after urgent expansion, the combined forces of Hanzhong and Xichuan had reached 50,000.

80,000 soldiers and horses in the area of Yuzhong Mansion of Chu State.

and the turtle cowered in the city of Panshifu, there are thousands of remnants led by Jihui himself.

The camps on the side of the Three Kingdoms add up to only 130,000 soldiers and horses.

There are two Innate Grandmasters, and the number is not bad, but Ji Hui is now seriously injured, and his combat power has been greatly reduced, and at most he can only be regarded as half a Congenital Grandmaster.

So only from the perspective of hard power, the Southern Zhao army is obviously superior, almost twice as large as their three-country alliance.

If it weren't for their insistence on holding on and occupying the advantage of defense, with the difference in strength between the two sides, the coalition side would have been unable to withstand it a long time ago.

However, even if the defense line is held now, with the strength advantage of the Nanzhao army, it is only a matter of time before the confrontation between the two sides continues, and the other side wins the final victory.

Especially with the national strength of the Zhao Kingdom in the south, only more than 200,000 soldiers and horses have been dispatched now, which is far from the limit of the other party.

You must know that on the side of the capital of Nanzhao, as far as Lu Yuan knows, the 100,000 soldiers and horses that the other party originally used to confuse various countries have not been disbanded now, and they are still stationed near the national capital.

Although now they all know that these 100,000 soldiers and horses are only temporary conscripted militia, and their combat strength is limited.

But even if the militia reaches 100,000 people, it is a rather terrible force.

If it is thrown into the battlefield of Xichuan Kingdom, it will undoubtedly make the defense line of the Three Kingdoms Alliance, which is already under great pressure, appear unbearable again.

This must not happen.

"The defense on Xichuan's side is still a little weak. Especially in terms of the congenital grandmaster, there is no congenital grandmaster in Yuzhong Mansion, and it is too much to suffer in the face of the Nanzhao army, so he has to send some reinforcements over there. ”

Lu Yuan frowned and thought.

The strength of the Nanzhao army was really beyond his expectations.

The most important thing is the great prince of Nanzhao Kingdom, the innate grandmaster who has been hiding from others and not exposed, who gave everyone a surprise.

If you count this prince, then the Nanzhao Kingdom already has three innate grandmasters, and in terms of combat power at the top level, it is not inferior to the current Chu State.

In comparison, the soldiers and horses that Nanzhao can mobilize now are not worth mentioning.

After all, whether it is the more than 200,000 Nanzhao troops in Xichuan or now, there are 100,000 soldiers and horses gathered in the Nanzhao Kingdom, and the total is only more than 300,000, and 400,000 in the sky.

Although this strength is already good, but looking at the past, the prosperous Dali Kingdom and the Great Changhe Kingdom, which one can't make up such a soldier and horse under the full effort?

Even exaggeratingly, it is not impossible to get 500,000 or 600,000 people.

After all, the three southwestern kingdoms, including vassals, are all large countries with a population of more than two or three million.

With this demographic potential, there is not the slightest problem in mobilizing such a number of soldiers and horses.

However, it is not elite enough, and no matter how many soldiers and horses there are, it doesn't make much sense.

If you simply pile up the number of people, even Xichuan County in the current Chu State can pull out a militia of about 150,000 people at any time.

But it doesn't make the slightest sense.

Without training, the militia regiment's combat strength was always limited, and it was simply impossible to pull them out for field combat.

And if you defend the city, the 80,000 soldiers and horses in Xichuan County are enough.

With an army of this size, even if the enemy's 200,000 soldiers and horses attacked, they would not be afraid of anything.

Therefore, it is meaningless to simply increase the number of troops, especially the number of miscellaneous armies, and it is easy to delay the local production of Xichuan County and further aggravate the consumption of logistics.

It's simply not worth the cost.

Now the only disadvantage of the Chu army in Xichuan County is still the lack of top-level combat power and innate grandmasters.

Only in this regard, the state of Chu has an absolute disadvantage in the face of the state of Nanzhao.

But now there are three congenitals in the Chu State, Zhou Qing wants to defend the northern countries in Xiangyang County, and Lan Caier wants to defend the Ning Kingdom in Baling City.

Lu Yuan himself wants to sit in Qianzhong County, suppress the rebellion in the county, and at the same time guard against the counterattack of the Great Changhe Kingdom at any time.

No matter which one of the three people is, they can't leave at all.

At this time, if you want to transfer an innate grandmaster and rush to Yuzhong Mansion, you can't do it at all.

"I can only add more soldiers and horses over there, and rely on the number of people to pile up defenses."

After frowning and pondering for a long time, Lu Yuan sighed helplessly and made this decision that he didn't want to make the most.

Now in Qianzhong County, after several months of cleanup, most of the local rebellions have been wiped out. There is some remnant left, which can also be slowly removed.

At the same time, the local tribes in towns and towns, which were either independent or semi-independent, were also deterred by the presence of large armies in local governments and counties, and began to slowly incorporate into the rule of the government.

At this time, although Qianzhong County does not dare to say that it is completely stable, as long as there are no major changes, there is basically no need to worry about local people and what waves will come.

In this case, the almost 20,000 mobile forbidden troops in Lu Yuan's hands can also be drawn out and sent elsewhere.

"There are 20,000 people going to Yuzhong Mansion, and the number of soldiers there is as much as 50,000, and the scale of soldiers and horses can reach 100,000. In this way, facing the innate grandmaster, it can be regarded as having the strength to fight, and it will not be easily defeated. ”

Thinking like this, Lu Yuan began to sign the transfer order, preparing to send it to various ministries for the transfer of personnel.

Now the situation in Xichuan is urgent, and every day that passes, there may be a little more danger.

If he didn't hurry up and strengthen his strength over there, he was really worried.

This world is changing, and it is really impermanent.

Although the alliance he made by himself achieved major results, it allowed the Chu State to open up a county. But it is also difficult to fill the holes that have been poked out.

It's hard to say!