Three Kingdoms: I, Liu Feng, do not want to die

Chapter 182 Father and son join the battle, fighting against the elite (Additional update)
Just returned to the big tent.

The military chief Fan Cheng brought Liu Bei the latest intelligence documents.

The document records that Liu Bei had ordered Jiangxia Governor Guan Xing and Pingdong General Guan Ping to send troops from Shiyang three days ago, claiming that he wanted to attack Pingchun.

Although the grand strategy of the Northern Expedition was proposed by Liu Feng, the specific command and dispatch of the Northern Expedition was presided over by Liu Bei.

As the saying goes: father and son fight together in battle.

Due to his age and status, Liu Bei could no longer go to the front line in person or even cross Micang Mountain to go around the enemy's rear as he did in the Battle of Hanzhong, but he could sit in the rear and command his two sons to be the vanguard and dispatch other generals to provide support.

After discussing Cao Pi's possible response with Guan Yu, Liu Bei sent Jiangxia Prefect Guan Xing and Pingdong General Guan Ping to launch a feint attack on Pingchun.

It was called a feint attack, but in fact they had two plans in mind.

Just like Liu Feng's surprise attack on Shiyang, if he couldn't capture the city, it would be fine, but if he could, he would make a lot of money.

"Father ordered Tanzhi and Anguo to attack Pingchun, so Cao Xiu and Yu Jin in Pingchun dared not act rashly. The opponent we will face next should be Cao Pi's general Cao Ren, so we need to prepare for the attack in advance."

Liu Feng asked Fan Cheng to read the contents of the intelligence document to all the generals.

The generals who came to attack Wancheng this time were either Liu Feng's direct subordinates or those in the army who admired Liu Feng.

Except for Liu Qingzhi, Liu Changgong, Liu Wentai, Liu Xianda and Liu Daozhi of the Five Divisions of the Flying Army who stayed in Nanxiang,
Direct line officers such as Wang Ping, Li Ping; Tian Qi, Kou Anguo, Fang Yue, Pan Feng, Yu She, Mu Shun, Li Fu, Deng Xian, Bai Shou, Mei Fu; Tian Zhong, Han Zhong, Wang Dang, Luo Xin, Shan Xiong, Pei Qing, Mi Tutong, Bei Shi Na, Shu Heli, Qu Xianzhi;

Those in the army who admired Liu Feng included Yue Ju, Yang Xing, Yan Cheng, He Yuan, Luo Yan, Yu Hua, Lu Wen, Niu Xian, Lu Yi, Guan Chong, Lin Sheng, Hu Yanshen, and Lu Zhuo.

They all followed the army to Wancheng.

In order to avoid making wrong decisions, Liu Feng also transferred Yu Fan, who dared to speak out and was knowledgeable about military affairs, to the tent to take orders.

Fan Cheng, who was originally a secretary, was promoted to the chief clerk in the army, responsible for core military affairs such as handling confidential documents, writing military orders, recording meeting matters and managing archives.

In addition to Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong, there are other less famous generals in the army, such as Qu Chang, Tun Jiang, Tu Jiang, Wu Qian, Qiang Sou, Qing Qiang, San Qi, Wu Qi, etc.

Liu Feng wanted great generals, counselors, good generals, and brave warriors.

Compared to the time when he had few soldiers and generals in Shangyong a few years ago, Liu Feng can now truly be said to have a powerful military force.

Hearing that Cao Ren was coming, Huang Zhong wiped his gray beard and laughed: "Cao Ren is a reckless man, and he is just a defeated general of your majesty. If Cao Ren dares to come again, I will capture Cao Ren alive for your Majesty the Prince of Yan."

Everyone laughed.

A great general of an enemy country who is captured alive by his own emperor cannot intimidate others.

The young general Yue Ju generously asked: "Why use a butcher knife to kill a chicken? You don't need to go there in person. It will be as easy as taking something out of a bag for me to capture Cao Ren!"

Kou Anguo was dissatisfied, so he also asked for orders: "Although General Yue is good at naval battles, he may not be good at land battles. I am willing to lead the vanguard and capture Cao Ren alive and present him to you!"

Yue Ju said angrily: "I have also been the first to ascend the battlefield and kill a general. How can you say that I am not good at land warfare? Do you dare to compete with me in martial arts and military tactics?"

Kou Anguo was also furious: "Let's compete, do you think I'm afraid of you?"

Both of them had red eyes.

With more people under your command, there will naturally be more conflicts.

This is human nature.

Lu Yi, Guan Chong, Lin Sheng, Huyan Shen and Lu Zhuo were all okay, after all, they had fought in the snow with Liu Feng. Although they were not Liu Feng's direct subordinates, they were also the first group of officers in the army who admired Liu Feng.

Kou Anguo was also convinced by the five people.

The relationship between Yue Ju, Yang Xing, Yan Cheng, He Yuan, Luo Yan, Yu Hua, Lu Wen and Niu Xian and Kou Anguo was relatively distant.

In addition, these eight people were selected by Guan Yu before, and they also made great contributions in Guan Yu's several battles to counterattack Jiangling. Among them, Yue Ju and Yang Xing were the most brave.

It is normal that newcomers are not convinced by the old ones and the old ones are not convinced by the newcomers.

Liu Feng did not deliberately try to stop this situation.

Fighting is a good thing.

If the officers have no desire to win, how can they boost the morale of the soldiers?
As long as they don't make any principled mistakes like backstabbing teammates or failing to help someone in need, Liu Feng will turn a blind eye.

Subsequently.

Several more young players joined the fight.

Huang Zhong chuckled and said, "Although Cao Ren was captured alive by Your Majesty, he is still a famous and brave general. It is too much to underestimate the enemy by arguing with him and treating him as nothing.

Stop arguing. I am in need of a few lieutenants. Anyone who wants to be my lieutenant should follow me so that each of you can make achievements. "

Liu Feng couldn't help but curl his lips.

Unlike other officers, Huang Zhong was the only one present who did not value military achievements.

Whether it was Yue Ju, Kou Anguo, or other young generals vying for the position, they all wanted to use Cao Ren as a stepping stone in order to achieve great merit.

On the other hand, Huang Zhong was simply too bored staying in Jiangling and did not want to retire as General Wei, so he asked to go to the front line.

For Huang Zhong, there is nothing more meaningful than fighting in the rest of his life.

As for how many years he can live?
Huang Zhong didn't care either.

Have a good attitude!
Live a day, earn a day.

If you are unlucky, you will die on the battlefield and return home in glory.

If you are lucky, you may even witness Liu Bei's glorious return to the old capital.

From the perspective of health preservation.

Such a Huang Zhong is more likely to live a long life.

No anxiety, no worries, just eat and drink enough every day, fall asleep as soon as you lie down, and kill the enemy when you meet them.

On the contrary, people like Zhuge Liang who work hard are the least likely to live a long life.

Liu Feng did not comment on the crowd's request, but looked at Yu Fan.

Yu Fan is also sixty years old this year.

Like Huang Zhong, he is not anxious or worried. He eats and drinks enough every day, works when there is work to do, and has no time to relax when there is nothing to do. He is an optimist.

If Liu Feng made a mistake, he would speak out and give advice directly. If he was not wrong, he would not make trouble out of nothing. The core of what he followed was to be in the position and do his job.

Yu Fan had been thinking since the argument just now. When Liu Feng asked him about it, he expressed his attitude without hesitation:

"Although the old general is brave, he is too famous. If the old general leads the troops to intercept Cao Ren, it will be difficult to make Cao Ren arrogant. If Cao Ren comes, he will definitely bring elite troops. If we meet him head-on, the old general may not have a chance of winning."

Huang Zhong almost tore off a strand of his gray beard when he heard Yu Fan's words. He immediately glared at Yu Fan and said, "General Yu, what you said is wrong. So what if Cao Ren brought elite troops? I am fighting against the elite troops!"

There were also young generals who supported Huang Zhong, some saying "The old general is right! Cao Ren leads elite troops, aren't the old general also leading elite troops?", others saying "Cao Ren is a human being, and so are we. When we meet on the battlefield, only the brave will win! Why should we be afraid of a mere thief Cao!".

and many more.

Yu Fan did not give Huang Zhong face because of his identity, nor did he use euphemisms because of the support of several young generals. Instead, he directly refuted:
"If the old general divides his troops and goes there, his forces will certainly be smaller than Cao Ren's. Using a small force against a large one and raising a high flag is a big taboo in military operations. If the old general fails, the morale of the three armies will certainly be frustrated. The old general's defeat is a small matter, but ruining the plan of His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan is a big deal."

Ouch?
Is this too much?

Huang Zhong was so shocked that he blew his beard and stared.

In the past, Huang Zhong had only heard that there was a man named Yu Fan around Liu Feng who spoke very unpleasant words. However, Huang Zhong had never experienced it personally. After Yu Fan joined the army, he always appeared to be a "gentle and elegant" scholar. Huang Zhong thought that Yu Fan was a "kind" old man.

Never thought.

Today, Yu Fan actually went straight to the face and used his ultimate skill.

What does "If the old general fails, the morale of the three armies will inevitably suffer" mean?
What does "It's a small matter for the old general to be defeated, but it's a big matter for His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan to ruin his great plan" mean?
Does this mean that I am certain to lose?

Huang Zhong was furious and asked directly: "Your Highness, Prince of Yan, I am willing to sign a military order. If I make any mistakes, I am willing to accept the punishment!"

Zhao Yun's face changed when he heard this, and he quickly advised: "Brother Han Sheng, calm down!"

Can a military order be issued casually?
Huang Zhong glared at Zhao Yun and pointed at Yu Fan: "Zilong, listen! What did Yu Fan say just now? He is questioning me!"

Zhao Yun was helpless: "Brother Han Sheng, General Yu also meant well, please don't misunderstand."

Huang Zhong snorted coldly: "Zilong, don't be fooled. General Yu definitely has bad intentions! Anyway, I have to go to fight Cao Ren. His Majesty has promised that he will not stop me from going to the battlefield just because I am old."

Looking at Huang Zhong's rolling eyes as he turned his back to Liu Feng, Zhao Yun felt speechless.

it is good!it is good!it is good!
I shouldn't have come to advise you!

In order to fight against Cao Ren, even Your Majesty's name is brought up, right?
Yu Fan's hair and beard were all standing on end, completely different from the usual "amiable" Confucian scholar: "Even if His Majesty comes, the old general cannot go there with a banner. Is a military order a joke? Can you issue it just like that?"

The quarrel between two old men, one civil and one military, in the big tent left the young generals stunned.

Those who had seen Yu Fan and Liu Feng glaring at each other were fine so they just grinned and watched the fun. Those who had not seen Yu Fan glaring at each other were as shocked as Huang Zhong just now.

This is General Yu?

That gentle, amiable and respectable General Yu?
"Old General, Lord Zhongxiang, please stop for a moment."

Seeing that the two were arguing with red faces and showing signs of getting more intense, Liu Feng spoke up in time to stop them.

With Liu Feng speaking, Yu Fan regained his former "elegance", as if he had never had an argument with Huang Zhong just now.

The level of his expression changing was so high that all the generals were stunned.

Huang Zhong snorted: "I would like to respect the orders of His Royal Highness Prince Yan."

Liu Feng considered the choice of words and said, "Warfare is a matter of deception. If you can fight, pretend you can't fight; if you want to fight, pretend you don't want to fight.

It is better to listen to what I say. In this battle, Kou Anguo will be the main general, and Fang Yue, Pan Feng, Yu She, Mu Shun, Yue Ju, Yang Xing, Yan Cheng and He Yuan will be the deputy generals.

The old general can hide in the army and make decisions on all matters. What do you think?"

Before Huang Zhong opened his mouth, Kou Anguo asked again: "Your Highness, Prince of Yan, if the old general is not here, I can still serve as the commander."

Yue Ju was not convinced by Kou Anguo in the first place, and he shouted, "If you were to lead the generals, would they be convinced? I will be the first one to be dissatisfied!"

Kou Anguo stretched his neck and said, "Come on, let's compete! If you win, you will be the master, and if I win, you will listen to me."

Yue Ju also stretched his neck and said: "I'm afraid you are not a good man!"

Huang Zhong lowered his head and pondered.

If Liu Feng didn't speak, Huang Zhong would naturally argue; but now that Liu Feng had spoken, and in a negotiating tone, if Huang Zhong continued to argue, he would be slapping Liu Feng in the face.

No matter how much you fight, it also depends on who you are fighting with.

Huang Zhong is not like Yu Fan who criticizes everyone he sees without being critical of the matter.

ponder for a moment.

Huang Zhong agreed with Liu Feng's decision: "I shall obey the order of His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan. In this case, I will be humble and hide behind General Kou. However, General Kou and General Yue are not on good terms, so I am afraid that something might happen. How about..."

The words have not yet fallen.

Kou Anguo and Yue Ju's expressions changed.

"You are joking, old general. General Yue and I are just competing for merits. We are not against people, but the matter. There is no discord." Kou Anguo laughed. Almost at the same time.

Yue Ju also laughed and said, "Old General, you misunderstood. I was just joking with General Kou."

All of a sudden.

The two brave generals who were arguing just now now had the same opinion.

But just as the words fell, the two of them felt something was wrong, glared at each other, and turned their heads away arrogantly.

Seeing that Huang Zhong easily resolved the conflict between Kou Anguo and Yue Ju, Liu Feng took on a serious expression and issued a military order in a firm voice.

He ordered Kou Anguo to lead Huang Zhong and other generals to the rear of Wancheng to set up camp to meet Cao Ren, and then said: "Military secrets must not be leaked lightly. If you disobey orders, the law will not tolerate it. I hope you will keep this in mind."

Subsequently.

Liu Feng also instructed all the generals to be careful and alert, and all military orders were issued one by one.

After all the generals left, Yu Fan stayed behind alone.

"Your Highness Prince of Yan, your deployment today may easily lose the support of the people," Yu Fan said bluntly.

Seeing Yu Fan's sharp eyes, Liu Feng gave up trying to find excuses to cover up. "After all, Kou Anguo is my relative in the Kou family. I just want Anguo to have more experience so that he can be independent in the future. I also know that today's deployment is not fair to the other generals. I will not do it again."

People have selfish motives.

Liu Feng was no exception.

The longer Liu Feng was in power, the more he could understand Zhuge Liang's intention to cheat and gain military merit for Ma Su.

Although Ma Su was incompetent, he would never betray Zhuge Liang.

The same is true for Kou Anguo, who would never betray Liu Feng.

Those who hold power are not necessarily the most capable, but they must be the most loyal.

With Kou Anguo's own abilities, if he wanted to make real achievements and get promoted, he would probably be nothing more than a general of minor rank in his lifetime.

It was not in Liu Feng's interest to just let Kou Anguo be a general of miscellaneous title.

Therefore.

That is why Liu Feng appointed Kou Anguo as the nominal commander-in-chief today, and secretly ordered Huang Zhong to be the actual commander-in-chief, using Huang Zhong's power to support Kou Anguo.

In order to prevent Kou Anguo from becoming another Ma Su, Liu Feng did not dare to cheat too harshly. Instead, he made it clear in front of all the generals and officers that Kou Anguo was only the commander in name only and actually had to listen to Huang Zhong.

Although the military merits awarded to Kou Anguo will be less, it is safer.

Huang Zhong saw it, so he didn't argue anymore.

Yu Fan saw through it, so Yu Fan stayed until the end.

The officers and other people in the big tent must have noticed it as well, but no one pointed out Liu Feng's intention.

See through, don’t say through.

It will be difficult to get along with each other after it is revealed.

Seeing that Liu Feng frankly admitted his mistake, Yu Fan did not pursue the matter any further.

For Yu Fan, it doesn’t really matter whether Liu Feng cheated and helped Kou Anguo gain military merit. What matters is whether Liu Feng can recognize his mistake and is willing to correct it.

Liu Feng stood up and walked to the map, his eyes fell on Wuguan.

“Although the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister have gained the upper hand in Longyou, Cao Pi also has many talented generals and strong soldiers in Guanzhong. If I cannot break into Guanzhong through Wuguan, the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister will find it difficult to gain a foothold in Longyou.

However, Zhang He, the commander of Wuguan Pass, was clever and resourceful. Last year, he executed a spy that I had sent to bribe the commander of Wuguan Pass, and even hung his head on the gate as a warning to others.

If Zhang He had stayed in Wuguan, even if my father led the generals to feint and attack Wancheng, I would not have been able to advance an inch. "

Just like he had infiltrated the nobles and powerful families in Nanxiang in the past, Liu Feng had been trying to bribe the commander of Wuguan since he took over Nanxiang.

It is almost impossible to attack a dangerous pass like Wuguan by force.

The reason why a dangerous pass is called a dangerous pass is because: one man can guard the pass and ten thousand men cannot break through.

At least you can besiege the city and cut off the supplies in the city, but in a dangerous pass you can only face one direction.

In the past, Huo Jun had only a few hundred men guarding Jiameng Pass. Liu Zhang sent Fu Jin, Xiang Cun and others to lead more than 10,000 people to attack Jiameng Pass. Huo Jun managed to defend the Pass for a year and even defeated Liu Zhang's army and killed Xiang Cun.

This is the advantage of levels.

So what if we have a lot of soldiers?
It's useless if you can't use it.

If you want to break through, you can only use cheating.

Whether the pass can be captured by deception depends on the intelligence of the general guarding the pass.

Huo Jun was also guarding Jiameng Pass. Zhang Lu sent Yang Bo to lure Huo Jun to defend together, but Huo Jun saw through his plan and Yang Bo had no choice but to retreat.

If the person who occupied Wuguan was an individual military general, Liu Feng might have successfully seized Wuguan.

However, the commander of Wuguan was Zhang He!
Zhang He, who was clever and resourceful, was naturally not afraid of deception.

In addition, Zhang He is now the powerful Left General and has been granted the title of Marquis of Zhou County, so he is not someone that Liu Feng can bribe.

As long as Zhang He is in Wuguan for one day, Liu Feng will be helpless against Wuguan!

Not to mention Liu Feng, even Han Xin would be equally discouraged.

If Liu Feng wanted to take Wuguan, he had to let Zhang He leave Wuguan so that he could take advantage of the opportunity.

After a while, Yu Fan suggested: "Why not spread rumors to make the generals in Guanzhong suspicious of themselves?"

Liu Feng turned around and said: "Given Zhang He's current status, if it is just a rumor, it will be difficult to transfer him away."

Yu Fan added: "Rumors are just a prelude, to create a crack in people's hearts. Once other coincidences come into play, the crack will become bigger and bigger. You can ask Your Majesty to transfer Zhang Sili away from Nanxiang on the pretext of jointly attacking Cao Ren."

Liu Feng pondered, "Lord Zhongxiang's intention is to make the generals in Guanzhong think that Zhang He has secretly surrendered to the emperor, so the emperor will transfer Zhang Sili away?"

Yu Fan nodded and said, "First, spread rumors in Nanxiang, and then transfer Zhang Sili away. The tyrants in Nanxiang will surely be greedy for profits and transport Shu brocade and other materials to Wuguan for sale. It is easier to convince people by using the mouths of the tyrants to spread rumors than by sending spies there.

Because he was not a spy, Zhang He did not dare to really kill all the powerful people in Nanxiang. He also needed to win the hearts of the people in Nanxiang in order to have a chance to retake Nanxiang in the future.

Even if the rumors could not affect Cao Zhen's trust in Zhang He, there was still a chance that Cao Zhen would quietly transfer Zhang He away from Wuguan.

Whether it succeeds or not depends on fate."

Liu Feng understood.

Yu Fan’s strategy was not one that would definitely succeed, but rather a gamble on “fate”.

Destiny is illusory and cannot be changed by human will.

Winning the bet is a great achievement.

Just like when Guan Yu flooded seven armies, it was not because Yu Jin did not know how to set up camp, but it was because destiny favored Guan Yu too much. He used destiny to flood the seven armies and thus achieved a great feat.

For example, when Deng Ai sneaked across Yinping, anyone else would have fallen to death long ago.

Yu Fan was proficient in the Book of Changes and had also studied the theory of destiny. Although he could not be said to be able to predict everything, he was able to discover some rules from it.

Although betting on "fate" cannot determine success or failure, Liu Feng doesn't mind giving it a try.

Apart from the fantasy elements, destiny is actually a law of natural operation.

It is the law of time, the law of geography, and the law of man.

Don’t be afraid of ten thousand, just be afraid of what happens.

If Zhang He left Wuguan and Liu Feng was not prepared, then this God-given opportunity would be wasted.

Think of this.

Liu Feng then picked up his pen to write a letter, writing down the latest intelligence documents and response plans, and sent a messenger to deliver it to Xiangyang City at full speed.

Fighting a war is a process of constantly searching for opportunities to fight.

After all, Liu Feng is not a player who plays the game of mass-produced troops, so he cannot force his way through an opponent who is skilled in mass-produced troops.

Before finding an opportunity to fight, even if Liu Feng prepared a first-choice plan and a backup plan for Liu Bei, he still had to look for opportunities step by step.

This is why.

According to historical records, Zhuge Liang and Jiang Wei failed in their repeated northern expeditions, the Eastern Jin Dynasty also failed in its sixteen northern expeditions, and Cao Pi also failed in his three expeditions against Sun Quan.

When countries compete with each other, it is extremely difficult to achieve a breakthrough victory.

Liu Feng also did not believe that having a feasible plan for the Northern Expedition would ensure success.

It's nothing more than trying it out and giving it a try.

Only after fighting and trying can you know whether you can succeed.

Wancheng is more than 200 miles away from Xiangyang.

In order to facilitate communication, Liu Bei deployed post stations between Xiangyang and Wancheng for changing horses.

In addition, the road is flat, so documents can arrive from Wancheng to Xiangyang in one day.

So on the second day.

Liu Feng's document had already been delivered to Liu Bei.

After pondering the military intelligence and response plans in Liu Feng's document, Liu Bei handed the document to Guan Yu.

Since Zhuge Liang went to Longyou, Fa Zheng, the Shangshu Ling, was unable to spare the time. Therefore, when Liu Bei came to Xiangyang, he did not bring Fa Zheng with him, but brought Guan Yu to discuss military affairs.

Although Guan Yu was not as well-educated as Fa Zheng, he did not become a great general simply because of his close relationship with Liu Bei, but achieved it through real military achievements.

When it comes to fighting alone, Guan Yu is no worse than Fa Zheng.

After carefully studying the contents of the document, Guan Yu agreed with Liu Feng's proposal: "Yide has a great reputation and is feared by Zhang He. If Yide does not leave Nanxiang, Zhang He will definitely not leave Wuguan.

Rumors may not necessarily make Cao Zhen suspicious of Zhang He, and transferring Yide away may not necessarily cause Zhang He to leave.

However, if the prince's battle in Longyou goes smoothly and he can defeat Cao Zhen's first wave of troops to reinforce Longyou, Cao Zhen will secretly transfer Zhang He away even if he is worried about Wuguan.

Whether the King of Yan will have the opportunity to break into Guanzhong through Wuguan depends on whether the Crown Prince can defeat the Wei army in Guanzhong without Zhang He in Longyou! "

Liu Bei also agreed with Guan Yu's analysis and said, "I heard that the Prime Minister has accepted a disciple in Tianshui who is quite famous in the local area. With the help of Meng Qi and others, it should not be difficult to defeat the Wei army in Guanzhong without Zhang He.

Um.
According to this plan, Yide was first transferred to Wancheng to assist in attacking Cao Ren together.

It will also let Cao Pi know that I really want to seize Wancheng!"

A smile appeared on Liu Bei's lips.

Compared with the Battle of Hanzhong, Liu Bei's desire to attack this time was even stronger.

(End of this chapter)