My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 483 Zhang Song Seeks for Help
Zhang Song's first round of persuasion failed to convince Liu Zhang to bring in Liu Bei as foreign aid.

Instead, it was the encouragement and dissuasion of Huang Quan and Wang Lei that worked, allowing Liu Zhang to temporarily muster up the courage and decide to rely on his own strength to be on guard first.

There was nothing that could be done about it. After all, Liu Zhang's situation was not that critical at the time, and Zhang Lu had not yet surrendered completely. Liu Zhang always felt that he still had time and could hesitate and wait and see.

What if Cao Cao didn’t head south immediately after defeating Zhang Lu?
What if Cao's army needed to rest, or Liu Bei discovered that Cao Cao had divided his troops to take Hanzhong, and Liu Bei's army was in the plains of Guandong, and took the opportunity to attack Cao Cao? In that case, Cao Cao would be unable to take care of himself, and the invasion of Yizhou would end in failure.

All of this is possible.

Liu Zhang certainly wanted to take a gamble and wait and see. It would be best if he could get away with it without losing any money.

Unfortunately, time does not seem to be on his side.

Less than half a month had passed since Zhang Song's first round of persuasion.

In order to avoid suspicion, Zhang Song did not mention the matter of asking Liu Bei for reinforcements to Liu Zhang again in the past ten days. If he mentioned it too frequently, the risk of being exposed would be too great. It was better to wait for a new opportunity or a new change before Zhang Song would bring up the matter again.

Fortunately, in such a chaotic time, there are always opportunities and changes.

Four days after the first persuasion, on the first day of July, the news that Nanzheng had been captured by Xiahou Yuan reached Chengdu.

Liu Zhang was a little worried, but he quickly calmed down - this was within expectations, the shoe would drop sooner or later.

Eight days later, the news that Chenggu, Nanxiang and other places had been captured by Cao's army also reached Chengdu, but Liu Zhang remained numb and did not change his attitude.

Two days later, Xiahou Yuan seemed to have had friction with the Jingzhou army between Hanzhong and Shangyong. When the news reached Chengdu, Liu Zhang was lucky enough to have a fight with Cao Cao and Liu Biao, which was a good thing for Yizhou.

However, Liu Zhang's happiness did not last long. Five days later, on July 15, the Lantern Festival, Zhang Song received another piece of bad news.

At that time, Zhang Song immediately rushed to find Liu Zhang and said, "My lord, it's bad! My brother has learned a piece of news through the spies who were ambushed in Shangyong before: Xiahou Yuan of Cao's army has negotiated peace with Liu Qi, the eldest son of Liu Biao!

I heard that Liu Qi was groveling and saying that he didn't want to be an enemy of Cao's army, but at the same time he hinted that if Cao's army insisted on forcing them, they could only lead Xuande's reinforcements into Jingbei and join forces with Xuande to fight against Cao! Xiahou Yuan didn't want to miss the big event and gave up the plan to take Shangyong! In my opinion, Xiahou Yuan will soon turn his full strength to deal with us!"

Has this day finally come?

Liu Zhang was anxiously thinking about all sorts of things. This was the second time he had wavered in more than half a month.

At least, Zhang Song had predicted one thing correctly: Cao Cao was indeed greedy for more, and at present no other princes would help Yizhou, nor would other princes send troops to contain Cao Cao. The situation in the world seemed to have turned into a "one-on-one" battle between Cao Cao and Liu Zhang!
Once Liu Zhang realized that the first part of Zhang Song's prophecy had come true, the credibility of the second part of Zhang Song's prophecy would naturally increase in Liu Zhang's mind.

Just like when Song Yi predicted Xiang Liang's defeat and it turned out correctly, King Huai of Chu's assessment of Song Yi's subsequent abilities would naturally be greatly improved.

From then on, the weight of Zhang Song's advice in Liu Zhang's heart began to surpass that of Huang Quan and Wang Lei.

However, at this moment, Liu Zhang still needs to make some efforts before he can completely side with Zhang Song - mainly because although the expectation of "expecting other princes to restrain Cao Cao and causing Cao Cao to stop" has not been realized, the expectation of "relying on the steepness of the Shu Road and holding off Cao's army on his own" still has hope of being realized.

Liu Zhang had not been forced to the point of complete panic, and his psychological balance was always tilted.

After Zhang Song's second persuasion, Liu Zhang then looked for Huang Quan and Wang Lei.

Huang Quan had no new excuses this time and just continued with the same old stuff.

Wang Lei then analyzed the situation to Liu Zhang in a different way: "My Lord, think about it, Cao Cao is not being restrained by other princes. Although this is bad news for us, it also shows that Liu Bei has evil intentions!

Otherwise, Liu Bei knew that Cao Cao had sent his troops to attack Sichuan, and he also knew that Cao Cao's garrisons in Yan, Yu, Ji and other states would inevitably be more empty than usual. Then why didn't he launch an attack on Hejian, Lu, Fuli and other places?
If Liu Bei really wanted to save us without expecting anything in return, as long as Liu Bei launched a fierce attack on the above three places, Cao Cao would be too busy to take care of himself and would definitely give up advancing in Yizhou and transfer his main force back to fight Liu Bei to the death. But Liu Bei chose not to launch an attack, which means he was not willing to save us without expecting anything in return! Even if they save us in the future, they will have their own agenda! We must be on guard! "

Liu Zhang thought about it and felt that this analysis did make sense.

Although Wang Lei's words made him feel a little embarrassed: In today's world, with so much contention, how can we expect other princes to save us "regardless of cost and without seeking rewards"? It's not like we expected Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Xiang of Song in the Spring and Autumn Period.

Liu Zhang is not a greedy person by nature. If Brother Xuande is willing to save me, even if he asks for a little benefit in the end, that is what he should do.

Perhaps, I should really take the initiative to send someone to contact him, at least to make an offer to Brother Xuande first? To get a feel for the situation?

……

With the end of the second wave of tug-of-war among Liu Zhang's internal advisers, Liu Zhang's psychological expectations had been greatly loosened.

Zhang Song also knew that since his lord was "wise to listen to both sides" but "liked to make plans without decision", he would definitely ask Huang Quan and Wang Lei for advice.

But Zhang Song was not in a hurry. He just waited quietly for the situation to develop further and for the third wave of good news for his side.

Five days later, the third wave of good news finally arrived.

That is, Xiahou Yuan finally divided his troops into two groups and launched an attack on Ba and Shu!
The main force of Cao's army was indeed advancing slowly on the Jinniu Road, and several waves of offensives were blocked by Liu Zhang's army.

However, Liu Zhang could not hold the area north of Jiameng Pass. Jiameng Pass is a great pass at the junction of Jinniu Road and Mamingge Road. It is also the first obstacle for Cao's army to enter Sichuan after Yangping Pass in Hanzhong changed hands. It is roughly located in Guangyuan City, Sichuan in later generations.

To the north of Jiameng Pass, there is the Jinniudao Valley, which is more than 100 miles long. The Xihan River flows along the valley, and then merges with its tributary Qiang River to the north of Jiameng Pass, and then bypasses Jiameng Pass to flow southeast. Outside Jiameng Pass, there are deep valleys and large rivers, which are easy to defend but difficult to attack, and no one can break through. Of course, Cao's army could not do anything to them for a while.

However, after Xiahou Yuan failed in his attack, he decisively chose to divide his troops again.

While he continued to attack the pass, he also sent a part of his troops downstream from the Xihan River in front of the pass to Langzhong in Brazil.

Jiameng Pass could only block the enemies from the north from entering Zitong County, and even Guanghan and Shu County in the south, that is, to prevent the enemies from entering the Chengdu Plain.

However, Jiameng Pass could not stop the enemy from the north from making a detour to the Baxi Mountains in the east, because the West Han River only passed in front of the pass, and Jiameng Pass could not block the waterway of the West Han River.

Meanwhile, Zhang Song in Chengdu had been keeping an eye on the military situation on the front lines. After learning that Xiahou Yuan had divided his troops to sabotage the situation, he finally seized the opportunity to advise Liu Zhang for the third time.

This time, Zhang Song came straight to the point and threatened: "My lord! The situation is not good! You can't hesitate any longer! Previously, Huang Gongheng advised my lord to defend himself by saying that the road to Shu is dangerous, and I have nothing to say.

But I heard that Xiahou Yuan had recently adjusted his deployment and divided his troops into two routes, one route continued along Jinniu Road and Mamingge Road, and the other route attacked Baxi. Even if our army could rely on Jiameng Pass and Baishui Pass to defend against the enemy, it could not prevent Cao's army from turning outside Jiameng Pass and going down the West Han River and approaching Langzhong.

Baxi is far away from Shu County and Guanghan, our heartland, by mountains, but is relatively more closely connected with Hanzhong. If we just defend it without fighting, we can only keep our heartland, but we will definitely lose Baxi! What should we do if Cao's army goes down along the West Han River and Dangqu and threatens the heartland of Ba County?"

As Zhang Song spoke, he also pointed on the map, which gave Liu Zhang a very intuitive sense of urgency.

Liu Zhang was already losing his hair because of the news of Cao's attack. Naturally, he became even more anxious after Zhang Song's words added fuel to the fire.

Liu Zhang tried to comfort himself at first: "Basi is not a rich place. When Zhang Lu was defeated, I thought Langzhong might also be lost. After all, it is the land north of the West Han River.

If Cao's army took Langzhong and stopped at Dangqu, it would be fine if they lost those places to Cao Cao - if they went down Dangqu, Jiangzhou should not be lost, right? I remember that to go from Dangqu to Jiangzhou, you have to cross layers of mountains. Only at the confluence of Dangqu, Xihan River and Fu River, there is a valley road to cross the mountains in northern Ba.

With General Yan guarding there, Cao's army won't be able to reach the heart of Ba County, right? As for those poor and remote areas in Badong and Baxi, there's nothing we can do if we lose them..."

Liu Zhang's words were almost like mumbling to himself, just to ease the panic.

People who are not familiar with the geography of Shu may not understand these words at first, but they will understand them after a brief explanation.

The Xihan River outside Jiameng Pass is the main stream of the Jialing River in later generations, and will eventually merge into the Yangtze River in Jiangzhou (Chongqing). Therefore, as long as Jiangzhou is not lost, Liu Zhang will not be too worried if Badong and Baxi mountainous areas in the north of Ba County are lost.

Even if Xiahou Yuan was outside Jiameng Pass and advancing downstream along the main stream of the Jialing River, he would still encounter a dangerous place on his way to Jiangzhou, which was Dianjiang County north of Jiangzhou.

Dianjiang County is the Hechuan District of Chongqing in later generations. That place is the only gap in the mountains in the north of Chongqing. Therefore, the Jialing River, Fu River and Qu River flow for thousands of miles without being able to cross the mountains. Finally, they all converge here, flow through the mountains in northern Yubei from this gap, and then go south to join the Yangtze River.

In the Southern Song Dynasty, a military fortress was built in Dianjiang County, which is now Hechuan District of Chongqing. It was the famous Diaoyucheng, which was considered to be the most dangerous fortress in the world.

It was here that Wang Jian, a great general of the Southern Song Dynasty, blocked the Mongolian army for more than 30 years and even killed the Mongolian Khan Mongke who was personally supervising the siege - this is the military achievement assigned to Yang Guo in The Return of the Condor Heroes.

Therefore, although Dianjiang County in the late Han Dynasty had not yet built a fortress as strong as Diaoyucheng in the Southern Song Dynasty, Liu Zhang had been in Shu for a long time, and he must have had some understanding of the military and geographical environment under his rule.

Liu Zhang knew that Yan Yan was stationed in Jiangzhou, Ba County, and should be able to hold Dianjiang County. In this way, even if Xiahou Yuan made any detours north of the Jialing River, as long as he could not pass the throat where the three rivers merged and could not go around to the Bashu Plain, he could protect his confidant.

After hearing his lord's self-deceiving self-consolation, Zhang Song did not refute it immediately, but continued along the lines of Liu Zhang's words, trying to please him first.

But after Liu Zhang was slightly relieved and calmed down, Zhang Song changed the subject at the right time: "My lord! Since you are willing to pay the price of giving up the Badong and Baxi mountainous areas to Cao Cao, why don't you bring in Lord Xuande to compete with Cao Cao?
I know that Huang Quan and Wang Lei have repeatedly advised us against it, fearing that they would invite a wolf into the house. So, if we just restrict Lord Xuande's reinforcements to a certain range of activities, wouldn't we be able to gain only the benefits and avoid the harm?

For example, we can let General Yan guard Jiangzhou City and control the throat where the Yangtze River and the West Han River meet. Then we can let the land west of Jiangzhou be handed over to Lord Xuande's army to pass through. As long as we strictly control the scope of the reinforcements' activities, we will not be afraid of accidents. "

Zhang Song's new suggestion was unique and inspired Liu Zhang.

Indeed, he had never thought that he could ask for help in this limited way, allowing reinforcements to enter the country while keeping the initiative in his own hands.

After thinking along this line for a while, Liu Zhang felt that it was more and more reliable. After all, according to the current trend, the land of Baxi would definitely not be saved and would be invaded by Xiahou Yuan.

In this case, why not sit on the mountain and watch the fight between the two tigers? Let Liu Bei and Xiahou Yuan fight, and then watch the show from the sidelines. When the time comes, I will make peace with whoever wins.

Thinking of this, Liu Zhang couldn't help rolling his eyes. After struggling for a long time, he finally asked, "Zi Qiao, if we ask Brother Xuande for reinforcements, how should we limit his range of activities?"

Zhang Song was ecstatic: I finally waited for this sentence!
However, his face remained expressionless, and he analyzed calmly, "My lord, I believe that starting from Wu County and Yufu County in the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River, they can all be given to Lord Xuande to garrison. Our army only needs to hold Jiangzhou as the throat.

When Lord Xuande's reinforcements arrive on the other side of Jiangzhou, that is, north of the Yangtze River and the West Han River, Lord Xuande can build another fortress there, facing Jiangzhou City across the river. In this way, they will be in the north of the river, and our army will be in the south of the river, so we can live in peace.

Then, Lord Xuande's reinforcements can turn from the north bank into the West Han River and head to Dianjiang to help us hold the throat. If Xiahou Yuan attacks Dianjiang from Langzhong and Dangqu, our friendly forces will help us fight back. If Lord Xuande's reinforcements can recapture Langzhong and Dangqu, we can also use those lands as rewards.

My Lord, please understand that I am not proposing to sell off my Yizhou land. If the situation had come to that, Langzhong and Dangqu would have already fallen into Cao Cao's hands. Lord Xuande was able to take them back because of his ability, and we cannot take them back. It would be better to be more generous and allow Lord Xuande and Cao Cao to continue fighting, with both sides investing more troops and money, so that Shuzhong can be safe. "

While listening to Zhang Song's explanation, Liu Zhang searched for the place names mentioned by Zhang Song on the map. After thinking for a long time, he finally decided to agree.

Liu Zhang sighed and said, "In that case... I'll have to trouble Ziqiao to travel again. If we do nothing, Baxi will surely fall into Cao's hands. So we might as well bring in Brother Xuande to fight for it. We can't take it anyway."

(End of this chapter)