My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 612 Even Liu Zhang himself was shaken, let alone the others

In the twelfth year of Jian'an, late November.

The war between Liu Bei and Liu Zhang officially broke out on the twentieth day.

Two urgent reports, one from the north and one from the south, were delivered to the Yizhou governor's mansion and Liu Zhang's desk respectively.

The one from the north was sent by Zhang Ren, the defender of Mianzhu. It said that Mianzhu had been besieged by Zhang Fei and Wei Yan, and it could be confirmed that Fa Zheng, Ling Bao and Deng Xian in Fucheng had surrendered.

The urgent report was sent from the still safe South Gate after Zhang Fei and Wei Yan surrounded Mianzhu from the east, west and north and set up fortifications to block the gates.

Zhang Ren also explained this situation at the end of the urgent report, and emphasized that he could not guarantee that he would be able to send an updated battle situation next time - if Zhang Fei and Wei Yan completely surrounded Mianzhu, then there would be no hope. If Zhang Fei continued to surround three sides and leave one side open in order to undermine the morale of the defenders, then there would be a next time.

The letter from the south was sent by Lei Tong, the governor of Baidao, and arrived only a few hours later than Zhang Ren's letter. The contents were similar, except for the place names.

The letter also emphasized that Gan Ning and Jiang Qin were besieging Baidao, surrounding the city from the east, west and south, leaving only the north side open for the defenders to escape.

Moreover, the enemy forces in the south were divided. While Gan Ning and Jiang Qin were advancing along the Minjiang River, Han Dang and Yan Yan were advancing northward along the Luoshui River and had persuaded Han'an County (now Zigong and Neijiang) to surrender. The news that Yan Yan and Zhang Song surrendered without a fight had also been thoroughly confirmed. This was because Yan Yan had already shown up at the foot of the city of Baidao and had failed to persuade Lei Tong to surrender.

The surrender of friendly forces was not confirmed until more than ten days after it actually happened. This was not surprising in ancient times when communication conditions were backward.

After all, once the war started, there was chaos and all kinds of false news were flying everywhere. Moreover, Liu Bei's army advanced so fast that sometimes a city was persuaded to surrender and fell, and even the messenger was not sent out in time, which made the defenders in the rear even more confused.

All in all, it was not until the twentieth day after the war broke out that Liu Zhang was able to fully confirm and digest the bad news.

All the bad news almost piled up at the same time, breaking out and confirmed in succession within one day. Naturally, the psychological impact on Liu Zhang was unusually huge, almost breaking his spirit.

"My father and I have been in Shu for twenty years and have never treated our troops harshly. Why did we lose so quickly when the time came...

Twenty days, just twenty days! Gan Ning and Han Dang have advanced a thousand miles! Fifty miles a day is just a matter of marching without fighting!

Zhang Fei and Wei Yan were not slow either. They covered more than 200 miles in 20 days and captured Fucheng and Jiangyou.

Xiaozhi and Ziqiao both seem to be loyal and righteous people. Why can't they die for their country when the time comes?

Even General Lian Yan, whom I valued so much, surrendered without firing a single arrow!

Can the Zhuge brothers' manifesto and "On Departure" really be so deceiving?"

After Liu Zhang digested everything, he crumpled up the urgent report and scattered it on the ground. He just buried his head in his desk and cried, losing his voice several times. He also drove away the attendants and maids in advance to avoid being too embarrassed.

After doubting his life for a full hour or so, he finally became discouraged and gathered his emotions. He walked to the courtyard himself and asked his attendants to summon Huang Quan, Wang Lei and Zheng Du to see him.

The attendant immediately took the order and left. Within a quarter of an hour, several key aides arrived one after another.

Wang Lei and Zheng Du arrived faster, while Huang Quan was a little late.

Liu Zhang was already a bit frightened, and he asked a few more questions suspiciously: "Why is Gongheng so late? Is Gongheng also going to abandon me?"

Huang Quan immediately bowed and apologized, saying, "How dare I delay! On the way here, I met... Zhang Biejia, who blocked my way and asked me to bring him to see the lord to apologize in person."

Liu Zhang was a little confused. When he heard the words "Zhang Biejia", he was in a trance for a moment. His expression subconsciously ferocious for a moment, and then he quickly recovered: "Are you talking about Jun Jiao? What crime has he committed? Well, since you are not at ease, let him in."

Liu Zhang waved his sleeves and sat down dejectedly. After a while, a close attendant led in from outside the courtyard a middle-aged man who was naked and carrying a whip on his back. He had his hands tied behind his back. When he saw Liu Zhang, he knelt down. It turned out to be Zhang Song's elder brother Zhang Su.

"My lord! My brother surrendered without a fight, which makes me unworthy of being a subject. I failed to discipline my subordinates properly, please punish me!" Zhang Su said as he knelt on the ground.

Because my hands were tied behind my back and I couldn't support myself on the ground, I couldn't get up once I lay down.

Liu Zhang felt sorry for him and wanted to leave him some room, so he waved his hand and said, "He is not the only one who surrendered in battle. Go back to your house and think about the past. We don't need you here."

In the end, Liu Zhang did not punish Zhang Su.

On the one hand, Liu Zhang wanted to leave a way out for peace in the future, hoping that he would be treated better in the future if he really lost the battle. He knew very well that if he killed Zhang Su, Zhang Song would definitely make things difficult for him if he went to the enemy. If he defected to the enemy in the future, he would make more enemies for the rest of his life, which would be troublesome.

On the other hand, Zhuge Liang also did a good job in protecting Zhang Song, so Zhang Song only helped secretly when persuading Yan Yan to surrender.

After Yan Yan surrendered, when Gan Ning's troops subsequently tried to persuade Fujie County, Jiangyang County and other places to surrender, they mostly relied on Yan Yan to come forward, and Zhang Song was almost never asked to persuade them in person.

In this way, from the perspective of Liu Zhang's camp, Zhang Song's crime was not very serious. He just failed to fight to the death, so his family was not guilty.

As for Yan Yan, he doesn't have to worry too much about his family, because Yan Yan's family is in Ba County, not in Shu County.

In history, Zhang Song was killed by Zhang Su's betrayal. In this life, Zhang Su was only implicated by his brother and had to bear the brunt of the consequences, which was not too much.

After Liu Zhang drove Zhang Su away in silence, he calmed down and turned to Wang Lei and others, asking with a sad face:
"Have you read Zhuge Jin's manifesto and Zhuge Liang's On Departing from the Capital? I have little knowledge, but are the principles in them really that attractive to scholars? Even if we force the armies to continue to hold on, can they really hold on?"

Upon hearing this, the counselors were also shocked, realizing that their lord had actually wavered.

Huang Quan, out of conscience, could not help but remind Liu Zhang: "My lord... the recent defeats are not due to the war, but are caused by the unwillingness of the generals and soldiers on the front line to fight, and the people's hearts are divided.

Although the fighting power of our Shu soldiers is indeed not as good as that of Liu Xuande's troops or Cao's army, if they really fight to the end, their fighting power cannot be that far behind.

As for the reasons why the generals surrendered, I don't think it was because the Zhuge brothers' proclamations and speeches were so profound. They were all people who had studied for many years and understood the pros and cons of the principles.

What the Zhuge brothers said was just to save face for those who were already wavering, so that they would not feel ashamed even if they surrendered to the enemy.

In the final analysis, the root cause is that in the past two years, Liu Xuande has been broadcasting small favors in Shu to win people's hearts. In addition, he defeated the Cao thieves and his prestige is high. He also has old friendships with some generals in our army. This is the result of years of efforts, and the lord does not need to be too self-deprecating. "

Huang Quan's analysis was quite pertinent. It finally helped Liu Zhang to understand himself a little better, and his inner sadness and panic were not so intense.

Of course, Huang Quan was not trying to persuade Liu Zhang to fight to the end, or to encourage him. Huang Quan just saw Liu Zhang so decadent, and he couldn't bear it, so he explained the matter clearly.

Liu Zhang sighed for a while, and then took the opportunity to express his doubts: "So, according to Gong Heng's meaning, the defenders in Mianzhu, Baidao and other places will not collapse without a fight like Fucheng, Jiangzhou and Jiangyang did? If we continue to hold on, what are our chances of winning?"

Faced with this question, Huang Quan remained silent and did not choose to give a direct answer.

Wang Lei and other loyal followers immediately encouraged him, "My lord, you must not lose your ambition! What Gong Heng said just now makes sense. The defeat of the generals on the front line is because Liu Bei was too vicious in winning over the people before the war. Now that most of the counties and prefectures bordering Liu Bei have been lost before the war, the generals in the rear have not been bribed by Liu Bei, and they will surely unite as one. Our army will be able to hold on for a year or two, which is more than enough.

There were still more than 10,000 soldiers in Mianzhu and other places, 20,000 soldiers in Luocheng, and 30,000 in Chengdu. The southern cities had a total of 10,000 to 20,000 soldiers.

Although our army lost more than 200 miles of territory in the north and more than 900 miles of territory in the south, the number of combat-capable soldiers only dropped from 110,000 to 80,000, and the main force still remained.

Those disloyal and unjust people surrendered to the enemy, and those who stayed behind were the steadfast ones. Didn't Zhang Ren and Lei Tong also hold their ground firmly to the end?
Although Liu Bei is powerful and our army alone cannot defeat him, as long as we survive the winter and wait until the next spring, Cao Cao will know that Liu Bei has changed. By then, the army will compete with Liu Bei and Liu Bei will not care about us. "

After listening to Wang Lei's words, Liu Zhang's confused eyes gradually focused again, and he saw a way out.

When he first heard about the series of defeats on the front line and the loss of troops and cities, he wavered because he felt there was no hope of holding on and that he could not defeat Brother Xuande on his own.

But Wang Lei gave him an expectation and a timetable in his mind. That is, as long as he could wait until the beginning of spring, Cao Cao would definitely know about it. If he waited until the snow in Qinling Mountains melted, it might be the time for Cao's army to launch a full-scale attack on Liu Bei.

This is like a person with poor physical condition who is already shaky and unable to hold on when doing the bent-arm hang exercise in the physical education exam.

But the invigilator handed him a stopwatch and told him that he would pass if he could hold on until the countdown was over. Then this poor man suddenly burst out with unprecedented potential.

Seeing Liu Zhang's hesitation, Zheng Du took the opportunity to persuade him: "My lord, if our army is so vulnerable, even if Liu Bei promised to treat us well before the battle, can he really fulfill his promise in the end? People are greedy, not to mention that Liu Bei is treacherous and goes back on his word! This is not the first time!

No matter what the end result is, we must let Liu Bei see the backbone of our Shu soldiers! Let him know that our Shu soldiers cannot be insulted! If we give up when the enemy is unstoppable, we will only be humiliated for the rest of our lives. "

Zheng Du inadvertently said something like "peace survives through struggle, but peace dies through compromise", which made Liu Zhang dare not give up easily.

This is also in line with the common sense of war in later generations. Sometimes the two sides go to war, and if you ask for peace when the enemy is at its peak, you will not get good terms at all.

If we negotiate after we have curbed the enemy's offensive a little, we may get some preferential treatment.

Liu Zhang was not stupid, so he could understand the reasoning. No matter what the final result was, the battle had already been fought and the enemy had been offended, so he had to flex his muscles seriously. No matter what the final result was, it would only do harm rather than good.

Even if he gave up immediately, Liu Bei would not give him better conditions, so he might as well try again.

People are selfish and they care about their own interests first. This is normal.

Wang Lei observed his master's words and expressions and saw that he had finally calmed down. At the same time, Wang Lei also knew that he had been labeled as a "local protection element of Yizhou" in the enemy's manifesto, and it was impossible for him to have a good end. So he gritted his teeth and expressed his loyalty to Liu Zhang:
"My lord, if you are worried about the loss of lives and the fact that you can't hold on, and will only add to your sins, why don't you ask me and Zheng Gongshi to supervise the army in the north and south respectively? If you can go to Mianzhu and Baidao, that would be the best. If you are surrounded and can't enter, we are willing to garrison in Luocheng and Nan'an respectively.

Chengdu is a vast city, difficult to defend from all sides, and the people are dense and rich, so it really shouldn't be attacked by war. If we can defend the dignity of our Shu soldiers in Mianzhu, Baidao and other places, then you can rest assured and wait for Cao Cao and Liu Bei to fight next year.

If Zheng Congshi and I die there, and you really feel there is no hope, you can go to Chengdu to negotiate with Liu Bei. Anyway, the conditions Liu Bei is willing to offer you won't be any worse than they are now."

"You...you are so loyal?!" Liu Zhang couldn't believe his ears after hearing this.

But soon, Liu Zhang was a little scared, because he felt that this level of loyalty was inexplicable. And just a few months ago, Fa Zheng and Zhang Song had also shown their loyalty.

But if what Wang Lei said was false, why did he have to comfort himself and prevent himself from wavering? If he was soft-hearted and directly surrendered to Brother Xuande, they should not have suffered any loss.

Liu Zhang was undecided and had to wave his hand to signal Wang Lei and Zheng Du to retreat.

The two men had no choice but to retreat. Huang Quan was about to retreat as well, but Liu Zhang signaled him to stay with his eyes.

Huang Quan didn't want Wang Lei and the others to be suspicious, so he pretended that his legs were numb, walked slower, and fell behind. After Wang Lei left the hall, Huang Quan turned around and quietly waited for his master's instructions:
"I wonder what other orders the lord has?"

Liu Zhang stroked his beard and sighed, "In your opinion, is it necessary to send supervisors and reinforcements to the Mian and Luo fronts?"

Huang Quan thought for a moment and said carefully: "In Zhuge's On Departure, there are indeed harsh words criticizing those civil and military officials who have no regard for the court, who only care about the weight of taxes and levies on the people of Shu, and who only care about the benefits of self-government of the gentry in Shu. Among them, Wang Lei and others were also named.

They knew that they would not have a good ending after Zhuge Liang's rule, so they were loyal to their lord and hoped that their lord would persist in resisting. It was not difficult to understand. However, their decision did not harm their lord. In terms of gains and losses, they had no reason to harm their lord. "

Huang Quan was speaking the truth, and his thoughts were very simple. He was still a subordinate of Liu Zhang, and he was loyal to him, which was also a matter of trust and loyalty.

Perhaps his words were not good for the people and soldiers, and might lead to more bloodshed. But Huang Quan was not so noble, and those were not the issues he considered.

He would speak out as much as he could see through things, to help Liu Zhang resolve his worries and doubts.

After listening to this purely profit-based analysis, Liu Zhang had to admit that Wang Lei and Zheng Du were different from Fa Zheng and Zhang Song. It was not that Fa Zheng and Zhang Song had been disloyal before, but that Fa Zheng and Zhang Song had a good relationship with Liu Bei and had not been registered.

In this case, let's place our last hope on the military supervision of Wang Lei and Zheng Du.

If they are lucky and can break into Mianzhu and Bodao, they can fight the last battle there and gather more reinforcements. If they are unlucky and cannot reach Mianzhu and Bodao, they can organize the last line of defense in Luocheng and Nan'an.

However, after today's heart-to-heart talk, as well as the disheartening feeling caused by the previous thunderbolt, Liu Zhang had at least one idea subtly implanted in his mind:
If these two planned defense lines are still breached, and it is obvious that they cannot delay Cao's army from attacking Liu Bei from behind, then it would be better to surrender directly... Liu Zhang also does not want a prosperous and wealthy metropolis like Chengdu with a population of hundreds of thousands to be devastated by war.

As for the military fortresses in the periphery, they could be attacked at will. As long as Chengdu could hold the peace talks intact, Liu Bei would definitely treat him like a rich man, and whether the periphery was attacked or not would not affect the result.

……

After Liu Zhang made up his mind, he no longer hesitated. He also felt that it was unnecessary to keep 30,000 soldiers in Chengdu, because he had no intention of fighting a battle to defend the city of Chengdu.

Therefore, while sending Wang Lei and Zheng Du to the front line to supervise the army, he also generously added 5,000 main combat troops to each of them as reinforcements.

As a result, Chengdu's military strength was reduced to 20,000. Mianzhu and Luocheng in the north had a total of more than 40,000 troops. Nan'an and Baidao in the south also had more than 20,000 troops.

Liu Zhang's idea was to keep the enemy out of Shu County. He wanted to prevent the enemy from entering the core rich plain area around Chengdu and the Longquan Mountains in the east, and ensure that it would not be destroyed by war.

After receiving the order, Wang Lei and Zheng Du did not dare to stay for long, and quickly led their troops to Luocheng and Nan'an respectively. After arriving, they also asked the local garrison commander to send more scouts to investigate the situation in Mianzhu and Baidao ahead, to see if there was any chance to directly reinforce the city.

Unfortunately, according to the intelligence gathered, although Mianzhu and other places were not completely surrounded, the gaps left by Zhang Fei and Gan Ning were not large, which seemed like an ambush.

If we send reinforcements rashly, we may be surrounded and attacked halfway.

After hearing this, Wang Lei and Zheng Du both chose to be cautious and prudent. They did not rashly support the front line, but set up a second line of defense and support points behind Mianzhu and Baidao.

While Liu Zhang's army was making these responses, seven or eight days passed quickly. On the front lines of Mianzhu and Baidao, Zhang Fei and Gan Ning also made their own preparations for the assault, and finally kicked off the prelude to the assault.

(End of this chapter)