My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 748 Zhang Yide Fights Sun Zhongmou Again
During the first wave of fighting on the southern front, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang were not able to arrive at the front line in person immediately.

Because Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang both went to the Nanyang battlefield, geographically speaking, their attack route was farther away from Xu County and had to cross the Tongbai Mountains.

As for Guan Yu, Zhang Liao, Gao Shun and others in the Xuhuai direction, they were unable to launch the attack immediately due to the long distance.

Therefore, the vanguard of the Northern Expedition could only be Zhang Fei and Wei Yan.

This can also be regarded as an honor for Zhang Fei, allowing him to fire the first shot of the Northern Expedition.

The price is that he will not be equipped with top civil servants and counselors of the level of Zhuge brothers, Lu Su, and Pang Tong. The most powerful military strategist in Zhang Fei's army is just Xu Shu.

But he had to rely on Xu Shu's wisdom and assistance to forge a gap in front of the combination of Cao Ren and Jia Xu, opening a channel for friendly troops to fully pour into the Yuzhou Plain.

……

On October 14, the 16th year of Jian'an, Runan Prefecture, Shangcai County.

As Zhang Fei's army approached and set up camp in the south of the city, the atmosphere in Shangcai City became solemn and murderous again. All the Cao army soldiers were as if they were facing a great enemy.

This important town in the northern part of Runan County, which was besieged once by Zhang Fei three years ago, is still guarded by Sun Quan, who was in charge of guarding this place three years ago.

During the battle three years ago, Sun Quan was only twenty-six or twenty-seven years old. Time flies, and now he is in his thirties.

In the battle three years ago, Liu Bei's army did not use its full strength in the Runan direction. Zhang Fei was about to leave after he fired a feint.

However, considering that resources should be used as much as possible, Zhuge Jin found an excuse before withdrawing his troops and truce and deliberately praised Sun Quan.

The Cao army thought that it was because "Sun Quan was good at defense and stood firm like a mountain that he was able to outlast the aggressive Zhang Fei."

Then everyone thought that Sun Quan was indeed a rising star in defense among the younger generation of the Cao family.

Therefore, during these three years, Sun Quan's official career was smooth. Relying on the support of his enemies, when he was in his twenties, he held the honorary title of Mu of Yangzhou while actually being assigned as the prefect of Runan. He actually took charge of the important defense of Runan County, and even his title of general was further promoted.

You must know that when Sun Quan's brother's power collapsed and he had to surrender to Cao Cao alone, all he got was a nominal title of General Suppressing the Rebellion.

Because his starting point was relatively high, if he wanted to move up to the rank of general, he would have to be a general of Siping Si'an, or even higher. Therefore, Cao Cao did not promote him for many years.

However, after defeating Zhang Fei in the Battle of Shangcai that year, Sun Quan's general rank was promoted to General of Annan.

Now that he was over 30 years old and had accumulated three more years of border defense experience, before the war, Cao Cao promoted Sun Quan again to the rank of General Zhennan.

Cao Ren, who was of a higher rank than his immediate superior, the Four Generals of the Four Directions, was only one level higher than his immediate superior, the Four Generals of the Four Expeditions.

When Sun Quan was promoted, there were some people in the Luoyang court who objected, but later everyone saw the truth.

As Cao Cao came under increasing external pressure, he had to become more and more centralized internally and promote his sons and nephews.

What kind of position did Cao Zhang, who had outstanding military achievements, become? He was only 23 years old and so tall. As the only one of the next generation of Cao family who was over 30 years old, it was not too much for Sun Quan to be the general of the four towns, right?
After all, he married Cao Cao's eldest daughter and Cao Ang's half-sister, who was later named Princess Qinghe in history and was supposed to marry Xiahou Mao.

……

Whether Cao Cao's extraordinary promotion of Sun Quan was a meritocracy or nepotism, the truth has finally been revealed today.

People all over the world, especially those officials in the Luoyang court who were dissatisfied with Cao Cao's principles of employing people, were waiting to see what would happen.

Of course, Sun Quan alone would not be able to defend the defense zone of Shangcai and Yancheng, so he had to rely on the talents under his command.

The main ones were Cheng Pu, who had followed him from Jiangdong for many years, and Ling Tong, who had just grown up. In addition, there were a small group of counselors and civil servants who had followed him for many years. The rest were the people sent to him by Cao Cao.

Ling Tong was 23 years old this year. When he fled to Cao Cao with Sun Quan, he was still a teenager who was not yet able to fight in the battlefield. When Zhang Fei attacked for the first time three years ago, Ling Tong had just reached adulthood. Although he joined the army, he could only serve as a captain of Sun Quan's personal guards and did not hold a high-ranking military position.

Now, with three more years of experience and daily hard work, the 23-year-old Ling Tong was finally promoted to the rank of captain and was able to lead an army under Sun Quan.

As for Sun Quan's direct advisers, they were mainly Xu Xiang, Kan Ze, Hu Zong and Wu Fan.

It's still the same old saying, even a rotten boat still has three pounds of nails. After all, the Sun family was a vassal that dominated Jiangdong for several years. When it was finally destroyed, there were always a few loyal people willing to follow it.

Among these four people, Hu Zong and Wu Fan were only ministers of literature and finance, and they could not be considered as having any strategic ideas.

Xu Xiang and Kan Ze, on the other hand, know some strategies and have military knowledge. Of the two, Xu Xiang is more focused on intelligence analysis and collection, while Kan Ze is relatively good at perceiving people's hearts and has eloquence and resourcefulness.

Over the years, whenever Sun Quan encountered issues that he could not decide on and could not talk to the people his father-in-law assigned to him, he would consult these two people. They were his most trusted confidants.

At this moment, facing Zhang Fei's invasion, Sun Quan was worried, so he naturally held a small meeting first and discussed it with his core confidants.

"Three years later, Zhang Fei suddenly led tens of thousands of troops into the country again, and with Wei Yan as his assistant, how can we repel the enemy?"

Sun Quan stood on the south gate tower of Shangcai City, looking at the camp that Zhang Fei had just set up last night in the distance. He frowned slightly and asked Cheng Pu, Ling Tong, Xu Xiang and Kan Ze who were around him in a deep voice.

Cheng Pu had the most seniority, so he had to be the first to express his opinion in order to stabilize the army's morale. So he roared without thinking, saying:
"When an enemy comes, we will fight back. Although Zhang Fei is brave, he was repelled by the young master three years ago. Now our army should remain unchanged in the face of ever-changing circumstances. I will lead the navy to station at the water fort on the other side of the Ru River to support Shangcai City and cut off the Ru River waterway to prevent Zhang Fei's warships and infantry from infiltrating our rear and harassing us on our way back.

The young master and his nephew Gongji stayed in Shangcai City, relying on the geographical advantage to consume Zhang Fei. As long as Zhang Fei's main force could not bypass the blockade of the water fort and go upstream, he could not cut off our army's way back.

Even if the young master holds out for several months and his troops and military supplies gradually run out, and he eventually has to retreat to Yancheng, he can definitely withdraw safely by water. Even if Zhang Fei completely blocks the land route, he can't block the retreat route of Rushui. In this way, our army can use the depth to resist step by step, and will never let Zhang Fei touch Xu County within a few months. "

Since Cheng Pu followed Sun Quan to join Cao, he could no longer call Sun Quan "Lord", but he did not want to completely lose the relationship between master and subject. In addition, Sun Quan became Cao Cao's son-in-law, so he went with the flow and called Sun Quan "Young Master" in private. This made Cao Cao seem like the lord and Sun Quan was a generation younger, which seemed to be fine.

And what he said is in line with the correct way of military strategy.

Although Shangcai County was strong and had been managed by Sun Quan for several years, it had not been the seat of Runan County before. The city had a poor foundation and could not become the strongest city in the world.

The hope of relying on defending the city and holding on to Shangcai is too slim.

Therefore, defending Shangcai can only delay time, while ensuring that once the delay is long enough, the troops are exhausted and too tired to hold on, they can retreat in an orderly manner.

Yuzhou is located on the Henan Plain. Runan County has some mountains on both sides of the Huai River, but near Shangcai, it becomes a plain.

The plain terrain has no strategic locations to defend and is easy to be bypassed and outflanked, so the only safe retreat route that will not be cut off is the river.

After listening to Cheng Pu's analysis, Sun Quan realized that the general direction of this idea was correct, so he turned his head to look to the other side and patted Ling Tong on the shoulder:

"Gong Ji, we have to rely on General Cheng to take charge of the water stronghold. I have to rely on you to keep an eye on the defense of Shangcai County." Ling Tong hurriedly cupped his hands and said, "Young Master, rest assured! I have received your great kindness and support for many years. Now is the time to repay you. General Cheng can defeat Zhang Fei, so how can I not defeat Wei Yan? We must make Wei Yan's troops stay in the fortified city for two months without making any progress to wear him down."

Sun Quan: "Do you have any specific strategy for defending the city?"

Ling Tong thought about it and felt a little embarrassed: "Since ancient times, there are no fancy techniques for defending a city... It's nothing more than wearing armor and holding sharp weapons, personally supervising the battle, and being able to adapt to changes to boost the morale of the troops."

After Ling Tong finished speaking, he stole a glance at Sun Quan's reaction. However, Sun Quan did not look disappointed, but patted him on the shoulder again, indicating that he believed in his fighting spirit.

The other two, Xu Xiang and Kan Ze, did not have many objections. Kan Ze just gave a slight reminder: "I think there is still a little risk in this battle. Young Master should also be careful."

Sun Quan immediately gestured to Kan Ze to continue in a friendly manner: "Oh? Derun, go ahead and talk."

Kan Ze: "It is October now. As winter approaches, the rain will gradually decrease and the river will become shallower. If it is delayed until next month, or even the twelfth month, the water level of the Ru River will be too shallow. We must also be on guard against Zhang Fei using part of his troops to bypass Shangcai City by land, and then set up camp in a place several dozen miles north of the city, digging earth to build dams, creating reefs and shoals, and blocking the navigation of warships.

Once that happens, General Cheng's warships and battleships will not be able to sail north, and our retreat route may be threatened before the enemy takes our water fort. Therefore, I think that the young master may be able to make two preparations. He should prepare military supplies in peacetime, and retreat in time if the situation changes and cannot be reversed. "

Sun Quan was slightly startled when he heard this, and thought that Kan Ze's consideration was very thoughtful.

Zhang Fei might not be able to forcibly break through Cheng Pu's water fort and destroy Cheng Pu's warships to cut off the shipping on the Ru River. But if the river was blocked in the season with the least water, it would still be a great threat to the Shangcai defenders.

If Shangcai was a strong city like Xu County, there would be no need to worry about this. Because Xu County could hold out for a long time, even if the river water level dropped in winter and the waterway was damaged, he could hold out for a few more months until the spring flood season when the water level rose again.

Whether it is the Ru River or the Zhang River that Zhang He is blocking in Hebei at this moment, a river of this magnitude can only be blocked by manpower in winter, and it is impossible to do so in the season of high water, and it is beyond human power.

But because Shangcai was not strong enough and not big enough, even if Sun Quan and Ling Tong defended it with all their might, it would probably fall during the dry season in winter. In this case, Sun Quan and others would probably be completely buried in Shangcai.

Thinking of this, Sun Quan couldn't help but secretly sweat, and hurriedly praised: "Derun is very worried! General Cheng, this is also something you must worry about. After you go to the water fort on the other side, remember to send warships to patrol upstream every day to ensure that the rear road is unobstructed.

If you find anything unusual, report it immediately. Our army can adjust its strategy in time. If the situation is really that critical, then giving up Shangcai in advance may be a last resort. "

"I will obey your command!" Cheng Pu immediately patted his chest and promised not to be negligent.

Seeing that all aspects had been explained, Sun Quan stopped talking and let everyone prepare their own defenses.

As for the generals sent to him by Cao Cao, Sun Quan handed them over to Cheng Pu and Ling Tong to command, and they only needed to report to him at the end.

The defenders around Shangcai all operated according to this deployment plan.

……

While Sun Quan was preparing his troops and deploying his defenses, in the siege camp south of the city,

Zhang Fei, who had just camped and had a good sleep last night to relieve some of the fatigue of the march, just got up at this moment, washed up, had some barbecue, then put on his armor and mounted his horse, and went out of the camp with Wei Yan to inspect the defense of Shangcai City and arrange the attack strategy.

Zhang Fei and Wei Yan were accompanied by several hundred cavalry guards, and they were not afraid at all that Sun Quan would gather a large force to attack and kill them when they saw that they were outnumbered.

Cao Cao deployed at least 50,000 defenders in the entire defense zone from Shangcai to Yancheng, Dingling, and Kunyang. In the forefront Shangcai County alone, there were at least 20,000 soldiers.

But even if Sun Quan could pull out 10,000 men to fight outside the city, Zhang Fei and Wei Yan with 500 cavalrymen would not be afraid of him. Even if they could not defeat him, at least they could break through Sun Quan's army formation and break out.

Zhang Fei is so confident.

Shangcai County is located on the east bank of the Ru River, so Zhang Fei went from south to east and then north. After circling the city half a circle, he rode his horse to a stop on a high hill in the north of the city, pointed at the city tower with his whip, and discussed with Wei Yan how to break the city.

"Shangcai City is not very strong. Three years ago, I let Sun Quan's kid go, and 'let him become famous'. This time we brought enough Ge Gong carts and catapults, as well as ladders and watchtowers. After a month of strong attack, we can definitely break the city and kill 10,000 or 20,000 enemies."

Zhang Fei expressed his thoughts confidently and seemed quite high-spirited.

Wei Yan pondered Zhang Fei's intentions, carefully checked for loopholes and said: "Although a strong attack can also break the city, won't it be too slow? It took a month to conquer Shangcai alone, how long will it take to conquer Dingying, Yancheng, Dingling, and Kunyang?

Can we clear all the counties along the Ru River before winter comes, and support the main forces of the Lord, Zhuge Lingjun, and General Huang Lao, and enter Yingchuan? In my opinion, Cao's army will set up camp across the river and cut off the Ru River. It would be better for our army to camp upstream, dig soil and build a dam to destroy the Ru River waterway.

In this way, no one will need to use boats to march, and both sides will have to walk on foot! We will surround all the gates of Shangcai that are not near the water. We are not afraid that Sun Quan's army will not be shaken, and he will not worry about whether he can withdraw from the encirclement when he is exhausted. By then, how can he still have the heart to defend the city? "

Zhang Fei subconsciously tightened his grip on the snake spear and knocked the spear shaft to the ground. He pondered and affirmed Wei Yan's opinion: "This is a good idea. It is definitely better than a direct attack..."

However, almost at the same moment, a dissenting voice rang out from the side: "Yi De can't do that!"

Zhang Fei instinctively turned his head and saw that it was his military officer Xu Shu who was firmly opposing it.

Wei Yan's plan was rejected by Xu Shu, and his face was a little gloomy, but he quickly controlled himself and patiently asked: "I wonder if Mr. Yuanzhi sees anything wrong with this plan?"

Xu Shu explained calmly and patiently: "Wen Chang's method is indeed in line with the common sense of military strategy, but unfortunately Wen Chang is not familiar with the geography between Ru and Ying. How wide and deep is the Ru River? Even if it goes around to the upper reaches of Shangcai, can it be cut off in a month?
In fact, even if we want to cut off the canal in the future, we have to wait until winter comes and the water level drops to the lowest. Only then can we achieve twice the result with half the effort. But if we really wait until the twelfth month when the water level is the lowest, two months will be wasted, which will only be slower and more time-consuming than Yide's direct deployment of a strong attack to break the city.

At that time, how can we use the danger of Xudu to force Cao's army to besiege Wei to save Zhao and withdraw the main force in Hebei to Henan to plug the loophole? Therefore, our army must think of another way, which will not let the army be exhausted and at the same time break the city within a month. "

Following this line of thought, Zhang Fei and Wei Yan had to admit that the demands described by Xu Shu were very beautiful and truly were "both this and that".

The only question is, how to realize such a good expectation?

Thinking of this, Zhang Fei and Wei Yan couldn't help but look towards Xu Shu with expectant eyes, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Xu Shu did not keep the secret, but just cleared his throat, took out the leather bag and drank some water, then he continued:

"If we want to capture Shangcai more quickly, the best way is to directly destroy Cheng Pu's water stronghold and completely break Cao's blockade of the Rushui waterway. By then, our warships on the river will be more powerful than Cao's. Do we still need to worry about Cao's retreat by water?

Moreover, as long as Cheng Pu is defeated, the enemy will not even be able to advance step by step or retreat step by step, because the enemy troops in the entire Ru River Basin will no longer dare to besiege the isolated city, because they will know that without the Ru River navy, they will be completely surrounded and killed if they are besieged by our army on land, and their determination to defend will soon be shaken. "

Zhang Fei and Wei Yan couldn't help but look at each other after hearing this, and then Zhang Fei asked another question:
"But... our army along the way did not have a navy strong enough to decisively overwhelm Cheng Pu. The navigation channel of the Ru River does not support the entry of the tower ships from the Huai River. The section of the lower reaches of the Ru River passing through Pingdingshan is too difficult for large ships.

Cheng Pu is a veteran who has served Jiangdong for three generations and is quite good at naval warfare. We did not bring Xingba and Ziyi's elite troops with us this time. How can we ensure that we can completely defeat Cheng Pu in the naval battle? Moreover, he can rely on the water fort to hold on, and our army must overcome the geographical disadvantage of attacking the fort."

Xu Shu was not worried when he heard Zhang Fei's question. Instead, he smiled smugly, feeling proud of having seized the opportunity to show off:
"In fact, although the method Wen Chang came up with just now cannot be used directly, it has inspired me. Now we have to go around to the upstream to set up camp, dig soil and build a cofferdam to stop the flow, but it is not reliable for the time being.

But our army can pretend that they don't understand the hydrology and geography of the Ru River and deliberately make this mistake, so that the enemy will laugh at us and not take precautions. Once we have established a stable camp upstream, we can pretend to continue to speed up the construction of the cofferdam, but in fact we can cut down a large number of trees for other uses. In fact, we only need to do this..."

(End of this chapter)