Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 496 A Strategy Comparable to Marquis Liu
"May I ask Secretary Guo, why does His Majesty not appoint me to lead the troops?"

Seeing that Zhang Yu had appointed Wen Ping as commander of the navy instead of using him, Qiao Rui, under the pretense of offering a toast, approached Guo Tu and asked.

Guo Tu took a sip of wine and said, "It's not that Your Majesty doesn't use generals, but that Your Majesty doesn't fully trust generals."

"Could it be that I have made a mistake that prevents the King from trusting me?" Qiao Rui asked.

Guo Tu glanced at Zhang Yu, who was chatting with Kuai Yue, and then smiled without saying a word.

Seeing this, Qiao Rui felt somewhat anxious. When he was under Yuan Shu, his official rank was higher than Wen Ping's, but now that he had surrendered to Zhang Yu, Wen Ping was promoted and given important positions, while he could not win Zhang Yu's trust, which made him somewhat apprehensive.

"Please enlighten me, Secretary Guo. I will be eternally grateful and will repay you handsomely afterward!" Qiao Rui said in a low voice.

Guo Tu's eyes flickered slightly, and he said in a low voice, "Wen Ping won the king's favor with his talent and strategy. General, how do you compare to Wen Ping in terms of your ability to command troops?"

"It should be a draw!" Qiao Rui frowned and pondered, then said thoughtfully, "Perhaps Wen Ping is better at the navy."

Guo Tu pondered for a moment and said, "I have heard that His Majesty values ​​Wen Ping highly because of Wen Ping's loyalty. General, your talents are not yet apparent, and His Majesty cannot see your loyalty. Therefore, if you wish to gain His Majesty's favor, we must find another way!"

Qiao Rui frowned in thought, then suddenly said, "It has been many months since Your Majesty went on your campaign. You have bestowed many singing girls upon your subordinates but kept none for yourself. I imagine you have no one to serve you. I have two daughters who are knowledgeable in music and literature and are beautiful. I wonder if they would have a chance to serve Your Majesty?"

Guo Tu looked at Qiao Rui suspiciously and asked, "Is she really that beautiful?"

"How could it be fake?"

Seeing Guo Tu question his appearance, Qiao Rui stiffened his neck and said unhappily, "When I was young, I was known as a handsome man. My two daughters were so beautiful that many young men came to propose to me, but because none of them were outstanding, I rejected them."

Seeing that what he said was true, Guo Tu said in a low voice, "In that case, after the banquet, when Your Majesty is feeling a bit tipsy, I will ask you about it, and you may have someone make preparations in advance."

"promise"

Qiao Rui said gratefully, "If my daughter can gain the King's favor, I will never forget your guidance today!"

"Ok!"

Guo Tu nodded smugly. Even though his position was not as high as that of Zhong Yao, Du Ji, and Xun You, who were heads of government agencies, he was better off serving Zhang Yu. Therefore, the civil and military officials preferred to befriend him rather than offend him.

The whispering between Qiao and Guo was noticed by Jia Xu, who was usually not on good terms with outsiders. He merely smiled faintly and then raised his cup to drink. Apart from relying on Zhang Yu, he did not rely on anyone else. As an observer, he was able to take in the expressions of all the civil and military officials at the banquet.

"Lord Jia, the King has issued an edict!"

Jia Xu dared not delay, and quickly got up from his seat, and went to Zhang Yu's side with Xun You and Guo Tu.

After finishing his conversation with Kuai Yue, Zhang Yu looked at the three men and asked, slightly tipsy, "Kuai Yue just advised me that with our army pressing in on the border and having also taken over the troops of Chen, he now recommends that I train my navy in Xiangyang. Once the navy is fully developed, we should cross the river, first destroy Liu Bei, then sail down the river to take Jiangzuo and capture and kill Cao Cao. What do you three think?"

Xun You stroked his beard and pondered, then said, “Kuai Yue’s words are not without reason. He is training his navy in Xiangfan. But now that a large army is pressing on our border, I fear that Cao Cao and Liu Bei will form an alliance to jointly defend against our army. In my opinion, it would be better to first conquer Huainan to divide Cao Cao’s forces, and then later lead the navy to defeat the enemy, cross the Yangtze River, destroy Liu Bei first, and then destroy Cao Cao.”

"Where are you two?"

Jia Xu smiled and said, "How could Gongda forget the Sun family of Bashu?"

"The great river originates in Sichuan and Chongqing, passes through Jingchu and Yangzhou, and flows eastward into the sea." Jia Xu spoke slowly, saying, "Now Your Majesty has unified China and Guanzhong, and the only remaining territory in the world is the Jiangnan region. With the fall of the two sides, if Cao Cao and Liu Bei form an alliance, how could Sun Ce stand aside?"

"Therefore, in my opinion, once Your Majesty's army arrives here, Cao Cao, Sun Quan, and Liu Bei will surely form an alliance to jointly control the Chinese army. The combined forces of the three families may number 100,000 elite troops. With the natural barrier of the Yangtze River, I fear Your Majesty will find it difficult to quell the warlords in one battle."

Zhang Yu nodded in thought and asked, "In Wenhe's opinion, how should the three families be destroyed?"

Jia Xu said, “During the Warring States period, the Vertical Alliance was used to resist the Horizontal Alliance. Why doesn’t Your Majesty first send envoys to pave the way and persuade the three families to surrender? If the three generals do not surrender, Your Majesty can then focus on either the Sun or Cao families. If you attack the Sun family, station heavy troops in Huaibei and Jiangbei to prevent Cao and Liu from launching a northern expedition and thus diverting your forces. If you attack the Cao family, similarly station troops in Hanzhong and Nanjun to prevent the Sun and Liu families from joining forces for a northern expedition.”

"If any of the three kingdoms is destroyed, the perilous passage of the great river will be shared by Your Majesty and the other two kingdoms. At that time, Your Majesty's prestige will be far-reaching, and your military strength will be great. You will then pacify the people, reward the officials and soldiers, and ensure the peace and happiness of the region. Meanwhile, the enemy soldiers will not dismount, and their boats will not dock. Within two years, the soldiers and civilians will be exhausted, and the people will yearn for peace. In this way, you can subdue the remaining enemy forces without expending a large army!"

Guo Tu frowned slightly and said, "When Emperor Gaozu attacked Xiang Yu, Marquis Liu advised him to attack quickly. Now Your Majesty possesses two-thirds of the world, so why worry about the three bandits in Jiangnan and instead adopt a strategy of delaying the attack?"

Jia Xu glanced at Zhang Yu, and seeing Zhang Yu looking at him with admiration, he said with relief, "Times have changed!"

"In the past, Marquis Liu advised Emperor Gaozu to hastily attack Xiang Yu because Han Xin had swept through Hebei, leaving Xiang Yu short of supplies. If we hadn't attacked then, it would have been like releasing a tiger back into the mountains, causing endless trouble. However, the three families have been cultivating the Jiangnan region for a long time. Liu Bei is a man of outstanding talent, Cao Cao is a ruthless hero, and Sun Ce has inherited his father's influence; all three have become a threat to Your Majesty. If we hastily attack now, a defeat could threaten the Central Plains." "Moreover, our army is not skilled in naval warfare. Without understanding the terrain, we will likely suffer more defeats than victories!"

Compared to Xun You, who was busy with military affairs, and Guo Tu, who was busy connecting civil and military officials, Jia Xu, who had nothing to do, could be said to have devoted himself to studying military affairs and had long ago thoroughly understood the situation and geography of Jiangnan.

The strategy of slowing down the attack proposed by Jia Xu today is completely different from the strategy of Zhang Liang advising Liu Bang to attack Xiang Yu urgently four hundred years ago. However, their essential purpose is the same: to make the monarch more confident in unifying the world.

At that time, Liu Bang first attacked Pengcheng, but was later driven back to Xingyang by Xiang Yu after opening champagne halfway through the attack, and was then surrounded. During the siege, Liu Bang, due to the critical situation, adopted the advice of Li Shiqi and Zhang Liang, and sent Han Xin to besiege Hebei, while sending people to win over Peng Yue.

After months of stalemate between Han and Chu, Xiang Yu's army gradually ran out of food due to Peng Yue's harassment of supply lines. Furthermore, Han Xin's conquest of Qi geographically encircled Western Chu. Forced into a corner, Xiang Yu proactively negotiated peace with Liu Bang, signing the famous Treaty of Honggou.

At that time, Zhang Liang and Chen Ping saw through Xiang Yu's outward strength but inner weakness and strongly urged Liu Bang to pursue him, and also recruited Peng Yue and Han Xin to besiege him. After a series of pursuits, Xiang Yu suffered a complete defeat and finally committed suicide at the Wujiang River.

Although Zhang Yu now seems to control two-thirds of the land, as Jia Xu said, Zhang Yu has not formed a strategic overwhelming advantage over the three powers. In particular, the existence of the Yangtze River, a natural barrier, seriously hinders the performance of the Tang army's elite troops and generals.

Therefore, Jia Xu's purpose in advising against a campaign was not essentially to avoid fighting, but to allow Zhang Yu to recuperate in China while simultaneously launching an attack to breach the Yangtze River defense line. Whether seeking a breakthrough from Cao Cao or Sun Ce, as long as the Tang army shared the Yangtze River with them, and coordinated with the Jingzhou navy in the middle reaches, they could achieve something.

Zhang Yu nodded slightly and said with emotion, "Wenhe's view is like Liu Hou's strategy of urging Gaozu to quickly attack Xiang Yu. On the surface, it goes against the grain, but in reality, it contains a hidden strategy. Although we are slowing down now, we are actually urging him to hurry. This is exactly what the words of Zhengqi mean!"

The current situation reminded Zhang Yu of Cao Cao in history. At that time, Cao Cao fought a bitter battle in the Central Plains for eighteen years and finally defeated Yuan Shu, Yuan Shao and Lü Bu, and occupied most of the country.

At that time, Cao Cao's army entered Jingzhou, and Liu Cong surrendered without a fight. Liu Zhang sent envoys to scout ahead, and it seemed that he was winning all the way. However, Cao Cao overlooked the huge differences between the north and the south. The veteran soldiers from the Central Plains could not play a role, so he tried to use the weak Jingzhou navy to defeat the Jiangzuo navy.

But how can surrendered people truly serve you when they have just submitted?
Therefore, even without the plague, Cao Cao's army would still be defeated by the allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei.

Perhaps sensing the hidden crisis within Cao Cao, Jia Xu advised him to first conquer Hanzhong and appease the scholars of Jingzhou, using time to wear down Sun Quan and create internal divisions within Eastern Wu, ultimately causing it to collapse without a fight. However, Cao Cao was blindly arrogant and ignored Jia Xu's advice, ultimately being defeated by the allied forces.

Although the situation is different now, Zhang Yu faces more enemies, and the three-way alliance is stronger than the Sun-Liu alliance, so how can he not be cautious?

Xun You understood the profound meaning behind it and sighed deeply, saying, "Jia Jun's words are a grand strategy for the country. The alliance of the three families should not be underestimated. If we rush into war, defeat is a minor matter, but the loss of China's elite troops is a major one. Moreover, Cao Cao claims to be a member of the Han dynasty, Liu Bei is a member of the imperial clan, and the Sun family claims to be Han subjects. If Your Majesty is defeated, it may shake the hearts of the people."

Xun You pointed out a crucial point that Jia Xu hadn't mentioned: since Zhang Yu raised his army, he had won every battle to reach the present state. Coupled with Yuan Shu's usurpation of the Han throne, the Chinese people tacitly accepted that the Zhang family would replace the Liu family in ruling the country. However, if the southern expeditionary force were to be defeated by the Liu family, it would inevitably breed separatist sentiments among the southerners, or raise questions about Zhang Yu's legitimacy.

Guo Tu saw through Zhang Yu's thoughts and nodded repeatedly, saying, "Jia Jun's words have enlightened me. They are truly insightful. You are worthy of the wisdom of Marquis Liu."

"Don't dare!"

Jia Xu humbly said, "I am but a humble opinion; Your Majesty may listen attentively."

"hehe!"

Zhang Yu took a big gulp of wine and laughed, "I will accept Wenhe's plan. However, since we are having a grand banquet now, we can discuss the details later."

"promise!"

After the three men withdrew, Zhang Yu already had a plan in mind. A hasty southern expedition was impossible. Now, once Li Song had conquered Xuzhou and Man Chong had taken Qingzhou, and he had repelled the opportunistic Cao Cao and Liu Bei, he could leave his troops in Jingzhou and return to Chang'an. Who would lead the subsequent southern expedition still needed careful consideration.

The grand banquet lasted for two hours, from noon until dusk. During the banquet, everyone made merry and drank, thoroughly enjoying themselves. The surrendered officials took the opportunity to become acquainted with the Tang people. Zhang Yu, through these conversations, gained considerable insights into military and political matters.

On the way back to the inner courtyard, because it was winter, night fell earlier.

Guo Tu, who was serving at his side, said, "Your Majesty has no close confidants. Why don't we invite some singing girls to relieve your boredom?"

Slightly tipsy, Zhang Yu asked, "Are there any women of exceptional beauty in the palace?"

"There are none in the palace, but there are two beautiful women in Wancheng who are skilled in playing the zither and can help Your Majesty relieve his fatigue!"

"who?"

"Qiao Rui has two daughters!"

"allow!"

(End of this chapter)