Late Han Zhao Tang

"His Majesty!"

Li Song, dressed in his official robes, entered the palace quietly. Seeing Zhang Yu, Jia Xu, and Xun You pointing out a map, he bowed and performed the rites of a subject to his ruler.

"Your subject Li Song pays his respects to Your Majesty!"

"Bosong has come at the perfect time!"

Zhang Yu stepped forward and took Li Song's hand, saying, "Cao Cao and Liu Bei have launched an attack on us, with their forces pointing directly at Jiangling. Huang Zu has been defeated and retreated to Xiakou, while Wen Ping is holding the isolated city. Hao Zhao has stationed troops in Dangyang and dares not advance rashly. Although I do not know the exact number of these two traitors' troops, based on my rough estimate, the enemy forces number between sixty and seventy thousand and over one hundred thousand."

"The combined forces of the various tribes in Jingzhou number over 40,000, but our current strength is likely insufficient to contend with the enemy. Therefore, I intend to send troops south to defend against the two rebel armies. However, Zhang Liao is in Yuzhou, and Man Chong and Xu Huang are far away in Yizhou. Among all the people in the country, only Bosong is truly capable of great service!"

With that, Zhang Yu smiled and asked, "The reason why Bosong wasn't used to conquer Yizhou in the past was precisely for today's matter. I wonder if Bosong dares to accept this important task and lead troops to defend the country against the enemy?"

"Since Your Majesty has given the order, I will go through fire and water without hesitation!" Although Li Song was worried, his expression was fearless as he solemnly said.

"good!"

Zhang Yu pointed to the map and said, "Jiangling is a fortified city with ample provisions. Wen Ping has 10,000 soldiers under his command. The surrounding area is flat and vast, which is advantageous for cavalry to maneuver. If the enemy were to besiege Jiangling, it would take them months to repair their weapons due to the city's high and precipitous walls. Moreover, the city is bordered by water to the north and the Yangtze River to the south, making it easily accessible by land and water. It would be difficult for the enemy to cut off their supply lines. If the enemy wants to sever communication between the inside and outside, they must cut off the northern route to prevent reinforcements from advancing south."

"Therefore, when you led your troops south, your first priority was to secure the passageways, followed by the defense of the camps, and finally, to repel the enemy. I wonder if Bosong is aware of this?"

Li Song nodded and said, "I have noted it down. Jiangling is a fortified city and difficult to breach in a short time. If our reinforcements divide the enemy's forces, we can delay their capture of the city. If the siege continues for a long time without breaking through, the enemy will eventually lift the siege and withdraw their troops."

That's roughly it!

Zhang Yu frowned slightly and said, "After the expedition begins, you must listen carefully to Military Advisor Jia's advice and not act rashly. If Shu is breached, the enemy troops will retreat on their own!"

As previously mentioned, Zhang Yu did not expect Li Song to defeat the Cao-Liu alliance; he only hoped that Li Song could delay the two armies' siege of Jiangling. This was because the outcome of the battle in Shu would be determined within six months, and once Shu fell, the Cao-Liu alliance would lose the meaning of besieging Jiangling and would have to worry about the armies upstream in Ba and Shu, so they would eventually withdraw their troops from Jiangling.

Therefore, Zhang Yu sent Li Song on the expedition with two plans: first, to see if he could force the allied forces to retreat by holding firm; second, to use the momentum of capturing Shu to force the allied forces to withdraw.

"As ordered!"

Upon hearing that Jia Xu would be accompanying the army as an advisor, Li Song smiled, cupped his hands in greeting to Jia Xu, and said, "Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Jia!"

"Don't dare!"

Zhang Yu asked Li Song to sit down and said, "Lü Bu is skilled in cavalry and is currently living in seclusion in the capital. He will accompany you on this expedition. What do you think, Bo Song?"

Li Song pondered for a moment and said, "Lu Bu and Cao Cao have a blood feud. Now that he is going on an expedition with the army, he will surely benefit!"

"good!"

Zhang Yu looked at Zhao Zi and said, "In that case, issue an edict appointing Li Song as Governor of Yangzhou, Commander-in-Chief of the military affairs of Jing and Yang, granting him the authority to act on behalf of the emperor, and appointing him Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Expedition. Lü Bu, with the title of Grand Marshal, shall be appointed as Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Expedition. Jia Xu, with the title of Deputy Chief of the Privy Council, shall lead the Central Army Advisor of the Southern Expedition."

"promise!"

Zhao Zi wrote the imperial edict.

After making some arrangements for the generals to lead the expedition and dispatching several troops, the three men took their leave one after another.

Watching Li Song's retreating figure, Zhang Yu sighed softly. With no great generals in the country, Li Song had to be put in charge to relieve the siege. He could only hope that Li Song wouldn't suffer the same fate as Tang He, who led the western expedition against Mingxia.

In the early Ming Dynasty, the country was basically unified. Zhu Yuanzhang, mindful of past friendships, wanted to grant Tang He, the Marquis of Zhongshan, the title of Duke. So he ordered Tang He to lead a large army on a western expedition, coordinating with Fu Youde, who was leading a southern expedition in Shaanxi. However, in the war to overthrow the Ming Dynasty, Fu Youde and Liao Wenzhong made great contributions, while Tang He only captured one village. This angered Zhu Yuanzhang, who scolded Tang He for being cowardly.

Knowing he was in the wrong and had disappointed Zhu Yuanzhang's good intentions, Tang He submitted a memorial to plead guilty. Zhu Yuanzhang, unable to bear it, generously rewarded Tang He with ten thousand acres of fertile land. Several years later, citing the accumulation of Tang He's merits, Zhu Yuanzhang finally promoted Tang He to the rank of Duke.

Among the founding heroes of dynasties throughout history, some inevitably owed their fame to their close relationship with the founding emperor. Zhang Yu hoped that Li Song would be reliable, lest future generations criticize him for this. Leaving aside the fact that due to the upheaval in Jingzhou, Zhang Yu appointed Li Song as general and Lü Bu as deputy general, leading the Xiongnu and troops from Yin, Hai, and Yu provinces southward, totaling approximately 30,000 infantry and cavalry. Now, the army's southern expedition to Ba and Shu is hampered, and in desperation, change is inevitable; thus, strategies for defeating the enemy are gradually emerging.

Hanchang, the Tang army camp.

Inside the main tent, Zhang Lu reported to Man Chong, saying, "General, after I worked with Du, Pu, and Yuan to make contact, the Cong generals Li Hu and Li Hei are willing to raise an army. However, now that Shu general Zhang Man has moved his troops to Dangqu, the two are probably no match for Zhang Man. Therefore, I hope that you, General, can send troops south to support the Cong people's uprising."

"Split the troops and march south?"

Kirby frowned and said, "Our army is besieging Hanchang, while the enemy's main force is stationed in Langzhong. If we divide our forces to take Dangqu, wouldn't that be advantageous for defeating the enemy piecemeal?"

"Yes!"

Wang Ling said, "Although our army has 30,000 troops, we have heard that the enemy has about 40,000 troops stationed in Langzhong. If we send troops to Dangqu, too few troops will be useless, and too many troops will be like a weak army. We are afraid that the enemy in Langzhong will take the opportunity to defeat us."

Man Chong looked at the map and said calmly, "But if we can go down to Dangqu and dredge the Bajiang River, we can advance to harass the cities along the river, or retreat to focus on besieging Hanchang."

As he spoke, Man Chong looked at everyone and said with a smile, "Moreover, if the troops are used properly this time, we may be able to lure the Shu people out of their camp so that our army can defeat them!"

"What is the general's intention?" Wang Ling asked doubtfully.

Man Chong paced back and forth, slowly saying, "The Shu people guard Jiange in the west and Hanchang in the east. However, Hanchang is vastly different from Jiange. Therefore, our army is a detachment, and the enemy is stationed in Langzhong, intending to attack us. Now, I have divided my troops to march south to Dangqu, leaving the main camp empty. Gentlemen, do you think the Shu people will send troops to attack us?"

Kirby suddenly realized and said, "The general intends to divide his forces and march south to lure the Shu people into attacking our main camp. The moment the enemy leaves the city will be the moment of our victory!"

That's roughly it!

Man Chong laughed and said, "If the enemy holds back, our army can take the opportunity to descend into Dangqu. But if they attack us, they can cut off the main force's route south and defeat our army in one battle. When the enemy's detachment is defeated, how can Xu Huang's main force not retreat?"

Man Chong planned to use himself as bait to lure the Shu army in Langzhong into attacking. He would then be able to take advantage of the Shu army's absence from their camp to defeat the various Shu forces.

Of course, the risk of defeat is not small. Once the main camp is breached, not only will the southward army led by Kebi have nowhere to retreat, but the detachment led by Man Chong will also be unable to share the burden with Xu Huang. In that case, the southern expedition will be a fruitless one.

"This~"

The people in the tent looked at each other, seemingly all feeling that Man Chong's plan was too risky.

Wang Ling cupped his hands and said, "General's plan is excellent, but I fear that using it in battle will be dangerous!"

"How can military operations proceed without taking risks?"

Man Chong sighed and said, "Before His Majesty set out on the expedition, he told General Xu and me that the roads to Shu were treacherous and that it would be difficult for the troops to advance and retreat, let alone the provisions and supplies. With men and horses carrying loads, it would be exhausting for the people and costly for the army. Therefore, if this campaign lasts more than half a year, we may run out of provisions. If there is no progress by then, we should consider withdrawing the army!"

"Our army entered Sichuan in March and arrived at Hanchang in April. We have been in a stalemate for several dozen days, and the situation has been delayed until May. We have no other options this month. If we drag this out until June, and they make no progress, they will consider withdrawing their troops in July. Therefore, luring the enemy out to attack is a last resort."

The biggest problem in the campaign against Shu is gradually emerging: the southern expeditionary forces cannot maintain a prolonged stalemate as they have in the Central Plains. We must find a way to defeat the enemy quickly, penetrate the Bashu region, and obtain local supplies.

Wang Ling pondered for a while and said, "General, it would be better to pass the message on to General Xu for now. General Xu is the commander-in-chief of the southern expedition. Although our army is determined not to be under General Xu's command, this concerns the defeat of our army, so we must discuss it with him. Moreover, since General Xu is blocked at Jiange, his troops may be willing to cooperate with our strategy."

Man Chong considered it for a moment and felt that what Wang Ling said made a lot of sense. He said, "What Wang Shangyong said makes sense. Now let the scouts send a message to General Xu and see what General Xu says."

He then added, "If General Xu has no objection, General Ke may lead 10,000 infantry and cavalry south to Dangqu, while the rest of the troops will remain with the governor to guard the main camp."

"Yes, sir!" everyone responded. (End of Chapter)