The Three Kingdoms: Hindsight is 20/20, and the Three Revivals of the Han Dynasty

After capturing Fancheng, Zhuge Liang did not rush to attack Xiangyang. Instead, he organized the army and civilians to reclaim wasteland and cultivate land in Fancheng. He even sent a messenger to Cao Cao, saying, "There are many refugees in Nanyang. I want to cultivate land in Fancheng to help the refugees. I have no intention of attacking Xiangyang."

More than 20,000 troops from Wancheng, Nanxiang and Fangling appeared in Fancheng, and the 100,000 soldiers and civilians made a great show of force. Despite this, Zhuge Liang said that he had no intention of attacking Xiangyang.

What a liar!
Cao Cao did not believe it, nor did Cai Mao and others.

Everyone concluded that Zhuge Liang was trying to play the trick of "openly repairing the plank road while secretly crossing the Chencang pass," deliberately using the method of garrisoning farms to lull the Xiangyang defenders into a false sense of security.

Therefore, Cao Cao and Cai Mao, among others, not only did not lower their guard, but instead strengthened their defenses and even requisitioned large quantities of grain and fodder from the rear, preparing to confront Zhuge Liang with all their might.

Cao Cao also sent someone to detour to Xuchang, urging Sun Quan to send troops to attack Zhuge Liang's rear.

However, to Cao Cao and Cai Mao's surprise, Zhuge Liang had no intention of feigning an attack on one side while secretly advancing on another; instead, he had a plan to cultivate land in Fancheng from the very beginning.

Through several Northern Expeditions, Zhuge Liang gained a valuable lesson: by extending the military farms deep into the enemy's cities, he could not only solve the problem of food transportation but also put the enemy at a disadvantage in defending their cities.

Zhuge Liang was mistaking Fancheng for Wuzhangyuan.

If the garrison of Xiangyang is not convinced, they can also cross the river to challenge for battle.

If the garrison in Xiangyang refused to cross the river, Zhuge Liang could have expanded Fancheng from a small city into a large one, even building a ferry crossing and a navy, and incidentally taking over Sun Quan's Xuchang.

While this move would give Cao Cao more time to control Jingzhou, it also gave Liu Bei more time to seize Yanzhou and Yuzhou.

In war, interests naturally come first.

Whether for political, economic, or military interests, a direct attack on Xiangyang is the worst possible strategy. The best strategy is to gradually erode Sun Quan's power in Xuchang and completely control the area north of the Han River.

With the assistance of Kuai Yue, Kuai Liang, and others, Zhuge Liang's land reclamation efforts in Fancheng progressed smoothly.

Liu Biao recruited many scholars in Jingzhou. While these scholars lacked military skills, they were all excellent at governance.

Zhuge Liang only needed to issue the core instructions, and the scholars would take care of the governance work properly on his behalf. He did not need to work day and night or do everything himself.

Zhuge Liang even had the energy to consider how to successfully deal with Sun Quan in Xuchang, and what identity Liu Bei should assume after dealing with Sun Quan, among other things.

However, in the eyes of Cao Cao and Cai Mao, all of this was Zhuge Liang preparing to attack Xiangyang. Therefore, Cao Cao did not take the opportunity to pacify the various counties of Jingzhou, but only focused on recruiting grain and laborers.

Although it would cause dissatisfaction among the people of Jingzhou, Cao Cao didn't care. There were too many people dissatisfied with Cao Cao, and they would have to wait in line to express their dissatisfaction.

In Xudu.

Sun Quan also felt a chill run down his spine.

It was thought that arranging Zhou Yu to Chenliu would stop Liu Bei from going south, but unexpectedly Zhuge Liang went directly through Wuguan to Nanyang, and within a month he had control of the area north of the Han River.

Liu Qi, you are the Prefect of Nanyang and General Who Guards the East, why don't you resist? Are you just willing to submit to Liu Bei?
When Sun Quan appointed Liu Qi as the Prefect of Nanyang and General Who Guards the East, he intended for Liu Qi to become an independent force in Nanyang, free from the constraints of Liu Biao and the need to rely on others. However, Liu Qi, upon Zhuge Liang's arrival, immediately raised an army and surrendered.

Not only did he surrender, Liu Qi also served Zhuge Liang diligently, preparing money and provisions to help Zhuge Liang capture Fancheng.

You're not Zhuge Liang's son, why are you being so attentive?
Sun Quan, cursing under his breath, rubbed his forehead vigorously.

With Cao Cao now holding Xiangyang and the natural barrier of the Han River, it would be difficult for Zhuge Liang to take Xiangyang. However, Cao Cao's comfort has led to Sun Quan's downfall.

In the south there was Zhuge Liang, in the north there was Liu Bei, and in the east Chen Deng was also sharpening his sword. Not to mention the west, the area west of Hangu Pass was all within Liu Bei's sphere of influence.

Like Cao Cao, Sun Quan now only has two paths: either return to Jiangdong and defend it from the stronghold, or compete with Liu Bei to see who has the stronger tactics.

Furthermore, Sun Quan had to worry that Cao Cao might take the opportunity to advance eastward and seize Jiangdong, directly blocking Sun Quan's retreat route back to Jiangdong.

The more Sun Quan thought about it, the more he felt that Cao Cao might actually do that!

After all, Sun Quan attacked Cao Cao's Xuchang, so it wasn't wrong for Cao Cao to retaliate by attacking Sun Quan's Jiangdong.

Although Sun Quan occupied Xuchang, most of his family members, including those of his civil and military officials, remained in Wu County. This was to prevent the families of his generals and soldiers from being taken hostage.

Wu Commandery, being far from the Central Plains, was indeed an ideal place to settle the families of the soldiers.

Looking back now, it actually made Sun Quan feel constrained. If all the soldiers' families were in Xuchang, Sun Quan wouldn't have to worry about Jiangdong; he could have just confronted them head-on.

Sun Quan faced the same predicament as Cao Cao: his territory had expanded too much and he didn't have enough trusted generals and soldiers.

Unlike Liu Bei, who had local forces like Ma Chao in Yongliang, Chen Deng in Xuzhou, Ju Shou and Tian Feng in Jizhou, and Zheng Xuan and his followers in Qingzhou, Liu Bei himself was a local force in Youzhou.

It would take some effort in Bingzhou, but there were few Han Chinese in Bingzhou, and although there were many Hu people, they could be easily intimidated by beating them. Compared to Cao Cao and Sun Quan, it was much easier.

In other words, Cao Cao and Sun Quan used military force to conquer, while Liu Bei used political means. One was ruthless and the other was gentle. Relatively speaking, Liu Bei found it easier to win the hearts and minds of the people.

Before Sun Quan could decide how to properly deal with the current crisis, Cheng Pu, the Commandant of the Capital Region, urgently sent someone to deliver a message.

"Reporting to the General, Pang Tong, the governor of Bing Province appointed by Liu Bei, has led an army of 30,000 Han and Hu troops from Bing Province to invade the border. The Commandant of the Capital Region requests that the General send reinforcements immediately." The messenger's face was pale, and his voice trembled.

Sun Quan was shocked and stood up: "Bingzhou is a vast province with a small population. Where did Pang Tong get 30,000 troops?"

Sun Quan might believe that Liu Bei led 30,000 troops south to seize Yanzhou, but 30,000 troops for Bingzhou alone? That's just pure bluffing.

The messenger felt a chill run down his spine and dared not look Sun Quan in the eye. He said, “In the past, the land was indeed vast and the population sparse. But after Pang Tong became the governor of Bing Province, he made all the Hu tribespeople in Bing Province engage in production, essentially registering them as households. Now, there is little difference between the Hu people and the Han people in Bing Province. They are all under Pang Tong's command and control. Any Hu nobles or Han powerful families who cause trouble have all been executed by Pang Tong. Most of the families of these Han and Hu soldiers have also been sent to Ji Province. The Commandant of the Capital Region said that if the General does not send troops, he cannot defend Luoyang.”

Upon hearing this, Sun Quan was furious. First, Zhuge Liang seized Nanyang, and then Pang Tong marched south to Luoyang. If too many troops went to Luoyang, Xuchang would be prone to unrest; if too few troops went to Luoyang, Pang Tong would defeat them one by one. (End of Chapter)