At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty

If Sun Ce really goes north, it depends on how Zhang Liao responds.

In the same way, if Liu Biao chooses to go north, it will not be difficult for Le Jin to deal with it, but he must put on a show and not make things difficult for Zhang Yun.

If this battle really starts, Guo Peng has actually made the best preparations.

Fighting on the battlefield, the advance and retreat of both sides depend on who can create a more comfortable and favorable combat environment for themselves. Guo Peng has been operating Huainan and Huaibei for several years in order to arrive at this moment.

The generals and county guards placed along the border defense line also have to go through a severe test. Once this test is passed, they will be promoted to a higher level. If they fail to pass, the future will be worrying.

Guo Peng believes that they can understand this point themselves.

Therefore, Mao Jie, governor of Jiujiang County, and Gu Yong, governor of Lujiang County, worked very hard to prepare enough logistics for the army, repair enough military roads and advance bases, and actively go deep into the grassroots to grasp the population, so that they can recruit strong men to assist in combat at any time.

Regardless of whether Liu Biao and Sun Ce decided to go north to support Liu Zhang's Liangzhou offensive, Guo Peng was ready.

If you want to come, then come, if you dare, then come and try.

Needless to say, whether it was Liu Biao or Sun Ce, when they learned that Liu Zhang went north to Liangzhou to fight for Longxi, they both planned to try to go north to fight for the Central Plains.

Sun Ce's aggressiveness is much higher than that of Liu Biao, because Liu Biao already has Nanyang as a barrier for Jingzhou after all, but Sun Ce does not.

When Liu Biao held a military meeting to discuss this matter, he was almost unanimously opposed by his subordinates.

They thought it was enough to have Nanyang County in their hands. If they continued to attack the hinterland of Yuzhou northward, it would definitely touch Guo Peng's nerves, prompting Guo Peng to mobilize his troops southward to attack Jingzhou at all costs.

At that time, it is hard to say whether Nanyang can hold on, let alone make progress.

In fact, Liu Biao was also beating drums in his heart. He also felt that what these people said made sense. Although at this time, Beishang was bullying Guo Peng and could not return to the Central Plains, but once Guo Peng was really annoyed, Guo Peng would definitely retaliate. Keeping Nanyang is a problem.

Chapter 571 .580 Wei Gong Foresight

Guo Peng has many famous generals under his command, and the army is elite and good at fighting. Nanyang is located in the northern basin, and the terrain is flat. It cannot take advantage of the Jingzhou navy, but it is conducive to the northern infantry group.

Guo Peng's advantage lies in the powerful infantry group. The Wei army's infantry is famous for its powerful infantry. Once the Nanyang Basin is attacked by Guo Peng's heavy infantry group, whether the [-] Jingzhou soldiers led by Zhang Yun can hold it depends on the A big question mark.

Jingzhou soldiers, like Jiangdong soldiers, are good at water warfare, but they may not be good at field battles on the plains.

This is especially true for Guo Peng, who has a powerful cavalry group.

Liu Biao knew this, Cai Mao knew it, Zhang Yun knew it, and Kuai Yue knew it.

Everyone knows it well, but the key to the problem lies in the content of the covenant.

When one party advances or is attacked, the other two parties need to send troops together to restrain them, so that it can be regarded as an act in accordance with the covenant. If Liu Zhang asks for cooperation for the first time and refuses to comply, then how can you count on your allies to support you when you need it in the future? Woolen cloth?

This kind of thing is relative, and a person cannot sing a one-man show.

"We have made a covenant. If we don't attack, we will violate the covenant, and the covenant will be discarded immediately. Guo Zifeng is happy. I initiated the alliance of the three states in the south of the Yangtze River. I must abide by it. No matter what, I will send troops to the north to restrain Guo Zifeng! "

Once Liu Biao made a final decision, he forced to send troops regardless of opposition, and sent someone to contact Sun Ce, hoping that Sun Ce would cooperate in sending troops together to restrain Guo Peng and fulfill the covenant.

He specifically emphasized that if the covenant is not honored for the first time, the covenant will be the same as if it had not been concluded. Guo Peng is happy.

Sun Ce had just lost the opportunity under Guo Peng's political offensive. He was attacked successfully, his reputation fell, and he was in an embarrassing situation. So when the news of Liu Biao came, Sun Ce immediately decided to go north.

"Wei Gong made a move first, how can I not make a move and let Wei Gong see my joke?"

Sun Ce grinned, his face was filled with the will to fight, and his eyes were filled with the flames of battle.

Zhou Yu said worriedly: "If our army goes north, the target must be Lujiang and Jiujiang. Duke Wei must be aware of this, so he has set up troops in Lujiang and Jiujiang separately. He has already prepared for it. We are going north at this time. Really Is there no problem?"

"This is a covenant, Gong Jin. It's not something I want to do. If I don't send troops at this time, how can I expect Liu Jingsheng and Liu Jiyu to send troops to help me when I have difficulties in the future? To fight Wei Gong, the strength of a state is If it is not enough, the three states need to work together.”

Sun Ce took a deep breath: "Besides, my Jiangdong navy is the best in the world. If we go northward along the waterway, we can kill the hinterland of Jiujiang County in one go. I want to see how Duke Wei's elites compete with me on the water. Fight me, or run after me on the shore?"

Zhou Yu frowned, thinking that what Sun Ce said made sense, but...

"What we can think of, Duke Wei can't think of it? Duke Wei must have thought of it a long time ago, and he has already prepared to deal with it. Bo Fu, you have to think twice."

"I've thought twice. I have to fight this battle, and I have to. Gongjin, help me. If we win this battle, we will get back all the losses we suffered before. Well, if we can't win this battle, then..."

Sun Ce didn't say what he said to death, but Zhou Yu understood what he meant.

If this battle cannot be won, the situation will be really bad. It will be really difficult for the Jiangdong Army to go north again.

If they were defeated on the political battlefield, they would also be defeated on the military battlefield. The resistance of the locals in Jiangdong, which had been suppressed with great difficulty, might explode again.

On the first day of August in the fifth year of Xingping, when the Shu army had not completed the difficult Qishan Road and began to attack Liangzhou, Guo Peng's letter to Zhang Liao was sent to Zhang Liao by six hundred miles, and Zhang Liao immediately opened the letter and read it. .

After reading it, there was silence for a while, and Zhang Liao said to the generals around him: "Duke Wei has far-sighted plans, and our army will surely win this battle."

Afterwards, Zhang Liao burned the letter without letting anyone else see it.

At that time, Guo Peng had already obtained the news from Zhang Yun that Liu Biao was about to send troops northward to attack Runan and Yingchuan counties, and Zhang Liao had obtained evidence from various sources, proving that the Sun Wu regime was preparing for a series of wars. The front is heading north, and it is about to attack Jiangbei.

When Guo Peng wrote the letter, he didn't know the actions of Liu Biao and Sun Ce. He just speculated on the inevitability of this action, and then gave Zhang Liao an idea. Zhang Liao was a little nervous, and Guo Peng's letter arrived.

Zhang Liao's confidence increased greatly.

But even Ma Yan, Cheng Lian, Cao Xing, Hao Meng, Hou Cheng and other generals who were sent by Guo Peng to Zhang Liao to assist in the battle did not know what Guo Peng wrote to Zhang Liao, which gave Zhang Liao such confidence.

In any case, Zhang Liao did start to act.

Zhang Liao quickly withdrew the main force of the river defense force, leaving only a symbolic guard garrison, and did not intend to fight Sun Ce when the Sun Wu navy marched.

Then it was also ordered to move all the people south of Hefei in Jiujiang County and east of Xiang'an County in Lujiang County to the north of Hefei and west of Xiang'an County, and all materials were moved away, leaving a strategic vacuum.

The focus of Guo Peng's farming in Jiujiang is still in the Shouchun area, and in Lujiang County it is in the Wancheng area. When the population along the river was reset, Guo Peng deliberately did not place much, so it is very easy to move inland now.

Zhang Liao easily created a strategic empty city, so that Sun Wu's army could not get any supplies or damage anything when they marched.

Of course, Zhang Liao simply gave up the defense south of Hefei, and had no intention of entangled with Sun Wu's army in these places.

In fact, Zhang Liao did not have the ability to fight against Sun Wu's navy. He had no ships, no navy, Guo Peng did not train a navy along Chaohu Lake and the Yangtze River, and the only navy was far away in Qingzhou. Zhang Liao had no choice.

So I can only watch helplessly as Sun Wu's navy enters Jiujiang County along the river without being able to stop it.

The only place where Wei Jun can stop Sun Wu's navy is Hefei.

After Zhang Liao's repairs, Hefei City is not what it used to be. It has become a fairly strong military fortress. Although it is relatively close to the water, this is a chance of victory.

Although Guo Peng admired Sun Bofu very much and praised Sun Bofu as a lion and forging ahead, Zhang Liao didn't think at all that Sun Ce could take Jiujiang away from him.

When the Sun Wu fleet arrived at the source of Shishui and had to land and attack Hefei, it was time for Zhang Liao to show his power.

While deploying defenses in Jiujiang County, Zhang Liao was also a little worried about Xu Huang, a new general who was deployed in Lujiang County, Hengjiang Zhonglang General. He thought it would be a very risky move for Guo Peng to let the little-known Xu Huang replace Guan Yu's former position.

Chapter 572. 580 There is a mistake in Lujiang, Xu Mou came to see him! (build)

Xu Huang had never led a large army to fight a war, nor did he have much experience of being on his own, and he was relatively young. Zhang Liao felt a little uncertain about entrusting Xu Huang with the heavy responsibility of Lujiang County's defense.

He felt that compared to the newcomer Xu Huang, Guo Peng should let Yu Jin press to the front line to guard the Lujiang River instead of sitting in the rear.

For this reason, Zhang Liao personally rode his horse to Lujiang County to see how Xu Huang set up a defense line to fight against the possible invasion of the Jiangdong Army.

Guo Peng speculated that the Jiangdong Army would enter Lujiang County from Ruxushui, then enter Chaohu Lake, and arrive at Jiujiang County. food and population.

Jiujiang Lujiang Second County has a population of nearly 50, all of whom are farmers. They continue to open up land to cultivate food, making Jiujiang Lujiang Second County become the Jianghuai granary in just two years, rich and beautiful.

Zhang Liao thought that Guo Peng's speculation was correct, and Sun Ce would definitely divide his troops to plot against Lujiang County, so Xu Huang's mission was very important.

Zhang Liao came to Xiang'an County, which is the closest county to Ruxushui. Xu Huang set up heavy guards here, actively built fortifications, and decided to fight a defensive counterattack.

Xu Huang tried to shrink the line of defense and guard the county seat, but Zhang Liao noticed this trend when he arrived and immediately stopped it.

"Shrinking the defense line and guarding the county seat can allow the Jiangdong sailors to leave the defense of the boats and ships, so that our army can take advantage of the cavalry. Isn't this the right move?"

Xu Huang was a little puzzled.

"What is the trebuchet assigned to you by Duke Wei for?"

"what?"

Xu Huang looked at Zhang Liao and blinked, a little confused.

Zhang Liao said angrily, "What can a catapult do?"

"Throw stones."

"What are you throwing stones for?"

"Smash people."

"so?"

"so?"

Seeing Xu Huang's appearance, Zhang Liao couldn't stop his anger. He stamped his feet and said angrily, "Yum's head! Hit their boat with a trebuchet! The building is tall and slow, and there are too many soldiers on it. Targets! Fools! Throw them all on the water!"

Xu Huang's eyes widened suddenly, and he shouted, "Ah! I understand!"

"How did Duke Wei think of handing over such an important frontier county to you to defend? Gongming, you remember, if there is any loss in Lujiang County, if you don't die on the battlefield, I will use your head to plead guilty to Duke Wei. have you understood?"

Xu Huang was taken aback by Zhang Liao's murderous look, and quickly expressed that he must be careful not to make any omissions.

Then Zhang Liao instructed Xu Huang how to use a trebuchet to throw them into the water to feed the fish. If he was lucky, he would wipe out the Jiangdong Navy in one go, and he would make a great contribution.

At that time, it is not impossible for Xu Huang, the Hengjiang Zhonglang General, to become Hengjiang General, it all depends on Xu Huang's own efforts.

Xu Huang's eyes turned red immediately.

"There's something wrong with Lujiang, Mr. Xu came to see you!"

Only the trebuchet, a heavy-duty battlefield killer in the hands of Wei Jun, has not been known to people in Jiangnan until now. Guo Peng tried his best to block news of the existence of this killer, so that people in Jiangnan would not know.

But this time, it's time to let the trebuchet play its role.

After several years of improvement, the trebuchet has made great breakthroughs in accuracy and range.

According to Guo Peng's instructions, the craftsmen developed a counterweight trebuchet, which greatly increased the range of the trebuchet and the weight of the stone projectiles fired. The southeast front army is equipped with this new type of counterweight trebuchet.

Guo Peng asked Zhang Liao to use these trebuchets to fight a war of annihilation, and wipe out the Jiangdong's superior navy in the inland waterway, so as to prevent them from repeatedly coming to invade and harassing his southeast defense line.

In the next one to two years, Guo Peng's center of gravity will still be in the west, and many tasks will be completed in the west. Without the stability in the southeast, it will not work.

In this battle, destroy Jiangdong's arrogance and tell them that even if there are many warships, you are powerless in the face of my black technology.

Science and technology is the primary productive force!

Are you, a backward and reactionary regime, ready to feel fear?

Probably not.

At this time, Sun Ce is discussing the specific tactics for advancing Jiangbei with Zhou Yu and many other veteran generals.

According to Yangzhou, making Yangzhou's territory complete has always been Sun Ce's goal.

It's a pity that after the pacification of Jiangdong, there has been no opportunity to make progress. This time, he finally got a chance to make progress. Sun Ce attached great importance to it and asked the whole army to step up training and preparation.

In this battle, Sun Ce decided to go all out. While supporting Liu Zhang, he must also take advantage of the situation to obtain Jiujiang and Lujiang. This is a real strategic goal and cannot be shaken.

The land of Jiangdong seems to be a vast map, but in fact, most of it is the virgin forest occupied by the aboriginal people such as Shanyue who cannot use it.

The number and settlements of the Han people are pitifully small in the entire Jiangdong area, which greatly limits the potential of Jiangdong's local regime.

For Sun Ce, obtaining Jiujiang and Lujiang is not only a way to expand the territory, but also to obtain the northern barrier, and it is also a channel to obtain a large number of people to supplement the biggest shortcoming of the Jiangdong regime.

"At that time, Princess Wei was in Guanzhong and could not go east. There were no more than [-] soldiers along the Yangtze River, and they could not compete with me. Liu Jingsheng and Liu Jiyu also sent troops to the north at the same time. It was a great opportunity for me to enter Lujiang and Jiujiang. Such an opportunity is inevitable. lose!

There are [-] households in Lujiang and Jiujiang. The households are abundant and the products are abundant. Duke Wei farmed in the two places and obtained a lot of food and fodder. As far as Jiangdong is concerned, the two counties of Lujiang and Jiujiang are bound to win. Two counties, if you win two counties, then great things will happen! "

Sun Ce slammed his fist on the table, expressing his unshakable determination.

Looking around, Sun Ce saw resolute faces.

Cheng Pu, Han Dang, Huang Gai.

Three veterans who have followed Sun Jian for a long time.

Lu Fan, Zhou Yu.

Nengchen is almost a close friend who grew up with him, and he can be called his family.

Sun Ben, Sun Jing, Wu Jing, Xu Kun.

Four relatives and generals.