Zhu Nao

In the twilight of the morning light, Huang Dongxuan stood on the commanding height of the tower, watching the Changsha army disperse like splashed ink, he couldn't help but heaved a long sigh of relief.His tense shoulders relaxed, he sat on the female wall, and put his legs on the wall, watching the soldiers around him secretly sweating, for fear that he would accidentally fall off the city wall more than ten feet high .

Huang Dongxuan observed the retreating formation of the Changsha Army, and decisively ordered: "Send a surprise battalion to send troops and chase them!"

The messenger was about to deliver the order, when Huang Dongxuan said again: "Don't chase too far, just take a few bites and come back."

"Yes!"

Soon, the Jingzhou soldiers with high morale rushed out of the city, caught up with the tail of the Changsha army and began to bite.The Changsha soldiers who ran at the end were the ones who rushed the fastest just now. It was extremely difficult to escape from death. They just wanted to run for their lives, so how could they have the heart to resist?The officers did not expect that the Jingzhou soldiers would chase them out, and they were unable to organize a resistance in their panic. They were bitten off by the vicious Jingzhou soldiers in an instant.

When the army withdrew a thousand meters away, Huang Dongxuan received the order when he saw the situation: "Retreat!"

The Jingzhou soldiers who chased them back began to retreat, and the Changsha army had already been too busy to take care of themselves. It was too late to lick their wounds, so how could they have the strength to bite back?He could only watch helplessly as the Jingzhou soldiers returned to the city with pride.

At this moment, the sky was already bright. Looking at the situation below, Huang Dongxuan was in a good mood. The tension and depression of the past few days were swept away, and he couldn't help humming a little song.

A few months ago, he received Zhu Nao's transfer letter, appointed him as General Pingdong, and transferred him from Jingzhou to Hanzhong-however, this transfer letter was only on the surface.Secretly, what he received was another task: Zhu Nao asked him to feign surrender to Sun Xiang, luring Sun Xiang to send troops to capture Jingzhou, and at the same time, asked him to wipe out the Changsha army in Jiangling.

Of course, Huang Dongxuan was very unhappy when he received this task.Surrender?Or feign surrender to Sun Xiang?Take him for someone!Does he look like such a capricious villain?More importantly, wouldn't it be too stupid to ask him to surrender to Sun Xiang?Can Sun Xiang believe it?

But he had to accept the task given by Zhu Nao.If he doesn't answer, is he really going to be Na Laoshizi General Pingdong and leave Jingzhou for Hanzhong?This is not only about his personal power and status, whether he can make contributions, but also about the future of all the brothers who follow him.

At the beginning, Huang Dongxuan also doubted whether Jun Nao would not trust him enough and deliberately asked him to feign surrender, in order to test whether he really had the possibility of rebellion.But after thinking about it, I found that it was just the opposite—if Zhu Nao didn't trust him very much, why would he give him the crucial Jingzhou City?What Zhu Nao trusts is not only his character, but also his ability!

Huang Dongxuan is not a person who goes with the flow, on the contrary, he is a gambler, he likes to gamble more than Jun Nao.Although he had many dissatisfaction with Junao's plan, there was no doubt that he took up the task.

Now that he has decided to feign surrender, he must do so in a real way.In order to confuse Sun Xiang, he only told a few cronies about the false surrender, and he pretended to be a real traitor to those who did not trust him enough.

As for Zhu Nao, it was also highly confidential, and even Xu Yu didn't tell.It's not because Xu Yu is afraid of leaking the news, but Xu Yu is not with him after all, and if there is any mistake in the message transmission, it will be a big trouble.

It wasn't until the Changsha army was ready to go and the Shu army began to prepare for the fight that Zhu Nao sent the real news to the Shu government and ordered the Shu army to cooperate.

And it was all of this that made Sun Xiang personally lead his troops to appear under Jingzhou City.

In fact, Sun Xiang would bring so many soldiers and join forces with Tao Bei to conspire with Jiangling. This was indeed not in the plan of Zhu Nao and Huang Dongxuan, so Huang Dongxuan was also very nervous before the battle started.

Fortunately, they figured out Sun Xiang's temperament very accurately. Although they united with Tao Bei's army, because of Sun Xiang's selfishness towards Jingzhou, he led troops to Jingzhou alone without waiting for the arrival of the Central Plains army.

As for Luan Ping's false surrender, that was Huang Dongxuan's plan.He had worked under Sun Xiang for many years and knew Sun Xiang's temper well.Sun Xiang is a very ambitious person, very ambitious and self-willed.In fact, there are many doubts about Luan Ping's false surrender, and the biggest doubt is that the defense of the city tower is extremely important. If Luan Ping is not Huang Dongxuan's confidant, how could Huang Dongxuan entrust him with such an important matter?

However, as long as the time is tight and Sun Xiang is not given enough time to think and investigate, Sun Xiang will definitely advance because of greed for merit.Facts have proved that Sun Xiang is indeed such a person, and he has indeed done so.

Huang Dongxuan sat on the tower, watching his assault battalion return to the city, he was so happy that the corners of his mouth almost reached his ears.

He jumped off the female wall, and gave instructions vigorously: "Send someone to deliver the good news to the Shu army. Tell them to take their time and don't hurry. I will be enough to deal with that bastard surnamed Sun!"

The messenger gave a "poof" laugh.A few days ago, I didn't know who it was, but I knew that Sun Xiang's [-] army was pressing down on the border, and Tao Bei's [-] army was about to arrive, and they were as wilted as an eggplant beaten by frost.After a great victory in the first battle, it immediately looked like a fighting cock with its comb erected.

But I wanted to return to my heart, so naturally I wouldn't say it out of my mouth.The messenger said yes, and ordered manpower to deliver the letter to the Shu army.

=====

At night, the Changsha military camp.

Sun Xiang sat in the general's tent with a pale face, and several officials under him stood down in fear, reporting to him the results of the count.

"Qi report to the governor, more than 1000 soldiers died in battle today, including four centurion commanders, 20 corporal commanders, and 62 corporal commanders. More than [-] people were injured..."

Sun Xiang's face couldn't be more ugly.

He brought an army of [-], so naturally it was impossible to annihilate the entire army in one battle.But in this battle, more than one-seventh of his combat power was lost in a series of deaths and injuries!To make matters worse, almost all his cavalry were collapsed in the big pit in Wengcheng, which was not a heavy loss.

Cavalry has always been the most difficult elite to raise, and the painstaking efforts of cultivating a cavalry are enough to train a dozen infantry.Eight out of ten people died in this battle, making his army limping in an instant, and the next battle will be greatly hindered.

The atmosphere in the general's tent was extremely oppressive.

After an unknown amount of time, Deputy General Mu Cong said cautiously, "Prefect, right now we might as well retreat to Gong'an County and defend the county seat. Let's wait for the Central Plains Army to arrive and then make plans?"

They had been stationed near Jingzhou City before because they believed that Huang Dongxuan was a friend rather than an enemy.But now, they and Huang Dongxuan have already broken their skins, and it will be very unsafe to continue to station near Shatou.There is no danger in Shatou, and as long as Huang Dongxuan keeps sending small groups of people to harass them, it will cause them a lot of headaches.

This suggestion made Sun Xiang suffocate and gritted his teeth.

retreat?Before he came, he was clearly determined to take Jingzhou at any cost, but after only a few days, he was about to retreat!But if not, is there any other way?

Although this battle did not hurt the main force of his army, it severely damaged his morale.The army was ashamed and worried, fearing that Huang Dongxuan would have something behind him waiting for them.Not to mention continuing to attack the city, many soldiers now just want to go back to Changsha quickly.

Under such circumstances, it would be extremely irrational for Sun Xiang to insist on only advancing and not retreating, and it may even cause a mutiny in the army in the end.Mu Cong's suggestion may be the best way to do it now: retreat to Gong'an County first, and wait for Tao Bei's army to arrive. The two armies will join forces to attack Jingzhou, and the chances of winning will be much greater.As for whether Tao Bei would give up Jingzhou to them at that time, only God knows.

Thinking of losing his family's wealth through all his hard work, and possibly having to make wedding dresses for others in the end, Sun Xiang wanted to vomit blood.But at this point, no matter whether he can get Jingzhou in the end, he can't stop there.No matter what, he had to fight a victory to stabilize his military spirit.Otherwise, his prestige, his power, his status...all of his might be completely lost.

In the end, Sun Xiang waved his hand dejectedly, and said, "Give the order...tomorrow the army will pull out of camp and retreat to Gong'an County. Also, order someone to deliver a letter to Tao Bei, urging his army to come as soon as possible."

After saying these words, he leaned back in his chair with relief.But in just one day, he seems to have aged ten years...

=====

Hanzhong.

The guards carried several boxes to the hall, and carefully opened the boxes, which were filled with gold, silver and jewels.Chen Fu, the messenger from the river, stood aside with a full face.

Zhu Nao didn't have any special hobbies in his life, except money.Chen Fu gave the gift so straightforwardly, it was obviously very close to his heart.He smiled and asked: "What day is it today? Why did Chen Qing give a gift suddenly?"

Chen Fu hurriedly flattered and said: "The villain heard that General Pingdong defeated the rebellious army in Changsha in Jingzhou. It must be because of the Holy God's power to make the rebellious army frightened. The Holy One won such a great victory when he first ascended the Datong. In the future, he will surely be able to achieve eternal prosperity. Ah! Zhaozhou Mu is far away in the river, so he can't come to congratulate the Holy One in person, the villain can only send a congratulatory gift for Zhao Zhoumu to show his loyalty."

Chen Fu was the envoy sent by Zhao Wu to Hanzhong.Now that Zhu Nao and Tao Bei are competing for the world, they are trying their best to win the support of all the princes.The most important of them are Zhao Wu in Hezhong and Sun Xiang in Changsha.

Zhao Wu didn't have such big ambitions as Sun Xiang, he didn't expect himself to win the championship, he really planned to choose a strong one between Zhu Nao and Tao Bei to submit to, in order to strive for the greatest benefit for himself.But who to submit to, Zhao Wu did not make a decision.He is an old fox, he does not intend to gamble his future and life, he will wait until the situation is clearer before making a choice.

So both Zhu Nao and Tao Bei sent people to Hezhong to win over him, and he also sent envoys to Hanzhong and Yedu at the same time, first to please both sides, and second, to take the opportunity to observe the situation in Hanzhong and Yedu to see which side has more emperors phase.

Zhu Nao smiled meaningfully: "Chen Qing is well-informed. She has a heart."

The news of Huang Dongxuan's defeat of the Changsha army had just arrived in Hanzhong, and even Zhu Nao heard about it only yesterday, and today Chen Fu came to give gifts, which shows that this person is well informed.Obviously, it wasn't Zhao Wu who asked Chen Fu to give gifts to flatter him, but Chen Fu's own idea, he was very clever.

Before Chen Fu could be happy, Zhu Nao suddenly changed the subject and said, "I heard that Yedu sent another group of envoys to Hezhong a few days ago, does Chen Qing know what benefits they promised Zhao Zhoumu?"

Chen Fu's smile froze, and he laughed twice.He is well informed?Jun Nao's news is obviously better than his!He hadn't heard about the things in the river, but Junao had already heard about them.

He apologized and said with a smile: "The villain is in Hanzhong, how can he know the news in the river?"

He quickly added: "But the villain knows that Zhaozhou Mu's heart is for the Holy One. He sent the villain here to express his loyalty to the Holy One. If Zhao Zhoumu is lucky enough to be reused by the Holy One, he will definitely do it for the Holy One. The country is eternal and the heart is broken!"

In these words, the flattering part is just flattery, just listen to it, don't take it seriously.The second half of the sentence is the key point - he is asking Zhu Nao for high-ranking officials, rich salary and more territory for Zhao Wu as a condition for Zhao Wu to submit to Junao.

Zhu Nao lightly said: "Oh? Is that so? Zhaozhou Mu's kindness, I am very touched, thank him for me."

Chen Fu: "..."

He controlled himself very hard, so as not to show a disappointed expression.

——So it is again!

Zhao Wu flattered both sides, negotiating with both sides, taking advantage of his own popularity to raise the price desperately.One of the important tasks for Chen Fu to be sent to Hanzhong was to let him test out what kind of conditions Zhu Nao could offer at most in order to win over Zhao Wu.

Conditions, Junau opened from the beginning.Zhao Wu could barely accept his offer, but was obviously not satisfied, so he ordered Chen Fu to continue raising the price.But no matter how Chen Fu tried, Zhu Nao was always able to do nothing, and none of Zhu Nao's subordinates came to talk to Chen Fu about it.

Did Zhu Nao not understand Chen Fu's hint?Obviously not.Just don't want to bother.Why?Obviously, Junao didn't intend to change his conditions at all!

Chen Fu was inevitably a little anxious.He had been sent to Hanzhong for several months, and Zhao Wu repeatedly sent letters to urge him, asking Zhu Nao's attitude.Chen Fu didn't dare to say it directly, for fear that Zhao Wu would blame him for not doing things well.But if Zhu Nao doesn't get in, what can he do?

Isn't Zhu Nao afraid that Zhao Wu would take He Zhong into Tao Bei's arms because of his dissatisfaction?Chen Fu didn't know, and he didn't dare to ask.For Zhu Nao's mind, he couldn't figure it out at all, just like when everyone thought that Zhu Nao would go to win over Sun Xiang, but Zhu Nao used force to tear the face of Changsha Mansion...

Thinking of this, Chen Fu could only sigh secretly.There is no other way, he can only continue to exhaust himself, until the battle situation in Jingzhou has a result, the stalemate here must also be broken in response.

Although the Changsha army suffered a big loss right now, the victory or defeat is still uncertain when Tao Bei's army arrives in Jiangling.If Huang Dongxuan's army is defeated and Jingzhou falls, Zhu Nao will definitely focus more on fighting for the river, and will also actively win over Zhao Wu, and he will no longer have such an attitude; but if the coalition forces of the Changsha Army and the Central Plains Army Defeated at the hands of the Shu army...

Zhu Nao must be even more reticent, Zhao Wu, I don't know how to feel about it...

In the end, after delivering the gift, Chen Fu flattered Zhu Nao again, and then went out disappointed.As soon as he left, Jun Nao called Jing Zhe in.

Zhu Nao said: "Send someone to send a letter to Ge Lingcha, asking him to lead the troops to Jingzhou as soon as possible. After the [-] troops arrive in Jingzhou, the military power will be handed over to Huang Dongxuan to command."

After the previous defeat of the Changsha army, Ge Lingcha made great achievements in battle, so Zhu Nao promoted him to an official position and ordered him to continue stationing in the Yunyang area.Now the Shu army transferred to Jingzhou was assembled in Fuling, and Ge Lingcha temporarily led the march.

Zhu Nao said again: "Send another letter to Huang Dongxuan..."

He paused for a while, Jing Zhe asked: "What does the young master want him to do?"

Jing Zhe originally thought that Zhu Nao was going to give Huang Dongxuan some instructions, such as asking him to defend Jingzhou, or asking him to intercept the Central Plains army outside the pass.Unexpectedly, Junao thought for a while with his chin in his hands, but he didn't give any specific order.

"Tell Huang Dongxuan," Zhu Nao said with a faint smile, "the post of General Zhengxi is still vacant."

Jing Zhe was stunned: "This...Young Master, is that all?"

"That's it." Junao said firmly, "Go."