Weird Three Kingdoms

Chapter 3525 True or False

From being attacked from two sides, Cao Ren was now possibly besieged from three sides. He suddenly felt that his CPU was about to burn out!

"Where are those Jiangdong kids?!"

Cao Ren roared.

A few days ago, scouts from Cao's army reported that Jiangdong had stationed troops in the Jiangling Water Fort.

How come it disappeared in just a few days?

In fact, this cannot be blamed on Cao Ren's negligence. He did not expect that the outrageous actions of those guys in Xu County would anger the "honest man" Lu Su.

Lu Su's image of an "honest man" is just his character setting, used to deceive some ignorant people. In fact, it is impossible for someone who can become the top counselor of the Eastern Wu to be an honest man.

After being tricked once, when Lu Su arrived in Jiangling and was about to return to Jiangdong, he ordered all the navy in Jiangling to withdraw quietly!

After all, Lu Su knew that if he couldn't retaliate after being cheated once, these Shandong people would cheat him again next time!

Only a fool would believe in repaying evil with kindness, but the true Confucianism is to repay blood for blood, tooth for tooth!

Of course, repaying blood with blood does not mean being reckless and incompetent and jumping up and down in rage, just like Lu Su did not lose his temper in Xu County, but fled in disgrace and only retaliated against Shandong after returning to the Jiangling camp.

So Lu Su's move was quite fatal...

Cao Ren originally thought that the Jiangdong army might not be able to do anything else, but it should be able to block the Sichuan navy for Jiangling, or delay it a little. Once he repelled the Hussars in the north, he would be able to free up his hands to help Jiangdong repel the Sichuan navy.

This way, we can have the best of both worlds. Jiangdong had initially approved of this idea and basically agreed to it. But who could have thought that Jiangdong would suddenly go back on his word!

This is indeed very Jiangdong.

Cao Ren was furious, but there was nothing he could do. He could only send someone to urgently recall Cao Zhen who was defending the flank of Jingzhou.

When Cao Zhen heard the news, he was also shocked. He changed horses but not people. He led a few guards and hurried back to Xiangyang to meet Cao Ren.

When Cao Ren saw Cao Zhen, Cao Zhen was covered in dust and his legs were shaking.

"Zidan, sit down and take a rest. Someone, quickly prepare some food!"

Cao Ren also knew that Cao Zhen was working hard, but the current situation did not allow for any slackness.

This was not only true for Cao Zhen, but also for Cao Ren himself. Ever since he got the latest battlefield information, he had been thinking and planning day and night in front of the map. Only now did he have some ideas...

Cao Zhen took the towel handed to him by the guard, wiped it roughly, and then took a bowl of rice water and gulped it down. Only then did he feel a little better. The first thing he blurted out was, "The Jiangdong thieves have betrayed the alliance again! How despicable!"

In fact, Jiangdong’s betrayal is simply a traditional art.

As early as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the relatively southern countries such as Chu, Wu, and Yue often tore up their alliances at will and pursued temporary interests. Even after the Three Kingdoms period, when Eastern Wu proclaimed itself emperor, there were still internal rebellions, even rebellions by the Sun clan...

Cao Ren had calmed down from his initial anger. "Zidan, if I ask you to go to Jiangling to resist the Sichuan-Shu navy, how long can you hold out?"

When Cao Zhen came back, he had some thoughts in mind, but when he heard Cao Ren's arrangement, he was still a little shocked. "General, if I go to Jiangling or Fangling..."

"Let Cai Degui go." Cao Ren responded, "I recommend Cai Degui's son to be the chancellor of Xiangyang."

Generally speaking, when the sons of the gentry first entered the officialdom, they would most likely start as assistant clerks with a salary of 100 dan. Some people did not even have a salary of 100 dan, but only received a personal subsidy from the chief official. For a position like the county magistrate of a certain county, which started at 200 dan, it usually took several years of experience before one could be qualified to fight for it.

Therefore, Cao Ren gave this position to Cai Mao's son. On the one hand, it was natural that he wanted to win people's hearts and make Cai Mao work hard for him. On the other hand, it was also to keep Cai Mao's son under his nose to prevent Cai Mao from rebelling.

Cao Zhen also understood the meaning of Cao Ren's move, so he did not make any judgment on whether Cai Mao's son was qualified for the position of Xiangyang Cheng, but asked again, "If Li Mancheng attacks Fangling, Cai Degui... may not be able to defend it."

It’s not that Cao Zhen thinks Cai Mao is incompetent, but the defenders of Fangling are really not that good. Moreover, now they have to defend Xiangyang and Jiangling. The Cao army in Jingzhou is obviously not enough, and it is impossible to give Cai Mao a lot of soldiers. That would be putting the cart before the horse.

Cao Ren nodded, "So we must let Li Mancheng go through Yunguan!"

Cao Zhen stood up, stretched his legs and feet which were a little numb from the long journey, and stood in front of the map.

Cao Ren pointed at the map and said, "We need to lure Li Mancheng over here!"

"Lead them to Yunguan?" Cao Zhen asked.

Cao Ren nodded, "Zi Dan, what if we take the initiative to attack Li Mancheng's route?"

"Is it a real attack or a fake attack?" Cao Zhen asked.

Cao Ren said: "True and false."

Cao Zhen's eyes moved, "General, what you mean is..."

Cao Ren was still staring at the map, sliding his finger across it. "Here we are, it's time to really fight..."

Then he nodded again, "Here, it's just a fake fight..."

Cao Ren turned his gaze to Cao Zhen, "Until Danjiangkou... Zidan, at least until the end of the battle of Danjiangkou, you must defend Jiangling!"

Cao Zhen took a deep breath, and then said in a deep voice: "General! I will live and die with Jiangling!"

Cao Ren reached out and patted Cao Zhen on the shoulder.

As the setting sun illuminated the Xiangyang Hall with a deep red hue, as if it were dyed with blood.

……

……

The Cao army scouts standing on a high point on the bank of the river were stunned when they saw the Sichuan naval fleet slowly approaching the river.

These landlubbers were stunned by what they saw.

In the distance on the river, three tower ships formed a V-shape, the most conspicuous among the fleet.

On the ships, the tricolor battle flag fluttered in the wind.

In front of the tower ship is a smaller fighting ship.

Behind the building ship was a transport ship loaded with supplies...

On the transport ship, one can vaguely see some thick wood and stacked equipment.

"What are those?" Cao Jun's scout's eyes widened. "This cavalry navy, even the wood for siege equipment is carried on board?! This... is this crazy?! "

To attack a city, of course, you need siege equipment, which also requires a lot of wood. Siege equipment is too small and has limited power, and too large to be carried, so it is usually made temporarily and destroyed when retreating. No one will carry these siege equipment on the march.

Before attacking a city, it would take several days to build these devices, otherwise, there would be no attack at all. Using the simplest ladder to attack a city was only used in very rare cases.

Generally speaking, the wood needed for these siege engines was cut and collected by people just before the war. This way, too much manpower and material resources would not be consumed in transportation, and transportation time would be saved. However, this was the common practice on land!

Transportation on water is much more convenient than using animal and human power on land!

As long as there is enough space, a ship can transport anything!

So at the beginning, when Cao's army detected the advance of the Sichuan-Shu navy, they thought they still had some time. After all, Jiangling City was built on land, and the Sichuan-Shu navy could not just drive their boats into Jiangling City. But when Cao's scouts saw the Sichuan-Shu navy fleet in the river, especially the wood and equipment transported in the fleet, they realized that Jiangling was in danger!

With these woods and equipment, the Sichuan Army can build a camp on land in a very short time, and can also quickly launch an attack on Jiangling City!

"Quick!" The Cao army scout hurriedly ran down from the top of the mountain, "Quickly report to the general!" The Cao army scout was obviously a little panicked, so the movement was quite loud, and was discovered by the Sichuan army soldiers who were looking out on the tower ship, and they immediately reported to Xu Huang.

Upon hearing the news, Xu Huang went to the front deck of the ship and raised his telescope to look at the distant mountains.

Although the lens of the telescope has been polished as smoothly as possible, it is still somewhat different from the industrial products of later generations. As a result, the image looks like it is covered with a layer of gauze and is also a bit distorted, which makes you dizzy if you look at it for a long time.

But even so, the telescope is still a rare treasure for generals. Xu Huang is very careful every time he uses it, and he will put it away carefully after use...

Hmm, why does it feel a bit weird?

Even if he discovered the movements of Cao's scouts, Xu Huang did not send anyone to the hilltop on the shore to hunt down Cao's squad. There was no point in doing so. Whether the fleet was to set sail or to anchor, it would take a lot of time, and sending a fighting ship to clear out and hunt down Cao's squad was not worth the loss.

Gains and losses may be Xu Huang’s experience in commanding naval operations during this period.

Unlike vague concepts such as "a few", "probably", "hundreds", "nearly a thousand" in land warfare, in water warfare, the accuracy must be down to the single digit!

There are three ships, that is three ships. It is impossible to replace them with "a few" ships. The loss of one ship will greatly change the combat effectiveness. Therefore, every battle on the water must be precisely controlled, directed, and deployed. It cannot be like fighting on land, where the main focus is on controlling and directing larger arrays and formations.

Refined command also brings about more detailed division of labor.

In the past, Xu Huang didn't care much about the supply of supplies. He thought he only needed to do a good job in the front-line battles, and the supply of supplies in the rear camp was left to the civil servants to arrange. Under normal circumstances, he was too lazy to ask. But after the surface battle, he learned that he must fight a battle with a reserve of supplies.

In other words, try to fight battles with "reserve" as much as possible.

This "reserve" may be a reserve of ships, a reserve of soldiers, or a reserve of repair wood, spare equipment, etc. Anyway, only with sufficient follow-up "reserve" can the combat effectiveness be maximized during the battle.

This is actually what Xu Huang learned from Zhuge Liang...

If Zhuge Liang had not asked Huang Quan in the rear to organize the Di and Qiang people to cut, transport and store wood in the Bashan Mountains before the expedition, Xu Huang and others would have to wait anxiously for the wood to be slowly cut and delivered from the rear, and then Xu Huang and others would have to wait again for the wood to be delivered before they could repair the boats.

If Zhuge Liang had not made arrangements in advance, the speed of the Sichuan-Shu navy's advance would definitely be much slower!

Therefore, the so-called "war essentials" are not only about preparing for the battle, but also about the subsequent preparations after the battle. A good military commander does not only focus on the front line of the battlefield.

Zhuge Liang also received the news that Cao's scouts had been found, and they had moved from the stern of the ship to the front deck. When the Cao's scouts appeared, Zhuge Liang was at the rear of the ship with several craftsmen, measuring and mapping the hydrological conditions of the Yangtze River.

For people like Zhuge Liang, they are learning and growing almost all the time.

Just like ordinary people taking a boat to follow the army, some people may choose to sleep in the cabin, but Zhuge Liang chose to take craftsmen to survey the geographical environment and hydrological changes along the way, and even used the Pythagorean theorem to measure the water depth and used a sundial to determine the geographical direction...

Zhuge Liang was not sure when he would be able to use this information, but he absolutely did not want to not be able to find it when he wanted to.

From Sichuan to Jiangling, the most difficult problem is not the shortage of these materials, but the long supply line.

Mobilizing soldiers and food supplies over such a long distance and on such a large scale would undoubtedly bring great risks if any problems arose.

When Xu Huang saw Zhuge Liang, he pointed to the spot where Cao's scouts appeared and told Zhuge Liang that from here on, they had entered the Cao's alert range...

Zhuge Liang nodded, took out the map he carried with him, and marked it on the map.

Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang were only advancing along the waterway, and there were no troops on land. In other words, the road from Zigui to Jiangling was almost empty. Therefore, all the areas where Cao's army appeared were dangerous areas. If they chose to camp, it was best to choose to be close to the south bank.

Xu Huang watched Zhuge Liang take notes, and then asked with a smile: "Kong Ming, the Cao army scouts are here... Do you think it is a good thing or a bad thing?"

"That's a good thing." Zhuge Liang said with a smile, "It would be bad if we didn't see any trace of Cao's scouts..."

"Hahaha..." Xu Huang smiled and nodded, "The rats from Jiangdong disturbed Sichuan and Shu, but they withdrew their troops in a hurry. I don't know what happened?"

As for Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang, they did not have the ability to see and hear from afar, but they had been paying attention to the movements of the Jiangdong navy, so they received the news of the Jiangdong navy's retreat earlier than Cao Ren.

Because they were not sure what the Jiangdong navy was planning to do, Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang prepared to conduct a fire reconnaissance.

Zhuge Liang's eyes flickered slightly, and then he put the map away again. "I heard that... Governor Zhou of Jiangdong is weak and sickly..."

"If that's the case, then it's fine." Xu Huang looked ahead, "But if the Jiangdong rats collude with Cao's traitors..."

In the previous battle with the Jiangdong navy, the Jiangdong navy did collapse a bit ridiculously in the later period, which made Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang more cautious...

Although he might have missed the opportunity to pursue and kill the enemy, he ensured the safety of his own troops.

Now that Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang are pressing forward openly, even if the Jiangdong Army is still in Jiangling, it will still be difficult to compete with the Sichuan Army.

Xu Huang, Zhuge Liang and others have confidence.

In combat, the best thing is to be strong first, rather than expecting your opponent to make mistakes or act stupidly.

On the one hand, after fighting all the way from Yufu to Zigui and then to Yidao, and finally winning the battle against the Jiangdong Navy, which was considered the highest level of navy at that time, although the Sichuan Navy also suffered considerable damage, the entire army was reborn.

On the other hand, Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang's attack this time was a mixture of truth and falsehood, reality and illusion.

Zhuge Liang smiled, "Now we can decide whether to advance or retreat. We can decide in a moment whether to fight or flee. As for Cao and Sun, if they don't respond, they will be in danger. If they send a large army to meet them... Hehe, we can easily withdraw, but Cao and Sun will have a hard time! Jiangling is only a matter of time. As long as we are cautious and don't rush, Cao and Sun will not be able to trap our army."

Xu Huang nodded, "That's true."

The river is vast and the water is surging.

Although the ship is very large, it seems very small compared to the river.

In fact, Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang worked well together. The reason why Gan Ning was not sent was that they were worried that Gan Ning would be like a Husky with its reins untied, and would disappear without a trace once he was on the battlefield...

Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang were both relatively cautious and not too greedy for merit, which allowed them to think about problems relatively calmly and detect abnormalities on the battlefield without sacrificing large forces for the sake of small profits.

This time when attacking Jiangling, we must pay attention to the specific details, but the overall strategy is the opposite. Jiangling is not an important key node in the next stage.

For Liu Bei in history, Jiangling was an indispensable support point, but for the current Cavalry Army, even if Jiangling was captured, it would only be an enclave before Jingbei was obtained.

Therefore, if Xu Huang, Zhuge Liang and his party regarded them as a cavalry unit on the Yangtze River, they would probably understand the key points of this military operation.

This is also one of the reasons why Xu Huang and his companions carried a large amount of supplies in the fleet.

Another reason is that if all the supplies are not brought with us, it will be very difficult to transport them to the rear.

The hundreds of miles of roads from Yufu to Zigui and then to Yidao are all rugged mountain roads. Not only are they winding and difficult to travel, but the temperature difference is also very fluctuating. Now that we have entered spring, the flood season of the river is about to arrive, which means that there will be a period of time in the future when transportation on the river will become very difficult. In the summer, the dense forests near the river are prone to miasma and heat, and land transportation will once again face great obstacles...

Therefore, no matter from which perspective, the current stage is the last window for the Sichuan Navy to advance.

If we fail to achieve certain results this time, it may take three or four months before we can wait for the next more appropriate time to attack.

However, Xu Huang and Zhuge Liang were not alone in their expedition. Their advance to Jiangling was also part of the overall plan...