Goose Three Kingdoms

Chapter 565: The Final Decision
In the distant Jingzhou, the siege of Xiangyang has broken out.

At the northern end of Mount Dansu, on the hillside, there are several layers of curtains.

Lu Yi was looking down at the battlefield from a high place, where he had an absolute visual advantage.

The only bad thing is that Wanshan to the west of Xiangyang City is still firmly controlled by Wen Pin. If the imperial court mobilizes troops on a large scale, Wen Pin will be able to see through it.

But there was no room for tricks. Liu Qi and Huang Zhong concentrated their forces in Xiangyang in the entire area south of the Han River, and abandoned various strongholds such as outer water forts and camps.

Even at the north dock of the city, there were no troops stationed.

Including Wanshan Camp, there are only two strongholds that rely on each other.

To the north of the Han River, Zhou Yu and Duan Wei were stationed in Pinglu City and Fancheng respectively. Xuanchi, northeast of Fancheng, was the gathering point of the Jingzhou navy, and Pei Qian, the governor of Jingzhou, was stationed here.

The navy led by Taishi Ci set up camp on the sandbar of Han River in the north of Wanshan. Under such circumstances, the enemy's military strength still maintained an advantage, so they dared to send out a large army to transport grain to Xiangyang City.

The army of the Southeastern Court could only surround the southern area of ​​Xiangyang and garrison troops to the north, where they would be attacked by Wen Pin, Taishi Ci, and Huang Zhong.

The two sides fought several times, and after suffering losses, the Southeast Army gave up the plan of completely encircling Xiangyang.

Unless they could get more reinforcements, they would not be able to block the Han River, let alone completely besiege Xiangyang.

Most of the people in Xiangyang have moved to the Nanyang area, and the current Xiangyang city is a huge military fortress.

Even if the defenders did not shoot arrows and allowed the Southeast Army to attack the city, the ugly casualty ratio produced in the confrontation on the city wall alone would be enough to discourage the Southeast Army.

From the beginning to the end, Lu Yi had no intention of besieging or capturing Xiangyang because it was difficult to achieve.

Especially without large-scale annihilation and killing of the Jingzhou army in the field battle, there was basically no possibility of capturing Xiangyang.

Not to mention him, even if the Grand Marshal came in person, he would not be able to capture Xiangyang, which had sufficient garrison and reinforcements that were even larger and closer.

But Lu Yi could not disobey the order of the court. Although it was called the order of the court, it was actually the will of the leaders of the army.

The battle has been going on till now, and we can only hope that good news will come from Youzhou, and then changes will occur within the Jingzhou army.

Various rumors had been spread in order to capture Xiangyang, but with little effect.

From Liu Qi and Pei Qian to vassal subordinates like Taishi Ci, they all had the motive to fight to the death with the southeastern court.

He couldn't fight, but he was unwilling to retreat. With this mentality, Lu Yi could only seek more reinforcements.

When the number of troops reaches a certain level, opportunities for war will naturally appear.

Thanks to the Han River water transport, no matter how many troops gather here, there will be no shortage of food and fodder.

While he was observing the various camps as usual, Lu Su quickly climbed up the wooden platform halfway up the hill and said, "General, the Changsha soldiers have begun to move north and have already left Dongting Lake today."

But there was no joy on Lu Su's face about the reinforcements. Lu Yi frowned and asked, "Does Zi Jing have any bad news?"

"I don't know if it's good or bad."

Lu Su lowered his voice and said, "The camps in Hanjin and Huarong where Sun Ben was stationed... the officers and soldiers were infected with the disease."

As he spoke, Lu Su handed over a stack of silk books: "This is Sun Ben's handwriting. He proposed to join forces with the Changsha soldiers and attack the Jingzhou navy together. If we destroy their navy and block the Han River, Xiangyang will be in our pocket."

Lu Yi flipped through the silk book and asked without even looking up, "Are there any signs of infection in other armies?"

“It has not been reported yet.”

Lu Su took two deep breaths, put his hands on his hips, and squinted his eyes at the mountains to the north and west: "If the various armies report, the situation will be critical. Since the soldiers of Jingzhou are not damaged, the governor will lead the entire army to attack everywhere. The worst case scenario of this battle is not that bad. If a major epidemic spreads, Guanzhong will not send reinforcements. If we withdraw our troops at this moment, the four counties in the south of the Yangtze River and the counties in the east of the Yangtze River will suffer heavy losses."

Having lost the chance to withdraw his troops, Lu Yi felt a little suffocated. Although he had not yet launched the attack, he felt that hundreds of thousands of young and strong men might have fallen into the abyss and were only a matter of time before they drowned.

At this moment, Hanjin is the navy’s stronghold.

Sun Ben was lying on the couch, and a strange smell filled the room.

Sun Jiao and Sun Hao were sitting a few steps away. Sun Ben had dark circles under his eyes, his eyes were red and yellow, and his lips were dry and white due to dehydration. He spoke weakly: "Zhou Yu sent people to persuade me to surrender several times. Although I was tempted, I was worried that his position was too low and his words would not matter."

"At this point, the Southern Army is about to be defeated. For the sake of my fellow brothers and our descendants, we should not continue to fight the Northern Army."

Years of quiet life made Sun Hao silent. He just sat there as if nothing had happened.

Sun Hao's brother Sun Jiao could only speak up: "The Grand Marshal is trapped in Youzhou, and the general is attacking fiercely. How can he let the Grand Marshal go? Even if he escapes, his power will be gone, the Hu people will rebel, Guanzhong will be in turmoil inside and outside, and we will be attacked from all sides. I'm afraid it's not a place to stay."

"Yuan Shang could not even accommodate his elder brother. His clan was weak, so Yuan Shang would be controlled by the big families in Hebei."

Sun Ben made his own judgment: "If Yuan Shang starts this war, he still has some chance of winning. But if a big family starts an army to protect their family property, how much chance of winning can such an angry army have?"

He looked at Sun Hao and said, "We have betrayed Zhongmou, so how are we any different from the Yuan family? The court will not trust my family, nor will Lu Yi. It's just that the war is urgent and the court needs people, so they tolerate us. Now that the army is approaching, if we march north, Zhou Yu will support us."

Sun Hao said: "This will put my family to death."

"If you don't leave now, you will die with your family sooner or later. When the time comes, your clan will be destroyed and there will be no chance of survival."

Sun Ben felt a sting in his eye sockets, so he closed his eyes and continued, "My family surrendered to the north, so Xu Kun had to surrender even if he didn't want to. All the credit should be attributed to my family. In the future, even if you brothers cannot lead troops, you will still be rich and live in the south. You can also raise your children and grandchildren with peace of mind. The Grand Marshal is kind to people like me in troubled times. Even if we cannot be among the ministers in the future, we can still have a salary of two thousand stones."

After Sun Jiao hesitated, he was also tempted: "But if the army is infected with the disease, what should we do if the Northern Army refuses to accept it?"

"After crossing the Han River, we burned the boats, captured Suicheng, and stationed there, waiting for the epidemic to dissipate."

Sun Ben already had a plan: "Our army is infected with the disease, and Huang Zu dare not attack. If we hesitate any longer, when the Changsha soldiers arrive, they will force our army to be the vanguard. How many of you brothers will be able to survive by then?"

Seeing that the brothers were still considering, Sun Ben simply stopped trying to persuade them: "I know it's hard to survive. If you brothers are unwilling to follow me, you can cut off my head and hand it over to Lu Yi. Otherwise, I will lead my troops across the river myself. If you brothers are implicated later, don't blame me for not warning you."

Sun Hong had many children during his time in seclusion, and now he is reluctant to part with so many of them.

Sun Jiao also couldn't persuade his brother to abandon his family and children. After all, they were in their prime and after joining the Northern Army and marrying wives and concubines, they would naturally have no shortage of children.

Sun Hao couldn't help but stand up, and Sun Jiao quickly stood up for fear that his elder brother would draw his sword, which would be a bad ending.

At this time, Sun Ben opened his eyes and looked at Sun Hao straight in the face: "You couldn't win the battle against Zhongmou because you were too indecisive and not as good as my brother. After crossing the river, it will be difficult for me to command the troops. Aren't these 20,000 soldiers under your command? The Grand Marshal will reward you based on your merits, and you will definitely be awarded the title of Marquis of Ting."

Sun Ben struggled and lay on his back, coughing a few times. "It's hard to tell the truth from the false news in Youzhou now, and people are wavering. My brother raised his army to join us, which can be said to be a timely help. Although I am in the same boat, my achievements are seen by the world, how can I erase them?"

Sun Hao took a deep breath and asked, "What should we do if the military supervisor is in the camp?"

"My Sun family has many followers, so why should we be afraid of the military supervisor?"

Sun Ben turned to look at Sun Jiao and said, "Take my sword, lead my guards into the camp, kill Gu Hui, and bring me his head."

Sun Jiao also hesitated: "Just enter the camp like this?"

"If you feel it's too abrupt, mourning clothes have been prepared here. You and the guards can wear mourning clothes and enter the camp. Gu Hui knows that I am infected with the disease and is not on guard. You can kill him and then command the entire army."

"Yes, I'll go right away."

Sun Jiao agreed, turned around and picked up the sword from the wall, then glanced at his elder brother who didn't try to stop him, then turned around and left quickly.

He was afraid that if he hesitated any longer, he would be stopped by Sun Hao.

(End of this chapter)