The Three Kingdoms: Zhaolie, the strategist, and the rise of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 104 Zhang Liang's plan, Li Yi's plot

In the next few days,

Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui continued to lead troops to attack Guangling.

After a while, the day came and the evening came.

However, the siege was unsuccessful.

As time went on, everyone in Yuan's army was complaining and had no desire to fight.

This is a normal phenomenon in marching and fighting and has nothing to do with the quality of the army.

After all, if you keep winning, everyone will grit their teeth and bear with it.

But if you see less and less hope the more you fight, then naturally people will not be able to tolerate it.

After a long time, homesickness overwhelmed them and naturally they lost their morale.

In order to appease the military, Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui had to request funding from Yuan Shu in Shouchun.

Let Yuan Shu send down a batch of beef and wine to entertain the soldiers and boost their morale.

Li Yi stood on the wall, quietly observing the enemy camp through a telescope.

After a while, he slowly opened his mouth and said:

"Yuan's army is in disarray, the morale of the troops is lax, and the soldiers have no desire to fight."

"I expect it to retreat soon."

As he spoke, he handed the telescope to Liu Bei beside him.

Liu Bei took it very naturally, held it in front of his eyes, and observed it for a while.

"Yuan Shu controls Huainan, with well-trained troops and sufficient food."

"This battle is not going well, I'm afraid they won't be willing to withdraw their troops."

Liu Bei's brow was filled with discontent. Although he had repelled Yuan's attacks several times, he was still cautious and optimistic about the war.

After all, Lao Liu didn't want to be bogged down in the quagmire of the war in the south.

In his opinion, Yuan Shu's bones were just lying in his grave, and he had lost the support of the army and civilians in Huainan, so he would decline sooner or later.

He could rest assured and develop his power in Xuzhou, and when Yuan Shu became weak and powerless, he could march south to capture and kill him.

But he happened to catch up with Yuan Shu just before his decline, and not only did he catch up with him, he also fought with him.

I just hope that the surrounding princes won’t be able to reap the benefits.

"My lord, please be at ease. I have ordered Yunchang to march his troops to Zhongli."

"As long as Zhongli is taken, Yuan Shu will lose his support and will definitely withdraw his troops and go back to defend."

"In this way, the Yuan army in Guangling will retreat without a fight."

Ok……

Liu Bei nodded and said:
"I also read the military report sent back by Yunchang."

"The one guarding Zhongli is Yuan Shu's son Yuan Yao. Although Zhongli has few soldiers and horses."

"However, Yuan Yao built more than a dozen beacon towers in the upper reaches of the Huai River."

Liu Bei frowned and said in a deep voice:

"This is a brilliant move. As long as Yunchang attacks Zhongli, Yuan's army will be alerted immediately."

"When that happens, Yuan Yao will close the city gates and ask for help from Shouchun. Yuan Shu will be able to easily transfer troops from the southwest."

"With Yunchang's current troops, there is no way he can stop Yuan Shu's army."

"If I divide my forces with him, I'm afraid Guangling's front line will be weak."

"At that time, it will be nothing more than changing the battlefield and transferring the battle in Guangling to Zhongli."

"only……"

Liu Bei stopped talking.

Guangling and his men were fighting a defensive battle, while Zhongli and his men were fighting a siege battle.

The defender's advantage is more than ten times that of the attacker.

Liu Bei would not be stupid enough to move the battlefield to Zhongli.

"Military Advisor, Zhongli is on the front line, but it is a difficult problem."

Liu Bei looked worried and turned his gaze towards Li Yi.

"Since the military advisor sent out the troops on that day, he should send Yunchang to attack Zhongli."

"I think they should have expected Yuan Jun to make this move. Does the military advisor have any solution?"

Hahaha……

Li Yi smiled and said, "My Lord, please be at ease. Since Yi dared to order Yun Chang to advance his troops to Zhongli."

"Of course there is a clever plan, which can easily destroy this beacon tower!"

"Oh?"

Liu Bei was immediately delighted and pricked up his ears:

"What's the plan? I'm all ears."

I have to say that it is very appropriate to give Yuan Shu a "clever plan" skill in Romance of the Three Kingdoms 11.

Skeleton King, he can really come up with a good idea from time to time, although he is usually immersed in his own good ideas.

Beacon towers were installed in the upper reaches of the Huai River so that the situation dozens of miles downstream could be seen clearly.

This strategy was adopted by Yuan Shu in accordance with local conditions.

Zhongli County is located at a port, which is very suitable for building a beacon tower.

As long as you want to attack Zhongli, you will definitely get through the spies set up by Yuan Shu.

Once discovered, Yuan Shu would be able to close the city gates in advance and be on high alert.

This seems to be an unsolvable deadlock.

But Li Yi had a good idea.

"Yi has a plan."

"Didn't Guangling train a group of naval forces?"

"Although it's not much, it's enough for Yunchang."

"You can order Yunchang to lead the navy, all dressed in civilian clothes, and anchor under the beacon tower under the pretext of staying overnight."

"You can ask Yunchang to clear the way with money."

"Yuan Shu is a man of arrogance and extravagance. If the top beam is not straight, the bottom beam will be crooked. I believe that his soldiers will be blinded by money and allow the passing passenger ship to dock."

"When the enemy is caught off guard, the soldiers hiding in the cabin can rush forward and kill the guards before they can light the beacon fire, and take down the beacon tower."

"If we do this repeatedly, we can remove all the beacon towers upstream of the Huai River in less than a night."

"The Yuan army lost the warning. With General Yunchang's bravery, taking Zhongli is as easy as taking something out of a bag."

"Yuan Yao is a spoiled brat, weak and clueless, how could he see through my tricks?"

"By then he will be completely unprepared and be caught off guard by General Yunchang. Wouldn't it be easy for Zhongli to be captured?"

Li Yi described the whole plan of attacking the beacon tower in a clear and eloquent manner.

There was silence.

Liu Bei's eyes changed from surprise to surprise, and then to joy. Finally, he was suddenly overwhelmed with excitement.

"Good! Good! Good plan!"

"What a great trick to sneak into Chencang!"

"The military advisor is indeed a rare talent in the world, with numerous extraordinary plans."

"Only a military advisor can come up with such a fantastic plan."

"Among all the wise men in the world, no one can compare to the military advisor!"

Liu Bei was so excited that he held Li Yi's hand and refused to let go.

"In this way, Yunchang can take down Zhongli with the existing forces."

"If Zhongli is lost, Yuan Shu will surely lead a large army to rescue it."

"If it is true, Guangling will be safe."

……

……

On the south bank of the Huai River, there is Zhongli City.

The sky gradually brightened as the east grew whiter.

Yuan Yao and his Yuan army have been stationed here for several days.

He stretched lazily out of boredom and looked down at the city wall.

Many businessmen and common people were traveling around the city.

Some of the people had just returned from collecting firewood, while others were small vendors out doing business.

All living beings have different ways of living.

"People say Guan Yu is invincible, but today I see that they are just lies."

Yuan Yao yawned. He had originally come to Zhongli to defend against Guan Yu's attack with the intention of fighting it out.

As a result, after such a long time, Guan Yu has never come to Zhongli once.

Gradually, Yuan Yao himself became lazy, and every day he either drank or played tossing pots with the officers.

As time went on, I became more and more tired and began to hope that the war would end soon so that I could return to Shouchun to enjoy my life.

"I came to Zhongli with the intention of making achievements, so that the officials of Shouchun would no longer dare to bully me because I am young."

"But Guan Yu is as timid as a mouse and has been slow to send troops to attack."

Yuan Yao reluctantly confided his feelings to the generals.

He secretly thought that guarding Zhongli was not an easy job. He had to get up early and go to bed late every day to patrol the city defenses.

He was usually spoiled and preferred a life of feasting and revelry. He would get drunk with his friends every day and would not wake up until noon the next day.

That's what it means to enjoy life.

What kind of life is it in Zhongli now?

"We will guard this time, regardless of whether Guan Yu attacks or not, just to make sure Zhongli is still in the lord's hands."

"That's a great achievement. When you return to Shouchun, the ministers will naturally shut up."

A general spoke up to enlighten Yuan Yao and asked him to correct his attitude.

You went to the front line to gild your reputation, but you are still so unreasonable.

You only have a good father if such a good job falls into their hands.

When they go back, they burn incense and offer sacrifices to their ancestors to thank them for the good deeds they have done.

"Sir, don't be careless. Liu Bei has done a lot of great things over the past year."

"Cao Cao was defeated in Pengcheng, Zang Ba was captured in Langya, and Yuan Tan was captured in Qingzhou."

“Any three things are extraordinary achievements.”

"But Liu Bei accomplished it in one fell swoop, which is really amazing."

A general at the side reminded.

"Yes, according to our spies, Liu Bei's success today is largely due to the efforts of his newly appointed military advisor, Li Yi."

"This man is a master of strategy and tactics, and Liu Bei has great trust in him."

"It is also considered excellent by the people of Xuzhou."

"I have an old friend from Xuzhou who once mentioned this Li Yi."

At this point, many generals of Yuan’s army gathered around to watch the show.

I'm free anyway, so I might as well listen to it for fun.

The general said solemnly:
"In Xuzhou, people say that Mr. Li is as good at making plans as Liu Hou and as good at using troops as Huaiyin."

"To help the country and save the people, is different from the Marquis of Ying."

Well……

All the generals were amazed when they heard this.

Even though Li Yi was fighting with them right now, his words still sounded vague and ethereal to them, as if he was very far away from them.

Especially Yuan Yao, as Yuan Shu's legitimate son, had a large collection of books at home and knew the names of many sages.

I still have some respect for him in my heart.

But Li Yi was compared with so many sages by the people of Xuzhou, which naturally made him unhappy.

"I heard that this Li Yi is a hermit in the mountains. He is just a country bumpkin from a poor family."

"How do you deserve such a reputation?"

Yuan Yao inherited his father's conceited character, and like his cousin Yuan Tan, he was born in the clouds.

In his eyes, the poor and common people are like ants and clouds, not worth mentioning.

"In the past, Chen Pingyuan was a commoner, Xiao He was a county official, and Han Xin had no food to eat before he met Emperor Gaozu."

"When he met the emperor, he wore the jade seal of Sanqi on his waist."

"Li Yi was able to stay by Liu Bei's side and protect Xuzhou, which shows that he has the talent to govern the country."

"Sir, don't underestimate him,"

The general spoke.

He heard about Li Yi's reputation from his old friend in Xuzhou.

Therefore, among all the generals, he was the only one who respected Li Yi the most.

Yuan Yao raised the corners of his mouth slightly and said:
"Since you are so respectful of Li Yi, wait until Zhongli's mission of defending the city is completed."

"I will go to the front line in Guangling in person to meet this young man."

As they were talking, it was time to open the city.

The drawbridge at the east gate slowly dropped down, and the city gate creaked open.

People collecting firewood and peddlers doing business immediately swarmed in and moved around.

At the ferry not far away, dozens of passenger ships were slowly approaching the shore.

……

(End of this chapter)