Three Kingdoms: I, Liu Feng, do not want to die

Since Liu Feng began to plot against Hefei, the generals and soldiers of Jingzhou had not been mobilized except for the 10,000 men who went to Chaisang.

Even the 10,000 people who went to Chaisang only moved to another place for garrison. Apart from plotting against Cao Xiu, they hardly participated directly in the war. This made Zhu Huan subconsciously ignore the fact that Liu Feng could still mobilize the troops from Jingzhou.

Not to mention that Liu Feng is now the General of Chariots and Cavalry, the Minister of the Imperial Palace, the Governor of Yangzhou, the Commander-in-Chief of Jianghuai, and the Commander-in-Chief of Jianghuai Military Affairs, and he has the power to dispatch troops from Jingzhou.

Even if he did not have the power to dispatch the troops of Jingzhou, the most he could do was ride a fast horse into Jiangling, and then Liu Chan would directly order the troops of Jingzhou to obey Liu Feng's dispatch.

now.

Liu Feng had established his military prestige in Hefei, so naturally he should put all his efforts into it.

When Liu Feng first formulated his strategy, his strategic goal was not just Hefei. After taking Hefei, he also wanted to capture Pingchun, Yiyang and Shouchun.

Liu Feng wants not only Jiangdong, but also Huainan!
Three hundred thousand pieces of Shu brocade are not so easy to get.

Although he was reluctant in his heart, Zhu Huan did not dare to object.

Now that Liu Feng's military power is very strong, Lu Xun dares to be his lackey. If Zhu Huan dares to disobey Liu Feng's military orders, Lu Xun will definitely exercise his power of "kill first and report later".

By then, Zhu Huan’s death would have been in vain.

See this.

Lu Xun comforted him again, "General Zhu, relax! Your Highness has never suffered a defeat in the military campaigns in recent years. The ones who should be worried right now are not us, but the pseudo-Wei generals in Shouchun, and the pseudo-Wei monarchs and ministers who are living a life of luxury in Luoyang."

the other side.

Man Chong, Zhu Shu, Zhang Hu and other officers and soldiers who evacuated from Hefei returned safely to Shouchun.

Man Chong didn't say anything, but Zhang Hu and Zhu Shu couldn't help but start to confront him directly.

"Do you intend to kill General Zhengdong and take his place?"

"We have been defending for almost two months, and we haven't seen any reinforcements. Even if you crawl, you should be able to reach Hefei!"

"What good will it do you if you lose Hefei? His Majesty did not ask you to come to Hefei to sleep!"

"I'm so angry!"

Zhang Hu and Zhu Shu kept on talking, scolding Jia Kui, Wang Ling and the others so much that they dared not even raise their heads.

Given their identities, they were not qualified to criticize Jia Kui, Wang Ling and others.

However, the generals of Shouchun were in the wrong first, and Man Chong acquiesced in Zhang Hu and Zhu Shu's scolding, so everyone could only bite the bullet and endure the scolding from the two men.

As for the explanation?

Hefei is here, that is a brilliant plan.

Hefei was lost, and all the reasons are pale and powerless.

After cursing for nearly half an hour, Zhang Hu and Zhu Shu finally vented their anger and returned to Man Chong.

However, the looks they gave Jia Kui, Wang Ling and the others were still unfriendly.

"General, I made a mistake in judgment. I am willing to accept the punishment. It has nothing to do with Governor Jia and others." Wang Ling was straightforward and admitted his mistake directly.

After the war, Cao Pi will definitely send people to investigate the reason for the loss of Hefei. Once the investigation is completed, it will be found that Wang Ling was unwilling to send troops too early, and there is no way to cover it up at all.

Although there was also the factor that Jia Kui, Zou Qi and others did not argue for their rights, as long as Wang Ling took the responsibility alone, Jia Kui and others would more or less show some leniency.

"You want to take the blame alone?" Man Chong said coldly, revealing Wang Ling's intention, and then said: "But now, you can't take the blame alone. Liu Feng took Hefei, but ordered Lu Xun to besiege Shouchun, which shows his ambition."

Zou Qi said in a weak voice: "Hefei is a small city, and it can be conquered by force. Shouchun is a big city, and the Huai River protects it. How can it be conquered with Liu Feng's few troops? Lu Xun is just showing off his power. As long as we defend the city carefully, Lu Xun will leave on his own in no time."

Man Chong frowned and looked at Zou Qi: "Zou Qishi, how did you become the governor?"

Zou Qi's face instantly turned red, feeling both ashamed and embarrassed.

Sun Li said, "Liu Feng's intention of letting Lu Xun besiege Shouchun was not to capture Shouchun, but to block us in Shouchun and buy time for Liu Feng to pacify the Huainan counties south of Shouchun.

When all the counties in Huainan are pacified, how can Shouchun, an isolated city, be defended? When the Huai River rises next year, Liu Feng will divert the water of the Huai River to flood Shouchun, and we will die without a burial place."

Zou Qi's face changed again.

For large cities built along water, water attack has always been the most commonly used tactic.

For example, Cao Cao flooded Xia Pi and Ye City, it was all like this.

"No wonder Liu Feng waited until winter to launch an attack on Hefei. He was sure that he could capture Hefei quickly. In this way, before the Huai River flooded, he could use the momentum of conquering Hefei to pacify the Huainan counties in one fell swoop. Finally, he could march to Shouchun and use the rising water of the Huai River to divert water to flood the city. What a good plan!" Jia Kui exclaimed.

Although he guessed Liu Feng's tactical intentions, Jia Kui could not think of a good strategy to deal with it at the moment.

Hefei was lost, and both land and sea support troops were blocked, and the morale in Shouchun City was low.

Even though their military strength was superior to Lu Xun's, they did not dare to leave the city to fight Lu Xun, let alone divide their troops to rescue the counties.

"Write a military report to His Majesty and ask for help," Man Chong sighed.

The current situation in Huainan.

Man Chong could no longer handle it alone.

Seeing everyone's different expressions, Man Chong added, "The loss of Hefei was due to the large number of bandits. In order to preserve military strength, I took the initiative to withdraw to Shouchun."

As soon as these words were spoken, Wang Ling, Jia Kui and others breathed a sigh of relief.

With Man Chong taking the blame, even if Cao Pi sent people to investigate after the war, he would not have punished Wang Ling, Jia Kui and others too severely. At most, he would have given them a mild reprimand.

Choosing to seek help means temporarily giving up the Huainan counties.

Although helpless, everyone could only stare blankly for the time being.

Liu Feng took the opportunity to order his generals to divide the counties in Huainan. He wanted to use the prestige of capturing Hefei to pacify the counties in Huainan before Cao Pi counterattacked.

at the same time.

The troops in Jingzhou also began to be mobilized frequently.

Zhao Yun, the prefect of Nanyang, and Guan Xing, the prefect of Jiangxia, were both preparing their troops for war.

Liu Chan also ordered Li Yan, the governor of Jingzhou, to dispatch troops from various counties in Jingzhou to assist Zhao Yun and Guan Xing.

All of a sudden.

The Han army regained its prestige.

Liu Bei in Chang'an also ordered General Guan Yu to go to Weinan in person to create momentum for attacking Tongguan.

Sudden changes.

This made Cao Pi in Luoyang very uneasy.

"Old soldier Liu Bei, can't you just be quiet for a few years?"

Cao Pi was very angry.

Between January.

He received military reports one after another that Hefei had been lost, and that Liu Feng intended to attack Shouchun, Guan Xing intended to attack Pingchun, Zhao Yun intended to attack Luyang, and Guan Yu intended to attack Tongguan.

Just looking at the military reports, it seems as if Liu Bei is about to launch an all-out decisive battle against Cao Wei.

What made Cao Pi even more mad was that Liu Bei's side was fighting in winter and spring, so why couldn't they just stay at home and spend the New Year? Then why did they have to roll inward? They were already over 60 years old, so why not just continue to play music and dance?

"Tell me, do you have any plan to retreat?"

Cao Pi did not summon anyone alone today, but held the meeting in the main hall and asked the ministers to come up with countermeasures.

Obviously.

Cao Pi is a little annoyed today.

The ministers discussed from morning till noon, but failed to come up with a solution that satisfied Cao Pi.

In fact, this cannot be blamed on the officials being stupid.

But in the current situation, the countermeasures basically revolve around two viewpoints: fight and not fight.

Fight, I'm not sure.

If you don't fight, you'll feel aggrieved.

Although Cao Wei has a big plate, when it comes to fighting wars, it really has nothing to show for itself.

On the other hand, Liu Bei's side.

Although Guan Yu is old, he can still stand on his own in Chang'an.

What made Cao Pi upset was.

Liu Bei's side also had Liu Feng.

Not only is he good at fighting, he also has a strong desire to attack.

After attacking Shangyong, any normal person would have to stay in Shangyong to stabilize the situation; but Liu Feng, on the other hand, went straight to Jingzhou to fight Sun Quan.

Now that Sun Quan has been driven away, should things be quiet?
Before he knew it, Liu Feng conquered Nanzhong.

Yes, you can.

Is this time to stop?

As a result, he "encouraged" Liu Bei to attack Wei from three directions and took over Xiangfan.

I thought Liu Feng would be obedient, but he ran to Jiangdong to cause trouble, causing Cao Pi to fail in his attack on Ruxukou and lose Shiyang and Wen Pin.

Cao Pi had decided not to lead the army in person and was prepared to wear down Liu Bei. However, Liu Feng and his son pretended to attack Yongliang and captured Chang'an.

He hit it here and there, but he always hit the right head.

Cao Pi was so angry that he re-employed Cao Zhang, who was in captivity, from Rencheng State to Yongzhou, hoping to let Cao Zhang kill Liu Feng's prestige.

As a result, Liu Feng ran away directly from Chang'an!
Not only did it give Cao Zhang the opportunity to "nourish the enemy and strengthen himself", it also allowed Liu Feng to capture Cao Xiu and seize Hefei. Now he is even creating momentum to attack Wei from four directions.

If there is no war, will it still rust?
What Cao Pi couldn't understand was that Liu Feng was just an adopted son, but Liu Bei had always spoiled him.

Not to mention adopting a son, if Cao Zhang was like Liu Feng, fighting in the east and the west, and most of the states and counties he conquered were related to Cao Zhang, Cao Pi would have to find a way to abandon Cao Zhang.

Otherwise, if Cao Zhang felt cold one day, the generals and officers in the army might make him wear a yellow robe.

Just when all the ministers were so tired in the court that they just wanted to go home and sleep, Jia Xu's son Jia Mu, the son-in-law of the emperor, suddenly said, "Why not send someone to Jiangling to spread rumors that Liu Feng destroyed Sun Quan and seized Huainan in order to make Liu Bei appoint a new crown prince before his death."

Chen Qun frowned: "As we all know, Liu Bei and his sons and brothers have a very deep relationship. How can Liu Chan believe such rumors?"

When Jia Mu saw Chen Qun's rebuttal, he bowed and said, "Liu Chan is neither good at literature nor martial arts, but he got the crown prince position that should have belonged to Liu Feng just because he is Liu Bei's biological son. If he cannot remain humble in front of Liu Bei and Liu Feng, how can he convince the others?
Therefore, I think that Liu Chan was just pretending to have deep feelings for Liu Feng. In fact, he had been wary of Liu Feng for a long time, fearing that Liu Feng would snatch the position of crown prince.

Even if Liu Chan could pretend that no one noticed, the civil and military officials around him would not watch Liu Feng's power grow.

Especially now, Liu Feng not only destroyed Sun Quan's forces in Jiangdong, but also brought Sun Quan's tens of thousands of troops and civil and military officials in Jiangdong under his command.

Rather than saying that Liu Feng was expanding the territory for Liu Bei and his son, it would be more accurate to say that Liu Feng was replacing Sun Quan and preparing for the future competition for the position of crown prince.

Now that Liu Feng has seized Hefei and shocked the civil and military officials of Jiangdong, if he can also seize Shouchun, his prestige in Jianghuai will be at its peak, unrivaled for a time. When Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and other direct descendants of Liu Bei and his sons have passed away one after another, how many of the pseudo-Han monarchs and ministers will still support Liu Chan as the crown prince?
Putting aside other things, just talking about the civil and military officials and tens of thousands of soldiers in Jiangdong, there is no way they would support Liu Chan! "

Jia Mu's words left Chen Qun speechless.

Cao Pi, who was on the throne, thought about his past when Cao Cao was alive.

Because Cao Zhang and Cao Zhi performed so well, it seemed that Cao Pi was not as good as Cao Zhi in literature and not as good as Cao Zhang in martial arts, and Cao Pi's only advantage was that he was the eldest son.

Therefore, Cao Pi remained humble at all times. He neither relied on his talents to look down on others nor relied on his bravery to look down on the common people. He was strict with himself. Only in this way did he defeat Cao Zhang and Cao Zhi.

Heart to heart.

Cao Pi believes that Liu Chan’s current situation is very similar to his own back then.

There was no other way for Liu Chan to defeat Liu Feng except to endure and not make mistakes and then wait for Liu Feng to make a mistake.

The other way around.

If Cao Pi wanted to cause a conflict between Liu Feng and Liu Chan, he had to let Liu Chan make a mistake and make Liu Feng suspicious of Liu Chan. Once suspicion arose, Liu Chan would no longer be able to pretend.

At that time, the suspicion between brothers will lead to suspicion between father and son, and the suspicion between father and son and brothers will lead to suspicion among ministers, and finally the issue of standing in line.

Regardless of whether Liu Feng or Liu Chan wins in the end, they will suffer great losses due to civil strife.

On the other hand, Cao Pi was able to take advantage of the internal strife in Liu Bei's camp to accumulate strength and reap the benefits, just like after the Battle of Guandu, when Cao Cao watched Yuan Shao's sons fighting each other.

"This plan works."

Cao Pi affirmed Jia Mu's proposal and said, "Now Shouchun is asking for help, and we still need a good general to lead the troops to help. Do you have any good generals to recommend?"

Chen Qun advised: "Your Majesty, what Shouchun lacks right now is not soldiers, but supplies and morale. You can send people to deliver supplies to Shouchun, and then send envoys to appease the soldiers. Regardless of their crimes, only their previous merits will be considered, and all of them will be rewarded, from the most favored to the least favored."

When it comes to fighting, Chen Qun may not be good enough; but when it comes to winning people’s hearts, Chen Qun’s move really won the hearts of the soldiers in Shouchun.

After losing a battle, not only was there no punishment, but previous merits were taken into account and rewards were given first to appease the people.

In this way, morale is boosted.

After allocating supplies, we will also have food, fodder and military equipment.

As for whether Liu Feng will withdraw his troops, it depends on whether the rumor plan can work.

at the same time.

Cao Pi also asked Chen Qun to take charge of the allocation of supplies.

If the rumor plan does not work and Liu Bei really wants to attack Wei from four directions, Cao Pi will have to bite the bullet and take it on.

As the rumor spread.

Liu Feng, who was commanding the army in Hefei, also received the news.

Cao Pi was afraid that Liu Chan would fall into his trap, so he also spread rumors in Huainan.

"This is really a troublesome rumor, Lord Zhongxiang, how do you think I should deal with it?" Liu Feng threw the question to Yu Fan.

Liu Feng's approach to matters involving court struggles has always been simple and direct.

Leave professional matters to professionals.

"The prince is young, and he may be deceived by treacherous people. If the prince is not careful and issues a decree by mistake at the critical moment of attacking Shouchun, the Huainan war may fail." Yu Fan said, "The Huainan war does not require Your Highness to be there every day. It is better to go back to Jiangling and give gifts to the prince first."

Liu Feng leaned against the table, a smile on his face: "Mr. Zhongxiang, what kind of gift do you think I should give you?"

Yu Fan thought without hesitation: "The reason why Your Highness was able to capture Hefei was the 300,000 pieces of Shu brocade. And these 300,000 pieces of Shu brocade were transferred by the Crown Prince, so the credit for Hefei should go to the Crown Prince! Your Highness is determined to destroy Wei and support Han, so there is no need to be nostalgic for the mere credit for Hefei."

Liu Feng laughed loudly, "Mr. Zhongxiang knows my heart very well. But the victory of Hefei is far from enough. Notify Sun Lu immediately. I will take him back to Jiangling and present the household registers of the counties in Jiangdong to the crown prince!"
Cao Pi is a petty thief who has no idea of the bigger picture. He even wants to harm me with rumors. How ridiculous! "

Yu Fan looked surprised.

Liu Feng meant that not only the credit for the Battle of Hefei should be given to Liu Chan, but even the credit for destroying the Jiangdong forces should be given to Liu Chan!
This is not a trait that ordinary people can possess!
Then I thought about it.

Only in this way can we truly avoid rumors from misleading Liu Chan.

Liu Bei was far away in Chang'an, and the crown prince was in Jiangling as regent, so the household registration lists of the Jiangdong counties should naturally be received by the crown prince as regent.

The list of officials in Jiangdong had been sent to Chang'an long ago, and Liu Feng had never violated the rules in his behavior in Jiangdong. Once Sun Lu sent the household registration list, no amount of rumors would be of any use.

before leaving.

Liu Feng also appointed Lu Xun to temporarily serve as the governor of Huainan, supervising the generals of Huainan and 50,000 troops; at the same time, he ordered Zhou Cang to temporarily serve as the governor of Yangzhou and allocate supplies to various counties.

Just as Yu Fan said, the current war in Huainan does not require Liu Feng to be there every day.

Lu Xun was in charge of the army, and Zhou Cang was in charge of the government.

With these two people around, Liu Feng didn't even have to return to Hefei to command the war.

Liu Feng captured the most difficult city of Hefei.

The remaining counties of Huainan and the siege of Shouchun were divided, with a focus on "seesaw battles" and requiring the cooperation of other battlefields as well as the bonus of good timing and people to be able to capture them.

With Lu Xun, the only one in Jiangdong who could command a large army, temporarily taking over as the governor of Huainan, Liu Feng could rest assured.

When it came, it was a ship, and when it left, it was still a ship.

By the time Liu Feng arrived in Jiangling, it was already the end of February in the sixth year of Zhangwu (226).

The rumor spread quickly in Jingzhou and Jiangling.

Liu Feng could guess without even thinking that someone had done it on purpose.

otherwise.

It was impossible for Cao Wei's spies to spread the rumor so that everyone in Jiangling City knew about it, and even the four counties in southern Jing were covered with rumors.

"It seems that there are many people who don't want to be isolated." Liu Feng couldn't help laughing.

The forest is big and there are all kinds of birds.

When a regime becomes powerful, it will have all kinds of people.

In addition, Liu Feng's military achievements are so great that if he were Liu Bei's biological son, he could directly snatch the position of crown prince and few people would dare to complain.

It was precisely because Liu Feng was not Liu Bei's biological son that there were so many controversies and doubts among the civil and military officials under Liu Bei.

Except for the most loyal group who talked about loyalty, most of the civil and military officials talked about interests.

If they bet their entire fortune on following Liu Chan, and Liu Feng eventually rebelled and usurped the throne, then those who followed Liu Chan would have nothing to do but watch helplessly.

No one can accept that a loyal follower of the emperor has been transformed into a traitor.

If you want to keep the interests you have obtained, the simplest and most direct way is to suppress Liu Feng or make Liu Feng disappear.

This is human nature.

If Liu Feng was a civil or military official following Liu Chan, he would not be merciful until he was sure whether Liu Feng would rebel for power.

It is better for me to die than for my friend to die. It is always better for others to die than for myself.

The reason why Liu Feng could have his current magnanimity was actually because he had the advantage of foresight. He knew Liu Chan's character and understood Liu Chan's methods, which was why he dared to trust Liu Chan.

Even if it was Liu Feng in history, if Liu Bei did not kill Liu Feng, Liu Chan would not kill Liu Feng unless Liu Feng directly mutinied; even if Liu Feng mutinied, Liu Chan would more likely just exile Liu Feng.

Not to mention that the current Liu Feng knows better than the historical Liu Feng how to win over Liu Chan to stand on the same front.

Liu Feng's confidence in his own abilities and knowledge makes him far more capable than ordinary people.

Liu Feng's logic was: Liu Feng was a member of the royal family, and he was the King of Yan who fought for Liu Chan; Liu Chan was the emperor, and he was the emperor who acted as regent for Liu Feng.

And in the main hall of Jiangling Imperial City.

When the civil and military officials learned that Liu Feng had returned, they were all surprised.

Liu Feng's return to Jiangling this time was not made with much fanfare.

If Liu Chan had not said that he would wait for Liu Feng to come to the palace, none of the civil and military officials would have known that Liu Feng had returned.

While all the civil and military officials were surprised and puzzled.

Boxes of household registration lists were carried into the main hall.

Sun Quan's second son, Sun Lu, went to the palace with Liu Feng.

In front of all the civil and military officials, Liu Feng first reported that "Sun Lu, the descendant of King Wu Sun Quan, is grateful for the prince's kindness and has presented the household registers of the counties in Jiangdong." He then reported that "the victory in Hefei was entirely due to the prince's dispatch of 300,000 pieces of Shu brocade as backup."

and many more.

With just a few words in his memorial, he attributed all the credit for pacifying Jiangdong and taking Hefei to Liu Chan.

The civil and military officials in the hall were completely unable to handle the situation.

Liu Chan was so shocked that he left the table and left the palace immediately: "Pacifying Jiangdong and taking Hefei are all your achievements, how can I steal them? Did you listen to rumors?"

Liu Chan ignored the fact that the civil and military officials were still present in the hall, and directly addressed them by their private titles.

Liu Feng pretended not to know: "What rumor?"

Liu Chan blurted out: "It's the rumors in Jiangling City? Some traitors spread rumors to cause discord between my brothers, and now everyone in the city knows about it."

Liu Feng narrowed his eyes and glanced around, then sneered, "It seems that Jiangling has been at peace for too long. Just a few spies can spread rumors in Jiangling City, and the whole city knows about it. If I were an official in Jiangling, I would be deeply ashamed. Is this how you assist the prince?"

This collective ridicule made the civil and military officials in the hall feel shocked and ashamed, and some officials even hung their heads guiltily.

Just the next moment.

Liu Feng changed the subject and said, "Don't worry, Prince. It's just a rumor. It's unlucky to hear one more word.

This trip back to Jiangling had nothing to do with the rumors. In addition to asking Sun Lu to deliver the household registration list, he also wanted to discuss the military affairs of the next attack on Huainan with the prince.

As for the rumors all over the city, let's leave it to the ministers who are assisting in the administration to deal with them. Such trivial matters are not worth the prince's attention.

My brother and I haven't been together for a long time. How about we leave the court early today and go back to the palace to drink together?"

Liu Chan was stunned for a moment, then pointed at the household registration list sent by Sun Lu and said, "What about these..."

Liu Feng interrupted directly: "If such a trivial matter as cleaning up the household register has to be done by the Crown Prince himself, what is the point of having all the ministers in the palace do it? Is there anyone in the court who dares to be lazy about government affairs?"

"No, the ministers are doing their job conscientiously and are not lazy." Liu Chan shook his head slightly.

Liu Feng laughed loudly: "In that case! I will go to pay my respects to the Queen first. The Crown Prince can come to me as soon as possible after he has dealt with the affairs of the court."

Done.

Liu Feng turned and left.

All the ministers in the hall were stunned.

Just, that’s it?

Faced with rumors all over the city, why don't you even argue a bit? (End of this chapter)