Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 376 Son

Jingxiang was also engulfed in the flames of war.

At the beginning of this year, Qiao Zong, Huan Qian, and Yao Xing launched a three-pronged attack, while to the north they also faced the threat of Tuoba Gui's 150,000 infantry and cavalry.

However, they were all blocked by Mao Dezhu, Shen Qingzhi, Xiao Chengzhi, Wang Zhen'e and other generals.

Of all the troops, Qiao Shu and Huan Shi were the most anxious. Unable to capture Yiling, they turned to attack Zhijiang, Dangyang, Linju and other places. They even captured Zhijiang and threatened the flank of Jiangling.

Huan Zhen's infantry and cavalry repeatedly stormed into the walls of Xiangyang.

The Huan family had been in power in Jingzhou for forty or fifty years. Even after they were driven out, there were still people secretly flirting with them.

Liu Daogui's implementation of the land reform policy in Jingxiang also harmed the interests of many people.

It was only natural that they would collude with the Huan family.

It wasn't until Liu Daogui led 20,000 elite troops back to Xiangyang that people's hearts were finally at ease.

“Father, these are all secret letters between Xiangyang and the Huan family.” Liu Yixing held up a stack of letters.

Liu Daogui glanced at them and asked curiously, "Why didn't you expose them?"

Liu Yixing slowly said, "Huan Wen and Huan Chong have guarded Jiangling for many years and have been quite benevolent. The people of Jingxiang are still grateful to this day, and there are countless people who secretly support the Huan family. If we arrest and kill these people who wrote the secret letters, it will surely force those who support the Huan family to rebel. Therefore, it is better to keep it hidden and let them worry and fear."

"You can see these things, that's excellent." Liu Daogui was overjoyed.

Liu Yixing, however, did not take credit, saying, "It was Mr. Yin who taught me."

Yin Zhongwen quickly flattered him: "Young master is naturally intelligent, diligent and studious, and exceptionally clever. I am merely offering my humble opinion as a starting point."

"You're quite the talker."

It wasn't entirely flattery; Liu Yixing had been carefully taught by renowned teachers since childhood, so his foundation was already quite good.

"Then tell me, how should we deal with these people?" Liu Daogui continued to ask.

"Forgive my bluntness, but no matter how lenient Father is with these powerful families, they will always be two-faced. We might as well use this matter to exile the powerful families of Jingxiang to Qingzhou, so as to suppress them, strengthen the Jin people in Qingzhou, and suppress the Hu people in Qingzhou."

Liu Yixing spoke eloquently.

Liu Daogui glanced at Yin Zhongwen, who was also full of surprise.

Clearly, none of this was his own idea; he had never shown such vision and perspective in his previous strategic planning.

Liu Daogui couldn't help but look at his son with new respect. He had stayed in Pengcheng for many years and was raised by women. He thought his son would be kind and gentle, but he was not as kind and gentle as he thought.

In this day and age, a qualified monarch must never be sentimental like a woman.

Even an ordinary person can't survive these days if they're too soft-hearted!

Moreover, this strategy is quite ingenious.

Qingzhou had a large number of Hu people and few Jin people. Since Duan Kan, countless Xiongnu, Wuhuan, Xianbei and other Hu people have migrated there, while the local Jin people have long since moved south.

Too many Hu people are the source of chaos. They have been subdued by Liu Daogui, but once their population increases, or one day when our side is weak, these people will surely rebel.

During the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period, war and plague caused a sharp decline in population. Emperor Wu of Wei implemented a policy of replacing Han people with non-Han peoples, filling Guanzhong with Di and Qiang peoples, Bingzhou with Xiongnu peoples, and Youzhou with Wuhuan peoples.

Although the country quickly recovered its strength, it also laid the groundwork for the later chaos and rebellion of the Five Barbarian Tribes.

When the Sima family's War of the Eight Princes occurred, the vitality of China was severely damaged, and these barbarians immediately transformed into tigers and wolves...

Liu Daogui felt a surge of satisfaction. Cao Sifei truly was a virtuous wife, quietly nurturing such a suitable successor.

However, he remained expressionless. "Where did you learn these?"

"I recently read Jiang Tong's theory on relocating the Rong people, and it resonated with me. According to the Spring and Autumn Annals, the Chinese are considered the innermost and the barbarians are the outermost. The Rong and barbarians are greedy, fierce and cruel, and cannot be treated like the people of Jin."

The fact that he said those things shows that he really absorbed what he read.

Yin Zhongwen's phrase "diligent and eager to learn" does not appear to be flattery.

Liu Daogui was away on campaigns for many years, while Liu Muzhi remained in Jiankang. In terms of domestic affairs, there was a lack of someone to oversee the overall situation.

The Liu family members are all quite talented; they are skilled in both academics and martial arts. As long as they are not spoiled, they will all become pillars of society.

"From this day forward, I promote you to the position of Left Chief Secretary of the General of the Cavalry. You may participate in the deliberation of military and political affairs."

"Your son obeys."

He is twelve years old this year, which is no longer considered a child in this era. Moreover, he inherited the height advantage of the Liu family and is as strong as a fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy at the age of twelve.

People mature quickly in chaotic times; brothers fight side by side, fathers and sons go to war together, and offspring are a powerful asset.

“Wen Tao should be complemented by military strategy. Our Pengcheng Liu clan was established by martial arts, and martial arts should not be neglected.” Liu Yixing was slightly annoyed: “Although I have practiced hard, I am still no match for my elder brother.”

The eldest son, Liu Yiwu, was born to Shen Yuehan. The Shen family of Wuxing were all skilled fighters, including Shen Qingzhi in recent times and Shen Tianzi and Shen Linzi in more distant times.

Liu Yiwu was taught by the Shen sisters from a young age and has a talent for fighting.

However, of the five sons, only these two were successful; the other three were just average.

"You only need to know martial arts, not to be an expert. You won't need to charge into battle in the future."

"Yes."

Liu Yixing was respectful yet somewhat distant in front of Liu Daogui.

However, since the father and son have not been together for many years, some estrangement is inevitable.

At this moment, a military officer rushed over, "General, battle report from Jiankang!"

"Bring it here quickly." This was exactly what Liu Daogui was waiting for.

The western borders of Qiao Shu and Huan Shi are being held back by Wang Zhen'e, so it's not a big problem. As for the northern border, Yao Xing is currently preoccupied with his own troubles, and those 10,000 infantry and cavalry are just bluffing.

The greatest threat came from the demon bandits, whose 140,000 troops advanced by land and water. He Wuji was killed in battle, and Liu Yi successively lost Yuzhou, Xunyang, and Sangluozhou. The demon bandits sailed down the river and headed straight for Jiankang.

This battle report was full of twists and turns; Liu Yu's battle against the demon bandits was not smooth sailing.

Lu Xun first led more than 20 ships to launch a fierce attack on Shitouzha. Liu Yu ordered the elite troops of the Northern Army to shoot at them with "divine crossbows," burning half of the ships and preventing the enemy from entering.

After the failed attack on the fortified position, Lu Xun set up an ambush on the south bank of the Qinhuai River, ordering 20,000 elderly and weak people to board boats and sail north towards Baishilei, feigning an attack.

Faced with such a large force, Liu Yu, unaware of its strength, led a thousand elite troops north to meet the enemy, while ordering his military advisors Xu Chite and Shen Linzi to hold the south bank.

As soon as Liu Yu left, Xu Daofu and Xun Lin led 10,000 elite troops to launch a fierce attack on the south bank and advance on Zhanghou Bridge.

Xu Chite underestimated his enemy and led his troops out of the fortified camp, falling into Xu Daofu's ambush. Five hundred elite soldiers were almost all killed or wounded. Xu Chite broke through the encirclement alone and escaped back to Shitouzha.

The wicked bandits set fire to Chapu Fortress.

Fortunately, Shen Linzi fought to the death, and the brothers Zhu Chaoshi and Zhu Lingshi came out to meet him. Shen Tianzi and Meng Longfu's three thousand cavalry arrived in time, and together they managed to defeat the demon bandits.

Liu Yu returned with his army and immediately beheaded Xu Chite. He then executed Wei Yongzhi's younger brother, Wei Shunzhi, the governor of Huainan, and dismissed Wei Yongzhi from his posts as governor of Qingzhou and attendant to the emperor.

The three armies were immediately in awe, both inside and outside the city, and none of the armies in Jiankang dared to obey orders.

Overall, the fighting was evenly matched, but with the addition of Shen Tianzi and Meng Longfu's cavalry, the situation gradually turned in Liu Yu's favor.

However, the rebels controlled the Yangtze River and had control over the waterways, so Liu Yu could only defend passively and could not completely defeat them.

Lu Xun's attack on Jiankang failed, so he turned around and plundered Danyang County to the south.

The battle has reached a stalemate.

"We can send troops now." Liu Daogui felt the time was right, so he summoned his generals to discuss sending troops to suppress the rebels.

Feng Kai said, "Since the demons have come out in full force, we can send elite troops down from Changsha to attack Guangzhou and destroy their lair!"

Liu Daogui shook his head: "The soldiers are already exhausted. They have traveled a long way from Xiangyang to Guangzhou and entered Lingnan. Their fighting strength has been reduced by half. Moreover, Lingnan is hot and humid in this season, which will surely cause epidemics. Most of our troops are northerners and are not used to the water and soil of Lingnan."

In that era, Lingnan was a remote and impoverished region, and exiled criminals often faced a life-or-death situation.

That's not how you fight a war. Taking the sea route might be worth considering, but taking the land route is too risky.

Duan Hongdao said, "Our army will head directly east. Once we capture Xunyang, we can cut off the enemy's retreat."

Fu Hongzhi also praised, "That's right. Why go to such lengths when we can capture Xunyang first? The demon bandits will surely be thrown into chaos."

In fact, the demon thieves are best at moving around, so the breach of Xunyang will not have much impact on them.

At worst, they can just wander from Danyang County to the Three Wu and Eight Counties again.

Liu Daogui was thinking about how to wipe out the demon bandits in one battle.

Since Sun En raised his army, the rebels have wreaked havoc on the world for nearly ten years. They have suffered repeated defeats, yet they have fought on despite each defeat, rising from the ashes several times. Each time they make a comeback, the Jiangnan region suffers another war.

If they were to invade the three Wu regions and eight counties, the land reclamation achievements of the past two years would be lost.

At this moment, Meng Ganzhi said from outside the hall: "Report, a letter from the General of Chariots and Cavalry has arrived."

Liu Daogui ordered someone to fetch it, and upon opening it, he discovered it was a message instructing him not to send troops eastward...

(End of this chapter)