The Three Kingdoms Voyage

Chapter 178 Set sail with ulterior motives
"Fengxian still knows a little bit about the importance." Sun Quan put the letter he just received on the case and nodded in satisfaction: "Guan Yu really doesn't know the heights of the heavens and the earth, and he still wants to compete with me at this time. He doesn't even think about it. As long as his food is cut off, he will collapse in half a month at most, and Jingzhou will not be all mine by then? Liu Bei and his ministers are really short-sighted." He turned his head to look at Sun Shao, and said with emphasis: "Feng Xian It's a good job."

"Although General Sun is a bit domineering, he is a relative of the Sun family after all, so there must be no mistake in this point of propriety." Sun Shao replied with a smile.He could tell that Sun Quan was very satisfied with Sun Shao's actions and was in a good mood. This was the first time he showed such a smile in so many days.

"Domineering? Who said that?" Sun Quan glanced at Sun Shao with a smile.

"He crushed General Protector Zhenglu to death, isn't that considered domineering?" Sun Shao also replied with a smile.He knew that Sun Quan was in a good mood now, and he could say some sensitive things. At other times, he was afraid that Sun Quan would get angry when he mentioned this word.

"That's true, this Zhuzi did some outrageous things." Sun Quan stood up and walked around the room, "But then again, if he didn't follow the common sense and take down Jiaozhou, I would How can it be so stable now? Jiaozhou is now my Jiangdong granary."

Sun Shao also smiled, very comfortably.Yes, thanks to Sun Shao and Bu Zhi who won Jiaozhou last year, otherwise it is really hard to say whether they can stop Cao Cao's all-out attack this time.There is no shortage of food in Jiangdong, but it is not short. It is impossible to support Liu Bei in large quantities. Now that there are 30 years of savings from Jiaozhou scholars, Sun Quan has a big pocket. Not only is there no shortage of food in Jiangdong's army, And it can support Liu Bei in large quantities. Of course, the food price this time is enough to bite off a large piece of Liu Bei's meat.With sufficient food, Jiangdong can not only sell food, but also sell alcohol. The widespread use of alcohol not only greatly reduces the casualties of soldiers, but also can be exchanged for money.If Liu Bei is only temporarily short of food, then he has no other place to get alcohol. Sun Quan said that he has to pay as much as a stone, or you don't buy it.

After this battle is over, Liu Bei's disaster is far from over, and he has to face the next currency issue, which will make Liu Bei unable to recover within a few years.In this case, Guan Yu dared to compete with Sun Quan, basically it can only be attributed to ignorance.

So Sun Quan was very satisfied with Sun Shao's actions. He didn't forget his surname, and he didn't ignore the principle just because he was Guan Yu's son-in-law.

"How about Jiang Gongyi?" Sun Quan asked again.

"It is said that it is going well. Although Su Chukui has some opinions, there is no trouble."

"Well, that's good." Sun Quan sighed, and said with some regret: "I really didn't expect that Yu Jin, one of the five best generals, would be so inexperienced in military affairs. As a general, he should know everything about astronomy and geography. There is a flood season, and he is not prepared at all? The camp of 3 people has been washed away, ah, what a five-son general, flashy."

Sun Shao opened his mouth, but said nothing, thinking that if the five good generals are flashy, then Zhang Liao almost beat you to death, wouldn't you be even more flashy?But he didn't dare to say these words, he knew that this was the pain in Sun Quan's heart.

As a veteran of Jiangdong, Sun Shao knew that Sun Quan had a heart disease, and the root cause was a sentence Sun Ce said when he was dying.

Before Sun Ce's death, when he entrusted Jiangdong to Sun Quan, he said, "Jiangdong's people will decide between the two battles and compete with the world. You are not as good as me. To appoint talents and talents, each will do his best to protect Jiang's heart." , I am not as good as Qing." This sentence was originally referring to Sun Quan's strengths, but from another perspective, it was also referring to Sun Quan's weaknesses: you are not good at fighting.And Sun Quan was only eighteen or nineteen years old at the time, and it was the time when he was arrogant, and among his brothers and sisters, except for Sun Kuang and Sun Shangxiang who were still young, the first three were all brave people, and Sun Quan's martial arts skills were also quite good , He also hopes to fight on the battlefield like his father and brother, and make great achievements in battle.This is the case with his third brother, Sun Yi. Many people think that Sun Yi is more suitable to take over than Sun Quan, because Sun Yi is more like Sun Ce than Sun Quan, and has inherited Sun Jian's ability to be brave and good at fighting.

Sun Quan didn't say anything, but he was not convinced in his heart. After taking over Jiangdong, he led his troops to conquest many times, conquering Huangzu, attacking Wancheng, and attacking Hefei. He often visited the front line in person. At the end of Jian'an 13th year, he , and even put on armor and hold a halberd to challenge the city.Why?Didn't he just want to prove to others that he is as brave as Sun Ce?Why did he hunt tigers many times and was almost injured by tigers?Still for this reason.

However, in the 20th year of Jian'an, Zhang Liao gave Sun Quan a head-on blow under the city of Hefei, shattering the confidence he had cultivated. The [-] army was defeated twice by Zhang Liao, and the last time he even killed Sun Quan. The disastrous defeat became Sun Quan's nightmare, once again proving Sun Ce's correctness: "You are not as good as me in the battle between the two battles."

Ten years of hard work has only proved this sentence.

Now that Sun Shao was born, he swept the East China Sea and the South China Sea in a few years, and made great military exploits. It seems that Sun Ce is reborn, what will Sun Quan think?
So Sun Shao knew very well that no matter how obedient Sun Shao was, he would be a thorn in Sun Quan's heart, and he would not have any problems if he properly talked about Sun Shao's faults in front of Sun Quan.

"Chang Xu, Guan Yu defeated Yu Jin, and Cao Ren can't hold on for long. Do you think Cao Cao will withdraw from Bashu, or send Xiahou Dun to ask for help?" Sun Quan walked out of the lobby, came to the corridor, and habitually walked along the corridor. start.Sun Shao hurriedly followed, closely following.He thought for a moment and said, "It's all possible. However, I don't think it's possible."

"Why do you say that?" Sun Quan asked calmly.

"In order to take Yizhou, Cao Cao violated the law of war and moved with all his strength. After nearly a year, he finally attacked the hinterland of Bashu. If he is asked to withdraw at this time, wouldn't his previous efforts be in vain? So he has to withdraw , I’m afraid it’s not easy. It’s probably not easy for Xiahou Dun to ask for help. Once Xiahou Dun withdraws, who will guard the Jianghuai? So it’s also unlikely.”

"Then can't it be saved?" Sun Quan couldn't help laughing, stopped in his tracks, turned around and looked at Sun Shao: "Sit and watch Cao Ren get trapped?"

"Of course not." Sun Shao hesitated, "I think Cao Cao will move the capital."

"Move the capital?" Sun Quan really felt strange this time, he put away his smile and looked at Sun Shao seriously, "Why do you think he will move the capital?"

"Supreme." Sun Shao organized his words: "Where do you think Guan Yu can attack?"

Sun Quan rolled his eyes, carefully considered the strength comparison between the two sides, and then said: "With Guan Yu's current strength, he can probably occupy Nanyang County at most. If he goes further north, he may be beyond his reach."

"What the Supreme Being said is true. With Guan Yu's strength, he can win Nanyang County at most, and his military front can reach the limit of Xu County. Then Cao Cao only needs to move the emperor from Xu County to Yecheng, and Guan Yu can only wait and see Sigh. And he can take Yizhou calmly, as long as he takes Yizhou, how long will Guan Yu be so powerful?"

Sun Quan was stunned. He only thought that Cao Cao would come to save Cao Ren, but he never thought that Cao Cao would give up Nanyang. However, what Sun Shao said made sense. If Cao Cao gave up Nanyang and continued to attack Yizhou, then it would be him Still may be the ultimate victor.

Guan Yu's victory seemed unexpected and exciting, but after careful consideration, it still didn't help.

"Then... what should we do?" Sun Quan was a little anxious.He was not worried about Liu Bei, but himself.

"There are two ways." Sun Shao said hesitantly: "One is to help Guan Yu at all costs and help him fight further, not only to Xu County, but also to Luoyang, and also to Yecheng, forcing Cao Cao Withdraw from Yizhou. The other is..."

"What's the other one, tell me!" Sun Quan became impatient.

"The other is to ask Cao Cao to surrender in exchange for the six counties in Jiangdong. With the strength of our Jiangdong navy and the great danger of the river, we can occupy Jiangdong for at least 30 years. None of Cao Cao's sons can match Cao Cao's ability to use troops. How many years can he live? Once he dies, how do you know that nothing will change?"

Sun Quan was speechless for a while, and Sun Shao's words made him at a loss.He turned back and forth a few times, and finally shook his head: "It's better to assist Guan Yu in attacking Nanyang. Although Liu Bei is a rogue, he is much easier to deal with than Cao Cao. Although Cao Cao is over sixty years old, who knows how long he will live?" If he lives another ten years without dying, can I keep him alive for another ten years?"

Sun Shao no longer explained, just nodded and said: "Supreme wise."

Sun Quan turned back and forth a few times irritatedly, and said with some anxiety: "But if Guan Yu takes Nanyang, we still haven't accomplished an inch, and I'm afraid we will be at a disadvantage then. No, we have to let Ziming and Gongyi hurry up." , strive to defeat Xiahou Dun as soon as possible, and seize the land of Jianghuai."

After speaking, he immediately sent someone to invite Lu Meng, Jiang Qin, Lu Xun and others to discuss matters.After getting the news, Lu Meng and others arrived soon. When they saw the battle report, they were very surprised. They always thought that Guan Yu would have a tough fight, but they didn't expect that Yu Jin would be solved by a flood. The progress of the battle was somewhat beyond their expectations. expected.After listening to Sun Shao's suggestion, the three of them looked at each other, and they were all a little embarrassed. Finally, everyone turned their attention to Jiang Qin. became the key.

"I'm afraid it's unrealistic to defeat the Qingxu Navy in a short period of time." Jiang Qin smiled wryly, everyone looked at him, he was under a lot of pressure. "Although Su Chu's legs are under my command, his strength is far superior to mine. Even if the new warships are equipped in place, our tactics are not as proficient as them. We need at least one more month to get familiar with them. Generally speaking, two months We won't make much progress within that time frame."

"Su Chugui doesn't obey your order?" Sun Quan's face darkened, very annoyed.

"I listen to the order, but the execution is not thorough. He can always find many reasons." Jiang Qin bowed to the ground in shame: "I am incompetent, please punish me."

Sun Quan understood that Su Chugui and the others were openly dissatisfied, obediently obedient and contradictory, and Yu Fan probably did not act either.It's no wonder that Sun Shao made great contributions, but he split the Aurora Navy, which will inevitably make people uneasy.This kind of thing is not uncommon. If Jiang Qin forcibly mobilizes Su's thick legs before his strength surpasses Su's thick legs, I'm afraid it will backfire.

"My lord, why don't you lure him with money?" Lu Meng pondered for a moment, then raised his head and said calmly, "Su Chugui was originally a pirate. What did he ask for? It was nothing more than official positions and benefits. Whatever the later general can give him, the lord can give him." , what the Supreme can give, the latter general may not be able to give."

Sun Quan suddenly realized, and nodded again and again, that's right, adding an official rank to Su Chukuleg will benefit him, and he will naturally abandon Sun Shao and invest in himself.He asked for Lu Xun's opinion, and Lu Xun naturally agreed.It's just that he was a little curious. Sun Shao also left Su's thick legs to Sun Quan. Could it be that he was really willing to sacrifice his strength to show his loyalty?But judging from his actions, he is not someone who is willing to tolerate.Is there any other way for him?
Sun Quan immediately asked Lv Yi to write an order, conferring on Su Chuga the title of General Lou Chuan, enfeoffing the town of Tang Ting Hou, eight hundred households in the town, and giving rewards to each of his subordinates.At the same time, he was urged to cooperate with Jiang Qin in the order to defeat the Qingxu navy as soon as possible, and there must be another reward at that time.

At the same time, Sun Quan ordered Sun Shao to try his best to establish a good relationship with Guan Yu, assist Guan Yu in attacking with all his strength, fight as far as possible, and fight as hard as possible, so as to attract Cao Cao from Yizhou as soon as possible and relieve Liu Bei's crisis.At the same time as the order was issued, he sent another batch of food and supplies, and at the same time wrote a letter to Guan Yu, expressing that he would go all out and cooperate sincerely with Liu Bei to defeat Cao Cao and restore the determination of the Han Dynasty.

When Sun Shao received Sun Quan's letter, it was already the eighth day after Guan Yu stormed Fancheng.In the past eight days, Guan Yu has used all his skills, and the warships have sailed to the top of the city of Fancheng. The soldiers directly fought with Cao Ren at the top of the city. , and Man Chong stood in the wet muddy water and ran around shouting, boosting morale, and drove the soldiers who rushed to the top of the city down again and again.In fact, he was already desperate when he was defeated in the Jin battle, and was about to abandon the city and flee, but Man Chong persuaded him.Man Chong told him that although Guan Yu was still in Fancheng, his vanguard army had already arrived at Jiaxia. In the south of Xu County, the people were uneasy, but why Guan Yu himself did not dare to advance?It is because Xiangyang and Fancheng are still in our hands, he is afraid of being intercepted in the rear, so he dare not enter lightly.If we break through the encirclement, Nanyang County will be lost, and Guan Yu will be able to directly attack Xu County with confidence.Do you think Duke Cao will abandon Nanyang and us?He will definitely send someone to rescue us.Even if we want to give up Nanyang in the end, we have to wait for Cao Gong's order, otherwise, we will be sinners.

Cao Ren thought about it for a long time, and finally decided to stick to it. He killed a white horse at the top of the city, and vowed to live and die with the city.At this time, Man Chong said to everyone that Yu Jin was defeated not because Guan Yu was strong, but because of mountain torrents. Mountain torrents come and go quickly. We only need to persist for a few more days. Once the water recedes, Guan Yu will be helpless.Inspired by their confidence, the crowd broke out with powerful fighting power in the next few days, repelling Guan Yu time and time again.

Seeing that the ten-day deadline was approaching, Guan Yu was very anxious. On the one hand, the battle situation had not progressed, and on the other hand, he also felt ashamed. He had praised Haikou in front of Sun Shao. Shao appeared on the stage, so where would I save my face? Could it be that the father-in-law wanted to admit defeat to the son-in-law?
At this moment, Sun Quan's letter arrived.After reading the letter, Guan Yu let out a long sigh of relief.In an instant, he was very grateful to Sun Quan, not only for his unremitting support, but also for giving him the best step.With Sun Quan's order, he can justifiably ask Sun Shao to join the war.

After Sun Shao received the letter, he took the initiative to come to the door. He smiled as usual, and never mentioned the ten-day agreement. In fact, he didn't talk about the ten-day agreement with anyone except Yin Guan. Sun Jiao and others are still in the dark about why Guan Yu's fight is in full swing, but Sun Shao is sitting peacefully like a mountain, and has no intention of helping at all.

"Yue Zhang, how do you see us cooperating?" Sun Shao said to Guan Yu very politely.

Guan Yu's anger is still there, but at this moment, he is no longer in the mood to be angry with Sun Shaozhi. If he really wants to mess with Sun Shao, I will wait for you for another two days, and then there is really nothing I can do about him.

"What do you think?" Guan Yu suppressed his anger and asked in a deep voice.

"I'll play forward for Yue Zhang. First, I will go up and beat Cao Ren hard, and then Yue Zhang will come and teach him a lesson. I think Fancheng will be able to beat him down."

"Are you so sure?" Guan Yu looked at Sun Shao unconvinced, thinking he was bragging.

Sun Shao smiled lightly: "With Yue Zhang in charge behind, breaking Fancheng is no small matter. Once Fancheng is broken, Xiangyang will be easy to handle. Yue Zhang, you should first consider how to enter Nanyang after breaking Fancheng and Xiangyang."

Seeing Sun Shao repeating his old words, Guan Yu was not as arrogant as last time, because he now knew that without Sun Shao's help, it would not be easy for him to take Nanyang quickly.He thought for a moment: "At that time, you will be the vanguard, and I will lead the army to follow. As for the territory, you will be rewarded according to your merits. Since the two are allies, it is easy to discuss things."

Sun Shao laughed, is this reasonable? I said that a long time ago, how can I be like this today.Without saying a word, he agreed.

Soon, Sun Shao led the army out of the camp. He said to Sun Jiao, today I will give you a chance to make meritorious service. Have you seen it? Bewildered, you lead people to rush up, and this first achievement is yours.

Sun Jiao was so happy that his back molars came out, so there was no reason not to agree.

Sun Shao ordered the five building ships to sail to the south gate of Fancheng, and the other warships guarded around Fancheng, preparing to capture Cao Jun who might break out of the encirclement.Everything was ready, 75 thunderbolt cannons and [-] giant crossbows on the five buildings began to bombard the city head indiscriminately.It should be said that Sun Shao has not been idle these days. In addition to letting the soldiers perform daily drills, he prepared stone bullets, a large number of stone bullets, and the drills of thunderbolt gunners and crossbowmen were the most important. After several days of intensive training, the state of the gunners and crossbowmen has been adjusted to the best state. With one order, each of them seems to be on drugs, and they have endless strength.Winding, arrowing, and launching are almost like innate instincts, and the proficiency is dazzling.

Cao Ren was immediately stunned.

When he saw five building ships parked fifty paces outside the south gate, he already felt great pressure. He ordered the defensive crossbows and Thunderbolt chariots at the top of the city to attack the building ships, but the number was limited Second, there is no chance to replenish the stone bullets these days. At the beginning, they fired a little bit of force. In front of the crossbow, their counterattack was as negligible as drizzle. What's more, the first attack targets on the building boat were the defending crossbow and thunderbolt chariot. It was only two rounds of attack. The car was lost.

Then it became the time for the Sinian Navy to unilaterally abuse.

The gate tower on the city wall that was about to fall was smashed, the female wall that was soaked in water was smashed down, the warship parked behind the city wall was smashed, and the roaring stone bullets smashed into pieces. Water splashed on the city wall, water jets shot up into the sky one by one, and the rain of long arrows shot the soldiers into a panic, crying and howling, one after another fell into the pool of blood and fell into the muddy water.

The entire south gate of Fancheng became a hell, with corpses everywhere, blood everywhere, stone bullets and crossbow arrows everywhere.

Cao Ren huddled at the base of the city wall, his face was pale, and Man Chong was beside him. He, who was always resourceful, had lost his composure now. Jiangdong's Aurora Navy had been watching the battle for the past few days. They were a little lucky at first, thinking The Sun and Liu families have their own ghosts, and they seem to be in harmony with each other. It seems that there is still an opportunity to take advantage of it. Unexpectedly, the Aurora Marines used their trump card as soon as they came up today, knocking them out without even giving them a chance to react.In the blink of an eye, the south gate, which was most heavily guarded, was riddled with holes and lost its combat effectiveness.

At some point, the whistling of stone bullets and crossbow arrows stopped, but the shouts of killing were getting closer. Cao Ren stood up, drew out the long knife at his waist, and said to Man Chong without emotion: "Bo Ning , Now it's time for me to fulfill my vow."

Man Chong grabbed Cao Ren and was about to speak, but Cao Ren shook his head and slowly pushed Man Chong away: "You run away and tell Cao Gong that Cao Ren is incompetent and failed to hold Fancheng, and has already died with Fancheng " After finishing speaking, he raised his knife and shouted wildly: "Niu Jin, follow me to kill the enemy!"

"Here." Niu Jin, who was covered in muddy water, slammed into the promise, and followed up with more than 50 surviving guards. They rushed up the city wall stepping on the bloody water that was flowing wantonly, just as they ran into the man who had just jumped off the warship. Sun Jiao, the two sides killed each other immediately without saying anything.Cao Ren shouted forward, slashing left and right with the long knife in his hand, and killed three people in a row in a blink of an eye. Sun Jiao was furious, strode forward to meet him, and slashed with the knife.The two were fighting together, Cao Ren's eyes were wide open with anger, his long sword was dancing fiercely, and the sword was slashing at Sun Jiao's vitals, only attacking but not defending. Cao Ren was forced to retreat step by step. Niu Jin led his bodyguards roaring forward, guarding Cao Ren tightly. More than 50 besieged warriors and the rushing Sun Jiao and others were killed together, and one after another fell down. down, but no one took a step back.

Sun Jiao became angry immediately, he let out a long roar, put Cao Ren's long knife on the shield with his left hand, and slammed into him.The long knife stretched out from under the shield and pierced Cao Ren's lower abdomen.Cao Ren was exhausted, and he pushed back two steps. His stomach felt cold, knowing that he had been tricked, he flew into a rage, and punched Sun Jiao's shield with a reckless fist, deflecting the shield. The knife came suddenly, and slashed hard on Sun Jiao's shoulder, only three inches away from the neck. Sun Jiao screamed in pain, twisted the long knife inserted in Cao Ren's belly, and kicked Cao Ren in the air. The two stepped back at the same time, Cao Ren gathered his last strength, pressed his left hand tightly on the back of the knife, and the long knife slashed across Sun Jiao's shoulder, making a long cut, and blood gushed out.

The two glanced at each other unconvinced, staggered twice, and fell to the ground at the same time.

(End of this chapter)