Zu Jue never expected that he would encounter so many things on an originally ordinary expedition.
Let’s forget about Qizhou’s situation. We can get through it if we bite the bullet, but the impact of the Southern and Northern Expeditions is really too great.
Zu Jue said solemnly: "My lord, our troops in various places have not yet completed their training. All the field troops are in the north. Even if we want to transfer them here, I'm afraid it will be too late. Besides, the journey is extremely long."
"In several states in the south, there are too many armies to fight. King Lou has never commanded a large army. The various places may not obey him. They fight on their own. Sooner or later, they will be defeated by the southerners one by one!"
"If the enemy knows that we are in Guangzhou, they may concentrate their troops, cross Huaihe and Haizhou, and come to Jiaodong to block our road."
"The enemy's navy is also quite powerful. If they can defeat Guangzhou and Huaizhou, they can even go directly north to attack Guangzhou from the waterway!"
"Lord, we must return to the north of the river as soon as possible."
Hearing Zu Jue's analysis, Liu Taozi frowned and said nothing.
Wang Lin sat aside and said in a low voice: "What my grandfather said makes sense. My lord, please don't underestimate these southern generals. Xu Du is a veteran general of the Chen Kingdom. He is very experienced and has great military exploits. He is as fierce as fire."
, it is possible to conduct military operations but be extremely cautious."
"Wu Mingche is even more extraordinary. At the moment, he is the leader of the most powerful General Chen. This man is brave and extraordinary, and he likes to come up with strange plans. He is particularly admired by everyone in the army. He is deeply respected and loved by the soldiers. He has many warriors under his command, and each of them can be regarded as an equal.
Hundred!"
"Huang Fazhu is a benevolent general. He governs the army strictly and distinguishes rewards and punishments. When his officers pass by the city, they can avoid infringing on the people!"
"Moreover, Chen Guo has been fighting for these years, fighting with the generals around him. The more than 100,000 people they have summoned now are veterans who have experienced several years of fighting."
"Three powerful generals, plus these more than 100,000 elites, are not easily defeated."
"Besides, as my grandfather just said, if they learn that our lord is in Guangzhou, they will definitely try their best to attack. Their navy is equally powerful. If we set up defenses on the front line, they will go around and attack Guangzhou on three sides.
It is impossible to block their landing by enclosing the sea.”
Wang Lin was also a little shaken.
As a southerner, he knows the enemy's situation better than Zu Jue.
Although he wanted to take revenge and fight against the Southerners, judging from the current situation, the enemy was still too strong and capable of threatening them.
Liu Taozi looked at the agitated two people and couldn't help but look at Shi Wansui who was standing at the door.
"Long live, ask someone to bring some tea."
Shi Wansui bowed his head and said yes, and hurried out.
Soon, someone brought tea and placed it in front of the two of them. They didn't know what Liu Taozi meant, but Zu Jue was rude and drank it.
Liu Taozi then said slowly: "Don't be anxious, you two. Let's have some tea first."
"The current situation is that Lou Rui uses thousands of elites, plus soldiers from all over the country, to fight against the three generals of the Southern Kingdom."
"In my opinion, Lou Rui will definitely lose."
"But once Lou Rui is defeated, based on the virtues of the governors from all over the country, none of them can fight to the end and will choose to surrender. In this way, Chen Guo will be able to get the most fertile land south of the river without any effort.
area
, then Yan, Yu, Huai, Qing, and Yang are all the richest places in the world. Just give it to Chen Guo. From now on, we will fight with the Turks in Hebei in the north, and Yuwen Yong in the west.
Going south, we have to fight with the Chen people."
"We are enemies on three sides, which is extremely detrimental to us."
"Originally, the only one who can fight against us is Yu Wenyong, and Chen Guo is far inferior to Bei. But if they are allowed to take over these areas, the situation will be very different."
"The navy of Chen State can transport the elites of the Central Plains to our coast. From Anzhou to Qingzhou, this coastline may be attacked everywhere, but we have no ability to resist."
"This is something I will never tolerate."
After Zu Jue drank the bitter tea, what he worried about came again.
My lord is good at everything, but there is one thing: he doesn't like to run away with his head down, he is too strong-willed.
He had no choice but to look at Wang Lin secretly and wink at him.
Just as Wang Lin was about to speak, Liu Taozi added: "Although there are many enemies, there are few cavalry. Besides, they are all from the south. They are not used to fighting in the north."
"It's autumn now, and it will be cold winter soon. As long as they fail to defeat Lou Rui in the past few months, they will have to wait until next year's autumn harvest to continue sending troops. They can't fight in the north in the cold winter, otherwise they will be ten
With more than ten thousand troops gathered, if some disease breaks out."
If Liu Taozi was just talking big words about the enemy's danger and having to fight, then Wang Lin would definitely persuade him to retreat.
But when Liu Taozi began to explore the enemy's weaknesses and deficiencies, Wang Lin became hesitant.
He slowly added: "Actually, these three people are not working together."
"The three of them all have their own advantages, but the three of them are not convinced by each other. They all hope that their own contributions are the greatest. They are involved in each other, and it is impossible to work together."
Liu Taozi nodded, "The enemy is not invincible. Although our soldiers are few, they are elite knights. Although there are many enemies, they may not be able to assemble a cavalry force that can rival us."
The horse shortage problem in the south has been going on for a long time. War horses from the north sent to the south can often be sold for sky-high prices. However, the cavalry troops in the south are also very few, and there are not even a few qualified cavalry officers. Of course, the Lianghuai
The area can still be found, but the Lianghuai area has been separated from the Southern Dynasty for a long time.
When Liu Taozi saw that Zu Jue was silent, he asked someone to take out the map and put it in front of him.
This map is relatively rough. It only marks the location and division of states, counties and counties, and cannot be regarded as a qualified military map.
But this is enough.
Liu Taozi pointed at the map, "The enemy is currently attacking Qin, He, and Jiangzhou, but Nanguang has not been attacked. In other words, there is currently no enemy situation in Huai, Hai and other states. It is impossible for the enemy not to attack."
Take Nanguang and enter these prefectures and counties."
Wang Lin sat aside and nodded in approval.
Liu Taozi's finger went down from the map and tapped a place hard.
He looked at Zu Jue and said, "Grandpa Zu, I understand your worries."
"Don't worry, even if I'm not successful in the battle, I won't throw my life away over there. The cavalry from the north to the south will not be able to catch up with the cavalry."
Zu Jue frowned and said seriously: "My lord, now you are not a fierce general under His Majesty's command. You are the Lord of Hebei, but the king of the frontier. There are millions of people under your command, and countless people rely on you to survive.
You can't always take the lead like this. Although you are brave, your sword has no eyes on this battlefield. If you hurt the lord, what should we do?"
"This time the enemy has sent 100,000 troops, but you only have 3,000 fine cavalry under your command. You are thinking of fighting the enemy again. This is really risky, and I will never agree to it."
Zu Jue put down the tea cup in his hand, stood up and walked directly opposite Liu Taozi. Then he knelt down and stretched his head forward.
"If the lord insists on going to fight, please kill Zu Jue first. The day when the lord goes to war will be the time of Zu Jue's death."
Wang Lin on the side was shocked.
He looked at the guy in front of him carefully. Zu Jue's face was very serious, and it didn't look like he was joking at all.
And Zu Jue was indeed not joking.
If there were other generals following him today, Zu Jue would instigate the other generals to take the initiative to fight and help Lou Rui solve the difficulties without them having to speak.
But the person who said this was the Lord, so Zu Jue would never dare to agree.
As a prince, how can he lead his cavalry into battle every day?
If something goes wrong, a good situation will be ruined in one day.
Liu Taozi was not angry, "Grandpa, you get up first."
"If I don't get up, it's not because I can't trust my lord. I know that if my lord takes action, he will definitely win a great victory. However, I am worried that this victory will increase my lord's arrogance and he will be the first in every battle in the future. So who can stop him?
"
"If my lord insists on going on an expedition today, please kill me first!"
Zu Jue was extremely tough and would not give in at all.
Wang Lin was stunned.
Zu Jue has always felt like a sycophant to him. Even if he has some talents, he is definitely not related to his straight minister.
But I didn't expect that Zu Jue would be so tough today.
Liu Taozi looked at Zu Jue, "I know my grandfather's temper, and my grandfather also knows my temper."
"If there is a change of generals at the moment, the only cavalry commander who can replace me is Gao Changgong, and Gao Changgong is far away in Lingzhou. The rest cannot be regarded as cavalry commanders. Yao Xiong, Kou Liu and others still have many shortcomings."
"I promised Grandpa, just this once, and I won't do it again next time, okay?"
Qinzhou.
"kill!!"
"Boom~~"
The cart made a loud noise, and the huge stone was thrown up and smashed towards the tall city wall.
Stones flew and collided heavily with the city wall. The city wall shook, the stones cracked, and the sky was filled with dust.
The soldiers on the city wall shouted, and the crossbows were aimed at the throwing carts in the distance. As they started, the crossbows roared and fired. The huge arrows directly broke through the wooden shields, including people and armor.
wear.
Outside the city, Chen Bing was everywhere in the mountains and plains.
They didn't surround the city, but surrounded the city completely, and there were crazy bombardments from all sides.
I saw more and more enemies in the distance, and some shield bearers were already forming up, hoping to launch a general attack.
On the city tower, the flags were constantly changing, and the defenders were running around.
Master Qian looked at the countless enemies outside the city wall, his eyes full of fear. He was wearing an armor that was much larger than himself. The armor hung on his body, and it always looked a little empty. His face was pale.
The hand holding the knife was shaking.
He had never worn armor or fought in a battle in his life.
The person standing next to him was none other than the local governor, Lu Yao.
Lu Yao looked much weaker than before. He was also wearing armor and holding a long sword.
He originally served as the governor of Jiangzhou, but because he hindered the local business relationship with the south, he was sent to Qinzhou. The Qinzhou of Daqi is in the south. Although Qinzhou is also close to Chen State, it is not here.
There is no trade, because across the bank is the naval camp of the Chen Kingdom. When Chen Qian was in power, he was relatively strict with his subordinates. At least under his eyes, the navy camp would not let smugglers go.
.
Because Lu Yao was sent here to serve as the governor, it is ridiculous to say that the governor who was on the front line against the enemy turned out to be a person who was not familiar with war.
Lu Yaozu had been a general and made many achievements, but by his generation, he had already begun to study classics. He was more Han than Han, and there was no trace of Lao Xianbei at all.
When Lu Yao was young, he even looked down on his old Xianbei relatives who only knew how to fight and kill.
But at this moment, Lu Yao stood at the top of the city, looking at the dense enemy troops outside, and suddenly began to regret why he was not Lao Xianbei who only knew how to fight and kill.
The opponent's general is a famous general who has experienced many years of war, but on his side, he has only read some art of war. Although he has served in the army, he has never been a general.
Lu Yao's forehead was covered with sweat, and he no longer knew whether he could hold on.
The more Master Qian looked, the more frightened he became, and he kept approaching Lu Yao.
"Lord, can you hold on?"
Lu Yao just looked at the enemies under the city, "The enemies just have more soldiers, there is nothing to be afraid of!"
"Our reinforcements will arrive soon, why should we be afraid?!"
"Inform the soldiers everywhere that after they defend the city and repel the enemy, I will be the emperor, and everyone will be rewarded!!"
"only!!"
As a scholar who was not good at tactics, Lu Yao could only choose to fight by improving morale.
The enemy launched a fierce attack at the next moment. Lu Yao always stood at the top of the city, holding a sharp sword, and led the people to counterattack.
Wu Mingche stood in the distance, watching the sergeants under his command rushing towards the enemy like a flood.
His eyes were full of confidence.
He knew almost everything about the situation in the city. The governor, Lu Yao, was a scholar and had never fought in a war.
Based on his understanding of Beiren, a thing like this might not even be able to withstand a single charge.
When his sergeants successfully approached the city wall, Wu Mingche had already begun to think about which city to attack next. Just when he picked up the map and began to observe, bursts of killing shouts erupted from the city wall. Wu Mingche
He suddenly raised his head and saw that his ladders were burned down one by one. The soldiers were covered in fire and rolling on the ground screaming. Arrows on the city wall kept flying out, more and more each time. The soldiers attacking the city
They fell to the ground one after another.
Wu Mingche slowly put down the map and began to fight with all his heart.
The siege continued, and Chen's soldiers carried out four strong attacks, but the enemy's counterattacks became stronger each time.
Wu Mingche's face turned completely dark.
Before setting off for the expedition, he had sworn to tell the emperor how weak the Northerners were now. Is it just the beginning and the resistance is so great?
Soon, the vanguard general appeared in front of Wu Mingche with wounds all over his body.
Looking at the panting Pioneer, Wu Mingche asked coldly: "What's going on??"
The vanguard's face was full of helplessness, "General, the defenders in this city are particularly desperate. Some even jumped onto the ladder with torches. This..."
Wu Mingche frowned and quickly summoned several lieutenants to discuss the matter.
One of the generals who was responsible for inquiring about intelligence from various places took out a lot of documents and said: "General, this Lu Yao is not a traitor. After he came to Qinzhou, he dealt with the local tyrants, treated the people generously, equalized the land, and gave many rewards.
The soldiers, from top to bottom, had no complaints against him, and all believed that they had received great kindness from him. Therefore, although he did not know how to fight, the whole city was willing to fight to the death for him."
Wu Mingche was a little shocked, "Among the barbarians, there are still such people?"
He pondered for a long time and said, "Stop the attack first. Tomorrow, I will go to the city to meet with the governor. Although this man is a barbarian, he is a minister. If he can surrender to us."
The siege then ceased.
The next day, Lu Yao was still guarding the city wall. While he was taking a nap, a scout ran out of the city and said, "My general, please discuss with Governor Lu!!"
Lu Yao stuck his head out and looked at the scout.
He said angrily: "I have nothing to discuss with your general!"
"Go back and tell him!"
"That General Liu Taozi is the one I recommend. If he learns that I am besieged, he will definitely lead his troops to rescue me! You little thieves, if you encounter him, you will only die! Before he comes here!"
, run away early!! Don’t lose your life!!”
Lu Yao roared loudly, and the scout turned and left.
On the city wall, bursts of cheers came again.
Master Qian was a little excited at this moment. He asked ecstatically: "My lord?! General Liu is coming??"
"If he comes, why should we be afraid of southerners?"
When the scout went back and told Wu Mingche these words, the generals around Wu Mingche were also particularly surprised.
Wu Mingche looked at the panicked crowd and felt a little displeased, "Why are you panicking?!"
"Can't you see that this is Lu Yao's plan to boost his military morale??"
"Liu Taozi is in the north and his army is outside the fortress. How can he get here?"
"A bunch of idiots!!"
Wu Mingche scolded him, and then said: "But this Lu Yao is really a righteous man. It is a pity that such a person cannot be used by us."
Wu Mingche frowned, his face full of solemnity.
"Who is willing to defeat this city for me?! I will be rewarded heavily!!"
"I will go there in the end!!"
Among the many generals, a man suddenly stepped out.
Everyone took a closer look and saw that this man was tall and powerful, with a thick beard and wide eyes.
Many people did not recognize this guy and asked in a low voice: "Who is this?"
And those who know him are full of respect.
"This is the prefect of Bashan."
"Xiao Mohe!"
Chapter completed!