Lei Tong rushed back to Jianmen Pass with 500 elite soldiers overnight, and reported to Deng Xian that he had captured Jiameng Pass and captured one general. The rest of the defenders fled to Hanzhong.
Deng Xian was greatly surprised. He didn't expect Lei Tong to be so capable. Looking at the bound Kou Feng, he asked in surprise: "The Jiameng Pass is easy to defend but difficult to attack. How can General Lei succeed?"
Lei Tong said with a smile: "This man thought he was very skilled in martial arts. He came out to fight, but was captured alive in front of my formation. Taking advantage of the situation, he rushed into the gate. Liu Xian saw that the situation was not good, so he abandoned the pass and left."
"Turns out he is a useless person!" Deng Xian sighed, secretly regretting it, and frowned: "Since we have taken Jiameng Pass, the general should guard the pass, why bother to escort him here personally?"
He knew that Liu Qi had many capable people under his command. Previously, Kou Feng was showing off his power outside the camp and did not dare to go into battle rashly. If he had known this, he would have killed the enemy and made meritorious service in the past few days.
Lei Tong smiled and said: "We were repeatedly bullied by the Jingzhou army in Yizhou. This time we finally won a big victory. I should be more cautious. I will guard the pass tomorrow. General Youlao will send someone to escort him to Chengdu. This battle is inspiring In the hearts of the people, the lord will be overjoyed and will be rewarded greatly, and the general will also share the credit."
When Deng Xian saw that Lei Tong was willing to share the credit, he couldn't help but be overjoyed. He ordered people to take Kou Feng down and guard him closely, and held a banquet to celebrate Lei Tong's success.
The banquet was about to break up at midnight. Deng Xian was very drunk. He suddenly heard shouts of killing in his sleep. He was shaken awake by his own soldiers, only to see fires everywhere in the camp and figures bumping into each other.
Deng Xian woke up instantly and asked in shock: "What happened?"
The soldiers were sweating profusely: "The Jingzhou army came from nowhere to kill. There is a fire in the camp. General, leave quickly!"
Deng Xian didn't care about dressing up, and hurriedly mounted his horse wearing only his shirt, and fled to Zitong. Just after passing the entrance of Jiangu Valley, he saw the noise of people in front of him, and countless deserters gathered here, like a school of fish that had been intercepted, panicking.
Deng Xian was furious, stepped forward on his horse and shouted: "Who is so bold as to block my way?"
"Those who surrender will not be killed!" As soon as he finished speaking, he saw the torches at the intersection were lit, and a group of men and horses were waiting in strict formation, with bright armor, and all their bows and crossbows pointed at the Shu army.
These deserters had already thrown away their armor and weapons and fled, but when they were intercepted by the army, they were unable to resist and knelt down one after another, making Deng Xian look very awkward on the horse.
A general leapt out of his horse, raised his gun and shouted: "A certain person is Chen from Runan. Who is coming? Why don't you come down quickly?"
The cold night wind blew through his chest, and Deng Xian let out a long sigh, turned over and dismounted, and lost the battle in a daze, as if he was in a dream.
Chen Dao sent people to escort Deng Xian and the prisoners back to Jianmen Pass, and personally led people to continue guarding the intersection to prevent any deserters from escaping to avoid leaking the news.
Deng Xian was escorted back to Jianmen Pass. It was already dawn. The Jingzhou army had put out the fire, and they saw the dark square filled with embarrassed Shu troops, all of whom were his troops.
In the central military tent, a young general was sitting in command, with a scribe on each side. Lei Tong and Kou Feng were also there, standing behind a black-faced man who looked like an iron tower.
"General Lei, you..." Deng Xian was taken aback and suddenly said angrily: "You betrayed me?"
Lei Tong clasped his fists and sighed: "To be honest, I was defeated by General Zhang when I attacked Jiameng Pass. I just escaped death because of General Liu's kindness. Now Liu Yizhou has unknown personnel and it is difficult to defend the border. Why don't you abandon the secret and surrender to the bright side?" , can we achieve great things together?"
Deng Xian turned to look at the handsome man: "Are you Liu Qi from Jingzhou?"
"That's right!" Liu Qi nodded and said, "I sent troops from Langzhong three days ago, but the general didn't even notice?"
Deng Xian sighed: "The people in Yizhou are panicked, the morale of the army is unstable, and even the scouts and horses are not doing their duty. How can they be undefeated?"
Liu Qi said: "In that case, general, why don't you give me a helping hand and capture Yizhou as soon as possible, so that the soldiers will not die and the people will not panic?"
Deng Xian said helplessly: "I have heard about the general's reputation for a long time. He defeated Cao Cao's thieves and destroyed Zhang Lu. His actions are comparable to those of Liu Mu. A good bird chooses a tree to roost in, and I am willing to surrender."
Liu Qi was overjoyed and personally untied Liu Xian. He held a banquet to calm the shock and the whole army celebrated. The prisoners were also provided with meals. Later, Deng Xian and Lei Tong came forward to persuade him to surrender.
During the dinner, they learned that Liu Qi had already arrived in Jianshan and secretly monitored the movements of the camp. When he saw the reinforcements arriving, he did not stop them. Knowing that Kou Feng was defeated, Zhang Fei made a surprise attack and persuaded Lei Tongli and Yingwai to surrender and jointly captured the camp.
Deng Xian and Lei Tong marveled at Liu Qi's planning. No matter whether he marched cautiously, controlled the battle situation, or grasped the opportunity, he was just right. He was worthy of being the man who defeated Cao Cao!
Kou Feng and Liu Xian had stern expressions on their faces. They were already feeling ashamed, but when they thought about losing in front of Liu Qi, they felt even more uncomfortable.
Only Zhang Fei held the wine jar and persuaded the three of them to drink. In this battle, two close associates were promoted, and three lieutenants were recruited. All of them were young and talented, and they made a lot of money!
Liu Qi also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. Taking the Jianmen Pass in this battle was the second most important thing. Pulling out the two thunders around Zhang Fei was the most important thing.
Although Fan Jiang and Zhang Da were forced by the situation to betray Zhang Fei, they could have just walked away and there was no need to kill people to take credit. This shows that they are still vicious people at their core, but they have not yet exploded.
However, the two of them had no fault at present, and they were Zhang Fei's confidants, so they could not be punished without reason. They simply pretended to admire them and promoted them to guard the insignificant Jiameng Pass.
This move not only promoted Zhang Fei's close associates and made him look good, but also gave him three lieutenants. With Liu Xian by his side, he could give more advice and make fewer mistakes.
Liu Qi used these two as examples to publicize throughout the army that loyalty comes first in the army and promotion is based on merit. As long as you have the ability, you can be promoted even if you are a soldier.
"Gold always shines! Regardless of your status or position, as long as you fulfill your duties, you can do extraordinary things in an ordinary position."
At the swearing-in meeting in Langzhong, Liu Qi said this, which boosted the morale of the officers and soldiers of the three armies. They put aside the impatience of winning streak and returned to the camp to perform their duties conscientiously.
After chatting for a while, Deng Xian was eager to perform meritorious service and took the initiative to ask for an order: "Prefect Zitong has a good relationship with me, and the general is willing to lead his troops there to persuade him to surrender."
Liu Qi waved his hand and said with a smile: "There is no need to rush to send troops, I still have a big gift that I have not received yet."
"Big gift?" Deng Xian was startled and suddenly realized: "By the way, a message was circulated a few days ago, and money and food were sent from Chengdu to various places to boost the military's power. Could it be that the general wants to wait for this batch of food and grass?"
"Of course!" Liu Qi laughed and said: "The troops and horses have not moved, and the food and grass have gone first. If there is no news, how can I dare to leave Bazhong with light troops?"
Deng Xian glanced at Lei Tong, and the two of them were shocked. It seemed that every move in Yizhou was under Liu Qi's surveillance, but they knew nothing about Liu Qi's movements. How could they fight this battle?
Liu Qi said: "Since the general can persuade the governor of Zitong to surrender, how can he have a good relationship with the general of Fushui Pass?"
Deng Xian frowned and said: "Fushui Pass is a fortress in northern Sichuan and the gateway to Chengdu. It has been guarded by two generals, Yang Huai and Gao Pei. These two are generals of the First Lord and are extremely loyal. It may be difficult to persuade them to surrender."
Liu Qi looked at Fazheng: "It seems that the first fierce battle will start at Fushui Pass."
Fazheng said: "The Fushui Pass is naturally dangerous. It is surrounded by mountains. The pass has dangerous peaks and walls. The Fushui River flows through it. It can only be taken wisely, not by force."
