The news that Han Bian, a personal soldier sent by General Lu Yi of Soochow to deliver a message to Emperor Sun Quan of Wu, was captured by the Wei army soon spread to the ears of the Wu army.
In the Wu Jun Jiangxiaxi Dazhai with waving green flags, a middle-aged general with serious features, wearing heavy armor and a sword hanging on his waist was pacing back and forth in the tent. The soldiers holding halberds outside the tent could hear from time to time. Hear the sound of the armored leaves "cracking" and the long sighs.
This person is the elder brother of Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of the Shu Han Dynasty. Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Ziyu, the generals of Soochow and the Marquis of Wanling, are known as Zhuge's "tiger talents".
Although His Majesty failed to attack Hefei Xincheng, he did not have the decree to ask Generals Sun Shao and Zhang Cheng, General Lu Yi, and himself to withdraw their troops. Therefore, he planned to discuss with Lu Yi how to capture Xiangyang, but he did not expect that Yes, early this morning he heard the news that Lu Yi's personal soldier Han Bian was captured by Wei Xiahou Xian.
Zhuge Jin thought to himself, Han Bian has always been reliable in his work, but why was he so reckless this time and was captured alive by the Wei army?
Little did he know that if Xia Houxian, who was bent on making a name for himself and was recently promoted to the leading general of the Wei State, had not personally led the patrol this time, Han Bian would have been able to pass through the pass of the Wei army smoothly.
After Zhuge Jin thought about it again and again, he was still very anxious. He decided to write a personal letter to Lu Yi who was in Dazhai, Jiangxia East:
"Bo Yanruwu: Your Majesty's cavalry has already turned around, and the thieves have captured Han Bian. At this time, he already knows the size of our army, and the Han River is at low tide and the river is about to dry up. It is best to leave as soon as possible."
When Zhuge Jin sent this letter, he didn't expect that there would be no news like a cow in mud entering the sea.
If the roads between the two camps were not guarded by domestic soldiers, he once doubted whether the messenger he sent had also been captured by the Wei army.
Zhuge Jin did not receive a reply from Lu Yi, so he sent someone to inquire about the details of Dongdazhai. After inquiring, Zhuge Jin learned that Lu Yi had no intention of marching and no signs of withdrawing. Instead, he ordered The soldiers under his command were planting vines and beans, while he himself was playing chess, archery, and throwing pots with the generals under his command. He was not even a little anxious about the messenger being caught.
After all, Zhuge Jin was also a wise man. He thought to himself: Boyan has always been wise and strategic. There must be a major reason why he did this.
After thinking about this, Zhuge Jin felt that it was necessary to go to Dongdazhai in person and discuss it with Lu Yi face to face.
Wu Jun's Jiangxia East Dazhai had more than 20,000 soldiers, all of whom were commanded by General Shang and Jiangling Marquis Lu Yi Lu Boyan.
Before Zhuge Jin left, he handed over the defense of 25,000 people in Xidazhai to his eldest son Zhuge Ke. Zhuge Jin believed that his eldest son had grown into a capable general who was talented and intelligent. He also has experience in facing the enemy, so in terms of marching and fighting, even though he has been on the battlefield for many years, I am afraid that he is still inferior to his son.
In the East Dazhai, Zhuge Jin was riding a two-horse chariot, rushing towards the general's tent. Originally, carriages and horses were not allowed to pass through the military camp, but as a first-class general, Zhuge Jin was the superior of the country. General, naturally has this privilege.
Zhuge Jin went to Lu Yi's handsome tent by himself, and it took him only half an hour to get there by car.
Lu Yi, on the other hand, seemed to have known Zhuge Jin would come for a long time. He had already brought his own drum band to greet him outside the handsome tent.
Seeing this, Zhuge Jin felt more at ease. He strode forward, grabbed Lu Yi's hand and said:
"Bo Yan, I finally see you!"
Lu Yi just smiled, and then waved his left hand to signal his subordinates to stop playing. With a slight turn of his right hand, he took Zhuge Jin's arm and led Zhuge Jin towards the tent:
"Come on, Tzuyu, you and I will come to the tent to discuss it in detail!"
In the commander's tent, Lu Yi had already prepared Lanling fine wine and Wuchang sea bass, and Zhuge Jin had not yet had lunch. After a brief exchange of greetings, the two began to drink and talk in detail about the military situation on the front line.
Zhuge Jin picked up a piece of seabass with chopsticks, chewed it carefully, and said:
"Bo Yan, now that Han Bian has been captured, I am afraid that the secrets of our army's military situation here cannot be kept. I am afraid that the two strongholds led by you and me must evacuate quickly, right?"
After Lu Yi raised his bottle and drank a bottle of Lanling wine, his face became serious. He answered Zhuge Jin:
"What Ziyu said makes sense, but you and I must not withdraw our troops in a hurry. I sent Han Bian to chase His Majesty's carriage earlier because I wanted His Majesty to camp temporarily in Jiangbei to rest and wait for the opportunity. Don't just do this. Withdrawing into the south of the Yangtze River, Han Bian was unexpectedly captured. This plan was difficult to achieve. Now that Cao Ni knew that his majesty had returned, he no longer had to worry about south of Hefei. Therefore, the Wei army would definitely direct its troops at my Jiangxia Dazhai and Gong Gong. Li [Sun Shaozi]'s Huaiyin Dazhai. His Majesty's attack on Hefei has failed this time, and the morale of our three armies has been depressed. If you and I withdraw too quickly, once Cao Rui sends the generals to follow the trend and go south, we will chase him to the north. Not only was Wu completely defeated in this battle, I am afraid that even the Jiangbei and Huainan areas are no longer owned by me, the Great Wu!"
Hearing this, Zhuge Jin couldn't help but sweat profusely. At this moment, he finally understood how dangerous his previous idea was. If he retreated hastily, no one would be able to provide cover for His Majesty. Once Cao Rui was a little more decisive, he would take advantage of the situation. If we go south like this, wouldn't the great Wu be in danger?
"Bo Yan's words are very true. At this time, the morale of the troops in our Jiangxia Dazhai and Gongli's Huaiyin Dazhai is fluctuating. It is best to calm them down and then use tactics to paralyze the Wei army, and then slowly move out!" If we hurriedly signal to retreat now, Cao Ni will definitely tell us that our army is frightened, and if we take advantage of the situation to pursue him, our army will be defeated!"
When Lu Yi saw that Zhuge Jin understood, a smile appeared on his face again. He smiled slyly and said:
"Tzuyu, now instead of being able to retreat immediately, you and I are going to attack Xiangyang again!"
At this moment, Zhuge Jin naturally understood Lu Yi's plan. The two smiled at each other and drank another bottle of Lanling wine.
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In the capital of Jingzhou of the Great Wei Dynasty, in Xiangyang City, the newly appointed governor of Yuzhou and Jingzhou, Xia Houru, was currently checking the march map of the front line in his residence.
This Xiahou, named Junlin, was the younger brother of Xiahou Shang, the late general who conquered the south of Changling. He was also the uncle of Xiahouxuan, the current Yulin Supervisor and Changlinghou, and the father of Xiahoufeng, the Marquis of Guannei.
At that time, he first joined the army and served as a knight commander under Cao Zhang, the mighty king of Rencheng who was still the Marquis of Yanling. Later, in order to accumulate military merits, he was able to serve as the guard of the conquest of Shu and stationed in Kansai. When he was in office, he accompanied Emperor Wen. Together with the famous ministers of the dynasty, the late Liangzhou governor, and Xixiang Suhou Zhang Ji and Zhang Derong, they put down the rebellion of Su Heng in Jiuquan. From then on, they were able to stand out and make a small splash among the Xiahou family's descendants.
This time, Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of the Shu Han Dynasty, went north again. Sima Yi, the general who had previously defended Jingxiang and Wuyanghou, was transferred to Yongzhou to fight Zhuge Liang. Only then did he replace Sima Yi and become the governor of Jingzhou and Henan.
Xiahou Ru has been in battle for a long time and has always been cautious. Although he already knew that Sun Quan of Hefei had commanded the army to retreat, he still did not dare to relax his vigilance because he understood that this time, his opponents were two men from Soochow who were both wise and brave. General: Lu Yi and Zhuge Jin.
If you are even the slightest bit negligent and careless, it will definitely lead to immeasurable consequences!
In a daze, he thought of his only son: Xia Houfeng, who was far away in Luoyang and had no great merit, living in the mansion of his nephew Xia Houxuan.
He was the only son, but he had no great talent. He was a weak man but still accomplished nothing. He could only get the virtual title of Marquis of Guannei. If Emperor Wen hadn't given his nephew Xia Houxuan's 300 households of food to Feng'er, I'm afraid that now he can't even pay for his expenses in Luoyang.
Thinking of this, Xiahou Ru couldn't help but bring out a wry smile. He understood that he lived a life of swords and shadows on the battlefield, and he might be injured by swords, spears, halberds one day. His Xiahou Among the descendants of the family, only the two nephews Xia Houxuan and Xia Houxian have great talents. If he wants his only son to survive in the abyss-like city of Luoyang, he must let him hold Xia Houxuan and Xia Houxian well. These two thighs.
At this point, he thought of Xia Houxuan, his nephew who always liked to give him, as well as Xia Houwei, the governor of Yanzhou, Xia Houheng, the Marquis of Anning Ting, Xia Houhui, the prefect of Le'an, Xia Houhe of Henan Yin, and Xia Houba, the guardian of the expedition to Shu. An uncle wrote a letter. In addition to greetings and greetings, this boy also likes to inquire about major events in the states and counties where his uncles are located, as well as various border military and political affairs.
This is a habit of Xia Houxuan. What Xia Houru doesn't know is that in addition to his uncles in the clan such as Xia Houwei and Xia Houba, Xia Houxuan often writes letters to contact friends such as Lian Zhao and Xie Jun on the border. This is also the reason why Xia Houxuan often knows all the major events in the world without leaving home.
Thinking of this, Xia Houru wrote a letter home to his son Xia Houfeng and sent it to Luoyang. After the family letter, he also talked a lot about the wars and current affairs rumors in Jingzhou and Yangzhou, and also instructed his son to communicate more with his cousin Xiahou Xuan who was far away in Youzhou.
His idea was simple. In this way, he not only satisfied his outstanding nephew's request for military and political intelligence, but also indirectly allowed his Feng'er to learn more from Xia Houxuan and further shorten his relationship with Xia Houxuan.
At this moment, a Wei army scout entered the governor's mansion with a panicked expression.
When Xia Houru heard the report, he immediately recovered his misty thoughts.
"Why are you so panicked?"
Xia Houru put down the map in his hand and looked at the soldiers who almost rolled into the hall in surprise.
"To the Commander-in-Chief, what's wrong, Lu... Lu Yi and Zhuge Jin, each leading a land and water army, are coming towards Xiangyang City. It looks like they are about to attack the city!"
Hearing this, Xia Houru frowned and his heart sank. He immediately issued a military order for the generals to strictly defend the city. He called his own soldiers and asked them to help him quickly put on his armor and get ready. After getting the swords and horses, and everything was ready, Xia Houru calmed down his slightly nervous mood and said in a deep voice:
"Instruct all generals to defend tightly and be ready!"
