The Chu army had been besieging Xiapi for three days.
The earth fell into darkness again. Wanjia lights up the lights, shining on the dim city wall like a huge black cloud with flashing thunder, and around this black cloud are countless dancing stars.
The galaxy seemed to be hanging upside down on the ground.
The autumn wind is bleak and the lights are shining brightly.
"Report, the Third Army Division has a letter asking me to present myself to the Second Army Division."
"Come in."
The soldiers walked into Sun Ce's tent. At this time, they could see Sun Ce and Zhou Yu, all dressed in civilian clothes, gathered around the sand table in the center of the tent, and seemed to be discussing something. The soldier first saluted the two of them, respectfully handed a piece of paper to Zhou Yu, and then quietly exited the tent.
Zhou Yu opened the note, and there was just a simple sentence on it, which made his beautiful eyebrows wrinkle slightly.
"What did Ziyuan say?"
"Zi Yuan asked me to increase my efforts to detect the Qin army's movements."
Zhou Yu handed the note to Sun Ce, and Sun Ce shook his head and said that it was enough for Zhou Yu to read it. After hearing Zhou Yu's answer, Sun Zhizhi was slightly puzzled.
"Did Ziyuan notice something?"
Zhou Yu touched his chin, took two steps, shook his head and said.
"Perhaps he just felt a sense of disharmony. He is not a person who likes to play riddles. If there is anything serious, he will definitely come to see you directly."
The Qin army sent 20,000 troops to attack Xinye, but lost more than 10,000 troops due to the failure of the water battle. Cao Cao took advantage of the momentum to counterattack and captured Wancheng. Now Wuguan is in danger and is about to be captured by the Wei army again. What will happen at this time?
At this thought, Zhou Yu felt violated.
"No matter what, Jingzhou has no remaining strength. We have reached the final battle in Xuzhou. The arrow is on the string and we have to shoot. Later, I will ask the people of the shadow guard to send a message to the spies in the northwest to increase the investigation, but for now we still have to concentrate on attacking Xiapi.”
That's right.
Sun Ce nodded lightly and sat on the ground beside the sand table, placing one hand on the edge of the crossbar.
"I originally wanted to give Liu Bei only one day to think about it. If we don't surrender and attack Xiapi the next day, why do you have to give me three days?"
Zhou Yu put a smile on his face, took the teapot and teacup from the table behind him, poured some tea for Sun Ce, and then sat down on the floor. He leaned on the other side of the sand table with one arm and looked at Sun Ce lazily.
"Zi Yuan, this guy, is always too kind. It often makes me wonder which paradise he grew up in. But his achievements in the future will not be low. As the second brother, I still have something to teach him now."
"Just let Liu Bei express his position, Bo Fu, you'd better keep things simple."
"Why did I give Liu Bei three days? I just wanted Liu Bei to express his stance three times."
Zhou Yu made a three sign to Sun Ce with his fingers and continued.
"It might not apply to other places, but this is Xu Han's last city. Looking at the Chu army outside the city, do you think the Han army in the city doesn't understand the fact that Xu Han will perish?"
"Eight or nine thousand recruits have climbed to the top of the city. Liu Bei's reputation in Xuzhou is no less than your reputation in Jiangdong. At this time, your promise not to kill Liu Bei, doesn't it give them hope of survival?"
"As long as Liu Bei agrees to surrender, they won't have to fight Xiapi in a bloody battle, and they won't have to die. As a minister, of course you shouldn't have such thoughts. But when you are in a desperate situation, people will become extremely complicated. The more this kind of At times, controlling people's hearts can lead to unimaginable results."
Zhou Yu grabbed the tea cup and sipped it gently at the corner of his mouth. His low, magnetic voice was like a devil whispering in his ears.
"If the King of Han surrenders, we won't have to fight, and we won't die."
"Even if none of them will say it, guess what they think?"
"Perhaps they were willing to take up weapons and walk to the city for Liu Bei before. But after the first night, they would be a little disappointed. Compared to being imprisoned for the rest of their lives, their King of Han was more willing to trade their lives for freedom. . What about the second night and the third night? I became more and more disappointed."
"Changes in morale are usually difficult to see. If a soldier's mood is reflected on his face, then whether it is good or bad, it must have reached its extreme."
"Actually, there is no such thing as three days. The battle has started from the first day. This is about attacking the heart."
Zhou Yu didn't give up and continued.
"In addition, I also asked the local Xuzhou soldiers who surrendered to promote Chu's "One Tax Law" and "Qi Min Law" to let them know that Xuzhou under Chu's rule was far better than Liu Bei. I also told the Xuzhou family that surrendering Those who do not surrender will be killed."
Is it useful to shout like this? Sun Ce expressed doubts and shook his head.
"After the new law, the people of Chu State support me more, and the cohesion and combat effectiveness of the Chu State Army are also stronger. But the people at the bottom are not so easy to change. People are used to being oppressed, and suddenly they want to give them land, freedom and dignity. , they will just be confused and overwhelmed.”
Otherwise, why could the Jiangdong family mobilize tens of thousands of private soldiers to hunt down Sun Ce? People's wisdom cannot be opened overnight, and trust cannot be established with just a promise.
"But didn't Jiang Qin rebel against the family and come to save you?"
Zhou Yu's words made Sun Ce speechless again.
"But the new law is peeling off the flesh of the aristocratic family. From the Jiangdong aristocratic family to the Jingzhou aristocratic family, there are so many people who want to bite my bones off. Just by shouting like this, doesn't it strengthen the aristocratic family's decision to resist?"
You also know, why don’t you bring more guards with you?
Zhou Yu gave Sun Ce a big roll of his eyes, feeling very sad.
"Don't worry, there are heroes who sacrifice their lives for righteousness in the family, and there are also soft people who are humble. If everyone in the Xuzhou family is hard-core, how can they make Tao Qian give up and welcome Liu Bei? In recent years, Liu Bei has benefited from the Xuzhou family's Although he supported seizing power, many policies were constrained by others. Zhuge Liang is indeed a great talent, and his political methods are far better than Xu Shu, but changes in interests will always offend a certain family. The strongest fortress is often breached from within, not to mention Xia Pi in It looks like it’s already riddled with holes.”
Sun Ce laughed again and again, tilted his head, pointed at Zhou Yu and laughed.
"You are the only one with the most clever ideas!"
"I know Liu Bei wants to hold on until winter. When it snows heavily, it will be difficult for the army to fight. When spring comes next year, Cao Cao will definitely not sit back and watch me swallow Xuzhou."
"Huh, just his 20,000 people want to resist my 80,000-strong army until winter? Let you and Ziyuan see it tomorrow. I will lead the army in battle."
After two cups of tea, the night is getting darker.
