No matter what strategy is adopted, no matter what price is paid, Hongnong Yang is always a target worth winning over.
Hundreds of years of accumulation and the heritage of the Four Generations and Three Dukes are of very important significance to the Han Dynasty. The symbolic significance alone is worth fighting for, not to mention the influence of the Hongnong Yang family on the world's aristocratic families.
In fact, Zhuge Liang is not not doing this.
Unlike Zhang Xi, who has no political sensitivity, after Zhuge Liang took control of Chang'an, in addition to developing the economy and restoring the people's livelihood in Yongzhou, the most important thing was to send agents to Hedong, Hongnong, and even Hanoi to win over the divided people. Luo Shijia, get the support of these people.
The route is ready, which is the food smuggling team starting from Guanzhong.
When Zhang Xi was in charge of Yongzhou, the main responsibility of these grain teams was to bring urgently needed grain and grass to Yongzhou to stabilize the situation in Yongzhou and improve people's lives. However, on the basis of this, Zhuge Liang paid more attention to infiltrating the enemy and instigating rebellion. Sometimes, the Yongzhou aristocratic families were even instructed to suffer some losses in terms of financial benefits, and the Yongzhou Governor's Office would compensate them afterwards.
Therefore, Zhuge Liang is actually qualified to complete the task of contacting and instigating the Hongnong Yang family.
Since this condition exists, the main direction of the Northern Expedition will most likely be to attack Hongnong County as planned by Pang Tong and Fazheng.
In fact, Zhang Xi and Zhuge Liang do not agree with this approach.
Both of them were more cautious, and still believed that the risk of attacking Hongnong was too high. If there was a problem with the logistical supply of food and grass, or if Sima Yi had been prepared, the 10,000 soldiers sent would most likely be cornered and eventually the entire army would be annihilated.
The two of them still prefer to fight a decisive battle with the Wei army in Yingchuan County.
There is also an advantage to doing this, that is, it is accomplished in one battle.
As long as the Wei army is completely defeated in Yingchuan, there will be no hope for the Wei army to hold on in the Heluo area. The only difficulty may be that Sima Yi will choose to defend Luoyang and wait for the timely reinforcements from the Wei army in Hebei.
However, once Yingchuan is captured and the main force of the Heluo Wei army is defeated, the Han army can enter Yanzhou along Yingchuan County.
On the one hand, it can seize Yanzhou and not give Cao Wei and Soochow a chance to react. On the other hand, it can also cut off the shortest channel for the Wei army in Hebei to reinforce Heluo, forcing the Wei army to go to the more difficult Hanoi area and cross the dangerous section of the Yellow River to reinforce Luoyang.
This can buy at least half a month to a month more time to besiege Luoyang.
With such an attack, although it will be quite difficult in the early stage and it will take a hard fight with Cao Wei's army, once a breakthrough is achieved, the next step will be unstoppable.
It's more secure.
Therefore, the two people have been emphasizing the orthodoxy, completeness, and effectiveness of such operations. Taking Hongnong County as the main attack direction is too risky and has too many uncertainties. Once something unexpected happens in the middle, it is likely to lead to More than ten thousand soldiers were trapped in despair.
However, this is a discussion, and no matter how important Zhuge Liang's opinion is, one person he supports will count as two votes.
But the problem is, including Zhang Xi's vote, Zhuge Liang and Zhang Xi only have three votes in total. On the opposite side, those who support the vote include Fazheng, Pang Tong, Zhang Fei, Wei Yan, Wu Yi, etc.
Zhao Yun was a little hesitant. He felt that both sides were reasonable, but when he saw that everyone's opinions were so one-sided, Zhao Yun chose to give up his choice and obey his orders.
Yes, Zhao Yun abstained directly.
Needless to say, Pang Tong and Fazheng came up with the strategy, so they naturally wanted to defend it. However, Wei Yan, an old man, was born to like this kind of risky strategy. What's more terrible is that the last time this old man took a risk, he almost lost his life. If it really happened, the final failure was not his problem, it was Zhao Yun's misjudgment in decision-making.
The most important one, and the one who ultimately had the overwhelming impact, was Zhang Fei. Zhang Fei insisted on using such a risky strategy.
In fact, the reason is very simple, he can't wait any longer.
The eldest brother and second brother passed away one after another, which was a huge blow to Zhang Fei.
You can tell from his appearance.
When he was in Nanyang half a year ago, Zhang Fei's hair was half white and he was energetic. Now, only half a year later, Zhang Fei's hair and beard have turned white, and he looks a few years older than Zhao Yun.
And Zhang Fei's spirit has never been quite right. He always gives people a feeling of being irritable and impulsive, which is indeed the case.
This time Zhuge Liang was able to persuade the court to send troops for the Northern Expedition. Without Zhang Fei's full support, even with Zhuge Liang's power, it would not be so easy to push this matter through quickly.
At least within the Jingzhou sect, there will inevitably be some quarrels.
But after Zhang Fei intervened, no one wanted to confront this respected, grumpy man directly, saving Zhuge Liang a lot of trouble.
As for Zhang Fei's purpose, there was actually only one purpose - to capture Heluo so that his eldest nephew could return the two capitals in glory.
This is something Guan Yu paid special attention to Zhang Fei in his legacy letter to Zhang Fei.
Guan Yu actually knows his third brother very well, just like his eldest brother knows himself and his third brother very well.
Before his death, the eldest brother used the same method to give Guan Yu and Zhang Fei a share of responsibility respectively, so that they could not think about it and had to fulfill the oath of Taoyuan.
Zhang Fei was given the responsibility of entrusting him to guard Chengdu after Liu Bei's death and help his eldest nephew take over the power smoothly.
The letter to Guan Yu was a letter. In the letter, Liu Bei hoped that Guan Yu could continue to command the Xiangyang Army, at least conquer the entire territory of Jingzhou, go north to Heluo, and lay the foundation for the three prosperity of the Han Dynasty.
In the end, Guan Yu did capture Nanyang, but lost Jingnan. Although he was unwilling to do so, Guan Yu really couldn't hold on any longer.
Before he died, Guan Yu also wrote such a suicide note to Zhang Fei, telling Zhang Fei that you still have things to do, and don't forget that your official position of Sili Xiaowei was still held by you.
When you defeat Sili and let our eldest nephew return to the land of the two capitals of the Han Dynasty, there will be no regrets for the three of us brothers to meet underground.
This is just Guan Yu giving Zhang Fei motivation and excuse to continue living well.
But Zhang Fei and Guan Yu actually had the same thoughts. Back then, Guan Yu held in his last breath and forced himself to capture Nanyang. Now, Zhang Fei also held on to his last breath and must conquer Heluo.
Using Zhuge Liang and Zhang Xi's suggestions, it is indeed possible to march into Heluo more safely, but the problem is that Cao Wei's combat power is not low. Once they open their battles and attack each other, it is hard to say whether they will win or lose.
And as Cao Wei's Hebei Army moves south, it is very likely to fall into a protracted tug of war.
On the contrary, if the strategy of attacking Hongnong can be successful, we can launch an attack on Luoyang directly in the hinterland of Heluo, which may be determined by a battle.
In this way, with Zhang Fei's strong support, the final strategy of the Four Expeditions adopted the more risky strategy of attacking Hongnong.
Zhang Xi finally wanted to fight for it again. However, even if you want to attack Hongnong, you must have a prerequisite, which is to occupy Pubanjin Ferry and deal with Cao Wei's navy.
Let's put it bluntly, Cao Wei's Yellow River Navy is a joke, but the problem is that the Chang'an Navy is not much better.
Furthermore, the terrain of the Yellow River is dangerous, especially after entering the Heluo area. As the width narrows, the water flow will become very turbulent, and the height difference between the upper and lower levels will also be very large.
It is not that easy to transport troops from Pubanjin to Hongnong County, let alone defeat Cao Wei's Yellow River navy first.
If these problems are not solved, how can we use troops against Hongnong County?
Zhang Xi once served as the governor of Yongzhou for six years, and he believed that he knew the internal situation of Yongzhou very well, so he believed that the questions he raised were very practical issues.
But in an instant, Zhang Xi was slapped in the face.
The person who slapped him in the face was still his comrade in the trenches, Zhuge Liang.
Zhuge Liang whispered to Zhang Xi that since he took charge of Chang'an, he had specially allocated money and food to Huang Quan so that Huang Quan could vigorously develop the navy. Today, the Yongzhou navy has more than 7,000 men and more than 130 warships. .
Such speed made Zhang Xi dumbfounded. Zhang Xi vaguely remembered that when he left Yongzhou, Huang Quan should have only three thousand sailors and fifty or sixty walking boats, and they could only move back and forth in the relatively gentle Luoshui River. Bar? !
What the hell, it's only been a year and a half, and not only the military strength, but also the warships have been doubled? !
Besides, your shipbuilding speed is wrong. Jingzhou has a ready-made shipyard, but now it has only built forty or fifty Zuke and two semi-finished Mengchong warships. How can you, Yongzhou, build seventy or eighty warships at once? The boat comes out.
Even if they are all just being blind, this is a bit outrageous, right? People’s livelihood is no longer needed? !
Zhang Xi was the one who was wondering, but what Zhuge Liang said couldn't be false, and judging from what Zhang Xi saw and heard in Chang'an these days, the people didn't seem to have been too disturbed, and there was no way to tell. How did it happen that it affected people's livelihood? !
Now Zhang Xi really has serious doubts. Is the political gap between himself and Zhuge Liang really that big? !
Why can you, Zhuge Liang, develop people's livelihood and at the same time vigorously launch corvee labor and recruit people to expand the army and prepare for war, but Zhang Xi can't? !
Anyway, Zhang Xi doesn't understand, but Zhang Xi knows that seven thousand naval troops and more than 130 warships may not be a decisive force on the Yangtze River, but they can only be used to deal with the Yellow River. It is not difficult for Cao Wei's navy to transport troops across the river.
Then the only remaining problem is how to capture Pubanjin and open the passage to Hongnong County.
And this is really not a problem that can be solved by sitting in the Yongzhou Governor's Mansion.
This is a problem that requires generals to take command on the battlefield and scholars to fight bravely to solve the problem.
Then the next step is to discuss the deployment of military power.
(End of chapter)
