Sun Quan believed that he had huge advantages in terms of military strength and strategy, so he was confident in taking over most of Jingzhou at this moment.
It is not convenient for Lu Su to pour cold water on him at this time. After all, the situation in Jingzhou is quite difficult.
This time Jiangdong's main force was used up, and they had been planning for several months in advance. Jiangxia guard Fu Shiren was 'inspiring to rebel', and Cao Ren sent troops to attack Jiangling. The entire Jingzhou from north to south was now almost in full bloom, and Lu Su didn't think Guan Yu could turn things around.
After chatting with Sun Quan for a while, Lu Su told Sun Quan a story and tactfully suggested that Sun Quan should give up when Liu Bei's envoy arrived from Chengdu. The two sides should renew their old alliance as soon as possible, otherwise Cao Cao would take advantage of it.
Sun Quan heard too much about Lu Su's compromises, but because of the sincerity of the other party, he finally agreed in front of Lu Su. After all, he could expand the territory of Jiangdong, and he could also take a step forward on the basis of his father and brother, and he could also improve his position in Jiangdong. Prestige among the gentry.
While the two were chatting, Lu Su curiously asked Sun Quan: "My lord, Cangwu and Nanhai are major counties in Jiaozhou. How many troops have Ziheng and Ziqi mobilized?"
Sun Quan smiled slightly: "Zi Heng accepted Wu Ju's troops, plus Cangwu and Nanhai have recruited a lot of new troops in the past two years, the total strength of the two counties should be close to 20,000."
Although Lu Su was the governor of Jiangdong, he was only responsible for the navy garrisoned in Chaisang. Unexpectedly, Lu Fan and Wei Jing developed so rapidly in Jiaozhou.
Lu Su twirled his beard and pondered, and then naturally said to himself: "Since Jiaozhou also has 20,000 troops, the garrison in Guiyang will definitely not be able to hold it. I guess the news will come back soon, right?"
Sun Quan waved his hand and smiled bitterly: "Zi Heng received a letter last year. Lingnan people are generally short in stature and have poor foundation. They are also aggressive and difficult to tame. The combat effectiveness of the new recruits is actually very weak. Lai Gong in Yulin in the west has thousands of barbarians. We must Leave some troops to frighten Cangwu, it is estimated that only about 10,000 people will attack Guiyang."
"So that's it..." Lu Su seemed to understand, but he didn't understand. Is the Lord saying that the Lingnan soldiers are good and fun-loving?
"Although the new troops from Lingnan are useless, a fierce attack on Xiaopu Pass can attract the attention of the Guiyang and Lingling defenders. It would be best if they can directly attack Guiyang. If Ziheng and his troops are frustrated, Cheng Gong's troops can take advantage of the opportunity and attack them. Finally, the final victory belongs to Jiangdong..." Sun Quan was full of confidence. He and Lu Meng discussed this major event for a long time to ensure that everything was absolutely correct before taking action.
Lu Su nodded noncommittally, "Since there is a huge disparity in troops at Xiaopuguan, it is estimated that the battle can be resolved before negotiations. I have to say that the strategic plan this time is very big. It is difficult to lose with such troops..."
"That's how it should be."
Sun Quan found that Lu Su was particularly good at talking today, so he was full of complacency at this time. He stood on the side of the school field and looked south, looking forward to the success of Cheng Pu and Lu Fan.
Xiaopu Pass in Guiyang County is located at the southernmost tip of Guiyang County, bordering Nanhai County in Jiaozhou.
Among the vertical and horizontal ravines of the Nanling Mountains, Xiaopuguan is the only way to enter Guiyang by land. The waterway enters Jingzhou at the tributaries of Cangwu's Li River and Yulin's Tan River. The starting points of both rivers are in Shi'an County in Lingling. .
Lu Fan and Wei Jing were ordered to attack Guiyang and Lingling to cope with Lupu's attack in the middle.
Lu Fan photographed Lai Gong's barbarians in Yulin County and the reputation of Lingling Gaoshun's camp. He did not dare to attack Lingling by water, but decided to attack Lingling from the Xiaopu Pass unanimously with Wei Jing.
Lu Fan left 3,000 troops to garrison Guangxin, and personally led 8,000 soldiers to join Wei Jing at Xiaopu Pass. The total number of troops from both sides was 15,000.
Lu Fan and Wei Jing were very cautious. They deliberately massed their troops in front of the pass, intending to use psychological tactics to undermine the morale of the defenders. This move achieved very good results, and within three days there were signs of breaking through the pass.
When the situation was extremely critical, Xu Shuang arrived in time with 2,000 trapped troops. Relying on the elite equipment and training gap of the trapped troops, he repelled Lu Fan and Wei Jing's attacks many times. Seeing that it was difficult to defeat the tough nut of Xiaopu Pass, he again Thousands of new soldiers were recruited with heavy sums of money, and the total strength of the front line reached a peak of 20,000.
Xu Pu Pass is a dangerous pass that cannot be opened by one man. Considering that the number of defenders is too small, Xu Shuang ordered to stick to the pass and never leave the pass to pursue. This stubborn attitude made Lu Fan and Wei Jing very helpless. They They can only risk huge losses and carry out a strong attack.
Wei Jing was worried that it would take as long as the Battle of Moon Castle, so before the war started, he sent people to Jiaozhi to borrow grain from Shi Xie. In the past two years, Jiaozhou's climate had been suitable and the grain production had been abundant. Wei Jing's letter of kindness and offer Shi Xie could not refuse. .
Lu Fan and Wei Jing launched a fierce attack regardless of the cost, and the number of the defenders at Pupu Pass was reduced by the same proportion. On the seventh day of the war, Haopu's original two thousand garrison were all killed, and he could only mobilize the last thousand soldiers from Chen County. came over, and the number of enemy troops was still about 14,000.
Wounded soldiers and corpses can be seen everywhere in and outside the Guan. Every day after the war, special personnel would carry away and burn the corpses. Xu Shuang was worried that if they were not dealt with in time, there would be a plague.
In addition to delivering grain, rice, melons and fruits to the defending soldiers, the people of the Pu Pass after the pass also took the initiative to carry materials for the defenders, such as carrying stones, repairing the city walls, etc. Many people also sent their stored excrement to burn gold juice, which was originally An important fertilizer they use for spring plowing and top dressing.
The population of Guiyang County dropped sharply due to the plague at the end of the Han Dynasty, and it once became the least populated and poorest area in Jingzhou. After Liu Bei arrived, he used Lantian planting to restore the population, and the local people highly recognized the current officials.
In order to protect their hard-won livelihood, the people at the border in Guiyang had people and food.
Before Quanling's expedition, Lan Tian specifically explained that war is what professional soldiers do, and he should try not to drag the people directly into the war. This would not only indirectly delay production, but also overwhelm the army's supply system.
Xu Shuang did not intend to temporarily recruit people into the army unless it was absolutely necessary. Later, more and more defenders died in battle. At the moment when Xu Shuang was preparing to send people to Linwu County, the Jiaozhou Army's offensive suddenly weakened.
News came from Cangwu County in the rear that Lai Gong, using his status as the governor of Jiaozhou to regain lost territory, raised troops from Moon Castle to march towards Guangxin. Lu Fan could only withdraw 5,000 troops from the front line to defend.
Lu Fan originally wanted to personally lead his troops back to defend Cangwu, but Wei Jing had to leave for a trip to the South China Sea due to important matters, so he could only stay at Xiaopu Pass to command the attack.
Because Lu Fan sent troops to Cangwu to resist Lai Gong, the total number of troops remaining in front of the Xiaopu Pass was less than ten thousand. The number of troops directly affected the strength of the siege, and the reaction on Xu Shuang was a sudden reduction in pressure.
Lu Fan was not in a hurry even if the attack was weak. After all, Sun Quan gave them the task of supporting Cheng Pu. As long as the pressure on the border was maintained, it would be effective support for Cheng Pu.
The reason why Wei Jing wanted to return to Nanhai in person was because Shi Xie not only readily agreed to borrow food, but also promised to send 4,000 troops to assist in the battle, so he was overjoyed and returned to Panyu to wait.
At this time, Shi Hui was taking a boat from Longbian and heading toward Panyu along the offshore sea. Due to the strong wind and waves on the sea, his fleet was moving slowly. His fleet arrived in the waters of the South China Sea at the end of March.
The officer Hui on the bow had a cold look in his eyes, and he was not as flattering as sending food or troops.
