All the civil and military officials expressed their opinions, which gave Liu Zhang, who was sitting in the main seat, a headache.
"Okay, stop arguing now!"
Liu Zhang's tone was a bit unkind, and the scene immediately became quiet, and those who had previously objected also retreated into the group.
"Everyone, if we recuperate and increase our strength, the enemy will also strengthen, so we can't wait to go south!"
"I'm here today to discuss a strategy for marching into the army. We don't necessarily have to take down six counties at once, but we can't do nothing. Okay, whoever has a strategy can come forward and talk about it."
Liu Zhang had made up his mind, and Zhang Yi and others who had previously blocked him could no longer refute. They all frowned, shook their heads and sighed.
At this time, Zheng Du, who had been silent for a long time, stood up.
"Lord, the difficulty of conquering the six southern counties is actually in Yizhou County and Yongchang County. We can first send troops to occupy the vassal states of Shu County and Qianwei County." "There are seven cities in these two counties, and they are currently relying on Yue County. Si County and Zangke County. As long as we attack the two counties at the same time, we will definitely be able to achieve the goal of knocking out the mountains and shaking the tigers. Then the vassal state of Shu County and the vassal state of Qianwei can be easily captured."
Liu Zhang nodded slightly. Zheng Du's proposal was quite good. The geographical locations of the Jianwei Kingdom and the Shu County Kingdom were very important. Especially the Qianwei Kingdom, which is sandwiched between Zangke County and Yueqi County. If it is occupied and garrisoned with a large army, it will definitely have a strong deterrent effect.
Shu County has four cities with a population of nearly half a million, which Liu Zhang has long coveted!
Just when Liu Zhang wanted to express his agreement, Yang Hong stood up again.
"My lord, although Zheng Shenjun's plan is good, Chengdu cannot afford four armies to conquer at the same time."
In the final analysis, there is only one problem, insufficient food and grass.
If grain and grass are piled up in Chengdu, Liu Zhang can directly send 80,000 troops southward and conquer six counties in one fell swoop.
"Wenhe, what do you think?"
At present, all the situations in Yizhou are in the mind of Yizhou Bijia Jia Xu. Jia Xu will know how much food Yizhou has, how many troops it can send, and whether it can march into Nanzhong.
At this moment, Liu Zhang also had to ask Jia Xu to explain to him.
Jia Xu has been silent, not because he is helpless, but in fact he has been observing everyone in the room.
Now that Liu Zhang called his name, Jia Xu had to say a few words.
"My lord, at present Shu County, Guanghan County, and Hanzhong County have surplus grain, which can be mobilized and used. Jianwei County and Ba County can only be self-sufficient."
"How many troops can be dispatched and how long will they last?"
Liu Zhang didn't care about how much food he had, he just wanted to know how many troops and horses he could mobilize now.
"Forty thousand troops can be mobilized. The current food and grass can last for half a year. After the autumn harvest, it can last for another half a year."
After hearing Jia Xu's report, Liu Zhang immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
The 40,000-strong army is enough for the time being if we do not consider Yizhou County and Yongchang County. And the food and grass can last for a year!
"enough!"
When Huang Zhong, Tai Shici and others heard Liu Zhang's words, they immediately became energetic.
As military generals, the only way to advance is to fight, and only war can reflect their value.
"My lord, wait a minute."
Someone else blocked Liu Zhang's words and asked him to hold back the order to go out.
This time Liu Zhang couldn't get angry even more. The person who interrupted him was Jia Xu, Liu Zhang's most trusted military advisor.
"Wenhe, what's wrong?"
If Jia Xu strongly opposed the expedition, Liu Zhang would have to reconsider. After all, Jia Xu has a perfect plan!
"My lord, I'll take a look. It's easy to take down these counties, but the difficulty lies in how to govern them. Especially places like Yizhou County and Yongchang County where foreigners are entrenched."
"As far as I know, there are no less than a million barbarians in Yizhou. They all live in tribes and mountain villages and haunt the mountains all year round. If these barbarians insist on becoming our enemies, it will do great harm!"
"Therefore, I would like to suggest that it is not too late to send troops after discussing how to deal with the Southern Barbarians."
Jia Xu's words immediately resonated with Zhang Yi, Yang Hong and others, especially Yang Hong.
Being in Jianwei County, he was well aware of the nature of foreigners. They could not be educated at all, and they would rebel whenever they were told. There was nothing the government and army could do against them.
If a large army is sent to conquer, they will immediately hide in the mountains. When the army retreats, they will come out to do evil again.
The officers and soldiers could neither enter the mountains to search nor be stationed at the foot of the mountains for a long time, so they were usually helpless when facing the barbarians.
"Lord, what you said is absolutely true! The Yizhou barbarians are not like us Han people. Their number is no less than a million, and they have no fixed soldiers. When the war comes, all the people are soldiers. If they are involved, we will be trapped in the quagmire."
In fact, Liu Zhang had known about this problem for a long time. Not only the barbarians in the six southern counties, but also the barbarians under his rule had been experiencing constant friction in the past six months.
Fortunately, the barbarians in the six northern counties were not large enough, and the situation was always under control.
But it's different in the south. There are barbarians living on almost every mountain, and there are countless tribes, big and small. Once gathered, it is definitely a very powerful force.
Liu Zhang did not intend to follow the old path taken by Zhuge Liang. First of all, the barbarians did not have the position of barbarian king. They fought on their own and attacked each other. It was completely impossible to surrender one person and then there would be no more rebellion.
Historically, after Zhuge Liang pacified Nanzhong, rebellions continued.
"The main reason why barbarians are called aliens is that they cannot integrate into us. As long as they are civilized and kept away from the mountains, these millions of barbarians will become millions of people. Therefore, we must not regard them as aliens in our hearts."
Thinking that more than 50 ethnic groups in the future can be very harmonious, what can a barbarian tribe not do to coexist peacefully?
"Those who are not of my race must have different hearts! Please don't be too kind."
A man stood out from the queue of generals, and he didn't quite agree with Liu Zhang's idea.
Liu Zhang looked around and saw that it was General Yan Yan.
"General Yan, what do you think?"
Yan Yan's eyes narrowed, and a ruthless look burst out in them.
"Kill! Only by killing them until they are frightened can we completely shock them and make them no longer have the courage to resist!"
Liu Zhang shook his head slightly. He would never agree with Yan Yan's statement.
It is easy to kill one, a hundred, or a thousand, but how can it be possible to kill a million?
As long as the killings begin, the contradiction between the barbarians and the Han people will become more and more serious, which will intensify the hatred of the entire barbarians in Yizhou towards Liu Zhang.
Maybe by then, rebellious barbarians will appear in every county in Yizhou.
"No, you must not use killing to suppress it!"
Not only Liu Zhang, but also Jia Xu also spoke out against Yan Yan's suggestion.
"Once the killings begin, we will completely lose faith in the barbarians. Then millions of barbarians in Yizhou will share the same hatred. Even if we can pacify them, our vitality will be greatly damaged!"
In these troubled times, it is also a critical moment for the rise of power. Jia Xu will never allow such things to be done.
Once millions of barbarians rebel, their power and deterrence cannot be underestimated. Even Liu Zhang would need to spend a lot of effort to quell them.
Maybe just a few years!
How long did it take for Liu Zhang to develop from one county in Hanzhong to occupying six counties in Yizhou?
A few years is too long and they can't afford to gamble!
"Report!"
At this time, a soldier suddenly rushed out of the door and knelt down directly in front of Liu Zhang.
"What's the matter?"
"My lord, General Gan Ning has returned from Yangzhou and is now ten miles outside Chengdu!"
