To the southwest of Ezhou, to the north of Puqi, where Junshui flows into the mouth of the river, there is Chibi Mountain, where Cao Gong was defeated. Due to its superior terrain, it is still an important military location and a key location. Especially after the Han division moved south and launched a large-scale troops in Jinghu Lake, it became even more tense.
In the fifth year of Qianyou's reign, Wuping Jiedushi was ordered to attack the Tang Dynasty, but was severely defeated by Liu Renfan, the Wuchang Jiedushi. After the war, Liu Renfan immediately established a stronghold in Chibi to prepare for the invasion of enemies from upstream. At first, some people still questioned why they should be so serious about Jinghu, but now, with hindsight, they understood that Liu Rengan was still guarding against the powerful men in the north.
A boat came up the river, and several walking boats were guarding it. They arrived at the water village on the south bank of Chibi and anchored ashore. One old and one strong, two generals dressed in Tang army uniforms appeared under escort. Judging from their uniforms and armor, they were of high status. They were obviously senior generals of the Southern Tang Dynasty.
The veteran general was Liu Renfan, the military governor of Wuchang, and the young general was Lin Renmin, a later and key general of the Tang army. The Tang general in charge of the garrison hurriedly came to pay homage and wanted to lead the two men into the camp to rest, but Liu Renfan refused and directly ordered the two men to inspect the defense.
Of course, Liu Renfan basically knew the defense of Chibi Village. After all, he arranged it himself and he often patrolled it. This inspection was mainly for Lin Renmin.
After spending less than half an hour walking around, the two of them stood on a high wall, facing the river, watching the runoff with their eyes, and were filled with emotion. Pointing to the Red Cliff fortress, Lin Renmin looked impressed: "The fortress here is rigorously fortified, carefully arranged, and there are no omissions. Mr. Liu is worthy of being a pillar of the Tang Dynasty!"
"I'm old! Now I'm just sitting on the sidelines! The imperial court still has to rely on young heroes like you!" Liu Renfan waved his hand and said to Lin Renmin: "I have already known the name of General Lin. I heard that in the Huainan War, the Han army was invincible. Our army lost consecutive battles and all the soldiers and horses suffered heavy losses. Only you, the general, can resist the Han army, weaken its spirit, and return the whole army. Thousands of generals, but you are the only one. ah!"
Lin Renmin is both brave and resourceful, has a resolute personality, and has a high vision, but he also admires Liu Renfan very much. Hearing his praise, he immediately expressed humility and even smiled bitterly: "I really don't dare to take this prestigious honor. I lost fourteen states in one battle. Thinking about my insignificant performance, I feel even more ashamed. The loss of Huainan should be my fault." The shame of Nanbing is hard to wash away!"
"Know your shame and then be brave! I'm afraid there are only a few people who are as ashamed as the general!" Liu Renfan sighed.
The two chatted about business and couldn't help but fell into silence. Under the summer sun, the river breeze blew head-on, which was very refreshing. Lin Renmin couldn't help but point to the southwest: "How is the battle at Sanjiangkou? Has the Han army made any progress?"
During this period, Liu Renfan was always paying attention to the war situation in the south, making detailed espionage reports, and going back and forth on the river without stopping for a day. Lin Renmin took the initiative to come to Chibi to inspect this time, obviously he was also interested in the war between Han and Chu.
After hearing the question, Liu Renfan couldn't help but turn to the southwest. His calm eyes seemed to be able to penetrate the clouds and see the fighting situation at Sanjiangkou. He said: "The Han and Chu sides have 60,000 water and land troops, fighting fiercely at Sanjiangkou for half a month." More than enough. However, the current situation is that Zhou Xingfeng mainly attacks and the Han army mainly defends. From the rivers and lakes to the walled city, the two sides are fighting fiercely.
However, judging from the movements of the Chu army, Zhou Xingfeng could not hold out for much longer. Without external force, its defeat is imminent! "
"The Gao family was cowardly and incompetent, and sacrificed all their territory to the Han army, allowing them to move south easily. Zhou Xingfeng was considered a powerful force, and he dared to show off his chariots and ships against the enemy Han army. It was a pity that he could not sustain his strength!
It is said that the commander-in-chief of the Han army has personally led his troops southward, and the troops are directed towards Wuling. If nothing unexpected happens, Zhou Xingfeng's defeat will be just in these few days! "
After listening to Liu Renfan's narration, Lin Renmin's expression showed seriousness and he said: "Sit back and watch his defeat, Mr. Liu is unwilling to do so!"
After hearing this, Liu Rengan showed a little anger on his face and said: "It's only a hundred and twenty miles from Chibi to Baling, but it's so close! The enemy is fighting at home, but he can only shrink like a turtle... .”
As he said that, Liu Rengan showed bitterness on his face and turned to look at Lin Renmin: "The general is also a man of outstanding knowledge. Jinghu and Jinghu are the lips and teeth of each other. If Jingnan is lost, Hunan cannot be saved. However, as far as our dynasty is concerned, Jinghu and Jinghu are not the same." We are also dependent on each other. When the Han army captures Jinghu Lake and occupies the heart of the world, it is not far away to move eastward along the river! This is a matter before our eyes. I have reported to the court that I want to send troops to help, but Jinling has many concerns. If you don’t accept it, what can I do?”
Liu Renfan had been in Ezhou for many years and was much more sensitive to the surrounding situation. When the Han army moved south, he went to Jinling several times to analyze the situation and elaborate on the pros and cons. He hoped that the imperial court could send more troops and horses to join forces with Gao and Zhou Xing. The Communists fought against the Northern Han Dynasty. However, he never received clear instructions. He only agreed that Liu Ren would distribute part of Ezhou's grain and sell it to Zhou Xingfeng for support.
Later, after passing through Han envoys to Jinling, a stern edict was issued, asking Liu Rengan to guard Ezhou securely. Without orders, he was not allowed to use any of his soldiers. This made Liu Renfan, who was full of fighting spirit, extremely angry.
This time, Lin Renmin came to the west with the post of inspector of Ezhou. He was also ordered to supervise the Wuchang Army. He was afraid that Liu Renfan would be impulsive and participate in the Han-Chu War and drag the Southern Tang Dynasty into the war. Disaster to oneself.
Liu Renfan was also clear about Lin Renmin's intention, and he did not avoid his feelings at all, and he also wanted to tell him.
Sure enough, Lin Renmin also showed a bit of a wry smile and said: "I have also heard about Liu Gong's report. I also fully agree with your analysis and the development of the future situation. The Northern Han Dynasty wanted to connect the world. This has already been done Those who know it are things that everyone knows. No matter how careful you are, the day will come when the Han army will march eastward and southward.
However, since the surrender of Jinling, no one has wanted to fight, for fear of offending the Northern Han Dynasty and causing the Han army to point its troops towards our court. Even if the general dares to fight, so what? Can he still ignore the orders of the court and launch troops privately?
Even if they kill first and report later, with the military strength of Wuchang and without the support of the imperial court, if they rashly participate in the Jinghu War, I am afraid that they will bring disaster upon themselves! "
It can be seen that Lin Renmin also supports sending troops from his own heart. However, the choice of national strategy cannot be controlled by their envoy.
As Lin Renmin said, Liu Rengan had the idea of cutting first and then playing. However, I was also worried and finally gave up. If he had not led his troops into the war, the entire Southern Tang Dynasty would have been involved in the war.
That way, not to mention going against the will of the imperial court, given the urinary nature of the Jinling imperial court, it is impossible to use Liu Renfan's head to flatter Tokyo and calm down the anger.
"This time the Northern Han Dynasty defeated Jinghu, our court should have united with them to fight together. This is not without a chance of victory. The Northern Han Dynasty only experienced the Qin-Feng War last year, and suffered disasters year after year. The losses were huge, and the army and the people were exhausted. This year They still refused to stop and moved to fight at Jinghu. Even with its national strength, it would be difficult to support a protracted war!"
Liu Renfan continued: "As long as the three parties join forces, work together, and rely on the river, they can defeat the Northern Han Dynasty's attempt to annex Jinghu. We can maintain peace for three or two years now, but it will inevitably lead to disaster in the future.
The Northern Han Dynasty has taken all the land north of the Yangtze River. If it captures Jinghu Lake again, its power will become more and more powerful. Our country will be in danger. Once it advances from two directions and stretches across the river, it is difficult to call it a natural danger. How can we stop it then?
Instead of waiting for a desperate situation, if you can stand up and fight, as long as you block the Northern Han Dynasty's offensive on Jinghu, you can still maintain the safety of the upper reaches..."
Liu Renfan spoke freely and eloquently. Lin Renmin listened attentively, even in a daze. Finally, he heard a sigh full of complicated emotions: "It's a pity that it is difficult for Zhuge's talent in Jinghu to go east to Jinling and win an alliance." . In our court, no one can be like Lu Su!"
After coming back to his senses, Lin Renmin sighed: "Our dynasty is not Soochow, the Gao family is like Liu Cong, but Zhou Xingfeng is not Liu Bei. Not to mention other things, the contradiction between Tang and Chu is enough to form an alliance obstacles."
Hearing this, Liu Renfan couldn't help but feel depressed, and sighed: "More than seven hundred years ago, Zhou Yu defeated Cao's army here. Later generations thought about it, admired it, and were fascinated. Now, I am stationed here, but I can only sit here. Watch success or failure!”
"After the Huainan War, the country's strength was severely damaged. Prime Minister Han and others implemented strict reforms. It took three years before they recovered. However, for our court, it was still not enough to mobilize troops. The army was still mixed with good and bad, and the combat power was uneven. Above the court, ——" As Lin Renmin spoke, he subconsciously stopped talking and turned into a deep sigh.
Today's Jinling court is no longer peaceful, and seems to have returned to the chaos of the mid-Baoda period. Li Jing was still enjoying herself in the palace, and the party struggle showed signs of recovery. The reformists headed by Han Xizai had already begun to encounter backlash from the southern aristocrats, bureaucrats, and landlord groups, and a group of people led by Zhong Mo were added to stir up the situation. There was also Li Hongji, who was established as the crown prince. After he came to the throne, he also began to expose the jealousy in his temperament, which was not liked by Li Jing...
Under such a situation, it is difficult for talented people like Liu Renfan and Lin Renmin to make a difference.
"Can Liu Gong send one or two to attack me?" Lin Renmin said suddenly, relatively silent and slightly depressed.
"What do you want to do?" Liu Renfan was curious.
Raising his hand and pointing to the southwest, Lin Renmin regained some energy and said solemnly: "I want to go up the river to have a closer look at the war in Yuezhou, and then explore the strength of the Han army!"
