In the large tent of the Chinese army, all the generals gathered.
The current battle situation is in his own favor. At this time, Xiao Yuan is ambitious and has the attitude of wanting to fight directly across the Yangtze River.
He tied his hair with a jade hairpin and walked casually as he said: "Today, Peng Shuang has captured Jiangling, and the Huaihe River waterway is unimpeded. Our warships can be transported to the front line and march to the Yangtze River."
This is the role of occupying Gangneung.
Before, this was the city of Wu State, and your warships could not pass by. Now, the waterway has been opened. Regardless of the troops and supplies, you can sail your warships along the Huaihe River to the north bank of the Yangtze River.
Then, they fought an earth-shattering water battle in the Yangtze River with Wu and Chu.
As long as this battle is won, the infantry will land on the south bank, and the army will advance together, the entire south of the Yangtze River will be at your fingertips!
This is exactly what Xiao Yuan is thinking now.
When the generals heard the words, they were also in high spirits, and many of them showed excitement on their faces. Xu Rong cupped his fists and said: "Your Majesty! If that's the case, then what are we waiting for? Please give the king an order to assemble the army and fight directly." Yangtze!"
"Yes, Your Majesty! Now that the Wu army has retreated to the south bank, and Jiangling is in the hands of General Peng, the main force of our army can be assembled on the north bank!" Another general agreed.
The military generals all hoped to cross the Yangtze River as soon as possible, but Wang Su shook his head and said: "Although we have Jiangling, there are still many problems in crossing the river at this point."
As soon as he finished speaking, Jia You followed up and said: "I agree, there are nearly 150,000 Chu troops in Xiangyang City, and it is too dangerous to be placed behind us like this."
Hearing this, Xu Rong said carelessly: "Sir, you are too worried. Although there are Chu troops stationed in Xiangyang, that guy from Hanzhou is just a coward, so don't pay attention to him!"
"It is a taboo for military strategists to ignore the enemy's troops at the rear. Now Hanzhou is holding on and cannot move out, but once our army crosses the river, he will attack from Xiangyang. This is a very likely thing to happen. , Your Majesty, you must not worry about it," Jia You said.
Of course Xiao Yuan understands this truth, but he has a bold idea, that is, to cross the river by force, and then attack the capital of Chu directly, forcing the king of Chu to surrender. As long as the capital of Chu surrenders, the Chu army in Xiangyang will be defeated without a fight. .
But this strategy was too dangerous, and he needed to consider everyone's opinions.
After thinking about it, he also looked at Yan Qi, because he was the commander of the navy, and his opinion was crucial in the cross-river battle.
Seeing this, the latter thought about it for a while, and then said: "I don't agree with crossing the river now. Although we can transport warships to the north bank now, compared with the Wu Army Navy, whether it is the number of warships or combat power, They are all slightly weaker, and the Wu army knows the waters of the Yangtze River very well. If they launch a cross-river campaign at this time, they may be defeated."
He directly stated the possibility of defeat.
All the generals couldn't help but look at each other.
This is a very serious problem. Xiao Yuan leads his army to the south. If he is defeated by the Wu army on the Yangtze River, he will inevitably flee in a hurry. By then, the Chu army in Xiangyang will pursue and intercept him again, and the consequences will be disastrous.
This battle is related to the entire Jiangnan region and the future ownership of the world.
Taking advantage of the opportunity to cross the river, Xiao Yuan had to think carefully about whether he should move forward steadily. Once he made a wrong military decision, it would most likely trigger a chain reaction later.
At this time, Yan Qi said again: "I suggest that one force can be left behind to build warships and train naval forces on the north bank of the Yangtze River. My main force will continue to besiege Xiangyang. When the time is right, we can cross the river again." Not too late."
"I second the proposal."
"I also second the proposal..."
Jia You, Wang Su and other counselors all stood up.
Xiao Yuan glanced at everyone, took a deep breath and said: "The siege of Xiangyang cannot be decided in a short period of time. Do I have to fight for three to five years in this southern expedition? If so, Qin will also be exhausted."
"Your Majesty, the Southern Expedition is of great importance. We must not take risks. Once the situation changes, our country's efforts over the years will be in vain." Wang Su said.
Jia You also said: "At present, although we cannot win decisively, the Chu army will definitely be frightened because of the large army surrounding the city. Your Majesty can plan for it slowly."
"Wei Chen agrees with Mr. Jia's words. Xu plans Xiangyang in the rear, and builds warships and trains navy in the front line, so that our army will be familiar with the waters, which will be more convenient for crossing the river in the future." Yan Qi said.
Xiao Yuan is not a willful person. He will definitely adopt any favorable opinions. Since the counselor and the navy commander said so, he no longer hesitated and said immediately:
"Okay! Then quickly occupy all the cities north of the Yangtze River and completely isolate Xiangyang!"
"The building of warships and training of naval forces are left to General Yanqi."
"As ordered." The latter quickly bowed down.
This military discussion also determined the Qin army's next military action. They would not cross the river for the time being, but first surrounded Xiangyang, built warships, and trained their navy.
With the issuance of the highest military order, the generals of various ministries began to lead small groups of troops to attack in all directions to recapture various counties north of the Yangtze River.
Among them, 50,000 troops were stationed in the Linzhang area.
In just two months, except for Xiangyang, all the Jiangbei area had been captured by the Qin army.
Looking at the sand table at this time, we can see that there are small black flags everywhere in all directions of Xiangyang City. At this time, even if Hanzhou wants to retreat south, it is simply impossible.
The main hall of the Chu Dynasty.
Wang Ting, of course, is paying close attention to the battle situation.
After listening to the report, King Chu couldn't help but ask: "After King Qin captured Jiangling, he didn't make any move to cross the river?"
"Yes." A minister returned: "The main force of the Qin army is still besieging Xiangyang, and another hundred thousand troops are training naval forces at the Hanchuan ferry."
"Where's Wu Jun?"
"The Wu army set up a favorable defense line along the south bank of the river. Its navy camp is opposite the Qin army and looks across the river."
"Well..." King Chu frowned slightly: "The situation in Xiangyang is not good. At this time, Lingguo should send troops."
He placed his hope on the Ling Army. As long as the Ling Kingdom sent troops, he did not believe that King Qin would dare to besiege Xiangyang for several years.
This is what he has in mind.
Next, after a discussion about the war, another minister stood up and began to plead for Cui Ji.
Although Cui Ji is arrogant, he must still have friends in Chu State for so many years. In addition, after he was imprisoned, he frequently transported gold and silver in the palace and carried out activities in various places. So far, he has made a lot of progress.
Moreover, King Chu's anger had long since dissipated. After several ministers said some kind words, he waved his hand impatiently: "Okay, there is no need to talk about Cui Ji anymore. Let him go."
In this way, Cui Ji was imprisoned for a while and finally saw the light of day again. However, after he was released from prison, he did not think about thanking the king for his kindness. Instead, he felt that the king of Chu was self-willed, indecisive and not a wise master.
He even felt that he was in the Chu country and that disaster would befall him sooner or later.
So he packed up his belongings and secretly escaped from Chudu overnight. He hurried all the way to the Yangtze River ferry and crossed the river by boat.
(End of chapter)
