Chapter 101 Xuzhou betrayal, betrayal, Zhou Yu sentenced Liu Wu to death
Just as Liu Wu, Pang Tong, Zhang Fei and 20,000 cavalry were marching towards Puyang, the war in Hanzhong broke out.

Cao Hong and Zhang Wei left a small number of troops to the west of Hanzhong to defend against Zhang Renhou in Yizhou.

Then more than a hundred thousand soldiers and horses rushed towards Xiangyang.

After being reminded by Liu Wu, Guan Yu realized that there was a possibility of war breaking out and had already raised his level of vigilance.

Therefore, when Cao Hong and Zhang Wei’s troops came to attack, Guan Yu led his troops to stop them without hesitation.

When marching from Hanzhong to Xiangyang, the key cities that need to be conquered may include but are not limited to the following three stages.

The first thing they needed to do was to cross the Qinling Pass: Since the Qinling Mountains separated Hanzhong and Xiangyang, the armies of Cao and Zhang Wei first needed to cross this dangerous area.

During the crossing, you will encounter some important passes or small strongholds. These locations are important military nodes and need to be conquered to ensure the smooth flow of the marching route.

When Guan Yu and Liu Zhang’s troops had previously rehearsed the attack on Hanzhong, he had already taken control of this pass or small stronghold and deployed troops there.

If Cao’s army and Zhang Wei’s army could break through the dangerous passes or small strongholds in the Qinling Mountains, they would only have passed the first stage.

Then, Cao’s army and Zhang Wei’s army will enter the important cities in the north of Jingzhou.

After entering the Jingzhou area, Cao’s army and Zhang Wei’s army will face a series of important cities in front of Xiangyang. Among them, Fancheng and Dengcheng are the only way to Xiangyang. If the opponent continues to break through, these cities will still be the focus of competition between the two sides.

These cities are strategically located and heavily defended, and conquering them will require tremendous effort and sacrifice, which constitute the second line of defense for the attack by Cao’s army and Zhang Wei’s army.

Xiangyang City: This is the third line of defense and also the ultimate goal.

Xiangyang City is an important town in the Jingzhou area. It has strong defenses and sufficient military forces. Conquering it will be the most difficult and critical part of the war between Cao’s army and Zhang Wei’s army.

Therefore, with three lines of defense, and as the main general of the defensive side, with 100,000 soldiers under his command, plus a large amount of food and fodder prepared for him by Liu Wu and Zhuge Liang, Guan Yu was very calm and composed.

Guan Yu personally led the army to block the dangerous pass in the Qinling Mountains, and engaged in an offensive and defensive war with Cao’s army and Zhang Wei’s army.

A large-scale war broke out between Hanzhong and Xiangyang, attracting the attention of all parties in the world.

Everyone knows that this was a contest and war between Cao Cao and Liu Wu.

Just when the world’s attention was focused on the war between Hanzhong and Xiangyang.

Another explosive news from the north swept the world, causing an uproar on all sides.

One hundred thousand cavalrymen from Liangzhou marched out of Hulao Pass and attacked Liu Wu’s Guandong states.

This news spread across the world, and all the princes were shocked by Cao Cao’s generosity.

In the south, Cao Hong and Zhang Wei led an army of over 100,000 to attack Xiangyang.

Another 100,000 cavalry were sent from the north to attack several states in the north of Liu Wu. Who could stop them?

Yangzhou, Hefei.

The residence of Marquis Wu.

In the hall.

Sun Quan sat in the main seat.

More than ten people including Zhang Zhao, Gu Yong, Zhang Hong, Yu Fan, Zhuge Jin, Lu Xun, Lu Meng, and Pan Zhang gathered together.

“Haha, good, that’s it. Cao Cao’s two armies attack Liu Wu. Let’s see how Liu Wu will respond?” Sun Quan, sitting on the main seat, looked at the news from the north and couldn’t help laughing out loud.

Obviously, there was some pleasure in his tone.

Inside the hall, a group of civil officials and military generals also had smiles on their faces. They were all under the command of Sun Quan, so naturally their attitude towards Liu Wu was determined by their positions.

Zhang Zhao smiled and said:

“My lord, Cao Cao is attacking Liu Wu from two directions. Liu Wu will definitely be unable to resist. Why don’t we conduct a large-scale naval warship exercise on the Yangtze River to respond to Cao Cao? If Liu Wu is really defeated by Cao Cao, how about our navy take advantage of the situation and attack Jiangdong?”

Zhang Zhao’s words immediately made Sun Quan quite interested.

Sun Quan slammed the table and said:

“Let’s do this, but who will be the Grand Commander?”

After Sun Quan finished speaking, the hall suddenly fell silent.

Although the generals were eager to try, they felt that they were not capable enough, and their eyes were filled with lack of confidence.

Sun Quan looked at the two or three big and small fish in the row of generals and felt helpless.

If it were before, he would not have to worry about not having enough generals under his command. However, because of Liu Wu’s conspiracy, he was deserted by his friends and relatives, and the generals under his command fled to Xuzhou one after another.

As a result, he now has no generals available.

Sun Quan’s eyes swept over the generals who lacked confidence, and finally stopped at Lu Meng, saying:

“Amon, do you have the confidence to take over the position of Grand Commander under my command?”

As Sun Quan spoke, his eyes were fixed on Lu Meng.

When Lu Meng heard Sun Quan’s question, his body trembled and excitement appeared on his face.

In his early years, he depended on his brother-in-law Deng Dang and served as a general under Sun Ce. However, because he relied on his brother-in-law for living when he was young, he had no chance to study, had little knowledge and limited experience, but was known for his courage.

After his brother-in-law Deng Dang died, Lu Meng took command of his troops and was appointed Sima of a separate army because of his military achievements. Only then did he begin to be valued by Sun Quan.

However, there was a scene several years ago that Lu Meng clearly remembered.

Sun Quan said to Lü Meng and another general, Jiang Qin: “You are now shouldering important responsibilities. You must study hard and increase your knowledge.”

He, Lu Meng, said disapprovingly, “The military affairs are so busy that I am afraid I don’t have time to read.” Sun Quan enlightened him, “My military affairs are much busier than yours. I read many books when I was a child, but I have never read “The Book of Changes”. Since I took charge of military affairs, I have read many history books and military books, and I find them very beneficial. Emperor Guangwu of Han Dynasty still read books when military affairs were urgent. Now Cao Cao is also old but studious. I hope you will not make excuses and refuse to study.” Sun Quan’s enlightenment inspired Lu Meng.

From then on, he began to seize the time to read, and soon after, he had read a lot of books, more than most people.

Once, Lu Su, a famous general from an aristocratic family, discussed political affairs with Lü Meng. During the conversation, Lu Su was often at a loss for words and was stumped by Lü Meng.

Lu Su patted Lu Meng on the back and said:

“I used to think that you only had a little knowledge of military strategy. Now I know that you are well-educated and have profound insights. You are no longer the same Amon from Wuxia!”

He Lü Meng smiled and said, “After three days of separation, we should see things with new eyes. Why are you so slow to react today?”

Then, Lü Meng thoroughly analyzed the current military situation and secretly provided countermeasures to Lu Su. Lu Su attached great importance to these countermeasures and never leaked them out. Lü Meng did not know whether Sun Quan knew about these changes.

However, Lu Meng continued to study diligently, even though he still felt that the knowledge in the ocean of books was endless.

However, Lu Meng is no longer the same A’meng as before.

Today, Sun Quan asked him if he had the confidence to take over the position of Grand Commander?
With his heart agitated and his hands trembling, Lü Meng bowed to Sun Quan and said:
“Thank you for your trust, my lord. I will definitely live up to your trust and use.”

Lu Meng accepted the position of Grand Commander of Jiangdong without hesitation.

He has courage to begin with, but he is making up for the lack of knowledge. He may be able to do a good job in the position of Grand Commander!

“Okay, in that case, Lu Meng will serve as the Grand Commander from today on.” Sun Quan was quite pleased to see Lu Meng take on the important task without hesitation.

Sun Quan valued Lu Meng very much because he was a general trained by him personally.

Of course, before Lu Su left, he secretly asked Lu Su which general could take on the important task. Lu Su said, “After three days of absence, Lu Meng is no longer the same old man from Wu. He should take on the important task.”

After Lu Meng took office as the Grand Commander of Jiangdong, he immediately passed down orders one after another.

Thirty thousand naval warships began training day and night along the Yangtze River at Jiangxia.

At the same time, 30,000 land forces were also deployed and conducting drills in Shouchun.

One naval force headed towards Jiangxia, and the other land force headed towards Runan.

It must be said that Lu Meng’s methods and actions immediately aroused Zhuge Liang’s vigilance, because no one could guarantee that Sun Quan would not break through and launch an attack on Xiangyang at this time.

Huang Zu also gathered naval warships and confronted the Jiangdong navy on the Yangtze River.

At the same time, Zhao Yun of Runan also stationed troops in Runan to guard against the army from Shouchun in Jiangdong.

Sun Quan’s actions increased the pressure on Zhuge Liang in Xiangyang.

Zhuge Liang took corresponding actions and sent an envoy to Xuzhou, asking Sun Shao to send troops to help, or to threaten Sun Quan as much as possible so that he would not dare to take further actions.

Xuzhou and Pengcheng are provincial governors’ offices.

Sun Shao, who was about fourteen or fifteen years old and looked very heroic, sat in the main seat.

In the hall.

Zhou Yu, Lu Su, Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang, Jiang Qin, Zhou Tai, Zhu Zhi and a dozen other civil and military officials gathered together.

“Xiangyang hopes that we can send troops to help, or station troops in Guangling to intimidate my uncle. What do you think?”

Sun Shao said with a headache as he talked about the news from Xiangyang.

Now the two great princes in the world are fighting each other, and many people are implicated.

Such as Zhang Lu in Hanzhong, Liu Zhang in Yizhou and Sun Quan in Jiangdong, and now they want Xuzhou to get involved as well.

Because he had previously signed an alliance with Liu Wu.

Zhou Yu was the first to step forward and bowed to Sun Shao:
“My lord, I do not recommend sending troops, nor do I even recommend deploying troops in Guangling to intimidate the Marquis of Wu.”

As soon as Zhou Yu finished speaking, the people around him were all in an uproar and became agitated.

Even Sun Shao, who was sitting in the main seat, was stunned by Zhou Yu’s sudden words.

What did he hear?
Zhou Yu actually said that he did not recommend sending troops, and even did not recommend deploying troops in Guangling to deter Sun Quan?

This is not helping Liu Wu of Xiangyang at all?

“This…this, General Gongjin, how can this be? Not to mention that my uncle and I have already formed an alliance, my uncle is very good to me, and he even gave us more than 100,000 dan of grain to help us tide over the difficulties. It would be fine if we didn’t send troops, but why don’t we even station troops in Guangling?” Sun Shao was shocked and puzzled, and said to Zhou Yu.

Zhou Yu frowned upon hearing this, and bowed to Sun Shao. He did not answer Sun Shao’s question, but asked:

“My Lord, do you and the others think that Liu Wu has a chance of winning against Cao Cao’s two-pronged attack this time?”

As soon as Zhou Yu finished speaking, the crowd in the hall, which had been noisy, suddenly fell silent.

Any chance?

No.

In fact, when the news first came, they all thought that Cao Cao’s two armies were attacking in large numbers, and Liu Wu had no chance of winning.

In fact, the best outcome for Liu Wu was that the rule of several northern states collapsed, and all his troops and forces were concentrated in Jingzhou, occupying it in order to protect himself.

The truth is, Liu Wu’s Xiangyang was too far to the south, and his control over the five states in the north, namely Youzhou, Jizhou, Qingzhou, Yuzhou, and Yanzhou, was beyond his reach. One hundred thousand cavalry were enough to cause chaos in the north, and Liu Wu’s control collapsed.

Even if Cao Hong and Zhang Wei in the south joined forces, it would be enough to destroy Liu Wu’s Xiangyang.

In the hall, Zhou Yu saw that everyone was silent, and continued:
“Liu Wu has no chance of winning, and Wu Hou Sun Quan has allied with Cao Cao. It is unwise for us to clash with Sun Quan now. Once Cao’s army retakes Guandong, Sun Quan will surely join forces with Cao’s army to attack Xuzhou, and Xuzhou will be in danger.”

“And if we do not clash with Sun Quan at this time, we can still maintain a superficial relationship with him. One day, when Cao’s army returns to Guandong, Xuzhou and Yangzhou may be able to fight against Cao Cao together. After all, both Wu Hou Sun Quan and we understand Cao Cao’s ambition. At that time, only the two Suns will unite to make Cao Cao afraid.”

“So, Yu thought that since Liu Wu was doomed to fail, we could not send troops to Yangzhou, nor could we threaten Sun Quan.”

When Zhou Yu expressed his thoughts, Lu Su, Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang, Jiang Qin, Zhou Tai, Zhu Zhi and others in the hall looked at each other in surprise.

They understood what Zhou Yu meant.

What this means is that, judging from the current situation, Liu Wu cannot defeat Cao Cao. Even if 100,000 cavalrymen wreak havoc in Guandong, Liu Wu’s rule over several northern states will collapse.

In this case, there is no need to provoke Sun Quan.

Because Sun Quan and Cao Cao were allies.

Otherwise, if they did as Xiangyang wanted, it would cause them to fall out with Sun Quan and they would lose the basis for their subsequent alliance with Sun Quan.

Even Xuzhou might be attacked by Cao’s army.

Hearing Zhou Yu’s words, Sun Shao immediately sat down on his seat with a bit of weakness, and said:
“It’s just that my uncle has been very good to me. If I do this, it would be a bit of a betrayal.”

Sun Shao’s words made everyone frown.

subconsciously.

In their minds, they had to make a choice between “betrayal” and “the possibility that Xuzhou would be attacked by Cao’s army and lose the basis for an alliance with Sun Quan in the future.”

“Report-urgent report!”

Suddenly, a messenger walked in, attracting everyone’s attention.

“Reporting to Lord Peng, Cao’s 100,000 cavalrymen have passed through Hulao Pass and entered Guanzhong. General Liu Wu of the Cavalry is personally leading 20,000 cavalrymen to attack Puyang to meet them.”

The messenger reported loudly.

“Liu Wu personally led the troops? Only 20,000 cavalrymen?”

The messenger’s words were like a stone thrown into a river, causing ripples. Everyone in the hall, whether it was Sun Shao, Zhou Yu, Lu Su, Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang, Jiang Qin, Zhou Tai, Zhu Zhi, etc., exclaimed in surprise.

It seemed that no one expected this to happen.

But soon, Zhou Yu, Lu Su, Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang and others all shook their heads.

“It’s over. It seems that Liu Wu has really run out of tricks and has actually gone to the battlefield himself.”

Huang Gai shook his head, as if sentencing Liu Wu to death.

They had not heard that Liu Wu had experience in commanding troops and fighting on the battlefield. Since his debut, Liu Wu had been in the center.

This time, he personally led the troops to fight, which really made them feel that Liu Wu’s defeat was inevitable.

At this time, Zhu Zhi bowed to Sun Shao and said:

“My lord, Liu Wu’s defeat is inevitable. We should stay out of it and not get involved. We should just sit back and watch the situation in the world and work hard to train our troops.”

Sun Shao sighed and said:
“Okay, let’s do as you wish.”

(End of this chapter)