Chapter 254: Attack Fancheng again, Sun Li offers advice
Liao Hua, courtesy name Yuan Jian, the Liao family has been a wealthy family in Miannan for generations.
When Guan Yu became a former general, Guan Yu appointed Liao Hua as his chief secretary.
Later, because of Mi Yang's outstanding performance, Guan Yu awarded Mi Yang the post of chief clerk, and appointed Liao Hua as the subordinate supervisor of the account.
There is no such person as Zhou Cang in history. In this world, Liao Hua assumes Zhou Cang's responsibilities.
Liao transformed into the general's subordinate general and took charge of Guan Yu's personal troops. Under his summons, all the generals currently in Xiangyang were soon in the military camp outside the city.
After all the generals arrived, Guan Yu put on his armor and came to the tent.
After Guan Yu arrived, the faces of the generals showed expressions of admiration, and they all stood up to salute Guan Yu.
Perhaps in the past two years, Mi Yang's military exploits were the highest among all generals, but in the decades before Mi Yang suddenly rose to prominence, Liu Bei's number one general was Guan Yu.
With decades of experience and decades of military exploits, no matter how great his military exploits were, Mi Yang could not compare with Guan Yu.
What's more, the Battle of Xiangfan, which was known as a powerful battle in China, was different from the original history where Guan Yu had no choice but to retreat.
After he sent Mi Yang to garrison the public security, he first killed Xu Huang to break the trouble outside Fancheng. Later, when Cao Cao personally led an army of 100,000 and countless Cao Wei elites went south.
With a force several times lower than Cao Cao's, he blocked Cao Cao's army from moving south, causing Cao Cao's last battle in his life to end in failure, and he could only die with regrets.
That was Emperor Wu of Wei, who was both resourceful and experienced!
It can be said that in the present-day Battle of Xiangfan, Guan Yu's overall battle performance was fully worthy of the word "Megatron China".
No one will ever question Guan Yu's ability because of his final result.
Moreover, Guan Yu was not victorious in every battle in his life. He was defeated by others in his life.
But every time he was defeated, he was able to draw lessons from the defeat for his own use, and then grew up quickly until he reached the height he is today.
If we compare Mi Yang and Guan Yu, the two sons-in-law, although they are both currently famous generals of the Han Dynasty.
But compared to Mi Yang's talent type, Guan Yu's experience of becoming a famous general can inspire the hearts of the generals more, and he is more suitable to be the idol of most generals.
For all these reasons, even though Guan Yu did not value etiquette, Zhu Ci asked the generals not to be too polite in the army.
However, the generals who always regard Guan Yu's orders as standards still unconsciously stood up and saluted Guan Yu when they saw him.
Seeing this scene, Guan Yu was also a little helpless.
But the military situation was urgent, and he couldn't care so much.
He quickly came to his seat and sat down, and then waved to the generals in the tent to sit down. After sitting down, Guan Yu straight to the point explained the purpose of summoning the generals today.
"The autumn harvest in Jingzhou has ended now. Our army has enough food and supplies. It's time to attack Fancheng again!"
When Guan Yu said these sonorous and powerful words, excitement appeared on the faces of all the generals present.
Everyone in later generations knows about Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition, but looking at the period when Liu Bei really had the strength to launch a large-scale Northern Expedition, in fact, the Northern Expedition launched by Ji Han was not always led by Zhuge Liang.
For example, the Battle of Hanzhong was personally commanded by Liu Bei, and the Battle of Xiangfan was led by Guan Yu last year.
Regardless of the scale, direction or purpose of these two battles, these two battles can be regarded as the Northern Expedition.
These two massive Northern Expeditions both ended in victory for the Han Dynasty.
So when Guan Yu proposed to launch the Northern Expedition again, excitement appeared on the faces of all the generals present.
They looked at Guan Yu with fanatical eyes, and they were all willing to follow the great general of the Han Dynasty in front of them to regain the old land for the Han Dynasty.
After stating his purpose, Guan Yu began to mobilize his troops.
Although some generals in Jingzhou were guarding the southern border for the Han Dynasty, there were also many generals who stayed in Xiangyang to follow Guan Yu for a long time.
As early as when Liu Bei left Jingzhou, Guan Yu was always thinking about the Northern Expedition.
Who leads how many soldiers and what tasks should be completed.
How many troops Cao Xiu had on the other side of the Han River, and what preparations he had made for defense. In the past year, Guan Yu had already made plans for this situation in his mind.
Guan Yu respected the royal way in military use, and his military use style was a bit like that of General Wei.
Although he rarely uses tricks, he always considers every step clearly and then implements the plan in his heart step by step.
This style of using troops, although sometimes not very effective, can gradually reduce the enemy's living space and keep you in a favorable situation.
And once he encounters weather or geographical conditions that are favorable to him when he is marching steadily, Guan Yu will keenly seize this rare opportunity to quickly expand his results.
Unless something unexpected happens, such as the rebellion of Shiren and Mi Fang in history, Guan Yu's military style is most suitable for large-scale battles.
Guan Yu's tone was very majestic, and although his speaking speed was not fast, he had already considered it in his heart, so he completed his arrangements in a short time.
After Guan Yu issued all the orders, all the generals present stood up, followed the order, and retreated, hurriedly making preparations for the army.
After the generals left one after another, only Guan Yu and Ma Liang were left in the tent.
Ma Liang was appointed as the governor of Jingzhou by Liu Bei in the previous reward after Liu Bei became emperor.
Because he did not hold a military position, and the general Guan Yu was present in Jingzhou, Ma Liang did not participate in the actual leadership of the army on weekdays. He was more responsible for raising food and fodder for Guan Yu and planning military aircraft.
In the big tent, Guan Yu looked at Ma Liangyan and said, "The next step is to work hard for Ji Chang."
After listening to Guan Yu's words, Ma Liang bowed to Guan Yu humbly and said, "It is Liang's duty to raise food and fodder for the general. How can we talk about hard work?"
The three armies have not moved, and grain and grass have gone first. Moreover, the autumn harvest in Jingzhou has just ended, and a lot of harvested rice has not yet been put into warehouses.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Under such circumstances, there is no doubt that Ma Liang has a very heavy burden, which is why Guan Yu said these words to Ma Liang.
In the eyes of the world, Guan Yu's character despised scholar-bureaucrats and valued soldiers.
However, the scholar-officials that Guan Yu despised were only those who he felt were seeking fame and reputation. Guan Yu was also respectful to the scholar-officials who were worthy of their reputation.
Just like Zhao Lei, Wang Fu and other scholar-bureaucrats who were willing to die for Guan Yu in history, if Guan Yu did not pay attention to them in the past, would they repay Guan Yu with their lives?
In Guan Yu's eyes, just as Liu Bei once said to him, Ma Di was too famous to be useful, but Ma Liang lived up to his name and was a scholar-bureaucrat worthy of his attention.
After answering Guan Yu, Ma Liang looked at Guan Yu with a concerned look, and said to Guan Yu in a reminding tone:
"General Liang Guan seems to be mentally weak recently. I hope that General Liang Guan will not be too tired when dealing with military matters."
Most people may not know about Guan Yu's headache, but Ma Liang, the current second-in-command in Jingzhou, certainly knows about it.
There were even several times when Guan Yu covered his head in front of him when discussing matters with him.
However, in the face of Ma Liang's concern, Guan Yu smiled and said, "Did Ji Chang forget that I scraped my bones to heal my wounds?"
When Guan Yu mentioned this, Ma Liang showed admiration on his face.
Guan Yu was hit by a stray arrow from the rebel army, and the arrow penetrated his left arm.
Although the superficial wound healed later, because Guan Yu had not practiced well at that time, the bones in Guan Yu's left arm often felt pain whenever it was rainy.
After the examination, the medical officer said to Guan Yu: "The arrowhead is poisonous. The poison penetrates into the bone. The arm should be broken and the bone scraped to remove the poison. Then the ear can be removed."
After listening to the medical officer's words, Guan Yu stretched out his arm and ordered the medical officer to strike him.
At that time, Guan Yu was hosting a banquet with the generals. Under the attack of the medical officer, Guan Yu's left arm was bleeding like a stream, filling the plate.
But Guan Yu didn't seem to be afraid at all. He was eating meat and drinking wine, talking and laughing freely.
Ma Liang was also present at that time, and that scene left a deep impression on him. It was also that scene that made Ma Liang feel great admiration for Guan Yu.
After Guan Yu mentioned this matter to Ma Liang, he said to Ma Liang:
"I am a mediocre person, but I was created by the Lord. When I heard about Cao Ren's fall, I immediately wanted to attack Fancheng and open a northward passage for Jingzhou.
At the time of autumn harvest, I cannot get what I wish for. This autumn harvest is over, and the Central Plains is covered with dust. I have received your kindness, how dare I love my life!
I am an honorary relative with a heavy responsibility. If I can't defeat the enemy thousands of miles away, kill the rebels and restore the old capital, even though I have the supreme honor and honor attached to me, it's nothing valuable.
As a general of the Han Dynasty, although there is no clear decree from the emperor, time does not wait for me.
I have been through many battles in my life and have suffered a lot of injuries and some discomfort. How dare I cherish my life?
I have made my decision and there will be no more doubts."
Guan Yu brought up old things again not to show off himself.
Guan Yu mentioned this matter to Ma Liang, meaning that he wanted to tell Ma Liang that he had been fighting for decades and had suffered countless wounds.
In Guan Yu's opinion, the pain in his arm back then was no different from the headache he had now, neither of which could stop him from serving his country.
Hearing what Guan Yu said, Ma Liang was still a little worried, but he finally said nothing.
As Guan Yu said, if he was a person who cherished his life, would he still be the Guan Yunchang who was so powerful in China?
After reminding Guan Yu, Ma Liang slowly exited the main tent and went to arrange everything.
Looking at Ma Liang's leaving figure, Guan Yu had some deep thoughts in his eyes.
...
Fancheng has a long history of establishing counties, and has existed in Jingzhou for hundreds of years.
The geographical location of Fancheng is very special. When Cao Cao captured Fancheng, he placed Xiangyang County under Fancheng's jurisdiction.
But even though Xiangyang and Fancheng belonged to the same county in the political area set by Cao Cao.
But Fancheng and Xiangyang are separated by a vast Han River.
Because Fancheng is quite close to Xiangyang, Cao Xiu, the general of Cao Wei who led the troops stationed in Fancheng, had already discovered the news before Guan Yu's army began to cross the Han River.
When Cao Xiu heard the news, he immediately summoned the generals to discuss the military situation.
Facing the fact that Guan Yu's army was about to cross the Han River, all the generals showed fear on their faces after hearing the news.
As time went by, the generals in Fancheng already knew about the battle in Xicheng.
At this critical moment when Cao Ren died in battle, Guan Yu led an army to attack Fancheng again. This news was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for them.
But compared to the fearful looks on most of the generals' faces, some of the generals summoned by Cao Xiu remained calm.
For example, there was a general named Sun Li among them.
Sun Li, courtesy name Deda, was a native of Rongcheng, Zhuojun County.
When Sun Li was young, he was separated from his mother. At that time, Ma Tai, a native of Lai Township, rescued his mother, and mother and son were reunited. Sun Li donated all his family property to Ma Tai as a token of gratitude.
Later, Cao Cao conquered Youzhou and recruited Sun Li to serve as Sikong's advisor.
At that time, Ma Tai was about to face the death penalty for being implicated in the incident. Sun Li, who was already in power at that time, wanted to repay old favors and secretly allowed Ma Tai to escape from prison and escape.
He himself did not want to abscond, so he went directly to the principal's office, Wen Hui, to surrender.
After Wen Hui found out the whole story, he admired Sun Li's act of repaying kindness very much, so he informed Cao Cao of the incident. In the end, both Sun Li and Ma Tai were spared the death penalty.
Soon Sun Li was promoted to the post of Prime Minister of Hejian County, and then moved to the post of Captain of Xingyang.
At that time, there were hundreds of mountain bandits in the territory of the Lu State. They took advantage of the dangerous positions and caused harm to the people, so the imperial court appointed Sun Li as the Prime Minister of the Lu State.
After Sun Li took office, he immediately rewarded the military officials and ordered that those who obtained the heads of thieves would be rewarded.
On the other hand, he adopted a gentle policy towards the thieves and recruited them to surrender, and soon the local social order improved.
Sun Li now serves as the governor of Xiangyang.
After knowing that Guan Yu on the other side was mobilizing a large number of troops and horses, Sun Li immediately stood up and suggested to Cao Xiu:
"The bandits have the Han River as their backing, so they must be lightly armed and decisive in order to fight quickly. Therefore, our army cannot fight them head-on today.
Our army should divide its forces to defend Yancheng, so that they cannot penetrate deeply into our army's territory, try to delay as much time as possible, and vent their energy.
Then calmly select thousands of strong cavalry, go south along the Han River, wait for the flow of the Han River to be cut off, and cross the river to cut off their food routes. This is the best way.
If you order other county chiefs near Fancheng, they must rely on the danger to defend themselves.
It is a common method to burn all the remaining food and materials except for your own use, and then cut off all the crops in the fields so that the invading enemy has nothing to replenish their supplies.
If you think of taking advantage of the advantage of being able to attack halfway across the river and take the initiative to attack the bandit army, this is the worst method in my opinion."
After Sun Li came out to make suggestions, he listed the upper, middle and lower strategies based on the current situation.
After listening to Sun Li's advice, Cao Xiu decisively adopted Sun Li's best strategy.
In Cao Xiu's view, due to the existence of the Han River, Guan Yu's army's attack on Fancheng was not considered an expedition, so Sun Li's middle strategy was of little use.
As for the next strategy, although it is the most appropriate method in terms of the art of war.
However, the Wei army did not have the power to control the water. The Han River was so long that the Wei army had no way of predicting where the Han army would land. How could they attack halfway across the river?
In contrast, Sun Li's best strategy is the most consistent with today's practices.
So Cao Xiu immediately asked Sun Li to lead thousands of troops out of Yancheng, while he led the remaining army to garrison Fancheng, waiting for the arrival of Guan Yu's army.
After Sun Li led thousands of troops out of Yancheng, Guan Yu's army officially began to cross the river!
In early October of the first year of Han Zhangwu, the Han general Guan Yu led an army of 40,000 troops, known as 70,000, and crossed the Han River from the Han River to attack Fancheng.