"The order was sent to Zhang Shicheng in Yangzhou. The battle situation in Yangzhou changed from offensive to defensive. Zhang Shicheng led the main force of 150,000 to Yanzhou."
Zhang Jiao also knew something about the Yangzhou war situation, which had already reached a stalemate. Although Zhang Shicheng concentrated most of his troops and prepared to capture Jiujiang County, he still failed to achieve any results despite the stubborn resistance of the Yangzhou governor.
Rather than continue in this stalemate, it is better to make a choice, put troops in some major areas, and maintain a defensive position.
Anyway, with the current strength and strength of the Han army, it is not that easy to organize a decent attack.
"An order was sent to Hong Xiuquan in Jiaozhou. The battle situation in Jiaozhou changed from offensive to defensive. Hong Xiuquan led a main force of 150,000 people to Yanzhou, and he personally selected a general to defend the rest of the troops!"
Although the land of Jiaozhou is huge, it is basically vast and sparsely populated.
Take Nanhai County as an example. It covers an area equivalent to three ordinary counties, but there are only seven counties. It is very close to Yangzhou, so it is naturally Hong Xiuquan's attack target.
After several months of conquest, seven counties in Nanhai County fell into the hands of Hong Xiuquan.
After Hong Xiuquan captured Nanhai County, he asked Yang Xiuqing to repair Sihui County, then attack Gaoyao County and open the door to Cangwu County!
As the governor of Jiaozhou, Jia Cong naturally could not remain indifferent and sent troops to support him. However, due to the distance between the two sides, the reinforcements sent by Jia Cong had not arrived yet, and Gaoyao was captured by Yang Xiuqing.
After occupying Gaoyao County, the Yellow Turban Army entered Cangwu County as if they were in uninhabited territory, and captured Cangwu County in more than a month!
Although Jia Cong's internal affairs were strong, his military level was still flawed. Even though he was good at utilizing talents, the local talents in Jiaozhou were not as numerous or as strong as those in the Central Plains.
In front of famous generals such as Yang Xiuqing and Shi Dakai, he looked very unbearable.
From the beginning of the Yellow Turban Uprising to this time, more than half of the seven counties of Jiaozhou were in the hands of Hong Xiuquan.
They are: Nanhai County, Cangwu County, Hepu County, and Yulin County, occupying half of Jiaozhou and holding 35 counties.
Hong Xiuquan now has more than 200,000 troops in his hands. Even if he takes away 150,000, the remaining troops are enough to hold on.
……………
"I sent an order to the commander-in-chief of Yizhou, Ming Yuzhen, that the battle situation in Yizhou has changed from offensive to defensive, and his troops are staying in Yizhou on standby. I have only one order for him, that is, the Han Dynasty must not be allowed to transfer any troops from here.
"
"Keep them nailed here!"
The reason why Zhang Jiao arranged for Ming Yuzhen to stay in Yizhou was because of the strategy he and Su Zhe had arranged in advance.
The land of Yizhou is known as the land of abundance!
Since the Qin and Han Dynasties, although Yizhou is relatively remote, its economic strength is not inferior to that of the Central Plains states that were developed earlier.
The Land of Abundance is geographically relatively isolated, there are no large-scale wars, and the turmoil in the Central Plains has less negative impact on Yizhou, so the population grows rapidly.
Although the author of "Book of the Later Han" had not yet been born at this time, since Fan Ye can record it here, in the fifth year of Yonghe Emperor Shun of the Eastern Han Dynasty, that is, in 140 AD, the population of Yizhou was 6.974 million.
It is enough to prove that Yizhou has a large number of people.
Although Yongchang County has a population of 1.69 million, which has been questioned by historians, even if we take a step back and refer to the population of Yuexun, a neighboring county of Yongchang, with a population of 620,000, and then subtract one million from the population of Yongchang, the total of Yizhou
The population is still about six million.
At this time, Zhang Jiao knew more than Fan Ye, a historian of the Northern and Southern Dynasties and the Southern Song Dynasty. The number of people in Yizhou today would only be greater than the data indicated.
Zhang Jiao made a preliminary estimate and found that there must be at least more than 7 million people.
Not only that, Yizhou is surrounded by mountains and rivers, with a huge basin in the middle that is suitable for agricultural development, and with such a large population, it is the best place for separatist rule in troubled times.
At the beginning of the Yellow Turban Uprising, Zhang Jiao was already worried about defeat before winning, so he asked Hong Xiuquan and Ming Yuzhen to attack Jiaozhou and Yizhou one after another to prepare for emergencies.
Ming Yuzhen is from Yizhou and knows the situation here well. Moreover, this person is another version of Dou Jiande, with a benevolent heart and strong military ability!
If the Yellow Turban Uprising fails, the remaining troops can also circle the south and enter Yizhou or Jiaozhou.
This is also the reason why Zhang Jiao didn't let Ming Yuzhen come over.
After all, the situation in Yizhou is far more complicated than that in Jiaozhou. He, a local figure, needs to be in charge. If the court is planning to dispatch troops from here, Ming Yuzhen can stop it in time!
It can be said that the role he played in Yizhou is far better than the role he played in Yanzhou. After all, the next Yellow Turban Army will have one more of him but not more, and one less of him will not be enough!
In this way, it is better to keep it useful and deal with the Han army in Yizhou.
…………
Hearing Zhang Jue issue a series of orders one after another, each sound was undoubtedly a shock to the Yellow Turban Army who still had the upper hand.
Everyone present didn't understand that this was a great situation, and as long as they exerted a little more force, they could gain an even greater advantage.
They believed that the great virtuous master must also be able to see this, but why would he issue such an order to switch from offense to defense?
In this way, wouldn’t it increase the ambition of others and destroy one’s own prestige?
However, if I just say this, why should I concentrate the Yellow Turban Army forces in Xuzhou, Qingzhou, Yangzhou and other places in two states away from Hebei and Yanzhou?
There is definitely different information hidden behind this command!
Could it be...
Everyone quickly thought of a possibility!
Does that mean Zhang Jiao is preparing to concentrate his forces and fight a decisive battle with the Han army?
When they thought of this, the hearts of the Yellow Turban leaders present were filled with endless excitement and hope.
According to military advisor Su Zhe's advance plan, he was to first capture Yuzhou, Yanzhou, eastern Xuzhou and other Central Plains areas, and then develop in all directions to capture Jizhou, Qingzhou, Xuzhou, Youzhou, Yangzhou and other large eastern states in one fell swoop.
After these places are completely occupied and stabilized, the superior troops in these places will be gathered to seize the imperial capital Luoyang and decide the outcome in one battle.
It can be said that this arrangement is both stable and practical.
For the Yellow Turban Army at that time, it was definitely the best choice.
It is a pity that even Su Zhe, who has an intelligence of over 100, did not expect that the Han army's resistance would be so strong, and the Han army's determination to fight the Yellow Turban Army exceeded their expectations.
On the frontal battlefield, neither the main force of the Yellow Turbans nor the main force of the Han army could do anything to the other. Just like the Battle of Changping during the Warring States Period, they were attrition on all major battlefields.
It depends on who can't bear it in the end!
The competition is about resources and foundation.
