After the meeting, Liu Xiu went to Lanlin Hall, where Xin Linglu lived, and Heimao, Dahua, and Ermao also lived here.
As for the lion sent by Guishang, although it is also here in Lanlin Palace, it was not raised by humans after all. It is wild and untamable, and it is still locked in a cage until now.
Seeing Liu Xiu coming, Dahua and Ermao were very excited and walked around him.
But Heimao, who was most often with Liu Xiu and ran with him at night every day, acted very coldly. He raised his head, looked at Liu Xiu, yawned, and continued to sleep in.
The black-haired cat's personality is more like that of a cat. When it wants to get close to you, it will cling to you and pester you to play with it. When it doesn't want to get close to you, it will turn around and leave without mercy.
During this period, Xin Linglu has been living in the palace. At first, she was a little restrained, but now she has gradually adapted. She feels that living in Lanlin Palace is indeed much more comfortable than living in Zhongling Mountain.
Seeing Liu Xiu coming, she asked with surprise: "Why is Brother Liu free to come to my place today?"
As the war approached, things became busier and busier. It was difficult for Liu Xiu to spare any free time, and the number of visits to Lanlin Palace became less and less. He smiled helplessly at Xin Lingling and said, "In the middle of this month,
I want to lead the army to Hanyang."
Xin Lingling was stunned for a moment, then asked hurriedly: "Brother Liu, is there going to be a war?"
"Yes!" Liu Xiu nodded and said, "Kuihuo is a serious problem for me as a big man. If I can't get rid of it, I will have trouble sleeping and eating."
As he spoke, he looked at Heimao who was sleeping there and said, "I plan to take Heimao with me on this expedition."
Xin Linglu said oh but did not answer.
She didn't like war, and she didn't want Liu Xiu to participate in the war, and she didn't want Liu Xiu to take Heimao to participate in the war. After a while, she asked in a low voice: "Does Brother Liu have to fight this battle?"
?”
Liu Xiu said: "Sooner or later there will be a war between the imperial court and Wei Xiao. It is better to fight early than to fight late.
"The longer it is delayed, the more people will die. Ling Lu must have heard about the robbery of a civilian girl some time ago. If Wei Xiao cannot be defeated, such evil deeds will become more and more common in the future. I don't know what to do next.
How many innocent people have been implicated."
Xin Linglu sighed softly, was silent for a moment, and said: "Brother Liu takes good care of Heimao, and he must also take good care of himself."
Liu Xiu originally thought that borrowing the black hair from Xin Linglu would cost him a lot of money, but he didn't expect that she would agree to borrow the black hair so quickly. He asked, "Linglu is willing to lend me the black hair?"
Xin Ling smiled and said: "I have said before that what Brother Liu did must be right. Since Brother Liu proposed to borrow Black Hair, there must be a reason to borrow Black Hair."
Liu Xiu was somewhat ashamed of Xin Lingling's trust. Xin Lingling clearly hated war, but now he wanted to use Heimao to participate in the war, and he felt somewhat sorry.
He said seriously: "Don't worry Ling Lu, when the war is over, I will definitely bring Heimao back intact!"
Xin Lingling said: "Brother Liu himself must return to Chang'an intact!"
Liu Xiu smiled at her, stood up, and rubbed Xin Linglu's head.
To make a long story short, time flew by and soon it was mid-October.
Liu Xiu led an army of 20,000, as the vanguard of the Han army, and marched towards Qian County. Accompanying Liu Xiu were not only Lai She, but also Yao Qi and Ji Zun.
Yao Qi was a guard, and his duty was to protect the emperor. Liu Xiu was going to Hanyang to fight, so Yao Qi had no reason not to follow him. As for Ji Zun, he repeatedly asked Liu Xiu to fight, and finally Liu Xiu agreed.
he.
After the Han army led by Liu Xiu arrived in Qian County, they still faced three mountains, Jiequan, Qinting, and Longguan.
During the first battle of Hanyang, the Han army led by Liu Xiu was defeated on these three mountains. This time Liu Xiu led his army to Hanyang again. He did not want to fight either Jiequan or Qinting.
Longguan.
While discussing with Yao Qi, Ji Zun, and Lai She, Liu Xiu proposed a bold plan to clear a road through the mountains between Jiequan and Qinting, and directly attack Lueyang.
Lueyang is located behind Jiequan, Qinting, and Longguan. If Jiequan, Qinting, and Longguan are the first line of defense, then Lueyang is located on the second line of defense, and it is also the core position.
Instead of attacking Jiequan, Qinting, and Longguan, we skip directly and go to Lueyang without any resources. This plan is bold enough, and it means that there is no need for logistical supplies at all.
Regarding Liu Xiu's plan, Yao Qi, Ji Zun, and Lai She all looked a little solemn. Ji Zun said: "Your Majesty, is such a strategy too risky and radical?"
Yao Qi also believed that Liu Xiu's plan might not be feasible.
He said: "Skipping the three important places of Jiequan, Qinting, and Longguan, and attacking Lueyang directly, it will be difficult for our army to keep up with the supply of food and grass. Going deep into the enemy's hinterland without supplies is indeed... too much
adventure."
Liu Xiu rubbed his chin and said: "According to the information provided by Gongsun, Lueyang is an important storage area for the enemy. It not only stores a large amount of grain and grass, but also stores a large amount of armaments and baggage. If our army can take it by surprise and attack it unprepared,
To occupy Lueyang will be a heavy blow to the morale of Kaixiao's army!"
After a pause, he added: "In addition, our army can also use the supplies stored in Lueyang as our own supplies!"
Liu Xiu's plan sounds good, but it will not be so easy to implement.
Lai She said: "Your Majesty, even if our army is really surprised, captures Lueyang, and robs the enemy's supplies, it will definitely attract a large number of enemy troops. In this way, our army will be deeply encircled and it will be difficult to escape!"
Liu Xiu said: "If this is the case, and the main force of the enemy army is really attracted to Lueyang, our army can rely on the city defense of Lueyang to hold on for a period of time. During this period, the main force of our army can attack Lueyang and compete with us."
The inside of the ministry should cooperate with the outside world to fight the enemy to the death!"
Yao Qi, Ji Zun, and Lai She took a look at each other. It sounded like this plan was still feasible. The three of them said nothing more, and all bowed their hands to Liu Xiu and saluted, saying: "I will listen to your Majesty's orders!"
No one among the generals objected anymore, and Liu Xiu's plan was finalized.
The Han army rested for a day in Qian County. On the morning of the next day, the whole army set off, left Qian County and entered the territory of Hanyang.
The movements of Liu Xiu's Han army were clearly investigated by Kaixiao. They did not know that Liu Xiu was in the 20,000-strong Han army. They only knew that the leader of the Han army was here to offer sacrifices to Zun.
.
After learning that this Han army had entered Hanyang, Jiequan, Qinting, and Longguan, the number of defenders began to increase.
The defenders in the three places were all ready to resist the enemy, but to their surprise, the Han army did not attack in large numbers as they expected, but disappeared inexplicably.
They did not know where the Han army went after entering Hanyang. Even the most elite spies could not find out the specific whereabouts of this Han army.
The news quickly spread back to Shanggui. After hearing this, Wei Xiao looked confused. An enemy army of 20,000 people entered the territory of Hanyang and then disappeared? This is too weird?
He asked the spies who came to report the news: "No trace of the enemy was found near Jiequan, Qinting, and Longguan?"
The spy nodded repeatedly, raised his hands and said, "Report to your Majesty, we have searched all three places, Jiequan, Qinting, and Longguan, and no trace of the enemy has been found!"
Wei Xiao blinked his eyes, looked at his subordinates on the left and right, and asked, "Do you know what the thieves are doing and where they have gone?"
No matter how large or small the number of enemy troops is, as long as he knows where the enemy troops are, Wei Xiao will have a good idea.
But the problem now is that this enemy army of only 20,000 people disappeared under his nose, which made Wei Xiao feel anxious immediately.
The ministers under Wei Xiao looked at each other in confusion. They did not have more information than Wei Xiao, and they also had no idea where the Han army had gone.
Wang Yuan frowned and said: "Your Majesty, could this be Liu Xiu's child's plan to suspect the enemy? This bandit army may not have entered Hanyang at all, but secretly hid it. Its purpose is to use this to find out
What are the movements of our army?”
Of course, this possibility cannot be ruled out, but Wei Xiao's heart is still hanging on. He murmured: "Liu Xiu's use of troops cannot be underestimated. It is impossible for him to send out a troop of troops to enter without any reason.
Hanyang, these soldiers and horses must have a plan! But..." What is Liu Xiu planning? What can a force of 20,000 soldiers and horses do if they enter Hanyang?
Wei Xiao was really puzzled.
Wang Meng then said: "Your Majesty, do you want to assign the troops and horses stationed in Shanggui to Jiequan, Qinting and Longguan?"
Wang Yuan waved his hand and said: "That's inappropriate! The main force of our army is stationed in Shanggui. It can adapt to any changes without changing. If we rashly divide our troops and let the enemy control our deployment, it will be very detrimental to our army!"
Wei Xiao also agreed with Wang Yuan's statement. He thought for a long time and said, "Keep inquiring! As long as this Han army is still in Hanyang, I must find out their whereabouts!"
This Han army, which confused Kai Xiao and his ministers, is now in the mountains between Jiequan and Qinting.
In this large mountainous area, wherever you look, you can see endless mountains and forests.
Liu Xiu originally thought that crossing this mountain forest would not be too difficult, if not easy. However, when he actually took action, he realized that he thought it was easy. The forest was full of thorns, grass and vines, making it difficult to move even an inch.
