Chapter 304 Zhao Fan Night Crossing (continue to add more updates!)
Zhuge Jin knew very well that if Zhuge Liang really became the son-in-law of the Liu family, with Liu Feng’s appreciation and love for Zhuge Liang, the future of the Zhuge family would definitely be There is a huge leap forward.
The Yuan family in Runan did not dare to think about it, but the status of Chen, Zhong, Xun and Han in Yingchuan could always be improved.
Just when Liu Feng was about to take a rest, Xu Chu suddenly knocked on the door.
Liu Feng raised his eyebrows and walked over to open the door himself.
As soon as he opened the door, he saw a small mountain-like Xu Chu standing at the door.
After seeing Liu Feng, Xu Chu reported in a low voice: "My lord, we are coming from Jiangdong."
Liu Feng raised his brows, and a smile flashed at the corner of his mouth.
It’s really interesting to see people coming from Jiangdong in the middle of the night.
Immediately, Liu Feng asked: "Where is the person?"
Xu Chu replied: "General Dong from Shuizhai did not dare to neglect, and immediately sent people to escort him into the city. He was already in the mansion at this time."
Liu Feng immediately made a decision: "Invite people quickly, and I will Let’s meet in the room.”
“Here!”
Xu Chu responded and then turned around and left.
Liu Feng did not go back to the house, but stood at the door and waited.
The guard on the side said with concern: "General, go back to the house and wait."
Liu Feng smiled and shook his head.
Then the guard said again: "The wind is strong at night, general, please don't catch cold. How about adding another cloak?"
Liu Feng saw that he was very concerned about him, so he followed the good example. , nodded.
Seeing that Liu Feng agreed, the guard hurriedly entered the room, took out a cloak, and put it on Liu Feng.
The cloak has just been tied here, and Xu Chu's figure has already appeared at the entrance of the courtyard.
I saw a young man with a delicate appearance and a height of about 1.8 meters following Xu Chu. His expression was a little nervous, but his eyes were full of hope.
After seeing Liu Feng, Zhao Fan paid homage with great salute, raised his hands to Liu Feng and said: "Zhao Fan, who is of humble rank, is the Sima of Jiangdong Army, see General Zhengnan."
" Zhao Fan?"
Liu Feng felt that the name sounded familiar. After thinking about it carefully, he thought about it and asked tentatively: "You were the one who held Sun Ce back for half a month in Qu'agu City last year. Ah Zhaofan?”
Zhao Fan's eyes suddenly lit up: "Unexpectedly, Zheng Nan actually knew the name of his humble position."
Zhao Fan was surprised and surprised. Who would have thought that Liu Feng would know the name of such a small army commander, and even know that he was Qu'a's military exploits.
"It turned out to be Zhao Sima."
Liu Feng was a little surprised. Although Zhao Fan was able to hold on for half a month, it was also because Sun Ce wanted to capture Liu Yao alive and made a prudent decision.
But the other party was able to hold on for a full half month, and was able to break out of the encirclement after finally falling, which shows that Zhao Fan's ability and ability are also outstanding.
At that time, Sun Ce's troops surrounded Qu'a, and they all used his direct lineage. It was only expanded once in Jiangbei. The core and backbone were veterans of hundreds of battles who followed Sun Jian to fight in half of the Central Plains. The generals who led the army were also Wu Jing. , Xu Kun, Cheng Pu, Huang Gai and other veteran generals.
His combat effectiveness is far superior to that of Liu Yao's army, which further highlights Zhao Fan's extraordinary strength.
Looking at Zhao Fan's delicate face, Liu Feng felt fond of him. He immediately took a few steps forward and walked to Zhao Fan's side. When he saw that his clothes had been wet by the river water, he immediately tore them open. He tied it up, took off the cloak, and put it on the other person.
"Zhao Sima defended the isolated city alone and was loyal to the Lord. Feng was very happy."
Liu Feng helped the other party stand up and praised him: "I saw him today, he is really outstanding."
Zhao Fan only felt that his heart was beating very hard, and the sound was as loud as gongs and drums. He lowered his head, not daring to look at Liu Feng, but he felt that the cloak was extraordinarily warm, and it made his whole body feel warm.
"Zheng, Zhengnan has been overly praised..., Fan, Fan is too ashamed to deserve it."
Zhao Fan tried his best to calm down, but his answers were still arrogant.
Zhao Fan was filled with annoyance, wondering if Liu Feng would be disappointed if his performance was so bad.
He raised his head and glanced at Liu Feng quietly, only to find that the other person was looking at him with a smile on his face, and their eyes were still facing each other.
Zhao Fan's face suddenly turned red. He wanted to explain, but he couldn't think of how to explain.
Liu Feng took the other party's hand and ordered the guards: "Go and prepare some food, serve a pot of good wine, and find another set of clothes according to Zhao Sima's figure. . ”
Zhao Fan felt dizzy and was pulled into the room by Liu Feng.
Then, both parties sat down respectively. Seeing that Zhao Fan was very nervous, Liu Feng signaled Xu Chu to have someone give him a cup of hot soup first.
The hot soup in the Eastern Han Dynasty was actually very simple, just hot water.
After all, productivity is low at this time and there is no insulation equipment. Hot water is also a very valuable thing.
Even if someone like Liu Feng wanted to keep the hot soup, he could only keep adding firewood and water.
Soon, the hot soup was brought up. Liu Feng personally handed it to Zhao Fan's hand, and patted his shoulder gently as if to comfort him.
Although Liu Feng does not look very young, Zhao Fan feels that he makes him feel like an elder.
Zhao Fan suppressed the random thoughts in his heart and drank the hot soup in his hand.
The warm soup was put into his belly, and the substantial temperature warmed his hands and feet, making his somewhat panicked expression finally begin to calm down.
After seeing Zhao Fan calm down, Liu Feng began to ask: "Why did Zhao Sima cross the river at night this time?"
Liu Feng specifically pointed out the two things that happened at night. In other words, if there is no emergency, it is impossible to row over in the middle of the night.
Zhao Fan did not dare to neglect and hurriedly answered Liu Feng's questions.
"The humble post came under the orders of three captains, Zhang, Fan and Yu. Liu Shijun seems to have some opinions on the expedition to the south and does not want to conquer the south across the river."
Zhao Fan thought about the news Zhang Ying told him and said slowly: "According to Captain Zhang, Liu Shijun hopes to stop Zhengnan in Jiangxi, and hopes that Zhengnan will provide soldiers, food and ordnance across the river."
Liu Feng and Xu Chu, both of whom were well-known in the city, were also shocked by Liu Yao's imagination.
However, Liu Feng quickly realized that this was not actually because Liu Yao was stupid, but because Liu Yao was completely panicked.
He neither wanted Liu Feng to cross the river, nor could he come up with a reasonable reason to stop Liu Feng, nor could he afford the consequences of Liu Feng not crossing the river.
Sun Ce is racing and staking land in Jiangdong right now.
Liu Yao was obviously panicked.
Liu Feng continued to ask: "What is the attitude of the three captains?"
As soon as Zhao Fan heard this, he immediately stood up excitedly: "The three captains have all admired each other for a long time. The general is famous, and he hopes that the general will cross the river day and night, expel Sun Ce, and restore Jiangdong."
Liu Feng nodded with satisfaction: "Okay, that's good."
After that, the clothes happened to be the same. The food was also served. There was nothing to eat in the middle of the night, just a simple bowl of corn rice, a plate of pickles, a pickled fish, a plate of seasonal fruits and vegetables, and a small pot of fine wine.
"You go change clothes first, and then eat. We will talk about other things later."
Liu Feng asked Zhao Fan to change clothes first, and then he thought about it in his mind.
Zhang Ying and the others should have no need to lie to themselves.
Liu Yao cannot lead them to restrict Sun Ce. If Sun Ce continues to be allowed to expand his power, sooner or later he will attack Danyang.
From Liu Yao's perspective, the most he can do is, as Zhao Fan said, if he doesn't want to cross the river, it is impossible to design any conspiracy against him.
Therefore, what Zhao Fan said is most likely true and believable. If he crosses the river at this time, Liu Yao will probably have no choice but to wait for his capture.
After Liu Feng considered it carefully, he did not speak immediately. Instead, he waited for Zhao Fan to finish his meal before he said: "Zhao Sima."
"I am here!"< br>
Zhao Fan immediately stood up and waited for Liu Feng's instructions.
Liu Fengdao: "I still need to work hard for you. You go back this time and inform the three captains that early tomorrow morning, I will send troops across the river and ask them to guard the gates and order the officers and soldiers not to leave the camp. . You can do it?”
Zhao Fan immediately responded to the order and said: "Please rest assured Zheng Nan, I will definitely be able to do it despite my humble position!"
"Okay!"
Liu Feng praised: "The three captains abandoned the dark and turned to the bright side. Loyal to the court, the emperor, this success will be rewarded. In addition, I like Zhao Sima very much. If Zhao Sima is willing, how about working with me after crossing the river? "
Zhao Fanmeng? He raised his head, almost wondering if his ears had heard it wrong.
But when he saw Liu Feng nodding and smiling at him, he felt ecstatic.
"I am willing to accept this humble position!" "Good!"
Liu Feng then told Xu Chu: "Zhongkang, please send someone to take Zhao Sima to the water stronghold. It will be hard for him to go back overnight."
“Here!”
Xu Chu nodded and turned to leave with Zhao Fan looking surprised.
Zhao Fan had not taken two steps when he suddenly remembered something. He turned back to Liu Feng and said, "General, I almost forgot something else."
"Oh?"
Liu Feng reassured him: "What else can you do?"
Zhao Fan cupped his hands and said: "Colonel Zhang asked me to tell the general a message that Sun Bofu has captured Youquan County, and the vanguard continues to move south. Arriving directly at Qiantang, it is said that they have already fought against the Kuaiji Army."
Liu Feng's expression changed slightly, but he did not expect that Sun Ce was determined to continue to expand.
"Okay, I already know about this."
Liu Feng nodded and warned: "Be safe on the way back, be careful."
Zhao Fan was moved in his heart and thanked him repeatedly: "Thank you, General!"
Afterwards, Liu Feng personally escorted them to the door. After they left, Liu Feng still did not return to the house, but stood there thinking.
Liu Yao's incident really shocked Liu Feng.
He originally thought about how to divide and disintegrate the other party after crossing the river, and then ignored Liu Yao.
Who would have thought that Liu Yao's men would fall apart just after he had sent troops to Li Yang, and they were all scrambling to beg for mercy.
In the final analysis, Liu Yao was still out of touch. Although he had been in Jiangdong for three years, he had never extended his influence and control to the local areas, and even the counties were beyond his reach.
It is entirely because of the famous nobles in the court and the need of a co-owner by the local wealthy families in Jiangdong that he has been able to support himself until now.
Now that the powerful people in Jiangdong have a newer and better choice like themselves, they naturally leave Liu Yao and switch to themselves without any burden or pressure.
This also sounded the alarm for myself. If I were weak and these powerful people had better choices, they would abandon me like Liu Yao.
So this time when I cross the river, I can't be dazzled by the support of powerful people. I still have to add sand to them, divide and win them over, and support the local forces close to me. Coupled with the replacement of county-level officials, we should be able to ensure local stability, tax collection and other tasks for the time being.
Before dawn, Zhao Fan rushed back to Niuzhu and immediately went to Zhang Ying to tell him everything Liu Feng had told him to say, especially Liu Feng's words that there would be rewards and so on. Zhang Ying listened. Ying's heart is in full bloom.
However, Zhao Fan hid all that part about himself. Zhao Fan also felt extremely complicated about Zhang Ying and others.
On the one hand, he was grateful to Zhang Ying for helping him when he was down and giving him the opportunity to cross the river to meet General Zhengnan.
But similarly, he also looked down upon Zhang Ying and others for easily betraying Liu Yao.
What is even more confusing is that he himself is full of resentment towards Liu Yao.
I defended the isolated city for him and bought Liu Yao a lot of time, but Liu Yao had no intention of rewarding him.
Zhao Fan was both angry and puzzled. In the end, Zhang Ying helped him. It was simply because he was from a bad background, not from a noble family, and was from Jiangdong.
Looking at Zhang Ying's ecstatic look, Zhao Fan couldn't help but think of how he looked in front of Liu Biao before, and couldn't help but feel a little ashamed.
What qualifications do you, Zhao Fan, have to look down on Zhang Ying? Just now you sold Liu Yao cleanly.
Zhang Ying did not pay attention to Zhao Fan's complicated psychology, You Zi was immersed in joy: "Xiannephew, you can go and rest, there may be time for you to contribute tomorrow."
Zhang Ying is quite sure of Zhao Fan's bravery.
With such a warrior by his side, he can feel much more at ease.
Unexpectedly, Liu Yao did not fall asleep that night, but stood in the courtyard and meditated.
The weather had turned cold by this time. Although it was better in the south, Liu Yao's own health was not very good.
Not long after, he coughed softly.
After his son Liu Ji saw it, he quickly took out the cloak from the house and wanted to put it on his father.
Liu Ji is the eldest son of Liu Yao, and his mother is the legitimate daughter of the Taishan noble clan, with beautiful appearance.
Liu Yao himself is quite charming, so Liu Ji has a pretty face at a young age, and his appearance is very cute. Moreover, this son is also very smart. He was enlightened at the age of five and filial since childhood. He has always been Liu Yao's pet peeve and has always been his capital to show off.
But tonight, he suddenly felt that his love for his son had faded.
No matter how you look at it, you will feel unhappy.
The reason is naturally very simple, because Liu Ji's age is only one year younger than Liu Feng, who is stationed in Liyang and is working hard.
Seeing Liu Yao suddenly throw away the cloak he handed to him, Liu Ji was obviously frightened by his father.
In fact, Liu Ji was pretty good. He was deeply favored by King Wu of the Wei Dynasty and was promoted all the way, starting from Hussar General Dong Cao, and then promoted to Jianzhong Zhonglang General via Fuyi Xiaowei.
After Sun Quan was canonized by Cao Wei and became the Queen of Wu, Liu Ji was awarded the title of Grand Secretary of Agriculture and the title of Langzhongling.
In the end, after King Wu of the Wei Dynasty became the great emperor, Liu Ji even divided the ministerial affairs with Prime Minister Gu Yong.
This is tantamount to half phase.
It's a pity that now he is still a twelve-year-old child and doesn't understand anything.
Liu Yao sighed deeply in his heart when he looked at Liu Ji who was so aggrieved that he shed tears.
If Liu Feng were my son, how could Jiangdong be at peace?
After sighing for a moment, Liu Yao turned around and picked up Liu Ji's little hand and took him back to the house.
After all, Liu Feng is not his son, Liu Ji is.
Early the next morning, Liu Feng personally appeared at Liyang Water Village and ordered the army to cross the river.
The morale of Liu Feng's army was high. Jia Kui's troops acted as the vanguard. Carried by Dong Xi, Gan Ning, and the boats in Liyang Water Village, the first wave of 5,000 people (except the cavalry battalion) all boarded the boats. Cross the river.
The distance between Liu Fengliyang Water Village and Niuzhu is a narrow section of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, where the river is gentle and the wind and waves are small. It is one of the three most suitable sections for crossing the river.
Downward is from Jiangdu to Dantu, and upward is from Wankou to Hulin.
These three places are the battlegrounds for the confrontation between north and south in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.
This section of the river in Liyang is about twelve miles wide, but the speed of a boat is much faster than walking.
Even with a fully loaded boat, the other shore was already in sight after more than an hour.
At this time, all the soldiers in the Niuzhu military camp stayed in the camp and were comforted by officers at all levels.
Otherwise, it would be impossible for such a large fleet of hundreds of ships to cross the river without arousing the defense of Niuzhu defenders.
When Li Yang's fleet approached Niuzhu, the other side's water village opened, but only three or five small boats came out, waved the flag towards Li Yang's fleet, and then guided the fleet into the water village one by one.
After the ship docked, Liu Fengjun's subordinates landed one after another, and began to take over the defense in an orderly manner under the leadership of Zhang Ying's generals.
After Liu Fengjun landed, news spread within Jiangdong Army.
It turned out that Liu Feng, the general who conquered the south, had crossed the river and came to support them.
After the Niuzhu defenders learned the news, not only did they not mutiny, but their morale was immediately boosted.
Before Liu Feng arrived, the morale of the Niuzhu garrison was actually quite low.
Trapped in a corner, there are enemies in both the east and west, and the friendly forces seem to be in harmony with each other. From Zhang Ying, Fan Neng, Yu Mi, down to the soldiers, they all feel helpless.
Therefore, when everyone saw Liu Fengjun crossing the river, their first reaction was not to be wary, but to be overjoyed.
The Niuzhu defense line is divided into two layers.
The first line is Jiangfang, which is built on Niuzhu Mountain. Niuzhuji is close to the east bank of the Yangtze River, and the west bank across the river is Hengjiangjin and Danglicou.
The location of Niuzhu Mountain is the most important. It is not only the location of Jiang Defense and has terrain advantages, but also stores a large amount of grain, grass and military supplies, which is where the logistics inventory is located.
Sun Ce has been unable to break through the Yangtze River defense line because he has been unable to attack Niuzhuji.
In the original time and space, Sun Ce later relied on Zhou Yu and Zhou Shang's sneak attacks to attack Niuzhuji from both sides. As soon as Niuzhuji, Hengjiangjin and Danglikou could no longer hold on, they were suddenly defeated.
Because Niuzhuji is the first line of river defense, Liu Yao's military water stronghold was established here.
After Liu Fengjun landed ashore, he took over the defense of the entire Niuzhuji. He not only controlled the river defense, but also controlled various warehouses such as the treasury, arsenal, and grain depot on Niuzhuji.
At this point, even if Liu Yao woke up and had soldiers and horses to mobilize, it was already too late.
Liu Yao's army at the Niuzhu Defense Line has nearly 20,000 people, of which more than half, more than 13,000, are elites, and the other 6,000 or so are new recruits after the Battle of Xiangxiang River.
These troops were distributed in Niuzhuji, Hengjiangjin and Danglishou.
(End of this chapter)