Plan to cut off the nine states

The north and south cities of Mengjin have changed hands several times, but the city walls are still intact, and there is almost no sign of the impact of the war. When the subordinates of King Gan Zhao of Shu arrived, the few officers and soldiers in the city fled without any resistance.

Ma Wei led the Liang army to travel day and night and arrived just in time. Soon after entering the city, news came from the north bank that a team of soldiers of unknown origin were spying from a distance. After discovering the flags of Wu and Shu on the city, they immediately retreated.

It looked like the enemy army. Ma Wei secretly admired the foresight of King Wu and immediately arranged to defend the city. The river ice was melting and could no longer carry heavy objects. To be on the safe side, Ma Wei still sent people to monitor the flat areas upstream and downstream to prevent the enemy from sneaking across.

Although it was not stated explicitly, everyone knew that the King of Shu had been placed under house arrest by the King of Wu, and his subordinates were naturally not trusted. Ma Wei transferred them all to the south city as a backup and ordered the Liang army to guard the north and south cities separately.

The enemy did not appear again. In the evening, a messenger came outside the city. The gatekeeper recognized him as someone close to King Jin and immediately reported him to King Liang.

Ma Wei was surprised and ordered the messenger to be let in. He went downstairs to greet him in person.

Liu Youzhong dismounted gracefully, his face was not tired at all, and he was in high spirits. He bowed to Ma Wei and said with a smile: "It turns out that King Liang is here. I also said that from a distance, the sky above this city is covered with colorful clouds, which seems to have the aura of a king."

Knowing that Liu Youzhong's words were untrue, Ma Wei still smiled. It didn't matter whether he believed it or not. As long as the people around him cared, he had to thank Liu Xiangshi for flattering him in person. "My eyelids have been moving today. I expected that there would be a distinguished guest. Seeing that the sky was getting dark, I finally waited for it."

The two looked at each other and laughed, and went up the stairs hand in hand.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Ma Wei asked, "It seems that the King of Jin has safely crossed the river and returned to Bingzhou. Is Jinyang okay?"

"Alas, it's hard to explain. He did cross the river, but he didn't go to Jinyang. The Jin army stopped not far from here."

Ma Wei's heart moved, but he still had a smile on his face, "We will meet again in the end of the world. Since the King of Jin left, I have been thinking about him day and night. The King of Wu also often said that if he had known that the siege of Dongdu would be lifted so quickly, he should have kept the King of Jin. After the victory, all the armies would go to rescue Jinyang together to help the King of Jin."

The two kings of Liang and Jin attacked each other in Dongdu, to the point of life and death, but Ma Wei didn't mention it at all, as if the two were still close allies.

Liu Youzhong did not point it out, but smiled and said: "It is hard to predict the world. Who would have thought that the Jizhou army would be so vulnerable? It is said that the King of Wu took up his gun and mounted his horse, and personally assassinated the general in front of the battle. Is this true?"

"Haha, Mr. Liu knows the King of Wu, so why would you believe such hearsay?"

"There are so many people saying it, I can't help but believe it. Of course, I don't believe it completely, but I just think... the King of Wu can do such a cruel thing."

"Lou Wen was killed by Queen Mother Luan."

"Is this... is this true?" Liu Youzhong showed an extremely shocked expression.

"It is absolutely true. I didn't believe it at first, but I had to believe it after asking the people who were there. Even if it wasn't Empress Dowager Luan who did it herself, it was someone around her who did it."

"How could the general..."

"You should know Lou Wen best."

Liu Youzhong was a frequent visitor to the Lou Mansion. The general talked to him about everything. Thinking of the past, he sighed, "The general was ruined by the word 'lust'. He was too bold and actually had his eyes on the Empress Dowager. Did the Empress Dowager lose her chastity?"

"Haha, Mr. Liu also cares about this kind of thing?"

"Hey, I'm afraid everyone cares."

"No I know that the Queen Mother was also unlucky. She was abandoned by her own son and coveted by Lou Wen. She did not escape death even when she killed someone. It is said that she was taken away by Ning Baoguan and her life or death is unknown. "

Liu Youzhong was horrified and shook his head repeatedly. "The world is in chaos. It is the time for us fortune tellers to use our skills and it is also our nightmare. In the past, we could see what would happen five or ten years later. Now, it is hard to say what will happen three days later. For example, this encounter with King Liang was completely unexpected. "

"To be honest, I was also surprised." Ma Wei said lightly, looking at the guards and trusted generals around him, with no intention of expelling anyone.

Liu Youzhong also saw it, and said seriously: "There are things in Dongdu that I don't know, and there are also changes in Hebei that surprised King Liang."

"Oh? King Jin is in danger? Jinyang was lost?"

"Haha, no, King Jin is wise and brave, and God protects him. He can always turn danger into safety."

"If that's the case, the one who owns Dongdu now should be King Jin, not King Wu."

"The world is not settled yet, and anyone who owns a city or a place is only temporary and doesn't count."

"Mr. Liu, let's talk about the changes in Hebei."

"The King of Jin had long been on guard against the He Rong tribe, so he sent Zhou Yuanbin back north in advance. This move was really timely and important. The Zhou family had been dealing with the He Rong tribe for generations, trading and marrying, and had a deep friendship. Zhou Yuanbin could be on good terms with the leader of the He Rong tribe. When the He Rong tribe attacked Jinyang, Zhou Yuanbin went to meet the enemy alone, scolded the He Rong tribe for their treachery, persuaded them to retreat, and saved the entire Jinyang."

"It's really... hard to believe." Ma Wei laughed, not taking Liu Youzhong's bragging seriously.

Liu Youzhong didn't blush, and continued: "The He Rong tribe felt ashamed, not only withdrew its troops, but also lent 50,000 troops to the Shen family as an apology."

Ma Wei raised his eyebrows slightly, "50,000 He Rong cavalry?"

"That's right, a full 50,000."

"Haha, so to speak, there are more cavalrymen from the He Rong tribe in the Jin army than Bingzhou officers. The King of Jin... surrendered to the He Rong tribe, bowed his head and became a general of the northern captives, right? It's really unexpected. I didn't expect it at all. King Wu even more Unexpectedly, the King of Wu thought that the King of Jin could distinguish the Hua from the Yi and help the Central Plains to stand in the way of those who controlled the strings. "

Although his lord was humiliated, Liu Youzhong remained calm and said with a smile: "Borrowing troops is borrowing troops. There is no way to turn against the guest. What's more, there are many people from Bingzhou among the Jin army. After the King of Jin crossed the river, various places actively sent troops and food. Now Jin There are 100,000 people from Bingzhou alone in the army, and He Rong's cavalry is just an embellishment."

"One hundred and fifty thousand Jin troops are impressive. I wonder why these hundreds of thousands of people stopped near Mengjin?"

"Of course I'm here to help."

"What help?"

"Why did King Liang come to Mengjin?"

“Revisit old places and see the scenery.”

"Haha, King Liang is joking. As for the scenery, Mengjin is really good. When spring comes, the scenery will be even better. Not only King Liang likes it, but everyone in the world likes it. They are queuing up to watch it."

"I'm here. Prince Jin is here. Is there anyone else?"

"There are also people from Jizhou."

"Is there anyone else in Jizhou?"

"That's why it's unexpected. Jizhou has collected 100,000 soldiers and horses from somewhere, and they are on their way to Mengjin, which is not far from here."

"Wang Tiemei is dead, who will be the general of this Jizhou army?" Ma Wei didn't care about the number of troops, only who the leader was.

"The King of Liang could not have imagined that even I was surprised when I heard about it for the first time. Yecheng actually asked Huangfu Kai, the former shepherd of Jizhou, to serve as the commander-in-chief."

The strength of troops is usually fictitious, but the identity of the coach is difficult to fake. Ma Wei was really surprised when he heard this answer, "Didn't Huangfu go to Liaodong?"

"It is said that he left his son in Liaodong and led his troops southward. Somehow, he was persuaded by Yecheng to join forces with Jizhou and go south to avenge the defeat of Dongdu."

"The Jizhou Army was defeated. What does it have to do with Huangfu Kai?"

"After all, he was once the shepherd of Jizhou, and Wang Tiemei was his subordinate in the past. It is probably because of the sadness of the rabbit's death and the fox's death."

"Hey, Huangfu Kai is indeed an old fox."

"Not only that, I heard that the Sheng family in Huaizhou has also sent troops to march westward. At least 100,000 people are on the road. They will not go through Mengjin and go straight to the Eastern Capital. The Xi family in Jingzhou seems to be one step ahead and is about to reach the Eastern Capital."

"Those who are willing to die are always in a hurry." Ma Wei did not mention that the Jingzhou Army was indeed approaching the Eastern Capital.

"The King of Liang has the air of a king, he never changes even when shocked, I admire him, I admire him."

"It's not that I don't react to surprises, but the King of Wu has already anticipated all this and formulated a clever plan to defeat the enemy. Otherwise, why would I lead my army to Mengjin?" Ma Wei also had to brag.

Liu Youzhong nodded repeatedly, "King Wu's wisdom is unparalleled in the world, but his ingenuity is ultimately no match for his strength. King Jin was worried that King Wu was in danger, so he came to help."

"I'm grateful to King Jin on behalf of King Wu, but there's no need. The Wu and Liang armies are enough. There are still troubles in King Jin's hometown, so go home and solve your own problems first."

"Jinyang is safe. Wu and Liang armies? Where are the Shu armies? The spy clearly said that there were Shu flags on the city during the day."

"It turns out that those people are the Jin army. They are really out of touch. They don't come in to take a rest when they get to the city. The Shu army is still there, and the King of Shu is left by the King of Wu to be in charge of the civil servants. He is considered a minister."

Liu Youdian ended, "The King of Shu was born as a minor official and was not good at fighting, but the King of Wu knows how to make good use of people. So, the King of Wu and the King of Liang really don't need help?"

"unnecessary."

"Then Prince Jin can rest assured."

"The King of Jin is heading north, please forgive me for not being able to see him off."

"Haha, I have already said that Jinyang has turned the corner and the King of Jin is not in a hurry to go back. There is nothing going on. We will stop not far away to watch the decisive battle between King Liang and the Jizhou army and cheer for King Liang."

Ma Wei laughed and said, "Thank you very much. When the Liang army is victorious, I will give some of the spoils to the Jin army so that the King of Jin will not shout in vain."

"There is no need for spoils of war. When the Liang army is victorious, the King of Jin will also give a big gift to reward the soldiers to help the army."

"Mr. Liu went back to advise the King of Jin that the world is in a difficult situation and money and food are hard to come by. Let him save some money and never make a fool of himself by rewarding other soldiers and starving his own subordinates. Isn't that chilling?"

"Although Bingzhou is not the richest in the world, he still has this little savings. Not to mention an army of 150,000, even 300,000 or one million can be afforded. But the King of Liang should be more careful."

"We have won consecutive battles, we have enough food and grass, and we even use rice and corn to feed our horses. What should I be careful about?"

"Be careful of King Wu."

"Haha, I am in love with King Wu, so there is no need to be careful."

"The King of Wu and the King of Jin were sworn brothers, so what?"

"It's King Jin who should regret it."

"Really? I heard that the King of Wu was soft-hearted in front of the formation and spared Ning Baoguan's life. What was the result? Ning Baoguan set fire to tens of thousands of Wu soldiers and killed the King of Wu. To be honest, King Jin It was quite embarrassing at that time, but thanks to King Wu entangled the officers and soldiers, King Wu allowed King Jin to leave safely. King Wu was soft-hearted twice and failed twice. He must be extremely regretful. From then on, he must be as hard as iron and cannot tolerate any mistakes. "

Liu Youzhong stood up, prepared to leave, and said with a smile: "As long as King Liang makes no mistakes, there is no need to be careful. If there is a mistake, even just a little bit - the Jin army's camp is spread over mountains and rivers, and King Liang can find it no matter what."

"You are more familiar with Meng Jin's path. I am here to wait for the King of Jin at any time."

The two exchanged words with each other and refused to give in. Liu You finally said goodbye and left. Ma Wei ordered his people to send him outside the city, and immediately sent more scouts to check the enemy's situation in the direction of Jizhou and Huaizhou.

Even if only half of what Liu Youzhong said was true, it would be a storm beyond Ma Wei's expectations. Deep down, he was indeed a little panicked.