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After seeing Zhang Zhao off, Liu Min said angrily to Sima Yi: "It can be seen that Jiangdong has not sent troops sincerity, so I don't understand. Will Jiangdong not ask us for help in the future?"

Sima Yi shook his head, "Maybe it can't be seen by a person. Can't even see so many senior officials in Jiangdong see this, this should be the result of Jiangdong weighing the pros and cons. They hope that we and Cao Cao both suffer losses. As for Cao Cao's threat to Jiangdong, frankly speaking, before we destroy us, Cao Cao will only win over Jiangdong. From the fact that Sun Quan was granted the title of Duke Wu this time, we can see Cao Cao's attitude towards Jiangdong."

Speaking of this, Sima Yi sighed softly, "I only truly understand why the provincial governor must destroy Jiangdong before considering the Western Expedition. If Jiangdong's strength is still there, then we will face the attacks between Cao's army and Jiangdong army. Now the one who attacks Xiangyang is no longer Cao's army, but Jiangdong army. It's not that Jiangdong doesn't want to take the opportunity to seize Jingzhou, but that he has the will but lacks strength."

Liu Min nodded silently and sighed a little: "This is the fundamental interest of a country, and even marriage is meaningless."

“In fact, marriage is still useful”

Sima Yi smiled slightly and said, "At least both sides will not break up, and the final result will not be bad. If I was not wrong, Jiangdong would still send troops. On the surface, Sun Quan is a sensible person. He knows how to weigh the pros and cons."

The two were talking, and the postmaster reported outside the hall: "I reported to Sima Military Advisor, someone asked for a meeting outside the hall, and he said he was also a general in Jingzhou."

Sima Yi was stunned. How could there be a general from Jingzhou in Jiangdong change his mind. He suddenly knew who it was, and quickly ordered: "Please invite him in."

Liu Min asked in confusion: "Military advisor, who will it be?"

Sima Yi smiled mysteriously and said, "Think about it, who has disappeared in the past one or two years?"

Liu Min pondered for a moment, and suddenly blurted out, "Lou Fa"

Sima Yi nodded, "It's him, he was ordered by the governor of the state to carry out a secret mission, and he should be back now."

At this time, the official chief led a burly general to walk into the inner hall. His skin was dark and shiny, and his eyes were full of spirit. It was Lou Fa, the general of the Jingzhou Navy. Lou Fa and Shen Mi were Gan Ning's right-hand men back then. Later, they gradually became the main generals of the Jingzhou Navy and served as the lieutenant.

After conquering Yizhou, Lou Fa was sent by Liu Jing to perform a secret mission, which was the agreement reached by Liu Jing and Sun Quan that year, to exchange Yuzhang County for Yizhou, which was the Taiwan Island of later generations. However, Lou Fa's mission was not to go to Yizhou, but Xiying Island between Yizhou and Jian'an County, which was the Penghu Islands of later generations, where a supply point was established.

Lou Fa led ten 2,000-stone ships and eight soldiers to Xiying Island in the autumn of the previous year. He has been there for a year and a half. There has been no news yet. However, he did not expect that he also appeared in Jianye City today. Lou Fa stepped forward and knelt down on one knee to salute, "I am not a military advisor."

Sima Yi quickly helped him up, "General Lou is exempted from the gift, please get up quickly."

Lou Fa met Liu Min again, and then sat down. Sima Yi smiled and said, "How could General Lou appear in Jianye?"

"We are passing Jianye on the way back to Jingzhou. We found Jingzhou warships while supplying supplies on the dock. We asked about it. It turned out that the military advisor was in the city, so Bei Yi rushed to pay a visit."

"So that's the case, it's a coincidence."

Sima Yi smiled and asked again: "What's the situation on Xiying Island?"

"We have established military camps on the island and get along well with the local natives. Now there are soldiers building cities on the island, and more than a thousand natives have also assisted us. More than half of the castle has been built."

Sima Yi nodded and asked again: "Where is the county closest to Xiying Island?"

Lou Fa thought for a while and said, "The nearest county should be Dongzhi County, the capital of the former Minyue Kingdom, but it will take a voyage of several days and nights."

Speaking of this, Lou Fa smiled bitterly and said, "Frankly speaking, the deal between Zhou Mu and Wu Hou was a loss."

"Why is the loss far away?" Sima Yi asked with a smile.

Lou Fa shook his head, "Actually, there are many islands along the coast that are deserted islands, and there are many estuary places in Jian'an County. The land is fertile and sparsely populated, and Jiangdong is unable to occupy it. We can enter the land without having to occupy Xiying Island. In fact, we are also coaxing the local natives, saying that they are building ship supply points and they have no intention of seeking their land, otherwise they will never allow us to go to the island."

"You are right. In fact, our purpose is to put a knife on the back of Jiangdong to create conditions for the future sweeping Jiangdong, but we cannot make Jiangdong suspicious. Therefore, we temporarily built a city on Xiying Island, with this supply point, and then expanded to the mainland. The governor of the state means that we will gradually establish ten military cities in the coastal areas within five years and station 5,000 soldiers."

Lou Fa nodded silently. At this moment, he suddenly remembered something and said with a smile: "When we came back, in order to avoid the wind and waves, we accidentally found an exiled prisoner on a deserted island south of Kuaiji County. The military advisor guess who he is."

"Who is it"

"It's Sun Quan's cousin Sun Ben. I never thought that he would be on a deserted island."

Sima Yi and Liu Min looked at each other, and their expressions suddenly became serious. They heard Liu Jing talk about the internal strife in Jiangdong, and Sun Ben was the key figure in the internal strife. Sima Yi hurriedly asked: "Where is this Sun Ben now?"

Lou Fa whispered: "He is on my boat. I felt that he was useful, so I brought him back."

Liu Min asked anxiously: "Does anyone else know?"

Lou Fa shook his head, "There is only one mute servant on the island to take care of him, and there are five soldiers guarding him. I took everyone away. It is said that the Kuaiji County government will send them supplies once a month. I just sent them once. Even if I found out that they were missing, it would be a month later."

Sima Yi took a few steps behind his hands. This Sun Ben is indeed an important figure. It will be of great use in the future. The key is to hide it secretly and never let Jiangdong know about it. Thinking of this, Sima Yi made a quick decision: "I will not return in a few days. General Lou should not wait for me. You should leave Jianye and return to Jingzhou now. Hide this Sun Ben in Wuchang County for the time being, and report to the governor of the state after returning."

"I understand, let's leave now"

Lou gave a gift and left in a hurry. Sima Yi smiled at Liu Min and said, "This trip to Jiangdong was not in vain. At least one good chess."

Liu Min also laughed, "I can imagine how Sun Quan would be furious after he knew that the man disappeared."

The two looked at each other and couldn't help laughing together.

Finally, as Sima Yi's guess, Sun Quan accepted the condition that Liu Jing could release the upper limit of the warship and agreed to send troops to Hefei. Sun Quan immediately ordered Huang Gai to lead 20,000 troops from Liyang to cross the river and fight to Hefei.

But before Huang Gai left, Sun Quan also explained to him very clearly that this time he sent troops to Hefei only to attack but not to attack, and no soldiers were allowed to lose

Liu Jing's 50,000 army went south along Shangyong Road. Five days later, the army arrived in Fangling County, a Zhongxian surrounded by mountains, with a population of about 2,000 households, most of which make a living by farming. The basin is centered on both sides of the water-building station, with fertile land, abundant water sources, warm and humid climate, and very stable grain output, which makes the people here live and work in peace and contentment.

Fangling County is naturally the capital of Fangling County. Although the county is not large, its location is very important. It is a must-pass place for Shangyong Road to Xiangyang. From here, you can go to Wudang County to the northwest. You can take a boat to Zhushui and drive directly into the Han River. To the southeast, you can enter the boundary of Xiangyang.

Because of the important geographical location here, Fangling County is also a must-fight for military strategists. Pang De was worried that Cao's army would cross the river from Fangling County. After Xinye's defeat, he directly led the remaining troops to Fangling County to participate in defense. At the same time, Pin ordered Cai Jin to lead thousands of troops to Fangling to join Pang De's army, so that the garrison in Fangling County reached more than 4,000.

On the morning of that day, the 50,000 army led by Liu Jing slowly arrived in Fangling County. There were still several miles away from the county town. Pang De and Cai Jin had arrived to greet him. The 50,000 army stopped. Among the several big flags, Pang De and Cai Jin saw Liu Jing, the governor of the state. They hurriedly stepped forward and bowed, "I am not good at the governor of the state."

"Thank you for your hard work, two generals"

Liu Jing already knew about the fierce battle between Pang De in Xinye. He turned over and dismounted, patted Pang De on the shoulder, and asked with concern: "How is the injury?"

Pang De didn't expect that the first thing the provincial governor did was to care about his arrow wound. He was very moved and hurriedly said: "Thank you for your concern, the arrow wound is not hindered."

"That's good. I have heard of this battle in Shinye. Although there are quite controversies, I support your decision. If the army dares not fight, then what is the army?"

Pang De led a thousand troops to evacuate eastward in time, but took the initiative to go north to face the vanguard of Cao's army. His move caused discussion in the army. Some people said that he was brave and fearless and could be a role model for generals. Some people said that he was very responsible to fight to cover the retreat of the people, but many people criticized him for his unnecessary sacrifice. Although he could save the lives of the soldiers, he had to attack the strong with weak, resulting in a disastrous defeat.

But Liu Jing took the initiative to excuse Pang De and praised Pang De as a heroic move, thus ending the debate over Pang De in the army. Pang De nodded silently and bowed and said, "Thank you for your understanding, you will have no regrets even if you die in a humble position."

Liu Jing nodded with a smile, and said to Cai Jin again: "Cao army can peek at Fangling County."

"Reported to the provincial governor, Cao's army did not leave Fangling, but Yicheng County. However, we dare not take it lightly. We have deployed a thousand troops in Zhuyang County and Wudang County. As long as Cao's army shows signs of crossing the river, we will immediately go to support."

Liu Jing smiled and said, "The two river crossing points in Fangling County are in Wudang County and Zhuyang County respectively. I suggest that the two generals lead 2,000 troops to garrison one place, just be careful not to be trapped by Cao's army's plan to lure the tiger out of the mountain."

Pang De and Cai Jin looked at each other, and they all understood that the provincial governor was dissatisfied with their appearance in Fangling County, thinking that they should be stationed by the Han River. The two bowed together and said, "After the order."

Liu Jing nodded then, and he turned over and ordered his horse, saying, "I will rest outside the county town for an hour, and I will not be allowed to enter the city, and then continue to head towards Xiangyang County."

The 50,000 army started again and drove towards the county town.
Chapter completed!