Chapter 145 Please Leave
Cui Yong sighed, "My abilities are limited. While I might be able to contribute labor and money, I am powerless to influence the people's hearts."
Okay, you'd better leave quickly. He originally felt that he had some hope, but after listening to what you said, he felt that he was finished.
Liu Yi now deeply regrets calling Cui Yong over to discuss countermeasures.
Liu Yi sent Cui Yong away with a blank expression.
Cui Yong hurried off, thinking, "Liu Yi should have given up, right? He shouldn't bother with this anymore. Wouldn't it be better for him to just be a puppet and let Lu Chenyang worry about Ningzhou's future development?" He could just indulge himself in the pleasures of the backyard and not worry about Ningzhou.
Cui Yong now wishes Lu Chenyang could come to Ningzhou immediately. With Lu Chenyang in Ningzhou, why would Ningzhou be afraid of the Yilin Army?
As soon as Cui Yonggang returned home, someone came to see him again, and came in secretly.
The man who came was from Nanyang Army and was a servant of Zhang Zhi. He came to ask Cui Yong to go to Lu's Army to rescue the captured Zhang Zhi.
Others may not know, but as Zhang Zhi's servant, he does know. The Cui family and the King of Nanyang are allies, and now that their general has been captured, Cui Yong can't just ignore it!
Cui Yong still wanted to entertain Liu Yi. After all, he was the governor of a state. What was this servant? Just a servant, and he wanted him to do things for him?
Cui Yong sneered. He didn't even see him and sent his men away.
But this servant was surprisingly loyal to Zhang Zhi, and he even sent a message: "Chief Cui, you are cooperating with our prince, so you can't ignore our general. Otherwise, if the news gets out, what will happen to the Cui family's reputation?!"
This servant was also stupid. When Cui Yong heard the servant threatening him, he sneered and immediately had the servant tied up. He then sent him to the Lu family army and handed him over to Ji Ping.
The Cui family's servant said, "This is a fish that slipped through the net. Our clan leader sent it to the general. Our clan leader asked me to bring a message. Please rest assured, general, if there is any need in Ningzhou, the Cui family will do its best to help."
If Shen Shiqian were here, he would definitely say that the Cui family is aware of the current situation and is almost catching up with him.
Ji Ping was also speechless. After all, Lu Chenyang had a very difficult journey, fighting wits and courage. He didn't expect the Cui family to be so cooperative.
He accepted Cui Yong's kindness and took the person in.
Ji Ping ran to tell Yan Xing about this: "This Cui is really decisive. I thought he would let us release the people."
Yan Xing raised an eyebrow. "Cui Yong is a man who knows the current situation. Now that we have occupied Ningzhou, he will naturally show us goodwill. Don't overthink it. If we were the losers and we went to him for help, he would also hand us over to Zhang Zhi."
Ji Ping thought about it, felt it made sense, and nodded.
However, Ji Ping said, "Our Lu Family Army will not lose. Even if we lose, we will not seek help! The Cui family is just a collaborator, not worthy of being trusted."
Look, even Ji Ping understands this principle, but this servant doesn’t.
Yan Xing frowned and sighed softly.
Ji Ping asked suspiciously, "The situation is very good now, why is the coach sighing?"
Yan Xing said, "If the King of Nanyang knew that we were moving our troops away, His Excellency would be in danger."
The fact that Yan Xing led his army to leave could not be concealed for long, but it was kept secret at the time in order to prevent the King of Nanyang from informing Zhang Zhi and to catch Zhang Zhi off guard.
Facts have proved that their strategy was correct. Zhang Zhi did not expect Lu Chenyang to send troops to rescue him. In panic, he had almost no power to resist.
This was to create a time difference, but now the battle was over, and King Nanyang should have known that Lu Chenyang had divided his troops.
Now that King Nanyang's plan to occupy Ningzhou has failed, he will definitely turn around and attack Shu.
But he couldn't leave now. He had just occupied Ningzhou and it was impossible for him to leave at this time, otherwise the Yilin Army would definitely come back - that idiot Zhang Zhi let the Yilin Army go without even fighting!
If the King of Nanyang knew Yan Xing's guess, he would definitely praise him and say that his guess was really accurate.
King Nanyang was not stupid. In fact, before the news from Ningzhou reached him, King Nanyang had already discovered that the Lu family army's strength had been reduced.
After all, there were 100,000 missing troops, how could there not be any trace?
When King Nanyang received the news, he began to think about attacking Shu.
He called his confidants to discuss the matter.
Some people wondered if this was a trap.
"We promised Cui not to send troops. This is a shortfall of 100,000. This might be a ploy to lure the enemy in, just to make us break the agreement. Your Highness must be on guard."
This is indeed a possibility.
The King of Nanyang said, "What if they sent troops to rescue Ningzhou? I want Ningzhou, but doesn't Lu Chenyang want it too? Look at how anxious Cui is. Maybe Cui is doing Lu Chenyang a favor. Otherwise, why would Lu Chenyang send troops to rescue Ningzhou for no reason? I don't believe it!"
This is normal thinking, but King Nanyang was actually half right.
Lu Chenyang did divide his troops, but his original intention was really for Ningzhou.
The King of Nanyang said decisively, "If Lu Chenyang sent his troops to Ningzhou, Zhang Zhi and Liu Yi would not be able to resist. I'm afraid Ningzhou is now under the Lu family's control."
Otherwise, how can we say that he is someone who wants to become emperor? Prince Nanyang is also smart and self-aware.
He knew the army he sent out best, and he also knew the elite of the Lu family army. It could be said that it was a free gift.
The staff member was shocked and said, "If Lu Chenyang occupies Ningzhou, the Cui family has always been a fence-sitter, and I'm afraid they will turn to Lu Chenyang's side."
The King of Nanyang nodded in approval: "That's right, in this case, Shu must be taken back!"
No matter who you are, even if you become an emperor, you will always have a special feeling for your hometown. It is your home, and no matter where you go, you will always miss it.
The saying "fallen leaves return to their roots" is exactly this truth.
Shu is the root of the Zhang family. His ancestors have lived here for generations. The Zhang family has achieved glory in Shu, but has also experienced decline here.
How could King Nanyang be willing to give up Shu?
The King of Nanyang's eyes flashed: "While the army is away, now is the time to reclaim our homeland! Assemble the troops and follow me into battle!"
The staff member said, "But the prince has promised Cui..."
The King of Nanyang sneered, "Don't worry about it. When I achieve my great goal, the Cui family will be nothing to me!"
King Nanyang launched the attack on Shu late at night.
This can be considered as a case of giving someone a taste of his own medicine - Yan Xing led his troops away late at night.
However, the King of Nanyang did not attack Shu, but Lingnan!
Lingnan is Lu Chenyang's base camp. King Nanyang is forcing Lu Chenyang to withdraw his troops to defend the area. As long as he withdraws his troops, the troops he leaves behind can recapture Shu without bloodshed.
The King of Nanyang did not want Shu to experience another war. Lu Chenyang had done a good job governing Shu during this period. Lu Chenyang had invested a lot of manpower and material resources in Shu, allowing the people of Shu to recuperate.
Under this circumstance, King Nanyang was reluctant to destroy the current good situation in Shu, so he launched the strategy of besieging Wei to save Zhao.
Lu Chenyang didn't expect that King Nanyang could bypass Shu and go directly to Lingnan!
This shows that there are still many officials in Shu who are more inclined to King Nanyang. By the time he received the news, King Nanyang had already reached the capital of Lingnan Prefecture.
The commander of the garrison in the provincial capital is still Xu Hao. After Yan Yuanjie's death, Lu Chenyang did not remove him, and he still holds a nominal position.
However, at this time, Xu Hao had already defected to Lu Chenyang. Lu Chenyang was capable, and he had long been convinced, so he served as his commander with peace of mind.
The garrison in the city has been transformed after a series of training in Yanxing.
Xu Hao led his troops to resist, but if he just wanted to defend the city, he could still do it. Then he sent someone to ask Lu Chenyang for help.
Most of the Lu family army's troops were taken away by Lu Chenyang, and the number of troops in the capital city was only 10,000.
It was two days later when Lu Chenyang received the news.
The King of Nanyang's detour also caught him off guard. He thought the King of Nanyang would attack Shu, but he didn't expect that he would go to Lingnan!
Lu Chenyang's expression was stern. He said, "Send a message to Xu Hao, tell him to hold the city! Stay in the city and don't leave. The main purpose is to contain the enemy."
Gao Ming was shocked: "Sir! Aren't you going to send troops back to rescue?!"
Lu Chenyang shook his head: "No."
Gao Ming immediately said, "My Lord, please think twice. Lingnan is our foundation. Your years of hard work have been…" Just as he finished speaking, an idea suddenly occurred to him: "My Lord, are you going to attack Quzhou?"
The King of Nanyang sent troops to attack Lingnan, so now Quzhou must be short of troops. If the King of Nanyang wants to take advantage of the opportunity to invade Lingnan, he can do so.
Lu Chenyang nodded.
Gao Ming pondered for a moment: "It's indeed unexpected, but... can Lingnan be defended?"
Lu Chenyang's eyes flashed, "I'm going back to Lingnan."
Gao Ming was shocked and objected flatly: "Sir, this is absolutely not allowed!"
Lu Chenyang said, "I'll go back and ask the Dongyi people to borrow troops. The Dongyi people's Han-destroying army is very powerful. If I come forward, the Dongyi people will give me this face. Lingnan must not make any mistakes!"
Even Gao Ming said that Lingnan was their foundation. Could Lu Chenyang really be willing to give it up? Lingnan was built by Lu Chenyang himself, from poverty in the early days to prosperity today. It was his masterpiece of painstaking effort and dedication. How could he be willing to give it up?!
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