When this person came in, he sat down casually, just glanced at the notes on the table, and then heard Xin Yongzong's anxious words, and then he shook his head and laughed while wiping the rain off his sleeves:
"You two are really going in opposite directions, trying to catch fish in a tree..."
When the Xin brothers heard this, both the fourth brother, who was very expectant, and the eldest brother, who was originally a little disappointed but still had some expectations, became gloomy.
However, Hu Hongxiu ignored the expressions of the two men. He wrung out his sleeves, tied his belt again, and continued to speak slowly and calmly:
"In my humble opinion, you two made two big mistakes this time. One is that you didn't know how to advance or retreat in defense..."
Hearing the last two words, Xin Yongzong instinctively wanted to refute, but Xin Xingzong himself had an idea and directly held down his brother.
"General Han was appointed as the military commander of Huaixi. Whenever Nanyang Prefecture issues rewards and honors, General Han is the first to be awarded. When it comes to the ministers, General Han is also the first to be awarded. When it comes to the ministers, no matter how far away they are, General Han is also the first to be awarded... Not only that, but I heard that since the emperor bestowed the jade belt, even though Nanyang and the southeast have paid tribute, he has never worn the jade belt in public for half a year. Even at the last Fangchengshan Grand Court, he only wore a gold belt..."
At this point, Hu Hongxiu, who was sitting on the stool, smiled slightly, and then looked at Xin Xingzong, who had already turned pale, "May I ask, Fang Yu, such favor and important position, can you brothers easily shake it? And according to the grudge between Fang Yu and Han Taiwei, as long as he is here, how can you stand out?"
"Then what should I do?" Xin Xingzong almost blurted out in a trance.
"What can we do?" Hu Hongxiu laughed. "Defense, forgive me for being blunt, but if you don't want to surrender to the Jin people, or end up like Fan Qiong, and you still miss the prosperity of the Song Dynasty... Of course, I'm afraid that's the case... There is only one way, that is to take the initiative to retreat. Once you retreat, the other Xin commanders will suddenly see the light and be able to move forward."
Xiao Xin was furious when he heard this, but Da Xin sighed and said, "I've actually thought of this a long time ago, but no one has explained it to me. Thank you, Mr. Hu, for reminding me."
"It's okay. If I were to say it, let's take advantage of this time. There are seven divisions in the imperial camp, plus the imperial guards, a total of eight divisions. Everyone must want to be the vanguard, but one division must be left behind in Nanyang, which is something everyone wants to avoid. Why not tell the emperor directly about defense and say that the old injury is hard to bear in the rain, so please stay behind and ask to guard Wuguan after the battle..."
"I understand what Master Hu means," Xin Xingzong glanced at his younger brother and tried to cheer him up. "I'll do this, and then the fourth brother will go and ask to be the vanguard. Then, there's a good chance that he'll win!"
The fourth brother, Xin Yongzong, was standing nearby and was also delighted, but he immediately stood up and personally poured a bowl of ginger soup for Hu Hongxiu.
Hu Hongxiu was not hypocritical. He took the bowl and drank it all. He wiped his mouth, then shook his head and smiled, "This is the other of the two mistakes I just mentioned about defense. It is also the fundamental reason why I came to find you two this time... In this battle, if you want to gain military merit, how can you compete for the title of vanguard? Being a vanguard is doomed to be a waste of time and effort!"
Without waiting for his eldest brother to speak, the fourth brother Xin Yongzong pulled a stool and sat next to Hu Hongxiu. He imitated the handshake etiquette that was popular in Nanyang recently, took the other person's hand and asked earnestly:
"Brother Hu, please give us some pointers for the future, considering that we have been wandering together for a year!"
"I was going to say it anyway." Hu Hongxiu pulled his hand back calmly. "Xin Wujing (Xin Yongzong's newly acquired rank, Wujing Doctor, the 32nd rank), let me ask you, now that you have won the vanguard, where are you going to fight?"
"Of course, we should follow the Baihe River (Yushui River) all the way south, break Dengcheng and take Xiangyang!"
"Is Dengcheng so easy to conquer?" Hu Hongxiu suddenly asked seriously. "Is Xiangyang so easy to conquer?"
"It can't be that difficult, right?" The young Xin Wujing was obviously puzzled. "So Fan Qiong still has a way out today?"
"It will still take some time." The elder Xin Xingzong next to him was more experienced. "The imperial decree did not pardon the soldiers who surrendered to the Jin Dynasty, and Fan Qiong took advantage of the situation to pile up those soldiers who surrendered to the Jin Dynasty in Dengcheng, north of the Han River, and gathered his own troops in Xiangyang. In other words, the soldiers in Dengcheng have not been pardoned, and with this kind of military force, I'm afraid they will resist stubbornly for a few days, and will only disperse after seeing blood, which can delay for some time. As for Xiangyang..."
"What about Xiangyang?" Xin Yongzong was still puzzled.
"Isn't it raining?" Xin Xingzong sighed. "To capture Xiangyang, we must first capture Dengcheng and then cross the Han River. However, how difficult is it to cross the river in rainy days? Not to mention that by the time we cross the river, the water level will have risen. Even if Fan Qiong is a jerk, he has defended Dongjing City... The troops at the ferry must be his most elite and reliable troops."
Hearing this, Xiao Xin couldn't help but look at Hu Hongxiu again.
Hu Hongxiu did not try to hide the truth, but directly offered a suggestion: "Xin Wujing can ask to be a detachment and go to Niu Shou Town upstream to attack Monk Zongyin, then cross the river from there and rush to Xiangyang City from the south bank!"
The Xin brothers looked at each other. The fourth brother, Xin Yongzong, was obviously asking for help because he didn't understand the benefits of this plan. The eldest brother, Xin Xingzong, was silent for a while, and said awkwardly: "Xiao Hu, I must not have understood the key to this plan... Although Niu Shou Town has few soldiers, the monk Zong Yin who led the troops there has not been pardoned by the imperial decree, not to mention crossing the river alone to attack the famous city of Xiangyang where tens of thousands of troops are stationed. My brother is in charge of 1,500 people. If something goes wrong, won't the whole army be wiped out?"
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