Several more years passed, during which Cao Cao devised a plan that aroused the suspicion of Ma Teng and Han Sui.
The two fought each other, and both died. Cao Cao absorbed most of their troops, and Ma Chao led his men back to Xiliang.
Ma Teng's side was easy to deal with, but Liu Bei's side was a formidable force, making it impossible to find a way to attack him.
Left with no other choice, he had to garrison 100,000 troops in Yanzhou to guard against Liu Bei's attack, and then launch a full-scale attack on the four northern provinces.
Yuan Shao died several years ago, leaving his territory to his three sons and four high-ranking officials.
Gao Gan dutifully guarded Bingzhou, but Yuan Shao's three sons were incompetent, daring to attack each other even with Cao Cao by their side.
This gave Cao Cao an opportunity. Through alliances and counter-alliances, he first destroyed Yuan Shang in Ji Province, and then Yuan Xi in You Province.
However, his current forces are stretched too thin, making them somewhat stretched thin.
Gao Gan of Bingzhou and Yuan Tan of Qingzhou formed a pincer movement, making it impossible for Cao Cao to eliminate them both for the time being.
However, he has now occupied Jizhou, a crucial military location, and it is only a matter of time before he eliminates the two of them when the time is right.
Not to mention that Cao Cao was recuperating, Liu Bei, after several years of development, not only had countless civil and military officials, but the lives of the people had also been fundamentally improved.
With brilliant strategists like Guo Jia, Zhuge Liang, and Pang Tong assisting them, it's no exaggeration to say that the country is prosperous and the people are strong.
He now commands an army of 700,000, with countless provisions, and his officials are honest and upright, allowing the people to live in peace and prosperity.
In recent years, he has quelled bandits within his territory, conquered the Yue tribes in the mountains, and trained a navy, making his strength unprecedented!
Moreover, as his reputation spread and his policies became more transparent, he attracted a large number of displaced people to settle under his rule.
Guo Jia's strategy was to recuperate and wait for a change in Jingzhou.
Now, several years have passed, and things have indeed changed in Jingzhou. First, Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou, died, and his two sons began to fight for power.
With the support of the powerful Cai clan in Jingzhou, Liu Cong was no match for Liu Qi, so he took the initiative to seek help from Liu Bei.
Liu Bei seized the opportunity, led a large army into the country, and wiped out the entire Cai family in one fell swoop. Liu Cong was imprisoned by them.
Liu Qi was appointed Governor of Jingzhou by him, but the real military and political power was in Liu Bei's hands.
Liu Qi didn't have any particular thoughts, after all, it was better to have enough to eat and drink now than to die at the hands of Liu Cong and Lady Cai.
Thus, Liu Bei possessed the rich land of Jingzhou, and had already gained control of three parts of the world!
Originally, Liu Bei wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to recuperate and develop the wealthy region of Jingzhou. However, a major battle suddenly broke out between Liu Yan of Yizhou and Zhang Lu of Hanzhong. Given this rare opportunity, Liu Bei had no choice but to set his sights on Yizhou.
However, Jingzhou has only just been acquired, and its administration is ineffective, with frequent rebellions. If we were to send troops to Yizhou at this time, it would be taking too big a step.
Moreover, he had no reason to attack Yizhou. Besides, according to seniority, Liu Yan was Liu Bei's nephew. If he took the opportunity to seize Yizhou, it would probably give others cause for gossip.
Seeing his predicament, Guo Jia immediately said that Liu Yan was his nephew, but Zhang Lu was not. Yet Zhang Lu dared to hit his nephew. How could he, as the uncle, not stand up for his nephew?
Upon hearing the strategy, Liu Bei's eyes lit up.
That's right. If we can't defeat Liu Yan, we can take down Zhang Lu. How can we let outsiders humiliate the world of the Liu family?
Once the idea took hold, it was unstoppable. He immediately ordered Guan Yu to gather a large army from Jiangdong and also transferred 100,000 soldiers from Jingzhou, forming an army of 300,000 to head to Hanzhong.
When Zhang Lu of Hanzhong heard that Liu Bei was coming to attack, he was so frightened that he turned pale and dared not go out of the city to fight. He simply kept the city gates tightly closed and focused on defense.
They wanted to take advantage of the natural, easily defensible terrain of the Sichuan region to keep Liu Bei out of Ankang City.
But is Guan Yu afraid of these things now?
Since his strength improved, he was no longer afraid of a direct attack. He quickly stepped forward and easily blocked the arrows. He even cleaved the stones thrown from the city wall. Then, with a single slash, the city gate shattered.
Then he single-handedly killed the soldiers at the city gate, and the army swarmed in and entered the city, wreaking havoc everywhere!
This kind of fighting style makes no sense and doesn't require any military strategy or tactics. So, when your strength reaches a certain level, all schemes and tricks become ineffective.
Zhang Lu was even more alarmed when he heard that Ankang City had not been defended even for half a day.
He could fight Liu Yan to a standstill, but he felt immense awe and respect for an absolute powerhouse like Liu Bei.
Moreover, the martial prowess of Liu Bei and his two brothers was deified and demonized years ago, so they cannot be referred to as human beings at all!
Therefore, Zhang Lu led his men to surrender, begging Liu Bei to spare his life.
Liu Bei did not make things difficult for him, but simply had Zhang Wen post a notice informing him that he was abdicating the throne to Zhang Lu, allowing Zhang Lu to enjoy his old age in peace.
Cao Cao has not yet pacified the four provinces, but Liu Bei has successively conquered Jingzhou and Hanzhong. Upon hearing this, Cao Cao vomited three liters of blood!
What gave Liu Bei a headache next was how to deal with Liu Yan. After all, it would be too unreasonable to attack him directly. Even if nothing happened now, he would still be condemned in the historical records.
However, Guo Jia came up with a brilliant plan.
On this day, Zhang Song, an officer under Liu Yan, offered a brilliant plan: to lure Liu Bei to a banquet and then force him to sign a non-aggression pact, thus resolving the current awkward situation in Yizhou.
After all, at this time, people with names and identities still valued integrity and reputation. If the signed covenant was made public, there would basically be no changes.
Liu Yan heeded Zhang Song's advice and sent someone to invite Liu Bei to a banquet in Chengdu to express his gratitude for his uncle's help.
Liu Bei then took Guan Yu and Zhang Fei with him.
Before the alliance could be discussed at the banquet, Liu Bei coughed up a mouthful of blood and fainted!
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei risked their lives to protect Liu Bei and fought their way out, their bodies covered in blood, seemingly also seriously injured.
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