Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

When Sun Quan and Quan Cong's 10,000 troops caught up with the armies of Ding Feng and Gan Tong by boat, the two generals' armies had already advanced to a place forty miles west of Pengze City.

Jiangnan has been a water town since ancient times, and many place names are related to water.

During the late Han and early Wei dynasties, the three most important lakes south of the Yangtze River were Yunmengze, Penglize, and Zhenze. Penglize later became Poyang Lake. The Gan River flowed into Penglize and then into the Yangtze River through the lake mouth. Chaisang was west of the lake mouth, and Pengze was east of the lake mouth.

It can be said that when Sun Quan arrived here, he was less than a hundred miles away from Huan Fan's main force.

Inside the military tent, Quan Cong, Gan Tong, and Ding Feng stood solemnly before Sun Quan. After Quan Cong's 10,000 troops arrived, the Wu army here had reached 23,000 men, almost equal to Huan Fan's army nearby. Moreover, another 20,000 troops were following behind, arriving by boat within the next day or two.

However, Sun Quan was now in a dilemma.

Sun Quan lay on his side on the soft cushions of the mat, curled up in the brocade quilt. Although his fever had subsided, the accompanying imperial physician, Xu, still advised him to avoid getting chilled or exposed to drafts. Of course, avoiding exertion and worry was unavoidable, and Sun Quan was doing his best to take care of his health.

"Ding Feng, Gan Tong," Sun Quan's voice was hoarse and sharp, "One of you says that there are not enough troops to stop the Wei army from crossing the river, and the other says that there are not enough ships to defeat the Wei navy. I accept those words. Now that I am about to reach Hukou with the two of you, can you give me a definite answer as to how many troops this Wei army actually has?"

Gan Tong and Ding Feng exchanged a glance, and then Gan Tong, who held a higher rank, bowed and reported: "Your Majesty, the scouts under my command and General Ding's have reported back over the past few days, and the local people have also reported back in the last two days. According to their reports, this Wei army has at least 20,000 infantrymen, and the number of cavalry is unknown, but I estimate it to be several thousand, but less than 10,000."

“Your Majesty,” Gan Tong said, bowing to defend himself, “It is not that I am unwilling to attack the Wei army, but the Wei army is far more numerous than my and General Ding’s forces. Judging from their fleet, there are at least several dozen warships. As far as I know when I received the order, Your Majesty is leading a large army in Dantu. In order not to lose troops due to a chaotic battle, I have chosen to proceed cautiously. I hope Your Majesty will understand.”

Sun Quan coughed lightly: "I said, I don't blame you."

Upon hearing this, Gan Tong felt slightly relieved. He instinctively waited for Sun Quan to give further instructions, but after a few moments, Gan Tong and Ding Feng did not receive any further words from Sun Quan. The two involuntarily looked over and saw that Sun Quan was lying on the soft cushion, seemingly in a daze.

Sun Quan originally wanted to give instructions to Gan Tong and Ding Feng, asking them about the morale of their troops and whether they could maintain their fighting strength in the battle against the Wei army. He also thought that since the Wei army had already crossed the lake and had a large and powerful force, the city of Chaisang, which was only defended by a thousand men, should have been occupied by the Wei army by now.

But just as Sun Quan was about to ask a question, a thought suddenly appeared in his mind.

Are we going to fight the Wei army in Chaisang?

Sun Quan blinked hard, only then realizing that his mind had been somewhat clouded by the cold he had been suffering from for days. During the recent march, Sun Quan knew that he could only rely on Quan Cong for military matters, so he had consulted Quan Cong for his opinion.

That was back when large ships were sailing upstream on the Yangtze River.

Quan Cong's argument at the time was that Wuchang was protected by mountains and rivers, and the Wei forces had never launched a large-scale military campaign in Jiangxia. Furthermore, General Zhuge Jin had over 40,000 troops in Jiangling; even if they were temporarily on the defensive, they wouldn't be defeated within two or three months. During the Huangchu era, when Cao Zhen, Xiahou Shang, Zhang He, and others attacked Jiangling, Zhu Ran defended the city with 5,000 troops. The reinforcements outside the city, including Zhuge Jin's forces, totaled only about 30,000, yet they held out for more than half a year. When the northern army fell ill in the summer and withdrew, Zhuge Jin was bound to make progress.

Moreover, Quan Cong said that this time, a total of 30,000 troops were drawn from Dantu and Guangling, plus the troops of Gan Tong and Ding Feng, which exceeded 40,000 men. This was enough to annihilate this Wei army of 20,000 to 30,000 men. This Wei army crossed the river from Wancheng. The Wancheng army had not made any major moves for many years. In fact, Wu knew that Wancheng was a remote place in Wei, and there should not be any strong troops there.

But Sun Quan just felt something was wrong.

Almost instinctively, alarm bells rang in Sun Quan's mind. In his mind at this moment, Chaisang City, less than a hundred miles to the west, seemed like a trap. This city, which had belonged to him just a few days ago, had lost its warmth and had begun to open its bloody maw.

Is it really possible for me to lead 40,000 troops to capture a city defended by 20,000 to 30,000 Wei soldiers, including at least several thousand cavalry? If Wei's attack on Jiangling is slow, will my attack on Chaisang be much faster? What if it takes two months to capture it? What if I lose another 10,000 or 20,000 soldiers? How will the battle turn then?

Moreover, this Wei army advanced along the river with unusual decisiveness. What if they didn't linger in Chaisang but continued south? Should we pursue them? Or abandon this Wei army and go to rescue Wuchang or Jiangling?

Of course, there's another crucial point... Cao Rui has been toiling away for months, running himself ragged, just to send 60,000 troops to attack Jiangling? Can Quan Cong's advice really be heeded?

Sun Quan felt a sharp pain in his head, then frowned and closed his eyes.

Generals Gan Tong and Ding Feng were unaware of the situation, but Quan Cong was far more perceptive. A seasoned general who diligently practiced martial arts and combat, Quan Cong was extremely sensitive to people's physical condition. It was clear that although Sun Quan had been trying to protect his health recently, his condition was still slowly declining.

"Your Majesty!" Quan Cong strode forward and knelt abruptly before Sun Quan's seat: "Is Your Majesty in good health?"

"I'm fine, just a slight headache." Sun Quan forced himself to remain calm. Upon opening his eyes, he was met with Quan Cong's anxious face. Before Quan Cong called him, the last thought in Sun Quan's mind was whether he could truly trust Quan Cong's decisions after so many defeats over the years.
But when Sun Quan saw Quan Cong, he decisively stopped himself from saying those words. If he didn't even trust Quan Cong in military matters, who could he trust? Hu Zong, who was only good at leading troops and didn't understand warfare? Or Yi and Xu Xiang, who were only skilled in literature? Or Zhuge Jin, who had suffered many defeats? Or Sun Shao and Sun Huan, who were loyal but lacked strategic vision?
For a moment, Sun Quan was in a state of utter confusion.

However, Sun Quan had been a ruler for thirty years, and naturally had his own methodology for handling such difficult decisions. He then spoke to Quan Cong:

"The Wei army numbers at most 30,000, while I already have 23,000 troops here. The two armies can now hold their own. I have decided that in 25 minutes, the entire army will march westward, and I will camp at Hukou tonight! Once the rear guard arrives, we will immediately attack Chaisang!"

"As you command." Quan Cong didn't detect anything unusual in Sun Quan's words; it was still the same advice he had given earlier, so he readily agreed.

The following day, January 9th.

When another 10,000 soldiers set off from the rear, bringing Sun Quan's total force to 33,000, he could no longer contain himself. He immediately ordered Quan Cong and 10,000 of his elite troops to cross the lake to the west, intending to find a suitable place for his army to set up camp and garrison on the other side.

Quan Cong did not shy away from difficulties. He accepted the order and led his troops westward. When they arrived at Chaisang, he set up positions and sent scouts to gather information in the direction of Chaisang city.

But the news that came left Quan Cong dumbfounded.

"Liu Liu, are you sure? Is there really no one left in Chaisang City?" Quan Cong stared wide-eyed at the scout Du Bo, who was always his most trusted scout.

Liu Liu patted his chest and guaranteed, "General, these eyes of mine were born for you. When have I ever been wrong? Apart from the military rations that were taken away, all the rest of the rations in Chaisang City were burned. The city walls were also damaged by the Wei army, and all the houses in the city were burned down..."

Quan Cong felt a tingling sensation on his scalp.

He suddenly recalled the strange look in His Majesty's eyes when he opened them yesterday, followed by a hint of tenderness. His Majesty trusted him so much, so why had he misjudged him on such a crucial matter!
The Wei army marched along the way, looting supplies and burning cities along the way.

Chaisang was the most important city along the Yangtze River, between Wuchang and Wankou. It had fertile land and a prosperous population. I had once been stationed here, and I knew every part of the city's structure intimately. How could it have been so completely destroyed by the Wei army?
It seems that this Wei army is determined to advance south.

In all the years I've fought against Wei, I've never seen a Wei army fight like this! Relying on horses and boats to transport essential military supplies, they penetrated deep into Wu territory, fighting and looting along the way, using war to sustain war... And yet, there weren't many Wu troops in these areas. If Chaisang could be captured so quickly, what about the other counties that hadn't heard of war for so long?

Quan Cong suddenly stood up, strode out of the tent, mounted his horse, called over a few guards, and galloped eastward toward Sun Quan.

Meanwhile, Huan Fan's army had already marched south to the territory of Liling County, south of Chaisang. In addition to his own 25,000 troops, he had also taken in 2,000 surrendered Wu soldiers along the way, and more than 4,000 able-bodied people from Chaisang.

For Huan Fan, his only thought was victory and achieving the strategic goals the emperor had given him. Everything else was irrelevant. (End of Chapter)