flstandardbreds Chapter 391 Lu Xun's Doomsday ( )
Chapter 391 Lu Xun's Doomsday ( )
Defeat is not just a simple loss on the battlefield; it can trigger a series of chain reactions, the biggest of which is the desire for change among the people.
After all, hope is the greatest motivation to persevere; without hope, how many people can persevere?
With Guan Xing's attack from Yu Han and Zhou Fang's failed attempt to lure the enemy, many in the army began to consider surrendering.
Almost everyone had the thought of surrendering, even Lu Xun himself, but only Shi Xin dared to put it into action.
It should be noted that Shi Xin was Shi Xie's son, and was sent to Sun Quan as a hostage. He only harbored resentment towards Eastern Wu and had no loyalty to him. If the Wu army won, all would be well, but if they lost, Shi Xin would definitely surrender or even stab them in the back.
So Lu Xun sent him away, and Lu Xun seriously suspected that Shi Xin was very likely not to travel through mountains and rivers to find Lü Dai, but would turn around and head straight to Da Mo to surrender to Shen Yi.
Surrender is better than having someone stay by your side and stab you in the back at a crucial moment. Between two evils, choose the lesser.
More importantly, Lu Xun did not want Mi Fang to betray Guan Yu in the same way he did; that would be too painful.
Ding Feng frowned and said, "Breaking the cauldrons and sinking the boats is not impossible, but what if Guan Xing doesn't fight us after seeing the fire, but instead keeps retreating to Yuhan? If he continues to stall like this, we won't be able to catch up and we'll run out of food. Wouldn't that be suicide?"
The Zhejiang-Jiangxi Corridor is 400 li long, and Yushan is in the middle of the corridor. This means that if Guan Xing were to retreat from Yushan to Yuhan, there would be at least 200 li of depth. Such a long distance would definitely be enough to kill the Wu army that was cut off from supplies.
More importantly, just as Wu Jun was wary of merchants after crossing the river in white, Guan Xing, with his own skill in infiltration, strictly prevented Wu Jun from infiltrating. During the march, he blocked the mountains on both sides, making it impossible for Wu Jun to infiltrate behind Guan Xing and intercept him.
Lu Xun said, "There's no other way. We have to take a gamble. It would be too frustrating to surrender without even trying."
Lu Xun was also an ambitious and promising young man who believed himself to be no less capable than any famous general in the world. However, when he encountered Guan Xing, it was as if he had met his nemesis, and he suffered setbacks all the way.
If you don't find a chance to vent your pent-up resentment, you'll become depressed.
Moreover, even if he were to surrender, he would have to fight with all his might to prove his abilities to Liu Bei before surrendering, so as to earn the respect of Liu Bei and Guan Yu and be given important responsibilities by Liu Bei in the future.
Ding Feng slammed his fist on the table and said, "Then there's nothing more to say. Let's fight the Han army. I deeply regret not following General Xu Sheng to the death last time. This time, I must fight the Han army to the death and vent my anger."
Lu Xun nodded and said, "You must be exhausted from just getting back. Go and rest first. We'll set off in two hours. To prevent Shen Yi from suddenly attacking our rear during the crucial moment of the decisive battle with Guan Xing, we must try to keep our distance from Shen Yi as much as possible. This way, we can at least make Shen Yi waste more of his energy."
Ding Feng got up to take his leave and went back to his tent to sleep and rest. Two hours later, Lu Xun pulled him up and he followed the army to attack Yushan.
Meanwhile, Shi Xin led dozens of his personal guards, carrying ropes, as they struggled to climb through the mountains. The crevices at the bottom of the mountain were guarded by Han soldiers, making it impossible for them to pass. They could only use the ropes to climb up the cliffs and then down. This method of travel was not only laborious and exhausting but also dangerous. If they were to fall, they would be smashed to pieces.
At this moment, Shi Xin was hanging halfway up the mountain, gripping the rope and climbing up the cliff while cursing, "Damn Lu Xun, sending me to contact Lü Dai at this time is obviously up to no good. Are you afraid I'll follow in Mi Fang's footsteps?"
"I've worked so hard, serving you diligently and conscientiously, and you not only fail to appease me but also keep your guard up against me at every turn. You don't treat me like a human being at all."
Shi Xin grew angrier and angrier, and felt that his current behavior was incredibly stupid. People were already wary of him, and he was still running off to work for them. Wasn't that crazy?
Thinking about how his father and brothers were living a life of luxury in Jiaozhou, while he himself was living in fear and trepidation under Sun Quan's very nose, he felt increasingly uneasy.
Why?
We're all born of the same father, so why am I always the one who gets sacrificed?
Shi Xin refused to go any further and turned to his personal guards who had already climbed to the top of the cliff and were climbing up the cliff next to him, saying, "I'm not going any further. Come down the mountain and surrender to the Han with me."
Finding Lü Dai would require crossing countless mountains, and even then, there was no guarantee of finding him. However, surrendering to the Han Dynasty was a different story. Once they found a Han army outpost and revealed their identity and purpose, the Han army would warmly welcome them into Damu City.
More importantly, Lu Xun was already surrounded and was about to be completely annihilated. Lu Xun was leading Sun Quan's only 50,000 elite troops. Without this army, what would Sun Quan have left?
The situation is now very clear. Jiangdong and even Jingzhou are about to fall to the Liu family. If you don't hurry up and surrender to the Han and use the influence of the Shi family to seek your own interests, are you going to sink with Sun Quan's sinking ship and be sent to Liu Bei by your father as a hostage again? Haven't you been a hostage long enough?
As he slid down, Shi Xin's thoughts became clearer and clearer. When he reached the bottom of the cliff, he made his final decision. Once all his personal guards had come down, he immediately waved his hand and said, "Follow me to surrender to Han, then we'll eat and drink well and wait for Lu Xun to be captured. As for Eastern Wu, to hell with Eastern Wu."
It must be said that mountain paths are easier to traverse than cliffs. Shi Xin quickly arrived at the Han army's outpost in the mountains. Seeing the Han soldiers aiming their bows and arrows at them, he immediately threw down his weapon in front of them and said, "I am Shi Xin, son of Shi Xie, the General of the Great Han Guard, and the Prefect of Wuchang. Today I abandon darkness and surrender to the Han army. Please take me to see General Shen Yi."
After speaking, he removed his armor with the help of his personal guards and threw it aside, thus demonstrating his sincerity in surrendering.
The Han soldiers at the outpost dared not neglect them and hurriedly invited them into the village, provided them with food, and after a short rest, sent someone to take them to Damo.
As evening fell, Shi Xin was successfully brought to Damu City and hoisted onto the city wall by the Han army in a basket. Shen Yi, upon receiving the news, immediately rushed to greet him. Upon seeing Shi Xin from the city tower, he smiled warmly and said, "Shen Yi greets Prefect Shi. I have long admired your name and it is my great honor to meet you today."
Having been frustrated by Sun Quan for so long, Shi Xin immediately returned the greeting and got straight to the point: "I, Zhou Fang, am not here to surrender in a false manner. I am here to surrender sincerely, so I will not disclose the information from Lu Xun's side. You would not believe me anyway. Find me a room and I will wait in peace for the war to end. A prison cell is fine with me. I will not listen to, see or participate in anything else."
Look, this is the attitude of surrender.
Shen Yi became even more enthusiastic, pointing to the steps and saying with a smile, "Prefect Shi, please. I will immediately order someone to prepare a banquet for you."
……
Guan Xing continued his journey after passing Yushan, and soon met up with Wu Yue. Wu Yue came before him, bowed, and explained the situation.
Guan Xing frowned and asked, "Ding Feng actually retreated, and he retreated very swiftly, as if he were being chased by a wild beast. Why?"
Wu Yue said, "He must have received orders from Lu Xun, otherwise he wouldn't have dared to retreat so easily. So the question is, why did Lu Xun send Ding Feng to intercept him and then recall him? Isn't this just playing with him?"
Guan Xing said, "Now Lu Xun has fewer and fewer options left, so his purpose is becoming increasingly clear. If I were Lu Xun, after realizing that the self-inflicted injury plot had failed and I had no other choice, I would only have two options: either surrender or..."
"We must concentrate our forces for a desperate, all-or-nothing battle, a do-or-die gamble, and there is no other way."
Wu Yue frowned and said, "Now that you mention it, there is indeed a high possibility that Lu Xun is coming for you, but is it possible that he will break into the Huangwu Mountains and join up with Cao Ren?"
Guan Xing shook his head and said, "Absolutely impossible. You should know the current morale of Wu's army, and you know the terrain of Huangwu Mountain even better. If we really go into the mountains, the complex terrain will cut Wu's army into countless pieces. Not only will it be easy for us to eat them one by one, but the dispersed army will also be difficult to control. Isn't Lu Xun afraid that the army will turn around and surrender after it breaks away from his control?"
"Therefore, Lu Xun will not enter the Huangwu Mountains, but will only attack me."
Wu Yue asked, "That makes sense. So how should we deal with it?"