The scenery outside Jiangling Prefecture (now Jingzhou City) is very pleasant. There are vast tracts of lush green rice fields on the endless plains. Villages and houses can be seen everywhere. Amidst the sparse smoke from cooking fires, the peach and plum trees have already blossomed. The red and white colors dotted among the vibrant green are particularly beautiful.
Guo Shao was looking at the scenery in the distance from the top of the city wall. He had repeatedly prohibited his soldiers from disturbing the people. It would be a pity if this rare prosperous scene was destroyed. Jingzhou has been a strategic location since ancient times. It is not because of its dangerous terrain, but on the contrary, it is located on the Jianghan Plain; however, its position as a water and land transportation hub connecting the north, south, east and west is very important, and the flat terrain and rich resources are easy to govern, which is indeed a good place to station troops and raise troops.
Now Guo Shao planned to use Jingzhou as the base camp of the Eastern Route Army. It had food, people and convenient transportation, and would become the rear center of the army. Luo Yanhuan was also heading south with 20,000 troops from the left wing of the Tiger Army. They would station elite troops here to firmly control Jingzhou and stabilize the rear of the Eastern Route Army.
The road below the city was filled with the clatter of horse hooves, and soldiers were galloping happily on the road between the fields. Someone nearby spotted Guo Shao standing on the top of the city wall, and some of them waved their weapons and shouted at the top of the city wall, causing the soldiers to make a noise.
Everyone's morale is very high, Zuo You said from the side.
Wang Pu said: We have easily occupied such a good place. The soldiers are now enjoying good food and drink, horse riding and entertainment every day, and there is also money to share. Who wouldn’t be happy
After hearing this, Guo Shao looked towards the west and said casually: The good days will not last long.
On a sunny afternoon, everything was so bright and peaceful, and the city was filled with peace and joy. But Guo Shao's tone and eyes suddenly made the atmosphere a little gloomy.
Zuo You and others followed his gaze to the west, and there was still endless open wilderness. However, everyone knew that as long as they kept going west, they would soon enter the treacherous mountainous area of Songshan Mountain. The Xiling and Bashan Mountains were heavy obstacles, as if adding layers of heavy armor to Shu.
At this moment Guo Shao suddenly smiled and said: We will have a hard time, but we will definitely win.
The Shu army is not strong enough to fight, and will certainly not be able to stop the elite troops of the Great Zhou. Wang Pu also echoed, and everyone gradually regained their sense of ease.
Guo Shao did not affect the mood of the crowd, but he was not at ease pinning his hopes of victory on the weakness of his opponent. But what other ways were there to get from Tokyo to Jingzhou? Guo Shao learned about the terrain and local conditions around Shu in detail. He believed that as long as Shu could really defend itself, almost no ancient army could break in at once. So most of the time, the rapid attack on Shu was due to their own internal problems; for example, the former Shu emperor liked to worship Buddha everywhere and neglected military affairs.
What if Meng Chang and his ministers suddenly stop being stupid
If the war drags on, the various problems and contradictions within the Zhou Dynasty will intensify and ferment.
On the contrary, as long as they defeat Shu, one of the great powers at that time, the prestige of Guo Shao and even Fu Jinzhan's regime will rise rapidly. Victory will be like a shot in the arm for the Zhou Dynasty, and will also give a substantial increase in national strength, and all hidden dangers can be solved.
Guo Shao turned and walked down the city wall, returning to the central army camp not far from the city gate. He suddenly walked from the warm sunshine into the shade, and felt the remaining chill of spring, which was a bit chilly.
He asked Lu Chengyong to go find Sun's people, several business leaders, who often traveled along the road to Jingnan in Shu. Before the war, the Privy Council and the Palace Front Department had compiled a lot of information about the road to Shu, including route maps and some articles written by officials; but Guo Shao still wanted to talk to people who had actually traveled there.
Guo Shao talked to them. The people from the business gang spoke very excitedly, and two or three of them who were brave enough revealed their true colors in front of Guo Shao.
When sailing upstream, it is best to use a wheel and paddle to go faster, but more boatmen are needed. It is best to avoid sailing upstream and against the wind. When sailing with the wind, the water is usually fast in narrow places on the river, and paddles and sails are not very useful. At that time, boat trackers have to be used. When sailing in the Three Gorges, the most important thing is to avoid dangerous shoals and reefs. If you hit them, the boat will be destroyed.
Guo Shao listened carefully and asked: Do you know the location of those dangerous reefs
A man said: There is also a map of dangerous shoals in the shop in Jiangling Prefecture. I will ask someone to go back and get it for Marshal Guo.
That's great, Guo Shaoxi said.
The man volunteered again: "A map alone is not accurate. Marshal Guo, please take me with you. I am familiar with this waterway and can recognize many places. I also know how to find a familiar guide along the river. We have made many trips, but we still have to find a guide every time."
Guo Shao did not put on airs and asked gently: From Jiangling Prefecture, can we go directly to Kuizhou by land along the river
Someone rushed to say: We can only go through places like Qutang Gorge, where there are steep cliffs on both sides and no way to get through, so we have to take the plank road, which is very dangerous.
There is a picture of the plank road by Guo Shaowen.
Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads. Guo Shao turned to Zuo You and said: We have to send someone to find out the exact location of the plank road. He unfolded the map in his hand and looked at the lines on it. It was mainly the plank road from the east of Kuizhou to the confluence of Wuxi River. This part was under the control of the Shu army. There was no need to worry about Guixia and other states. They were in the hands of the Jingnan garrison and there would be no resistance.
Guizhou and Xiazhou are also strategically located near Yichang City. They used to belong to Shu, but are now controlled by Jingnan. Guo Shao has not figured out the historical origins yet, but he thinks that Shu did a bad job. Shu is also a big country, so it is understandable that it did not occupy Jingzhou in the east to form an offensive. However, Guizhou and Xiazhou in the mountainous area, which originally belonged to Shu, were also lost, shortening the defense depth. This should be considered a strategic mistake of the Shu regime.
As a result, Guo Shao only needs to break through one place: the Three Gorges, and then directly threaten the throat of Shu, Kuizhou.
The two characters "Kuizhou" on this map have become blurred. Guo Shao has touched the ink many times and can no longer see what is written. Kuizhou, a city in the mountains, has become Guo Shao's dream destination.
At this time, there was a commotion at the door, and a group of military commanders came in, talking and laughing. When the businessmen saw the military commanders, they were all frightened and hurriedly hid by the wall. Guo Shao was also a military commander, but they did not seem to be that afraid of him.
When Guo Shao looked up, a general shouted to the men in plain clothes leaning against the wall: "Where are you from? Why are you here in the central army hall?" One of the men bent down and said: "General Guo asked us to come here."
Greetings, my lord. The generals saluted Guo Shao casually with their fists clasped. The generals were very familiar with Guo Shao and knew his temper. As long as it was not a formal occasion to select generals, Guo Shao never punished his generals for personal matters and rarely scolded them, so everyone was very casual at ordinary times. Zuo You also advised him to take the opportunity to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys and let the generals have a fear of him, but Guo Shao could not do it and felt it was unnecessary.
Shi Yanchao felt no pressure at all, he found a chair and sat down without saying anything. He immediately looked at Yang Biao and said: Oh, what's wrong with Li Dazhu today? He even squeezed his legs together when walking.
Luo Mengzi suddenly laughed and said to Guo Shao: Brother, I was just about to tell you this. Li Dazhu went to drink wine a few days ago, and a lot of lumps grew on his thing.
Li Dazhu, the commander of the Second Army, was embarrassed. He was just a commander, but he rose to prominence after fighting with Guo Shao and forming the Tiger Army. He looked at Luo Mengzi with a very unhappy look, but he couldn't say anything rude to him because Luo Mengzi was higher in rank than him, and everyone knew that Luo Mengzi was Guo Shao's brother.
Venereology, venereal disease. The generals started to make a noise, saying that Li had a lump of flesh, but I also heard that some people with pus said that venereal disease was not a big deal, and some people also said that if it was not treated properly, it would be useless.
Guo Shao rolled up the map and asked Li Dazhu kindly: Have you seen a doctor
Li Dazhui said sullenly: I have treated it, but it is not fully cured yet.
Guo Shao turned his head and looked at the business leaders to see if there were any famous and skilled doctors in Jiangling Prefecture. These people had stayed in the shops in Jiangling Prefecture for a long time and were familiar with the local area.
I haven't heard of anyone so good in Jiangling Prefecture. But the most famous and skilled doctor must be Bai Lao of Wushan, a man said.
What does Wushan Bailao do? It sounds like a charlatan's name. Guo Shaodao, where is she
The man said: Wushan Bailao is in Wushan. It is reasonable that Marshal Guo has not heard of her in Tokyo. This person's reputation has only been spread for two years. But if you have been to Jingnan or Dongchuan before, you should have heard of her.
Guo Shao thought for a moment and said casually: Wushan is so far away from Jiangling Prefecture, and is blocked by high mountains. It is amazing that its reputation has spread so far in just one or two years. It must have something extraordinary.
Of course, this person also has a nickname called the Holy Hand of Wushan. As long as the person is still alive, there is no disease that she cannot cure. It is said that she has also saved men who were put in coffins after they died. She talked about it excitedly and boasted about it with great joy.
Of course Guo Shao didn't believe it. Although he had indeed witnessed a miraculous thing where a Taoist's elixir brought Fu Jinzhan back to life, Fu Jinzhan didn't have any serious illness. It was probably some disease caused by heatstroke.
If it is a real terminal illness, let alone the ancient masters, even the more developed modern medicine does not dare to claim to be a cure for all diseases. For example, can leukemia be easily cured? This man must be bragging, but it sounds like the Wushan Bailao may really be amazing. After all, if there was no example of curing difficult and complicated diseases, others would not spread her reputation, and it would not spread so quickly thousands of miles away.
Guo Shao suddenly became very interested. He was not concerned about Li Dazhu's syphilis, but he suddenly thought of Wang Pu who was half-dead in Tokyo.