jdhmnovel Chapter 449 Bu Zhi Surrenders, Guan Xing Takes Over Public Security
Chapter 449 Bu Zhi Surrenders, Guan Xing Takes Over Public Security
Life is full of unpredictable surprises; you never know whether tomorrow or an accident will come first.
Guan Xing encountered another accident.
Guan Xing escorted the goods over mountains and valleys, and finally entered the territory of Jingzhou. However, unable to bear the exploitation by the Wu army along the way, he had no choice but to accept the suggestion of Geng Shang Yu Yang to travel through the mountains.
To avoid any unforeseen circumstances, he did not dare to take the Huarong Road, which might be heavily guarded. Instead, he continued westward across Dongting Lake to Zuotang, intending to head north from Zuotang, pass through Chanling west of Gong'an, and head straight for Jiangling.
This route is located in the core area of Jingzhou, and they are traveling along narrow, winding paths rarely visited by people, so the initial part went relatively smoothly.
Guan Xing was overjoyed and was preparing to cross the mountain range and pass through Chanling in one go, but unexpectedly, Bu Zhi blocked his way just as he was about to leave the mountain.
The incident began when Yu Fan, while reporting on the eastern expedition to Sun Quan, also sent a message to Bu Zhi, who was stationed in Gong'an. Yu Fan's messenger traveled on the official road and was not burdened by supplies, so his speed was definitely faster than Guan Xing's. Therefore, while Guan Xing was still traveling through the mountains, Bu Zhi received the news of Lu Xun's capture.
Who is Bu Zhi? He was the prime minister of the Wu Kingdom in history, a pillar of the state. How could he do nothing after receiving the bad news of Lu Xun's capture?
Bu Zhi had also analyzed Guan Xing's tactics. Moreover, with the lesson of Guan Yu's surprise attack on Jianye in mind, after receiving the news of Lu Xun's capture, he instinctively felt that Guan Xing was very likely to replicate the Jianye incident and lead his army to launch a surprise attack on Jiangling. Therefore, he analyzed Guan Xing's possible attack routes on the map and then sent out scouts to search the mountains.
These scouts were all locals, and relying on their familiarity with the mountains, they quickly discovered the whereabouts of Guan Xing and his men. After confirming with the sentries who had intercepted Guan Xing, Bu Zhi guessed that the team transporting farm tools was Guan Xing's surprise attack army. Therefore, he did not hesitate to lead his troops into the mountains to block Guan Xing's path.
Tragically, Wu's main force had been taken by Lu Xun to the east, leaving only 3,000 men in the important town of Gong'an. Bu Zhi, fearing an accident in Gong'an, did not dare to take all 3,000 garrison troops with him, and only took 2,000 men to block Guan Xing. This resulted in a severe shortage of troops to block Guan Xing, making it impossible to encircle him. They could only block Guan Xing and wait for him to run out of food and collapse without a fight. In this way, Guan Xing would have ample time to react and prepare.
Han army temporary camp...
After half a day of preparation, Guan Xing finally finished forging the wooden handles and turned all the farm tools he was carrying into long-handled weapons. Then he gathered everyone and said, "We can't delay any longer. We must launch an attack immediately to repel Bu Zhi. Otherwise, the longer we drag this out, the more Bu Zhi's troops will grow, which will be more disadvantageous for us."
While the public security forces might be outnumbered elsewhere, Guan Xing was certain that Bu Zhi would seek reinforcements from other counties and even Jiangling while blocking his advance. Once Bu Zhi's reinforcements arrived, they would have no chance to attack, let alone break out.
Geng Shang, Yu Yang, and the others knew that the moment of life and death had arrived. They gripped their shovels and said, "Then let's fight! Let Bu Zhi know how powerful our Han army is!"
Just as everyone was about to set off, clutching weapons made from modified farm tools, Li Gousheng hurriedly ran over from a distance, looking at Guan Xing with a strange expression, and said, "General, Bu Zhi requests an audience."
what?
Everyone was stunned, and Guan Xing asked incredulously, "Bu Zhi wants to see me?"
Li Gousheng nodded and said, "Yes, he came alone, without any guards or weapons. He seems quite sincere."
Guan Xing exclaimed again, "What? You didn't even bring weapons?"
The two sides are about to start fighting, but Bu Zhi, the enemy commander, comes to see me alone at this critical moment. Why?
Isn't he afraid of being detained by himself?
Or did he think Guan Xing was a benevolent and righteous person like Liu Bei and Guan Yu, and wouldn't kill him?
Even if he were facing Liu Bei and Guan Yu, Bu Zhi wouldn't be foolish enough to hand his life over to the enemy. So there's only one reason left: something happened within Eastern Wu, forcing an important minister like Bu Zhi to choose sides in advance.
Thinking of this, Guan Xing immediately reprimanded Geng Shang, Yu Yang, and the others, saying, "Put away your weapons and put on a smiling face. They came to visit with good intentions. What are you trying to do with your weapons?"
Everyone: "..."
Don't you feel any remorse saying that?
Guan Xing quickly straightened his clothes and led Geng Shang, Yu Yang, and the others, who had removed their weapons, to the camp gate. Upon seeing an unfamiliar middle-aged man standing outside the gate, he immediately ran forward and bowed, saying, "Is the visitor General Bu Zhi? Guan Anguo greets my maternal uncle."
Bu Zhi is now considered his maternal grandfather. Although they are not blood relatives, they are still relatives. Since they are relatives and he does not know the purpose of the other party's visit, he naturally has to lower his posture and try to find out what the other party wants.
Unexpectedly, Bu Zhi didn't waste any time. Instead, he said with a serious expression, "Let's find a quiet place to talk."
Guan Xing hurriedly invited him into the cave that served as a temporary command post. Before they had even settled in the cave, Bu Zhi took out two secret letters from his bosom and handed them to Guan Xing, saying, "Take a look for yourself."
Guan Xing took the letter and unfolded it, only to find that it was written by Sun Quan to Bu Zhi. Sun Quan first expressed his determination to surrender to Liu Bei to Bu Zhi, and then ordered Bu Zhi to immediately lead his army north to Jiangling and hold Jiangling in place.
The letter also bears Zhang Zhao's signature in the lower right corner, proving that surrendering to Liu was a shared will of Sun Quan and Zhang Zhao.
The second letter was written by Fei Yi to Guan Xing. Fei Yi was unaware that Guan Xing was already on his way. He wrote this letter for two reasons: first, to prove, as Liu Bei's envoy, that he had accepted Sun Quan's surrender on Liu Bei's behalf; and second, to have Bu Zhi send a messenger to deliver the letter to Guan Xing, who was far away in Nanchang or even Yuhan, to inform Guan Xing of the situation in Jiangling and request that Guan Xing lead troops to rescue the city.
Guan Xing read the letter twice before handing it to Geng Shang, saying, "I didn't expect so many things to have happened in Jiangling City in just a few days. It seems we need to speed things up. Grandfather, what do you think we should do next?"
First she called him "sister," then "younger sister," and finally "little darling." Guan Xing always felt that the relationship between people was the same as a man pursuing a woman—you had to express goodwill first and subtly build rapport. So he decisively omitted the "uncle" from his maternal great-uncle's name.
Bu Zhi, however, did not notice this detail and instead said, "Our lord has already ordered Yu Fan to surrender. Your troops currently attacking Nanchang can now take over the city smoothly. After taking over Nanchang, your troops must rush to support Jiangling, since Jiangling is too close to the Wei army and there are many Cao Cao factions within the city..."
Although Bu Zhi didn't say what came next, Guan Xing knew very well that Jiangling City was personally supervised by his father. Once Sun Quan was driven out of Jiangling City by the Cao faction, they would have to pay a heavy price if they wanted to attack the city again.
Therefore, it is imperative to reach Jiangling before Sun Quan can no longer hold out and defend the city to block the Wei army's attack.
Upon hearing this, Guan Xing immediately shouted, "Li Gousheng, you immediately lead your men back to Nanchang, order Hao Yu to stay in Nanchang, and order Shen Yi to rush to Jiangling along Huarong Road. Also, send the message to my father and ask him to make preparations in advance."
“Yes…” Li Gousheng dared not disobey the military order. He clasped his hands in a bow and was about to leave when Bu Zhi stopped him and threw him a token, saying, “You don’t need to hide from the Wu army sentries anymore. Show the token when you see a sentry, and they will not make things difficult for you.”
"Thank you, General Xie Bu." Li Gousheng was overjoyed, accepted the token, bowed again, and then turned and left quickly.
Bu Zhi then said, "General Guan, you must be quite exhausted after your long journey. Pack your things and come back to Gong'an City with me. Rest for the night and we'll head to Jiangling together tomorrow morning."
"Okay..." Guan Xing nodded in agreement without refusing. He was not worried about Bu Zhi ambushing him in the city. "I have three thousand elite troops under my command, why would I be afraid of your ambush?"
Guan Xing led his army, carrying hoes, away from the mountains, and went to Gong'an City with Bu Zhi.