Chapter 147: Conquering Wanling with Wisdom, the Hero of the World But Jiang Gan was ordered to persuade Taishi Ci, and unexpectedly Taishi Ci was actually persuaded. But this guy changed his plans at the last minute. Not only did he not want to go south, he also wanted to take the initiative to seize Wanling, an important town in Danyang, and completely ignored his advice. After the banquet, he was helped to a house to rest. At this time, I was drunk and felt dizzy. After thinking about it, I felt that it was not appropriate. Because he was ordered to come, his mission was just to persuade Taishi Ci to go south. Now Taishi Ci took the initiative to take Wanling. If he succeeded, he would not get any credit, but if he failed, he would be guilty. Naturally, he could not sit idly by and watch Taishi Ci act in this way. But the problem is that Taishi Ci is a very opinionated person and will not change his mind easily. Now that Taishi Ci has given the order, how should he change it?

If it were in the past, Jiang Gan would have thought about it for a while and would have been able to come up with a solution. But now I'm drunk and my head is dizzy, so it's really hard for me to think clearly. I was lying on the bed thinking about it for a while, and suddenly fell asleep. He slept like this until dawn, when he woke up and suddenly jumped up from the couch. Without even having time to put on his clothes, he hurried out of the room and shouted: "Where is General Taishi? I want to see him!" But when he went out, he found that most of the village was empty, with only a few soldiers guarding the door. Seeing this, the soldier hurriedly said: "Sir, you got up late. The general led his troops down the mountain early this morning and I'm afraid they have already left the mountain!" "Alas, General, why are you so impatient?" When Jiang Gan heard this, he was greatly shocked and immediately went back into the house to get dressed. But as he was putting on his clothes, he thought to himself that Taishi Ci had already led his troops away, which meant he was probably confident. He had already advised him yesterday, and if he did so again today, Taishi Ci might be displeased. Zuo Jing County is not far from here, so he might as well see if Taishi Ci can take it in one battle. If he could take it, it would show that Taishi Ci was capable, and then he would naturally have nothing to say. If it is not possible to obtain it, he will persuade her again when the time comes, it will not be too late. Thinking of this, he simply stopped thinking about it and sat quietly in the room waiting. On the other side, Taishi Ci got up early in the morning and led his troops down the mountain, heading straight to Jing County. Along the way, he held a spear in his hand and carried two halberds on his back, showing great ambition. Seeing this, his deputy general couldn't help but wonder: "General, now that Envoy Liu wants to give you the position of Grand Administrator, you also want to give you the position of Commander of Yuzhang." "We can go south to Yuzhang. Even though we don't have food or fodder, we can just gather some. Why do we need to attack the city?" In his opinion, since Liu Bei had given them benefits, they should just accept them.

There are troops and food in the south, so there is no need for them to fight to the death here! As soon as he said this, Taishi Ci smiled solemnly and said: "You thought I was just taking the city, but you didn't know why!" "Although the envoy treats me very well, I left him that day. I have not done anything today, but I am in a high position. Someone will not accept it in the future!" "So you should first gain some merit as a foundation for your life, so that no one will gossip about you in the future!" After all, he had been a county official for a short time and had been traveling all year round, so he was accustomed to the ways of the world and was not comparable to an ordinary general. For him, Liu Bei was really kind to him. But this doesn't mean that he can accept these treatments with peace of mind! Apart from anything else, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei under Liu Bei have not yet served as prefects. He was a foreign general and suddenly received such a high position. If he had no merit to support it, how could Guan Yu and Zhang Fei be convinced? Furthermore, even if we don’t start from external things, we can’t get past his original heart. You have to know that he was the one who avoided Liu Bei's recruitment and left, but now Liu Bei came to recruit him again regardless of the past grudges. If he wanted to save trouble and went south to receive troops with peace of mind, what kind of person would he be? Others are thick-skinned enough to do such things, but Taishi Ci can't! Therefore, now, he must first achieve some outstanding results before he can feel at ease to "ask" Liu Bei for the position of Danyang prefect. After he explained this, everyone under his command stopped talking. The reason why they followed Taishi Ci was because Taishi Ci was ambitious and courageous. Now that Taishi Ci had this intention, they naturally had no objection. So everyone followed Taishi Ci all the way towards Jing County. However, Jing County is the gateway to Wanling and is located in a strategic location, so more troops should have been stationed there. However, when Xu Kun was ordered by Sun Ce to expel Yuan Yin, he brought only a small number of troops, only six or seven thousand. Later, Sun Ce was defeated and marched south. In order to retake Wu County, he drew troops from various places, resulting in the entire Danyang's defense being empty. At this time, there were only more than 600 people stationed in Jingxian City. When the county magistrate heard that Taishi Ci was sending troops, he was greatly alarmed and hurriedly summoned the county lieutenant to discuss the matter. "Now our army is small, and the enemy has many soldiers. How can we resist them?" When the county lieutenant heard this, he hurriedly said: "I heard that Taishi Ci was an old general under Liu Yao. He was extremely brave and fought against Sun Ce in the past, and the result was a draw." "We only have so many soldiers and horses. We cannot fight them. We can only surrender!" When the county magistrate heard this, his heart sank and he sighed: "I surrender voluntarily, but I'm afraid the soldiers in the city won't be willing to do so!" Although he was a county magistrate, he was not appointed by Sun Ce, so naturally he had no loyalty. But Sun Ce has troops stationed in this city, so he can’t surrender just because he wants to!

The county lieutenant heard this and thought that the key issue was the garrison in the city, so he hurriedly said: "In that case, let the guard come here and ask him if he is willing to surrender!" The county magistrate hurriedly followed his advice and went to invite the general of Sun Ce's garrison. Speaking of this general, he was also an unknown person named He Luan. He was originally a general of a thousand men under Xu Kun. Because of his loyalty and usefulness, he was ordered to garrison here. Hearing the summons from the county magistrate, he entered the county government office. When he heard that the two men wanted to surrender, he became furious and said: "I am stationed here under the order of the general. How can I surrender?" "Taishi Ci is coming with his troops, but I am not afraid. I will just hold the city and wait for General Xu to come to my aid. He will surely retreat. What is there to be afraid of?" He immediately drew his sword and threatened the two men. He then ordered the city gates to be closed and sent a messenger to Wanling for help. Just as the arrangements were completed, the gatekeepers came over and shouted: "Taishi Ci is seeking a fight outside the city!" Hearing this, He Luan thought that he should go up to the city to see the strength of Taishi Ci's army. He was also afraid that the county magistrate and the county lieutenant would cause a rebellion, so he drew his sword and threatened the two men, saying: "Come with me and see it!" The two had no choice but to follow him to the city gate. They saw a general standing outside the city, holding a spear and carrying two halberds. Behind him were thousands of soldiers and horses, shouting: "Taishi Ci of Donglai is here, do you dare to go out of the city and fight?" Having said this, he turned his horse's head and pointed his spear directly at the city gate, looking majestic and magnificent. The county magistrate and the county lieutenant were terrified, but the young general He Luan saw it and cursed loudly: "How dare you be so arrogant when you are defeated? If you know what's best for you, withdraw your troops immediately. If you don't, when my lord leads his troops here, you will be defeated here!" When Taishi Ci heard this, he sneered: "In the battle at Shenting in the past, it was a pity that Sun Bofu was not captured, and a scoundrel was left barking here!" "Even if I am defeated by you, do you dare to go out of the city and fight?" When He Luan saw this, he immediately cursed: "I don't want to compete with you in bravery. If you have the guts, come and attack the city. I am not afraid!" Taishi Ci looked at the large number of soldiers on the city wall and thought that the soldiers inside the city must be here. He also saw that He Luan did not dare to fight, so he must be cowardly and prepared to defend the city! If he attacks the city by force, the other side will surely defend it, so he must find a way to shoot and kill this person. After thinking for a while, he came up with a plan and immediately turned around and shouted: "Pass my order, the entire army will attack the city!" After he shouted, the generals under his command obeyed the order and rushed towards the city with their troops. "Kill!" Thousands of soldiers shouted in unison and rushed forward. Taishi Ci took the lead and rushed towards the city wall on horseback. Heluan was shocked by his sudden attack. He had just closed the city gate and had not yet moved in the city defense equipment. He only had bows and arrows to fight the enemy. He could only shout: "Meet the enemy with me, and prepare to shoot!"

As he said this, he turned around and shouted: "Hurry and get the battering rams and rolling stones!" But he didn't notice one thing at all, that is, Taishi Ci didn't bring any siege equipment at all. When he turned around, Taishi Ci saw an opening. The man immediately stuck his spear into the ground, drew his bow and arrow, and instantly aimed at He Luan. He just stretched out his ape arms, pulled the two stone longbows into full moons, and then shot out a long arrow. Poor guy, he just turned around and didn't know what happened. He just heard a voice saying "General, be careful". When he turned around, he saw an arrow shot at him. Before he could react, he was hit on the head by an arrow and fell to the ground. Before his soldiers could react, Taishi Ci laughed loudly and said: "The enemy general is dead, and those who surrender will not be killed!" As soon as he called out, everyone under his command began to shout, and for a moment the sound echoed throughout the entire city. When the soldiers on the city saw this, they trembled in fear. But they saw Taishi Ci pulling out arrows and shooting again and again, killing several people one by one. The soldiers under his command kept shouting, "The general is a great archer!" When Taishi Ci saw this, he burst into laughter and shot two more people to death, which frightened the soldiers on the city wall. Seeing this, the county magistrate swallowed his saliva, turned around and shouted: "Open the door and surrender, open the door and surrender quickly!" After he gave the order, the city gate opened naturally, and Taishi Ci ordered his soldiers to enter the city. After entering the city, he heard that He Luan had sent people to ask for help, and thought this was a good opportunity. He immediately marched without stopping, leaving several hundred men here, taking five days' worth of food and fodder, and led the army towards Wanling. It is also said that after leaving the city, the messenger He Luan headed towards Wanling. After walking for more than a day, he arrived at Wanling City. After meeting Xu Kun, he told him everything and asked him to send reinforcements. Speaking of Xu Kun, he was also a general under Sun Ce. He was the nephew of Sun Jian and followed Sun Jian in his battles. He had made great military achievements. At this time, he heard that Taishi Ci, an old subordinate of Liu Yao, suddenly marched into Jing County, and was greatly shocked. He thought that Sun Ce was far away in Wujun, and there were only more than 3,000 soldiers in their city. Taishi Ci might have taken advantage of the fact that his city was empty. Looking at the letter asking for help from Jing County, he was naturally hesitant and hurriedly called together his civil and military officials to discuss the matter. When everyone gathered together, Hong Zi stepped out and said: "Taishi Ci first followed Liu Yao and enjoyed great prestige, but later he fled to the mountains and was supported by many Shanyue people." "Now Jiangdong is in rebellion everywhere. If we let them seize Jing County, they can link up with Zu Lang. If we let them contact Jiao Yi, Yan Baihu and others, our army will be attacked from both sides." "We must rescue them quickly and not let Jing County fall into their hands!" Zu Lang was the leader of the Shanyue tribe in Danyang. He was instigated by Chen Deng to rebel and had already occupied Lingyang and other places west of Jingxian County. This man was also an old acquaintance of Sun Ce. When Sun Ce first started his army, he saw Sun Ce recruiting soldiers in Danyang, so he led his troops to raid Sun Ce's camp and almost killed Sun Ce. Fortunately, Cheng Pu and others fought desperately and finally helped Sun Ce escape from the siege.

Upon hearing that Taishi Ci might be able to contact Zu Lang, Xu Kun said in a deep voice: "In that case, you all stay here and defend the city while I lead the troops to reinforce you!" He then led more than a thousand soldiers out of the city and headed straight towards Jing County. Unexpectedly, halfway through the journey, they heard shouting and killing from the southwest, and then saw a group of soldiers and horses rushing out of the woods. It was Taishi Ci who led his troops to ambush here. When he saw Xu Kun coming, he spurred his horse and led his troops to attack. Upon seeing this, Xu Kun hastily led his troops to resist, but was defeated and had to retreat in panic. Taishi Ci pursued along the way and killed Xu Kun's troops so badly that they fled in disarray. When he reached outside the city, he heard Taishi Ci chasing after him. He knew that he could not defeat Taishi Ci, so he had to withdraw from Wanling City and retreat to Yuyang, waiting for Sun Ce to come to his rescue. Taishi Ci successively captured Wanling and Jing counties, and knew that he had gained a firm foothold, so he sent a letter to Jiang Gan, asking him to go north to meet him. Jiang Gan had been staying in the mountain stronghold for only half a day when he heard that Taishi Ci had already taken Jing County. He was greatly surprised. I couldn't help but think that Taishi Ci was indeed capable, no wonder Liu Bei and Qin Zhen valued him so much! He originally wanted to wait for Taishi Ci to return and then persuade him to go south, but unexpectedly, the soldiers came to report that after Taishi Ci took Jing County, he went to Wanling. Jiang Gan was so anxious that he wanted to chase after him, but he was worried that something bad would happen to him. If he didn't chase after him, it would be difficult to get his life back. Unexpectedly, after only two days, Taishi Ci's troops came to report that Taishi Ci had already captured Wanling. After hearing this letter, Jiang Gan was stunned for a moment. After a long while, he sighed: "Taishi Ziyi, you are truly a hero of the world!" This time he was finally convinced. I originally thought that Taishi Ci might do something bad, but I didn't expect him to actually do what he said. He is truly a hero! He felt proud to be able to persuade such a capable person to surrender. Thinking of this, he no longer hesitated and wrote a written report on everything that happened in the south and sent it towards Shouchun. (End of this chapter)