amaotonovel Chapter 419 The Merchants' Enthusiasm for Revenge Against Sun Quan
Chapter 419 The Merchants' Enthusiasm for Revenge Against Sun Quan
You only know if something is right or wrong after you do it; you only know if you can get to your destination after you walk the path.
So, having a thousand thoughts is not as good as taking one action. Young people who want to get ahead must dare to think, dare to act, and dare to fight.
Guan Xing and Shen Yi were both pragmatists. After discussing and agreeing to take action immediately, they personally saw off Lü Dai, Dai Liang, Qian Bo and others at dawn, and then selected personnel from the entire army to carry out the operation.
The journey is long, and since it involves operations behind enemy lines, which require flexibility and adaptability, we cannot bring too many troops; three thousand is the maximum.
With more people, the goal becomes bigger; with a small boat, it's easier to turn around.
The number of troops can be small, but they must all be elite soldiers capable of fighting ten men each, and all must meet Li Gousheng's standards.
In addition to personnel, there were also farm tools. Guan Xing planned to use farm tools as commodities and disguise himself as a merchant caravan to infiltrate Jiangling. Therefore, the farm tools had to be well prepared. There was no need to prepare them; the steel mill had plenty.
It's no exaggeration to say that Guan Xing now has soldiers, food, and equipment, so planning such an operation is really not a problem. The main thing is to see what Geng Shang can do. If Geng Shang can solve the problem of the checkpoints along the way, then everything will be ready.
Five days later, Geng Shang, having received his orders, rushed to Wushang and bowed before Guan Xing, who was training his troops in the camp. He said, "General, Geng Shang, the magistrate of Linru County, has come on orders. May I ask what your instructions are?"
This operation was kept absolutely secret, and only Guan Xing and Shen Yi in the army knew about it. Therefore, the messenger did not explain to Geng Shang the reason why Guan Xing had summoned him. As a result, Geng Shang kept thinking about this matter on the way and did not dare to stop for a moment while riding at full speed.
He had only recently been appointed magistrate by Guan Xing and it was time for him to prove himself. How could he dare to disobey Guan Xing's orders?
Guan Xing pulled him to a corner of the training ground and explained the details of the surprise attack on Jiangling before asking, "So, from your businessman's perspective, does this have any potential?"
Guan Xing spoke casually, but his words carried immense weight, startling Geng Shang into a moment of stunned silence and deep thought.
This is too risky; the slightest mistake could lead to total annihilation, and the chances of success are extremely small.
Even if the probability of using the "crossing the river in white robes" tactic to deal with Sun Quan is slim, it's still worth doing, for no other reason than revenge.
As we all know, if you are bullied, you should fight back on the spot, so that others will think twice before trying to bully you again.
On the contrary, if you silently endure being bullied, others will think you are easy to bully, and everyone will want to take advantage of you in the future.
Only by striking hard enough can you avoid being struck a hundred times.
Sun Quan and Lü Meng's feigned crossing of the Yangtze River caused merchants' status to plummet, and now even Cao Wei is beginning to strictly investigate and guard against them.
The result of this precaution is that merchants have to be humble and say countless nice things, and offer money, grain and countless gifts to get through the process. The cost of a round trip is at least 30% higher than before, which are all real losses.
Not only did it increase costs, but it was also incredibly frustrating. Every time they faced difficulties from the checkpoints along the way, the merchants felt like they could skin Sun Quan and Lü Meng alive.
Now the opportunity has come. If we can really use the "crossing the river in white robes" method to kill Sun Quan, we can show the world that merchants also have fangs and can bite when pushed to the limit.
In that case, anyone who wants to do bad things under the guise of a businessman will have to think twice about whether they can withstand the businessman's retaliation and whether they can bear the price.
As for whether crossing the river in disguise under the guise of a businessman will be criticized, there is absolutely no need to worry.
Geng Shang was originally a businessman, not a professional soldier like Lü Meng, so why would he need to use the name of a businessman? Is there anything wrong with a businessman crossing the river in plain clothes?
Moreover, this is revenge, a legitimate and justifiable revenge. If we successfully destroy Sun Quan in the same way as Sun Quan, the world will not only not slander and insult us like they did with Sun Quan and Lü Meng, but will instead give us a thumbs up and sincerely say "Awesome!"
Even if you fail, it doesn't matter. At least you got your revenge. Your mind is clear and you feel good. Isn't the most important thing in life to feel good?
Therefore, Geng Shang only thought for a moment before making up his mind, and said with a fierce look in his eyes, "I'll do it. What does the general want me to do?"
Guan Xing said, "Plan my route and take care of the relationships along the way. Also, have your merchant friends inquire about the situation in Jiangling and Chaisang. I need to know Sun Quan's reaction after receiving the bad news of the defeat and whether he will summon Zhou Tai back to Jiangling."
"Even if Sun Quan completely gives up after receiving the bad news, he won't really do nothing. At the very least, he will make some personnel adjustments to avoid being killed by his subordinates before surrendering."
"You must find a way to get me information about Sun Quan's personnel adjustments, and the more detailed the better, as this will be of great use to us later."
Geng Shang nodded emphatically and said, "This humble official understands what to do. This humble official will set off immediately."
After saying that, he turned and left. His decisive manner surprised Guan Xing, who quickly called out to his back, "Don't rush, at least finish your meal before you leave."
It's five or six hundred li from Linru to Wushang, and the journey was no easy feat. Guan Xing was thinking of letting Geng Shang rest for a night before continuing, but Geng Shang was even more anxious than he was.
Without turning his head, Geng Shang shouted, "Speed is of the essence in war. It's not too late to rest after we're all ready."
He certainly wouldn't have gone to such lengths for other matters, but dealing with Sun Quan, especially the matter of crossing the river in disguise, required his utmost attention, as it concerned the dignity of a merchant and his future social standing.
Moreover, the opportunity only comes once; once missed, it's gone forever.
Seeing how hard Geng Shangdu was working, Guan Xing's confidence naturally increased. He returned to the training ground and shouted to the three thousand elite soldiers who had been selected and were undergoing intensive training: "This mission is very important. Before we set off, everyone must train like crazy. You are not allowed to ask questions, communicate, or gossip about the mission. Keep your mouths shut, do you hear me?"
The soldiers were all speechless. You didn't say what the mission was. How could we ask or communicate with you when we didn't know anything? Why are you spreading rumors everywhere?
Despite this, the soldiers only dared to complain in their hearts, while their voices were all firm as they roared, "Yes, sir..."
After five days of such training, seeing that Shen Yi's side was almost ready, Guan Xing immediately convened a meeting of all the generals. The first thing was for the generals to report their battle achievements and take stock of their troops.
Before the battle, Guan Xing had more than 40,000 men. In this battle, he annihilated and captured Lu Xun's 50,000 troops, Peng Qi's 20,000 bandit troops, plus Lü Dai's 10,000 Jiaozhou soldiers, totaling more than 120,000 men. After deducting casualties, there were still more than 100,000 men left.
Guan Xing now commands an army of 100,000, making him stronger than most of the warlords who formed an alliance to oppose Dong Zhuo back then.
After taking stock of his troops, Guan Xing made the following adjustments: he ordered Wu Yue King Tao to lead 20,000 troops to guard Damu, and ordered Shen Yi to lead 60,000 troops to attack Nanchang from Yuhan. Those who were injured or unwilling to undergo reform were sent home.
The quality of soldiers is more important than their quantity. Besides, the people also need labor. We can't drain all the labor force from the people, that would be too wasteful of resources and a waste of resources.
Besides, Guan Xing doesn't have the financial strength to support an army of 100,000. Repatriating some of them could effectively alleviate the economic pressure.
Cheng Li and Wu Yue were responsible for sending the soldiers, so Guan Xing didn't need to worry about it. After giving the order, he assembled the army for pre-battle mobilization, preparing to first go to Linru with the army, and then split up with Shen Yi to go to Jiangling.
That morning, Guan Xing had just finished his pre-battle mobilization and led his troops out when he received a message from a messenger saying that Zhou Cang was requesting an audience.
Zhou Cang was quickly brought before him and given a brief report on the situation in Jianye: "Young General, the old general said that you still need some time to reorganize your troops and prepare for war, and he wants you to return to Jianye immediately to report on the situation."
Guan Xing was stunned for a moment and then cursed, "What a joke! It's 800 li from Wushang to Jianye! Isn't this just a waste of time?"
Zhou Cang insisted, "This is the old general's order, you must carry it out. I still need to report to the king, so I'll take my leave now."
Guan Xing watched Zhou Cang's retreating figure and sighed, "Old Guan, isn't he just looking for trouble? Never mind, let's keep going."
Shen Yi quickly advised, "No, General. Military orders are absolute. The consequences of openly disobeying orders are very serious. It's fine if you don't go back, but what if we follow suit and disobey your orders in the future?"