Chapter 124 Liu Biao deserved his defeat! He used my strategy against me? I have some ideas, but unfortunately not many! I have a backdoor!
Liu Bei looked back at Xiao Fang with delight.

As Xiao Fang had expected, Huang Chengyan personally took action and successfully persuaded his cousin to surrender, just like he had done to persuade Gan Ning to surrender.

How could Liu Bei not be overjoyed to see the return of such a brave general who could rival Zhang Fei and possess the courage to defeat ten thousand enemies?

"I am about to go down the river to capture Xiakou."

"Han Sheng is here at the right time to help Bei capture Xiakou and take over Jingzhou!"

Liu Bei stepped forward and hurriedly helped Huang Zhong up, his eyes filled with joy as if he had found a treasure.

Looking at the new ruler of Jingzhou who was courteous to the wise and humble to the humble, Huang Zhong felt deeply moved as he recalled the grievances and suspicion he had suffered from Liu Biao before.

"Xu'er, come and meet the lord!"

Huang Zhong put away his emotion and turned around to wave to his son.

Huang Xu, who was behind him, dragged his sick body forward and bowed down to pay homage.

Liu Bei did not wait for him to bow, and hurriedly supported him:
"Since you are feeling unwell, there is no need to be so formal."

"Jinglue, I'd like you to check on Mr. Huang first."

Liu Bei turned around and looked at Xiao Fang.

Huang Zhong's spirits suddenly lifted.

He persuaded Huang Chengyan to surrender, on the one hand because he valued Liu Bei as a wise leader, and on the other hand, Liu Biao was dead and the change of Jingzhou's master was a foregone conclusion, so he also had to find a way out for himself and the Changsha soldiers.

Another most important fact is that Huang Chengyan said that Military Advisor Xiao was not only a genius, but also had the ability to bring people back to life.

That's why he didn't dare to delay and hurriedly crossed the river to surrender, in order to save his son as soon as possible.

"Don't worry, General Han Sheng. I will do my best."

Xiao Fangfang asked Huang Xu to be helped into the tent.

Liu Bei took Huang Zhong into the central military tent and hosted a banquet that had been prepared in advance to welcome Huang Zhong.

Despite the delicious wine in front of him, Huang Zhong was still absent-minded and kept looking outside the tent from time to time.

"Han Sheng, don't worry too much. Military Advisor Jinglue has medical skills that are like Bian Que's rebirth. I believe that your son is a lucky person. Military Advisor will definitely be able to cure your son's illness."

Liu Bei saw what was on Huang Zhong's mind, so he smiled and comforted him.

Huang Zhong was relieved, but he still said with some doubt:

"My lord, I have long heard that Military Advisor Xiao is a man of extraordinary foresight, like Zhang Liang reborn."

"Kuai Yue claimed to be the best strategist in Jingzhou, but he was repeatedly fooled by Military Advisor Xiao."

"But even the famous doctor Zhang Zhongjing was helpless with my son's illness. Military Advisor Xiao is so young, how can he really..."

Huang Zhong's words were just a brief mention and he didn't say anything more explicit.

But the implication was that he was subtly hinting that he was in awe of Xiao Fang's wisdom, but was really worried about his medical skills.

After all, even a famous doctor like Zhang Zhongjing was helpless, let alone a young man like you.

"Han Sheng, don't underestimate the military advisor just because he's young..."

Liu Bei smiled meaningfully and recounted all the previous examples of Xiao Fang's "resurrection from the dead".

Huang Zhong's face gradually showed a strange look again, and the worry faded away.

"It seems that this Military Advisor Xiao is truly a rare talent in the world!"

"My lord, it's amazing that you have such a rare talent to assist you. No wonder Liu Jingsheng is no match for you..."

Huang Zhong's thoughts raced, and he was amazed.

Just at this moment, Xiao Fang supported Huang Xu and walked into the big tent.

"Military Advisor Xiao, how is my son's condition? Can he be saved?"

Huang Zhong jumped up, supported his son first, and then asked impatiently.

Xiao Fang sighed and said:
"Your son has been ill for a long time. If I try my best, I can guarantee that he can live another three or four years."

"As for whether it can be cured, it depends on your luck."

As soon as these words were spoken, Huang Zhong breathed a sigh of relief, and a look of ecstasy surged on his old face.

This was because he had visited many famous doctors before, but his son's illness had never been cured. Even after Zhang Zhongjing examined him, he was helpless and said that his son could only live for a year at most.

Xiao Fang was able to let his son live three or four more years, and even had the possibility of being cured. This was already a huge surprise. How could Huang Zhong not be ecstatic?

"It would be a blessing for Xu'er to live even three or four more years!"

"Thank you very much, Military Advisor, for saving my son!"

Huang Zhong was filled with gratitude and immediately pulled Huang Xu to bow down.

Xiao Fang hurriedly supported the father and son and smiled faintly:
"General, you are too kind. Fang is an expert in medicine, and I have come across this matter of curing illnesses and saving lives. Naturally, I cannot stand by and watch someone die."

"What's more, old general, you have the courage of ten thousand men, and you are also a great general who can help the lord to support the Han Dynasty. It is even more our duty!"

While Xiao Fang was being modest, he naturally had to speak up for Lao Liu on behalf of someone who was not easy to say.

Although Huang Zhong is upright, he is not unsympathetic.

After bowing to Xiao Fang again, he turned back to Liu Bei and said with emotion:

"I have wasted half my life, but I never thought that when I am old, I would meet a wise leader like you."

"Since the lord wants to attack Xiakou, I am willing to be the vanguard and lead my Changsha soldiers to sacrifice their lives to help the lord conquer Xiakou!"

Huang Zhong's statement naturally made Lao Liu very happy.

He immediately supported Huang Zhong, patted his shoulder and said with a proud smile:
"I have you, Huang Hansheng. I have found another right-hand man to support the Han Dynasty!"

"Okay, Han Sheng, you will be the vanguard, and Bei will follow up. We will advance by land and sea and head straight for Xiakou!"

After this welcoming banquet, the army set out immediately.

More than 40,000 troops, both land and sea, sailed eastward along the Yangtze River and headed straight for Xiakou. When they passed the important town of Baqiu, the garrison surrendered without a fight.

Liu Bei then divided his troops into several thousand and marched southward along the Xiang River, entering the four counties of southern Jing, using force to assist in the pacification.

...

three days later.

The vanguards Xu Sheng and Huang Zhong, however, stopped west of Chibi, set up camp on the spot, unable to move forward.

The next day.

Liu Bei led the main force and came to join the group one after another.

Inside the central military tent, a detailed topographic map had been placed on the desk.

"My lord, we are heading east along the river, and the journey is smooth."

"But when they reached the Red Cliff area, the Jiangxia army appeared in front of them and blocked their way. The leader of the army was Huang Zu's son Huang She."

"This Huang She led more than 5,000 Jiangxia troops and more than a hundred warships. They set up camp with Chibi Mountain as a barrier and set up an iron lock across the river to block the river."

"I have commanded the army for many years, but I have never seen such a battle. I dare not act rashly. I will set up camp here and wait for the lord to come and make the decision."

Huang Zhong reported the situation one by one, and then marked the enemy's deployment on the map.

"Iron lock?"

Liu Bei's eyes were shocked, and he looked at Xiao Fang in surprise.

Isn't this iron chain formation across the river the work of Xiao Fang?
In order to help Huang Zu stop Sun Ce, he used Huang She's mouth to give Huang Zu a plan. Huang Zu then set up an iron lock across the river east of Xiakou and successfully blocked Sun Ce's attack.

How come there are iron locks upstream of Xiakou?

"Huang She used the strategy I gave him to deal with us. He has some ideas."

"My lord, he wants to use a small number of troops and this iron chain to stop our army from going down the river to the east and capture Xiakou."

A sneer flashed in Xiao Fang's eyes, and he pointed out the enemy's intention.

Liu Bei suddenly understood and his face became embarrassed.

This strategy of "Iron Chain Across the River" was originally intended to deal with Sun Ce, but now it seems that it has the suspicion of shooting itself in the foot.

Despite Sun Ce's ferocity and the strength of the Jiangdong navy, they were unable to break the iron chain formation after attacking for a month.

The strength of his own navy is far inferior to Sun Ce's, so how could he defeat it easily?

"My lord, this iron chain formation is not easy to break by naval forces, why don't we start from land?"

"As long as we break through the enemy's dry camp and cut off the iron chains, this iron chain formation will naturally fall without any attack?"

Huang Zhong understood what was going on and pointed at the map and made some suggestions.

Liu Bei's eyes lit up and his gaze fell on the map again.

"It must be said that the Huang family has been operating Jiangxia for many years and they know the terrain of Jiangxia very well."

Xiao Fang nodded in approval and pointed to the two banks of the Yangtze River on the map:

"Huang She chose to set up the Tiesuo River area. The Red Cliff Mountain on the south bank is a natural fortress. He set up camp near the mountain and the water, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack."

"Although our army is ten times larger than Jiangxia's, our advantage in manpower can be easily offset by the dangers of this mountain. It will not be easy to defeat it quickly."

Huang Zhong couldn't help but nod his head repeatedly after reading it:
"Military Advisor Xiao's words make sense, but Zhong is a little bit thoughtful. This Red Cliff Mountain is indeed a natural and dangerous place, easy to defend but difficult to attack."

The words trailed off.

Zhang Fei squeezed forward and slapped the north bank:
"There is Chibi Mountain on the south bank, and the north bank is flat. Huang She has no defenses, right? We can attack his northern camp."

Xiao Fang had expected someone to bring this up, so he pointed to the north bank:

"There is really no strategic location on the north bank. The area around Wulin is full of mud and swamps. There is only a small piece of flat land, but it is occupied by Huang She. The surrounding area is either mud or swamps."

"This kind of terrain is not conducive to marching and deploying troops. Let alone breaking through the enemy camp, we should be thankful that we are not stuck in the quagmire and cannot get out."

Zhang Fei was silent.

Huang Zhong showed a strange look on his face and exclaimed:

"Zhongjiu is stationed in Jingnan, and he doesn't know much about the terrain here."

"I didn't expect that the military advisor knew the terrain of Chibi Wulin so well. I am really ashamed of myself."

Everyone was amazed.

Xiao Fang just smiled.

How could he not know the terrain here like the back of his hand?

The famous Battle of Red Cliffs in history took place here.

Why did the handsome Zhou Lang choose this place as the place for the decisive battle? Wasn't it to take advantage of the strategic location of Chibi Mountain to block Cao Cao's attack from land?

This forced Cao Cao to set up camp in the muddy ground at Wulin on the north bank, forcing Cao Cao to engage in a naval battle with him.

Before the two armies even clashed, Cao Cao was already at a disadvantage in terms of geographical location, so it would be strange if he was not defeated.

With such terrain advantages, it is no wonder that Zhou Yu chose to stop Cao Cao here, and Huang She chose to set up an iron lock formation here to block Liu Bei from advancing eastward.

"The military advisor really knows this terrain very well."

After Liu Bei praised, his brows furrowed again:
"But as the military advisor said, although our army is large, it is indeed not easy to capture the iron chain formation of Huangshe."

A shadow was cast over everyone's face, and they all began to think hard.

Xiao Fang sneered and asked meaningfully:

"My Lord, how could you have known that when Fang gave Huang She this plan, he had not anticipated that one day he would use it against us?"

(End of this chapter)