Chapter 663: Unexpected situation, Zhang Liang’s strategy!

Chapter 663: Unexpected situation, Zhang Liang’s strategy!

"Military Advisor, this...should our army continue to fight?" Ying Bu's face was solemn and his brows were furrowed. After hesitating for a long time, he finally couldn't help but ask Zhang Liang for his opinion.

He stared at Zhang Liang, as if trying to get some clues from his expression. However, Zhang Liang's face remained gloomy, making it difficult to guess what he was really thinking.

Ying Bu secretly complained in his heart. Although the letter was sent by Gao Yao, the content of the letter was ambiguous and did not clearly issue any specific orders. On the contrary, Gao Yao just asked Zhang Liang to act according to the actual situation, which really made Ying Bu feel torn.

Gao Yao has always been like this. He cannot fully understand every detail and change in the front line from behind. Even though the current communication speed has far surpassed this era, the situation on the battlefield changes rapidly and opportunities are often fleeting. Therefore, Gao Yao chose to trust Zhang Liang's judgment and gave him full decision-making power on the front line, allowing him to decide whether to attack or defend.

Zhang Liang was actually quite troubled by this decision-making power. The reason was that this temporary final decision-making power was like a hot potato, making people feel caught between a rock and a hard place. If he did well, his credit might not increase much; but if he did not do well, he would definitely be blamed.

"Ying Bu, it seems that you are willing to fight. In this case, how about this, I will let you make the decision this time?" Zhang Liang raised the corner of his mouth slightly and suddenly threw this difficult problem to Ying Bu.

Ying Bu was delighted when he heard this. He widened his eyes and said excitedly, "Me? Really, Military Advisor? That's great! I..." However, halfway through his words, Ying Bu's face suddenly became a little solemn, and his voice unconsciously lowered, "Uh... forget it, Military Advisor, it's up to you to decide, it's up to you to decide."

Ying Bu's words stopped abruptly, and he realized that his reaction just now was a bit too impulsive. After all, he had followed Zhang Liang for so long, and although he dared not say how much progress he had made in terms of wisdom, he still had a certain understanding of Zhang Liang's personality and way of doing things.

Before this, Zhang Liang had always advised Ying Bu to stay calm and think carefully before making any decision. Even before making every important decision, Zhang Liang would analyze the possible flaws and shortcomings in detail to ensure that the decision was foolproof.

But this time, Zhang Liang was so generous that he let him make the decision directly. This was really unusual. Ying Bu thought to himself, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt that something was wrong.

After a brief thought, Ying Bu decisively changed his attitude and pushed the decision back to Zhang Liang. Zhang Liang smiled as he listened to Ying Bu's words. Ying Bu had become much smarter now. He would not agree with anyone who said Ying Bu was a reckless man.

"Well, you have learned a lot smarter this time. I have three strategies to deal with the current situation. Now it depends on what you choose!" Zhang Liang raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a confident smile.

When Ying Bu heard this, his heart tightened. He quickly waved his hands and said, "Ah? Military Advisor, leave the planning to you. I will only be responsible for fighting in the battlefield." He did not dare to make a decision easily, for fear that his choice would lead to serious consequences.

Zhang Liang didn't seem to be going to let him off easily, and continued, "Why, are you still afraid that I'll cheat you? Don't worry, this is a serious matter. You are a general, and your judgment of the situation on the battlefield will be more accurate than mine. This is a fact, so this decision really needs to be made by you."

Ying Bu felt relieved after hearing Zhang Liang's words, but he was still a little hesitant. He knew that Zhang Liang was resourceful and would not deliberately cheat him, but this decision was of great importance after all, and he was really unsure.

"Military Advisor, please speak!" In the end, Ying Bu decided to listen to Zhang Liang's strategy. After all, Zhang Liang's wisdom was well known to everyone. Zhang Liang was not an amateur who could command the experts. Zhang Liang was good at strategy, not command ability.

This is just like Zhang Liang was able to cleverly design a trap to trap the enemy, but he could not accurately calculate how long it would take for the fierce fighting between the two sides to determine the winner. Different numbers of troops naturally have different strengths, so how long would it take to successfully break through the enemy's defenses?

How long will it take to successfully capture a city during an attack? How long will it take to climb the city wall? However, for generals, basically, they only need to fight once to have a rough judgement of the strength of both sides. Only generals will have a clearer understanding of the time required for an attack, the number of enemies that can be killed, and the possible losses that their side may suffer.

"First, keep the troops in place. Although Wang Ben has already led his army to set out, once he enters the southern border, within two days he will definitely receive news that Wu Rui has stationed troops on both sides of the Yangtze River. By then, Wang Ben will most likely choose to return to defend in order to ensure the safety of his rear. Our army can continue to clamp down on Wang Ben. Although doing so may not achieve obvious results, at least there will be no mistakes. This is undoubtedly the safest way."

After hearing Zhang Liang's words, Ying Bu frowned slightly, and it was obvious that he did not agree with this proposal. He did not refute it immediately, and seemed to be thinking about the pros and cons.

Zhang Liang continued, "Secondly, we continue to attack as planned. If we do this, the worst result is that we will successfully occupy Hanzhong. But the risk cannot be ignored. That is, Wang Ben may suddenly withdraw his troops. Once he does this, our army is very likely to confront Wang Ben head-on, and thus be delayed in Hanzhong for a long time."

As Ying Bu listened to Zhang Liang's analysis, his expression became more serious.

Zhang Liang paused, and then said, "If we want to break the impasse, the key lies in your speed of advance, Ying Bu. If you are fast enough and can quickly occupy most of Hanzhong before Wang Ben comes to help, then Wang Ben will definitely choose to withdraw to Xianyang. In this way, we can ensure the interests of our army to a certain extent. At least it can be said that we have successfully occupied Hanzhong and put great pressure on Wu Rui. Although this did not fully realize our original plan, it was enough to divert part of his attention and in turn provide some help to Han Xin."

"Military Advisor, there is one last solution. What is it?"

At this time, Ying Bu was eager to ask for other opinions. Although Zhang Liang's second method took Hanzhong, it was also a meritorious service, but Gao Yao was definitely not satisfied with this matter.