Two thieves turn against each other, Chen Lan sends troops

According to the plan, Lu Su's first stop was Chen Lanchu.

Chen Lan used to be the leading general under Yuan Shu. He had the most troops and occupied Tianzhu Mountain, a stronghold that was easy to defend but difficult to attack. It was really difficult to attack by force.

However, precisely because of Chen Lan's strength, those who were afraid of him were not only the government, but also two groups of local bandits, Lei Xu and Mei Gan.

As Lu Su went to Tianzhu Mountain, Liu Fu and Jiang Ji relied on the power they had accumulated before to release news to Lei Xu and Mei Gan.

In order to make the strategy more realistic, He Yan began to personally lead his army to transport grain to the Chaoxian area, making preparations to store grain here and attack Chaohu.

Liu Ye, the prefect of Lujiang, did even more ruthless things. He took the craftsmen directly to the dock near Wanshui River to build ships on a large scale.

All of this, without any deliberate concealment, was discovered by Lei Xu and Mei Gan's spies, and aroused their vigilance.

"Lujiang County is going to be in chaos again."

Lei Xusheng is tall and mighty, while Mei Gan has fair skin and short stature.

Both of them are natives of Lujiang. Although they are not very close to each other, in order to protect their own interests, they still communicate frequently and give each other gifts. They are not strangers.

Now, because of the government's actions, the two met again at a dock in the north of Chaohu Lake to discuss countermeasures.

"Originally, Liu Fu's attitude towards us was relatively gentle, but now there are signs that he is going to attack us!"

"First, He Yan sent by Cao Cao easily captured Wan County and captured Li Shu's troops. Then he got a thousand elite soldiers from the Sun family. His strength cannot be underestimated!"

The two of them had also found out what was going on in Wan County these days, and they had a pretty good idea of ​​the government's current military strength.

"But the biggest problem now is not Liu Fu or He Yan, but Chen Lan."

Although Lei Xu and Mei Gan are both thieves, they are somewhat different.

Lei Xu himself is from a local wealthy family, has a broader vision, and knows how to take advantage of the general trend of the world to protect himself wisely.

Mei Gan is a pure bandit with limited knowledge and doesn't care about things outside Lujiang County.

Now it is Lei Xu who is helping Mei Qian analyze the situation between the two of them and find the most suitable way out——

"Chen Lan used to be a subordinate of Yuan Shu and had an official status, which is different from us."

"If He Yan really tries to win over him, he might really surrender to Cao Cao with his troops!"

Anyone who has been an official is unwilling to become a bandit again.

Lei Xu used his own psychology to infer Chen Lan's approach: "Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao in Guandu at the height of his power, and everyone in the world wanted to rely on him. If He Yan really wanted to win over him, even if he promised him a lieutenant As a general, Chen Lan might devote himself to the government."

"After all, no matter how big a bandit is, they are still bandits. How can they be compared with the government? How was the power of the Yellow Turbans back then? Weren't they still wiped out by the government?"

"So Brother Mei, I'm afraid we have to deal with not only the government, but also Chen Lan!"

Umeboshi has no culture, but he can still do simple arithmetic.

With more than 10,000 people on his side, plus Lei Xiu's side, he could form an "army" of 20,000 to 30,000 people in front of him.

But the government has more than 30,000 people from Li Shu's old army. If Chen Lan's 20,000 soldiers and horses are added to it, a full 50,000 soldiers can be gathered!

Moreover, both Li Shu's old troops and Chen Lan's troops were regular troops who had actually been on the battlefield. With the same number of people, it would be easy to fight against the bandits under their own command, let alone those who were twice as many as themselves.

Suddenly, Mei Gan felt a little unsure.

But Mei Gan, who started out as a bandit, did not show the panic in his heart. Instead, he licked his yellowed front teeth extremely ferociously: "So what? As long as we go into Chao Lake, we can use the reeds and water vines to Hiding your whereabouts, I won’t be afraid at all even if Chen Lan and He Yan come together!”

Lei Xu quickly revealed the nature of Mei Gan's external strength and internal strength: "Although Chaohu is big, how can it hide ten thousand people? It is said that they also have their families. Does Brother Mei regard the government as a blind man or a fool?"

"And as long as they block a few exits near Chao Lake, how many days can you last with the fish and shrimps in Chao Lake?"

Mei Gan's tongue suddenly froze, obviously realizing that if the government really took action, he and the bandits under his command would have no chance of winning.

"hey-hey!"

Mei Gan, who had been tough just now, suddenly changed his face and asked Lei Xu for help with a flattering smile: "Brother Lei! Everyone in the Jianghuai area knows that you have the best brains! Don't you have any good ideas and can fight them off directly? Government?"

Lei Xu didn't care when he saw Mei Gan like this.

We are all bandits, who doesn’t know how to compromise?

Only this time, Lei Xu was helpless.

"If the government and Chen Lan really unite, then we have no chance of winning. We might as well surrender to the government as soon as possible and be free of death."

Lei Xu still yearns for a normal person's identity.

Gathering tens of thousands of people may seem impressive, but only you know the risks involved.

Not to mention that Cao Cao has an unstoppable trend now. If he acts like a chariot at this time, there is no guarantee that he will end up with no bones left.

"surrender?"

After hearing what Lei Xu said, I stopped drying plums!

The flattering smile just now turned vicious again, as if it had never existed before——

"How can I surrender?"

Lei Xu, as a local wealthy family, has some connections in the state and county, so he can live a good life even if he is not a bandit.

But Mei Qian himself had committed many crimes and had enmity with many prominent Huainan families.

If the two of them really surrender, Lei Xu will only lose his power, but he will still be a rich man.

But if Mei Gan surrenders, who knows how many former enemies will swarm up and tear him apart.

Even if those enemies are saints and are willing to let Mei Gan go, Mei Gan is still unwilling to surrender.

You can tell just by looking at the name of the prunes.

"No money".

If he really had the ability to eat prunes seriously, he would naturally not fall into trouble.

If we lose this power in Chaohu and our plum blossoms return to normal order, it won't take long for them to decline like before.

This was obviously unacceptable to Mei Gan, who had finally become a "superior person", so Mei Gan immediately rejected Lei Xu's proposal.

"No big deal, I'll take people out of Chaohu and go to Jiangdong!"

Of course, prunes also have a way out.

"Whether it's Taihu in the east or Pengze in the west, I know everyone there! They're all just dogs anyway. Instead of surrendering to the government, it's better to continue to follow those people and become the overlords of the mountains and fields!"

There are also big thieves hiding in Taihu Lake and Pengzezhong, and Mei Gan can definitely lead people there.

When the time comes, whether it is relying on local thieves or grabbing territory by force, Mei Gan will be able to live a good life, and naturally there will be no need to bow to the government.

"Brother Mei, wait a minute!"

Lei Xu heard that Mei Gan seemed to be moving his position, and he was so frightened that he quickly called Mei Gan to stop.

Mei Gan's men are all water bandits, so they can run easily, but Lei Xu himself can't run.

Besides, if Mei Gan really ran away, it would be embarrassing for Lei Xu.

If the government and Chen Lan, who already had the upper hand, saw Mei Gan running away, they would definitely focus their firepower on Lei Xu.

Lei Xu did intend to surrender, but this surrender must be conditional.

If you want to have conditions, you must have capital.

Together, Lei Xu and Mei Gan might be able to negotiate a good deal with the government based on their military strength, but if there was only one person, Lei Xu would definitely be alone and be eaten alive by the government.

"Brother Mei, the surrender to the government I just mentioned is just one of the ways!"

Lei Xu deserved to have some knowledge, and he quickly pointed out the second way for Mei Gan——

"As long as the government and Chen Lan are not allowed to unite, we will not have no chance!"

"I know Chen Lan well. He is a person with both sides of his head and a rat's head. He is not a decisive character."

"If the government tries to win over him, even if he is interested in it, he will not agree immediately. He will most likely sell it for a price and let the government wait for a few days."

"If we can take this opportunity to capture Chen Lan and annex his tribe, we won't have to worry about the government officials!"

"even……"

Lei Xu said in a seductive tone: "We can take advantage of this opportunity to lead troops to suppress the government and seize Huainan!"

"When that time comes, even Cao Cao can only hold his nose and admit it!"

"At that time, one of my brothers wants to ask for the governor of Lujiang, and the other wants to ask for the governor of Jiujiang. That will be an opportunity to rise to the top in one step!"

Mei Gan's breathing quickened after hearing Lei Xu's words.

The governor of a county!

This official position of two thousand dan is completely out of reach for people like Mei Gan.

But if he follows Lei Xu's plan, he might actually be able to become a prefect! He can be regarded as a glorious ancestor, right?

Mei Gan immediately made up his mind: "Okay! Just follow Brother Lei's plan!"

"I've long disliked that outsider Chen Lan! It's really in line with God's will to kill him this time to help us!"

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To be continued...