The heavy rain in summer comes and goes quickly. Before noon, the rain has passed and the sky has cleared up.
The sun peeked out of the clouds. When Cao Cao came out of the camp, he saw that the ground was in a mess. The tents were like mud rooms, and the soldiers were listless and hanging out their clothes.
Seeing that the army was in disarray and in disarray, Cao Cao frowned and said with emotion: "If Yu Wenze was here, why would the army be like this?"
Among the generals, Yu Jin was the best at managing the army and had strict military discipline. Even under such circumstances, he would not allow his soldiers to be so lax.
The lunch was extremely simple, consisting of gruel and moist and swollen pancakes. Xu Huang and Lejin were given priority, and each took five thousand elite troops to the south.
There were muddy footprints left on the road. Cao Cao looked at the retreating troops and was full of worry. If the trip failed, the army would be in a dilemma.
Three hundred thousand soldiers and horses are scattered in various places, their morale is low, their morale is disorganized, and there is a food and grass crisis. If Guan Zhang and other leaders arrive, the consequences will be disastrous.
Cheng Yu came to Cao Cao's side and whispered: "The morale of the army is unstable, the Prime Minister should relax military discipline appropriately."
"Huh?" Cao Cao narrowed his eyes slightly: "If we send troops to plunder, Nanyang will lose people's hearts. How can we capture Jingzhou?"
Cheng Yu said: "The Prime Minister promoted benevolence and righteousness, and he followed the imperial edict to fight against rebellion. The people in Nanyang broke into violence and caused military disasters. It was really his own fault. Now that the army is trapped, we should give up the small and save the big."
Cao Cao clasped his hands behind his back and looked up at the scorching sun hidden in the clouds. He closed his eyes slightly. If the soldiers were restrained in the current situation, it might lead to a riot.
After a long time, Cao Cao took a deep breath and suddenly stroked his forehead: "I have a headache. Cao Hong will be in charge of the military affairs for the time being."
Cheng Yu had followed Cao Cao for a long time, so he naturally understood and immediately ordered his soldiers to help Cao Cao return to his tent to rest and discuss military plans with Cao Hong.
Le Jin led his troops to Anzhong. It was already evening. He rushed straight to the city, surrounded the city on all sides, and shouted at the county magistrate to surrender.
After Zhang Xiu surrendered, An Zhong was under Cao Cao's command. Le Jin made a surprise attack here, hoping to use military force to intimidate the county magistrate into submission.
The defenders stayed behind closed doors. When Anzhong County Magistrate came to the city, he saw Cao Jun and asked, "Who is leading the troops?"
Le Jin said coldly: "That's right. You betrayed Prime Minister Cao. If you can regret it soon, the Prime Minister will let it go. If you persist in your persistence, I will kill you into the city and leave no chickens or dogs behind."
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a burst of laughter coming from the city, and one person said coldly: "Cao Cao is a treacherous traitor who deceives the emperor and ignores his superiors. You help the emperor to do evil and dare to speak nonsense. Do you know the word shame?"
Le Jin's eyes gleamed slightly and he said sternly: "Who are you?"
"Nanyang Wenpin is right!" Wenpin stood on the city with his sword pressed and said in a deep voice: "General Liu has already expected that Cao Cao's thieves are going to attack. Even if Cao Cao comes in person, I will not be afraid. What's more, you and other drowned chickens will lose their lives." dog?"
Le Jin was furious and sent an order to attack the city. Cao's army came in a hurry and rushed towards the city without any baggage. They raised their weapons and rushed towards the city.
Wenpin remained unmoved and ignored Cao Jun's charge. The defenders stretched their bows and set arrows. The city was full of creaking sounds like sparrows chirping, but no arrows were shot.
Cao Jun shouted and rushed to the foot of the city wall. No arrows were seen, but he was stunned for a moment before throwing the hook and lock on the top of the city and preparing to climb the city.
"Fire the arrow!" Only then did Wenpin give the order.
Dong dong dong——
Drums were beating loudly on the city and arrows were raining down. Cao Jun screamed and fell to the ground, and the ropes thrown to the city were cut off.
In the blink of an eye, half of the men and horses fell under the city. Le Jin's eyes seemed to be spitting fire, and he clenched his steel teeth.
He was known among Cao's troops as the first to ascend and the best at attacking cities and strongholds. However, he had no weapons in his hands at this time, and he was helpless as the surprise and deterrence failed.
Wenpin laughed and said, "Ask Cao Cao to come in person!"
It was getting late. Looking at the messy corpses lying under the city, all the soldiers were afraid. They knew that a strong attack was useless and the surprise attack failed, so they had no choice but to retreat.
On the other side, Xu Huang led his troops to kill in the new field. In the evening, they came to a mountain forest, where men and horses were hiding, and ordered people to go forward to inquire about the news.
This Xinye was originally Liu Bei's garrison. The city walls had been reinforced many times and the moat was extremely watery. If they were to attack by force, they would have no choice but to attack at night.
At the third watch of the night, half of the bright moon hung in the sky, and the summer night was very refreshing. Xu Huang led his troops to Xinye quietly.
Seeing that there were few torches on the city and the defense was lax, I was secretly happy. I surrounded the city and observed it. I saw that there was only a group of soldiers patrolling at the south gate, and they concentrated their troops here.
Five hundred people who were good at water were selected to cross the moat quietly first, and then they helped the five hundred people cross the river and quietly came to the city. Everyone threw their hooks and locks on the top of the city and started to climb the city.
Under the moonlight, looking at the black shadows climbing up like geckos, Xu Huang couldn't help but his heart beat faster and he waited with bated breath in the distance.
As soon as the soldiers climbed to the top of the city, lowered the drawbridge and seized the city gate, he led his troops in and captured Xinye in one go.
The night wind was blowing, and cicadas were chirping in the distance. Cao Jun lay down in the damp soil, not daring to move despite being bitten by mosquitoes. He stared at the black shadow on the city, and his days seemed like years.
Seeing that the soldiers were halfway into the city and the patrolling defenders were passing by, everyone's hearts were in their throats, for fear of being discovered.
The group of soldiers walked by with torches, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. But at this moment, a shrill scream suddenly came from the night sky, and someone slipped from the wall.
Xu Huang and others were all frightened and were about to curse the man for his mistake and ruined the plan.
But they saw the torches on the top of the city were all bright, and countless arrows, stones, and wood fell down without warning. The soldiers climbing the city fell one after another, and screams came one after another.
Xu Huang stood up suddenly and exclaimed: "I've fallen into the trap!"
Looking at this situation, it was obvious that the defenders had been prepared for a long time. They had been waiting for the soldiers to climb the city and attack head-on.
Arrows were fired from the top of the city, and rocks fell. In the blink of an eye, Cao's troops fell to the ground one after another, all dead. The screams disappeared in the night wind, and everything fell into silence again.
"Hahaha, you bandits, want to make a sneak attack?" On top of the city, Huo Jun pointed at Cao Jun and laughed: "Daydreaming!"
When Xu Huang saw that the garrison on the city was fully armed, he knew that preparations had been made. At this time, the soldiers were already tired and did not carry any dry food, so they could only sigh helplessly and send the order to retreat.
The two men returned to camp one after another the next day. Cao Cao saw that the two armies were defeated and lost thousands of people. He really suffered from a headache. Coupled with the rain, he had a fever all over his body and was bedridden.
Cao Hong reorganized his troops, avoided the water of Baihe River, and camped in the Bowangpo area, waiting for grain and grass to arrive before attacking Wancheng.
In the past few days, troops have been dispatched to nearby places to rob people of food. Although they are strictly prohibited from killing people, they have also caused resentment among the people.
Cheng Yu and Xun You discussed: "When the army encounters obstacles in its march south, Liu Qi has already taken precautions everywhere. This shows that Zhuge is very good at using troops. However, the prime minister is seriously ill and the army is weak, but Liu Qi is not seen. He is afraid that there is fraud among them. Gongda thinks that how?"
Xun You also frowned: "I'm worried about this. It's raining and the roads are slippery. It will take three days for the food and grass to arrive. Liu Qi is standing still, fearing that he will rob the food."
Cheng Yu stroked his beard and said, "Gongda's concerns coincide with mine, so we need to take precautions early."
Xun You said: "To the south of Bowang City, the road is narrow and difficult to navigate. We can send troops to Bowang City to respond."
