After Cao Shuang uncovered the spies, he was still aggrieved. He didn't know whether he should reorganize the remaining army and enter the Qinling Mountains again to avenge his previous humiliation, or whether he should return to Chang'an and return to the court. Therefore, he summoned all the deputy generals to come to the central military tent to discuss the matter. .
Yang Wei and Yang Shiying, who joined the army, saw that Cao Shuang still wanted to go south to avenge his humiliation. He was worried that Cao Shuang would be defeated again and again and would be out of control. He urgently urged Cao Shuang not to go south again:
"General General, now that the enemy is ready, our army has no chance to take advantage of it. In addition, most of the cattle, horses, mules and donkeys used to transport food died in the Luo Valley. The Han and Yi people are crying on the roads day and night. Our army in Guanzhong, as well as the Di and Qiang The food and grass in the stronghold of the two tribes can no longer be supplied normally. In addition, our army has suffered a new defeat, its morale is low, and it has no fighting spirit. In my opinion, at this time, we should immediately withdraw to Chang'an and return to Luoyang, General!"
At this time, Deng Yang rolled his eyes at Yang Shiying, stood up and said to Cao Shuang: "General, now that the spies in our army have been punished, it is enough to comfort morale. In Yang's opinion, the general should regroup and fight with the Shu captives again." Showdown!"
Seeing Cao Shuang's hesitation and Deng Yang's reluctance to go south again, Yang Shiying suddenly felt anxious. He made up his mind that he would not hesitate to break up with Deng Yang today, and he would not let the general make another wrong decision. He half-knelt in the camp Said: "General, Deng Yang will be defeated in a major national event, so he can be killed immediately!"
"That's enough!" Cao Shuang saw that the two of them were noisy and even started to criticize each other. He was so irritated that he picked up a bamboo slip and smashed it down in anger: "Stop arguing anymore!"
When everyone saw that the general was angry, they naturally did not dare to argue anymore and hurriedly bowed their heads and stopped talking.
Cao Shuang rubbed his forehead and thought for a long time before turning his head and asking Xia Houxuan in the tent: "Taichu, what do you think?"
Xia Houxuan was silent at this moment.
The reason why he hesitated at this moment was because of a letter he received from Luoyang yesterday.
That letter was sent to him by Sima Yi.
The letter said: "In the Spring and Autumn Period, when Emperor Wu entered Hanzhong again, he was almost defeated, as you know. Now the road to Xingping is extremely dangerous, and Shu has taken the lead. If we advance but fail to win, we will retreat to see you." Defeat it, the army will be overthrown. Why should the general be held responsible!"
In fact, he felt that what Sima Yi said was right now that the matter had come to this, and he also agreed with Yang Shiying's view. Nowadays, Xingshi Mountain, Huanghuang Gorge, Yangping Pass and other dangerous places have been occupied by Fei Yi, Wang Ping and others. Back then, Emperor Wu personally went to the Qinling Mountains to compete with Liu Xuande for Hanzhong. As a result, Liu Xuande occupied the dangerous places in advance, and Emperor Wu's talents were unable to do anything. , failed and returned, let alone Cao Shuang and himself now?
After thinking clearly, Xia Houxuan looked at Cao Shuang and said, "General, Xuan Yi believes that the situation is extremely unfavorable to our army at this time and we should retreat."
After hearing Xia Houxuan's words, Cao Shuang was silent for a long time. In the end, he nodded helplessly and unwillingly. At this moment, there seemed to be waves of faint crying coming from outside the tent.
"What's going on? Who is crying outside the tent?" Cao Shuang asked.
A deputy general hurriedly went out to check the accounts. After a while, he returned to the camp and reported back: "General Qi, they are the grain transport chiefs of the Di and Qiang tribes in the army. In the battle of Luogu, the cattle and horses of the Di and Qiang tribes Most of the mules died in the valley, so they were sad and weeping.”
Hearing this, Cao Shuang felt even more sad and depressed, and couldn't help but let out a long sigh.
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In the spring of the fifth year of the Zhengshi period, on Bingwu day of the fifth month, General Cao Shuang saw that the war situation was unfavorable, so he led his troops back to Luoyang.
The autumn wind is mournful and desolate, accompanied by the sighs of the wild geese, which is very sad to hear.
Outside Luoyang City, the mountains and fields seem to be dotted with white.
They are the mourning clothes worn by the living for those who have passed away. The heroic souls of those dead Wei soldiers remained on the ruthless battlefield forever, leaving all the pain to the living.
There seemed to be a faint whimpering mixed in with the sound of the wind.
In the general's mansion, Cao Shuang built a tall tower for himself. He was greatly shocked and disappointed, and he began to live in drunken dreams all day long.
On the side of the arsenal and along the avenue, the sound of silk, bamboo, wind and pipe music, singing and laughter at the General's Mansion was even louder than the Qingqing Garden not far away. The pedestrians and common people passing by seemed to be disappointed with this general who had humiliated the country in defeat and showed an arrogant and extravagant attitude, and they secretly cursed him.
In the eyes of others, Cao Shuang might be doing it for fun. But only Cao Shuang himself knew that he was trying to escape.
Since he returned to the capital, the angry words of the people and the ulterior motives of the veterans of the aristocratic families have poured in like waves. Cao Shuang, who has always been ambitious and accustomed to the flattery of others, naturally cannot withstand such huge pressure. .
Falling from the clouds to dust and mud is unbearable even for ordinary people, let alone him who is extremely proud.
So he simply broke the jar and planned to use wine to numb himself and avoid these troublesome things.
"General, you can't drink any more..."
Ding Mi looked at Cao Shuang, who was already very drunk, and tried to persuade him:
"What's the matter with you?"
"Hahaha……"
Cao Shuang, who was already drunk and very excited, waved the wine bottle in his hand randomly and sprinkled the alcohol all over Ding Mi's face. He laughed wildly and said:
"Why! Why do everyone in the world come to scold me! I, Cao Shuang, am not a mediocre person! Everything I did was for the late emperor and the great Wei Dynasty! Those old ministers ...Why should I criticize Gukou! Why!"
Cao Shuang kept pouring wine into his mouth. Finally, he was so drunk that he fell drunk in front of the case.
Mrs. Liu, the general's wife, walked into the attic cave, and all the propagandists and musicians exited the cave one after another. Mrs. Liu looked at her drunken husband and couldn't help shaking her head and sighing:
"What's the matter with the General? Isn't he just a few veterans who use pens? If he is so decadent and degenerate, doesn't it make it more realistic..."
"Madam, no matter how we try to persuade the general, the general just won't listen. Please think of a solution..." Ding Mi, who had always been resourceful, looked worried at this moment and turned to Mrs. Liu for help.
"Alas..." Mr. Liu sighed, with tears in his eyes, and shook his head helplessly. He knew the temperament of her husband Cao Shuang, who was stubborn and aloof. He would not listen to anyone's advice at this time: "He consort, Mr. Ding, Mr. Deng, Please take good care of the general, and I will ask my third brother to find a way..."
"Yes." He, Deng and Ding bowed and replied.
————————
In Taifu's house, the old man still passed the time by drinking tea, reading books and admiring flowers as usual.
"My father is really clever. This time Cao Shuang suffered a huge defeat and lost the hearts of the people. Even Xia Houxuan, who has always been valued by the government and the public, heard that this time he was scolded by the generals and people of Chang'an so that he did not dare to leave the house."
Sima Zhao looked at his father who was calm and composed, and his heart was full of pride.
"Humph!" Sima Yi sneered: "If Cao Zhaobo is really allowed to achieve military merit, then our Sima family will never be able to turn around again? This time, General Guo Huai stood still, and even went with my wishes. As for the dead Han Qianwei and the scout, I will remember them. In addition, I also know your performance in Huangjin Gorge. You did a good job, but remember, you must not take such risks unless it is absolutely necessary."
"Father, I have written it down. I have also heard that Cao Shuang is now in the mansion and is doing nothing all day long. He has handed over all government affairs to He Yan, Deng Yang and Ding Mi. He himself is drunk every day, and He has also complained of illness and has not gone to court for several days."
"Haha, this kid is still too immature after all. He can't even bear this little setback, so he has the nerve to act arbitrarily?"
The old man showed a sinister smile:
"Since he indulges himself so much, I will let him indulge until the end. Zhao'er, go and do something for your father..."
——————————
Outside Luoyang Palace, in a quiet place above the three-story attic of the Su Family Teahouse in the eastern suburbs, a young man dressed in plain clothes was drinking tea and talking with an old man over fifty years old across the table.
The young tea guest was sent by Sima Zhao.
The old man with wrinkles and no beard sitting opposite him was Zhang Dang, the chief eunuch who was in charge of all affairs of the internal affairs.
"Eunuch Zhang, to tell you the truth, I invited you here this time to help the general with something."
While the young tea guest was sipping tea, he slowly took out a piece of silk with a monogram commonly used by General Cao Shuang.
"Oh? It seems that your Excellency was indeed sent by the general."
Zhang Dang burst into laughter instantly:
"Since the general needs our family, we will definitely do our best for the general."
"Nothing else. I just saw that the general has been worried about official affairs in recent days, so I wanted to offer him a few singing and dancing concubines to help the general relax. Eunuch Zhang also knows that the general is now the chief assistant and has to take care of everything. He is so busy, how can he do it if he doesn't have a few outstanding concubines around him to take care of his worries?"
After Zhang Dang heard this, he burst into laughter and said:
"What's the difficulty in this matter? It's just a matter of effort for our family."
The young tea guest smiled and shook his head, and came forward mysteriously. After Zhang Dangfu'er listened, his face changed slightly, his eyes rolled, he looked around, and then resumed his flattering smile, whispering softly. Said lightly:
"I see, well... our family remembers that after the death of Emperor Ming, several talented people who had no heirs were arranged to go to the Tongque Terrace in Yedu. When the late emperor was still alive, they were brothers and sisters with the general. Our family sees that , it is perfect for these talented people to be given to the general as dancers!"
Zhang Dang is a smart man. He knows the current situation in the court. The real master of Luoyang City is not the twelve-year-old His Majesty, nor the powerless Tutor.
The real number one person in the government and the opposition is naturally the general Cao Shuang. If he wants to stand firm in Luoyang City, he must not offend the general. That's why Zhang Dang dared to agree to the young tea guest's request to please Cao Shuang.
After listening to Zhang Dang's words, the young tea guest couldn't help but clasped his hands and laughed: "Okay! Okay! Okay! If Eunuch Zhang can really accomplish this, the general will be very happy."
"Don't worry, this matter will be taken care of by our family." Zhang Dang said with a flattering smile.
There was an imperceptible sneer on the corner of the young tea guest's mouth.
Sima Zhao was very satisfied after hearing what the young tea guest who he sent to negotiate with Zhang Dang said about Zhang Dang's approach.
Regardless of how corrupt and dejected Cao Shuang is now, the mere charge of privately negotiating with his ministers and stealing talents from the late emperor is enough to put him in the hands of his father.
——————————
Cao Xi looked at his drunken elder brother in the attic cave of the mansion, anxious and not knowing what to do.
Today's eldest brother not only drinks alcohol all day long and ignores government affairs, but what is even more frightening is that, under the advice of some flattering villains in the palace, he asked Deng Yang and others to forcibly obtain the royal treasures from Wang Guan, the young man in charge of the royal treasures. The rare treasures of Shang Fang are placed in the cave of the General's Mansion for the eldest brother to watch and play with.
Not only that, the eldest brother also boldly accepted the seven or eight talented people from the late emperor sent by Zhang Dang, the imperial official, as well as the musicians and advocates in the palace. Then he recruited thirty-three children from good families who were good at playing musical instruments in Luoyang City, and they were all the dancers he drank and watched.
Even the musical instruments used by the musicians were obtained by the eldest brother from the Taiyue Order in the palace.
Cao Xi felt that if he did not stop his eldest brother's arrogant behavior, more terrible rumors would flow from the mouths and pens of those veterans.
Cao Xi tried to persuade his eldest brother directly, but not only did it have no effect, but it made the proud eldest brother even more serious.
He thought hard and then came up with a method that he didn't know whether it would work. He wrote three articles warning people not to be arrogant and extravagant. In front of his eldest brother, he called Cao Xun, Cao Ze and other younger brothers to write this article. Reprimand and admonish them.
Cao Xi felt that his eldest brother always liked the articles he wrote, and even the memorials and memorials were usually written by him, so he used this method to tactfully admonish his eldest brother.
But he didn't expect that the drunken elder brother would not take any advice. Not only did he scold himself, but his crazy behavior showed no sign of restraint.
Just like this, more than half a month passed, and Cao Xi, who was worried, could no longer bear it.
"Brother, have you forgotten what my father said to our brothers before he died?"
Cao Xi had no choice but to move out of his father's house. At this moment, he felt so sad that he couldn't help but burst into tears.
"shut up!"
When Cao Shuang heard Cao Xi mention his father Cao Zhen, he suddenly felt an uncontrollable sadness in his heart. He shouted loudly with red eyes and drunkenness:
"I am the head of the Cao family, don't use your father to pressure me!
Why, the Sima family has a crooked heart and has harmed countless people, but he can respond to everything in the court. I, Cao Shuang, just lost a battle and was reviled by the world. Why! "
Cao Shuang was so excited that he threw the wine bottle in his hand towards the mural of the "Eight Tigers and Knights" generals of the dynasty, including his father. There was only a "bang" sound, and the wine bottle hit the wall mural without any bias. Wine splashed everywhere.
The eyes of the generals of the Xiahou Cao clan on the mural were wet with wine, as if their ancestors were also crying.
