Ever since the defeat at the Battle of Luogu, Xia Houxuan and his staff from Zhengxi Mansion have been paying close attention to the intelligence of Shuchuan in Hanzhong.
Xia Houxuan understood that this war directly mobilized the resources of the entire Yongzhou. Countless grains, horses, fodder, and armored battles were all consumed by more than 100,000 troops in this month. In other words, the entire Yongzhou was in ruins. Yongzhou, which is not rich, is now even worse.
If the Shu captives invade in large numbers at this time and pursue the victory, and they are not prepared in advance, it may be difficult to defend the 100,000 Yongliang army under their command, which is not fully at their disposal.
While Xia Houxuan continued to let Qian Jia, Qian Hong brothers and others continue to win over Sanfu's Yongzhou army, he also compiled a list of fallen soldiers and meritorious soldiers, arranged for pensions, and quietly promoted new recruits to suppress Guo Huai's influence. Sanfu's strength. In addition, with the two miraculous doctors Li Dangzhi and Gouli Ke, most of the wounded soldiers in the camp who had ulcerated wounds and were already hopeless were cured.
In this way, although Xia Houxuan lost a lot of reputation and the trust of the officials and people due to his defeat, his power in Chang'an continued to grow quietly.
Not only that, Xia Houxuan also issued a general order to the prefects of the four counties of Longxi, Nan'an, Tianshui, and Guangwei: prepare your troops and horses carefully and prepare for battle.
With Xia Houxuan's reminder and arrangement, the governors of the states and counties on the western front naturally immediately entered a state of preparation for war. In this way, even if the Shu captives invaded, the Wei army would not need to be afraid due to the advantage of the geographical location and the ease of waiting for work.
In this way, while Xia Houxuan deployed his troops, he continued to send elite scouts to inquire about intelligence on the border.
A few days later, the scouts on the front line sent back a shocking news: Jiang Wan, the Grand Sima of the Shu Han Dynasty, Anyang Tinghou, died of serious illness in Fu County. General Fei Yi succeeded the governor of Yizhou and became the new ruler of the Shu Han Dynasty!
Although Jiang Wan is much more conservative than Zhuge Liang, he is still somewhat enterprising after all. I heard that he once planned to build a boat and sail eastward along the Han River to the Three Gorges to attack Shangyong, the southwest barrier of the Wei Dynasty. Capturing Jingzhou recreated the cross-Jingzhou alliance proposed by Zhuge Liang and Longzhong, but this plan failed due to the excessive opposition between the DPRK and China. Not only that, when Jiang Wan realized that his health was deteriorating, he immediately promoted Jiang Wei, a rising star of the Shu Han Dynasty, to the general of Zhenxi and the governor of Liangzhou, and ordered him to station in Hanzhong. His intention to invade the Wei Dynasty from the north was already very obvious.
Fortunately, Fei Yi, who is the father-in-law of Liu Xuan, the prince of Shu Han, and has a conservative attitude, has become the new ruler of Shu Han.
After hearing the news, Xia Houxuan's worries finally eased a lot.
On this day, Xia Houxuan returned to Zhengxi Mansion after inspecting the military camp. As usual, Huigu prepared a table of sumptuous meals for him. He watched his wife, who was pregnant with Liujia and her belly growing, still busy every day. After busying himself, Xia Houxuan's heart was full of distress:
"Madam, you are getting heavier and heavier, so you must not overwork yourself."
Hui Gu smiled warmly and said:
"I know, husband, I'm four months pregnant and it's time to move around slowly. Don't worry."
Xia Houxuan knew that Hui Gu was proficient in medical science, so he no longer worried.
After the two of them had lunch, Xiahou Xuan's soldiers came in and reported:
"I am reporting to the Grand Governor, the Military Advisor, Fan Sima, and Deng Canjun, He Canjun, Le Canjun, and the Chief Secretary of Xiahou to see me, saying that we have important matters to discuss."
Xia Houxuan understood that everyone must have important matters to discuss, so he arranged for his maid to help Hui Gu into the back hall, and then came to the meeting hall of Zhengxi Mansion.
Not long after, everyone came and sat down, and Xia Houxian spoke first:
"At the beginning of Taichu, after this great defeat, the counties of Yongzhou are especially empty. Although Jiang Wan has passed away, Jiang Wei, Wang Ping and others are probably keeping an eye on the four counties of Longyou, so they must be on guard!"
Xia Houxuan nodded, deeply convinced:
"What brother Xian said is absolutely true. It is for this reason that the governor issued a general order to strictly order all states and counties to maintain strict security at all times and guard against death to prevent the Shu captives from raising troops to invade the north."
Xia Houxian then shook his head, with a worried look on his face, and said again:
"In the early days of Taichu, Jiang Wei and Wang Ping were both famous generals with both wisdom and bravery. They were both from Xizhou in the early years of Wei Dynasty and were familiar with the terrain of Yongzhou. If these two men personally led the troops to invade, I am afraid that none of the Longyou generals could control them. !”
After hearing what his cousin said, Xia Houxuan suddenly realized that he was indeed too careless. After thinking for a long time, he ordered Xiahou Feng to get the resume files of Jiang Wei and Wang Ping and the map of the Yongzhou front line.
After half an hour of analysis, Xia Houxuan made a decision in his heart, and he said:
"Let me save it. If Jiang Wei and Wang Ping invade, they will definitely attack the two counties of Longxi and Nan'an in Longyou. I have seen all the generals in Longyou, and only Uncle Zhongquan has the ability to fight with Jiang Wei and Wang Ping." The famous generals of the equal enemy countries can compete with each other. Longxi County is a place where Han and barbarians are intertwined and is located on a major transportation road. It is now the weakest. The governor wants to let Uncle Zhongquan lead his Yongliang elite to station in Longxi County and concurrently serve as the county guard. , what do you think?"
"Marquis Bochang Ting is brave and good at fighting and knows the art of war. He is indeed an excellent candidate to resist Jiang Wei and others. The governor's arrangement is very appropriate!"
As the military advisor of the Zhengxi Prefecture, Xiahou Xian, whose status was second only to his cousin, expressed his stance. Naturally, others had no objections. The defense of Longxi County was decided by Xiahou Ba.
After a while, Sima Fancan spoke:
"Grand Governor, there is no problem with Longxi's defense, but Nan'an County is also garrisoned by unknown generals. I'm afraid it will be difficult to withstand Jiang Wei's troops!"
Hearing this, Le Fang, who joined the army, also nodded:
"My subordinates and Fan Sima have the same idea."
After hearing Fan Can's reminder, Xia Houxuan nodded meaningfully, looking a little embarrassed:
"What Fan Sima said is absolutely true, but I suffer from the fact that I have no one under my command. It is really difficult to choose a general who can resist Jiang Wei..."
As soon as Xia Houxuan said these words, everyone understood that what he said was true. Nowadays, the northwest is in decline, and Xizhou has not selected many sergeants who are enough to lead the army and govern the country.
Although He Kui had political talent, he only hated that he was not proficient in the art of war and was not strong enough to control one side. At this time, when he saw Xia Houxuan's anxious look, he felt equally uncomfortable in his heart.
Just when everyone was silent, a stuttering voice suddenly sounded:
"... to the Grand Governor, I am willing... to go to Nan'an to defend against the Shu... Shu captives, and I swear to live up to my command!"
Xia Houxuan looked up and found that this person was Deng Ai who was joining the army.
Naturally, everyone has known Deng Ai's name for a long time in recent years. It's just that Deng Ai was famous and prosperous for his farming in Huainan. As for commanding troops to fight and govern, he had little experience.
But Xia Houxuan had long heard that Deng Ai had been obsessed with the art of war since he was a child. Whenever he encountered mountains and rivers, he would explain to the people around him how he would set up camp and form formations, which often made others laugh.
But others would laugh at him, but not Xia Houxuan. You know, Xia Houxuan has been a member of the Central Guards for three or four years, serving as a full-time military attache. He has the most vicious eye for recognizing people. He could tell at a glance that Deng Ai was an extraordinary person. Moreover, if you are good at commanding soldiers to garrison fields, you will naturally be able to command armies to protect cities.
Just when everyone felt ridiculous for Deng Ai's overestimation of his capabilities, Xia Houxuan unexpectedly stepped forward and patted Deng Ai's shoulder seriously:
"Shizai, I will recommend you as the governor of Nan'an as you wish! I believe you will be able to protect every inch of Wei's territory. In the future, the country will expand its territory and conquer the world, and you will be greatly needed. Such capable ministers and generals are worthy of encouragement!"
Although Xia Houxuan was twelve years younger than Deng Ai, at this moment, Deng Ai felt that Xia Houxuan was more like an elder brother who had ardent expectations for him. And what Xia Houxuan said to encourage him to 'open up the territory and conquer the world' was deeply imprinted in his mind.
Even Xia Houxuan did not expect that many years later, his inadvertent encouragement would actually be turned into reality by the stuttering Deng Ai in front of him.
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Just as Xia Houxuan was intensively deploying defenses in various places, another shocking news came from Yizhou: Dong Yun, an important minister of the Shu Han Dynasty, the chief of Shangshu Taitai, Shizhong and Shangshu Ling, died of serious illness a few days ago!
Although Xia Houxuan didn't know much about Dong Yun, he had always been loyal, upright, and prestigious, which Xia Houxuan knew. Xia Houxuan likes to inquire about news from various places all the year round. Naturally, he also heard that there was a eunuch named Huang Hao in Jinguan City in Shuchuan River, next to Liu Chan, the Lord of Shu. He was quite favored by the Lord of Shu. He was flattering, but he was always afraid of being honest and powerful. Dong Yun, now that Zhuge Liang, Jiang Wan, and Dong Yun have passed away, the "Four Wise Prime Ministers" in the eyes of the Shu people only have Fei Yi, who is bold and careless. It seems that Huang Hao's rise to power will only happen sooner or later. Something happened.
Soon after, Shuhan Shangshu Lu Yi succeeded Dong Yun as Shangshu Ling, the leader of Taige, while Cao Lang Chen Zhi took over Dong Yun's position as Shizhong.
Chen only saw the Shu Lord's favor for Huang Hao, and he, who was always smart, hugged Huang Hao's thigh very naturally. From then on, Huang Hao, who had no power but only wanted to be charming, successfully extended his claws into the chancellery.
For no reason, Xia Houxuan suddenly remembered what Zhuge Liang once wrote: "Being close to virtuous ministers and staying away from villains is why the Han Dynasty prospered before; being close to villains and staying away from virtuous ministers is why the Han Dynasty has declined since then." But now Isn't it that what Liu Chan did was going further and further away from Zhuge Kongming's expectations? It seemed that Emperor Ji Han, who was only two years older than himself, could no longer bear the heavy responsibility of reviving the Han Dynasty.
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Luoyang, General Wu'anhou's Mansion.
On this day, Cao Shuang, who was bent on planning the restructuring, was in the study carefully studying the three articles on current affairs written by Xia Houxuan. When he was reading the key points of reforming the ninth-level Zhongzheng system, he suddenly saw Yan Shi, the governor of the account, entering the hall to report:
"General, this is the urgent report from the school affairs office just delivered by Mr. Xun Zeng Zhonglang!"
When Cao Shuang heard this, he immediately became energetic. A few days ago, he had just finished his Western Expedition. News of the death of Jiang Wan and Dong Yun came from the Shu Han school. Ding Mi and Deng Yang offered their advice and immediately went to Luoyang. The rumor that General Cao Shuang scared the enemy Prime Minister to death was created and publicized. This rumor was so outrageous that the scholar-bureaucrats of the Sima Party naturally scorned it. However, the common people in Luoyang who could not read a single Chinese character were very fascinated by such rumors. Therefore, the prestige that Cao Shuang lost due to the defeat in the public seemed to have recovered a little. He naturally felt in a good mood.
A few days later, the school affairs office sent another urgent report, which made Cao Shuang look at his newly appointed school minister Xun Xu with admiration. He immediately took the school affairs office files from Yan Shi's hands and looked at them carefully.
The news this time came from the school affairs officer lurking in Soochow.
