Before Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao were happy, doubts appeared in their eyes again.
Generally speaking, it sounds like Zhang He's plan of false surrender has merits, but what are the specific steps?
I think only Zhang He can answer this question.
So Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao both looked at Zhang He.
Seeing the two people's gazes, Zhang He continued to say confidently:
"For a false surrender plan to be successful, in addition to being consistent with the situation, the person committing the false surrender must also have a certain identity and have a defensible reason. Only in this way can the false surrender plan be more effective with half the effort."
Hearing what Zhang He said, Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao nodded.
For example, Meng Da was a powerful general under Mi Yang at that time. If not, Cao Ren would not have been overjoyed when he heard the news that Meng Da was willing to surrender.
At that time, Meng Da did have a precedent of being belittled by Liu Bei, which means that logically speaking, he had a reason to betray Liu Bei.
Seeing that Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao recognized his words, Zhang He finally said directly:
"Therefore, if I want to win Mi Yang's trust to the greatest extent, I can only use myself as bait to pretend to surrender to Mi Yang."
As soon as Zhang He finished speaking, Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao, who had looked at each other with approval just now, suddenly had looks of shock on their faces.
They never thought that Zhang He would actually regard themselves as the one who pretended to surrender.
Although they were shocked, Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao couldn't help but think carefully.
In terms of status, Zhang He can now be regarded as the most powerful general of the Wei army in Chang'an City.
In terms of reasons, well, Zhang He is indeed not a pure minister.
During the Guandu War, didn't Zhang He surrender directly because the situation was unfavorable?
Looking back further, after Yuan Shao planned to seize Jizhou, Zhang He was also the fastest rebellious official of Han Fu at that time.
Based on these two incidents alone, it seems to be easier to convince Mi Yang that Zhang He really surrendered.
After all, compared to Meng Da's betrayal once, Zhang He had already betrayed him twice, let alone the third time.
But the important thing is, just because of those two cases in the past, how can Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao ensure that Zhang He really wants to surrender to Mi Yang this time?
If Zhang He secretly conspired with Mi Yang under the guise of a false surrender, wouldn't Chang'an City be in danger?
When they thought of this, the way Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao looked at Zhang He suddenly became wrong.
The strange gazes of Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao were quickly caught by Zhang He, and Zhang He, who understood the deep meaning of their gazes, suddenly turned red.
It seems that Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao can't be blamed for missing him so much.
Zhang He was also a man who betrayed his master twice. For him, there was some feeling of shame, but certainly not much.
Zhang He quickly suppressed the feeling of shame in his heart, then cupped his hands towards Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao and said:
“Although I have done things to understand current affairs twice in the past, I was alone at that time without my family to accompany me.
But it's different now.
Since I surrendered to the late Emperor, he has given me a marriage to help me spread my branches in Xudu and raise my family.
Now, thanks to His Majesty’s grace, my family is raised in Luoyang.
My late Emperor, all of you have a deep affection for me. How can I be an ungrateful person? "
Zhang He's tone was sonorous and powerful. He was trying his best to make Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao believe in him.
After listening to Zhang He's words, Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao looked at each other, with a look of trust in Zhang He in their eyes.
Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao were not fools. Of course they could understand the implication of Zhang He's words.
On the surface, every sentence of Zhang He's words is about Cao Cao and Cao Pi's kindness to him, but what Zhang He actually wants to express is that his family is under the control of Cao Wei!
This was the powerful support Zhang He used to win the trust of Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao.
Zhang He's deep meaning was not in vain. In the eyes of Cao Zhang and Xia Houmao, with Zhang He's family in hand, there was really no need to worry too much about Zhang He's rebellion.
After all, Zhang He is not young, so the fact of cutting off his heirs is still a great deterrent to him.
After temporarily trusting Zhang He, Cao Zhang immediately changed his face.
A burst of hearty laughter came from his mouth. Cao Zhang came to Zhang He and patted his shoulder and said:
"General Zuo is really too worried.
General Zuo has made many great contributions to the Wei Dynasty over the years. How could I suspect that General Zuo is an ungrateful person?
The reason why Gu Fang hesitated was because he was worried about how your safety would be ensured if General Zuo went deep into the tiger's den! "
After finishing speaking, a somewhat worried look appeared on Cao Zhang's face.
It was as if he had never been suspicious of Zhang He just now, and it seemed as if he was really worried about Zhang He's safety now.
But Cao Zhang's words still made Zhang He understand what he really meant.
If you choose to go to Han camp in person, I still won't be relieved.
In Cao Wei, a big dye vat full of treachery, understanding the implicit meaning is almost a skill that any courtier must learn if he wants to survive.
After decades of hard work, Zhang He can be called a master in this aspect.
Looking at Cao Zhang's "worried" face, Zhang He cupped his hands and said:
"I will not go to the Han camp."
Hearing Zhang He's promise, Xia Houmao on the side also laughed.
Xia Houmao walked up to Zhang He and patted Zhang He's other shoulder. He said with satisfaction, "If so, Ziwen and I can sleep peacefully!"
After eliminating the worries in his heart, Cao Zhang took back the hand that patted Zhang He's shoulder and asked:
"If you don't go there in person, what should you do?"
Facing Cao Zhang's inquiry, Zhang He bowed to Cao Zhang and expressed his thoughts.
After listening to Zhang He's thoughts, Cao Zhang thought about it for a while, and then a smile appeared on his face:
"Sir, you are really talented!"
"Just do everything as you say."
The Wei River can be said to be the mother river of Guanzhong.
The Wei River not only provides water sources for the counties along its coast, but also extends into many tributaries that irrigate the entire Guanzhong Plain.
Just outside Chang'an City, there are three tributaries of the Wei River flowing through it.
During the farming season, those three tributaries will become the main water sources inside and outside Chang'an City.
In wartime, those three tributaries will be the three natural lines of defense to the west of Chang'an.
It is a pity that even if there are natural dangers to rely on, Chang'an City, which is currently in a precarious situation, can no longer send out its troops to stop the Han army.
Without any obstruction, the hastily marching Han army crossed three tributaries of the Wei River in two days and arrived safely a few miles outside Chang'an City.
When the Wei army scouts outside Chang'an City saw a large number of majestic Han troops appearing on the horizon, they had a look of fear on their faces.
As the Han army continued to approach, they felt even worse after seeing the battle flag with the word Mi.
As a result, an extremely urgent military message was passed from outside Chang'an City to Cao Zhang's hands as quickly as possible.
After learning the news of Mi Yang's arrival, Cao Zhang couldn't help but take a deep breath because he was nervous.
But he quickly ordered the scouts in front of him to look for Zhang He.
Looking at the scout's leaving figure, Cao Zhang relaxed slightly and exhaled the breath he had just taken.
There is a plan before the gain or loss.
Hope everything goes well!
Mi Yang was riding on a war horse, looking at the majestic city from a distance with high spirits.
Whether it was the past life or this life, this was the first time Mi Yang saw Chang'an City.
Perhaps because of the distance, Mi Yang couldn't see the whole city of Chang'an clearly at the first time.
But just a glimpse of the leopard in the tube was enough to make Mi Yang admire the city of Chang'an in his heart.
Such a majestic and magnificent city is indeed the home of my great man.
So impressive!
Encouraged by the admiration in her heart, Mi Yang was about to give another order for the entire army to continue to move faster.
But before Mi Yang's order could be sent out, an unexpected piece of news suddenly reached Mi Yang's ears.
"Is there an envoy visiting Chang'an City?"
Mi Yang looked at Huang Quan under the horse with some confusion.
Mi Yang didn't expect this to happen at first.
After pondering for a while, Mi Yang asked Huang Quan:
"Do you know whose messenger it is?"
Facing Mi Yang's inquiry, Huang Quan handed over his hands and replied calmly: "According to the envoy captured by the scouts, he was sent by Zhang He."
Huang Quan's reply deepened Mi Yang's surprise.
But at the same time, interest arose in him.
From the information we have gathered before, we know that the current Wei army commander in Chang'an City is Cao Zhang.
If Cao Zhang sends an envoy here, then what this envoy brings is Cao Wei's official contact.
But now that this envoy is sent by Zhang He, things are getting interesting.
Sending an envoy to contact him privately, Zhang He thought it was something worth looking forward to.
Thinking of this, Mi Yang asked Huang Quan to bring Zhang He's envoy over, and at the same time ordered people to summon some important generals.
When Zhang He's envoy arrived at Mi Yang's horse, the important generals also rode their horses to Mi Yang's side.
This also caused Zhang He's envoy to be surrounded by a group of Han generals.
Looking at the fierce-looking Han generals riding on horses around them, Zhang He's envoy was already so frightened that his legs were shaking.
After looking at Mi Yang who was sitting on the horse and looking at him with interest, envoy Zhang He could no longer hold back the tension in his heart. He was so frightened that he knelt down directly towards Mi Yang.
Mi Yang has seen many messengers in recent years, but this is the first time for him to see this one who has no courage.
Even though Yu Fan had knelt before, at least he was still tough at first.
The courage of envoy Zhang He made Mi Yang less interested in him.
Mi Yang, who was less interested, raised the riding whip in his hand and asked Zhang He's envoy impatiently: "Why did Zhang He send you here?"
Under Mi Yang's questioning, envoy Zhang He, who was filled with fear, cried and said to Mi Yang:
"My husband is in awe of the majesty of the general, and is willing to submit to the general and offer the city of Chang'an to the great Han!"
Hearing what Zhang He's envoy said, not only the eyes of the generals surrounding him lit up, but even Mi Yang regained his interest in an instant.
Mi Yang scolded Ding Feng behind him:
"What are you still doing?
He quickly helped up the envoy sent by Jun Yi. "
In her speech, Mi Yang no longer called Zhang He by his first name, but instead called Zhang He's nickname affectionately.
Ding Feng, who was suddenly "reprimanded" by Mi Yang, was stunned at first, but after taking a look at the outside of Chang'an City not far away, he immediately jumped off his horse and helped Zhang He's envoy up.
After helping Zhang He's envoy up, Ding Feng also carefully patted the dust on Zhang He's envoy's knees.
The main focus is on service.
Mi Yang's gentleness and Ding Feng's caring actions made the fearful expression on the face of envoy Zhang He lessen a lot.
Seeing that envoy Zhang He's mood gradually stabilized, Mi Yang leaned over and asked with a smile:
"The husband of the Qin family is now the general of Zuo against the Wei Dynasty. He is a high-ranking official. Why does he suddenly want to surrender to Yugu?"
Mi Yang asked what he was most concerned about at the moment.
Even though Zhang He had the glorious achievement of being a "retainer with three surnames", his sudden surrender was always a bit suspicious.
Faced with Mi Yang's inquiry, envoy Zhang He immediately raised his hands and said:
"After the news that the general led his army to enter Jingzhao spread in Chang'an City, due to the impact of the Battle of Nanzheng, many soldiers in the city cried:
"Chang'an City is about to be flooded, and we are going to die!"
Seeing the military's morale, my husband felt that Chang'an City could not be defended after all.
Moreover, Chang'an City was originally the capital of the Han Dynasty. Previously, there were treacherous ministers in the world who caused trouble, which made Chang'an City fall into dust to this day.
Today, the general is so powerful that he is marching on behalf of the emperor of the Han Dynasty. My husband was a minister of the Han Dynasty before, so how can he not have the heart to surrender to the general? "
After envoy Zhang He finished speaking the above words, he secretly observed Mi Yang's expression.
These words were taught to him by Zhang He before he set off.
He didn't know how much Mi Yang could believe these words.
Under the observation of Zhang He's envoy, he found that Mi Yang did not have any obvious look of suspicion or thinking on his face after listening to his words.
All he saw was disbelief.
Mi Yang's calmness made envoy Zhang He feel that there seemed to be murderous intent lingering around him.
Just when envoy Zhang He was feeling uneasy, Mi Yang asked again:
"Just now you said that Junyi wanted to dedicate Chang'an City to Gu, but as far as Gu knows, the current commander of Chang'an City is Cao Zhang.
With Cao Zhang here, how could he successfully offer the city to Yu Gu? "
When Mi Yang asked about this matter, the envoy who remembered Zhang He's instructions quickly replied:
"Cao Zhang has been drinking heavily since returning from Jieting.
After learning about the arrival of the general and his army in the past few days, it was rare for him to wake up for a few days.
My husband's intention is to ask the general to temporarily retreat ten miles, otherwise Cao Zhang will definitely return to his old ways.
At that time, my husband can take the opportunity to take his head. Once Cao Zhang dies, Chang'an City will naturally be in the pocket of the general. "
After hearing what envoy Zhang He said, Mi Yang's eyes narrowed.
After looking at the envoy Zhang He quietly for a long time, Mi Yang finally said with a smile:
"He really has a good plan!"
Mi Yang's "affirmation" made Zhang He's envoy overjoyed.
"Go back to the city and tell him that if our army retreats rashly, it will definitely arouse Cao Zhang's doubts.
In order to ensure that the plan is foolproof, although Gu will not retreat, he will not advance another half mile towards Chang'an from today on.
Gu is waiting for his good news here! "
Mi Yang's words made envoy Zhang He put down the big stone in his heart.
Consciously completing his mission, he quickly returned to Chang'an City after bowing to Mi Yang.
But what he didn't realize was that Mi Yang's name for Zhang He had quietly changed from the close Jun Yi to the emotionless him.
(End of chapter)
