On the way back, it started to rain continuously.
The road was muddy and extremely inconvenient. On several occasions, the carriage even got stuck in the mud and had to be pushed forward by the soldiers, which was extremely miserable.
When he arrived at the military camp, Zhuge Liang frowned.
Perhaps the soldiers had already guessed that they were going to withdraw, so they were all dejected and uninterested in training. Some soldiers had already begun to pack their bags, which seemed very confusing.
On the right side of the military tent, there lived the injured soldiers. The smell of putrefaction and blood and sweat came from the tent, which made people feel disgusted.
It seems that since the fall of Jieting, the officers and soldiers of the Shu army have lost their fighting spirit.
Zhuge Liang shook his head and said: "Our great man of Shu is now lifeless and dejected. Alas... Jiang Tuo of Qingshui County can still manage the people of a county. From this point of view, I am not as good as a remote place." A county magistrate."
Zhao Yun quickly said: "Prime Minister, don't worry, wait until the army rations are in place, and then compete with the Wei army!"
"Well." Speaking of this, Zhuge Liang felt much better. He cheered up and asked: "Zilong, who do you think Jiang Tuo is? He looks like a mediocre person, but also like a great talent. A wise person..."
Zhao Yun pondered for a moment and then said: "Jiang Tuo is talented and capable, but he has some bad habits. If he can be tempered, he may not be able to become a mainstay."
"you are right."
"The Prime Minister intends to conquer this person?"
Zhuge Liang nodded and shook his head: "This person is not willing to obey discipline. If he is rashly subdued, I'm afraid it will make people unhappy. After observing for some time, if he really intends to join the Shu army, then I will take this person under my account."
The two walked while talking, and soon they arrived at the Chinese army's tent.
Zhuge Liang then ordered: "Call Jiang Wei, I have something to tell him."
"Prime Minister, you have been traveling all day and got caught in the rain. Why don't you take a shower and change clothes first, rest for a while, and then make arrangements for Jiang Wei?"
"The military situation is urgent. Without further delay, let's find him now."
"yes."
After a while, Jiang Wei hurried over and saw Zhuge Liang sitting in front of the document, carefully reviewing the memorial.
Zhuge Liang is very serious about his work and must do everything he does. He will personally take care of all matters in the military camp, big or small, and give his own opinions.
"Meet the Prime Minister." Jiang Wei hurriedly bowed down to pay homage, and then asked: "Prime Minister, it's getting late. Why don't you review the memorial after dinner?"
Zhuge Liang shook his head and looked at the energetic young man in front of him.
Jiang Wei, courtesy name Boyue.
This young man was a talent he discovered when he conquered Tianshui. At that time, Jiang Wei saw through his schemes twice, much to his amazement.
Later, he invited Jiang Wei's mother out, treated the people of Tianshui preferentially, and subdued Jiang Wei.
He has high hopes for this young man, believing that this ambitious and talented young man will be the pillar of Shu Han in the future!
However, although Zhuge Liang regarded him as his heir, he did not teach him any wisdom. Instead, he gave him many books on the art of war and asked him to study on his own.
Because Zhuge Liang knew that a true commander needs to be tempered and is made by fighting on the battlefield, not by teaching.
Zhuge Liang put down the memorial, signaled Jiang Wei to get up, and said unhurriedly: "No, Bo Yue, I came to you today to ask you, what can the Shu army do now?"
Jiang Wei said seriously: "Prime Minister, since the defeat at Jieting, the soldiers have been filled with pessimism, and they are worried that Zhang He will cut off their retreat. The only plan now is to retreat first, and then make plans."
Zhuge Liang nodded and asked: "What if we fight Zhang He? What are the chances of winning?"
"Close to zero." Jiang Wei looked at Zhuge Liang. He didn't understand why the prime minister, who had previously advocated retreating, now wanted to fight, so he admonished: "The Wei army is like a rainbow. On the other hand, our morale is low. , if the two armies fight, they will definitely lose!"
"In addition... even if our army can defeat Zhang He, Zhang He's troops do not have to fight to the death with our army. They only need to entangle our army and consume our army's food and grass. When Cao Zhen leads his army to encircle us, our army will become a turtle in the urn. There is no possibility of escape!"
Zhuge Liang nodded.
Jiang Wei's judgment of the current situation is very accurate.
"What if our army has enough food and grass? Can we fight Zhang He's troops?"
Jiang Wei was stunned, wondering why the cautious and serious prime minister in front of him would say such a thing?
If...the facts are facts, what ifs are there?
Jiang Wei asked thoughtfully: "If there is enough food and grass, then our army will not be under logistical pressure and can fight to the death with Cao's army... However, our army does not have enough food and grass..."
Jiang Wei knew that Hanzhong was barren and had experienced great wars, and could not withstand the consumption of a hundred thousand troops.
If we were to transport grain from Shu, the journey would be long and the time required would be too long. We would not be able to survive that time.
So where does the Prime Minister plan to adjust the food supply?
Could it be that... the three counties of Tianshui and Nan'an that were just captured were used to collect grain from these places?
Jiang Wei was shocked and hurriedly stopped him: "Prime Minister, you must not do this. The three counties of Tianshui and Nan'an have just been captured, and the people do not have a high sense of belonging to the Shu Han. If we forcefully requisition food, there will inevitably be resentment among the people and riots will happen. If we send troops to suppress it, the situation will become even worse!"
Zhuge Liang laughed dumbly and said comfortingly: "Don't worry, we won't collect food from the three counties of Tianshui."
"That's good." Jiang Wei felt relieved and comforted: "Prime Minister, today we are trapped by food and grass, so our army can only retreat first. Wait until the day comes to reorganize our troops and horses, and then compete with the Wei army! Our Shu army is brave , we will definitely fulfill the late emperor’s last wish and restore the Han Dynasty!”
Zhuge Liang shook his head and smiled: "Who said our army was trapped by food and grass?"
"ah?"
Zhuge Liang said: "Today Zilong and I went on a patrol and arrived at a place where the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, and cultivated the fields happily without any worries about war. The county magistrate there said that millions of kilograms of grain and grass would be donated to me. Army, for our army’s war consumption.”
"Boyo, what do you think?"
After Zhuge Liang finished asking, Jiang Wei stood dumbfounded and showed no reaction.
After a long while, Jiang Wei frowned and asked cautiously: "Prime Minister, you have worked too hard recently, are you hallucinating?"
"You do not believe?"
"It's really hard to believe, General."
"I didn't believe it at first."
Jiang Wei breathed a sigh of relief, then you said a hammer.
Unexpectedly, Zhuge Liang said leisurely: "But it happened right in front of me, I can't help but not believe it."
"Really?"
Zhuge Liang sighed with emotion: "Yes, I originally thought that the Northern Expedition was a failure, but now things have turned around and God has given me enough food and grass. This is God protecting the big man!"
"And that magical county magistrate, I really don't know how much effort it took to store so much food and grass. And he also donated it to the Shu army for free. If this battle is won, then he will be the biggest contributor!"
Jiang Wei was stunned, not knowing what to say.
Zhuge Liang looked at Jiang Wei and asked: "So, I want you to go to Qingshui County tomorrow. Not only to transport food and grass, but also to test this person to see what kind of person he is!"
Zhuge Liang said seriously.
Jiang Wei did not stay too long. He bid farewell to Zhuge Liang, gathered his troops in the military camp, and planned to go to Qingshui County tomorrow. If the prime minister was telling the truth, then the Shu army would be able to fight with the Wei army if they had the support of food and grass. war.
After Jiang Wei left, Zhao Yun frowned and said, "Prime Minister, I can just do this kind of thing. Why should Jiang Wei rush to Qingshui County himself?"
Zhuge Liang shook his feather fan gently and said slowly: "Jiang Wei is a phoenix in the sky, and he will definitely serve as the general of the Shu Han in the future. However, he has an upright character and does not want to make friends with others, so I sent him to contact Jiang Tuo in order to make them two People make friends.”
"What if the two get into a dispute?"
Zhuge Liang was stunned for a moment, and then said: "It shouldn't be possible, right?"
The next day, Jiang Wei led a hundred soldiers and drove the carriage to Qingshui County.
Although Jiang Wei trusted Zhuge Liang very much, he was still hesitant about Zhuge Liang's remarks, mainly because according to Zhuge Liang's intention, there was a Qingshui County where he could live and work in peace and contentment among the deep mountains and old forests.
The people were peaceful and peaceful, and had no worries about food and drink, especially since tens of thousands of stones of grain and grass were stored.
If Zhuge Liang hadn't said it himself, Jiang Wei would have spat at him.
What about this fantasy and nonsense?
At this time, Jiang Wei raised his head and looked at the dense woods and rugged mountain roads, and couldn't help but deeply doubted that there was really a peaceful and peaceful place in this world?
"General, what did the Prime Minister want us to do?" the soldier asked.
These dozens of people were all Jiang Wei's confidants, so he explained: "The Prime Minister said that surrounded by these mountains, there is an out-of-this-world place where the people are happy and peaceful, and there is endless food."
"Pfft."
The soldier suddenly burst out laughing. He shook his head and said: "General, we have lived in the land of Yongliang for generations. From Dong Zhuo to Li Jue, from Ma Teng to Ma Chao, wars have been endless. How can there be any peaceful place?"
Jiang Wei frowned and said, "It's impossible for the Prime Minister to talk nonsense."
"Maybe it was to comfort the soldiers that I made up this lie."
Hearing this, even Jiang Wei couldn't help but be suspicious. Is the Prime Minister really like this?
Today's people are very luxurious even to have a full meal. There are tens of thousands of stones of food and grass hidden in this small county in the mountains. This kind of thing sounds too fantasy.
"You still have to trust the Prime Minister!"
Jiang Wei gave a word of advice and then led his soldiers forward and walked about twenty miles along the mountain road. The soldiers who followed began to complain, thinking that Zhuge Liang was fabricating lies to stabilize the morale of the army.
Jiang Wei was unmoved. He raised his head and saw a valley in the distance. The fields in the valley were full of wheat, which was golden and the wind blew like waves.
"Am I just blinded?!"
Jiang Wei rubbed his eyes and looked into the distance in disbelief.
