When Liu Bei's entire army arrived at Luoyang, the eastern capital, it was already August 21st. At this time, the situation in Guandong had changed again: In Youzhou, Gongsun Du of Guangyang responded to the imperial court for more than a month, and was killed by Cao Cao within a day, causing a great earthquake in the whole state. Duan Xuan, the general of Zhenbei, did not dare to move lightly after hearing this. , we can only stick to Juyong Pass and wait and see the movements of Cao's army. After waiting for two days, I learned that Cao Cao had led nearly 100,000 people from Hebei to the south. Now the vanguard had arrived in Xiaquyang, and only Bao Xin stayed in the military capital.
The situation in Jizhou is also not good. After Zhong Yao said he would surrender to the country of She, he successively recruited officials from Wu'an, Handan and other places to prepare for the city's response. Unexpectedly, Yecheng's review team responded quickly. When they noticed something strange, they led their troops to block the key roads between Sheguo and the counties, preventing Zhong Yao from communicating with Zhucheng. He then had no choice but to rob all the officials and their families from each county and bring them to Yecheng. , to force them not to surrender. Zhong Yao had no choice but to reluctantly lead the scattered soldiers.
Only the situation in Yanzhou has been stabilized. After Zhang Miao captured Xiahou Dun and sent him to Luoyang, he discussed with Chen Gongbianrang to take the lead in attacking before Cao's army could catch up. They had made preparations before and had contacted the officials of various counties in Duyin. At this time, they sent orders to the counties. It was like the world was turned upside down. In just ten days, they captured the five counties of Chenliu, Jiyin, Shanyang, Rencheng, and Jibei. Many counties and counties in Taishan also responded. In the entire Yanzhou, only two isolated cities, Puyang and Fenggao, were still resisting.
After Liu Bei heard the news, he discussed the overall situation with his staff. He said: "The original military plan was to cross the river from Puyang and Dong'a after pacifying Yanzhou. But now that Puyang has not yet fallen, should we attack Puyang first, or lead the army to cross the river first?"
Xu Shu, the chief official of Cao Zuo in the General's Mansion, frowned and said: "I still remember the layout of Puyang. This city is the prefecture of Yanzhou. Cao Mengde has been running it for several years. Its walls are mostly made of bricks and stones, and there are many corridors inside. Although it is not as good as Linzi, it is still good. Isn’t it a city that can be easily captured?”
However, Shi Fazheng, the commander of Cao Youjun in the general's palace, disagreed. He said: "Now that the whole state has returned to normal, only two isolated cities are left. Even if the cities are difficult to conquer, can their hearts be at peace? Why should Yuan Zhi have doubts?" Our army only needs to march to the city and let the rebels take a look at the appearance of our king's division. Do they still dare to resist?"
After Fazheng finished speaking, all the generals agreed. After all, the main forces of the Bafu have gathered in Henan. Famous generals in the world, such as Henan Yin Guanyu, Du Liao General Zhang Fei, Jianping General Dong Cheng, Xuzhou Governor Zhang Xian, Yuzhou Governor Huangfu Li, Pingnan Zhonglang Jiang Changxi, Huqi Xiaowei Wei Yan, Chen Wang Liu Chong, Taiyuan Prefect Shi Ci, Xihe Prefect Qin Yilu, Shangdang Prefect Zhang Yang, Hongnong Prefect Shejian, Hanoi Prefect Sima Lang, Hedong Prefect Gu, Ying Pan Xu, the governor of Sichuan, Huang Zhong, the governor of Donghai, Guo Gong, the prime minister of Pei, Liu Bao, the wise king of the left side of the Xiongnu, Liu Xuan, the wise king of the right side of the Xiongnu, Tuoba Liwei, the Shanyu of Xianbei, Tuoba Pigu, the captain of Yicong, etc., have also been listed. set. The flags of the 300,000-strong army are undulating like a blue dragon, and the mere sight of them can make one's heart tremble. People said: "How can any city dare to fight against such powerful soldiers?"
Seeing that the morale of the army was available, Liu Bei made up his mind to lead his troops to surround Puyang first and recruit the defenders to surrender. Later, it would depend on the situation.
So before he marched, he had one more thing to do.
After Xiahou Dun was captured to Luoyang, he was imprisoned in Guan Yu's mansion. At this time, Liu Bei was about to march eastward, so he was ready to see him. This was Xu Shu's advice. He suggested to Liu Bei that since he wanted to recruit Puyang to surrender, it would be better to surrender Xia Houdun. If he could do anything about it, the morale of the Hebei army would also be turbulent, and he would be able to achieve the miraculous effect of defeating the enemy without fighting.
But after Liu Bei entered the palace, he took a look at Xiahou Dun from a distance and found that he was still trimming his temples in prison. He was as meticulous as usual. He knew that his heart was as solid as stone, and he immediately gave up the idea of surrendering. But he still met him and asked him: "I have treated you well, why did Mengde abandon me?"
Xiahou Dun said frankly: "How can a hero be permanent? A general does not abide by the principles of loyalty and filial piety, plays with power, excludes ministers, and uses military force to establish power and conducts assassination. Although he is fake and loyal, how can he win people's trust? Meng De is a worldly person. A hero cannot be conquered by a true emperor, and if a general does not have such equipment, why should he be so aggressive?"
Liu Bei couldn't help laughing after hearing this. He thought for a while and said slowly: "Yuan Rang said this, which makes me ashamed! It's a pity that heroes don't stop with words, but thrive with swords. My army is about to go out, so let you Let’s see the hero again!”
So he set out for the expedition the next day, imprisoning Xiahou Dun in a chariot, and accompanied the army. Autumn was deep at this time, there was a bit of coolness in the wind, and the land was no longer as wet and soft as in summer. When the army marched, the footsteps of the soldiers were like the collision of swords, which made people feel chilled. Xiahou Dun was in the middle of the army. When he looked forward and behind repeatedly, he could only see a sea of flags and armor. The solemn appearance of the army reminded him of the winding giant mountains, which made him feel terrified.
After the Han soldiers left Chenggao Pass, they walked along the river for three days, and then stopped at Suanzao. After waiting for half a day, they saw Zhang Miao, the prefect of Chenliu, and Chen Gong, who was in charge of Yanzhou Zhizhong, leading thousands of people to meet them. , as a guide for the army.
When Liu Bei saw Chen Gong, he remembered that last year he had advised him to capture Cao Cao secretly, which was quite prescient. He couldn't help but feel a little emotional, and said to him: "There is nothing in Yanzhou, thanks to the care and contact of Gongtai. It's a pity that last year Gongtai cited However, I concealed the plan and did not launch it, so there will still be a war this year."
Chen Gongzheng said: "It's not too late to mend the situation. The general will be pacified this year, and he will be able to put an end to the affairs of the world. His merits will be followed by those of his ancestors, and his name will go down in history." Liu Bei laughed when he heard this, and immediately appointed Chen Gongzheng to the general's mansion as a post. In order to make Cao You the chief historian in Zhongzhong, Zhang Miao was also named the governor of Yanzhou.
Two days later, an army of 300,000 troops appeared under Puyang City.
According to the original plan, Liu Bei was not in a hurry to attack, but ordered all his troops to camp grandly. The first 30,000 vanguards to arrive surrounded Puyang with their barracks, and the following troops continued to camp outside the vanguard's barracks. When all the 300,000 troops arrived, the defenders on the Puyang city wall looked around and saw that the fields were completely empty. It was a dense crowd that stretched into the dim sky, which made them extremely frightened. Many of Cao Jun's generals had also seen the battle, and when they saw this spectacular scene, they couldn't help but feel swayed in their hearts, with a vague sense of betrayal.
Fortunately, it was Cheng Yu who was defending the city. When Xiahou Dun left, he was already working on fortifying the city.
In the period before the arrival of the Bafu army, Cheng Yu expelled all the refugees from the city, leaving only the families of the soldiers in the city. In order to prevent the soldiers from rebelling, Cheng Yu gathered them in the northern corner of the city and sent Danyang soldiers to guard them. Once there was chaos in the city, these family members would be killed. All the grain stores in the remaining houses in the city were requisitioned for him, and most of the grain was moved to the army. Those beams and door panels were either made into wooden buildings on the city, or into fences behind the city gates.
But after all, there are only 8,000 soldiers in the city. How to stabilize people's hearts is Cheng Yu's top priority. He summoned all the officials above Dubo in the city and talked together: "Although the city has been surrounded by Liu Bei, it is not easy for them to capture the city. They think that the world seems to be peaceful and everyone is united. But he didn't want to think that he was a rebellious minister and a traitor. As long as he was defeated, he would be in trouble, just like in the new era. Cao Gong's divine martial arts should be expected, how could he be inferior to Guangwu? As the saying goes, those who win will prosper, and those who lose their master will perish. Liu Bei's daily life So we relied heavily on the side and bullied our subordinates in Yanzhou. How could we end up well if we returned? I heard that Duke Cao had already captured Hebei and was leading his army southward. However, Duke Cao’s wisdom was unmatched in the world. God has given it to us! We need to hold on for more than a month, and we will be able to relieve the siege and secure the place. When Cao Gong returns, we can make great achievements in Tiandan!" Most people were persuaded by this, but some people were still silent, with sad expressions on their faces.
At this time, Captain Yu Jin stood up and said: "Brother Zhongde said it well! Since we follow Duke Cao, we must stick to it till the end. How can we be such half-hearted villains? From today on, I will be I will lead my troops to patrol the camp every day. If anyone is not concentrating on defending against the enemy and has other agendas, I will behead him in public to show military discipline!" After saying that, Yu Jin took out his knife and slashed it on the table in front of him with his hand, and the table fell in response. At the meeting, General Zuo Wubu changed his mind and expressed his loyalty to Cheng Yu again and again.
On the same day, Liu Bei sent envoys to the city to recruit surrender, but they were greeted only by rain of arrows. The envoys who surrendered were all shot to death, and no one survived.
This made Liu Bei furious. So the Bafu army raised a large mountain of earth and ordered the sergeants with iron pockets to climb the mountain along the mountain and climb ladders to attack the city. They covered their faces and necks with iron nets to prevent them from being cut by knives. Under the dense armor, they hung the hilts of their knives on their belts, waiting for the moment they jumped out of the city wall, and then hacked them with knives. Cao Jun tied a wooden fence beside the enemy tower on the opposite side of the mountain, with the sharp mouth facing outward. This caused the bulky armored sergeants to be blocked by the fence, and they had no choice but to crawl over one by one despite the rain of arrows.
The sergeant of Cao's army was wearing a light round-necked cloth shirt, rolled up his sleeves to his upper arms, and climbed up to the enemy tower nimbly. They held long wooden poles with iron hooks tied to the tops of the poles. They hooked them on the iron nets of the Bafu sergeants and dragged them down the city; or dragged them to the enemy tower, and the sergeants below used big sticks to drag them They beat him to death.
At the south gate, the Han army used pointed-headed wooden donkeys to transport troops. This pointed wooden donkey has a pointed cone on top, which can withstand the impact of stones. The sergeants hid below and pushed away, and more than a dozen troops could be transported at a time. When these people arrived at the city gate, they used giant axes to chop down the gate. The door was made of wood. Although it was a century-old jujube wood with excellent quality, it could not withstand repeated cutting and was smashed open. But Cheng Yu had already erected a fence inside the gate, which was layered on top of each other with the pointed mouth facing outward, so the Han army could not get in. However, arrows were being fired from inside the fence, and stones were being thrown from the top of the city gate. After holding on for a long time, even the pointed wooden donkeys were smashed, but they still could not get in.
After two days, the Han army stopped attacking the city. Liu Bei rode around the city to observe, praising all the way: "Cheng Yu is very durable and a good opponent. It's a pity that I can't stop here anymore."
The time for Cao Cao to go south is getting closer and closer, and Puyang cannot be broken, so the war seems to be in a stalemate. But at this time, Liu Bei got another good news, which made him plan to cross the river first.
