Zhang Xi led his troops to retreat, all the way back to Chongquan County.
In fact, according to Zhang Xi's intention, it would be best to retreat directly to Gaoling County and join forces with Hu Zun, the prefect of Zuo Fengyi stationed there, to defend. This would be closer to Chang'an, and it would be easier to protect the grain road and avoid being flanked by the Wei army. Flanking but the situation seems a bit unallowable.
One of the reasons is that Cao Zhen pursued very quickly.
This time, Cao Zhen's marching speed was no longer so slow and slimy. Only less than a day separated from Zhang Xi, Cao Zhen had already led his troops to pursue Chongquan County.
If Zhang Xi chooses to abandon the city at this time, it is very likely that his retreat will turn into a defeat, and he will be chased by Cao Zhen, which will eventually lead to the collapse of the entire army.
Even if they could retreat to Gaoling, they probably wouldn't be able to maintain sufficient combat effectiveness.
Moreover, Cao Zhen's pursuit seemed premeditated. According to scout reports, a cavalry force of several thousand people appeared on the south side of Chongquan County.
The cavalry on the plains are not easy to mess with. They are fast and have strong impact. Thousands of cavalry appear on the flanks of 30,000 people. If they are not careful, they will be hit hard by the cavalry attack. In this way, even if Zhang Xi really takes the risk to retreat, the speed of retreat will be very high. Can't even mention it.
Another reason is that Zhang Xi received a letter from Zhuge Liang.
It’s not that Zhang Xi responded to the letter he wrote to Zhuge Liang before retreating from Dali City. Dali County is quite far from Chang’an, so the letter should still be on the road and has not arrived in Chang’an.
This reply from Zhuge Liang was written when Zhang Xi had just arrived in Chongquan County. He really couldn't understand the meaning of Cao Zhen's use of troops, so he made a summary of the current situation and sent it to Chang'an to seek Zhuge Liang's opinion.
Zhuge Liang wrote a reply to this.
And Zhuge Liang's reply made Zhang Xi sigh, Zhuge Liang is Zhuge Liang after all.
Zhuge Liang combined the current situation in the letter and roughly analyzed it, and came to the same conclusion that Zhang Xi was in Dali County.
Zhuge Liang also believed that Cao Wei must have some special battle plan. The role of Cao Zhen's army cannot be determined for the time being, but at present, Cao Zhen should want to delay time and wait for changes.
However, at this time, Zhuge Liang did not understand the variables of the Wei army. Therefore, Zhuge Liang's advice to Zhang Xi was to set up defenses on the spot, not to rush in, and give him some time to adjust the deployment of troops.
Zhuge Liang planned to order Zhao Yun's Liangzhou legion assembled in Xiaoguan in advance to quickly enter the pass to meet Zhang Xi's troops, just in case.
The Liangzhou Army led by Zhao Yun consisted of 10,000 Liangzhou cavalry and 20,000 Liangzhou infantry. According to the Northern Expedition strategy, they needed to wait until the end of the Guanzhong Guard Battle to suddenly set off from Xiao Pass to encircle Cao Zhen's main army. They even counterattacked Tongguan. But at present, it seems that neither Zhuge Liang nor Zhang Xi can quickly determine the true purpose of Cao Zhen's advance. Zhuge Liang can only let Zhao Yun enter the pass in advance.
If Cao Zhen doesn't have any conspiracy, then Zhao Yun's entry into the pass can threaten Cao Zhen's main army on the flanks. As long as Zhang Xi in the front can hold Cao Zhen back, it is still possible to fight a decisive battle.
But if Cao Zhen has any conspiracy, then Zhao Yun's timely entry may play a key role in determining the success or failure of Zuo Fengyi's battlefield.
Now, combined with Zhang Xi's prediction, if the Wei army's real purpose is to break through from Fufeng on the right, and then attack his flank in a roundabout way, Zhao Yun's advance entry will be of great help to the battle.
Zhao Yun's Liangzhou Legion came with cavalry, and their speed was generally not too slow. And if the Wei army attacking his flank were also cavalry, then Zhang Xi would not have no capital to fight the Wei army in Zuo Feng Yi.
It is even said that if Zhang Xi and Zhao Yun can hold back Cao Zhen's 50,000-strong army plus the cavalry regiment attacking from the flanks on the left, then the Guo Huai regiment in the right Fufeng area will definitely be insufficient, even if they can occupy part of the land in the right Fufeng area. , and he did not have enough troops to launch an attack on Chang'an.
On the contrary, once more than 30,000 Han troops from the Northern Army entered Youfufeng, the balance of forces between the two sides was reversed. As long as Zhuge Liang could seize the opportunity, fight a battle of annihilation in the Youfufeng area, and then break into Wuguan. Then Cao Zhen would The battle in the Zuo Fengyi area has lost its meaning.
This is a good opportunity to turn defeat into victory. The key lies in two points. One is whether Zhang Xi can block Cao Zhen's main force from advancing, and the other is whether Zhuge Liang can seize the opportunity to defeat Guo Huai in Right Fufeng.
Regarding the latter, Zhang Xi really wasn't worried, after all, it was Zhuge Liang.
As for the former, Zhang Xi cannot retreat now. If he retreats further, the distance for Zhao Yun to come to help will be too long, and part of the logistics supply line will even be exposed to the Wei army's attack range.
Therefore, Zhang Xi must choose to hold on in Chongquan County, and at the same time send people to transport grain and grass from Gaoling County as soon as possible, and be prepared to hold on if his retreat is cut off.
In short, Zhang Xi planned to use himself as bait to attract Cao Zhen's army to fight a decisive battle in Chongquan County.
This decision was strongly opposed by Wei Yan when Zhang Xi proposed it.
Wei Yan is not opposed to Zhang Xi's decision. In Wei Yan's opinion, under the current situation, such a response should be the best choice.
What Wei Yan opposed was that Zhang Xi should implement this decision.
Zhang Xi is the governor of Yongzhou and also the Tuogu minister of the Han Dynasty. Such risky combat behavior should not be commanded by an important minister like Zhang Xi.
What if Zhuge Liang is unable to defeat Guo Huai in a short period of time and break into Wuguan Road, or Zhao Yun is unable to quickly lead the Liangzhou Corps into Xiao Pass, and the Wei army has already attacked Chongquan from the flank and even cut off the food and grass supply line in Chongquan County. Then At that time, Chongquan County was just an isolated city. No one knew how long it could last.
Wei Yan believed that Zhang Xi could not be allowed to risk taking control of Chongquan County. At this time, Zhang Xi should lead the guards and retreat quickly before the Wei army encircled Chongquan County. They retreated to Gaoling to join Hu Zun to form the second battlefield. , in case Chongquan County cannot defend the future situation.
As for Chongquan County, he should be allowed to hold it, and Wei Yan believed that with his ability, there would be no problem at all in holding Chongquan County for half a month to twenty days.
Therefore, Wei Yan strongly suggested that Zhang Xi lead five thousand troops and retreat to Gaoling. Holding Gaoling would be equivalent to guarding the entire army's retreat route.
Wei Yan's suggestion was supported by Zhang Yi, Hao Zhao and others, but was opposed by Zhang Xi.
Gaoling must be defended, but it is not up to Wei Yan to defend it.
As the commander-in-chief of the entire army, Zhang Xi cannot do such a shameless thing as retreating alone when faced with the pressure of the enemy's army and the possibility of being attacked from two sides.
And doing so is also very damaging to morale.
To put it nicely, it was to go to Gaoling to form a second line of defense to guard the army's retreat, but to put it worse, it was to escape from the battle.
The coach chooses to retreat when facing danger, leaving his soldiers to fight on the front line. Who would fight for such a coach? !
I appreciate your kindness, Wei Wenchang, but at this time, you should know the responsibilities of the commander of the first army best. Not only can you, Wei Wenchang, not withdraw, I can't withdraw either.
As for Gaoling, it is necessary to guard Gaoling. It is not only the retreat of Zuo Fengyi's main army and the place where grain and grass are stored, but it is also the seat of Zuo Fengyi's county seat and the gateway to Chang'an.
But now that there are cavalry of the Wei army cruising in the rear, it is not that simple to retreat to Gaoling.
Therefore, Zhang Xi ordered Hao Zhao, Xiang Chong, and Hu Fen, each with a thousand men, to break out in three ways and rush back to Gaoling in a detour. It was impossible to follow the command of Hu Zun, the prefect of Zuo Fengyi, to deploy the Wei cavalry. The troops were divided into three groups to pursue him, and there was always someone among the three who could retreat to Gaoling.
As for the remaining people, they all guarded Chongquan and were not allowed to retreat.
Although I feel a little sorry for Zhang Yi by doing this, I'm sorry, who asked you and me to be the first? If Zhang Yi is asked to retreat at this time, Zhang Xi is also afraid that others will have ideas.
Hao Zhao is a surrendered general, Xiang Chong is unfamiliar with him, and Hu Fen is the son of Hu Zun. Even if it is to appease Hu Zun and stick to Gaoling, he cannot be allowed to stay in Chongquan County. After all, Zhang Yi can only He has been with me the longest and is also the most trustworthy.
Therefore, Zhang Xi used a military order to forcefully issue such an order, and then at the evening of the next day, he arranged for three people to leave the city in batches and return to Gaoling to aid.
That's it for the rest of them. Whether they can win or not depends on this battle.
(End of chapter)
