Chapter 793 Zhongda’s plan
It is said that Cao Pi and Cao Zhi did not expect Zhou Buyi to abandon the city. A few days later they sent out scouts and discovered that Puyang was already an empty city. The Cao brothers then met in Puyang and held a celebration banquet to celebrate their major victory over the Qinglong Army.
Sima Yi rested outside the city and did not attend the reunion banquet of the Cao brothers. Zhou Busuo broke out of the encirclement, which made Sima Yi quite regretful. If Zhou Buyi, the second-ranking figure in the Qinglong Army, could be captured alive in one fell swoop, Sima Yi would be able to show his heroic nature, and Zhongda's name would surely become world-famous from now on.
Sitting in the tent, Sima Yi calmed down from his initial complacency and squinted his eyes to fall asleep. Dai Ling, the young general next to him, did not dare to disturb him and stood guard with his sword on his waist.
The night was deep, the moon and stars were sparse outside the military tent, dark clouds occasionally drifted by, and there were only the lights of the guarding military camp around, making it extremely quiet. Suddenly, Sima Yi slapped the marching table with a snap. Dai Ling turned around in excitement and saw Sima Yi's eyes widening. He looked at Dai Ling blankly and said: "Quick! Quick!"
Dai Ling was confused by what Sima Yi said, and he didn't dare to ask more questions, so he had to stand by in embarrassment. Sima Yi rushed over from behind the case, his eyes were like fire and said: "Hurry up and get on your horse. I want you to personally lead the people to Yecheng for a comprehensive reconnaissance. I will come back and report tomorrow at the latest."
Although the garrison outside Puyang is not far from Yecheng, it is still two hundred miles away. Even if we set out at starry night, we may not be able to arrive at dawn, not to mention that we have to return tomorrow. Dai Ling thought to himself: "This is to take the horse." Are you exhausted?"
But Dai Ling did not dare to neglect and responded: "Young man, let's go right away." After saying that, he turned around and Sima Yi grabbed him and said, "If you encounter an ambush on the road, you must not be reluctant to fight. You must find a way to sneak into Yecheng and get to the city." Take a look at the situation of the defenders."
Dai Ling asked rigorously: "The military advisor wants to see if Zhou Buyi's army entered Yecheng after breaking through?"
Sima Yi shook his head and said: "Puyang has fallen, and Yecheng hangs alone in a corner of Jizhou. If our army encircles us, wouldn't it be like catching a turtle in a urn? How could a wise man in the world make such an unwise plan? I suspect that Yecheng is already an empty city." But Zhou Buji must have arranged all kinds of illusions to confuse our army and make our army think that the Qinglong Army will defend Yecheng, so I told you to be careful about ambushes on the road and be sure to climb to the top of the city to have a look."
Dai Ling understood, and couldn't help but feel his blood boiling. He said with great joy: "Don't worry, military advisor, I am responsible for both the truth and the truth of Ye City. Dai Ling will live up to his command!" After saying that, without further words, he strode out of the tent and arranged for the reconnaissance cavalry to leave.
After Dai Ling left, Sima Yi was still worried. If he wanted to use a large force to go west to capture Ye City, he still needed Cao Pi's approval. Otherwise, it will arouse Cao Pi's doubts and all efforts will be in vain.
Sima Yi ordered horses to be prepared and ordered Liu Ruojin to guard the gate. He took dozens of guards and beat the horses to Puyang City. Originally, it was urgent for the troops to pursue Zhou Buyi to the west. Unfortunately, Cao Pi insisted on having this meeting banquet with Cao Zhi tonight, and Sima Yi did not dare to persuade him.
However, the matter involved the important town of Yecheng. Sima Yi felt that the situation was urgent. In order to prevent Zhou Busuo from escaping overnight, maybe Cao Pi would listen to his advice and allow the large army to advance westward quickly without giving Zhou Busuo the time and space to escape.
As long as Zhou Buyi's Qinglong Army can be blocked in Yecheng and Prime Minister Cao breaks through Luoyang, he can control all the cities up and down the Yellow River in the Central Plains and establish an indestructible Yellow River defense line. Then Jizhou will be within easy reach and Yuan Shu will have no way to escape. Planning to attack Chang'an City was also effortless.
Sima Yi beat the horses all the way, and with this grand plan in mind, more than 20 horses rushed into Puyang City under the moonlight. Asked about the location of General Wu Guanzhong, Cao Pi's escort led Sima Yi to a large house. Pavilions and pavilions can be seen outside the mansion, and the sound of silk and bamboo orchestra can be heard faintly. It seems that they are having a carnival of wine.
Sima Yi followed the sound of music and stepped into a large courtyard. When the guard at the door looked carefully, he saw that it was Sima Yi, a popular man under Cao Pi. He did not dare to stop him and hurriedly led him into the lobby. As soon as Sima Yifu entered the lobby, he saw a large group of singing girls in peach robes in the middle. They were all dressed very enchantingly. Although their thin gauze clothes had long water sleeves, the key points were looming, and they were dancing to the song of colorful feather clothes.
The stout men sitting in a circle were all the elites of the Cao family on the battlefield. At this time, they all showed expressions of brilliance and enlightenment. Some of them even salivated at the elder. It felt like he wanted to drag one of them to bed.
Sima Yi walked along the corridor, but no general noticed his arrival. Sima Yi saw from a distance that the people in charge were the two brothers Cao Pi and Cao Zhi. Cao Pi was flanked by his rival Wu Zhi, and Cao Zhi was flanked by his old enemy Yang Xiu.
At this time, the four of them were each holding a beautiful girl up and down their hands, having fun, and no one noticed Sima Yi's presence. Sima Yi shook his head and had no choice but to walk forward along the backs of the generals. He looked like an idle man stealing landmines. When he finally reached the end of the aisle, he was spotted by General Xia Houwei, who was sitting first on the left hand side. He stood up and saluted. Said: "Zhongda! The general is polite here!"
Xia Houwei, courtesy name Ji Quan, was a native of Qiao County, Pei State. He was the fourth son of Xia Houyuan, the general who conquered the west, and the younger brother of Xia Houba. Xia Houwei actually had a very close relationship with Cao Pi and Cao Zhi, but because Xia Houyuan favored Cao Zhi, Xia Houwei went with Cao Zhi on the expedition this time.
In the official history, Xia Houwei, a young man, already had a chivalrous demeanor, a better ability to judge people, and was proficient in martial arts. As the fourth son of Wei general Xia Houyuan, he was very friendly with the then crown princes Cao Pi and Cao Zhi. When Xia Houwei first met the young Yang Hu, he thought he was knowledgeable, talented, and good at talking. He admired him very much, so he came up with the idea to marry his brother Xia Houba's daughter to Yang Hu. Later, Yang Hu became a A famous general of a generation, and the famous Soochow general Lu Kang staged a beautiful talk about the "friendship between Yang and Lu". It shows that Xia Houwei has the ability to know people.
In the hustle and bustle, Xia Houwei's stop was very conspicuous. Yang Xiu was the first to react and saw Sima Yi who was returning greetings to Xia Houwei by the wall. Yang Xiu laughed, pushed away the girl beside him, stood up and raised his wine glass and said: "Brother Zhongda! You are late! Hurry up and drink three glasses of wine!"
Yang Xiu's laughter finally attracted the attention of Cao Pi and Cao Zhi, who were indulging in wine and sex. Cao Pi raised his hand as if to come quickly, laughed loudly and shouted: "Zhongda! I asked you to come, but you don't come, but you don't." Please come, you must drink Yang Dezu's fine wine!"
Cao Zhi glanced at Sima Yi with a smile, put his arm around the shoulders of the beautiful woman next to him, and raised his hand to drink a glass of fine wine. The strange thing was that Wu Zhi looked embarrassed. He only shouted and raised his glass, but did not stand up to greet him. Cao Zhi and Cao Pi had high status, so of course they would not stand up to greet Sima Yi, but if Wu Zhi did not stand up to greet him, the careful general already had a question mark in his mind. Could it be that the two think tanks under Cao Pi were not in harmony?
If you want to know what happens next, listen to the explanation next time.
