"Old General, you worked hard yesterday. It doesn't matter if you rest a little longer. You haven't had breakfast yet, right? Let's drink this bowl of porridge first." Zhao Yun did not respond directly, but pushed his own porridge over.
Huang Zhong sat on the bed, stared at the porridge on the table and thought for a while. He felt a little anxious just now, so he lowered his voice and said: "Military affairs are still important. Is it a little late to eat at this hour? I usually sleep. It’s very light, I didn’t expect that I overslept today.”
"No hurry, no hurry, it's not too late to talk about military affairs over hot porridge." Zhao Yun behaved calmly.
"Hey" Huang Zhong just held the porridge bowl with both hands, and suddenly put it down with a frown: "Although our army has plenty of food and grass, we'd better seize the time. Wouldn't it be better to do it faster than the three generals?"
"I told you there was no rush. The scouts sent out in the morning came with news that the Yinpan City ahead was empty. Zhang He and his men escaped before dawn. Let's have a good rest before we hit the road, and then go straight to Linjing to capture Cao Zhen." Zhao Yun saw that Huang Zhong was still anxious, so he told the good news.
"Seriously?" Huang Zhong was overjoyed when he heard this, then he picked up the porridge and blew it gently, "Zhang He is not very talented, but his ability to escape is second to none."
While the two were talking, the guard brought another bowl of porridge. Zhao Yun shook his head and said: "There are few villains in Yinpan City. Once surrounded, they will be captured. It is not so much that Zhang He is a coward and escapes, but he knows how to preserve his strength. Old Did the general forget the battle of Chencang? This guy is not polite when fighting against General Yan."
"He is the work of a traitor, and he is worthy of being brought out by the traitor Cao Cao." Huang Zhong cursed a few words and poured the gruel into his mouth.
Zhao Yun frowned and said thoughtfully: "Zhang He is smarter than Xia Houyuan and more difficult to deal with than Xia Houyuan. I don't know if Linjing is easy to fight. Cao Zhen's defenders are twice as many as ours."
"Anding is seriously short of food. The more Cao Zhen's troops, the better. The worst he can do is to set up a pot outside Linjing City, and the Wei soldiers will starve to death or die of greed." Huang Zhong said disdainfully.
"Linjing is blocked by a city wall, so the method of setting up pots in the wild won't work. After we have a rest, we will slowly think of countermeasures on the road." Zhao Yun looked serious.
Huang Zhong seemed relaxed on the contrary, "Just do whatever Zilong says. What I said yesterday will stand. You will be the main general for this trip."
"Uh, okay." Zhao Yun reluctantly agreed.
Zhang He originally planned to stay in Yinpan for a few days, fearing that he would be scolded by Cao Zhen for escaping back. However, Yang Qiu was defeated and failed to kill Huang Zhong but lost his life, so he led his troops to escape before dawn the next day. , before leaving, they plundered the few thousand remaining households in the city.
Anding County has fewer people and more soldiers, and the people have been exploited to the point where they can no longer live anymore. Now they are being robbed by the Wei army and have to wait for death. Zhang He leaves a mess wherever he goes. He wants to hinder Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong from advancing.
Doesn’t Liu Xuande pride himself on benevolence and righteousness? His soldiers can't just die without saving them, right?
Zhang He fled northwest along the Jingshui River back to Linjing in a worried mood. Cao Zhen's face turned as black as if he had smeared ashes on the bottom of a pot. Zhang He said to himself that this time it would be terrible and he might be severely punished. .
"General, I will apologize." Zhang He first admitted his mistake with his fists clasped.
Cao Zhen, who was on the throne, spoke in a cold tone and teased: "General Zhang's food scouts have just arrived in Jing a few days ago. Are you here to urge them yourself now?"
"The last general didn't dare, just because Zhao Yun was cunning and deliberately cooked in front of the formation."
Before Zhang He could finish his words, he was interrupted by Cao Zhen, "Okay, the previous scout has already reported. General Zhang is a veteran on the battlefield. Don't you know how to think of something?"
"The last general once tried boiling water to make wild vegetable soup to warm the soldiers under the tent. Unexpectedly, the more they drank, the hungrier they became." Zhang He explained helplessly.
Cao Zhen shook his head in disappointment, "What an idiot. Drinking water to satisfy hunger can only be used occasionally. Drinking water like this every day will stretch your belly. Don't you feel hungry?"
"Uh, general" Zhang He thought he could fool him, but he didn't expect that Cao Zhen was an expert in running the army. He couldn't find a suitable explanation for being reprimanded at this time.
"The shortage of food and grass is a fact. If you can't solve it, you will always be at the mercy of others. I can't blame you entirely. Did the Marquis of Linjing go away? Why didn't you return with Junyi?" Cao Zhen asked curiously, frowning.
Zhang He raised his head with a sad expression and replied seriously: "The Marquis of Linjing saw that Huang Zhong was pursuing a small army, and wanted to capture and kill him while he was trapped and out of horses. He was accidentally shot by Huang Zhong, and more than half of his troops were lost."
"What?" Cao Zhen jumped up and blamed him bitterly: "In front of Yangping Pass and at the foot of Dingjun Mountain, General Zhang saw Huang Zhong's martial arts and archery skills with his own eyes. Why didn't he advise the Marquis of Linjing? I don't think he is a reckless person."
Zhang He cupped his fists and replied: "Huang Zhong was short of men and horses at that time, and the Marquis of Linjing's troops and horses were full of energy, and his troops were more than twice the opponent's. It seemed that there was an opportunity to take advantage of it. The general tried so hard to persuade him, but the Marquis of Linjing was so eager to make a contribution."
Cao Zhen asked in confusion: "The soldiers and horses commanded by General Yang are the elite Yongliang troops I mobilized. Not only are they more powerful than the Han army, but they are at least equally matched. Why did they lose to Huang Zhong with twice the force?"
"After being chased for a day, the general's troops were too tired to fight anymore, so he went back to Yinpan County to rest alone. He didn't know the actual situation, but listening to Linjing Marquis's recollection of his retreat, he was about to kill Huang Zhong, but in the end Zhao Yun suddenly arrived with reinforcements, so..." Zhang He lowered his head after speaking.
"Zhao Zilong from Changshan, Liu Bei has so many fierce generals." Cao Zhen punched the case, a trace of despair flashed in his sad eyes.
"General, Zhao Yun's troops are much more stable than Huang Zhong's. The Han army was not in a hurry to pursue the scouts who stayed in Yinpan in the end. Now that they have enough food in Guanzhong, they will probably fight a war of attrition with us, and Beidi County's The food road has been cut off again. The more soldiers there are in Linjing, the more they will be unable to defeat the opponent. The terrain for a frontal attack is limited, and the battlefield situation is extremely unfavorable to us. You should make plans early." Zhang He cupped his fists and made a sincere suggestion.
Cao Zhen stroked his white beard and nodded, "General, I have made up my mind. I plan to give up stability and immediately withdraw the entire army to Wuwei for defense. Wuwei is adjacent to Zhangye and Jiuquan. It has a large population and a lot of cattle, sheep and horses, so I will no longer defend it. Worrying about food and grass, there will be no situation where Zhao Yun will take the blame in front of the formation."
"Just withdraw?" Zhang He opened his eyes wide, thinking that you have done it in one step, which is more convenient than me.
Cao Zhense said: "When the rebellion continues, Longyou's messenger arrived in Linjing last night. Zhang Derong has indeed died of illness. People in Longyou are now panic-stricken. The Qiang and Hu instigated by Ma Chao in various counties are ready to move. I'm afraid Zhang Fei's The troops will fall as soon as they arrive, and it will also affect Jincheng and Wuwei. There is no point in continuing to defend the peace. If Zhang Fei cuts off the retreat to Wuwei, then tens of thousands of us will really starve to death."
Zhang He suddenly realized that it was no wonder Cao Zhen was so decisive. It turned out to be Long You's information.
"The general is wise." Zhang He did not forget to applaud him.
(End of chapter)
