As soon as You Tong said these words, he was immediately frightened and made the staff tremble.
"The Duke led his army to Fanyang and personally went to the front to attack the two thieves Sun and Wang. After several months, the two thieves Sun and Wang are now at the end of the road. If they give it a little more time, they will surely defeat Zhang Wu."
"At this time, how can we retreat to Zhuocheng so easily?!"
You Tong was born in the You clan in Guangping County, Sizhou. The four brothers were collectively known as the "Guangping Siyou". They were not only famous for their knowledge and reputation, but also for their appearance.
Now that these words were spoken, they seemed even more righteous, and many people, including Zaosong, felt convinced.
Since Zaosong united with Duanbu Xianbei to seize power, many people in Youzhou have been dissatisfied. In addition, Sun Wei and Wang Zan of Zhangwu County are both veteran generals in Youzhou. If someone else is sent to lead the attack against them, , Zaosong was worried and could only come to supervise the formation himself.
Once Zaosong retreats to Zhuocheng, he will inevitably take the army away and dare not take advantage of others.
But in this way, Sun and Wang, who were finally suppressed, are afraid that they will regain their momentum and continue to cause trouble for the Southern Territory.
"What You Gong said does make sense." Zao Song stroked his thin beard and thought seriously.
Upon seeing this, You Tong immediately struck while the iron was hot and continued to speak with greater vigor.
"What's more, although Liu Yu brought tens of thousands of soldiers from Yuzhou and Yanzhou, he had already dispatched them to various counties to farm. Xindu's soldiers and horses already had less than 10,000 people. Even if he divided his troops to replace the counties, the troops inside and outside Fanyang The number of soldiers and horses is still several times that of his, so why be afraid!"
"Prior to this, the two thieves Sun and Wang repeatedly claimed that the Qingzhou thieves were coming, but they were just threats and deceptions. If the Qingzhou thieves were to attack, it would take tens of thousands of soldiers and horses to make the trip. I predict that Liu Yu will be unable to attack at this time."
"Otherwise, why would Liu Yu send secret envoys twice to lure the Duke to surrender?"
After listening to You Tong's analysis, Zaosong was even more certain that the Qingzhou thieves were unable to attack.
"Haha, Mr. You is a national scholar. I have made up my mind."
"I will be in charge of Fan Yang and continue to supervise the two thieves Sun and Wang. I will leave the affairs of Daijun to You Gong!"
Zaosong said this, and no one in the other staff dared to say anything, and they all kept their mouths shut.
"You Tong will not dare to accept the trust entrusted by the county magistrate!"
You Tong immediately said respectfully.
In just one day, You Tong was ready to go out to Daijun to quell the rebellion.
Zaosong led a group of officials from Xingtai in Youzhou to personally attend the tour for You Tongzhuang outside Fanyang City, which was really a courtesy.
Finally, Zaosong also sent his younger brother Zaoyue to serve under You Tong.
"My brother Zaoyue is familiar with military affairs. Let him serve as a marching commander under You Gong and share some trivial chores!"
The Marching Sima is usually the deputy of the commander-in-chief. He is involved in controlling important military affairs. He is not just a small staff member who handles trivial matters.
It is obvious that Zaosong used his younger brother Zaoyue as the supervisor to supervise You Tong.
When You Tong saw this, he felt contempt in his heart, but in front of many Xingtai officials, it was Zao Song who was embarrassed by such behavior, not himself.
Furthermore, as long as he leads his troops and horses away from Fanyang City, the original plan will be half successful, and a mere Zaoyue will be of no concern.
You Tong agreed happily without showing any displeasure, which made Zao Song completely let go of his wariness.
You Tong led more than 10,000 troops and horses to the north along the straight road, and arrived in Gu'an County in only one day.
Part of the Youzhou Army's food and baggage was stored here. You Tong replenished the food and grass here before continuing to the northwest.
However, after replenishing the food and supplies in Gu'an City, You Tong still had no intention of leading the army to set off on the second day.
Facing the confused marching Sima Zaoyue and others, You Tong just reasoned that the provisions and baggage were not fully prepared, and it was necessary to recruit more carriages and horses for pack transportation, otherwise the mountainous terrain of Daijun would make it difficult to transport grain and grass.
Marching Sima Zaoyue and others were not familiar with military affairs, so they continued to stay for two days without doubting his presence.
After gathering many chariots and horses, You Tong led the entire army to head north, but the march was very slow along the way.
Even the marching Sima Zaoyue, who was not familiar with military affairs, felt that the marching speed was too slow. It was so far away from Fan Yang. If he walked to Daijun at this speed, it would take years and months.
Faced with Zaoyue's new doubts, You Tong had no choice but to explain patiently.
"If you don't hear that troops are coming from hundreds of miles away, you will definitely defeat the general. If you march in a hurry, when you arrive at Daijun, you will only be a group of tired soldiers. How can you fight! The marching speed must be accelerated gradually, so that the soldiers cannot adapt better."
After hearing this, Marching Sima Zaoyue immediately agreed in his heart. He felt that You Tong, one of the "Guangping Four Tours", was really capable. He was secretly happy that he had learned another trick.
When the army continued to march northward to Qiu County (Nainai County), marching Sima Zaoyue felt confused again.
If he went to Dai County, he should take another shortcut, but now he came to the boundary of Qiu County. Zaoyue looked at the map carefully, and the more he looked at it, the more he felt that something was completely different.
Faced with the doubts of the marching Sima Zaoyuexin, the general You Tong explained patiently.
"The thieves from Daijun must have thought that the army would take the southern route through Guangchang County. There would be an ambush there, waiting for us to hit them head-on."
"So, I, the general, will go to the north of Qiuxian County, take a detour north along the Juma River, exit Feihukou in the west, and then go straight to the Daijun thief's nest. In this way, the battle can be decided!"
After the marching Sima Zaoyue heard this, he felt secretly happy again. "Guangping Junzi" You Tong is really a wise general. Today he learned another trick, which is the "avoid the truth and use the imaginary" in the Yinghe War Book. 'Attack the unprepared'.
After returning to the account, Zaoyue immediately wrote down today's gains with pen and paper, so that he could study them carefully in the future.
After crossing the Juma River, it started to rain heavily. General You Tong stationed himself in place on the grounds that the army's food and baggage could not be damaged by the rain.
At this time, the straight road in front of You Tong happened to be two intersections.
One road goes northwest along the Juma River, then leaves Feihukou and reaches Daijun.
The other road goes to the northeast, about fifty miles away, to Zhuocheng, the seat of Youzhou government.
In the military camp that had just been set up, the general Zao Song, who was sent to Daijun to quell the rebellion, looked up at the light rain falling from the sky and couldn't help but think to himself.
"Now Zhuocheng is close at hand."
"Judging from the weather conditions in the past few days, this rain will only last for two days at most. If there is still no news coming from the direction of Fanyang, then I will have no choice but to find reasons to delay the march."
"Even if Fan Yang's mission fails, I can lead the army directly to Zhuocheng. By then, all the officials' families will be in hand, and they will no longer be afraid of Zaosong!"
You Tong thought of this, and the expression on his face became more serious and cautious.
The marching Sima Zaoyue next to him saw that the general You Tong was not afraid of the rain, looking up at the sky, with a sad expression on his face because the rain had delayed the march, and his admiration for him increased by two points.
Zaoyue also secretly thought in his heart.
"The scholars in Youzhou say that You Tong is talented but not virtuous, but I think You Tong is loyal and diligent in his work. He is so worried about the rain delaying his trip. He is really a loyal gentleman."
