However, it is said that Huang Chong led 1,500 people, carrying dry food, on mountain paths, crossed the remaining branches of the Qinling Mountains, and finally reached Xunshui. Then he went south along the Xunshui River Valley and finally reached the intersection of Xunshui and Hanshui. at.
Xunkou was indeed as he thought. There was no defense at all. Only a hundred Wei soldiers were patrolling the mouth of the river. When they saw the Han army coming, they dispersed without any resistance.
Huang Chong ordered his soldiers to rest for a while at Xunkou, and at the same time sent sentinels to Mulansai to inquire about it. Once they found out the situation clearly, they would directly seize the pass.
He had held back his energy during this trip, just to achieve military success.
It seems that today is the day to make great achievements.
The sentinel came back soon, and the news he brought back shocked Huang Chong: Mulan Sen had a clear flag and seemed to be guarded by many Wei soldiers.
"My trip was to carry rations and quickly cross the mountain. How did Cao Cao know that I wanted to seize this pass?" Huang Chong was now poured cold water on him. He didn't want to believe it at all. "Is it a false flag?"
He had worked so hard, how could he retreat so easily? He immediately gave the order to break camp and led his army to the foot of Mulan Fortress. As expected, he saw that the fortress was heavily fortified, which was different from Xunkou.
At that moment, he could only sigh, "Thief Cao is really capable."
With my own small force, if I want to capture such a pass, I have no other choice but to take it by surprise. Now that the fortress is on defense, it seems that this trip is destined to be in vain.
Before retreating, he reluctantly sent someone to ask who was locked up.
"A certain person is a subordinate of Sima Gong, the general of Wei Qiaoqi, and so is Hu Zun."
General Wei, who was at the fortress, replied loudly, "Sima Gong knew that this place was dangerous and sent someone here early. How can you, the little thieves, escape from Sima Gong's sight?"
Although he had been mentally prepared for a long time, Huang Chong was still shocked when he heard this. He thought to himself that Sima Yi was really powerful and could predict that he would attack Guan early.
So he had to retreat to avoid being surrounded.
Li Yi on the other side was also unable to capture Anqiao. When he got the news of Huang Chong's return, he went to join them.
After hearing about the situation of Huang Chong and Mulan Sai's party, Li Yi thought for a moment and said after careful consideration, "I'm afraid I was deceived by Hu Zun."
Huang Chong was startled and asked, "What do you mean by this?"
"If I were Sima Yi, I could have predicted that someone would attack the pass and set up an ambush. How could you come back safely?"
After hearing this, Huang Chong suddenly felt that it made sense, but he was still confused, "But how can we explain that Mulan Castle is heavily guarded?"
"This is beyond my knowledge. In my opinion, Sima Yi should have done this just in case, rather than expecting someone to come. After all, the pass is the only way to go from Wei Xing to Shangyong. It won’t hurt to make some preparations.”
When Li Yi said this, he sighed in admiration, "This Sima Yi is meticulous in his actions. He is indeed a capable person."
Huang Chong nodded. At this time, he had to be convinced even if he was not convinced, so he stopped looking down on the world's heroes.
The news of the appearance of Han soldiers in Mulansai soon spread to Sima Yi's army. All the generals in the army admired the general for predicting the enemy's opportunity.
Sima Yi had an indifferent look on his face, as if he was full of wisdom, "How can a bandit be so smart as to be able to climb the hall? Now the Wu bandits are blocked in Fangling, the Shu bandits are blocked in Anqiao and Mulansai, Shangyong Mengda, and there are no reinforcements." Come on, this city will undoubtedly be destroyed, and all the generals must step up their attack on the city and not slacken off."
"promise!"
After everyone left, Master Sima asked curiously, "How do you know that the Shu thieves will attack Mulan Sai?"
After everyone left, Sima Yi had a look of joy on his face, "I sent troops to Mulan fortress just in case. Not only to guard against Shu thieves, but also to guard against Shen Yi."
"Sir, are you worried about Shen Yi?"
Master Sima said something unexpectedly, remembering that his Excellency had scolded Shen Yi when he learned that Meng Da rebelled, and immediately asked, "Is it possible that Shen Yi also has rebel intentions?"
"The Shen family has been in the three counties of Shangyong for a long time and has deep roots. They have long regarded the three counties as their own territory." A sneer appeared on Sima Yi's face, "Then Shen Yi carved seals without authorization and gave them to others privately to win the hearts of the locals. How could I Do you believe this kind of people?"
"What's more, I want to bring in local wealthy families like the Shen family to relieve His Majesty's worries about me."
Having said this, Sima Yi smiled gloomily.
Master Sima was confused when he heard this, "Isn't your Majesty very fond of you now? How can you say that you are worried?"
"Our Majesty is not a simple person. If it weren't for the establishment of a queen, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to see his intentions."
Sima Yi chuckled and said, "The Yu family from Hedong is originally the head wife and a prominent family. Your Majesty did not make her your queen, but instead made the Mao family, who was of low origin, do you really think he just doted on his concubines? No, he just imitated the late emperor. It’s just wisdom.”
Seeing his son's puzzled look, Sima Yi was not harsh on him and just let him know.
At this time, Dalang had just lost his crown, and the game between the forces of the DPRK and China was beyond his ability to see clearly at the moment. He brought him to his side just to give him a long experience.
So Sima Yi explained to Master Sima in detail, "Back then, Queen Zhen was from a prominent family in Hebei. The late emperor deposed her and replaced her with Queen Guo because she was worried that the powerful family in Hebei would become too powerful."
"After all, Hebei was the old home of the Yuan family. Yecheng was originally the old capital of the Wei Dynasty. However, before the death of the late emperor, he visited all directions but did not enter Yecheng. Why do you think? It was just to suppress the prestige of the big families in Hebei. .”
"Two of the four auxiliary ministers in the court are members of the royal family. Chen Changwen and I represent the Hedong family and the Yingchuan family respectively. This is the balance set by the late emperor for His Majesty today."
"If the Hedong Yu family is appointed as the queen again, then the Hedong family will become too powerful, which is not what Your Majesty wants to see, so he followed the example of the previous emperor and established the Mao family with no foundation as the queen."
Having said this, Sima Yi looked at his son, and then pointed at himself, "The Sima family and the Yu family are both Hedong aristocratic families, and they are in the same spirit. The Yu family was deposed. Although the Sima family is not affected for the time being, it still needs to be done." It’s better to be careful.”
"So this time, I will not only put an end to the Shangyong Rebellion as soon as possible, but also attack the Shen family to let Your Majesty know that I am loyal. Not only will I not collude with the local wealthy families, but if they make mistakes , I will still be ungrateful, do you understand?"
After hearing this, Master Sima suddenly realized. He didn't expect that the fight for the queen's position two thousand miles away would actually affect this place?
Seeing his elder man's thoughtful expression, Sima Yi nodded with satisfaction.
Above the court, there is no need to be careless. The higher you are in a high position and the more powerful you are, the more careful you must be.
At that time, Emperor Wu once ordered himself to move forward, and then suddenly turned his head, saying that he was facing the front and standing still, which was a sign of a wolf. He once warned the late emperor that he was not a human subject and would definitely predict the affairs of the Cao family.
Fortunately, I had a good relationship with the late emperor. After hearing about this incident, I deliberately worked hard at my official duties and forgot to sleep at night. Even small things such as cutting grass and herding horses had to be done personally. This dispelled Emperor Wu's doubts.
Now that your Majesty has Emperor Leiwu, if you dare to bully his young age and start to despise him, you will definitely suffer.
"Okay, you are still young, things like this are beyond your imagination now. The most urgent task is how to defeat Shangyong City as soon as possible."
Sima Yi interrupted Sima Shi's train of thought.
Master Sima nodded, thought for a moment, and suddenly smiled, "My child has a way to break the hearts of the people in the city."
"Let me try it out."
"Then Mengda dared to defend the city, but he relied on the danger of Shangyong City and Wu Shu as an external support. Now that Wu and Shu's reinforcements have been blocked, as long as this news is spread to the city, the morale of the army will be shaken. If we try to persuade him to surrender, Mengda will no longer be willing to hold on."
Sima Yi listened and nodded with satisfaction, "Shangyong City is surrounded by water on three sides. If there is outside support, it will naturally be a defensive place. Now that foreign aid is cut off, it has become a dead place, and you can't even rush out. I don't like it. For a repetitive villain like Meng Da, trying to persuade him to surrender is not necessarily to persuade him to surrender."
"My lord, what you mean is..."
"Instruct all the troops to find an opportunity to pass the message to other guards in the city. If they are willing to help open the city gate, not only will they not be charged with the crime of rebellion, but they will be rewarded heavily!"
Sima Yi said coldly.
"My child understands!"
Shangyong City was originally under-prepared because of Sima Yi's quick arrival, but now news came that Wu Shu could not respond, and people in the city suddenly fluctuated.
In January of the sixth year of Jianxing, 16 days after Sima Yi attacked Shangyong City in eight groups, Mengda's nephew Deng Xian and his trusted general Li Fu finally collapsed mentally and secretly opened the city gate to surrender. The Wei army took the opportunity to swarm in.
Mengda was caught off guard and had nowhere to escape. After being captured, he was beheaded in public and his head was passed down to Luoyang.
At the same time, Zhuge Liang, the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty, announced that he was going out of Jikou through the Xie Valley and was preparing to take Yicheng. At the same time, he sent Zhao Yun as the commander and led the suspected army to set off.
Then he made use of the artificial stone road built last year and ordered Wei Yan to lead the front army and quietly stationed in Ju County at night.
After the Wei army sentries guarding various roads in Hanzhong learned about the path Zhao Yun was taking, they immediately flew on horseback to deliver the news to Luoyang.
Since the death of Liu Bei, Shu has been silent. When Cao Rui heard that Zhuge Liang was in Hanzhong, he only thought that he was patrolling the border and training in martial arts to prepare himself for attacking Hanzhong. He even wanted to send troops to attack Hanzhong.
Therefore, not only him, but also the government and the public looked down upon Shu from top to bottom.
I never thought that Zhuge villagers would be so bold, secretly gathering an army and sending troops from Hanzhong to attack.
The news reached Luoyang, and for a while, the government and the public were shocked.
General Cao Zhen rushed to Chang'an overnight to take charge of the overall situation, quickly gathered the troops in Guanzhong and headed for Yicheng.
Fortunately, Meng Da's head was reported to the capital at this time. Cao Rui immediately circulated the head in the streets of Luoyang, publicized it to reassure people, and then burned it in all directions of Luoyang.
Now that the Mengda rebellion was over, Cao Rui ordered Zhang He, who was stationed in Jingzhou, to rush back to Luoyang at night.
Because General Sima Yi wanted to appease the people in the new city, Cao Rui asked him to take full charge of Jingzhou's defense affairs.
When Zhuge Liang in Hanzhong heard that Cao Zhen in Guanzhong had been fooled, he notified the front army Wei Yan to go to Long. At the same time, he personally led the main force and followed closely, heading towards Qishan, the throat of Hanzhong to Longyou.
Wei Yan received the order and as soon as he left Ju County, he assigned a force to Liao Hua and asked him to enter Yinping, the military capital, to mow down the scattered Wei troops nearby to protect the grain road, while he led his troops directly northward.
After Zhuge Liang led his army to Ju County, he ordered Zhao Guang, the defender of Ju County, to take the name of Feng Yong. At the same time, he used Ju County as a grain garrison base to attack Longyou.
When the banner of the Han Dynasty appeared at the foot of Qishan City, the Wei soldiers in Qishan City thought they were dazzled and suddenly panicked.
In the early years, due to the Qiang-Hu Rebellion, the Ma Chao Rebellion, and the impact of the Hanzhong War, the vitality of the counties in Longyou was severely damaged, and the population dropped sharply.
In the past two years, the number of business trips between Longyou and Hanzhong has increased, giving them the illusion of peace. Who knew that Ji Han would actually attack with a large army?
"Enemy attack, enemy attack! Close the city gate, close the city gate quickly!"
The guard at the gate of Qishan City waved his whip and slapped the soldiers, urging them to close the gate with a burning heart.
Before Wei Yan rushed to the city, the city gate finally closed with a rumble, and the suspension bridge of the moat was also pulled up.
Seeing the heads swaying on the city wall, Wei Yan laughed, reined up his horse and shouted loudly, "Cao thief in the city, listen, I am Wei Yan, the general of the Han Dynasty's Northern Expedition Army. I know who I am, so hurry up." Open the city gate quickly and surrender, otherwise..."
Before he finished speaking, there was only a "whoosh" sound, and an arrow shot down from the city, and finally landed softly a foot away in front of him.
Although there was no shouting in the city, the arrow had already expressed its attitude.
Wei Yan was furious.
But now that he has just arrived with his army, he has not yet made any siege equipment. In addition, although the city is small, it is extremely dangerous. It is guarding the intersection to Tianshui from the north.
If the army wants to pass here to Tianshui, it must capture this city.
At that moment, he had no choice but to have trees cut down in order to prepare for the siege before the Prime Minister's army arrived.
At this time in Longyou, it is time to prepare for spring plowing.
In Luomen, Tianshui, a group of people were coming from the west along the Wei River.
The leader, who looked to be in his forties, was tall and elegant in appearance. He looked at the fields on both sides of the river as he walked. He was Guo Huai, the governor of Yongzhou.
He only heard him say, "I once heard that someone deliberately abandoned the fields in the past two years to raise sheep. Is there such a thing, Governor Ma?"
Ma Zun, the prefect of Tianshui County, stepped forward quickly and said, "Back to the governor, there are indeed people raising sheep in the past two years, but the fields are not abandoned, but the barbarians are driven to enclosure the land for raising sheep."
"Driving the barbarians to enclose the land?" the governor asked a little strangely, "the barbarians herd cattle and sheep, and the Han people plowed the fields. This is the right thing to do. Listening to your tone, is it possible that there are wealthy families in Tianshui who imitate the barbarians to herd cattle and sheep?"
"Replying to the governor, it's true."
Guo Huai was originally from a noble family, so he naturally knew how important the wealthy families were to their fields. If they enclosed the land for farming, that would be normal.
Because in the past two years, a kind of plow has been spread from Shu, called the curved shaft plow, which only uses one person and one ox. It is not only extremely convenient, but also labor-saving. It is much better than the previous two-oxen plow.
It would be best to use it for farming.
It used to be difficult to open up wasteland, but with this kind of plow, it is much easier to open up wasteland.
Unexpectedly, this wealthy family in Longyou behaved abnormally. Instead of using their land for farming, they used it for grazing cattle and sheep?
At that moment, Guo Huai was thoughtful, "In the past two years, Hu people have been coming to tell me that the Han people in Longyou do not allow them to graze. I originally thought that in Guanzhong and Longyou, the Hu people kept driving cattle and sheep here to graze. , just enough to appease them.”
"I didn't expect that something like this happened. Then do you know why they don't farm but herd cattle and sheep?"
When Ma Zun heard this, a look of embarrassment appeared on his face. He glanced at the people following him and coughed, "Return to the governor, these things were all done by the local big families. How do you know this?"
In today's world, local officials have to have a good relationship with the local aristocratic families in order to be in power, so Guo Huai didn't want to embarrass Ma Zun.
Moreover, it is almost an open secret that the wealthy families in Guanzhong, Longyou, and even Liangzhou have many connections with the south.
Even the late emperor held a special court meeting because of the excessive inflow of Shu brocade and wrote a "Book of Discussing Shu Brocade with the Officials" in order to warn wealthy people not to be proud of Shu Brocade.
Where does Shu brocade come from? Aren’t they all from Shu?
The price of Shu brocade from Wu is more than double, so the wealthy families in Longyou, Guanzhong, will find ways to buy it directly from Shu, and then transfer it to the Central Plains.
Although the imperial court deeply abhorred such behavior as liaison with Shu bandits, it had to hold its nose and accept it - because it was impossible to stop it.
