At this time in Wei State, Chen Qun, who originally had the highest status in the court, had passed away half a year ago.
In other words, of Cao Rui's four auxiliary ministers, only Sima Yi remains.
Two months ago, Shangshu ordered Chen Jiaogang to worship Situ, and he passed away last month.
In other words, no one holds the positions of the three princes.
Xue Ti, who had just been promoted to Shangshu Ling, stepped forward, picked up the military newspaper, read it once, and handed it to his right servant Sima Fu. After Sima Fu read it, he handed it to the Central Guards Jiang Ji...
Seeing that all the ministers below were silent, Cao Rui couldn't help but feel even more angry:
"What's the matter? You're not saying anything? Didn't you always boast that the Shu captives would definitely be defeated a few days ago?"
"Now that Shu soldiers are invading Bingzhou, why is no one coming up with a strategy to retreat from the enemy? Speak up!"
After Cao Rui yelled out the last few words, he felt his eyes began to swell and hurt, and turned black. He quickly closed his eyes, leaned back on the soft cushion, and took a few breaths.
However, the news that the Shu captives broke through the border from Bingzhou and went south was not only difficult for Cao Rui to accept, but also some veterans who had experienced hardships for a long time were so shocked that their faces turned pale.
Not to mention the fifth and sixth grade officials, almost everyone looked frightened, and some even had weak legs.
How can I get out of the queue and speak when I can't even stand?
The rare silence in the court reminded some senior officials of the time when Emperor Wu almost moved the capital.
At that time, there was also a man named Guan...
Why does this man named Guan always like to lead the army to approach the capital of Wei?
After the suppressed silence, Yang Ji, the leader of the Central Committee, finally spoke:
"Your Majesty, I believe that the urgent need now is to reinforce Jinyang as soon as possible. As long as Jinyang is not broken, the Shu captives will not dare to continue southward with confidence."
Cao Rui then opened his eyes and sighed with a tired face:
"This is the only plan we have now. There is no other way. But where will the reinforcements come from?"
Yang Ji said categorically:
"Hanoi County still has 50,000 elite soldiers, who can just go to Zhiguanxing to enter Bingzhou to prepare for the Shu captives."
Fortunately, the 50,000 men recruited from Hebei were not sent to Guanzhong at that time!
The monarchs and ministers of the Wei Kingdom felt a little lucky in their hearts.
Otherwise, the situation may become irremediable.
Cao Rui asked again:
"But who will be sent to lead the army to stop the Shu captives?"
The ministers were silent again.
Nowadays, in addition to guarding Yangzhou and Jingzhou, those who can be used in the army are basically sent to Guanzhong.
On the other hand, the Xiahou clan still had some talents, but it was a pity that Cao Rui did not dare to use them.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help feeling sad:
During the reign of Emperor Wu and Emperor Wen, the country was powerful and had countless elite soldiers and generals. How could it end up like this in their own hands?
Jiang Ji, the Central Protector, finally stood up:
"I am willing to go."
Cao Rui looked at this veteran of three dynasties and couldn't help but be moved. He said sincerely:
"Thank you, Jiang Zhonghu. I wonder if Jiang Zhonghu has any requests?"
Jiang Ji kowtowed, then raised his head, gritted his teeth and said angrily:
"My only request is to implore Your Majesty to issue an order to punish Bi Gui for his dereliction of duty."
Not only Cao Rui, but also the officials of Wei State were all horrified, wondering why Jiang Ji said these words.
Jiang Ji was heard saying loudly:
"Your Majesty, Bi Gui first tried to force the Hu people to rebel, and then suffered the humiliation of defeat outside the Great Wall. Now he has acted inappropriately in the face of the Shu captives."
"The soldiers didn't know how to close the city gates and guard, but instead fought with the Shu captives in the wild. His move to summon the Xiongnu was particularly hateful. He really gave up Jinyang to the Shu captives!"
After listening to Jiang Ji's words, many people were confused. Some people asked in confusion:
"Jiang Zhonghu, the Huns are brave and brave, so they gathered together to stop the Shu captives. What's wrong with that?"
When Jiang Ji heard this, he turned his head suddenly, startling the person who asked the question:
"If the Huns were available, why didn't Emperor Wu order them to guard Yanmen instead of putting them behind Jinyang? It's really because the Huns can't be trusted!"
"When the world was in chaos, the Xiongnu took the opportunity to cause chaos many times and plundered Bingzhou, Hedong and other places, which shows their wolfish ambitions."
"It would be fine if Bi Gui could defeat the Shu captives, but the Xiongnu would not dare to be dissatisfied. If the situation is even slightly unfavorable, I am afraid that the Xiongnu will intend to cause rebellion, and it will be too late to regret it!"
For twenty years, the military commanders and horses alone were able to control the Xiongnu tribes, which made many people in Wei develop a habit of dependence.
They did not realize that the current situation of merging states made Wei lose its ability to suppress the Huns.
It can be said that it is simply a dream to force the Huns and barbarians to desperately resist the Han army without a sufficient number of Wei troops to suppress the Xiongnu tribes.
Jiang Ji was an old minister who had followed Cao Cao from the beginning and even commanded the army in place of Cao Ren.
Having experienced the three generations of Cao and Wei, he has far more knowledge than most people.
In the fourth year of Zhongping, that is, fifty years ago, the power of the Later Han Dynasty was still there, but because the Xiongnu were conquered too frequently, many Huns actually rebelled against the Xiongnu Chanyu who had obeyed the orders of the Later Han Dynasty.
Now Bi Gui's bullying of the Xiongnu in Bingzhou was even greater than that of the Later Han Dynasty. How could the Xiongnu have no intention of causing rebellion?
Now that Bingzhou's troops were empty, he still summoned the Huns to Jinyang regardless of life and death, which simply provided the best opportunity for the Huns to cause rebellion.
Jiang Ji can be sure that as long as the Xiongnu tribes are slightly disadvantageous in fighting against the Shu captives, those barbarians who have been dissatisfied for a long time may disperse in droves.
As long as someone provokes them even slightly, the Xiongnu tribe behind Jinyang will probably cause trouble everywhere.
The more Jiang Ji said, the more excited he became, his anger was beyond words, and he finally shouted:
"From this point of view, Bigui is harming the country!"
Cao Rui was shocked.
Recalling that after Bi Gui's defeat, Jiang Ji once said strongly that Bi Gui was unfit to serve as the governor of Bingzhou and it would be better to recall him to the court.
Unexpectedly, it turned out to be a prophecy.
Thinking of this, Cao Rui also regretted:
"I regret that I didn't listen to your words, which led to today's failure. This time when I go north, I will give you a fake yellow axe, and you will be in charge of everything in the state."
"I accept the decree."
After deciding on the candidate to lead the army, Cao Rui said:
"The situation is urgent. I will immediately send people to Guanzhong and ask Da Sima to find ways to pay attention to the movements of the Shu captives. At that time, Jiang Zhonghu will work closely with Da Sima to expel the Shu captives."
Speaking of Da Sima, Cao Rui couldn't help but glance coldly at his right servant Sima Fu.
Sima Fu looked at his nose with his eyes, and his nose with his heart, but he just lowered his head and said nothing.
For such a big mistake this time, Sima Fu knew that His Majesty would definitely blame his second brother (i.e. Sima Yi).
At this time, it is better to speak more than to speak less, and to speak less is better to remain silent.
Just when Jiang Ji was preparing to cross the river from Luoyang north to Hanoi to take over the strategic mobile forces that Wei could now mobilize.
General Guan was already leading the cavalry, chasing Sima Huan all the way south.
If Sima Huan hadn't been able to exit the mountain pass during the night for half the night, he would have been annihilated with all 5,000 men in his hands.
Even so, this Wei army is still dying, dying, and scattered.
In the end, Sima Huan only led less than two thousand cavalry, and did not dare to stop for a moment along the way. He rushed back to Jinyang and closed the city gate tightly.
From Yanmen, General Guan coerced the Hu people all the way south, and also subdued the left and right Xiongnu troops. When he arrived at the gate of Jinyang City, he actually waved a banner and claimed to have an army of 50,000.
Jinyang is located to the west of Fen River, surrounded by mountains and rivers. The terrain is dangerous and the city is high and the pond is deep.
As Shi Bao organized his men to cross the water, he looked at Jincheng not far ahead, and couldn't help but admire General Guan.
At this time, he finally understood why General Guan was resting in Jiuyuan County, allowing the Wei thieves to easily occupy the mountain pass north of Jinyang.
This was simply done intentionally by General Guan.
If General Guan rushes south as he did before, he will only force 5,000 Wei troops to defend the city.
When the time comes, the Wei thieves will let more than 10,000 barbarians gather under the city. At this time, the army may not be able to cross the Fen River so easily.
On the contrary, if the Wei thieves are allowed to defend at a dangerous pass, it may seem that the opponent has the upper hand, but in fact it will force the opponent to divide their troops into two parts.
Even without Liu Hun, these barbarians who were temporarily summoned would sooner or later be defeated by General Guan because they fought on their own and had different orders.
This can be said that "those who are good at fighting will harm others without harming them."
The Han army outside the city was crossing the water in a mighty manner, but Bi Gui inside the city stared at Sima Huan with red eyes, as if he wanted to eat him:
"This is what you said, instead of defending the city, it is better to defend the danger? Why didn't you defend? How dare Sima Shuzi'an misunderstand me like this!"
If Bi Gui had the right to hold the law, he could guarantee that he would definitely kill this person.
Li Xi looked at Sima Huan also angrily.
When I first saw this man boasting and talking, I thought he was really capable of leading an army, but I didn't expect him to be so miserable.
Even if you die in battle, it is still better than running back to Jinyang with the defeated army.
If that were to happen, there would be no troops to defend the city, and everyone would be blameless whether they abandoned the city "as a last resort" or surrendered as a "last resort".
Now that you are running back with your men, do you want us to defend you or not?
If it were to be defended, the possibility of this person being able to defend Jinyang was almost non-existent.
But if you don't abide by it, it will be a serious crime according to Wei law.
The most terrifying thing is that if you can't defend it and defend it forcefully, the city will eventually be captured by the Shu captives. In anger, the opponent will say something like "no limit for three days."
In the future, all the officials in the city would like to eat people like themselves alive.
So this unlucky thing is basically leading everyone to death!
"Your Majesty, the city cannot be defended. Now that the Han army has not officially laid siege to the city, we should make a decision as soon as possible about where we should go."
Sima Huan ran fast, and the Han army was not slow in pursuit.
As soon as the defeated army entered the city, the Han army followed closely behind.
This made it too late for Jinyang to mobilize the young men in the city.
Bi Gui stopped roaring at Sima Huan, his blood-red eyes filled with madness:
"I am deeply favored by the country, so why should I shrink back? Even if I am defeated, I must still fight hard to kill the thief!"
It was impossible not to be afraid. He had already been afraid when he heard that the Shu captives were heading south.
But when things came to pass, no matter how scared he was, he still had to consider his family in Luoyang.
His Majesty has always been deeply dissatisfied with himself.
Now, if he abandons the city and flees south, the whole family will be dragged down by him.
It is better to fight to the death. Even if he dies, His Majesty will see that he will fight to the death and leave some dignity to the family.
He growled to Sima Huan in a hoarse voice:
"Immediately gather your soldiers and go to the top of the city to defend the city. If you can defend it, you can make up for your mistakes. If you can't, your wife and daughter will wait to become the wife and daughter of a scholar's family!"
A scholar family is a family that has been serving as soldiers for generations.
As soon as the soldiers in the front died in battle, the wives and daughters in the rear were taken away by the officials and given away to others.
When Sima Huan heard this, his body trembled. He did not dare to show any signs of neglect and quickly turned around to get ready.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he went out, he suddenly heard a "bang" sound.
He quickly followed the sound and saw a beautiful firework blooming over the north gate.
Sima Huan's legs went weak and he fell to the ground with a "thud" sound.
Stars fall, see stars fall again...
