Guanzhong, Lantian.
In Cao Jun's tent, the charcoal was swallowed up by the flames, and the sound of beeping was heard. The high temperature released by the orange flames dispelled the cold in the tent.
"The horse is brave and cannot be defeated easily!"
On the couch, Cao Cao's face was gloomy, but his heart was not dull, and he said: "The officers and soldiers of Guanxi are more familiar with spears, are brave in battle, and are not afraid of death. Although the soldiers under the lone tent are fierce, they are not as good as the soldiers of Guanxi. Fortunately, Han Sui died, otherwise this battle It will be difficult!"
The Kansai troops and horses were strong and capable, exceeding Cao Cao's expectations. In particular, the Qiang cavalry led by Ma Chao were extremely brave and skilled with bows and horses, which gave Cao Cao a headache.
In the great battle a few days ago, Cao Cao's army was almost broken by Ma Chao. Thanks to Xu Huang and Zhu Ling's resistance, they were able to repel Ma Chao's army.
Nowadays, when talking about infantry and cavalry combat, generally speaking, the strongest combat effectiveness is the Guanxi soldiers, followed by the Central Plains soldiers and horses under Cao Cao's account, the Wu Chu troops under Liu Bei's account are the third most powerful, and Liu Zhang's Bashu troops are the last.
However, in addition to combat effectiveness, there is also discipline. The Kansai soldiers lacked military discipline and could not last long. The reason why Cao Cao was able to fight Ma Chao without a clear outcome was mainly due to the inability of the Kansai troops to fight a protracted war. At the end of the war, Ma Chao saw that the situation on the battlefield was not good and took the initiative to withdraw his troops.
The reason why Zhang Fei was able to kill Han Sui and defeat Ma Chao. Yu Zhang Fei caught him by surprise, detoured around Yangping Pass, and led his elite troops to ambush Han Sui on the mountain road.
As he said this, Cao Cao said with emotion to the civil and military officials on his left and right: "Having a son is like a horse rising up!"
Xia Houyuan made a knife with his hand and said: "Prime Minister, Ma Teng and his son are both in Yecheng. Now Ma Chao is causing chaos in Guanxi. Why don't we kill him as a warning to others?"
Cao Cao stroked his beard and lowered his head in thought.
After a while, Cao Cao looked at Cheng Gongying and asked: "You are from Guanxi and have always worked under Wen Yue. What do you think of the words of a wonderful talent?"
After Han Sui's death, Yan Xing and Cheng Gongying welcomed Han Sui's youngest son Han Fu as their leader, and Ma Chao wanted to enter Longyou to fight for territory. Together with Wei Kang, the governor of Liangzhou, and Yang Fu, they gathered troops from Longyou and defeated Ma Chao. Now that Cao Cao has entered Guanzhong, Cheng Gongying, as Han Fu's representative, asked Cao Cao for orders to surrender.
Cheng Gongying pondered for a while and said: "Most of the generals in Guanxi are selfish people. Ma Chao's mother is a Qiang girl. If Ma Teng's life is taken into consideration, how can she rebel?"
"It has been decades since Ma Teng raised his army. With the favor of the Prime Minister, he gave up his army and horses, took his children to Yecheng, and surrendered to the Prime Minister. This shows that he had no intention of rebellion. Now because his rebellious son Ma Chao raised his army, he killed Ma Teng, which is frightening to the hearts of the officers and soldiers of Guanxi. ."
"And Ma Chaoruo spread rumors that the Prime Minister wanted to kill all the families of all the generals in Kansai. Perhaps Ma Chao originally wanted to surrender, but because the Prime Minister killed Ma Teng, it only aroused his desire to fight for a long time."
With that said, Cheng Gongying raised his hand to Cao Cao and said: "In my opinion, if the Prime Minister wants to do great things, he should put peace of mind first. Guanxi has been away from China for a long time, just like a baby separated from its mother. The mother has given her kindness. Can Zi'an not deeply miss the kindness of the Prime Minister? ?”
Hearing the word 'great cause', Cao Cao's bloodthirsty thoughts calmed down.
Liu Bei's rise to power in the south, under the banner of "Fengtian Jing'an", was considered a serious concern for him. He went through three southern expeditions, the first of which was a disastrous defeat at Chrysostom, and the last two at Ruxukou and Xiakou ended in draws.
After much trouble, Cao Cao almost realized that Liu Bei's separatist rule in the south was a foregone conclusion, and it would be difficult for him to cross the Yangtze River in his lifetime.
How could Cao Cao not consider himself and be fair? To become a prince or a king, or to establish a country?
These thoughts flashed through Cao Cao's mind countless times, and he had to consider them for the future.
Cheng Gongying was right. Killing a defenseless Ma Teng was insignificant, but whether it would worsen the situation in the northwest required his careful consideration.
Cao Cao stroked his beard and said with a smile: "What Berger said is that he knows how to be lonely. Ma Teng surrenders to Gu, how can he live up to Gu?"
"Come here, please order the officials in Yecheng to take good care of Ma Teng and his son. Don't neglect them."
"promise!"
After a pause, Cao Cao looked at Jia Xu, pointed at Cheng Gongying, and said with a smile: "Unexpectedly, in the land of Longshang in Guanxi, there are two talented people, Wen He and Bergie!"
Jia Xu smiled modestly, but Cheng Gongying said he didn't dare.
Cao Cao stood up, clasped his hands behind his waist, walked up and asked, "Wen He and Berger are resourceful and resourceful men. Do you know how to teach a lonely horse?"
When Jia Xu saw Cheng Gongying looking at him, he raised his hand, indicating that he should speak first.
Cheng Gongying thanked Jia Xu and said: "I'm reporting to the Prime Minister that Ma Chao invaded Hanzhong and returned with money and grain from Nanzheng, and stationed it in Chencang. He scattered the money and grain to recruit elite Qiang soldiers to fight, and gave them to the generals. The elite Qiang soldiers came from below. Bian, Hechi, and Didao are the prime minister's confidant troubles."
"Ying thought that the prime minister asked Wei Liangzhou and General Yan to spread rumors in Longyou, saying that the Qiang soldiers helped the thieves to cause chaos and attacked the Qiang and Di tribes to quell the chaos. After hearing this, the Qiang soldiers were worried about the safety of their family members and would leave Ma Chao and return to the clan. Ma Chao If you don’t have Qiang soldiers as your wings, you shouldn’t worry about it.”
"Bojie is an outstanding strategist, and now he is serving as a military advisor in Gu's tent. He also wrote to Wei and Yan to tell them to act in this way." Cao Cao said with admiration.
"Wait!"
Jia Xu interrupted and said, "Prime Minister, since Ma Chao has collected money and grain in Chencang, why not use it now?"
"Um?"
Cao Cao looked at Jia Xu and said, "Wen He, please speak."
Jia Xu organized his thoughts and said: "If the troops and horses of Longyou are available, why not ask Prime Minister Wei to send troops eastward, southward along the Weishui River, and march into Chencang. Ma Chao is surrounded by enemies in front and behind, so the Prime Minister looks for an opportunity to appease the Kansai generals with letters, which will make the Allied troops feel more confident. It will inevitably be defeated, and we can reach Guanzhong in one battle at that time."
"If Guanzhong falls, Han Fu returns and surrenders to the prime minister, and Governor Wei and General Yan return to China. At that time, the prime minister will send troops to Lianglong. Longyou will be safe and Liangzhou will be at peace."
"color!"
Cao Cao applauded and said, "According to what Berger and Wen He said, the horse's rear is restless and the army's morale is shattered. It won't be long before the chaos can be quelled."
It has to be said that Han Sui died in battle, and Yan Xing and Cheng Gongying surrendered to Cao Cao, which had a great impact on the Kansai Allied Forces. As a Kansai scholar and Han Sui's confidant, Cheng Gongying had a deep understanding of the problems of the Kansai Allied Forces, and almost all of his strategies were aimed at the shortcomings of the Allied Forces.
Just as Cao Cao and his generals were further discussing strategies to defeat the enemy, the scouts hurried into the tent and brought the battle report from Hefei.
"Reporting to the Prime Minister, Huo Jun led an army of 40,000 to 50,000 to invade Hefei from the north. He is currently building a weir outside the city, which seems to be intended to divert fertile water to the city," the scout said.
Cao Cao put down his military affairs and said, "Huo Jun's army invaded Hefei, and it turned out just as Gu expected."
As he said this, Cao Cao asked around and asked: "Is it possible to use water to decide the strategy in Hefei?"
The left and right people could not answer, but Sun Quan thought for a while and said: "Prime Minister, Hefei is located in a low-lying land, and the fat water flows through the city. In spring and summer, the fat water rises greatly, so we build river weirs to store up the water potential, and the floods can wash it down. Break down the city gates.”
Cao Cao's expression suddenly became heavy and he said: "Huo Jun's use of troops is extraordinary. He uses water instead of troops. When summer comes, he will break the river weir to irrigate Hefei."
"Prime Minister, what should we do?" Xia Houyuan asked worriedly.
Cao Cao paced in his tent and analyzed calmly: "Huo Jun used water instead of troops to build river weirs. This must be Huo Jun's strategy to lure the Hefei garrison out of the city. Reinforcements must be sent."
Sima Yi reminded: "Prime Minister, Huo Jun has many strategies, and he may be able to foresee reinforcements."
"right!"
Cao Cao woke up and said: "Huo Jun is building the river weir now. It will not be used until spring and summer. He will wait until our Jianghuai troops move south. If we want to break the siege of Hefei, we must have wise and brave generals, and we must have wise and resourceful people to accompany us." ."
After saying that, Cao Cao looked at Xia Houyuan, who was bowing his head, and quickly rejected it.
Xia Houyuan was defeated by Huo Jun twice in a row, and he must have been psychologically affected by Huo Jun. If I go now, I'm afraid I will be defeated by Huo Jun again.
What about Cao Hong? I'm afraid it will be difficult to do the job.
After pacing and thinking for a long time, Cao Cao said: "How about letting General Fu Bo (Xiahou Dun) command the troops and horses in the Jianghuai area now?"
"Prime Minister, why don't you let Han Hujun control the Jianghuai army? He has a good military strategy and can calm the border." Cao Hong suggested.
Cao Cao was very interested in making a move, but he objected, saying: "The war is fierce today, and we must be left alone without an army to protect us."
Cao Cao occupied the Central Plains and had many outstanding generals under his command. Generals such as Han Hao, Shi Huan, Tian Yu, Qian Zhao, and Zhu Ling are mostly unknown, but their actual abilities are no worse than those of Shuang Cao and Shuang Xiahou. However, they lack a platform and find it difficult to display their talents.
To rescue Hefei today, after careful consideration, Cao Cao could only choose Xiahou Dun as the rescue coach.
Yang Xiu hesitated a little and said: "Since the Prime Minister regards General Fu Bo as his commander, he may need to choose to join the army, protect the army, and assist on the left and right, in order to force Huo Jun to retreat."
Yang Xiu's words were very reserved. After all, one could not say that Xiahou Dun was too weak to be Huo Jun's opponent. Without the help of reliable people, it will probably be wasted.
Cao Cao pondered for a long time and said: "If you want to join the army, you can ask Liu Ye from Yangzhou to take charge, and to protect the army, you can ask Zhong Mou to take charge."
Joining the army is a person who participates in military matters. A guard is a person who supervises the generals.
Obviously, Cao Cao had outstanding talents in recognizing people, and Liu Ye was outstanding in strategy. He performed well in the Battle of Ruxukou and joined the army in the Prime Minister's Office. Later, he was transferred to Yangzhou Biejia. As a Jianghuai person, it is most suitable to join the army now.
Sun Quan was loyal and trustworthy, and during the defeat of Chrysostom, fortunately Sun Quan protected him, and Cao Cao was able to escape from Jianghan unscathed. Huo Jun has many old generals from Jiangdong under his command, and Sun Quan serves as the guard, which may affect the performance of the enemy generals.
Moreover, the guards do not need to lead the troops in combat, they are only responsible for military discipline and occasionally make suggestions. For Sun Quan, a person with weak military ability, it may be the most suitable.
"The Prime Minister is wise!" Everyone praised him.
"good!"
Cao Cao ordered: "Order General Fubo to go out of Zhenjiang and Huaihe, and command all the armies in Jianghuai, and assist Hefei in the south. Let Liu Ye join the army and Sun Quan be the protector."
"Thank you, Prime Minister!" Sun Quan accepted the order.
Cao Cao sat back on the couch and asked, "Is there any movement from Liu Bei?"
Yang Xiu thought for a while and said: "After the Prime Minister sent troops to Guanxi, Liu Bei returned to Wuhan. In addition to asking Huo Jun to raise troops for the Northern Expedition, Guan Yu prepared grain and grass in Jiangling. There seems to be signs of using troops."
Cao Cao stroked his beard and said with a sneer: "Liu Bei must have seen Gu sending troops to Guanxi. He was afraid that Gu would have Lianglong, so he then sent troops to Bashu. Liu Bei is a hypocritical person, and Liu Zhang invited tigers into Sichuan, but he was eventually harmed. Gu should hurry up as soon as possible After Dingguanzhong, we will advance to Lianglong again."
(End of chapter)
