When they heard that the Han army was pursuing them, all the Wei soldiers were so frightened that they did not choose their way out. They ran for thirty miles eastward in one breath. When they saw that the Han army did not follow, they stopped and took a rest.
"Gongming, the Shu army didn't come after them again, right?" Cao Zhen sat on a medium-sized boulder and kept breathing heavily.
Fei Yao, who had just been ordered to lead the army to break up the rear, knew the movements of the Han army best. He calmed his breath and replied: "Don't worry, general. The scouts have detected that the Shu army has withdrawn its troops and retreated to Zhouzhi."
"That's good."
Cao Zhen's frowning brows finally relaxed. He turned to Sima Yi who was also sitting on the stone and asked, "Zhongda, what do you think our army will do next?"
"General, in today's battle, our army suffered nearly 5,000 casualties and lost more than half of its military supplies and equipment. The sergeants lacked medical treatment and their morale was low. They are no longer able to fight anymore. For the current plan, we can only retreat to Huaili to rest for a while. We’ll worry about it later.” Sima Yi said with a hint of frustration.
Cao Zhen nodded slightly and asked Fei Yao, "Gongming, what do you think?"
"General, I agree with Sima Gong. The army is no longer able to pursue and must retreat to rest."
Cao Zhen said: "In that case, let's retreat to Huaili first. But in this case, I am afraid that the withdrawal of the Shu army will no longer be able to hinder it."
"Now we can only place our hope on Zhang Junyi. If he can break through the Shu army's Wei River defense line and lead the army to the south bank, we still have a chance." Sima Yi said.
Cao Zhen murmured: "Zhang Junyi, Zhang Junyi, it all depends on you now."
"Ah sneeze!"
On the bank of the Weishui River, Zhang He looked at the south bank and kept thinking about the way to cross the river. Suddenly, a chill hit him. He sneezed involuntarily and wrapped his thick fur tighter.
"General, it's windy by the river. Be careful of getting cold. It's getting dark. Let's go back to camp." The captain of the soldiers who had been following him for many years approached and said with concern.
Zhang He said with a wry smile: "We have been blocked here by the Shu army for a day. If we don't find a way to cross to the south bank, we will never be able to complete the task of intercepting the main force of the Shu army."
Starting from yesterday afternoon, Yang Qing led his troops to guard the south bank tightly, without revealing any flaws or giving Zhang He any chance to take advantage of. Although Zhang He used various tactics such as making false claims to the east, attacking in the west, and sneaking in suspected soldiers, Yang Qing saw through them one by one and resolved them one by one. In desperation, he had no choice but to look at the river and sigh.
"General, I don't understand strategy in this lowly position, but I also know that one person can plan shortcomings and two people can plan longings. Since the general has no good strategy for the time being, why not go back to the camp and summon all the generals to come up with ideas together?" said the captain of the soldiers.
Zhang He thought to himself that he had discussed it with the generals many times, but he still didn't have a clever plan to break the situation. If not, how could he go out alone to meditate?
However, he also knew that the captain of the soldiers mainly wanted to persuade him to return to the camp to avoid being exposed to the wind and cold by the river. Anyway, I can't live up to my subordinates' good intentions. Just as I was about to give the order to go back, I suddenly heard the sound of horse hooves behind me, and four or five horses galloped over.
"General, General Yan He sent an envoy to report that he is heading towards our army with 6,000 infantry and cavalry. He is currently less than ten miles away from our camp." One of the leading knights reported with his fists clasped.
Zhang He was surprised when he heard this and asked, "Isn't Yan He pursuing Zhang Ni? How could he move closer to our army?"
"This little one doesn't know. Vice General Chen is receiving the envoy. The general will know when he returns to camp and asks."
Zhang He nodded and said, "I understand." After that, he got on his horse and returned to the camp under the protection of a group of soldiers.
"General." Seeing Zhang He entering the tent, Vice General Chen rushed up to greet him.
Next to him stood a middle-aged scribe, who also quickly bowed and said, "Gu Yu, the villain, has met General Zhang."
"Are you sent by Yan He?" Zhang He nodded, returned to the main seat and sat down.
The scribe replied: "I am a clerk in General Yan He's tent. I have been ordered to come and report the military situation to the general."
"Isn't your general chasing Zhang Yi's tribe? How come he suddenly wants to join our army?" Zhang He continued to ask.
The scribe said: "Reporting to the general, Zhang Yi's army suddenly changed its marching direction last night, crossed the Wei River diagonally from the trail, crossed the river early this morning, and fled to the south bank.
Our troops could not catch up, so we had no choice but to move closer to the general. General Yan said that he would wait until the two armies joined forces before making other calculations. "
"What, Zhang Yi's army has crossed to the south bank?"
Zhang He was really surprised and angry when he heard this, and asked: "What does your general do for food? He can't even watch a group of infantry. He is really derelict in his duty."
"General, please calm down. You can't blame my general for this matter. Our troops are far away from the Shu army. They changed lanes at night. It's really difficult for our troops to catch up and stop them."
Zhang He waved his hand and sighed: "That's it, let's not talk about this anymore. When your general comes, I will discuss the next step with him." After all, Yan He was not his direct subordinate, so he couldn't blame him too much.
"Yes, please excuse me."
After the middle-aged scribe left, Zhang He sighed slowly and said with a wry smile: "Yan He came with his troops. I was very happy at first, thinking that with thousands more cavalry, our army would be able to cross the river." Have greater certainty.
Alas, I didn’t expect that he didn’t contain Zhang Yi’s army. Now Yang Qing has thousands more troops in his hands. One comes and goes, one goes down, the other goes up, and the situation facing our army still hasn’t improved. It’s really a joy in vain. One game. "
"General, please don't get angry in a hurry. We'll have a good discussion when General Yan arrives. Maybe we'll be able to come up with a good idea by then." Vice General Chen comforted him.
Zhang He said: "I hope so."
On the south bank of the Wei River, in the camp of the Han army, Yang Qing was killing pigs and sheep and feasting on the soldiers. The troops were fighting continuously, and they were already exhausted physically and mentally. It was time to give them a good reward. Besides, this was also for Zhang Yi and his group who had been fighting for many days. Reinforcements come and go.
"Boqi, after you got rid of the pursuers and crossed the river smoothly, my hanging heart can finally be settled. These days, you have been hanging alone on the north bank to deal with the Wei army. You have worked really hard. Come, let me offer you a cup of tea instead of wine. ." Yang Qing said.
Although it is a big reward for the three armies, Zhang He's army is on the north bank after all. The powerful enemy has not yet gone, so we still can't be careless. Therefore, there is enough meat tonight, but as for wine, all the soldiers, including Yang Qing, cannot drink even a drop. Dip.
Zhang Yi raised his glass and responded: "What the envoy said is really shameful. It should be Yi who respects the envoy."
"Haha, there is no need to be modest. You have done a great job this time. I will personally thank you and all of you in front of the Prime Minister. Come, let's have a drink together, please." Yang Qing said with a hearty laugh.
The generals raised their teacups and responded: "Your Majesty, please."
After a full drink, the atmosphere in the tent became more lively. Everyone enjoyed the delicious food while chatting and recounting their parting moments. It was really fun.
"Your Majesty, where is Xiuren?" Zhang Yi had not seen Liu Yin since the two armies met, so he asked Yang Qing in confusion.
Yang Qingdao: "Xiuren went to check the sentry. The Wei army should not be able to cross the river at night, but it is difficult to guarantee that Zhang He will take the risk and catch us by surprise. Therefore, we should not be careless and should maintain the vigilance we should have. Wait. He will come over after his inspection, and it won’t be too late for you to talk about it then.”
"Shijun, Boqi."
As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Yin walked into the tent with a smile. Zhang Yi had not seen him for many days and was very worried about him. He quickly got up and took him to the table.
But Liu Yin declined first and said sternly to Yang Qing: "Your Majesty, the Prime Minister has envoys coming. I will bring the envoys over when I meet him halfway."
"Oh? Please invite the envoy in quickly." Yang Qing said urgently.
