Liu Bei originally wanted to go south to intercept Yuan Shu, so that he could escape far away after the incident was completed, and he could also gain a foothold in Geyang or Anfeng.
As a result, Zhu Ling, who was traveling with him, disagreed. Although Liu Bei was nominally in control of the army, the military talisman was in Zhu Ling's hands.
Helpless, Liu Bei could only obey Zhu Ling's instructions and wait at Jieshan for Yuan Shu to surrender.
Jie Shan is the only way from Nanyang to Hanoi and Shang Bingzhou. You can’t go wrong by waiting here.
Yuan Shu's speed was surprisingly slow. According to the military report from the previous scouts, they should have arrived at Jieshan long ago. They had to wait for six more days before they arrived at Yuan Shu's army.
It is said that the army all praised Yuan Shu. When he was in Xuchang, the first battle report he received was that Zhang Xun led more than 8,000 troops and horses to the north. However, when the three brothers Liu Bei took a look at the vanguard, they found that the good guys could not count more than a thousand. People.
Moreover, they didn't even have a large banner, their armor was mostly broken, and many of the sergeants didn't even wear tassels and helmets. This was not an army, they were clearly deserters.
Encountering Liu Bei's three thousand vanguards, they put down their weapons in a tacit understanding, squatted down with their heads in hand, and accepted the surrender.
Even Zhang Xun just stood still and had no intention of resisting.
"Highway General, you're safe."
Liu Bei was still very civilized. He rode his horse to Yuan Shu and bowed his hands: "I heard that you had more than 8,000 people with you when you fled Anfeng. Why are there only so few left?"
The only person in the entire team who is still riding a horse is Yuan Shu. His hair is messy, his beard is a bit gray, and there is deep depression between his eyebrows. Compared with the high-spirited Suizao in the past, the person in front of him looks more like a soldier who has been beaten. An old man in his dying years.
That is to say, the python robe on the body still stubbornly declares the identity of the owner, but there are seven or eight holes visible to the naked eye.
Yuan Shu's eyes were cloudy and his lips were chapped. He wanted to say something, but it was extremely difficult. In the end, he only uttered two words, "I'm thirsty."
Zhang Xun, who was standing beside him, lowered his head and choked with sobs: "I protected Your Majesty from escaping from Anfeng, but I was short of time and didn't bring much food with me. We ran out of food just after we passed Geyang. We have been walking all this way."
He couldn't continue what he said, but he could think of what happened with his toes. You had no money or food, how could anyone still be willing to follow you? There must have been deserters along the way.
There were more than 8,000 people, and when they came to Jieshan, there were only a thousand or so people left.
Liu Bei glanced at Guan Yu and sighed. A generation of heroes also ended up in such a tragic situation, and their fate was inevitable.
However, Zhang Fei on the side was not so well-educated. He immediately opened his eyes and blurted out: "Oh my god, tell me about you, the fourth generation and the three princes of our ancestors. A year ago, they had no less than 200,000 troops and claimed the title of emperor." Now he can't even eat, so he has the nerve to defect to Yuan Shao.
As far as your Yuan family is concerned, you will be looked down upon by them even if you go there."
Yuan Shu was just hanging on for dear life, hoping to live in peace and contentment in Bingzhou. However, after being humiliated by Zhang Fei, his moral heart immediately collapsed. He couldn't even sit on his horse and fell straight down. If it weren't for With Zhang Xun supporting him, His Majesty is probably going to die.
"Third brother!"
Liu Bei glanced at him and said, "He has fallen to this, why bother adding insult to injury?"
Zhang Fei sneered and said disdainfully: "He was so powerful when he cut off our food and grass in Hulao. Later, my eldest brother won Xuzhou, and this guy sent Ji Ling to rob Guangling. It is fitting that he should end up like this."
After meeting Liu Bei's stern gaze, he reluctantly shut up.
Liu Bei dismounted and came to Yuan Shu, saying in a deep voice: "I was ordered to take you back to Xuchang, but if you go to Xuchang, you will probably be humiliated. Where to go is up to you."
After saying that, he turned his back to Yuan Shu.
This hint was clear enough. Yuan Shu took a deep breath and stood up with difficulty with Zhang Xun's help. Then he slowly pulled out the sword from his waist and hung it on his neck.
The cold light of the sharp sword reflected the scene when he proclaimed himself emperor. He heard it, he heard it, someone shouted "Your Majesty will live forever", the voice was loud and heart-stirring.
Amidst the screams of "Your Majesty's Eternal Life", the sword blade passed by and Yuan Shu fell down. All the loyal subordinates around him knelt down. Some choked and wiped their tears, while others cried bitterly.
"Brother, this damn Yuan Shu didn't bring any food or grass, what should I do?" Everyone was dead, but Zhang Fei was still unhappy.
The key is that they expected to be able to bring some relief to Yuan Shu, but found out that he was poorer than themselves, and they were inevitably a little angry.
Liu Bei glanced to the east, then to the south, and finally shook his head, "Go back to camp first."
After Yuan Shu was buried, Liu Bei returned to the military camp again and reported the matter to Zhu Ling. He also praised the general for his strategizing, and this was the general's contribution.
Zhu Ling laughed proudly, it was inevitable that a celebration banquet would be held.
That night, Liu Guanzhang, together with Zhu Ling and the battalion lieutenant colonel, started drinking heavily in the central military tent. By around midnight, most of the people were drinking until they could not stand upright.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei all looked outside and confirmed that the sergeant on duty outside the tent had been replaced by one of their men. Then they looked at each other and suddenly became angry.
The two of them drew out the swords from their waists and started the massacre mode. General Cao Ying, who was not one to shut down his opponents, was already in a drunken state and drank in hatred without even understanding what was going on.
In order to ensure that there would be no accidents, the eight captains in the camp were also cleared before dawn. The remaining army officers and horses had no big problems and could not afford to make any splash.
After daybreak, Liu Bei summoned his troops, took out Zhu Ling's military talisman, and claimed that Sikong ordered him to secretly go south to occupy Anfeng.
The sergeants who had no backbone looked at each other. Although they had doubts in their hearts, they still chose to obey in the end.
In fact, the boundary mountain is within the scope of Nanyang. Whether it is distance or wealth, Anfeng and Nanyang are very different, but Liu Bei did not dare to stay in Nanyang.
Zhang Xiu learned from the past, staying in Nanyang was too close. With this in mind, it would not be easy for Cao Cao to counterattack.
Both Liu Biao and himself were descendants of the royal family, but judging from Zhang Xiu's case, Liu Biao was too weak. With hundreds of thousands of people on hand, he allowed the other party to roam around in front of his house without making any move. It was obvious that he relied on relatives to seek shelter. Recruitment won't work.
After thinking about it, Anfeng should stay away from Xuchang. Cao Cao is paying a lot for sending troops. He is currently preparing to prepare for war and conquer Xuzhou, so he may not be willing to be distracted.
Furthermore, Anfeng is adjacent to Jiujiang, and Jiujiang is Lu Bu's territory. When Cao Cao leads his army, Lu Bu will most likely not remain indifferent, unless he wants to ambush a powerful force in his own backyard.
Just when Liu Bei left Nanyang County and entered the territory of Geyang, a scout who had been rushing for three hundred miles hurriedly ran into the palace in Xuchang, not caring that he was in the early morning.
This news was like a ladle of cold water poured into boiling oil. In an instant, the officials above the court exploded. Some scolded Liu Bei as a rebellious minister, some scolded him for betraying Sikong's trust, and some were whispering and not knowing how to discuss it. What.
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
Cao Cao waved his hands and said with a smile: "Zhu Ling has six thousand soldiers and horses in his hands, six thousand! Liu Bei can't annihilate them all without blood, right?"
No one in the court responded to Cao Cao's rude question.
The three-hundred-mile express request needs to be issued by the county office or the garrison pass. If the investigation is not clear, who would dare to send the three-hundred-mile express request to Sir Sikong without any problem.
In the Golden Palace, you could hear a pin drop, and all the ministers lowered their heads and dared not speak. Probably only Liu Xie was secretly happy.
Now, the only person he can rely on and place his hopes on is Liu Bei.
Hope is a good thing, it can support you to move forward in the most desperate and difficult times.
What Liu Xie needs most now is hope.
"What do you think, Your Majesty?" Cao Cao suppressed the anger in his heart.
"I would like to hear your opinions." After these days, Liu Xie also began to learn to do Tai Chi.
Cao Cao sneered and turned to look at the officials.
He said nothing, but everyone knew that he was soliciting opinions.
"Your Majesty, Liu Bei can only take away 10,000 troops. Even if he flees south, it will not be possible in a short time. I think that the preparation for the war for several months now is just to capture the six counties of Xuzhou in one fell swoop. If I am distracted at this time, I am afraid I will miss Lu Bu. opportunity." The speaker was Dong Cheng, the uncle of the state, protecting Liu Bei under the banner of thinking about Cao Cao.
But Cao Cao directly ignored him and walked directly in front of Xun Yu and others without stopping for a moment.
"Wei Chen thinks what uncle Guo said is reasonable." Xun You spoke. It seems that his opinion is to firmly conquer Xuzhou.
"Wei Chen seconded the proposal."
"Wei Chen also seconded the proposal." Chen Qun, Cheng Yu and others expressed their opinions one after another.
The only ones who didn't speak were Guo Jia and Xun Yu.
According to Cao Cao's understanding of them, if they don't speak, they can only hold opposite opinions. It's just because the Yingchuan gentry are like-minded and generally won't sing the opposite opinion in the court.
Especially when this kind of consensus is exposed to the outside world.
Cao Cao glanced at Guo Jia and Xun Yu, OK, you both support it, that's enough.
He turned around and looked at Liu Xie who was sitting on the dragon throne. He didn't care about looking up at you as the king's assassin and killing him. He said in the middle: "I suggest that you send troops to chase Liu Bei! And send a powerful force to destroy him with the power of thunder! "
Hearing the sonorous and powerful words, Liu Xie was frightened and trembled slightly.
Cao Cao deliberately stopped when he reached Dong Cheng, and then looked at him playfully, "Not for anything else, just to tell the people of the world that whoever dares to rebel against the emperor will be burned."
When Cao Cao spoke, there was usually no second voice in the court, and the people who had previously persuaded Liu Bei to abandon Liu Bei and attack Lu Bu stopped speaking.
"Let everything be done according to Sikong's opinion," Liu Xie said weakly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
After retreating from the court, Cao Cao sent a message to Xun Yu and Guo Jia to go to Sikong Mansion to discuss military plans.
It's not that we want to talk about how to fight, but we just want to hear whether these two people who have never spoken have any other ideas.
"Sikong, I agree to pursue Liu Bei. He has Sikong's military talisman in his hand. Logically speaking, it is the most convenient to station in Nanyang. But he chose to go south. He is obviously planning to gain a foothold in Geyang or Anfeng. If he just sits idly by, he will definitely Being entangled with Lu Bu, we must not allow these two to join forces to repeat the old events in Xuzhou!"
Xun Yu's words were in line with Cao Cao's wishes. Looking at the overall situation, Lu Bu was very likely to recruit him to increase his strength against him in the future.
"The most important thing is that Yuan Shu is living a life of extravagance in Huainan these days. His subordinates have defected and the counties are divided. Even if Liu Bei reaches Anfeng in Geyang, he will not have time to gain a foothold. If he attacks now, he will win!"
After Guo Jia finished adding, Cao Cao no longer had any worries and immediately said to the messenger on the side: "Come with Xiahou Dun."
"Here!"
Cao Cao completed the two tasks of ordering troops and generals that day.
Liu Bei only took away 10,000 people. To hunt him down, 20,000 people were enough.
Considering the possibility of accidents, such as Lu Bu or Liu Biao intervening, Cao Cao still sent 30,000 people.
Moreover, they are the most elite 30,000 troops under his command, including Cao Chun's newly trained Tiger and Leopard Cavalry.
As for the generals, in addition to Dian Wei who was recovering from his injuries, the brothers Xu Chu, Xu Huang, Yu Jin, Le Jin and Xia Hou, who were considered to be the most capable fighters under their command, were all gone.
Because Xuchang has been in a state of preparation for war, and now it has to mobilize 30,000 people, the start-up time only took less than three days, which is extremely fast.
Just as Guo Jia expected, Liu Bei was stunned after entering Anfeng.
Is this Huainan?
I believe you when you say this is Xiliang.
I saw that Anfeng County, the seat of Anfeng County, was full of broken eaves and broken walls, as well as burned-down houses. There were few pedestrians on the streets, and everyone fled in panic after seeing the army.
It's over, it's over now, how to station in such a place, how to resist Cao Cao, Liu Bei's heart dropped a lot.
Finally, Guan Yu, who led 3,000 people to explore, came back and reported that Anqing County, thirty miles east of Anfeng, was well preserved. When the county magistrate heard Liu Bei's name, he expressed his willingness to accept it, which made Liu Bei's heart rise again. gained hope.
After entering Anqing County, Liu Bei's heart was hanging again.
This is just a small fort within a hundred miles. The city is less than three feet high. It is all made of rammed earth and is mostly damaged. The cavalry can even penetrate directly into it.
Moreover, Anqing is not rich either. It must have been plundered, but was repelled by the county magistrate and his men.
The most serious problem is that there is not enough food and grass to feed an army of 10,000.
"Brother, don't worry. I just heard from the county magistrate that there are many bandits around here. I will take people to pick out a few of them. Won't the food and grass problem be solved?"
Zhang Fei's suggestion is good. It is indeed the fastest way to get money and food. Even Guan Yu nodded in agreement, "Brother, what the third brother said makes sense. You are familiar with the county magistrate in the city. Third brother and I The troops are divided into two groups, and it is not a problem to pick a few of his strongholds every day."
Liu Bei sat on the steps of the simple martial arts stage in the school ground with a bitter smile on his face, "This is not a long-term solution after all."
For a moment, he frowned and said uneasily: "Besides, I suspect that Cao Jun is already on his way here."
This is the disadvantage of having no money and no one. If you don’t have money to support an intelligence organization, you don’t even know the other party’s actions.
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei stopped talking. In the past, when they were taken in by others, there were no such problems. Now that they are out to fly solo, the problems are one after another. Only then do they realize that it is not easy to conquer the country.
After a while, Liu Bei stood up with his knees propped up, "For the current plan, we can only ask Lu Bu and Liu Biao for help."
Hearing Lu Bu's name, Zhang Fei showed disdain and whispered something about the three surnamed family slaves.
Guan Yu said in a deep voice: "Lu Bu is now rich and powerful, and there is a gap between us and him. I'm afraid he may not be so generous."
He didn't mention Liu Biao, because everyone knew that Liu Biao was in Xiangyang, and it would take more than ten days for letters to come and go. They wouldn't be able to reply immediately, so they had to think about it, right?
Thinking about it this way, only Lu Bu could save him from the situation in front of him.
Of course, there is another way, which is to cross the Yangtze River south and go straight to Cangwu, Jiaozhou. The prefect Wu Ju is his best friend. Going there can not only save strength, but also solve the food and grass problem.
The disadvantages are also obvious. Once you cross the river, you don't know when you will have the opportunity to return to the Central Plains.
Obviously, Liu Bei, who had just escaped from Xuchang and carried the emperor's blood letter, did not want to do this.
"I personally wrote a letter to Lu Bu. I just hope that he can remember the kindness of taking him in that day." Liu Bei walked to the military tent aside, took down the bamboo slips, wrote quickly, and specifically asked him to hurry up and send it to Jiujiang.
He knew that Lu Bu was now in Guangling and Zhang Liao was in Jiujiang. If he wanted to inform Lu Bu as quickly as possible, only Zhang Liao could do it.
Now, the only thing he can do is wait.
Waiting for Lu Bu’s decision
(End of chapter)
