Li Dao and Guo Yan were afraid of Lu Bu in the pass, and did not dare to lead their troops to attack the pass, but went down to the village ten miles away from the pass. And Han Zhan in Guanzhong couldn't take the initiative because he had too few troops in his hand, and the two sides entered a standoff.

After the stalemate between the two sides for four or five days, Dian Wei was a little breathless, and ran to take the initiative to ask Han Zhan for help: "Lord, as far as the last general knows, Li Dao and Guo Yan are mediocre in martial arts, please let the last general lead the people of the headquarters to fight." If they can't take the heads of the two and come back, the last general will be willing to engage in military law. ”

The reason why Han Zhan didn't fight was because he had many concerns, don't look at the original defenders of Hangu Pass who killed him, but it is still unknown whether the defenders in the city were subdued by Dong Cheng. If he leads his troops into battle, the defenders in the city mutinied, killed Dong Cheng, and then closed the city gate, his soldiers and horses would be in a desperate situation.

Frustrated, who had just come to the council hall, guessed Han Zhan's thoughts, and hurriedly said: "Lord, it is not appropriate for the holy driver to stay in Hangu Pass for a long time, and among his subordinates, it is better to send someone to send him back to Jizhou as soon as possible!" ”

Han Zhan had already intended to send Emperor Han Xian away, and the reason why he didn't move for a long time was because Emperor Han Xian had been bedridden since the day after he arrived at Hangu Pass, and he was afraid that something would happen on the way, so he didn't move. Hearing this at this moment, he hurriedly asked, "Gonghe, I don't know how His Majesty's condition is?" When can I hit the road? ”

"It's getting better a little, but it will take time to heal." Fu Zhu frowned and said to Han Zhan: "Most of the two thieves of Li Guo will arrive at Hangu Pass in the near future. Although Hangu Pass is dangerous, there is not much grain stored in the pass, and if they surround the pass, once the food is exhausted, our army will collapse without a fight. ”

This statement of frustration is exactly what Han Zhan is worried about. Don't see that the terrain of Hangu Pass is dangerous, and it is difficult for Li Guo and others to attack it, but because this place is too far away from Jizhou, his lone army stays here, and sooner or later it will be difficult to escape the annihilation of the whole army, so he has to think about the back road in advance.

He stood up, walked back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back a few times, then stopped and said to Fu Zhu: "Gonghe, tomorrow you will take Dian Wei, Xiahou Lan, Xiahou Yun, and two thousand soldiers and horses to escort the holy car back to Jizhou." By the way, bring Lu Bu and Zhang Wenyuan with you. ”

It was understandable that Zhang Liao wanted to take refuge in Jizhou and return to Jizhou with him, but he took Lu Bu to leave with him, but he was a little reluctant. He was worried that Lu Bu would suddenly go crazy on the way and hijack the holy car to defect to Yuan Shao or Yuan Shu, and all his efforts would come to naught. Therefore, he asked puzzledly: "Lord, since you also think that Lu Fengxian and I are not of the same mind, why do you want him to go back to Jizhou with us?" Aren't you afraid that he will rob the holy car halfway and go to seek refuge with other princes? ”

"I'm afraid, why am I not afraid!" Han Zhan said with a bitter face: "If you leave him in Hangu Pass, Ben Hou will be even more scared in his heart, maybe at some point, he will rush in with Fang Tian's halberd to take my head, and then go to Li Guo and the others to reach an understanding between the two parties." As for what Gonghe was worried about, Ben Hou also took it into account, so he sent Dian Wei and Xiahou brothers and sisters to lead, even if Lu Bu had any bad intentions on the road, the three of them were enough to deal with Lu Bu. ”

Unexpectedly, as soon as Han Zhan finished speaking, Dian Wei said in a rough voice: "Lord, let the last general stay in Hangu Pass to protect you." As for escorting the holy car to Jizhou, it was enough for the Xiahou brothers and sisters, Zhang Liao and others. Although Zhang Wenyuan's martial arts are slightly inferior to the last general, there is no problem in dealing with Lu Bu with the Xiahou brothers and sisters. ”

"No, Dian Wei, you must follow the prison army to escort the holy car to Jizhou." Han Zhan did not hesitate to reject Dian Wei's kindness, and specially explained to him: "Zhang Wenyuan is certainly loyal to the Han family, but after all, he and Lu Bu are both from the Bingzhou army, if Lu Bu wants to hijack the holy car, even if he doesn't join forces with Lu Bu, he won't help you, at best, the two won't help each other." ”

He put his hand on Dian Wei's shoulder and said gratefully: "Dian Wei, what do you mean, Ben Hou understands, you are worried that Ben Hou will be in danger, so you ask to stay." But don't worry, there is still Huang Zhong here, and when you are far away, we can abandon the pass at any time. We are all cavalry, and if the soldiers and horses of Li Guo and the two thieves want to catch up with us, I am afraid it will not be so easy. ”

Seeing that Han Zhan had already made up his mind and was ready to send Emperor Han Xian away as soon as possible, he suggested to him: "My lord, my subordinates have a suggestion, can we order Dong Cheng to lead the defenders of Hangu Pass to escort the holy car to Jizhou with us. His subordinates recently inspected the city and found that these soldiers and horses were all combatable soldiers, although they were brought to Jizhou, whether they were in the east to Qingzhou or westward to merge with the state, they could be of great use in the future. ”

"That's right, that's right." As soon as he finished speaking, Dian Wei said excitedly: "With these four thousand elite men and horses with us, presumably Lu Bu will not dare to use any crooked brains on the road, but he can also strengthen the strength of my Jizhou." ”

"That's a good idea." Han Zhan felt that if all the defenders of Hangu Pass were transferred, there would be no one to hinder him, and whether he would leave or stay in the future could be arranged according to the specific situation. Thinking of this, he hurriedly instructed Dian Wei: "Dian Wei, go and invite Dong Guozhang to come here, and say that Ben Hou has to discuss it." ”

Coincidentally, as soon as Dian Wei walked out of the conference hall, he saw Dong Cheng coming in a hurry, and hurriedly stepped forward to greet him: "The last general, Dian Wei, has seen Dong Guozhang!" ”

"General Dian is exempt!" Dong Cheng saw that the person who greeted him was Dian Wei, and hurriedly asked with a smile: "I don't know if the Pavilion Hou is in the conference hall?" ”

"Yes, my lord is just in the council chamber. He was ordering me to come and invite the abbot, but he didn't expect the abbot to come first. After Dian Wei finished speaking, he let his body go again, and stretched out his hand to make a gesture of invitation: "Guozhang, please talk inside." ”

Han Zhan and Fu Zhu were talking, and suddenly saw Dian Wei going and returning, and was about to ask him what was wrong, but he saw Dong Cheng behind him, and hurriedly stood up and bowed: "It turned out that Dong Guozhang was here, Ben Hou has missed the distance, and I ask for forgiveness." ”

"Tinghou," Dong Cheng arched his hand towards Han Zhan, and said anxiously: "I have taken the liberty to come here today because I have something important to discuss with you." ”

Although Han Zhan said that he had something to discuss with Dong Chengxiang, but seeing him so anxious at this moment, he said politely: "The national lord has something to do, but it doesn't hurt to say it, Ben Hou listens to it." ”

"Tinghou, I see that the follow-up army of Li Guo's two thieves is about to arrive." Dong Cheng asked a little anxiously, "I don't know what Tinghou is going to do?" ”

"Guozhang," Han Zhan said to Dong Cheng with a smile, "Benhou Mingdianwei is going to invite you, and there is also something to discuss with you." Although Hangu Pass is easy to defend and difficult to attack, if Li Guo's army stays outside the pass, sooner or later the pass will be lost because of the exhaustion of grain and grass. Therefore, Ben Hou planned to let the Fu Jian army take someone to escort the holy car to Jizhou tomorrow. ”

"But the holy driver is sick, and it is not suitable for long-distance travel!" Dong Chenggang wanted to dissuade Han Zhan from changing his mind, but suddenly remembered the purpose of his visit, so he changed the topic in time, "I don't know how many people Tinghou plans to send to escort the holy car?" ”

"Ben Hou originally planned to send two thousand soldiers and horses to escort the holy chauffle." Han Zhan deliberately didn't talk about everyone's worries about Lu Bu, but said bluntly: "But considering that the road to Jizhou is long and the road is not smooth, I plan to borrow some soldiers and horses from Dong Guozhang to escort the holy car to Jizhou together." ”

Hearing that Han Zhan was planning to borrow troops from him, Dong Cheng immediately said cheerfully: "I don't know how many soldiers and horses Tinghou plans to borrow?" ”

Han Zhan raised his right hand, turned his fist into a palm, and said, "Ben Hou wants to borrow 5,000 soldiers from Dong Guozhang. ”

"What, borrow five thousand soldiers?" When Dong Cheng heard Han Zhan say this, he couldn't help but smile bitterly and said: "Tinghou should know that the defenders in Hangu Pass are only 5,000 people, and you have borrowed them all, so who will accept the pass?" ”

"Guozhang, please listen to me," Han Zhan saw Dong Cheng's face with a displeased expression, and hurriedly explained to him: "Hangu Pass is too far away from Jizhou, our soldiers and horses can only block Li Guo and the two thieves here for a while, once the food is exhausted, the soldiers and horses in the pass will collapse without a fight." Therefore, Ben Hou planned to ask the national abbot to take all the defenders in the pass and escort the car to Jizhou. As for Hangu Pass, it will be guarded by Benhou with 3,000 cavalry, and when you reach a safe place, Benhou will abandon the pass again. ”

After listening to Han Zhan's words, Dong Cheng muttered to himself in his heart: Tinghou arranged it like this, probably because he was afraid that when he went out of the city to fight, I would not be able to control the defenders in the city, after all, many of them were the henchmen of the original guards, and they wanted to take the opportunity to make trouble at that time, and they really couldn't suppress it.

After thinking about this truth, Dong Cheng nodded and said to Han Zhan: "I am willing to obey the arrangement of the Pavilion Marquis, and tomorrow I will lead the defenders in the city to escort the holy car to Jizhou." ”

In the early morning of the next day, Han Zhan personally escorted Emperor Han Xian out of the east gate. Emperor Han Xian poked his head out of the car, cheered up and said to Han Zhan: "Han Qing's family, Hanguguan will ask you." I will be waiting for you in Jizhou. ”

Han Zhan hurriedly bowed and replied, "Please return to Jizhou first, and the minister will return to Jizhou as soon as possible to meet Your Majesty." After speaking, he waved his hand at Fu Zhi and the others, signaling that they could leave.

Han Zhan, who was standing on the side of the road, looked at the long line passing in front of him, and thought that when these soldiers and horses arrived in Jizhou, they would be incorporated into the Jizhou army, and he couldn't help but feel a burst of ecstasy in his heart.

"Han Jizhou," Han Zhan was complacent when he suddenly heard someone calling him, and when he looked up, it turned out to be Lu Bu riding on a red rabbit horse. Lu Bu clasped his fists on the horse and saluted: "We will have a meeting later!" ”

"There will be a date later!" Thinking that he would be able to send this plague god away immediately, Han Zhan's heart couldn't be happier.

Soon after Lu Bu passed, two beautifully decorated carriages, surrounded by Lu Bu's subordinates, followed the procession forward. Han Zhan's eyes stared at one of them, and he thought to himself: "Sitting inside is the most beautiful woman in the Three Kingdoms, but it's a pity that she is also Lu Bu's favorite woman, otherwise I really want to keep her." ”

Just thinking about it, I suddenly saw the curtain on the window of the carriage, which was lifted a corner, and a face that was overwhelming the country and the city could be vaguely seen. Han Zhan couldn't help but sigh, and then said to Huang Zhong, who was standing behind him, "Hansheng, let's go back to the city." ”

On the afternoon of Emperor Han Xian's departure, Jia Xu arrived with soldiers and horses. I don't know where he found this many-soldier horse, there are 80,000 people, plus the 20,000 cavalry that Li Guo and the others originally brought, the total strength has reached 100,000.

Han Zhan, who was standing in the city gate tower, looked at the camp in the distance, and his heart was still beating drums. Now Li Guo has 100,000 soldiers and horses, and he only has 3,000 cavalry. Although these cavalry were equipped with stirrups, and their war horses were also nailed to horseshoe, and their combat effectiveness far exceeded that of any cavalry, Han Zhan was very self-aware, and he didn't think that with his 3,000 cavalry, he could defeat Li Guo's 100,000 soldiers and horses, so he ordered to hold out.

Jia Xu rushed to the camp, and after understanding the situation in detail, he said to Li Guo and the others: "Two generals, the reason why the defenders in the city have not fought for a long time is that according to Jia's estimate, there must be too few soldiers and horses, so they dare not fight easily. The Hangu Pass is easy to defend and difficult to attack, and if our army implements a strong attack, even if it barely takes the pass, it is bound to suffer heavy losses. In Jia's opinion, it is better to camp troops in front of the pass, wait for the food and grass of the defenders in the pass to be cut off, and then launch a fierce attack, and then the city will be easily broken. ”

Huang Zhong, who was patrolling the city, saw Li Guo's army approaching to the village only three miles away from the city, and hurriedly ran into the guard's mansion to report to Han Zhanyu: "Lord Qiyu, the soldiers and horses of Li Guo's two thieves have been stationed three miles away from the city. The last general dared to ask for his life, and asked the lord to give the last general a thousand cavalry, and he would definitely be able to kill the enemy army. ”

"Hansheng, it's not that Benhou is unwilling to fight." Han Zhan said helplessly: "However, the enemy army is strong, if our army rushes into battle, it will be a sheep in the mouth of a tiger." Ben Hou still plans to hold out, and after the frustrated prison army and they escort the holy car away, we will immediately abandon the pass and leave. ”

Fortunately, Huang Zhong is not a brave and unscrupulous person, and when he heard Han Zhan say this, he immediately understood the other party's intentions, and hurriedly replied: "Please rest assured, as long as the last general is in general, he will never let the soldiers and horses of Li Guo's two thieves enter the city." ”

As soon as Huang Zhong left the garrison's mansion, a cavalry marquis ran up to him and reported to him: "Captain Huang, the thieves are calling for battle under the city, please go to the city quickly to check." ”

Huang Zhong followed his subordinate to the city tower, and sure enough, he heard a burst of scolding, looked down, and saw dozens of disheveled sergeants, standing an arrow away, pointing in the direction of the city wall, scolding. The shouting and scolding of the Xiliang soldiers made the military marquis a little annoyed and angry, and he said to Huang Zhong: "Please give the captain a hundred cavalry below, and you will definitely kill them in the next place." ”

Unexpectedly, Huang Zhong shook his head and said: "If they want to scold, let them scold, without my general order, no one is allowed to fight without authorization, and those who violate the order will be killed!" ”

"Captain," the marquis pointed to the group of Xiliang soldiers under the city, and said with some emotion: "There are only a few dozen people below, and if you lead a hundred cavalry to rush out, you can kill them cleanly, please allow the captain!" ”