The Yellow River in March is in the peach blossom flood season, the river water is soaring, the water is turbulent, the turbid river water is mighty, like thousands of troops, rushing endlessly, the momentum is pressing.

In this year's Peach Blossom Flood, the water potential is obviously bigger and more fierce than in previous years, the entire Yellow River channel is almost filled with surging river water, and even many sections of the river are in danger, and the government has mobilized tens of thousands of river workers to stick to the Yellow River embankment day and night to prevent the Yellow River from bursting.

Sima Yi rushed from Luoyang to Mengjin Ferry, looking at the turbulent river, Sima Shi said with some concern: "Father, this water is too fierce, it is better to rest for a few days, and wait for the water level to drop before crossing the river." ”

Sima Yimu was expressionless, even the terrifying scene of the monstrous waves in front of him could not move him, he said slowly: "No, it has been delayed for too long, we must cross the river today!" ”

Although his voice was soft, it carried an unmistakable momentum, and the momentum was magnificent.

In order to prepare for this northern expedition, Sima Yi did spend a lot of time, just from Yongzhou, Yuzhou, Jizhou and other places, it has taken nearly a month, plus the army originally stationed in Hanoi, Sima Yi's army mobilized this time has reached 150,000 people.

The terrain of Bingzhou is complicated, which Sima Yi is very clear about, without enough troops, it is impossible to take the state.

Sima Yi's use of soldiers, Qi Zheng complements each other, when it should be stable, he will never rush forward, just like his method of dragging Zhuge Liang to death, when it is time to shoot, he will never drag mud and water, just like when Xincheng captured Meng Da, due to the time and situation, according to local conditions, fickle at the right time, and did not stick to any art of war.

After a lifetime of fighting, Sima Yi's experience in leading the troops is almost unparalleled, this attack and the state, Sima Yi has already made a plan to march, and the state is different from other places, here is mountainous and dangerous, easy to defend and difficult to attack, there is no sufficient troops, rash attack, will only lose the battle.

Knowing oneself and knowing one's opponent, a hundred battles will not be defeated, and how many soldiers and horses there are in the state, Sima Yi naturally went through careful investigation in advance, the five schools of the Northern Army that Cao Liang brought at the beginning, now the full establishment is 25,000 people, plus the newly promoted Xiao cavalry battalion, the mobile force in Cao Liang's hands will not exceed 30,000.

The garrisons in various parts of the state are estimated to be about 15,000 to 20,000 people, and the total strength of the state is about 50,000 to 55,000, counting the troops that can be temporarily conscripted.

For the combat power of this army, Sima Yi did not despise it at all, and was able to pacify the Xiongnu and repel Xianbei in a few years, and the combat effectiveness of the state army was absolutely strong, even if it was the most elite Chinese army in Wei, the combat power was at most equal to it, and it would not be better.

In the face of such an army, and it occupies the right time and place, Sima Yi's offensive strategy is naturally based on stability, and three times the enemy's strength, which is the lower limit of the number of troops.

If possible, Sima Yi would mobilize more troops to participate in the battle, and in order to offset the opponent's advantage in time and place, the only way to maintain the crushing number of troops was to maintain the number of troops.

Of course, the 150,000 army should be the largest force that Sima Yi can mobilize at present, after all, on the Yongliang front, you still have to guard against the attack of Shu, and on the defense line of Huainan in Jingzhou, you have to guard against the attack of Wu, and if there is a civil war in Wei, the happiest thing is probably Wu and Shu, they are likely to take advantage of the situation and launch an attack again, and the border situation of Wei is still quite grim.

Among them, the Huainan defense line is also where Sima Yi is more worried, although in order to appease Wang Ling, Sima Yi gave him the position of captain, but can this really stabilize Wang Ling? Sima Yi himself was deeply skeptical.

If Wang Ling has greater ambitions, then the position of a lieutenant may not be able to satisfy him at all, not to mention, this lieutenant, no matter how you look at it, is also a false title, just a name.

Sima Yi has fought for many years, conquering the south and the north, blocking the east and killing the west, so for Sima Yi, marching and fighting is as simple as eating and drinking, and there is nothing special about it.

However, in the past, Sima Yi went on an expedition, whether it was a war against Wu or Shu, or an expedition to Liaodong, Sima Yi did not need to take care of the affairs of the rear at all, he just had to concentrate on the war on the front line without distraction.

But this expedition to merge the state is completely different from the previous campaigns, Sima Yi not only needs to consider the war on the front line, but also must consider the affairs of the rear, must achieve a balance between the front and back, and take charge of the overall situation.

For Sima Yi, this is both a pressure and a challenge, for an old man who is nearly seventy years old, this age should be at home to raise Sun Yi for a long time, but Sima Yi has to go into battle and fight again.

Because this battle was the first battle after the Sima family controlled the Wei dynasty, although the mutiny went very smoothly and Sima Yi easily ascended to the throne, the surrounding environment faced by the Sima family was still extremely grim.

Strong enemies are around, and the current situation can be described as embattled, many political enemies are still holding a wait-and-see attitude, as long as Cao Liang, who is in the state, stands up with a clear banner and confronts Sima Yi.

The others have a wait-and-see attitude, maybe they want to see Sima Yi's softness and hardness through this battle of merging states, and then decide the next move.

Therefore, for Sima Yi, this battle is a battle that must be won, if it fails, it is very likely that separatist forces in various places will swarm, and the situation in the world will be out of control.

Sima Shi took the initiative to invite Ying to fight Sima Yi did not agree, not that Sima Yi did not trust Sima Shi, but that this battle was too important to allow any mistakes, and with Sima Shi's combat experience, I am afraid it is difficult to be qualified for such a duty.

However, in order to train Sima Shi, Sima Yi did not forget to bring Sima Shi when he went out on the expedition, after all, Sima Yi is already old, time is short, Sima Jia's great cause, there must be successors, as Sima Yi's successor, Sima Shi must grow up as soon as possible.

In the face of the turbulent rapids of the surging Yellow River, Sima Yi's attitude was very resolute, and he would never retreat because of such a little difficulty, and he had nothing on the south bank of the Yellow River for a few days, but it was a big blow to the morale of the army.

Therefore, forcibly crossing the Yellow River was a task that Sima Jun had to complete, even if there would be risks and casualties when crossing the river, Sima Yi still ordered the army to cross the river immediately and march towards Hanoi County on the north bank of the Yellow River.