Nanyang County led 37 counties, with a population of millions at its peak. The main part of the county is the Nanyang Basin.

Although this place is surrounded by mountains, there are many ways out, so it is easy to attack and difficult to defend. After the destruction of the Yellow Turban Uprising, plus the cancer of Yuan Shu.

After that, Zhang Ji and Zhang Xiu, the two uncles and nephews, attacked Nanyang County.

After that, there is the familiar Cao Cao's three expeditions to Wancheng.

Lao Cao is still here, because of Zhang Ji's widow Zou, he was attacked by Zhang Xiu, and he broke the general Dian Wei and his eldest son Cao Ang.

All in all, Nanyang is dilapidated. In the county seat of Nanyang County controlled by Cao Cao, except for the 100,000 people inside and outside Wan County, most of the rest of the county seats are vacant, and the population of the few populated counties is also not large.

Yexian is one of the few counties with people.

Ye County is located in the north of Xinye, east of Wancheng, about 500 miles apart, light riding two days and nights can kill from Wancheng to Ye County.

At present, there are not many cavalry under Cao Cao, most of them are stationed in the north, Xiahoudun of Wancheng, Yu Ban, Li Dian and other troops, only the infantry army has no cavalry.

This is also one of the important reasons why Liu Bei dared to go out of Xinye and plunder the population.

The opponent has no cavalry, and if he can't beat it, he can escape. On the contrary, if the opponent has cavalry, then the infantry army will kill out of the city and run rampant across the plain, which is tantamount to throwing a sheep into a tiger, and there is no return.

Although Ye County is one of the few cities in the north of Nanyang County that is still inhabited, the population inside and outside the city is only more than 8,000 people.

The geographical location was also not important, so there was no garrison in the city.

There are only county orders, as well as a small number of officials, officials and the like.

The county order's surname is Ye, and his name is Ye Kai.

Ye Kai is from a poor family in Yuzhou, but his family background is strong and first-class. Ye Kai is forty-five this year, and in his early years, he was also a high-spirited fledgling young talent.

Both talent and appearance are outstanding. But it's a pity, in this era of paying attention to bloodline and family, Ye Kai couldn't get out of the way after all.

Ye Kai had been a junior official in the county before, and he was the highest in the county. Ye Kai is not forty-five years old until now, and he can be worthy of the county order.

Moreover, it is a small county magistrate like Ye County, and he has long been desperate for his career, and he just messes with his concubines every day, drinking more and falling asleep.

In the afternoon of this day, the gates of Yexian County were opened. Even if the city gate is open, only a few pedestrians enter and exit, and the officials guarding the gate are all lazy.

Ye County is a small county, and the geographical location is very remote. When Cao Cao pacified the Central Plains and stationed heavy troops in Wancheng, Yexian never experienced war again.

Therefore, Ye County, from top to bottom, has no crisis in his heart.

But then again, if the army is pressing, it would be strange that this small county town with a combined population of only 8,000 inside and outside the city could hold on.

The county government back house.

Ye Kai has ignored it for a long time, even if there is a civil litigation dispute, he will let the officials under his command deal with it. Every day, I just drink and have fun in the back house.

At this moment, Ye Kai hid in the bedroom, put warm wine and dishes and hugged the concubine.

Ye Kai was half drunk, and the concubine in his arms was also like a peach blossom. "Mi's wine, really good wine. It's a pity that it's a little expensive, and with the county order, I can't drink a few jars a year. ”

Ye Kai picked up the small wine pot next to the desk and poured wine into the wine bowl, but only squeezed out three or five drops of wine, shook it, and it was empty.

Ye Kai's mouth was full of wine and sighed.

Mi's liquor was first popular in Jingzhou, then Jiangdong, Bashu, and recently in Wancheng, it also gradually became popular, and slowly entered the north.

There are already merchants from Xudu who have gone south to Xinye to buy Mi's wine.

Ye Kai borrowed wine to kill his sorrows, and naturally he couldn't do without wine. After drinking Mi's wine by chance, it was out of control, except for Mi's wine, the rest were like chewing wax, and there was no taste at all.

At this time, the concubine in Ye Kai's arms couldn't hold on any longer, her eyes were closed, her head was crooked, and she fell into Ye Kai's arms.

Ye Kai laughed when he saw this: "It's the old man's Mi wine, most of which was drunk by you stupid woman, it's really a tyrannical thing, a tyrannical thing." ”

Ye Kai is a good wine and womanizer, but he has no interest in a drunk concubine like a dead pig. I didn't have the strength to carry the concubine to bed, so I just put the concubine on the ground, swayed it again, and covered the concubine with a quilt.

After that, Ye Kai staggered to the door, opened the door, and a gust of cold wind poured in, causing Ye Kai to tremble for a while.

The wine was mostly awake, but when the wind blew, I had a splitting headache.

"It's really not a good idea to drink and blow the wind." Ye Kai hurriedly closed the door, intending to go to sleep. At this moment, a small official broke in from outside, regardless of his dignity and humility, and said in a panic: "Lord County Commander, a large group of people have come to the outside of the county seat, and it seems that they are going to attack the city." ”

Ye Kai just laughed for a while when he heard this: "Ye County is not a strategic place, who will fight?" Moreover, Cao Gong unified the Central Plains and defeated Yuan Shao, and he is currently in full swing. Who dares to come and violate the borders. ”

But then, Ye Kai hit a spirit, and the wine woke up completely. He asked in a hurry, "Wait, where did the soldiers come from, and what banner did they fly?" ”

"The vanguard is a cavalry of hundreds of people, and the banner is "Zhao". After that, thousands more came, under the banners "Liu" and "Chen". The guards of the city gate have urgently closed the city gate and are preparing for battle. But a careful count shows that there are only fifty old and weak servants in the city, and no more than ten bows. What should I do at this moment, and I would like to ask the prefectural magistrate to show me. The little official was at a loss and gave up his request.

Ye Kai's face turned pale, white and red, his hands were put behind his back, pacing back and forth. is also extremely hasty: "Yes, this general surnamed Zhao should be Zhao Yun, the general under the command of General Liu Bei." "Liu" is General Zuo himself. General Zuo was brave and opposed to Cao Gong, and was famous all over the world. But why did you come to my Ye County? That's right, that's right, I'm afraid it's for the sake of my eight thousand people in Ye County. It's really a disaster from heaven, I'm resting, I'm resting. ”

Ye Kai paced back and forth until I rested, I rested, but he couldn't decide what to do.

In the blink of an eye, there was the sound of horseshoe people, followed by a commotion in the house.

"The prefectural order is not good. The officials guarding the southern gate opened the gate and welcomed the enemy in. At present, the army has entered the city and surrounded the county order yamen. ”

Ye Kai's housekeeper rushed in from outside and said in fear.

A blow to the chest, a fatal blow. But he also made a decision for Ye Kai. "At this moment, there are only two paths, one is the city is broken, and the other is kneeling and begging for mercy. My lord, I choose to kneel and beg for mercy, you can do it yourself. ”

Ye Kai hurriedly said a word to the little official who came first to report, and then tidied up his clothes, walked out of the bedroom, and went out of the county office.

Outside the county office, there are a large number of soldiers. The first general, silver armor embroidered robe, imposing, followed by this flag bearer, the flag bearer held a "Chen" flag in his hand.

There is no doubt about his identity, this person must be a general under General Zuo, and Chen Zhi, a native of Runan.

Seeing this person, Ye Kai perked up, stepped forward and bowed down, and said: "I am Ye Kai of Chengxian County, and the general is from the state (from the same state)." ”

"Raw? Die? Chen Zhi is not a person who is easy to be trapped, he doesn't say much, but he hits the nail on the head, and there are only two words at the moment, life and death.

"Raw!" Ye Kai said without hesitation.

Chen Zhi turned his head to look at his battalion Sima, who immediately knew what his general meant, turned over and dismounted, personally restrained Ye Kai, and then ordered the county government to be emptied.

When the male and female population in the county government is emptied, it is time for soldiers and horses to replace them. Liu Bei, Sun Qian, Jian Yong and others rode into the county hall and sat down.

Ye Xian Ling was also invited into the lobby, forgive this person is just a literati, and he can't afford to turn up the storm, so Chen Zhi didn't tie up Ye Kai.

"The county order doesn't need to be afraid, I am a relative of the Han family, and I will not easily kill the court officials." Liu Bei was in the hall, although he was very imposing, but he also had the style of a corporal and a pleasant face.

Believe in you to have ghosts.

Are there still fewer officials killed by your Liu Bei?

Ye Kai scolded in his heart, but he hurriedly promised on his face, very well-behaved.

"Where is the county population roster?" After Liu Bei appeased Ye Kai, he couldn't wait to ask.

"Please wait a minute, General Zuo." Ye Kai asked Liu Bei to wait, and then under the supervision of the two soldiers, he went to the treasury to take the population roster and presented it to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei opened the population roster and saw that there were enough people with a population of 8,000, and he was immediately overjoyed.

This 8,000 people is nothing, but 10,800 people are enough to have a population of 80,000. Xinye has barren land, and there is no problem in raising another 80,000 people.

Liu Bei became more and more pleasant, and said to Ye Kai: "I am going to go to Xinye to the people, and I am afraid of disturbing the people, can the county order come forward to lead the county officials, gather the people, and go south with me?" ”

The will of the people is irreversible, and if they are forcibly moved, I am afraid it will backfire. Don't look at Ye Kai as a bastard, but at least he is a county order, and the officials under his command are also very inconspicuous.

But these people are the closest officials to the people and have prestige. If these people are willing to help, they will get twice the result with half the effort.

This is also an important reason why Liu Bei is so kind to Ye Kai.

"I am willing to do the work of dogs and horses." Ye Kai hurriedly said.

Liu Bei nodded with satisfaction, and then sent some officials from the army, and asked Chen Zhi to lead a few soldiers, not only to see, but also to help Ye Kai migrate the people.

First migrate the people outside the city into the city, and then follow the army south to Xinye. As for the people's family property, try to be as light and simple as possible, and abandon it if it can be discarded.

In doing so, of course, there will be public resentment.

But at this moment, Liu Bei can't control so much.

After Liu Bei sent Ye Kai away, he asked Chen to go down to defend the city, and then summoned Zhao Yun to form a four-person decision-making group with Sun Qian and Jian Yong.

Liu Bei asked Jian Yong to take out the map, and the four of them sat around to watch.

Liu Bei pointed to the Yexian markers on the map and said, "This time I will take Yexian, and the generals of Yide, Xingba, and Wenchang plundered the population of the counties near Yexian. Ye County has a population of 8,000, and I look at the total population of all counties, no less than 30,000 or 40,000. ”

"If 30,000 or 40,000 people go south, then the population of Xinye will be nearly 200,000. In the future, there is something wrong with Mi's wine, with a population of 200,000 alone, it can also raise 20,000 or 30,000 elite soldiers. ”

Sun Qian smiled and touched his beard, also showing joy.

The purpose of this war was very simple, to plunder the population, and not to engage the Wancheng garrison such as Xiahoudun. The army went north, besieged the city, plundered, and did not stay for more than three days.

Because if Xiahoudun and the others traveled day and night, it would be possible to reach Ye County in four days at the earliest, and then a battle would be inevitable.

On the contrary, if it is within three days, the army can calmly return to Xinye. Xiahoudun, Li Dian, Yu Ban and others even sent troops to Yexian, they only saw an empty city.

All in all, the goal of the Northern Expedition this time was Wancheng, and the harvest exceeded expectations. Liu Bei and others guessed that it was already very good to be able to rob 20,000 or 30,000 people.

It is now estimated that there are 30,000 or 40,000 people.

With an additional population of 10,000, you can raise an additional 1,000 elite soldiers, which is very important.

Not only Sun Qian, but Zhao Yun also showed joy, only Jian Yong was still the same, lying down, not happy or surprised, very chic.

But Liu Bei suddenly wanted to do a big one.

Before Liu Bei sent out his troops, he was ready to move, tossing and turning. I have had a dream, and this dream does not refer to a real dream, but to a fantasy.

Liu Bei imagined that he had defeated Xiahoudun, Li Dian, Yu Ban and others, and entered Wancheng with troops, possessing a county of Nanyang.

In the three-person military meeting before departure, Liu Bei also mentioned it, but he was poured cold water by Jian Yong and Sun Gan, so this Northern Expedition became a plundered population.

Although it is also known as Cao Cao of the Northern Expedition, it is indeed not on the stage.

And at this moment, Liu Bei suddenly wanted to make a big deal about it.

"Do you remember the Bowangpo we walked through?" Liu Bei suddenly pointed to the Bowangpo marker on the map, revealing a look of eagerness.

Jian Yong and Liu Bei have known each other since they were teenagers, and when they saw Liu Bei's expression, they knew that Liu Bei was afraid that he was going to do something.

Jian Yong squinted, and then the person changed from reclining to sitting cross-legged, the whole person was much more serious, he glanced at the three words of Bowangpo, and then thought about the terrain in that area, and said: "The road of Bowangpo is narrow, the grass and trees are deep, and it is easy to ambush. ”

"If Xiahoudun can lightly advance the enemy, we will set up an ambush here, and we will be captured. But Xiahoudun is a famous general of Cao Cao, Yu Ban and Li Dian are resourceful, and I am afraid it is not easy to be fooled. ”

Sun Qian stretched out his finger and pointed at the map, turned in a circle, and then withdrew and scratched his beard, revealing a hesitant look.

"Xiahoudun is very capable of managing soldiers, and he is very capable of giving up wealth and silk to raise soldiers, so the soldiers are willing to serve him. When he was a general of Jianwu, he was stationed in the area of Chenliu and Jiyin, cut off the water to make slopes, and persuaded the people to plant rice, which was loved by the people. It is good to govern the army and manage the people, but it is not good at fighting. Moreover, Xiahoudun led 30,000 elite soldiers to settle in Wancheng, a strong general. The main army was only sixteen or seven thousand, and thirty or forty thousand people were plundered, and the ranks were bloated. As long as the lord shows a little flaw, Xiahoudun is afraid that he will chase after him. If Xiahoudun chased to Bowangpo, he would be defeated nine times out of ten. ”

Zhao Yun knew Xiahoudun quite well, and after analyzing the other party's personality and ability, he felt that this matter was feasible.

"What Zilong said is very true. If Xiahoudun leads his troops to chase after him, I can press the whole army and swallow it. After defeating Xiahoudun, he could take advantage of the situation to capture Wancheng and then control the entire Nanyang County. There's a lot to be done. ”

Liu Bei was rarely excited.

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