Yecheng, inside the Imperial Palace.

Cao Cao's face was gloomy, and Chen Qun, Liu Ye, Xun Yu and others standing below also looked solemn.

Xun Yu said: "Your Majesty, the army led by Wang Can has a total of more than 100,000. Among them, Huang Zhong led 50,000 left route troops, and Zhao Yun led 50,000 right route troops, which was already 100,000 people. Coupled with the Chinese army led by Wang Can and the vanguard army under Lu Meng, there were at least sixty or seventy thousand. With a total of more than 160,000 people, so many people attacked Handan, and it was inevitable that General Xu would not be able to hold it. ”

Chen Qun continued: "Handan was defeated, I don't know what General Xu's situation is? ”

"Smack!!"

Cao Cao slapped the desk and said loudly: "I am angry in my heart, of course, there is a reason for the loss of Handan. But more of an annoyance, Xu Huang didn't know how to be flexible. Wang Can led an army of more than 100,000 to attack Handan, and he couldn't resist it, couldn't he retreat? But Xu Huang stayed in Handan and was finally defeated. If he withdraws, will I blame him? ”

After a pause, Cao Cao said again: "Handan City is broken, Xu Huang has become a loyal minister, but he is of no use to the overall situation. Especially when Wang Can waved his army, the situation was even more difficult. ”

Liu Ye said: "Your Majesty, Wang Can waved his army straight down, and the two generals Cao Hong and Zhang Jaw will not sit idly by, and are likely to lead the army to intercept Wang Can, which is probably in line with Wang Can's intentions." ”

Cao Cao said, "What do you think? ”

Xun Yu said: "Back to Your Majesty, the purpose of setting up a defense line in the north was to stop Wang Can. It's just that Wang Can's soldiers are strong and strong, and his weapons are even more powerful, and ordinary cities can't stop them. Zhang Jaw, Cao Hong and Xu Huang were all scattered and could not be rescued in time, so Handan was breached. The minister thought that the two should be transferred back immediately. ”

Cao Cao frowned and said, "Transferring the two of them back means that the arrangements in the previous stage are in vain. ”

Xun Yu shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, this is only a temporary retreat, not a retreat to Yecheng City. ”

Cao Cao waved his hand and said, "Wen Ruo, what do you have in mind?" ”

Xun Yu said loudly: "What we need to do now is to defend Yecheng, and the minister thinks that Cao Hong will be transferred back to Yecheng, let Cao Hong find a place to camp within twenty miles northwest of Yecheng, and let Zhang Jaw lead the army back and station within twenty miles northeast of Yecheng." Two large armies were distributed around Yecheng, looking for a place that was easy to defend and difficult to attack. If Wang Can attacks Yecheng, the two can lead the army to the rescue, and if Wang Can attacks one of them, His Majesty can send troops to support, so as not to be broken by Wang Can. ”

Liu Ye frowned and said: "Although the method proposed by Wen Ruo is feasible, it is not that there is no way to solve it. If Wang Can wants to win, he can divide his troops to block and break them individually, so that he can also break them. ”

Cao Cao said confidently: "Ziyang, our soldiers are also elite. Wang Can wants to divide his troops to block the attack, but there are still certain difficulties, so there is no need to be afraid. If Wen Ruo's opinion is feasible, so do it. ”

"Step! Trample!! ”

When Cao Cao was discussing with a few people, Man Zhong hurriedly walked in. Man Chong bowed to Cao Cao, and arched his hand and said, "Your Majesty, I just got the news from Cao Ren and Xiahou Yuan that the situation in the south is unfavorable!" ”

Cao Cao asked, "What's the disadvantage?" ”

Full of favor said: "Lu Xun of Yuzhou has been helped by Zhang Liao and Huang Xu, and has defeated Cao Ren who entered Yuzhou, and waved his army into Yanzhou, and joined the Shu army from the east of the Tiger Prison Pass. At present, Gan Ning, Tai Shici, Zhang Liao, Gao Shun, Xu Rong and other generals of the Shu army have entered Yanzhou, and the momentum is violent, and they are about to capture Chenliu. ”

"What about Xiahou Yuan's situation?" Cao Cao asked again.

Man Zhong replied: "The war in Xuzhou is also not good, Xiahou Dudu took Zang Ba to resist Xu Shu, and he was defeated in successive battles, and he has withdrawn from Xuzhou and returned to Qingzhou. Xu Shu waved his army into Qingzhou, and there was already a tendency to merge with the armies of Gan Ning and Zhang Liao. At present, our army is already tightened on all fronts, and the situation is very difficult. ”

Cao Cao raised his eyebrows, changed his words, and said, "What do the ministers of the DPRK and China think?" ”

Man Zhong sighed and paused for a moment before continuing: "Your Majesty, some of the ministers in the court are wall grass, wine bags and rice bags, so there is nothing to worry about. As long as His Majesty can hold Yecheng and stabilize the situation in Qingzhou and Yanzhou, it is still possible. ”

Cao Cao waved his sleeves and said, "You don't need to comfort me, I know the situation." ”

Cao Cao knew the thoughts of some ministers of the DPRK and the Central People's Republic of China.

The Wei army was defeated, and some officials had already begun to plan the way back, thinking of surrendering. But it is impossible for Cao Cao to surrender, and he will definitely choose to fight to the death. Cao Cao took a deep breath and said, "As long as I am still there, the situation in the court and the central government will not be chaotic." Now block Wang Can with all his might. Wen Ruo, you pass the news to Cao Hong and Zhang Jaw, and let the two of them wave their troops back immediately. ”

"No!"

Xun Yu surrendered and immediately turned around to carry out the order.

……

Feixiang County, the county government.

After receiving Cao Cao's order, Zhang Jaw ordered the soldiers stationed in Feixiang County to pack their bags and prepare to leave Feixiang County and head south. The generals under his command got the news and came to the county government to meet Zhang Liao en masse. These people all have the same plan, they don't want to withdraw to Yecheng, and they want to prepare for a decisive battle with the Shu army.

After Zhang Liao listened to the words of his generals, he smiled bitterly.

He looked at his faces and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, Your Majesty asked us to withdraw, not to withdraw to Yecheng to hold on, but to camp outside Yecheng City, and to have the opportunity to attack the Shu army." At that time, we sent troops to attack the Shu army, and with the support of His Majesty's army, we would not be alone. If you attack now, it is tantamount to hitting a stone with an egg. Go pack your bags and get ready to leave. ”

After listening to this, the general left silently.

Zhang Liao also quickly packed his bags and left the county government.

The army left Feixiang County, and Zhang Liao moved all the equipment and food left in the county government. As for the people in the city, Zhang Liao believed that they would not be attacked by the Shu army.

……

The Zhanghe River flows through the edge of the border between Wei and Guangping counties, and there is a series of camps under the slopes near the river.

This big camp is Cao Hong's station.

In the big tent of the Chinese army, Cao Hong's face was pale, and he looked very unhappy. He was not unhappy because of the news from Cao Cao, but because Sima Lang tried to persuade Sima Yi to deal with Wang Can, not only did he not succeed, but was arrested by Wang Can. This situation made Cao Hong feel extremely ashamed.

Cao Hong pinched Cao Cao's message, pondered for a long time, and finally ordered a retreat. Although Cao Hong wanted to raise troops to kill Wang Can and take revenge, he had no impulse in the end.

……

The retreat of the two armies of Cao Hong and Zhang Jaw was expected by Guo Jia.

The Shu army went all the way and did not encounter any obstacles when it went south. It took three days for the army to enter Wei County and approach Yecheng. It took another three days to camp thirty miles north of Yecheng.

At this time, Zhang Jaw and Cao Hong also returned to Yecheng.

Of the two armies, Cao Hong was stationed in the northwest and Zhang Jaw was stationed in the northeast. The large camp of the Shu army was to attack Yecheng, and the Wei army, which was located in the northwest and northeast of Yecheng, attacked. Moreover, Yecheng is not a city like Handan, it is the capital of Wei, and it is already a strong city after repeated reinforcement and construction.

Outside the city of Ye, not only a moat was built, but also a strong urn city was built, which was equivalent to an outer city defense, and an inner city to resist the attack of the Shu army.

Such fortifications are not easy to capture.

In the big tent, Wang Can summoned Jia Xu, Sima Yi, Guo Jia, Fa Zheng and other civil officials, and brought Zhao Yun, Dian Man, Chen to Lü Meng and other generals to discuss the attack on Yecheng.