Numbers in troubled times are an interesting thing, if the north is two rivals, then it is always more difficult to end the war than to start the war, because it only takes the initiative of one side to provoke the war, but to end the protracted war, it requires the consent of both sides or a complete law of the jungle.

It's just that when the number becomes "three", it becomes easier to end the war than to start the war.

For example, after the end of the Northern War in the sixth year of Jian'an, the three families of Yuan, Yan and Cao, as the three heroes of the north, entered a short truce again with the posture of the alliance of Yuan and Cao to resist Kansai, and in view of the heavy price paid by each in the last war, the three families did not dare to easily start a war against either side in the short term, but focused on cultivating the agricultural war internally, gathering lessons and actively accumulating strength for the third northern war.

But in this short and peaceful summer, Hebei overlord Yuan Shao did not survive after all, he lay on the sickbed and died of depression, before dying, he stubbornly sent his important ministers to Tian Feng to prison and died, and with his death, a cumulative internal heir contradiction also quickly broke out.

Yuan Shang, the third son in Yecheng, with the support of the foreign ministers, Feng Ji and his stepmother Mrs. Liu, took the lead in claiming to inherit all the titles and official positions of Yuan Shao's general, Marquis of Ye, etc., and ruled the land of Jizhou, Youzhou, Qingzhou and the nominal four states of Jizhou, Youzhou, Qingzhou and the nominal annexed states.

The eldest son Yuan Tan, who returned to Qingzhou halfway, called himself a general of chariots and cavalry, supported troops in the plains and stood on his own, refusing to bow down to his younger brother in Yecheng.

Originally, the civil and military forces under Yuan Shao's command also stood in line, and the important ministers Guo Tu and Xin Ping fled to Qingzhou successively, and the confrontation between Jizhou and Qingzhou has been revealed.

Qingzhou, Plains City.

The undercurrent in the hinterland of Hebei is surging, and the soldiers and horses of Qingzhou, which were originally stationed on the south bank of the river, have all been transferred north, and the plain city, which has maintained tranquility since the Yuan clan took over Hebei, has once again seen the situation of soldiers and horses entering the country, and the neighboring Qinghe country is also preparing for war and continuously increasing the garrison in the territory.

At the head of the city, Yuan Tan, who called himself the general of the chariot cavalry, was holding the battlements with his hands, looking at the distant mountains, and listened to the report of the military under his command with some distraction.

As Yuan Shao's eldest son, he is over thirty years old, although his appearance is not as handsome as his third brother Yuan Shang, but he has also inherited the good genes of Yuan's lineage, and his appearance is somewhat similar to his father.

And he has always been in his heart to Hebei foundation heir self-style, these years he has been stubborn, the north row of Tian Kai, the east attack Kong Rong, Yao Bing Haiyu, for the Yuan town to guard the land of Qingzhou, can be described as a high degree of hard work, but the father favored the younger brother, he passed him to his uncle Yuan Ji, more on the trial, Feng Ji and other villains from it, so that he lost the opportunity to inherit the foundation of Hebei, and now can only return to Qingzhou to support the army and stand on his own, waiting for the opportunity to move.

However, because the elite soldiers of Jizhou have suffered heavy losses in foreign warfare in the past two years, so in the case of the confrontation between Jizhou and Qingzhou, Jizhou, which has a large population and rich people, does not occupy an obvious advantage.

It's just that in addition to Hua Yan, Kong Shun and other civil and military officers who actively support their entry into Jizhou, there are also one or two ministers who put forward dissenting opinions, such as Wang Xiu, who came in a hurry at this moment, and stood behind him and bitterly warned himself not to do things like "relatives and enemies are happy".

"As the so-called 'brothers are on the wall, and the outside resists their insults', the new defeat in the eastern part of the country, the rebellion of Rong Di, and the strong neighbors covet, Hebei is in an eventful autumn, so how can you do fratricidal things at this time, you must know that the snipe and the clam compete for the benefit of the fisherman, at this time, the king only has to return to the border of Baozhou, send the envoy to Yecheng, and reach a peace agreement with Jizhou, which is the best policy to take into account the overall situation!"

Yuan Tan frowned when he heard this, "The army is gathered, and it costs a lot of money every day, how can there be a reason to return in vain, don't you want to let Tan watch the rebel brother seize the throne in Yecheng, and let the Yuan family's elders and children be disordered and the foundation will not be guaranteed?" ”

"Alas, make the king, do more injustice will kill yourself, the son of Xianfu has seized the throne without permission, has fallen into the land of injustice, so that the king may as well follow the example of Lu Zhuang Gong, take into account the overall situation, and retreat as advance, so that you can not only seek injustice, punish the ministers, but also avoid a civil war, so that Hebei Li Shu is blocked, this is the best of both worlds, the king must take it!"

After listening to Wang Xiu's bitter words, Yuan Tan closed his eyes and fell into deep thought.

It was only soon that he reopened his eyes and shook his head.

He understood the truth, but he couldn't do it. At present, it is difficult for him to ride a tiger, and if he does not advance, he will retreat, so he can only fight hard and fight for the position of the lord of Hebei. If he doesn't do anything and leads his troops back to Qingzhou like this, then not only Guo Tu, Xin Ping and others who defected to him will leave him one after another, but those who originally intended to climb the dragon and attach the phoenix will also leave Germany, turn to Yecheng, and sell himself and Qingzhou to the younger brother who wants to get rid of him.

Besides, the bloody battle within the Yuan family is not inferior to the emperor's family, do you still see less, once his father and uncle were a pair of living examples, the fate of the loser, Yuan Tan didn't want to taste it himself.

"Don't drive the king." Yuan Tan sighed, "The way of the king, brotherhood, these Tan understand, but Tan can't do this!" ”

"Envoy-" Seeing this, Wang Xiu still needed to be persuaded again, Yuan Tan had already shook his hand, ignored it anymore, turned around and strode down the city.

"Troubled times need to be saved by domineering, and the last thing the emperor and general's family needs is brotherhood!"

···

The signs of infighting in the Yuan clan in Hebei had already appeared, and there was no military affairs in the eastern part of the country, and the Yan Xing side, which had won the previous Northern War, immediately turned its attention to Zhang Lu in Hanzhong in the southwest.

In the eyes of the civil and military forces of the Hussar General's Mansion, Hanzhong, which was divided by the rice thief Zhang Lu, was rich and saved, and the Bashu army was weak, so he could take advantage of the gap in the absence of a big war in the north to send a group of soldiers and horses south to enter Hanzhong, so as to achieve the purpose of seizing the granary of Bajun and making up for the shortfall.

Therefore, in the autumn of the seventh year of Jian'an, the general Yan Xing commanded Wenwu Pei Ji, Fa Zheng, Yan Gui, Ma Jun, Zhang Zhuo, Quan Quevil, Ma Dai, Ma Tie, Ma Xiu and the generals Gao Rou and Cheng Gongying, led 30,000 cavalry, and joined Su Ze's soldiers and horses in Wudu to attack Zhang Lu in Hanzhong.

The army was invincible all the way, and the Qiang tribe followed like a shadow along the way, but met the Hanzhong defenders sent by Zhang Lu at Yangping Pass, and the enemy generals Zhang Wei and Yang Ang defended according to the danger, and the southern expeditionary army attacked for several days, and the Hanzhong soldiers were afraid of the southern expeditionary army, and did not dare to go out of the field battle, so the two armies confronted each other at Yangping Pass, and it was a stalemate until November.

Outside Yangping Pass, the Yan army camp.

The main general, Yan Xing, the supervising army Pei Ji, and the military Fa Zheng sat silently on their seats, relatively silent.

At the beginning of this battle, Yan Xing looked at it with an optimistic attitude, after all, Fa Zheng, who knew the geography of Hanzhong, served as a member of the army, and the troops were divided into multiple ways to march together, plus the Bashu soldiers were weak, and there were all kinds of siege equipment made by Ma Jun in the Southern Expeditionary Army, whether it was a siege or a field battle, the Southern Expeditionary Army was not afraid, so he and the shogunate both believed that Hanzhong would be able to capture it.

Yan Xing even secretly ordered Yan Xing to send Pei Ji, Gao Rou and others to contact Shuzhong if he took Hanzhong in advance, and Bashu had a chance to take advantage of it.

Unexpectedly, the situation of the Southern Expedition became more and more unfavorable with the passage of time. First of all, several troops from the Xiegu and Luogu divisions were divided into divisions because of heavy rain for several days, and the autumn flood and mountain floods washed down the plank road, and they could not go south to attack Hanzhong; Secondly, the enemy generals Zhang Wei and Yang Ang controlled the mountain danger and could not defend it, and the siege equipment suitable for attacking and fighting on the plain had little effect, and even the heavy stone throwing machine was helpless against the rugged and steep mountain, and the southern expeditionary army could not attack it; In the end, Fa Zheng suggested that the strange soldiers who took the middle road of the mountain were ambushed by the Banyu barbarians, suffered heavy losses, and returned in defeat.

After being silent for a long time, Yan Xing, who was the main general, finally spoke, he looked at Pei Ji and Fa Zheng and said in a deep voice:

"The hussar general sent an envoy to give an order, if the southern expedition is impossible, you can temporarily retreat north, and on the way to retreat, you need to guard against rice thieves taking the middle road of the mountain to intercept our army."

Fa Zheng's mind moved, and he raised his eyes to look at Yan Xing and asked:

"General, could it be that there are police in Kanto?"

As a minister of the shogunate, he knew that the hussar generals were looking forward to the southern expeditionary army to capture Hanzhong, so he did not hesitate to dispatch a large army to the south.

Yan Xing didn't hide it, he nodded.

"Indeed, Xu Du Cao Cao led a large army to attack Jingxiang in the south, and even under Bowang, Xi'e and other cities, the southern soldiers were defeated and retreated, and the hussar general agreed to the request for help from the Jingxiang envoy, and many generals of Boyang and Wenyuan were sent to the east to rescue."

Although Fa Zheng didn't know much about the situation in Kanto, according to the grain reserves in Guanzhong, Sanhe and other places recorded by the shogunate Cangcao last year, he was afraid that Yan Xing, who had been fighting for many years, could not support the logistics consumption of two-front operations, so after agreeing to Jingxiang's request for help, Yan Xing then ordered the southern expeditionary army that if it could not make a breakthrough, in order to reduce the meaningless attrition confrontation, Yan Xing could lead the army back to Guanzhong as soon as possible, and the southern expedition would be temporarily ended in advance.

Just doing so, for the top and bottom of the Southern Expeditionary Army, they will undoubtedly suffer the humiliation of attacking unfavorably and returning in vain.

"Now that the shogunate has arrived, when is the shogun going to withdraw his troops?"

The supervising army Pei Ji listened quietly for a long time and took the initiative to ask. The main general Yan Xing pursed his lips when he heard this, but in the end he did not reply immediately.

In fact, he was also hesitating in his heart, facing each other for several months, and the military order had arrived, should he try to reduce his losses and retreat as soon as possible, or would he not be willing to fail and finally fight again?

···

Hanzhong, Nanzheng.

Zhang Lu, who has a high crown and a long beard, and has a bit of fairy style, stands on the pavilion in the backyard, looking at the scenery from the lower place, frowning.

Since the second year of Chuping invaded Hanzhong, Zhang Lu has controlled a place in Hanzhong for ten years, relying on the shadow of the ancestors in Han and Ba preaching and the dangerous geographical location of Hanzhong, the five buckets of rice that met with Liu Zhang's sword soldiers not only did not die, but entered a period of vigorous growth, and there were many people who believed in the five buckets of rice under Liu Zhang's rule, so that Zhang Lu's power could continue to penetrate into the land of Sanba.

And according to the preaching system of "ghost pawn - sacrificial wine - big sacrificial wine - Shijun" of Wudou Midao, Zhang Lu also established a **** secession regime, although Hanzhong is in a corner, but under the rule it is also rich and secure, and all industries are prosperous. More importantly, Liu Zhang in Shu was weak, and Hanzhong was not in danger of being annexed by strong neighbors, which made Zhang Lu, who was full of ambition, in addition to Tunan, also intended to go north to use troops to expand the territory.

In the fifth year of Jian'an, he united with Han Sui, who fled to Qiang, and sent troops north to attack Wudu County, which was a bold attempt by Zhang Lu's ambition.

It's just that the time he went north to use troops not only returned in vain, but also brought a monstrous disaster to the land of Hanzhong. Two years later, in retaliation, Yanxing in Guanxi launched several large armies southward, claiming that he would swear to break through Hanzhong and capture the rice thief alive.

Although the recent army is still blocked by the defenders of Hanzhong outside Yangping Pass, the strong enemy is pressing the border and not retreating, which still makes Zhang Lu's heart that has been hanging these days unable to let go.

In the final analysis, the tranquility of Hanzhong is not because Zhang Lu is strong enough, but because the surrounding forces are weak enough, so once a powerful force intervenes, the situation in the entire Hanzhong suddenly becomes precarious.

Gong Cao Yanpu was also worriedly reporting to Zhang Luyu about the recent military and political affairs in Hanzhong at this time.

Because the troops from the south of Hanzhong were dispatched to Yangping Pass and other places to resist the attack of Yan Xing's troops and horses, which caused the defense of the cities in Brazil adjacent to Liu Zhang's forces to be empty, and the Shu general Pang Xi had already sent troops to Brazil, preparing to wipe out all the forces of Wudou Midao and recover the entire territory of Brazil.

The Shen family brothers, who controlled Xicheng and Shangyong, and Kuai Qi, who controlled Fangling, used to be under the orders of Zhang Lu, the master of the Five Bucket Rice Dao, but at this time, seeing that the Hanzhong soldiers were pressing the border, they also said that there were incidents in their own territory, and they refused to be ordered to requisition grain and civilian servants to come to Nanzheng to support.

As the most solid ally of Wudou Midao, there are also internal divisions in the territory of Ba and Han, and the Banyu barbarians originally had the surnames of Luo, Pu, Du, E, Du, Xi, and Gong, and the internal forces are complicated, and at present, in addition to Du Hao, Pu Hu, Yuan Yue and other Qu Shuai still insist on expressing their support for Zhang Lu, the other surnames have begun to become both ends of the first rat, it is said that their previously captured clan children were released by Yan Xingjun, and conveyed to their clansmen the magnanimity and goodwill from Yan Xingjun.

"Yan Jun, do you also think that Hanzhong should surrender?"

Zhang Lu, who was worried about internal and external troubles and restless, sighed for a long time, and finally asked Gong Cao Yanpu the question that he had buried in his heart from the beginning.

"Shijun, I think that Hanzhong should surrender." Yan Pu pondered for a while, secretly observing Zhang Lu's expression, until he confirmed that Zhang Lu was not deliberately tempting, and then spoke leisurely.

"Why?" When Zhang Lu heard this, he didn't mean to blame at all, he was preoccupied, and then asked.