The flood caused victims on both sides of the Weishui River to be everywhere, and the people in the land of Qinchuan for 800 miles were fierce, and there were many homeless victims who gathered together to do business. []

Over time, several bandits in large numbers gradually formed. These large bandit gangs were at least a thousand in size, and most of them were hidden in the Qinling Mountains, evading the pursuit of officers and soldiers.

The Shu army has been busy with disaster relief, and has not yet made time to clean up these robbers who have fled to the Qinling Mountains.

The Qinling Mountains stretch from southern Gansu in the west to Nanyang in the east, with a total length of more than 1,500 kilometers and run through most of China. These robbers were hidden in the Qinling Mountains, and it was very difficult to exterminate them.

Cao Zhen wished that Yongzhou could be more chaotic, so he secretly supported many of the bandit gangs, gave them some shabby weapons, and even directly installed some capable people into Qinling to integrate some bandit gangs.

The news of the birth of the red dragon spread quickly. It spread all over the land of Yongzhou, and also reached the ears of these victims hidden in the mountains.

All kinds of rumors in the land of Yongzhou. Circulating, hundreds of different versions have gradually evolved, but all versions have a common feature, that is, Adou is the true son of destiny chosen by Gaozu!

Whenever there is a holy Lord, there will inevitably be differences. Elephant, the common people believe in these illusory things the most, and a red dragon was born, giving the people a backbone. The invasion of the Hu people and the flood have made the people of Yongzhou disheartened, and now, everyone has seen hope again.

……

Tianshui City.

The number of victims outside the city has not continued to increase, and Zhuge Liang left. After Tianshui, he handed over all affairs to Deng Zhi.

Deng Zhi is not only good at political affairs, but also proficient in military affairs. Shiba's management was well organized, and there was no chaos among the victims outside the city.

Deng Ai came to the Tianshui Gate and looked at the vicinity without a glimpse of the edge. The disaster victim camp frowned slightly. Originally, Deng Ai thought that Yongzhou should be very chaotic after the ravages of the Hu people and this big flood, but looking at the well-organized disaster camp in front of him, Deng Ai realized that there were not many capable people in Shu.

Deng Ai is a pair of tours. The chivalrous dress, and the weapon, ran into trouble when he entered the city. Because of the war and the victims, Tianshui City has been under martial law, and ordinary people cannot enter and leave the city, especially people like Deng Ai who still have weapons in their hands, and it is even more difficult to enter the city.

Deng Ai had to find a place to bury the weapon, and then dressed up and paid enough money to enter the city. only then did he enter Tianshui City.

Due to the war and floods, many people have taken refuge in Tianshui City, and now there are many people in Tianshui City, most of the shops in the city are already full, and the prices in the city have also risen several times.

However, Deng Ai is not worried that there is no place to live, a big city like Tianshui naturally has Cao Wei's contact point, and after Deng Ai entered the city, he went straight to Cao Wei's contact place in Tianshui City.

……

In a large mansion in the west of Tianshui City.

Deng Ai put down the teacup in his hand and asked a middle-aged man in gorgeous clothes next to him: "Old Wu, is it true to say that this red dragon is true?" ”

The middle-aged man in Chinese clothes next to him nodded: "General Deng Ai, it is true, I heard that during the Heaven Sacrifice Ceremony, tens of thousands of people saw a red dragon emerging from Weishui!" ”

Deng Ai nodded slightly, but his brows furrowed, Deng Ai sensitively noticed that as soon as this red dragon was born, it might be very difficult to make Yongzhou itself chaotic.

However, Deng Ai's main task this time was to persuade Liangzhou Ma, so Deng Ai then asked, "What news is there from Liangzhou Ma?" ”

"Back to General Deng Ai, I heard that Ma is still in Guzang City, and he doesn't dare to go out of the city, and the Qiang army is still in Liangzhou." When the middle-aged man in Chinese clothes said this, his voice paused, and then said: "But a few days ago, Zhuge Liang sent tens of thousands of people to the west. ”

"Tens of thousands? What are you going to do? Deng Ai asked sensitively.

"These tens of thousands of people are going to recover Jincheng, and the main general who led the troops was originally a small official in this Tianshui City, named Jiang Wei."

"Jiang Wei? Who is it? Haven't heard of it. ”

"This Jiang Wei is a person from Tianshui, he is only in his twenties today, his father died in battle with the Qiang people back then, and Jiang Wei is a Gong Cao in Tianshui City, and he is good friends with Ma Zun, Yin Xian and others. However, this Jiang Wei's martial arts are good, and there is no one to beat in this Tianshui City. ”

"Twenty years old? It's quite young......" Deng Ai smiled: "A yellow-mouthed child, don't be afraid." Just keep an eye on it. Lao Wu, you go and prepare for me, I want to go to Guzang first. ”

Deng Ai didn't know that when the name Jiang Wei appeared in front of his eyes, the fateful battle between the two began.

……

Tongguan.

Sima Yi led 30,000 troops and came to Tongguan. And along with them came the generals of Wei, Zhu Ling and Niu Jin, as well as Zhang Liao's son Zhang Hu, Le Jin's son Le Qi, and Chen Qun's son Chen Tai.

Cao Pi, who was far away in Xudu, also thought that at this time, Yongzhou was full of disaster victims, and it was a good time to recapture Yongzhou, so he sent Sima Yi to Tongguan on the front line to assist Cao Zhen in recapturing Yongzhou.

Cao Zhen knew that he was not inferior to Sima Yi in terms of command, but in terms of strategy, he was far inferior to Sima Yi. So when Sima Yi came to Tongguan, Cao Zhen immediately asked Sima Yi how to recapture Yongzhou.

Sima Yi had already thought of a strategy against the enemy before he came, even if Cao Zhen didn't ask himself, Sima Yi himself would take the initiative to propose it to Cao Zhen.

Sima Yi slowly stretched out two fingers and said, "Du Du, I have two strategies for the Du Du to choose." ”

"Zhong Da will talk about the mitigation first."

"Dudu, the Hu people have been wreaking havoc in Yongzhou for nearly a year, and with a flood, there will be no harvest in Yongzhou this year. The grain stock in Yongzhou was not enough for the victims of Yongzhou, so Liu Chan would transport grain from Bashu and Hanzhong to Yongzhou. Although Bashu and Hanzhong are important grain producing areas, if they are supplied to Yongzhou's consumption, grain and grass are also very tight. The governor could lead the army to Chang'an, contain the main force of the Shu army, and then enter the north with light horses, cross the Jing River, and attack Anding, Shicheng and other places, so that the people north of Weishui could not cultivate, and forced Liu Chan to continue to transport grain from Yizhou to supply the people of Yongzhou. In this way, the Shu army's food is exhausted every year, and the Shu army has no food, so it is unable to expand its armaments, and we can rest and recuperate in the Central Plains, accumulate strength, and under the advantages of the other, within five years, our army can attack Yongzhou with superior troops, and within ten years, Yongzhou can sweep Yongzhou! ”

Yongzhou is vast and wild, but the real fertile land is mainly concentrated on both sides of the Weishui River and the Jing River. The south bank of Weishui is too close to the Qinling Mountains, and the cultivated land area is limited, and the most important cultivated land in Yongzhou is still concentrated on the north bank of Weishui. More importantly, the Zhengguo Canal is the water of the Jing River, and the entire Zhengguo Canal can irrigate more than 40,000 hectares of farmland, and it can be said that the more than 40,000 hectares of farmland irrigated by the Zhengguo Canal is the 800-mile Qinchuan grain production land.

Sima Yi's strategy was to hold back the main force of the Shu army in Chang'an, and then send light cavalry to attack and harass the more than 40,000 tons of fertile land, so that the people of Yongzhou could not cultivate the more than 40,000 tons of fertile land, and also cut off part of Yongzhou's grain production, forcing Liu Chan to transport grain from Bashu to supply Yongzhou.

Money and food are needed to recruit troops, expand the army, and even march to war. Money can be used to buy weapons and armor, while food is used by the army. Shu has iron, so there is no shortage of weapons and armor, but grain needs to be planted year after year. Once the grain of Bashu is supplied to Yongzhou, it will be difficult for the Shu army to save excess grain and grass, and it will be difficult to continue to expand the military strength. The Wei State could take advantage of the rich land of the Central Plains to slowly hoard grain and grass and expand its military strength. According to Sima Yi's prediction, if Cao Zhen used this strategy, within five years, the Wei army would have an advantage in numbers, and within ten years, the Wei army's strength would be able to sweep through Yongzhou.

After hearing this, Cao Zhen thought about it seriously for a while, and said, "Zhongda, although your plan is good, it will take ten years, too long. Let's talk about the quicker plan. ”

Sima Yi had long expected that Cao Zhen would not use this strategy, when he was in Xudu, when Sima Yi proposed this strategy with Cao Pi, he was also vetoed by Cao Pi, for ordinary people, ten years is too long.

Sima Yi said slowly: "There is a faster strategy, Lord Zhang has been operating in Chang'an for many years, and has a lot of friendship with the Chang'an family, and now Liu Chan has Chang'an, but it is difficult to make the people of Chang'an attached, the governor only needs to send a general to Chang'an, contact with the Chang'an family, and wait until my army is killed, the inside and outside should be combined, maybe you can take Chang'an in a war!" ”

Cao Zhen nodded: "This strategy is good, but this alone is not enough. That Pang Tong has arranged a disaster victims' camp for dozens of miles to the west of Chang'an City, and we will also send people to the disaster victims' camp to rebel against the disaster victims and create chaos for the Shu army. ”

Sima Yi frowned slightly after hearing this, Sima Yi also agreed with Cao Zhence's strategy against the victims, although there were hundreds of thousands of victims, once the chaos broke out, the Shu army would have to spend a lot of effort to control the situation, but the disaster victims were mixed, a group of rabble, it was easy to expose the news, if the Shu army knew in advance that there was a guard, it would not be good.

Sima Yi was just about to remind Cao Zhen, but at the moment when he was about to speak, a strange thought appeared in Sima Yi's mind, which made Sima Yi swallow his words again.

However, Sima Yi's movements were captured by Cao Zhen, and Cao Zhen opened his mouth and asked, "Zhongda, look at the way you want to speak and stop, but you have something to say?" ”

Sima Yi said without changing his face: "Dare to ask who the governor is going to send to Chang'an City as an internal response?" ”

Cao Zhen thought for a while and said: "General Zhu Ling is an old minister of the former emperor, he is well versed in the art of war, has rich experience, and is familiar with military affairs, so he can do this, but General Zhu Ling is very old, and there is a king and two in our army, who is brave and powerful, and is the enemy of ten thousand people, so I can help Zhu Ling, so send the two of them!" ”

Sima Yi nodded, Zhu Ling is Yuan Shao's old general, this person is very talented, and he also has military exploits, when it comes to the ability to lead troops to fight, Zhu Ling is not much worse than Xu Huang, and the official has also become a general. Although Cao Cao didn't like Zhu Ling back then, he couldn't hide Zhu Ling's talent, and he should be able to succeed if he went to Chang'an.

Sima Yi then asked, "Governor, who will you send to the disaster victims' camp to plot against the disaster victims?" ”

"I want to send Guo Huai's brother Guo Pei there. Although this Guo Pei is not as good as his brother Guo Huai, he is also quite talented. Cao Zhen said.

"Don't do it!" Sima Yi hurriedly opened his mouth to stop.

"Why not?"

"I heard that Guo Pei has been by Guo Huai's side all these years, and many people in Yongzhou must know Guo Pei, if Guo Pei is sent to the disaster camp, he may be recognized. So I think we should derive faces. Sima Yi replied.

"Then who does Zhongda think is the best person to send?"

"General Xiahou Yuanrang has four sons, his third son Xiahou Zizang and fourth son Xiahou Zijiang have lived in Xudu for a long time, the people of Yongzhou definitely don't know them, these two are famous generals, this time the two of them just came with me, so send them!"

Cao Zhen nodded: "Okay, let Zizang and Zijiang go." Zhongda, you are new to Tongguan, Kurama Tired, go rest first! ”

"Since this is done, then I will retire in the next place."

……

There was a young man standing next to Sima Yi, who looked like he was fourteen or fifteen years old, and he looked four or five points similar to Sima Yi, although he was not as eagle-eyed as Sima Yi, but there was a little more resolute look in his eyes than Sima Yi.

This young man is Sima Yi's eldest son, Sima Shi.

"Father, the two brothers Xiahou Zizang and Xiahou Zijiang are famous sons and daughters of Xudu, and they don't have much ability, why did my father recommend the two of them? It must be known that these two people are not enough to succeed and more than to lose, and sending these two people there is afraid that it will be a big deal. Sima Shi asked.

"Hehehe." Sima Yi smiled: "It is precisely because these two people are not successful enough to lose more than they can do that I recommend the two of them." ”

Speaking of this, Sima Yi looked outside cautiously, and now that there was no one outside, he said: "Master, let me ask you, who is the most favored person by His Majesty in the court now?" ”

"It's father, you and Cao Zhen, the Metropolitan Governor." Sima Shi replied.

"Yes, now Your Majesty favors me and Cao Zhen the most, that Cao Zhen is the righteous son of the former emperor, and the righteous brother of His Majesty today, counting up, His Majesty trusts Cao Zhen a little more, and as a father, he is just a person with a foreign surname. If Cao Zhen wins this battle, he will be able to pay homage to the marquis after returning to Xudu, and his status will be far above his father, but if Cao Zhen is defeated in this battle, His Majesty's side, Cao Zhen will not be able to explain, even if His Majesty does not treat Cao Zhen's crimes, Cao Zhen himself will ask for self-punishment, and at least three or two years, Cao Zhen will return to the court without shame. If there is no Cao Zhen in the court, it will be a chance to be a father! Sima Yi said this, a strange smile appeared on his face.

"But father, Xiahou Zizang and Xiahou Zijiang, the two mediocre talents, were recommended to Cao Zhen by their fathers, will Your Majesty pursue ...... afterwards?"

"No, although these two people are recommended by me, they are used by Cao Zhen, once something goes wrong with these two people, it must be Cao Zhen who will take care of them. What's more, these two people are the sons of Xiahoudun, even if these two people mess things up, they will lose the face of the dead Lao Tzu, what does it have to do with recommending their father? Even if Your Majesty really blames it, it can be said that it is Xiahou Dun's prestige to recommend these two people, and with the dead Xiahou Dun as a shield, Your Majesty will not blame me. ”

……

In the fourth year of Wei Huanglong, the first year of Shu Han Jianxing, at the end of August, Cao Zhenbing, the governor of Wei, went out of Tongguan and attacked Chang'an.

……

Tongguan is only more than 100 miles away from Chang'an, even if there are a large number of Cao troops, they can also arrive day and night.

The Shu army has been paying attention to Cao Zhen's movements at Tongguan, and the distance between the two sides is too close, so the Shu army must be ready for battle at all times. If there is any change in Cao Zhen on Tongguan, the spies will immediately report back to Chang'an.

Adou was ready to immediately lead his troops out of the city to meet the battle, but the ministers came out to stop him.

"Your Majesty is the body of ten thousand gold, you should sit in Chang'an, and you must not easily drive the expedition!"

"Yes, Your Majesty, Cao Zhen is just a young man overnight, and there is no need for His Majesty to drive in person."

Adou looked at the dozens of ministers below with a depressed face, and every word you said to me was nothing more than persuading Adou not to meet the enemy in person.

Zhuge Liang half-squinted his eyes, looking like he had nothing to do with himself, while Pang Tong next to him turned up the corners of his mouth, with a wicked smile on his face, and at the same time whispered to Zhuge Liang: "Kong Ming, look at it, Your Majesty will ask you later!" ”

"Prime Minister, what do you think?" As soon as Pang Tong's voice fell, Adou asked Zhuge Liang here.

Zhuge Liang opened his eyes, walked out slowly, and said: "Your Majesty, what you said is very right, the minister thinks that Your Majesty should sit in Chang'an." ”

"Master Taifu, what do you think?" Adou then asked Pang Tong.

"Your Majesty, the minister also thinks that Your Majesty should sit in Chang'an." Pang Tong said.

Hearing that Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, the two great ministers, had let themselves sit in Chang'an, Adou was deflated.

"Okay, then I'll sit in Chang'an!" After speaking, Adou looked at Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, then at Guan Zhang, and said: "Second uncle, third uncle, as well as the prime minister and the Taifu, after retiring from the dynasty, the inner hall will be discussed." ”

……

Inner nave.

"Two teachers, I really don't understand, why don't you let me go?" Adou said with some anger.

"Your Majesty, the swords of the two armies have no eyes in front of the formation, and they are very dangerous? For the sake of Your Majesty's safety, you still don't go. Zhuge Liang replied habitually.

"The sword has no eyes? Very dangerous? Back then, even Cao Cao's hundreds of thousands of troops couldn't keep me, and besides, I have fought a lot of wars over the years. ”

"Your Majesty, it's different now, you are now the king of a country!"

"But my father also drove the ...... back then."

"Your Majesty, you are different from the first emperor, and the first emperor already had you when he drove the expedition in person." Zhuge Liang said that he didn't say anything more, and the implication was that now Adou has no queen and no successor, so he can't go out easily.

At this time, Pang Tong next to him interjected and said, "Your Majesty, in fact, Kong Ming and I are worried about the safety of Chang'an City. ”

"Mrs. Fu, please speak."

Pang Tong cleared his throat and said: "Your Majesty, the strength of our army was stronger than that of the Cao army before, so we were able to force the Cao army into Tongguan, but after a big battle with the Hu people, at this time we and the Cao army were only evenly matched. However, if Cao Jun fights with us and loses both, it will be a defeat for Cao Zhen. After both defeats, we can rely on Chang'an City to defend, and if Cao Zhen has no troops, he will not be able to attack Chang'an, and if he can't capture Chang'an, Cao Zhen can only retreat to Tongguan, so the key to the victory or defeat of this battle is here! ”

Pang Tong said and pointed to his feet, and then said: "This is Chang'an City!" ”

Adou nodded, as long as Chang'an City is in hand, then for the Shu army, it can be attacked and retreated. But if Chang'an City is lost, even if it occupies the entire Yongzhou, there is no point.

"Your Majesty, the reason why you can't go on the expedition is precisely because you want to defend this Chang'an City. Now Chang'an City seems to be as stable as Mount Tai, but in fact it is surging. Although the families in the city are superficially homely, they have their own ghosts, and there must be Cao Jun's spies in Chang'an City, trying to take advantage of the chaos. There are hundreds of thousands of victims outside the city, if they are instigated by villains and produce a civil uprising, the consequences will be unimaginable, so Your Majesty must personally sit in Chang'an City. Not only is Your Majesty in Chang'an City, but Kong Ming and I must leave at least one person in the city, just in case. Pang Tong continued.

Adou nodded: "I didn't expect what Taifu said." ”

"Your Majesty, the minister thinks that the prince or one of the three generals should be kept in the city, and it is best for both generals to stay." Zhuge Liang continued.

"Why?"

"Your Majesty, I'm afraid that Liangzhou in the west is not very peaceful, if there is a change in Liangzhou in the west, it will have to be a prince or a third general to be able to suppress the person in Liangzhou, so that he will not dare to attack easily."

Although Zhuge Liang did not name anyone, Adou understood that Zhuge Liang was talking about horses.

"Prime Minister, do you think he may have defected? I don't think it's possible, he's not like that. Adou said.

"Your Majesty, the heart of defense is indispensable, and you are not afraid of 10,000, just in case, the current situation in Yongzhou must not allow the slightest mistake, be cautious in everything." Zhuge Liang said.

Adou nodded: "Since this is the case, then leave this matter to the prime minister and the Taifu!" ”

……

Fight against Cao Zhen, don't want to win, but just want to be undefeated. Zhuge Liang is cautious and more suitable for doing such a thing, so this time to resist Cao Zhen, Zhuge Liang went, and Pang Tong stayed in Chang'an City to assist Adou.

Since Liu Bei's death, Guan and Zhang were not in a very good mood, and basically had no intention of fighting, so both of them stayed in Chang'an City, and Huang Zhong, who was nearly eighty years old, happily followed Zhuge Liang on the expedition. For Huang Zhong, it is better to be able to fight than anything. At the same time, Wei Yan, as a general, also went with Zhuge Liang.

Although Guan Yu didn't go, he sent Guan Ping and Liao Hua to Zhuge Liang. At the same time, Zhang Yi, Huang Quan, Sha Moke and others also went with the army, and the strength of the Shu army was still very strong.

……

Chang'an City, Du Family.

Du Sheng looked out the window with some uneasiness, Cao Zhen attacked, and Du Sheng sensitively realized that he might not be idle.

The sound of footsteps came from outside, Du Sheng looked back, and the current housekeeper walked in from outside.

"The head of the house, there are more than a dozen people outside, and they want to see the head of the house."

"Who is it?"

"They claim to be distant relatives of the head of the house."

"Distant relatives?" Du Sheng was slightly stunned: "What are they called?" ”

"Homemaster, they didn't say, but they asked me to bring a token and asked me to present it to the homemaster, saying that it could prove their identity." As he spoke, the butler pulled an amber object from his bosom.

Du Sheng looked at this amber object, and his expression suddenly froze. Then Du Sheng snatched this thing and looked at it carefully for a long time.

After a long time, Du Sheng said, "They are my distant relatives, please invite them in!" No, I'll meet you personally. ”