At the end of the ninth year of Emperor Jian'an of the Han Dynasty (196), Ma Yue led the army to conquer in person, Zhang Lu rebelled and surrendered, and Hanzhong was determined.

When Yizhou Mu Liu Zhang heard the news, he urgently ordered the general Yang Huai to lead an army of 30,000 to defend Jiameng Pass, and ordered Zhang Ren, a fierce general in Shuzhong, to lead 3,000 elite soldiers to guard the Sword Pavilion and strictly prevent the Liang army from taking advantage of the situation to go south and plot against Xichuan.

At the height of the Western Han Dynasty, Yizhou had a population of more than 7 million.

After the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the population of Yizhou was greatly reduced, but during the reign of Liu Yan and Liu Zhang's father and son in Jian'an, the policy of recuperating with the people was adopted, and the situation in Yizhou did not deteriorate further because of the warlord melee in the Central Plains, so there are still nearly five million people! Among them, Shu County, Yongchang County (now Yunnan, Guizhou) and Ba County each have a population of more than 1 million, making them the three most populous counties in Yizhou.

Such a huge population base is undoubtedly quite terrifying, far from being comparable to the 200,000 population of Hanzhong District.

Although Liu Zhang is incompetent, he has some talents, including Zhang Song, Dong He, Wang Lei and others, and Yan Yan, Zhang Ren, Yang Huai, Wu Yi, Lei Tong, Wu Lan, generals, who can be described as both civil and military.

More importantly, the Liang army was not familiar with the terrain of Xichuan, and Li Su's fine work network had no achievements in Xichuan, and if he rashly went south under the circumstances that the time, place, and people were not available, he would probably be dragged into the quagmire of long-term attrition by the Sichuan army, which was something that the current Liangzhou military group wanted to avoid.

After careful consideration, Ma Yue and Jia Xu both believed that the time was far from ripe to go south to Xichuan, and finally decided to give up attacking Xichuan and led the army north to return to Guanzhong in the first month of the tenth year of Jian'an (197).

……

Emperor Jian'an of the Han Dynasty was in the summer of ten years.

The Central Plains is in drought, the Yellow River is broken, the red land is thousands of miles, the people of Yan and Henan have no harvest, cannibalism, and at this time Hebei is the wind and rain, the spring wheat harvest is bumper, Yuan Shao believes that this is a celestial metaphor, the time is ripe to go south to the Central Plains and crusade against Cao Ying, so in July of the tenth year of Jian'an (197), the strategist Chen Qun wrote a letter against the thief and announced to the world.

In the middle of August, Yuan Shao ordered a total of 300,000 troops from Hebei, You, Qing, and the four states, and claimed to be 700,000 to the outside world, and marched to Liyang from all over Hebei, and it was not until the beginning of September that the various armies successively gathered outside Liyang City, and the company camped for hundreds of miles, which was quite spectacular.

In mid-September, Yuan Shao ordered his eldest son Yuan Tan to lead 30,000 Youzhou elite soldiers to cross the Yellow River to attack Baima, and ordered his second son Yuan Xi to lead 30,000 Qingzhou elite soldiers to attack Yanjin, and the famous Battle of Guandu broke out.

……

Nanyang County.

Ma Yue and Jia Xu, who rushed to Wancheng, didn't have time to breathe, so they hurried to the Liangjun camp in the east of Wancheng, and Li Su, who arrived in Wancheng first, had already been waiting outside the gate with Ma Chao. Ma Yue turned over and dismounted, and a personal soldier had already stepped forward to take the reins of the horse, Ma Yue casually threw the horse whip in his hand into the arms of the pro-soldiers, and walked towards the big tent of the Chinese army, while turning back and asking Ma Chao and Li Sudao: "Meng Qi, Ziyan, how is the situation of the battle between the two armies of Yuan and Cao?" ”

Ma Chao followed behind Ma Yue step by step, and replied respectfully: "Brother, Yuan Shao's army of 700,000 has been assembled in Liyang and is on standby, and Cao Ying is also gathering troops, transporting grain and grass, and preparing to go north to Guandu to meet Yuan Shao. ”

"Seven hundred thousand!?"

Ma Yue suddenly paused and looked back at Ma Chao in disbelief.

Li Su hurriedly said: "Yuan Shao is just bluffing, although he claims to be 700,000, he can think that the Hebei army is only 300,000 at most!" ”

"Well, the figure of 300,000 is more credible." Ma Yue's expression was relieved, and he said, "Although Yuan Shao has been desperately expanding the army in recent years, and the population of Jizhou, Qingzhou, Youzhou, and Bingzhou combined is as many as seven or eight million, it would be an exaggeration to say that Yuan Shao can raise an army of 700,000 in a few years. ”

Jia Xu said: "Even if it is only 300,000, it is far from being comparable to Cao Ying!" ”

Ma Chao said: "What the military advisor said is extremely true, in recent years, Yan and Henan have suffered natural disasters in two prefectures, and the people are not happy, and Cao Ying and our army have been fighting for many years, and the consumption is very great, although Xuzhou was annexed last year, but it can only alleviate the embarrassment of lack of money and food, and it is difficult for Cao Jun to recover without three to five years." ”

Li Su said: "Based on the information sent back from the detailed work, I thought that Cao Ying could only gather 30,000 troops at most in the battle of Guandu, that is to say, the strength of the Cao army was only one-tenth of Yuan Shao's army, and in the first half of this year, Yan and Henan prefectures suffered from a major drought again, and the military food of the Cao army was extremely scarce, and it may be difficult to hold on for a long time. ”

As he was talking, everyone had come to Ma Chao's Chinese army tent.

Ma Yue stopped in front of the screen, Li Su hurriedly rushed forward and put down the rolled up map, Ma Chao stretched out his hand and pointed to the map, and said to Ma Yue: "Brother, please look, this is Liyang, Yuan Shao's army is gathered here, here is Baima, here is Yanjin, Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi's army is attacking these two places." ”

Ma Yue said: "Who is guarding Baima and Yanjin?" ”

Ma Chao said: "The White Horse Guard is Liu Yan, and the Yanjin Guard is Lu Qian, both of them have only 3,000 soldiers, not only are they at an absolute disadvantage in terms of troops, but also lack of training, and the equipment is far less sophisticated than Yuan Shaojun's, if Cao Ying does not send reinforcements, at most half a month, White Horse and Yanjin will be lost." ”

Ma Yueyu frowned, although he knew the battle of Guandu, but in his mind he had no idea about the process of this battle and the strength of the two sides, in fact, even if Ma Yue can know the battle of Guandu in history, it does not mean that this scene will be repeated here, because of the arrival of Ma Yue, the entire history of the late Han Dynasty has been completely rewritten, and no one knows how the battle of Guandu will develop and evolve this time?

Jia Xu suddenly asked: "How many troops does the Cao army stay on the front line of Luoyang and Yingchuan have?" Who did Cao Ying send to preside over the overall military and political situation in Luoyang? Have the guards of Hangu Pass, Tiger Prison Pass and Yingchuan ever found out? ”

Li Su replied: "It is Cao Ren and Cao Hong who preside over the overall situation of Luoyang, and it is Cao Xiu who guards the letter to Guguan, but it is Cao Zhen, the adopted son of Cao Ying, who guards the Tiger Pass, who is only eighteen years old, very young, but it is said that the bow and horse are skillful, very brave, and they are taught by Cao Ying at a young age, and they are very good at strategy. ”

"The Cao army on the front line of Luoyang and Yingchuan has about 30,000 troops, including 3,000 people in Hangu Pass, 2,000 people in Hujiao Pass, about 10,000 people in Yingchuan and Luoyang, and the remaining 5,000 people are led by Cao Hong to garrison Yiyang, and Luoyang is a horn to prevent our army from going north from Wancheng and attacking Luoyang."

Ma Yue said awe-inspiringly: "Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Cao Xiu, Yu Ban, these people are either Cao Ying's clan cronies, or his henchmen, that Cao Zhen was only eighteen years old and was entrusted by Cao Ying with the important task of guarding the Tiger Prison, and he is not an ordinary person!" Now that Yuan Shao's army is pressing, Cao Ying's troops are already stretched, but in this situation, Cao Ying has always refused to mobilize the 30,000 elite soldiers who stayed in Luoyang and Yingchuan...... In Cao Ying's heart, he has always listed Lone as the number one enemy. ”

Jia Xu muttered: "This is Cao Ying, like the lord, Cao Ying has never taken Yuan Shaozhi and his ilk in his eyes, and always thinks that only the lord is his confidant." ”

"Well, that's the rough picture!" Ma Yue glanced back at everyone and said loudly, "Yuan Shao led an army of 300,000 troops to Liyang, Cao Ying is about to lead an army of 30,000 to enter Guandu, and the two armies are about to face off across the Yellow River!" And the Cao army that stayed on the Western Front was about 30,000 people, and the troop allocation Ziyan Fang had already introduced, let's talk about it, how should this battle be fought? ”

"Then it depends on what the lord wants this battle to be?" Fa Zheng, who had just returned from the Western Regions, suddenly came out and said, "The lord just wants Cao Ying to perish? Or do you hope that Yuan Shao and Cao Ying will lose? Also, does the lord value Yan, Yu, and Xuzhou under Cao Ying's rule more? Or do you value the Son of Heaven in Xuchang City more? ”

"Good question!" Ma Yue threw an appreciative glance at Fa Zheng, and said loudly, "Lone's main goal is only one, that is, Cao Ying's defeat, if you can have both fish and bear's paws, Lone also hopes that Cao Ying can fight with Yuan Shao to lose both, as for Yanzhou, Yuzhou, Xuzhou and Xuchang City, which is more important, then there is no need for Lone to say more, right?" ”

A knowing smile appeared on the corner of Fa Zheng's mouth, and he asked again: "There is another question, how large of an army does the lord plan to send to attack Cao Ying?" ”

"There aren't many troops." Ma Yue said, "There are only about 40,000 people in total, but whether the 5,000 people in Xu Huang in Hedong and the 20,000 Hanzhong troops in Guanzhong participate in the war depends on the situation, after all, Shuo, Yong, and Liang states are still recuperating, and the grain and grass that our army can raise is extremely limited. ”

"That's easy." Fa Zheng smiled and said, "This battle, our army has won before the battle!" ”

Ma Yue glanced back at Jia Xu, Jia Xu understood, and asked, "Why is Xiaozhi so sure that our army will win?" ”

Fa Zhengdao: "Cao's army has eight defeats, while our army has four victories, so it will win." ”

Jia Xu said: "I want to hear about it." ”

Fa Zhengdao: "Cao Ying's war with two strong neighbors at the same time with the weak crowd is a defeat; From Yingchuan to Hangu Pass, the defense line of the Cao army stretched for thousands of miles, and the scattered troops were easy to be broken by our army, which was a second defeat; Cao's army lacked food and grass and was difficult to last, which was a three-defeat defeat; Cao's army fought for many years, and the soldiers were tired of fighting, which was four defeats; The Central Plains suffered from natural disasters, and the hearts of the scholars fluctuated, which was five defeats; There is no danger to defend in the land of Yanzhou's four battles, and this is six defeats; Xuzhou Xinding is not stable, this is seven defeats, Cao's army is mostly infantry, lack of cavalry so that the movement is slow, this is eight defeats! ”

"Our army is well-fed, the generals are united, and the three armies are killed, this is a victory; Under the rule of the people, the people have enough food and clothing, people are determined, and there are no worries, which is a second victory; Xiliang Iron Riding Thunder, the Kwantung Army is difficult to compete with, this is three wins; Our army coerced the aftermath of a hundred victories, gathered 20,000 elites to attack the Cao army a little, and the momentum was like a strong crossbow, which was four victories. ”

"It's a good collection of 20,000 elites to attack Cao Jun a little, and the momentum is like a strong crossbow!" Ma Yue was ignited by Fa Zheng's incisive and unique analysis, and he vigorously said, "According to Xiaozhi's opinion, what point should our army attack Cao's army?" ”

Fa Zheng walked to the map with a smile, stretched out his hand and crossed the map, and finally settled between Yingchuan and Yingyang, and said loudly: "Now there is a great drought in the Central Plains, the Yellow River is cut off, and the water level of Yingshui has also been greatly reduced, and the defense line arranged by Cao Jun along Yingshui is already vulnerable!" Our army can completely bypass the dangerous crossing heavily fortified by the Cao army, and cross the river with a pontoon bridge in the middle of the river! ”

Ma Yue's face changed suddenly, and he crossed Yingshui from the direction of Fazheng's finger, and it was less than a hundred miles away from Xuchang!

……

Xuchang, Xiangfu.

Cao Ying's expression was gloomy, staring at the map on the table and falling into deep thought, Cheng Yu, Xun You, Xun Yu, Liu Ye, Jia Kui and others in the hall all looked solemn, and the generals Zangba, Yin Li, Sun Guan, Zhang Liao, Song Xian, Cao Bao, and Guan Yu were also silent, and the atmosphere in the hall seemed a little dignified.

Hurried footsteps suddenly sounded from outside the hall, when Cao Ying looked back, Guo Jia had already walked in from outside the hall with vague steps, Guo Jia's face was pale, his lips were chapped, and the corners of his eyes were bloodshot, the whole person looked tired, Cao Ying hurriedly stepped forward to support Guo Jia and said, "Fengxiao, why are you here?" ”

"Ahem, cough, cough ......" Guo Jia bent down and coughed twice, his pale face suddenly became flushed, and he gasped, "At this time of crisis, although the octogenarian and the three-year-old boy are still eating pot pulp and feasting on the army, how can Jia, as a military advisor, not live in front of the tent and give advice for the lord?" ”

"Ugh."

Cao Ying didn't say anything, just held Guo Jia's hand and shook it vigorously.

"My lord." Guo Jia's bloodshot eyes widened and asked Cao Ying, "What is the situation today?" ”

Cao Ying turned back to Liu Ye and said, "Ziyang, explain the situation facing our army to the military advisor." ”

"Yes." Liu Ye bowed to Cao Ying, and then took advantage of the situation to Guo Jia, and then began to explain, "Today, Yuan Shao Chen has 700,000 soldiers in Liyang, saying that the night is performing and looking at the Central Plains, and there are Tian Feng, Xian Pei, Feng Ji, Xun Chen, Xu You, Xin Ping, Xin Bi and other famous people, and Wu has Zhang He, Jiang Qi, Han Meng, Chun Yuqiong, Tian Yu, Tian Yue, Jiang Yiqu, Yan Ming and other fierce generals, which can be described as strong soldiers and talents. ”

Xun You continued: "In recent years, Yuan Shao has fought successively, successively annexed Hebei, Qing, You, and Zhuzhou, and swept away Han Fu, Gongsun Zhan, Zhang Ji, Zhang Yang and other separatist princes. ”

Xun Yu said: "And the lord has fought with the horse butcher in recent years, the loss of soldiers, money and food is great, although last year Lu Bu was destroyed, got some money and grain, but this is far from enough to alleviate the predicament faced by our army, plus this year's Central Plains suffered another major drought, and the income from the tuntian fields in various places is only enough to barely maintain food and clothing, and it is impossible to gather half a year's military rations. ”

Guo Jia's expression turned pale again, and he asked Cao Ying weakly: "How does the lord want to meet Yuan Shao?" And how do you want to guard against the horse butcher? ”

Cao Ying said: "Gu Xiang led an army of 30,000 to meet Yuan Shao, and then ordered Zixiao (Cao Ren) to lead 8,000 troops to defend Luoyang, Ling Wenze (Yu Ban) to lead 8,000 towns to guard Yingchuan, Zilie (Cao Xiu) to lead 3,000 to Shouhan Valley, Cao Zhen to lead 2,000 troops to guard the Tiger Prison, and Zilian led 6,000 troops to Yiyang, with their backs to Luoshui and rejected Nanyang's troops. ”

[The actual troop allocation of the Cao army is somewhat different from the troop disposition mastered by Li Su Annihilation, because the Liang army's Annihilation cannot reach the power core of the Cao army. ]

Xun You said: "As the saying goes, the army has not moved, the grain and grass go first, if the horse butcher really wants to send a large army to attack Xuchang, Hanguguan will definitely bear the brunt!" Because the transportation of grain and grass from Wuguan and Nanyang is far away, not to mention, and it has to pass through Liu Biao's territory on the way, the risk is too great, only by taking the Chang'an Ancient Road and going directly to Luoyang from the Hangu Valley is the most convenient road, in order to ensure that the grain and grass are continuously transported from Guanzhong to Guandong, and it is enough to support the Xiliang army to launch a steady offensive against our army. ”

"Therefore, if you want to reject the Liang army's first Hangu, if Hangu goes down, Guanzhong's money and grain can go straight to Luoyang along the Chang'an Ancient Road, Luoyang can no longer be defended, if Luoyang is lost, the Tiger Prison Pass is not to be feared, Xu will be deeply besieged by Yuan Shao in the north, Ma Butcher in the west and Ma Chao in the south, and the situation will be irreparable."

"Ahem, cough, ahem......" Guo Jia suddenly coughed violently, and it took him a long time to catch his breath, and he said to Xun You and the others with a flushed face, "But have you ever thought that it is a taboo for soldiers to divide troops and refuse to defend!" What if the horse butcher gathers superior forces to storm our army a little? Our army has sent troops and fortified everywhere, but in fact, it is not fortified everywhere. ”

Xun You said: "The concerns of the military advisor are exactly what we are worried about, but Hangu Pass, Tiger Prison Pass, Luoyang, and Yingchuan are all dangerous passes, and the gains and losses of these strongholds are directly related to the safety of Xudu and the victory or defeat of the whole war, and our army cannot afford not to defend it."

In order to avoid being broken by the Liang army, the lord has sent troops to build beacon towers in Gyeonggi, Yingchuan, and Runan counties, and when the beacon tower is completed, no matter how the Liang army hides and sneaks, it will not be able to escape the eyes of our army, so that even if the Liang army has a fast-moving Xiliang iron cavalry, our army can also deploy troops in advance to be prepared. ”

……

Wancheng East Effect, Liang Army Camp.

Jia Xu shook his head with a wry smile, and said to Fa Zheng: "The idea of filial piety is good, but the problem is that Cao Ying sent troops to build beacon towers in Gyeonggi, Yingchuan, and Runan counties, and with these beacon towers, Cao Jun can know the movement of our army and make troop deployment in advance.

In this way, our army's strategic idea of concentrating superior forces to storm Cao's army will come to naught, and I am afraid that our army has just crossed Yushui and has not yet entered Yingchuan County, Cao's army has already known the news and transferred the troops left behind in Luoyang, Yuyang, and Hujiao Pass to Yingchuan. ”

Ma Yue said: "Yes, Cao Ren's army plus Yu Ban's army is nearly 20,000 troops, our army only has 20,000 elite soldiers in Nanyang, and the army must leave a considerable number of troops to guard against Huang Zhong in Xinye, so it can only send 15,000 people at most, so our army is already at a disadvantage in terms of strength, and it is fighting in the enemy territory, it is difficult to say that it will win." ”

"How can a few beacon towers solve the weakness of Cao's scattered forces!" Fa Zheng smiled faintly, showing a confident look, and said casually, "Youwang Fenghuo frolicks the princes, the Zhou family is dead, if Cao Ying really thinks that he can block our army's troops with a few beacon towers, then the defeat of Cao's army is not far away." ”

……

Xuchang, Xiangfu.

Guo Jia smiled bitterly: "The public is poor, how can a few beacons reverse the weakness of our army's scattered forces?" If the horse butcher sends a squad of elite soldiers to attack the beacon tower, and the defenders confess the method of our army's communication, the Liang army can falsely convey the military information, making our army run back and forth and be exhausted. ”

"If this is the case, the Liang army only needs a few teams to wipe out the fine and can put our army in a state of no return."

"Ah, this ......"

Xun You was stunned when he heard this, and Cheng Yu, Xun Yu and others were shocked, Cao Ying was even more awe-inspiring in his heart, thinking that if Guo Jia hadn't come to remind him of his illness, Cao Jun really pinned his hope of resisting the Liang Army on the beacon tower, and the consequences would have been unimaginable! Cao Ying was shocked into a cold sweat at the moment, and said suddenly: "If it weren't for filial piety, I would be alone." ”

……

Wancheng East Effect, Liang Army Camp.

Fa Zheng said casually: "The lord only needs to send a few teams of elite soldiers, Qiao makeup merchants to blend into the enemy territory, seize a few beacon towers with lightning speed, and then force out the method of Cao Jun's communication from the mouth of the defenders, so that our army can fake military reports, so that Cao Jun runs back and forth and is tired of running for his life." ”

"Ah, it's so easy!"

Ma Yue struck the knot hard, but he thought regretfully in his heart, if he could have thought of this method back then, the eight hundred liukou would not have to be driven around like a lost dog by Kuai Yue, and finally left Nanyang gloomily, but then again, if the eight hundred liukou had not left Nanyang, would there still be today's horse butcher?

"It's that simple." Fa Zhengdao, "However, with Guo Jia's ghostly ability, it is impossible not to think of the weakness of the beacon transmission, so the Cao army should not pin the hope of resisting the enemy on the beacon transmission, so that the situation will return to the situation just mentioned, the Cao army has to divide troops to guard various dangerous passes, while our army can concentrate its forces and break through each one." ”

……

Xuchang, Xiangfu.

The general Zang said domineeringly: "If the method of beacon fire transmission does not work, the weakness of our army's scattered forces may be difficult to reverse, and how can we resist the concentrated attack of the superior forces of the Liang army?" ”

Almost everyone's eyes were focused on Guo Jia, the sick ghost, and Cao Ying asked expectantly: "I don't know if Fengxiao has a good way to solve it?" ”

Guo Jia said miserably: "There is no other way now, Jia is willing to assist Gongzi Zhen (Cao Zhen) to lead the army to take the initiative to attack, and the Liang army is caught off guard, only in this way can it be possible to reject the enemy outside the country, and it is possible to relieve the worries of the lord, so that the lord can devote himself to the decisive battle with Yuan Shao without distraction!" ”

Cao Ying said: "Zhen'er is resolute and decisive, lonely and very important, if there is a filial piety to assist you should not be afraid of the horse butcher Yinwei, but your body is ...... filial piety."

Guo Jia said: "Jia is only occasionally caught with the cold, and the lord doesn't need to worry." ”

Cao Ying's expression was gloomy, Xun You and Cheng Yu's faces were a trace of unbearability, the two were not unwilling to go on the expedition instead of Guo Jia, but the reality was that only Guo Jia could have a long time with the horse butcher and Jia Poison, Xun You and Cheng Yu were never arrogant, but they were not arrogant enough to think that they could beat Jia Poison.

……

Wancheng, the camp of the Liang army.

Fa Zheng's voice fell, and Meng Da continued: "In other words, Cao's army will once again return to the dilemma of being passively beaten and taking care of one at the expense of the other, while our army will have the absolute strategic initiative. ”

"Nope." Fa Zheng shook his head lightly and said in a firm tone, "Things can't be so simple! With Cao Ying's deception and Guo Jia's resourcefulness, how could Cao Jun be allowed to be in such a passive situation? Cao Ying and Guo Jia will definitely find a way to turn the situation around, there is no doubt about it! ”

Li Su couldn't help but ask: "In the face of Yuan Shao and our army's two-sided attack, the Cao army is at an absolute disadvantage both in terms of strength and geography, is there still a way to reverse the situation?" ”

"Yes!" Fa Zheng said in a deep voice, "Cao Jun really has a way to turn the situation around!" ”

Li Su said in horror: "What way? ”

"It is absolutely impossible to divide troops to guard and resist every step." Fa Zheng replied word by word, "So Cao Jun can only take the initiative to attack and replace defense with offense!" ”

"Take the initiative to attack instead of defending!?" Li Su lost his voice and said, "Xiaozhi is saying that Cao Jun still dares to take the initiative to attack our army?" This...... Is this possible? ”

Fa Zhengdao: "This is the only chance for Cao Jun, and it is also the last chance, Cao Ying will definitely send troops to attack, definitely!" ”

Ma Yue couldn't help but glance sideways at Jia Xu, Jia Xu smiled at Ma Yue and bowed his head slightly, with a lot of relief in his expression, today's Fazheng's performance can be described in two words: amazing! In terms of thoughtfulness and speculation on the thoughts of the enemy generals, Fa Zheng is no longer inferior to Jia Xu at all.

In time, it is entirely possible for Fazheng to be better than the blue (Fazheng once studied from Jia Xu), and most importantly, Fazheng is only in his early twenties, and the era of Fazheng has just begun.

……

Xuchang, Xiangfu.

The meeting had ended, everyone had dispersed, and only Cao Ying and Xun Yu were left in the hall.

"Wen Ruo." Cao Ying asked Xun Yu worriedly, "What did Lang Zhong say, what kind of illness did Feng Xiao have?" ”

Xun Yu sighed and said gloomily: "Lang Zhong said that Fengxiao is indulged in wine and intemperate, so that the kidney qi fails, and the loss of qi and blood is now terminally ill, and he can only rest in bed, insist on treatment with medicinal stones, or still hope to save his surname, if he goes out with the army, I am afraid ......."

Xun Yu said this, glanced at Cao Ying, and didn't dare to say any more.

Cao Ying's mind is confused and undecided, in his life, it has never been so difficult to make a choice as now, if Guo Jia is allowed to go with the army, then he is likely to lose the most important military advisor, but if Guo Jia is not allowed to go with the army, then the young Cao Zhen cannot be the opponent of the horse butcher at all!

Even if Xun You or Cheng Yu go out with the army, they are not the opponents of the horse butcher and Jia Poison, Guo Jia, only Guo Jia has the ability to deal with the horse butcher and Jia Poison, and only Guo Jia can reassure Cao Ying, Cao Ying dares to concentrate all his strength to go north to Guandu and Yuan Shao for a decisive battle.

Let Guo Jia go on the expedition? Or don't let Guo Jia go on the expedition?

Cao Ying hesitated for a long time, still unable to make up his mind, and couldn't help but turn around and ask Xun Yu: "Wen Ruo, what should I do?" ”

A trace of indescribable pain flashed across Xun Yu's face, and he immediately said solemnly: "The lord should focus on the overall situation!" ”

"The big picture? Overall situation! Cao Ying muttered twice, his face suddenly turned gray, and his whole complexion was also depressed, and he whispered to himself after a while, "I understand, Lone knows what to do." ”

……

Wancheng, the camp of the Liang army.

The military meeting of the Liang army has also ended, except for Ma Yue, Ma Chao, Jia Xu, and Fa Zheng, all the strategists and generals have all left the big tent of the Chinese army, and Ma Yue is pacing back and forth in the tent behind him, and the expression on his face is also cloudy and uncertain, as if a fierce ideological struggle is underway.

Ma Chao and Fa Zheng's eyes moved back and forth with Ma Yue's pace, and the two of them felt both expectant and confused in their hearts, it was obvious that Ma Yue and Jia Xu left Ma Chao and Fa Zheng alone, which must have an important mission, and Ma Yue did not dare to make up his mind, which shows the arduousness and importance of this task.

It was late at night, and there was a dead silence in the tent, except for the footsteps of the horses and the burning of torches.

Finally, Ma Yue paused, slowly raised his head, and his eyes swept over the faces of Ma Chao and Fa Zheng like a knife, Ma Chao quickly straightened his chest, and Fa Zheng couldn't help but straighten his clothes to hide the tension and expectation in his heart. Ma Yue's gaze finally fixed on Jia Xu's face, and said, "Wenhe, it's still you and Meng Qi, let's talk about filial piety." ”

"Command." Jia Xu waved his hand, turned back to Ma Chao and Fa Zhengdao, "Young General, filial piety, the lord means to let you lead eight hundred iron cavalry, Qiao makeup horse thieves into the Central Plains, follow the example of the eight hundred Liukou into the hinterland of Yan, Henan, and Xuzhou, and use the advantage of cavalry coming and going like the wind and plundering thousands of miles to attack and harass the Cao army's territory, burn the Cao army's grain and grass, kill and poke the Cao army's soldiers, in short, the rear hinterland of the Cao army will be as chaotic as possible!" ”

Ma Chao glanced at Ma Yue and asked Jia Xu: "Military advisor, since the eight hundred iron horsemen are horse thieves, do they still have to be bound by the military regulations of Liangzhou?" ”

Jia Xu said: "Eight hundred horsemen can act cheaply, and they are no longer subject to military regulations, in Yan, Henan, and Xuzhou, you can let go to burn, kill, and rob, and this army division will never settle accounts and investigate the mistakes of the soldiers, but in the same way, it will not count your merits in getting heads." ”

Jia Xu's voice fell, and Ma Yue added: "Having said that, you still have to kill as few innocent people as possible, as for the gentry of the Kanto clan, you can do it yourself." Lone only said one word, no matter what you do, even if you exterminate the Cao surname of Qian County, you will not be held accountable! ”

Jia Xu said again: "You must be cautious, the task of the eight hundred cavalry is to attack the rear of the Cao army, not to fight head-on with the Cao army, let alone let you attack the city!" Eight hundred horses are a boning knife, and it must be cut from the weakest point to dismember a strong ox. ”

"Got it!" Ma Chao clenched his fists and said in a deep voice, "Please rest assured, brother and military advisor, Chao will never be dishonored!" ”

Fa Zheng also hugged his fists and said: "I am determined to do my best to assist the young general." ”

"Hmm!" Jia Xu nodded, and said in a deep voice, "Eight hundred elite soldiers, two thousand Hun bantam horses, as well as costumes, and miscellaneous weapons needed, the lord has already prepared, and this army division has also prepared dry food for you for three days, and after three days, everything will be up to you." ”

Ma Yue said: "The soldiers are fast, and they will go to battle tonight!" ”

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

Ma Chao and Fa Zheng clenched their fists at the same time and responded violently.

……

Liyang, Daying, Hebei.

Tian Feng, Xu You, Zhang He, Chun Yuqiong and other strategists and generals have gathered together, Yuan Shao's Chinese army tent is crowded, the voice is boiling, its talent is at its peak, there is no one in the world at that time, even if it is Cao Ying, who is entrenched in the hinterland of the Central Plains, his team can not be compared with Yuan Shao.

"Ladies and gentlemen." Yuan Shao stood up, waved his hand to everyone, and said loudly, "And be quiet." ”

The big tent suddenly fell silent, and Xin Ping, who was in charge of intelligence, coughed lightly, and stepped forward to Yuan Shao and said: "Lord, make a careful report, Cao Ying is gathering troops from various counties, preparing to personally lead the army to rescue Yanjin and Baima, and based on all aspects of intelligence, Cao Ying can only mobilize a maximum of 30,000 troops this time, only one-tenth of our army!" ”

Tian Feng said: "Has the elite of the 30,000 Cao troops who stayed on the front line of Luoyang and Yingchuan ever moved? ”

Xin commented: "No. ”

"It seems that Cao Ying is very jealous of the horse butcher!" Yuan Shaolang said, "However, Cao Apu wants to block the lone army of 300,000 with 30,000 miscellaneous soldiers, which is too naïve. ”

Tian Feng said: "My lord, don't underestimate Cao Ying's 30,000 troops!" At least 10,000 of these 30,000 troops are veterans who have followed Cao Ying's expedition to the east and west, and they can be described as the elite of the elite, and the remaining half are also selected from the Yangzhou and Xuzhou armies, and their combat effectiveness should not be underestimated! ”

"What an elite!" Yuan Shao said with some disapproval, "I was beaten by the horse butcher several times and lost my armor and fled in embarrassment, but it was just a rabble, how could it be the opponent of the lone 300,000 Hebei male soldiers?" Yuan Hao doesn't have to grow up with other people's ambition and destroy his own prestige. ”

Tian Feng sighed softly and stopped talking, but a trace of gloom passed through his heart for no reason.

In this battle, from all aspects, the Hebei Army has the advantage, but there is only one point, the Hebei Army is far inferior to the Cao Army, that is, the main generals of the two armies are not on the same level at all! Yuan Shao is overjoyed and self-serving, Cao Ying is wise and decisive, and Cao Jun can be said to have an absolute advantage in the main general.

Xin Ping continued: "In addition, Sun Jian is gathering land and water troops to Lujiang and Chaisang, and Liu Biao is also gathering troops to Jiangxia and Sanjiangkou, it seems that a big war will break out between Sun Jian and Liu Biao in the near future, so in a short period of time, both Liu Biao and Sun Jian will have no time to take care of the war in the north. ”

Yuan Shao nodded and asked, "What about the horse butcher who is entrenched in the northwest, what are his actions?" ”

Xin commented: "The horse butcher has just pacified Hanzhong, and the new 20,000 Hanzhong troops have been surrendered, but Guanzhong, Hetao, and Liangzhou are all calm, and the Liang army has no signs of large-scale assembly at all, and it seems that the horse butcher only intends to use the 20,000 elite soldiers stationed in Nanyang to contain Cao Ying." ”

"Hush." Yuan Shao said coldly, "Lone didn't expect the Northwest Army to help in the first place, and it would be better if the horse butcher didn't come to cause trouble, lest when the two armies fought over the turf, the horse butcher would poke Gu's backbone in the back, scolding Lone for his treachery and unilaterally tearing up the armistice agreement." ”

"No!" Xu You said categorically, "This war horse butcher will never stand idly by, I thought that the horse butcher would definitely send troops to attack Xuchang in order to seek to hold the Son of Heaven hostage, and the lord should also send an elite army to return to the side of Xuchang, and he will definitely rob the Son of Heaven to Hebei before the horse butcher." ”

Tian Feng's expression suddenly moved when he heard this, Xu You's proposal was undoubtedly an excellent suggestion, if Yuan Shao could adopt it, and take advantage of Cao Ying's army to send strange soldiers back behind Cao Jun to attack Xuchang when he was outside, it was likely to kill Cao Jun by surprise, even if the sneak attack failed, he would inevitably be able to kill Cao Jun in a hurry.

Cao Jun is likely to expose flaws when he loses one or the other, thus giving the Hebei army a chance to win with one blow.

It's a pity that Yuan Shao didn't seem to be very interested in Xu You's proposal, so he just replied in a cold tone: "It's too risky to send a lone army behind enemy lines, and this matter will be discussed later." ”

……

(To be continued)