It is said that Cao Zhen led a large army to break through Wancheng, but Sima and his son were not seen, so he ordered a large search inside and outside the city. His subordinates and generals were all fighting to the death, so they took the opportunity to oppress the people and rob women of their property, which was even worse than the thieves. For more than ten days, Sima and his son were not seen at all, but there were ten rooms and nine empty rooms in a radius of dozens of miles near Wancheng, and the people complained deeply about their suffering, or fled into the mountains to hide, or ran south with their families. Cao Zhen was afraid that the people's power would flow into Shu Han, so he ordered to intercept and kill, which caused the people's resentment to boil for a while, and it was out of control. Jia Kui, the general of Sima Jianwei in the army, then said: "Now that Sima Yi's whereabouts are unknown, the army stays in Wancheng, one disturbs the people, and the other consumes food, so it is better to make Cao Da Sima stay in Wancheng to guard against Guo Huai." The army can be a teacher. It just so happened that Emperor Cao Rui also happened to issue an edict, ordering Cao Zhen to move his troops westward, go to Tongguan to station, and wait for the opportunity to recapture Chang'an. Cao Zhen then divided 80,000 troops and Cao Xiu to stay in Wancheng, and led the army to Tongguan.

Cao Xiu is a son of the Cao clan, and when he was a teenager, Cao Cao praised and said: "This is a thousand miles away from my family." "Treat him like his own son, often from conquest, and he is quite reused. Later, when Cao Pi collapsed, he supervised the military of Runan with the great Sima to guard against Eastern Wu. Now that Wancheng has been broken, Guo Huai withdrew his troops from Fancheng, and Cao Xiu stayed in Nanyang to prepare for Shu Han.

With Cao Xiu's original intention, he did not want to divide his troops with Cao Zhen and control Wancheng alone. Instead, he hoped to combine the forces of the two armies and move south to break through Guo Huai's Jingzhou soldiers and horses stationed in Fancheng. Even if he couldn't capture Jingzhou, he would have to drive Guo Huai to the south of Xiangshui, so that Cao Wei could possess the entire territory of Nanyang. However, Wei Yanqi attacked Chang'an, Cao Rui was terrified, and he was bound to issue an edict to Cao Zhen and move his troops west to recapture Chang'an. From a military point of view, there are two strong passes in the east of Chang'an, Tongguan and Wuguan, and they are guarded by famous generals like Xu Huang and Zhang He. And Wancheng lost Fancheng as a barrier and was directly exposed to Guo Huai's troops, which was obviously very disadvantageous. However, Cao Zhen agreed with the emperor's edict, and also believed that Chang'an was the old capital of the former Han Dynasty, symbolizing the orthodoxy of the Han family. For this reason, Cao Xiu and Cao Zhen had a dispute, but in the end, the emperor's order was great, and Cao Xiu had to give up his idea and let Cao Zhen leave with his troops.

Wancheng only left 80,000 soldiers and horses, and Cao Xiu did not have enough troops to attack Guo Huai, but he was thinking about recovering Fancheng all the time. But when the opportunity came to him, Cao Xiu didn't dare to agree rashly. Although the letter in his hand was sincere, Cao Xiu felt that it was unbelievable that Guan Ping would actually send someone to unite with him to attack Guo Huai. The Kwan clan has always been known for his loyalty, how could he do such a rebellious thing? Cao Xiu sneered a few times, threw Guan Ping's letter on the case, squinted at Liao Hua who was standing in front of him, and said, "It's too child's play for you to use this kind of trick to lure Bendu into the urn." Where is the axeman? Drag Liao Hua out and behead him for public display. ”

When the left and right knife and axe men heard the order, they responded in unison, and stepped forward to escort Liao Hua to go out. Liao Hua not only had no fear on his face, but also suddenly looked up to the sky and laughed, broke free of his arm and said: "A certain person will go, no need for others." With that, he walked out with a proud stride. Cao Xiu saw that he was acting abnormally, and couldn't help asking: "What's so ridiculous about being discovered by the Governor of Pontus and revealing the treacherous scheme?" Liao Hua snorted lightly and said coldly: "It's just that Xiaoru is smart." ”

"Presumptuous." Cao Xiu's lower heart and abdomen Zhang Pu saw that Liao Hua was disrespectful, and immediately shouted and said, "Don't drag this person down quickly." The left and right sergeants have not moved, but Cao Xiu said first: "Stay." He asked Liao Hua and said: "Who in the world doesn't know that your lord Guan Ping is loyal to the Han family, but he wrote a letter to come to the governor of Ben to attack Guo Huai together, isn't it deceitful?" Liao Hua did not answer Cao Xiu's words, but asked: "Although my general is loyal to His Majesty, how can Guo Huai be a loyal minister of the Han family?" It's just Zhao Shu's lackey ear. ”

"Oh?" Cao Xiu groaned slightly, waved his hand to let the knife and axe hand retreat, and said, "You can tell me in detail." Liao Hua then said: "My general is not sincere in cooperating with the governor. When Zhang Pu heard Liao Hua say this, he shouted again: "Since this is the case, why do you want to come here?" Cao Xiu motioned him to stop again, and replied to Liao Hua: "General, please continue." ”

Liao Hua slightly thanked Cao Xiu with a fist, and replied: "I really don't hide it, the current danger of the contempt country is not in your country or the invasion of Eastern Wu, but, but," Liao Hua paused for a moment before sighing and said: "It's the national thief Zhao Shu." ”

Zhao Shu is in charge of the Shu Han Kingdom, which is known to the whole world, and he has also forced the palace to kill the main mother, so there is nothing wrong with calling him a national thief. Cao Xiu said deliberately: "Where did you start with this?" General Zhao's prestige is far and wide, and if it weren't for the fact that he was an enemy country with the Governor of Pontus, the Governor of Pontus would really want to visit and make friends. Liao Hua snorted again: "I'm afraid this is not the true words of the governor, right?" Zhao Shu has now conquered Chang'an, and Guo Huai went north to Fancheng to unite with Sima Yi to oppose Wei. Du Du is afraid that he can't wait to break his body to pieces, what else to talk about? ”

Although these words did not save Cao Xiu's face, they did go to Cao Xiu's heart, so he had to laugh and say: "The general knows my heart." Although Zhao Shu was hated by the soldiers of our court, in the country of Ru, isn't he highly respected for making such a great contribution? Liao Hua Zhengse said: "The credit for recovering the old capital is certainly very high, but Zhao Shu's wolf ambition and wants to usurp the throne through this, he is a chaotic minister and thief." The general of my family couldn't bear to see the Han family change his surname, so he wanted to unite with the governor and sabotage Zhao Shu's plan for the Northern Expedition. ”

Hearing the word "Northern Expedition", Cao Xiu couldn't help but be moved, and asked: "Zhao Shu intends to invade our country?" Liao Hua nodded and said, "Since Zhao Shu has the intention of usurping the throne, he naturally wants to go out to conquer in order to establish his prestige." The capture of Chang'an was only the first step, and then it should be Guo Huai who led Jingzhou's troops north to capture Wancheng. Then he personally led the army to conquer Tongguan, advanced in two ways, and went straight to Luoyang. Cao Xiu was a little surprised at first, but after listening to Liao Hua's words, he laughed and said: "You are too alarmist, how can Zhao Shu have the virtue and dare to act so recklessly?" Your country's military and financial resources, is it my opponent of the Great Wei? You must know that my Great Wei has a million armor and has a rich land in the Central Plains, if Zhao Shu dares to come, he will let him come and go. ”

Liao Hua didn't refute, just sneered a few times before saying: "I heard that your country also has heavy troops in Fancheng, and there are Wenpin generals to guard it. The city is not strong, the soldiers are not fine, and the general is not bad, but it has only been held for a few days? was broken by Guo Huai, but poor General Wenpin, a famous general in the world, ended up so dismal......"

"Shut up." Liao Hua didn't know that Wen Xiu, the son of Wen Ping, was working under Cao Xiu's account, and he was also beside him at the moment. Without waiting for Liao Hua to finish speaking, Wen Xiu couldn't bear it, rushed forward, grabbed Liao Hua's armor, and said, "How can my ancestor allow you to blaspheme like this?" Although Liao Hua was extremely angry in his heart, he took the big thing as the priority, and said lightly: "This is Major General Wen?" On the day of the battle in Fancheng, you saw it with your own eyes, the siege equipment made by Zhao Shu is strange and ingenious, where can the soldiers of your country resist? ”

Cao Xiu was already suspicious of Liao Hua's words at this moment, and when it came to Zhao Shu's armament, he refused to stop there, but he was afraid that Wen Xiu would be rude, so he got up and persuaded him: "The young general is angry, the death of General Wen is the work of Zhao Shu and Guo Huai, and it has nothing to do with General Liao, please let go first." Wen Xiu saw that the master was like this, so he had to let go of his hand with hatred, and said again: "What this person said is true, Guo Huai's army is indeed well-armed, if it weren't for this, how could the father, how could the father be ......" At this point, he was already sobbing and couldn't say anything more.

When Wen Xiu reported the defeat of Fancheng to Luoyang, he also told the details of the battle clearly, and now he mentioned it again, although Cao Xiu had never seen it with his own eyes, he couldn't help but be shocked. But he couldn't show his cowardice in front of Liao Hua, so he ordered Wen Xiu to retreat temporarily, and said with a smile: "He can only sneak attack once, and the governor of Pontus has made preparations early, and he will definitely not repeat the defeat of Fancheng." Liao Hua straightened his armor and said disdainfully: "Could it be that the governor thinks that Zhao Shu didn't make anything else except those siege equipment?" As he spoke, he reached out and groped in his arms.

Cao Xiu was closer to Liao Hua, worried about being plotted by him, so he couldn't help but take two steps back, and then looked at it in a blink of an eye, and Liao Hua already had an extra columnar item in his hand. It seemed to be wrapped in cardboard, except for a thread at one end, it didn't seem to have anything special, Cao Xiu asked, "What is this?" Liao Hua shook his head and said, "This is a secret thing made by Zhao Shu, and I don't know about it, but I will steal this one and demonstrate it for the governor." And ask for a stone to be brought in. ”

Cao Xiu was deeply curious, so he asked someone to take a stone the size of a millstone and put it on the open space outside. Liao Hua first put the cylinder away, then pressed the stone up, and then turned to Cao Xiu and said: "The governor is far away, be careful of injury." Cao Xiu said, "It's okay." He took a few steps back. Liao Hua placed the stones properly, took the fire and lit the fuse, and then ran away quickly.

Everyone present had carefully watched the fuse burn, but they never expected that after the burn reached the end, there was a deafening loud noise. With a "boom", the stone on it was shaken and rolled more than ten steps away. Although Cao Xiu was prepared, he was still frightened by its power, and his face suddenly changed greatly.

Liao Hua peeked at Cao Xiu's face and knew that he had been bluffed, so he said: "This is Zhao Shu's secret thing, and the power is amazing. There is only a little medicine in the tube, and Guo Huaijun is not less than a thousand catties. If all of them are buried at the foot of Wancheng, do the governors still think that Wancheng can be defended? Cao Xiu knew that he shouldn't show weakness in front of Liao Hua, but in this situation, he had to say: "Zhao Shuguo is very human, he can make such a sharp weapon, and he should dominate the world." Between the words, he looked very lost. Recalling that he has been governing the army for many years, he often wants to improve his armor in order to destroy Shu and Wu with the Great Wei Iron Cavalry, but according to the current situation, even if the soldiers are strong and strong, how can the flesh and blood withstand such a powerful explosion?

Liao Hua knew that Cao Xiu had already believed in him a little more, so he said, "That's right. Zhao Shu was ambitious, first wanted to conquer your country, establish prestige, and then usurp the throne and stand on his own. As for the Sun clan of Eastern Wu, if he knew that the Wei and Han countries were defeated, they would inevitably be shocked up and down, and Zhao Shu would only need to pass on the news at that time. The generals of our family united with the governors, not only were they not disloyal to the Han, but they wanted to continue the Han Zuo and not be replaced by Zhao Shu. ”

Cao Xiu nodded again and replied: "General Guan's letter is not exhaustive, please come in and sit down to talk in detail." Liao Hua couldn't ask for it, and hugged his fists and said: "Thank you Dudu." Then he sat down with Cao Xiu.

After sitting down, Cao Xiu picked up Guan Ping's letter again, read it carefully, and said: "General Guan asked the governor of Bendu to attack Fancheng first, and then sent troops from Wuling to seize Nanjun and Xiangyang, so as to cut off Guo Huai's grain and grass, and then break it. But the Governor of Pontus felt that this was not the best thing to do. Liao Hua was ordered to act at the opportunistic, and did not necessarily want Cao Xiu to enter the army according to what the letter said, so he had to say: "This is the strategy of my general, or there is something inconsiderate, if the governor does not approve, you can discuss the change." ”

Cao Xiu then said: "According to the intention of the governor of Bendu, I still ask General Guan to occupy Nanjun and Xiangyang first." Guo Huai learned that he must retreat to Jingzhou in a hurry, and the governor of Bendu will raise troops to pursue again. What does the general think? After speaking, he looked at Liao Hua and waited for an answer. Liao Hua sneered: "The governor is calculating, if my general is the first to raise troops." Guo Huai will inevitably rush back, and when the time comes, if the governor does not move, he will sit on the mountain and watch the tiger. Even if Wuling is mobilized by the whole army, it is only 20,000 combatable soldiers, how can it resist Guo Huai's army? My general fought to the death, but let the governor take the opportunity to recapture Fancheng. Such a deal, my general is not a fool, he must not agree. ”

Liao Hua's words broke Cao Xiu's wishful thinking, Cao Xiu was not annoyed, and nodded slightly: "It is reasonable that the general refuses to believe the governor of Bendu, just as the governor of Bendu does not dare to believe General Rujiaguan." If so, what is there for cooperation? It's better to leave it at that, and the general will ask him back. "It means to get up and send off the guests.

Liao Hua's task was not completed, so he naturally refused to leave easily, so he had to deliberately make a difficult decision, and only gritted his teeth after a while: "Since this is the case, I will go back and ask my general to send troops first, but I hope that the governor will not be untrustworthy." The governor must understand that if you can't take this opportunity to get rid of Guo Huai, it doesn't matter if my general dies and the clan is wiped out, it will be a great disaster for your country after all. ”

Why didn't Cao Xiu want to provoke the internal strife of Shu Han and take the opportunity to make profits? Then Zhengse said: "Zhao Shu and Guo Huai are our common enemies, and they all want to get rid of them quickly, and the governor of Bendu will never lose his trust, but he can rest assured that he will go back and let the general of the Ru family send troops as soon as possible to capture the second county." Jingzhou is the place where General Guan has been a town for a long time, known for his prestige, and there is no obstacle to forgiveness. ”

"Exactly." Liao Huanai hugged his fists and said: "Guo Huai's family is all in Fancheng. There are many guards in the two counties related to the old department of the princes, as long as my general raises his arms and shouts, he will definitely gather and attack everything. It's just that Guo Huai's army still hopes that the governor will help. So he took his leave and went back. Then he turned and departed. Cao Xiu was about to get up to send him off, but he heard someone shouting outside the door: "The governor must not believe Liao Hua's words, otherwise it will be a disaster." When everyone heard the rumour, they saw Jia Kui hurrying in.