Outside Wuyin City, the jingling sound of gold in the Xiliang army resounded throughout the wilderness.

The soldiers were in a panic and threw away their armor and fled for their lives.

Obviously, Zhang Xiu had a serious miscalculation of his own strength and Cao Jun's strength, which caused this defeat.

The wilderness is full of fleeing Xiliang troops, all over the mountains, if you look down from the sky, you can see dense countless black spots, galloping towards the rear.

The Cao army strangled and outflanked the Xiliang army from three directions, Zhang Xiu rode on horseback and quickly fled to the rear, and Cao Hong was still pursuing behind him.

"Zhang Xiuxiaoer, what are you running? Come and fight me again. ”

Cao Hong shouted.

Zhang Xiu turned a deaf ear and fled at a high speed on his horse, with dozens of knights by his side to cover his retreat.

The two sides chased and fled, and ran for more than ten minutes before Cao Hong's lieutenant shouted: "General, don't chase, there is a sound of Mingjin from the rear, and it is Sikong who ordered the withdrawal of troops." ”

"Damn."

Cao Hong also heard this voice and immediately retreated.

When he returned to the outside of Wuyin City, he saw that Cao Cao was already reorganizing his troops and horses at this time, and the three armies outside the city were quickly arraying and setting up formations, as if they were going to fight a big battle.

"Zilian."

Seeing Cao Hong coming back, Cao Cao beckoned him to come over.

Cao Hong asked: "Big brother, what's the matter, I'm still close to catching up with that embroidery." ”

Cao Cao frowned and said: "Zixiao and Wen Qian have not heard from them, I am very worried about them in my heart, Zhang Xiu is already a rout, and it is a waste of time to pursue the rout, it is better to rectify the three armies and attack Wancheng." ”

"Are we going to fight back to Wancheng?"

Cao Hong asked.

Cao Cao nodded and said, "Well, one is to pick up Zixiao and Wen Qian, and the other is to recover the bodies of Dian Wei and Zi Xuan Anmin after taking Wancheng." ”

"I see."

Cao Hong nodded, and immediately came to the phalanx of his subordinates, and reorganized the team to prepare for departure.

Naturally, it is not so simple for the three armies to be dispatched, and if the large army is allowed to wantonly chase after Zhang Xiu just now, it will easily cause the troops to disperse, and it may take a long time to regroup.

Therefore, it is necessary to collect the troops in Mingjin, and after rectification, go to Wancheng in a marching posture.

Cao Cao also stayed in Wuyin for a few days, and Dian Wei Cao Ang Cao Anmin had already died in battle, needless to say, there was no way to do it.

But Cao Ren and Le Jin have not heard much, which makes Cao Cao very worried, so he decides to regroup the team and fight back to Wancheng.

This battle was regarded as Zhang Xiu's help, originally because of the battle of Wancheng, the morale of the Cao army was greatly reduced, and the sergeants of the army were all depressed and unstable.

As a result, after this battle, seeing that Zhang Xiuxi's Liang army was nothing more than this, the morale was like a rainbow for a while.

After reorganizing the troops and horses, Cao Cao immediately waved his army west, and the main force went to Wancheng, and at the same time sent another team of 2,000 people to Jianyang to meet Lejin's troops.

In the afternoon, Zhang Xiu gathered some of the scattered soldiers, more than 8,000 people and more than 6,000 remained, the losses were very large, and they retreated in the direction of Wancheng overnight.

The distance between Wuyin and Wancheng is still very far, which is equivalent to more than 20 kilometers from Nanyang City to Sheqi County in later generations, and the total distance is more than 140 miles, even if it is 40 kilometers a day, it will take two days.

Therefore, Cao Jun set out that day and camped in the wild at night, probably in the area of Sheqi County in later generations.

And Zhang Xiu was chased urgently, so he could only choose to escape overnight.

By the time it was almost dawn, he was already less than twenty kilometers away from Wancheng, and it was expected that he would be able to return to Wancheng before noon.

As a result, in the wilderness in the distance, an army suddenly appeared, which startled Zhang Xiu.

However, the scouts soon reported back that it was Gan Ning's troops.

This made Zhang Xiu breathe a sigh of relief.

After about half an hour, Gan Ning came in a hurry, and at this time there were only generals Lou Fa, Shen Mi and Shen Chen by his side.

Deng Hong went back to Xiangyang and didn't come back, after defeating Lejin, Gan Ning went north to meet Zhang Xiu according to Shen Chen's intentions.

At this moment, they met in the township pavilion less than twenty kilometers away from Wancheng, and the two sides quickly approached.

"General Zhang."

"General Gan."

Zhang Xiu ordered the army to rest in place for a while, and he brought some of his cavalry over to meet with him.

The place where they are now located, known in later generations as Hongniwan Town, is a vast plain area with dense farmland and villages, except for a hill on the bank of a tributary that flows from the river to the west.

Everyone met under the hills, and Gan Ning saw that the Xiliang army in the distance was all discarded and exhausted, so he asked: "Why is the general so embarrassed when he attacks Wuyin?" ”

Zhang Xiu said embarrassedly: "I wanted to take advantage of the victory to pursue Cao Cao, but I was unexpectedly defeated. ”

Shen Chen said in a deep voice on the side: "General, I reminded you before, although Cao Cao is newly defeated, his strength should not be underestimated, and he should act cautiously when attacking Wuyin, how can he not listen to good words and advice?" ”

Zhang Xiu was silent, these words were actually very uncomfortable, but Shen Chen was not his general, he was still attached to Liu Biao, and he couldn't say anything.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Shen Chen said again: "Now Cao Jun is afraid that he is preparing to turn back and attack us." ”

Zhang Xiu complained: "I asked you to attack Wuyin with me, but you didn't listen, why do you blame me now." If you had been there, you would not have made such mistakes. ”

Gan Ning saw that he was not happy, and he was not happy, and said, "Does General Zhang think that we are waiting? You don't know that Lejin and Cao Ren are in the rear? If we hadn't broken Cao Ren first, and then went to Jiannan to eliminate Lejin, I'm afraid we would have been flanked by Cao Cao Lejin before and after, and the whole army would have been annihilated. ”

"You eliminated Lejin?"

Zhang Xiu was very surprised.

"That's natural, half of his troops crossed the water and arrived at Thorn Yang, Thorn Yang is only two days away from Wuyin, we defeated him the day before yesterday, if there was no us, today's general would not just be defeated and retreated."

Gan Ning told the truth of the matter.

"Hmm......"

Zhang Xiu was silent again, in fact, he also knew about Lejin and Cao Ren, after all, it was An Zhong and Huyang who went under his nose.

But at that time, Cao's army was newly defeated, and he pursued urgently, but he forgot about this stubble.

Thinking about it now, I can't help but stand up in a cold sweat, if it weren't for Gan Ning breaking Le Jin, Le Jin would definitely block his rear, and when the time comes, he will be attacked by Cao Cao back and forth, I'm afraid that if he doesn't die, he will have to lose half his life.

Shen Chen thought for a while and said: "But it's not the general's fault, I heard that there is a wise man in the general's army, logically speaking, even I can see it, why didn't he persuade the general?" ”

Zhang Xiu scratched his head and said: "Uncle really didn't persuade me, and said that he could pursue and urge me to move forward." ”

"Mr. Wenhe said that he could pursue?"

Shen Chen's face changed slightly, and he quickly thought about it in his mind, then looked left and right, and said to Zhang Xiu: "General, take a step to speak." ”

He turned over and dismounted, although Zhang Xiu didn't know why, he also dismounted, and the two walked to the side of the cliff next to him.

"What's wrong?"

Zhang Xiu asked.

Shen Chen said: "General, if what I expected is correct, Mr. Wenhe is afraid that he should let the general beware of Liu Yuanjun." ”

Zhang Xiu was surprised: "How did you know?" ”

Shen Chen said: "Because I know that Mr. Wenhe has always wanted to join Cao Cao, and the matter of the general's surrender to Cao Cao before should also be promoted by him." ”

Zhang Xiu was silent, he and Shen Chen had actually met a few times, and they didn't know what he was capable of.

But now I see it.

can actually be counted as Jia Xu said bad things about Liu Biao to him.

Shen Chen continued: "Mr. Wenhe only wants to be attached to the strong, Cao Cao coerced the Son of Heaven to order the princes, and the future is bound to become a great weapon, so he must make the general feel that Liu Yuanjun is unreliable, so he can persuade the general to surrender to Cao Cao." ”

"I'm already at odds with Cao Cao, does he think he can still persuade me? What's more, if I kill Cao Cao's beloved general and nephew, he will not accept me. ”

Zhang Xiu laughed to herself.

It's not that he doesn't want to surrender, it's that Cao Cao doesn't do anything, and he is forced to have no choice.

Shen Chen said, "What if Cao Cao is in a critical moment? Yuan Shao's annexation of the north is imminent, and he is bound to fight Cao Cao in the future, which will be the best opportunity for the general to surrender to Cao Cao. ”

"Really?"

Zhang Xiuhu was suspicious: "Will he accept me at that time?" ”

Shen Chen said with a smile: "Naturally, I will accept you, but between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, Yuan Shao wins, and the general still has to live, just surrender Yuan Shao when the time comes." But if Cao Cao wins, the general won't want to live at that time. ”

Zhang Xiu was puzzled: "How do you say this?" ”

Shen Chen pointed to the north and said with a smile: "Cao Cao got rid of Yuan Shao, the biggest opponent, and dominated the entire north, can't the enmity between Dian Wei and his nephews be avenged?" At that time, the annihilation of the three clans of the generals will only be a matter of one sentence. ”

Zhang Xiu suddenly felt creepy, and a cool air rose from the soles of his feet.

Yes.

If Cao Cao and Yuan Shao were fighting, he would surrender to him by himself, he would definitely accept it happily.

Because then he has more strength, and his chances of winning are one more point.

But what about after the fight?

When you see him again, will you think of the hatred between Dian Wei and his son and nephew?

When the time comes, wipe out the three clans of the Zhang family, isn't it just a sentence?

"Unless the general wants to gamble with his life."

Shen Chen said again: "Bet that Cao Cao will not kill the general afterwards, then the general can listen to Mr. Wenhe's words and surrender to Cao Cao." But don't forget, when the general's family wiped out the three clans, Mr. Wenhe would not be implicated, after all, it was not the Dian Wei Cao Ang Cao Anmin who he killed. ”

Zhang Xiu only felt that her scalp was numb, and she couldn't help but say, "What do you think that my uncle will definitely let me surrender to Cao Cao?" ”

If the general does not believe it, Mr. Wenhe will inevitably continue to persuade the general to stay away from Liu Gong and get close to Cao Cao. On the eve of the war between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, it was also the time when Mr. Wen He persuaded the general to surrender to Cao Cao. ”

Shen Chen said: "I'm just kindly telling the general, the general can not believe it, but he will see when the time comes." You can also pay attention to your daily life to see if Mr. Wenhe is belittling Liu Yuanjun and praising Cao Mengde. If one day in the future he really persuades the general to surrender to Cao Cao, the general only needs to remember what I said today. ”

"Is that so?"

Zhang Xiu said silently: "I know." ”

He actually understood in his heart that Shen Chen was provoking his relationship with Jia Xu.

But what can he do?

Because Shen Chen was telling the truth.

After Jia Xu told him about Liu Biao that time, he faintly guessed in his heart that Jia Xu still wanted to surrender to Cao Cao.

It's just that Zhang Xiu is also very uneasy in his heart, so he pretends not to know.

Now that Shen Chen told him what might happen in the future, it would be easier for him, and many things had been figured out.

However, he couldn't fully believe Shen Chen's statement, so he could only let it go.

We'll see when the time comes.

Let's see if Jia Xu will keep persuading him to surrender to Cao Cao as Shen Chen said.

Zhang Xiu thought to herself.

In the afternoon, the Xiliang army returned to Wancheng.

On the second day, when he learned that Cao Cao's army was attacking again, Zhang Xiu evacuated in the direction of Anzhong City.

After Cao's army occupied Wancheng again, it continued to pursue south.

At this moment, Cao Cao didn't know that the detachment he sent had encountered the remnants of Le Jin's retreat to the north, and had already learned the news of Le Jin's death, and was now rapidly approaching him to report the matter.

However, he does not know the news at present, and he himself has led the main force to Niyang.

Niyang is located on the right bank of the turbulent water, this river is the same as the water, originating from the Funiu Mountain, in Xinye and the water confluence, is a small and medium-sized river.

Anzhong, on the other hand, is located on the left bank of the turbulent water, very close to Nieyang, with only about 20 kilometers between the upstream and downstream.

Cao Cao rode on horseback, raised his eyes and looked into the distance, and saw countless wheat fields on both sides of the turbulent water, it was the end of February, when the wheat was about to ripen, the green ears of wheat were swaying in the wind, and the distant villages were rising with curling smoke.

"Report!"

At this time, the scout came to report: "Sikong, Zhang Xiu is reorganizing his troops and horses at the bridge on the left bank of the turbulent water, as if he wants to fight us to the death." ”

"Hmph."

Cao Cao snorted coldly: "Yesterday, he left a letter to me, saying that the corpses of Dian Wei Zi Anmin had been taken away by him, and asked me to go and fetch them personally. ”

Cao Hong stood up and said: "Big brother, I am the vanguard, and I will break his army." ”

Cao Cao waved his hand and asked, "Are there any other places to cross this river?" ”

Yu Ban said: "When I came, I asked the local people, and there is still a bridge more than ten miles north of Nieyang that can be crossed. ”

"Hmm."

Cao Cao nodded and said, "Wen Ze, you lead three thousand men and horses, bypass from the upstream, and we will attack left and right." ”

"Yui."

Yu Ban took the order and left.

The army continued downstream along the turbulent water, and walked for about seven or eight miles, and sure enough, they saw a bridge over the river.

On the opposite side of the bridge, there are several undulating hills, but it is said that it is a hill, it is better to say that it is a small hill, and the highest is more than ten zhang, that is, a height of more than 20 meters, which is not very steep.

At the foot of the hills and mountains, about thousands of Xiliang troops were gathering in formation, and from a distance, the number of people did not seem to be as many as imagined, only three or four thousand.

"Zhang Xiu must set up an ambush in the mountains."

Cao Cao pointed to the hills in the distance and said: "Let's not cross the river first, it is equivalent to banning the crossing of the river, and then we will attack in two ways." ”

Cao Hong glanced at Yu Ban, who had just left, and said, "Big brother, I'm afraid it will take an hour or two for Yu Ban to take a long detour, if it doesn't pass for so long, will it make them suspicious and leave directly?" ”

The Yuban detour road is more than ten miles north of Nieyang, and here is seven or eight miles south of Nieyang. In this way, it adds up to almost 20 Han Li Road, which is converted to 10 kilometers.

But it was a one-way trip, twenty kilometers round trip, and it would take two to four hours to step up the march.

If they didn't take any action during this time period, and Zhang Xiu on the other side of the bridge chose to go directly, or simply destroyed the bridge, then it seemed that they could only watch.

Cao Cao thought about it for a while, and thought: "What Zilian said is reasonable, then send two thousand people to cross the river first and seize the bridge, and I will pretend to cross the river slowly and delay time." ”

"Understood."

Cao Hong took the order and left.