In July, the altar was set up at the north gate of Xuchang.

In the afternoon, Cao Cao ascended to the altar, and hundreds of officials accompanied him.

At that time, Cao Cao was proclaimed emperor in Xuchang, with the country name 'Wei', with Luoyang as the national capital, and Xuchang was fortunate for the time being. Nasun Quan is sparse, and the era name is 'Jianye', amnesty to the world.

In August, Cao Cao took the Han Emperor as the Duke of Shanyang in Hanoi, and carried out the Han Zhengshuo, and sacrificed to the suburbs with the gift of the Son of Heaven.

Queen Bian is the queen, and the crown prince Cao Pi is the crown prince; Feng Xiahou was the general, Cao Hong was the hussar general, Cao Ren was the chariot general, Yu Ban was the former general, Zhang He was the left general, Xu Huang was the right general, and Zhu Ling was the rear general.

Officials of all sizes were promoted, and the rewards were very rich. For example, Ma Chao, who guarded Longyou, was named the general of Zhenxi and the assassin of Yizhou by Cao Cao; Zang Ba was worshiped by General Zhendong and the history of Xuzhou Thorn.

As for Meng Da, who was waiting for the price to be sold, Cao Cao's reward for him was not small, and he worshiped General Dangkou and awarded him the position of marquis of the capital.

Although General Dangkou is a miscellaneous general, he is a miscellaneous general with a higher rank, and above is a general at the town and levy level, which shows Cao Cao's generosity.

At the same time, because Cao Cao was proclaimed emperor, the Southern Han Dynasty also began to plan the layout in depth.

In August, Liu Feng inspected Fangling County, and Meng Da set up a table to wait.

When Meng Daxinna's concubine was beautiful, Liu Feng heard about it, and asked Meng Da to call the concubine to attend as a companion. Meng Da was hindered by Liu Feng's power, so he had to call the beautiful concubine to attend.

Meng Daqi's concubine is beautiful and graceful, and she is a rare beauty.

Drunk, Liu Fengdun became lustful and forcibly seized Meng Da's concubine for his own use.

The concubine was reluctant to obey Liu Feng and begged Meng Da for help. Meng Da angrily refused. However, in front of the public, Liu Feng openly made the warriors take it, and even though Meng Da was unwilling, he was helpless.

After Liu Feng returned to Shangyong, Meng Da, who was angry, finally wrote the tenth letter to Cao Ren.

In the letter, Meng Da described his heart to surrender to Wei, and the reason why he surrendered was because he witnessed the death of his friend Zhang Song, and he felt that Liu Bei was unfair.

At this time, he had a dispute with Liu Feng because of the matter of concubines. Unexpectedly, Zhang Song's experience would fall on him, he was panicked and unwilling to go to Zhang Song's old path. He didn't want to sit still, he wanted to make a secret plan and surrender the city.

Since hearing that the Han dynasty was destroyed, Liu Bei of the old revolution has been born to be self-reliant, and now he is preparing for the enthronement ceremony in Wuhan, so the border is unprepared.

Due to his growing age, Guan Yu fell ill and returned to Wuhan to recuperate, and participated in Liu Bei's enthronement ceremony.

Huo Jun was suspicious of the king of Huainan because of the matter and stayed away from Jianghuai. Today, due to the anxiety of the Jiaoling war, Liu Bei sent him south to supervise the Jiaozhou war.

Zhang Feiyuan is in Jiangzhou, although he has soldiers and horses, but the distance is far away, which is not enough to worry; Wenpin and Pang Tong guarded Jiangxia and Hefei, and had no heart for the Northern Expedition.

Among the three counties and nine counties today, in addition to the 3,000 soldiers and horses he led, only the 5,000 soldiers led by Liu Feng were the only ones. and Lu Xun's department in the upper reaches of the Han River, with 20,000 people, stationed in Hanzhong, did not dare to leave lightly.

If Cao Ren marched Jingzhou's troops from Nanxiang, he would lead the people of Fangling and raise the county to respond. Whoever defeated Liu Feng, who was entrenched in Shangyong, relied on Cao Ren's heroism and the old people of the Shen family. Three counties and nine counties should be passed down.

Then, Meng Da emphasized that he was a Fufeng person in Guanzhong, saying that his hometown was in Guanzhong, and he was willing to return to the Central Plains now, and he did not want to be a homeless wandering soul after death.

The next day, Meng Da sent his nephew Deng Xian to Fancheng with a letter. Fangling is six or seven hundred miles away from Xiangyang, and Deng Xian finally delivered the letter to Cao Ren after several days of traveling.

Fancheng, the old Zhengnan General's Mansion.

In the hall, Cao Ren, who was promoted to the general of the chariot cavalry, became more and more prestigious, and put down Meng Da's letter.

Cao Ren's words were pleasant, and he said: "Mencius hesitated for several months, and finally because of the gap between Liu Feng and him, he wanted to make an appointment with our army and raise troops to return to the right, which is gratifying!" ”

Zhu Zhi had many scruples and said: "Meng Da's desire to surrender is for good deeds, but if it is for fraud, the general will raise troops to enter it, and there should be danger!" ”

Brushing his beard, Cao Ren smiled and said, "Zhu Jun should be suspicious. I wrote to Menda for many months, and I secretly thought that he was a man who coveted riches. If it surrenders by fraud, it should increase its troops in Gangneung. However, now, as Mencius said, Guan Yu returned to Wuhan after recuperating from illness, and reduced the soldiers and horses of Nanjun. From this point of view, how can the water thieves have the idea of attacking Xiangfan? ”

After months of correspondence with Meng Da, combined with the news that Guan Yu returned to Wuhan to recuperate, Cao Ren really had no doubts about Meng Da's surrender. Especially now that Cao Cao has just been proclaimed emperor, he is eager to use three counties and nine counties as a gift of celebration to Cao Cao.

Saying that, Cao Ren looked at Shen Yi and asked, "General Shen can tell Lu Jun everything about the investigation." ”

"No!"

Shen Yi straightened his back and arched his hand and said, "Yi was ordered by the general of the chariot cavalry to send the sergeants under his tent into the tomb to investigate the details of Meng Dadi. As Meng Da said, Liu Feng repeatedly bullied him, first grabbed his advocacy, and thought it was for his own use; Later, as stated in the letter, Liu Feng was greedy for beauty and took away his beautiful concubine. ”

Speaking of beautiful concubines, Shen Yi showed a look of secret anger and said: "Liu Feng snatched Meng Da's beautiful concubine, not her, but Yi's beloved daughter. Its posture is beautiful and has a promising beauty. After Yi was defeated, this concubine was accepted by Meng Dasuo. ”

Shen Yi said that she was incompetent, cuckolded by Meng Da, and felt humiliated. But now, for the sake of the overall situation and recapture his county, he must tell the truth.

Cao Ren bowed his head slightly and said, "The entanglement between Meng Da and Liu Feng is well known in the three counties. Now Meng Da has a grudge with Liu Feng because of his concubine, and it is expected that with Liu Bei's ability, if he knows that the two are contradictory, he will definitely send someone to replace Liu Feng or Meng Da to prevent turmoil in the border area. ”

Thinking about it, Cao Ren said: "Liu Feng is the son of Liu Bei, and Meng Da is a foreign minister. I am afraid that Liu Bei will transfer Meng Da far away, and then leave Liu Feng in Shangyong. If Shi Mengda is transferred, it will be difficult to seek the three counties! ”

believes that Meng Da sincerely surrendered, but now Cao Ren is worried that Liu Bei will transfer Meng Da if he knows about the dispute between Liu and Meng. At that time, if this is the case, it will be a bamboo basket for nothing.

Brushing his gray beard, Zhu Zhi suggested: "Jingxiang's soldiers guard Xiangfan, and there are nearly 30,000 soldiers. If the general wants to enter Fangling in the west, he needs to arrange the general to guard Xiangfan. And it is necessary to ask His Majesty to send troops and horses to support him for the purpose of maneuvering. ”

Zhu Zhi is old, because he is a general, he has a stable temperament and does not want to cause more trouble. But now that Cao Ren has firmly moved west to meet Meng Da's thoughts, he doesn't have much to say.

Cao Ren led Jingxiang's soldiers and horses into Fangling, so it was naturally impossible to excessively transfer the soldiers and horses of Xiangfan Ercheng, and naturally needed to stay behind to guard the soldiers of Nanjun.

At the same time, from the perspective of stability, it is even more necessary for Zhu Zhi to ask Cao Cao to send troops and horses to respond.

"Good!"

Cao Ren stood up with his sword pressed and said in a deep voice: "Order the sergeants of all departments to prepare grain and grass equipment for the battle." After His Majesty's edict was issued, he immediately sent troops to the west, met Mengda, and attacked the three counties. ”

"No!"

Xiangyang was more than 1,000 miles away from Xuchang, and Cao Ren sent Cao Cao to approve the order to go on the expedition. And the letter agreed with Meng Da on the time of starting the army.

A few days later, Song Shu arrived in Xuchang and reported to Cao Cao.

In the old Han Palace in Xuchang, Cao Cao wore a crown on his head and wore the clothes of the Son of Heaven, pacing in the hall.

After listening to the attendant's recitation of Cao Ren's recital, Cao Cao put his hands behind his waist and asked: "Today, the general of the Che Cavalry wants to send troops to take Fangling and Shangyong's three counties and nine counties, I don't know what Zhu Qing thinks?" ”

"Dare to ask Your Majesty, is there any change in the water thieves?" Sima Yi asked.

Cao Cao paced and pondered, and said: "Guan Yu returned to Wuhan due to illness, and many Jiangling sergeants were transferred. And according to the details, the battle in Jiaoling is scorching today, Shixie is in danger, Liu Bei sent Huo Jun to the south, and the capital supervised the war in Jiaoguang. And there are no sergeants in Jiangxia and Hefei,"

Therefore, the dispatch of the water thieves is indeed as Mencius said, and it is expected that it will surrender, which should be true. Today, the general of the Che Cavalry wants to lead the army westward and seek to capture the three counties, and I think so! ”

The upgrade from King Wei to Emperor Wei, and the change of title from lonely to me, made Cao Cao really happy for many days.

Sima Yi frowned and pondered, and said suspiciously: "Nanjun is an important town for water thieves, and the general Guan Yu left the city due to illness and returned to Wuhan to recuperate. However, in terms of military arrangement, Guan Yu left office, and Nanjun reduced his troops and horses, and his behavior should have the intention of slacking off our army. ”

"In terms of circumstances, whenever the general leaves office, the water thieves need to be guarded by soldiers to prevent Nanjun from being attacked. Now it is not beneficial to the soldiers, but to cut the soldiers, this behavior is abnormal, and the ministers are afraid that the water thieves are cheating! ”

Saying that, Sima Yi arched his hand towards Cao Cao and said: "Fangling is located in a mountainous range, the road is rugged, it is not easy to pass, and it is easy to enter and exit. Today, the general of the cavalry raises his troops to the west, and if he is ambushed by the enemy, he is in danger of losing his division. ”

Cao Cao looked at Jia Xu and asked, "Does Wen He have any opinions?" ”

Jia Xu pondered for a while and said: "The Art of War says: 'You can go, but it is difficult to return, and it is said to hang; Those who hang on the form are unprepared for the enemy, and they will win; If the enemy is prepared, he will not be victorious, it will be difficult to return, and it will be disadvantageous. 'Looking at the topography of Fangling today, it should be 'hanging land'! ”

"When the army is used on the hanging ground, the road should be cut off, and it is easy to advance and difficult to retreat, resulting in the defeat of the army. Today, the general of the Che Cavalry went deep into the hanging ground, if Meng Da did not surrender, and Lu Meng and others were in Nanjun, and Liu Feng and others were in Shangyong. All the armies marched together, and after riding the general in the chariot, the ministers did not see the benefits! ”

As he spoke, Jia Xu stroked his beard and thought about it: "Cao Che rode the army to the west, and the minister thought that His Majesty should send the general to support him, or to ride and plunder Cao Che, or to benefit the soldiers and Xiangfan, for the purpose of guard. ”

"Hmm!"

Cao Cao paced in the hall and said: "Meng Da has ten letters, his attitude is sincere, and his words are sincere, which shows the meaning of his surrender. The general of the water thief sacrificed the county to surrender, if he was afraid of his bad intentions and refused to accept it, it should hurt my China. ”

"As for the reduction of troops and the transfer of generals in Nanjun, or the public security and Dangyang all year round, there are few wars. It is also a common thing for water thieves to reduce their armaments and gain other places, and it is not enough to doubt it. ”

Cao Cao is a gambler by nature, and he is not a steady person. If you don't like to gamble, there will be no thousands of miles to attack Wuhuan, or the battle of Wuchao at night; If his temperament was stable, after pacifying Xiangyang, Najiaxu's strategy would have dominated the world long ago.

Now the bait of the three counties and nine counties has been hanging for so long, and he has not seen the action of the water thief, he has already intended to eat it as a gift for him to become the emperor.

After thinking about it for a long time, Cao Cao instructed: "Order Yan Xing to ride 10,000 people south, and order him to be the backup and belong to the general of the chariot cavalry." Teach Cao Che to use soldiers, you need to be vigilant against the enemy ambush, if Meng Da does not surrender, immediately withdraw the army, do not hesitate. ”

"No!"

(End of chapter)