Liu Bei rode the elite to drive the merchants in 600 places, won four battles and four victories, broke Shangluo, took Lantian, and drank horse water. However, because Guo Huai arranged it properly, Liu Bei was temporarily confused.

Cao Zhang led 2,000 cavalry to come to the aid in time to ambush Liu Feng's battle. Cao Zhang's martial arts were almost off the charts, the arrows were not missing, and there were dozens of people with blades, killing the Han army in fear, a few in and a few out, and he didn't dare to despise 'Huang Xu'er'.

The soldiers were slightly frustrated, and after Liu Bei was familiar with the terrain of Guanzhong, he came out of Qingnikou and decided to fight with the Wei army for Bailuyuan on the west bank of Bashui.

Bailu Plain, the foot of the South Mountain, is located in the west of Bashui, east of Chanshui, west and north facing high cliffs, south by deep ditch, only the east can be connected to the plain.

Because Bailu was originally the barrier of the southeast of Chang'an, and it was condescending and close to the water, the captain of Changshui in the Western Han Dynasty was stationed here.

Guo Huai and Cao Zhangtun soldiers were in Bailuyuan, Liu Bei was limited by this, and if he wanted to go down to Chang'an, he had to break Bailuyuan.

Two days after Cao Zhang's arrival, Liu Bei selected 10,000 people, divided them into ten divisions, ignored Fa Zheng's advice, supervised all the soldiers and horses, led the army to fight against the Wei army.

The Wei army had the advantage of being condescending, coupled with Cao Zhang's life in the struggle, and more than ten arrows in the armor did not retreat, which greatly encouraged the Wei soldiers, resisted Liu Bei's offensive, and finally waited for the reinforcements led by Sima Yi.

Liu Bei saw that the Wei army's reinforcements had arrived, and there was no hope of breaking the village, so he could only lead the army back to the camp and then find a way to break Wei. And Cao Zhang saw that Sima Yi's foot soldiers arrived, and finally breathed a sigh of relief, if the reinforcements arrived, I am afraid that he would have to ask Cao Zhen for help.

On the plateau, Sima Yi met with Guo Huai and Cao Zhang, looked at the Han army camp on the bank of the water, and sometimes pointed out the layout of the camp.

Cao Zhang raised his whip and pointed to the Han camp, and said: "Liu Bei's forbidden army is brave and resolute, and it is not inferior to my Chinese warriors." In the past, there were thieves who were surrounded by the wall, and they still fought to the death and did not retreat. And the thief's bow and crossbow are strong, the crossbow is sharp and the arrow is heavy, and many of the middle are killed and wounded. In the future, we should make good use of the cavalry. ”

In the past, Liu Bei initially pacified the south, adopted Huo Jun's strategy of strengthening the weak branches, and ordered the generals to send the warriors to Wuhan, and all the old and weak retreated by themselves, and the generals were repatriated.

The generals of the Southern Han Dynasty sent warriors into Wuhan, and under the training of Zhao Yun and Chen Zhi, the forbidden army of the north and south was formed. Liu Bei repeatedly used troops to go on the Northern Expedition, and the forbidden army was almost the main force. Where the elite cannot be damaged, the damage will hurt the fundamentals.

Sima Yi looked at the Han army camp under the plateau and asked, "Guo Yongzhou, what is the situation in Guanzhong today?" ”

Guo Huai's expression was solemn and said: "According to reports from various places and sentinels, Lu Xun's soldiers were 40,000 out of Fu Luo, and Cao Zhenxi raised more than 20,000 troops and horses to defend Luokou. Lu Xun sent troops to invite the battle for several days, but Cao Zhenxi suspected that there were ambushes and avoided the battle. ”

"The situation in Longyou is erosive, Ma Chao led his troops to rebel, sweeping the four counties of Longshang, almost unstoppable. The Longren are strong and strong, and the big clan dedicates the city to send troops, and Ma Chao collects his people for his own use, and he is afraid that he will not be able to settle down. Now I am afraid that the horse will go down to the right, and then from the response of the thief army, he will raise his pawn and come to the pass. ”

As the battle situation in Guanlong gradually became clear, General Cao Wei knew that the situation in Guanxi was bad, and the advantage was not in their hands, but in the hands of Ma Chao and Liu Bei.

Sima Yi carried his hands on the back of his waist, paced and scanned the surroundings of Bailuyuan, but saw that there were a large number of wheat fields along the banks of Ba and Chan Ershui, and the summer wind blew by, and the wheat crops moved with the wind.

After a little silence, Sima Yi said: "Can Boji make Yan Wenlin lead the villagers of Jingzhao to harvest wheat overnight, and this Chang'an wheat grain must not enter Liu Bei's hands." ”

Hearing this, Cao Zhang's face was stunned and asked, "Fu Jun, why did you order the people to harvest wheat and harvest?" ”

Sima Yi smiled and said: "The reason why Liu Bei dared to leave Jianghan and enter the Guanzhong was not because our army was defeated in Jingzhou, but because in the rainy season, the water of Dan and Han soared, and he was able to travel by boat. However, this summer and autumn come, the river recedes, and the Jianghan is besieged, and Liu Bei's grain will be difficult to hold for a long time. ”

At that time, Liu Bei's soldiers were short of food, so they could only take wheat grain for food. Today, the people are ordered to harvest wheat, and Liu Bei has nothing to eat. The grain is not enough, the people's food is desperate, and Liu Bei will leave soon. When the soldiers retreat and leave, send troops to chase them, and our army will be able to get everything. ”

The reason why Liu Bei dared to abandon the Nanyang Wei soldiers and go west was not because he was crazy. Instead, the river water rises in summer, and the Dan and Han rivers can be transported, and the Han River basin is controlled by the Southern Han Dynasty. Therefore, Liu Bei asked Zhao Yun, Wen Ping, and Lü Meng to lead 60,000 guards in the Han River basin to ensure the smooth flow of his grain routes.

However, Jingzhou, which lacked Wancheng, was always weak, and the Wei army set out from Wancheng to harass the Han and Dan waters, and perhaps when the waterway rose, it was difficult to make progress due to the problem of the Han army's sailors.

Once the water level drops and it is inconvenient for the boat to go against the grain, there will be a shortage of food and grass. What's more, the Wei army will cut off the grain route, and with the cooperation of the soldiers and horses in Guanzhong, Liu Bei's troops will be defeated. Therefore, in this battle, Liu Bei's dispatch of troops and choice of route cannot be said to be safe, and there are radical factors in it.

As for why Liu Bei was aggressive, it was because he did not have much confidence in defeating the Wei army head-on, so he attacked the east and west, and adopted the strategy of using troops by tricks.

Sima Yi cut the wheat grain in Guanzhong, Liu Bei had nothing to eat, and he couldn't break the Bailuyuan Wei army, so he had to retreat because of the exhaustion of food.

Hearing the reason, Cao Zhang admired: "Fu Jun harvested wheat and cut off Liu Bei's grain, which is called great wisdom!" ”

After a pause, Cao Zhang's words changed and asked: "Now stop Liu Bei from Bashui, but wait for his food to retreat." However, Ma Chao made a mess of Longright, if he wanted to help the thief, he raised his troops to take the Longdao Road, and went down to the pass, so how should it be? ”

"Ma Chao donated his son to betray the Lord, ruthless and unjust, and An will help Han?"

Sima Yi hesitated for a long time and said: "Now you should watch the situation in Longyou, and then go to the table with Your Majesty." Send an envoy to Longyou to temporarily calm Ma Chao's heart. and wait for Liu Bei's soldiers to retreat, and then discuss the strategy of breaking the horse. At this time, you must not be enemies with horses, if you are enemies with horses, then Guanzhong cannot be protected. ”

As soon as these words came out, Cao Zhang and Guo Huai were silent.

A few people chatted about the arrangement again, and then dispersed. Guo Huai was responsible for harvesting wheat harvest, Cao Zhang commanded the troops to inspect, and Sima Yi played important military affairs.

With the continuous battle of Han and Wei for several days, the Wei army became more and more stable, while Liu Bei became increasingly worried.

In the big tent, Liu Bei paced slowly, and said worriedly: "If you can't go down to Bailuyuan today, you can break through Chang'an City." Fearing that the enemy will have more reinforcements and cling to the dangers, the war will not be beyond the control of our army. ”

As mentioned before, Liu Bei wanted to take advantage of the fact that the main force of Cao Wei's reinforcements was not in Luoyang, so as to take advantage of Chang'an. In the early days, the morale was at its peak, and the armies fought all the way and broke through many dangers on the military pass.

But when he arrived in Lantian, due to Guo Huai and Cao Zhang, even though he was in the green mud and the soldiers were in the water, he was only stuck in Bailuyuan and was not allowed to enter.

Seeing Sima Yi's reinforcements arrive today, Liu Bei became more and more anxious. He knew that if he couldn't break the Wei army now, with the arrival of the Wei army, his hope of taking Chang'an would become more and more slim.

Ma Liang hesitated a little and said, "Your Majesty, Ma Chao is in breach of contract today and will take Longyou." Bo Yan was blocked Luokou, and Cao Zhen stubbornly held on without fighting. Our army fought fiercely on the ba, and could not advance. In a good opinion, our army has lost a good opportunity, and it is better to make plans to withdraw it, so as to avoid the arrival of the army of thieves. ”

"Withdrawal?"

Liu Bei frowned slightly, and said: "Licheng mutiny, thief Xu Huai is difficult to settle." Zhong Miao led the troops and looked, and Cao Pi would send a large army to the east. When the thieves came to the aid of the east, the light troops plundered the road, the Yiqiang troops marched westward, the disparity in strength was divided, our army still had the strength to fight, and it was too early to retreat! ”

As soon as the words fell, the attendant quickly walked into the tent and said: "Your Majesty, the people of Chang'an have entered the Ba and harvested wheat in the fields, are they sending troops to stop them today?" ”

"Huh?"

Liu Bei was slightly surprised and said: "Now that the wheat is ripe, why do the people rush to harvest the wheat harvest? ”

"Your Majesty!"

"Ahem"

Fa Zheng, whose face was sallow, coughed a few times and said, "Your Majesty, this is a thief's strategy to clear the wilderness, and it is definitely not as good as it meant." The thief knew that our army was supplied with food because of the boats, and if the water fell in the autumn, the transportation would be poor, and the soldiers' rations would be exhausted. ”

Therefore, in the right opinion, if Your Majesty wants to hold on to the thief army for a long time, it is advisable to send troops out of the camp to compete with the people of Chang'an for wheat, and only then can you hold it for a long time. Otherwise, the autumn solstice will fall, and our army will only retreat! ”

"I'm afraid it's not appropriate to compete with the people for food!"

Liu Bei shook his head slightly, and said: "Since I entered the Wuguan, I have fought many battles, and I have no benevolence and virtue and the people, but I only do the things of the ancestors, and I have not committed any crimes in the autumn. If I plunder the people and take wheat now, I will lose the hearts of the people, and how will the people of Guan Zhong attach themselves to me! ”

"Your Majesty, if you don't compete with the people for food today, if our army is short of food, what can you do?" Fa Zheng asked rhetorically.

Liu Bei stopped and said decisively: "Today, the thief has no worries about food and grass, and our army has a supply of water for the time being. Can the early ripening wheat help me get off the gates? If I can't get down, what good will it do me? ”

Liu Bei does not take away the people's food, not because of his benevolent and pedantic temperament, but because of the dual limitations of benevolence and politics.

In terms of benevolence, Liu Bei can't say that he loves the people like a son, but he can say that he can treat the people as well as possible, not slaughter the city, and not brutalize the people.

In the customs today, if the people's rations are taken away, it means that these people will have no food to eat in the second half of the year and next spring, and their fate will change because of Liu Bei, so they can't bear it.

Politically, Liu Bei played the banner of reviving the Han dynasty, and he had to be more lenient than Cao Wei in terms of policy in order to win the hearts of the people. If the behavior is more cruel than Cao Wei, those Guan sergeants might as well stay under the rule of Wei.

And with the development of the war, Liu Bei realized that it was impossible to get down to Guanzhong quickly. Guanzhong is too big to lock Tongguan, and if you defeat Chang'an, you will still face Cao Wei's army. Without the help of the scholars and the people, the Southern Han Dynasty would not be able to stand in Guanzhong.

Unlike Liu Bei's thoughts, Fa Zheng is a matter of self-interest, and he is willing to do it, no matter who the object of damage is?

Hearing this, Fa Zheng sighed slightly, but didn't say anything more.

Truth be told, the people are already afflicted, and if they take their rations, they will starve and starve. And the early-maturing wheat is not a factor that determines the outcome of the two sides, the Han army can't break through Bailu Village, and no matter how much grain there is, it's useless.

After a pause, Liu Bei looked at Fa Zheng and asked, "Xiaozhi, according to Boyan's letter, Ma Chao swept Longyou." Can I make him send troops to Longyou today to help my Han seek to conquer Guanzhong. ”

Fa Zheng thought about it, and said with a wry smile: "Ma Chao is ruthless and unrighteous, borrowing our army to cause trouble, his words and deeds are inconsistent. Now that I have Longyou, I am afraid that I will renovate the internal affairs, how can I help me wholeheartedly? ”

Saying that, Fa Zheng hesitated a little and said: "According to the current situation, Your Majesty can repair the book with Ma Chao, seal the high-ranking officials and lords, seal the land of the western soil, and elaborate on the pros and cons to please his heart." Act like this to see if you can lure Ma Chao to serve our army. ”

The battle was scorched, and the two sides could only look at Ma Chao, who could change the situation of the war. The Northern Wei Dynasty was worried that Ma Chao would join the battlefield, while the Southern Han Dynasty was looking forward to Ma Chao joining the battlefield.

"Good!"

Liu Bei bowed slightly, and said: "Rong Zhen repaired a letter and invited Ma Chao to enter the customs to fight the thief." ”

(End of chapter)