Silver Fox of the Three Kingdoms

"what?"

Inside Cao Jun's tent, Cao Hong suddenly changed his expression when he heard the news, "Say it again?"

The messenger knelt down on one knee, cupped his hands tremblingly and said, "The urgent report from the rear, the imperial physician Ling Jiben, Shaofu Geng Ji, Sizhi Weihuang and others launched a rebellion and killed Wan Changshi. Fortunately, Wang Shangshu was alert and escaped into the palace in time. , order the guards in the palace to defend, and now they are probably attacking the palace gate."

Zhao Yan was also shocked and said: "It's no wonder Shen Chen has never built fortifications. He must have colluded with Gibbon and others, knowing that we are worried that the rear will inevitably withdraw troops, and there is no need to defend."

"hateful!"

Cao Hong immediately said: "Return to help Chen Du!"

"No."

Zhao Yan quickly said: "If the army moves, it will be pursued by Shen Chen. It may lead to a big defeat. At that time, Henan will be in danger. We must defend here, and we cannot let Shen Chen's soldiers advance an inch."

"Then send Qingqi to rescue?"

Cao Hong calmed down, and only after being persuaded by Zhao Yan did he realize that he was in a mess. If he really wanted to follow his order just now, Henan would not be able to keep it.

Zhao Yan turned his head and asked the messenger, "How many troops does the enemy have?"

The courier from Dingling quickly replied: "The envoy is from Linying. He said that the courier who escaped from Chendu and went to Weishi told the magistrate of Weishi that there are about thousands of enemies. The exact number is too confusing." I don't know."

"What was the situation like when the envoy left Chendu?"

"They set fire to the Changshi Mansion and the Shangshu Mansion, and the city is already on fire."

"When did it happen?"

"The cock crowed at the end of the day before yesterday."

"The situation in Chendu is not very good. We must return to help as soon as possible."

Zhao Yan frowned.

Cao Hong clapped his hands and said, "Of course I know, but why don't you let Qingqi go to help?"

Zhao Yan pointed at the messenger and said with a wry smile: "Chendu is more than 20 miles away from Kunyang. The incident happened at the last moment of cock crowing the day before yesterday. They changed people and horses in various counties all the way to report the news. They ran for more than [-] hours day and night. It’s impossible to get there in two days after arriving at Taiting on Qingqi.”

According to historical records, tiger and leopard riders can run three hundred miles to chase Liu Bei all day and night, that is, within 24 hours.

But tiger and leopard cavalry are different from ordinary cavalry. They are ace troops. They not only have the best BMWs in the north, but also have two horses or even three horses per person. They can change horses and run day and night.

On the other hand, it is very difficult for ordinary single horses to run continuously, and they are often exhausted after running for half an hour, and at least have to rest for a while before continuing on the road.

Like the post station in the Tang Dynasty, if you travel [-] miles a day, you can travel [-] miles a day, and you can travel [-] miles a day, you can change horses without changing people, and people can only eat and drink on horseback.

Especially in the [-]-mile rush, there are many records of horses running to death. Even the postmen with poor physical fitness may die from overwork. It can be seen that it is absolutely impossible to run [-] miles without changing horses in a short period of time. .

Under normal circumstances, Cao Hongjun's cavalry, if they stop and go, run and rest, they can run 150 miles a day and night.

For example, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, Huang Taiji led the Eight Banners Army soldiers to the city of Beijing. In order to relieve the siege of the capital, Yuan Chonghuan personally led [-] cavalry of the Guanning Army and rushed more than [-] miles in two days and nights to rescue Beijing.

Therefore, if Cao Hong sent cavalry to march day and night, resting for only two or three hours in between, and the rest were on the road, it would take at least four or five days.

So now send Qingqi back to Chendu, the far water can't solve the near fire, and the time will be much slower.

It's just that there is no other way.

Cao Hong was anxious like an ant on a hot pot, and said: "Does Boran have any other strategies to rescue Chen Du? Let Qingqi go now."

"There must be a faster way"

Zhao Yan thought for a while, then suddenly remembered something, and said hastily, "General, I remember that Yan Kuang's Diannong Army set off to Dingling four days ago to deliver grain and grass."

"That's right, but wouldn't it take four days for Diannongjun to go back?"

Cao Hong was puzzled.

"The distance from Chendu to Dingling is more than [-] miles. In the past, it usually took [-] or [-] days to deliver the goods, but that was because there were many carts and horses transporting food, and they could only travel more than [-] miles a day."

Zhao Yan analyzed: "So he should be north of Changshe, which is [-] or [-] miles away from Chendu. He should be able to reach Changshe tonight and Yingyin tomorrow night."

"Oh?"

Cao Hong was lost in thought.

"And we are in Kunyang. Kunyang is six hundred miles away from Chendu. Even if Qingqi gallops to Chendu overnight, how can we reach Chendu for more than six hundred miles?"

Zhao Yan continued: "I'm afraid that within a day or two, all the horses will die of exhaustion, and the soldiers will have to run another two or three hundred miles back to Chendu. We won’t be able to reach Chendu within five days.”

Cao Hong understood, and asked, "Bo Ran's intention is to send someone to inform Yan Kuang to return to Chen Du?"

"good."

Zhao Yan replied: "It is only 190 miles from Yingyin to Chendu. If Yan Kuang gets the order now, let him give up transporting food. The infantry will march back to Chendu quickly and lightly, and they will arrive in about a day."

This is Xia Houyuan's speed, five hundred in three days and one thousand in six days, with an average speed of 160 li per day.

Cao Hong shook his head and said: "But it is impossible for him to know the news now. Our farm in Henan is divided into two parts, one is near Chendu, Yanzhou, and the other is in the Changsha area of ​​Yingyin. Every time Yan Kuang goes to the Changshe , is to go to the Changsha to collect grain and grass and send it to Dingling, he and the envoy have different paths."

"Did you meet General Yan on the way here?"

Zhao Yan asked the envoy again.

The envoy replied: "The envoy came from Yanling, and did not pass through Changshe."

The disadvantages of moving the capital are reflected.

Cao Cao had a good relationship with the Yingchuan family before, so he put the capital in Xu County and became the capital of Xu.

After that, he farmed outside Xudu.

Shen Chen burned Xudu, and Xudu was gone, but the interests of Tuntian and the Yingchuan family could not be lost, so they still kept Tuntian.

But after being forced to move the capital, he had to open up new farmland outside Chendu. At the same time, Cao Cao compromised with the Yanzhou family, and had to take into account the interests of the major Yanzhou families.

As a result, the farmland was divided into two parts. After each harvest, Yan Kuang had to go to Changshe Yingyin, northwest of Xudu, to send the grain and grass handed over by Chen Liu and Changshe Yingyin to the front line.

As a result, he did not meet the envoy from Yanling halfway on the other road he took.

"But we can send people to Yingyin immediately."

Zhao Yan said in a deep voice: "Just as the envoys change people and horses in the counties along the way, we will send people back and continue to change people and horses along the way. We should be able to arrive at Yingyin within [-] hours, so Yan Kuang will go back to Pingyin immediately. If you rebel, you will be able to support Chen Du within two or three days."

Cao Hong's eyes lit up immediately, and he nodded again and again, "It's still Boran's resourcefulness, so let's do as Boran wants, come here."

"General!"

The guards outside the door came in and cupped their hands.

Cao Hong said: "Let two scouts with the best riding skills, holding my general's seal, rush to Changsha immediately without stopping. Arrive at Changsha within five hours."

"Rush to Changsha?"

Zhao Yan was surprised and said, "Changsha is more than four hundred miles away from us, can we reach it within fifteen hours?"

Cao Hong explained: "When they came to report the news, they had to call the city gate to open, and then changed people and horses, and they were county government servants with average riding skills. It is normal to delay three or four hours in the middle. Go, don't let the county government officials slack off, save these few hours, maybe you can stop Yan Kuang when he leaves the Changshe."

This is the accelerated speed of four hundred miles.

Although the Han Dynasty did not have such a system of expediting a few hundred miles, Zhao Yan also understood it, so he nodded and said, "It would be the best if it can be done like this. In this way, the crisis in Chendu can be resolved within two days."

At that moment, Cao Hong did not hesitate, and immediately ordered the scouts to act.

But what he didn't know was that something had changed in the direction of Langling at this time. Zhang Xiujun did not attack the city, but led his troops northward to nowhere.

Shen Tao led the soldiers of the Huangmen, and began to return to his old business, traveling lightly every day, walking [-] kilometers, nearly [-] Hanli a day, and went straight to Chenliu.

However, Cao Jun in Beiyichun and Yang'an saw that they ignored the surrounding cities, and was afraid that they would attack the hinterland or flank Cao Hong's troops, so they intercepted them halfway.

The two sides fought at Daoting in the southeast of Yang'an and northwest of Beiyichun.

The strength of the two sides is 3000 in Huangmenting and more than [-] in Cao's army. Moreover, because they have to travel lightly, the Huangmen soldiers do not carry heavy armor, only leather armor, and fight with small round shields wrapped in iron.

But even so, facing the attack head-on, in the first battle, 3000 people were forced to regret 200. Only with more than [-] casualties, Cao Jun was defeated, showing the power of the world's elite leader.

The main reason is that for so many years, Shen Chen has been researching equipment technology with Zhuge Liang and craftsmen, such as crossbows, armor, shields, knives, etc., and they have all been involved in restructuring.

As a special force, the Huangmen soldiers specially developed weapons for small-scale warfare, such as small chain hand crossbows, steel ring knives, leggings for long-distance marches, special leather armor, round shields, Weapons backpack and so on.

Although the small chain hand crossbow can only shoot three seven-inch arrows at a time, and the range is only within 50 meters, it can still take advantage of this kind of encounter.

In the first round of the battle between the two sides, Cao Jun was directly shot into a hornet's nest.

Originally, Cao Jun had infantry hard bows with a longer range, which should have a slight advantage in range, but this kind of infantry hard bows is difficult to apply in mobile warfare.

The troops commanded by Shen Tao are very thieves. There is a plain in Henan, and there are roads everywhere. If Cao Jun forms an formation and wants to fight against them, the Huangmen soldiers turn around and run away. They run so fast that Cao Jun can't even catch up. .

If Cao Jun broke up and started chasing, they would turn around and shoot randomly.

This is how Cao Jun was defeated at Taiting.

They intercepted the Huangmen soldiers at the pavilion, and just assembled their team and lined up to meet the enemy, when they gave an order to fight against the wind, they went to other places.

General Cao Jun was in a hurry, gave an order and chose to pursue, and then he was killed and shot into a sieve with a carbine.

After defeating the intercepting army, the Huangmen soldiers continued to go northward and drove straight in.

In the early morning of September 24, on the official road from Changshe to Yingyin, a large group of chariots and horses headed in the direction of Yingyin.

Riding on horseback, Yan Kuang looked at the road ahead and saw the endless grain transport convoy, and then turned his head to look at the rear, and there was still the endless grain transport convoy.

There are countless pastoral fields on both sides of the road, and densely packed in the northerly direction, and a large number of docks have been built.

This is Cao Cao's farm settlement in Yingyin Changshe area.

As a general of Diannong Zhonglang, these places are all under the jurisdiction of Yan Kuang.

In history, the Gibbon Rebellion occurred in Xudu. Yan Kuang was stationed in Tuntian District in the north of Xudu City at that time.

But now because Cao Cao moved his capital, he has two farming areas, so Yan Kuang has a wider jurisdiction. Every time the grain is collected, he must first go from Chenliu to Yingchuan, and then send the harvested grain to the front line of Dingling.

On the wide official road, the grain transportation team of the Diannong Army advanced slowly. The speed of the heavy vehicles was really too fast. In the past, once a baggage truck broke down, the speed of the entire team would be delayed.

Fortunately, nothing has happened these days.

Yan Kuang is in a good mood, as long as the food team can be delivered to Dingying smoothly, half of his twice-a-year burden will be basically completed.

"Report!"

At this moment, the lieutenant-general at the front of the team hurried over, with his seal on both hands: "General, General Cao sent a letter saying that there was a rebellion in Chendu, and ordered the general to return to Chendu quickly to put down the rebellion."

"Someone rebelled in Chendu?"

Yan Kuang recognized Cao Hong's seal letter in Lieutenant General's hand at a glance, and he was very surprised when he received it, wondering, "Why did I not get any information about the rebellion in Chen Du?"

The lieutenant general said: "Chen Du's courier is staggered from us. General Cao on the front line is fighting the enemy in Nanyang. It is too late to return to Chen Du. We can only let the courier change horses and not change people to report to Changsha. Now both couriers are exhausted and paralyzed. ,just in front."

"I see."

Yan Kuang replied in a low voice, looked around, and said, "I will take the soldiers and horses back immediately, Zhang Gan, you lead the troops, and recruit the villagers in the nearby Wubao to help transport the food. Be sure to send it to the front line as soon as possible."

Lieutenant General Zhang Gan hesitated and said: "But general, is this too risky? Now that General Cao is fighting the enemy and sending it to the front line, if the enemy robs the food, it is better to take the food and grass to Changshe City first, and wait until the general puts down the rebellion." , send it over."

"Well"

Yan Kuang thought for a while, this is an old-fashioned opinion, although it will delay the delivery of food, but at least it is safer, so he said: "Okay, it depends on your opinion."

At the moment he gave an order, the soldiers put down the grain truck and quickly assembled to the rear.

On his side, he took away most of the Tuntian soldiers, and the remaining [-] soldiers, led by Lieutenant General Zhang Qian, sent them to the surrounding Wubao to recruit Tuntian people to transport food and grass back to Changsha.

At this time, Chen Du, the nominal capital of the Han Empire, Gibbon and others set fire to Wan Qian's mansion, and then attacked the imperial palace.

Shangshu Wangxuan fled into the palace, and the guards in charge of Liu Xie in the palace took control of the palace gate.

Gibbon and the others couldn't get in for a while, they were as anxious as ants on a hot pot, and now the city was full of wind and rain, because they hadn't entered the palace in the past two days, and many dignitaries of the Yanzhou family who had reacted had already begun to collude and gather servants, want to attack them.

If Shen Chen's spies in Chendu hadn't stabilized the morale of the army, Gibbon's unreliable servants would probably have fled in all directions.

But as time passed, there were no reinforcements from outside, and they couldn't enter the palace inside, so their morale fell to the bottom.

Suddenly the situation took a turn for the worse, and many people were panicked, not knowing their future fate.