Silver Fox of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 368

On October [-]th, at the end of Pingdan in the morning.

When Shen Chen and Xiahou Yuan made an appointment to fight and the two sides mobilized troops, Xiahou Dun in Xiangyang City was also mobilizing troops.

He was not stupid enough to take all the soldiers and horses out, but left Zhao Yan to lead 1 people to continue to garrison Xiangyang, and he took 3 people out of the city by boat in the early morning when the sky was still dark.

There are not many small boats in the city. In order to send all 3 people out, dozens of small boats went back and forth seven or eight times from Pingdan to sunrise.

The soldiers brought dry food for five days, leaving most of the food and grass for Zhao Yan to hold on to, so that Zhao Yan could hold on for a long time. After he joined Xia Houyuan, he could counterattack Fancheng and regain the important area of ​​Xiangfan.

By the end of the sunrise, an army of [-] troops had gathered outside the city and began to march northwest along the Han River.

The scouts of the Jingzhou army on both sides of the strait naturally discovered their movements long ago. The sound of horns, bone whistles, gongs and drums from all walks of life was endless, as if awakened from a deep sleep. Even on the Han River, there were many more ships following behind.

But Xiahou Dun was not afraid, he knew that these were the scouts that Shen Chen had placed on the Han River.

Although Shen Chen's troops were in the Fancheng area of ​​Jiangbei, Shen Chen's main force was currently confronting Xia Houyuan on the front line. The distance between the two sides was already very close. Unless Shen Chen won a big victory and returned to the army, he would not be able to catch up with him.

After he arrived at Zhuyang, even if Shen Chen withdrew his troops back to the camp, and then immediately boarded a boat and organized a fleet to attack him, it didn't matter.

Because Xiahouyuan could also immediately go to Yin County to fight Xiahoudun across the Han River and Shen Chen's army on the river. Fu Fang built walls on both sides of the river, and Jiangxinzhou has a narrow terrain and fast-flowing river. They occupy a favorable location, so they are not afraid.

Soon when it was time to eat, the Jingzhou cavalry stationed in the Longzhong area in the west roared and fled in all directions. Although Huo Yang and the others killed many scouts of the Cao army here, they could not go head-to-head with the regular army after all.

Xiahou Dun rode on horseback, glanced at the cavalry in the distance with one eye, and said nothing, but directed the troops to walk towards the hilly and mountainous road in the northwest direction.

By noon, they had already passed Longzhong.

This is almost the only way to cross the Han River from Xiangyang. The narrowest part of the Han River in other places is fifty feet wide, and the average width of the entire river section is more than one hundred feet.

Moreover, it is still the dry season, and the width of the flood season has to double.

So they can only go to the relatively narrow upper reaches of the Han River, pass through Jiangxin Island, and build pontoon bridges on both sides of the river to cross the river.

However, the road to Zhuyang is very far away. It takes 180 miles to go to Zhuyang alone, and many of them are in mountainous terrain. Even if the army travels lightly, starts early in the morning, and sleeps in the open, they will not be able to reach Zhuyang until at least tomorrow night. It's sunny.

Among them, between Zhuyang and Xiangyang, there is another city called Shandu County, which is probably located in Miaotan Town, south of Gucheng County in the later world, and Taipingdian Town, Fancheng District, Xiangyang.

This is also a river crossing point, which is called Taiping Ferry in later generations. There is Jiangxin Island on the river, and it is connected to the opposite bank.

However, this place has long been occupied by Shen Chen, who dispatched Huo Yang, Wu Dang, Wu Tao and others to seize Shandu County, and use Shandu County as the base point to block all the Han River from Shandu to Xiangyang.

As for why it didn't radiate to Gucheng and Yinxian Ferry, it's also very simple.

Too far.

The straight-line distance from Xiangyang to Gucheng is about 70 kilometers, and the distance along the river to the north is more than [-] kilometers. Especially in the upper reaches of the river, there are countless islands, floating islands, and hidden reefs.

Therefore, this is why Xiahou Dun dared to cross the mountains and ridges, walked two days on the mountain road to Zhuyang, then crossed the river from Zhuyang, and walked another two days to return to Yancheng where Xiahouyuan was located.

As long as Fu Fang guards Zhuyang and Yin counties, Shen Chen's big boats and small boats can't get through, and he can swagger past.

Soon in the evening, Xiahou Dun had already seen Shandu County in the distance.

They came from Longzhong Township. They crossed several hills and mountains. They walked for six hours, almost ninety miles, about forty kilometers, with an average speed of three kilometers per hour, excluding the time for rest and meals in the middle. , with an average speed of about four kilometers.

From this point of view, it was quite difficult for Cao Jun's soldiers to walk all the way, but the journey was relatively smooth, except for the annoying Shen Chenjun scouts who appeared from time to time.

"Take a rest in place."

Xiahou Dun saw that the soldiers had been walking for a day, and they didn't rest much except for a [-]-hour break at noon. The soldiers were quite tired, so they ordered to camp in the field.

Of course, it’s not about camping, just lying down and sleeping for a while.

It was sunset, and except for the soldiers who arranged the night watch, most of the people were lying down in a tree in the jungle at the foot of the mountain.

At dusk, the sky had already darkened, and several horses suddenly appeared in the distance.

"Beep beep!"

The sharp whistle of the peripheral scouts quickly aroused the vigilance of the surrounding soldiers.

But a moment later, the bone whistle that also belonged to Cao Jun sounded, which quickly made them calm down from restlessness.

Those knights were quickly brought in front of Xiahou Dun, got off their horses, knelt down on one knee and said, "Report, General, the enemy is attacking Zhuyang and Yin counties."

"How many people did they go?"

Xiahou Dun frowned, he was not surprised that Zhuyang and Yinxian were attacked.

Because the news of him leaving Xiangyang in the morning must have reached Shen Chen, unless Xia Houyuan did not complete the task of pestering him, otherwise Shen Chen would definitely not be able to go directly to Yin County by land.

However, it is still no problem to send a small group of troops to go north along the river by boat. It is difficult for large ships in the upper reaches to pass, and it is still very easy for hundreds of small troop transport ships such as Maotu and Luwei.

The messenger replied: "There are no fewer than 5000 people, and there are hundreds of ships. General Fu only has more than 1000 people. I am worried that it will be difficult to resist the enemy's offensive."

"Five thousand?"

Xiahou Dun thought about it.

Zhuyang and Yinxian are just two small cities with very few garrisons.

Because they are not strategically important places in themselves, there are too many places where the Han River crosses, and they are extremely far away from the Xiangfan battlefield. Whether it is Shen Chen or Xia Houyuan, it is inconvenient to send troops there.

So at that time, soldiers and horses were only routinely stationed in the counties on the north bank of the Han River, and the number was not large.

"Didn't Miaocai send someone to meet him?"

Xiahou Dun asked.

The messenger shook his head: "Sent, but it's still on the way. It's Ling Jun who said that he was afraid that Shen Chen's scouts would find out, so he would also send a large army to attack Zhuyangyin County, so he notified General Fu to build the wall first. , Wait until General Zhengxi engages the enemy, and then detour to Yin County from the rear, but the journey is long, at least it will not arrive until tomorrow."

Now both sides of the Han River are Shen Chen's territory, Zhuyang is in the southwest of the Han River, and Yin County is in the north of the Han River, both of which are on the riverside.

Xiahoudun and Xiahouyuan only dared to send messengers to walk in the middle of the night when communicating with Xiahouyuan, but they did not dare to ride horses, because they were afraid of disturbing the scouts of Shen Chenjun along both sides of the river.

With a naval force, Shen Chen could do whatever he wanted. He fought Xiahou Yuan's troops head-on, and closely monitored the movements on both sides of the Han River. If he sent reinforcements ahead of time, he would definitely be noticed.

So according to Guo Jia's intention, in order to prevent Shen Chenjun's scouts from discovering their move to Yin County, they should wait until the day of the operation before sending reinforcements there.

Calculated from the distance in this way, when Xiahoudun arrived at Zhuyang Ferry tomorrow afternoon, the reinforcements would almost arrive.

At that time, even if Shen Chen sent troops, they could not stop them from evacuating.

But obviously Guo Jia still underestimated Shen Chen's ability.

Xiahoudun guessed that when Shen Chen first learned that he was going to evacuate Xiangyang, he had already sent a fleet northward along the river to take Zhuyang and Yin counties.

After all, Shandu County is controlled by Shen Chen, and it is impossible for him to cross the river from Shandu.

It just so happened that the south of the Yangtze River in the Shandu section of the Han River was covered with continuous mountainous areas, which caused Xiahou Dun's army to walk not by the river, but in the mountains more than ten miles away from the Han River.

So in the morning when Shen Chen received the information, he immediately sent the fleet northward. They could not see the movement of the other party's ships at all, and they didn't know how many people the other party had gone, let alone the current situation in Zhuyangyin County.

But now that Fu Fang has sent people to pass the message, it seems that the situation in Zhuyang and Yinxian is not good. Maybe the 5000 people are just the first wave of pioneers, and there will be a large group of people to follow.

If this is the case, Fu Fang's more than 1000 people must be stationed in the two cities of Zhuyang and Yin County, which may indeed be a bad idea.

Thinking of this, Xiahoudun felt that he could no longer hesitate.

If Shen Chen captured Zhuyang and Yin counties, then his situation would be in trouble.

When Shen Chen retreated from the front line to Fancheng, and then took a boat from Fancheng to intercept him halfway, he would be completely isolated and helpless.

Xiahou Dun then said, "How far is this place from Zhuyang?"

"More than ninety miles."

"Can I arrive at noon tomorrow?"

"Probably we can."

replied the messenger.

"it is good!"

Xiahou Dun gritted his teeth, turned his head to look at the messenger and said, "Commander, galloping through the starry night, we will rest in Zhuyang City tomorrow!"

"General."

Wang Tu, the deputy general of the guard army, persuaded: "The soldiers have been walking for a day. If they leave again, even if they arrive at Zhuyang tomorrow, they will not have the combat power to fight the enemy. How about the last general with 5000 people rush to Zhuyang to defend first? The army rests overnight and sets out tomorrow?"

"This"

Xiahou Dun hesitated, and said hesitantly: "Fu Fang only has more than 1000 soldiers in his hands, and Zhuyang and Yin counties each have hundreds of soldiers. The enemy is powerful. I am afraid that Fu Fang will not be able to resist and lose Zhuyang and Yin counties. Let's go as soon as possible." Hurry over, even if you meet the enemy, don't get entangled, go to the city to rest as soon as possible, and it will probably be better to cross the river tomorrow."

Wang Tu thought about it, and it really made sense, because Fu Fang's troops were too small, so he had no choice but to say: "Then the general is willing to be the vanguard, and lead the troops to march lightly and go straight to Zhuyang."

"Ah."

Xiahou Dun nodded and said, "That's it."

The messenger's face changed slightly, but fortunately the sun was setting and it was getting late, so the change on his face could not be seen.

He is Fu Fang's confidant, so he naturally knows that Fu Fang has surrendered.

Now Zhuyang and Yin counties are all Jingzhou army, and they are waiting for Xiahou Dun to fall into the trap. If Xiahou Dun sent Wang Tu to explore the road first and found the ambush circle, wouldn't all previous efforts be wasted?

After thinking about it, the messenger hurriedly said: "General, I would like to lead the way ahead, but I still need to send someone back to inform General Fu, so as to cheer up the soldiers in the city."

"it is good."

Xiahou Dun did not doubt that he was there, and said: "Then you two should go back immediately, and the rest will lead the way for Wang Tu."

"Yes."

The messenger should go down.

They actually have leaders themselves.

However, if the troops are divided now, the leader does not have the technique of avatar.

It would be great if Fu Fang sent a messenger to lead the way.

At present, Xiahou Dun ordered the soldiers to rest for an hour first, and asked Wang Tu to lead 5000 people to go straight to Zhuyang with light clothes.

Shandu is more than [-] Hanli away from Zhuyang, which is [-] kilometers away. Even if Wang Tu marches in a hurry and advances at a speed of [-] kilometers per hour, it will take four hours.

It is now three quarters in the evening, about eight o'clock, and it is not expected to arrive until four o'clock in the morning, and this is still a relatively optimistic situation.

People are not steel, they have to eat and rest, they have been walking for a day since they set off this morning, and the soldiers are exhausted to the extreme, so even if Wang Tu sets off first, whether he can arrive before [-] o'clock in the morning is still a problem.

And the messenger sent by Fu Fang was riding a horse. Although the horse had to rest, the horse was still better than the human in the short-distance race. Even if it was stop and go, it would take about two hours to return to Zhuyang.

On the evening of the [-]th, at the end of the final hour, in Zhuyang County, Huang Zhong, Zhao Yun, and Fu Fang were discussing the matter of ambushing Xiahou Dun tomorrow in the county government office.

In terms of official positions, Huang Zhong and Zhao Yun are actually on the same level, and Fu Fang's status as a general is definitely not as high as theirs.

However, Shen Chen arranged for Huang Zhong to be the main one to solve the primary and secondary issues, so Huang Zhong sat on the main seat and discussed the arrangements for tomorrow with the two of them in detail.

In fact, the arrangement has already been completed.

But they are all waiting for the messenger's reply, so they have been waiting.

Near midnight, the messenger sent to report to Xiahou Dun finally returned, and hurriedly reported to them after entering the door: "Three generals, it's not good."

"what happened?"

Huang Zhong hurriedly asked.

The messenger said: "Xiahoudun sent Wang Tuling 5000 people to go first. If he finds out, he will definitely send someone to inform Xiahoudun."

"How can this be good?"

Fu Fang suddenly lost his sense of control and panicked.

Huang Zhong and Zhao Yun pondered for a moment, Zhao Yun smiled and said, "It's easy, just keep them from entering the city."

"good."

Huang Zhong also nodded and said: "We originally deployed [-] soldiers and horses outside the city to pretend to attack the city and deceive Xiahou Dun. If Wang Tulai, then just attack him and keep him outside the city. The general can pretend to be a Wei soldier on the city to watch the battle, this battle will surely destroy the Cao army, and the king of Han will reward him for his merits, and the general will not be forgotten."

Fu Fang said happily: "Thank you two generals."

"It's not too late."

Huang Zhong looked at Zhao Yun and said, "Zilong, leave the city immediately, rectify the troops and stop that Wang Tu tomorrow."

"it is good."

Zhao Yun nodded.

Now the two made arrangements.

They have more than [-] troops, which is comparable to Xiahou Dun's number.

But they deliberately pretended to take a boat to go north to Zhuyang first, and then asked Fu Fang to ask for help, and asked Xiahou Dun to go on a starry night without rest.

At that time, the more than 3 Jingzhou army with high morale will be as easy as chopping melons and vegetables against the [-] Cao army with low morale and driving for a day and a night.

Although Shen Chen had told Guo Jia about Fu Fang's defection on the front line today, Guo Jia also informed Xia Houyuan.

But it was not so easy for Xia Houyuan to inform Xiahou Dun.

Not to mention whether the scouts can break through the Han River blocked by Shen Chen and come to the other side of the river, even if they can sneak across, from Yancheng to Zhuyang, and then from Zhuyang to Xiahoudun's place, it takes more than 100 kilometers to ride a horse for two days. It was too late.

So even though Xiahouyuan had already sent a large number of scouts to cross the river to inform Xiahoudun of the incident, but with the long journey and the interception of Shen Chen's scouts halfway, almost no one could successfully reach the other side.

So in the early morning of the second day, Wang Tu, who had been driving all night, finally crossed the mountains and mountains, and when he passed the large hills and mountains in the south of Gucheng County in the future, what he saw was the Jingzhou army's barracks in the south of Zhushui, and The city of Zhuyang is located north of Zhushui and west of Hanshui.

　Some friends like strategizing literary dramas, and some friends like fighting martial arts. Xiahou Dun, as the number one general of Cao Cao, gave him a chapter in literary dramas and a chapter in martial arts.As for Sun Quan, don't worry, first clean up Cao Jun and then go back to him.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)