Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 607 Arranging a Retreat

When Yuan Shang, with his troops and horses, finally came out of the Black Mountain Pass and saw the vast Jizhou Plain in front of him, he almost wanted to cry.

During this period, he couldn't bear to look back on the time he spent trudging through the Black Mountains with an army of [-] men.

Because it was summer when he sent out his troops and it was autumn when he returned. In the intervening months, there were many heavy rains in Montenegro, which destroyed almost all the roads that Yuan Shang had hastily opened up before.

This not only made it difficult for the logistics to keep up with the food and baggage, but also forced Yuan Shang to change routes several times when he led his army back. As a result, he repeatedly got lost during the period and was harassed by bandits who appeared out of nowhere. The entire army was harassed. Exhausted.

Yuan Shang knew that the only thing he had to do now was to rush back to Yecheng at all costs, so on Pang Ji's suggestion, he abandoned almost all the baggage and asked the soldiers to carry a certain amount of food by themselves, and rushed towards Yecheng.

Encountering flash floods, getting lost, ferocious beasts, and heavy rain along the way, many soldiers fell behind, but Yuan Shang finally successfully walked out of Montenegro with more than [-] people.

Yuan Shang was excited. He only needed to march for five or six days before he could return to Yecheng!

He was about to order the entire army to move quickly, but Pang Ji beside him said: "Wait a minute."

"It's not too late to set up camp first to find out the news, and then march forward."

After hearing this, Yuan Shang said anxiously: "Sir, is this too conservative?"

"Shouldn't we rush to Yecheng at full speed at this time and then enter the city to rest?"

Pang Ji shook his head and said: "No, it is precisely because the target is so close that we should be more vigilant, lest we fall into the enemy's trap when we reach out."

"Master, think about it, if there is an enemy ambushing us ahead, and we advance rashly, and the enemy cuts off our retreat, how long can these more than [-] people last?"

"At this time, it would be a safe strategy if we rely on the mountain pass to establish a stronghold, send spies to investigate the situation, and guard against enemy sneak attacks."

After hearing this, Yuan Shang still hesitated and said: "But if I delay my elder brother and occupy Ye City because of this, wouldn't it mean that I have failed in my success?"

Pang Ji nodded and said, "That's true."

"But Yecheng may not be safe."

"Young Master, have you ever thought about what will happen if we try our best to rush to Yecheng, but we are still not as fast as Mr. Xiansi?"

"If Mr. Xiansi takes Mr. Benchu ​​hostage, and we are not allowed to enter the city, we will be trapped under the city. If Cao's army attacks, what should we do if we sit in the city and watch us being attacked?"

Yuan Shang hesitated. The fight for the heir was a matter of life and death. According to Yuan Tan's character, it might be possible!
He asked anxiously: "What should we do?"

"But if I stay too long, I might become even more hopeless!"

Pang Jidao: "Master, don't be anxious. We can send a team of troops and horses, take the master's token, and rush to Yecheng at full speed to investigate the situation first."

"Our main force will slowly recuperate for a day or two, gathering the stragglers behind, and waiting for the front army to find out the situation in Yecheng. By going back and forth, we will not lose many soldiers and horses, nor will we fall into an enemy ambush."

Yuan Shang heard this, thought for a long time, and then nodded heavily and said: "I will follow your advice, sir!"

Not long after, Zhang He led two thousand troops and marched quickly to Yecheng. Wen Chou led two thousand troops to support the Chinese army and set up camp thirty miles forward. At the same time, he sent spies to inquire about the enemy's situation around them.

Yuan Shangze and Pang Ji took the remaining [-] people to set up camp at the Black Mountain Pass and responded from behind.

Yuan Xi didn't know that Yuan Shangjun was already only a few hundred miles away from Yecheng. He stood on the top of Yecheng city, observing the distance with a telescope, and there was always a huge question lingering in his mind.

This is already the fourth day after he entered Yecheng. Where did Cao Jun go?
After Le Jin Yu Jin was repulsed, it stands to reason that he should merge with the Cao army that had not yet been lost and take action, either to rebuild Cangtingjin, to besiege Dongwuyang, to harass Yecheng, or to attack and dredge the Zhanghe River. Yuan Xi is a soldier and civilian husband.

But so far, no news has come.

Not a single message.

Four days is more or less. Each of Cao Cao's armies may be hundreds of miles apart, and it may only take a day or two to coordinate information and support each other.

If Le Jin reunited with the other Cao troops after Yu Jin was defeated, it would not be impossible to direct the mobilization of troops there, which would take four to five days.

Therefore, the Jizhou counselors did not pay attention these two days. After all, it was not the time to detect the enemy's movements. However, Yuan Xi had fought with Cao Cao many times and knew that the most difficult thing about Cao Cao was his quick reaction.

There is no way that the opponent has not responded after being destroyed in Cangtingjin for so many days. It should at least take a posture of intimidating Yecheng and force Yuan Xi to shrink its defense before it can take the initiative.

Otherwise, if Yuan Xi sends cavalry to attack his camp, are they confident that they can defend it?

Yuan Xi shook his head. No matter what, he would expand the search scope today. In the ancient era when information could not be transmitted in time, the battlefield with a radius of hundreds of miles seemed to be shrouded in fog. Only the spies sent out sent back news, and their search The fog in the area will open.

But this is only temporary. Maybe after the spies leave, enemy troops will appear in the area they were previously searching, and the information sent back will be completely invalid.

Therefore, the primary factor that determines victory or defeat on the battlefield is how much both sides understand the battlefield situation. The more detailed they understand and the more information they have about the enemy, the more they can tilt the balance of victory in their favor.

This is called knowing yourself and the enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles.

In this regard, the city defender is inherently at a disadvantage, because the city is in a fixed location and there are many people in the city, so the movements in the city can easily be detected and passed on to the traitors within.

But the siege army outside the city is different. The most dangerous time is when the siege has not been launched and the location has not yet been discovered.Even if there is a traitor in the camp, it will be difficult to pass on the news. After all, the access to the military camp is extremely strict, and the slightest movement will be discovered.

So what Yuan Xi is worried about now is that Cao Jun already knows the situation in Yecheng very well, but he has not even found out the location of Cao Jun. Compared with the two, he is already at a disadvantage.

Yuan Xi walked down the city with Sun Li. He wanted to prepare for the worst. Instead of returning home, he rode all the way to the back door of Zhen's house.

Sun Li jumped off his horse and gave the code to the door. The back door opened. Yuan Xi and Sun Li entered and then closed it immediately.

As Yuan Xi entered the main room, he saw Mrs. Zhang kneeling in the hall. Seeing him come in, she knelt down and said, "I have seen the envoy."

Yuan Xi stepped forward to help Mrs. Zhang up and said, "Mom, you don't have to be so polite."

"I won't be polite anymore. How are things going?"

Mrs. Zhang whispered: "There are now more than twenty people in the Zhen family in the city. I have tried my best to reduce the number of servants and control the fleet to less than a hundred people."

"Most of the Zhen family's belongings have been secretly transferred before, so the baggage vehicles brought this time will not exceed thirty."

Yuan Xi pondered for a moment and said decisively: "It's still too much. If there is an emergency, it will cause chaos..."

"The number of people is limited to 40, and the number of vehicles is limited to less than ten."

"The remaining people have been properly accommodated. Now the people in Yecheng are stable and there should be no trouble."

Zhang quickly agreed, but she didn't dare to ask why Yuan Xi wanted to let the Zhen family leave in a hurry when there was no news in Yecheng?

Zhang explained everything clearly and concisely one by one. Yuan Xi couldn't help but nod. Zhang had been running the Zhen family for a long time and was very strict in doing things. He didn't find any omissions, so he said: "That's good."

"Before nightfall today, let all those who are going to set out gather and wait in the backyard."

"After the night curfew, I will let people lead the army to pass by, in the name of setting up camp outside the city. My mother asked the Zhen family to take the opportunity to follow the team and leave the city through the north gate."

"After leaving the city, immediately rush towards Youzhou at full speed. Once you enter Youzhou, someone will come to meet you."

Seeing that Yuan Xi said it solemnly, Mrs. Zhang quickly agreed.

She hesitated again and again and said, "My daughter Zhen Rong doesn't want to leave..."

Yuan Xi frowned slightly and said, "Why, what is she afraid of?"

After Zhang hesitated for a moment, Zhen Rong came out of the back court and bowed to Yuan Xi, "I've met the envoy."

"My husband, Gao Lan, is fighting against the enemy outside the city. Due to emotions and reasons, I dare not leave."

"If it is investigated and I escape as a member of a military general's family, I am afraid that my husband and his family will be implicated."

After hearing this, Yuan Xi said, "I don't think it's anything. I'll take care of this matter."

"You just follow grandma."

Zhen Rong thought to himself that he had not seen Yuan Xi in the past few years, and his words were inadvertently revealed with confidence and unquestionability. The huge change in his demeanor made him completely different from the other two.

She leaned forward and asked, "How is your husband doing?"

Yuan Xi hesitated for a moment, "He is injured, but don't worry, madam, I won't let anything happen to him."

Zhen Rong's heart tightened, and he lowered his head and said, "I would like to thank you for your kindness."

Yuan Xi nodded and got up.

Zhen Rong waited for him to leave and then raised his head. Mrs. Zhang couldn't help but sigh: "I didn't expect that just a few years later, Mi'er's husband has already undergone a completely different transformation."

"I have met many people, including Benchu ​​Gong, but I have never seen the royal aura he inadvertently showed from anyone before."

Zhen Rong thought to himself and the other party seemed to know that something bad would happen to Yecheng. Now all he could hope for was that the other party still missed Gao Lan.

Thinking that Yuan Xi had made such a big name in the past few years, and that his generals and counselors were famous all over the world, including Guo Jia, Zhao Yun, Tai Shici and others, everyone in Yecheng knew it. An idea came to Zhen Rong's mind. Yuan Xi, will the situation be much better than now?

When Yuan Xi returned to the house, he saw Lu Lingqi wiping the armor she usually wore. She saw the pair of polished halberds beside her. She picked them up, weighed them, and said, "It seems that ever since I met After Xu Chu, I haven’t seen you use the double halberds?”

Lu Lingqi shook her head and said: "On the battlefield, bows and arrows are the most important, followed by long soldiers."

"I can't even get an advantage from General Taishi's two halberds, so why should I sacrifice my strengths and weaknesses?"

"The short halberd is just for daily protection."

(End of this chapter)