Wei Ni

Chapter 74
Man Chong's hunch was right.

After the emperor Cao Rui watched his watch repair, Dang even made up his mind to attack Wancheng.

In addition, they also summoned Jiang Ji, the general of the guard army, and Chen Jiao, the minister of the book, to attend to the details, and asked them to check and fill in the gaps in Man Chong's above table.

Well, Liu Ye was not summoned.

Today's Liu Ye has been alienated by the emperor.

The reason is that he is good at meeting people, and he often acts both ways. He was disgusted by some caring people and privately reported to the emperor.

In this way, Chen Jiao, who had made great achievements in military affairs and government affairs, became the person used by the emperor to replace Liu Ye.

Moreover, the emperor had asked the ministers more than once who was suitable to succeed Shang Shuling, and revealed that he was about to promote Chen Jiao to be a servant.

Actually this is not surprising.

When Cao Rui, the former emperor, planned to change the structure of the temple, the officials of the public and officials used their strength to take out Jiang Ji in the past, and accused Liu Fang and Sun Zi of Zhongshu Province of having too much "full-time" power. After it was unfavorable to the country, the emperor took action.

In the past, when the emperor was in charge of the government in the East Hall, Liu Fang, the supervisor of Zhongshu, and Sun Zi, the order of Zhongshu, would accompany him to take care of the government, but now the emperor only calls one of them every day.

And set the vacancy of accompanying driver as the left or right servant of Shangshutai.

The intention is also very obvious, it is to increase the authority of Shangshutai and avoid the full-time power of Zhongshusheng.

In this way, Chen Jiao, who once blocked the emperor from the door of Shangshutai, naturally cannot continue to serve as Shangshuling
After all, the reason why Emperor Wen Cao Pi set up Zhongshu Province before was to prevent eunuchs and relatives from intervening in politics, and the power of officials dominated by gentry will usher in a sharp expansion~
Now that Cao Rui has cut the power of the Ministry of Education and increased the number of Shangshutai, of course he has to choose a Shangshuling who cares about the monarchy.

In fact, Chen Jiao was very loyal to Cao Wei Sheji.

It's just based on the ideas that the scholar-officials abide by, and they are biased at certain times.

Cao Rui also knew this.

That's why he was summoned together and asked him to try to recommend a candidate to succeed Wen Qin as the prefect of Lujiang.

After Chen Jiao took the order, he pondered for a moment and then recommended three candidates.

One is Wang Ji, the Minister of Zhongshu.

The reason is that when Wang Ji worked in Qingzhou Biejia in his early years, his ability to govern the local area was highly praised, and his virtues were very good. Both Wang Lang and Sima Yi had conscripted.The most important thing is that Wang Ji was very different when he served under Wang Ling's command before, so going to Huainan this time can also ease the discord over mutual impeachment there.

The other person is He Zeng, who was transferred from Diannong Zhonglang to Huangmen servant not long ago.

Needless to say, the reason for his appointment is that he was once a minister of the emperor's hidden residence.

In the case of other Qiandi ministers such as Wu Qiujian as the governor of Jingzhou and Bi Gui as the governor of Bingzhou, shouldn't it be He Zeng's turn to be released?

In the end, it was Sun Li, the prefect of Yangping.

Sun Li was the first Liao Zuo recruited by Emperor Wu Cao Cao. He has served as county governor in many places, and he has achieved political achievements in all places.

And when he was the prefect of Langya, he also participated in the battle of Shiting.In this battle, he repeatedly remonstrated with Cao Xiu that he should not go deep, but it was a pity that Cao Xiu did not listen to people's words and was defeated.

It can be said that Sun Li was an excellent choice to be the prefect of Lujiang, regardless of his status, general strategy, or herdsmen's governance of the local area.

Emperor Cao Rui also thinks so.

Although the temple already had the intention of recalling Sun Li to Luoyang as a minister, Cao Rui thought about it and decided to let him be the prefect of Lujiang and the general who seeks captives.

The reason is that he cannot let Wang Ji take up the post.

It's not that Wang Ji lacks talent or qualifications, but that Wang Ling is Wang Ji's recommendation.

Although he has no doubts about Wang Ji, but because of the emperor's mind to control and balance, and there are other good choices, why send Wang Ji to Huainan?

After all, Wang Ling, who once slandered Man Chong, has a strong desire for power~
Why haven't you considered He Zeng~
If Emperor Cao Rui felt that he had the ability to supervise the army, he would not wait until Chen Jiao recommended him before releasing him.

After the final decision on the candidate for the prefect of Lujiang was made, Chen Jiao resigned and left very wisely.

Because Jiang Ji, who was summoned together, has been silent all the time, which made him realize that the emperor Cao Rui must have other matters to discuss with him, so he did not participate in the election of the prefect.

In fact, Chen Jiao is really not suitable to participate in the planning of the next matter.

At least not yet.

Jiang Ji was the first to know the Emperor Cao Rui's intention to promote the reform of the scholar family, and based on this point, he was able to give the most appropriate suggestions for the plan to attack Wancheng.

Just because of this difference, Chen Jiao couldn't give a suggestion that suits the emperor's wishes.

And Jiang Ji worked in Huainan in his early years.

In the temples of Luoyang today, besides Liu Ye, who else is more qualified than him to participate in the Huainan War?
Regarding this, Jiang Ji did his part, and after Chen Jiao disappeared outside the hall, he said without waiting for the emperor to ask, "Your Majesty, I secretly think that Man Boning's second strategy is better."

Well, in the table above, after explaining the causes, consequences, pros and cons in detail, Man Chong also made three strategies for the emperor Cao Rui to make a choice.

One is inaction.

On the grounds that raids must be swift and violent, and that the soldiers will inevitably be exhausted or non-war casualties when they pass through the Dabie Mountains, it will be difficult to break the city in one battle after entering the valley of Wancheng, so that there will be no return.

Moreover, there are not many standing soldiers stationed on the Huainan front now. After the soldiers are sent out, if the thief Wu Xizuo detects and Sun Quan Xingbing invades, it may cause Hefei to fail to defend and Shouchun to be unbearable.

Of course, both Emperor Cao Rui and Jiang Ji automatically ignored this policy.

They all knew that no matter how bad the result of the sneak attack on Wancheng was, they would not have the consequences that Man Chong mentioned.

I also know that even Man Chong himself doesn't believe such a consequence - the reason why he mentioned it is just the duty of the governor, who must think through all possibilities and speak in detail.

The second is to suggest the implementation of aggressive tactics.

On the grounds that Jiangdong Ruxuwu was on the north bank, and Mengchong battleships were often sent into Chaohu to spy on the military situation in Hefei and Lujiang Lu'an, he concluded that the battle to attack Wancheng must be resolved quickly.

It is best to control the war within five days.

The Jiangdong elite navy is mainly stationed on the south bank of the great river, Chaisang and Niuzhuji, who are in the dock. Based on the distance and the speed of the navy Hengjiang, they have detected the military situation in Wancheng and summoned soldiers from Hengjiang to help. Five days is the limit. up.

Once the battle lasts for more than five days, it may follow in the footsteps of the previous battle of Fanshiting. The thief Wu entered from Shushui or came ashore from Chaohu Lake with his elite navy, occupying Jiashi and Shuxian in the north of Wancheng Valley. If there is no strong mouth, then all Wei soldiers who entered the valley will usher in the end of being caught in the urn.

In such a short period of time, it is no less than a fool's dream to raze half of the county to white land.

But Man Chong thinks it can be done.

Before submitting the list, he rushed to Lujiang County on the pretext of inspecting the defense, and privately asked Jiang Ban to bring a few survivors and barbarians of Yanshan Mountain outside the city to inquire about the situation in the area of ​​Wancheng in detail.

I also learned that the defense of Wancheng is very lax now, and the inspections in and out of the city are also very perfunctory.

This is also easy to understand.

Jiangdong thought that Wei State no longer had the strength to defeat Wu.

Furthermore, there are soldiers and horses stationed in Shu County and Juchao County in the east of the front of Wancheng!
If the Wei State invaded with troops, Wancheng would have enough time to close the city gates and urge the soldiers to defend the city.

Therefore, Man Chong's plan is to send dozens of elite soldiers to disguise themselves as Shanshan Man carrying mountain goods into the city in exchange for daily necessities before the attack, and enter the city in batches to hibernate.Later, when a large number of soldiers came to sneak attack, they should cooperate with each other, quickly control the city gate and seize the city.

Once Wancheng is taken, the rest such as Juchao and Shu County will be easy.

After all, due to the geographical relationship, it is impossible for Wu soldiers in these two places to feel the possibility of Wei soldiers attacking from the rear.

Of course, under the premise of using such a sneak attack method and limited time, the soldiers used by the Wei State will inevitably select elites and appoint them.

Man Chong planned to use Shouchun's [-] elite infantry, cavalry battalion, and all the troops in Yiyang and Anfeng counties.

Needless to say, elite infantry are the main force for sneak attacks on mountain roads.

The cavalry battalion was used to support the breach of Shu County.

Shu County controlled by Jiangdong is an outpost on the border with Wei State, and the defense must be tight. Even if Wei soldiers attack quietly from the rear, they may not be able to be fully sure that they will succeed.

Therefore, if there is a situation where Shu County cannot be captured, the cavalry battalion can display troops outside Shu County to deter the Wu soldiers in the city from coming out, so that the infantry who sneaked deep into the rear can return smoothly.

The resident soldiers and horses in Yiyang and Anfeng counties are not strong because they are all county soldiers and scholars, so Man Chong intends to let them serve as the support team.

For example, after the infantry successfully attacked Wancheng, they had to go to occupy Juchao and Shuxian without stopping. Therefore, the relocation of Li Shu and the burning of the city could only be entrusted to the soldiers and horses of Yiyang and Anfeng counties.

As for why the standing soldiers are not selected, but the county soldiers and scholars who are not strong in combat power go forward~
That's because there are too few soldiers and horses on the Huainan front!

Man Chong would rather reduce the odds of winning a sneak attack than let Shouchun and the second city of Hefei fall into a weak defense.

Moreover, Yiyang and Anfeng counties are connected to the Dabie Mountains, and sending troops there will not cause Jiangdong to be alarmed, but if too many troops are mobilized from Shouchun, it will be difficult to say.

Therefore, under these constraints, Man Chong emphasized that the sneak attack war should not be greedy for credit.

Everything must be based on preserving one's own soldiers.

For example, Xunyang County, which is adjacent to Jingzhou, was not among the targets of this attack.

If Juchao and Shu County can be breached, they can be broken, and if they cannot be broken, then they can let it go.

Li and common people can relocate easily, but don't force them if they can't.

As long as Wancheng can be breached and burned, and the whole army can be quickly withdrawn before Wu soldiers can react, then it will be all done!

As for when to put the plan into practice, Man Chong thinks the best time is to wait for the next time the thief Wu Sunquan invades and returns without success.

Because at this time, the soldiers and horses of Jiangdong's various ministries have just returned to their garrisons to rest and let the soldiers take turns to visit their relatives.

It is also difficult to gather quickly in case of emergencies.

In this way, even if the state of Wei was alarmed by the thief Wu Xizuo when he mobilized various troops to attack Wancheng and passed the news back to Jianye, Sun Quan could not gather troops to rush to Wancheng to rescue or come back to besiege Hefei in a hurry. "Besiege Wei and save Zhao".

It can be regarded as using the time difference to gain more space for the success of the war.

The last strategy is to take this opportunity to completely occupy this valley and make it another stronghold for attacking Jiangdong in the future.

But Man Chong said very little about this strategy.

I just mentioned that there are not many troops on the Huainan front now, and even a single soldier cannot be transferred to garrison.

If the emperor Cao Rui chose this strategy, he would have to deploy troops from other places to defend. About [-] elite soldiers and [-] scholars and county soldiers would be needed to have a chance to defend.

the number of troops
It is impossible for Wei Guo to do it.

After all, the standing elite soldiers on the entire Huainan front are no more than ten thousand cavalry!
But Man Chong is not alarmist.

Not to mention exaggerating deliberately for the sake of the emperor and the temple not choosing this strategy.

The terrain of this valley centered on Wancheng is closed. For Wei Guo, the rescue is too difficult.

Jiangdong, where there are elite naval forces who can travel freely on the river, can drive troops from Chaohu Lake or up the Shushui River at any time to besiege Shu County, which also blocks the way Wei State enters the valley.

In this way, if Jiangdong don't send a navy from Peng Lize to attack Wancheng, Wei State will not be able to rescue it.

Taking a step back, even if Wei Guo breaks through Jiangdong's siege in Shu County, it will be the same as when the former general Zhang Liao guarded Hefei in the past, unable to rescue Wancheng in time.

Therefore, the prerequisite for Wei Guo to occupy this valley is to have sufficient standing troops stationed to ensure that the city will not be lost again.

Jiang Ji is very familiar with Jianghuai's military affairs.

Therefore, after watching the Man Chong list transferred by the emperor, the second strategy should be directly admonished.

But he missed something.

That is, through Man Chong's statement and the detailed strategies of the three strategies, the emperor Cao Rui knew that Man Chong's intention was in the second strategy.

If the emperor intends to take it, why invite him to discuss it?
It's just a sneak attack with thousands of soldiers and horses, and it's not Cao Xiu's previous battle that used [-] cavalry. Doesn't the emperor believe that Man Chong can manage it properly?
"Well, the second strategy is the safest."

Hearing Jiang Ji's words, Emperor Cao Rui nodded slightly, then changed the subject and asked, "According to Jiang Qing, if I send [-] soldiers from the Luoyang North and South Army to help, can we make Wei Guoquan occupy Lujiang?" County?"

uh~
Do you want to occupy Lujiang County entirely?

Jiang Ji was stunned for a moment, and finally realized that the emperor originally intended to adopt the third strategy.

"Going back to Your Majesty, the minister thought it was difficult."

After thinking for a while, Jiang Ji responded loudly, "It is true that the Northern and Southern Army of Luoyang is the elite of our country Wei, but what Man Boning said would require [-] troops to defend the Wancheng Valley. However, Your Majesty, if we deploy it like this, we will There are three disadvantages of being a soldier!"

"One, it's hard to keep food and fodder. The thief Wu's navy is elite, and he can move freely across the river. And the valleys of Wancheng are densely covered with water. For our country of Wei, it is the place of the four wars! The thief Wu can send Mengchong at any time. The warships went deep and burned the farmland and villages outside the city; even though our garrison worked tirelessly and waited all day long, it still couldn't protect the fields and food."

"Both, it's because of the ships from the south and the horses from the north. The soldiers of Luoyang's northern and southern armies, or the northerners or the strong men of the Central Plains, are not good at fighting across the river and across the marshes, and there are too many obstacles in the valley of Wancheng!"

"The three are the hot and humid summer and autumn on both sides of the river, and the frequent outbreaks of epidemic diseases. It is not the soil and water where the northern and southern armies of Luoyang can be stationed for a long time!"

After explaining the reason with eloquence, Jiang Jifu saluted and remonstrated.

"Your Majesty, the so-called excesses are too late. Both the minister and Man Boning intended to destroy the city and not to hold the land. It is not because they do not want to restore the entire Lujiang County, but it is really too late. In the past few years, there have been stone pavilions and wares in the Wei Kingdom. The defeat in Longyou, the Gongsun family in Liaodong is still domineering, and the Kebi Neng of Xianbei has shown signs of turning back. If there are swordsmen, it will be thanks to the Luoyang Chinese army to help! Now is the time when His Majesty is making great efforts to rectify the evils accumulated in the farmland and promote the reform of the scholar family. I secretly think that it is not possible to increase the number of places where troops are deployed because of the number of counties."

In this regard, the emperor Cao Rui responded silently with drooping eyes.

From the frowning and soothing eyebrows from time to time, it can be seen that he is still unwilling to give up the idea of ​​occupying Lujiang County entirely.

Therefore, after Jiang Ji waited quietly for a while, he added another sentence softly.

"Your Majesty, do you remember that when Man Boning returned to the imperial court, Sima Zhongda arrived at the same time, and His Majesty summoned Man Boning, Liu Ziyang and his ministers to discuss the matter of Yongliang Yushu?"

(End of this chapter)