At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 232: Capturing Yuan Shu alive, a strategy of alienation

After the sky became brighter, Zhang Liao knew that his troops were few and did not dare to continue fighting, so he led his troops to retreat.

Those generals under Yuan Shu who had not yet escaped realized that there were not many pursuers at all, and the chariot and cavalry general Zhou Qi could not be seen.

They were immediately frightened and angry, and hurriedly gathered their defeated troops, intending to pursue and kill Zhang Liao to avenge him.

However, Zhang Liao's men were all cavalry. Even though they were furious, they could not catch up. They had to return to the camp to put out the fire, collect the remaining troops, and count the losses.

The total number of Yuan's soldiers who died in the hands of Zhang Liao and others in this battle was only more than [-]. On average, Zhang Liao and his men only killed one person each.

The remaining more than 2000 people died from cannibalism or trampling on each other, and a few unlucky ones were burned to death in the fire.

As for the injured, there were more than [-] people, and there were more than [-] people who escaped and disappeared.

In this battle alone, Yuan Shu's men lost nearly ten thousand people.

Although the more than 300 wounded soldiers could continue to join the army in the future, Zhang Liao only led [-] people to rob the camp this time, and they could achieve such results, which can be considered appalling.

After this battle, Zhang Wenyuan was so powerful in Yuzhou that his name could stop children from crying at night.

But Yuan Shu thought that Zhou Qi really led his troops to kill him, so he fled in a panic, with only hundreds of personal guards around him.

At this point, I have to say that compared to the other princes in the late Han Dynasty, Yuan Shu was really far behind. If it weren't for the name of the legitimate son of the Yuan family in Runan, there would be no way to compare with the other princes.

Even if Yuan Shao were in the same situation as last night, he would not leave his troops and flee directly. Instead, he might arouse the ferocity in Yuan Shao's bones, take the initiative to gather his men to defend the stronghold, and even kill Zhang Liao.

What's more, with Yuan Shao's wisdom, he could guess that Zhou Qi could not bring troops. Even if someone came to rob the camp, there would not be many troops.

But when he arrived at Yuan Shu's place, he was so frightened that he ran away in panic and lost the ability to think.

It’s okay to have Jung Tae around.

But the two of them couldn't sleep in the same tent at night, so although Zheng Tai could guess that there weren't many soldiers and horses who robbed the camp, there was no trace of Yuan Shu in the chaos.

When Zheng Tai stumbled and finally rushed to Yuan Shu's camp, he found that the opponent had abandoned the tens of thousands of troops in the camp and fled with his personal guards.

After learning the news, Zheng Tai was so angry that he almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

At this time, the camp was in chaos. As a civil official, Zheng Tai had no power to mobilize troops, so he had to find a place to hide. He waited until Zhang Liao evacuated at dawn and finally escaped with his life.

As for Yuan Shu, he did not feel guilty at all about abandoning his army and fleeing. Instead, he became furious and cursed: "Ji Ling, Zhang Xun, Qiao Rui, they knew that Zhou Qi led his army to rob the camp, but they didn't even send troops to protect me. !”

The more Yuan Shu thought about it, the angrier he became, but he did not stop and continued to flee north with his soldiers.

He knew Lu Bu's fate and did not dare to enter the county that had been captured before. Instead, he fled directly to the Huaihe River.

Yuan Shu led his troops to the Huaihe River, but could not see the boats under his tent, only a few fishing boats.

He hurriedly commandeered those fishing boats. Thinking of Lu Bu's fate, he did not dare to let the fishermen take him across the river. Instead, he asked his subordinates who had been fishermen to row the boats.

In this way, several small fishing boats took Yuan Shu and some personal guards to the center of the Huaihe River. As long as they crossed the Huaihe River, they would arrive at Yuan Shu's base camp.

"General, look, that looks like a warship!"

Just when Yuan Shu was rejoicing that he was about to escape back to Runan, he suddenly heard the exclamations of his personal guards and hurriedly stood up and looked into the distance.

"Oops, the warship is flying the Yangzhou flag!"

Yuan Shu was horrified when he saw this, and hurriedly ordered his subordinates to speed up the boating, trying to reach the other side as soon as possible.

on the battleship.

Zhou Jin's newly recruited military commanders, Ma Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong, originally saw a few fishing boats crossing the river, but they didn't think it was strange.

But when they saw the fishing boat suddenly speeding up, they immediately realized something was wrong.

"Wen Gui, let's take a look. The armor on those people across the river seems to be a little different!"

Ma Zhong's eyesight was very good. From a distance, he saw the personal guards who were left by Yuan Shu on the south bank of the Huaihe River and had not yet boarded the ship. He couldn't help but get excited immediately.

Pan Zhang also built a pergola with his hands and looked into the distance, and also discovered something was wrong.

Although they didn't carry any flags, the armor on their bodies was all very bright and had a flashy feel.

Even the personal soldiers of generals and captains would not wear this kind of armor. Instead, it would be those big shots with great faces who would let their personal guards wear it in order to show their status.

Pan Zhang suddenly became excited when he thought of this, pointed at the fishing boats that were speeding across the river, and shouted: "Hurry up and catch up, there must be some big shot on the boat!"

After they joined Zhou Jin, they had no chance to make contributions.

This time, Zhou Jin cooperated with Xu Huang in Jiujiang to rob the people of Runan, but he sent the two of them to Lujiang County to inquire about the military situation and look for opportunities to respond to Zhang Liao.

They never thought that they would make such a discovery just after arriving in Lujiang.

The new warship that Zhou Qi ordered the craftsmen to build was so fast that even if it went upstream, it would soon catch up with Yuan Shu and others.

Yuan Shu was horrified when he saw this and hurriedly ordered his soldiers to paddle as hard as they could.

Seeing that Yuan Shu and others were about to land, Ma Zhong shouted sharply: "The archers fired arrows to prevent them from landing!"

Yuan Shu looked at the nearby river embankment and was about to rush ashore when he saw dense arrows coming towards him. He was so frightened that he hurriedly hid in the cabin, not daring to show his head any further.

Seeing this, the guards on the left and right hurriedly shouted: "General, come ashore quickly, we will protect you."

The people who can be accepted as personal soldiers by Yuan Shu are basically family warriors who have been trained since childhood, and their loyalty can naturally be guaranteed.

They knew that if they could not get ashore before the enemy warships approached, they and others would never have a chance to escape.

never thought.

Yuan Shu usually looked arrogant and domineering, but when the incident happened, he was panicked and scared, shouting loudly: "The arrow has no eyes, and you don't have a shield in your hands. What if you are hit by random arrows?"

The leader of the personal guard said hurriedly: "General, please rest assured, even if I use my body to block him, we will still protect the general's safety."

"If you don't get ashore now, it will be too late!"

Yuan Shu hurriedly shook his head and said: "How can a son of a rich man, who cannot sit down in court, put his life in the hands of Thor and others?"

When all the soldiers heard this, they all frowned.

As Yuan Shu's closest and trusted subordinates, they didn't even dare to trust him with their lives. So what's the point of the existence of these personal guards?

Just as the leader of the personal guard was about to persuade him again, the unparalleled combination of Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong had already arrived by boat and surrounded Yuan Shu and others.

When the guard leader saw this, he couldn't help but sigh slightly and prepared to fight to the death.

never thought.

Yuan Shu, who was still timid at first, saw that he was surrounded by Yangzhou soldiers, but he took the initiative to stand up and shouted sharply at Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong: "I am the general of the Hussars, the Mu of Yuzhou, and the direct descendant of the Yuan family in Runan. The highway is the same, and the chariot and cavalry generals have also been favored by my family."

"What's the point of you leading troops to intercept me alone on the banks of the Huaihe River?"

Yuan Shu relied on his background to have a kind of self-confidence.

Although he was afraid of arrows in the war, he was not so afraid when he actually faced Yangzhou soldiers and horses.

Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong looked at each other, and they all looked at each other. They didn't expect to catch Yuan Shu this time.

But after the other party revealed his identity, the two of them were in trouble.

Zhou Qi had told Zhou Cheng, Zhang Liao, and Xu Huang that they could find an opportunity to teach Yuan Shu a lesson, but they could not seriously damage his vitality, let alone kill him.

I don’t know what Yuzhou has become now due to the disaster caused by Yuan Shu. Many people have fled to Jingzhou and Yangzhou.

Even though Zhou Qi did not use troops against Yuzhou, he had already taken advantage of it.

On the other hand, Yizhou now has the most registered residence in the world. If it can be completely conquered, it will definitely become a strong backing for Zhou Qi to fight for the world.

It would be far more advantageous for Zhou Qi to confront the two princes head-on by letting Yuan Shu occupy Yuzhou, which was in ruins and was the site of the Fourth War, to help Zhou Qi resist Cao Cao and Yuan Shao.

In the final analysis, it was because Yuan Shu was stupid.

Compared with the powerful neighbor Cao Cao, Yuan Shu, the stupid neighbor, is the best choice.

It's not that Zhou Qi is afraid of Cao Cao, it's just that the strategic significance of capturing Yizhou is far greater than capturing Yuzhou.

Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong, as commanders of the army under Zhou Jin, naturally knew the orders of the generals of chariots and cavalry.

When the two of them heard that Yuan Shu had signed up to be the leader, they immediately asked his subordinates to put away their bows and arrows, then stood on the bow of the ship and said loudly: "We are the commanders of the army under Captain Hengjiang. We have offended many people just now. Please don't blame General Hussar." .”

"General Hussar has invaded the Lujiang River without any reason. Please move your body to the warship first."

"We can only decide whether to release the general after we report it to the superior!"

Although Zhou Qi had warned him in advance not to harm Yuan Shu, he did not prevent Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong from capturing him alive.

This is such a great achievement. The two of them will not let Yuan Shu leave no matter what.

Yuan Shu looked at Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong who were eyeing him, and had no choice but to board the warship where they were riding.

Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong did not dare to neglect Yuan Shu, and gave all the good wine and meat left on the warship to Yuan Shu and his personal guards.

However, they did not dare to stay in Lujiang anymore, but went down the river and returned to Jiujiang with Yuan Shu.

After Xu Huang and Zhou Jin learned this exciting news, they couldn't help but look at each other, wondering why Yuan Shu, who had attacked Anfeng County with great force, was captured by Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong

However, the two of them also knew that the matter was serious and did not dare to make the decision privately. On the one hand, they sent Yuan Shu to Shouchun and on the other hand, they hurriedly reported the matter to General Chariot and Cavalry for [-] miles.

Zhou Qi, who was returning to Xiangyang, received an urgent battle report from Xu Huang. He thought the situation in Lujiang had changed and hurriedly opened the letter.

After reading the content inside, Zhou Qi couldn't help but have a strange look on his face.

Upon seeing this, all the civil and military officials in the tent asked curiously: "Lord, what is said in the letter?"

Zhou Qi suppressed his laughter and said: "Zhou Jin's army commanders Pan Zhang and Ma Zhong captured Yuan Shu alive on the Huaihe River!"

"boom!"

These words were like a bolt from the blue, making everyone's heads buzz.

They originally thought that if Yuan Shu did not withdraw his troops after returning to Xiangyang, they would follow the generals of chariots and cavalry to fight Yuan Shu.

never thought.

After worrying for a long time, I actually waited for the news that Yuan Shu had been captured.Everyone was extremely shocked and asked about the detailed process. When they learned that Zhang Liao led 300 people to defeat Yuan's army, and Yuan Shu panicked and fled first, they were all shocked.

Huang Zhong was the first to recover from the shock, then stood up suddenly and said: "Since Yuan Shu has been captured, my lord must quickly send his troops north to capture Nanyang first, and then Yuzhou."

"In this way, we can go north and compete for the world!"

When the other generals heard this, their eyes were brightened and they all asked for battle.

Today's Yuzhou is without Yuan Shu, and it is an unowned land. It is easy for Zhou Qi to capture it.

To be honest, Zhou Qi was also very moved.

However, he was not carried away by greed after all, but retained some sense.

If Zhou Qi wanted to take Yuzhou and Nanyang County, he would have led his troops northward long ago.

There is no danger to defend these two places. With the elite soldiers and generals under his command, it is not difficult to capture Yuzhou.

The reason why Zhou Qi didn't do this was because he had his own plan.

He looked up at Tian Feng and asked, "Yuan Hao thinks, should I seize Nanyang County and Yuzhou at this time?"

Tian Feng was also a little confused.

According to the strategy he formulated for Zhou Qi, it was not appropriate to capture Yuzhou at this time.

However, despite Tian Feng's cleverness, he never expected that Yuan Shu would be such a fool and be captured alive by two army commanders under Zhou Jin's account.

Tian Feng pondered for a long time and finally said: "I secretly think that it would be more advantageous to let Yuan Shu occupy Yuzhou first than to run Yuzhou by myself."

Zhou Qi said: "Yuan Hao, please tell me in detail."

Tian Feng spoke eloquently: "Since the Yellow Turban Uprising, Yuzhou has been torn by war, causing people to be displaced and flee south."

"Since Yuan Shu occupied Yuzhou and Nanyang, he has been even more arrogant, extravagant, extortionate, and disrespectful of the people. As a result, more and more people are moving their residences to the south."

"Today's Yuzhou is no longer the Central Plains land with many registered residences and extremely wealthy people in the past. Instead, it is gradually dilapidated and depressed."

"If my lord seizes Yuzhou at this time, he will certainly be able to expand his power in a short period of time. However, let alone the fact that Yuzhou is the place of the Four Wars, he will definitely face Cao Cao and Yuan Shao in the future."

"Just say that Yuzhou is in ruins. Will my lord have to spend a huge price to manage it?"

"Instead of spending three to five years re-governing Yuzhou and worrying about being attacked by Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, it is better to let Yuan Shu continue to occupy Yuzhou, while the lord is looking for opportunities to capture Yizhou."

When Zhou Qi heard this, he couldn't help but nodded secretly.

Since he became a shepherd in Yangzhou, he has discovered that many refugees are fleeing from the north to the south.

Today, Yangzhou has become the fourth most populous state, second only to Yizhou, Jizhou and Jingzhou.

Yuzhou, which was once extremely prosperous, is now depopulated and dilapidated.

The most important thing is that Yuzhou is known as the land of the Central Plains. Since ancient times, there have been many aristocratic families, and they are the kind of deep-rooted aristocratic families.

If Zhou Qi occupied Yuzhou, he would definitely have to deal with the aristocratic families there.

For Zhou Qi now, the aristocratic families in Jing and Yang states are already a huge headache. In his early years, in order to stabilize the situation in the two states as soon as possible, Zhou Qi had already made a lot of concessions.

Now let Zhou Qi occupy Yuzhou and deal with those more powerful aristocratic families. If the relationship between the two is not properly handled, it may hinder Zhou Qi.

In comparison, the Yizhou family was not that strong to begin with, and after Liu Yan's suppression, the family's strength shrank even more, so it was actually a good place to be.

Zhou Qi pondered for a while and said: "Although I have no intention of plotting against Yuzhou, Yuan Shu's fellow has invaded our territory many times. If we let him go so easily, I'm afraid it will continue to encourage his arrogance."

When Tian Feng heard this, he smiled and said: "Master, as long as Yuan Shu pays a sufficient price, he will definitely have a long memory."

Zhou Qi's expression moved slightly and asked: "What's the price?"

Tian Feng looked at Huang Zhong and said: "Nanyang, the hometown of General Huang, is known as the best county in the world, and it is also affiliated with Jingzhou. My lord can take the opportunity to come."

When Zhou Qi heard this, he couldn't help but clasped his hands and laughed, saying: "This is a great plan!"

Zhou Qi had previously thought about whether to capture Nanyang County, but in order not to quarrel with Yuan Shu, he only captured two cities, Fancheng and Deng County, near Xiangyang.

However, there are many people from Nanyang County under Zhou Qi's command. If Yuan Shu is always allowed to occupy Nanyang, these generals will inevitably have some thoughts.

This is why, after Huang Zhong learned the news that Yuan Shu had been captured, his suggestion was to take Nanyang County first.

Huang Zhong's move was not without any selfish motives.

In recent years, Yuan Shu had violently conquered Nanyang County, causing the people of Nanyang to live in dire straits, and many people fled Nanyang.

Wenpin and Li Yan are both like this.

They were all born in Nanyang, so naturally they couldn't bear to see their hometown destroyed by Yuan Shu.

This time Yuan Shu took the initiative to invade Lujiang and was captured by mistake. If Zhou Qi asked him for Nanyang, Yuan Shu would definitely agree.

When the time comes, he will be able to seize the best county in the world, appease his Nanyang soldiers, and not completely break up with Yuan Shu. It can be said to be the best of all three.

However, Jia Xu said at the right time: "Didn't my lord want to make King Chenliu the emperor before? Capturing Yuan Shu alive today will actually give my lord an opportunity."

However, Zhou Qi said that after Zhou Qi and his counselors decided how to deal with Yuan Shu, he immediately handed over the army to the commanders of Huang Zhong, Xiang Hong, and Tian Feng. However, he took Xu Chu and Qingqi and rushed to Jiujiang day and night, planning to meet Yuan Shu.

In Shouchun, Yuan Shu looked at the table full of delicacies, but his face showed displeasure, and he shouted: "What kind of status do you have, you are treated with these vulgar things every day?"

A dozen serving maids, seeing Yuan Shu's rage, were trembling with fear and hurriedly invited Xu Huang.

After Xu Huang learned the news, he came to apologize and said with a smile: "The conditions here are simple, naturally not as good as the palace of the Hussars General."

"General Hussar, please keep me aggrieved for a few more days. When General Chariot and Cavalry arrives in Shouchun, I will definitely let him go."

After finally appeasing Yuan Shu, Xu Huang did not want to stay too long in the mansion and left the place where Yuan Shu lived as if he was running away.

After going out, Xu Huang couldn't help but cursed: "That guy Yuan Shu has become a prisoner, but he is still so luxurious and particular. Even the Lord's daily diet and daily life may not be like this."

Yuan Shu is worthy of being a son of an aristocratic family. He is very particular about food, clothing, housing and transportation, and he often causes trouble for Xu Huang.

Xu Huang did not dare to neglect Yuan Shu, so he had to do his best to meet Yuan Shu's request.

But Yuan Shu's demands were too exaggerated, and Xu Huang couldn't satisfy them all, which made Yuan Shu lose his temper.

But it was said that after Yuan Shu watched Xu Huang leave, he dismissed the servants who were waiting for him, suppressed the angry look on his face just now, and instead showed a worried look in his eyes.

Although Yuan Shu looks so arrogant, domineering and heartless on the surface, in fact he is worried that Zhou Qi will be detrimental to him.

Although Yuan Shu did give Zhou Qi a lot of help in the past.

However, most of those help came from Yuan Shao, and Yuan Shu looked down on Zhou Qi who was born in a high position.

Moreover, now that the princes are competing for power, the small favors in the past are nothing compared to the entire Yuzhou?

When Yuan Shu was captured, he was also worried about the situation in Yuzhou.

Fortunately, Xu Huang was reasonable and Yuan Shu wrote a letter to ask his personal guards to take him back to Ruyang. After explaining the situation, he appointed his confidants to temporarily take charge of Yuzhou affairs.

In this way, Yuzhou will not be in chaos for at least a short time.

If Yuan Shu never goes back, Yuzhou will inevitably change sooner or later. This is what he is most worried about.

Today, Yuan Shu deliberately probed Xu Huang's tone and felt a little calmer.

"Brother Highway, I'm neglecting you!"

Just when Yuan Shu was feeling depressed, he suddenly heard a slightly familiar voice.

He hurriedly looked up and saw Zhou Qi, who had become much more mature, walking quickly in the direction where he was.

Yuan Shu's eyes lit up and he was ready to step forward and salute.

Although he is proud and domineering, he also knows that he is dependent on others at this time, and he should bow his head when he should.

never thought.

Zhou Qi was one step ahead of Yuan Shu, bowed deeply to Yuan Shu, then stood up and excitedly held Yuan Shu's hands.

Zhou Qi led Yuan Shu to sit down without uncovering his scars. Instead, he began to reminisce with him, talking about the past in Luoyang.

Influenced by Zhou Qi, Yuan Shu also showed a nostalgic look on his face, and his words gradually increased.

In this way, the two of them had a long chat, which lasted all afternoon.

Seeing that it was time for dinner, Zhou Qi hurriedly ordered a banquet and drank happily with Yuan Shu.

Three rounds of wine, five flavors of food.

Zhou Qi suddenly said: "Zhou Qi will not forget Yuan's kindness in this life."

"Although I have a closer personal relationship with Benchu, brother Gujiu is the eldest son of the Yuan family after all. Now Benchu ​​welcomes the emperor and makes himself a general, but instead appoints brother Guzi as a hussar general."

"By taking this official position, doesn't my brother tell everyone in the world that he is not as good as Yuan Benchu ​​and only follows his lead?"

Zhou Qi's plan to divorce was very crude, but Yuan Shu just fell for it.

He claimed to be a direct descendant of the Yuan family in Runan and was quite jealous of Yuan Shao's achievements today. He hated being told that he was not as good as Yuan Shao.

Zhou Qi's slight provocation really made Yuan Shu feel angry.

Zhou Qi continued: "I have been neighbors with Brother Qiu for so many years. Out of respect for my brother and Yuan Shu of Runan, I have never violated Yuzhou Qiu."

"Brother Ben Chu asked his elder brother to lead troops to attack Yangzhou in the name of the emperor, and he reaped the benefits."

"If I hadn't ordered all the generals in my tent to treat brother Qiao with courtesy when they met him, and if some blind person had killed him, wouldn't Cao Mengde take the opportunity to annex Yuzhou?"

When Yuan Shu heard this, he was shocked. He didn't expect that he could survive because of Zhou Qi's instructions.

Thinking that his attack on Lujiang was indeed caused by Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu's hatred for Yuan Shao increased even more.

　There are updates every day, and the word count has been [-] for a week, but the time is not as fixed as before.

　　This book has not been updated since it was first published.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)