Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 232

The strategic goals involved in Huo Jun's resistance against Cao Cao at Jinkou were very large, otherwise he would not have had to go through all the trouble to send Cao Cao to fight around Xiakou, two or three hundred miles deeper than Chibi and Wulin, which would have also made his own situation worse. More dangerous.

The core is to cause greater casualties to Cao Cao and force Cao Cao to defeat Xiangfan instead of Jiangling.Historically, Cao Cao defeated Jiangling and left tens of thousands of soldiers and horses for Cao Ren, allowing Cao Ren to defend Jiangling and fight Zhou Yu back and forth.

Zhou Yu was forced to adopt the strategy of cutting off Jiangling City's supplies, such as the Battle of Yiling and the Battle of Juebidao, and faced Cao Ren for more than a year.In the end, Cao Ren, with the support of Man Chong, Xu Huang and others, moved away the people around Jiangling City, so that a no-man's land appeared in the nearly thousand miles between Jiangling and Xiangfan.

How many people are there in Nanjun?In the fifth year of Yonghe's reign, Nanjun had more than 10,000 registered households and more than [-] people. Thanks to Liu Biao's governance for more than ten years, hundreds of thousands of northerners fled south. It is no exaggeration to say that Nanjun's population is nearly one million.

This is why Pang Tong once told Liu Bei that Jingzhou was desolate and ruined, with all its characters lost.The Jingzhou it refers to is not the four counties in Jingnan, but the land of Jiangling behind Red Cliff.

Historically, after the Battle of Jiangling, Jiangling was devastated and had few people. After the war, it relied on Jiangdong's grain and grass support. If Bashu was not taken, the land of Jiangling would be useless to Jiangdong, and it would have to face the front of Cao's army.

For various reasons, Sun Quan agreed to Lu Su's suggestion and generously exchanged Nanjun with Liu Bei.After all, Sun Quan, who was good at political planning, was not stupid. He naturally had his own political agenda.

Therefore, the Battle of Jiangling is not the end of the Battle of Chibi.Knowing this, Huo Jun would definitely pay attention to the strategic location of Jiangling when choosing a combat strategy, so as to achieve all his achievements in one battle.

Now that the night attack on Chrysostom is over, Huo Jun must prepare for the next pursuit and think about how to obtain greater benefits for his own side.

In the cabin of the stern ship, a map of Jingbei was hung on the wall. Under the light of the lights, the water and land transportation on the map were clearly marked.Huo Jun stayed up all night, marking information on the map with Jiang Ji and others.

When the sky was hazy and slightly bright, the scouts finally spread the news to the generals scattered all over the country. Along the Yangtze River for more than a hundred miles, the camps were burning, and black smoke rose into the sky.The fires in the tombs on the other side of Chaos Hill are getting bigger and bigger, and they tend to spread to the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

"Commander, all the ministries have been contacted, and the generals and corrections from each ministry have been ordered to arrive in small boats."

"it is good!"

"Captain, please have tea!"

Deng Fan led his attendants to serve breakfast to Huo Jun and other scribes who joined the army, and said: "The governor drinks tea to refresh himself."

Huo Jun was very satisfied with this adopted son, and he called to the people around him and said, "Zitong, Zijing, Derun and other gentlemen, please eat some. We will march later."

"promise!"

About a dozen literati and counselors put down their work and gathered together to have some refreshments to relieve their hunger.

After a while, the generals boarded the boat one after another. There was no room for dozens of generals in the cabin, so they moved to the deck to discuss matters.

"Meet the governor!"

When all the generals saw Huo Jun coming out to the deck, they all saluted with respectful attitudes and humble words.Huo Jun waited with a smile. Even though he was extremely excited, he still maintained his demeanor.

Gao Xiang looked in admiration, raised his hands and said: "Captain, our army defeated Cao Cao's millions, and the enemy invaders fled invincible. Under the fire, the boats were reduced to ashes, the baggage and food were burned, the armored soldiers fled, and countless surrendered, beheaded and captured Cao Cao's army. There were more than thirty generals and General Cheng Yu was killed."

"Cao Cao burned the camp and cut off the road, and led his army to flee south. With a small enemy and a large army, he used fire as his army and defeated Cao Cao. The governor is not the only general in the world."

"Cao controlled the world, unified the world, met the governor, burned the camp, abandoned the stronghold and fled. Gaisun and Wu could not do this in their lifetimes," Xu Sheng also praised.

The smile on the corner of Huo Jun's mouth could not be concealed, but in order to maintain his humility, he lowered his hands and said: "Although we are attacking Cao Cao today, the remnants of Cao Cao's army are still there. Don't be arrogant and underestimate the enemy now, or you will be defeated by his remnant army. And the cities and counties of Jianghan Don’t relax easily until it’s over.”

"promise!"

The generals were chatting and laughing for a while. When Huo Jun saw Liu Bei leading his generals on board the ship, he stepped forward and said, "It was only because Yuzhou defeated Zhoulingcao's camp last night, otherwise Gui could not have achieved such a great victory."

Liu Bei couldn't hide his smile, returned the salute with both hands, and said: "Zhong Miao's maneuvering is good, and fortunately the two generals Xingba and Gongli help us, we can break Cao Cao's camp in Zhouling and stop Cao Cao's idea of ​​gathering troops to join the camp."

The victory of last night's battle exceeded Huo Jun's imagination. He knew that the Zhongzhouling fortress was difficult to break and could only be broken through by surprise attack, so he left the hard nut to Liu Bei to solve.

He was prepared for the worst outcome, that is, to defeat Jiangyang, Chuanqiu and other strongholds, allowing Cao Cao to lead the soldiers of Zhoulingyingzhai to retreat, preparing to pursue him halfway, thereby severely injuring Cao Cao again.Unexpectedly, Liu Bei gave him a surprise and defeated the Zhouling camp, causing Cao's army to almost collapse.

After a pause, Liu Bei said: "Zhongmiao, I heard that Cao Cao's army surrendered. Last night, Cao Cao met Cao Hong's troops and led the remaining troops to run south. It seems that he is going to the Wulin camp."

Cao Cao failed to enter the Zhouling camp. On the advice of his subordinates, he marched towards Wulin where military supplies were stored. He tried to return to Jiangling from Wulin and then withdraw his troops to Xiangfan.

"In Wulin Liangzhai, Jun has ordered generals Huang Zhong and Wang Wei to lead their troops to intercept and kill Wulin's baggage. Cao Cao will gain nothing by running around Wulin."

Huo Jun raised the corner of his mouth slightly and said, "Come here, show me the map!"

"No!" Several attendants stood behind Huo Jun and unfolded a map of the Jianghan landscape.

Huo Jun retreated and revealed the map. Everyone could see the detailed map of Jianghan. The map clearly showed the terrain of Wulin, Zhouling, Huarong, Hanshui, Xiashui and other mountains and rivers.

Huo Jun was wearing a big cloak, pointing at the map, and said: "Cao Jun's old stronghold is adjacent to the Seventh Army of Xiakou, but it is blocked by the Han River and the lakeside, so Cao Cao has no choice but to go south. To the south is Wulin Liangzhai, and Jun has ordered Huang Zhong and If Wang Wei enters the stronghold and burns it, Cao Cao will hardly gain anything."

"When Cao Cao learns that Wulin Liangzhai has been attacked, he will change his route to Huarong Road and rush to Jiangling. On Huarong Road, there is a pavilion named Jianli Township. I predict that Cao Cao will go here. Our army should deploy in Jianli Township. The stronghold, and then defeated Cao Cao again, preventing Cao Cao from advancing westward to Jiangling."

"Cao Cao was frustrated in Jianli Township, so he had to head north to Xiangfan. There is Hanshui Avenue from Jianghan to Xiangyang, or there is Dangyang Avenue. Cao Cao was frustrated in Jianli Township, so he should rush to Jingling to see if he could join the Seventh Army, or take the waterway Return to Xiangfan. If the water route is blocked and it is difficult to return, Cao Cao should take the Dangyang Avenue and return to Xiangfan."

As he spoke, Huo Jun's tone was full of murderous intent, and he said: "Our army defeated Cao Cao in Jianli Township, prevented Cao Cao from joining the Seventh Army in Jingling, and pursued him in Dangyang. After passing these three passes, even if Cao Cao is not dead, his tent will be destroyed. The sergeant was not spared either."

The land of Nanjun, the hometown of Huo Jun, the land of Chu people.When fighting the Chu people on the Chu land, what would Cao Cao do to play with Huo Jun?

There are only a few ways for Yun Mengze to communicate with the outside world.If Cao Cao doesn't take these roads, why should he take his army away, unless Cao Cao wants to leave alone.

"Please give me your orders, Commander-in-Chief!" the generals said, cupping their hands.

Huo Jun looked around at the crowd and said, "In the great fire of Chrysostom, many of our troops and Cao's soldiers were lost and dispersed, and Cao's remaining baggage, armor, and horses were scattered in the wild. In addition, there were many wounded generals in this battle. From Lu Su, Ye Cheng, and Chen Yue commanded six thousand soldiers to garrison troops at Jinkou, sweep the battlefield, and transport grain and grass to Jiangzuo."

"promise!"

With that said, Huo Jun pointed to Jingling with his finger and said: "Lü Meng led [-] navy troops to support General Guan, and General Guan led them to Jingling to cut off Cao Cao's intention of using the waterway to join the seven armies."

"Where are Zhao Yun, Zhao Lie, Gao Xin, and Shi Ren?"

"The end is here!"

Huo Jun focused on the sun with his hand and said in a deep voice: "Dangyang is three to four hundred miles away from Jianli. After you lead the cavalry to Jianli, immediately lead the cavalry to Dangyang day and night. If Cao Cao returns from Dangyang to Xiangyang , you and the other three should ride into the formation and jump into it."

"promise!"

Then, Huo Jun looked at Liu Bei and asked, "I wonder if Yuzhou is willing to lead [-] elite soldiers with Jun to Jianli to defeat Cao Cao's remaining army?"

Liu Bei nodded slightly and said with a smile: "How could you not want to!"

"Good!" Huo Jun said: "If there is no doubt, we can use this method..."

Suddenly, Zhang Fei looked at the map and interrupted, saying: "Captain Huo, Fei has doubts. I wonder if he can ask?"

Huo Jun looked gentle and said: "Please speak to General Zhang!"

Zhang Fei frowned and said: "Cao Cao fled from Zhouling to Wulin. After getting nothing, he fled from Wulin to Huarong. Our army stopped the enemy in Jianli. But why didn't we pursue him in succession?"

"Ha ha!"

Hearing this, Huo Jun, Huo Du, Gao Xiang and other Nanjun generals all burst into laughter.

At Huo Jun's signal, Gao Xiang explained with a smile and said: "General Yide does not know that the road in Yunmengze is muddy and difficult to navigate. If our army is chasing after them, they will also fall into the muddy road and be dragged down by the baggage, making it difficult to move forward. OK."

"If they were to stop the enemy in Jianli, Cao Cao would have led his troops to march through the muddy swamps for three to four hundred miles. Without food, grass or baggage, Cao Cao would have led the remaining troops to Jianli. They were already suffering from hunger and cold, and their troops would have no fighting spirit or will to fight. Our army is waiting for work at leisure. Why worry!"

Yunmengze Wetland can be said to be a nightmare for the army. Even with sufficient food and grass, Cao Cao's army still breeds diseases. Not to mention that after being defeated, Cao Cao's army also lacked food.

Dragging Cao Cao to fight at Chrysostom would lengthen his supply line. When defeated, there would be no navy to transport grain and grass, and Cao Cao's army would be exhausted by the wetlands.Therefore, instead of pursuing the enemy in the mud and wetlands, it is better to wait for work and defeat the enemy at the place where he must pass.

Fighting in Chibi and Wulin is too close to Jiangling.With a distance of three to four hundred miles, Cao Cao could quickly retreat to Jiangling after being frustrated in Wulin.In the battle at Chrysostom, Cao Cao faced an extra two to three hundred miles, which undoubtedly gave the coalition forces more time to operate.

Zhang Fei suddenly had an epiphany and sighed: "I almost forgot about Yun Mengze!"

Seeing that everyone had no doubts, Huo Jun said in a deep voice: "It is better to leave the remaining brave men to pursue the poor bandits. If we pursue and fight now, Cao Cao will die in Jianghan."

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)