Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 259 Cao and Liu Xiongxiong
In the 14th year of Jian'an, July.

Cao Cao set out from Xuchang to his hometown in Qiao County, then entered the Huaihe River from Guoshui, arrived in Shouchun to join the generals, and then headed south to Hefei.

Due to the defeat of Jinkou, Cao Cao's troops in Jianghuai expedition this time were far less than those in history. Adding in the Xiahou and Cao generals, Cao Cao had only [-] troops.

Sixty thousand soldiers and horses went south to the Jianghuai River, including more than [-] soldiers from Taishan generals. Cao Cao actually led more than [-] soldiers and horses south.

The number of troops is smaller than in history, and it is also due to Huo Jun's operations in Jiangbei in the early years.Cao Cao's purpose of going south also changed, which was to break Ruxukou and occupy Chaohu Lake. Instead, he went south to conquer the Jianghuai River and move the people north to avoid Liu Bei's gain.

Cao Cao had long paid attention to the Jianghuai area, but due to the conquest of Hebei and Liaodong, and the southward battle in Jianghan, he had no time to devote a lot of energy.Liu Fu could only be allowed to go to Jianghuai alone to build Hefei City for Cao Cao.

In the past, only when the two Liu soldiers came out of Jiangzuo, Cao Cao asked Xia Houyuan and Yu Jin to help Sun Quan to prevent Liu Biao from becoming powerful.However, thanks to Huo Jun's early management in Jiangbei, Cao Cao's prestige in Jianghuai was shaken.

Last year, Liu Fu, who had great reputation in Jianghuai, died of illness, and Cao Cao's defeat at Jinkou completely shook Cao's rule in Jianghuai.Under Zhuge Liang's invitation, the Jianghuai bandits were ready to make a move, and they flirted with Liu Bei.

In order to prevent Liu Bei from seizing Hefei, or Liu Bei migrating Jianghuai people south, Cao Cao must conquer Jianghuai south to consolidate his rule in Jianghuai.

Cao Jun's camp is in a stronghold, and the Chinese army's tent is large.

A vast map of the Yangtze River and Huaihe River was hung in the tent. Cao Cao sat in front of it and asked: "Mei Cheng and Chen Lan gathered a crowd of dissatisfied people and occupied Lu'an and Haoxian County to rebel. How should we conquer these two bandits?"

Cao Cao adopted Liu Ye's suggestion and sent envoys to appease the Jianghuai bandits. However, Chen Ce, Chen Lan, Meicheng, and Lei Xu were not persuaded by Cao Cao.Cao Cao had no choice but to send generals to attack the four thieves.

Xia Houyuan cupped his hands and said: "Prime Minister, the thieves from Liu'an are easy to conquer, but the thieves from Xian County are difficult to conquer. Xixian County is close to Huashan Mountain, and the mountains are extremely steep and steep. The mountains are continuous and narrow and difficult to pass. Moreover, Chen Lan and Huashan Mountain are difficult to conquer. The thief and bandit Lei Xu have a close relationship, if they attack Chen Lan, Lei Xu will definitely save her."

"Lei Xu, Yuan Shu's old thief, had an old relationship with Liu Bei, and had correspondence with Huo Jun. At this time, it is not a worry for Huo Jun to be in charge of Nanjun. Only Liu Bei from Jiangdong will take action, and he may send troops to rescue Chen and Lei. , so you should be prepared for it."

Cao Cao sneered a few times and said, "How dare the four thieves dare to rebel deliberately if they don't surrender? I'm afraid Liu Bei promised to provide support and conspired with the four thieves. Moreover, Liu Bei is hypocritical and has a good reputation. The two thieves have many tribes. Liu Bei How could you not save him?"

"Then how should we deal with it?" Xia Houyuan asked.

As soon as he finished speaking, the attendant went into the tent to report and said: "To report to the Prime Minister, General Dang Kou has succeeded in destroying Chen Ce. I am waiting outside the tent with Chen Ce's head."

"Please!"

Cao Cao's eyebrows were flying and he said with a smile: "Gu Zhiwen has returned from afar!"

After a while, Zhang Liao was seen wearing heavy armor, walking like a tiger, and carrying a bag with Chen Ce's head in his hand.

"Meet Duke Ming!"

Seeing Zhang Liao wearing armor and about to salute, Cao Cao quickly came out, stopped Zhang Liao, and said with a smile: "It's inconvenient for Wen Yuan to wear armor, so why do you need to salute?"

"Thank you Minggong!"

Zhang Liao looked grateful, holding the blood-stained cloth bag, and said: "Prime Minister, this is the head of Chen Ce, the leader of the bandits. All the tens of thousands of people under his rule have surrendered to our army."

"color!"

Cao Cao asked his attendant to take the cloth bag and said with a smile: "Wen Yuan went on the expedition for less than ten days, and he came back after killing Chen Ce. His bravery is truly unparalleled, and he is truly an enemy of ten thousand people!"

The soldiers were very fast, and Cao Cao was worried that he would be discovered by the four thieves if he marched south in a big way.Therefore, the light troops advanced quickly, allowing Zhang Liao to lead the elite to attack Chen Ce first.

A few days after the army was launched, Zhang Liao relied on his bravery to kill Chen Ce and captured tens of thousands of men and women the same day he arrived at Chen Ce's camp.

With that said, Cao Cao put his arms around Zhang Liao and said to all the generals in the tent: "I am worried about the dangers of the Haoshan Mountain and the strength of the Tianzhu Mountain. No one can defeat the thieves. But now I think about it, it is none other than Wenyuan."

Cao Cao looked around at the generals and said, "Where are Yu Jin and Zang Ba?"

"The end is here!"

"Mei Cheng rebelled against Liu'an and ignored his own capabilities. I order you two to lead your own sergeants to conquer Mei Cheng and surrender his tribe."

"The last general takes orders!"

Yu Jin and Zang Ba came out to receive military orders.

"Where are Zhang Liao, Zhang He and Niu Gai?" Cao Cao pointed at the three generals and asked.

"The end is here!"

"Chen Lan has a close relationship with Lei Xu and will definitely ask for help from Lei Xu. Haoxian County is close to Haoshan Mountain and contains the danger of Tianzhu Mountain. The mountains are steep and steep, and Chen and Lei are quite brave. Only brave generals cannot conquer them. Now Zhang Liao As the governor, you two will follow me." Cao Cao said.

"The last general takes orders!"

Zhang Liao, on behalf of three people, stepped forward to receive the order.

Cao Cao asked again: "Where is Xia Houyuan?"

"The end is here!"

"I'll tell you that you are the leader of the army and inspect the troops and horses of each department."

"No!" Xia Houyuan cupped his hands and said.

Then, Cao Cao sat back on the couch and said in a deep voice: "I led the army southward. I have defeated Chen Ce's bandits and will attack three more. When Liu Bei hears this, he will gather troops and horses from Jiangzuo and garrison at Ruxukou. Now I am leading the army. In response, I hope you will wait and encourage me."

"promise!"

Cao Cao was not worried about Meicheng who was entrenched in Lu'an. Lu'an was far away from Hefei and also far away from Yan County.It is difficult for the navy under Liu Bei to travel hundreds of miles to rescue him, so Mei's success or failure is only a matter of time.

But Chen Lan and Lei Xu are different. They are entrenched in the Dabie Mountains, close to Wancheng.If Liu Bei sends troops to respond, the two thieves will be allowed to flee to Wancheng in the north of the Yangtze River.And Cao Cao believed that he was the only one who could confront Liu Bei.

……

The military order was issued, and Cao's army marched quickly.Lu'an, located between Shouchun and Hefei, was the closest to Cao's army. Yu Jin and Zang Ba led their troops to surround it.

Mei Cheng, who rebelled in the city, was afraid of the strength of Cao's army, but did not want to surrender to Cao Cao, so he pretended to surrender.Yu Jin credulously believed that Mei Cheng was sincere in surrendering, so he did not take any precautions.Mei Cheng found an opportunity, abandoned the old and weak men and women, led three thousand troops under his account, and took a small road to join Chen Lan.

Chen Lan responded to Meicheng and also sent someone to inform Lei Xu.

"Boda, sit down!"

Chen Lan served food to Mei Cheng, who had been hungry for a long day, and asked, "What happened to Cao Jun?"

Meicheng ignored the etiquette and ate the food and said: "Cao Cao came too fast and asked Zhang Liao to advance quickly. Chen Ce had no time to react and was killed by Zhang Liao. Yu Jin's fellow was also advancing very fast. I just received it." After hearing the news about Chen Ce, he led his army not far from Lu'an."

After taking a sip of wine and swallowing the rice, Mei Cheng sighed and said, "Fortunately, I was smart and pretended to surrender to Yu Jin and took the opportunity to escape. It's a pity that all the tribe members were detained by Yu Jin, and there are only three thousand Buqu left."

When Chen Lan saw that Mei Cheng had finished eating the bowl, she waved her hand and asked the attendant to serve the rice again, and said comfortingly: "It's good if you can escape. As long as you have three thousand pieces in hand, sooner or later, you can save your family members."

"Brother Chen, Cheng is ready to lead his troops across the Dabie Mountains and go south to join Duke Xuande. What about you?" Mei Cheng asked.

Chen Lan gave a bitter smile and said: "The current situation is that if you don't surrender to Cao, you will return to Liu. Cao Cao wants to move the people north, so I don't want to surrender. I want to go to Yanshan first to avoid the war. If that doesn't work, I will go look for Lei Zi." Let's go together with Duan to surrender to Duke Xuande. I have sent someone to send a message to Duke Xuande for help."

Chen Lan and Lei Xu settled in Lushan in the early years, and Lushan can be said to be Chen Lan's hometown.With the expansion and development of power, Chen Lan took control of Yaxian County, while Lei Xu led his tribe to stay in Yaoshan.

The four Jianghuai giants, Chen Ce, Chen Lan, Meicheng, and Lei Xu, have no affiliation, but they have a good relationship and they just stick together to keep warm in troubled times.

After a pause, Chen Lan said: "Now Lan has asked Bu Qu to go with his family, and Ziduan has probably sent a sergeant to help him. Bo Da will rest with Bu Qu and we will go together then."

"it is good!"

After a while, the servant came to report and said: "To inform the master of the family, General Lei has sent two young masters, Lei Xiu and Lei Yuan, to come to meet him. Each of them leads a thousand light troops."

When Chen Lan heard that they were Lei Xu's two sons, he sighed and said, "Ziduan has been ill all year round and is bedridden. Fortunately, the eldest son and the second son continue to be outstanding, otherwise it would be difficult to convince the public."

"Let the two young masters rest for a while. When the time comes, we will set off." Chen Lan ordered.

"promise!"

In troubled times, people's hearts are unpredictable. When Lei Xu fell ill, Chen Lan once took a peek at Lei Xu's tent.However, Lei Xiu, the eldest son of Lei Xu, was brave, and Lei Yuan, the second son, was courageous, which finally made Chen Lan give up the idea of ​​annexation.

……

Jiangzuo, the capital of Wuxian County.

Zhang Zhao, Mi Zhu, Zhao Yun, Chen Dao and other civil and military officers, either wearing Eguan Bo or wearing armor, were sitting on both sides.

Liu Bei sat on the couch with a solemn expression and said: "Cao Cao promised to lead an army of [-] people to go south and attack the Jianghuai righteous men. Chen Ce was defeated and beheaded. Meicheng and Chen Lan fled to Lushan Mountain to take refuge and asked for help. I don't know. How do you think you can deal with it?”

"This~"

After hearing the news, Zhang Zhao discussed in low voices with the scholars on his left and right, and seemed to be quite worried about the news of Cao Cao going south.

Liu Bei looked around at the crowd and saw Zhang Zhao's expression. He smiled and said, "I wonder what Chang Shi has to say?"

Liu Bei pinched his nose and asked Zhang Zhao to serve as Changshi. It was really helpless.But when Cao Cao went south again, Liu Bei wanted to see Zhang Zhao's attitude.If Zhang Zhao persuaded him to surrender, Liu Bei was really prepared to throw Zhang Zhao into the ravine of Jian'an.Naturally, Zhang Zhao didn't know what Liu Bei was thinking, so he cleared his throat and said, "My lord, although Cao Cao has many soldiers and horses, they are nothing to be afraid of. He has no boats and boats, and our army is stationed at Ruxukou, which is enough to take advantage of it."

"Furthermore, Lei Xu, Chen Lan and other Jianghuai righteous men have their hearts in Jiangzuo and have been in contact with the lord for a long time. Now they have taken refuge in Haoshan Mountain. They may send strong generals to lead their troops to help them. They can support the righteous men and their Qu tribesmen to prevent them from being plundered by Cao Cao. .”

Liu Bei cast approving glances at Zhang Zhao. He was dissatisfied with Zhang Zhao's previous behavior in persuading Liu Qi to surrender, but Zhang Zhao's attitude now made Liu Bei very satisfied.He was afraid that the leader of the officials under his command would suddenly stand up and say that he would surrender if he could not defeat him.

"What do Kong Ming and Zijing think?" Liu Bei asked.

Zhuge Liang stroked his feather fan gently and said: "Cao Cao boasted of a hundred thousand troops, but from Liang's perspective, how could Cao Cao have a hundred thousand troops?"

"In the Battle of Chrysostom, not even one of the ten soldiers or horses was left. Generals Le Jin, Cheng Yu, Lou Gui, Lu Zhao, etc. were all defeated in Jianghan. Cao Cao escaped back to the Central Plains in embarrassment. It was a fluke. Zhongmiao lived in Nanzhen, and Xiangfan soldiers There must be a lot of horses."

"Based on Cao Cao's treacherous nature, Liang believes that Cao Cao's troops are far less than [-], perhaps [-] or [-]. The lord can gather men from the four counties on the left of the Yangtze River and garrison them at Ruxukou to confront Cao Cao. At this time, he can send troops. The army went to rescue Lei Xu, Chen Lan and other Jianghuai martyrs." Zhuge Liang said.

Liu Bei had only been in charge of the four counties for a few months, and the local officials had not yet figured out the personnel. The number of soldiers in each county and the Cao clan's soldiers seemed to be large, but the actual combat effectiveness was really low.

Liu Bei had written to Liu Qi earlier because he was worried about this matter.Now he listened to Zhuge Liang's analysis of the true number of soldiers and horses in Cao Cao's tent, and his heart suddenly felt much calmer.

If Cao Cao really led an army of [-] people to go south to compete with him, I guess he might really be able to convince Liu Qi to send people to support him.

After Zhuge Liang finished speaking, Lu Su added: "My lord, Poyang County is close to Yaoshan Mountain. You may write a letter to ask Huo Poyang to send sergeants to provide food and fodder, and to provide guides so that our army can enter the mountain to fight. And Cao Cao only has five or six soldiers. All the people in the army thought that Cao Cao's trip was not to humiliate his troops, but to appease the Jianghuai River and prevent it from being captured by our army during the turmoil."

Liu Bei nodded slightly and said, "What Kong Ming and Zijing said is very true!"

As he spoke, Liu Bei looked regretful and said: "I originally intended to appease Jiangzuo this year, reorganize the army, and next year I would launch an expedition to the north of Jianghuai, joining forces with Chen Ce, Meicheng, Lei Xu and other righteous men. However, when Cao Cao led his troops south, he even It’s a pity.”

After returning from Jiangling, Liu Bei really hooked up with four people including Chen Ce, Chen Lan, Meicheng, and Lei Xu.During the period, the words were heated, and the four of them also expressed the intention of surrendering to Liu Bei, and even talked about raising troops to seize Hefei next year.

Unfortunately, Cao Cao, who was in the Central Plains, also noticed the changes in Jianghuai and did not give Liu Bei time to prepare. Within a few months after the Battle of Chrysostom, he led his troops south to Jianghuai to thwart Liu Bei's attempt.

Then, Liu Bei stood up and said: "Cao Cao is marching south to Hefei, and his troops are not to be feared. Now I am sending an order to all the ministries, and ordered Danyang Prefect Guan Yu, Jian'an Prefect Zhang Fei, Liuying Sima Zhao Yun, Lujiang Prefect Gan Ning and other generals to gather together At Ruxukou, we defeated 4 soldiers. Zhang Zhao, Mi Zhu, Xu Shu and other state and county officials stayed at the left side of the river to provide food and grass and appease the people."

After a pause, Liu Bei said: "The military advisor will go out with the army."

"No!" Everyone stood up and responded.

Under Liu Bei's military order, Guan Yu, who was in charge of the defense in Jiangbei, took the lead in sending troops to Ruxukou, stationed in the East and West Passes, and built fortifications for the army.At the same time, Cao Cao's vanguard troops had also arrived in Hefei, and the Cao and Liu armies were looking across Chao Lake.

Five days later, Liu Bei led Zhang Fei, Gan Ning, Zhao Yun and other generals, assisted by Zhuge Liang and Lu Su, and stationed [-] troops in Ruxukou.

Liu Bei took the letter from Lei Xu and said, "After Lei Zi brought the letter, Chen Lan and Meicheng led tens of thousands of tribesmen to flee into the mountains. They wanted to use the danger of the mountain to stop Zhang Liao's pursuit, but then Zhang Liao was extremely brave, climbing the mountain, fighting bravely, and breaking through several mountain fortresses."

"Zi Duan brother and two sons were ordered to come to the rear, and Gai could not stop Zhang Liao's courage. The eldest son Lei Xiu died in the battle, and the second son Lei Yuan was injured. Now Zhang Liao's two generals, Zhang He and Niu Gai, have chased into the mountains. Buqu and the people are 8. People are crossing mountains and ridges to enter Tianzhu Mountain, hoping that our army will send troops to rescue them."

Liu Bei traveled extensively and met many people.In the past, I had met Lei Xu, who was under Yuan Shu's account, and had written letters to each other several times, and the relationship became harmonious.

Putting down the letter, Liu Bei said worriedly: "Kong Ming, the battle situation in Yanshan is critical and we must rescue him. However, Cao Cao sent Zhang Liao to fight. If our army wants to save him, we must have Yun Chang and Yide to fight."

Zhuge Liang pondered for a long time and said: "Zhang Liao is both wise and brave. In the past, Bailangshan recognized Ta Dun's weakness, fell into the formation and beheaded the generals, and beheaded Ta Dun. He was extremely brave. General Zhang will be hard-pressed to defeat Zhang Liao when he goes to battle. After thinking about it deeply, maybe Guan Guan is the only one who can defeat him. The general goes to war.”

"Yun Chang is going to fight?"

Liu Bei stroked his beard and said: "Wen Yuan's bravery is unmatched, and I know it. I ordered Yunchang to go to the battle, and maybe he could save the three generals Lei, Chen and Mei. However, Yunchang is in charge of an army of ten thousand people, and now he is asked to lead the elite. I’m afraid I won’t want to go into the mountains to fight!”

How could Liu Bei not know about his second brother's temperament?When fighting in Xiakou, Guan Yu once complained to Liu Bei. If Cao Cao had been killed while hunting in Xuchang, how would the situation be today?

Zhuge Liang stroked his fan and smiled and said: "Liang has a plan to make General Guan willingly lead his elite troops into battle."

"Oh?"

Liu Bei sat upright and said, "I would like to hear the details."

"General Guan~"

Just as Zhuge Liang started to speak, his attendant came into the tent and interrupted, saying: "Your Majesty, there is a fleet docking. The leader of it said that he is Yizhou Yijun Colonel Fazheng, who is coming to the rescue with his deputy Meng Da and [-] troops. , there are also [-] stones of food and grass on board to support our army."

"Please!"

Liu Bei was quite dissatisfied because his attendants interrupted Zhuge Liang's speech.But when he heard that the law was correct, he led four thousand soldiers and one hundred thousand stones of food and grass to come, and his face turned from gloomy to sunny.

Holding Zhuge Liang's hand, Liu Bei smiled and said: "Kong Ming, Xiaozhi has traveled far from Yizhou. Now he should go out with Gu to greet him. And the talents of filial piety and zhizhi will be of benefit when fighting in front of the army. Strategies can be decided later. speech."

"promise!"

Liu Bei stood up and walked out. Zhuge Liang and Lu Su looked at each other and followed him.

After a while, Liu Bei appeared on the dock of Ruxushui. Seeing Fazheng, whom he had not seen for several months, a smile appeared on his face.

"Xiaozhi!"

"Your Majesty!"

Fa Zheng, who was commanding his soldiers to carry grain and fodder, heard his words, turned around and saw Liu Bei walking quickly to greet him, and was extremely happy in his heart.

"Filial piety comes from afar, so there is no need to be polite!"

Liu Bei helped Fazheng, who was trying to salute, and said with a smile: "Gu got a letter from Zhongmiao, saying that he was Xiaozhi and Zijing persuaded Liu Yizhou to send troops and supplies to Gu. When he got the letter, Gu was overjoyed."

"Why are you so happy? Not for military rations, but for your filial piety and uprightness!"

"Your Majesty!"

There was a sour feeling on the tip of Fazheng's nose, and tears seemed to be flowing down.

So flirtatious!Fazheng, a man who had not had any desire for Mingzhu in decades, was really played to death by Liu Bei.

Holding Fazheng's hand, Liu Bei smiled again and said: "At the time of the great war, Jiangzuo was first approaching, and the isolated army was short of food. Xiaozhi came from the west to solve the problem of the isolated army."

It may not be known whether Jiangzuo is short of food.

However, Liu Bei knew very well that Fa Zheng and Meng Da lacked this credit.

With this credit, others will have a sense of participation.Otherwise, how embarrassing it would be for Fazheng and Meng Daguang to come all the way to watch Liu Bei fend off the enemy!
Hearing Liu Bei's words, Fazheng was full of energy, raised his hands and said: "I just heard from Huonan County that there seems to be a war in the Jianghuai River. I'm afraid that when you first take charge of the four counties, you don't have enough troops and food, so you and Zijing travel at night under the stars. , go down the river, don’t dare to delay.”

"Takanao arrived at the right time!"

Liu Bei said: "Now Cao Cao has set up camp in Hefei and is confronting our army across Chao Lake. A man of filial piety and uprightness can be an adviser to me."

Fazheng's eyes glanced at Zhuge Liang, Lu Su, Lu Yi and others, and he said humbly: "Zheng Shang can help you fight in Bashu. Now we are in Jianghuai. Zheng has just arrived here. The mountains, rivers and terrain are unknown, and Cao's army does not know the situation of the soldiers, so they dare not Nonsense.”

What Liu Bei said was purely to express the importance he attached to Fa Zheng and to make Fa Zheng feel respected.You can't say that you just arrived and don't know anything. You sit next to Zhuge Liang and get used to the environment.

Of course, Fazheng couldn't take it seriously. Without investigation, he had no right to speak. As a newbie in Chaohu, he really had no right to speak.

"nothing!"

Liu Bei held Fazheng's hand and asked, "I wonder where Meng Zijing is?"

Fa Zheng pointed to Meng Da beside him and said: "This is Meng Da, Meng Zijing. My father was Meng Tuo, the governor of Liangzhou in the Han Dynasty. He once led troops to conquer Shule in the west and promoted the power of Han Dynasty in the Western Regions."

Fa Zheng said he had chosen Meng Da, but in fact Meng Tuo, Meng Da's father, had a close relationship with Zhang Rang. Meng Tuo bribed Zhang Rang to become the governor of Liangzhou.He led an army to conquer Shule in the west, but actually failed to defeat it.

Su Shi wrote a poem about this and sarcastically said: "The general has fought a hundred battles but failed, and Bo Lang conquered Liangzhou in one fight."

I saw Meng Da, who had an outstanding appearance and was neither humble nor arrogant. I also heard that he was from Liangzhou before the Eastern Han Dynasty.Liu Bei stepped forward, held Meng Da's hand, and said warmly: "The river is thousands of miles away and there are many mountains and mountains. It is very hard for Zijing to travel a long distance."

"This is all business!" Meng Da said seriously: "Now that I can see you, I am very happy."

Liu Bei held Meng Da's hand and said with a smile: "Is it possible that Gu and Zijing are destined?"

After speaking, Liu Bei faced everyone and said: "I have an uncle named Zijing who taught me my studies when I was young. When I went to Jiangzuo alone, I met the talented Lu Zijing. Now in Ruxukou, there is also the Western scholar Meng Zijing. Help. Congratulations!"

"Ha ha!"

While talking and laughing, Liu Bei led everyone into the big tent.

However, the speaker has no intention, but the listener has intention.Liu Bei just wanted to express his welcome to Meng Da, but Meng Da wanted to use this to please Liu Bei.When he learned that Liu Bei's uncle was also Zijing, he had the idea of ​​changing his name.

Of course, it is purely Mengda's own, neither Lu Su nor Liu Bei care.

After all, Lu Su, a heroic and heroic man, would care about this little detail.If Liu Bei was so rigid about small etiquette and etiquette, maybe Lu Su would still look down on Liu Bei.

(End of this chapter)