Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 428 The danger of hanging on the ground

In July, an altar was set up at the north gate of Xuchang.

On the Gengwu day, Cao Cao ascended to the throne and was accompanied by hundreds of officials.

At that time, Cao Cao proclaimed himself emperor in Xuchang, and his country was named "Wei". He made Luoyang the capital of the country and temporarily stayed in Xuchang. According to Sun Quan's advice, the reign name was "Jianye", and the world was amnesty.

In August, Cao Cao worshiped the Han emperor as the Duke of Shanyang with ten thousand households in Shanyang City in Hanoi. He went to Hanzhengshuo and offered sacrifices in the suburbs with the rites of the emperor. He wrote a letter not to accept the title of minister.

Queen Bian was made empress, Crown Prince Cao Pi was made crown prince; Xiahou Dun was made general, Cao Hong was made general of hussars, Cao Ren was made general of cavalry, Yu Jin was made the former general, Zhang He was made the general of the left, Xu Huang was made the general of the right, and Zhu Ling was made the general of the right. After the general.

All officials, big and small, were promoted and their rewards were very generous. For example, Ma Chao, who guarded Longyou, was granted the title of General Zhenxi and the governor of Yizhou by Cao Cao; Zang Ba was granted the title of General Zhendong and the governor of Xuzhou.

As for Meng Da, who was waiting for a price, Cao Cao rewarded him quite a lot. He was worshiped as General Dang Kou and granted the title of Duxiang Marquis.

Although General Dangkou is a miscellaneous general, he is a higher-level miscellaneous general. Above him, he is a general at the level of subjugation and levy. This shows how generous Cao Cao is.

At the same time, because Cao Cao proclaimed himself emperor, the Southern Han Dynasty also began to make in-depth planning.

In August, Liu Feng inspected Fengling County, and Meng Da set up a banquet to wait for him.

At that time, Mengda accepted a beautiful concubine. Liu Feng heard about it and ordered Mengda to summon her to accompany him. Due to Liu Feng's power, Meng Da had to call his concubine to attend.

Meng Da's concubine is beautiful and graceful. She is a rare beauty.

While drunk, Liu Feng became lustful and took Meng Da's concubine for his own use.

The concubine did not want to follow Liu Feng and begged Mengda for help. Meng Da angrily refused. However, in public, Liu Feng openly asked his warriors to seize it. Even though Meng Da was unwilling, there was nothing he could do.

After Liu Feng returned to Shangyong, Meng Da was so angry that he finally wrote his tenth letter to Cao Ren.

In the letter, Meng Da stated his intention to surrender to Wei. He surrendered because he witnessed the death of his friend Zhang Song and felt that Liu Bei's rewards and punishments were unfair.

At this time, he had a dispute with Liu Feng over the matter of serving his concubine. Unexpectedly, Zhang Song's fate would happen to him. He was so panicked that he didn't want to go back to Zhang Song's old ways. Not wanting to sit still and wait for death, he wanted to make a secret plan and surrender the city.

Ever since he heard about the demise of the Han Dynasty, Liu Bei, the old revolutionary, has become self-reliant. Now he is preparing for the enthronement ceremony in Wuhan, so there are few defenses on the border.

Because Guan Yu was getting older, he fell ill and returned to Wuhan to recuperate, and participated in Liu Bei's enthronement ceremony.

Huo Jun was often jealous because of the Huainan king's affairs and stayed away from Jianghuai. Due to the intense fighting at Jiaoling, Liu Bei sent him south to supervise the fighting at Jiaozhou.

Zhang Fei is far away in Jiangzhou. Although he has troops and horses, the distance is too long to worry about. Wenpin and Pang Tong guard Jiangxia and Hefei and have no intention of the Northern Expedition.

Among the three counties and nine counties under his command, apart from the three thousand soldiers and horses he led, there were only five thousand sergeants led by Liu Feng. As for Lu Xun's troops on the upper reaches of the Han River, he stationed 20,000 men in Hanzhong and did not dare to leave lightly.

If Cao Ren marches Jingzhou's troops from Nanxiang, he will lead the officials and people in Fangling and all the counties to respond. Fan defeated Liu Feng, who was entrenched in Shangyong, with the help of Cao Ren's heroic spirit and the old people of the Shen family. The three counties and nine counties should spread the word.

Then, Meng Da emphasized that he was from Fufeng, Guanzhong, saying that his hometown was in Guanzhong, and he wanted to return to the Central Plains now, and did not want to be a homeless wandering soul after his death.

The next day, Mengda sent his nephew Deng Xian to Fancheng with a letter. Fangling is six or seven hundred miles away from Xiangyang. After several days of running around, Deng Xian finally delivered the letter to Cao Ren.

Fancheng is the former residence of General Zhengnan.

In the hall, Cao Ren, who was promoted to General of Chariots and Cavalry, put down Meng Da's letter as his dignity became heavier.

Cao Ren spoke happily and said: "Mencius hesitated for several months, but finally, because of the rift between Liu Feng and him, he wanted to make an appointment with our army to raise his troops and return to the right direction. It is very gratifying!"

Zhu Zhi had many scruples and said: "Mengda wants to surrender for a good deed, but if it is a false surrender, the general will raise his troops to advance, and there will be danger!"

Stroking his beard, Cao Ren smiled and said: "Zhu Jun must be suspicious. I have been writing to Mengda for many months, and I secretly thought that he was a man who was greedy for wealth. If he pretended to surrender, he should send more troops to Jiangling. But now, as Mencius said, Guan Yu recuperated and returned to Wuhan, and reduced the army of Nanjun. Judging from this, how could the water thieves have any intention of attacking Xiangfan?"

After several months of correspondence with Meng Da, and combined with the news that Guan Yu had returned to Wuhan to recuperate, Cao Ren really had no doubts about Meng Da's surrender. Especially now that Cao Cao has just proclaimed himself emperor, he is eager to use three counties and nine counties as a celebration gift to Cao Cao.

With that said, Cao Ren looked at Shen Yi and asked, "General Shen, can you tell Jun Lu everything about the investigation?"

"promise!"

Shen Yi straightened his back, cupped his hands and said: "Yi followed the order of General Chariot and Cavalry and sent his sergeants into the mausoleum to find out the details of Meng Da. As Meng Da said, Liu Feng bullied him many times and took the first He advocated it for his own use; later, as stated in the letter, Liu Feng was greedy for beauty and took away his beautiful concubine."

When it came to the beautiful concubine, Shen Yi showed a look of secret anger and said: "Liu Feng took Meng Da's beautiful concubine, not from her, but from Yi Yi's beloved maidservant. She is beautiful and could be a beauty. Yi failed. After leaving, this concubine was taken in by Mengda."

Shen Yi said that she was incompetent and felt humiliated because she was cuckolded by Meng Da. But now for the sake of the overall situation and taking back his county, he must tell the truth. Cao Ren nodded slightly and said: "The dispute between Meng Da and Liu Feng is well known in the three counties. Now Meng Da has a grudge against Liu Feng due to his concubine. Given Liu Bei's ability, if he knew about the conflict between the two, he would definitely send him away. People should be replaced by Liu Feng or Meng Da to prevent unrest in the border areas."

After thinking about it, Cao Ren said: "Liu Feng is the son of Liu Bei, and Meng Da is a foreign minister. I am afraid that Liu Bei will transfer Meng Da from afar and keep Liu Feng in Shangyong. If Meng Da is transferred away at this time, it will be difficult to take over the three counties. !”

Believing that Meng Da sincerely surrendered, Cao Ren was now worried that Liu Bei would transfer Meng Da away if he knew about the dispute between Liu and Meng. If that happens then, it will be all in vain.

Stroking his gray beard, Zhu Zhi suggested: "Most of Jingxiang's soldiers are guarding Xiangfan, with nearly 30,000 soldiers. If the general wants to march westward to Fangling, he needs to arrange the generals to defend Xiangfan. He also needs to send troops to your Majesty. Horse support is used for maneuvering."

Zhu Zhi was old, and because he was a surrendered general, he had a steady temperament and did not want to cause trouble. But now that Cao Ren had firmly decided to march westward to support Meng Da, he couldn't say much.

Cao Ren led the troops from Jingxiang and Xiang into Fangling. Naturally, it was impossible to overly deploy troops and horses from the two cities of Xiangfan. Naturally, he needed to stay behind to guard the troops in Nanjun.

At the same time, from a prudent perspective, it was even more necessary for Zhu Zhi to ask Cao Cao to send troops and horses to respond.

"good!"

Cao Ren stood up with his sword in hand and said in a deep voice: "Order the soldiers in each department to prepare food, grass and equipment for the expedition. When His Majesty's order is issued, immediately send troops to the west to meet Mengda and attack the three counties."

"promise!"

Xiangyang was more than a thousand miles away from Xuchang. Cao Ren immediately sent troops to evacuation Cao Cao and asked him to approve the expedition order. And he wrote to Mengda to agree on the time to launch the army.

A few days later, the memorial arrived in Xuchang and was reported to Cao Cao.

In the old Han Palace in Xuchang, Cao Cao was walking in the palace wearing a crown and emperor's uniform.

After listening to the attendant reading Cao Ren's memorial, Cao Cao put his hands behind his waist and asked: "Today, General Chariot and Cavalry want to send troops to capture the three counties and nine counties of Fangling and Shangyong. What do you think?"

"May I ask your majesty, has there been any unusual movement among the water thieves?" Sima Yi asked.

Cao Cao paced and thought, and said: "Guan Yu returned to Wuhan due to illness, and many Jiangling sergeants were redeployed. According to detailed reports, the battle at Jiaoling is intense today, and Shi Xie is defending in danger. Liu Bei sent Huo Jun south, and the commander-in-chief is fighting at Jiaoguang. . And there are no soldiers in Jiangxia and Hefei."

"Therefore, I observe that the management of the water thieves is exactly as Mencius said. It is true that I expect him to return and surrender. Now the general of chariots and cavalry wants to lead his army to the west and seek to capture three counties. I think so!"

The promotion from King of Wei to Emperor of Wei, and the change of title from Gu to "I" made Cao Cao really happy for many days.

Sima Yi frowned and thought, and said suspiciously: "Nanjun is a stronghold for water thieves. General Guan Yu left the city due to illness and returned to Wuhan to recuperate. However, in terms of military arrangements, Guan Yu left office and Nanjun reduced its troops. His behavior should be lax on our army. meaning."

"In terms of sentiment, when a general leaves office, the water thieves need to strengthen their troops to guard Nanjun to prevent the Nanjun from being attacked. Instead of increasing our troops, we are reducing our troops. This behavior is abnormal. I am afraid that the water thieves are deceitful!"

With that said, Sima Yi raised his hand towards Cao Cao and said: "Fangling is located in a mountainous area with rugged roads, making it difficult to pass. It is easy to get in but difficult to get out. Now the generals of chariots and cavalry are marching westward. Anyone who is ambushed by the enemy will be in danger of losing their troops. I hope your Majesty will learn from it!"

Cao Cao looked at Jia Xu and asked, "Does Wen He have any insights?"

Jia Xu pondered for a while and said: "The Art of War says: 'You can go, but it is difficult to return, so it is called hanging; if the enemy is hanging, the enemy is unprepared, so he can win if he goes out; if the enemy is prepared, he can't win if he goes out, and it is difficult to return, which is disadvantageous.' Today Looking at the topography of the mausoleum, it should be regarded as the 'hanging ground'!"

"When using troops in Guangdi, be careful not to cut off the road, making it easy to advance but difficult to retreat, which will lead to the defeat of the army. Now the generals of chariots and cavalry have penetrated deep into Guadi. If Mengda does not surrender, Lu Meng and others are in Nanjun, and Liu Feng and others are in Shangyong. All armies are ready Go ahead and ride on the chariot and cavalry of the general, but I will see no benefit!"

As he spoke, Jia Xu stroked his beard and thought about it and said: "Cao's chariots and cavalry are leading the army to march westward. I thought that your majesty should send a general to provide backup, or to plunder the rear for Cao's chariots and cavalry, or to reinforce Xiangfan as a precaution."

"Ok!"

Cao Cao paced in the palace and said: "The ten letters written by Meng Da are sincere and the words are sincere, which shows his intention to surrender. The general of the water thieves has come to surrender to the county. If he is afraid that he has evil intentions and refuses to accept it, he should have It hurts China’s wisdom.”

"As for the reduction of troops in Nanjun and the transfer of generals, the public security and Dangyang are not at war all the year round. The water thieves are reducing armaments and making gains elsewhere. This is an ordinary thing and cannot be doubted."

Cao Cao was a gambler by nature and was not a steady player. If he didn't love gambling, he wouldn't have fought thousands of miles to attack Wuhuan or attack Wuchao at night; if he had a steady temperament, he would have been able to dominate the world with Najia Xu's strategy after Xiangyang was pacified.

Nowadays, the bait in the three counties and nine counties has been hung up for so long, and the water thief has not seen any action. He has already intended to eat it as a gift for him to become emperor.

After thinking for a long time, Cao Cao ordered: "Order Yan Xing to go south with tens of thousands of infantry and cavalry, and order them to serve as backup and return them to the chariot and cavalry generals. To teach Cao how to use chariot and cavalry troops, you need to be alert to enemy ambushes. If Meng Da does not surrender, withdraw your troops immediately without hesitation. .”

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)