Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 457: Hypocrisy to lure enemies
September, Wancheng.

Hou Yin expelled Dongligun and rebelled against Wancheng. Xu Huang and Zhao Yan heard about it and surrounded Wancheng with troops. The prefect Dongligun, in the name of Hou Yinwudao, gathered Nanyang volunteers to help Xu Huang fight against the thieves.

At that time, Cao Zongjin, the puppet leader who surrendered to Houyin County, heard that Dongligun had led reinforcements to Wancheng. He climbed over the wall and left the city overnight and took refuge with Xu Huang and Dongligun.

The Wei army's camp, inside the Chinese army's tent.

Xu Huang invited Zong Jin to take a seat, and the civil and military officials on the left and right were present.

"Sir, your integrity is truly admirable. Now that you are traveling across the city, I wonder if you have anything confidential to teach me?" Xu Huang said.

Zong Jin wiped his scratched hands and said: "Hou Yin is vulgar and greedy for fame. He took advantage of the country's crisis to deceive people's hearts and incited the mountain people to rebel. He caused chaos in Wancheng and looted money. Many of the people in the city had resentment. This is called People’s hearts are not attached to them!”

"Now I see the general going south, and the army is encircling Wancheng. The people in the city are in turmoil, Hou Yin is afraid, and the dead are fleeing and the people want to disperse. He said to the people under the tent that Guan Yu will go north soon, and he and the others can get rich and noble, and the people under the tent will die People feel at ease because of it.”

"Jin believed that the reason why the mountain people revolted was not because they wanted to return to Guan Yu, but because they were afraid of the country's harsh laws. Now that the general wants to pacify Wancheng, it is better to forgive the mountain people's crime of fleeing, so as to disrupt the rebel army, and then move down quickly Wancheng."

Hou Yin gathered the mountain people to force people to rebel, and many of them were rich in money. When things went well, everyone could still gather under Hou Yin's tent. If the war goes wrong, everyone will scatter in all directions because they are greedy for life and afraid of death.

In particular, they occupied Wancheng and plundered a lot of money. How could they risk their lives with Hou Yin now that they had worries. Once the rebellious mountain people are pardoned, most of Hou Yin's rebels will disperse and Wancheng will be able to descend easily.

Xu Huang pondered for a while and said: "Your Majesty said that those who run away from doing corvées will not be pardoned. Today's pardon for the people who died in Wancheng is contrary to your Majesty's old order. I'm afraid your Majesty will punish you for this!"

"otherwise!"

Zhao Yan looked slightly serious and said: "Today Jingxiang is in turmoil and the war is critical. If we follow the old law, miss the opportunity to punish the thieves and ruin the overall situation, it will be more sin than merit. It seems that Hou Yin and other thieves will not be pardoned, and the rest of the people will be guilty. It can be pardoned. If Your Majesty blames me, I am willing to bear the blame."

"good!"

Xu Huang nodded and said: "The current situation is urgent. The words of the warlord are the best policy and should be followed."

Although Xu Huang is a general, most of the people who can represent Cao Cao's attitude in the army are the military governor Zhao Yan. Now that Zhao Yan is taking responsibility, Xu Huang has no pressure.

Then, Xu Huang looked at Sima Yi and asked: "Zhongda is joining the army. He said beforehand that he had a plan to defeat Guan Yu. I wonder if he can talk about it now?"

Sima Yi stroked his beard and said with a smile: "I have gained a little bit, but whether I can succeed or not, I need Ziqing's help."

"Please join the army and tell me carefully. If I can help the army, I will do my best." Zong Jin said with cupped hands.

"It's not that difficult!"

Sima Yi thought for a while and asked, "May I ask General Xu, how is Guan Yu?"

After hearing this, Xu Huang hesitated for a while and said: "Guan Yu has great ambitions and is loyal to the world. He is a hero of tigers and bears. However, he is very arrogant by nature, and he is arrogant when he is polite and arrogant. This is his shortcoming."

Sima Yi stroked his beard and smiled, and said: "Guan Yu flooded seven armies and made outstanding achievements. Now our army is outnumbered and Fancheng is in crisis. Yi Pi thought that he was arrogant and ambitious. This is the disadvantage of a general!"

Saying that, Sima Yi looked at Xu Huang and said: "Now Hou Yin has rebelled against Wancheng and sent letters asking for help. Guan Yu is very loyal and sees that the situation between the enemy and us is similar. Xiangfan is besieged and the Wancheng Incident occurs. Under his arrogance, Guan Yu , there should be the intention to aid Wancheng from the north and defeat our army."

"Wancheng is about three or four hundred miles away from Xiangfan, and it is a lonely place. Guan Yu entered by boat, but as the sun turned to autumn and winter, the water fell in the Qi River, making it difficult for boats to enter and return."

"Now I ask Mr. Zong to imitate Hou Yin's letter, detailing the reason why our army is outnumbered and weak, and use Wancheng as a bait to lure Guan Yu's troops to go north. During this period, reinforcements from various tribes will arrive, and the general will lead troops to surround and fight against the water thieves. If we can defeat them, Guan Yu, if the general takes advantage of the situation and kills him, he will definitely defeat his army."

Sima Yi was quite proud and said: "General Shi chased the thieves to Fancheng and responded to Cao's cavalry. General Zuo (Zhang He) sent troops out of Wuguan and defeated the water thieves in Nanxiang. He trudged across the Han River and attacked the water thieves in Hannan. The crisis in Xiangfan can be resolved!"

In order to understand the danger of Xiangfan, Cao Cao not only sent Xu Huang and Sima Yi, but also followed Jia Xu's advice and mobilized troops from Guanzhong, such as Zhang He and Yang Qiu, to lead the infantry and cavalry from Wuguan to Nanxiang.

In order to win the Battle of Xiangfan, Cao Cao almost mobilized all available troops in the country. As Sima Yi said, Xu Huang's troops are only the vanguard, and the real army is behind.

There were more than 200,000 Southern Xiongnu in Bingzhou, and Cao Cao ordered more than 10,000 cavalry to be mobilized. There were Wuhuan in Youzhou, and with the power of Wuhuan in Youzhou, he ordered the general who protected Wuhuan to lead more than 10,000 cavalry southward.

Coupled with the dispatched Chinese army and soldiers from various states and counties in the Central Plains of Hebei, Yan, and Henan, the Northern Wei Dynasty could be said to have devoted all its strength to the southern expedition, vowing to win this battle.

However, despite the huge momentum, most of the northern troops and horses are on the way. Unless the two sides are in a confrontation, there will be no use for the northern troops and horses.

As for the Battle of Xiangfan, why did it affect the soldiers and horses of all the troops in the world?

Because Nanyang is located in the middle of the world, it is a revolving door in China's geography, and its roads connect the northwest, southwest, southeast, Henan, Hebei and other places. Therefore, whenever troops are launched in Xiangyang, it is destined to be a country-breaking battle for both sides.

There are only two outcomes for the Battle of Xiangfan to end. Either Xiangfan is captured by the Southern Han, or it ends with the Southern Han withdrawing its troops.

Historically, Guan Yu's surrender to Jin and his seven armies was actually only the beginning of the Battle of Xiangfan, and it was far from taking Xiangfan.

Not to mention Soochow's attack on Jingzhou, even if Soochow did not attack Jingzhou, with the huge military strength of the Central Plains and the special geographical location connecting the world, not even half of Jingzhou could compete with it.

"General, what do you think Yi's plan is?" Sima Yi said with a smile. Xu Huang paced in the tent, a little excited, and said: "As I said in joining the army, if I can lure Guan Yu north, I will try my best to win. But I don't know how Wancheng will treat him?"

Sima Yi did not hesitate and said: "Although Guan Yu's ambition is arrogant, his bravery cannot be underestimated. Now the general can, as the governor said, surround three towers and quickly descend to Wancheng. Only when Guan Yu's troops arrive can the peace of the rear be guaranteed."

Xu Huang was very happy and said: "Now we are sending strong troops to besiege Wancheng, and open the south gate to Hou Yin. As for the matter of luring the enemy with letters, it will be handled by joining the army, and I will be responsible for leading the troops to attack the thieves."

"promise!"

Not to mention that Xu Huang sent troops to attack Wancheng. Cao Cao, who was living in Mobei, now not only received news of the commotion in Jingxiang, but also received news that Liu Bei led an army to send troops from Jiangxia.

In the big tent, Cao Cao looked through the news from Nanyang County, looking very irritable.

Seeing that Cao Cao was silent, Sun Quan suggested: "Your Majesty, there is unrest in Nanyang today, and Hou Yin has rebelled against Wancheng. Dongli Gun's ability is not enough to pacify Nanyang, and your Majesty may have to replace Nanyang's governor."

Cao Cao rubbed his temples and said: "Zhongmou's words are exactly what I meant. Dongli Gun governs the people with gentleness and lacks the strength of military strategy. Now Xiangfan is in danger and Wancheng is occupied. Although Xu Huang is the governor to attack Jingxiang, But it’s not enough to appease the border.”

After saying that, Cao Cao thought for a moment and asked, "What does Zhongmou think Tian Yu can do?"

Sun Quan cupped his hands and replied: "Your Majesty, Tian Guorang has a strategy. When he was the king of the city and attacked Wuhuan from the north, he made many suggestions and assisted the army to defeat Wuhuan. Nanyang is in turmoil now, and no one without military strategy can pacify it. Tian Guorang Although I am on good terms with Liu Bei, I am still young and there is no reason to doubt him."

Wuhuan of Daijun rebelled previously. Cao Cao sent Cao Zhang to suppress the rebellion, and appointed Xia Houshang and Tian Yu to assist him. When Cao Zhang was just starting out, he was ambushed by Wuhuan and almost overturned. Thanks to Tian Yu, he turned the tide and defeated Wuhuan using a chariot formation. In addition, Cao Zhang was so brave that he repelled the Xianbei army that came to support him.

Although the victory in this battle belongs to the general Cao Zhang, Tian Yu's outstanding talents cannot be concealed. In particular, Cao Wei's veteran generals were gradually withering away, and fresh blood was needed to maintain the vitality of Cao Wei's country. Under this situation, Tian Yu gradually entered Cao Cao's field of vision.

Cao Cao thought about it for a long time and said: "Today, Tian Yu is appointed as the governor of Nanyang, and Dongligun is transferred to Sima to participate in military affairs."

"promise!"

As he spoke, Liu Yechu stepped into the tent, raised his hands and said: "Your Majesty, the governor of Runan has come to report that the main force of Liu Bei's army has appeared in the Dabie Mountains, with Huang Quan as the vanguard, out of the three passes of Yiyang. Now Manchong has ordered the soldiers of Runan to be on alert and to guard the cities in Runan."

"Liu Bei appeared in Dabie Mountain?"

"Where is the map?"

"Your Majesty, here is the map of Yuzhou!" Sun Quan spread out the map of Yuzhou and said.

Cao Cao quickly confirmed the location of the three passes of Yiyang from the map, and then poked them a few times with his finger, his expression slightly solemn.

"Your Majesty, Liu Bei did not go to Xiangfan, but went to Yiyang. What does this mean?" Sun Quan asked in confusion.

Cao Cao stroked his white beard and did not answer. Instead, he looked at Liu Ye and asked, "What do you think Liu Bei means?"

Liu Ye looked at the city on the map and said: "Guan Yu has encircled Fancheng, and the power of Xiangfan is greatly in Liu Bei's favor. Therefore, Liu Bei is not worried about Xiangfan, but worried about the six armies of your Majesty. Today, I came out of Jiangxia, and the bigger the mountain, I thought that Liu Bei had It has the intention to capture Runan, and it also has the intention of containing His Majesty."

As he spoke, Liu Ye pointed to the map and said: "The bandits flourished in Huaidong and were blocked in Shouchun. The Huai River flows out of Runan, passes through Shouchun, and enters the sea. When Liu Bei's troops march towards Runan, there should be echoes in Huaixi and The meaning of Jing Xiangyang."

Compared with the two waterways of Xiangfan and Hefei, Liu Bei took Jiangxia to go north, which is more surprising. Since there was a road threatening the Central Plains, how could Cao Cao be unprepared?
In his early years, he appointed Manchong as the governor of Runan. He was responsible for not only supporting Shouchun and Xiangyang, but also guarding against Liu Beiqi's Northern Expedition from the Dabie Mountains.

Liu Bei's departure from the Dabie Mountains today is exactly what he planned in his early years.

Cao Cao paced slightly and said: "Liu Bei is my great enemy. He will not be able to defeat him, and I can only deal with him personally. I am ordering the army to rush to Anyang. Let me defeat Liu Bei first and then retreat to Guan Yu."

After a pause, Cao Cao seemed to remember something and asked, "Is there any movement from Huo Jun?"

Liu Ye shook his head and said: "There are no specific movements of Huo Jun. We only know that Pang Tong of the Jianghuai River has mobilized troops to move westward. However, if this is the case, Huo Jun will rush to the Jianghuai River to take charge."

After so many years of confrontation with the Southern Han Dynasty, the Northern Wei Dynasty figured out the military and political structure of the Southern Han Dynasty, such as the relationship between the deputy governor of Jianghuai and the chief governor Huo Jun.

"good!"

Cao Cao narrowed his eyes slightly and said: "Now let Xiahou Dun stand still and defend the Shouchun fortress. We should take Cao Ren's defeat as a warning."

"promise!"

"Your Majesty personally led the troops to Runan, while the right general and the left general went to Jingxiang to use troops. I wonder who will be in charge of the war in Jingxiang?" Sun Quan asked.

Cao Cao stroked his beard and said: "Take the right general Xu Huang Gongming as the first, and the left general Zhang He as the second. The two divided their forces and advanced in two directions. The governor Zhao Yan was in charge of coordination, Sima Dongligun was in charge of military law, and Sima Yi joined the army to discuss military matters."

"Urgent orders to Cao Zhen, Xia Houshang, Tian Yu and others to rush to Nanyang immediately!"

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)