Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 512 The Battle of Xu Huai Begins
June, Shouchun.

At present, in Shouchun, in addition to Cao Xiu and the generals of Yangzhou, the generals of Yuzhou and the officers and soldiers of the Chinese army have arrived in Shouchun to listen to Cao Pi's order. Cao Xiu also promoted General Zhennan to General Zhengdong, guarding the troops and horses of the states in Huaibei.

At present, with the arrival of Yuzhou and Chinese troops, there are no less than 40,000 to 50,000 Wei soldiers stationed in and outside Shouchun. If we add the 10,000 soldiers from two or three counties in Qing and Xu states, then Cao Wei has 70,000 combatable troops in Huaibei. people.

To deal with the rebels in Licheng, Cao Wei did not need to assemble so many troops. At this time, it was mainly to guard against Huo Jun, who was stationed at Huaihe River.

In the Southern Han Dynasty, due to Liu Bei's Northern Expedition, Huo Jun's Huainan army had 50,000 men. Excluding the troops stationed at the border, there were more than 30,000 men who could fight.

The troops deployed in the Huaihe River Basin between the Southern Han and Northern Wei today may be seen as the difference in population size between the two countries. No matter how hard the Southern Han Dynasty tapped its internal potential, it was still difficult to hide that its population size was smaller than that of the North.

A few years before his death, Cao Cao knew that the situation between the north and the south was clear. After his failure in the southern expedition to Hanzhong, he adopted a defensive strategy. In the seven years before his death, unlike the long-term northern expedition of the Southern Han Dynasty, he devoted himself to restoring production. Rest with the people.

Although the seven flooded armies were defeated, the loss of troops was beyond words. With the peace of the Central Plains for more than ten years, the population multiplied and heirs were reborn. Cao Wei recruited soldiers to join the army, and there were 300,000 soldiers stationed in the four directions. .

Even though the Southern Han Dynasty had three territories: Bashu, Jingchu, Wuyue, and Zhuge Liang's governance, the Northern Expedition could use 190,000 troops, which was the maximum force that the Southern Han Dynasty could produce. Perhaps Bashu could send more troops, but due to food supply constraints and governance issues, the Northern Expedition would not be able to send many troops.

In the hall, Cao Xiu, wearing fish-scale iron armor, sat on the general's seat, discussing the military situation with Yang and Yu generals.

Cao Xiu stood up with his sword in hand and said coldly: "Your Majesty ordered me to control the armies in Huaibei. Why did Jia Jun disobey his order?"

"Although Huo Jun outnumbered others, his number was only 20,000 or 30,000. His troops have been used so far, and he has won more and lost less. It is expected that he is arrogant. If all the armies are united, march forward slowly and with drums. But if you try to advance, you will take advantage of the arrogance of the thieves and you will be destroyed."

"General, it is better to lead and not attack. The army is making noise to make Huo Jun suspicious. If we send out troops to fight with him now, if there is a loss, I am afraid Xu Huai will be frustrated and shaken. I hope the general will think deeply about the advantages and disadvantages."

Seeing that Cao Xiu insisted on fighting, Jia Kui was very angry and said: "Huo Jun ordered Tang Zi to retreat to Qushan, but the truth is that Licheng is isolated and cannot be defended. If the situation deteriorates, the thieves will break through and go to Yuzhou. Moreover, Qushan is under the command of Pi On the other side, it is close to Qingzhou. Even if the thieves can save Tang Zi, they will not be able to hold on to Qushan."

Although Cao Xiu's military strategy was outstanding, his temperament was strong and he was too eager to establish fame. Since he took over, he has been eager to gather all his troops and win the field battle with Huo Jun, so as to seize the Jianghuai counties and drink from the Yangtze River.

Cao Xiu rejected Jia Kui's suggestion and said: "Hefei is backed by rivers and lakes, and the city is high and strong. If we send a large army to attack it now, we may not be able to attack it in a hurry. If I were Huo Jun, if I heard that Hefei was besieged, I would lead my troops to advance quickly and break through. The two armies of Lu and Zang will then return to fight me."

Huo Junti's army went deep into Xuhuai. Once he found the main force and joined forces with other armies to defeat it, wouldn't he be able to win?
If we don't go to war now, why don't we have to wait for Huo Jun to go north to defeat Zang Ba and Lu Qian, rescue Tang Zi, and let him surround Pi with all his troops?

Due to Huo Jun's order, Tang Zi abandoned Licheng and led the rebels to retreat to Qushan. However, Qushan was too prominent and deep into the hinterland of Xuhuai, which was not conducive to long-term defense.

Although Cao Xiu was lucky enough to advance because of his clan general, he was not a man without plans. Hefei is not so easy to capture. Once he sends a large army to capture Hefei, it will give Huo Jun a chance to defeat Zang Ba and Lu Qian.

"Today, Huaidong is sparsely populated, with many muddy swamps and thick reed forests. If a large army marches eastward, it may be difficult to find traces of the bandit army. Moreover, Huo Jun is familiar with the Jianghuai water town and is close to the seaside. His soldiers are few but skilled. It is difficult to fight against them today. Hope of victory.”

Huaidong was harassed several times by Huo Jun, and its already sparse population became even smaller. Cao Xiu's troops must go through no man's land this time. In Man Chong's opinion, it would be better not to engage Huo Jun's main force to fight now, but to strictly guard the border town and wait for Huo Jun to come.

Compared with Jia Kui and Man Chong, Cao Xiu was undoubtedly the main combatant. He really couldn't understand why the general was so afraid of Huo Jun.

"otherwise!"

As Jia Kui said, Cao Xiu did not need to send troops, but sent troops with great fanfare, which made Huo Jun suspicious and did not dare to stay in Xuhuai for a long time. Now Cao Xiu insists on sending troops to fight Huo Jun's main force in the field, but Jia Kui really doesn't agree.

Although Jia Kui changed his position from admonishing the officials to being the governor of Yuzhou, he was not a scholar who did not know how to fight, but he was quite capable of military strategy. He didn't want to confront Huo Jun head-on, but wanted to encircle Wei and rescue Zhao, forcing Huo Jun to give up rescuing Qushan.

Man Chong frowned and said: "General, Liu Bei has launched an army to attack Guanlong. The situation is hard to say to our benefit. It is better to guard the border city and wait for the enemy to arrive. Don't send Yuzhou soldiers down to Yiyang and attack the water thieves while they are out on their northern expedition. Jiangxia, in order to intimidate the enemy capital, make the traitors return."

After a pause, Cao Xiu's tone increased and he said: "The reason why Huo Jun dare not advance now is that he has few troops. The two armies of Lu and Zang are in the north, and our army is in the west. There is a danger of a combined attack and defeat. Our army should take advantage of his movement. Seize the opportunity for the troops to move north, unite Zang's and Lu's armies, and attack Huo Jun's troops to achieve great success."

Cao Xiu put the letter on the table and asked: "Your Majesty has written today, allowing our army to use force. I would like to follow your Majesty's order and lead my troops to march eastward, either to rob Huo Jun's retreat, or to join forces with Zang and Lu's armies to join forces. I wonder what you guys think about attacking Huo Jun?"

Jia Kui hesitated a little and said: "Now Zang and Lu are encircling Tang Zi, and they have retreated the powerful general Gao Xiang. Huo Jun moved his troops to Huaidong with the intention of rescuing Qushan. Kui thought that he might implement the strategy of encircling Liang to rescue Zhao, and the general sent a large army Attack Hefei. If Hefei is lost, it will be difficult to protect Jianghuai."

When Cao Xiu saw the objections of the generals in Yuzhou, he spoke forcefully and said: "Now the Tang Dynasty soldiers have rebelled, endangering the land of the Peng and Song Dynasties. Now if we go to the road with heavy troops to defend ourselves, the situation will be divided and the strength will be weak. If we encounter the enemy, we will not be able to support it. If we send troops and horses to attack When he comes out, where will he place the Qing and Xu armies?"

At the same time, in order to force Huo Jun to return to the army, Man Chong suggested sending troops from Runan. Taking advantage of Liu Bei's army's northern expedition and Jiangxia being empty and deserted, he led his troops to attack the counties and counties, thus scaring Wuhan in the south of the Yangtze River and allowing Huo Jun to lead his troops back to defend the capital.

Jia Kui also had a strong temperament and refused to give in. He said: "Kui is the governor of Yuzhou and supervises and protects the troops in Yuzhou. Now the general wants to go far to Huaidong to compete with the enemy. It is not the best choice. It is better to build it."

"You~"

Cao Xiu glared angrily and wanted to say something, but was directly interrupted by Jia Kui.

Jia Kui was neither humble nor arrogant. He raised his hands and said, "If the general wants to fight Huo Jun, please divide an army to cross the Huaihe River and attack his border."

"allow!"

Although Cao Xiuxin was unwilling to agree with Jia Kui's opinion, since he had no power to supervise the military affairs in Yuzhou, he could only grit his teeth and agreed with Jia Kui's opinion.

Standing with his sword in hand, Cao Xiu's face looked a little cold. He looked around at everyone and said: "Jia Cishi led eight thousand soldiers and horses to cross the Huaihe River to harass the border areas of the water thieves. If Huo Jun is defeated, his return route should be cut off. Man Chong led his headquarters to stay in the town. Shouchun, provide follow-up food and grass."

Cao Xiu kicked almost all those who disagreed with his strategy out of the expedition team to prevent them from affecting his authority.

"promise!"

The generals stood up and responded.

As Cao Xiu's military order was issued, Shouchun City allocated grain and fodder and moved baggage to supply Cao Wei's army heading east.

In the noisy city, Lu Fang, who was dressed in disguise, waited in the street for a long time. Seeing no one following him, he quickly walked into a shop selling silk. After knocking on the shelf and alerting the servants who were working, Lu Fang said in a rough voice, "Is there any high-quality Liangzhou Shu Brocade?"

"Sichuan brocade is in Chengdu, where can it be found in Liangzhou?" the servant replied.

Lu Fang smiled and said, "I must have remembered it wrong. What I want is the Shu Brocade produced in Hanzhong."

"There is no Shu brocade in Hanzhong. Today, Shu brocade can only be woven in Chongqing." The servant replied.

"good!"

Seeing the slogan, Lu Fang smiled and said: "I want to buy a three-inch Sichuan brocade, can it be cut?"

"It should be possible!"

"The master is in the back room, please come to the back room to discuss matters."

The servant led Lu Fang to a side room of the house, where the merchants and fishermen had been waiting for a long time.

When they reached the side room, Lu Fang stuffed the silk in his hand into the hands of the merchants and whispered: "Cao Xiu has ordered all the troops to go out. His troops are not less than 30,000. It seems that he is going to advance east. Report as soon as possible." Governor."

The merchant secretly stuffed it into his sleeve, lowered his voice and said, "Send the newspaper immediately tonight, and it should be delivered to the governor in three or four days."

"good!"

Lu Fang looked outside and said, "I have been suspected by Wen Hui, so we should reduce our dealings from now on. It's just important information, so I won't be a shop owner."

The merchant held Lu Fang's hand and said: "Please rest assured that the money and food supplies will be delivered in full. If there is any shortage, please let me know. As for the governor Ke Shouchun, there will be a big appointment for you."

"Thank you!" Lu Fang said gratefully.

As he spoke, the merchant smiled and sent Lu Fang out of the side room, and said with a respectful smile: "Noble sir, the only black Shu brocade left in the store today is black. If you don't want to discard it, you can use the black Shu brocade to make clothes."

"good!"

The merchants presented Lu Fang with black Shu brocade and sent him out with gifts.

Huo Jun has been operating in Jianghuai for many years. In addition to cultivating fields and training troops, he has also worked hard on intelligence warfare. Regardless of money, bribe the Wei officials on the border. There are fine works of cloth not only in Shouchun, but also in various cities.

The reason why Huo Jun was able to bribe Wei officials has a lot to do with the current economy. For example, the currency of the Northern Wei Dynasty collapsed, the population dropped sharply, the country focused on military affairs, and official salaries were greatly reduced. Even high-ranking officials suffered from hunger at times, let alone ordinary Wei officials.

That night, the shops passed the news to the boatmen outside the city, and the boatmen rowed all night to send the news to Zhongli City downstream.

In the Huainan region, except for Shouchun, almost all the middle and lower reaches were stationed by Han troops. All information about Huaibei will be sent to Zhongli, and then sent to the army after being sorted by a dedicated person.

Within a few days, the news that Cao Xiu was leading the army had been sent to the Han army camp by scouts.

By the river, Huo Jun was spreading wheat and feeding pigeons.

"Cuckoo~"

Hundreds of pigeons are scattered all over the ground, competing with each other for the wheat grains on the ground. From time to time they make a cry, which causes the pigeons to respond.

"Wow!"

Suddenly, pigeons all over the ground flapped their wings and flew into the sky. The scene was very spectacular.

Jiang Ji dodged the flying pigeons and said, "Captain, Zhongli has come to report that Cao Xiu has sent troops to Xu Huai!"

Hearing this, Huo Jun threw out the remaining wheat grains in his palm and said with a smile: "As expected, Cao Xiu sent troops to Xu Huai instead of Hefei."

Jiang Ji handed the letter to Huo Jun and said: "Captain, Man Chong is staying in Shouchun, and Jia Kui will not go with Cao Xiu."

Huo Jun quickly scanned the contents on the scarf and said, "Concentrate on dealing with Cao Xiu and ignore Jia Kui's troops."

"Should Xu Wen march across the river now?" Jiang Ji asked.

"Ask Xu Sheng to lead his troops across the Huaihe River and march north, and order all the troops to stay still and to constantly investigate Cao Xiu's troops."

Huo Jun put away the scarf and said with a smile: "Remember, tell Wen Xiang that if he encounters Cao Xiu's army, just act according to the plan."

"What are the arrangements for Gao Xiang and Chen Yue?" Jiang Ji asked.

After pondering for a while, Huo Jun said: "Chen Yue's soldiers were weak and he was ordered to stay in Yuzhou. He should not go out to fight lightly to avoid being attacked by thieves and seize the grain land. Gao Xiang was ordered to go north to Yilu Township to respond to Tang Zi. If he met Zang and Lu, he Defend in danger, or lead the army to retreat without fighting."

"good!"

Huo Jun patted the wheat flour off his palm and ordered the attendants on the left and right, saying: "Put the pigeons in the cage and feed them well without any loss."

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)