Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 623 Backstabbing Ma Chao?

In October, after Huo Jun became the county governor, due to the cold weather, the troops under his tent returned to the country in batches.

In the Huaixi area, Shouchun and the upper reaches of the Huai River were recovered. Liu Pang commanded tens of thousands of troops to guard Shouchun, and appointed Shi Ran as the governor of Yiyang County.

In the Huaidong area, in order to strengthen control over Xiapi, Huo Du and Xu Sheng were stationed in Sikou to ensure the smooth flow of the Sishui River.

After Huaidong and Huaixi military arrangements were made, Huo Jun, urged by Zhuge Liang's letter, returned to Beijing with his meritorious generals.

The reason why Zhuge Liang urged Huo Jun was to confer meritorious generals and entertain them at banquets.

On the way back to the boat, Huo Jun, Lu Xun, Jiang Ji, and Huang Quan took the boat together and talked briefly about what had happened recently.

Huang Quan sat cross-legged and said with a smile: "Xu Huang had a hidden illness at first. Quan originally thought that his hope for longevity was greater than Xu Huang's illness. Unexpectedly, the opportunity for our army to break the city was not Xu Huang's, but Cao Pi's death from illness. Of course, there is also Jiang Jun's strategy of distracting people's hearts. Only by combining the two can our army break the city. "

At first, many generals expected Xu Huang to die of illness, but because there was no owner in the city, they destroyed the city. However, things are unpredictable, and no one expected that Cao Pi would leave first and help the Han army in a different direction.

When they heard that Cao Pi had died of illness, the generals in the army almost couldn't believe it. After repeated confirmations, they finally believed that Cao Pi was really dead.

Jiang Ji smiled and shook his head and said: "The destiny of Han is in Han's hands. Even if there is no way to save it, Shouchun will be defeated by our army. It is only a matter of time."

Huang Quan pondered for a while and said: "Cao Pi died of illness, a new ruler came to the throne, and Shouchun was defeated. In the future, the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains may be easy to say!"

"That's probably not the case!"

Lu Xun sipped his tea cup and said seriously: "Since Cao Rui came to power, in order to test his abilities, Xun Duo sent people to understand him. He served for several months in order to please the people, ease punishments, and provide favors; in order to replenish his troops, he recruited the minister's children, The people of Henan are more likely to be in trouble than Pi Shi."

After Shouchun was captured, Lu Xun fought all the way north and received more news than Huang Quan and Jiang Ji. In order to understand his opponents, Lu Xun also sent people to conduct in-depth investigations into the decrees issued by Cao Rui after he came to power.

Although he had only been on the field for a few months, Cao Rui's performance really surprised Lu Xun. Although he adopted some decrees about drinking poison to quench his thirst, he could feel that Cao Rui was much stronger than Cao Pi.

"Better than Cao Pi?"

Huang Quan frowned slightly and said: "We have lost most of our elite troops, Shouchun has been captured by our army, and the Central Plains is wide open. How can we say we are better than Pi Shi?"

Lu Xun calmed down and explained: "Although the door to the Central Plains is wide open, is it so easy for our army to make the Northern Expedition?"

As he spoke, Lu Xun dipped his fingers in water, traced the water channel on the desk, and said: "The water in Huaibei is different from the water in Wu and Chu. Summer is at its peak and winter is at its decline. In winter, boats flow from the Huai River into the Surabaya River, and the water dries up. It takes only ten miles a day." . If we cannot defeat the enemy in summer, we will have to withdraw our troops in winter if the water is shallow.”

During the Southern and Northern Expeditions, once winter came, they were in a state of food shortage, or it was said that they would withdraw their troops. It's not because the generals are incompetent, nor does it mean that Bai Qi and Han Xin can definitely defeat the enemy if they lead the army. But there is an objective fact that cannot be avoided, that is, once winter comes, food and grass cannot be transported. The army is short of food and it is difficult for anyone to do anything.

The reason why the delivery range of Jiangdong is limited to the Huai River is not because it cannot be transported by boat, but because the water in the Huaibei River is easy to dry up. As Lu Xun said, in winter, the boats could only travel ten miles backward, so if the boats carrying grain reached the front line, the army would have been defeated long ago.

Jiang Ji stroked his beard and commented: "In the expedition to the Central Plains, the most taboo thing is for the enemy to hold on without fighting. If the enemy holds on, it will turn into a cold winter, and the shipping lanes will be sluggish. In addition, the northern soil will be cold early and winter furs will not be supplied. Even if the three armies are brave, there will be nothing to do. ”

Lu Xun described it from the perspective of waterways, while Jiang Ji, a Huainan native, described it from the perspective of weather. When winter comes, not only will the ship channel be difficult to pass, but more importantly, the cold winter in the north will make the southern soldiers uncomfortable.

The difficult problems described by Lu and Jiang were actually the same as those of the northern army's southern expedition. The northern army was not accustomed to summer, nor was it accustomed to an environment with dense water networks.

Historically, Huan Wen defeated Murong Chui at the Battle of Fangtou, and almost hit all the pitfalls of his southern expedition to the north. In the winter, the waterways dried up and the soldiers and horses lacked winter clothing. In the end, Murong Chui sent out troops in April and was defeated in September.

Huang Quan has lived in Bashu all year round. Except for this expedition, he didn't know much about the situation in Huaibei. Hearing the words of Lu and Jiang, he subconsciously looked at Huo Jun.

"Does Mr. Huo have any ideas?" Huang Quan asked.

Huo Jun played with the cup and said with a smile: "The war is over now. The three gentlemen don't want to have fun. Instead, they discuss the war here. Isn't it a pity to have free time?"

Huang Quan smiled and said: "I am so excited, but I don't know how to solve it. How can I be happy?"

"hehe!"

Huo Jun poured a cup of tea for Jiang Ji and said with a smile: "Zitong has lived in Huaisi for a long time. I guess there is a way to solve it. Let Zitong discuss it briefly."

Jiang Ji took the tea cup with both hands and said: "If you want to solve the problem of not using troops in winter, you can transport troops and food in summer and gather them in autumn and winter for use in the next year. If you use troops in this way, I will be trapped in autumn and winter. What will happen to me? ?”

The reason why Huo Jun didn't answer was that the solution was not difficult. Just like Jiang Ji said, if you don't use troops in winter, the worst thing you can do is not transport food in winter. Instead, you can control the transportation of military food in summer, or find a way to obtain food and grass from the north.

The answer is actually very simple, that is, make use of strengths and avoid weaknesses, but how to do it will test the general's ability to use troops.

What is a famous general? He can probably maximize his strengths and avoid weaknesses to defeat his opponents. As mentioned before, Han and Bai will also be affected by the difficulties caused by winter, but they can use operations to either win in the summer or survive the winter and wait for the use of troops in the coming year.

Listening to such a rude answer, Huang Quan was a little bit dumbfounded, but he could understand it. Huang Quan pondered for a while and asked: "Mr. Huo, if you want to go to the north in the future, how will you go north if you are elected?"

Huo Jun sipped his saliva and said thoughtfully: "Huaixi is close to Xuluo, and Huaidong is close to Qingxu. If you want to send troops to the Central Plains, you can first move down to Qi, and then turn to Henan and spin down the Central Plains; or you can send troops to the north and go straight to the Central Plains. Yecheng.”

"Ok!"

Huang Quan nodded slightly and said: "Among Wu, Ru, Ying, and Si, the Sishui River is the most prosperous. Now Xia Pi is in the hands of our army, and we can reach Peng Song in the north."

Lu Xun hesitated for a while and asked: "If we use troops in the future, it may be difficult to accomplish anything by leaving Surabaya alone. I wonder if Mr. Huo has other arrangements?"

Huo Jun glanced at Lu Xun and seemed to understand what he was thinking. He smiled and said, "I don't know what Bo Yan said, but do you have any insights?"

"It would be better to let Jianghan and Bashu each send out an army to respond to Duke Huo." Lu Xun said.

"Ok!"

Huo Jun stroked his moustache and said, "Jun and the Prime Minister have written letters and talked deeply. In the future, the Prime Minister can send troops from Jianghan for the Northern Expedition, and the general will be ordered to leave Guanxi from Bashu."

After a pause, Huo Jun said truthfully: "Bo Yan has been in charge of Bashu for a long time and is familiar with the customs of the West. He can return to control Bashu in the future. Let Ma Chao raise his troops to Longyou, and Boyan's troops will go out of Hanzhong and march towards Guanxi to use force."

As previously arranged, Huo Jun is ready to let Zhuge Liang leave Jianghan, so it is impossible for Bashu not to send troops to share the pressure of the Central Plains for Huo and Ge. Looking at the candidates for the court, the only one available was Lu Xun.

Not only did Lu Xun have general skills, but more importantly, Lu Xun was Liu Bei's left-over minister. When Liu Chan came to the throne, in order to fight against Cao Wei, Huo Jun used his power to force Lu Xun to stay in the center. If Lu Xun is kept in the central government now, it will be detrimental to unity.

Of course, Lu Xun was both civil and military. Only by letting him serve in the Kansai region would we be able to carry out the Northern Expedition better!

"Thank you Mr. Huo!"

Lu Xun felt a little happy and thanked him.

The reason why Lu Xun was interested in conquering Bashu was that besides wanting to return to a place he was familiar with, he also didn't want to attack others. Of course, Lu Xun could barely accept it.

But Huo Jun had too many generals. In addition to his deputy Pang Tong, there were also Huang Quan, Jiang Ji, etc. In addition, as a general in charge of the army before, he could hardly command the Jianghuai troops, which really made Lu Xun not want to stay in Jianghuai.

Returning to Bashu, Lu Xun will be able to use his troops alone. And today's Guanxi is different from the past. Ma Chao split Longxi and Cao Wei occupied Guanzhong. He will have a very large space for using troops.

Lu Xun seemed to have thought of something and asked, "I wonder what Mr. Huo thinks of Ma Chao?"

Huo Jun pondered for a while and said: "Ma Chao has great ambitions and an unruly temperament. He has wanted to be king of Guanxi for a long time. Due to the current situation, he temporarily surrenders to me. One day, if the situation changes, Ma Chao will definitely join forces with Wei!"

"Of course!"

Lu Xun expressed his thoughts and said: "Huo Gong, Ma Chao is like a jackal and cannot be raised for a long time. Now it is better to look for opportunities to destroy Ma Chao first, and then use Longyou and Hanzhong to unite, and then attack Guanzhong and Hexi."

"Conquer Ma Chao?"

Although Huo Jun's expression did not change drastically, his tone was a bit surprised.

After sorting out his thoughts, Huo Jun said: "Bo Yan, there was an agreement in the Longnan alliance in the past. Ma Chao seceded Longnan from me, and Han and Liang ignored the past grievances and joined forces with Cao Wei. Now that Ma Chao has surrendered to our Han Dynasty, it is against our faith to use troops against him again." ”

After a little hesitation, Huo Jun said: "Now it is better to lead Ma Chao to the northwest and use troops to contain the Hexi soldiers and horses. Hexi has less people and a vast territory, and the commander is Guo Huai. With Guo Huai's ability, he may be able to control Ma Chao. The two armies are at odds with each other, and Boyan may be able to control him. Take advantage of the situation and go to Guanzhong.”

Lu Xun argued for his opinion and said: "Huo Gong, Ma Chao has the ability to spread information. If he is ordered to conquer Hexi now. If Hexi is occupied by him, he will occupy the northwest and will be a trouble for China. It is better to get rid of him first to solve the problem. future trouble."

"As for the covenant, Ma Chao has a disobedient heart. How can the Han Dynasty coexist with him? Soldiers are also deceitful. There are Jiang Jiong and his son as internal agents. It would be a pity if we don't take it now!"

Hearing this, Huo Jun fell silent.

In Huo Jun's view, the situation in Kansai is complicated. If he wants to break the situation, he has two strategies. One is to stab Ma Chao in the back again, as Lu Xun said, and then rely on Baliang and Long You to fight against Cao Wei's power in Kansai.

Another way of playing, contrary to Lu Xun's approach, was to lure Ma Chao to attack Hexi. Then he sent troops to Hanzhong to confront Cao Zhen to see if he could capture Guanzhong.

As for whether Ma Chao can win Hexi, Huo Jun doesn't have much hope. Not to mention that the one guarding Hexi was Guo Huai, the general of Cao Wei. Judging from the geographical situation alone, there are few people along the way and the distance is long. With Ma Chao's later supplies, it is almost impossible to conquer Hexi.

"Rong Gu, think twice!" Huo Jun said vaguely.

"promise!"

(End of this chapter)