I seek economic hegemony in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 431 Sima Yi is locked up

On April 23, Yang Yi walked quickly into Zhuge Liang's camp.

"Prime Minister, good news!"

"Ok?"

"Wei Yan defeated the 30,000 troops of Liu Jing, the governor of Liangzhou in Cao Wei!"

Zhuge Liang immediately received the good news, read it quickly, and was overjoyed: "Okay! Great! The length of the article has never let me down!"

Seeing Zhuge Liang praising Wei Yan so much, Yang Yi said: "Prime Minister, I have something to say that I don't know whether to say or not. Since the matter is serious, I think I should say it."

"What's the matter?"

"The lower official heard that Wei Yan massacred innocent people in Pingyang City, and allowed soldiers to burn, kill and loot in Yong'an. He committed all kinds of evil!"

"really?"

As for the reward, Zhuge Liang also reported it for him.

Wei Yan defeated the main force of the Wei army in Bingzhou at Yong'an in Sizhou, but it did not mean that Bingzhou had belonged to the Han Dynasty.

Yang Yi saw that Zhuge Liang was unwilling to immediately express his stance on punishing Wei Yan, so it was not appropriate to continue fanning Wei Yan.

Recalling Wei Yan now is obviously a taboo for military strategists.

"Here."

Zhuge Liang immediately wrote a letter to Wei Yan, in which he affirmed Wei Yan's contribution.

Now changing generals on the spot will affect military morale.

"Prime Minister..."

"I have my own arrangements."

"Go and arrange for people to coordinate prisoners of war and armaments."

"Prime Minister, killing civilians is a taboo." Seeing Zhuge Liang finish writing the letter, Yang Yi quickly started to fan the flames, "The lower official feels that Wei Yan should be transferred back from the front line immediately. If he goes to Bingzhou, he will probably massacre all the counties. Kong, when the world is shaken and all the states rise up to resist our great Han, won’t the many years of hard work of the late Emperor and the Prime Minister be wasted?”

But he also very seriously pointed out the shortcomings of Wei Yan's march. He killed civilians indiscriminately and only briefly took the initiative. If he went to Bingzhou next, he would inevitably encounter desperate resistance from the counties.

Zhuge Liang fell into silence.

"Don't worry, Sima Yi will come to your door. Jie County is in our hands. There is a large shortage of salt in Luoyang, and Sima Yi dare not not go to war."

Zhuge Liang sat down again and summoned Huo Yi.

"It's absolutely true. Some officials reported it to the lower officials. Of course, whether it's true or not, the Prime Minister will recall Wei Yan and we'll know after asking."

Taiyuan has not yet been conquered, and there is still Yunzhong.

This will definitely make it more difficult to regain the state.

For this reason, Zhuge Liang fined Wei Yan one year's salary.

"Prime Minister."

He changed the subject and said: "Prime Minister, since the soldiers and horses of Bingzhou were defeated by our army, why not take advantage of the victory and attack Sima Yi's tribe in Hebei County?"

"Xian Shao, how are the tea sales going?"

"They've all been snatched up." Huo Yi smiled, "In just half a month, several prominent families in Hedong County have bought them."

"Isn't there any left?"

"There is not a single bit left, and there are several families among them who want us to restock."

Zhuge Liang nodded and said with a smile: "It seems that the sales of tea are going more smoothly than I expected."

"Because of this matter, several big families who were previously opposed have now helped us start a debate, telling the countryside that Master Wang is about to save the people from disaster."

Yang Yi on the side was stunned for a while.

Is this tea thing so awesome?

"That's good. Ji'an's tea diplomacy is actually more effective than the army." Zhuge Liang sighed, "That's what the so-called military strategy is."

"It also requires Master Wang to have strong military support." Huo Yi added, "Both of them are indispensable."

"Is there any more tea?"

"There are still stocks in Chang'an, and there are sufficient quantities in Yizhou."

"Wenchang Wei has defeated the soldiers and horses of Bingzhou and will immediately import tea to Bingzhou. We must shake Cao Wei's foundation in Bingzhou in a short time."

"Here!"

At noon on April 25th, Sima Yi just woke up. Gao Rou said to him: "Master, this is the tea that has been spread in Hedong County recently." "Has it been spread to Hedong County?"

"People from all major families are rushing to buy it."

Sima Yi looked at the cup of crystal-colored tea in front of him and asked, "Can you drink it?"

"You can drink it."

Sima Yi picked it up doubtfully, took a breath, and then his face became condensed.

"This...is this tea?"

"This is tea!"

"Produced in Yizhou?"

"Yes."

"Which counties currently have it?"

"I've only heard about it in Hedong County so far, but I heard there are quite a few in Chang'an."

A trace of pain flashed in Sima Yi's eyes, and he said: "After the war is over, all those who bought tea will be eliminated."

"Master, why is this?"

"This thing is more terrifying than Shu brocade. If we let it in, a lot of our wealth will be wiped out by Zhuge Liang."

"Is it so serious?" Gao Rou couldn't help but take a breath, "Fortunately, our army currently has the advantage. After defeating the Shu army, we will blockade the Shu army in Guanzhong."

As soon as he finished speaking, an urgent sound came from outside.

"Report! Report! Urgent report!"

"Enter!"

An urgent report was delivered to Sima Yi. Sima Yi curiously took it and opened it. He was shocked and said: "Liu Jing has been defeated!"

"Liu Jing was defeated?" Gao Rou was also shocked, "How is this possible? Liu Jing has 30,000 troops, and he just received the order to go south not long ago..."

"Go and investigate quickly, go and investigate quickly!"

Sima Yi shouted while holding back the pain.

Two days later, Sima Yi received definite news: Liu Jingzhen was defeated.

Sima Yi stayed alone in the camp for a long time before ordering the entire army to break camp and march northward into Hedong County.

He has no time. If the Han army controls Jie County for more than two months, the salt supply in Luoyang will be reduced by one-third, and the price of salt will inevitably rise sharply.

At that time, all political forces in Luoyang will place the responsibility on him.

Not to mention military defeat, politically he may be counterattacked.

Now he has almost no choice. He has been locked up at the tactical level. He can only bite the bullet and go north to Hedong County to fight Zhuge Liang head-on.

And there is no support from the north.

If he loses, he can only watch Bingzhou being controlled by Zhuge Liang.

Of course, more operating space was lost on the Hedong battlefield. Before setting off, Sima Yi sent an order to Wang Jun in Tongguan: pay close attention to the situation in Chang'an.

Early in the morning on April 28th, 50,000 elite Wei troops from Hebei County began to march north.

The Battle of Hedong is about to break out.

The commander-in-chief on one side was Zhuge Kongming, the prime minister of the Han Dynasty, and on the other side was Sima Zhongda, the leader of Cao Wei.

These two people had fought against each other several times in Guanzhong more than ten years ago.

After Sima Yi withdrew from Guanzhong, he gradually took control of the Cao Wei regime, integrated all forces, and gained power in both the government and the opposition.

After Zhuge Liang entered Chang'an, he began to delegate power and gradually retreated behind the scenes to cultivate his body.

Both sides are the top wise men of this era.

But both sides plan to use the most primitive way to decide the outcome: a conference battle.

The big battle is not the cause, but the result of the two sides after several games.

Of course, outside of the Hedong battlefield, both sides also have further arrangements.

Sima Yi arranged for Wang Jun, and Zhuge Liang arranged for Xiahou Ba.

(End of this chapter)