Cao Thief

Chapter 538 Liangzhou decisive battle (eight)
The north wind howled, and the northwest wind blowing from the Hehuang Plain was wrapped in goose feathers and heavy snow, flying all over the sky.

Ma Chao stood outside the big tent of the Chinese army, looking at the snowflakes all over the sky, his face was a bit dark, which made his handsome face look a little hideous.

"The grain and grass for Lingju haven't arrived yet?"

The sound of footsteps came from behind, and Ma Chao asked without turning his head.

Ma Dai stopped behind him, hesitated for a moment, and said in a low voice: "It hasn't been delivered yet... I have sent people to Lingju to urge, but I am not sure if I can get the food. Li Yue returned to Zhangye yesterday , I don’t know if some can be expropriated. Brother, it has been more than a month in the blink of an eye, and the first snow has arrived. If the food and grass are not enough, we can’t last long. In my opinion, it is best to return to Zhangye County, and then order people to go to Yun I, remind me."

Cheng Yin is from Feiwo!

While Lingju was responsible for containing Cangsong Cao's army, he was also responsible for supplying Zhangye's grain and grass.

Zhangye County is a county with Qiang people as the main body, most of them are animal husbandry, and only a small number of people are engaged in farming.In the past, Zhangye Qiang lived on the supply of Wuwei County.They bought cattle, sheep, horses, and furs from Hehuang in exchange for necessities of food, clothing, housing and transportation from Ma Teng.Now Wuwei County is occupied by Cao Peng, and Zhangye Qiang is in the season of exchange, but instead of Wuwei County, there is inevitably a shortage of food, salt and other aspects of the embarrassment.

Ma Chao naturally knew this too.

There is no need for him to doubt Li Yue's loyalty.

But it is very difficult to collect food and grass from Zhangye.

With an army of nearly ten thousand, the daily consumption of food and grass is astonishing. How can a small Zhangye County be able to afford it?

Before, relying on the continuous supply of Jincheng County, it could support it.

But now there is a problem with the grain and grass in Jincheng County, which makes Ma Chao feel inexplicable pressure immediately.

"How long can the food and grass in the camp last?"

"The food and grass sent by Cheng Yin last time, there is not much left... I asked the master book at noon, and he said that it can only last for ten days. This is because Li Yue took away a part of the people. If Li Yue's people If we return, I’m afraid we won’t last seven days.”

Ten days, sounds wonderful.

But in fact, compared with the battlefield, these ten days are nothing more than a wave of hands...

If Li Yue expropriated the grain and grass, it would be fine. If not, there would be big troubles.This battle relies on logistics. If the logistics cannot be guaranteed, it will have a vital impact on the battle situation.Ma Chao originally thought that relying on Jincheng County's transportation, the problem would not be a big problem.But now it seems that Jincheng County may not be able to supply...

"Can't move!"

Ma Chao smiled wryly, "The reason why we are stationed here is to consider that Zhang Yeqiang's burden is too heavy.

If we go back at this time, I'm afraid Zhangye Qiang will collapse in a day.The consumption of [-] soldiers and horses is definitely not something that Zhangye Qiang can support. We are stationed outside, and Zhangye Qiang can still fully support us; if we go back, I am afraid that conflicts will arise immediately.Although Li Yue is Zhangye Qiang's handsome man, he will not be able to suppress him at that time..."

Ma Chao thought about it very carefully.

The population of Zhangye County is even less than [-], which is a place where supplies are scarce.

The reason why he raised troops with Ma Chao was more because of Li Yue's admiration and support for Ma Chao.For a county that could not even guarantee self-sufficiency in supplies, if an additional [-] soldiers and horses were added, the impact would be enormous.

Ma Chao didn't dare, and didn't want to gamble!

He only hoped that Ma Teng could end the war as soon as possible, so that part of his strength could be mobilized to increase the pressure on Wuwei County.This piece of Ye County must not be lost. Once it is lost, the last part of the Ma family's strength in Wuwei County will be lost.That's why Ma Chao insisted on staying in Zhangye under such difficult circumstances.

"Then, shall I send someone to urge you?"

Ma Dai asked softly.

"For this matter, urging Cheng Yin is not very useful. It still depends on Master Fei... Cheng Yin, it's just that Fei Wo has a dog. Urging him is better than urging Fei Wo. In this way, you hold the arrow of my command." , immediately send people to Yunwu, and ask Fei Wo to allocate food and grass as soon as possible. Fei Chengda stationed troops in Luodu Valley (and Ledu County), and there is plenty of food and grass. As long as Fei Wo asks, Fei Chengda will allocate food and grass for up to five days , can alleviate our lack of food and grass.

At that time, Li Yue can be ordered to attack from Zhangye to attack Lushuitan...

Cao Youxue thought he sent people to station at Lushuitan, I don't know?Hey, I'm just waiting for the right moment. "

If Cao Peng were here, he would be very surprised.

Is this still the brave and foolish Ma Mengqi?Judging from his remarks, this guy is definitely a master with deep thoughts, and he is extremely tolerant.But if you think about it, you can understand it.Ma Teng can sit in Xiliang because of Ma Chao.When Guo Yuan's high-ranking cadres ravaged Hedong, wasn't it Ma Chao who led the army and assisted Cao Cao in defeating Guo Yuan?

A master who can command an army, how can he be brave and foolhardy?
Ma Dai agreed and took the order to go.

Ma Chao took his own army and went straight to the rear camp.

The area of ​​the rear camp is not too large, but it is heavily guarded.Seeing Ma Chao approaching, the two generals from Xiliang rushed forward to salute.

Ma Chao waved his hand, and asked in a deep voice, "How, can it be built?"

"My lord, this thing is actually not difficult to make. The general ordered the craftsmen to make it according to Cao Jun's equipment. However, the stirrup is easy to make, but the saddle is a bit troublesome... We don't have so many cobblers here, so we have to do it thoroughly. I'm afraid it's not easy to imitate according to Cao Jun's equipment. Another idea of ​​the last general is to use a mixture of fur and hemp. In this way, the pressure on the cobbler will be greatly reduced, and this kind of needlework can be undertaken by women."

"What's the effect?"

"The difference won't be too big, it's just that it's not as durable as full fur."

Ma Chao rolled his eyes, and suddenly said, "Leave the horse."

A snow-riding horse was pulled out of the stable in high spirits. Seeing Ma Chao, Xi Yuyu hissed for a while, feeling very happy.

This is Ma Chao's mount, which is extremely handsome.

However, at the moment it is wearing a pair of high bridge saddles, the saddle is tightly fastened, and two stirrups hang on both sides of the horse's belly...

Takahashi saddle, double stirrups!
If Cao Peng saw it, he would be surprised again.

Ma Chao has discovered Cao Jun's secret.Before Ma Chao and Cao Peng confronted each other at Luanniao City, they felt something strange.He found that Cao Peng and him were just brothers, but for some reason, Cao Peng was able to exert strength continuously on the horse, and when he straddled the horse, he looked very calm, which made him a little curious.

He immediately guessed that there must be a huge secret in Cao Peng's hands.

So he ordered people to gather Cao Jun's war horses, and soon discovered the existence of Gaoqiao saddle and double stirrups.Fortunately, apart from the Flying Camel Soldiers and White Camel Soldiers, Cao Peng has not yet had time to promote horseshoes throughout the army.Otherwise, all the secrets of the Three Treasures of Ma Zhong will be exposed.After setting up the camp, Ma Chao recuperated for a few days, and then ordered people to start imitating stirrups and high saddles.

This is not a particularly complicated process in the first place, the key is an understanding.

You know, then the craftsmanship is equivalent to being cracked!
If you don't know, it's still a secret... Ma Chao pulled the saddle and recognized the stirrups, turned over and sat astride the horse, tapped the horse's belly with his feet, stepped on the snow, neighed, and ran in the rear camp.Ma Chao is as clever as a swallow, making various movements on the horse's back to test the use of the saddle and stirrups.I saw the war horse galloping, and the horse super united with the horse, which attracted the applause of all the generals in Xiliang.After running more than ten laps, Ma Chao suddenly let out a long whistle.

Stepping on the snow and Wuzhao stopped immediately, and Ma Chao got off his horse.

"Eldest son, how are you?"

Ma Chao laughed loudly, "From this baby, my Xiliang iron cavalry is even more powerful.

Immediately ordered to speed up the production of stirrups and saddles... Well, after they are produced, they will be distributed to my Flying Tiger Guards first, and then promoted to the entire army.As for the mixed system, the [-] saddles of the Flying Tiger Guards should be mainly made of fur. As for the others, mixed systems can be considered.In short, we must complete the replacement of the entire army as soon as possible, and then..."

A gloomy look flashed across Ma Chao's face.

After I assemble these things, Cao Peng!Let's compete again and let me see how capable you are!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++
time, day by day.

It has been three days in a blink of an eye.

As Ma Chao guessed, Cheng Yin did not allocate food and grass.

But his reason is very good, that is, Ling Ju does not have much food in storage.It was not easy for Ma Chao to contain the phoenix in Zhangye. Lingju had to cross the tributaries of the Huangshui River, constantly attacking, exerting pressure on the pines and pinning down the pines.

The consumption of grain and grass in Lingju is equally astonishing.

According to Cheng Yin, he is completely relying on Luodu Valley's supplies now, and has no spare energy to support Ma Chao's troops.

Cheng Yin is a native of Jincheng County, and was once a part of Han Sui's trilogy.

After Han Sui's death, Cheng Yin and the candidates were reused by Ma Teng through Feiwo's relationship.

And Luodu Valley's main general, Fei Long, also known as Fei Chengda, is Fei Wo's son.In contrast, they were both from Jincheng, and Fei Chengda had a close relationship with the candidate Cheng Yin, so it was naturally impossible for him to treat Cheng Yin badly.But Ma Chao is different... Ma Chao and Fei Long have nothing to do with each other, and because of Ma Tie, the Fei family and Ma Chao are not in harmony.

It is indeed very difficult to get Fei Long to support Ma Chao.

But the most important thing is Feiwo's attitude.If Feiwo is willing to support Ma Chao, Feilong will naturally not be able to make things difficult.But now, what is Feiwo thinking?Nobody knows.The battle in Longxi was in full swing, and Fei Wo didn't have that much energy to take care of Ma Chao.After Ma Teng captured Didao, he drove Wei Duan and his son to Hanyang County.But this does not mean that Ma Teng has easily controlled the entire Longxi County in his hands.

In the eleven counties of Longxi County, apart from Baishi Paohan in Heguan, Ma Teng only occupied Didao and Lintao.

In addition, with Wei Duan's defeat, Ma Teng won the two counties of Shouyang and Angu, and now he is stationed in Wuxiju and is using troops against Zhang County.That is to say, of the eleven counties in Longxi, Ma Teng won seven counties, and five counties were still resisting.

Among them, Zhang County is particularly important.

Ma Teng didn't want to completely occupy Longxi County, but he had to capture Zhang County.

After Yang Fu rescued Wei Duan and his son, he ordered generals Kong Xin and Wang Ling to defend Zhang County and Xiangwu to the death, thus saving Hanyang County from the flames of war.But how long it can last, I'm afraid even Yang Fu himself is not sure.

The war in Liangzhou is not over yet.

On the day of the arrival of the first snow, it just kicked off the prelude.

Ma Chao knew this very well, but he also knew that Fewo didn't like him very much.

But now, he has no choice but to rely on Feiwo's support.If Feiwo refuses to allocate food and grass, Zhangye will surely lose.

Ma Teng wins, but Ma Chao loses?

This is by no means the result Ma Chao wanted to see.

In that case, his reputation will plummet... God knows what Ma Teng, who has just changed his mind, will think?
"Feiwo, do you have any news?"

Ma Dai said with a wry smile: "The envoy has just returned, and the secretary of the speech fee promised that he will raise food and grass as soon as possible to alleviate the danger of Zhangye."

"As soon as possible? How fast is that!"

"..."

Ma Chao couldn't laugh or cry!

Don't be afraid of opponents like gods, but be afraid of robes like pigs.

It's this time, and you still suppress me, and still want to fight among yourself?Your grandson is dead, and your daughter was captured by Cao Peng, what capital do you have in your hands to fight against me?Unless you give birth to a girl who will be my daughter-in-law, this Liangzhou foundation will belong to me sooner or later... Fei Wo, you are doing it to yourself, making yourself uncomfortable.

How could Ma Chao not guess Feiwo's thought?

However, he has no other choice now.At least for now, if Feiwo doesn't support him, he will lose sooner or later.

"..."

After pondering for a while, he suddenly stood up and said, "My dear brother, how about this, I will immediately take someone to meet Fei Wo in Yunwu, and urge him to allocate food and grass. You and Li Yue, one guarding the army stronghold and the other guarding Zhangye, must To prevent Cao Jun from attacking.

The day before yesterday, Tanma said that Cao Peng had returned to Guzang because of Wang Meng's death and he was ill.

How can you lie to me with a mere subtotal?He is trying to lure the snake out of the hole and trick me into attacking... I will not follow his wishes, let's see how long he can last.Now, it depends on who has the patience to make the first move.I will go to Yunwu for three to five days at most. Before I come back, you and Li Yue should remember not to act rashly.I'll make a decision when I get back. "

Ma Dai is a soft-tempered master.

In other words, even if you have no ambitions, you can't make up your mind.

He does what others tell him to do.Ma Dai is an excellent executor, not a decision maker.

This can be seen from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

After Ma Dai returned to Shuhan with Ma Chao, there was nothing special about him.Besides beheading Wei Yan... oh, that was done according to Zhuge Liang's will.Almost everything he does is done by order.

In this way, there will be no big achievements, but no big mistakes.

Don't seek meritorious deeds, but seek no faults... In his previous life, Cao Peng joked with others: Zhuge Liang's greatest achievement in Shu Han was raising a group of obedient dogs.In the battle of Jieting, if Ma Dai was the main general, he might not be able to win a complete victory.

It's a pity that Zhuge Liang finally chose a not-quiet Ma Di.

Ma Dai cupped his hands and said: "Don't worry, brother, I will keep an eye on Cao Jun."

Ma Chao nodded, and it was considered a matter of peace.On the same day, he raised his soldiers and horses, braved the wind and snow to leave the camp, and went straight to Yunwu.

As long as I have enough food and grass, it will be the day when we will have a showdown!

Cao Peng, just wait for me...

(End of this chapter)