The Jagged Cavalry of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 447 Chapter 446 West Wind (13)

Zhang Yan thought for a long time, but still couldn't think of a good solution, so he asked someone to call Dong Zhao over.

Dong Zhao had been on an envoy to Liangzhou and was familiar with the situation there, so Zhang Yan wanted to ask Dong Zhao's opinion.

Half an hour later, Dong Zhao was summoned to the palace of King Yan. After some ceremony, Zhang Yan showed Ma Chao's memorial to Dong Zhao, and asked Dong Zhao to pay attention.

After browsing through Ma Chao's memorabilia in a hurry, Dong Zhao thought for a while, and said, "His Royal Highness, Liangzhou is an inseparable part of the great man. If Liangzhou continues to be in such a mess, it will definitely affect the whole man. Now Ma Teng Serving as a guard in Beijing, Ma Teng's two sons are also in the capital, and the King of Yan has just awarded Ma Chao the title of Liangzhou Mu and Zhenxi General, and Ma Chao also expressed his acceptance of the imperial title. In this way, Ma Chao is like me. A courtier who guarded Liangzhou for me. Now that the courtier is in trouble, how can my Han court not send troops to rescue?"

Zhang Yandao: "You mean, let me send troops into Liangzhou?"

Dong Zhao nodded and said: "Although Ma Chao eradicated Han Sui's power and subdued Han Sui's tribe, he was still far behind the Xianbei people. Ma Chao is a god in the eyes of the Qiang people. General Tian, ​​the Qiang people fear Ma Chao very much and dare not be enemies with him, but the Xianbei people are not Qiang people, they are not afraid of Ma Chao. If His Royal Highness King Yan wants to reopen the Silk Road, he must give Liangzhou stability and security .Besides, Ma Chao has accepted the emperor's seal, he is the minister of the emperor, if His Highness doesn't send troops to Liangzhou, I'm afraid it will chill Ma Chao's heart."

Zhang Yan agreed with Dong Zhao's words, that Liangzhou must restore proper order and stability, and must also send troops to Liangzhou, otherwise, Ma Chao would think that he looked down on Ma Chao.

However, the current main force has already been dispatched, and it is impossible to deploy it at all, so what should he do.

After thinking about it, Zhang Yan finally understood. Ma Chao himself is a very powerful person. Since he has surrendered to the imperial court, he is equivalent to Zhang Yan's subordinate, so he doesn't have to send elite troops to Liangzhou .

Therefore, Zhang Yan made a bold decision. He would personally lead an army of [-] militiamen to Liangzhou to open the traffic arteries leading to the Western Regions and ensure the safety of caravans on the Silk Road.

Having made up his mind, Zhang Yan summoned Chen Qun, Zhang Zhao, Gu Yong, Xu Sheng and others to Prince Yan's Mansion, and told them that he was going to Liangzhou, hoping that they could stay in the capital and take good care of the rear.

Although Chen Qun and Zhang Zhao objected, Zhang Yan insisted on going his own way and insisted on leading the army to Liangzhou to open up the Silk Road in person.

Chen Qun and Zhang Zhao had no choice but to give up.

Zhang Yan drew up a list of officials who would accompany him on the expedition, including Wei Wei Ma Teng, and Ma Teng's two sons Ma Tie and Ma Xiu.In addition, there are Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu, and Xu Chu is the only one with the accompanying generals.

Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu all worked in the Puyang Tiangong Bureau. They were still working tirelessly with the craftsmen to forge, improve, and test new weapons. However, they made more than 30 rifles in a row, and all of them were eliminated because they were unqualified.Just when the mood of the three of them and the craftsman was very low, Zhang Yan issued an order to let Zhuge Liang, Pang De, and Xu Shu temporarily put down their work and go to Pengcheng.

Zhang Yan has been paying close attention to the affairs of the Tiangong Bureau. When he learned that the top and bottom of the Tiangong Bureau were distressed because of the failure to develop new weapons, he ordered the Tiangong Bureau to take a two-month holiday to let these people rest for a while.

Everyone in the Tiangong Bureau is like rain after a long drought, and no one is unhappy.Therefore, Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu left Puyang without any worries, first went to Pengcheng to meet Zhang Yan, and then set off from Pengcheng, all the way west.

On the other hand, Zhang Yan used these days to mobilize [-] militiamen, all gathered around Pengcheng, and distributed armor, weapons, and newly equipped militiamen. .

In addition, Chen Qun was dispatching grain and grass, and a special grain transportation team would first transport it to Yongzhou. As for the transportation from Yongzhou to Liangzhou, it was all handed over to Yongzhou Mu Zhongyou.

After several days of preparation, Zhang Yan's army was assembled, and Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu also arrived in Pengcheng. After meeting Zhang Yan, the three knew that Zhang Yan asked them to go to Liangzhou together, and gave them the same position. , are all joining the army.

Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu had an indescribable feeling. They didn't know whether it was joy or what, but they felt that the opportunity for them to show off their talents had come.

On April 1th, the sun was particularly dazzling, and the weather suddenly became hot. Fifty thousand troops gathered outside Pengcheng, waiting in full force. Zhang Yan asked Ma Teng to lead [-] people as the vanguard, and Zhang Yan personally led the rest of the troops. After Ma Teng.

Since the food and grass have been transported away first, it is estimated that they will soon arrive in Yongzhou, so these 5 people are all lightly packed, only carrying dry food and water, which is enough for three days. After three days, the food and grass are used up, and the counties and counties along the way will provide them. Dry food and water are provided, so there is no need to worry about running out of food and grass.

After the army set off, it headed westward in a mighty way. Because there was no luggage, the soldiers marched faster. It took only fifteen days to arrive from Pengcheng to Yongzhou.

After arriving in Yongzhou, Mu Zhongyou of Yongzhou had already prepared everything, and personally led civil and military officials to greet Zhang Yan. He insisted on letting Zhang Yan enter Chang'an City to rest, but Zhang Yan refused.

Zhong Yao then handed over all the grain, grass and supplies that had been transported earlier to Zhang Yan. Zhang Yan asked Xu Chu to lead the army to receive them, and continued to command the army to advance westward. When passing by Chencang, Niu Jin saw that Zhang Yan was not leading the main force, but The army formed by the militia suddenly felt a little worried, so he offered to transfer half of his soldiers and horses, and followed Zhang Yan into Liangzhou.

This move was also approved by Zhong Yao, who proposed that Niu Jin lead five thousand soldiers to follow Zhang Yan to Liangzhou.Zhang Yan couldn't resist, so he had to agree to Zhong Yao and Niu Jin's request.

This brought the number of the army to fifty-five thousand men.

The Han army headed west all the way towards Liangzhou, and Ma Chao in Liangzhou had already learned that Zhang Yan was going to lead the army to Liangzhou more than half a month ago, so Ma Chao led the army to Liangzhou. A guard of honor of 300 people came to the junction of Liangzhou and Yongzhou, waiting patiently for Zhang Yan's arrival.

A few days later, Ma Chao finally met Zhang Yan's army on the banks of the Weishui River. When he learned that the person leading the team in front was his father, he couldn't restrain his inner joy any longer. In front of his father, meet Ma Teng.

After Ma Teng, Ma Chao, father and son exchanged pleasantries, Ma Teng ordered the army to stop advancing, and he took Ma Chao to see Yan Wang Zhang Yan.

Zhang Yan was on the march, and was four or five miles away from Ma Teng's former army. When he learned that Ma Teng had brought Ma Chao to meet him, Zhang Yan ordered the army to temporarily stop advancing, while he set up an army on the side of the road. Temporary meeting tent.

Ma Teng brought Ma Chao to Zhang Yan, and Zhang Yan looked at Ma Chao from a long distance. Seeing Ma Chao's handsome appearance, imposing appearance, and extraordinary power, he liked Ma Chao a little.

While Zhang Yan was looking at Ma Chao, Ma Chao was also looking at Zhang Yan. What he never expected was that Zhang Yan was such a young person. In terms of age, he was only a few years older than him. Now Zhang Yan King Yan, who is already the regent, and he is just a little Liangzhou shepherd, this kind of gap in his heart immediately made him feel very uncomfortable.

Ma Chao is a person who refuses to admit defeat. His own conditions are very good, his force is high, and his reputation is great. It is a pity that this is only limited to Liangzhou. Compared with Zhang Yan, who is famous all over the world, he is simply far behind.

It was this huge gap in heart that made Ma Chao realize how big the gap was between himself and Zhang Yan, and he secretly swore in his heart that when he reached Zhang Yan's age, he would be the same as Zhang Yan, and he would be the same as Zhang Yan. Make a king.

After Zhang Yan was crowned king with a different surname, many overlords of the separatist regime were ready to move. Among them, Liu Biao of Jingzhou, Sun Ce of Jiangdong, Gongsun Kang of Liaodong, Liu Zhang of Yizhou, and Zhang Lu of Hanzhong, which one did not want to be king?
But these people also kept this kind of ambition in their hearts, because Zhang Yan's throne was conferred by the emperor himself, whether it was forced or what, anyway, Zhang Yan's throne was conferred by the emperor.If they all claim to be kings without authorization, it is tantamount to establishing themselves as kings, which is a crime of treason.

Therefore, even though many of these people were good enough to be kings, they still endured due to the limitations of the politics of that era.

Ma Chao is different. He has lived in the frontier of Liangzhou for a long time, and has read some books roughly, but he dismisses the red tape of the Central Plains. In his life dictionary, he is a king, and he is also a king. Why can't he be with the world? The rest of Wang Ping sits on an equal footing?
However, the current Ma Chao also understands very well that his power has just been born and is not enough to become a king, but the seeds of becoming a king have already been planted in his heart, and he is about to move in this direction in the future.

"Your Majesty, Ma Chao, kowtow to His Royal Highness the King of Yan!" Ma Chao came to Zhang Yan, knelt down on the ground, and bowed respectfully to Zhang Yan.Even though he was absolutely unwilling, he still knelt down.

Zhang Yan liked Ma Chao very much, and felt like old friends at the first sight, so he hurriedly said: "General Ma, please get up quickly and sit down!"

As soon as the words fell, the soldiers brought out several wooden stools, one for Ma Teng, one for Ma Chao, and the remaining three for Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu.

After thanking Ma Chao, he sat down on the stool. His sharp eyes quickly scanned around. When he saw Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, and Xu Shu, three people dressed as literati, he secretly thought: "Not only is King Yan so young, why are his followers also so young?"

Looking at the people around Zhang Yan, almost everyone is between 30 and [-] years old, and all of them are strong and strong, with a very neat military appearance.In the entire army, there is not a single old or weak person.

At this time, a rough-looking man walked over from the side. This man was wearing iron armor and an iron helmet on his head. His eyes were piercing, and he had already arrived at Zhang Yan's side without saying a word. Standing by Zhang Yan's side, it was the first time Ma Chao had seen such an aura of looking down on the world.

Zhang Yan noticed that Ma Chao was watching Xu Chu standing beside him, so he hurriedly said: "General Ma, I'm here to introduce you. The one standing next to me is one of the five tiger generals in the imperial court." Xu Chu, the great general of Huben, this time I come to Liangzhou, I will rely on you two a lot, you can get closer!"

The reputation of the five tiger generals is extremely resounding. General Hulie Tai Shici, Huyi General Xu Huang, Huya General Zhang Liao, Huwei General Zhao Yun, and Huben General Xu Chu jointly formed the Five Tiger Generals. In addition, under Zhang Yan's tent are Gan Ning, Zhang He, Gao Shun, Zang Ba, Zhou Tai, Gao Lan, Jiang Qin, Xu Sheng, Niu Jin, Li Dian, Lu Meng and other brave generals are all powerful figures in Zhang Yan's tent.

Ma Chao had heard about the Five Tiger Generals for a long time, but he always believed that these people were all worthless people.

When Ma Chao heard that the person standing next to Zhang Yan was one of the Five Tiger Generals, Huben General Xu Chuzhi, he immediately became interested. , I wonder if General Xu can discuss everything with Ma?"

(End of this chapter)