Great Han Empire

Chapter 790
In December, Jinyang, heavy snow.

The Spring Festival is approaching, Jinyang City is filled with a peaceful atmosphere, and every household is busy cleaning the house.

On the 24th of the twelfth lunar month, dust off and sweep the house.According to the records of "Lu Shi Chunqiu", this custom of sweeping dust existed in the Yao and Shun era.Sweeping dust is called "sweeping the house" in the north, and "sweeping dust" in the south. "Dust" and "Chen" are homophonic. Sweeping dust in the New Year means "removing the old and bringing forth the new".

When people were busy cleaning the six Lu courtyards, brushing off the dirt and cobwebs, and preparing for the New Year, the ministers of the court gathered in the palace, arguing fiercely over whether to support Xijiang in attacking Guanzhong.

Zhongshujian is located in the Phoenix Pond in the palace, only a few dozen steps away from the forbidden center, which is very convenient for the eldest princess to enter and exit.Because the battle situation in Guanzhong directly affects the future Central Plains War, the eldest princess arrived at Fenghuangchi early in the morning and summoned Prime Minister Cai Yong, Taiwei Xu Rong, Yushi doctor Liu He, Shang Shuling Li Wei, Zhongshu Supervisor Xun You and other ministers Discuss countermeasures.

It has been a few days since Han Sui's memorial was sent, and the ministers and ministers have their own opinions, and there are great differences, but the opinions against aiding Han Sui clearly prevail.

Maybe the ministers were tired from arguing in the courtroom these days, and now everyone is sitting in the spacious main room, looking at the beautiful snow scene outside, talking and laughing leisurely in a low voice by the exquisite small stove, the atmosphere is very relaxed.

The eldest princess was sitting high on the table, talking with Prime Minister Cai Yong and Tai Chang Cui Lie about Tian Chou's marriage in the future.Tian Chou stood behind the eldest princess, smiling all over his face, listening quietly, reveling in his own happiness.

"General Long Xiang, Mr. Zhao, Zhijin Wu, here..." Following the shout of the eunuch on duty at the door, Zhao Yun strode in with snowflakes all over his body.

He now leads the Northern Army stationed in Longshan Camp.After receiving the edict from the eldest princess, he rushed forty miles to Jinyang to participate in the political discussion.

The eldest princess waved her hand, and asked Zhao Yun to sit on the table after saluting, "Today, I ask my lords not to quarrel. Please explain your reasons clearly, don't attack each other, and don't insult each other. He drove out of Phoenix Pond."

=

Although the support for Xijiang is mainly based on money and food, it mainly involves military affairs. Therefore, under the gaze of the eldest princess, Taiwei Xu Rong first explained the opinions of the Taiwei Mansion.

Xu Rong served as Taiwei, which was unanimously approved by the court.Both Xu Rong and Xian Yufu are from Youzhou, they are both from local prestigious clans, they are both distinguished generals in northern Xinjiang, and they are both prudent and prudent, but there is one fundamental difference between the two, that is, Xian Yufu The blood of the barbarians flows through his body.This was the main reason why many officials in the Jinyang court could not accept Xian Yufu. Secondly, compared with Xu Rong, Xian Yufu had a more upright and loyal character.The shortcoming of this kind of person is that it is not easy to be flexible, which can be seen from the completely different attitudes adopted by the two when the Eldest Princess implemented the earth-breaking policy.

Xian Yufu was very wise, he knew that his background and character were not suitable for court.Beijiang in the past and Hebei today are completely different things, so he left without hesitation. He felt that his world was Beijiang, and only there could he regain his dignity and self-confidence.The Eldest Princess and the imperial court worshiped him as the General of the Left Guard, and he was stationed in Youzhou, which was also a consolation for him to choose to leave the imperial court.

Xu Rong insisted on assisting Xijiang and helping Xijiang to conquer Guanzhong.

The outbreak of war in Guanzhong has many benefits for Hebei.

The battle in Guanzhong will contain Yuan Shao's main force on the Guanzhong battlefield.Yuan Shao was short of troops and could not concentrate his forces to attack Hanoi, which would help Zhang Liao defend Hanoi, gain a firm foothold in Hanoi, and threaten Luoyang.As the Guanzhong War continues, Yuan Shao's influence on the Central Plains will also decrease dramatically.Cao Cao and Liu Bei are bound to take the opportunity to attack Yuan Shu, and the conquests among all parties in the Central Plains will become more intense, which will help us win the Central Plains in the next few years.

Regardless of the outcome of the Guanzhong War, Yuan Shao's losses will be astonishing, which will severely damage Yuan Shao's strength.Yuan Shao's strength is weak, and the benefits to Hebei are obvious.

"The point of contention, my lords, is not the benefits of the Guanzhong War to Hebei, but the harm to Hebei from the Guanzhong War." Xu Rong then changed the subject and explained the reasons why the ministers opposed supporting Xijiang these days.

In the Guanzhong War, not only Yuan Shao was damaged, but Hebei as well.

Hebei has to pay a heavy price for this. First, because of the shortage of wealth, the time to attack the Central Plains will definitely be delayed, and the time to pacify the world will naturally be delayed. Second, once Han Sui occupies Guanzhong, the power of Western Xinjiang will suddenly expand. Fuel Han Sui's ambition.With the strength of all parties ebbing and flowing, he is very likely to betray the imperial court and rely on the benefits of Guanzhong to rule the roost separately.This move is purely breeding tigers.

=

"My lords' concerns are very reasonable, but I ask you to look back." Xu Rong waved his hand solemnly.

Is the reason why the big man has come to this day only because of traitors, Dong Zhuo and his ilk, who ruined the country?Is it just because of the rebellion of the Yellow Turban Army?Some people may say that the peril of the country is related to the weakness of the great Han, the disasters of refugees for decades, and the natural and man-made disasters of the Han for decades, but why don't you say that the Western Xinjiang rebellion lasted for more than 100 years? Is it also one of the important reasons why Dahan turned from prosperity to decline?

In order to quell the rebellion in western Xinjiang, which has been suppressed repeatedly, the imperial court has invested hundreds of thousands of troops and tens of billions of wealth, exhausting the national power of the Han Dynasty, and several emperors of this dynasty faced with the empty treasury, so they had to aggravate the situation. Taxes, selling officials and nobles, and even selling crimes at a low price.There are many reasons why the Han Dynasty has come to this precarious predicament today, and the imperial court has insisted on sending troops to suppress the rebellion in Xijiang for nearly a hundred years.

Why did the imperial court try to maintain the stability of Western Xinjiang?
Because Xijiang is the gateway of Guanzhong and Gyeonggi, and the instability of Xijiang, Qiang cavalry will take advantage of it.Once Western Xinjiang becomes the pasture of the Qiang people, Guan and Luo will become battlefields, and the Central Plains will directly face the attacks of the Hu people.

When the general agreed to Han Sui without hesitation and was willing to provide relief to Xijiang, many officials in Hebei did not understand, and the general summoned all the officials to explain this.

Although Han Sui is the leader of the rebel army in Xijiang, he is a Han. Regardless of whether he is sincerely appeased or not, he is still a Han. He is still the general of the Han Dynasty. He wants to fight to protect Xijiang.Looking back at what Han Sui has done in Xijiang over the past ten years, we have to admit that it was Han Sui's efforts that allowed the big man to keep the land of Xijiang.

What is our goal today?It's ZTE's big man, not to dominate the world, let alone lay down a country for himself.

The western border is the territory of the Great Han. In order to protect the territory of the Great Han and defeat the Hu people who invaded the Great Han, even if Han Sui is rebellious, we must support him, because at that time Han Sui and our goal were the same, and he was fighting for the Great Han. Fighting, fighting for every inch of the big man's land.

In the future, when we stand on that blood-stained land, when we see those bones that we once regarded as rebellious, do you still think they are rebellious?No, they are the heroes of the big man, the heroes who guard every inch of land for the big man.

As long as the Han is there, Xijiang will be there, and Xijiang will always be a part of the Han.We must not lose Xijiang, and we must not let Xijiang be ravaged under the iron hooves of the Hu people.

That's why we helped Han Sui.

=

"My lords are not very clear about today's situation in Xijiang." Xu Rong calmed down his agitation, and continued, "My lords, please turn your attention to today's Xijiang."

Although the Eastern Qiang in western Xinjiang has surrendered to the imperial court, there are still Xiqiang in western Xinjiang, including Baima Qiang, Shenlang Qiang in the south, and Shaodang Qiang near Xihe (now Qinghai). There are also Zhuoxie Mountain The Xianbei people to the west, as well as the countries of the Western Regions.

The Baima Qiang, Shenlang Qiang, Shaodang Qiang and other tribes took advantage of the turmoil of the Han Dynasty and continued to attack Jincheng, Longxi, and Wudu, threatening the hinterland of Liangzhou and restraining most of the troops in Western Xinjiang.

At the same time, some tribes of Shaodang Qiang crossed Qilian Mountain and attacked Hexi to the north, while Xianbei people west of Zhuoxie Mountain and Cheshi, Shan (shan) and other countries in the Western Regions also took the opportunity to invade.

Han Sui's strength was weak, and he couldn't take care of both ends, so he was gradually driven out of Hexi.

In this way, Zhangye, Jiuquan, Dunhuang, the vassal state of Zhangye and the vassal state of Zhangye Juyan in the west of Xinjiang were lost.

These five prefectures included three of the original four prefectures in Hexi. These places were the territories that Emperor Xiaowu, General Wei Qing, General Huo Qubing, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers had worked hard for decades.Today, our descendants are incompetent and have lost it.This is a disgrace to the big man, and it is even more a shame to us descendants of the big man.

However, the plight of Xijiang is far from that.

In order to defend the western frontier, Han Sui has frequently used troops in recent years, and at the same time stationed heavy troops in the south, north, and west of Liangzhou.The financial resources in Xijiang were limited. Han Sui had to do everything possible to feed the people in Xijiang, but also to defend the frontier with all his strength. Where did he get so much money and food?Everyone knows that the barrenness of western Xinjiang is much poorer than that of northern Xinjiang. In addition, it has experienced more than 100 years of war, and the government was corrupted to the extreme. This kind of place where you can't find money and food, How long can he last with his own strength?

Therefore, the land of Guanzhong has become the dream of Xijiang people. Whether it is the border chapters, kingdoms in the past, or Han Sui today, they all regard occupying Guanzhong as their top priority, and the land of Guanzhong has become the life-saving of Xijiang people. straw.

=

"Han Sui attacked Guanzhong at this time. The opportunity is indeed well grasped, but everyone knows Yuan Shao's strength. If Han Sui wants to defeat Yuan Shao and occupy Guanzhong, it may be very small." Xu Rong sighed and said helplessly, "My lords Once Han Sui is defeated, the loss to Hebei will not be great, but to the great Han, the loss will be staggering. Han Sui's defeat may not be able to keep the western border. The loss of the western border not only means the loss of the territory, but also It's a sign of the country's downfall."

"My lords may think that I am alarmist..." Xu Rong smiled wryly, "Xijiang is lost, I don't know how long it will take us to get it back, how much money will be spent, and how much troops will be spent, but I can say with certainty, The price we will pay in the future will be infinitely greater than the price we paid for helping Han Sui capture Guanzhong now, and what is especially important is that we, as the court, know that Han Sui's defeat will lead to the loss of Western Xinjiang, and we are clearly capable of helping Han Sui But we ignored it, and what we gave up was not only Han Sui and the tens of thousands of Western Xinjiang cavalry, but also the dignity of the emperor and the majesty of the court."

=

Xu Rong then dismissed the two reasons in the court that there was no need to support Xijiang.

One opinion is that Han Sui may withdraw his troops and return to western Xinjiang after learning that the court rejected his request.

This time, Han Sui gathered all the conscriptable troops in Xijiang, and it is estimated that the total strength is about [-].Han Sui assembled such a large army, which shows that he is very determined to attack Guanzhong, and it is also a threat to the court.If I am defeated, Xijiang will not be able to keep it.The court rejected his request, and gave him a reason to betray, and then he was going to have a good talk with Yuan Shao.

And this is the second opinion in the court.

If Yuan Shao and Han Sui fought in Guanzhong, both sides would suffer heavy losses. One would hand over Xijiang to the Hu people, and the other would give Guanzhong to Hebei. Therefore, the purpose of Han Sui's sending troops to Guanzhong was probably not to defeat Guanzhong, but It was to force Yuan Shao to divide Guanzhong equally with him.In order to stabilize Guanzhong and restore vitality as soon as possible, Yuan Shao is also very likely to agree to Han Sui's request.Such a one got half of Guanzhong and eased the plight of Western Xinjiang a little bit.One not only got the backup of Han Sui, but also got time to breathe.

But this is the result that the court least wants to see.Han Sui and Yuan Shao joined forces, Guanzhong was temporarily stable, and Yuan Shao could concentrate on attacking Hanoi and plotting the Central Plains, which would greatly increase the difficulty for the imperial court to pacify the Central Plains.

Supporting Western Xinjiang and helping Han Sui occupy the Central Plains is currently the best and most conducive strategy to stabilize the world as soon as possible.

=

Xu Rong's words made the ministers fall into deep thought.

Xijiang is the west gate of the Han Dynasty, and it is the gateway to protect the prosperity of the Han Dynasty.Once this portal is lost, it is undoubtedly a dream for the big man to revive quickly.

Compared with the rejuvenation of the Han Dynasty, the revival of the country, and the people's living and working in peace and contentment, it is worthwhile to help Han Sui occupy Guanzhong now, even if it is a tiger.

Han Sui is still the general Zhenxi of the Han Dynasty, and the imperial court's frontier official. Who can say that he will be like Yuan Shao and Cao Cao in the future, causing disasters to the society?In fact, as long as the emperor and the court are majestic, the Han army is strong, and the world is stable and the people are healthy, how can Han Sui betray him?

If everything goes according to Xu Rong's idea, Beijiang used wealth to support Han Sui to take Guanzhong this time, which is equivalent to easily obtaining Xijiang and Guanzhong. Then, as long as the army goes south to pacify the Central Plains and capture Luoyang, then The period of the revival of the Han Dynasty is just around the corner.

Will Han Sui, who was once the leader of the rebel army in Xijiang, be loyal to the big man?Will he be forced to succumb to the imperial court due to the power of the northern border army, and want to hand over Guanzhong and Xijiang?Will there be such a good thing in the world?
=

Cui Lie coughed.

All the officials looked up at Cui Lie, thinking that he was going to speak out again.

The princess looked at him nervously.When the old man speaks, the ministers are bound to quarrel.The eldest princess quickly raised her jade hand, "My lord, are you in poor health and caught a cold?"

Cui Lie's face turned cold, and he said rather unhappily: "Your Highness, it's very unlucky to say something about Chinese New Year. I'm fine, I'm in good health."

The eldest princess smiled slightly, "Master Xu has said a lot, is the elder still insisting on his own opinion and refusing to support Xijiang?"

"After listening to Mr. Xu's words, I have changed my opinion." Cui Lie coughed a few more times in a low voice, "Han Sui is an old boy, but he is very energetic. If he has nothing to do, he will trouble the court. I think Let him be bled."

The eldest princess glanced at Cui Lie in surprise, "What advice does your lord have?"

"I haven't made up my mind yet." Cui Lie replied, "I want to ask Mr. Xu, is there any way to force Han Sui to withdraw his troops and continue to guard the western border, so that the court can concentrate its forces to prepare for the Central Plains War?"

"Forcing Han Sui to withdraw his army?" Xu Rong looked at each other with Zhang Yan, Lu Bu, Zhao Yun and others who were sitting beside him, and if they realized something in their hearts, they roughly understood what Cui Lie meant.

"According to Mr. Xu, the imperial court will support Han Sui no matter what this time, but if the Guanzhong War lasts too long, Hebei's wealth will not be able to support it." Cui Lie said, "As a result of this war, if Han Sui wins , It’s too much trouble for us, but he can’t lose, so in order to prevent Hebei from being dragged down by Han Sui, for the safety of Western Xinjiang, and for us to conquer the Central Plains as soon as possible, we still have to find a way to make Han Sui lose a few field, forcing him to go back to Western Xinjiang as soon as possible."

The eldest princess and many ministers nodded repeatedly.

Cui Lie's suggestion is not to go out of his way. If Han Sui can be forced to withdraw his troops, everything can be solved.

"My lords, who has a clever plan?" The eldest princess asked with a smile, "How about we help Yuan Shao this time?"

"Your Highness, Han Sui's excuse for sending troops this time is to avenge Ma Teng." Shangshu ordered Li Wei to stand up and bowed, "The reason why many generals in Xijiang are willing to send troops this time is also because of their close relationship with Ma Teng." As in general, everyone has to come out to denounce it out of emotion and reason. It is really going to be a life-and-death moment, I believe they will definitely have reservations for their own lives and future, and the best policy is to preserve their strength."

"So..." Li Wei dragged his tone and said expressionlessly, "As long as we find a way to make Ma Chao and Han Sui fight among themselves, this battle will be over."

"Han Sui is a talented person with great intelligence and great ambition. He has been operating in Xijiang for more than ten years and has a very deep foundation. He will definitely be our trouble in the future." Li Wei continued, "After Ma Chao and Han Sui withdraw to Xijiang, We supported Ma Chao and lured him to attack Han Sui on the condition of helping him avenge his hatred, so as to completely muddy the waters in western Xinjiang. In this way, Han Sui's strength will be greatly reduced, and it will be very easy for us to regain western Xinjiang in the future."

"Okay, good idea." Cui Lie clapped the table and praised loudly, "Master Li still has a brilliant idea."

Li Wei smiled modestly, "Although we promised to give Han Sui money and food, the road was difficult due to the heavy snowfall, and the Yellow River was frozen again. Before the Yellow River thawed, the food, grass and military equipment could not be transported to Guanzhong at all. Han Sui's army stayed under the city of Chang'an for a few days. Standing still for a month will definitely anger Ma Chao, who is eager for revenge, and the conflict between the two will become more and more serious. If someone fanes the flames at this time, great things will be accomplished."

Xu Rong's brows immediately frowned, his face was frosty, obviously very dissatisfied with Li Wei's strategy.

"Xijiang needs Han Sui. The safety of Xijiang is very important. Ma Chao can't enter Xijiang again." Xu Rong stood up and waved his hands vigorously, his tone very stern.Both Xu Rong and Ma Teng used to be titans of Xijiang, and they had a deep friendship with each other. Of course, he would not watch Ma Teng's son die unexpectedly.In Xijiang, no one can regret Han Sui's status, and Ma Chao, who is weak and weak, is not Han Sui's opponent.

"If you want Ma Chao and Han Sui to fight among themselves, you just need to issue an order to Pang De, asking him to withdraw his troops as soon as possible." Zhang Yan saw that Xu Rong was angry, and hurriedly stood up to smooth things over. "Withdrawing troops as soon as possible is different from withdrawing troops immediately. We will Explain clearly to Pound as soon as possible, and he will naturally know what to do. Of course, Ma Chao will be very anxious if Pound is leaving, and he will keep urging Han Sui to launch an attack. Of course, I dare not rush into the army rashly, so the conflict between the two is inevitable. As for Pound’s withdrawal of troops, Han Sui should be able to understand. We have already promised him money and food, and there is no reason to send troops to help. We also need troops to defend Beidi and Anding counties."

Zhang Yan looked at Li Wei and said with a smile: "It's better not to do things that fan the flames, so as not to reveal too much and anger Han Sui, which is counterproductive."

Li Wei smiled embarrassedly, cupped his hands at Xu Rong, and sat down peacefully.

"Also tell Pound that if something happens in Guanzhong, Ma Chao must be brought back to northern Xinjiang." Xu Rong shook his head, added, and sat down exhausted.

For the matter of Xijiang, I have thought hard, but in the end there is such a result, I really did not expect it.If Han Sui could not occupy Guanzhong, he could barely survive on the relief from northern Xinjiang, and it would be difficult for him to defeat the invading Hu people and take back several counties in Hexi.

In the future, the imperial court must pay a heavy price for today's decision.

===

The first month of the second year of Jianxing in the Han Dynasty (AD 198).

===

On the first month, Yangzhou, Shouchun.

Yuan Shu's army and Sun Ce's army fought fiercely on both sides of the Huaishui River.

Xiacai (now Fengtai, Anhui) and Dangtu fell successively, and Yuan Shu commanded the army to approach Shouchun.

Sun Ce always thought that Cao Cao and Liu Bei would take this opportunity to attack Yuan Shu from three sides, but the news that came later gave him a big ridicule.Whether Cao Cao or Liu Bei didn't take him seriously at all, they withdrew their troops and went home long ago without even saying hello.

Sun Ce is certainly not an idiot.After he finished the army, it would be best if Cao Cao and Liu Bei were killed, so he would not do it.Sun Ce decisively ordered that the entire line be withdrawn to Hefei and Liyang, and withdraw to Jiangdong at any time.

In the middle of the first month, Yuan Shu walked into Shouchun.Sun Ce was not bad, he left Yuan Shu and his family members behind, but moved away all the money and food, even the furniture in the house.

Facing the empty house and the frightened and crying relatives, Yuan Shu couldn't control the anger in his heart any longer, so angry that he vomited blood and fainted on the ground.

Although Yuan Shu lay down, Li Ye, Yang Hong, Ji Ling and others couldn't stay idle.

Li Ye rushed to Luoyang and asked Yuan Shao for help.At this time, even if you humbly and suffer all the eyes, you have to admit it, and you can't go through the winter hungry.

Yang Hong rushed to Runan to ask Xu Qiu for help.

Ji Ling and Qiao Rui led their respective armies and divided them into two groups. One went to Liyang and the other to Hefei.

Sun Ce is in Liyang.Hearing that Qiao Rui's army had arrived, he left without saying a word.Before leaving, he took away all of Yuan Shu's warships and sailors.Without warships, even if Yuan Shu wanted to attack Jiangdong, he would have to wait until he had enough warships, but with Yuan Shu's current financial resources, there was no money left to build warships.

Zhou Yu is in Hefei.He didn't fight Ji Ling either, and led his army to withdraw to Lujiang.Ji Ling's army lacked enough food, grass and supplies, and it was a severe winter at this time, so it was inconvenient to fight, so they had to give up the pursuit.

Under the first month, Yuan Yao, Xun Zheng, and Liu Ye, who had been hiding on the Yangtze River for more than two months, returned to Shouchun.

They brought Li Hong's letter, which made Yuan Shu heave a sigh of relief.After the Battle of Jizhou, it was a big surprise that Qingzhou fell into the hands of an unknown old Yellow Turban general.Although Li Hong calculated that Yuan Shu would withdraw from Yangzhou in the end, he did not expect Yuan Shu to fall into such a miserable situation.Now with Li Hong's strategy of attacking from north to south, Yuan Shu knew that he was safe for the time being.If Cao Cao and Liu Bei call, Zang Ba in the direction of Qingzhou will restrain him, which will allow him enough time to recover.

Thinking of Zang Ba's effortless acquisition of the entire Qingzhou, Yuan Shu felt extremely unbalanced.Why is my luck so bad?I was full of ambition to fight the Central Plains, but in the end I ended up miserable, leaving only a handful of three counties.Why does God treat me so thinly?This is all bullshit.

=

In February, the news from Guanzhong made Yuan Shao restless.

After killing the entire family of Ma Teng and Ma Chao, not only did not achieve the desired effect, but it aroused the anger of the people in Xijiang and attracted tens of thousands of troops from Xijiang.Guanzhong is at stake.

Yuan Shao regretted it at this moment.If I had known that things were going in a worse direction, I might as well have spent some money to bribe Han Sui to kill Ma Chao.After all, for a certain period of time in the past few years, I had a good relationship with Han Sui and provided him with a lot of money and food.

At this time, Yuan Shu had already driven Sun Ce away and regained Jiujiang County. Although he had lost a lot of money and Lujiang County had not yet been taken back, Yuan Shu still controlled the three counties of Peiguo, Xiapi, and Jiujiang, and he was still in his hands. There are tens of thousands of troops, as long as they provide money and food support to help him overcome the current difficulties, Yuan Shu will be alive and well in no time, and continue to fight Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Ce in bloody battles.

The Northern Frontier Army in Hanoi showed no signs of continuing to attack.Yuan Zhong and Xia Zhao's reinforcements had already arrived at Pinggao, joined Guo Tu and Han Qiong, and prepared to launch a counterattack in March.

After Yuan Shao arranged the affairs of the Central Plains, he immediately recruited Yuzhou troops to go to Guanzhong. He took Tian Feng, Feng Ji, Xin Ping and others to Chang'an day and night to meet the army of Western Xinjiang.

=

In March, the situation in Guanzhong became more and more tense as the forces of both sides gradually increased.

Ma Chao kept urging Han Sui to attack Chang'an, but Han Sui refused to fight for various reasons.First, there were not enough troops and siege equipment, then it was snowing, and the snow had not yet melted, and then there was not enough food and grass. The food and grass promised by Hebei could not be shipped until the Yellow River thawed.

At this time, Pound continued to receive imperial edicts and letters ordering him to withdraw his troops as soon as possible.Although the imperial court did not stipulate the time for his withdrawal, he obviously did not want him to participate in the battle to attack Chang'an.Pound's departure is not only related to the lack of [-] cavalry in the siege army, but also related to whether the grain and grass in Hebei can be delivered on time.

Ma Chao was almost going crazy. He was unkempt, with a long beard and deep-set eyes, like a tiger trapped in a cage. He had a gloomy face all day long, and he walked back and forth between Han Sui and Pang De's camp with a murderous look. , anxiously waiting for the moment of siege to come.

In March, the Yellow River thawed, and the first batch of grain and grass in Hebei was transported to Guanzhong, and Pang De had to leave.If he delays any longer, I'm afraid the next imperial decree will dismiss him and cut off his head.

Ma Chao became anxious and yelled at Han Sui.Han Sui still had no intention of attacking, and he also refused to answer Ma Chao's questioning.Ma Chao was finally completely irritated.Ma Chao drew his saber, put it on Han Sui's neck, threatened him, and forced him to order an attack.Han Sui was indifferent and unafraid.

Yang Qiu, Ma Wan and others rushed forward and almost chopped Ma Chao down.Fortunately, Pang De arrived in time and pulled Ma Chao out of the camp.

Yan Xing didn't understand, and asked Han Sui, "Why is your lord unwilling to attack?"

"Because the time hasn't come yet." Han Sui sighed and said slowly, "When the Hanoi battlefield starts, the northern border army in Hedong will attack Kansai to cope with the Hanoi battlefield. At this time, we dare not supply the food and grass for Yuan Shao's army." It left from Kansai, but it was shipped from Nanyang. Our chance has come."

"My lord wants to cut off Yuan Shao's food supply?"

"No." Han Sui explained, "The reason why I hesitate to attack is that I hope Yuan Shao will send more troops into Guanzhong. In this way, a grain road threatened by us will not be able to support Yuan Shao's tens of thousands of troops for a long time. Necessary. At the same time, since Yuan Shao’s main force is in the Guanzhong battlefield, this is an excellent opportunity for Cao Cao and Liu Bei in the Central Plains to attack Yuan Shu and the strength of the Yuan Clan. When Yuan Shu’s defeat is imminent, it will be the day when Yuan Shao withdraws from Guanzhong .”

"In a few months, I can win Guanzhong with the least cost, but Hebei will provide me with money and food, and Yuan Shao will suffer heavy losses because he has to give up Guanzhong." Han Sui looked at Yan Xing with a stern expression. Said, "Only by saving enough strength can I ensure that I occupy the pass and gain a firm foothold in the pass in the shortest possible time."

Yan Xing understood, "When is your lord planning to start the war?"

"By autumn, I think it should be almost there."

=

(End of this chapter)