Three Kingdoms.

Chapter 3255 What to do

While Pei Jun was plotting Anyi, Xun Chen received a secret message from Pingyang in the Hussar camp on the Emei Mountains.

The information was all encrypted. Xun Chen translated it word by word according to the code book on his desk, then moved a few war chess pieces on the map, pondered for a moment and said, "Invite General Zhang." 』

 After a while, Zhang Xiu arrived.

　　　There is good news and there is bad news. "When Xun Chen saw Zhang Xiu coming, he said, "I just got the news that Sichuan and Shu have defeated the Jiangdong Army and have recovered Zigui. They are preparing to station and build defense lines before marching to Jiangling..."

 Zhang Xiu was immediately overjoyed, and then a little confused, "This is great!" Well, ah, but... news from Sichuan and Sichuan has reached here? 』

　　　‘Did you forget that there was a homing pigeon? Xun Chen said.

 Zhang Xiu suddenly said, "Hi! My memory... Not to mention, I don't even eat pigeons now... This is indeed good news, now Cao Jun has no help... The kid from Jiangdong also wants to covet me, Sichuan, and is simply seeking death! Haha, hahaha! 』

　　　But there is bad news. ”

Zhang Xiu frowned slightly. It was not that he was afraid, but that his troops were not large, and he had been warned by Fei Qian before going to battle, saying that it was definitely not a good idea to compete with Cao's army.

Xun Chen pointed to the map and said: "According to the original idea of ​​the lord, the counterattack was delayed until Cao's army was exhausted. At that time, Cao's army was unable to follow up and was in a dilemma. Coupled with low morale, there was only one way to retreat from Hangu. Road, it will be difficult to take care of it in a hurry, and if we wait for work, we will definitely fail... But it is still a little early, and the heat is not yet there..."

Zhang Xiu scratched his head, "So, does Cao Jun know that Jiangdong has been defeated?" So you are anxious? 』

Xun Chen nodded, "Maybe." However, I think that even if Cao Cao knew about Jiangdong's affairs, he would definitely block the information and would not announce it easily to avoid disturbing the morale of the army. 』

 Zhang Xiu raised his eyebrows, "If that's the case..."

Xun Chen laughed and said, "You mean to spread the news of Jiangdong's fall to Cao's army?" This is somewhat useful, but not very effective... One is that it takes a certain amount of time for the news to spread, and the other is that if it comes from us, it is always not as effective as if it comes from Cao Jun's rear..."

 Zhang Xiu nodded when he heard this, "That's true." So why is Changshi worried? 』

　　　These refugees. Xun Chen said.

 Zhang Xiu fell silent.

 After all, Zhang Xiu, who prefers military commanders, and Xun Chen, who prefers logistics and civil affairs, must have completely different modes of thinking. Zhang Xiu must have thought about how to attack Cao Jun's troops, while Xun Chen's first thought was that the refugees caught in the battlefield would be the most injured under Cao Jun's counterattack.

Zhang Xiu didn’t even think about it before he blurted out: “How about... speeding up the screening? Or should we simply skip the screening and send them directly to Linfen? Anyway, there is still one third left..."

Xun Chen frowned, "That's wrong!" 』

Zhang Xiu also knew that what he said without thinking was wrong, so he apologized first, then sat down again with a sad face and said, "What should we do?" Screening officers and soldiers is tiring enough now... There are so many hours in a day, and many of these refugees can't even speak properly..."

Over the years, Fei Qian has worked hard to eliminate illiteracy in the army, so that many soldiers can recognize some words, which can help the civil servants solve part of the workload, otherwise it will be even slower!

imagine that two people who don’t know how to read get together, and then add in the differences in accents from different places, and they speak like a chicken...

 Most of the refugees who were dispersed in the early stage were relatively easy to identify as farmers in Hedong. The remaining one-third of the refugees were relatively difficult to identify.

 This kind of language and writing difficulties is beyond Xun Chen's imagination.

Until this moment, Xun Chen truly realized how important it was that Fei Qian had been trying his best to promote the literacy of ordinary people, especially the lower class people!

Because Xun Chen has lived in a wealthy family since he was a child, reading and literacy is as natural as eating and drinking.

This difference in concepts is like the difference between young people and old people in later generations regarding smartphones. Many young people can't understand why older people can't see that confirmation, or that cancellation, or they can't find any verification code, etc... Aren't those very simple and obvious?

In addition to the problem that these refugees are illiterate, there is also a thorny problem. The refugees who come later are more scattered, mostly old and weak. Like the situation before, they can rely on mutual protection in the village. Fewer and fewer.

These refugees who came later often relied on a small number of young adults to support themselves here. If there is no conclusive evidence that these young adults are spies of Cao Jun, then these young and weak refugees who were cared for along the way will be the ones who will take these young adults. With Zhuang's emotional support as a savior, would he feel that the hussar soldiers were justified in arresting people?

 Similarly, the spies of Cao Jun who were screened out in the early stage are also relatively impetuous and easier to identify, while the remaining spies of Cao Jun are naturally becoming more and more cunning...

 This all adds to the difficulty for Xun Chen and Zhang Xiu.

No wonder Zhang Xiu was so upset that he wanted to leave this problem to Linfen and Fei Qian to deal with...

 Fortunately, Xun Chen was relatively sober. He knew that persistence was more important at this stage. If all previous efforts were wasted due to impatience, then the theory of valuing the people proposed by Feiqian Shoushan Academy would undoubtedly become a joke.

　　　The Lord said at the Shoushan Academy the day before yesterday that the work of the four people is the cornerstone of the country. Xun Chen said, "Nowadays, these people from Hedong cannot be confused with the people from the big families in Hedong." Since you already want to return to your heart, is there any reason to give up halfway? 』

Fei Qiancai made a high-profile statement about caring for the people and paying attention to Dingkou, but Xunchen, because he was pressed for time and had a heavy task, coupled with the relative lack of manpower among officials and the difficulty in communicating with refugees, just cut him off across the board, killing everyone and rushing everyone?

So if this happens, will it make Fei Qian look good, or will it **** on Fei Qian's head?

　　　But...this speed is indeed a bit slow! Zhang Xiu lowered his voice and said, "Cao Jun's forward has reached the bottom of the slope!" One came with the surname Liu and the other with the surname Hu... Although they were not the central guards, there must be others following these two people... If a fight really broke out, they wouldn't be able to care about it! 』

Xun Chen nodded, "I'll think of a way... I really need to speed it up a bit... But at this moment, the less chaos is allowed!" 』

 In the end, these people must be successfully closed before they can be considered complete.

 Zhang Xiu looked at Xun Chen, smacked his lips, and nodded in agreement.

Although they have obtained certain information about Cao Jun by capturing his soldiers alive, it does not mean that Xun Chen and Zhang Xiu will know the exact movements of Cao Jun. Because even if some soldiers of Cao's army were captured, the information obtained was one-sided and could not fully describe the specific distribution of Cao's army and the movements of his soldiers.

It's like Zhang Xiu and Xun Chen knew that Liu Zhu and the guards were leading the army this time, but how exactly did Cao's army arrange it? Was there anyone else behind it? Where was the main force of Cao's army, including the central leader, the middle guard, and so on? Zhang Xiu and Xun Chen are not sure about other issues, so they can only speculate based on some information...

　　『Report! "Suddenly, soldiers came and said, "Report to the Chief of History, General, there is someone who claims to be a spy of Cao's army, who wants to abandon the secret and turn to the bright side..."

Xun Chen and Zhang Xiu couldn't help but be stunned.

 …

 …

　　　Are you Wang Meng? 』

Xun Chen carefully observed Wang Meng's expression.

 Very calm.

 This was the first feeling Wang Meng had for Xun Chen.

Xun Chen was slightly surprised.

Zhang Xiu winked at Xun Chen.

Xun Chen knew what Zhang Xiu meant.

Previously, Zhang Xiu said that this person was a spy of Cao Jun, but Xun Chen said that this person was just a suspect. Now it was confirmed that Zhang Xiu was correct, so Zhang Xiu was somewhat proud.

Xun Chen nodded slightly towards Zhang Xiu, saying that Zhang Xiu was great, but Xun Chen did not feel any discomfort because of this. Instead, he looked forward to what Wang Meng could bring to him. After all, Wang Meng was still able to wait until now to surrender even though he was suspected and under the spotlight, which shows that he is quite capable.

　　　"Are you a spy for Cao Jun?" 』

Wang Meng was worshiping on the ground, but he raised his head, as if he was not embarrassed by his status, "Exactly." 』

　　　Why do you want to surrender? Xun Chen asked again.

Wang Meng smiled, and there was something special in his smile, "I came to vote just for a piece of cooking cake!" 』

"Well? Xun Chen was stunned for a moment and didn't react, "What?" Cooking cake? 』

　　　Cooking cake. But that's not the point. The point is... You must be anxious too..." Wang Meng nodded. He seemed too lazy to explain clearly to Xun Chen, but in order to rush for time or for some other reason, he said very directly, "Cao Jun It's coming...if these refugees can't distinguish the good from the bad as soon as possible, I'm afraid...they will become useless! 』

Xun Chen was silent for a moment and said, "If you can give me a helping hand, the homeless people can be brought to rest as soon as possible." 』

"Understood. This is what I want too. "Wang Meng said, trying to find something from his arms.

Although it was said that before Xun Chen met Wang Meng, the guards had already searched Wang Meng's body and found no weapons. However, Wang Meng's move still made Xun Chen's guards beside him a little nervous. He pulled out the knife an inch with a cry. .

Wang Meng glanced at the guard, his expression unmoving, and then slowly took out the item in his arms, which was just a rag.

It was obvious that Wang Meng had picked up the rag from somewhere, and there were even some stains on it.

Wang Meng spread out the rag in front of him. There seemed to be some characters and marks written on it with charcoal or something. "This is what Cao Jun did in detail..." Wang Meng's voice was a little low, "We can arrest people based on this..."

Xun Chen gestured.

 The guard stepped forward and took the rag to Xun Chen.

Before Xun Chen could ask, Wang Meng said directly, "I don't know how your shacks are numbered, so I just follow my habit... Take the shack I am in as the center, and divide it into the left and right facing north... The number of people above is not It’s very complete, because I don’t know how many people came... But Jian Erlang on this list should know more..."

Xun Chen and Zhang Xiu looked at each other.

Zhang Xiu immediately stood up and said, "I will send people to do it separately now!" 』

 Zhang Xiu quickly left with the list.

Xun Chen looked at Wang Meng and asked, "I wonder...what does the strong man want?" 』

Wang Meng shook his head, but quickly changed his tune, "I don't want anything... Oh, maybe you can give me a place to rest?" I want to take a good rest..."

　　　『Good! 』

Xun Chen didn’t think much about it. After all, the authenticity of the list still needed to be verified, so he asked someone to take Wang Meng to an empty tent aside...

 …

 …

 Down the **** of Emei Ridge.

 Cao Jun’s camp.

Just like the terrain of Tongguan that blocked Cao Cao’s army from advancing westward, today’s Emei Mountains has also become a natural barrier that hinders Cao Cao’s army from moving north. Faced with this natural terrain restriction, Cao Xiu really had no good way to overcome it. He could only attack according to the limited gap in the Emei Mountains.

These gaps were carved out by ancient glaciers, so the terrain made Cao Xiu frown.

Coupled with the criss-crossing terrain of the Loess Plateau, it was difficult for Cao's army to make a detour even if they wanted to. For Cao Jun, who was unfamiliar with the place where he was born, it was undoubtedly a huge problem.

And the key is that the cavalry on the Emei Mountains are far faster than Cao's army as long as they want to support somewhere.

Even if there are nobles from Hedong as guides, they are only familiar with the roads they often take. And those roads are almost needless to think about. They must be heavily guarded by Hussar troops. If you want to rely on these guides from Hedong, you can figure out the Emei Mountains. The arrangement above is obviously impossible.

Faced with such a difficult situation, Cao Xiu could only increase the intensity of scouts exploring Emei Mountains, and on the other hand, he was waiting for the spies who had been dispatched among the refugees to bring back some surprises...

Besides this, I also hope that the Hussars can take the bait.

However, in the past few days, the progress of Cao Jun's scouts has obviously slowed down. Sometimes the scouts went out all day without knowing what they were investigating. This made Cao Xiu very angry and scolded the scout team leader. , but the effect is still not good.

  There is always a reason for this or that for the rate of scouts, which all sound reasonable, but this is not the main reason why Cao Xiu continues to tolerate this rate of scouts. If there was a second candidate, Cao Xiu would definitely chop off this guy's head!

 However, in the process of fighting against the hussars, many of Cao Jun's scouts have been lost. Although there has never been a large-scale battle between Cao Jun and the Hussars, the battles between the scouts on the ground in Hedong were quite fierce. Especially the Hussars scouts were cunning, cruel, and good at disguise. As a result, the remaining scouts are now Not much, and morale was terrible.

Of course, Cao Xiu’s other option is to ask his own guards to investigate, but similarly, Cao Xiu’s own troops don’t have many.

 When he was on the Zhiguan Road, in order to break through as soon as possible, Cao Xiu did not hesitate at all costs...

 So a lot of price was paid.

 So now it is really difficult for Cao Xiu to post the remaining parts.

　　　　General! ” Cao Xiu’s guards came from outside, “Reporting to the general, another five thousand soldiers and thirty carts and baggage have been sent from the rear! 』

Cao Xiu's eyes lit up slightly, but he quickly calmed down, "Are they the Heluo County soldiers again, or are they additional soldiers?" 』

 "This...should be a newly added soldier..." the guard whispered.

 ‘Huh…’ Cao Xiu nodded.

 Better than nothing.

　　　　Where is General Liu Hu2 now? ” Cao Xiu asked again.

The guard reported back: "We are at the pass." 』

Cao Xiu thought for a moment and said, "Let him raise the flag of Cao's general!" 』

"ah? 』

Cao Xiu repeated: "I say, order Liu and Hu to display my banner!" 』

　　　　　　! 』

 …

 …

Liu Zhu stood in front of the Emei Ridge slope. At a glance, it looked like a thick earth wall spanned the sky and the earth, completely cutting off his path.

In fact, if we really need to take a detour, the Emei Mountains are not absolutely unavoidable, but like most ancient wars, being called an important route has its own reason for its existence. In the folded terrain of the loess high slopes, If you take a detour successfully, it will be a great victory, but if you fail, you will be dead.

  It can be attacked from the front, which really puts Cao Jun in a difficult position.

There was loess everywhere in front of him, making Liu Zhu feel as if he was being submerged by the loess.

 In the land of Shandong, at this time, the grass should be rolling, catkins flying, and the peach blossoms should be in full bloom!

 He still prefers Shandong.

On the one hand, he also hopes that Cao Cao can take Guanzhong as soon as possible and defeat Fei Qian. On the other hand, he is not willing to become a bait and keep dangling.

This feeling is not pleasant.

After hearing Cao Xiu's order, he pondered for a long time before saying, "Where are the generals?" 』

　　　　　General Hu... uh, he is busy with military affairs. Please ask General Liu to wait a moment. 』

 The muscles on Liu Zhu’s cheeks jumped.

Strictly speaking, the guard can be regarded as the supervisor of the army. He can control Liu Zhu, but Liu Zhu generally has difficulty in controlling him.

 Ever since the hostage realized that he had become a bait, he seemed to be living in a state of intoxication.

After a long time, the hostage came over with a sloppy step, smelling of alcohol.

　　　『General Cao Wenlie wants us to display the General Cao flag! ” Liu Zhu did not bother to argue with the hostage about whether to drink or not, and simply said, “Do you understand? Cao's general flag! 』

Hu Zhi shook his head, as if to shake the chaos out of his head, and then broke out in a cold sweat, "General Wen Lie...how can this be done?" I...I, I...』

Liu Zhu snorted, "Why can't it be like this?" Your surname is Hu, and my surname is Liu, so what’s weird about adding another Cao family? 』

"No, no no..." The guard thought Liu Zhu didn't understand the problem, but when he looked up at Liu Zhu's expression, he realized that Liu Zhu understood everything, "You... you you..."

　　That’s it! ” Liu Zhu waved his hand, “If I were you, I would drink a few sips less... What if, what, I won’t be able to get on the horse... Hahaha...”

Although Liu Zhu didn't say everything in full, the guard understood what Liu Zhu meant and couldn't help but tremble, and his drunkenness completely dissipated.

　　　『This is really going to make us...』 Hu Zhi murmured half a sentence, then woke up and swallowed the rest of the words.

“No, no no,” Liu Zhu said with a smile, but there was something different in his smile. “It’s because we dislike us for not being good enough as bait...”