Three Kingdoms.

Chapter 3494: East, west?

Among the Hussar and Tongguan troops, there were some discordant voices in the military meeting.

The phenomenon of Cao Jun's army reducing the number of soldiers was discovered by the Hussar scouts.

The strategy of reducing cooking stoves was not initiated by Cao Cao, but it was also a tactic demonstrated by Cao Cao.

Pang Juan fell into the trap because he was eager to kill Sun Bin.

Pang Tong was also named Pang, but he felt that no matter how urgently he rushed, he would only defeat Cao Jun earlier. One day or two days in advance would not have a big impact on the overall situation. Pang Tong would rather spend a day or two to rest his troops, then rendezvous with Fei Qian, advance steadily, and reach the land of Shandong in a posture of Mount Tai pressing down on top, so that the people of Shandong can know what the true form of "Mount Tai" is.

The calmness of a strong man is like a heavy sword without an edge, which is as cunning as clumsy.

With great strength in hand, there is no need to care about trivial gains and losses.

This is a psychological advantage and a military battle.

Just like Pang Tong did before, he can release and close, use swords and guns, and can also play tricks on the heart.

A small army, between a few dozen and a few hundred, can move very quickly, but once the number of troops exceeds three thousand, or even tens of thousands, the movement speed will suddenly slow down.

This is an inevitable problem. Unless the entire army has been completely institutionalized, regulated, and informationized, it will be possible to march quickly and intensively. At the moment of the Han Dynasty, even the two hussars units in Tongguan and Hedong want to The urgent need to join forces must also comply with the laws of nature, and it is impossible to reach it just when you say it.

Therefore, Pang Tong's strategy of attacking the heart was also a strategy of slowing down the troops, but he did not expect that Cao Cao would be so decisive and withdraw his troops all at once.

Reduce the stove and reduce the army.

Cao Cao's army seems to be very honest.

But this situation is also a battlefield for competing psychological games.

Really reducing the troops and retreating, or faking a retreat?

Is it because Cao Jun can't hold on any longer, or is something unexpected happening in Shandong?

The best way is to wait and see.

Pang Tong was a native of the Han Dynasty, and he was different from the people of later generations who would take advantage of every advantage they had, and would get angry when waiting in line at a traffic light to miss a parking space. Moreover, his position determines that Pang Tong will consider the battle situation and countermeasures more comprehensively.

But Ma Yue is different.

Zhang Liao followed Pang Tong's advice and could calmly look at Cao Jun's reduction in attack.

After all, Zhang Liao already had a lot of military exploits. His contribution to capturing and killing Cao Cao was certainly great, but it was obviously impossible for Zhang Liao to covet this feat and go against Pang Tong's opinion.

Zhu Ling's confidence is not as great as Zhang Liao's. He also had a desire for merit, and even this desire was higher than Ma Yuedu, but Zhu Ling resisted. On the one hand, Zhu Ling is a reduced general and is not as senior as Ma Yue. On the other hand, he has been stationed at Hangu Pass for many years and suffered losses in battles during this period. As a result, he does not have many cavalry under his command and is not equipped to pursue. conditions…

Ma Yue is not too old, but he is senior. He is one of the first generals to follow Fei Qian. He also trained cavalry in the Yinshan area. Many cavalry academies in the army were trained by him...

Ma Yue insisted on pursuing.

The scout reported seeing Cao Cao, which was an important reason why Ma Yue insisted on pursuing him at the last moment.

Regardless of whether the retreat of Cao's army is true or false, as long as it retreats, Cao's army will inevitably experience some chaos. Seizing the opportunity to launch a surprise attack may directly collapse Cao's army and capture Cao Cao who remains behind, thus establishing the victory of the entire battle in one fell swoop!

If Cao Jun is allowed to retreat back to Heluo, then reinforcements and supplies from Shandong may be added to Cao Jun's hands. In this way, Cao Jun will recover to a certain extent, and the chance of capturing Cao Cao again will become smaller and smaller.

There is some truth in what Ma Yue said, but it is obvious that these truths are one-sided...

This one-sided truth is difficult to correct in a short period of time.

For example, many people in later generations like to say that I should enjoy what I spent money on. For example, I paid the fare but not the highway fee, and then asked the driver to use the highway. The reason is that I spent money and should enjoy it! There are also people who are blocking the train doors at high-speed rail stations and refusing to let them open. After all, they paid for the tickets, so how can they pull people away? I grabbed the driver's steering wheel after I passed the station and paid the bus fare. How could I pass the station?

Pang Tong frowned.

He is not Ma Yue's parent, so he has no need to explain clearly to Ma Yue.

Cao Cao is not a dead thing, he is a living person, and after he retreated from the Tongguan camp, after Cao Cao took over the command, Cao Cao's army's resistance ability and combat endurance were significantly enhanced, and the key is that Cao Cao is a veteran general for many years and survived the iron-blooded fight in the Central Plains. Yes, just like a veteran of many battles, even the newly appointed military academies have to show a certain amount of respect...

Pang Tong advised Ma Yue to be cautious and wait for Fei Qian to join forces, which would be within a few days.

But Ma Yue refused to listen and even expressed his willingness to issue a military order!

There's nothing we can do about it.

Pang Tong gave Ma Yue 1,200 troops and horses, plus Ma Yue's own 300 troops, forming a pursuit force of 1,500, which pursued Cao Cao in the direction of retreat...

Who will win?

Pang Tong certainly hopes that Ma Yue can win, but wishes cannot replace reality.

"General Wenyuan," Pang Tong called to Zhang Liao who was about to leave, "if the situation changes and General Ma is ambushed, it will be like this..."

"Your Majesty, since we have concluded that the rebel army is ambushing an army, why don't you stop it..."

Zhang Liao couldn't understand.

Pang Tong just shook his head slightly and sighed.

…

…

Cao Cao is standing on the bank of the river.

Last winter, he was standing here, but at that time, his mind was all on Guanzhong and he didn't pay attention to this big river at all.

But now when I look at this big river, I suddenly have some inexplicable feelings in my heart.

This big river flows from Guanzhong, passes through Heluo, goes straight to the Central Plains, and then rushes into the sea...

So, is this river considered to be on the east side or on the west side?

It is said to be west, but the river flows eastward. It is said to be east, but the source of the river is in the west.

Just like Guanzhong and Shandong now.

Cao Cao exhaled and watched the white smoke dissipate in the air.

He stayed behind and played a very big role in the mood of Cao Jun.

Cao Cao, to Cao Jun, is just like Fei Qian to the Hussars. He is not only a commander, but also a leader.

It is a mixture of faith and hope, expectation and sustenance.

If Cao Cao leaves first, it can be said that the remaining soldiers of Cao Cao's army will definitely not have much fighting spirit. If there is any slightest disturbance, they will flee like frightened birds.

Now, although morale is still not high, seeing that Cao Cao is still there, Cao's soldiers will not be too chaotic, and some orders can also be carried out...

For example, Cao Cao took some soldiers to the river to investigate.

He has been here before, but at that time he was thinking more about offense, but now he is thinking about defense.

He remembered something Le Jin said.

In autumn and winter, the water level of the river drops.

Due to sediment accumulation and river erosion, after the water level of the large river on the Hanguguan Pass drops, a river floodplain will be exposed, where pedestrians can naturally march.

This is a flaw in Hangu Pass!

And this flaw cannot be repaired by human power...

The walls of Hangu Pass are all up and down the plateau, but no walls can be built on the tidal flats beside the river.

The river is eroding and rushing day and night. Who can make the river stop?

Even if Feiqian developed soil and cement, it would not be able to resist foundation settlement and river erosion, let alone the current mainstream rammed earth masonry structure walls in the Han Dynasty.

Even if it is built in the winter, it will be gone when the river water surges in the summer.

This resulted in the strategic status of Hangu Pass declining again and again after the Han Dynasty.

The heroic appearance of Hangu Pass in the Qin Dynasty in rejecting the six kingdoms is like the great river eastward that will never come back.

Cao Cao stared at the exposed river beach, thoughtfully.

When he arrived here, he saw the exposed tidal flat, and then Cao Cao suddenly remembered something, so he asked his soldiers to disperse and investigate along the river bank...

It didn't take long for the results of the investigation to come out.

"Report!" ” A soldier hurriedly ran over and said, “Report to the Prime Minister! Found it! 』

Cao Cao frowned, then waved his hand, "Lead the way!" 』

Not long after, Cao Cao arrived at the place mentioned by the soldiers.

After checking it out, Cao Cao couldn't help but take a breath of cold air, and at the same time felt lucky for himself...

…

…

On the other side, the Hussars were preparing to attack.

Ma Yue is eager to make meritorious deeds.

crisis.

It's the opportunity in danger. Others thought he was reckless, but Ma Yue himself knew that this was the result of careful consideration.

Where others saw danger, he saw opportunity within those dangers.

Cao Cao is the last hope of Cao Jun, and it is also their confidence that they can still resist tenaciously. As long as they defeat Cao Cao, they can break Cao Jun's will and gain the most brilliant achievements in this battle.

So, is it dangerous?

Definitely dangerous.

But Ma Yue analyzed it carefully.

Cao's army seems to be maintaining order now, but in fact it is at the end of its strength.

Ma Yue concluded that Cao Jun's retreat was definitely not a suspicious attack, but a real retreat!

That's why Ma Yue dared to issue a military order!

An attack with 1,500 men and horses can only be a surprise attack.

Once the raid fails, or suffers heavy losses, not only will the horse be in danger of overtaking the enemy, but the morale of the hussars will inevitably be dampened.

Check out the 16-9 book bar to see the correct version!

Ma Yue naturally knew the topography of Hangu Pass.

In addition to understanding it from the map, Ma Yue had also been here before. He even got to know Zhu Ling who was stationed at Hangu Pass when he was in Tongguan.

Therefore, he felt confident.

"What? Raid from the river beach? 』

When Ma Yue explained the plan to his military academy, the Hussars Military Academy began to discuss it.

"That's right!" Ma Yue said in a deep voice, "River beach!" It's winter now, and the water level in the river has dropped a lot! There is a river beach on the side of Hangu Pass. You cannot walk on it in spring and summer, but you can walk on it in autumn and winter! 』

"Won't the river beach be so soft that it gets stuck in the horses' hooves?" ” asked a military academy.

Ma Yue smiled, "Have you forgotten what season it is now?" Even though it was soft and rotten before, the soil is now frozen hard! And we don’t go to the side close to the river, we try to go to the side close to the river bank. 』

In order to determine the feasibility of his strategy, Ma Yue also went to the big river and inspected other exposed small river beaches. He did find that the places near the river were relatively soft before freezing, but the places near the river bank It is already relatively hard, and some even have dry and cracked lines, so the horse can pass through it without any problems.

"Cao Jun's ambush must be at Hangu Pass!" ” Ma Yue’s voice was loud and clear, “In that case, let’s just go around it! Hit its side directly! The retreating soldiers of Cao's army must not have expected that we could pass through the ambush at Hangu Pass silently. They would be caught off guard by then, and Cao's army would be in chaos! 』

Ma Yue had selfish motives, so he only revealed this plan to his subordinates in the military academy after he left. He did not tell Pang Tong, Zhang Liao, Zhu Ling and others...

Ma Yue was worried that once he said it out, if Pang Tong thought it was reasonable, then Ma Yue would only have the merit of offering advice, but not the merit of defeating the enemy and winning a victory!

"As long as we avoid Cao Jun's ambush, we will go straight to Heluo!" Ma Yue became excited as he spoke. He stood up and waved his fists, "With the swords in our hands and our horses dismounted, what else can keep us and stop us in the land of Heluo?" ! We fight first if we want to, and if we want to leave, we leave! If Cao's army retreats, we will attack and harass them in batches. If they stay to block them, we will go around and attack their flanks! In the land of Heluo, we scouts are very familiar with the investigation. Where can we move horses and where can we communicate with people? Do I still need to say this? ! 』

"When the time comes, we can go east if we want to, and if we want to go west, we can go west!" Most of Cao's army retreated, which is the flesh of our sword! How you want to cut it and when you want to cut it is all up to us! 』

"This incredible achievement is right in front of you! 』

"In a word, do you want to do it or not?" ! 』

Several military schools looked at each other and shouted in unison.

"Dry! 』

"Fuck him!" 』

"I am willing to listen to the general's orders!" 』

…

…

"Is there anything unusual in the Hussars?" See clearly? ! 』

Cao Cao asked the scout.

The scout lowered his head and reported, "Return to the Prime Minister!" I did see the smoke! But…"

"But what?" ”Cao Cao asked.

The scout lowered his head, "But when the scout in front sent the message and went to check again later, the smoke disappeared again..."

The roads in the Han Dynasty are all dirt roads, and this area is covered with loess soil. Even if you walk in a vegetation area during the day, smoke and dust will rise into the sky, which is completely unavoidable. Unless you are marching in bad weather, strong winds or rain and snowfall will cover up these traces, but this bad weather will in turn restrict the marching speed of the troops and increase the difficulty of marching...

Cao Cao did not get angry at the contradiction in the scout's words. Instead, he nodded and waved for the scout to investigate further.

"Coming. 』

Cao Cao looked down at the map and muttered to himself.

Although the scout said that the smoke disappeared later, Cao Cao concluded that the hussars were coming.

The reason why the smoke disappeared, Cao Cao judged, was that the hussars had stopped.

"They are all cavalry..."

Cao Cao looked at the map and clicked on the location reported by the scout.

The high mobility of cavalry allows soldiers to attack at longer distances. So the Hussars stayed outside the detection of Cao Jun's scouts, waiting for nightfall.

At night, the smoke and dust are naturally covered by the night.

The sound of horse hooves can also be weakened by means...

Cao Cao looked at the map for a long time, then raised his head and said, "Here comes someone!" Send the order! Making rice for the first time today! The whole army is on alert! 』

It's not that Cao Cao was kind enough to give his soldiers extra meals, but it was the custom of the Han Dynasty to have two meals a day.

Fu means food during the Shen period.

Normally, a meal in the evening is cooked after the sun goes down, followed by the afterglow of sunset, and then it is time to rest. However, Cao Cao ordered that the actual cooking be delayed until the first watch, in order to prepare these Cao soldiers in the middle of the night. There was still some food left in my stomach, and it all melted away in the middle of the night instead of Shen Shi eating...

…

…

Ma Yue's face and body were covered with dust. He sat on a stone and looked up to see that the sky was gradually getting darker, but his eyes were shining, even a little excited.

"The rebel scouts have returned?" 』

Ma Yue asked.

"Report to the general!" Back! 』

The hussar scout responded.

"good! 』

Ma Yue nodded and smiled.

In the past two days, when it gets dark, Cao Jun's scouts will retreat.

There were no changes today, which means everything is normal...

Ma Yue felt that his possibility of success had increased again!

All plans are just guesses and estimates before they are implemented.

The idea of ​​using the river beach to bypass Hangu Pass does not mean that Cao Cao will be able to catch Cao Cao's flaw. However, before the actual action, the constant returns from the scouts made Ma Yue feel that the possibility of this plan was getting higher and higher. .

Night attack.

It is a traditional project of the Hussars. There is almost no need for Ma Yuedu to give any instructions, and the military schools have already made preparations.

Now, as long as he seizes this opportunity in front of him, no matter how tight the ambush Cao Cao sets at Hangu Pass, what's the use? Once Ma Yue and the others pass through Hangu Pass, Cao Cao will inevitably have only two choices left. One is to watch Ma Yue cut off his return path and become a turtle in the urn, the other is to immediately turn around and rescue the attacked rear. , and this will give Ma Yue an opportunity to attack!

When the hussars encounter battle in the wild, they have never been afraid of anyone!

What's more, you can also set up an ambush in reverse!

By then…

Ma Yue laughed.

Cao Cao's defeat has been doomed, and Ma Yue will once again prove his ability and achieve supreme feats!

As long as Cao Cao is really captured and killed, all the risks taken will be worth it!

"General!" Do we attack as planned? 』

someone asked.

"certainly! Ma Yue answered loudly, "I would like to ask if you have the courage to kill generals and seize flags?" ! Are you willing to accompany a certain person to capture and kill the old thief? ! 』

The soldiers from the military academy shouted, "Yes!" have! 』

"I would like to follow the general!" 』

Ma Yue couldn't help but laugh, "Good!" Check the equipment again, and feed the horses well! All ministries are not allowed to light fires to avoid being discovered by Cao Jun! When Cao Jun is defeated, we will drink and eat meat together! 』

After hearing this, the soldiers in the military academy were excited and agreed in unison.