Chapter 148 Three strategies: upper, middle and lower
It was already the afternoon of July 15th when Shen Chen learned that Liu Bei had been defeated.
He was shocked and immediately sent out scouts to look for it.
Fortunately, Liu Bei still had a small group of elites around him, and Zhao Yun, Chen Dao and others protected him as he retreated to Dingling.
Shen Chen personally went to Dingling to meet him on July 16th. Cao Hong's pursuit was imminent, and a battle broke out between the two sides in the Dongbogen area.
After returning to Kunyang, Shen Chen's army replenished military supplies and had enough arrows. When the enemy and we met in Dongbugeng, Cao Hong's former army was shot back by Shen Chen's army and was forced to stop the pursuit.
So Liu Bei returned to Kunyang smoothly. In the next few days, a large number of scouts were sent out to search for the scattered troops.
The remaining troops were found one after another. The main damaged troops were actually the old troops of the Yuan clan in Runan. Liu Bei's main army only had two to three thousand men, so he did not suffer much losses.
But Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Tai Shi Ci and others were separated, and Liu Bei was very worried.
On July 17, Zhang Fei, who led the cavalry, came back first. Then on July 20, Taishi Ci also arrived in Kunyang.
One of them was a cavalry unit with strong maneuverability. They threw away Cao Jun and headed straight for Kunyang.
The other one was Taishi Ci who broke through to the south. To the south was Dingying. There was no Cao army. To the west was Xiping County. Li Tong was crippled. He only dared to garrison and did not dare to attack, so they both returned to Liu Bei's tent smoothly. .
But there has been no news about Guan Yu, and everyone is worried.
Because Cao Hong was already stationed at Dingling, and had divided his troops to garrison in the Xiangcheng area, and Li Tong still had a small number of troops in Xiping County to the south, it could be said that Kunyang was surrounded on three sides.
If Guan Yu was intercepted by Cao Jun on his way back to Kunyang at this time, the consequences would be disastrous.
Therefore, after Shen Chen and Liu Bei discussed it, they decided to reorganize their troops and horses. The two troops were united and prepared to take the initiative to attack, so as to contain Cao Hong's troops.
From the beginning of this year to now, Shen Chen's Huangmenting Army and Ganning Army have lost nearly half of their 10,000 troops.
When he sent troops to Xudu for the second time, Shen Chen still had 6,500 men. As the general guarding Kunyang, Shen Zhen led 1,500 men, Lou Fa led 1,500 men to the north as a feint attack, and Shen Chen led 4,000 men. People went straight to Dingying to attack Man Chong.
After Dingying and Liu Bei reunited, they worked together to kill Man Chong, and immediately went east to repel Li Tong. Then they divided their forces and headed north, where they met Ren Jun's Diannong army near Bali Bridge.
After the war was over and he returned to Kunyang, he counted the battle losses and found that apart from the battle to pursue Cao Cao, this was the most brutal battle Shen Chen fought.
Nearly a thousand people were lost. The Huangmenting soldiers lost 300 people. Now there are still 1,600 left. The Ganning army lost nearly 700 people. Therefore, now with the troops of Shen Zhen and Lou Fa, the total strength is There are still 5,400 people coming.
There are also some disabled soldiers and horses, and the number of soldiers who can actually be used in battle is about 5,000.
Shen Chen left a thousand troops to garrison Kunyang and merged with the more than 4,000 scattered soldiers gathered by Liu Bei. About 8,000 people moved closer to Dingying, intending to contain Cao Hong's main force and prevent Cao Hong from being dispersed. Liu Bei's army launched a siege.
Unexpectedly, not long after the army left the city, horses suddenly galloped towards Wuyang from the south, and they were several scouts. They informed Liu Bei that Guan Yu was coming from the south towards Kunyang.
After hearing the news, everyone rushed to greet him.
Go all the way south to Lishui. This Lishui is not Hunan's Lishui, but Runan's Lishui. This river originates from Hengshan Mountain in Ye County, and later became Liming Mountain in Fangcheng County. It flows eastward into Ru River. To the south of Henan is Wuyang, and beyond Lishui is Xiping.
Liu Bei, Shen Chen and others were looking at Liting outside Wuyang City, and saw a large group of people approaching on the official road to the south. The leader was wearing a green robe stained with dust, and was riding a dusty road.
It was Guan Yu.
"Big brother and three brothers!"
When they were within a mile of the land, Guan Yu waved and shouted.
Liu Bei, Zhang Fei and others hurried forward and saw a huge crowd of people behind Guan Yu. There were four to five thousand people dragging his family with him.
"Second brother."
"Second brother!"
Liu Bei and Zhang Fei got off their horses and stepped forward to hug Guan Yu tightly.
All three people laughed.
They have experienced this joy of reunion countless times from Xuzhou to now.
Every time they were separated by Lu Bu, Yuan Shu or Cao Cao, and they finally reunited with difficulty, but their friendship has never changed.
After everyone laughed heartily and rejoiced in the joy of reunion, Liu Bei looked at the people behind him in surprise and asked: "Second brother, what is going on?"
"Your Majesty."
Before Guan Yu could speak, two majestic and powerful men beside him came forward and knelt down on one knee with their hands in hand and said: "Zhou Cang, Pei Yuanshao has seen the envoy."
"Two righteous men, please wake up quickly."
Liu Bei hurriedly stepped forward to help him. He had always been courteous to virtuous corporals. Not to mention those who brought people to surrender, even the poor people in Guizhou Province could enter and leave his mansion at will. He was a person who was very close to the lower class.
Guan Yu introduced: "Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao were originally the remnants of the Yellow Turbans, and they formed a stronghold near Woniu Mountain in Xiping. After I broke out from the army, I went east to Xihua. I wanted to come to Kunyang to look for my elder brother, but Cao's troops were everywhere, so I just Neng went south first and arrived in the Yang'an area. A few days ago, when he came north to Kunyang, he met them."
Zhou Cang said: "I have always admired the reputation of General Guan. The general had no choice but to commit himself to Cao Cao for the sake of his two wives. After killing Yan Liang to repay Cao Cao's kindness, he resolutely went south to find the envoy. Such loyalty makes us admire him very much, so he went forward I have come to seek refuge, and I hope that you will take me under your wing."
These two people were the ones who slipped through the net during the last Shen Chenqing campaign against Runan and Nanyang Yellow Turban.
Their camp was in the southwest of Xiping County, in the remaining mountains of the Dabie Mountains southwest of Zhumadian in later generations. Therefore, when Cao Cao attacked the Runan Yellow Turbans, they were not affected, and naturally they would not accept the invitation to Nanyang.
After the battle at Jianqiang, Guan Yu broke through and ran eastward to Xihua County. He originally wanted to go west to Kunyang, but there were Cao's troops everywhere around Kunyang, and Cao Hong was chasing him hard, so he had no choice but to go south, from The area around the Dabie Mountains went around Kunyang, and ended up at Woniu Mountain.
When the two knew that the person coming was Guan Yu, they immediately felt admiration. Although they had not passed five passes and killed six generals, the fact that Guan Yu bid farewell to Cao Cao for his sworn brother, gave up his glory and wealth, and resolutely returned to Liu Bei's tent had already spread throughout the world. .
Therefore, he was immediately willing to lead the camp with 4,000 to 5,000 people and follow Guan Yu. When passing by Xiping, Li Tong and Zhao Yan were maimed, and even if they saw them, they did not dare to send troops to pursue them.
certainly.
The so-called four to five thousand people, most of them are old, weak, women and children, the young and middle-aged are pitifully young, about a thousand or so, and their combat effectiveness is very limited.
But even this is a great supplement for Liu Bei who is in urgent need of troops.
So when he heard that someone was coming to join him, Liu Bei was very happy and said: "As long as you are willing to fight against Cao's thieves and help the Han Dynasty, there is nothing wrong with you. You two will first work under my second brother's account and follow Yunchang to make contributions. "
"Thank you very much, envoy."
Thank you both.
When everyone received Guan Yu, they immediately set off back to Kunyang.
Upon arriving in the city, Shen Chen immediately arranged for manpower to settle the remaining Yellow Turban troops brought by Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao, and at the same time helped Liu Bei reorganize his soldiers.
He asked Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao to send all the old, weak, women and children to Ye County in the rear, and then he would send people to take them to Xinye.
Then Wuyang and Ye County each sent some of Liu Bei's second-line troops to garrison. His main force and Liu Bei's elite soldiers, totaling about 7,000 people, were garrisoned in Kunyang.
It wasn't until late July that all these messy things were sorted out.
Due to sufficient supplies at the rear, Huangmenting's side was still continuously transporting grain and grass to the Kunyang area of Shangye County in the north, so even if there were more than 10,000 more mouths to eat, there was not much pressure.
It's just that ordinary food is not a problem, but meat is in very short supply.
Shen Chen asked the soldiers to go hunting in the nearby mountains every day. At the same time, he asked Deng Mao, the magistrate of Xinye County in the rear, to help purchase a batch of pork, whether it was pickled fresh pork or bacon strips, to barely maintain meat supply for the main soldiers. .
By the beginning of August, all kinds of things were finally settled, and Shen Chen finally had some free time to chat with Liu Bei about national affairs.
On this day, Liu Bei was handling some military affairs at the Kunyang County Government Office.
Although he is a guest soldier, he has many titles.
Uncle Emperor of the Han Dynasty, General Zuo, Mu of Yuzhou, Marquis of Ting of Yicheng.
Any one of them would be better than Shen Chen, Liu Biaofeng's lieutenant general.
More importantly, Shen Chen, the middle man, would be appointed by Liu Biao, a state pastor, and would not have much legal effect.
These titles for Liu Bei were given by Liu Xie, the real emperor, and were of extremely high political significance.
Later, why did Yuan Shao personally greet him two hundred miles away when he went to Yuan Shao's place? Why did Liu Biao personally greet him ten miles away when he went to Liu Biao's place?
It has nothing to do with the reputation of Renyi, it is all brought about by these titles.
To a certain extent, Liu Bei was nothing before he went to Xudu.
After going to Xudu, Liu Xie gave him a gilded pass and a bunch of titles decreed by the emperor, and his identity immediately became unique.
So even though they were guest troops and Shen Chen and Liu Bei had no direct affiliation, Shen Chen still insisted on using him as the leader.
In the county government hall, Liu Bei was quite distressed at this time.
In recent days, although many defeated soldiers have been collected, plus the troops of Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao, they barely have more than 6,000 troops.
But most of them were defeated soldiers of the Yuan clan's old tribe who had gathered together.
At that time, Cao Hong attacked, and many of Yuan's old tribe died, fled, and surrendered, creating a chaotic mess.
Liu Bei's main force was about 3,000 people, and another 3,000 people were willing to follow him, so when the main camp was preparing to go east, there were 6,000 people.
But after the main camp was broken, there were only less than 3,000 troops around. Then the leaders of Yuan's old tribe who had not wanted to come were killed, and Liu Bei gathered some such soldiers on the road.
These soldiers themselves are not very effective in fighting, and they are soldiers of the Yuan family's old tribe, so their loyalty is also very poor. They just have to rely on Liu Bei now.
Therefore, of the more than 6,000 people he currently has, the only ones that are really useful are the approximately 2,000 elite soldiers.
The remaining more than 4,000 people, including the 1,000 troops brought by Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao, may not have much strength in combat effectiveness and military morale.
Therefore Liu Bei is very sad now.
Even if Shen Chen's army is added to the army, which can number ten thousand people, half of them are still a mob. It is not easy to complete Yuan Shao's instructions and attack Xudu.
While he was in distress, Chen Dao came in and reported: "My lord, General Shen wants to see you."
"Please!"
Liu Bei quickly stood up and walked out of the hall.
These years of wandering around made him understand that he lacked intelligence and urgently needed someone who could point him in the right direction.
Shen Chen had made suggestions to him back then, but unfortunately he was shackled everywhere in Xuzhou. Before he could follow Shen Chen's suggestions and deal with the separatist local forces in Xuzhou one by one, he was beaten in turn by Yuan Shu and Lu Bu. It was pitiful.
Now that Shen Chen finally arrived, she naturally hoped to get his guidance.
Shen Chen did not wear a military uniform today, but an ordinary scholar's robe, without a hat as it did not reach the crown. He tied his hair with a cloth, and accompanied a scholar's sword at his waist. He slowly walked into the hall, cupped his hands and said: " Duke Xuande."
"Little sir, you have been working hard these days."
Liu Bei had already reached the entrance of the hall at this time, and originally wanted to greet him in the outer court. Unexpectedly, Shen Chen had already walked in quickly, so he quickly took his hand to a seat next to him and said happily: "Sit down quickly. "
Handling military affairs is a very troublesome matter. Not only do each battalion's garrison have to be arranged, food and supplies also need to be provided, and even the tasks of each army must be arranged.
So in the past few days, Shen Chen had been running around in Ye County, Wuyang, and Kunyang, but he didn't have much time to meet Liu Bei.
He had just come back from Wuyang today. After hearing Liu Bei's words, Shen Chen knelt down and sat under Liu Bei's right hand and said: "Mr. Haihan.”
Liu Bei sat next to him, and the two of them sat on the same table together. He shook his head bitterly and said, "It doesn't matter. What the young gentleman is doing now is a national matter, so what is there to blame? What's more, I'm everywhere I have been wandering around and failed to serve my country and the emperor. I am extremely lucky to be taken in by a young gentleman. How can I complain?"
Shen Chen then said: "My lord, please don't be self-indulgent. Today I came to see Duke Xuande to discuss countermeasures with you on how to support the Han Dynasty and save the people of the world."
Liu Bei's spirit perked up and he immediately sat upright and said, "Sir, please speak."
Shen Chen pointed to the north and said: "Nowadays, there are endless wars in Guandong, and disputes in the world are endless. Today, the great Han Dynasty, Yuan and Cao are fighting for supremacy in Guandu. Whoever wins this battle will get the entire north. What is the situation expected by then?"
Liu Bei thought: "The fourth and fifth princes of the Yuan family have returned from overseas, and they serve the emperor in the name of supporting the Han Dynasty. With the banner of righteousness, I am afraid that all the north will return to Yuan Shao."
"good."
Shen Chen sighed: "But actually, has Xuande ever thought about it, whether we return to Cao or to Yuan, we cannot ignore one thing."
"What's the matter?"
"The minister is strong and the master is weak. No matter who controls the emperor, in the end he will be just like a puppet on the strings at a funeral and celebration. The north is powerful, and Liu Biao, Liu Zhang, Sun Quan and others in the south will never be the rivals of Yuan and Cao. This big man may not be the opponent of Yuan and Cao." He will still be a big man."
"Well"
Liu Bei said with a solemn expression: "Mr. Yuan. Mr. Yuan's generosity has won the hearts of the people. With Zhou Gong's subordinates, it should not be like this. If we can defeat Cao Cao, we will definitely be able to help the world."
"Gong Xuande."
Shen Chen said seriously: "Nowadays, the Han Dynasty is in decline and His Majesty is in prison. It is already known to everyone. Even if Yuan Shao has this intention, if he wins the world, will the civil servants and generals under him be willing to watch him control the country? Can't it be returned to His Majesty? So sometimes, please don't deceive yourself and face what may happen in the future."
It has become an established fact that the world was in chaos at the end of the Han Dynasty. At that time, many famous people directly said that the Han Dynasty was about to perish. For example, Qiao Xuan, Yan Zhong, He Yong, Xu Shao and other famous people said that the Han Dynasty was exhausted. Something like that.
This is indeed the case to this day.
Therefore, anyone who is not a blind person or a fool knows that Cao Cao coerced the emperor to order the princes. This was just preparations made by powerful ministers to control the situation in the name of the emperor.
When one day in the future he defeats Yuan Shao and defeats Liu Biao, Sun Quan, Liu Zhang and others, I'm afraid he will usurp the throne in a short time.
Even Xun Yu was aware of this, but what could he do? He could only assist Cao Cao helplessly and barely extend the life of the Han Dynasty for several decades, which was considered worthy of his own conscience.
And Liu Bei is not stupid, how could he not know?
But there was nothing he could do.
At first, he naively believed that Cao Cao was a loyal minister, but when he went to Xudu, he imprisoned the emperor, killed the ministers, killed the uncle, killed the concubine, and killed the prince. Is this okay? So he quickly attacked and killed the chariots and went to Yuan Shao. .
But Yuan Shao is not a good person. He had planned to make Liu Yu the emperor before. Now even if he defeats Cao Cao and wins the emperor, he probably won't be a loyal minister like Zhou Gong Huo Guang, but will be a traitor and traitor who usurped the throne. As long as he Unifying the world, the Yuan family is likely to become emperor on behalf of the Han Dynasty.
After all, Yuan Shu has learned from the past. Yuan Shu even gave the imperial title to Yuan Shao before his death, and Yuan Shao's reaction was to accept it. This shows that if Yuan Shao wins the battle of Guandu and gets the entire north, he will probably not grow old. Be an honest Hanchen.
Therefore, Liu Bei had no choice but to go to Yuan Shao.
It was Cao Cao himself who pushed Liu Xie too hastily, which led to the Yidai Zhao incident. Otherwise, Liu Bei and Cao Cao were getting along well before, so why did they fall out after the Yidai Zhao?
Now Yuan Cao is worse than Liu Bei.
If Cao Cao wins, Liu Xie will not have an easy time, and the Han Dynasty may also be in jeopardy.
It's the same thing if Yuan Shao wins.
It was just because of the imperial edict that Liu Bei had no choice but to follow Yuan Shao. He could only naively hope that Yuan Shao was really attacking Cao Cao to help the Han Dynasty, as he said.
Although even children would not believe such words, people like Liu Bei and Kong Rong, who were deeply interested in the Han Dynasty, could only deceive themselves in this way.
But Shen Chen clearly realized that this kind of self-deception was undesirable, so he had to make Liu Bei give up this idea, give up his illusions, and start doing it.
After hearing his words, Liu Bei pondered for a moment, and finally just sighed: "Well, how could I not know? Cao Cao controlled the court and bullied the emperor. Yuan Shao even tried to establish a new emperor in the north. Such rebellious ministers can't be compared with our weak generals. As a widow, there is really nothing I can do."
Shen Chen smiled and said: "If Mr. Xuande is determined, he may not be able to turn the tide."
"oh?"
Liu Bei said happily: "Sir, can you teach me something?"
Shen Chen muttered: "I have three strategies: upper, middle and lower. They all depend on the situation. Each has its own reasons. I don't know which strategy you want to hear."