After the Deng family moved to Huangmenting, the clan spread out and spread throughout the countryside, with more than 300 genealogies.
The Shen family followed closely, with more than 200 people. Together with other surnames, there were probably several townships around Huangmen Pavilion, and more than a thousand people lived here.
At first, Deng Shen lived mixedly in two townships near Huangmenting. Later, through development, Deng Chen gradually grew stronger, and each township was led by them.
There are six direct descendants of the Deng family in this generation. They gather in the surrounding villages of Huangmenting and are in charge of the clan power. If there is to be a clan meeting, they must nod.
Deng Hong learned that Cao Cao had slaughtered Qi Li, and in response to Shen Chen's speculation, he quickly sent letters to the elders of the Deng family scattered in various villages, hoping that they would respond to the call and hold a clan meeting.
Although Deng Hong was the youngest son, the Deng family abided by filial piety. When they learned that the youngest was in an emergency, the brothers did not refuse. The oldest, Deng Mao, who was over fifty years old, went to the ancestral hall to discuss matters.
Logically speaking, outsiders are not allowed to enter the Deng family ancestral hall, but things have to be prioritized. Deng Hong also took Shen Chen into the ancestral hall and discussed with many brothers in the hall on the right side of the side room.
In the hall, the clan elders sat down one by one. Deng Hong explained the whole story clearly, and everyone looked at each other. After a while, Deng Maocai said in a deep voice: "Sixth brother, this matter is related to the life and death of the whole clan. You can't be careless. It's definitely true. ?”
"Brother, must I have forgotten that I asked him to borrow a horse a few days ago." Deng Hong said: "The tribesmen sent to inquire about the news reported that they had seen it with their own eyes. If brother doesn't believe it, call him and ask him, and he will know for himself. "
"Well, it's better to be cautious."
Deng Mao asked people to call the tribesmen who had gone to inquire about the news. They waited outside and came in to report to Deng Mao what they saw and heard.
Cao Cao personally led the army southward, and after passing Pengcheng, entered the territory of Xiapi.
Choli was the closest to Pengcheng, so the butcher's knife fell on the county town of Choli immediately. When the Deng clan members who went to inquire about the news arrived at Choli, Cao's army had already left.
What they saw was devastation and countless corpses in the wilderness. Cao's army was extremely cruel. They not only massacred all the villages and pavilions in their path, but even burned down the houses. At that time, most of the villages were concentrated on both sides of the river.
There are two most important rivers in Xuzhou, the Sishui River and the Huaihe River, and Gelu County is located between the Sui River and the Sishui River. Corpses drifted from the upper reaches of the Sui River to the lower reaches of the Sishui River, accumulating the entire river.
After hearing about this situation, Deng Mao and other clan elders were extremely horrified.
The communication methods of the Han Dynasty were extremely backward. The villagers lived in one place all their lives, and their activity range may not exceed 20 kilometers. They did not know the changes in the general trend of the world, did not know who the current emperor was, and did not even know that the Han Dynasty had already been The country is not a country.
So when Cao Cao massacred a county town and left no one alive, the people in other counties didn't know about it at all. Otherwise, how could the people in Xuzhou not know how to escape when Cao Cao massacred five cities in history?
Therefore, after the elders of the Deng clan learned about this, they all became panicked. Deng Hong's second brother Deng Kai said in a trembling voice: "Cao Cao. Is Cao Cao really going to massacre the entire Xuzhou? Is he crazy?"
"He is not crazy, he knows very well that his strength cannot compete head-on with Yuan Shu, so in order to prevent Yuan Shu from seizing Yin Fu's Xuzhou, he must kill Xuzhou to pieces."
Shen Chen sat cross-legged on the banquet, looking around like an old man, and said in a deep voice: "Uncles, I hope you can recognize the reality clearly."
"Then what should we do now?"
Deng Mao worriedly said: "Cao Cao has sent troops to attack. Huaibei is already in chaos. There is nowhere to run even if you want to."
Shen Chen said: "I said this two months ago, and the whole clan thought I was lying. If I had escaped at that time, I might be able to escape to Jingzhou now. For the current plan, I can only flee north first." Go hide in Niqiu Mountain and wait until Cao Cao slaughters Xuzhou before making further plans."
"Can't we go east?"
Deng Kai traveled all over the world when he was young. He said he traveled all over the world, but in fact he traveled around Xuzhou and Yangzhou. He knew that from Qu County, which was later Lianyungang, he could go south to Guangling County. In this way, he could bypass Xiapi and go from Guangling. Enter Yangzhou and then find a way to Jingzhou.
However, Shen Chen shook his head and said: "I often talk to merchants and tourists, and I know that Guangling has been occupied by Zuo Rong. This thief has always been fierce, and everyone who comes and goes will be exploited by him. We fled south with our family and passed by his place. It’s like a sheep entering a tiger’s mouth.”
"Oh, this world is really difficult."
Deng Mao sighed, looked around and said: "Brothers, Ah Chen's words are reasonable. It involves the lives of the whole clan. If you decide to cut it off, it will be cut off. What do you think?"
"That's all it can do."
"I have no objection."
"Then make sure you go north and escape into Niqiu Mountain."
Finally, Deng Hong made the final decision: "Brothers, please immediately summon all the people in the township to move to their homes and flee."
"It's time to set off without further delay. Cao Cao massacred Xiapi and will never let go of Yan County. In addition to preventing Yuan Shu from going north to invade Xuzhou, revenge on Tao Gongzu is also an important reason!"
Shen Chen said.
During this period of time, he had been analyzing all Cao Cao's actions since his attack on Tao Qian last year, and finally concluded that his main strategic intention was to prevent Yuan Shu from going north.
But the secondary intention is also obvious, he really wants to avenge his father.
Xuzhou was rich in Yin, but its wealth was mainly in the three places of Donghai State, Xiapi State and Guangling County. Among these three places, Guangling was seriously harmed by Zuo Rong, and it was too close to Jiangdong and too far away from Cao Cao, so he could not kill him.
There are still Tao Qian's remaining tribes in Donghai Kingdom, and Donghai is closer to Cao Cao's territory, so he doesn't want to wipe out Donghai Kingdom. After all, he still wants to get Xuzhou.
Therefore, Xiapi, which is right in the middle of Yuan Shu's Huainan area and Cao Cao's Yanzhou area, became the main massacre area for Cao's army.
It was Cao Cao's intention to turn the hundreds of kilometers in between into no man's land, but it did not mean that he would not take action against Shan County.
Because Tao Qian is his enemy after all, and he has to kill Tao Qian to avenge his father.
Deng didn't believe Shen Chen's words at first, but now the facts are before his eyes. His previous prediction that Xiapi would be massacred has come true. Now everyone did not dare to neglect and immediately called on the villagers to prepare to flee.
However, millet seedlings were just planted not long ago, and it is difficult to leave the hometown. How easy is it to persuade all the villagers immediately?
After Xun Yu discovered Dong Zhuo's usurpation, he immediately abandoned his official position and returned to his hometown. He wanted to persuade the village elders to leave Yingchuan and go elsewhere to escape the war. As a result, the people in Yingchuan were unwilling to leave. In the end, many people were killed after Dong Zhuo's rebellion. This is a typical example. .
Fortunately, the Deng and Shen families are married to each other, so if you persuade the Deng family, you will be able to persuade the Shen family.
Half of the people in Huangmenting were members of the Dengchen tribe, and the rest of the people were all headed by the second surname. After everyone's persuasion, most of the people were still willing to follow them, and they packed their belongings and prepared to leave.
And it's not just Huangmenting. The Han people have been a society of love since ancient times. When the news reached Huangmenting, they learned that Cao Cao was massacring Xiapi. The people rushed to tell each other and spread the news to relatives and friends in the nearby countryside. Soon the whole country Everyone in Xiangben County knew about this.
In the next few days, the incident spread further and further, starting from Xiangben County and spreading to the neighboring county. It caused an uproar in a radius of forty or fifty miles, and soon reached Tao Qian's ears.
Shan County, Donghai State, Shan County is very close to Xiangben County. In recent days, many villagers in Xiangben County are relocating their families. It is impossible for local officials and village elders not to report it. Therefore, it has only been two days, and the matter is still going on. While it was fermenting, Tao Qian had already sent someone over to inquire about the situation.
Tao Qian's close confidant Cao Hong went to Xiangbi to investigate the whole story. After learning the whole story, he returned to Shan County to report the matter to Tao Qian.