Guanqiu Jian, the governor of Jingzhou, was already Cao Rui's literary advisor in his early years when Cao Rui was just a Marquis of Pingyuan and was still not very popular with Cao Pi. He formed a deep friendship with Cao Rui.
It is precisely because of this that after Cao Rui ascended the throne, Guanqiu Jian won the trust of Emperor Wei, and his official career was extremely smooth, and he rose to prominence all the way.
He successively held important positions such as Shangshulang, Yulin Supervisor, Luoyang Diannong Zhonglang, etc., and then served as the governor of Jingzhou.
Even without any military experience, he was later promoted to General of the Southern Conquest, and at the same time, he was in charge of all military affairs in Jingzhou.
Over the years, Guanqiu Jian has been guarding Jingzhou and has never moved his position.
Because of Ji Han's huge pressure on the western front, the Wei State, which had planned to conquer Liao a few years ago in history, could only watch the Gongsun family of Liaodong dissociate between Wei and Wu.
Now even Youzhou, which is adjacent to Liaodong, is desperately trying to reduce its military strength.
In the original history, Guanqiu Jian, who really rose to power due to his conquest of Liao, was still just a governor without much military merit at this time.
Even in the original history, Guanqiu Jian led an army alone to conquer Liao for the first time, but it was a failure.
So when he learned that the notorious Feng Thief was personally leading his army to Caoqiao Pass, he did not dare to hesitate at all:
"Someone is coming!"
"General?"
"Get your horses ready immediately, I want to go back to Wancheng."
"Also, immediately send an order to Wancheng to have the soldiers assemble their troops and head to Caoqiao Pass at any time."
It is known to everyone that the Han-Wu alliance wanted to conquer the Wei Dynasty.
Now the whole country of Wu is attacking Wei, and the north bank of the river is full of Wu soldiers.
And what about Han?
But the thunder was loud and the raindrops were light.
It is hard to believe that Han, who had been forcing the Wei Dynasty to retreat continuously, would let this opportunity pass.
At this time, Guan Qiujian finally breathed a sigh of relief involuntarily after receiving the exact news about Feng Thief.
It may be difficult to deal with Thief Feng, but at least you can be mentally prepared.
If Thief Feng doesn't even know where he is and what he plans to do, he will suddenly appear from nowhere, which will only make people more frightened.
The leader of the army, Feng Thief, has always been elusive, erratic and extremely cunning.
But this man was also the leader of the bandits in the Han Kingdom, and he was extremely fierce.
During the Battle of Guanzhong, this impression reached its peak throughout Wei State and was simply unforgettable.
Guanqiu Jian, who had no experience in major military campaigns and had no reputation, naturally had to be extremely careful when he heard Feng Thief's arrival.
"But general, what should we do over there in Peizhong? I'm afraid the Wu invaders are unwilling to retreat easily."
When I heard that the general was about to leave Xiangyang and go to Caoqiao Pass, I couldn't help but remind him with some worry.
Guanqiu Jian could guess that Ji Han would take the opportunity to send troops from Wuguan, so how could he not be prepared for this situation?
But seeing him sneer and say:
"Wu Kou has made great efforts since his invasion of the north, but from what I can see, he may not have done his best."
After so many years, Guanqiu Jian naturally had an idea of how many troops the Wu bandits in Jingzhou had.
"So what they want to wait for is probably this moment."
This is a ploy, a half-hearted ploy.
This is also the main reason why no matter how urgent the battle in Peizhong was, Guanqiu Jian did not mobilize all the soldiers and horses in Wancheng to cross the Han River.
He himself even stayed in Xiangyang and did not lead the army to Peizhong at all.
If we are entangled by the Wu invaders in the pall and Feng thief emerges, Caoqiao Pass will be in danger!
Without Caoqiao Pass, Wancheng would no longer be in danger.
Nanyang is all flat. When the time comes, the Han army in Guanzhong can come and leave whenever they want.
This Chengwan city cannot bear the weight.
"Zhuge Jin is called General Wu Kou, but in fact he is just a scholar with no reputation."
"This man is a decent civil servant. If he joins the army, the most he can do is join the army. How can he lead the army alone? And he is old and dying now. Why should he be afraid?"
Counting from the time when Zhuge Jin became an official with the Wu invaders, he has detailed his achievements. Most of them were from other people's expeditions and benefited from others.
But leading the army alone, he never won a single victory and was repeatedly defeated by the Wei Dynasty. This can be said to be ignorant of the tactics of the army.
This is the reason why Guanqiu Jian knew that the Wu army had not yet exerted its full strength, but faced the army led by Zhuge Jin, the general of Wu State, and did not worry too much at all.
"However, Thief Feng is exactly the opposite of Zhuge Jin. This thief has never been defeated since he invaded the Wei Dynasty. He is indeed the great enemy of the Wei Dynasty."
"Therefore, Thief Feng leads an army to invade. How can I rest assured if I don't get to Caoqiao Pass? In the war in Tiaozhong, as long as the generals guard the city, I will have no worries."
Thinking about the early years, the officers and soldiers of the Wei Dynasty could come and go freely between Xiangyang and Nanjun.
How could Zhuge Jin in the south deal with the Wei generals?
But now, the Wei forces in Jingzhou are actually quite outnumbered and can barely cope with the Wu invaders coming from the south.
Even though Guanqiu Jian was promoted by Cao Rui, he was a die-hard loyalist of the Wei State, so he couldn't help but feel a little sad, thinking that destiny was unpredictable.
If it weren't for the Han Kingdom in the west, why would the Wei Dynasty be like this?
Seeing that Guanqiu Jian had made up his mind, he made another suggestion:
"When the Wu invaded, the general was able to do it with ease, so he didn't have to ask the court for help."
"Now that the Feng thief has invaded, the general feels as if he is facing a formidable enemy. Jingzhou is under attack from both sides. If the general does not ask for help from the imperial court, how long will he wait?"
"Xuchang..." When mentioning this, Guanqiu Jian, who had always been confident, became somewhat silent.
There is indeed a forbidden army in Xuchang.
It was brought from Luoyang by the late emperor during his eastward tour.
Later, when the Jianghuai war was urgent, the great Sinong Zhao Yan was ordered to face the danger and was appointed as a hussar general. He also led the imperial army south to support.
After the death of the late emperor, this imperial army has been guarding the emperor in Xuchang.
Guanqiu Jian finally shook his head:
"The fighting over Jianghuai is far more intense than in Jingzhou. If His Majesty sends the Imperial Guard over, what if something happens to Jianghuai?"
Of course, this is only a superficial reason.
The deeper and more important reason is that Xuchang and Luoyang are still too close.
Xuchang's imperial army was also responsible for guarding against Sima Yi.
Now that Feng Thief has appeared in Wuguan, the pressure on Jingzhou has increased sharply, while on the other hand, the pressure on Luoyang has been greatly reduced.
With this situation declining and the other rising, Xuchang's imperial army may not be able to move lightly.
Thinking of this, Guanqiu Jian couldn't help but grit his teeth:
As a veteran of three dynasties, Sima Yi did not want to repay his country's kindness, but instead supported his troops in order to stand on his own feet. This can be said to be an old thief and not a son of a man!
But no matter how much he scolded Sima Yi, it was of no use now.
Guanqiu Jian had already anticipated what would happen today, so he quickly made arrangements for his departure, and then immediately crossed the Han River to return north.
After returning to Wancheng, he led the Wancheng soldiers who had been prepared without stopping and rushed towards Caoqiao Pass for reinforcements.
At this time, Feng Duhu had only walked halfway.
Late spring and early summer are inherently rainy seasons.
There was a severe drought last year, and God seems to be trying to make up for the rain this year.
Although Wuguan Road did not encounter the extremely bad conditions mentioned by Jufu, Danshui surged and flooded many sections of the road.
Fortunately, with Jufu's reminder, Meng Yan was sent as a vanguard in advance, and the Han army also had a special branch: the engineering battalion.
Although Feng Duhu did not have a fully organized engineering camp in his hands at the moment.
But even sending some twenty skilled personnel and dozens of interns can still help a lot.
Therefore, although this road was difficult and the march was not fast, after five days, Feng Duhu finally led his army out of the mountains and entered the small basin of the valley where Caoqiao Pass is located.
Meng Yan, who arrived here two days in advance, greeted him at the entrance of the valley:
"Zhongduhu!"
Feng Duhu nodded and walked to the water's edge. He first rubbed the soles of his boots a few times, then took turns extending his feet into the water and shaking them hard a few times.
Along the way, we encountered a rain, the road was muddy, the soles of the boots were covered in mud, and it was still thick and sticky mud.
Each boot seemed to weigh several kilograms. Not only was it uncomfortable, but even when walking on the road, the soles of the boots felt like they were sticking to the ground with every step, and I had to exert force to lift my feet, making walking extremely inconvenient.
"What's going on with the Wei thieves on the other side?"
When Feng Duhu saw that the thick layer of mud on his boots had not been shaken off, he simply squatted down, picked up a thin piece of stone, and started shoveling away the mud with water.
"The scouts sent by the general at the end of yesterday saw Wei thieves and it seems that reinforcements have arrived."
Meng Yan didn't feel that Feng Duhu was deliberately rude to him because of his informal appearance.
In his early years, he worked with Feng Duhu in Yuexuan, and he knew that this man's reputation as a "quick talker and a charming man" was not unfounded.
If he is polite to you, he doesn't treat you as one of his own.
Just like the time during the Northern Expedition to Longyou, he said it very nice and thanked me for helping him find some poisonous weeds to make poisonous juice.
small book booth
Unexpectedly, as soon as he turned around, he led the army secretly towards Hanzhong. By the time he reacted, they were almost at Jincheng!
Alas, forget it, don’t mention it anymore, it’s all in the past.
Feng Duhu ignored Meng Yan who was having some random thoughts. He shoveled the thick mud off his boots and put his feet into the water again to rinse them off.
Well, it’s clean, my feet feel comfortable, and my heart feels comfortable too.
Then Feng Duhu turned around with a relaxed smile on his face:
"Oh? So, the reaction of the Wei thief on the other side was quite fast. Have you found out who the guard is?"
The boots got wet and creaked when I stepped on them, but I felt better than before.
Meng Yan followed behind and quickly replied:
"It's not certain yet, but when I look at the big flag at the top of the city, it seems to have been replaced with the word 'Gu'. Could it be the Jingzhou guard Guanqiu Jian of the Wei thieves?"
"Guanqiu Jian?" Feng Duhu paused for a moment, his face a little strange, "If it is really him, it would be no wonder."
When Meng Yan heard this, he was immediately surprised:
"I didn't expect the Central Protector to know this person?"
"I don't know him, I just heard his name."
Although Guanqiu Jian was not well-known at this time, Feng Duhu was still somewhat impressed by such major events as the largest rebellion in the history of the Three Kingdoms - the Three Huainan Rebellions.
Among the three rebellions in Huainan, Wang Ling, one of the first rebels, surrendered without a fight, while Zhuge Dan, one of the three rebels, was constantly besieged.
Only Guanqiu Jian, the second rebel, could lead his army northward, forcing Sima Division to mobilize most of Wei's troops to encircle and suppress them.
At the same time, this battle also made Wen Qin's son Wen Yang famous as a brave general.
"Anyone who can get into the ear of Zhongdu Protector, is it possible that this person really has something extraordinary?"
Feng Duhu smiled calmly:
"So what if he is extraordinary? Can he still be able to withstand the turbulent forces of the world?"
After finishing speaking, he turned around and said: "Here, bring the horse over."
"General Meng, how about you accompany me to observe the other side?"
"How dare you disobey your orders?"
Setting up camp does not require Feng Duhu to personally watch, Jufu can still trust it.
Under the protection of his personal guards, Feng Duhu and Meng Yan rode to the west bank of Danshui and looked at Caoqiao Pass on the other side.
At this time, the wooden bridge originally erected on both sides of the bank had been demolished by the Wei army, and even the bridge piles were burned.
Coupled with the rising water in Danshui, the water surface is much wider than usual.
The roaring water rushes out of the mountains to the west, turns a nearly ninety-degree bend to the south, and rushes straight to the mountains to the south.
Then it was blocked by the mountains to the south and turned eastward again, forming a notch.
And Caoqiao Pass is located just inside the notch, blocking the throat between Guanzhong and Nanyang.
Watching Feng Duhu stationed at the waterside, silent for a long time, Meng Yan took the initiative and said:
"In the opinion of the Central Protector, according to the last general, although Caoqiao Pass is not as dangerous as Wuguan Pass, it is still easy to defend but difficult to attack."
"In addition, we are not familiar with the currents here. If we want to cross the water, we need to be careful and make more preparations."
Feng Duhu nodded:
"What General Meng said is true."
With that said, the two rode their horses and walked along Danshui for a while.
The location of Caoqiao Guancheng is probably the easiest place to cross the water. The terrain is flat and the water is relatively gentle.
Otherwise, the original wooden bridge would not have been built there.
Even so, the Wei thieves built a line of defense along the east bank with Caoqiao Guancheng as the center.
Every once in a while, you can see a dock.
The closer they are to a place where water can be easily crossed, the larger and denser the forts will be.
Feng Duhu circled around and came to the old site of Caoqiao again. Looking at Guancheng standing opposite, he said:
"General Meng, I would like to ask you to send a letter in my name to General Wei opposite."
Although I don’t know why the Central Protector didn’t write it himself, but he could write a letter for the Central Protector, how could Meng Yan not obey?
"After receiving the order, I would like to ask the Central Protector, what should I write in the letter?"
"Just write one sentence: Do you know the old story of King Jian of Qin's army coming out of Wuguan to destroy Chu?"
When Meng Yan heard this, he couldn't help but his heart skipped a beat: "Here!"
Guanqiu Jian, who arrived at Caoqiao Pass one day earlier than Feng Duhu, sneered after receiving the letter sent by someone from the other side:
"Thief Feng is so loud, he dares to compare himself to Wang Jian!"
It is said that Feng Thief is one of the best in the world in both civil and military affairs. Looking at his handwriting now, it seems to be just ordinary, which is far from his reputation.
Guanqiu Jian wrote on the spot:
"Wang Jian leads 600,000 troops. I think Feng Jun only has 20,000 troops. How can he dare to compare himself to Wang Jian?"
"Frugality is not talent. I still remember that Li Xin received 200,000 men and finally returned with the remaining soldiers."
When Qin Shihuang wanted to destroy Chu, the veteran general Wang Jian bluntly said that "it takes 600,000 people", while the new leader Li Xin thought that "it only takes 200,000 people".
Qin Shihuang believed that Wang Jian was old and timid before fighting, while Li Xin was brave because of his strength.
So Li Xin and Meng Tian were sent south with 200,000 troops to attack Chu.
Unexpectedly, Li Xin won first and then was defeated. Chu general Xiang Yan defeated two battalions of the Qin army and killed seven captains of the Qin army. This was one of the rare defeats during the period when Qin destroyed the six kingdoms.
Qin Shihuang finally realized his mistake, so he went to Wang Jian's hometown in person, asked Wang Jian to come out again, and commissioned 600,000 soldiers from all over the country.
Wang Jian lived up to expectations and defeated the Chu army. Even Xiang Yan was defeated and killed.
Feng Duhu wrote a letter to Wang Jian because he wanted to tell Guanqiu Jian that the Wei Kingdom would be destroyed.
Guan Qiujian's reply was that he thought Feng Duhu was too arrogant and was just like Li Xin.
"Zhongdu Protector, this thief is really too arrogant and does not understand the current situation!"
When Jufu and Meng Yan learned the content of Guanqiu Jian's reply, their faces were filled with anger.
Feng Duhu didn't pay attention. His eyes paused at the signature of the letter for a long time, and then he said calmly: