Huan Fan led his men, controlled his facial expressions forcibly, and finally walked out of the periphery of Sima Yi's army. Only then did he dare to breathe a little relieved.
It was a crisp autumn day, and after walking only a short distance, his chest and back were already soaked to the skin.
Now that he could escape, he couldn't wait to say to Si Fan and Buqu:
"The matter is urgent. I have to rush to Xuchang to report to the general. You and others must also hurry up."
"I expect Sima Yi will react soon, and he will definitely send people to chase him when the time comes. Don't be careless."
It's not that Huan Fan didn't know that taking these people to Xuchang personally was the most appropriate way.
But now that things have come to a point, Sima Yi will definitely not let him and others off easily.
When so many people walk together, it will not only slow down the journey, but also easily expose the target.
The lesser of two evils, even if he knew that leaving these people behind would be a flaw in his plot.
But right now we can only protect ourselves first.
Although the mouth of the dead is naturally the safest.
But Huan Fan was not a general who led the army. Since he became an official in Cao Wei, he has basically been regarded as a civilian official.
After arriving in Jizhou, although he was appointed as General Zhenbei as usual, he was still unfamiliar with military matters.
Under the circumstances at that time, without the cooperation of Si Fan and other cronies, how could they barely stabilize the morale of the army under the pressure of Sima Yi's army?
Not to mention that without the assistance of Si Fan and others, it would not be so easy for Cao Shuang to wipe his ass with his own servant Ding Buqu.
So now we can only try our best to get these people to Xuchang.
After arriving in Xuchang, everything became easier.
Therefore, before Huan Fan left, he specifically said to Si Fan:
"If Sima Yi knew about what happened in Yecheng, it would be difficult for him to do anything right. So now you and I can be said to be in the same boat."
"If you are lucky enough to reach Xuchang safely, I will definitely tell the general about your achievements. Why worry about a reward when the time comes?"
After drawing a big piece of cake, Si Fan and others' eyes lit up.
After appeasing everyone, Huan Fan got on his horse, and with a few of his most trusted cronies, galloped towards the south.
It's just that although the flatbread is delicious, if you want to eat it in your mouth, you have to go to Xuchang.
The most critical problem facing Si Fan and others was that they were too close to Yecheng, or in other words, too close to Sima Yi.
But it is too far away from Xuchang, or in other words, from the general.
More importantly, the people sent by Sima Taifu to chase them were much faster than expected.
In order to catch up with Huan Fan as soon as possible, Sima Yi even sent out his precious cavalry.
Moreover, these elite cavalry were modeled on the Ji Han cavalry army, equipped with a three-piece cavalry suit.
"Where is Lord Huan?"
Facing more than a hundred menacing Jingqi, Si Fan, who at this time was still bent on rushing to Xuchang to receive his reward, although he wanted to resist.
But after taking a look at his side, he was immediately discouraged and simply ordered his men to abandon their weapons and surrender.
In order to get out of the city safely without being suspected, they all pretended to be Huan's servants.
The one who holds it is no more than a sword, and the one who wears it is no more than cloth armor.
How can we fight against these mighty elite knights in front of us?
Not to mention that the Huan clan servants, who only knew how to deal with weak women who had no power to resist, immediately dispersed when they saw the pursuers coming.
And I don’t know if they had received the order early, but these people actually scattered and ran away.
"Master, have mercy!"
Si Fan is also a sensible person.
As soon as he was brought to Sima Taifu, he saw the Taifu's face that was so gloomy that it was almost dripping with water.
Before the Taifu could say anything, he immediately begged for mercy.
Huan Fan has already run away, so in the Yetai incident, he will have to take the blame and become the main culprit.
If you don’t beg for mercy now, when will you wait?
"Where have those talented people that Cao Shuang sent to Tongque Garden gone?"
Sima Yi asked in a low voice, staring at Si Fan.
Although Si Fan had long expected that the Taifu would ask about this matter, and the Taifu sent people to chase him and others, it was most likely because of this.
But when he heard the Taifu's question, cold sweat still broke out on his forehead, and his mouth started to stutter:
"Return to the Taifu's words, those, those..."
"Say it!"
Sima Yi shouted loudly.
"Yes, yes," Xiaoren said. Sweat flowed into his eyes, and Si Fan did not dare to reach out to wipe them. "Long before the Taifu entered the city, Huan Shijun took Xiaoren and others to bring the late emperor's talents to the city.
,all,all..."
At this point, Si Fan didn't dare to continue talking.
"I want to die!"
Sima Yi, who was usually very good at cultivating qi, now no longer cared about his demeanor and simply drew his sword as if he was about to strike.
"If you don't say anything, believe it or not, I'll let you sharpen your sword?"
"I can't help Huan Pifu. Do you really think I can't help you?"
"Even if your wife and children live in Xuchang, believe it or not, I can still bully your entire family?"
"Believe it, believe it! The villain believes it!"
Si Fan's face was pale and his head felt like pounded garlic.
"Now I want you to tell me what Huan Fan did to the late Emperor's talents!"
Sima Yi was so angry that he passed by with his sword, and Si Fan's bun was immediately cut off.
"Yes, yes..." Si Fan felt a slight chill on his head and was frightened. He quickly said, "They were killed by Commander Huan. They were all killed by Commander Huan!"
Sima Yi had already guessed this answer, so he was not too surprised. He continued to ask:
"Where is the body? Where is the body buried?"
"They didn't bury them. Huan Shijun asked the villain to put the corpses, stones and iron tools in sacks and sink them in Zhangshui..."
"A common man! This is really worse than a beast!"
Sima Yi cursed angrily and ordered:
"Where is Shen Yu? Lead the way there quickly!"
Although the Zhang River in Yecheng is not too urgent, Huan Fan buried the corpses for several days. It is not easy to fish them up again.
Sima Yi sent a large number of men to search along the waterside.
A few days later, I tried my luck and picked up two sacks.
It's just that the corpse inside was swollen and rotten by water, and was beyond recognition, making it difficult to identify.
Sima Yi had no choice but to let others restrain him and bury him.
The talents of the late emperor that Cao Shuang sent to Yetai were not found in Ye City, which made Sima Yi's plan not so perfect.
He might even give Cao Shuang some truth in the future.
But the matter has come to this, and there is no use in regretting.
However, Cao Shuang has always kept things secret, and the Three Dogs in Taichung are even more rampant.
The fact that the late emperor's talents were secretly hidden in the general's palace has become an open secret in the court.
Even if Cao Shuang is not caught this time, it does not mean that Cao Shuang has not done those things.
Not to mention that he still has Si Fan and others in his hands.
The only thing to worry about is how to cover up the army's unauthorized entry into Yecheng so as to block Youyou's mouth?
Alas, I'm afraid it will take a lot of effort!
Just when Sima Yi was trying to figure out how to take over Jizhou at the minimum cost.
Huan Fan was already running all the way, crossing the river from Baimajin, traveling day and night, entering Chenliu, and then ran from Chenliu to Xuchang.
When Cao Shuang heard that Huan Fan had arrived, he was shocked and hurriedly came out to greet him personally.
When he saw Huan Fan's appearance, he couldn't believe that the man in front of him was his fellow countryman:
"But in front of Yuan Zejun? You, why did you become like this?"
But I saw the man in front of me, with disheveled hair and bare feet, with long hair covering half of his face, and the exposed face was covered in gray and black dirt.
The clothes on his body were all stained with mud. If it weren't for the fact that the fabric and the jade pendant used to hold the clothes could not be identified as belonging to a powerful person, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the person in front of him was a refugee fleeing famine.
When Huan Fan saw Cao Shuang, he quickly stepped forward and said three words: "General..."
Cao Shuang felt a stench coming from his nose. He quickly covered his nose and took a few steps back:
"You, are you really Yuan Ze?"
Although Cao Shuang and Huan Fan were from the same hometown, it seemed that Cao Shuang treated Huan Fan quite politely.
Otherwise, he would not be allowed to serve as the governor of Jizhou.
But in Cao Shuang's heart, he was not very close to Huan Fan.
Normally, Cao Shuang would be able to hide his inner feelings, but at this time, the stench emanating from Huan Fan's body really made him feel nauseous.
This action of covering your nose and retreating is a subconscious behavior.
When Huan Fan saw Cao Shuang acting like this, he finally came to his senses.
Although he knew that he was the one who made a mistake, Cao Shuang's actions still made him feel uncomfortable.
At this time, Cao Shuang also reacted and put down the hand covering his nose.
"Yuan Ze, what is going on with you?"
"Forget it." Huan Fan was a little downcast, "Sima Yi is good at leading troops across the state border. He surrounded Yecheng and Jizhou. He has already fallen into the hands of an old man."
"What!" Cao Shuang's face changed drastically when he heard this, "Why do you do this?"
Huan Fan ran all the way without stopping, and his speed was faster than the speed at which the news spread.
Not long after Cao Shuang received the news that Jizhou was besieged, he heard from Huan Fan that Jizhou had been lost. He was really shocked and angry.
There was even some intention of blaming Huan Fan in his heart.
Seeing Cao Shuang's extremely ugly look, Huan Fan smiled bitterly and told Sima Yi's plan.
After hearing this, Cao Shuang was shocked and broke into a cold sweat again.
But I saw him gritting his teeth and saying:
"This old thief Sima Yi is really vicious. He wants to kill me!"
Originally he was a little angry that Huan Fan had lost Jizhou, but now he heard that Huan Fan had done so many things for him before escaping from Yecheng.
My heart has turned from anger to gratitude.
"General, the old thief Sima crossed the state border without permission, surrounded Yecheng with troops, and openly slandered the general. His rebellious intentions are clearly exposed."
Seeing Cao Shuang's behavior, Huan Fan quickly suggested:
"The general should immediately report to the emperor and issue an edict to remove him from the post of Taifu, denounce him as a treason, and summon a large army to conquer him."
"That's natural!" After Cao Shuang blurted out, he seemed to think of something again, his face changed, and he was a little embarrassed, "Oh, actually, I have wanted to kill the old thief for a long time."
"It's just," he said, shaking his head with a troubled look on his face, "Oh, the Western bandit is very powerful, and I want to use his hand to stop the bandit, so I have to keep him for now."
"Besides, it's not like you don't know, Yuan Ze, that over the past few years, the country has been in crisis, and the Wu bandits from the south have invaded the north every year, making it increasingly difficult to control them. Alas!"
"For the sake of the overall situation, I have been holding back. I didn't expect that old thief to be so disregardful of the safety of the country!"
Huan Fan frowned when he heard Cao Shuang's ramble.
In fact, how could he not know the current situation of Da Wei?
If we really want to attack Sima Yi immediately, will we make the Western bandits and Southern bandits laugh out loud?
At that time, it will only lead to the overthrow of the Wei Dynasty and the loss of the country's title.
Therefore, his real intention is just to ask:
"General, did the Wu invaders really capture Xiangyang this time when they invaded the north? How much did the Wei army lose in the south?"
Cao Shuang's face became increasingly ugly:
"That guy Sun Quan is really cunning and cunning. He actually used his body as bait to attack Hefei, Shouchun and other places."
"But Lu Xun was sent to attack Xiangyang secretly. What's even more disgusting is that the Western thief Feng Yong actually went to Chencaoqiao Pass to cooperate with Lu Xun."
When Cao Shuang said this, he sighed, "Guanqiu Jian, the governor of Jingzhou, was concerned about one thing and not the other. He was at a loss of what to do. Xiangyang was finally captured by Lu Xun."
This was one of the reasons why he did not blame Huan Fan directly.
One lost Yecheng and the other lost Xiangyang.
The eldest brother does not talk about the second brother.
"How big is the loss of Jingzhou's troops?"
"Guanqiu Jian led the main force of Jingzhou and went to Caoqiao Pass to defend against Feng's thieves. Although there are many defenders left in Xiangyang, in general, it is better to lose some vitality than to wipe out the whole army."
Not to mention Xiangyang, it was fine. When he mentioned Xiangyang, Cao Shuang became more and more irritable.
In the past few days, there has been a lot of discussion between the government and the public, and many veterans have taken the opportunity to make trouble and have publicly expressed their dissatisfaction with themselves.
All he needs to do is point out directly that he, the general, is a person of "poor virtue and respectability" and "drinking and sex is poisonous".
In order to appease both inside and outside, Cao Shuang already felt a little anxious.
No matter how stupid he is, he still knows that this is definitely not the time to openly attack Sima Yi.
Otherwise, there is no telling whether the Western bandits and Nan bandits will take advantage of the situation.
Even within the Wei Dynasty, if you send a large army to the north today, someone might raise troops to respond to Sima Yi tomorrow.
After all, the loss of Xiangyang would have a huge impact.
This was the first time since the founding of the Wei Dynasty that the territory was taken away by the Wu invaders.
Not to mention the importance of Xiangyang to Jingzhou.
Without Xiangyang, Nanyang will be unstable.
If Nanyang is unstable, Xuchang will be uneasy.
After losing territory to the outside world, it would be strange if the government and the opposition did not start a turmoil if they used troops internally again.
"The general has the overall situation in mind, so he has concerns. I naturally understand that Sima Yi will not think about Wei."
Huan Fan knew that Cao Shuang's concerns were not completely unreasonable, but he still had to remind him:
"Sima Yi was outside Ye City. He listed many crimes and slandered the general. He made it clear that he was at odds with the general."
"Even if the general wants to stand up to Sima Yi and serve the country, he must make preparations as soon as possible."
Cao Shuang frowned after hearing this: "What can I do?"
"If the general wants to put the overall situation first, he must try to stabilize Sima Yi and prevent him from looking south."
Cao Shuang sighed: "Can Sima Yi'an comply with my wishes?"
Huan Fan had already thought of a way to escape and said immediately:
"General, Sima Yi cannot find the late emperor's talented daughter in Yecheng, and most of his righteousness has been lost."
"The general should rebuke him to show his innocence, and then order him to guard the towns of Taihang to prevent Western thieves and make meritorious deeds."
"If Sima Yi wants to annex Jizhou, he will definitely follow the trend and pretend to obey the general's orders in order to control Hebei."
"When the world saw Sima Yi acting like this, they naturally thought that the general's rebuke to Sima Yi was justified. Those who are righteous will be righteous themselves."
After hearing this, Cao Shuang nodded secretly and asked again:
"The old thief Sima is very scheming, I'm afraid he may not be fooled."
Huan Fan said:
"Unless Sima Yi is really dedicated to serving the public good and has no desire to invade Jizhou, if he ignores the safety of the Wei Dynasty and sends his army south."
"In this way, the general can issue an edict from the emperor to remove him from the position of Taifu, and then accuse him of slandering important ministers and violating the laws of the Wei Dynasty. His intention is to commit rebellion."
"When the time comes, he has no great righteousness in his hands and does not care about the overall situation. How can he fall into disrepute? How can the knowledgeable people of the Wei Dynasty follow him?"
When Cao Shuang heard this, he breathed a sigh of relief: "Wonderful!"
If Sima Yi obeyed the order, how could he have the dignity to oppose himself with righteousness in the future?
If you don't obey orders, you will fall into disrepair, so why should you be afraid?