Spring, the first lunar month, Wuchang City, King Wu's residence.
Sun Quan held the hand of one of his ministers, and Yin Yin said, "You will decide on the plan of pretending to surrender to lure the thief Cao Xiu. If you need someone to conspire with you, you will send someone to tell them, and I will not refuse. But I hope you will do it."
"My lord, I will live up to my high expectations!"
When the man heard the words, he bowed and said goodbye.
Xiao Xibu stepped back slowly, and after about ten steps, he turned around and strode away.
He is the governor of Pan Yang, Zhou Li.
Ziyu, a native of Yangxian, Wu County, came here to secretly propose a plan to defeat Wei.
However, Sun Quan wanted to attack Cao Wei again.
It was not that Prime Minister Zhuge Liang, who had been accumulating his strength for a long time and was finally going to make the Northern Expedition, sent an envoy to Jiangdong to invite Sun Wu to send troops to respond and make an alliance to attack Cao Wei together.
But if Sun Wu does not fight, he will not be at peace.
Last year, Sun Quan sent a large number of troops to Jiangxia and Xiangyang. Although he returned with a setback, his muscles and bones were not broken.
However, on the Huainan battlefield, Cao Xiu captured the city and territory.
Cao Xiu, after Cao Ren died of illness, had been in charge of Yang, Qing and Xu Sanzhou for five years. He was the only one among Cao Pi's four assistant ministers who had always led the army.
Cao Wei and Sun Wu were thousands of miles apart from each other, and their influence had always affected their entire lives.
But the main battlefield has always been in Huainan.
The foundation of Sun Wu is in Wu County.
Moreover, out of the strategic consideration of "to defend the Yangtze River, we must defend the Huaihe River", Jiangdong repeatedly sent troops to take Huainan as its own.
Therefore, the number of troops under Cao Xiu's command was never less than 100,000.
In addition, because Cao Pi had repeatedly attacked Wu in the past, Cao Xiu had been eyeing Jiangdong with covetous eyes and was ready to capture it to repay the country's favor.
To retaliate carefully, after Sun Quan personally conquered Jingzhou, he was ready to go and led his army south to besiege Wancheng.
Sun Wu's general Shen De of Wancheng was caught off guard by Cao Xiu. Moreover, because all the troops in Jiangdong were in Jingzhou, they had no mobile support to support him, so he was defeated in a battle and was defeated.
After the victory, Cao Xiu once again exerted his remaining courage, marched down the Anqing Valley, led his army to attack Xunyang, and brought the entire Lujiang County under Cao Wei's command.
Therefore, Cao Xiu was promoted to Grand Sima and became the supreme commander of the Wei army.
The loss of Lujiang County was an unbearable burden for Jiangdong.
In Jiangdong with Jianye as the center, the Jingzhou defense line is based on Wuchang and Jiangling as its fulcrums; while the Yangzhou defense line is based on Guangling and Ruxukou as its fulcrums. If Lujiang County is occupied by Cao Wei, not only Ruxukou will suffer huge losses.
Due to the pressure, the Wei army can attack Yuzhang County across the river at any time and divide Sun Wu's territory into two!
Especially, the commanders of Yuzhang and Poyang sects.
He had always been dissatisfied with Sun Wu's rule. Ever since Sun Ce took over the six counties in Jiangdong, he had never stopped rebelling.
The most recent time was during Cao Pi's third expedition to Wu. At that time, Peng Qi, the commander-in-chief of the clan, gathered tens of thousands of people to rebel and conquered several counties in Poyang. The rebellion lasted for more than a year and was just put down by Zhou Li, the governor of Poyang.
If Cao Wei raises his troops, these sect commanders who have fled into the mountains will definitely raise their troops again.
By then, Jiangdong will face external and internal troubles and may not be able to defend it.
What made Sun Quan even more motivated to counterattack Lujiang County at all costs was Han Zong who surrendered to Wei!
Han Zong is the son of Han Dang, a veteran minister of Sun Wu.
Before Sun Quan led his army to attack Jiangxia, Han Dang happened to die of illness, so Han Zong, who inherited his father's tribe, was not allowed to accompany him on the expedition, and he was left to mourn in Wuchang.
However, although Han Zong had a somewhat paternal style in the military, his personal ethics were unsatisfactory.
On the occasion of his father's burial, he actually looked for an opportunity to live with his deceased father's concubines!
Someone in charge heard about it and reported it to Sun Quan.
Although Sun Quan was extremely angry with him, he did not blame him because of his father's merits.
However, Han Zong didn't think so.
He was frightened when the incident was revealed, thinking that Sun Quan was not responsible because he was far away in Jiangxia. When he returned to Wuchang, he would be doomed, so he began to consider defecting to Wei.
However, in order to gain favor from Cao Wei, he still had to take away his late father's old men as a way to advance to the throne.
He encouraged and allowed his late father's old tribe to rob the people, and then claimed that he would not pursue the case, but Sun Quan had already issued an edict to punish him. Then he forcibly married off all the female family members, ranging from aunts and sisters, to the concubines and maids he had favored.
The generals and officials under his command formed a blood alliance with them and lived and died together.
After winning the hearts of the soldiers, he took his dead father's coffin and thousands of people from his mother's clan and tribes across the river to seek refuge with Cao Xiu.
Moreover, Han Zong's defection to Wei also seduced Zhai Dan, a guard stationed in Qichun, who also led his troops to accompany him.
well.
There is such a son without a king and a father. If Han Dang knew about it, he would probably raise the coffin.
Well, Han Dang's headquarters, named "Dare to Die", is a famous elite division in Jiangdong.
And another elite force, "Jie Fan", was often led by him during war.
Fortunately, after Han Dang's death, Sun Quan appointed Chen Wu's son Chen Xiu as the governor of Jiefan, instead of being taken over by Han Zong.
In any case, when the son of Yuan Xun led his troops to defect, causing Sun Quan to lose face, it also set a very bad example for other generals of Sun Wu.
In particular, Han Zong and the death-defying army are familiar with the terrain of Jiangdong and the garrison and defense of sergeants from various places!
After Cao Wei captured Lujiang County, and then obtained generals who were familiar with the situation in Jiangdong, if Sun Quan did not send troops to recapture Lujiang County, the consequences would be self-evident.
Coincidentally, when Pan Yang's governor Zhou Li came to report his duties this time, he also proposed his own plan of pretending to surrender and luring Cao Xiu to lead the army deeper.
It also suited Sun Quan's wishes and allowed him to do it.
Luoyang, Jianshi Hall.
In the grand hall, there were only four people: Emperor Wei Cao Rui, General Cao Zhen, Sikong Chen Qun and Attendant Liu Ye.
Everyone looked silent, stroking their beards and frowning in thought.
The reason is that Sima Yi, who was supervising the battle in Jing and Henan provinces, after reporting Shangyong's great victory and passing on Meng Da's leadership, only three days later, he once again rushed 800 miles to send military information.
On the grounds that Shen Yi rebelled and returned to Shu, and that all of Xi County was relocated, he claimed that Bashu would send troops to attack.
Naturally, wherever the Bashu troops came from, it was only Longyou or Guanzhong.
He doesn't need to be precise.
A few months ago, Guo Huai, the governor of Yongzhou who has been stationed in Longyou all year round, vaguely mentioned in the above table that there may be movement in Bashu.
At that time, Cao Wei's temple officials did not agree with the plan.
This time, Sima Yi, who was the assistant to the government, came to the table, so Cao Rui naturally did not dare to ignore it.
He immediately summoned Cao Zhen and others to ask whether they should send troops to garrison Guanzhong and Longyou.
This is not to question Sima Yi's judgment, but since Cao Rui came to the throne, he followed the advice of Zhongshu Ling Sun Zi, taking Cao Pi's military campaigns in recent years as a warning, and the national policy was biased towards cultivating one's health.
But after listening to Sima Yi's words, if the army moves, it will be contrary to national policy.
Moreover, after increasing the troops in Longyou and Guanzhong, will Bashu still send troops?
If he saw the army advancing and decided not to send troops again, how long would the soldiers have to stay in Guanzhong and Longyou on guard?
Just waiting will consume more and more food. How can military security last long?
"Your Majesty, I believe that what General Hussar said is quite reasonable."
The first person to speak out was Cao Zhen, who was familiar with the northwest. "Bashu and Sun Wu have been in alliance for a long time. His grandson Wu invaded Jingzhou last year. If Bashu sends troops, it will be in compliance with the alliance. It is not surprising. And, Bashu defeated the rebellion in Nanzhong, and the soldiers were still several years old and ready to go out."
"Um"
Nodding slightly, Cao Rui gave Cao Zhen a positive smile, then turned his head and looked at Chen Qun and Liu Ye.
"Your Majesty, I second the decision of the general."
With the corner of his eye, Liu Ye caught a glimpse of Chen Qun who was still deep in thought, so he spoke directly, "In recent years, we, the Wei Dynasty, have sent troops to Huainan and Jingzhou several times, and most of our soldiers have been transferred to these two places. Those who are against Shu have seen me in Guanzhong and Long It is understandable that the troops on the right are empty, and they do not know their own strength and are covetous. They want to strike at the stone with an egg."
As soon as he finished speaking, he had been recording the minister's affairs. Chen Qun, who knew the family background of Cao Wei, also spoke up.
"Your Majesty, we, the Wei Dynasty, have been on campaign for many years, and the people have worked hard. Now the attack from Bashu has not been confirmed, so I think we should not use large-scale weapons. We can first order the troops to be stationed in Guanzhong and Longyou to strengthen the alert; then we can station the troops in Luoyang and wait for it with strict orders. Can."
These words are meant to advise Cao Zhen to go to Guanzhong to guard.
It is also cryptic, asking Cao Rui to transfer Xiahou Mao, the governor of Guanzhong who has no strategy, back to Luoyang.
In case Bashu actually sends troops, their talents will be overwhelmed and the military aircraft will be delayed.
As for advice, it can be mentioned in a subtle way.
If you don't name anyone, you don't want to offend your colleagues and make others hate you.
"That's a very good thing to say!"
After hearing this, Cao Rui, who was sitting high at the head of the case, raised his hands in praise.
After praising him, he cast his faint gaze on Cao Zhen, "All the ministers have said that the rebel general Kou Bian will rebel against Shu. The general has been in Guanzhong for a long time, and his prestige is unparalleled. At the time when the imperial court is appointing people, the general should not refuse. toil."
"only!"
Upon hearing this, Cao Zhen immediately left the table and bowed, and received the order loudly, "Your Majesty will not give up, and will not give you important tasks because of my stupidity. I dare to say goodbye!"
"Hahaha~~~~"
Cao Rui laughed and quickly stretched out his hand to help, "General, please get up quickly."
However, at this moment, Xiao Zhibu, an order from the Yellow Gate outside the palace, came quickly, "Report~~~~ to the military situation in Guanzhong from Shangshutai, eight hundred miles away, urgently arrived!"
It also made Cao Rui's laughter stop in shock.
He quickly sent an order to get the military information and looked at it, and then he frowned.
On the small cloth conveying military information, there were only a few numbers, "Bashu soldiers came out, took Baoxiegu, looked to the right and came from Fufengyi County."
Of course!
Before Sima Yi arrived at Luoyang, Prime Minister Zhuge Liang led his army out!
The troops were divided into two groups.
With Zhao Yun as the governor and Deng Zhi as the deputy, he led more than 10,000 people out of the Baoxie Valley to serve as suspected soldiers.
The Baoxie Valley, which runs through the Qinling Mountains, is named after the Baoshui Valley at the southern foot and the Xieshui Valley at the northern foot.
In the middle of the road, there was a flat land where troops could garrison, which was called Ji Valley (today's Taibai County area). Zhao Yun led his troops to garrison here.
Because there is also a Mawei River in Jigu area that meanders northward and flows into the Wei River, this valley is also passable.
Therefore, in order to deliberately make Cao Wei's garrison on the right of Fufeng aware of the direction of his feint attack, Zhao Yun sent his front troops, set up more flags, and entered the Xie Valley to make a big splash.
The other group of troops was naturally led by Prime Minister Zhuge Liang.
Leaving Hanzhong County in the west, they quickly attacked Longyou.
Inevitably, after passing through Wudu County, we must take the Qishan Road along the Western Han River.
Moreover, among the three counties where Cao Wei garrisoned troops, Xiabian, Shanglu and Wudu Road, only Wudu Road was on the road to Qishan, and their troops were very small, unable to stop the Han army's advance.
Therefore, the prime minister did not send troops to capture Wudu first.
When the main force was about to advance in a mighty manner, they sent the vanguard Wei Yan to go up the Qingni River and head straight for Qishan Mountain.
The Qingni River originates from Qishan Mountain, passes through Bian County under Wudu County, and then merges into the Jialing River.
And across the watershed of this river is the Yangshui River.
The two rivers are connected, which is the route Ma Chao took after being expelled from Longyou and defecting to Zhang Lu in Hanzhong.
The most valuable thing is that this route saves one-third of the time compared to taking the Qishan Road.
Because as early as more than a hundred years ago, when Yu Xu, a famous official of the Han Dynasty, was serving as the prefect of Wudu, in order to more conveniently obtain grain and weapons from Hanzhong to quell the Qiang rebellion, he personally led the army to clear the Qingni River using the "burning stone method".
On the rocks, the channel from Xiabian to Juxian was built, and it is still open to this day without any obstruction.
It is a pity that the Qingni River is too narrow to allow large ships to pass through it, nor is it suitable for transporting the baggage of a large-scale march.
In any case, the convenient road that can be used to transport grain, fodder and baggage by boat has been a place guarded by military strategists since ancient times.
Today's Cao Wei is not surprised.
Therefore, the Prime Minister sent the vanguard Wei Yan to take this route first. This was to block the messengers of Cao Jun in Wudu County and take advantage of the opportunity to pull out all the Wei troops stationed at this point!
Well, the end point of guarding this road is Licheng, Xi County, upstream of the Yangshui River. [Note 1]
But when Ma Chao was defeated and fled, he also took advantage of the situation to invade Licheng, killed Jiang Xuman's family who had rebelled against him, and burned Licheng to vent his hatred.
Later, Cao Wei used Wudu County as a barrier and did not rebuild it.
There are only more than a hundred sergeants stationed there.
Wei Yan led the army to the ruins of Licheng, which could protect the main force led by the prime minister. Without Cao Wei's Longyou garrison noticing anything, they successfully reached the end of Qishan Road, Shanggui County in Tianshui County.
In fact, the Prime Minister succeeded!
When the banner embroidered with the character "Han" and the banner embroidered with "Conquer the Central Plains" were flying in Tianshui County, no one in Cao Wei knew it!
At that time, Cao Rui of Luoyang made Cao Zhen the governor and led the army to Youfufeng County with Zhang He as the vanguard.
Moreover, he vigorously boosted his morale and entered the inclined valley, intending to fight Zhao Yun.
Guo Huai, the governor of Yongzhou, was ordered by Cao Rui on Pegasus and was patrolling Tianshui County with Ma Zun, the prefect of Tianshui, to deter the Qiang and Hu tribes from taking the opportunity to cause rebellion.
Seeing the Prime Minister's army approaching, he was immediately shocked.
He quickly returned to garrison his troops and garrisoned them in Shanggui County, and sent people to Guanzhong Youfufeng to report to Cao Zhen, claiming that the main force of the Han army was in Longyou and asking him to come to the rescue as soon as possible.
Among them, there is also a small episode.
Ma Zun, the prefect of Tianshui, did not return to Ji County to set up defenses. Instead, he followed Guo Huai to Shanggui County.
At that time, Guo Huai persuaded him because he had the responsibility to protect the land, saying: "The Ming government should return to Hebei."
However, he thought that Ji County was far to the west and it would be difficult to hold on without the help of a large army. Moreover, the Di tribes who had migrated from Wudu County were all settled here. They were afraid of joining forces with the Han army and causing rebellion, so they did not dare to return.
It also harmed one person.
The man's official title was Zhonglang, and his position was the military officer of Shentianshui County.
He is a native of Ji County. His surname is Jiang, his given name is Wei, and his given name is Boyue.
——
[Note 1: At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Licheng, Xi County, was located in Shibao Town, north of present-day Xihe County. Later, the Prime Minister sent Chen Shi to capture Wudu and Yinping counties, and then he led his army up the Qingni River and reached the Yangshui River.
The garrison point "Jianwei" was built in the north, and the force of targeted reinforcements made Guo Huai dare not go south and abandon the two counties.]
