Today's situation in the northwest is best described as "corner-to-corner".
After the Wei State offset its geographical disadvantages with more troops and grain, and the situation was evenly matched, the Wuhuan cavalry was once again transferred to the northwest. If the prime minister did not want to see the Changyin Fortress change its owner, he had no choice but to continue to invest troops and horses in the battle.
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This is the reason why he asked Fei Yi in his letter how many more soldiers, horses, and supplies Liangzhou could recruit.
While the main force of the Wei State in Guanzhong was still waiting to move, the Chinese army in Longyou of the Han Dynasty could not move without permission, lest Sima Yi, the governor of Wei Yongliang and Liang Dynasty, find the weak spot in the defense line.
right!
If we send troops to rescue the Fortress of Manyin, we can only send troops and horses from Liangzhou.
After learning that Wei had sent Guo Huai, Hu Zun, and Deng Ai to increase their troops from Xiahou Ru tribe to jointly attack Manyin, the prime minister's response was to transfer the cavalry general Zhao Guang's tribe to Hexi and return it to Wei Yan's control to offset Wei's disadvantage of having more troops.
However, the news that Wuhuan's cavalry was about to arrive disrupted the prime minister's plan.
Because no one dares to say that if Sima Yi learns that Zhao Guangbu has left Longyou, will he follow Cao Zhen's instructions in the past and harass Longyou with Wuhuan's sudden cavalry, and personally lead the army out of Gaoping City to besiege Zuli County. At that time,
The crisis facing the Han Dynasty was not only that Manyin was trapped, but also that Longyou was in constant war.
"Zijin, I already replied to the Prime Minister's letter the day before yesterday."
Seeing that Zheng Pu was silent for a long time after reading the letter, Fei Yi said in a low voice, "General Wei's troops rushed to the rescue. In addition to his troops, there were also Xiping County commanded by Zhang Bogong, the prefect of Jincheng, and Zhang Wenrong.
If we deploy more soldiers and horses now, I think for a few days, I will only be able to piece together 7,000 soldiers at most."
"You can actually polyphonize seven thousand soldiers! Brother Wen Wei is truly a great talent!"
Hearing this, Zheng Pu woke up from his thoughts and said in surprise, "However, as far as I know, how come there are so many soldiers and horses in Hexi? I don't know, but I am prepared for this, so please don't hesitate to say it clearly."
"Zi Jin was so impressed."
Fei Yi smiled and waved his hand, "I'm just piecing everything together and trying my best."
It turned out that he planned to bring the three thousand soldiers and horses of Liao Hua, the prefect of Dunhuang, and more than a thousand soldiers of Fu Qian's tribe who were returning from the Juyan vassal state to escort the prisoners of the Southern Huns from the right in Zhangye County, and the more than a thousand soldiers of Yan Yu's tribe who were guarding in Wuwei County, and then from Zhangye
More than a thousand soldiers from the county were returned to the command of Xu Zhi, and they forcibly cobbled together 7,000 soldiers.
It can be said that except for the Zhoutai tribe who defended Liu Bao on the left of the Southern Xiongnu in Xuanwei City and the Jiang Shu tribe who guarded the Hexi outpost in Puchuan County, he had mobilized all the troops in Hexi.
Because Li Qiu's troops were rushing to Dunhuang to replace Liao Hua in guarding Yumen and Yangguan.
As for why Jiuquan County can’t mobilize troops?
Previously, Huang Hua, the governor of Wei, was too selfish and drafted countless Li people into the army to fight against the Han army. As a result, the people were in chaos and the counties were uneasy and could not be transferred from the garrison.
Moreover, the Madai tribe that was originally in Jiuquan County has already moved forward.
After roughly speaking, Fei Yi went on to say, "Now that Zijin is in charge of government affairs in Hexi, if the Prime Minister sends reinforcements again, he will definitely appoint Zijin as the governor. However, Liao Yuanjian and other troops will gather in Guzang County for at least a month.
The establishment of bow and arrow societies in various counties under the command of Jin must be completed as soon as possible."
"I see."
After hearing this, Zheng Pu gently nodded and thanked him, "Thank you, Brother Wenwei, for reminding me about the formation of the Bow and Arrow Club. I will return to Jiuquan County in a few days." Immediately, he asked again with an even more surprised expression, "If
If we can mobilize 7,000 soldiers to join forces with General Wei, we will be able to protect the city of Guanyin. However, where will the food come from? How can the land west of Hexi support 20,000 infantry and cavalry for years of fighting?"
Indeed, Hexi cannot afford the supply.
Wei Yan's more than 10,000 men, Ma Dai, and Jiang Wei alone totaled nearly 5,000 cavalry, which already stretched Liangzhou's strength.
How can we have enough food to feed seven thousand soldiers for the expedition?
This time, Fei Yi did not answer immediately.
Instead, he turned his head away and cast his gaze towards the sunset outside the office.
After a long time, he said sadly, "If the Prime Minister agrees, I will let the wealthy families in Hexi provide grain first, and then repay it after it is collected in the treasury in the autumn."
This is because I want to borrow money from Haoyou and eat food from Yin~~~
Zheng Pu suddenly realized.
He knew in his heart that this move would undermine the authority of the government and should not be the first of its kind, but he had no better way to prepare food.
It seems that Fei Yi doesn't want to discuss this matter further.
After saying that, he stood up and said goodbye, "I have read the Prime Minister's letter to Zijin. I have nothing to do here and will go back to Guzang. Zijin knows that I can't stay away from Guzang for too long."
Hearing this, Zheng Pu quickly stood up to see him off, "The war is raging, Brother Wen Wei will go on his own."
When he was sitting alone in the office, Zheng Pu, who felt bored, picked up a water bag and went out to ride his horse slowly.
Shandan Racecourse is also a famous summer resort.
The scenery is beautiful in midsummer, with the setting sun dyeing the white clouds red, and the undulating dark green under the horses' hooves winding to the distant mountains. Unknown flowers and plants bloom one after another, and it is extremely beautiful against the backdrop of the Qilian Snow Mountains in the distance.
In the cool breeze, you will suddenly discover the vastness of the world and the insignificance of individuals.
Zheng Pu now feels very small as a person and as weak as a big man.
The moment he read the Prime Minister's letter, he could vaguely guess how the Prime Minister was going to respond. Wu State was defeated and unable to contain Wei State's Luoyang Central Army and the polytonic Wuhuan sudden cavalry came to Hexi.
The sending of troops to Hexi, where he had just talked with Fei Yi, was just the prime minister's response.
The real intention is to send troops from Xiaoguan!
Substituting offense for defense, the Prime Minister wants to fight the Wei State once and for all while there is still enough food and fodder, so that the war can end as soon as possible!
This is a helpless move.
It is impossible for the Han Dynasty to defeat the Wei State in terms of war and consumption. Judging from the current situation, the Wei State is extremely determined and will definitely not give up easily. The longer the delay, the more disadvantageous it will be for the Han Dynasty.
Because since the Northern Expedition was launched in the sixth year of Jianxing, the Han Dynasty has never stopped fighting!
Although he achieved the feat of seizing Longyou and completely restoring Liangzhou, it was inevitable that the state treasury would be empty and the people's strength would be exhausted.
Except for several counties in Longyou, which are run through by the Wei River, the rest of the newly acquired land is known for its poor soil.
In addition, the imperial court needed to rebuild after the war, such as building city passes, preparing beacons to pacify the people, and investing a lot of manpower and material resources in water conservancy and valley cultivation. The self-sufficiency of the newly restored land was still in doubt, let alone that it could provide food for the Northern Expedition.
In other words, the Han Dynasty's Northern Expedition achieved successive victories and conquered cities and territories, which seemed to be fruitful, but in terms of people's livelihood, it was devastated.
After all, only Bashu can be called a fertile land for the Han Dynasty!
And after experiencing the trauma of the Battle of Yiling, he began to enter Bashu where people's livelihood was exhausted!
This is also the frustration that the Prime Minister has been guarding all these years.
Therefore, it is inevitable to fall into strategic passivity today.
However, if the defense cannot avoid the continuous consumption of national power and cannot cultivate health and rest in peace, the prime minister will naturally not let Wei continue to show off its power.
