When Xu Rong learned that the enemy had appeared in Feixiang, it was already the next morning.
He thought about all the circumstances of Chen Mubei's trip, but he didn't expect that he would come back and actually go to Feixiang.
Feixiang is located to the southeast of Handan, and Wu'an is located to the northwest of Handan. The two directions are completely opposite, and they are completely opposite.
Could it be that he didn't want to return to Puyin at all, but planned to go from Qinghe to Jinan to seek asylum from his sworn brother Liu Bei?
Xu Rong thought quickly in his mind, thinking about what he should do next.
The first thing that comes to mind is to go to Feixiang immediately and continue the pursuit.
But he quickly rejected this idea, because the information that people were in Feixiang was last night, and they rested all night today. They are probably already setting off now. My team has been traveling all night and hasn't rested yet. How can I catch up?
So he quickly came up with a second insidious idea, which was to give up chasing Chen Mu and directly follow Chen Mu's original route to the north and lead his army northward.
With the imperial edict in hand, he arrived in Puyin directly and used the edict to arrest Chen Mu's clan to threaten him.
But this idea was quickly rejected.
It's so embarrassing.
When someone fooled me, I became angry and went to arrest the family members to threaten them. The method was really despicable.
Xu Rong admitted that although he was not a good person, after thinking about it, he still felt that he could not do such a thing.
Secondly, Dong Zhuo wanted someone, Chen Mu himself, not Chen Mu’s family.
It would be interesting if Chen Mu's family members were captured and Chen Mu imitated Liu Bang's saying, "I am like an old man, I will cook for you, but I am lucky enough to share a piece of the pie!"
At that time, Dong Zhuo and Liu Bei will completely break up with each other and there will be no room for negotiation. It may lead to a war.
After all, Dong Zhuo planned to use Chen Mu to threaten Liu Bei when he captured Chen Mu.
Liu Bei has an army in his hands, and he is a vassal on one side. Regardless of whether Liu Bei returns to the central government or continues to work locally, his official position will not be too low.
Coupled with the army commanded by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, Liu Bei had the capital to be won over by Dong Zhuo.
Regardless of whether it is fighting for or threatening, the goal is to make him obey orders.
Catching Chen Mu was a way to blackmail Liu Bei, and it felt a bit like threatening Chen Mu to get Liu Bei's attention.
Therefore, Dong Zhuo's order has always been to capture Chen Mu and Zhang Fei alive and not to hurt them.
What's more, a fight to the death is also not the result Xu Rong wants.
Therefore, taking action against Chen Mu's family was the last move.
Including the fact that he asked the Prime Minister of Zhongshan to control the Chen Mu clan first, it was also a trick to suppress the situation, rather than just blow it up.
In this way, you are back to the first step.
That is, how to arrest Chen Mu before taking action against other people's families?
Xu Rong quickly began to think about the problem from Chen Mu's perspective.
Assumption.
If Chen Mu directly crossed the Qinghe River and entered Qingzhou Pingyuan County, it would be another matter.
I can't blame myself for this, I can just go back and resume my life.
After all, they set off half a day ahead of me and secretly took a boat to Huai County. In terms of prerequisites, they were two days ahead of me.
Moreover, Qingzhou is so close that it is normal for him to be unable to catch up. Dong Gong cannot blame himself.
But if you have to work hard.
Then we have to assume that Chen Mu will continue to go north.
So which path will he take?
Either go through Qinghe Anping and the central hinterland of Jizhou, and go straight to Zhongshan Kingdom.
Either take the plain Bohai Sea, detour to Youzhou or Hejian to Zhongshan.
The former road is a shortcut, while the latter road is a longer detour.
Xu Rong took out the map and studied it carefully.
If Chen Mu planned to bypass the western defense line and go to the center of Jizhou, Xu Rong thought this was not a good choice.
It’s still the same problem. One is densely populated, and the other is well-developed water systems.
Although there are many counties and counties, and supplies are very good along the way, there are now wanted orders in every county.
Even a person with a background like Cao Cao had to change his name and sneak back to Qiao County. What's more, a person with no background like Chen Mu was bound to be hunted down by the soldiers of various counties.
certainly.
Cao Cao relied on his father and grandfather. His family background was relatively powerful and he belonged to the second-generation and third-generation official class.
Chen Mu and Liu Bei are now counterattacking from the grassroots. In the past, they only had their backs.
Now, they themselves are the background.
With a thousand cavalry by his side, the few soldiers from the surrounding counties did not dare to provoke him at all.
But Xu Rong also knew that even if Chen Mu traveled across the state and counties, the counties would not dare to provoke them because there were enough water systems, and his marching speed would still be slow enough for him to catch up.
so.
Xu Rong felt that if Chen Mu really continued to go north, he would definitely not choose the first option, but the second option, detouring through the plains and Bohai Sea.
But the prerequisite for all this is that Chen Mu will still choose to go north instead of going east to Qingzhou.
Although Liu Bei and Chen Mu left Luoyang at the same time, according to the analysis of the distance, Liu Bei probably just arrived in Qingzhou not long ago, and he should not have contacted Chen Mu yet.
But no matter what, he had to go and see.
What if Chen Mu did not go to Qingzhou to seek refuge, but still chose to go north back to Puyin?
No one can predict such things as luck.
Thinking of this, Xu Rong already knew what he should do next, but now was not the time to continue marching.
The soldiers had been walking for a day and a night, without rest for twelve consecutive hours.
Now, it's time to take a good rest.
.......
.......
While Xu Rong was resting, Chen Mu was also resting his team at this time.
After marching overnight, Xu Rong was not only tired of his men and horses, but his troops also needed a rest. So they simply stationed outside Feixiang and camped and slept on the spot.
Naturally, the Feixiang County Magistrate didn't know that all the soldiers in the military camp outside were fast asleep. He closed the city gate tightly and shivered inside the city.
Chen Mu's current identity has changed from a central official like Shangshu Ling to a wanted criminal in the country overnight.
Just like Zhang Jian.
At that time, Zhang Jian was also respected by the world, but the imperial edict was issued and he had to be arrested if he should be arrested.
The problem is that Zhang Jian ran away alone, so he stopped at his door all the way. Tigers and wolves from various counties and counties, and even the yamen thieves Cao Cao, dared to hunt him down.
As for Chen Mu, not only did he bring a few thousand soldiers with him on his escape, he also brought a thousand cavalry, and they were heavy cavalry.
Who dares to mess with this?
During the Eastern Han Dynasty, a county had its own soldiers.
According to historical records, at that time, except for the border counties, the average number of county soldiers in the inland counties was about four to five thousand.
There are also county soldiers in local counties, but the number is very small. They are actually the thieves and cavalry officers of each county and township, subordinate to the pavilion chiefs of each township, and under the command of the county captain in the county. The total number is about a few hundred people.
For example, when Cheng Yu resisted the Yellow Turban soldiers in his hometown, he called on the people of his hometown, as well as more than a thousand local soldiers including Cao Cao, to repulse the Yellow Turban soldiers who invaded Dong'a.
But although there are county soldiers in Feixiang, they are still far behind compared with the thousands of soldiers and horses outside the city. The combat effectiveness of the two sides is vastly different.
Therefore, throughout the day, Feixiang Ling watched the situation on the tower in fear.
No one from either side was sent to make contact, and the scene fell into an eerie silence.
Four hours later, the soldiers had almost rested. It was already the afternoon of the next day, and they gathered up all the troops and headed east.
After Feixiang ordered them to leave, he quickly ordered the county captain: "Quickly, send someone to deliver the message. The thieves will go east."