Chapter 57: Will be away

As Pang Tong expected, Sima Yi defended Wancheng in order to help Cao Zhen gain time.

Cao Zhen faced Sun Quan along the Huai River. If he was focused and without external interference, Cao Zhen would have a greater chance of winning. The most elite tiger and leopard cavalry of Wei and the second generation of Qingzhou soldiers were all in the hands of Cao Zhen. These two troops were one cavalry and the other one infantry, and were the most elite marine troops of Wei. When facing the soldiers of Jiangdong, these two marine troops had inherent advantages.

Speaking of command level, Cao Zhen is also better than Sun Quan. He approached Cao Zhen, a professional soldier who led troops to fight for many years, while Sun Quan was only half-baked at best. Sun Quan is the king of a country, and is much better in internal affairs than he was in leading troops to fight for war.

In terms of military generals, the second generation of military generals in the Wei State, such as Zhang Hu, Chen Tai, Le Jin, etc., were also concentrated under Cao Zhen. These generals from military families have been influenced since childhood and are not unfamiliar with leading troops to fight.

If we deal with Sun Quan alone, Cao Zhen would be sure to repel Sun Quan, but if Runan Yingchuan was captured by Lu Xun, Lu Xun could attack Cao Zhen with Sun Quan on both sides, and Cao Zhen would face a great crisis. It would be fine if he could defend it, but if he could not defend it, he would probably retreat to the edge of the Yellow River at once. At that time, Qingzhou and Yanzhou would have to fall into Sun Quan's hands.

So Sima Yi decided to take a risk and personally guard Wancheng, resist the attacks between the Wu army in the south and the Han army in the west, and buy time for Cao Zhen. As long as Cao Zhen can repel Sun Quan and protect the Central Plains, even if Nanyang and Luoyang are lost, they will not hurt the vitality of Wei. In the hands of the Central Plains, Wei's comprehensive strength is still the most powerful.

Yecheng.

"Bang..." Cao Rui threw the candlestick to the ground, and then Cao Rui kicked the table hard, with anger in his eyes.

Wu Pass, one of the four passes of Qin, and Zhang He, the largest general of Wei, guarded Wu Pass for only one day!

Looking back at the battle at Wuguan, Cao Rui felt like he was entrusted with something that he was not human. He didn't expect that Zhang He was so unbearable, which disappointed Cao Rui.

Cao Rui already had a vague understanding of why Cao Pi had to value Cao Zhen and Sima Yi instead of Zhang He since ancient times. It turned out that Zhang He was indeed useless.

Xu Shu walked in quietly and saw that Cao Rui had already vented the room into a mess, and shook his head slightly.

Cao Rui turned around and found that Xu Shu had come over. Cao Rui hurriedly came forward and said, "Sir, you finally came, Wuguan is lost."

Xu Shu nodded, took out a memorial from his arms, and then spoke, "Your Majesty, Sima Yi, the Grand Marshal, sent someone to send a memorial at night."

"Take it!" Cao Rui turned it on and saw the memorial. He opened it and threw it on the ground.

"Sima Yi, he actually gave up Xiangfan directly!" A trace of fierceness flashed in Cao Rui's eyes.

"Your Majesty, I think Sima Taiwei did it very correctly." Xu Shu said from the side.

After hearing Xu Shu say this, Cao Rui finally suppressed his anger slightly, and then asked, "Sir, what do you mean?"

"Sima Taiwei wanted to protect the Central Plains, so he had to do so." Xu Shu said, bowed down to pick up the memorial, and then said, "Your Majesty, now that Wuguan is lost, if the Han army leads its troops eastward to attack Wancheng, Wancheng will inevitably be out of protection. If Wancheng is lost, Xiangyang Fancheng will become an isolated army, so Sima Taiwei will give up Xiangyang and Fancheng and return to Wancheng to set up defenses."

"And I think Sima Yi's move is also a dangerous move. If the Han army leaves Wu Pass and the Wu army heads north, and two groups of people attack Wancheng at the same time, Wancheng will probably be difficult to resist for how long. Sima Yi's move also put himself in danger. The purpose is to exchange for time, so that General Cao Zhen can defeat Sun Quan as soon as possible and end the battle."

"According to what the sir said, Nanyang will inevitably be out of protection?" Cao Rui asked.

"Your Majesty, not only Nanyang, but also Luoyang, may be out of protection."

"What? Luoyang will not be protected? No! This is absolutely not possible! How can Luoyang be lost!" Cao Rui shouted.

In Cao Rui's mind, Luoyang is a city at the capital level after all, and it is of great significance. If even Luoyang is lost, Cao Rui will not accept it.

"Your Majesty, this is also a helpless move. If Nanyang is lost, the Han army can bypass Tongguan and attack Luoyang. According to our current strength, it is not enough to defend Xiangcheng and Luoyang at the same time. Xiangcheng is the gateway between Yingchuan and Runan. Taizu once resisted Wancheng with Xiangcheng. If Xiangcheng is lost, the enemy can directly take Runan and Yingchuan. In comparison, if Luoyang is lost, only half of Sili was lost. After all, the Sili area north of the Yellow River is still in my hands. After weighing the pros and cons, I think Sima Taiwei protects Yingchuan and abandons Luoyang very well." Xu Shu said.

Cao Rui nodded and suddenly remembered that Sima Yi mentioned in the memorial that Youzhou Corps in the north could be transferred back to the Central Plains to resist the Han army.

Since Cao Cao unified the north, he has always stationed more than 100,000 troops in the two states of Youbing. These more than 100,000 troops were mainly guarding against the Xianbei, Wuhuan and Goguryeo tribes in the north. Neither Cao Cao nor Cao Pi had mobilized these more than 100,000 Youzhou corps. Even if Cao Cao was defeated in the Battle of Red Cliff that day, or if Cao Pi lost Yongzhou, he had never mobilized Youzhou's troops.

Of course, most of these tens of thousands of people are military farming soldiers, but if these people are mobilized to Luoyang, they can resist the attack of the Han army. Even if only 20,000 to 30,000 people are mobilized, they can still deal with the Han army.

"Your Majesty, you must not! The northern alien races have always had their own intentions. What should we do if we learn that our army was dropped back and attacked Youbian and the two states?" Xu Shu hurriedly stopped.

"Sir, the Xianbei has been severely damaged now, and Goguryeo was beaten to the northeast by Gongsun Kang. Only Wuwan will threaten Youzhou. I will mobilize some of my troops to return to Luoyang, so there should be no problem!"

"Your Majesty, have you forgotten the 'Northeast King' I said? People in the north are extremely resistant to bitterness and coldness. The Gongsun family has 100,000 armor. When Gongsun and his son resisted Wuhuan in the north, invaded Goguryeo, and occupied the capital of Goguryeo. It can be seen that the 100,000 troops of the Gongsun clan are not ordinary people. If the Gongsun family really had a rebellion and our Youzhou army was transferred away, Youzhou would be in danger! When Taizu and the former emperor were in the middle of the earth, no matter how dangerous the war situation in the Central Plains was, they had never mobilized the Youzhou army. Many of the components were to guard against the Gongsun family."

Xu Shu paused when he said this, and then said, "Your Majesty, there is another thing that I have to say. The Youzhou Corps is no longer the Youzhou Corps of the past. When Taizu was in his place, he had to go to Wuwan. At that time, Yan Rou and Tian Yu were a master of the time. Taizu's command were powerful generals, which made Wuwan frightened and everyone was afraid. Later, the King of Rencheng Cao Zhang guarded Youzhou and defeated the Wuwan clan several times. At that time, I was Youyou. The state corps still has the power to fight. However, so many years have passed since now. Yan Rou is dead, and Tian Yu is just a dead old man. Most of the cavalry of Youzhou back then are old and unable to fight. Today, most of the Youzhou are soldiers of old and weak who are old and weak. How many people are there really able to fight? I'm afraid it's only 30,000 to 40,000 people. If Your Majesty really transfers these 30,000 to 40,000, and relying on the elderly and weak to garrison, Youzhou has no power to defend at all!"

Cao Rui took a slight breath of air conditioning. What Xu Shu said was reasonable. The Youzhou army was invincible back then and was invincible. However, now it was twelve years before Cao Cao fought against Wuwan and Jian'an. It was almost twenty years since now. The Youzhou elites of that time no longer existed.

"Did you really give up Luoyang to them? I'm not willing to give up!" A sharp look flashed in Cao Rui's eyes.

"Your Majesty, Luoyang is just a city. Which one is more important than the Central Plains? So what about the entire country?" Xu Shu's expression became unprecedentedly serious and said loudly.

Cao Rui was slightly stunned. This was the first time Cao Rui saw Xu Shu like this.

"Your Majesty, you must know that this country is hard-won! If the late emperor had not been surprised and premature, Your Majesty felt that this country was still the country of Your Majesty? At that time, Cao Zhang, the King of Rencheng, was his Majesty's home. Your Majesty must know that Luoyang and Xiangcheng can only be one of them. If Your Majesty is reluctant to let Luoyang go, Xiangcheng will inevitably be destroyed. At that time, Lu Xun went straight to Runan, Yingchuan and Sun Quan to attack General Cao Zhen. What we lost was not just one Luoyang, but the entire Yuzhou, the entire Qingzhou, the entire Xuzhou, and the entire Yanzhou! If Yanzhou is lost, does Your Majesty think that Luoyang can still be defended alone? Can this country be defended?"

Cao Rui looked at Xu Shu with some confusion. In Cao Rui's impression, Xu Shu had always been respectful to him and acted politely on weekdays. He didn't expect that he would dare to talk to him like this now.

Cao Rui looked at Xu Shu's serious expression and suddenly realized that Xu Shu said such things to him to wake him up. It is indeed not easy for Cao Rui to come from this country. As Xu Shu said, if Cao Pi died a few years later, when Cao Pi's other sons grew up, the throne would not necessarily fall on him. Compared with the entire country, Luoyang City is indeed nothing.

Cao Rui sighed slightly. When he recalled Xu Shu's words, Cao Rui felt that Xu Shu was loyal and thoughtful. If it were others, they would definitely not dare to talk to him like Xu Shu just now. The so-called loyal words were unpleasant. It seems that Xu Shu was really a loyal minister.

Cao Rui bowed to Xu Shu and then said, "Thank you for your advice, sir, I have received my teaching!"

When he went out of the hall and was blown by the wind outside, Xu Shu suddenly felt that his entire back was soaked in sweat.

Many of the last few words I said to Cao Rui were considered to be very ruthless. For example, if this country was not Cao Rui's, or if Cao Rui was compared with Cao Zhang who was killed by Cao Pi, it was all considered a serious crime of beheading. Xu Shu said this more of the matter was also a bet. If Cao Rui was unhappy and killed Xu Shu directly, Xu Shu would have no choice.

Fortunately, Xu Shu had the right bet. Cao Rui was still very young after all, and Cao Rui was good at literary talent on weekdays and had no experience in governing the country. Xu Shu's words made Cao Rui feel that Xu Shu was a loyal minister, and Xu Shu could also prevent Cao Rui from transferring the troops of Youzhou to Sili.

The Han army and the Wu army launched a large-scale attack, and the news that Wuguan had been captured by the Han army quickly spread like wildfire and spread throughout Yecheng.

A house in the south of the city is Gongsun Huang's residence, but in addition to Gongsun Huang, there are several spies from Liaodong who disguised themselves as Gongsun Huang's attendants and lurked in Yecheng.

As the news spread, these spies also began to take action, and they wanted to bring the news back to Liaodong as quickly as possible.

Huaibei.

Cao Zhen held Sima Yi's letter in his hand, but his brows frowned into the character "Sichuan".

Sima Yi's letter has already stated that he hopes that Cao Zhen will defeat Sun Quan as soon as possible, while Sima Yi will use Wancheng to delay the Wu and Han army as much as possible. After Cao Zhen defeated Sun Quan, he immediately divided his troops to travel west and cooperated with Sima Yi to defend Xiangcheng and prevent Lu Xun from advancing eastward. This crisis will be solved.

Cao Zhen naturally saw that Sima Yi's move was equivalent to giving in to Nanyang, and at the same time, Nanyang was lost, which means that Luoyang would not be protected. However, there is a Yellow River block in the north of Sili, so it should not be captured so quickly. It is worth resolving today's dilemma with one Nanyang and one Luoyang.

All counties in Hebei have posted imperial lists to recruit soldiers, but for many years, the people are at ease, and it is difficult to achieve much effect with a royal list. However, it is still easy to recruit 20,000 to 30,000 new soldiers in the whole of Hebei. In addition, Qingzhou, Yanzhou and Xuzhou can recruit at least 50,000 or 60,000 people and horses as long as the Wei State is given half a year. Although these 50,000 and 60,000 people are not good at attacking, it is more than enough to guard one side.

Originally, Cao Zhen planned to attack four routes, and there should be no problem in defense for half a year, but he didn't expect that as soon as the war started, Wu Pass was lost, and Wei State suddenly fell into a passive state.

"Cough cough..." A gust of wind was carried by, and Cao Zhen couldn't help but cough gently.

The weather near the Huai River made it difficult for Cao Zhen to adapt to, and Cao Zhen’s health is indeed not as good as before recently.

A young man with beautiful eyes came over, came to Cao Zhen, and spoke, "Father, the tiger and leopard cavalry are all ready."

The young man who came was Cao Zhen’s son Cao Shuang.

Cao Zhen handed Sima Yi's letter to Cao Shuang and said, "Bo Zhao, look, this is a letter sent by Sima Yi."

Cao Shuang opened the letter, read it, then frowned slightly, and said, "Father, Sima Yi is too bold. He made such a decision without asking for an order. Wouldn't this give up Nanyang and Luoyang?"

"Oh... I'm confused!" Cao Zhen sighed helplessly. His son Cao Shuang has been smart since childhood and has been familiar with military tactics. But a pity is that Cao Shuang is too smart in some things, but she will be smart and will be mistaken for cleverness.

"Zhaobo, the situation in Jingzhou is much worse than what you think. If you have any mistakes, you will fall into a state of doom. "The Art of War" once said: If there is something to attack the city, if there is no dispute, the king will not accept the orders! If the general leads the army outside, you should make a decision immediately when encountering things. If you obey the orders of the king and everything will be rewarded, wouldn't it be a missed opportunity for the fight? Therefore, if the general outside, if there is no punishment for the king's orders, it is not a crime."

"Is your order not to be accepted?" Cao Shuang murmured and repeated Cao Zhen's words. After a long time, Cao Shuang raised her head and said, "Father, the child has been taught."

Although Cao Shuang made it clear, she still felt very uncomfortable about Sima Yi's actions. In Cao Shuang's opinion, Sima Yi was just a foreign minister after all. If the foreign minister had too much power and became a powerful minister, he would turmoil the government. If he was lucky, he would have Huo Guang, but if he was unlucky, he would have produced Wang Mang or Dong Zhuo, his country would have been ruined.

In the final analysis, this country is still the country of the Cao family. Cao Shuang still feels very awkward for Sima Yi who holds great power. Especially now that Sima Yi has given up Xiangyang without authorization, Cao Shuang feels that Sima Yi has no imperial power in his eyes. If it were time for a while, he might have sat on the emperor's head!

"I am not allowed to accept the orders of the emperor when I am away? Humph! Sima Yi and other foreign ministers are just my Cao family hawks. What qualifications do you have to talk about not accepting the orders of the emperor!" Cao Shuang murmured to herself.

Tongguan.

"Shoot the arrow!"

With Guo Huai shouting loudly, the bow and arrow shot down like raindrops.

The Han army under the city held a shield in one hand and a sandbag in the other, and rushed towards Tongguan. From time to time, the Han army would fall under the bow and arrow, but this did not affect the rest of the people's continued courage.

Tongguan is located at a critical moment. The place in front of the pass is not big. Many large siege weapons cannot be used. Even the toad trucks used to fill the moat cannot be deployed in front of Tongguan. However, Tongguan has just been established not long ago, and the moat is not too deep. It is very efficient to carry sandbags on your shoulders to fill the moat.

Under the city, Liao Hua held a machete in his hand and personally urged the soldiers to keep carrying sandbags. Not far behind, Guan Ping looked at everything in front of him coldly without showing any expression.

However, Guan Ping was still very anxious. Wuguan had already taken down, but Tongguan had not even been filled with the moat. This progress was far worse than that.

Fortunately, Guan Ping was very good at comforting himself. After all, Wuguan was led by Adou himself. To be superstitious, his Majesty was a great blessing and the dragon's power was shocked, so he won Wuguan. If it were to be true, it was because His Majesty was extremely wise and used a trick to seize Wuguan.

"Hey, people can't compare themselves with each other. Who made him your majesty?" Thinking about the fact that being an emperor should be better than himself, Guan Ping felt a little more comfortable.

"General, the moat has been filled, and you can leave!" Liao Hua's voice came, interrupting Guan Ping's thoughts.
Chapter completed!