On June 10, the main force of the Xuzhou Navy led by Zhou Yu and Gan Ning went upstream all the way and reached the east of Xiacai City.

Cao Ang considered for many times whether to attack Cai first or to attack Shouchun directly, and finally decided to take down Cai first.

The two cities were located on the north and south banks of the Huaihe River respectively. Shouchun City was located to the south of the Huaihe River, with many soldiers and horses, and the city was dangerous. There was also Bagong Mountain and Feishui (now Dongfei River in Anhui Province) as a barrier, so a surprise attack might not be possible; while Caicheng City was isolated and isolated.

To the north of the Huaihe River, the garrison was no more than a few thousand strong. By taking down Cai, the army would have a base to advance from, and could establish a firm foothold. Xu Tu Shouchun.

Regarding this battle, Cao Ang was not in a hurry, but focused on mobilizing Yuan Shu's troops and annihilating the enemy troops on the move. Otherwise, Yuan Shu would catch a city and defend it, and this battle would have been fought.

The Jianghuai River in June is hot, humid and rainy, and the Huaihe River seems to be covered with a thin veil.

Zhou Yu and his party of five men and hundreds of ships, flying the Yuan family flag, headed west without negotiating with the coast.

Although the government officials along the way were suspicious of the ships coming and going from the brigade, the Yuan family's flag made many people feel intimidated. In line with the attitude of doing more than doing less, they did not dare to interfere. So the Xuzhou Navy actually

No obstacles along the way.

After arriving in the east of Xiacai City, Gan Ning led dozens of ships and headed straight for the city gate, saying that they were Yuan Yin's salt-carrying fleet and requesting to enter the city for a rest.

The defenders in the city did not have many precautions and did not dare to offend Yuan Yin, so they allowed him to enter the city.

At noon on June 10th, Xiacai City was destroyed.

The army won the first battle.

Not long after, tens of thousands of troops rushed from the north and rushed to Xiacaicheng. This army was Cao Ang's Northern Route Army.

In Xuzhou's expedition to Huaihe, the main force was divided into three routes, and in Cao Ang's plan, the most important route was the North Route Army, which was responsible for attracting the main force of Yuan Shu's army head-on.

The North Route Army consists of the Left Army, the Right Army, the Jianwei Army, the Taishan Army and the main force of the Xuzhou Navy. It has about 33,000 people. It is the most elite force in the army besides the pro-military camp. The commander is

It's Zhang Liao.

In fact, everyone has been arguing for a long time about the candidate for the chief general of the Northern Route Army.

The importance of the Northern Route Army is self-evident. It has a high position and is related to the overall situation, so the choice of the coach is crucial. Not only must he have ability and prestige, but he must also have absolute loyalty.

After all, it would be difficult for anyone to trust a large regiment of more than 30,000 people.

Ban Ying suggested that Guo Jia should be the main general and nominally command the armies. However, Guo Jia knew that he did not have the talent to lead an army and did not want to taint military power, so he suggested that Cao Ang's uncle Cao Yu should be named.

Cao Ang hesitated again and again, but rejected the suggestion.

Cao Yu was mediocre in ability, Xiao Gui and Cao Sui could do it, but he was far from capable of commanding tens of thousands of people.

The purpose of this battle with Yuan Shu is to eliminate the opponent, and Yuan Shu will resist desperately. If an incompetent general is mistakenly used, it is likely to harm the three armies.

In the end, Cao Ang decided to use Zhang Liao.

In fact, Zhou Yu was the most suitable to command the army, but he was too young. As for Dian Wei, Zhang Liao, Ma Tong, and Xu Shang, Zhang Liao was still the best.

Moreover, Zhang Liao was not Cao Ang's close confidant and lacked prestige in the army. Even if he was malicious, it would be impossible to win over all the ministries.

Zhang Liao was shocked when he learned that he had been awarded the title of Marching Governor of Shouchun Road and commander-in-chief of the North Route Army.

Zhang Liao also considered candidates for the Northern Route Army, but he never thought that it would fall on him. Without him, his qualifications are too young and he has no significant military exploits.

Previously, when Zhang Liao was able to become a lieutenant general in an army and lead the state of Lu, some people thought that he was a lucky person.

And now, he has become the second commander-in-chief of the armies.

No one will be jealous of such kindness.

Zhang Liao was also extremely excited and choked up when facing Cao Ang.

"How dare you die if you don't obey me?"

Cao Ang was very satisfied with Zhang Liao's attitude. Zhang Liao has the qualifications to be a famous general, and I treat him as a national soldier. How could Zhang Liao not repay me as a national soldier?

Zhang Liao also knew that his status would definitely not be able to suppress Cao Ang's old confidants such as Dian Wei, Ma Tong, Xu Shang, etc. Facing Shouchun, he also worked hard and prepared to make a surprise move.

After the army entered Xiacai, they rested for a while, then crossed the Huaihe River and stationed themselves at Feikou (also known as Feikou, the mouth of the Dongfei River entering the Huaihe River near Fengtai, Anhui today).

Xiacaicheng was the rear base of the army. In order to keep the grain road open, Zhang Liao ordered people to build a pontoon bridge over the Huaihe River.

Zhang Liao's first resolution was opposed by Xu Shang.

Xu Shang was very doubtful whether Zhang Liao would fight, so he said unceremoniously in front of the generals: "Everyone knows that there are tens of thousands of soldiers in Shouchun City, and there is even a navy stationed in Shaipi.

It is not easy to build a pontoon bridge. If the Yuan army attacks with a naval force, it is difficult to say whether the pontoon bridge can be saved. If you waste time and effort to do something that may not be possible, you are asking for trouble."

Xu Shang had an upright character and felt that Zhang Liao had no ability, so he was quite dissatisfied with Zhang Liao's coming from behind. In Xu Shang's opinion, if there was no suitable commander, his brother Xu Huang would be better than Zhang Liao.

Xu Shang questioned the coach face to face, making Zhang Liao unable to come to the stage.

Central Guardsman Cao Hu also frowned a little when he saw it, but after all, he had a better relationship with Xu Shang, Ma Tong and others, so he didn't say much.

With Xu Shang taking the lead, many people below looked at each other, wanting to see Zhang Liao's joke.

Zhang Liao was very aware of everyone's thoughts, and he also understood that if he got angry, although he could suppress Xu Shang, he would not be able to gain military morale.

So Zhang Liao explained: "Yuan Shu has a naval force, and our army also has one, so we are not afraid of him. As for the pontoon bridge, if it can attract the defenders in the city to come out to attack, even if it is destroyed, it is still meaningful."

Zhang Liao's idea was very clear. He wanted to use the pontoon bridge as a bait to lure Yuan Shu's army to attack. After all, field battles were much more beneficial than siege battles.

Everyone was silent after hearing this, and felt a little awkward for a while.

At this time, Cao Hu looked at everyone and said with a smile: "What Commander Zhang said is absolutely true. I think this arrangement will definitely defeat the thief."

Cao Hu actually didn't know much about marching and fighting, but he knew very well that he, the central guard, was sent to the North Route Army by Cao Ang. In addition to monitoring the generals, more importantly, he provided a platform for Zhang Liao.

Before Cao Hu left, Cao Ang gave a warning to Wan to unite all the tribes and obey Zhang Liao's command.

In the past, it was a trivial matter for Xu Shang to confront Zhang Liao, but Zhang Liao gave the order, but he could not take the lead in executing it. Cao Ang would not be lenient after hearing this.

He did a good job as a central guard, but he didn't want to offend Cao Ang, his eldest nephew.

Cao Hu took the lead, and Dian Wei also came forward to support.

Among the generals, Dian Wei was the oldest and felt that he should be the commander, and he looked down upon Zhang Liao. However, Dian Wei was the most loyal to Cao Ang. Not to mention not making him the commander, even if he allowed him to follow him with his life, Dian Wei also

Don't frown.

So at this time, Dian Wei knew very well that he had to execute the order even if he couldn't figure it out.
Chapter completed!