I pondered for a while.

Cao Cao's expression moved slightly, and there seemed to be a glimmer of light in his eyes. He suddenly raised his head and faced the civil and military personnel, and said in a deep voice: "Given the favorable geographical location of Hanzhong, our army must approach Hanzhong from all fronts."

"Zhang Lu is just a man sitting on the sidelines, nothing to worry about!"

"But the land of Bashu has been invaded by Liu Bei's men who weave mats and sell shoes. Hanzhong County is the gateway to northern Sichuan. What I am worried about now is that this person will get involved."

As soon as these words came out, Cao Cao's expression suddenly became solemn.

He and Liu Bei are also old acquaintances.

We had heart-to-heart talks, and more of them were in contact with each other, which can be regarded as half a lifetime.

He can certainly make a rough guess about his nature.

This person is like a dragon swimming in the shallows. Once encountering wind and rain, he will turn into a real dragon and soar into the sky.

The conversation ended after a while.

The civil and military people on both sides just nodded in agreement.

yes!

There is a powerful enemy lurking next to Hanzhong.

Thought for a long time.

Cao Cao squinted his eyes and glanced at Jia Xu, who was silent and low-key and had his eyes closed.

"Wen He, what do you think about the invasion of Hanzhong?"

As soon as he finished speaking, seeing that he had been named, Jia Xu naturally couldn't keep a low profile any longer.

Immediately, his eyes widened slightly, and there was a depth in his eyes that seemed to be invisible, and it was extremely mysterious.

"Prime Minister, actually you don't have to be suspicious!"

"Even if Liu Bei sends troops to fight for Hanzhong, he will still have to face Hanzhong's Yangpingguan defense line that is easy to defend but difficult to attack."

"Our army only needs to camp step by step, leave Sanguan, march to Wudu, and slowly march to Hanzhong!"

After saying this, he pondered for a while, and then said: "If Xu Xu expected, by the time our troops approach Yangping Pass, Liu Bei may still be gathering the main forces of various ministries."

"The Prime Minister can use this time difference to conquer Hanzhong."

Jia Xu's words were concise and to the point, which immediately dispelled Cao Cao's doubts.

This matter has been decided.

Cao Cao ordered Xia Houyuan to advance to Wudu County with more than 10,000 elite troops, Zhang He, Zhu Ling and other generals, while he himself followed up with the main force.

All the way.

Xia Houyuan led the troops to wipe out Liangzhou and the majestic power of Tiger Stepping to the right of the pass, which frightened the various Qiang and Di armed forces along the way and made them dare not act rashly.

In an instant, wherever Cao Jun went, he was greeted by a crowd of people.

However, it was not until Xia Houyuan's troops penetrated deep into the territory of Hechi that the situation suddenly changed drastically.

Dou Mao, the Di king of Hechi, gathered all the forces in the territory to resist Cao's army.

For this.

Xia Houyuan and his troops settled down and sent people to persuade them to surrender.

It's a pity that the recruitment failed.

King Dou Mao of Di refused to submit his troops.

In the past few days, the Qiang and Di forces from various places along the way all welcomed Master Wang's arrival with utmost humility.

Now the Di people are stubbornly resisting.

Xia Houyuan suddenly became furious.

He immediately gave a sharp order.

Zhang He and Zhu Ling were ordered to lead their troops to attack the Di camp in turn.

only.

The Di people were familiar with the geographical advantages of this place, and Dou Mao, the Di king of Hechi, had already prepared for it.

Relying on the dangerous terrain, they refused to defend.

After several days of continuous attacks, they failed to break through the front line of the river and pond.

Cao Jun's offensive was temporarily suppressed.

Seeing such a battle situation, Xia Houyuan already had an extremely hot temper, how could he still be able to swallow his breath at this moment?

Without hesitation, he went into battle to supervise the battle.

He personally boosted the morale of the troops in the military formations, and the soldiers in various departments also had great morale.

The intensity of attacks increased again.

Cao Jun is fiercely attacking the Di forces in Hechi.

For a while, it was difficult to break through its defense line.

And as Cao's army has begun to march southward.

With Bashu already in the north, Huo Jun was stationed at the Baishui Pass line. His primary purpose was to be able to keep an eye on and collect military reports from the north.

One piece of news was gradually sent south to Chengdu.

Among them, it naturally includes the news that Cao Jun has advanced to the front line of Wudu Hechi.

Chengdu City.

After Liu Bei, the left general, received Huo Jun's battle report and reviewed it, he immediately ordered people to summon Yangwu General Fa Zheng and partial general Huang Quan.

After Pang Tong was sent to Jingzhou to take full charge of handling diplomatic relations with the Sun family.

Liu Bei also made a new internal division of labor arrangements.

Zhuge Liang, the military advisor general, was assigned to the General Administration of Liu Ba to deal with internal affairs.

With Fazheng as the leader, Huang Quan as the assistant, assisting him in military affairs.

When the two of them arrived at the residence, they bowed one after another with their hands raised.

Liu Bei slowly reported the troops to the north.

The two saw this.

Huang Quan, who was full of righteousness, looked a little startled, and then said calmly: "Since Cao's army has already entered Wudu Hechi, the time when the army will approach Yangping Pass is not far away!"

In one word.

Liu Bei nodded in agreement, pondering for a while, and then said: "According to what was explained a few days ago, the various policies of issuing hundreds of dollars have calmed prices and stabilized market conditions."

"Let the civilian coin trade get back on track."

"Our army can go north to compete with them for Hanzhong County at any time."

At this point, he pondered for a moment, but said with a hint of difficulty on his face: "It's just that the main forces of the various ministries are still being assembled, and it will definitely be difficult to send troops northward in a short period of time."

"Now we are afraid that Cao Jun will break through the Yangpingguan defense line in one go and rush into the Hanzhong Plain."

"If this is the case, then the situation can be over!"

Finished talking.

Liu Bei was keenly aware of the seriousness of this problem.

They were worried that Cao Cao would take advantage of this time lag to gather the main force and break through the Hanzhong defense line.

After all, Zhang Lu was not good at running an army.

He really didn't dare to place too many expectations on it.

Hearing this, Huang Quan on one side pondered for a long time, and then he raised his hands with a calm expression and said: "My lord, the main army needs to be assembled. There is no way around it."

"Quan was worried that if Cao's army approached Yangping Pass, Zhang Lu would be forced to surrender without a fight under the pressure of his strong front."

"Quan thought deeply and asked for orders to go to Hanzhong to persuade Zhang Lu to submit to the lord in case the county is suddenly lost!"

A very solemn word was spoken.

Huang Quan raised his hands and asked for orders with a serious look on his face.

Seeing this, a kind smile appeared on Liu Bei's face, and he said slowly: "Gong Heng's concerns are not unreasonable. Regarding Zhang Lu's surrender without a fight, we really cannot be careless."

"If he surrenders to Cao Cao's thieves, it will be extremely difficult for our army to take back Hanzhong!"

After that, after thinking carefully, Liu Bei quickly agreed to Huang Quan's proposal.

Immediately, Huang Quan did not stop and immediately accepted the order to resign and leave.

…

Just when Liu Bei and his ministers were busy preparing to lead the Northern Expedition to fight for Hanzhong.
To be continued...