A team stretched across the wilderness, moving slowly and meandering like a giant dragon.
In the middle of the team, a large flag with the word "Cao" in black letters on a yellow background fluttered in the wind. The man with slender eyes and short beard riding a horse below was none other than Cao Cao.
At this moment, Cao Cao was sitting on his horse, holding the reins with one hand and holding his short beard under his chin with the other. His head was slightly raised, and his two black pearl-like eyes seemed to be staring at the sky.
"Tsk tsk!"
Cao Cao clicked his tongue twice, recalling the shocking explosion of Gong Yuxian in his mind.
I was afraid that one Fire Thunder Pack wouldn't be enough to blow open the city gate, so I simply put four of them, two on each side of the city gate. I thought it was possible to blow open the city gate, but who would have thought that with a loud explosion, half of it collapsed.
A city wall.
Of course, Gongyu County is just a small county in Shanyang County. The city is low and in disrepair. It already had some cracks. However, four fire thunder packs destroyed half of the city wall, which really made Cao Jun sigh.
.
They had never seen such a simple and crude method of siege. Even the original siege-type ballistae was not as powerful as the Ambush Fire Thunder Pack.
Just four fire and thunder packs frightened Gong and the county defenders out of their wits. Cao's soldiers rushed forward and captured Gong and the county town in less than an hour.
This is incredible!
Cao Cao felt that he had mastered the password to success, and turned to look at Cheng Li: "Zhongde, now that we have siege weapons such as the Fuhuo Thunderbolt, what city is unbreakable?"
"I'm afraid that after this year, in less than two years, we will be able to successfully sweep the world and help the Han Dynasty, and the Jiangdong rats may even give up."
"Ha ha!"
Cao Cao looked up to the sky and laughed, feeling that his vision was very good at the time: "From the time His Majesty fled Luoyang to the end of his unification of the world, it was only five years. He really surpassed the emperors of Qin and Han."
"yes."
Cheng Li nodded, and was filled with emotion as well: "I really don't know how your majesty did it. He could actually invent such magical things as the Fire and Thunder. It's simply unbelievable."
"Perhaps in the future, His Majesty will also consider marching to Mobei, going south to the barren land, and maybe even heading to the ocean. Otherwise, there will be no point in establishing a navy for the imperial court."
Cao Caoen nodded: "Yes, it is indeed the case, and I have a strong feeling that the future battlefield development will most likely develop in the direction of volts of fire and thunder. Individual bravery will become more and more important in future wars."
Inconspicuous."
"yes."
Cheng Li also felt the same way: "Human power is simply vulnerable to the thunder and lightning. The public and the county guard are generals under Yuan Yi, but who would have thought that they would be killed by the thunder and lightning just after the war started."
Already."
"The generals needed for future wars do not necessarily need to be very powerful, but they must be able to lead troops, understand the battle situation, be able to analyze, and be familiar with the art of war!"
"Generals often say that it's not about having many soldiers, but about being smart; generals are no longer brave, but strategic. Maybe it was difficult to show it before, but from now on, it will become more and more obvious."
Cao Cao nodded affirmatively: "Yes, the soldiers we need in the future are elite soldiers, and the generals we need are strategic generals. Just like your majesty's trapped camp, the Leopard Cavalry is a model of elite soldiers. As for the generals, there are currently no qualified generals.
.”
"Why not?"
Cheng Li denied without hesitation: "A general is a qualified general. You can realize this now and you will definitely be able to adapt to the trend of new warfare in the future."
Cao Cao smiled lightly and his eyes softened: "We must all work hard and order the entire army to learn the art of war, especially officers above the rank of captain."
"Oh right."
At this point, Cao Cao suddenly thought of something and said softly: "When I sign the responsibility letter with my officers and men next year, Cao will also sign that he will learn the art of war. If he fails to complete it, he will be demoted. He might as well become a soldier."
Let’s go to the big head soldiers.”
Cheng Li couldn't help being surprised: "General, if you really do this, I'm afraid many generals in the army will be dissatisfied, especially the two generals Xiahou, who will definitely cause trouble for the general."
How could Cao Cao not understand Cheng Li's worries: "So what? Even if Cao's generals are dissatisfied, Cao will still be demoted and punished. I am helping them now, not harming them."
"kindness."
Cheng Li was filled with emotion and marveled at Cao Cao's courage: "If the general can do this, he will not disappoint His Majesty Tiankui's expectations. Nowadays, the major commanders in Nanyang are in harmony on the surface, but in fact they are dissatisfied with each other."
"Only when a general truly achieves success and adapts to His Majesty's development of future wars can he truly be called the leader of the sky, and will he truly be able to become a general conquering the West in the future."
General of the Conquest of the West!
An official position that was enough to make Cao Cao's blood boil.
He took a deep breath and tried to keep himself calm: "Don't worry, starting from next year, all employees will learn the art of war. Those who fail to learn the art of war will be demoted. I have made my decision and no one can change it."
Cheng Li pinched a wisp of beard under his chin: "General, we can even follow the example of the imperial court and conduct military art examinations within the army, and the test scores will be used as one of the criteria for promotion."
"Huh?"
Cao Cao frowned: "This is a good idea, you can try it."
Cheng Lipan smiled: "Of course, you have to implement it slowly, don't be too hasty."
Cao Cao said favorably: "Don't worry, I still understand this point."
"..."
The two of them chatted about each other.
Suddenly, a long announcement sounded from the front:
"Report—!"
However, General Cao Ren galloped over on horseback, leaned forward and said, "General, there is a beggar in front of us who stopped our army. He said that he was Liu Dai, the governor of Yanzhou, but we don't know him."
"Liu Dai, the governor of Yanzhou?"
Cao Cao was stunned for a moment.
How could he not know that Liu Dai has disappeared and his life or death is unknown.
I just never thought that he would appear at this time, and as a beggar.
"Walk!"
Without any hesitation, Cao Cao moved his hand and galloped forward.
As expected.
At this moment, a man in rags was holding a wheat cake and chewing heavily. There was no trace of panic on his face. He was not even nervous at all when facing an army of tens of thousands. If he were a real beggar, how would he dare to do this?
"Shijun Liu?"
Cao Cao dismounted from his horse, walked up to him, and gave a tentative greeting.
The beggar turned around quickly, pushed aside his messy bun, and looked at Cao Cao: "Mengde, why are you here? Do you know how I got here these days?"
It’s really Liu Dai!
Cao Cao was shocked and hurried to greet him: "Forgive me, Commander Liu, but without the news of your Yanzhou governor, we would not dare to enter Yanzhou at will. If we had not received the news of your messenger troops, we would probably still be in Yuzhou now."
What could Liu Dai say? He tried his best to push back the tears, and then waved his hand: "Anyway, I'm very happy that you can come."
"This time, we must capture Changyi County. Otherwise, if we enter the middle of winter, we don't know what will happen in the future. I have to kill Yuan Yi with my own hands."
Between the words, the anger was beyond words.
But it's understandable. After all, turning from the governor of Yanzhou to a beggar is something that even Yuan Yi can't even imagine. Liu Dai is really brave enough to even lose his face.
"Zi Xiao."
"exist."
"Find some clothes for Mr. Liu and take him to the river to wash. We will set up camp in front."
"Here."
Cao Ren responded and waved his hand to make a petition: "Liu Shijun, come with me."
Liu Dai faced Cao Cao, and Cheng Li cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Liu."
Cao Cao simply responded, and Quan Zuo responded: "Okay, I'll help you tonight and get to know Yuan Yi's situation. With the strength of the envoy, it shouldn't be such a disastrous defeat. There must be something fishy in this."
"well-!"
Liu Dai sighed and said softly: "Let's talk about it after I come back. Yuan Yi, this kid, I really underestimated him. Meng De must not be careless."
Cao Cao nodded: "Okay, I'll wait for you."
Although Cao Cao had expected that Liu Dai might not be Yuan Yi's opponent, during Ma Sheng's sneak attack, Liu Dai was actually able to fight on a par with Yuan Yi despite dividing his troops. Cao Cao felt that Liu Dai was
Is a character.
But I never thought...
Within a few days, the bad news of Liu Dai's defeat came back, and the news of the defeat came only after Wan Qian defeated Ma Sheng. This can only prove that something unexpected happened.
Although Cao Cao also asked about the situation of the messenger, this person was not the commander after all. His understanding of the battle situation was very one-sided and unclear, and in the end he could not come up with a reasonable explanation.
Since he met Liu Dai today, he could answer Cao Cao's doubts, which would make it easier for him to understand Yuan Yi's strength and prevent unnecessary accidents.
It's night.
The wind is slightly cool.
The moon and stars are sparse.
The main camp of Cao's army and the main tent of the Chinese army.
hiss-!
Cao Cao was shocked, pinched a strand of beard under his chin, and said in disbelief: "I didn't expect that the whole process turned out to be like this."
Liu Dai sighed with annoyance on his face: "Well, if I hadn't been eager for success, how could I have blindly pressed all the troops up? If not, how could the few cavalry under Yuan Yi's command have hurt me at all?"
Peng!
As he said this, Liu Dai punched the gum with his fist and glared angrily: "Damn it! It's all my fault for being too impulsive. If I can wait for Wan Qian to lead his troops back, everything will be safe."
Cao Cao said without hesitation: "If you take the initiative to attack, Wan Qian will not be able to come back. This cavalry will definitely intercept Wan Qian halfway to respond to the main force in the city."
"That's right."
Bao Xin, who was on the opposite side, nodded: "Meng De's words are reasonable. If I were Yuan Yi, I would definitely send cavalry to raid Wanqian. Even if the whole army cannot be wiped out, I can still kill half of them. In this way, if you want to take
Going down to Changyi will not be so easy."
"certainly!"
Cheng Li added on the side: "If this is true, at least Liu Shijun will not be defeated so miserably, and once our army enters Shanyang County, the battlefield situation will immediately change."
"well-!"
Liu Dai doesn't care that much.
He sighed deeply and waved his hand: "The matter has come to this, it is useless to talk more. Anyway, Meng De, you must be more careful. This kid Yuan Yi is not as easy to deal with as you think."
"Now that they have taken prisoners, they have more troops, and their morale is strong, I'm afraid it won't be as easy as you think to take over Changyi County."
"certainly!"
Liu Dai emphasized: "The most important thing now is that winter is about to enter. Soon there will be snow all over the sky. By then the weather will be freezing and the ground will be freezing. I'm afraid the two sides will have no choice but to stop fighting. It is conservatively estimated that they will have to wait at least three months before they can fight again."
Let’s start a war.”
"More than that."
Cheng Li on the side reminded: "Now, your majesty is preparing to put Yuan Wei on trial. Once he is convicted, Yuan Yi will inevitably be involved. If we can capture Yuan Yi, we can just surrender. If we can't capture him, it will be a smear on your majesty's face."
"
How could Cao Cao be unaware of this matter? He did not hesitate and said, "Where is Zixiao?"
Cao Ren took a step forward: "The final general is here."
Cao Cao ordered: "Send out your scouts quickly and investigate the situation around Changyi County. You must not let them escape, or set up an ambush outside the city. You must especially observe the situation of the city to see if it is reinforced."
Cao Ren leaned forward and handed over his hand: "General, don't worry, I have already made arrangements."
Cao Cao nodded: "That's very good."
Immediately.
Cao Cao turned to Cheng Li and said softly: "We have Fire and Thunder bombs in hand. We should fight quickly. Use all the remaining Fire and Thunder bags, and then organize an elite army to attack the city with Fire and Thunder bombs.
Try to solve Yuan Yi's case in the shortest possible time."
Cheng Lien nodded: "To be honest, I have this intention."
Cao Cao breathed out: "Early tomorrow morning, we will set off for Changyi."
All the soldiers shouted in unison: "Here."
****
Youzhou.
Outside Ji County.
Yuan Shao sat on his horse and looked at the people fighting desperately in the city of Ji County. He was so angry that his heart ached: "Damn it! Once these hateful people of Ji County break through, I will definitely kill them all."
"Lord, don't be anxious."
On the side, Guo Tu bowed and held up his hands, and said calmly: "Jixian is already on the verge of collapse and can't hold on for much longer. If the Black Mountain Army hadn't been so annoying, we would have conquered Jixian long ago."
"However, even so, I don't think I can last more than a few days in Jixian County. Didn't you see? There are almost no soldiers now, and all the people are left."
call-
Yuan Shao breathed a sigh of relief, frowned, and the hand holding the reins wanted to crush it: "It is precisely because the people support Liu Yu so much that it is really infuriating!"
In the past, Yuan Shao didn't pay attention to the common people at all. After all, they were all powerless farmers, but now it seems that with Liu Yu, they can exert a strong fighting power.
Popular support!
This is the power of people’s hearts!
One hundred thousand soldiers and civilians guarding a city can actually stop their own army from attacking for a year. This is simply incredible. Even if there are no soldiers left in the city, they still don't give up easily.
"this......"
Guo Tu didn't know how to comfort him.
After all, there are very few people who can transform people's hearts into fighting power. This is also the first time he has seen them.
"In the direction of Zhongshan, when can we mobilize our troops back?"
Yuan Shao could no longer care so much and turned around to ask.
"this......"
Guo Tu frowned, pondered for a moment, and said, "It will take some time. I heard that the Black Mountain Army in the direction of Zhongshan is led by Zhang Yan himself, with a total strength of 40,000 to 50,000."
"That won't work either!"
Yuan Shao denied without hesitation: "As the cold winter is about to begin, we must capture Jixian before winter begins, otherwise we don't know what will happen next year."
"You quickly send an order and tell Zhang He and Gao Lan that three thousand soldiers and horses must be sent back. As for how to resist the Black Mountain Army's attack, that is their business. I have only one request, which is to ensure that the food route is smooth."
Guo Tu bowed his head and said: "Here."
"Report—!"
At this moment, a long announcement sounded not far away.
Yuan Shao turned around and looked.
But when he saw soldiers from his family coming from Juechen, he looked extremely panicked: "Lord, something serious has happened."
Yuan Shao was furious and shouted coldly: "What's the matter? Speak up!"
The messenger nodded: "According to reliable information, His Majesty took refuge in Nanyang in front of the Wuguan Formation. Duke Yuan and Chang'an civil and military officials were all arrested. They are currently under joint investigation by Nanyang Tingwei and the school affairs office. I heard that Nanyang is preparing for two days.
Put Yuan Wei on trial."
"What?"
"Uncle, he...he actually..."
Yuan Shao's eyes were as wide as bells, and he was stunned in place like thunder and lightning.
He couldn't believe it.
The cold winter was approaching, and such a message was sent to me, which completely destroyed the last hold on my heart.
At this moment, Yuan Shao felt only a surge of anger, boiling from the bottom of his heart, constantly impacting his internal organs, and his whole body almost seemed to explode.
puff!
Yuan Shao covered his heart. After a while, he couldn't bear it any longer. He spat out a mouthful of twenty-year-old blood. He blinked on the spot, passed out, and fell off his horse.
"Lord!"
"Lord!"
"Quick, Ming Jin withdraws his troops!"
Guo Tu couldn't care less and hurriedly protected Yuan Shao and ordered the gold to be withdrawn.
Jingle bell—!
The next second, the golden sound sounded, and Yuan Shao's army retreated.
Liu Yu stood on the top of the city, staring at the retreating troops and horses outside the city, and breathed a sigh of relief.
He raised his head, stared at the sky, and felt the cool breeze blowing past the side of his cloak. A hint of joy appeared on his face: "Winter will begin in half a month, and we finally made it through."
"yes."
Wei You on the side was also filled with emotion: "It's hard to imagine how we survived this year. Now that the houses of the people in the city have been demolished, what will happen when winter comes?"
Liu Yu naturally knew that this was a difficult problem, but he still gave his own solution: "Let everyone huddle together and try to survive the winter. Zitai said that he will report the situation here to the court."
"well-"
Wei You sighed: "I don't know what the outcome will be with the imperial court?"
Liu Yu frowned and said with absolute certainty: "Don't worry, there must be no problem. Haven't you noticed that Yuan Shao's military strength has been greatly reduced in recent times?"
"Is it possible..."
Wei You was stunned for a moment and said in disbelief: "The soldiers and horses of the Nanyang court have already come to kill them?"
Liu Yudan smiled and shook his head: "That's not true."
"oh?"
Wei You frowned: "That's..."
Liu Yu said softly: "Zitai said that the imperial court has persuaded the Black Mountain Army to surrender. Now they are attacking Yuan Shao's rear in sections from Changshan, Wei County, and Zhongshan, and have restrained a large number of the opponent's troops."
Wei You was surprised, with a look of disbelief on his face: "No wonder, the more Yuan Shao fights, the fewer people there are. It turns out that the Black Mountain Army is assisting us."
"yes."
Liu Yu sighed, with a long-lost smile on his face: "The Black Mountain Army cooperated with the imperial court's accurate intelligence in Jizhou, and was always able to attack accurately, and succeeded several times in succession, forcing Yuan Shao to send troops back for reinforcements."
"Although His Majesty the Emperor of Nanyang is far away in Guanzhong, he can accurately lead the Youzhou battlefield from a distance. Based on this ability alone, I can judge that Yuan Wei is no match for His Majesty, and he will be defeated sooner or later."
Wei You nodded with interest: "That's true."
"Report—!"
At this moment, a long announcement sounded from the city.
Liu Yu turned around and looked.
But I saw Tian Chou hurried to the city, with a hint of joy on his face: "Your Majesty, good news."
Liu Yu smiled calmly: "What news is it? Just tell Zitai directly."
"kindness."
Tian Chou responded and passed the flying pigeon letter to Liu Yu: "Information sent from Nanyang, King Chenliu surrendered in front of the Wuguan Formation, Yuan Wei and all the civil and military officials of Chang'an were arrested, and are currently accepting court officials, the school affairs office
joint review."
"and......"
Tian Chou couldn't hide the joy on his face: "My son Liu He is safe and uninjured. There is also his personal letter on it. Due to the limited space, there is not much content. I just want to report that he is safe."
"oh?"
Liu Yu was surprised and horrified: "Where is the letter written by my son?"
Tian Chou smiled: "It's in the hands of the envoy."
Liu Yu hurriedly opened the flying pigeon letter.
really!
On a small rolled piece of paper, there was a line written: "Father, please don't miss me. Everything is fine with my son, Liu He."
Liu Yu was so excited that she burst into tears: "It's great! It's great! My son is fine, it's great!"
Wei You bowed his head and said solemnly: "My lord, can you rest assured this time?"
"kindness."
Liu Yu nodded heavily, and immediately bowed in the direction of Nanyang: "Your Majesty, Liu Yu, thanks you for your great kindness."
Tian Chou hurriedly helped Liu Yu up: "Your Majesty, your Majesty said in the letter that you should guard Jixian. After winter, the court's supplies will be delivered to Youbeiping from the sea, and then transferred from Youbeiping to Jixian."
.”
Wei You was pleasantly surprised. One second they were still worrying about this matter, and the next second the Nanyang court had already sent news. It was timely and touching:
"really?"
"certainly!"
Tian Chou said with great certainty: "I have already made a list of supplies. There are 50,000 pieces of winter clothes, 20,000 stones of grain and grass, and supplies for ten large commercial ships."
Wei You was ecstatic: "That's great, I won't worry about it this time."
Tian Chou said softly: "The imperial court has ordered me to take advantage of the depth of winter to negotiate with Gongsun Zan on behalf of the Han court in Nanyang. If he can surrender to Nanyang, the imperial court will transport some troops and horses over by water to help defend the city."
Liu Yu was so moved that he couldn't help himself: "Your Majesty is really...so...so touching."
Wei Youen echoed: "Yes, your Majesty is the real chosen one. It won't be long before the Han Dynasty will be unified again and completely embark on the road of rejuvenation."