When he saw those letters, Wang Zheng looked calm on the surface, but deep down he was in turmoil.
Did Cao Mengde actually instigate rebellion in two important towns in Jiangdong without saying a word?
Although he was still saying in his heart that the letter could not be fully believed, subconsciously, Wang Zheng felt that this matter was quite true, and even thought of more.
In the original history, Sun Ce's death was full of doubts.
If we analyze who the murderer is from the perspective of profit maximization, it has a lot to do with Cao Cao.
First, after Sun Ce completely defeated Liu Xun and completely occupied Lujiang County, he already had a lot of interest in Xuzhou, which belonged to Cao Cao at the time. He twice sent generals to attack Chen Deng, the prefect of Guangling, and the result was ten times more powerful than Chen Deng's.
Sun Ce's army was actually defeated by Chen Deng. Considering Sun Ce's strength at the time, "killing tens of thousands of prisoners" may be an exaggeration, but the defeat to Chen Deng is irrefutable. This battle was too humiliating.
As for this general under Sun Ce, none of them were named.
Later, the unknown Jiangdong general once again gathered his troops to besiege Kuangqi City. Chen Deng sent Chen Jiao to ask Cao Cao for help, and then sent people to gather firewood on the only way to rescue the troops. He piled them every ten steps, lined them up in a long row, and lit them at night.
.Sun Ce's army thought that the continuous bonfire was the arrival of Cao Cao's reinforcements, and was frightened into chaos. Chen Deng took advantage of the situation to attack and defeated Sun Ce's army again.
Sun Ce's army, which was ten times stronger than Chen Deng, was defeated twice in a row. Who was this general who led the army? Neither Sun Ce nor Chen Deng's biographies mentioned this person's name.
But in "The Biography of Chen Jiao", the truth was finally revealed.
"Three Kingdoms·Chen Jiao Biography" records: The county was surrounded by Sun Quan and Kuang Qi, so he ordered Jiao to seek help from Taizu.
It turns out to be Sun Shiwan. That’s normal.
In any case, in the fourth year of Jian'an, Sun Ce, who inherited most of Yuan Shu's property, his initial strategic purpose was more inclined to go north to Xuzhou than to go south to Jingzhou. This is certain.
Second, when Cao Cao and Yuan Shao fought in the Guandu War, Sun Ce was ready to make a move again.
"Three Kingdoms: Sun Ce Biography" records: In the fifth year of Jian'an, Cao Gong and Yuan Shao refused to fight in Guandu. Ce Yin wanted to attack Xu, met the Han Emperor, organized the army secretly, and deployed the generals. Before the attack, he would pay tribute to the governor of Wu County.
Killed by a guest.
The biographies of Soochow have directly stated this clearly, clearly showing that Sun Ce's gathering of troops this time was aimed at Cao Cao. Not only did he want to march north to compete in the Central Plains, but he was also preparing to attack Xudu and steal the biggest trump card of Emperor Xian of Han.
.
There is no doubt that Sun Ce has this ability, such a strategic vision, and indeed has such a plan.
If he had not been assassinated and had really attacked Xudu and robbed Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty, perhaps the direction of history in the late Han Dynasty would have been completely different, and the resulting chain reaction would have been a completely different situation.
It's just that there are no ifs in history. The twenty-six-year-old Sun Ce was like a dazzling supernova, suddenly erupting and then disappearing. In the dark, everything he did seemed to be just to pave the way for his younger brother Sun Quan.
From the perspective of later generations, the biggest beneficiary after Sun Ce's death was naturally Sun Quan, but from the perspective of the time, it was actually Cao Cao who felt relieved about this.
Combined with the ghostly prophecy of his counselor Guo Jia, this can only make people think a lot.
From the current Wang Zheng's point of view, it is not an easy task to assassinate Sun Ce, a figure with strong martial arts and high authority. If Cao Cao really did it, then his hidden power in Jiangdong...
.
There are probably not a few nobles, aristocratic families and even officials who are secretly close to him!
No matter what, it is definitely not a good thing that Zhou Hui, as the king of Shucheng County, is pro-Cao. Wang Zheng immediately summoned Wang Xiong and the mid-level generals in the army to come to the commander's tent for discussion.
After hearing the news, the generals also changed their minds. It was really troublesome that the enemy had such unrest within the enemy, but Wang Zheng always felt that there was something wrong with Zhou Lue's plan.
It is not difficult to capture Zhou Hui. Wang Zheng personally led the elite soldiers of Tianzhu Camp to find an excuse to enter the county government and capture him, but what next?
Judging from the performance at the banquet that day, Zhou Hui, the county prince, was quite popular, and he had just won a victory. Now his reputation was booming, and the generals in the city respected him. In the end, he and his family were just a guest army.
The most important thing is that in the eyes of these people, Wang Zheng's current military strength is not considered "strong".
The saying that soldiers are not numerous but refined is not always true. After all, most people will subconsciously do a simple math problem. Ten thousand soldiers and horses will naturally be stronger than five thousand.
Even miscellaneous soldiers and refugees, when their numbers reach a certain scale, possess a deterrent power that a small number of elite soldiers cannot possess.
Unless it is an elite army that has already gone through countless tough battles and become famous all over the world, such as Gongsun Zan's white horse Yi Cong and Yuan Shao's Jizhou Qiangnu.
As for the Tianjun, their current reputation is certainly not weak, but most of them are still concentrated in Qingxu territory, but they have not yet truly become famous throughout the Han Dynasty, making everyone feel deafening!
Unable to suppress the power on paper, and as a guest army, Wang Zheng's immediate concern is naturally that if he captures Zhou Hui, even though Zhou Hui will help him, none of Zhou Hui's subordinates will be convinced and launch an attack.
Mutinying to recapture Zhou Hui, or even directly having a large-scale conflict with the Heavenly Army, wouldn't it cause a great chaos in Shu County?
So what should we do?
Of course, he was confident that the three thousand Heavenly Army could completely suppress this group of people, but at the critical moment, how much would the Heavenly Army suffer in the process, and what would he do next when facing Sun Ce's army?
After expressing his concerns, everyone agreed. Wang Xiong thought for a while and said: "General, I see that Zhou Hui is also an arrogant person. He comes from a famous family. I am afraid that he and Cao Cao have more of a cooperative relationship than a relationship between monarch and minister."
Genus."
"Cao Cao and the general are naturally at odds with each other, but this is not necessarily the case for Zhou Hui. In addition, if he knows the importance of foreign enemies now, he should know that the most important thing now is to work together with us to deal with Sun Ce first. This son has been showing his goodwill since the general entered the city.
, I guess I understand this."
"In that case, how about we stay put for the time being, increase our vigilance, and adapt to changes?"
Wang Zheng pondered for a while and nodded: "That's all we have to do."
After the discussion was over, the generals retreated, and it was almost dawn.
Wang Zheng had just undressed and taken a nap, but was awakened by the footsteps of a soldier coming in. He felt slightly unhappy in his heart, but he still suppressed it and managed to say gently: "What's the matter?"
"General," the soldier said, "Zhou County Lord sent someone here to meet the general. He is waiting outside the camp now."
Zhou Hui?
Wang Zheng immediately fell asleep. He was still discussing how to deal with him, but why did he send someone here? He stood up, straightened his clothes and said, "Bring him in."
Soon after, a general wearing soft armor came in, stood respectfully and saluted Wang Zheng and said: "Meet Wangzhou Mu, the county king has invited you."
...
When we arrived at the inner courtyard of the county government, we heard a banging sound coming from a row of rooms on the left. Wang Zheng was an expert, so he knew it was the sound of wooden weapons clashing. This was not surprising, as the Han people were very martial.
, many civil servants also have practice rooms in their inner courtyards in addition to their studies, but as he listened, Wang Zheng showed a look of surprise on his face.
There was a man in the room who was very good at martial arts. When he swung the bladeless wooden weapon, it made such a sound of breaking through the air. It was so powerful that if it hit an ordinary person, it would probably be enough to break bones and tendons!
Out of curiosity, he walked over and saw at a glance Zhou Hui standing aside with a smile and four men in the middle. At this time, the three men were lying on the ground with bruises and swollen noses and faces. They were the same men he had seen at the banquet before.
There were several uncles, and the other one who stood proudly and bravely had a strange face, but Wang Zheng was immediately shaken at the first sight.
But I saw that this strong man had a face like a jujube, eyes like bright stars, nine feet tall, and as majestic as a mountain. At first glance, he really looked like another person.
It's not just the appearance, but the most important thing is the arrogant look on this person's face, and the virtue of his nostrils pointing to the sky, which are exactly the same as Guan Yu.
Seeing Wang Zheng come in, Zhou Hui said loudly to the other three people: "It seems that the three of you have been practicing hard recently. You can sustain so many rounds in Wei Yan's hands. Not bad, not bad. Your salary will be increased by 30% next month."
Wei Yan?
When Wang Zheng's heart moved, Zhou Hui had already come over with the big man and said with a smile: "Wangzhou Mu, I'm here to introduce you, this is Wei Yan."
Wei Yan also bowed slightly and said, "I'm here, Wei Yan, to pay my respects to Wangzhou Mu."
Although he has the same name and the other person's extraordinary demeanor, it is very likely that he is the Wei Yan that Wang Zheng has in mind, but he still has doubts in his heart.
I remember Wei Yan is from Nanyang, how could he appear here in Lujiang? Isn't it too far away?
There was some doubt in his heart. Wang Zheng keenly captured the information of the other party's title. He did not address the general, so that meant that Wei Yan was white and had no official position?
But he saw Wei Yan raise his head after finishing the ceremony, looking at Wang Zheng with his eyes like cold lightning, and suddenly said in a deep voice: "I once heard someone say that when Zhou Mu was in Xiapi, he had a great battle with Yan native Zhang Fei, and the outcome was inconclusive.
, I wonder if this is the case?”
"There is no deadlock." Wang Zheng waved his hand and solemnly corrected the mistakes in his words: "This general has the upper hand."
Wei Yan had a look of astonishment on his face, and it took him a while before he came back to his senses and continued: "Zhou Mu is really brave, and I am also a martial artist. I am best at swordsmanship. I wonder if Zhou Mu would be willing to give me some advice?"
Hearing this, Zhou Hui on the side looked startled, and then shouted with some displeasure: "Wei Yan, don't be so presumptuous! Zhou Mu has a body of thousands of dollars, and he is responsible for everything. How can he have the leisure to wield a sword with a rough guy like you?"
?”
Then he turned to Wang Zheng and said, "Forgive me, the state pastor, but Wei Yan has been with my father since he was a child. My father is not energetic and is busy with government affairs, so he inevitably neglects to discipline him, so he does not know the etiquette. Hui will definitely discipline him well in the future."
Does this mean that Wei Yan came to join you after Zhou Zhong died?
When Wang Zheng heard this, he suddenly realized that it made sense to follow Zhou Zhong. Zhou Zhong had been in Sili for half his life, which was not far from Nanyang County.
"No problem." He waved his hand and said with a smile: "I heard the sound of wind and thunder outside the hall just now, and I know that Brother Wei's sword skills are extraordinary. I am happy to see the hunter, but also feel itchy hands. Mr. Zhou, please give me the weapon.
"
Zhou Hui had no choice but to signal to his followers, and immediately someone came over with a wooden sword and handed it to Wang Zheng.
Wang Zheng drew his sword and waved it casually a few times in his hand. He then made a entrance and stood facing Wei Yan. The two of them held their swords and saluted at the same time.
Wei Yan was originally half-believing Wang Zheng's words, but when Wang Zheng put on his posture, his expression suddenly became stern.
The opponent only made such a simple horizontal sword gesture, but he actually felt like he was invincible!
Looking at the majestic figure of the opponent who is not inferior to his own, coupled with the immovable and towering demeanor of the mountain, Wei Yan has clearly met the most powerful enemy he has ever seen in his life. He took half a step back, lowered his waist and sat on the horse, with a pair of huge eyes.
It's cautious: "Zhou Mu, please."
Wang Zheng smiled and said calmly: "Brother Wei, please."
Seeing this scene, Zhou Hui frowned on the side.
He was not very skilled in martial arts, but he knew the art of war. Although he didn't know who was stronger or weaker between Wang Zheng and Wei Yan, Zhou Hui had already figured it out in just a moment. In terms of momentum, Wei Yan couldn't stand Wang Zheng's oppression, so he couldn't help but take half a step back and lowered his body.
shape to stabilize the formation.
Just like two armies facing each other, Wei Yan was at a disadvantage based on this alone.
When he was getting anxious, the door was suddenly pushed open with a bang, and a man stumbled in. He fell to the ground as soon as he entered the door. He was a soldier from the garrison.
Seeing that the other party was wet all over, soaked with sweat and looking very embarrassed, Zhou Hui couldn't help but frowned and shouted: "What's the matter? I don't see Zhou Mu here, how can I be so flustered?" Obviously?
He felt that the other party was so embarrassed that he had lost face in front of Wang Zheng.
The officer got up and said angrily: "County Lord, Wangzhou Mu...Sun Ce...Sun Ce's army is attacking again!"
Zhou Hui was shocked and shouted: "Why didn't the scout come to report earlier? Where are they?"
"It's only five miles away from the city."
"What?!"
When Zhou Hui looked shocked, Wang Zheng raised his eyebrows, swung the wooden sword, and walked out directly. He had no time to pay attention to Wei Yan and Zhou Hui, and jumped on his horse and ran towards the camp.
As soon as they arrived at the camp, they saw that Wang Xiong had gathered the entire army, and Qiao Huan also appeared in the commander's tent wearing armor and helmets. It seemed that the military exploits Wang Zheng mentioned last time were already on her mind.
When Wang Zheng came back, Wang Xiong came up to him and said, "General, Sun Ce's army has appeared outside the south gate of Shu County!"
"I know," Wang Zheng said in a deep voice, "Gather your troops and set off immediately!"
"Here!"
Three sides of the Shuxian city are guarded by natural dangers, making it extremely easy to defend and difficult to attack. Only in front of the west gate is a plain, so most of the defenders gathered here. The south gate itself has a narrow terrain and a valley barrier, especially last time.
It was here that Sun Cejun made a mistake. He thought that the enemy would retreat in the face of difficulties, so Zhou Hui did not pay much attention to it. However, he did not expect that Sun Cejun would launch an attack from here again.
When the army arrived at the south gate, Zhou Hui was mobilizing troops and generals, and there was a constant flow of troops and horses. This place was originally in charge of an uncle, but now Zhou Hui took it over personally.
Wang Zheng glanced at it casually for a few times, then climbed up to the top of the city and looked around. He saw faint shaking in the woods in the valley ahead, probably Sun Ce's army was advancing. He turned around and looked at Tao Ze who was following him and said: "Captain Tao
, how do you think Sun Cejun wants to attack?"
Before Tao Ze could answer, a person behind him said hurriedly: "They clearly attacked the gate here before, but they still dare to come here this time. In my opinion, it must be a plan to attack the east and west. The south gate is just a feint attack, but they actually want to attack."
Attack the west gate." But it was Zhou Hui who caught up with the city.
Wang Zheng turned his head and glanced at Zhou Hui, then nodded slightly to Wei Yan who stood beside him, and then said:
"According to the art of war, this is indeed possible. It is just the weakest link in the defense of Ximen Naishu County. This is a place that must be defended. No matter how fiercely the enemy attacks the south gate, if they want to attack the east and west, it will probably be difficult to achieve success."
"What Zhou Mu said is true." Tao Ze nodded repeatedly: "But the south gate is easy to defend and difficult to attack. They suffered a lot last time. Wouldn't it be foolish to repeat the same mistake this time?"
"Sun Ce and his troops will not be so stupid."
Wang Zheng shook his head, stared at the moving figures under the city, and suddenly laughed, but there was no trace of laughter in his smile:
"After falling down in one place, do you want to get up here?"
"I think that if they come back to attack again this time, they are either confident that they can win by force, or..."
"It's just that I have other plans and thought of other ways to break through the south gate!"