Qian Zhao frowned slightly and stared at the map on the screen for a long time.
Zhu Gai coughed lightly and said, "Your Majesty, I roughly understand your intention."
"Tell me!" Cao Rui looked sideways at Zhu Gai.
Zhu Gai said, "I would like to step forward a few steps and discuss this with Your Majesty in front of the map."
Cao Rui then moved two steps to the side to make room for Zhu Gai.
At this moment, the three of them were very close to each other, and Zhu Gai just said softly: "As your Majesty just said, Guo Huai, Xiahou Ba, and Lu Xun are blocking the enemy in Longyou."
"If Longyou is in danger, General Zuo needs to go out of Longshan and head west to reinforce Longyou."
"So the 20,000 troops Your Majesty is going to place in Chang'an actually have three tasks to handle."
Cao Rui raised his eyes and looked at Zhu Gai: "Which three?"
"First, protect Guanzhong from being invaded by the Shu enemy. This is the top priority. Second, reinforce Longyou at the right time to prevent Longyou from being in danger."
Zhu Gai paused for a moment and continued, "Third, if Longyou is completely lost, we should block Longshan and prevent the Shu army from entering Guanzhong."
Cao Rui's eyes widened slightly, and he stared at Zhu Gai's face carefully. After a long while, he asked: "Right General, why do you say that? How could Longyou be lost?"
Zhu Gai showed a trace of panic on his face, and hurriedly explained: "Your Majesty, I...I did not mean to speak nonsense."
Cao Rui asked: "Why do you say that?"
Zhu Gai explained: "Although I have been in Huainan for ten years, when Emperor Wu defeated Ma Chao and Han Sui in Weinan, I was under the command of Emperor Wu together with the Left General Zhang Junyi."
"I just remember that when I followed Emperor Wu out of Chang'an and passed through Meiyang County, Emperor Wu and his generals discussed the time when General Zhang Wen led Dong Zhuo, Sun Jian and other generals to fight against the Liangzhou rebels led by Bian Zhang and Han Sui."
If the person involved didn't tell me about this old story, I'm afraid others would have no way of knowing it.
Cao Rui was already interested at this time, and Qian Zhao's brows also relaxed temporarily as he listened to Zhu Gai's story.
Zhu Gai could sense that the emperor and Qian Zhao were looking at him, so he coughed and said, "The Emperor Wu told the generals at that time that Zhang Wen led six armies out of Longyou, but only Dong Zhuo's army returned victorious."
"If we want to fight outside Longyou, we must first consider defeat and then seek victory. Even in the worst case scenario, we must ensure that Guanzhong is not lost."
Zhu Gai bowed to the emperor and said, "Your Majesty, this is what I just thought. Please forgive me."
Cao Rui turned around and walked behind his desk, pointing to the chairs beside him and saying, "You two should sit down too!"
After Qian Zhao and Zhu Gai sat down, Cao Rui sighed softly: "Right General, you are right! I will record this achievement for you!"
"Your Majesty..." Zhu Gai was confused and bowed to ask.
Cao Rui said slowly: "As the saying goes, a lion will use all its strength to fight a rabbit! Earlier this year, I defeated Sun Quan in Huainan. If I had not gathered more than half of the world's military forces in Huainan, I am afraid it would be difficult to achieve this victory."
"I have always thought that since we have Zhang He and Guo Huai in Yongliang, and I have sent Lu Xun and Xiahou Ba there, I am afraid we don't have to be afraid of Zhuge Liang anymore."
"The Right General has given me a warning! How can we become complacent in military affairs just because we have foreseen something?"
From the looks in Qian Zhao and Zhu Gai's eyes, Cao Rui knew that the two of them obviously did not understand what "predictions" were, but Cao Rui was not prepared to explain more.
Cao Rui continued, "Twenty thousand may or may not be enough. I have discussed this with the West and East Chambers, and we do not have enough military resources to place more troops in Yongliang at the moment."
"I have thought about it again and again. The current task is to have all the troops in Yongliang prepare for war, just in case."
Cao Rui looked at Qian Zhao and said, "Didn't you just ask me why I wanted you to lead the troops in Chang'an?"
Qian Zhao stood up with a solemn expression and bowed.
Cao Rui said slowly: "The situation in Yongliang is different from that in Yangzhou. The military command in various places is too complicated."
"The foreign troops from Yongzhou, the prefecture troops from Yongliang, the Qiang volunteers, the foreign troops transferred from Jingzhou and Yangzhou... I really don't want the Yongliang army to be affected by any regional prejudices or personal likes and dislikes in the military operations."
Cao Rui looked into Qian Zhao's eyes and said, "After much thought, I think that you are the most suitable person to take care of the troops from all over the Wei Dynasty and the generals who are not serving in Yongliang, Jingzhou, and Yangzhou all year round."
Qian Zhao bowed and saluted: "I will not disappoint your majesty."
Cao Rui nodded slightly.
At this time, Cao Zhen and Dong Zhao also came over.
Seeing Qian Zhao saluting, Cao Zhen smiled and asked, "Has Your Majesty already appointed the generals?"
"It has been ordered." Cao Rui also smiled and asked: "General, how is the progress of the troops from Jing and Yang states that were transferred to Chang'an?"
Seeing that the emperor was in a good mood, Cao Zhen also said, "I heard some good news from the Grand Marshal."
"Oh?" Cao Rui asked, "Can the Grand Marshal send more troops?"
"Your Majesty is wise," Cao Zhen replied, "The Grand Marshal wrote to me saying that 12,000 is definitely not a problem, and if there are 3,000 or 5,000 more, they can also provide it."
Cao Rui asked in confusion, "Why is this? Didn't you and I calculate the military strength of Yangzhou before?"
Cao Zhen smiled and said, "Your Majesty and I had forgotten about the Wu army prisoners captured at the beginning of the year."
"The Grand Marshal and the Governor of Yangzhou, Jiang Zitong, selected about 20,000 soldiers from the 50,000 prisoners of war of the Wu army, who came from remote counties and Shanyue. These people had little affection for the Sun family of Jiangdong, and they also set up military settlements."
"Did Jiang Ji help the Grand Marshal to set up military settlements?" Cao Rui asked.
"That's right." Dong Zhao interrupted and replied, "The Grand Marshal and Jiang Ji wrote to your majesty to ask if you can use the reform of military settlements in Yuzhou as an example and distribute half of the food and prisoners to the newly established military settlements in Yangzhou as food and wages in a 50-50 ratio."
"If we do this, we can not only increase our food and fodder income, but also win over these captives and transform them into soldiers that can be used by the Wei Dynasty."
Cao Rui thought for a moment and asked, "How do they plan to prevent the prisoners from causing trouble?"
Dong Zhao cupped his hands and said, "The Grand Marshal mentioned three strategies in his memorial."
"First, the captured soldiers' places of origin and their original subordinates were reorganized."
"Second, divide and rule, disperse thousands of troops near each military base to prevent them from causing chaos."
"Third, we promised that after conquering Wu, each of us would be given 100 mu of land."
Cao Rui smiled and asked, "How did these captives believe it?"
"After the land was divided and the promise was made, they naturally believed it." Dong Zhao replied: "Besides, the power of the battle in Wancheng has been less than half a year, so no one dares to have second thoughts."
Cao Rui nodded and said, "Show me the Grand Marshal's memorial. If there are no other reasons, this proposal can be approved."
"What about the remaining 30,000 prisoners?"
Dong Zhao said: "They are probably repairing rivers and building dams, and the conscripts are doing the work."
"Yes." Cao Rui nodded and said, "It seems that the Grand Marshal and Jiang Ji did not disappoint me in Yangzhou. They actually came up with some new things."
Cao Zhen then cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty just asked when the troops from Yangzhou and Jingzhou would be able to arrive in Chang'an. If the transfer order is approved in the next two days, they will be able to arrive before the end of July."
"Okay, let's do it this way!" Cao Rui looked at Cao Zhen, and pointed at Qian Zhao and Zhu Gai beside him: "General, explain the geography and military situation of Yongliang to them."
"As you wish." Cao Zhen replied with a bow.
Just as the four were about to leave, Cao Rui stopped them again.
Cao Rui said: "I was in such a hurry just now that I almost forgot something."
"Qian Zhao." Cao Rui said in a deep voice.
"I'm here." Qian Zhao seemed to have realized something and bowed solemnly.
Cao Rui said slowly: "I now appoint you as the General of Zhenxi. I give you the title of general that the great general once had. Please don't let me and the great general down!"
Qian Zhao knelt down and bowed respectfully: "Your Highness, I will never fail your grace."
Cao Zhen stood aside and said with a smile: "General Qian, you may not know that after the late emperor appointed me as the General of Zhenxi, I led the army to pacify Hexi, beheaded 50,000 people, and captured more than one million cattle and sheep."
"I'm so lucky, Your Majesty wants to ask for a blessing for you!"
Qian Zhao kowtowed heavily again. Cao Rui signaled to Cao Zhen with his eyes, and Cao Zhen immediately stepped forward and slowly helped Qian Zhao up.
For a moment, there seemed to be a few more tears in Qian Zhao's eyes.
Ever since Qian Zhao served Wei, his "life-and-death friendship" with Liu Bei in the past has been constantly questioned and inquired about, so much so that a few months ago, Qian Zhao was still the prefect of Yanmen County on the border of Bingzhou.
A person with such experience and ability has never been given an important position due to some speculations within the court.
Now, the title of "General Zhenxi" conferred by the emperor is enough to comfort Qian Zhao for the twists and turns he has experienced in the past twenty years.
……
Just when the former Yanmen prefect Qian Zhao and Qian Zijing were awarded the title of General Zhenxi in Luoyang, the Protector of Wuhuan Captain Tian Yu also led his troops out of Juyang County, the northernmost county of Yanmen County.
Bingzhou and Youzhou, one in the west and the other in the north, are arranged like a '┍', wrapping up the land of Hebei.
The Yanmen Commandery where Qian Zhao had served was at the northernmost part of Bingzhou, and the Dai Commandery where Tian Yu had set out was at the westernmost part of Youzhou.
The border between Yanmen County and Dai County is the turning point of the '┍' shape.
Juyang County is here.
Tian Yu's two thousand elite soldiers just arrived in Juyang last night. After resting for a night, they set out from Juyang City early in the morning and advanced southward along the east bank of the Sanggan River.
In the distance, three knights dressed in Xianbei costumes were galloping towards the army. After being checked by the scouts, they were led to approach Tian Yu.
After Tian Yu reined in his horse, he raised his left hand to signal a halt to the march.
The three Xianbei people in front of him also dismounted and bowed down in front of Tian Yu's horse.
Tian Yu picked up the whip and whipped it in the air, making a crisp sound. "Suli? Why are you not in Wang Tao, but come here alone?"
Four days ago, Suli's younger brother Suti came to Dai County and requested Tian Yu to send troops to help, saying that Suli's troops were attacked by Kebineng.
Tian Yu guarded the northern border for many years, and the situation of the Hu people in the north of You and Bing states was generally stabilized.
Almost all the Wuhuan tribes obeyed the orders of the Wei Dynasty.
Among the Xianbei tribes, except for the most powerful one, the other tribes such as Budugen, Xieguini, Suli, etc. were about to be annexed by Kebi Neng, and thus took refuge in the border counties of the Wei Dynasty.
Simply put, except for the Xianbei Kebineng tribe, the rest of the Xianbei and Wuhuan people obeyed the command of the Wei Dynasty.
Kebi Neng dominated the grasslands alone. Although he did not have the arrogance of Tan Shihuai, he was basically equivalent to one-third of Tan Shihuai. The Wei Dynasty currently had no spare energy to send troops to You and Yong, so after the Suli tribe was attacked by Kebi Neng, Tian Yu had to send troops to rescue them no matter what.
We must never sit idly by and watch Ke Bi Neng become more powerful.
At this time, Suli, whom Tian Yu sent troops to rescue, was kneeling in front of Tian Yu's horse!
How could Tian Yu not be shocked?
Suli said respectfully, "Lord Tian, I just found out last night that Ke Bineng had led his army to retreat, so I came to see Lord Tian in person at dawn today."
"Perhaps Kebi heard that Lord Tian was coming in person, and was afraid of provoking Lord Tian's majesty, so he led his troops to retreat..."
Before Suli could finish his words, Tian Yu drove his horse forward two steps and whipped Suli's right ear with the whip, instantly causing blood to burst from his ear.
"Bullshit Heavenly Power!" Tian Yu's chest heaved, and he was obviously angry. "I am already over sixty years old! In order to save you, I hurriedly marched for four days to get here, and also recruited three thousand Wuhuan volunteers, but you told me that Ke Bineng had left?"
"Could it be that you and that Kebi are teaming up to deceive me?"
Suli kowtowed repeatedly: "Lord Tian, I am now alone in Lord Tian's army, how dare I tell a lie? If I tell a lie, Lord Tian will chop me up on the spot!"
"Raise your head and stand up!" Tian Yu shouted.
"Yes, yes." Suli stood up reluctantly.
Tian Yu had been in You and Bing for many years. Although he was well-known for his virtue outside the Great Wall, he was extremely rude in his words and behavior when facing the Xianbei and Wuhuan people.
This is also related to the grassland habits of the Xianbei and Wuhuan tribes. Tian Yu clearly understood that if he was polite and courteous to them, they would think he was weak and could be bullied.
Even if someone like Suli led a tribe of tens of thousands of people, Tian Yu would just whip him and there was no need to worry too much.
Tian Yu said: "Since I have seen you, please tell me in detail how Ke Bineng attacked."
Suli said respectfully, "Mr. Tian, about two months ago, Kebi Neng sent someone to scold me because I sold horses to the government. A month ago, Yu Zhugan, Kebi Neng's son-in-law, led his people to graze around Pingcheng."
"The area near Pingcheng is my pasture. Kebineng and I had an agreement last year. When I sent someone to ask Yuzhugan, the envoy I sent was sent back tied up and one of his ears was chopped off."
"Since then, Yu Zhugan and his people have become more and more arrogant. Ten days ago, Ke Bineng personally led 20,000 cavalry to attack me."
"I then retreated again and again from Pingcheng, and only stopped south of the Sanggan River."
Suli said quickly: "I really don't mean to disobey Lord Tian's order. It's just that Kebi has more capable soldiers and more than 200 people in my tribe have died!"
Tian Yu nodded slightly, as if thinking about something.
"Suli!" Tian Yu asked, "Where is Yu Zhuqian's tribe now? Do you know?"
"Pingcheng, it must be in Pingcheng!" Suli shouted, "Kebineng led his army to attack me, it must be for the support of Yuzhugan."
"Yu Zhuqian has seized the land of Pingcheng, where else can he go? He must be in Pingcheng!"
Tian Yu remained calm, but sighed secretly in his heart.
Pingcheng...
Has the former Han territory now become a place for the Hu people to fight over?
The situation in the border counties must not deteriorate in my hands!
Tian Yu turned around and called out to the person behind him: "Tell Xia She to come over here!"
The warriors following behind him hurriedly passed on the order, and soon Xia She arrived in front of Tian Yu's horse.
"Greetings, Lord Tian!" Xia She saluted.
Tian Yu nodded slightly and pointed in the direction of Suli: "You usually help me contact the various Xianbei tribes. In terms of being familiar with the various Xianbei tribes and proficient in the Xianbei language, no one in our army can compare to you."
"Xia She, you are to go with Suli's brother Suti and hold my token to Pingcheng Yuzhugan to ask for me how Yuzhugan dared to come to Pingcheng and why Kebineng came to attack!"
"Yes, sir!" Xia She replied.
Suti, who was kneeling behind Suli, grabbed the hem of his brother Suli's robe with a look of fear on his face: "Brother! Can you please not let me go to Yu Zhugan? I will die..."
Suli had been overly nervous for the past ten days. Seeing that his brother was afraid of death and didn't want to go, he grabbed Suti's collar and lifted him up, then slapped him four times on both sides.
Suli angrily shouted, "Mr. Tian sent Xia Gongshi to go with you. What are you afraid of? Where is your courage?"
"I..." Suti was about to explain, but when she saw the red eyes of her brother who was nearly twenty years older than her, she swallowed her words back.
"Brother, don't be angry. I will go with Xia Gongshi right away."
Suli's expression finally improved. He turned around and imitated the Han people's way of greeting, cupping his hands and saying, "Mr. Tian, please follow me to Wangtao City first, so that we can wait for news."
"Yes." Tian Yu nodded: "Suli, I have also summoned 3,000 Wuhuan followers for this expedition, and they are just two days behind me."
"You should also prepare the camp residence in advance."
We can't all be asked to provide food for the three thousand men, right? Suli secretly groaned inwardly.
But thinking that Tian Yu was here to support him, he could only grit his teeth and swallow his anger, forcing a smile: "It's all up to Mr. Tian!"
……
Two days after Tian Yu arrived at Wangtao, He Xin and Cao Shuang also arrived at Wangtao with 3,000 Wuhuan light cavalry.
Another day later, Yanmen County also welcomed two distinguished persons from the Luoyang court.
Yanmen County has a vast territory, with the Sanggan River as its northernmost boundary. Wang Tao and Juyang are both not far from the Sanggan River.
At that time, the county seat of Yanmen County was in Guangwu County, a hundred miles to the south. This was also the residence of the former Yanmen prefect Qian Zhao.
Qian Zhao was summoned to Luoyang, and the new prefect had not yet taken office.
At this time, all matters of Yanmen County were handled by the County Magistrate Guo Fang, and the county troops were led by the Commandant Feng Po.
Upon hearing that the two envoys Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian from Luoyang were about to arrive in Guangwu, the county magistrate Guo Fang and the county commander Feng Po went three miles out of Guangwu city to welcome them.
Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian rode side by side, followed by a hundred cavalrymen given by the emperor to escort them.
"Mr. Liu, you and I have been traveling from Taiyuan without stopping. Why don't we rest for three days in Guangwu City?"
Liu Ye stroked his beard and said, "Zhong Gong is right! Although the mountains and rivers in Jin are beautiful, I have seen enough in more than a month. From Yanmen to the north, we will reach Youzhou. We have plenty of time, so it's okay to stay for three days."
Guanqiu Jian smiled and nodded.
A group of people waiting in front of a roadside pavilion saw Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian's group approaching, and two of them came out and shouted, "Are those coming the angels Liu Gong and Guanqiu Gong?"
Liu Ye looked at Guanqiu Jian with a smile: "Zhonggong is now also Guanqiu Gong!"
Guanqiu Jian smiled awkwardly, rode forward, dismounted, bowed and said, "I am the deputy envoy, the captain of the Yue cavalry, Guanqiu Jian."
Guanqiu Jian pointed behind him and said, "This is Guanglu Dafu Liu Gong."
Liu Ye did not dismount, but nodded: "Are you two the local officials of Yanmen County?"
Guo Fang bowed and saluted: "Mr. Liu, Mr. Guanqiu, I am Guo Fang, the prefect of Yanmen Prefecture, and the person next to me is Feng Po, the commander of Yanmen Prefecture."
Feng Po also bowed and said, "Greetings to Mr. Liu and Mr. Guanqiu."
Guanqiu Jian smiled and said, "We are here on a tour of the various counties under the order of the emperor. We have traveled all the way from Taiyuan and would like to rest in your county for three days before continuing."
Guo Fang, who was short and fat, greeted him with a smile: "What are you talking about, Master Guanqiu! Since we are in Guangwu, the angel can stay as many days as he wants. The county will definitely do its best to entertain you!"
……
Liu Ye and Guanqiu Jian had just stayed in Guangwu City for one day. They displayed the head of the traitor Qu Ying in the county according to the emperor's order, which aroused many sighs and words of loyalty.
At this time, in Wangtao City, a hundred miles to the north, Tian Yu became furious.
"What? Yu Zhugan killed Xia She and only left you to come back to report the news?" Tian Yu grabbed Su Ti's collar and said angrily.
Suti knelt on the ground with a plop, and said in a trembling voice: "Mr. Tian, Mr. Tian! Yu Zhugan is too arrogant!"
"He told me that Lord Tian favored my brother and allocated such good pasture to our tribe without caring about the life and death of their tribe."
"He also said...he also said that my brother is a coward and does not deserve such a good place. He should just go back to the south of the Sanggan River and beg for food in Yanmen County."
Xia She has been with Tian Yu for nearly ten years.
From a small soldier to a military officer, Tian Yu devoted a lot of effort to Xia She.
I thought that I was old enough to train more talents for Youbing, thinking that it would be a long-term plan. Who could have thought that Xiashe would be defeated by Kebineng's son-in-law today?
Tian Yu, who was extremely angry, did not say a word to Su Ti. Instead, he turned to look at Cao Shuang who was standing beside him, and squeezed out a few words from his teeth: "Beat the drums, raise the tents, and organize the troops!"
"Yes, sir!" Cao Shuang did not dare to say another word. He followed the order and after a while, all the generals in the army, including Suli, Suti and the three leaders of Wuhuan, gathered in the hall.
Tian Yu faced the crowd and said in a low voice: "Yu Zhugan killed Xia She without authorization and murdered Wei officials, which is tantamount to treason!"
"Follow my orders, gather your forces, and prepare to march north to Pingcheng!"
Everyone in the hall bowed and said, "As ordered!"
It also takes time to deploy troops. The two thousand elite soldiers of Tian Yu's headquarters, the three thousand Yicong light cavalry of Wuhuan, and the four thousand Xianbei light cavalry of Suli's headquarters, whose combat effectiveness is questionable, now amount to nearly ten thousand troops.
Just as the army was preparing to cross the Sanggan River and set out, the scouts sent out by Tian Yu to the east and north returned to report that Kebineng had arrived with a large army.
About a quarter of an hour later, a large group of cavalry appeared on the undulating horizon opposite the Sanggan River.
Even in the direction of Juyang in the east, Kebinen's cavalry could be vaguely seen.
Tian Yu had also been a military commander for many years, and he knew that they had been ambushed by Ke Bineng, so he called Cao Shuang to his side:
"Zhao Bo! I have an important matter to entrust to you now!"
Cao Shuang responded without hesitation: "Mr. Tian, please speak!"
"While Kebineng has not yet surrounded us, quickly take my token to Guangwu and ask Governor Qian Zhaoqian to send troops to help us!"
"Wangtao County is in ruins and cannot be defended. I will retreat upstream along the Sanggan River to Yinguan and Mayi."
"Do you understand?" (End of this chapter)
