Three Kingdoms: I help Liu Bei grow thousands of miles

Chapter 724

In the third year of Wei Huangchu, and at the beginning of February in the third year of Yankang of the Han Dynasty, the son-in-law Xiahou Mao left Chang'an.

Thirty thousand horsemen marched west along the mighty Wei River, and all the supplies of the army were transported by water, so Xia Houmao's march was very fast, and he arrived at Shangyu in the east of Ji County in more than ten days.

The gate of Shangyu City was closed tightly, and the flags on the city wall were swayed lazily by the wind. Xia Houmao rode to the gate, and the ancient wooden gate slowly opened. The guard Liang Qian was dressed in full body, leading a team of pacers. Riding out to welcome.

Although Xia Houmao was not the general of Liangzhou, he was ordered by the emperor to support the Tianshui War. In addition, he was a close subject of Cao Pi, so he would be treated politely by Liangzhou officials, but he did not expect Liangqian Shangyu to be so "disrespectful".

Han Shao, the chief secretary of the army, found that Xia Houmao was unhappy, so he sneered at Liang Qian: "General Liang is really a great official, the son-in-law came to rescue him from Chang'an, but the soldiers and civilians of Shangyu didn't go out early to meet him, Liangzhou Do the officials only recognize General Zidan (Cao Zhen)?"

Liang Qian got off the horse first, then knelt on one knee, cupped his fists and raised his head above his head, explaining loudly: "Forgive me, son-in-law, Shangyu has been played by Zhang Fei many times, so before his identity is unknown, he dare not open the city to greet him."

"It is rumored that Zhang Fei is no match for a reckless man, will this black fellow also use tricks?" Xia Houmao sat astride a tall horse and looked at the underground people with contempt.

Liang Qian quickly shook his head: "Where did you hear that? Zhang Fei has a lot of tricks and schemes. He once pretended to be Chen Cang Junyi (Zhang He) to help the army. At that time, because of his lowly position, he lost many people because of his tricks."

Xia Houmao said in his heart that Zhang Fei's tricks are all right, and you, the county magistrate, will be in the end. He couldn't help but shook his head and said: "It's cold on the ground, the county magistrate Liang got up and answered."

"Thank you son-in-law." Liang Qian stood up after receiving the order.

"Zhang Fei only has a few thousand riders, and the Tianshui defenders number tens of thousands at least. The main cities are on both sides of the Wei River. It should be very convenient for the counties to support and cooperate. Even if Ma Zun can't defend the army and retreat the enemy, he won't be able to retreat to the county seat? Why? It feels like Tianshui is surrounded?" Xia Houmao frowned.

Liang Qian was full of bitterness, shaking his head and complaining: "Zhang Fei's cavalry come and go like the wind, the garrison in the county is easily divided, and the garrison from all over the country has never really assembled. Gather up the people and carry out fortified walls to clean up the wilderness, hoping that Zhang Fei will run out of food and retreat."

"I heard that Zhang Fei left Qishan in November last year, and it has been more than a hundred days since mid-February. Did they retreat because they ran out of food?" Xia Houmao asked.

"Uh because of."

Liang Qian was about to explain, but was interrupted mercilessly by Xia Houmao: "What's the use of strengthening the walls and clearing the fields? None of you will break Zhang Fei's grain road. The grain will be transported continuously across Qishan Mountain. Naturally, Zhang Fei can be unscrupulous in Tianshui. This general It’s just to close the door and beat the dog.”

"Uh, I am willing to listen to the order of the son-in-law." Liang Qian swallowed back what he wanted to say.

Xia Houmao turned around and turned his head to Master Han Shao to order: "General Han, I will send you five thousand steps to ride south along the valley to cut off the grain transportation of Zhang Feiqi Mountain Road."

"Wei." Han Shao cupped his fists.

Liang Qian asked curiously: "General Han is going to Duanliang Road, and the son-in-law is going to Ji County to find a battle? Zhang Fei has been active there recently, and Ma Taishou may not be able to come to Shangyu to welcome you."

Xia Houzhen sneered and said: "You have said that Zhang Fei is cunning, why should I go head-to-head? The general will sit in the town and wait for work. When Han Shao cuts off the grain road, Zhang Fei will go back to Qishan when all the grain is exhausted. Wouldn’t it be more effective to send troops to attack them?”

"Uh, the son-in-law has a wonderful plan to lead you to the city to rest." Liang Qian saw that Xia Houmao was complacent, and it was not easy to say discouraged words to spoil the fun.

"Well, the soldiers are on a hard journey, and General Liang needs to prepare more wine for the army." Xia Houmao spoke and added in a low voice: "If there is a kabuki in the county, prepare some as well."

"Uh, yes," Liang Qian responded awkwardly, filled with contempt.

The small county of Shangyu is not comparable to the big city of Chang'an, and it may not be able to meet Xia Houmao's request. Liang Qian thought he had to find a way to send this master to Ji County.

Xia Houmao lived in Shangying for seven or eight days. The food provided by Liang Qian was almost as simple as that during the march, and the Kabuki he found through "hard work" was also difficult for him to understand.

Xia Houmao, who was used to living a good life, couldn't bear eating bran and swallowing vegetables for a long time. He called Liang Qian and asked: "Shangying is also a big county in Tianshui. You are deceiving me by treating guests with these foods every day." Are you in a good temper?"

"Don't be angry, son-in-law. Although Shangyu is a big county in Tianshui, there was a severe drought in the north last year, and Zhang Fei suddenly harassed him when harvesting grain. escaped." Liang Qian explained.

Population represents taxation and the source of soldiers, which are the main assessment indicators of the county magistrate. Liang Qian said that the people fled, which made Xia Houmao unable to think of a rebuttal point for a while.

Xia Houmao frowned and asked: "Last year, due to special reasons, it is understandable that the grain production decreased, but the weather in the past few years was good, and a large number of people moved from Wudu. It is impossible for Shanggui to have so little grain?"

"Uh, there are actually other reasons." Liang Qian lowered his head while speaking.

"Still hiding?" Xia Houmao raised his voice.

Liang Qian clasped his fists and replied: "The humble official used the grain from the treasury to exchange many prisoners from Zhang Fei."

"What?" Xia Houmao couldn't believe his ears.

Liang Qian added embarrassingly: "In fact, this is the case in several nearby counties."

"The officials in Tianshui are so generous. No wonder you frequently ask for help from the imperial court. All the food in the treasury is given to Zhang Fei. How can the soldiers in Tianshui get their fighting power? This is really ironic."

Xia Houmao suddenly realized that he seemed to understand why Zhang Fei was not short of food. It turned out that these Liangzhou "traitors" were supporting the enemy. He even thought that he could help Cao Pi clean up a group of moths.

"My son-in-law, you have misunderstood me. In fact, we are very passive. Take the situation of Shangyu as an example. The defenders in the county were no match for Zhang Fei. Later, they were threatened with captives, and the humble officials were forced to exchange the soldiers with food. Shangbi has already been taken by Zhang Fei," Liang Qian complained repeatedly.

"If Zhang Fei dared to kill the prisoners in front of the city, wouldn't he be able to arouse the anger of the soldiers of Shangyu? The so-called mourners share the same sorrow and empathy." Xia Houmao frowned.

Liang Qian shook his head and replied: "Zhang Fei clamored to only exchange food without killing people. If the humble official is unwilling to use food to redeem people, he will move the captives back to Wudu."

"You let the black man move. When the people moved from Wudu, all the counties provided food and grass support. Zhang Fei dared to move the captives back to Wudu. The military rations he transported so hard will probably be exhausted soon. Liang County magistrate, you really don't think clearly." Xia Houmao kept shaking his head, thinking that after all, he is a small border official, and his mind is not flexible at all.

Liang Qian was even more taken aback after hearing this, Xia Houmao showed the appearance of a military rookie in a few words, he was pessimistic about the next battle.

(End of this chapter)