Ji Han Liu Zhang

"The eldest son is leaving first?"

Gao Gan, the governor of Bingzhou, raised his glass to Gao Lan and asked him at a banquet to welcome Gao Lan, one of the Four Pillars of Hebei.

Gao Lan nodded and said affirmatively: "The eldest young master set out five days earlier than me. According to his speed, I estimate that the eldest young master should have arrived in Qingzhou by now. If he had moved faster, he might have already led his troops south."

"The eldest son is truly diligent." Gao Gan seemed to have sensed something and raised his glass to toast the east.

"Yes." Gao Lan echoed: "The eldest son is the leader of all the sons, and his position is respected. However, he is resolute and diligent in his actions. He can be a role model for all the sons under Ming Gong's command."

"Yeah." Gao Gan nodded, his expression showing approval, but he had another layer of thought. Yuan Tan acted so quickly that the word "diligent" alone was not enough to explain it.

As Yuan Shao's nephew, Gao Gan clearly understood Yuan Shao's preference for the successor. His uncle was very fond of the youngest son Yuan Shang and wanted to make Yuan Shang the successor, but due to the order of seniority, he was not able to make a decision for the time being.

It makes sense that Yuan Tan set out for Qingzhou early and sent his troops south early when the succession to the throne was still undecided and there was a possibility that it would be taken away by his younger brother Yuan Shang.

In the opinion of senior officials, Yuan Tan was trying to show off in front of Yuan Shao and make an effort to compete for the position of successor.

At this point, Gao Gan withdrew his thoughts. He had no intention of interfering in the selection of the successor to Hebei, nor did he dare to interfere. Although he was Yuan Shao's nephew, if he got involved in the dispute over the successor, if he made the slightest mistake, at best he would be in trouble, at worst he would be imprisoned, and his life might even be in danger.

As it was, Gao Gan planned to take good care of his own piece of land and do his own job well. No matter which young man came to power in the future, with his neutral attitude, even if he could not be close to or valued, he could still be in charge of one party. He would not have to retire and become an old farmer because of a failed bet.

"I wonder when you will set out, sir?" Gao Gan turned the topic to the central army led by Yuan Shao.

Gao Lan replied, "In the near future, you will lead your army southward."

"Even so, we have to act as quickly as possible." Based on the current situation, the senior official determined the urgency of the next course of action.

Gao Lan drank the whole cup quickly, then put down the cup in his hand, ignoring the wine dripping from his beard, and answered loudly: "As the envoy said, we must set off south as soon as possible, but I don't know how the envoy will arrange it."

Facing Gao Lan's question, Gao Gan pondered for a while, and then he gave a battle plan: "Taiyuan and Shangdang are important places. They are the first line of defense against Liu Zhang in Guanzhong. We must leave heavy troops to guard them. Otherwise, if our army marches south in large numbers without leaving troops to guard them, Liu Jiyu will take the opportunity to attack us. If we lose Taiyuan and Shangdang, Yecheng and even Jizhou will be in danger."

"Your Excellency is right." Gao Lan agreed and brought up the instructions from the shogunate before the battle: "Before the battle, you repeatedly told us that our troops should focus on deterrence and not engage in large-scale warfare."

"The reason is just as you said. You are worried that Liu Jiyu will take advantage of the opportunity to attack us and target our important areas of Taiyuan and Shangdang. Even if we can reach the Central Plains, losing Taiyuan and Shangdang will be a loss." Seeing that Gao Lan had the same idea as him, Gao Gan smiled and continued, "So in this battle, I intend to lead my troops and the troops of the Xiongnu Right Xian King Qubei to the south to threaten the governor of Henan, while I will stay in Shangdang and Taiyuan to look after the two counties and not give Liu Jiyu any chance."

"But it will take several days for Qubei's troops to gather their troops and generals. General, you can go south first, go to the river, set up camp by the river, and wait until Qubei's troops arrive, and then set out to cross the river together."

"What the envoy said is the best way, so we should do it." Gao Lan voted in favor of the plan proposed by Gao Gan without any doubt.

Firstly, although Gao Lan was a famous general in Hebei, he should have his own ideas about this battle, but there were differences in closeness and distance. Gao Gan, as Yuan Shao's nephew, was closer to him than him; secondly, what Gao Gan said made sense and was consistent with Yuan Shao's instructions, so Gao Lan gave his approval without hesitation.

Not long after, Gao Lan led his troops south and arrived at the bank of the river, where they saw the river flowing endlessly.

Without being fascinated by the magnificent scenery of the river that looked like thousands of galloping horses, Gao Lan set up camp and made preparations for the night. At the same time, he sent out scouts to cross the river to Mengjin on the other side of the river to investigate the movements of Cao's army.

After one night, the scouts who had crossed the river for reconnaissance returned and reported the situation on the other side of the river to Gao Lan. Cao's army was stationed at the Mengjin ferry and had made early preparations for defense. In addition, except for the Mengjin ferry, Cao's army cavalry could be seen traveling back and forth in other places across the river in Henan Yin.

After listening to the scout's report, Gao Lan rubbed his short beard, with a worried look on his face. It seemed that Henan Yin Zhong Yao and Cao Jun general Cao Ren, the two civil and military officials guarding Henan Yin, really would not give him any chance, not even allowing him to cross the river.

"That's fine." Gao Lan's worry disappeared in an instant. He was very relaxed. In this battle, he had only a small number of troops and the task he needed to do was not too difficult. He just had to show his intention to march south, threaten Cao Cao's Henan Yin territory, and put some pressure on Cao Cao.

Therefore, Gao Lan was not so anxious to cross the river, and there was no reason for him to cross the river.

Therefore, Gao Lan planned to wait until the troops of the Right Wise King of the Xiongnu, Qu Bei, arrived, then build several pontoon bridges and get dozens of boats to let Qu Bei's troops cross the river first. He would wait and see from the rear, assess the combat effectiveness of Cao Ren's troops, and then make a decision.

Although the task was slow and the burden was light, and there was no need to cross the river for a battle, Gao Lan did want to cross the river, defeat Cao Ren's troops, capture the Yin of Henan, and show off his face in front of Yuan Shao.

The world is in chaos and the four seas are falling apart. It is the time for warriors to rise up. If you don't take advantage of the current opportunity to gain enough military merits and win a title for your wife and children, it will be too late to regret when the world is peaceful and there is no trouble.

That is, out of the idea of ​​gaining military merit, Gao Lan was not satisfied with just supporting his troops. He could not wait and started the preparations for crossing the river before Qu Bei's troops arrived.

As one of the Four Pillars of Hebei, Gao Lan was not a reckless warrior. He was skilled in martial arts and had a lot of strategies. Although he had the desire for merit, his actions were still prudent. Regarding crossing the river, he planned to make a feint to the east and attack in the west, not giving Cao Ren the opportunity to attack him halfway across the river. (End of this chapter)