Three Kingdoms: Heir of Wolong, my father-in-law is Guan Gong

Chapter 209: Liu Bei’s army is overwhelming, Huang Xuer retreats in shame and anger (please give me monthly votes for more updates)
Zhang He urgently summoned Su Ze, Hao Zhao, Li Fu and Deng Xian to discuss the withdrawal of troops.

When they heard that Linjing City had been captured, all the generals were also shocked.

"The food route has not been cut off, how could Linjing City be captured by Zhuge Qiao?"

Li Fu couldn't understand that Li Fu was supervising and patrolling this grain road. If Zhuge Qiao really captured Linjing City, how could the grain road be stopped?
Zhang He snorted coldly: "Zhuge Qiao is good at using tricks. He must be trying to paralyze us, making it difficult for us to judge the truth and make it difficult for us to see through Zhuge Qiao's true intention."

"Now that Linjing City has been captured by Zhuge Qiao, you can easily reach Chang'an City by going south along the Jing River."

"Although there are soldiers and horses stationed in Chang'an City, if Zhuge Qiao appears in Chang'an City, it will definitely cause panic among the officials and people of Chang'an City."

"No matter what Zhuge Qiao's plot is, as long as he cannot attack Chang'an City, all plots will be in vain."

"There is Chiyang City thirty miles north of Chang'an City. Who is willing to go and guard this city to prevent Zhuge Qiao from sneaking into Chang'an?"

Zhang He can make good decisions and directly block Zhuge Qiao's ultimate goal.

As long as Chang'an City is in hand, all conspiracies and machinations are just paper tigers.

Hao Zhao asked for orders: "Zhuge Qiao took advantage of my absence to capture Yuzhong City, and killed my old friend Wei Ping, causing Governor Zhang to return to Luoyang to suffer."

"This hatred is irreconcilable. I am always thinking about how to capture Zhuge Qiao alive. I ask the general to allow me to go to Chiyang with 5,000 troops."

"With me in Chiyang, Zhuge Qiao won't be able to sneak attack Chang'an City!"

Zhang He knew Hao Zhao's abilities.

Although his official position is lower than that of Li Fu and Deng Xian, his ability is far better than that of Li Fu and Deng Xian.

After thinking for a moment, Zhang He said solemnly: "If Bo Dao is good at guarding, he will definitely be able to stop Zhuge Qiao."

"It's just that Chiyang is not the only way to Chang'an. I asked you to go to Chiyang because I was worried that Zhuge Qiao would take the lead."

"It would be troublesome if Zhuge Qiao didn't go to Chiyang and took a detour directly to Chang'an City."

Hao Zhao said calmly: "General, don't worry! Chiyang is only thirty miles away from Chang'an City, and my scouts are enough to cover it."

"If Zhuge Qiao does not go to Chiyang, but takes a detour to attack Chang'an City, I can send troops to help in half a day."

Seeing that Hao Zhao had a plan to deal with it, Zhang He said no more and gave Hao Zhao five thousand soldiers to return to Chiyang at night.

At the same time, Su Ze, Li Fu and Deng Xian were ordered to break camp and go to Wugong River to join Cao Zhang.

Zhang He, on the other hand, personally led five thousand soldiers to defeat the enemy to prevent Zhang Fei from taking the opportunity to attack.

The movement of breaking up the camp did not alarm Zhang Fei in Chencang. When Zhang Fei found out the news, only bluff flags were left in Zhang He's camp.

After careful investigation and confirmation, Zhang Fei immediately sent the information to Wuzhangyuan for Liu Bei to make a decision.

"Zhang He has broken camp?"

"Bo Song must have captured Anding County!"

Liu Bei clapped his hands and laughed.

Fa Zheng said cautiously: "Zhang He is good at using his military power, your Majesty must not be careless."

"You can first order General Zhao to attack Cao Zhang's camp. If Cao Zhang closes the camp and defends himself, he will definitely be waiting for Zhang He to return."

"If Cao Zhang leaves the stronghold to meet the enemy, your majesty must be careful that Zhang He left on purpose to wait for an opportunity to attack Chencang again."

Liu Bei agreed with Fazheng's judgment and ordered Zhao Yun to attack Cao Zhang's camp. However, Cao Zhang closed the camp and defended himself, refusing to fight Zhao Yun.

"It's done!"

"Cao Zhangding was suspicious of Jin, and Zhang He was loyal to the puppet Wei, so he called Zhang He back to the camp to help make a decision."

"Your Majesty can transfer the chariot general back to Wuzhangyuan, and send another general to lead two thousand soldiers to guard Chencang."

"As long as Zhang He's flag appears on the east bank of Wugong River, Your Majesty will lead strong troops to advance towards Yi County."

"Although Cao Zhang has had more mutinies, it has become difficult to give orders."

"Not everyone can use more troops to do better."

Fa Zheng smiled with conviction.

Han Xin is the only person in the world who dares to say "the more, the merrier".

The formation of troops is linked to the general's ability; even Liu Bei, who has spent half his life in the military, dare not say that the more the better.

"Just follow the words of filial piety and uprightness."

After careful consideration, Liu Bei summoned Huang Quan and ordered Huang Quan to go to Chencang to replace Zhang Fei.

While Liu Bei was actively preparing for war, Zhang He also led troops into Cao Zhang's camp.

Seeing Cao Zhang take out the letters from Liu Bei and Zhuge Qiao, and mentioning the accusations of Sun Zang and Zou Qi, Zhang He immediately made a judgment:
"General Zhenxi, this must be a stratagem between Liu Bei and Zhuge Qiao to make our army doubt ourselves."

"Sun Zang and Zou Qi can be beheaded as a sign to the three armies: Anyone who spreads rumors or frames his colleagues will be beheaded immediately!"

"General Zhenxi went to the right general's camp in person to comfort him with good words, and allocated a troop of troops to the right general to divide the camp and defend it."

"At the same time, send Zhuge Qiao's letter to Sima Jianjun to show that he has no doubts about Sima Jianjun. Sima Jianjun is wise and good at planning, and he must be able to see the tricks of Liu Bei and Zhuge Qiao."

Zhang He is indeed Cao Wei's most capable five-son general, and his response was orderly.

This not only stabilizes the morale of the military, but also allows Yu Jin, a veteran, to have more room to perform.

however.

Zhang He underestimated Cao Zhang's stubbornness and overestimated Cao Zhang's ability.

Cao Zhang's expression changed when he heard Zhang He say that he wanted to comfort Yu Jin with kind words and allocate a troop of troops to Yu Jin.

However, because these words came from Zhang He's mouth, Cao Zhang endured the anger in his heart.

Taking a deep breath, Cao Zhang concentrated his attention, and his tone became a little more stubborn: "I can kill Sun Zang and Zou Qi, and I can also send Zhuge Qiao's letter to Sima Supervisor."

"As for the rest, I don't think there's any need to add extraneous details."

"Yu Jin was appointed by His Majesty. I have no right to judge him, and I cannot get too close to him, otherwise His Majesty will doubt me."

Zhang He's heart sank.

Cao Zhang's reason sounds sound, but in fact it is because he can't bear to appease Yu Jin, and deliberately passes the handling of Jin to Cao Pi.

Although Zhang He guessed what Cao Zhang was thinking, he couldn't persuade Cao Zhang.

Cao Zhang Xiaoyong is brave, but he has a strong character. Even if he knows that he has done something wrong, he will never bow his head and admit it.

Just now he scolded Yu Jin so much that he was now going to comfort Yu Jin and apologize?
Where to put Cao Zhang's face?
If Cao Zhang really had such brains and foresight, the battle for the crown prince of Wei in the past would not have been solely between Cao Pi and Cao Zhi.

Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, Cao Zhang smiled again and said, "General Zuo, don't worry about these details."

"Yu Jin is just here to stabilize the morale of the army. Whether he will lead the army again or not is not important to me."

"As long as I kill Sun Zang and Zou Qi, the army will not be panicked, and the generals will not be suspicious of themselves."

"The urgent matter now is to concentrate on dealing with Liu Bei."

Zhang He sighed secretly and stopped arguing with Cao Zhang on this matter: "Zhuge Qiao has captured Anding County and may attack Chang'an at any time."

"I have ordered the heroic general Hao Zhao to lead five thousand troops to Chiyang to garrison."

"As long as I withdraw my troops from Chencang, I will no longer be able to threaten Liu Bei's rear; Liu Bei will no longer have any worries and will definitely attack with force in the future."

"Now that our army has suffered a new defeat, its morale has not recovered; but with Liu Bei's new victory, its morale is booming."

"I think we can temporarily avoid Liu Bei's attack by setting up strongholds every ten miles from Wugong River to Chang'an City for more than a hundred miles."

"When Liu Bei captures a stronghold, our army will retreat and defend the first stronghold."

"Doing this will not only increase Liu Bei's supply difficulties, but also deplete Liu Bei's morale. At the same time, it can also reduce the pressure on our army to transport food."

"Liu Bei entered General Zhenxi's army with 800 brave soldiers. He must have underestimated General Zhenxi."

"If he sees that our army has been defeated in consecutive battles, Liu Bei will definitely become arrogant. When his morale is gone and he is arrogant and unprepared, General Zhenxi will lead his troops to counterattack, and he will definitely gain something."

Since ancient times, fighting has been vigorous and vigorous, then weakened and finally exhausted.

Avoiding Liu Bei's edge when he is at his strongest is the safest response.

Zhang He was cautious, but Cao Zhang didn't think so: "General Zuo, Liu Bei only has about 50,000 troops for this expedition."

"He wants to keep people in Wuzhangyuan and Chencang. The number who can really fight will not exceed 40,000."

"General Zuo has more than 10,000 people, and I now have more than 50,000 people. This adds up to about 70,000 people."

"If you include those from Xi County and Chang'an City, there are still more than 80,000 people."

"To fight with more and less, but to avoid the edge for a while, wouldn't it make Liu Bei laugh?"

"We have been teased by Liu Bei, and now we have to retreat. If this is spread to His Majesty's ears by a villain, wouldn't it make Your Majesty mistakenly think that I don't know how to fight?"

"Courage is the key to using soldiers. If you don't have courage, how can you make your soldiers serve?"

"If Liu Bei dares to come, General Zuo will join me to face the enemy!"

"In the past, I could defeat thousands of Wuhuan with more than a thousand infantry. Now I have tens of thousands of soldiers and horses in hand, twice as many as the enemy. How can I still defeat Liu Bei?"

"Liu Bei dares to use tricks at night. If we confront him head-on, how can he be my opponent?"

Although he was defeated by Liu Bei in several battles, Cao Zhang did not think that Liu Bei had the advantage.

Cao Zhang has a lot of people. As long as he doesn't suffer a big defeat, he can afford to lose a few battles!

Zhang He was a little helpless.

Meng Da is like this, and Cao Zhang is like this.

It is true that newborn calves are not afraid of tigers. People who have never experienced setbacks feel that they are invincible!

Cao Zhang showed his strong self-confidence by defeating Wuhuan and Xianbei.

After all, when fighting Wuhuan and Xianbei, Cao Zhang always defeated more with less and moved forward indomitably.

Now he is fighting Liu Bei with more and less, but he still has to avoid the edge for a while. How can Cao Zhang accept this?

If it weren't for the overall situation, Zhang He wouldn't bother to persuade him, just love him!

But for the sake of the overall situation, Zhang He must persuade him.

If Cao Zhang is defeated and captured alive like Meng Da, then this pass will really be undefendable.

"General Zhenxi."

Zhang He persuaded again in a concentrated voice.

"Temporarily avoiding the edge is not because we are afraid of Liu Bei, but because we are deliberately showing weakness and minimizing our disadvantage in terms of military food pressure."

"In the old battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao had more troops and the late emperor had fewer troops. However, Yuan Shao's military food pressure was far greater than that of the late emperor."

"Therefore, the late emperor's countermeasure was to sneak attack on Yuan Shao's grain road and defeat Yuan Shao's army in one fell swoop while he was out of grain."

"Although Liu Bei has few troops now, Liu Bei has a granary in Wuzhang, but our army's rations have to be transported from Chang'an."

"Liu Bei has been skilled in fighting for a long time, so he will definitely look for opportunities to plunder our army's supplies."

"If food and grass are robbed, even if we have many soldiers, they will scatter because of lack of food."

"You must be careful!"

The smile on Cao Zhang's face disappeared: "General Zuo, Guanzhong is no better than Hebei."

"Our army's food routes all follow the Wei River. If Liu Bei really dared to send his generals to rob food, how could he not bypass our army's camps?"

"On the Tangluo Road to the east, I have stationed soldiers and horses to guard the entrance. There is no way Liu Bei can run behind me."

"At most, Zhuge Qiao in the north may have some chance, but General Zuo, you have already sent generals to garrison." "Our army's rear is absolutely safe!"

"If we set up a stronghold and retreat, allowing Liu Bei to advance to Yixian, Wugong Mountain, Zhouzhi, or Xiaohuaili, Liu Bei can completely bypass me and attack Chang'an City."

"What else are you talking about about counterattack?"

After a pause, Cao Zhang said again: "General Zuo, I didn't call you back to teach me how to organize my troops."

"If it weren't for the fact that these two letters from Liu Bei and Zhuge Qiao were so mysterious that I had doubts in my heart, how could I have called you back?"

"We won't discuss this matter anymore. General Zuo has many capable generals and warriors who are good at fighting, which will help me defeat Liu Bei."

Zhang He saw that Cao Zhang insisted on this, so he stopped trying to persuade him.

after all.

Cao Zhang is the commander-in-chief!

Seeing that Zhang He no longer tried to persuade them, Cao Zhang ordered Sun Zang and Zou Qi to be beheaded in public, and warned no one in the army to "frame his colleagues or spread rumors."

Poor Sun Zang, he thought he could get close to Cao Zhang's big tree, but Cao Zhang chopped it down as easily as he killed a chicken and a dog.

Zou Qi regretted it even more.

If he went to Sima Yi directly, Sima Yi would definitely be able to save Zou Qi's life.

Zou Qi wanted to doubt Sima Yi, hoping to make contributions in front of Cao Zhang to offset the crime of losing Linjing City.

When Yu Jin heard that Zhang He returned to camp and Sun Zang and Zou Qi were killed one after another, he felt a little relieved.

Although Cao Zhang did not cancel the ban, with Zhang He in the army, Yu Jin felt relieved.

With Zhang He and more than ten thousand soldiers joining him, Cao Zhang suddenly felt so confident that he directly sent someone to write a letter of challenge to Liu Bei, offering to fight on the east bank of the Wugong River.

He even said boldly, "One battle will determine the outcome. If you are afraid of death, don't come.", in order to anger Liu Bei.

Liu Bei, who received Cao Zhang's letter of war, just sneered and approved the reply and asked Cao Zhang's messenger to take it back.

"Child Cao Zhang, seeing that I have no worries, you want to fight me urgently with the advantage of your strength."

"How ignorant."

"In the past, when Cao Cao was around, I wasn't afraid, so how could I be afraid of this kid?"

Fazheng was a little worried: "Your Majesty, are you too hasty? We have a small number of soldiers, Cao Zhang, and a large number of people. An appointment for a battle will not give our army much advantage."

"It is better to use a step-by-step strategy to reduce Cao Zhang's troop space step by step. When we reach a narrow place where Cao Zhang's troops cannot be deployed, it will not be too late to fight again."

Liu Bei shook his head: "Zhang He has joined forces with Cao Zhang."

"Cao Zhang lost several battles in a row and his morale was damaged. But now he has not chosen to avoid the edge temporarily, but instead made an appointment with me to fight."

"I guess that Cao Zhang must be stubborn and unwilling to accept Zhang He's advice."

"If we don't take this opportunity to fight Cao Zhang, we won't have a chance to fight again."

"Don't worry, I am sensible."

Immediately.

Liu Bei summoned Ma Chao, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun and other generals to formulate specific combat tactics.

When he heard that Cao Zhang wanted to fight, Zhang Fei suddenly became excited: "I knew that as long as Zhang He is not the general, Cao Zhang will comply with my wishes."

"Brother, I will be the vanguard of the Chinese army tomorrow, and I must let that kid Cao Zhang know that when it comes to leading an army in combat, he is just a kid who has just learned to crawl!"

Zhang Fei is qualified to say this.

If he were to formulate an offensive and defensive strategy for the entire Jingzhou like Guan Yu, Zhang Fei asked himself that he would not be able to do it.

But if it's just a battle for supremacy on the battlefield, Zhang Fei is not afraid of anyone!

Zhang Fei's favorite is Cao Zhang's head-on tactics. The battle between head-on and head-on is to determine who is braver and whose troops are more cohesive and penetrating.

People who are cautious like Zhang He give Zhang Fei the most headache.

Liu Bei smiled and said: "Yi De is brave, and the vanguard of the Chinese army must be Yi De."

"Meng Qi, Zilong, I will leave the two wing cavalry to you two. When Yide comes into contact with Cao Zhang's central army, you two will take a flanking approach."

"I have never heard that Cao Zhang has commanded an army of 60,000 to 70,000 soldiers in battle formations before, so I expected that his control of the battlefield would be weak."

"If we are attacked by Yide's Chinese army, there will be holes in both wings!"

Liu Bei carefully explained tomorrow's specific combat tactics to the generals in detail, and asked the generals to go to the camp to figure it out. If there is anything they don't understand, be sure to ask before the battle.

All the generals took the order one after another and went to the camp to figure it out.

The next day.

Liu Bei and Cao Zhang each led their troops and formed formations on the east bank of Wugong River.

Both sides were waving their flags and shouting loudly, but no one was willing to obey the other.

Cao Zhang rode his horse and dragged his halberd to the front of the formation. He shouted like a tiger and leopard, "Liu Bei, come out and speak!"

Liu Bei sneered and said nothing, and just asked Zhang Fei to come forward and talk.

Zhang Fei understood this, rode his horse, raised his spear, and went out into battle to shout: "Sir, Cao Zhang, in terms of seniority and qualifications, what qualifications do you have to let my brother talk to you?"

"Do you think you are Cao Cao?"

"Cao Pi is not even qualified as a child, so who do you think you are?"

"If you want to fight, then fight. If you are afraid and give in, just call Uncle Yide and I will spare your life."

Cao Zhang originally wanted to taunt Liu Bei a few words before the battle to improve his morale, but he never thought that Liu Bei would not go out to the battle, and he just let Zhang Fei humiliate him here.

"How dare you, Zhang Fei, be rude!"

"In terms of seniority, you still have to call me cousin."

"You must not forget that you are also marrying the Xiahou family's daughter, who is my cousin."

Zhang Fei married Xia Houyuan's niece, and Cao Zhang's sister was Xiahou Dun's daughter-in-law. Due to the relationship between Cao's family and Xiahou's family, Cao Zhang called himself Zhang Fei's cousin, and he could be called Zhang Fei's cousin based on seniority alone.

When it comes to antagonizing others, Zhang Fei has never been disrespectful to anyone. When he saw Cao Zhang mentioning Xia Houyuan's niece, Zhang Fei couldn't help but laugh: "Sir, Cao Zhang, I've also heard that you have several sisters who are the wives and concubines of Shanyang Gong. , but Cao Pi married Shanyang Gong’s daughter again.”

"Should you call Cao Pi your brother, or your niece-in-law?"

"Hey, your Cao family's generation is really chaotic!"

"Although I haven't read many books, I also know that people are born with a sense of shame and must not mess up their family relationships. Are your Cao family members all a bunch of shameless beasts?"

"My son Cao Zhang, I see you are quite brave. Why don't you come and be my adopted son? From now on, if your surname is no longer Cao, your surname will be Zhang, and it will be changed to Zhang Zhang."

"Don't worry, we in the Zhang family are all aware of our integrity."

Cao Zhang is so angry.

Zhang Fei's voice was very loud. After these few words, even some people in the military formation behind Cao Zhang laughed secretly.

Cao Pi is Cao Zhang's brother and Cao Zhang's niece-in-law?
Do all the Cao family members have no shame?
Cao Zhang felt anger growing in his heart.

"Zhang Fei, don't use your words. Let's see the truth on the battlefield!" Cao Zhang knew that he couldn't beat Zhang Fei with his words, so he reined in his horse and returned to the military formation, commanding Zhang He, the vanguard of the Chinese army, to fight Zhang Fei.

When Zhang Fei saw Zhang He, he couldn't help laughing: "Zhang He, you ran away from Chencang, but you were hit by me! Come on, suffer death!"

Zhang He snorted coldly and did not reply to Zhang Fei. He just ordered his troops to come forward and fight.

Just as Liu Bei expected.

Cao Zhang had no experience in commanding large-scale battlefields. With Zhang He and Zhang Fei at the vanguard of the Chinese army, there was no problem.

But as soon as these two wings moved, Cao Zhang's command became weak.

Regardless of whether it was Xiahou Ba on the left, or Dai Ling, Xian Yufu and others on the right, Ma Chao and Zhao Yun still had the upper hand despite their superior strength.

"I have nearly 70,000 people, but I can't beat Liu Bei's 40,000 people?"

"This is impossible!"

Seeing the decline of the left and right wings, Cao Zhang wished he could go into battle himself.

But if this general goes into battle, he will not be able to respond to changes in the battlefield in time.

Commanding operations is like playing chess on a chessboard. You must pay attention to your opponent's moves at any time and respond accordingly. Otherwise, your soldiers will be eaten accidentally like chess pieces on the chessboard.

Unlike Cao Zhang who was getting more and more anxious, Liu Bei was calm and relaxed.

Whether it is to increase troops or to make detours, every tactical order is in order.

This is the advantage of elite soldiers.

Generals such as Ma Chao and Zhao Yun were able to successfully complete the military orders issued by Liu Bei; however, generals such as Xiahou Ba, Dai Ling, and Xian Yufu were unable to complete the military orders issued by Cao Zhang in time.

Zhang He sensed that Liu Bei was too aggressive, so he chose to avoid the edge temporarily.

Cao Zhang relied on his large number of troops and wanted to compete with Liu Bei for supremacy, but fell into Liu Bei's plan.

As time passed, Cao Zhang's left wing began to be unable to hold on.

Xiahou Ba was far inferior to Ma Chao in terms of personal bravery and experience in commanding troops in combat.

Just because a newborn calf is not afraid of tigers does not mean that a newborn calf can be as ferocious as a tiger.

"General, help from the left wing!"

The soldiers came to see Cao Zhang in a hurry.

Hearing that Xiahou Ba couldn't resist Ma Chao, Cao Zhang quickly called for reinforcements. This was the third time Cao Zhang added reinforcements to Xiahou Ba!
Su Ze, who was in the vanguard of Zhang He's Chinese army, was keenly aware of the changes on the left wing: "General, the left wing can't resist it anymore. If we continue like this, we will be defeated again!"

Zhang He's eyes flashed: "General Zhenxi is arrogant and only wants to compete with Liu Bei for supremacy. How can Liu Bei be easily dealt with?"

"Now that I have suffered a loss, it is time to restrain myself."

"Go back and tell General Zhenxi that I can no longer resist Zhang Fei, and tell General Zhenxi to prepare to retreat."

Su Ze hesitated: "But the general will definitely be punished if he does this."

Zhang He snorted coldly: "It is better to be punished than to be defeated! If Liu Bei is allowed to win in one battle, you and I will all be punished by His Majesty."

Su Ze no longer hesitated and rushed to the Central Military Command Station: "General Zhenxi, General Zuo can't stop him!"

Cao Zhang was shocked: "How could General Zuo be unable to stop Zhang Fei?"

Su Ze said without hesitation: "Zhang Fei's morale is high, but our army's morale is low and cannot withstand crimes other than war. General, please make a quick decision whether to fight or retreat. If the opportunity is missed, it will be difficult for our army to retreat."

Cao Zhang was angry: "Am I really no better than Liu Bei?"

Except for the fact that Zhao Yun was unable to defend the stronghold at the beginning, Cao Zhang suffered consecutive losses, which made Cao Zhang feel a great sense of frustration.

however.

The current situation no longer allowed Cao Zhang to think too much.

If Xiahou Ba can't stop him, he can still increase his troops, but Zhang He can't stop him, so it's useless to increase his troops.

"Ming Jin withdraws his troops!"

"withdraw!"

Cao Zhang gave the order with difficulty.

　I'd like to ask for more monthly tickets. I'm just short of a hundred tickets.

　
(End of this chapter)