Han officials

Chapter 115 Foresight
A rider can separate and unite, disperse and gather.

The journey is a hundred miles, and a thousand miles can be completed without interruption.

As early as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Sun Bin made such an evaluation of the newly emerging cavalry.

Now that almost five hundred years have passed, the positioning of cavalry has naturally become clearer.

Perhaps cavalry cannot beat infantry in long-distance marches, but cavalry is the best choice for short-distance raids.

Xiangping City is about 350 miles away from Shangyintai, and Houcheng is located in the middle.

As a result, Wei Zhe rushed to Houcheng the next afternoon, which was a very quick reaction.

Of course, his speed cannot be compared with Cao Chun's.

According to the original history, when Liu Biao of Jingzhou died of illness and Liu Cong submitted the letter of surrender, Liu Bei almost immediately fled south. When Cao Cao learned about it, he was afraid that Liu Bei would reach Jiangling first, so he ordered Cao Chun to lead 5,000 Tiger and Leopard Cavalry ahead. Finally, at a speed of 300 miles day and night, they caught up with Liu Bei at Changbanpo and caused his army to be defeated.

This marching speed was very rare even in ancient times.

Because such an extremely intense march will inevitably result in the loss of a large number of war horses and a reduction in combat effectiveness.

The fact that the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry can still maintain a certain level of combat effectiveness after a long-distance raid is enough to prove that their reputation is well-deserved.

But then again, if Cao Cao had not unified the north at that time, he would not have been able to raise such elite cavalry.

Otherwise, do you really think Wei Zhe doesn't want to form a Tiger and Leopard Cavalry? It's just because he's poor.

If he had enough money and food and a full warehouse of armor, he would definitely be able to choose one out of a hundred and ride three horses.

But now, it’s better to be safe.

……

"Father!"

Houcheng County, Weishiwu.

When Wei Zhe saw Wei Xuan with gray hair and beard, but still holding a Han sword and patrolling on the wall of the fort, he had clearly given him many instructions, but for some reason he was speechless.

In comparison, Wei Xuan is more free and easy.

Looking at the thousands of dusty elite cavalry outside the dock, the old man's originally tense expression suddenly relaxed.

"Go ahead, my son, just fight without worry, I'll take care of everything in the back!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhe immediately smiled heroically.

"Don't worry, Father. I will definitely build a few Jingguan to celebrate your birthday after this battle!"

After saying this, Wei Zhe jumped on his horse, whipped it, and led 4,000 elite cavalry towards Goguryeo County.

Seeing this, Wei Xuan finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"How magnificent! You are worthy of being a son of the Wei family!"

After saying this, he picked up the wine bag and drank heartily. For a moment, he couldn't tell whether it was wine or tears in his hair and beard.

When this conversation outside the fort was reported, the entire Houcheng County was speechless.

From the powerful to the common people, everyone is full of admiration at this moment.

With such good father and son, it’s no wonder that the Wei family is so prosperous!

……

Not long after leaving Houcheng, Wei Zhe arrived in Goguryeo County.

Inside the prefectural mansion, when Xuanchu Prefect Bian Yi heard the news, he was overjoyed. He didn't even bother to change his clothes before excitedly leading a group of county officials out of the city to greet him.

So when Wei Zhe led his troops to Goguryeo City, there was already a huge crowd outside the city.

There were officials from the prefectural government, local powerful figures, and even merchants and ordinary people came out.

As Wei Zhe stopped his horse, a deafening cheer suddenly rang out outside the city.

Xuanchu Governor Bian Yi stepped forward with excitement and bowed respectfully, saying:

"Brother Gongwei, I am truly grateful for your generosity and rescue!"

Faced with the opportunity to win people's hearts, Wei Zhe naturally would not let it go.

He first humbly helped Bian Yi up, then looked at the people around him and shouted:
"Everyone, please live in peace, but one day, we will not allow the barbarians to occupy an inch of our land again!"

Even though Wei Zhe had not yet fought with the Hu people, everyone felt relieved after hearing this.

After all, Wei Zhe's verbal promise was backed by his illustrious military achievements. As soon as he finished speaking, cheers erupted from outside the city gate.

"Cai! You are indeed my Xuanchu hero!"

"Please take me in, my lord. I will fight to the death!"

"I still have a thousand bushels of beans and millet at home, and I'd like to offer them to you as food and fodder!"

This is why Wei Zhe chose to stop in Goguryeo County even though the two places are very close to each other.

Even though Wei Zhe wanted to stop in Houcheng and give his father some advice, reality did not allow it.

Because Goguryeo County is the county seat of Xuanchu County, the political significance of this place is incomparable to Houcheng.

The former is for the public, the latter is for private.

Just like Wei Xuan would rather perish along with his fellow Wei clan members than let go of any member of the Wei clan, at this moment, every move of Wei Zhe would be interpreted by others.

At this moment, stabilizing people's hearts is more important than anything else.

Otherwise, if the people and powerful people in the counties of Xuanchu fled in panic, Wei Zhe would be defeated without even having a chance to fight the enemy.

At the same time, seeing the public outcry, Xuanchu Governor Bian Yi felt somewhat complicated.

It was obvious that these people were panicking before, and were even ready to pack up their belongings and run away.

But as soon as Wei Zhe arrived, the attitude of this group of people immediately changed.

But he was secretly glad in his heart.

Fortunately, Wei Zhe came, otherwise he would be finished.

……

Let’s not talk about what Bian Yi was thinking.

After performing a political show at the city gate, Wei Zhe immediately led his troops into the city.

After settling his soldiers, Wei Zhe asked about the situation in Xuanqiu County.

It is said that Xuanchu County, like Liaodong County, actually also has 4,000 county soldiers.

However, due to the special geographical location of Xuanchu County, there are only one thousand county soldiers stationed in Goguryeo County at this time.

As for the other 3,000 county soldiers, they were stationed in Gaoxian, Shangyintai and Xigaima counties close to the border.

Hearing this, Wei Zhe couldn't help but nodded slightly.

This is not so bad, because at the beginning of the year he stationed two camps of troops in each of the six counties of Xuanchu.

Although they were engaged in half farming and half fighting, with the help of two thousand garrison troops, the defense of the three counties was expected to be greatly enhanced.

When talking about this matter, Bian Yi's face was full of emotion.

"Fortunately, Brother Gongwei had foresight, otherwise Gaoxian and the three counties would have been broken into."

At this moment, Bian Yi was extremely grateful for his previous decision.

Fortunately, he did not stop this matter at the time, otherwise he would not even have the chance to ask for help.

Then, remembering the situation at the city gate, Bian Yi couldn't help but say, "Since the people in the city are so willing, Brother Gongwei, why don't you recruit some volunteers? That would at least be a help!"

In Bian Yi's opinion, Wei Zhe only brought 4,000 cavalry, which was really too few.

However, Wei Zhe smiled faintly upon hearing this and said, "Quality is more important than quantity!"

However, Bian Yi's suggestion is not without merit.

Wei Zhe then paused for a moment before calling Shi Yi over:

"Zi Yu, send a message to the military camps in Houcheng, Goguryeo, and Liaoyang counties. If anyone wishes to serve as a volunteer soldier, each county may select a cavalry unit to join the army."

"Lord, are you going to Shang Yintai?"

"No, let them harass Goguryeo's food supply and delay their offensive."

You should know that in order to prevent Goguryeo from making a feint to the east and attacking in the west, Wei Zhe did not even transfer the garrison troops in the three counties of Xuanchu along the way, but only ordered them to defend themselves strictly and not give the enemy any chance to take advantage.

Not only do these volunteers bring their own horses, they can also go out and contribute their efforts.

But if you don't even have a horse, then you'd better stay and defend the city.

(End of this chapter)