The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 331 Deng Ai
Yongzhou, outside Chang'an.

"General!"

"Mr. Chen was confronting Jiang Wei near Didao. His army was advancing from the north, thus avoiding Jiang Wei's ambush."

The scout reported the situation on the front line.

Deng Ai was wearing armor, but he couldn't calm down.

When he arrived in Luoyang, the emperor held his hand in front of General Wei and said that he must make use of him, but Deng Ai was not quite convinced.

After all, he was a close confidant of the Sima family, promoted from the bottom by Sima Yi himself, the most trusted confidant among the trusted ones.

Even if Cao Mao admired me, would he still dare to trust me unconditionally?
Moreover, the emperor mentioned things like military farming, which made Deng Ai even more certain that he would not be able to command the army in the future.

Because Deng Ai knew how much these nobles would despise things like military farming and reclamation.

They looked down on farmers, looked down on farming, and even looked down on the officials who were in charge of farming.

So far, the person Deng Ai has met who cares most about this matter is the deceased Ma Yi of Xuanwen Company.

When Sima Yi discovered Deng Ai, he asked him for advice on farming, and according to his advice, he reclaimed land and established military farms in various places, which further enhanced the strength of the Wei State.

He didn't think what the emperor said was true, and it was probably just to keep himself away from the army in the future.

However, after leaving Sima Zhao's mansion, Cao Mao pulled him into the car and rushed all the way to the central army camp.

His appointment was announced immediately.

General Zhenxi.

Before Deng Ai could recover from the shock, Cao Mao summoned many of the central army generals and began to discuss the counterattack against Jiang Wei.

Cao Mao directly asked Deng Ai and Xiahou Xian to sit on his left and right respectively, and he sat in the upper seat.

Deng Ai was really shocked.

But what shocked him the most was not these.

After discussing with many generals and captains, Cao Mao immediately decided not to bother with the opinions of the ministers in the court, but to send troops directly and send part of the central army to the battlefield to inflict heavy damage on Jiang Wei when he faced Chen Tai!

This idea was approved by the generals.

Deng Ai did not dare to say much, and Cao Mao made the decision directly, appointing Deng Ai as the commander-in-chief and letting him lead Cheng Ji, Ma Long, Wen Yang, Li Zhao, Sima Jun and others to attack Jiang Wei.

The expenses for this military expedition were directly transferred from Taicang and were directly under the responsibility of Lu Qin, without going through the Secretariat.

Because the Sima family has been continuously injecting blood into the various camps of the central army in recent years, the scale of the central army camp has become extremely large. Except for a few camps composed of pure cavalry, the camps commanded by Ma Long and Cheng Ji have more than 10,000 people.

This time, the troops numbered more than 40,000, and they were all elite soldiers who had been reorganized by Xiahou Xian and severely trained by Ma Long. Because of the emperor's reward, their fighting spirit was high and their combat effectiveness was extremely high.

With a king like Boss Cao, the morale of the central army has been constantly improving.

Deng Ai was immediately stunned. He had just arrived, and now they were handing over the central army to him and asking him to lead the troops into battle?
The emperor's trust in him made Deng Ai feel a little guilty.

He did not dare to accept the order, so Cao Mao persuaded him: I treat you as a national hero, and I hope you will repay me as a national hero.

At this moment, Deng Ai didn't know how to answer. The emperor had already prepared for the expedition, but he lacked a commander.

In the past, Cheng Xian always served as a charge general. Like Wen Yang, he had no command experience. Ma Long was top-notch in all aspects, but he had no qualifications and was too young. Not to mention the others. Once Deng Ai arrived, Cao Mao's shortcomings in the expedition were made up.

Deng Ai was good at fighting, had experience, reputation, and was familiar with Yongliang. Cheng Ji knew his talents, and Ma Long was his subordinate in the past. The others did not dare to say that they could surpass him.

In this way, Deng Ai divided the camps in the name of training the army, and then left Luoyang and headed towards Yongzhou.

At this moment, the army in Yongzhou had learned the news of the arrival of reinforcements, and Chen Tai also sent people to contact Deng Ai.

Deng Ai ordered the army to rest for a while and then summoned many captains.

"Gentlemen, Governor Chen's army will advance from the north to attack Jiang Wei, while I will remain with a small force in the mountains south of Di, Di, Di Dao."

"What do you think?"

Deng Ai asked his subordinates about their thoughts. For this expedition, Cao Mao had arranged for him to lead some young men. Even Cheng Ji, who was just over forty years old, was actually a young general.

Deng Ai is already in his fifties this year.

Putting aside those gods in history who could make the enemies dizzy in their teens and twenties, the rest of the generals rose to prominence after a long period of tempering and accumulating sufficient experience.

Deng Ai felt that it was necessary for him to help His Majesty lead these young people.

The emperor treats me as a national hero, how can I not repay him as a national hero?
"I think, given the current situation, we should withdraw the elite cavalry from the army and let the infantry follow behind."

Wen Yang began to present his own strategy. "Then advance with full cavalry speed and attack Didao directly."

"Cut off Jiang Wei's head."

Everyone was looking forward to his tactical deployment, but after hearing this, they could not continue listening. Deng Ai nodded, he admired the adventurous spirit of this young man.

Many times, it is this kind of unexpected behavior that is most effective in defeating the enemy.

Deng Ai said approvingly, "You have a good idea, but the situation in Yongliang is complicated now, so we should be cautious."

Ma Long then said, "Lord Deng, we should seize this opportunity to cut off their retreat, surround Jiang Wei, and annihilate his entire army."

Deng Ai was also very impressed. He commented: "At your age, if you meet an ordinary general, you will definitely win."

He then explained, "But Jiang Wei is not an ordinary commander. Would he take the safety of his own food supply route lightly?"

"If he dared to besiege Didao this time, he must have ensured that his food supply would not be easily cut off. Perhaps he has set an ambush and is waiting for us to attack."

Ma Long continued, "What if we use a small force of cavalry to attack his food supply route, so that he doesn't dare to attack with all his strength, and then we can attack him when he is tired?"

Deng Ai shook his head again. "Jiang Wei has been attacking Didao for a long time but has been unable to capture it. He was also attacked by Lord Chen. His morale must be low. His soldiers are resentful of him and unwilling to fight again."

"If they learn that their food supply has been cut off, it will only arouse their fighting spirit. Fighting them on the plains will be extremely disadvantageous."

Deng Ai looked at Cheng, who smiled and said, "Mr. Deng, I will follow your instructions."

He didn't express his opinion at all, but Deng Ai still admired him very much and said, "He is a capable general."

Deng Ai now expressed his thoughts, "I think we should attack Zhongdi first, take it, and then wait for the enemy to tire themselves out."

"Ah? Why are you hitting Zhongdi?"

"Where is Zhongdi?"

Several generals looked at each other, and Deng Ai drew a picture directly on the ground, which was very standard.

"Look, the armies of both sides are now deployed here. If Jiang Wei still wants to succeed, he must attack the mountains and capture Lord Chen, because he has the least troops here."

"But the problem is that Jiang Wei's attack won't be so easy, and Lord Chen, defending the mountain, won't be easily defeated."

"In the end, Jiang Wei will definitely not be able to take this mountain, and the morale of his troops will reach an extremely low level. At that time, as long as Lord Chen shows his intention to cut off his retreat, Jiang Wei will definitely retreat."

"Look at these routes. If we want to retreat, the only route that can avoid the Yongliang army, replenish supplies along the way, and slightly recover the victory is the route to Zhongdi. If we capture this place now and wait for Jiang Wei to return, we can then engage him here."

"At this point, Jiang Wei's soldiers will undoubtedly be complacent and demoralized. When we suddenly charge, led by a formidable general like Wenjun, they will undoubtedly be terrified. Even Jiang Wei, for all his formidable skills, will be powerless to prevent such a rout."

"This time Jiang Wei is invading with a large army. The Shu ministers were originally against him going to war, but he insisted on doing so. If he is defeated this time, he will hardly have the chance to go on another expedition. That will give us ample time to reorganize our army."

Deng Ai looked very excited.

Everyone looked at each other for a few seconds, and Wen Yang couldn't help but say, "General, these are just your predictions."

"Jiang Wei is currently engaged in a fierce battle with Lord Chen in Didao. We were sent to support him, yet we're headed straight for this county whose name we've never heard of. If Jiang Wei doesn't leave through here, or even if he manages to defeat Lord Chen, we'll be captured and beheaded."

"People in the future will laugh at our stupidity, saying that we arrived in Yongliang as reinforcements, strayed away from the battlefield and went directly to other places, causing the army to be defeated."

Deng Ai slowly frowned, "This isn't a negotiation with you, this is my order!"

"If anything goes wrong, I will be responsible."

"This is a march and battle, how can there be no risks?!"

"I'm determined! Send out the troops!!"

The generals could only obey orders now. After all, compared to their previous suggestions, Deng Ai's analysis was much more reliable. If, as Deng Ai said, they could severely stop Jiang Wei's attack, defeat his entire army, or even capture him alive or kill him in battle, then their achievement would be enormous!

Wen Yang became excited again. From what Deng Ai had just said, it was obvious that he wanted him to lead the charge.

When the time comes, I must capture Jiang Wei alive and let this old general see what I can do!

Deng Ai led the army, but instead of heading to Didao, he rushed directly towards a county town at the gate in the distance.

At this moment, Jiang Wei was leading his army to attack Chen Tai's hill. After two days of attack, there was no progress.

The whole situation became extremely unfavorable to Jiang Wei.

But even so, Jiang Wei still did not choose to retreat.

This opportunity was so rare. If I missed it, would there be another chance like this in the future? Would I be able to come here again?

No, I must win!!
(End of this chapter)