: The soldiers are in Nanyang

In the first half of the seventh year of Jian'an (194), the war between Ma Yue, the Muslim in Liangzhou and Cao Cao, the Prime Minister of Han Dynasty, ended with Cao's army occupying Hangu Pass and Liangzhou's army retreating to Tongguan. On the surface, it seemed that Cao's army won the victory, but Cao's army paid twice the price of heavy casualties that Liangzhou army had been severely injured and injured.

At the same time, Xiahou Dun, the number one general under Cao Cao, also died in this battle.

Due to their respective reasons (Ma Yue Group is resting and recuperation, while Cao Cao Group is busy annexing and integrating Yuan Shu's old subordinates), the war that took place in the seventh year of Jian'an did not eventually expand, nor did it evolve into a comprehensive decisive battle between Ma Yue Group and Cao Cao Group.

However, this does not mean that Ma Yue and Cao Cao will be in peace from now on.

In the spring of the eighth year of Jian'an (195), a group of Guanzhong merchants were looted by thieves in the territory of Nanyang. The butcher Ma took the opportunity to attack 5,000 soldiers at Wuguan and set off on a large-scale attack on Nanyang. Nanyang prefect Chen Ji was facing a great enemy. While dispatching troops to condemn generals to prepare for the battle, the condemns the envoy asked Xuchang to invade.

Upon hearing the news, Cao Cao urgently ordered Cao Hong, and Yu Jin led his army of 3,000 to Wancheng to help.

The dark clouds of war enveloped the sky above the land of Nanyang overnight.

At this time, the remaining princes in various places were not calm.

Jizhou.

General Yuan Shao led his army into Qingzhou in large numbers under the pretext of attacking the Yellow Turbans of Qingzhou.

After more than a year of siege, by the beginning of the eighth year of Jian'an (195), most of the Yellow Turban troops in Qingzhou were wiped out. Yuan Shao used the same trick again and reorganized more than 300,000 Yellow Turban thieves in the model of reorganizing black mountain bandits, and selected 30,000 of them to form the Qingzhou army, and the rest of the personnel carried out military farming.

In the summer of the eighth year, Yuan Shao used his second son Yuan Xi as the governor, and Shen Pei as the chief minister stayed in Qingzhou. Later, he led a large army to station in Yecheng. At this point, Yuan Shao's only enemy north of the Yellow River was left with Zhang Ji, the family of Bingzhou. Taking advantage of the opportunity of Ma Yue and Cao Cao's battle in Nanyang and having no time to take care of others, Yuan Shao began to prepare to attack Bingzhou in full swing.

Xuzhou.

At the end of the seventh year of Jian'an (194), Xuzhou Governor Tao Qian was seriously ill.

Before his death, Tao Qian called Chen Gui, Chen Deng, Sun Qian, Cao Bao and other civil and military confidants, as well as the lower Pei prime minister, Lu Bu, and solemnly entrusted Xuzhou to Lu Bu in front of Chen Gui and others. Lu Bu pretended to refuse for a few more times and happily took Tao Qian's seal. Starting from the eighth year of Jian'an, Lu Bu officially took over Xuzhou.

Yangzhou.

Sun Jian, the prefect of Wu County, adopted the suggestion of military advisor Xu Shu, and led 8,000 troops to attack Jiangdong with Zhou Yu, who was only young. From the beginning of the seventh year of Jian'an (194), to the summer of the eighth year of Jian'an, less than two years ago, Zhou Yu successively wiped out Liu Yao and Yuzhang Xu Gong, the brave general Taishi Ci, was also captured by Zhou Yu with a plan to live.

Shortly after that, Zhou Yu waved his sword to the east and forced his way to the Wuchengyan Baihu and Kuaiji Wanglang, and all the four counties in Jiangdong belonged to Sun's family.

After pacifying Jiangdong, Sun Jian adopted Zhou Yu's suggestion and set up water and land camps in Shicheng and Niuzhu, built ships and recruited troops, and practiced day and night. Zhang Zhao, Zhang Jun, Bu Zhi, Gu Yong, Yu Fan and others worked hard to govern the government. The treasury was rich, and the strength of the Sun clan in Jiangdong quickly began to become stronger.

Ma Yue and Cao Cao, who were busy leaning against each other, did not realize that the powerful enemy was rising at the same time in both north and south.

Chang'an, General Pingxi Mansion.

Ju Shu straightened his clothes and walked into the hall with his head raised, bowed to Ma Yue to the ground: "See the lord."

At this time, Ju Su was no longer the Ju Su that was more than a year ago. Ju Su was black and thin a year ago, and seemed to be able to float away as soon as the wind blew. However, Ju Su now seems to be blessed and handsome, with a rosy complexion. Obviously, over the past year, with the restoration of the county system, the internal affairs under Ma Yue's rule have gradually begun to be on the right track, and Ju Su no longer has to work as hard as before.

"No gift." Ma Yue smiled and said, "Haha, does Zezhu look good?"

"The lord doesn't know anything." Jia Xu, who stood on the side, smiled, "Guan, Liang, Hetao have been harvesting for two consecutive years. The wheat harvest in spring is about to be harvested, and it is a big harvest. In the past two years, industry and commerce under the lord's rule have gradually flourished, especially the trade between the Mobei Grassland and Guanzhong, and Liangzhou has been even more prosperous. There are hundreds of thousands of guan alone. How can he not be in a good mood? Haha."

"Hey, Jia Wenhe, the account cannot be calculated like this." Ju Su said anxiously, "You have seen this entry, but what about the entry? Do you know how many places you are waiting to use money? Not to mention anything else, just say that the cavalry team responsible for protecting the Mobei grassland to Guanzhong Business Road will receive tens of thousands of guan every month. This does not count the equipment and loss of horses on the cavalry, and the pensions for the fallen soldiers fighting against horse thieves. By this calculation, there is not much left for hundreds of thousands of guan."

"So bet, this is your wrong thing." Jia Xu said, "You are deliberately bullying the people and not understanding the internal affairs, right?"

Ju Shu said: "How did you say this?"

Jia Xu said: "As far as we know, the cavalry team protecting the business road is supported by the merchants. It seems that there is no need for the treasury to pay a penny?"

"Hey, that's it~~" Ju Su said dryly, "Everything cannot be generalized. Now we don't need to pay the treasury, but it wasn't like this two years ago. How could the merchants have money at that time? It's not all the money paid by the treasury. Now the input is considered to make up for the previous deficits, yes, that's it."

"Okay." Ma Yue smiled bitterly, "Zezhu, before I reached out to ask you for money, you were already complaining."

"Lord, the treasury is really not rich. If you don't believe it, you can check it." Ju Su said seriously, "In the past two years, the fees required to maintain the operation of government agencies at all levels in the state, county, county and pavilion have been borrowed from major merchants in Guanzhong, and there are also proofs. If the lord doesn't believe it, he will go back to the house to get it."

"Okay, okay, don't read any words." Ma Yue smiled bitterly, "There is no money, so there should be food, right? Don't tell me that for two consecutive years, the bumper harvest, and the wheat that is about to be harvested in spring, you can't even send out tens of thousands of s of military rations in the end!?"

"There are some food stored in the treasury, but that is all spare food." Ju Su said, "If there is a snow disaster in the north of Mobei, or a premature disaster in Guanzhong, a locust plague, or other things, the lives of the people are gone, they will all be distributed from the treasury. The food cannot be moved easily. But then again, tens of thousands of stones of military ration can still be distributed."

"Hahaha." Ma Yue and Jia Xu looked at each other and laughed, "Then please pay me a lot of money to prepare 50,000 shi of military rations for this general."

The butcher Ma and Dushi Jia went around such a big circle with Ju Su is just a cover, and the key is to ask for food.

"Fifty thousand stones!" Ju Su's face changed, he screamed in his heart and said bitterly, "Fifty thousand stones of military rations are enough for 20,000 troops to eat for half a year. I want so much? Is the lord going to fight against Kanto?"

"It's not a big fight." Ma Yue said calmly, "It's only a scale of 20,000 people, and it won't affect the rest and recuperation of our army."

"Okay." Ju Su said helplessly, "I'll go prepare."

"Zezhu, wait." Ma Yue suddenly waved, "There is another thing that I almost forgot to tell you."

Ju Shu said: "What's the matter?"

Ma Yue said: "Now that commercial exchanges in Guanzhong, Mobei, Western Regions, and Guandong have begun to flourish. Can you consider setting up a money shop? Think about it, Guanzhong merchants bring a lot of money to Mobei to purchase livestock and fur. On the one hand, it is inconvenient to carry, and on the other hand, it is easy to be robbed by horse thieves. If you have a money shop, it will be different."

Ju Su said inexplicably: "Why are the difference?"

Ma Yue said: "The merchant can deposit the copper coins in his hands into the money house in Guanzhong, and then the money house issues the same amount of bills. With this bill, the merchant can withdraw the same amount of copper coins when he goes to the money house in Mobei. That is to say, the merchant only needs to carry one bill to go to Mobei to purchase livestock and fur. Isn't that very convenient?"

"Yes, this is a good idea." Ju Su, who is full of business acumen, immediately thought of the vigorous business opportunities and said to Ma Yue happily, "Lord, let's go back to the yamen to draft a charter and then hand it over to the lord for review."

Ma Yue said, "Go, haha."

After Ju Su's figure went far away, Ma Yue said to Jia Xu: "As the saying goes, the army has not moved, food and grass will go first. Now the problem of food and grass has been solved. Next, we should consider how to fight the battle in Nanyang! The general's meaning is to draw 20,000 people from Gao Shun's 50,000 infantry as the main force participating in the battle, and then draw 5,000 cavalry from Ma Chao's cavalry corps as the reserve team. What do you think about Wenhe?"

Jia Xu said: "Chen Ji's army is only seven or eight thousand, and Cao Cao can draw up to five or six thousand people to help in the war. If the situation is not good, the reinforcements may increase to about 10,000. In other words, the strength of the Cao-Chen coalition is between 10,000 and 20,000. In terms of force, our army has 20,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry to participate in the war. In addition, there is a more important point. The Cao-Chen coalition is on the defensive and needs to divide troops to guard the villages and towns everywhere. Our army's military strength advantage will be more obvious in actual combat."

Ma Yue said: "After the fall of Hangu Pass, the Liangzhou Legion had lost its strategic advantage over the Cao army. In order to regain strategic initiative, the general of Nanyang County was determined to win, so this battle cannot be lost. Before sending troops, we must take all the unfavorable factors into consideration, so we must avoid causing trouble and failing to do so."

Jia Xu nodded, flattened the map on the table, and said to Ma Yue: "Master, please see, the biggest threat to the north is Yuan Shao, who is entrenched in Jizhou. However, Hetao and Jizhou are separated by Bingzhou, and there are natural dangers of the Yellow River and Great Wall. General Fang Yue is a general on the battlefield, able to attack and defend. There are also Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao's two ten thousand families who have conquered the Xianbei in the eastern region and can go south to Hetao at any time, so there should be no problem with Hetao."

Ma Yue said: "Yuan Shao's current target is Zhang Ji, Bingzhou. This general noted that he would not use troops to Hetao through Bingzhou."

"Yes." Jia Xu nodded, "There is General Xu Huang in Tongguan, and everything is foolproof."

Ma Yue said: "Where is Liu Biao in Jingzhou?"

Jia Xu said: "Liu Biao is just a dog, and the Jingzhou army was killed by the lord's eight thousand iron cavalry, which is not worth worrying."

Ma Yue said again: "What about Zhang Lu, Hanzhong, and Liu Zhang, Yizhou?"

Jia Xu said: "After the death of Liu Yan, the governor of Yizhou, his fourth son Liu Zhang succeeded to the throne. Liu Zhang was weak in nature and was indifferent to the mundane wine and sex every day, and was not enterprising. However, Zhang Lu, Hanzhong, posed a certain threat to Guanzhong. However, since Yuan Shu became emperor, the prestige of the Xuchang small court has been greatly reduced. Will Zhang Lu obey Cao Cao's orders be a question?"

Ma Yue said: "Prepare for the worst."

"The worst result is that Zhang Lu will launch all the Hanzhong army to attack Guanzhong." Jia Xu said, "The lord only needs to order elite soldiers and generals to defend Chencang and Xiguan two passes, and Hanzhong soldiers will not be able to enter the gate. Guanzhong can be as stable as a rock."

"Yeah." Ma Yue nodded and said in a deep voice, "Fang Yue wants to guard Hetao, Xu Huang wants to guard Tongguan, Gao Shun, Ma Chao wants to go out with the army again, and Fa Zheng is far away in the Western Regions. Except for these few people, there is no other general in the Liangzhou army. Wenhe thinks that people can defend Chencang and Xiegu Passes?"

Jia Xu said: "I recommend two people to guard Chencang and Xiegu."

"Oh?" Ma Yue said happily, "I don't know who it is?"

Jia Xu said: "Fufeng Mengda, Su Ze."

"Meng Da, Su Ze?" Ma Yue frowned, "How capable? Chen Cang, the terrain of the silence valley is dangerous. If it is lost to Guanzhong, you must be careful."

Jia Xu said: "Fa Xiaozhi thought that the two were worthy of being the governor of a county, and Xu deeply agreed."

Ma Yue said: "If you say this to Wenhe, I will feel relieved. Now Hetao, Tongguan, Xiegu, and Chen Cang have made complete arrangements. The army can go out to fight Nanyang with confidence. This time, if we don't play with Cao Cao, we will set up a formation with him and do it openly. Hehe, if you want to play with the villain, you really can't play with Cao Cao and Guo Jia."

"Cao Cao is deceitful, Guo Jiaduozhi, and there are Xun You, Cheng Yu, Liu Ye and others around him. If you want to use tricks, no one in the world can do anything to the right!" Jia Xu said this and continued, "However, in the face of absolute strength, all conspiracies will have no place to be used. Only by relying on absolute strength can you have a chance to defeat Cao's army."

Ma Yue said: "I have no worries and can do my best to attack Nanyang, but Cao Cao cannot!"

Jia Xu said: "Yes, Yanzhou is located in the Central Plains, and it can be said to be the real place of four battles. The north is the powerful Yuan Shao, the south is the increasingly powerful Sun Jian, and the east is Lu Bu, who had just entered Xuzhou. These three powerful neighbors are not fuel-efficient, and they are even more eyeing Yan and Yuzhou."

"So, I would rather let Yuan Shao take over the top than destroy Cao Cao first!" Ma Yue's expression turned solemn and said, "Wenhe, what would happen in the end if Cao Cao gained a foothold and became strong in such a four-war place?"

Jia Xu's expression also became solemn, and he replied: "At that time, Cao Cao's subordinates will definitely have an elite army that has been through many battles, and a group of tiger and wolf generals who can fight well! Faced with a huge group of veterans who have emerged from the bloody storm, and a large group of long-standing generals who have experienced countless fierce battles and hard fighting. Ten years later, even if the lord all goes to Guan, Liang, and hundreds of thousands of iron cavalry in the north of Mobei compete in the Central Plains, it is hard to say that they will win."

"Yes." Ma Yue said solemnly, "The desperate battle between this general and Cao Cao is not because of personal grudges, but is inevitable! Because we two represent two interest groups that are incompatible with water and fire. If one party eventually falls, the fight will never stop."

Jia Xu sighed and said, "The lord and Cao Cao are both heroes of the world."

"Haha, Wenhe doesn't have to put gold on this general's face. What kind of hero is at best just a hero!" Ma Yue said casually, "If possible, I really want to make friends with Cao Cao. If I can change my position, I believe that I will become a close friend with Cao Cao."

Jia Xu nodded and said, "Xu also believes in this."

Xuchang, Prime Minister’s Mansion.

Liu Ye, who is in charge of intelligence collection, said: "Lord, according to the news sent back by me, Ma Chao has led 5,000 cavalry from Hetao to Guanzhong. In addition, Gao Shunzheng led 20,000 infantry to advance to Wuguan. According to the itinerary, Ma Chao's cavalry and Gao Shun's infantry will advance to Wuguan at the same time in early July."

"Twenty thousand infantry plus five thousand cavalry?" Cao Cao sighed, "For a small Nanyang County, we dispatched 25,000 troops. The butcher of horses really value the true nature. If we respect the filial piety, how many troops can our army draw to the Nanyang battlefield?"

Guo Jia said: "At most, ten thousand people."

"Ten thousand people?" Cao Cao said, "Hey, even if Chen Ji's eight thousand troops are added, he is still at a disadvantage in terms of military strength. Chen Ji's army still has to divide troops to guard various cities and towns. In actual combat, our army can only face the Liangzhou army's troops alone. The disadvantage in terms of military strength is probably still obvious. The risk of this battle is very high."

"Prime Minister, there is something that is very puzzling." Liu Ye continued, "This Liangzhou Army's military operation did not deliberately hide its traces. The butcher Ma was always deceitful in his military use. Before the close contact, it was generally difficult to understand his true intentions, and it was even more impossible to know his troops. However, this battle in Nanyang was not the same. According to the current situation, the butcher Ma was intending to fight a dignified decisive battle with our army in Nanyang."

After hearing Liu Ye's analysis, a trace of gloom flashed through Cao Cao's eyes and said in a low voice: "This is not good news for our army. This shows that the butcher Ma's style of using troops is also changing. He no longer believes in military danger as before and wins by surprise! The way of using troops should be combined with strange and righteousness. If Ma's butcher Ma understands this, it will become more difficult to deal with."

"Yes." Guo Jia continued, "Before this, if Ma Butcher still had weaknesses, it was his adventurous personality! Now, even his only weakness no longer exists, and it would be difficult to defeat him! However, even if we know we must be defeated, our army will still have to fight in the Battle of Nanyang."

"What Fengxiao said is very true." Cao Cao agreed with it, "Li Dian finally seized Hangu Pass and strangled the throat of the Liangzhou Legion's army going eastward to Luoyang. If the butcher Ma captured Nanyang County again, wouldn't it be that Luoyang's capital was exposed again under the army of the Liangzhou Legion?"

Xun You said: "If the Liangzhou army captured Nanyang County, it would be more serious than the regaining Hangu Pass. From Nanyang County, the Liangzhou army could not only go north to attack Luoyang, but also wield its swords eastward to directly threaten Xudu! The threat from Nanyang is much greater than the threat from the Yellow River waterway."

Cao Cao looked around Guo Jia, Xun You, Xun Yu, Cheng Yu, Liu Ye, Jia Kui and others, and sighed: "The victory of Nanyang is unpredictable. Our army must make the worst plans! Once the war in Nanyang is defeated, not only will Luoyang be in danger, but Xudu will also open the door. Hulao Pass and Yangdi will become the last barriers for Xudu, and heavy troops must be set up."

Guo Jia's expression became unprecedentedly solemn, and he continued: "Yes, if the Battle of Nanyang is defeated, our army will inevitably face the endless invasion of the Liangzhou Legion! We must make plans early."

"Three years ago, the siege of the 23-way coalition forces greatly damaged the Liangzhou legion, but with the plunder of the Western Regions, the Xianbei people in the northern desert, the Guandong and Jingyang, and the vigorous support of the industry and commerce of the Ma Butcher, Guanzhong, Liang and Hetao, the Liangzhou legion's recovery speed was greatly unexpected. In just three years, the Ma Butcher has been able to dispatch nearly 30,000 troops again. It's amazing."

"Prime Minister." Xun Yu, who had never spoken, suddenly said, "It is particularly worrying to the people's support."
Chapter completed!