My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 159 Liu Bei is still a loyal man

Let's talk about two things separately. After abandoning Shouchun, Yuan Shu's 30,000-strong army advanced westward in a panic, going upstream along the Huai River. They passed Anfeng in three days and Liaoxian in five days.

Finally, in Liao County, he received support from Zhang Xun, the last general under his command who was recorded in history and was responsible for guarding Runan County.

Zhang Xun only had less than 20,000 men left, and they were not gathered in one place. For the time being, there were only nearly 10,000 men to support Yuan Shu. After joining forces with Yuan Shu's main force, the Yuan family had only 50,000 men in total. In the end, they occupied most of Runan County, and the rest of the territory had been lost.

Of course, although the number of 50,000 is still very large, the quality of Yuan’s army at this moment is completely different from that of one or two years ago. They are all young men who have been conscripted for several rounds, and it is estimated that only 20% of them are veterans of the regular army.

Those defenders in Qiao who could have withdrawn had already withdrawn, leaving Qiao for Cao and Lu to fight over. As for the troops that could not be withdrawn, they were probably divided and surrounded by Cao Cao, and persuaded to surrender in the name of the Han court.

Cao Cao had the righteous title of the emperor, so he had the best chance of winning over the rebels. After Yuan Shu's troops were divided and trapped in enclaves, if Cao and Lu came to persuade them to surrender, most of them would choose Cao, and almost no one would choose Lu.

It was only after seeing Zhang Xun, who was also in a state of disgrace, that Yuan Shu learned from him that his side had also been suffering defeat on the battlefield in Runan County recently.

Zhang Xun said, "Your Majesty, Cao Cao has been advancing steadily and vigorously, attacking Ancheng and Xincai, trying to enter Huai from Ru and completely uproot our army. But in the past half month, Cao Cao seems to have learned that Liu Bei has made rapid progress in Huainan and has captured Hefei.

Cao Cao took a risky move, temporarily putting aside the route along the Ru River, and sent another army down Yingchuan, breaking Xiang County, passing Ruyin, trying to enter the Huai River at Yangyuan, and directly attack Shouchun, and attack Shouchun together with Liu Bei! Fortunately, Your Majesty took the initiative to break out of Shouchun, otherwise I'm afraid that Cao Cao would go downstream from the upper reaches, and Liu Bei would go upstream from the lower reaches, attacking from the east and west!

I was incompetent and had insufficient troops. My main force had been focused on Ancheng and Xincai, and I was unable to send troops to defend Xiangcheng and Ruyin. It only took Cao's army half a month to capture these two cities along the Yingchuan River and advance hundreds of miles.

Our army is now in Runan County, and only the south bank of Yingchuan, a small piece of land in the north of the Huai River and the lower reaches of the Ru River, and those remote counties in the south of the Huai River that are deep in the Yinghuo Mountain area, I wonder where Your Majesty will go to as a temporary residence?"

Originally, every word Zhang Xun said was bad news of defeat, but at this moment Yuan Shu could not hate him, nor could he muster the energy to reprimand his subordinates.

He simply asked someone to bring a map, and then made a simple comparison to realize how bad the situation was.

Yangyuan County, located east of Shouchun and just captured by Liu Bei, is also a transportation hub, because it is the node where the Yingchuan River, a major river in Huaibei, merges into the Huaihe River. Yingchuan is connected to the ancient Grand Canal Honggou in Chen County and Xiang County, and can connect all the way north to the Jishui River, Suishui River and the Yellow River.

(Note: The Honggou is the Honggou that separated the Chu River and Han River from Liu Bang and Xiang Yu at the end of the Qin Dynasty. It was built by King Hui of Liang during the Warring States Period, the same King Hui of Liang that Mencius often invited to chat.)
Originally, Yuan Shu was still a little resentful that Liu Bei took an additional county after capturing Shouchun.

Although Liu Bei conveyed the meaning through Yuan Huan at that time, "Since Yangyuan County belongs to Huainan County/Jiujiang County and is the land of Yangzhou, then as the governor of Yangzhou of the Han Dynasty, he must take every inch of Yangzhou occupied by the rebels for the court, and not abandon any of it."

But now it seems that Liu Bei's capture of Yangyuan blocked the throat of Cao's army after breaking through Ruyin and continuing to enter the Huai River from Yingchuan, making it impossible for Cao Cao's forces in the Yellow River basin to transit quickly by water.

Although Cao Cao could not take Yingchuan, he could still choose to take the Ru River, but the Ru River today did not have a canal like the Honggou connecting it to the Yellow River. As a result, Cao Cao's dispatch efficiency to the south would definitely be reduced.

Of course, Liu Bei and Cao Cao have not fallen out yet, and Liu Bei still obeys the court completely. If Cao Cao's army or grain ships want a transit right and go around Yangyuan, Liu Bei will not intercept them. But it is hard to say in the future.

After figuring out all these twists and turns, Yuan Shu couldn't help but sigh:
"Liu Bei is a loyal man. He promised not to pursue our army, and he actually did not pursue us any further. He only captured three counties and then stopped.

Now that I think about it, if I had hesitated for ten more days in Shouchun, even if Liu Bei wanted to release us, we might have been blocked by Cao Cao in Yangyuan. Fortunately, Yangyuan was taken by Liu Bei first, and it would have been more troublesome for Cao Cao to take this route again. "

After sighing, the civil and military officials around him asked Yuan Shu what his future would be like.

Yuan Shu had no choice. Looking at the map, he only had about 60% of Runan County's land left, and more than half of it was rotten land in the Yinghuo Mountain area.

In the end, Yuan Shu could only think of a way to drain the pond and catch all the fish:
"It is now September, and the autumn crops have been harvested. We should quickly collect the autumn crops from the counties still under our control. Don't worry about the tax rate. We should take whatever we can from the people of Runan.

This way, at least my 50,000 troops can be fed for more than a year. Even if we hide in the Yinghuo Mountain area, we can still defend against Cao Cao."

Yan Xiang was shocked when he heard this and quickly advised: "Your Majesty! Now we only have two-thirds of the counties in Runan left. This is our last foundation for the people. If we impose heavy taxes, who will farm for us and pay taxes next year?"

Yuan Shu sighed, but didn't say something. He was obviously thinking: I don't even know whether I can live to see next year's autumn harvest, so what does it have to do with me whether there is an autumn harvest next year!
If Yan Xiang is unwilling to carry out the order, then let Yang Hong and Zhang Xun carry it out.

I have to say that if Runan County is really squeezed hard, it may still be able to squeeze out some potential.

During the peak period of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the registered population of Runan County alone reached over 2.1 million, making it the second most densely populated county in the world after Nanyang County.

In comparison, the Pseudo-Huainan Yin/former Jiujiang County, which had just been occupied by Liu Bei, had a population of only over 500,000 in the middle of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the population of Lujiang County was about the same.

Even after years of war, by September 198, there were still hundreds of thousands of people in Runan, but one third of it had been occupied by Cao Cao, and the remaining population in Yuan Shu's hands was at most 9 or .

After Yuan Shu began to collect grain, the last group of people in Runan who were unwilling to leave had no choice but to flee madly downstream along the Huai River in search of survival.

……

Relying on the Dabie Mountains, Yuan Shu successfully hid in the hinterland of Runan.

Of course, this news was soon known to Cao Cao, who had just led his army along Yingchuan and captured Ruyin.

Cao Cao just wanted to steal the heads, and was really depressed about this.

"Yuan Shu actually gave up Shouchun? He chose to lead the main force to break out to the west, relying on the Yinghuo Mountain area to occupy Runan for a final desperate resistance? Isn't this guy the most concerned about face? Why didn't he live and die with Shouchun City!

Why didn't Liu Bei surround Shouchun and completely annihilate Yuan Shu in Shouchun! In that case, the imperial court could have taken over Runan County without bloodshed!"

Cao Cao learned the news when he was camping in the field about seventy or eighty miles away from Yangyuan County after he had captured Ruyin and continued to move south along Ruyin.

The vanguard scouts he sent out, the farthest group, had already scouted to the foot of Yangyuan City and reported that Yangyuan City had already hung the flag of the Han Dynasty, and that it was the Han Left General Liu. When Cao Cao received this tip, he knew that Liu Bei had succeeded, and he could not help but feel remorseful.

He calculated in his mind that if Yuan Shu could hold out in Shouchun for another month, it would not be Liu Bei's turn to deliver the final blow to Shouchun. It is possible that the imperial army led by him would also rush to the city of Shouchun and claim the first credit.

However, there was no way. The reason why he did not go through Yingchuan and go straight to Yuan Shu's heartland was that he did not expect that Yuan's army in Huainan and Lujiang would collapse so quickly.

Cao Cao wanted to start from the outside and slowly clip his wings so as not to fight head-on with Yuan Shu's main force.

The three lords of Cao, Liu, and Lu surrounded and attacked Yuan Shu. It was originally a situation of being cautious in throwing the mouse and being afraid of the weapon. Everyone wanted to gain benefits, but they also wanted the friendly army to bear the damage and fight hard. If Cao Cao had let the main force go down Yingchuan a few months ago, then the Cao army would definitely have to bear the main force of the Yuan army.

It was only after he learned that Liu Bei had suddenly captured Hefei that he suddenly convened an emergency military meeting and changed his strategy.

Who could have thought that Liu Bei would delay in Hefei for a month and a half, and then suddenly break through. Later on, the speed was further accelerated, and Shouchun even lasted less time than Hefei.

"Liu Bei must have mastered some secret method to quickly attack and break through the city! It took our army more than three months to attack Chen County and more than three months to attack Ku County!

The strength of Hefei was even greater than that of Chen County. Liu Bei's military force was not several times that of the defenders, but he was able to capture the city in more than 40 days. Liu Xun had not surrendered yet. He must have used some strange tricks!
Someone... bring Fengxiao and the others here! I have something to ask you!"

After Cao Cao thought about it, he came to this conclusion. Feeling depressed, he ordered his advisers to gather to discuss the matter.

Xun Yu was to stay in Xudu to guard his home, while Cheng Yu was to guard against Lu Bu on the eastern front. Therefore, the main advisers accompanying the army were Guo Jia and Xun You.

When Cao Cao encountered setbacks, he would not blame his advisers, but he was also not very polite and would not be courteous to them.

Cao Cao was in a bad mood at the moment. As soon as Guo Jia and Xun You entered the tent, Cao Cao spoke harshly to them:
"Liu Bei had few soldiers, but he was able to scare off Yuan Shu with his strategy and quickly break through the strong city. You all said before that Liu Bei was weak and not capable of stealing the first credit. You also said that if Liu Bei could really break through Hefei, our army would have time to change the plan and divide the troops to grab the credit.

The current situation is like this, all because you guys are not paying enough attention! You must have underestimated Liu Bei's ability to attack, and also underestimated his strategy! "

Guo Jia and Xun You looked a little unhappy when they heard this. But Cao Cao did not mean to blame or punish them. Since the lord was in a bad mood, it was reasonable to criticize him.

Xun You took the initiative to admit his mistake and said, "Liu Bei's attack was so sharp. His strategy was certainly one aspect, but his siege equipment might also be unique. We underestimated the enemy and we are ashamed of you. In the future, we will definitely send people to scout carefully and learn his methods.

Even though Liu Bei intended to conceal his secrets, there must be many defeated Yuan soldiers who have seen his method of breaking into the city. When we capture these Yuan soldiers in the future, we can carefully interrogate them and let skilled craftsmen carry out the work according to the captives' instructions. In time, we will be able to reap the benefits of both."

Cao Cao saw that Xun You had a good attitude, so he decided to move on. He asked, "We must do these things carefully in the future, but first, the most urgent task is how to prevent Liu Bei from continuing to compete with the imperial court for Yuan Ni's territory!"

Seeing that Cao Cao had calmed down a bit, Guo Jia quickly took the opportunity to offer a suggestion: "Mingsong, why don't we march lightly and quickly, with the cavalry carrying their own food supplies, and no longer march along the river, but bypass Yangyuan and head straight for Anfengjin west of Yangyuan, and cut off Liu Bei's Huaihe waterway to continue westward at Anfengjin.

As long as the Huai River was cut off, Liu Bei would not be able to continue to expand his victory. Moreover, the official position given to Liu Bei by the court was only the governor of Yangzhou, not the governor of Yuzhou. Even if Liu Bei had the expedient right to pursue the rebels across the border, he should not have competed with the court for credit after the main force of the court arrived.

If Liu Bei was greedy and wanted to gain more, we could blame him for the righteousness of the court. Fortunately, we could expose Liu Bei's hypocritical loyalty and more or less damage Liu Bei's reputation."

Cao Cao did not look pleased when he heard Guo Jia's plan. Instead, he stroked his beard worriedly and said, "Although your plan is meticulous, your understanding of Liu Bei may not be as good as mine.

Liu Bei is a very sensible person. Since he used a trick to force Yuan Shu to retreat, he must have known that he was not strong enough and would not give others an advantage. Even if he pursued to expand the territory, he might use courtesy before force and ask the court for instructions first..."

When Cao Cao said this, he fell silent, as if he was recalling his impression of Liu Bei. Guo Jia and Xun You didn't know how to persuade him for a moment, so they just let Cao Cao ponder.

Perhaps it was a coincidence of fate. Just as Cao Cao was pondering for a while, someone outside the tent suddenly came to report: "Report! Report to the Minister of Works, the Left General Liu Bei sent an envoy here to report to the court on the pacification of Lujiang County and the war with the pseudo-Huainan Yin. Please make a decision, Minister of Works!"

Cao Cao's eyes became fierce, and he waved his hand quickly: "Send a message! Bring Liu Bei's envoy to see me immediately!"

The attendant responded and soon brought Liu Bei's envoys Sun Shao and Sun Qian in.

After paying his respects to Cao Cao, Sun Shao handed over a memorial. He also said that the General of the Left had originally intended to send it directly to Xudu, but suddenly heard that Cao's cavalry was near Ruyin, and fearing that it would delay military operations, he followed the ancient meaning of "a general may not obey the orders of his sovereign when he is away from home" and sent it directly to Cao's cavalry.

Cao Cao unfolded Liu Bei's memorial and was stunned for a moment. Then he burst into laughter and directly showed it to Guo Jia and Xun You.

"Fengxiao, your prediction was so accurate! When Liu Bei was chasing, he did not forget to ask the court whether he needed his Yangzhou army to cross the border to help suppress the remaining rebels in Yuzhou!

Haha, Brother Xuande, you are so cautious. You have suffered so much that you have developed such a character! Go back and tell Brother Xuande that he doesn’t need to worry about Yuzhou anymore. The imperial army will deal with the remnants of Yuan Shu on its own! "

Cao Cao had made up his mind: after Yuan Shu left Shouchun and returned to Runan, he no longer had a strong enough base to rely on, and it was only a matter of time before the situation was resolved. Moreover, as long as he left Shouchun, Yuan Shu's army would be more likely to be divided and surrounded, and forced to land.

Cao Cao certainly could not give Liu Bei the opportunity to wipe out the remaining enemies. He would rather do it himself and fight slowly. In the final stage, he might have to go deep into the Dabie Mountains and slowly search the Xinyang area.

However, the credit of killing Yuan Shu and taking back the imperial seal must not be given to Liu Bei again!

After hearing Cao Cao's open order, Sun Shao and others did not show any reluctance. They just said that the Left General was dispatched entirely in accordance with the court's will, and he would not intervene if the court felt it was unnecessary.

Cao Cao found the situation increasingly difficult as he saw Sun Shao's submissive appearance.

Liu Bei was so impeccable that he had to give him more preferential treatment in his official position, otherwise where would the prestige of the court be? This was the credit for conquering the pseudo-capital.

(End of this chapter)