My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 701 I have a son-in-law, Sun Zhongmou, so I don't have to worry
When Wei Yan beheaded Zhao Yan and had his body and head taken back, the battle in Xincai City was basically over.

Those organized resistances had long been crushed and dispersed by Zhang Fei with thundering means, leaving only some scattered and rebellious stragglers.

As Zhao Yan's body was sent back, Zhang Fei immediately had it hung at the crossroads in the center of the county town and widely publicized it. In less than two hours, the scattered stragglers also laid down their weapons and surrendered in despair.

After Zhang Fei took control of the situation in the city, he immediately demonstrated his rough but meticulous side, and his ability to use both kindness and severity.

He comforted the first group of military officers and county officials who had just surrendered with warm words and said he would not hold them accountable for their past.

He would not show mercy to those who resisted to the end. He would tie them up when necessary and send them to hard labor camps when necessary.

After sorting them out, he gathered all the surrendered soldiers and captives together, announced the relevant policies of Liu Bei's camp, and emphasized Zhao Yan's crime - not only did he resist stubbornly, but he also killed the envoy, so he was indeed guilty of a crime that could not be punished. As long as the rest were deceived and coerced, they could be given lighter sentences according to the actual situation.

The few Cao army Simas who were forced to surrender looked at each other. They also knew that Zhao Yan had indeed killed the envoy, and there was no way to wash away this fact. They could only accept the reality with their heads down.

Some of them did not understand why Zhao Yan did this during his lifetime at first.

However, there were a few officials who were once Zhao Yan's confidants and knew a little about the inside story:
Lord Zhao did so, on the one hand, because he wanted to show his loyalty to the court, but it was also a way of seeking wealth and honor by taking risks.

On the other hand, it was also because he had observed that Zhang Fei was impatient and eager to advance his troops, and Zhang Fei did not have time to build heavy siege weapons in a short period of time. So Zhao Fujun thought he could take advantage of this and deliberately anger Zhang Fei, inducing Zhang Fei to lose his temper and quickly attack Xincai regardless of the actual situation, and then hit him with a bloody head.

Zhao Yan's calculation was not wrong. If Zhang Fei did not rely on the Huai and Ru rivers to transport a large amount of ready-made wood and parts from the rear to build siege weapons, and really relied on logging near Xincai, then the rapid attack would indeed result in Zhang Fei giving away his life in vain under the strong city.

But the problem was that Zhang Fei's logistical support far exceeded Zhao Yan's expectations, and Zhang Fei had Xu Shu to help him advise on military affairs and hide his strength, and did not reveal the actual scale of his siege weapons in advance.

All of this eventually led to Zhao Yan's misjudgment, and his provocative behavior backfired. Zhang Fei and Xu Shu took advantage of the situation and broke through Xincai.

All I can say is that Zhao Yan should have stopped trying these tricks and just played honestly, maybe the result would have been better.

But as I said, the past is the past, and what has happened cannot be assumed.

Previously, Liu Bei's camp had repeatedly surrounded three sides and left one side open in the battlefields of Xiangyang and Nanyang, with the goal of shaking the enemy's determination to hold on, and only seeking to expand the territory rather than encircle and annihilate the enemy.

After fighting so many battles like this, the Cao army generals on the front lines of Jing and Yu have indeed developed a bad habit. When they see a city, they want to hold on and delay for a while, even if they have no confidence to fight a decisive battle or wait for reinforcements, they will delay as much as possible.

This time, Zhang Fei acted decisively and did the opposite, catching Cao Jun off guard. This also made Cao Jun realize that his fighting style was different from Guan Yu's, and Zhang Fei would kill everyone at any cost to establish his authority.

……

The Battle of Xincai was very effective in establishing prestige, especially the killing of Runan Prefect Zhao Yan in battle.

In addition, Zhang Fei was clear about rewards and punishments, forgiving those who surrendered first and severely punishing those who refused to surrender. With both kindness and force, he led his army to continue to go upstream along the Ru River for several days. The counties along the way were frightened and the resistance was much weaker than initially imagined.

Although Langling County was where Zhao Yan had served as a county magistrate when he was young, the local officials were quite loyal to Cao Cao's camp.

However, after seeing that Zhang Fei's army brought Zhao Yan's head and showed off their military power and publicized relevant policies, Langling County finally chose to open the gate and surrender without a fight.

The army then went to Ancheng, which was the new county seat of Runan County occupied by Cao and also where Zhao Yan was originally stationed.

As the county seat, Ancheng still resisted for a while, and the defending generals fought hard with Zhang Fei for several days.

However, Zhao Yan's death dealt a heavy blow to the morale and morale of the defenders.

In addition, Zhang Fei made rapid progress and was very successful in persuading the surrounding small counties to surrender. Xu Shu also taught Zhang Fei to use both psychological and siege tactics. All kinds of true and false news were flying around, and soon the military and civilians in Ancheng became increasingly panicked.

In the end, Ancheng only held out for less than ten days before falling into the hands of Zhang Fei - and this was only the beginning of May.

If you have no idea about this time, you can compare it horizontally with the progress of the battlefield in Nanyang County to the west: this time point is roughly equivalent to when Guan Yu just sent Huang Zhong to capture Rangcheng.

After Ancheng was captured, Zhang Fei went up the Ru River and continued northward, taking the small counties of Shenyang and Yang'an, and finally approached Shangcai County, the last barrier between Runan County and Yingchuan County.

In fact, Cao's army's reaction was not slow. When Xincai fell, urgent news was quickly sent to Xu Du.

Cao Cao was naturally shocked when he heard the news, and he immediately began to mobilize troops to rush south to provide reinforcements.

It's just that all this takes time, and Ancheng fell too quickly, so the reinforcements didn't arrive in time to save Ancheng. But if Zhang Fei made other aggressive moves later, Cao's reinforcements would definitely catch up.

……

The news of the fall of Xincai reached Xudu on April 28th.

This day was not the day of the grand court meeting that was held every five days, so the urgent military intelligence report was sent directly to the residence of Shangshu Ling Xun Yu. After being screened, it was immediately transferred to Cao Cao's prime minister's residence.

Upon hearing that an important gateway on the Runan front had been lost, and that Zhang Fei suddenly led a large army into the country and captured the first important town north of the Huai River and along the Ru River, Cao Cao became solemn.

He immediately asked Xun Yu, who came to report, and several of his aides present, such as Sima Lang, Sima Yi, etc., to quickly recommend someone who could stop Zhang Fei.

"Guan Yu is attacking Wancheng in Nanyang, and Zhang Fei is invading along the Ru River. The current plan is to implement the previously agreed move of the capital. Wen Ruo, how are the preparations for the relocation of the families of the nobles in the court going? When will the relatives of those idle and noble officials be able to move to Luoyang?
In addition, we must select another general to stop Zhang Fei's offensive and buy time for the court to implement the relocation of the capital. Alas, Yuan Rang and Jun Yi are in Hebei, Zi Lian and Wen Qian are in Liang and Lu, Zi Xiao and Gong Ming are in Nanyang to fight against Guan Yu, is the court really out of generals? ! "

Cao Cao pointed out the current dilemma in a few concise sentences. He took stock of the generals under his command, and suddenly felt sad.

After all, since the death of Xiahou Yuan, the direct descendants of the Cao family have been increasingly short of commanders who can lead an army.

Of the generals from the Cao and Xiahou families of the same generation as Cao Cao, there are only Xiahou Dun, Cao Ren and Cao Hong left. These three people now have to take charge of their own affairs. When new enemy breakthrough directions emerge, Cao Cao can only use generals from other families to command the troops, or recruit younger talents from the Cao family.

In fact, even among the younger generation of the Cao family, some have already begun to help take on important responsibilities. For example, the one currently stationed in Chang'an is Cao Cao's nephew Cao Xiu.

It was Cao Xiu who took over the defense of Guanzhong after Xiahou Yuan's death. Later, at the beginning of last year, Cao's army attempted to feint an attack on Hanzhong in Guanzhong to tie down Liu Bei's military strength. Those battles were also commanded and undertaken by Cao Xiu.

Unfortunately, Cao Xiu was still young and ultimately accomplished nothing. He also lost some soldiers and the young general Guo Huai left to him by Xiahou Yuan was killed.

If it weren't for the natural barrier of the Qinling Mountains, which meant that the defending side would have a huge advantage, it would have been almost impossible for Cao and Liu to launch an offensive on the western front in the future. Cao Cao was really worried about letting Cao Xiu take charge at his age.

At this moment, facing the questions raised by Cao Cao, Xun Yu and the Sima brothers could also feel the prime minister's inner helplessness.

They were all too familiar with Cao Cao and knew that under normal circumstances, Cao Cao would call Guan Yu "Yun Chang". But just now Cao Cao directly said "Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are invading", which shows that he was extremely anxious.

Xun Yu thought about it carefully and felt that this problem was very difficult. Out of public interest, he wanted to recommend some capable generals from other families to lead the army to stop Zhang Fei.

But he also knew that at this sensitive moment, the Prime Minister would become more suspicious and would not trust outsiders. And this concern could not be exposed.

In comparison, the brothers Sima Lang and Sima Yi did not have so many concerns.

Sima Yi gritted his teeth and said to Cao Cao, "Prime Minister! I think that only a general who is close to me can take on this important task at this troubled time. Although General Xiahou and other veterans are stationed outside, General Cao Zhen is close to the capital. Why not let him take charge and assist him with famous generals?" Cao Cao was stunned when he heard Sima Yi recommend Cao Zhen: "Hmm... Zhongda, are you talking about Zidan? Zidan is indeed a talented person in my Cao family, but he has never been able to lead a team on his own...

If he wants to go to the battle, he must be assisted by famous and experienced generals. Where can he find a deputy general in such a hurry? Should we quickly transfer Gongming back from the Luyang front? "

Cao Cao was still pondering, but Xun Yu, who was standing by, felt that this was not right and was afraid that it would lead to a major mistake. He quickly advised: "Prime Minister, this cannot be done! Cao Zhen is only a lieutenant general, he is young and lacks prestige. How can he convince the famous veterans?

Zhang Fei is heading straight for Yingchuan. If we fail to deal with it properly, it will shake Xudu. Prime Minister, have you forgotten the failure of the feint attack on Dazhong at the beginning of last year with Cao Xiu as the general? "

Xun Yu was quite straightforward in his words. In order to remind Cao Cao not to entrust young people with important tasks without authorization or to over-force them, he directly cited the example of how he reused Cao Xiu last year and then suffered a military defeat.

Of course, Xun Yu said this not because he was a fool and wanted to offend people. He had no choice but to say something serious to the Prime Minister so that he would wake up. If he made mistakes in employing people, Xudu would be shocked.

But when Cao Cao heard this, he was indeed quite angry.

Xun Yu is talking about something irrelevant. He was just tempted to follow Sima Yi's advice and use Cao Zhen to resist Zhang Fei, but Xun Yu used the example of Cao Xiu to slap him in the face. Isn't this clearly saying that there is no one left in the Cao family who can be used for the next generation?

At this critical juncture, isn't loyalty to the Cao family more important than military talent?

However, Cao Cao could only think about this idea in his mind and it was not easy to say it out loud. Wouldn't that make it seem that he did not trust the generals from other families?

There are some things that can be done but cannot be spoken of. Both parties should have an agreement on them and know them clearly.

So even though Cao Cao was angry about Xun Yu's sabotage, he could only remain gloomy for the sake of saving his face and couldn't get angry for the time being.

Sima Yi, who was standing by, saw this and felt that he had seized an opportunity, and hurriedly advised: "What Xun Lingjun said is not without reason. If you want to use General Cao Zhen, you must have a famous veteran as your deputy to stabilize the situation.

I, a foolish subordinate, have a few thoughts, and I would like to ask the Prime Minister and your Majesty for advice. When Sun Quan of Jiangdong surrendered, he brought his deputy general Cheng Pu with him. Cheng Pu was also a famous veteran in Jiangdong. He had followed Sun Jian in the battles of the south and the north, and many people in the world knew his bravery and ability to lead the army.

Because Sun Quan was originally the son of a prefect from outside the city, the prime minister had always let him live in Xudu and never used him. Cheng Pu was also placed with him. Now the prime minister urgently needs to dispatch famous generals to resist Zhang Fei, so why not use General Cao Zhen as the main general, Sun Quan as the deputy general, and Cheng Pu as the vanguard?

Although we cannot fully know Cheng Pu's loyalty to the court, his former master Sun Quan was treated with courtesy by the prime minister and they were traveling together, so Cheng Pu would definitely fight to the death for the prime minister. "

Cao Cao was originally in pain because he had no one to rely on, but after hearing Sima Yi's suggestion, his eyes lit up.

When Sun Ce died of his injuries and Sun Quan fled in a panic, the fates of several old and famous generals of the Sun family were quite sad.

Huang Gai was severely wounded and captured, and later faded from public view due to his old age. In order to protect Sun Quan's escape, Zhou Yu had to surrender to Bu Zhi and Lu Yi who were intercepting his fleet at that time.

Only Han Dang and Cheng Pu successfully followed Sun Quan and fled to Yuan Tan's territory in Qingzhou. Later, they wanted to pass through Yuan Tan's defense zone to surrender to Cao. But at the last moment, something unexpected happened, which led to Han Dang being captured. In the end, he was softened and surrendered to Yuan Tan and finally to Liu Bei.

Of the old subordinates left by Sun Jian, only Cheng Pu followed Sun Quan to Cao Cao's territory. After Sun Quan was enthroned, Cheng Pu also got a fairly good official position, but he never had any real power. Cao Cao had no shortage of trustworthy veterans at the time, so he would not risk reusing Cheng Pu.

But now, the situation is so critical that Cao Cao's mentality has changed.

In Cao Cao's view, Cheng Pu's talent is definitely not as good as Le Jin, Xu Huang, and Zhang He, whom he is used to. But the problem is that these people are not here now. If he wants to rush to send someone from Xudu to the south, Cheng Pu's strength will obviously exceed that of the generals in the second echelon of Cao's camp.

Originally, Cheng Pu's biggest problem was his loyalty and reliability. However, Sima Yi suggested that Cao Zhen hold Sun Quan hostage and then use Cheng Pu to command him, and everything seemed to be working.

Moreover, although the young man Sun Quan had been idle for several years, Cao Cao was still very satisfied with him.

A few years ago, when Cao Cao wanted to abolish the Three Dukes and framed Prime Minister Zhao Wen to remove him, Sima Yi helped him plan a plan and let Zhao Wen use the Prime Minister's authority to recommend Sun Quan as a talented person. Then Cao Cao pretended to be noble and declined, saying that Zhao Wen was "flattering Cao Cao" and got rid of Zhao Wen.

In the original history, Cao Cao killed Zhao Wen with the excuse that "Zhao Wen recommended Cao Pi as a talented person". In this life, this event happened earlier, and Cao Pi was not yet an adult at the time, so he was not old enough to be included in the scheme. Therefore, Cao Cao could not use his own son to set up the scheme, and could only use a prospective son-in-law.

But no matter what, the fact that Sun Quan was able to enter Cao Cao's vision and participate in that game shows that Cao Cao really admired this young man and wanted to make him his son-in-law.

Now, several years have passed, and Sun Quan has indeed become Cao Cao's son-in-law. When Sima Yi mentioned letting Sun Quan follow Cao Zhen as a deputy general, Cao Cao was completely tempted.

One is his nephew and the other is his son-in-law. What is there to worry about? With Sun Quan around, Cheng Pu will definitely work hard. Isn't this a good thing?
"In that case, there is no need to discuss this matter any further. Zhongda's plan is more in line with my opinion. Let Zidan be the commander, Zhongmou as his deputy, and Cheng Pu as the vanguard. Let's lead the army south to resist Zhang Fei!"

Xun Yu moved his lips when he heard this, but this time he didn't have the courage to persuade him firmly.

Sima Yi, who was standing aside, also had a barely perceptible smug look in his eyes.

It was by participating in the case of overthrowing Si Tu Zhao Wen that he caught the prime minister's eye, and quickly won his trust and promotion. In that case, Sun Quan inadvertently accepted a favor from him.

This time, he successfully sold a favor to Cao Zhen and Sun Quan. If Sun Quan, the prime minister's son-in-law, can make progress in the future, he will definitely not forget his kindness.

Sima Yi's network of contacts in the Xudu court became much deeper.

-

After Cao Cao decided on the strategy of having Cao Zhen as the commander, Sun Quan as his deputy, and Cheng Pu as the vanguard, tens of thousands of Cao's reinforcements quickly moved south and arrived at the battlefield in Shangcai County, where they confronted Zhang Fei.

Along the way, Cao Zhen also discussed with Sun Quan and Cheng Pu, and felt that Zhang Fei's troops were at the forefront and they should not engage in a head-on confrontation with him. Instead, they should focus on holding their ground and undermining the enemy's morale.

Therefore, they decided to divide a part of their troops to urgently enter Shangcai County, and the other part to serve as a reserve force and be stationed in Yancheng in the rear to provide logistical support for the Shangcai defenders.

Another part of Cao's army set up camp on both sides of the Ru River, built high ramparts and dug deep trenches, forming a pincer attack with the Shangcai defenders and supporting each other.

This would also completely cut off the Ru River waterway and prevent Zhang Fei from taking advantage of the fleet to continue to sneak across and circumvent the enemy.

When assigning specific tasks, Cao Zhen chose to personally lead his troops to station in Yancheng in the rear to protect the retreat of the friendly forces. He let Sun Quan enter Shangcai County and let Cheng Pu camp on the other side of Shangcai.

In this way, Cheng Pu's talent as a famous general in water battles could be utilized, and he could be in charge of intercepting the Ru River. He could also use Sun Quan as a hostage to force Cheng Pu to be attentive and prevent him from abandoning his post when the situation was not right - his former master Sun Quan was guarding Shangcai City, and if Cheng Pu ran away, he would be a traitor and would be despised by the world.

After Cao's army made such a move, when Zhang Fei arrived, he saw that Cao's army had a large number of reinforcements and he did not have a clear military advantage, so he slowed down his pace, inquired about the situation of the enemy generals, and discussed it with the military officer Xu Shu.

"I didn't expect that Cao Cao would send Cheng Pu as a general in a desperate situation and hold Sun Quan hostage. Cheng Pu is good at water battles, so he should be able to cut off the Ru River. Now that the enemy and our forces are similar, what should we do next?"

Xu Shu listened to Zhang Fei's suggestion and thought that there was no need to rush, so he comforted him, "General, if you can reach Shangcai, it is only five counties away from Xudu. As long as you gain a foothold here, it will be enough to shock Cao Cao, and changes will inevitably occur within the army.

Since our troops are not strong enough to completely break through the main force of Cao's army, we might as well build high fortifications and deep trenches to confront Cao's army. This will create opportunities for General Guan's troops."

Zhang Fei thought about it and agreed with Xu Shu's opinion. He then ordered his troops to switch to defense on the spot, dig fortifications and confront Cao's army.

On the battlefield of Runan County, the battle lines of both sides were temporarily stabilized after moving here. However, the adverse effects brought about by Zhang Fei's approach to Xudu were slowly fermenting and spreading.

(End of this chapter)