My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 704: Cao Ren escapes, Nanyang changes hands

Zhuge Jin's report of victory and document requesting reward were quickly sent back to Xiangyang in less than a day.

So when Liu Bei woke up the next morning, he heard his subordinates report the good news that Cai Mao had been executed.

At that time, Liu Bei was still sleepy and looked confused.

After all, the war was going well, and Liu Bei was in a good mood. His main job in Xiangyang recently was to appease the people and get to know the officials and talents left by Brother Jingsheng.

The nature of this kind of work inevitably requires drinking heavily every now and then, followed by music and dancing. So when the victory report came, Liu Bei was still drunk from the previous night.

However, the stimulating effect of this good news was indeed good. Liu Bei was originally enjoying the beautiful maid washing his face.

After hearing this, his ears immediately stood up to the wind, and his earlobes twitched twice. He snatched the gauze towel and wiped it hard on his face twice.

"They actually caught that bastard Cai Mao? Oh, he was killed in battle? Great! That's great! Brother Jingsheng must be still alive in heaven, and asked his former generals to avenge him! If Qi'er heard about this, she would be so relieved!
Hurry, find Qi'er right away and decorate the lobby of the Jingzhou Mu Mansion. I want to pay tribute to Brother Jingsheng again today!"

Since Liu Bei recaptured Xiangyang at the beginning of the year and restored the rule and order in the city, not long after Liu Bei invited Liu Qi to move here from Jiangling, so Liu Qi himself is currently in Xiangyang.

Liu Bei made such arrangements at the beginning, of course, not because he was worried about his nephew, but purely to better control the old subordinates left by Liu Biao, while also naturally demonstrating his own generosity and benevolence.

With the influence Liu Qi still has left, Liu Bei doesn't have to worry about him having other ideas.

Now that the opportunity has come, of course I want to let my nephew enjoy it too.

……

Liu Bei's envoy quickly found Liu Qi's residence and reported the situation.

"Master! Congratulations on getting your revenge! Cai Mao, the thief who murdered his master, was beheaded by General Huang in Bowang County!"

Liu Qi had nothing to do recently, and spent his days leisurely. However, because he still had to take care of his father, he could not eat and drink in public like his uncle Xuande and other civil and military colleagues, nor could he openly approach women.

The Han people's dedication to filial piety is not something that people in later generations can understand. Liu Biao was killed last spring, and only a year and a few months have passed.

Even though Liu Qi had no worries about food and clothing every day, he had to appear to be more suppressed in front of others. No matter what happy things happened, he could not laugh heartily.

But today's good news is different from any good news we have heard in the past year or so. It can even be said that it is completely on a different level.

Liu Qi, who had suppressed his emotions for more than a year, had his pupils dilate violently and the muscles on his cheeks twitched violently after hearing clearly what the messenger conveyed.

This seemed to be a piece of good news that would allow him to vent his emotions to his heart's content! No matter how happy or crazy he acted, no one would blame him.

The enemy who murdered his father was killed by General Huang! Is there anything more unbridled and joyous than this?

"Cai Mao! You murdered your master! You deserve this day! Heaven has eyes! Heaven has eyes! Father! If you are in heaven, you must have seen that my vengeance has been avenged!"

Liu Qi laughed wildly in surprise for a few times, and then suddenly burst into tears. He smiled foolishly, with his facial features distorted violently, looking very crazy.

If a time traveler from the future saw the change in Liu Qi's facial expression at this moment, he would definitely be amazed. And he had to admit that the drastic change in Liu Qi's expression just now was definitely not as dramatic as Jim Hack's when he heard about his predecessor's death.

Liu Qi remained crazy for a long time, and took the opportunity to completely vent all the emotions that had been suppressed during more than a year of mourning. Then he stood up completely refreshed and ordered the servants in the mansion to help him change his clothes.

Then he immediately took a ox cart to the Jingzhou Mu Mansion to attend the sacrificial ceremony presided over by Uncle Xuande.

There was no regulation in the Eastern Han Dynasty that prohibited riding in a carriage during the period of mourning, but riding in a carriage was relatively grand and comfortable.

During the period of mourning, Liu Qi would ride a horse if he had to hurry. But he was not very good at riding, so he would ride an ox cart in less urgent situations.

After arriving at the Jingzhou Mu Mansion, Liu Qi first asked someone to report, and then Liu Bei personally greeted him at the gate of the inner courtyard and pulled him in.

When he walked into the main hall, Liu Qi saw that the spirit tablet of his late father had been arranged again, with offerings displayed solemnly between the white linen curtains.

In the small bronze tripod in the middle was the head of Cai Mao, which had been pickled and dried with lime and was placed in front of the spirit tablet.

On both sides were some of Liu Biao's former staff members, all of whom wore plain clothes today to pay respects to their former master. When they saw the eldest son coming in, they all bowed silently to Liu Qi.

Liu Bei didn't mind all this. He felt that the more loyal people were to their former master, the more loyal they would be to him in the future.

Liu Qi returned the greetings to everyone, then came to the front of the spirit tablet and strictly followed the complicated etiquette. He poured wine and shed tears to offer sacrifices. There is no need to elaborate on the specific process.

Anyway, his words were from the bottom of his heart and his feelings were sincere, and everyone present was moved to tears.

The eldest son is truly a filial gentleman.

After the mourning ceremony, Liu Qi paid great tribute to Liu Bei, naturally to thank his uncle Xuande for helping him avenge his death.

Liu Bei did not take credit for it. He humbly helped Liu Qi up and explained in public:
"My dear nephew, there is no need to do this. General Huang, who killed Cai Mao, was also an old general of Brother Jingsheng. This is the blessing of Brother Jingsheng's spirit in heaven, allowing my dear nephew to use his own people to clean up the mess.

It can be seen that those traitors who assisted Cao in his atrocities were all punished by heaven. When I was preparing to read the Spring and Autumn Annals, I always admired people like Jie Zitui who were loyal and righteous. How can I take the credit for myself now? "

Jie Zitui, mentioned by Liu Bei, was a righteous man in the Spring and Autumn Period.

Before returning to Jin to take power, Duke Wen of Jin, Chong'er, had been exiled to other countries for 19 years, and Jie Zitui followed him through hardships for 19 years. In the end, Chong'er returned to the country and became the king, but Jie Zitui did not take credit for it. He felt that Chong'er was the only one left in the royal family of Jin. Since it was God's will that Jin would not be destroyed and the Jin dynasty would not be cut off, then Chong'er's becoming the king was God's will. Why should he say that following God's will was his own achievement?
Liu Bei's words at this moment can be regarded as the ultimate attitude of "following the will of heaven". He did not take credit for himself, and even said that the traitors who supported Cao Cao were punished by heaven.

Such publicity effect is obviously better than Liu Bei taking credit for himself.

Of course, Liu Bei didn't think so much in his heart. He just felt that there was no need to take credit for it. He made this choice out of his instinct of trust and loyalty.

However, this choice will inevitably be seen by the Zhuge brothers and other wise and resourceful people in the future. They will spontaneously interpret it into more profound meanings and think that the lord's decision is truly wonderful.

After Liu Bei expressed his opinion without taking any credit, he announced a decision in public, and also said it to Liu Qi.

He said that he had planned to recommend Huang Zhong as the General of the Southern Expedition, ranking him on the same level as Taishi Ci and Gan Ning, in order to commend his achievements.

Liu Qi quickly expressed his gratitude on behalf of Huang Zhong, and also expressed the hope that his uncle would allow him to go to Wancheng to entertain the troops. At the same time, he was also grateful to General Huang for avenging his father.

Liu Bei nodded, and then said that he would send a cavalry to escort Liu Qi north to visit Guan Yu's camp in Wancheng to comfort the troops. By then, Huang Zhong should have returned to the camp in Wancheng, and they could meet there.

This was all Liu Qi's filial piety, there was no reason to stop him. This route was also in an area tightly controlled by Liu Bei's camp, with cavalry protection, there was absolutely no chance of an accident.

……

So after only two days of preparation, Liu Qi, under the protection of Chen Dao and two thousand cavalrymen, brought more than a hundred baggage ships with him, carrying wine, meat and other supplies for the troops, and headed for the Wancheng army.

Liu Bei had originally agreed to Zhuge Jin's request to appoint Huang Zhong as the General of the Southern Expedition, and he needed a messenger to convey the message. In the past two days, the relevant paperwork had been completed, so Liu Bei did not bother two masters and let Liu Qi serve as the messenger, completing the tasks of rewarding the troops and announcing the promotion in one stop.

It took another five days to march by water from Xiangyang to Wancheng, so when Liu Qi arrived in Wancheng, it was already May 20th.

Huang Zhong has also returned to the Wancheng camp from the Bowang front line. It seems that there is a lack of good military doctors on the Bowang front line, so Huang Zhong returned to Wancheng to heal his wounds. This way, the famous doctor Wu Pu, who once scraped the bone to treat the poison for Guan Yu, can personally treat his injuries.

After all, Hua Tuo is old, and now his two great disciples, Wu Pu and Fan A, are already the most famous frontline military doctors in Liu Bei's camp. Basically, there is one doctor in each of the Jing and Yu war zones and the Xu and Yang war zones.

The senior generals who were injured in these two war zones all hoped to ask famous doctors to help them check. Even if the injury was not serious, having a famous doctor to check it out would at least make them feel more at ease and avoid sequelae.

After all, in the Eastern Han Dynasty, military commanders did not have a good understanding of the specific principles of "wound infection". They just felt based on experience that sometimes some seemingly minor injuries, if not handled carefully, would eventually become festering and worsen. Only by seeing a famous doctor could such troubles be prevented.

After Liu Qi arrived, he just met Zhuge Jin and exchanged a few polite words with him.

Then he should have met Guan Yu as well, but Zhuge Jin told him that General Guan had just led his troops to fight in the past two days and was not in the camp for the time being, but might be back within a day or two.

Liu Qi did not bother about it anymore. After dealing with Zhuge Jin, he did not deal with other things. He hurried to the wounded camp without paying attention to etiquette and visited Huang Zhong in a low-key manner.

Moreover, as soon as he saw Huang Zhong, he would bow down and perform a great salute.

Huang Zhong had been recovering from his injuries and had not been concerned about military affairs in recent days, nor did he know that Liu Qi was visiting him. It was not until the eldest son entered the tent that he was startled by his actions and quickly stood up to express his gratitude.

"Why do you perform such a great ceremony, young master? You are my former master. How dare I do this? Please stand up quickly." Huang Zhong thanked Liu Qi hurriedly and stepped forward to support him, preventing him from kneeling.

Liu Qi clarified in a serious tone: "You deserve it! Of course the old general deserves it! I was able to avenge my father because of the old general's help. How dare I judge you based on your past fame and rank?"

What's more, the lord has already recommended the old general as General Zhengnan and conferred him the title of Marquis of Zhanglingting. Now the old general's official position and title are higher than mine. This is what the old general deserves.

This time I have achieved both public and private success. I have been ordered to come here to convey the reward order, and I can also thank the old general for avenging my family's death for me."

Huang Zhong didn't know that he was promoted to General of the Southern Expedition until this moment, and his excitement was beyond words. He burst into tears, and after a long time, he bowed in the direction of Xiangyang, and then exchanged greetings with Liu Qi.

The two men sat down as host and guest and chatted for a while, and the topic naturally turned to the latest developments in the Battle of Wancheng.

Liu Qi came here originally to reward the troops, and he was also responsible for understanding the military situation on the front line so that he could report to Uncle Xuande after returning.

This matter should have been discussed with Zhuge Jin or Guan Yu, but Liu Qi was anxious to see Huang Zhong to express his gratitude for avenging his father, and Guan Yu was not there, so he "put personal interests above public interests" and messed up the order.

Now there is no need to bother two masters with one matter, and the same applies to asking Huang Zhong.

Huang Zhong was recovering from his injuries, so he didn't know much about the details of the military situation in recent days. But he still relayed the general situation he knew:
"The recent battle has been going smoothly. Cao Ren originally planned to have the main force retreat along the Baihe River toward Bowang, then take the mountain road northeast of Bowang to cross the Tongbai Mountain, reach Ye County in Yingchuan County, Yuzhou, and then take the waterway to Yancheng.

After our army captured Bowang and killed Cai Mao by chance, they divided their troops to defend Bowang and cut off this road. When Cao Ren learned about it, he was also unable to recapture Bowang. Moreover, because they were not able to react in time, a group of Cao's troops that were already on the way to retreat still advanced towards Bowang and were intercepted by our army and severely damaged.

After Cao Ren suffered a loss, he had to change his plan overnight, and retreated to Luyang in the north with his main force at full speed, trying to meet up with Xu Huang, and then cross the Funiushan and Songshan Mountains to retreat to Luoyang. General Guan had been keeping a close eye on Cao Ren for the past few days, and when Cao Ren was forced to lead the main force to retreat, he attacked Wancheng with all his strength and divided his troops to pursue him.

When Cao Ren retreated, in order to avoid being hunted down by our army, he did not dare to withdraw all the troops in Wancheng, but left some auxiliary troops to cover the rear in order to delay time.

These auxiliary troops naturally had no desire to fight, so within two days, Wancheng was captured by General Guan, killing and wounding about 3,000 to 4,000 enemy soldiers, while our army suffered very little loss. About 10,000 enemy auxiliary troops were captured or surrendered.

There were still tens of thousands of civilians in the city, who had been temporarily conscripted by Cao Ren as laborers. Now, because Cao Ren had to retreat hastily ahead of schedule, they did not have time to move with the army.

They were either forced to stay in the city to help defend it, or were forced to leave the city, but were intercepted when General Guan was chasing them. It is difficult to tell the details at the moment, but when General Guan returns, everything will become clear. "

Huang Zhong's statement was rather general, since he was not an eyewitness after all.

For Huang Zhong, after conquering Bowang County, killing Cai Mao, and cutting off one of Cao Ren's retreat routes, his mission came to a temporary end.

Especially since he was slightly injured in the Battle of Bowang. Now Liu Bei's camp is full of famous generals and talented people. In the final pursuit stage, there is really no need for him to fight with injuries. He just needs to take good care of himself.

However, Liu Qi still roughly understood the general logic of the evolution of the battle situation from Huang Zhong's general description.

It was nothing more than that Cao Ren was forced to further accelerate the process of withdrawal.

And because he had to choose a route that was more difficult to withdraw and more difficult to use by water, the amount of supplies that Cao's army could take away, as well as the auxiliary troops and civilians that they could take with them, was greatly reduced compared to the original plan.

According to a rough estimate from the overall situation, the number of Nanyang civilians who were not evacuated by Cao Cao's camp was at least 40,000 to 50,000, and nearly half of them were young and middle-aged civilians and auxiliary soldiers.

The amount of grain that was looted and transported from Wancheng and the surrounding counties in the final stage was also reduced by at least several tenths. Of course, Cao Ren and Jia Xu must have also adapted to the situation and tried their best to find ways to remedy the situation. For example, if something could not be transported away in time, they would try to burn it.

But no matter what, Cao Ren could set the fire, and Guan Yu could also put out the fire during the pursuit. In the confrontation between the two sides, some of the situation could be saved more or less.

In short, Cao Ren wanted to retreat quickly with his elite troops, but Guan Yu could not catch up and annihilate him. After all, there were several counties in the north of Wancheng in the hands of Cao's army, and these places could delay Guan Yu.

However, Cao Ren was forced to change the specific plan of the withdrawal, and the transportation of supplies and civilians must have been greatly frustrated. The rear guard of Cao's army also lost at least several thousand people due to Guan Yu's effective pursuit.

These several thousand people were not auxiliary soldiers or civilians, but the real direct descendants of Cao's army.

The most important point is that Guan Yu did not experience any fierce resistance during the entire process of capturing Wancheng, and the damage to Wancheng was not very serious when it was finally captured.

This would have been almost impossible to expect if Cao Ren had not been forced to withdraw his troops hastily and prematurely and change his withdrawal route.

The rest of the more specific details of the battle and the results of the battle can only be known after Guan Yu returns from the pursuit.

……

The words are divided into two parts.

Liu Qi arrived at the Wancheng camp to reward the troops and announce the reward order.

Near Luyang County, more than a hundred miles north of Wancheng, Guan Yu was personally leading tens of thousands of soldiers to carry out the final mopping-up pursuit of Cao Ren.

There are actually two small counties blocking the way from Wancheng to Luyang, but they are not very important and not worth mentioning.

However, as Cao Ren accelerated his retreat, thanks to these two counties, they delayed Guan Yu for a day and a half, making it impossible for Guan Yu to catch up with Cao Ren's main force.

Now, Cao Ren has finally escaped to Luyang County, and this journey of chase and escape has finally come to an end.

If you go further north from Luyang, you will have to cross the Funiu Mountains, which is also the border between Jingzhou and Sili. There is no county town for more than a hundred miles along the way.

You have to cross the entire mountainous area to reach Liang County in Yin, Henan.

Therefore, even if Cao Ren was on the previous few sections of the road, he could rely on those counties as support points to delay time and hinder Guan Yu's pursuit.

At this moment, as the battlefield moved to Funiu Mountain, Cao Ren had no choice but to fight Guan Yu.

Even if Guan Yu's main infantry unit could not catch up, the cavalry vanguard under his command could definitely hold off Cao Ren's rear infantry.

However, Cao Ren, Xu Huang and Jia Xu had already been mentally prepared for all this.

They had anticipated that they would not be able to escape this disaster.

Fortunately, the terrain of the Funiu Mountain area is steep, and there are not many valleys that can pass through the mountain area. Cao Ren retreated along the valley and was able to block the valley entrance with his elite troops to buy time for his friendly forces.

Therefore, in today's battle, after careful consideration, Cao Ren decided to let Xu Huang lead 5,000 elite infantry to block the rear and ensure that enough time was given for the main force to withdraw safely to Liang County in Henan Yin.

"Gongming, I'll give you 5,000 infantry and 800 cavalry. Can you block the entrance of the Funiu Valley for at least a day and a night? If possible, it would be better to delay it a little longer, so that the main force of our army can safely withdraw to Liang County.

As long as we reach Liang County, everything will be safe. When Sun Jian went north from Wancheng to Luoyang to fight against Dong, he also conquered Luyang and fought to Liang County and Yangren area, but was blocked by the dangerous pass in the south of Luo and was defeated by Xu Rong.

If Dong Zhuo had not later given up Luoyang and moved westwards for fear of being surrounded on three sides, Sun Jian would not have been able to break through the Liangxian-Yangren defense line. Although Guan Yu was brave now, the imperial court still had many troops and horses, and the rear was stable.

As long as we rely on the strategic locations of Funiu Mountain and Song Mountain and control the mountain cities in the valley, Guan Yu will inevitably return in defeat - whether all this can be achieved depends on you."

As the commander-in-chief, Cao Ren must have personally led the main force to withdraw. It is impossible for him to carry out such a dangerous task as covering the rear by himself.

Jia Xu would certainly give him advice and teach him how to divide the troops and cover the rear, but the person who would be the specific executor would have to be Xu Huang.

Xu Huang was well aware of this, so he did not refuse. He just felt a little sad, knowing that Cao Ren was going to sacrifice the 5,000 infantrymen who were left behind.

In addition to the 5,000 infantry, Cao Ren also assigned him 800 cavalry, obviously hoping that when he could no longer hold on, he would seize the opportunity and flee with these 800 cavalry in advance to keep himself useful.

Under normal circumstances, a general who abandoned his army and fled would definitely be severely punished by military law, and Cao Cao would not let him go after returning. But today, in this special situation, Cao Ren obviously hinted that he would plead for him, handle special matters, and guarantee that he would not be held accountable, and even give him credit.

Xu Huang took a deep breath, and responded to Cao Ren's order in a deep voice without asking any more questions.

Cao Ren looked into Xu Huang's eyes carefully for a few times, knowing that Xu Huang understood what he meant. Finally, he patted Xu Huang's shoulders twice and confirmed in a low voice:

"When the time comes and things become impossible, we will take the cavalry and retreat first. In this dead end, we have to sacrifice our arms to survive. This is a last resort, and the Prime Minister will also understand our difficulties."

Xu Huang nodded, turned back sadly, organized his troops, and formed a battle line in the narrow canyon of Funiu Mountain.

They hastily dug some loose soil on the spot to form a few shallow trenches, and rammed the excavated soil into low earth walls as much as possible. Some soldiers were also sent to the hillsides on both sides to cut down some small trees that could be cut quickly, or even just pick up some sharp branches, and hastily built temporary antlers and chevaux de frise, which were placed in front of the battle.

However, two hours later, Guan Yu, who had just taken over Luyang County, personally led his army to attack, and soon ran into Xu Huang, who had temporarily set up camp on the road to block the entrance.

In this life, Guan Yu never defected to Cao Cao, so there was no friendship between him and Xu Huang.

The most they could say was that they were both from Hedong, and they had no other old friendship.

Moreover, in this life, when Xu Huang surrendered to Cao, he was also saddled with the notoriety of murdering his former master. Yang Feng, who had fought with Cao Cao for the throne, later surrendered to Yuan Shu. In the Battle of Chen County, Yang Feng was killed by Xu Huang's troops.

Therefore, a trustworthy person like Guan Yu had even less favorable impression towards Xu Huang.

When the two armies met, Guan Yu knew that Xu Huang must have been ordered to delay the battle, and there was no room for negotiation between the two sides, so they did not waste words. After the troops were slightly assembled, Guan Yu led his army to charge straight towards Xu Huang.

Xu Huang was blocking the road, and there were also trenches and low walls. Relying on the narrow terrain, he held out for a long time as expected.

But a day later, Xu Huang's troops, which were running out of steam, collapsed unsurprisingly under Guan Yu's dual strategy of attacking the enemy and winning over his enemies.

Guan Yu not only physically attacked Xu Huang, but also made his soldiers shout before the attack:
"Don't work for Cao! You were betrayed by Cao Ren a long time ago! Cao Ren is just using your lives to buy time so that he can escape safely! Why waste your lives for such a despicable villain!"

Such shouting was very effective, because Guan Yu was telling the truth. Even the slow-witted ordinary soldiers of Cao's army could fully understand what was happening under such a psychological attack.

Xu Huang wanted to hold out for a little longer, or fantasize that he could bring back some of the remnants alive. But he couldn't do it. He just barely held out for the shortest time Cao Ren allowed, and then abandoned the army and fled with his cavalry.

Xu Huang himself finally managed to escape back to Liang County successfully.

Guan Yu easily wiped out the 5,000 men who were left behind, and then chased them all the way to Liang County.

He saw that Cao Ren and Xu Huang had already fled back to the city with light equipment, and had even thrown away a lot of things along the way in order to speed up.

The terrain near Liang County was also quite dangerous, and Guan Yu did not want to advance too deep into the enemy's territory alone, as this would cause logistical difficulties.

So they collected the spoils of war for a while, and slowly retreated to the south side of the Funiu Valley Road with a full load. They also left a camp blocking the road to the north of Luyang County, and had their generals reinforce it day and night.

The actual controlled front line between Jingzhou and Sili by the armies of Cao and Liu finally advanced to the boundary of Funiu Mountain.

From then on, both sides set up camps and reinforced their positions on both sides of the valley entrance. Everyone knew that it would be difficult for both sides to launch further attacks in this direction. The border between Cao and Liu was very long, and there were many other battlefields more suitable for attack in the future. There was no need to gnaw on the chicken ribs here.

Therefore, when either Cao or Liu has recovered in a year or two, the war will not start here again. Whether it is Hebei or Huaibei, it is easier to win a victory than in the Funiu Mountain area.

At this point, the last county of Jingzhou finally returned to Liu Bei's hands, and the Jingbei Campaign came to an end.

This battle lasted from April of the 13th year of Jian'an to June of the 14th year of Jian'an.
In the end, Cao Cao didn't get any land, while Liu Bei completely took over Liu Biao's inheritance.

Cao Cao not only failed to gain any territory, but also lost more than 100,000 active forces in Jingzhou, resulting in Cao Cao's camp having fewer combat troops than Liu Bei's camp.
And the gap is not just a few millimeters, but at least more than 10%.

(End of this chapter)