Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 314: Western Expedition to Longyou, Replacement of Chanyu

On April 20th, when Zhang Yu was about to lead his army to attack Long, the generals in Longshang, led by Han Sui and Ma Teng, called on the Qiang people in Longshang to rebel.

Ma Teng led 10,000 troops to besiege Ji County, hoping to force Hanyang Governor Zhang Ze to surrender and cut off the Chencang-Weishui Road. However, Zhang Ze knew that Zhang Yu would attack Long soon, so he refused to surrender and asked Shanggui County Magistrate Yan Wen to go to Long to ask for help from Zhang Yu, who had not yet mobilized his troops.

In May, Yan Wen went down the Wei River and met Zhang Liao's troops in Chencang. Zhang Liao sent cavalry to escort Yan Wen to Anyi in May, where he reported his experience to Zhang Yu and asked him to send troops to relieve Ji County.

Anyi, the general's mansion.

In the meeting hall, a sand table of Longyou was placed. According to the intelligence feedback from Yan Wen, the rebels in Longshang were marked one by one on the sand table, and the mountains and rivers such as Longshan and Weishui were distributed, so the terrain of Longyou was clearly visible.

Yan Wen pointed at the sand table and said, "Ma Teng was originally a general in Guanzhong. He followed the troops of the six counties of Liangzhou to attack the kingdom. However, due to the withholding of military funds, he rebelled with Li Can, the governor of Longxi, and joined forces with Han Sui to kill Geng Bi and weaken the counties of Hanyang. After Li Can died of illness, Ma Teng annexed Li Can's troops and thus occupied the area between Hanyang and Longyou counties."

"Hearing that you will attack Longyou, Han Sui united with the generals in Longshang and the Qiang, Di and Hu tribes to rebel. Now Ma Teng has laid siege to Ji County. He intends to cut off the Weishui River and then rely on the danger of Longshan Mountain to resist Zhang Hou's army together with the generals."

"The terrain of Ji County is complex, with ridges, hills, ditches and gullies undulating and crisscrossing, and bays, flatlands, rivers and shoals crisscrossing like a chessboard, making it a dangerous place. Moreover, Ji County is located on the Wei River and controls the Wei River channel. In the past, Emperor Guangwu was able to go down to Longyou because of Lueyang, and now Ji County is called Zhang Hou's Lueyang. I implore Zhang Hou to send troops to rescue it." Yan Wen bowed to Zhang Yu and said in a deep voice.

"Lao Bojian has been traveling all the way out of Long. All the soldiers under my command are ready for battle. Let's discuss the marching strategy with the civil and military officials. We will be able to march west soon and rescue Governor Zhang." Zhang Yu stretched out his hand to help Yan Wen up, and said soothingly.

"Thank you Ming Gong!"

Zhang Yu pointed at the sand table and said, "In the past, Ma Yuan piled rice into a mountain, and Emperor Taizu defeated the enemy with his guidance. Now you are a scholar from Longyou, and you are well versed in the geography of Longyou. I hope you can be my guide."

"I'm delighted!" Yan Wen agreed without hesitation.

After chatting for a few words, Yan Wen tactfully withdrew into the crowd, waiting for Zhang Yu's follow-up questions.

Zhang Yu looked at Ma Teng's army marked on the sand table and asked, "Ma Teng has many Han and Qiang soldiers and horses, more than 10,000 people. They are now surrounding Ji County. What do you think our army should do?"

Jia Xu pondered for a moment and said, "Liu Yan of Yizhou has passed away, and Sun Jian is heading west to attack Bashu. Judging from the situation in Bashu, Yizhou will have difficulty in helping Longyou, let alone sending troops to Wudu. If we want to relieve the siege of Ji County, why not order General Man to go north to Qishan Road, and you can send troops to help General Man urgently, or send a brave general to go against the Weishui Road and help Ji County."

Zhang Yu paced back and forth, holding his sword, and said, "The reason why Ma Teng took Ji County was because he was afraid that the Wei River would be unobstructed. So, as I expected, Ma Teng has sent troops to Shanggui to stop him. Now, if you want to relieve Ji County, you must use Man Chong's troops."

Jia Xu added: "Your Highness's worries are not without reason, but Man Chong has only a few thousand soldiers. If you send a small number of troops to support him, it will not be enough to lift the siege of Ji County. If you send a large number of troops to enter Chencang, it will be difficult to supply food and grass. Send a general to the west along the Wei River. If Ma Teng leads his troops to block them, then his troops will be tied down. If you do not send a general to resist, you can work with Man Chong to lift the siege of Ji County."

Xun You stroked his beard and thought, then said, "What Wenhe said makes sense. Your Excellency should send troops to ease the danger in Ji County first, and then you can lead the army to Longshan Road to Longyou to confront Han Sui's army. At that time, the enemy will be unable to resist and will be defeated."

Zhang Yu nodded and said, "What you two said is exactly what I want to say. The art of war is to win by using the normal and the unconventional. If the army takes the Longshan Road and is blocked in Lueyang, when the soldiers and food are exhausted, it will be the day for the army to withdraw and return. If we divide our troops to relieve the siege of Ji County, the enemy will find it difficult to stop the army in Lueyang."

"In that case, I wonder which general you want to send to go up the Wei River, and how many troops will be added to Man Boying's troops?" Zhong Yao asked.

"Generals Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, and Li Song are all capable of leading armies to fight. If we want to take the Wei River route and lift the siege of Ji County, I'm afraid it will take a great general to do the job," Lu Fan reminded.

Zhang Yu smiled and pressed his sword, saying, "In that case, let Xu Huang lead his troops to go against the Wei River, add 2,000 soldiers to Man Chong, and order Man Chong to march cautiously and be careful of Ma Teng's ambush on the way. If Man Chong and Xu Huang join forces, the one who reaches Ji County first will be the commander, and the two will work together!"

"As ordered!"

After a pause, Zhang Yu picked up the thin pole on the sand table and pointed, saying: "I will lead Zhang Liao, Zhang Ji, Yang Qiu, Cheng Pu, Shi Yi and other five divisions, a total of six armies, 30,000 people to the west to attack Longyou. Guo Tu will be the commander-in-chief, Xun You and Jia Xu will be the military advisors, Zhao Zi will be the advisor, and Yan Wen will be the guide."

"Li Song stationed in Anyi, Hao Zhao guarded Shangdang, Zhang Yang stationed in Henei, and Lü Fan served as the governor of Shangdang and the commander-in-chief to coordinate the military affairs of Bingzhou. Sun Zi used Fengyi to assist Zhang Feng in guarding Tongguan. If there was a rebellion in Guanzhong, Li Song would lead the army to suppress it."

"The affairs of the General's Office will be handled by the Military Advisor General Zhong Yao, assisted by the Hedong Governor Du Ji, and the rest of the civil servants will return to their original positions."

"I will obey the general's order!"

Everyone accepted the order and went about their business according to Zhang Yu's assignment. Zhong Yao stayed in the hall for a while because he had something unresolved.

After everyone left, Zhong Yao came forward and said, "My lord, Lü Bu had fought a great battle with Cao Cao in Juye, but because Yuan Shao intervened in Yanzhou and sent generals to reinforce Cao Cao, Lü Bu and Chen Gong retreated to Dingtao, and relied on Yuzhou for support with Zhang Miao. Now Yuan Shu sent Ji Ling as the general to lead 10,000 troops to the north."

Then Zhong Yao took out the letter and gave it to Zhang Yu, saying, "In addition to Yuan Shu's troops, Lu Bu also sent an envoy to ask for help from our army. I wonder if our army will send troops?"

Zhang Yu read the contents of the letter and asked, "Does Yuan Chang think that we should send troops?"

Zhong Yao pondered for a moment and said, "Lü Bu was sent by you. He fought with you in the past. If you don't send troops to help him now, I'm afraid Lu Bu will be disappointed. But now that you are about to march west to Longyou, I'm afraid you don't have the energy to help Lu Bu."

Zhang Yu invited Zhong Yao to sit on the couch and said, "What you said is what worries me, but considering the relationship between our army and Lu Bu, we have to send troops!" "Then I wonder how many troops you want to send to Lu Bu, and who will be the general?" Zhong Yao asked.

Zhang Yu frowned slightly, and then someone suggested, "How about letting Ke Bi lead 2,000 infantry and cavalry to support Lu Bu?"

"Kirby?"

Zhong Yao hesitated and said, "Although Kebi is your confidant and has made many contributions under Li Song, I don't know how capable he is of leading troops alone. Moreover, he is a Hu from the northern border and does not know the customs of the Han people. Now let him lead the infantry and cavalry to Yanzhou. Given the complicated situation in Yanzhou, I am afraid Kebi will not be able to cope with it."

The current battle situation in Yanzhou can be described as raising poison, gathering all the major forces in the world to fight. Although Kobe dominated the grassland in history, under Zhang Yu's intentional or unintentional control in the early days, Kobe's development was actually suppressed.

It was inevitable that Zhong Yao would be worried when Ke Bi, who had no experience in commanding troops alone and was of Hu descent, was sent to Yanzhou with 2,000 infantry and cavalry.

Zhang Yu smiled and said, "Kobe's military ability is not inferior to Shi Yi. Although he has no experience in commanding troops alone, he has experienced many battles since he followed me. Now let him go to Yanzhou. I don't ask him to defeat Cao Cao, but if he can relieve Lu Bu's worries and boost the momentum of our army, it will be a very good thing."

Zhang Yu's territory was getting bigger and bigger, and there were only two or three generals who were capable of taking charge. In the future, there would be more and more generals needed, so Zhang Yu planned to train other generals, such as Man Chong, Ke Bi, Shi Yi, etc. Before, he let Man Chong and Xu Huang, whoever arrived at Ji County first, become the commander, which was Zhang Yu's intention to give Man Chong a chance.

"Then it's up to you, my Lord!"

Seeing that Zhang Yu had his own ideas, Zhong Yao didn't say much.

"When I'm not at home, if Lu Bu sends an envoy asking for help, Yuan Chang should try his best to allocate supplies to support him. If Lu Bu is expelled from Yanzhou, he can be allowed to stay in Luoyang." Zhang Yu instructed.

"As ordered!"

Zhong Yao said, "Besides the matter of Lü Bu, I have something else to report. Now the Xiongnu Chanyu Yufuluo is seriously ill and is on his bed. I wonder what you would like to do?"

……

Lishi is the capital of the Chanyu.

In the mansion hall, Yu Fuluo was lying on the bed, and his younger brother Hu Chuquan was serving him.

"Did you know that Zhang Yu will send troops to attack Longyou soon?" Yu Furuo asked weakly.

"How could I not know!"

Huochuquan said: "Zhang Yu promised to restore the country for my brother, but now he has only placed you and me in Lishi, letting my brother defend the border of Bingzhou, and using my brother's reputation to recruit the Xiongnu tribe, which is really contrary to the old words."

Yu Fuluo was quite open-minded and said, "After Zhang Yu sent troops to conquer many times, and you and I sent troops to conquer and pacify, a large number of Xiongnu tribes have returned, and only half of the relatives and nobles led their troops to refuse to join. From this, it can be seen that Zhang Yu has restored our country. Moreover, the world is in chaos today, and Zhang Yu is focused on conquering powerful enemies, so it is difficult for him to take care of you and me."

Huochuquan looked depressed and said, "How can you speak for Zhang Yu?"

Yu Fuluo coughed a few times and said, "I am not speaking for Zhang Yu, but the Xiongnu are attached to Zhang Yu, deeply influenced by him, and share his glory and disgrace. Now Zhang Yu is on a long expedition to Longyou, you should lead your elite troops to join the army."

"Why?"

Huochuquan could not understand and said, "Since Zhang Yu has not sent a letter to summon us, why should we send troops to follow him now? If we attack Long, it will be a fierce battle, which will only lead to casualties."

"No!"

Yu Fuluo sighed and said, "The Xiongnu have been controlled by Zhang Yu. All the leaders of the tribes obey Zhang Yu's orders, but the people of our tribe can obey you and me. I am afraid that after I die, Zhang Yu will not intend to let you succeed to the throne. So if you want to succeed to the throne safely, you need to show your loyalty to Zhang Yu now."

Hearing this, Huochuquan understood what his brother meant and said, "My brother wants me to follow Zhang Yu and make meritorious contributions for him so that Zhang Yu can recommend me to succeed him."

"I hope you understand my deep meaning!"

Yu Fuluo held Huchuquan's hand and said, "You will lead your cavalry to serve us now, and present the Chanyu seal to Zhang Yu, saying that I am unable to manage the affairs, and ask him to find a virtuous person to serve as Chanyu for the Xiongnu. Moreover, if Zhang Yu recommends someone else to be Chanyu, you should not be angry, for Zhang Yu will surely reward you..."

"it is good!"

Huochuquan understood that his brother was entrusting him with his final arrangements, so he suppressed his inner sadness and agreed to all the requests.

(End of this chapter)