I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 424 The First Battle
Just as Zhou Yu had predicted.

Despite both fighting in the Central Plains, the logistical pressure on Northern Zhao was far less than that on the Han Dynasty.

The shorter supply lines and the continued use of a conscription system allowed Northern Zhao to mobilize its army even faster than the Han Dynasty. Just half a month later, a well-organized army had already crossed the river at Yanjin, set foot on the land of Yanzhou, and begun to approach the border between the two countries—the Ji River.

The general of this Yuan army was Yuan Chunqing, a relative of Yuan Shao.

Wearing an iron helmet, Yuan Chunqing urged his soldiers forward, and soon they would be able to see the outline of Guandu.

General Wen Ping, the Han general who led the southern expedition, personally led his troops to garrison this place. Yuan Chunqing was also a little troubled when he saw the banner with the character "Wen".

Wen Ping was known for his integrity and prudent conduct.

Whether it was blocking Cao Cao under Liu Biao's command or blocking Yuan Shao under Liu Miao's command, Wen Ping demonstrated the courage and competence of a first-class general.

Now that Wen Ping is stationed here, it's as if a huge mountain is blocking the way, making it impossible for anyone to know where to begin.

Fortunately, Yuan Chunqing's arrival here was merely a probe. After a few feints, Yuan Chunqing set up camp on the spot, refusing to engage in a direct confrontation with Wen Ping.

Seeing that Yuan Chunqing was not attacking, Wen Ping immediately wrote a letter to Cheng Pu in Xingyang.

"In the past, Cao Cao was able to hold Guandu because he occupied Luoyang and Henan, thus ensuring the safety of Xingyang in the north. Now these places are in Yuan Shao's hands, and Yuan's army will surely launch a fierce attack from the north. I hope you will be extremely careful."

Two days after Cheng Pu received Wen Pin's letter, traces of Yuan's army appeared to the north and west.

【Chunyu】

Upon seeing the banner, Cheng Pu knew that it was another familiar face.

Chunyu Qiong, one of the former Eight Colonels of the Western Garden!

Chunyu Qiong led his infantry and cavalry to surround Xingyang. Seeing that Xingyang was once a major city in the Central Plains, and had been diligently repaired by Zhou Yu, with high walls and thick fortifications, he sent his soldiers forward to hurl insults.

"Cheng Pu! Do you really think you can defy fate with these old bones? Are you really not afraid of losing your life here and being left with no trace of your remains?"

Cheng Pu has been in Jingnan all these years.

Although he still commands troops, he has gradually shifted his focus to internal affairs, and his temperament and self-cultivation have improved considerably compared to when he was often in the army.

Upon hearing Chunyu Qiong's cursing, Cheng Pu not only didn't get angry, but instead chuckled.

"I am a bit older than your general, but I have always remembered the four words: propriety, righteousness, integrity, and a sense of shame!"

"Chunyu Qiong was originally the Commandant of the Western Garden, trusted by the Han emperor! Now he has defected to the Yuan family, truly a disloyal and unjust person!"

"I, Cheng Pu, don't know if I'll be reduced to ashes! But I do know that if your general's heart were to be ripped out, it would surely be black!"

When you're going to insult someone, you have to make sure you hit the mark.

Cheng Pu is old, and Cheng Pu naturally knows that!
But throughout history, who hasn't grown old?
Especially in Jingnan, it was inevitable that Cheng Pu would hear and see many of the teachings of the Hundred Schools of Thought that came from Xiangyang.

Wang Chong's statement, "The essence and energy are the blood vessels. When a person dies, the blood vessels are exhausted, the essence and energy are destroyed, the body decays, and it becomes ashes. What use is it to become a ghost?" significantly enhanced Cheng Pu's understanding.

Everyone gets old, and everyone dies.

Since that's the case, why be upset about gray hair? Why be saddened by the loss of black hair?
Therefore, Cheng Pu was completely unfazed by Chunyu Qiong's insults about his age, while Chunyu Qiong was somewhat taken aback after hearing Cheng Pu's words.

Eight Colonels of the Western Garden.

That was an elite force established by Emperor Xiaoling in the Western Garden of Luoyang, the capital, to divide the military power of General He Jin.

Xiao Huangmen Jian Shuo.

Yuan Shao, the Tiger-like General of the Central Army.

Commandant of the Cavalry, Bao Hong.

Cao Cao, a court advisor.

……

These people were supposed to be among the most trusted by the Han emperor, who hoped they would ultimately protect the Han dynasty and safeguard the new ruler.

But as it turns out, they defended nothing!
Hearing Cheng Pu accuse him of disloyalty and injustice, Chunyu Qiong's blood boiled, and he didn't hesitate to ride forward and personally exchange insults with Cheng Pu.

"The Mandate of Heaven for the Yuan family was abdicated by the Duke of Shanyang to the Duke of Yuan! I have always served the Emperor, so how can I be accused of disloyalty?"

Chunyu Qiong tried to justify himself.

He was not loyal to any particular emperor or dynasty.

What I pledge allegiance to is destiny!
Previously, the Mandate of Heaven rested on Emperor Xiaoling, so naturally, he pledged his loyalty to Emperor Xiaoling. But now that the Mandate of Heaven has fallen on the Yuan family, naturally, he will pledge his loyalty to Yuan Shu!
Unexpectedly, Cheng Pu burst into laughter on the city wall after hearing this!

"Chunyu Qiong! You can fool others with this, but you can't fool me!"

"Back when the warlords of Guandong formed an alliance to fight against Dong Zhuo, I was fighting alongside the Marquis of Wucheng! I know what that old bastard Yuan Shao is thinking."

The longer you live, the more you'll see.

Especially Cheng Pu, who had followed Sun Jian and was active on the most central stage at the time, was very knowledgeable about many things.

"When Dong Zhuo deposed and installed Liu Xie as emperor, did Yuan Shao recognize that emperor? If so, why did he go to Youzhou to try to make Liu Yu emperor?"

"They didn't recognize him then, but later they intercepted Liu Xie in Xuchang and then recognized him as the emperor? How can the Mandate of Heaven be so arbitrary, whether it exists or not, and to whom it resides?"

Cheng Pu mercilessly exposed Yuan Shao's true colors.

"You're nothing but a traitor to the Han! What are you trying to prove by pretending to be a loyal minister? Even Wang Mang in the past could have done it better than your master Yuan Shao!"

Chunyu Qiong was furious. He drew his ring-pommel sword and pointed it at Cheng Pu: "You old scoundrel! After I break through the city, I will definitely take your tongue!"

"Very well! When you come before me, I will surely take your head and place it before Wenling as a proper sacrifice to Emperor Xiaoling! Let him see what kind of vicious dogs he raised back then!"

"what!!!"

Chunyu Qiong was already furious and unable to control himself when he saw Cheng Pu referring to Emperor Xiaoling repeatedly!
"You old scoundrel! You're asking for death!"

Chunyu Qiong didn't want to waste his breath arguing with Cheng Pu, and he didn't want to continue to humiliate himself!

"Siege!"

Chunyu Qiong led an army of 30,000! Together with Yuan Chunqing's troops on the opposite bank of Guandu, Yuan's army had committed a total of 50,000 troops to this flank of the western front. However, Cheng Pu and Wen Ping had only 20,000 troops under their command.

In this localized battle, Yuan's army was already gaining the upper hand over the Han army.

However, Cheng Pu and Chunyu Qiong were clearly not in a hurry.

After all, their mission was not to stop Yuan's army here, but to slow down their advance.

By utilizing the width and length of the Central Plains, Zhou Yu aimed to stretch the supply lines of Yuan Shao's army, thus trapping them in a war of attrition. This was Zhou Yu's intended strategy!
Meanwhile, the various fortified villages in the rear have also begun to take action.

After the last battle, the Central Plains was no longer as prosperous as it had been when Cao Cao was still alive.

Yuan Shao abducted the emperor and his officials, and many powerful families followed him back to Hebei, further replenishing the already densely populated Hebei.

Ordinary people dared not stay in the Central Plains where there was no security, so in just a few years, the Central Plains returned to the desolate state it had been after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, with a small population.

In order to keep as much of the population as possible in the Central Plains, the amount of land allocated to the Central Plains was actually much greater than that in Jiangdong and Jingzhou.

However, having too much land on equal footing is clearly not a good thing.

"I won't go! I won't go even if I die!"

The generals in charge of guarding the fortified villages in various places had an extremely important task: to move the grain and the nearby people to the fortified villages before Yuan's army arrived, so as to achieve the effect of clearing the fields.

But clearly, not everyone agrees with this idea.

Wei Yan, who had previously followed Liu Miao to Guanzhong, returned to the Central Plains and was assigned to a large fortified village in Yingchuan County.

However, a soldier quickly came to report: "General! Someone is unwilling to enter the fortified village!"

"Damn it! What kind of time is this to cause trouble? Do you have to wait until the Yuan army attacks before you realize you're afraid of death?"

Wei Yan stormed to the field, only to find a family of three—the parents and daughter—tied to a large tree, muttering something under their breath.

Enraged by this scene, Wei Yan immediately stepped forward, intending to slap the man across the face. However, seeing his wife and daughter watching, Wei Yan ultimately couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he sternly demanded, "How dare you defy military law?"

"Sir! General! I dare not!"

The man looked honest and simple, with dark, tanned skin and thick calluses on his hands and shoulders, clearly a hardworking man.

"General! Didn't we agree that this land would be ours? Why are you driving us to another place? This is breaking your promise!"

Wei Yan snapped at the other man again: "Who are you calling a liar! Huh?"

"Uncle, please, please don't scold Father."

The man's daughter, being young and short, jumped out and hugged Wei Yan's leg when she saw him arrive.

When Wei Yan saw the little guy who was only waist-high, his anger subsided somewhat.

He picked up the girl and held her in his arms, his tone softening considerably.

"I didn't say the land wasn't yours! I just want you to take the food and seek refuge in the fortified village!"

“That fortified village was built by the Xun family of Yingchuan in the past, and it’s very sturdy! There’s also a lot of timber stored inside, enough for your family to get through this winter!”

Although the man had an honest face, there was a cunning in his eyes typical of people from the lower classes, or perhaps it was a disguise he had to wear to protect himself: "Then, can't I not go? I can take care of myself. My house was newly built this year, and I can't bear to leave..."

"What good will that do! When Yuan Jun comes rushing in like a flood, what will you do to block him with your head!"

Wei Yan cursed a couple of times, but seeing that the little girl in his arms was about to tug at his beard, he could only try to reason with her.

"When the Yuan army comes charging in, starving, no amount of surplus grain in your household will be enough to feed them!"

"Moreover, the army is full of men as fierce as wolves and tigers! When they see your wife and daughters, do you think they can resist?"

The man's face gradually turned pale.

Wei Yan suddenly realized what was happening and glared at the man again: "You son of a bitch! You don't actually think I'd steal your grain, do you?"

"Holy crap! Do you know that His Majesty didn't collect any grain from the Central Plains for this battle? Apart from a portion used for military supplies, the rest was stored in the fortified villages. I only have a little over three hundred soldiers under my command. Even if we ate ten meals a day, we couldn't finish them all, believe it or not?"

The man's face turned bright red, clearly because Wei Yan had guessed his thoughts.

"Let me tell you! Just leave obediently! Once Yuan's army retreats, the land will still be yours! The grain will still be yours! Don't harbor any illusions! I remember this land of yours used to belong to some powerful family! Do you really think that when they return, they will let you continue to occupy this land? Stop dreaming!"

When the time comes, the Hebei aristocratic families will get a share, the Northern Zhao meritorious officials will get a share, and the rest will be returned to the former Central Plains aristocratic families to maintain their rule. How could it be your turn, a peasant?
Wei Yan cursed twice more, then ordered his personal guards to cut the ropes binding the other man.

"I came here out of pity for you! But Yuan Jun and those ruthless tyrants won't pity you! They'll only think you're a thief! They'll think you're a thief who stole their farmland while they were away!"

"If you truly don't care about the life or death of your wife and daughters, or naively believe that those people will give you the land when they return, then you can continue to stay here!"

The man hesitated for a moment, then finally said, somewhat embarrassed, "Then I'll go back... and pack up?"

"You should have cleaned up a long time ago!"

Wei Yan put the little girl down, but just as he bent down, he clearly felt the tip of her nose brush against his cheek.

"Thank you uncle."

"Hey!"

Wei Yan, who was supposed to get angry today, couldn't vent his anger even once!

He patted the little girl's head: "You're more sensible than your father!"

"Hurry up! There are limited spots in the fortified village! If you arrive late, you'll have to share a room with someone else!"

"Good! Good!"

Watching the family of three leave, the little girl kept turning back to wave goodbye. Wei Yan could only laugh and scold, "She's such a worry!"

At the same time, Wei Yan instructed his personal guards: "If there are any more like this, just tie them up and take them back to the fortified village! Save me the trouble of worrying about it!"

"Here!"

(End of this chapter)