Chapter 800 Bad luck
No matter whether the Shu captives at both ends were elite or not, the fact that Yuezhi City and Jingyang City were lost cannot be changed.
Now Hu Zun faces two choices.
One is to retreat to Linjing and wait for reinforcements from Chang'an.
One is to abandon Linjing and run directly back to Chang'an.
Although Anding County goes south, it has to pass through Xinping, Fuyi Hujun and other counties before reaching Chang'an.
But since the loss of Longyou, except for Chang'an, most of the garrison in Guanzhong were transferred to several important strongholds such as Qixian and Chencang in Fufeng County, and the rest were placed in Anding.
Even Beidi County, which was originally used as a barrier to Chang'an, is now guarded by local county soldiers.
If stability is lost, the Shu captives north of Chang'an can basically drive straight down the Jingshui River and attack Jingzhao.
Thinking of this, Hu Zun asked with some trembling:
“Have you sent any news to Chang’an?”
At this time, he felt extremely regretful. If he had listened to Xiahou Ba's words, he would have lost his face and directly asked Chang'an for help.
So if we retreat to Linjing now, we can be a little more sure.
Of course, Hu Shoujiang didn't know what Hu Zun was thinking. When he heard Hu Zun's question, his face froze and he said in a squeaky voice:
“As soon as Jingyang is lost, I will come directly to remind General Xiahou and the prefect. Besides, how can I dare to make the decision in private on such a major matter?”
He was not trying to shirk the situation. After all, with his status, how could he be qualified to talk directly to Chang'an?
Hu Zun’s heart suddenly went cold!
However, although he is where he is today because he pacified the Hu family, he still has some ability after all.
After determining that the matter was irreversible, he quickly reacted:
"The Shu captives in Jingyang are probably on their way to Jing at this time. Fortunately, I led the army back in advance and will arrive in Linjing tomorrow. I think it's still too late."
Thinking of this, he quickly wrote three handwritten letters and stamped them with his own seal. After sealing them, he sent out fast horses to send them to Chang'an.
When General Hu saw Hu Zun sending a message to Chang'an, he moved his lips as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he said nothing.
Hu Zun was only focused on arranging things to deal with the upcoming emergency, and did not notice the somewhat unusual look on General Hu's face.
After arranging things, he asked General Hu to rush back to Linjing to make preparations. He then urged the army to move quickly.
No matter what the situation of the Shu captives at Yuezhi City and Jingyang City is now, and no matter whether he will defend Linjing or retreat to Chang'an in the end, he must go back first and figure out the situation of the Shu captives as much as possible.
Hu Shou ran back to Jingyang from Wushi City, then ran from Jingyang to Linjing, then ran from Linjing to find Hu Zun, and now he was sent back to Linjing by Hu Zun.
I have been running all the way these days, and I am really exhausted.
He took Hu Zun's order and rushed back to Linjing. He ordered the whole city to be sealed and no one was allowed to enter or leave at will. Only then could he breathe a sigh of relief.
As for what will happen next, it depends on what your brother decides, and that is none of your business.
After doing all this, he personally visited various city gates to show his devotion to his duties.
The sudden closure of Linjing City caused many people in the city to panic.
There were rumors a few days ago that the Shu captives sent troops from Xiaoguan to stabilize the situation.
Two days ago, there was another rumor that Wushi City and Jingyang City had been lost, so many people started to pack up their gold and silver and prepare to flee south to Chang'an.
Now that Linjing has been suddenly closed down, it seems that the rumors are probably true, and I am afraid that the Shu captives are about to come.
For a time, there were a lot of discussions and rumors in the city.
Those who were preparing to flee south but had no time to leave the city were particularly anxious. Many people were looking for news and asking when they could leave the city.
One of them saw General Hu Shou and his soldiers coming to inspect, and he directly found an opening to shout:
“This general is someone who is stranded in Hebei and is now in a hurry to return to his hometown. May I ask when the city gate can be opened?”
General Hu turned around impatiently and said:
“It’s up to the prefect to decide when to open the city gate, so... hmm? Hmm!”
Halfway through his words, he saw the face of the person coming clearly, and his eyes widened immediately: "It's you!"
When the visitor saw the face of General Hu clearly, he secretly cried out in pain!
“It’s not me, it’s not me, the general got the wrong person!”
Shi Bao hurriedly covered his face and tried to escape.
But General Hu could not allow him to run away, so he immediately shouted: "This man is a careful worker, catch him quickly!"
Not to mention the soldiers below, even the officials around them were at this sensitive moment. When they heard General Hu shouting like this, they all shouted together, threw Shi Bao down and pinned him down. .
Shi Bao was pressed at the bottom. He felt like there was a thousand kilograms of weight on his body. He couldn't even breathe. His eyes suddenly went dark!
“Some...someone is not...careful...careful work!"
He only felt that he was taking in less air and outgoing more air, so he could only muster his last breath and shout intermittently.
It’s just that his voice is weak. Don’t say that people can’t hear what he is shouting. Even if they hear it, who will listen to him?
General Hu Shou came forward, separated the crowd, and asked the soldiers to tie him up.
When the soldiers were tying up the man, they felt that his body was bulging. He reached out and took out a lot of good things, including a few pieces of paper, which were very exquisite.
General Hu took it over and saw that it was actually candy coupons and cloth coupons. His eyes lit up immediately, and he pointed at Shi Bao and said:
"How dare you say that you are not a craftsman or a stable person, so how did you get so much gold and silver? How do you explain these notes?"
To Kanto, these bills may be just a piece of paper.
But for those with connections in Guanzhong, which is close to Longyou and Hanzhong, Han candy stamps and cloth stamps are simply hard currency harder than five baht coins.
Because the Han people would have special caravans coming every year, as long as you took these notes, you could exchange them for real brown sugar and wool.
It’s not that no one has had the idea of forging these bills, it’s just that the Han bills, regardless of whether they are paper or ink, are all high-quality items made with a unique secret recipe.
Just to say that it was accidentally stained with water, as long as you don’t crush it, the font on it will not be blurred after it dries, which is enough to be amazing.
Not to mention, it is rumored that there is a unique secret word on it, which only Han people can read.
Hence, no one except the Han people could make the money he took out from Shi Bao's arms.
Shi Bao shouted that he was wronged: "General, these tickets are for..."
At this point, his face turned pale and he could no longer shout.
General Guan...isn't he a general of the Han people?
Others may not have noticed the word "Guan", but General Hu was very sensitive to it.
At that moment, he wanted to kill Shi Bao on the spot to satisfy his hatred: This evil thief was really hateful. If it weren't for this evil thief's rumors that deceived people's hearts, how could Jingyang City be lost so easily?
It's all this thief's fault!
Just that he didn't say that his elder brother, the prefect, asked him to seal the city, but he didn't say what to do next.
Even the final decision the clan will make, he himself does not know.
This person first spread rumors in Jingyang City, and now he came to Linjing with gold and silver notes. His purpose is self-evident.
Thinking of this, General Hu had to hold back his anger and ordered:
“Put this masterpiece on death row and no one can get close to it!”
If the clan decides to cooperate with the Han people, that's it. If not, let's see how I can defeat you!
As for Shi Bao’s belongings, they were all searched, allowing General Hu to make a considerable windfall.
Shi Bao has been memorizing characters over the years.
Last time I survived a catastrophe in Jingyang, I thought I had been transported, but I didn't expect that these belongings were thrown out again before they were warmed by me.
At this moment, he almost doubted his life: Could it be that I was really born poor? Can't make money?
In September of the eighth year of Jianxing, Feng Yong, the Han Qiang guard captain, left Xiaoguan. He sent Guan Suo to lead the army to attack Wushi and Jingyang, and he led his fine cavalry to attack Yuezhi City.
Most of the Wei army in Anding County was led by Feng Yong. Guan Suo took the opportunity to quickly attack Wushi and Jingyang, opened the door to Anding, and advanced to Linjing, the county seat.
Feng Yong also used a plan to break through Yuezhi City, and responded to Guansuo from afar to attack Linjing from a flank.
Xian Yufu, the guard general of the Wei army in Chang'an, learned that Jingyang City and Yuezhi City were lost, so he led the Chang'an army northward overnight in order to rescue An'an.
Unexpectedly, only halfway through, we got the news that Hu Zun had surrendered the whole city.
Xian Yufu was so shocked that he had to garrison Xinping County to prevent the Shu captives from continuing southward. At the same time, he sent fast horses to inform Cao Zhen in the south of the fall of Anding County.
The news that one of the northern barriers of Chang'an was lost shocked Guanzhong.
Countless fast horses passed through Tongguan, galloping all the way to Xuchang.
When it was decided to let Cao Zhen send troops to attack the Shu captives, Cao Rui went east to patrol Xuchang.
On the surface it was to inspect the old capital, but in fact it was to prevent Soochow from taking the opportunity to send troops.
The news of the loss of An Ding reached Xuchang, which shocked the ministers who followed him.
More news came from Guanzhong, saying that Cao Zhen was leading his army in the Ziwu Valley. Due to continuous heavy rains, the plank road was damaged and the army had to dig a road.
It’s almost a month now, but we’re only halfway there.
Yang Fu, the young man, has always been upright. When he learned about the war in Guanzhong, he was so anxious that he wrote a letter overnight:
"Now Wu and Shu are not at peace, but the weather has repeatedly changed. When the armies begin to advance, there will be dangers of rain. The dangers of Jilu Mountain have been accumulating for many days. The labor of transportation and the suffering of burdens have already cost a lot. If there is any If it continues, it will violate this plan.”
"Now the great Sima has trapped the six armies in the valley. There is no way to advance and no way to retreat. This is not the way of a king's army!"
Cao Rui responded to the edict: "The Great Sima is in charge of all matters in Guanxi. He must have his own ideas. Moreover, the military situation in front of the battle is constantly changing. How can we, thousands of miles away, mess up our position?"
Wang Lang died in the sixth year of Jianxing. His son Wang Su was appointed as the regular servant of Sanqi. He followed Yang Fu and wrote to Cao Rui to persuade Cao Rui:
"When marching on a plain road, they have to feed food for thousands of miles, and the soldiers are hungry, and the firewood harvesters are behind the Cuan, so the divisions are not full. What's more, the commander-in-chief goes deep into the danger, encounters heavy rain, and the mountains are steep and slippery."
“The army cannot be deployed in deep mountains and canyons, and the supply of food and grass is a hundred times more difficult than on plain roads. This is really a taboo for marchers!”
"Now there is another fierce bandit named Feng Thief, who invades Anding from the north and disrupts Guanzhong. The army is trapped in the deep mountains and canyons. If they are disturbed by the Ge thieves who cut the trails and cannot return to Guanzhong in time, Feng Thieves will have no one to control them, and Guanzhong will be in danger!"
Cao Rui replied: "This is an exaggeration! How can Feng Zeian be so arrogant? I heard that this person is known as a clever talker in Shu. I think he is just a villain who takes advantage of the situation to achieve success!"
Unexpectedly, when Yang Fu heard this, he became furious and shouted loudly:
"Feng Thief is cunning and good at using soldiers. How can An Neng look down on him? I dare to ask Your Majesty, how many people in the Wei army can compare with General Zhang He?"
Cao Rui was speechless.
Yang Fu was sensible and refused to let others go: "I have been in Guanyou for a long time, and I have always known that the Qiang and Hu are unruly. The Feng thief has only been in Longyou for three years, and he has won the hearts of the Qiang and Hu."
"If we allow them to be stabilized, they can interact with the Hu people in the north of Beidi County. If the Qiang Hu incident in Longyou happens again, I'm afraid Guanzhong will no longer be owned by the Wei Dynasty!"
The so-called Qiang and Hu incident in Longyou refers to the second year of Taihe. The Shu captives took advantage of Wei's unpreparedness and attacked Longyou. The Qiang and Hu rebelled against Wei and became a traitor after hearing the name of Feng thief.
Zhang He and Feng Thief fought in a street pavilion and were locked in a stalemate. Unexpectedly, they were attacked from behind by the Qiang and Hu, and they were defeated.
Beidi County is located directly north of Chang'an and is one of the most important barriers in Guanzhong.
"If the Hu people in the north of Beidi County also follow the Qiang Hu incident in Longyou, then there will be Feng thieves in the northwest and rebel Hu people in the due north."
"Coupled with Zhao Yun from Longyou and Ge Zei from Hanzhong, Chang'an is surrounded by enemies on three sides. How can we defend it? The Wei Dynasty has no other choice but to withdraw from Guanzhong."
Cao Rui had no choice but to respond: "In that case, I will send an edict to the Grand Sima and ask him to withdraw his troops."
“That’s exactly what it should be.”
After receiving the emperor's promise to withdraw his troops, the ministers breathed a sigh of relief.
Unexpectedly, after Cao Rui finished discussing political affairs and returned to the harem, his expression changed on the spot. He glanced at the cases and heard a sound of "ding zero and Kuang Rang".
"What a bastard! Xiahou Ba is really incompetent! Anding has 20,000 elite soldiers, how can he not be able to defend it for ten days?"
His face was full of twisted anger, and he cursed through gritted teeth:
“Thief Feng ruined my important affairs, which is really my great hatred! If I can capture him in the future, I will eat his flesh and blood!”
Remembering that Xia Houxuan (son of Xia Houshang) despised himself and disdained the queen's younger brother;
Xiahou Mao (son of Xiahou Dun) also sold military supplies, which made the Guanzhong army unable to regain Longyou;
Now Xiahou Ba (son of Xia Houyuan) did this again, and Cao Rui was so angry that he beat the table again, making a "thud" sound:
"The three Xiahou families are all relatives of the royal family. Now they are of no benefit to the Cao family. What's the use of dragging down the royal family!"
His words were originally said in anger, but they were unexpectedly heard by Lian Zhao, a close servant, and he secretly remembered them in his heart.
Lian Zhao is Cao Rui's new close minister. He is quite talkative and likes to write down the ministers' minor faults in order to repay the emperor and gain the emperor's trust.
Some time ago, Liu Ye made a greedy statement in front of Cao Rui, saying that Chen Jiao had autocratic intentions.
Chen Jiao was afraid, and Lian Zhao wanted to overthrow Liu Ye in order to gain the emperor's exclusive favor.
Lian Zhao took the opportunity to join forces with Chen Jiao and exposed Liu Ye's good at figuring out his intentions to Cao Rui.
Cao Rui didn't believe it at first, but later tried it with the opposite intention in his heart. It was true as Lian Zhao said, so he alienated Liu Ye.
Liu Ye first heard that Cao Rui said he wanted to go west to Chang'an, but later he saw that the emperor went to Xuchang instead. He was already worried.
Later, Lian Zhao thought of ways to let Liu Ye know about it, and finally drove Liu Ye to collapse and go crazy.
Seeing this, Cao Rui hated Liu Ye even more, so he dismissed him from his position as a servant and transferred him to Dahonglu.
Lian Zhaoyou became more and more prominent.
(End of this chapter)