Silver Fox of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 461 Within a year, the three emperors collapsed together
At the end of October in the second half of the seventh year of Zhang Wu, Zhuge Liang and Shen Chen also got the news.

Guan Yu's side defeated Cao's army in late October, but Cao Pi's side did not immediately believe it. The reason was that Huainan was thousands of miles away from Luoyang, and the news did not spread so quickly.

The big men in the south have already established a carrier pigeon system. Jianye's carrier pigeons will fly to Jiangxia, and then report to Xiangyang from Jiangxia.

Xiangyang and Nanyang Wancheng also have carrier pigeon bases, so they can communicate within two days.

In the past year, Chang'an has also established a carrier pigeon system from Nanyang Wancheng to Chang'an. Therefore, to a certain extent, as long as the efficiency is fast enough, the news of Jianye can be sent to Chang'an in about four days.

Since the news was sent to Xiangyang first, and then to Wancheng from Xiangyang, Zhuge Liang got the letter on the third day after Guan Yu defeated Cao Jun.

At this moment in the Wancheng prefect's mansion, Zhuge Liang was sitting in the mansion hall looking at the official documents a little tiredly.

In addition to being the commander-in-chief of the current Nanyang army, he also has to take care of Nanyang's government affairs, because Nanyang is the grain and grass base of the Northern Expedition and one of the main granaries of Jingzhou.

The food issue was the key to the Northern Expedition, as well as a series of people's livelihood, public security, economy, criminal law and so on in Nanyang.

Although Ma Liang, Huang Quanzhou, Cai Du, and local Nanyang officials helped, but personally he prefers to pay attention to the details.

So I tend to make myself very tired.

In addition, he has been worrying about Jiangdong's affairs recently, so he didn't sleep well.

Seeing that he was restless, Zhou Buyi said, "Prime Minister, didn't Jianye send a letter saying that Sun Quan has already taken the throne and the rear is safe? Why should the Prime Minister be worried?"

Zhuge Liang pondered and said: "I am worried about whether Yunchang can defeat the enemy. If Cao Jun is not fooled and only occupies Huainan and does not continue to march, I am afraid."

Zhou Buyi smiled and said: "Prime Minister, there is no need to worry. Even I think Lu Boyan's plan is powerful. No matter how smart Cao Jun is, it is impossible for us to think that Taicang was set on fire by ourselves. Sun Quan's side is also ahead of us. Nei Ying, they unite with Sun Quan, and they will not stop just for Huainan, where no one lives."

"Ah."

Zhuge Liang nodded slightly and said: "Unless Cao Pi has no ambitions, it is impossible not to covet Jiangdong. Lu Boyan really has a strategy. Using the entire Jiangdong as bait to lure Cao Jun across the river and defeat them on the river is a good strategy! If I use troops , will probably not adopt this plan.”

"That's because the prime minister can defeat Cao Jun head-on, and he doesn't bother to use conspiracy."

Cai Du beside him said with a smile.

"No."

Zhuge Liang shook his head and said: "I'm really not good at intrigue, but if Lu Boyan advises me, I won't use it. It has nothing to do with whether the plan is dangerous or not. I just don't want to lose any more territory of the big man!"

To be honest, even if Lu Xun's strategy failed, the loss would not be as big as imagined.

Huainan was lost at most.

If Huainan still had the population of Yuan Shu's time, it would definitely be a huge loss.

However, Huainan is now a wasteland, with empty land and no population, and the city of Hefei was burned down. Cao Jun lacks important strategic cities and means of production, so it is difficult to pose a threat to Jiangdong.

At that time, Guan Yu will have the opportunity to go north to attack Cao Jun.

So to a certain extent, the reason why Guan Yu chose to adopt Lu Xun's suggestion was not only that Lu Xun risked his life to guarantee it, but more importantly, the failure of Lu Xun's suggestion would not have much impact.

However, Zhuge Liang felt that if he was the coach, even though the probability of success of Lu Xun's strategy was high, he still didn't want to adopt it.

This big man's territory can't be less!

"Report!"

At this time, a messenger suddenly came in from outside and said loudly: "Flying pigeons from Xiangyang sent a message. The general successfully lured Cao Jun to the river. He defeated the three armies in one fell swoop. Cao Jun was killed and wounded and captured nearly [-] people!"

"Seventy thousand?"

Zhuge Liang was so shocked that he stood up from the table and said, "Is the news conclusive?"

"conclusive."

"Congratulations, Prime Minister, congratulations, Prime Minister."

Next to him, Ma Liangzhou did not believe that Cai Du, Huang Quan and others hurriedly saluted Zhuge Liang.

Zhuge Liang laughed and waved his feather fan. Although it was early winter and October, the weather was a bit cold, but it made him feel like a spring breeze. He said happily: "God's will is in Han, and great things can be accomplished. Next year, we will conquer Wei and restore the Han Dynasty. At this time !"

Cut Wei next year?

Everyone looked at each other, bowed their hands and saluted: "Prime Minister is wise."

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Guanzhong, Chang'an.

Compared to Zhuge Liang who got the news on the third day, Shen Chen got the news on the fifth day.

In the side hall of Weiyang Palace in Chang'an, Shen Chen arranged for today's military affairs.

Before that, he planned to raid Hedong in the middle of this year, drive Cao Jun to Bingzhou, and start threatening Bingzhou.

But he didn't expect that Liu Bei's death in July disrupted his rhythm, so he could only suppress this thought.

After returning to Xiangyang to accept Liu Bei's will, Shen Chen returned to Chang'an. Because Cao Wei's internal investigation found that Cao Wei transferred a large number of northern cavalry to the south, he temporarily canceled this decision.

Cao Wei is now desperate.

The main reason is the failure of many battles such as the Battle of Guanzhong, the Battle of Xiangfan, the Battle of Hefei, and the Battle of Ziyun Mountain, which caused Cao Jun to suffer heavy casualties.

In history, Cao Wei had a large number of troops. According to the statistics of "Three Kingdoms Shihuo", Cao Wei had 70 million troops in its heyday, less than 20 in the heyday of Shu Han, and more than 30 in Jiangdong's heyday.

Several subsequent battles of Cao Wei also proved this point.

For example, Zhong Hui defeated Shu with 15 people, Sima Shi Sanlu defeated Wu with 20 people, Sima Zhaoshouchun's battle with 26 people, and Zhuge Dan's rebellion still had 15 people.

These are unlikely to be national forces.

Because in addition to the frontier army, Cao Wei also had a certain amount of local troops, the central army and the frontier army to guard against ethnic minorities.

Therefore, when Sima Zhao fought the Battle of Shouchun, if Sima Zhao's 26 troops were added to Zhuge Dan's 15 rebellious Wei army, there were 41 Wei troops in Huainan alone, which shows the background of Cao Wei.

But no matter how thick the background is, it is impossible to consume it like this.

What's more, the current Cao Wei is far from being as powerful as it was in history, and has been weakened a lot.

Therefore, combined, there were 15 casualties in the Battle of Guanzhong and Jingzhou, [-] losses in the Battle of Guanzhong, and [-] losses in the Battle of Ziyun Mountain.

The total loss is 20.

Now the entire Cao Wei army has suffered an extremely serious loss. The combined number of Cao Zhen, Xu Huang, Zhu Ling and others on the western front is less than 10.

The central army is currently Xia Houyuan's central army, which is about [-].

Cao Xiu's 13 people on the eastern front were not only soldiers and horses originally deployed in Xuzhou, Runan and other places to guard against Guan Yu, but also local garrison troops originally in Qingzhou, Yanzhou, Jizhou and other places.

Therefore, this means that if you count the cavalry such as Tian Yu and Yan Rou who guarded the border in Youzhou to guard against Wuhuan in Xianbei, the total central army, frontier army, local army, and county soldiers of Cao Wei may have been less than 40.

Among them, there are also a large number of new troops that have expanded in recent years. Their training is seriously insufficient and their combat effectiveness is not high. They have repeatedly fallen behind in the contest with southern soldiers.

So Cao Pi was eager to restore the decline and wanted to weaken the southern Han Dynasty.

This time is a very good opportunity. If we can cooperate with Sun Quan to bring Jiangdong down, then the Southern Dahan Group will directly lose millions of people and one-third of the land.

This is more cost-effective than directly eliminating 20 troops.

Therefore, under such temptation, Cao Pi decided to give it a go and transferred the northern frontier army to the south.

The role of Youzhou cavalry is not to cooperate with Cao Xiu to attack Jiangdong, but to be placed in Henan to quickly help the Quartet.

For example, Cao Xiu's side is in a hard fight, and the cavalry can be dispatched.

If Shen Chen and Zhuge Liang wanted to go out to encircle Wei and rescue Zhao, when Cao Xiu and Guan Yu were fighting, they would march into Bingzhou or Henan, and the cavalry could quickly support them.

So if Shen Chen sent troops to Hedong, then Cao Wei's cavalry would arrive soon, which would be a bit disadvantageous for him, so he didn't send troops and waited for news from Jiangdong.

At this moment, Shen Chen was sitting behind the table, staring at Hedong Yutu in a daze.

There are many lines drawn here and there, and he has made countless plans for the offensive deployment, and now he is waiting for the results of Guan Yu's battle.

If he wins, he can swing his division.

If it is defeated, or the strategy deviates, and Cao Jun is not wiped out in large numbers, you have to consider whether to send troops.

"It depends on Uncle Yun's actions."

Shen Chen rubbed his temples.

He is 41 years old this year, and it has been more than [-] years since Cao Cao slaughtered Xuzhou.

It has been 20 years since I assisted Liu Bei.

It took Liu Bang seven years to pacify the world, but it only took Liu Xiu 12 years.

Although Liu Bei's starting point was low, there was nothing he could do about it, but it took too long to unify the dynasty.

He still has a lot to do in the future, time waits for no one.

"Report!"

At this moment, Deng Ai and Jiang Wei rushed in almost as if they were running away from the door, and said with joy: "Great Governor, General Guan has won a big victory, and Cao Jun has been annihilated by [-]!"

"A big victory?"

Shen Chen was surprised: "Seventy thousand people have been wiped out?"

"Yes."

Jiang Wei was the first to say: "Just now, General Guan adopted Lu Shangshu's plan to pass the letter on with a pigeon, and lured the enemy to go deep. He led Cao's army to the Yangtze River, and defeated Cao's army with a navy!"

"Okay!"

Shen Chen cheered up and laughed loudly: "Once the 7 people are lost, Cao Wei will have less than 6 people left on the Eastern Front. General Guan's northern expedition will have no obstacles."

"more than."

Deng Ai said: "According to our detailed reports in Cao Wei, Cao Wei has almost all the troops in the hinterland of the Central Plains. If this is the case, the total strength of Cao Wei's country is almost 30, and the northern border and hinterland are almost There is no danger to defend."

"There is no danger in the hinterland of the border?"

Shen Chen frowned and said, "Shi Zai, there seems to be something in your words."

Deng Ai said: "Governor, the Northern Xianbei, Wuhuan, and Southern Huns have been oppressed by Cao Wei for a long time. If we can unite them and attack the Central Plains together, Cao Wei will be destroyed!"

United Minorities?

After thinking for a while, Shen Chen shook his head resolutely and said, "This is a war between the big Han and Cao Wei, and it's an internal dispute among the Han people. If it's not my race, their hearts must be different. How can we lure wolves into the house."

"But."

Deng Ai still wanted to say something.

"No but, this is the bottom line."

Shen Chen interrupted him and said, "I don't care if they want to invade the south, but I must not collude with them. Even in the future, if they are encountered by our Northern Expeditionary Army, we will eliminate them, you will understand."

"only!"

Deng Ai and Jiang Wei's hearts trembled, and they hurried to their hearts.

Shen Chen looked at the map.

Although Zhuge Liang also united with Kirby in history, he could want to attack Cao Wei together.

But Cao Wei had too many troops at that time, even if he joined with Kirbineng, it would be to contain part of Cao's troops.

It is impossible to be like now, Cao Wei has no soldiers and horses to defend the north at all, and ethnic minorities have stepped into the Central Plains.

Therefore, Zhuge Liang's behavior in history can only be said to be a strategic method to contain Cao Wei's troops, not a collusion with the enemy.

However, the situation is different this time.

Cao Wei's army was weakened to the extreme. If he also united with Kirbineng, the Five Husbands would have to happen in advance. A large number of nomads went south to invade the Central Plains, and the scourge originally belonged to the people under Cao Wei's rule.

You must know that these are all Han Chinese. In the future, when the Southern Han Dynasty succeeds in the Northern Expedition, the common people will return to their identity as Han Chinese. How can the barbarians be allowed to plunder?
Therefore, Deng Ai's idea is absolutely unacceptable.

However, although he can't unite with the Hu people to cause chaos, the hinterland of Cao Wei is empty now. If he can get through Bingzhou, then the whole Hebei, Luoyang and other places will be under his iron hoof.

It seems.

It's time to prepare to march into Bingzhou.

Shen Chen thought in his heart.

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At the beginning of November in the seventh year of Zhang Wu, Cao Xiu, the general of Cao Wei Zhengdong, was defeated in Jiangdong. After returning to Henan, he suffered from a serious illness and vomited blood and died.

On the sixth day after the battle ended, Cao Pi was the last to get the news in the Luoyang Palace.

no way.

In the Southern Han Dynasty, carrier pigeons were used for delivery. He could only use horses to run. From Ruxukou to Luoyang, it was more than 800 kilometers, and it would take several days to run a dead horse.

At this time in the palace, Cao Pi was already dying of illness.

Apart from the blow to him from the Battle of Ziyun Mountain, the most important thing is that his body has long since failed, and now he is exhausted.

On the side of the hospital bed, Cao Pi weakly said to Sima Yi and Chen Qun next to him: "Pass down my edict, after my death, Zidan, Wen Lie, Changwen, and Zhongda will assist you in governing the country and assist Yuan Zhong in governing the country well." .”

"only."

Sima Yi and Chen Qun should agree.

Cao Pi was almost on the verge of dying, and sighed, "I didn't expect that I would die soon. I...I don't want to die, but it's God's will. It's just that I am most worried about Wen Lie's situation in Jiangdong."

Sima Yi comforted: "Your Majesty, there is no need to worry. If things go well, General Zhengdong may have broken through Jiangdong and arrived at Jianye by this time."

"Yes."

Chen Qun also said: "A few days ago, the news was that Sun Quan had already defeated Wu County. Guan Yu had no choice but to send Wei Yan to quell the rebellion. He burned Hefei and Ruxukou by himself, and retreated to Jianye. The general Zhengdong will not fail to arrest him. Seize this opportunity and defeat Guan Yu in one fell swoop."

"Ha ha."

Cao Pi forced a smile and said, "If that's the case, that would be great."

"Report!"

The eunuch outside the door came in with a sad face and wailed: "General Zhengdong was attacked by Guan Yu when he was crossing the river, and lost [-] soldiers and horses!"

"Pfft!"

Cao Pi spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes wide open, and he fell on the hospital bed without breathing.

In July of the seventh year of Zhangwu in the Han Dynasty, Liu Bei died of illness.

In October of the seventh year of Han Zhangwu, Sun Quan was killed.

In November of the seventh year of Han Zhangwu, Cao Pi died of illness.

Within one year, the founders of the three countries in history, Wei, Shu and Wu, died at the same time!

(End of this chapter)