Three Kingdoms

The threat from the hussar generals was too great, especially the cavalry.

As for the racecourses in the world, nine out of ten are already in the hands of the hussar general Fei Qian. What is left to Cao Cao is only the small patch of racecourse in Youzhou and the one in the north of Jizhou.

Therefore, there is no room for failure in Yuyang.

Yuyang was originally the seat of Youzhou. Under the governance of Liu Yu, it was originally very impressive and had the magnanimity of a large northern county. However, in just a few years, it took a sudden turn and became completely dilapidated.

Seeing everything in front of him, Cao Chun, who had rushed here after a long journey, couldn't believe his eyes.

The city wall still has traces of scorch and damage, which are said to have been left by Xianbei back then. Cao Chunzhen wanted to scold his mother, but of course he wanted to greet Yuan's mother. After so much time, the traces left by the Japanese war are still there...

Although repairs are now being resumed, where the city wall is broken, dense crowds of civilians are moving earth and stones to repair the gaps. In the moat, there were also people who went down into the moat, continued to dig deep in the mud pond, and planted wooden stakes again, but Cao Chun didn't know whether he would have enough time to complete the repairs before the ice came.

"damn it……"

Cao Chun cursed in a low voice.

Jushou stood silently.

All this should have been done a long time ago, but at that time Yuan Xi had no intention of staying in Youzhou for a long time, so he didn't have much desire to do these things. Every time Jushu suggested it, Yuan Xi said it would be done later, and kept putting it off again and again. , it was postponed to the present moment.

Logically speaking, Jushou also did a good job. Just like the current construction site, there are hot pots and stoves set up every once in a while, and a few men are there holding ladles and distributing hot ginger soup to those who go into the water. At the gate of each city, there are still bags of food stacked up. Every citizen has worked for a round, so he comes here with chips to exchange for food. Although it is not much, he can still make enough food for a day by making porridge. of.

There is not much food and grass in Yuyang's granary, and Cao Chun came in a hurry. He did not bring a large amount, but now he uses this precious food and grass as "wage", in addition to wanting to repair the city walls and other city defenses as soon as possible. ? There is also an obvious role? It is to stabilize people's hearts.

The cavalry brought by Cao Chun, now three times a day, a hundred people at a time, all wearing helmets and armor, are patrolling around Yuyang. Under the sunlight, the armor on these cavalrymen shines dazzlingly, and the horseshoes are in formation. Is it like beating a drum in the heart of the people? It also seeks an exciting effect.

With food and soldiers? These originally panicked people in Yuyang gradually calmed down. After all, in this troubled world, aren't these two the biggest guarantees?

"How long can the food and grass in the city last?" ” Cao Chun asked in a very low voice.

Jushou also responded in a low voice: "There are probably more than a month..."

Cao Chun nodded, and then said: "After a few days, I'll just say that the water is cold... I'll put it aside for the time being..." The water conservancy near Yuyang still needs to be repaired for the new spring. A preparation, but now, the food and grass can't sustain so much labor force, so we can only make a show, express an attitude, and then stop temporarily, and wait until the next year to relax a bit.

"I don't know when Duke Cao's food and grass will be..." Jushou nodded and then asked. Although Jushou is now considered a member of the Cao family's camp because of Yuan Xi's relationship, I don't know if the habit of many years will not change for a while and he still calls Cao Cao "Cao Gong".

Cao Chun looked into the distance and didn't care about Jushou's details. "The grain and grass from Jizhou will arrive soon..."

Although Cao Chun said it with certainty, Cao Chun himself also knew that this so-called "no day" really didn't know the specific day...

Cao Chun was looking forward to, in addition to looking forward to food and grass, also looking forward to Cao Cao making a decision for him...

At this time, the problem of food and grass in Jizhou and Yuzhou was also a thorny issue.

Because of the fall of Yuan's banner in Jizhou, most of the soldiers were controlled by Cao Cao and taken away. There were not many soldiers left in Hebei, and in order to cope with daily needs, some miscellaneous soldiers had to be added to fill the number.

The biggest task of these miscellaneous soldiers now is to transport the grain and grass from Jizhou. Most of them are transported to Yuzhou, and occasionally some are transported to other directions, such as Youzhou.

Cao Cao naturally attached great importance to Cao Chun, so soon after Cao Chun went north, he began to prepare food and grass support. However, the problem was that what Cao Cao wanted was what the people of Jizhou did not want.

Youzhou, Youzhou is doing Jizhou’s shit?

Forget it if you give it to Yuzhou. After all, now that the emperor is in Yuzhou, it is equivalent to making up for the taxes that have not been paid in the past few years. But is Youzhou a ball?

Therefore, these soldiers who were originally from the Yuan family but are now from the Cao family are making very slow progress. Even four or five days after Cao Cao gave the order, there is still a gap of more than half before they are ready to set off. The undisciplined soldiers put on their felt hats and lay down to bask in the sun. Even the officers who managed these soldiers were lazy. They didn't see anyone for most of the day, and they didn't know where to hide and laze.

"How can I still send it to Youzhou?" Does this mean that we in Jizhou don’t need to eat or drink? 』

"When Mr. Yuan was alive, the most he could do was to recruit and mobilize people. He could only do three things, and he would still care about the local people. Now that Mr. Cao has been replaced, it would be better not to change him. He is forced to exploit, like drinking blood and eating flesh..."

"Be careful what you say, be careful what you say!" 』

"What's there to be cautious about? ! Look around Jizhou, who is not worried? Who is not filled with righteous indignation? Duke Cao said that everyone should be treated equally, but what was the result? Among the outstanding people in Jizhou today, how many are worthy of serving in the imperial court? 』

"This...hey..."

"I heard that after we finally prepared the money and food, after we transported it to Yuzhou, someone withheld it and passed it off as good quality. As a result, the court thought that the people in Jizhou were dissatisfied and deliberately used rotten rice and rotten wheat as military rations, and even wanted to investigate the involvement. ! 』

"Is there such a thing? This is absolutely ridiculous! 』

"Why not?" The people of Yuzhou have always had rifts with us, but now they see how decadent we are, how can we easily let them off? This is forcing us to go to a dead end! 』

"Alas, if Mr. Yuan were here, he wouldn't be able to reach this point..."

Many things have to be lost before you know how to cherish them. The same is true for these Jizhou people. When Yuan Shao was alive, he was dissatisfied with this and that, and kept muttering about Yuan Shao's this and that. But now that he has become Cao Cao, these Jizhou people suddenly realized that in fact Yuan Shao was still very good, but it was a pity that he passed away. If you leave this village, there will be no store like this. What you have lost is gone and you can never look back.

Scattered discussions, of course, will produce no results. It is just that everyone is full of complaints and their military morale is even more slack.

Naturally, Cao Cao couldn't hear these discussions.

Cao Cao was currently alone in his room, looking at the wooden diagram representing Youyan's locality on the table, pondering carefully. Outside, several personal guards were guarding the door, quietly daring not to disturb Cao Cao's thoughts.

This wooden map was probably made by Yuan Shao who knows when, and it has been rubbed to the point of being patinated. It is obvious that Yuan Shao had been thinking about this map for a long time. Cao Cao's hands were on the wooden diagram, pointing and thinking for a long time, and finally he could only sigh.

"The troops and horses are still insufficient..." Cao Cao sighed, "The hussars and horses are indeed the best among the best...especially the cavalry..."

After the battle with Fei Qian, Cao Cao's understanding of cavalry seemed to have improved to a higher level. I originally thought that my cavalry was already very good, but compared with Fei Qian's men, it seemed to be a little worse. Fei Qian's cavalry are more courageous, more aggressive, can travel farther, run faster, and seem to be able to sit and lie down on their horses all day long. They are even more barbaric than the barbarians.

Cao Cao originally thought it was just a little bit worse, but now he realized that his cavalry was a little bit worse here and a little bit worse there. The final result was that there was a big gap between him and Fei Qian's cavalry.

There is also the gap in equipment...

Those weapons and equipment are shining with cold light and will make people feel chilled under the sunlight.

Brother Hao's ability has made people helpless at all times and in all countries.

Sophisticated equipment and elite soldiers are almost unsolvable in the era of cold weapons.

And all of this has become an obstacle in front of Cao Cao.

Therefore, Youzhou is very important, very important. It is not only the north gate of Jizhou, but also a training ground. Although it may not be possible to train a white horse Yiliang again like Gongsun Zan did, it will gradually allow his own cavalry to catch up with the hussars. Those cavalry also need such an area to guarantee.

But Youzhou is very difficult and embarrassed. It is even poorer and worse than Cao Cao originally expected.

"Yuan Xi, Yuan Xianyi..." Cao Cao gritted his teeth. This was obviously Yuan Xi's fault, but now even if Yuan Xi beheaded, it would not be able to immediately change the problems in Youzhou, not to mention that Yuan Xi was still useful. Still can't kill him.

Therefore, Cao Cao could only wipe Yuan Xi's butt in person.

Cao Cao was hesitant about the information reported by Cao Chun, because he understood Cao Chun's thoughts on the newly discovered Zhao Yun's caravan. After all, Fei Qian's caravan was generally worth much, and Cao Cao also knew it well. If it was true, If it can be done a few times, it can temporarily alleviate Youzhou's dilemma.

But Cao Cao felt that there seemed to be something wrong with this caravan, and it smelled like a conspiracy. Although this was not in line with the habits of Qiqi Feiqian, Cao Cao smelled this smell, so Cao Cao thought again and again, and then sent an emergency to Cao Chun. The messenger told Cao Chun to be patient for the time being and not to act rashly, lest he fall into a trap. He also said that he would let Jizhou try its best to transfer grain and grass to Youzhou to alleviate the shortage in Youzhou...

The transfer from Jizhou, Hebei to Youzhou is generally by land, but it also has to pass through three rivers, one is Zhangshui, one is Sushui, and one is Juma River.

Many people in later generations only knew about the Battle of Jieqiao, but they did not know that there was also the Battle of Jumashui. After the Battle of Jieqiao, Yuan Shao sent Cui Juye to lead an army to besiege Gu'an. They could not attack for a long time and had to retreat when they ran out of food. As a result, Gongsun Zan sent 30,000 people to pursue him. They defeated Yuan Shao's army at the Juma River and killed seven or eight thousand people. . Later, Gongsun Zan took advantage of the victory and pursued to Pingyuan, and Liu Bei's Pingyuan Order was issued...

Of course, the victory of this giant horse water was also one of the reasons why Gongsun Zan later refused to fight in Yijing. After all, after Yuan Shaojiu couldn't attack, he tasted the sweetness of biting his tail and chasing him. After that, he naturally felt that he could do it again, but he didn't. Thinking that Yuan Shao had changed his posture.

Today, Juma Water.

The bridge is broken.

There was originally a stone bridge here, but it fell into disrepair and was broken.

On the river bank, dozens of people were working like ants, and the prototype of a pontoon bridge took some shape. Of course, it will obviously take a lot of time to take shape.

The messenger sent by Cao Cao to Youzhou was stuck here.

"Boat! Quickly adjust the ship! ” The messenger who delivered the order jumped off his horse and shouted on the river bank, sweating profusely, “Who is in charge? 』

Some farmers nearby stopped what they were doing and looked at the messenger like dumb geese, motionless, but the farmers in the distance were still there, either beating wooden piles or ramming earth, shouting. and knocking sounds one after another.

"Who is in charge?" "The messenger continued to shout. Seeing that no one responded, he couldn't help but stepped forward and grabbed a civilian husband. He stared at his eyes and asked, "Who is in charge? 』

"In the river, what's going on in the river?" What to cook? What's cooked? "The civilian husband trembled, "I don't understand anything..."

The messenger slowed down his tone, tried his best not to use the Yuzhou accent, and approached the tone here in Jizhou. He asked the citizen, who suddenly understood, and then pointed in a direction ahead.

The messenger immediately mounted his horse and hurried to the front. Then he searched around and found an official standing by the river supervising the work. "Send the ship quickly!" Someone wants to cross the river! 』

The official who urged the construction of the pontoon bridge frowned and said, "Report to the superior officer, there are no boats here..."

The messenger didn't believe it, pointed at the officials and shouted: "How can there be no ships on such an important road?" If you intentionally hinder someone, you will be charged with obstructing military affairs! Quickly adjust the boat to send someone across the river! 』

The officials bowed to each other repeatedly and said, "Shangguan's words are wrong. How dare you interrupt me?" There are really no ships... All the grain and fodder that were transported before have been transferred away, and there is not even a single ship left..."

"Uh..." The messenger was stunned for a moment.

If it is said that the official did not divert the ships on purpose, then it is natural that the official was obstructing the military situation. But if the ships were really diverted, then it was not within the scope of the official's ability, and of course it cannot be said to be the official's fault.

"Fishing boat!" Fishing boats are also available! There may be fishermen nearby, so you can find a fishing boat! ' said the messenger loudly.

The official bent down so much that he almost touched the ground, "I'm telling you, sir, here... there is no human habitation here for a hundred miles, why... where are the fishing boats..."

The continuous battles between Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan not only wrinkled the sheets, but also destroyed the original ecology. The people in the fighting area had either been captured or died. How could they still survive in the wild and even build Fishing boats come to the river to fish?

"Someone wants to cross the river!" The messenger had no choice but to grab the official and said, "Someone!" want! Pass! river! ! 』

The official trembled and said, "If Shangguan is in a hurry... why not... swim over?" 』

The messenger gritted his teeth, rolled his eyes a few times, and finally said viciously: "Where is the shallow water?" 』

Even in later generations, there are many people who are landlubbers and sink when they enter the water, not to mention the messengers who have lived in Yuzhou for a long time. However, there is a time limit for conveying military information. If the time is exceeded, the lighter will be punished, and the severer will be beheaded, so now it is also I just swam in. Although the water level inside is lower in winter, the water is also freezing cold in winter...

Even if you can swim across, you don't have time to warm yourself by the fire, change clothes, or find a place to repair. You have to continue on your way, and then when the cold wind blows on the horse, your life is almost sealed. Whether you can survive or not depends on whether God will give you face.

Wind-cold was almost a terminal disease in the Han Dynasty.

The messenger gritted his teeth, endured the fear of water in his heart, took off his outer robe, and then wrapped the bamboo tube in the outer robe. There was no oilcloth, so he could only borrow the linen cloth sent by the officials and wrap it with another layer, and hung it on the The horse's neck, then he stripped naked and got into the water, shivering in the cold wind.

The river is cold.

Although the water flow was not very fast, it quickly took away the heat from the courier's body, causing him to tremble uncontrollably. After taking a few steps, his legs and feet suddenly crooked!

The messenger secretly screamed something bad, and quickly hugged the horse's neck, barely able to stabilize his body...

Although horses themselves also have the instinct to swim, war horses are only good runners after all. This swimming ability is very reluctant. When the messenger hugged him, his body tilted and he almost sank into the water!

Fortunately, the war horse struggled, and the river water in winter was low and the current was slow, so we were able to swim slowly to the other side without any danger.

The messenger hugged the horse's neck as much as possible and swam across the river with difficulty relying on the horse's ability. However, when he just stood on the shore, he was faced with a gust of wind. He shivered all over and sneezed two or three times. , hurriedly went to take the bundle from the horse's neck, and when he was about to put on his coat, his face suddenly turned pale.

I don’t know when, the baggage that was originally placed on the back of the horse’s neck has turned in one direction and now is under the horse’s neck, and is dripping water...

The messenger hurriedly untied the baggage, and then panicked to see that not only the outer robes, etc. were soaked in the baggage, but also the bamboo tube in the middle was wet. He quickly grabbed the bamboo tube and shook it twice, trying to remove it. I shook off the water stained on the bamboo tube, but I didn't expect that the cold wind made my hands and feet stiff. In addition, there was water on the bamboo tube. I couldn't hold on to it firmly, so I took it out and threw it to the ground with a click. "Knock, knock." Just two sounds and he jumped into the river.

The messenger rushed forward and held it down with both hands.

Fortunately it was a bamboo tube, if it had been any other object it would have been broken.

Shivering, he put on the robe that was still damp even though he had tried his best to wring it out. Then he put the bamboo tube in his arms and gritted his teeth in the cold wind and continued to move forward hastily.

When he arrived in Yuyang, he relaxed and the messenger fell into a coma.

The Yuyang soldiers rescued the messenger and hurriedly delivered the bamboo tube to Cao Chun. Cao Chun picked up the bamboo tube and inspected it, and then he saw the sealing wax on the bamboo tube. Half of the bamboo tube was intact and stamped with the seal, but the sealing wax on the other half had a crack...