Three Kingdoms

Huguan Pass.

When Zhao Yun slapped Cao Chun on the face, Le Jin and Zhao Yan also seemed to have been slapped hard.

Cao's army unexpectedly retreated at Changping and Gaoping, leaving Le Jin and Zhao Yan's flanks directly facing threats.

"General Le!" Withdraw your troops! ” Zhao Yan said very seriously, his face was very ugly.

One monk carried water to drink, two monks carried water to drink, and three monks had no water to drink.

Although there are no three monks now, the withdrawal of troops is like the water that Le Jin and Zhao Yan want to carry. If one end is hot, the water will inevitably topple over, and no one will get any benefit.

Le Jin's expression also seemed to be stiff and fixed on his face. He did not expect that Zhao Yan spoke so directly, and even stabbed him so hard that it caused some inexplicable pain. From this perspective, Zhao Yan doesn't even look like a Shandong official, as he spoke so without leaving any room.

Zhao Yan stared at Le Jin closely, "General Le, may I ask if we can capture Huguan Pass with our current strength?" Even if Huguan Pass is captured, can Huguan City still be captured? 』

Le Jin was silent and did not answer.

Zhao Yan frowned and said, "Then let me change the question...General Le, how many soldiers do we have left now?" 』

Le Jin stared at Zhao Yan and replied with a loud voice: "More than six thousand." 』

"Yes, it also includes some auxiliary soldiers and civilians. Zhao Yan said, "Six thousand seems like a lot, right, but how many elites are left among them?" 』

"There aren't many elites left after the pot is closed." Le Jin still refused to let go.

Zhao Yan took out a piece of wooden tablet from his sleeve and put it in front of Le Jin, "General Le, this is the record of my observation of the battle these days... We attacked Huguan Pass more than ten times, and each time we lost a lot of people, as well as Huguan Pass." The number of losses of the garrison at Huguan... Although the statistics on Huguan are not complete, they can be used as a reference..."

Le Jin looked at the wooden tablet. The ink characters on it were like dried blood, so thick that it seemed to flow down.

Although Le Jin encouraged the soldiers in the surrounding military schools, saying that it was a big deal to exchange one life for another, in fact only those who were simple-minded and couldn't even understand arithmetic really thought that one of Cao's elites could be exchanged for one of the opponent's elites. …

What is seen is changed one by one, but what about the invisible ones, as if they do not exist?

Now under Zhao Yan's wooden slip, these cruel facts are undoubtedly revealed.

In fact, you don't even need to look at the wooden tablets, you only need to look at the department directly under Le Jin, which is now mostly damaged, to know what the actual exchange ratio is.

"Now that General Cao has been defeated by Changping, neither you nor I have any reinforcements!" ” Zhao Yan gestured on the map, “If you don’t retreat now, this is where you and I will be buried!” The point is, even if you and I die in this battle, what benefit will it have to the overall situation? 』

Le Jin frowned, "Changping... there is Ren Zhonglang in Hanoi..."

"Ren Zhonglang?" Zhao Yan shook his head, "Ren Zhonglang wants to control the civilians in the rear and transport military supplies...or does General Le think that our place is more important than the Lord's place?" 』

"The Commander-in-Chief of Xiahou is on the northern line..." Le Jin added, "Fukou She County is not far from here..."

"It's not far, but why hasn't it arrived yet?" Zhao Yan said, "What's more, the main direction of Xiahou Commandery's attack is Taiyuan and Jinyang. It is to contain Yinshan, not to rescue you and me." Our main reinforcements are to the south, from Hanoi. Now that the food route is cut off and there are no reinforcements, the entire army is in danger of being annihilated if it is delayed. 』

Lejin contained Hedong, and Xiahou Dun contained Yinshan. These were all strategies formulated before the war.

Le Jin was silent for a while, "If we retreat, wouldn't all our previous efforts be wasted?" What's more, there is no trace of the enemy coming from Changping yet..."

"It will be too late when you see me!" Zhao Yan pointed to the Taihang Mountains in the distance, "If we delay any longer, even if the enemy doesn't come... If this Yangchang Slope Road is covered with ice and snow, you and I will both starve to death here." By then, even if you and I give up our whole bodies, we will not be able to feed six thousand mouths. 』

"..." Le Jin fell completely silent.

The two looked at each other, neither giving in.

Military food is a big problem.

People can live in a simpler way and wear thinner clothes, but the daily caloric intake must not be less. Otherwise, hunger that lasts for three to five days will make people exhausted. If the time is longer, there will be no need to ride a horse. When the army came to fight, Le Jin and others starved to death.

"The Lord's order, the Governor of Xiahou, and you and I are all feigning attacks. If we can do it, we will do it. If we can't do it, we won't do it," Zhao Yan said, "Today, the dangerous pass of Huguan is too urgent to get down, and there is no way The backup troops should be withdrawn in order to preserve the soldiers and prepare for the follow-up. Otherwise, you and I will both die here. When the hussars counterattack, who will defend Hanoi? Defend Jiyu? So far, I was the one who raised the idea of ​​withdrawing the troops. If the Lord blames him in the future, General Le can also say that it was me who advocated it and it has nothing to do with the General..."

"You..." Le Jin was stunned.

"In the past few days, the north wind has decreased slightly, and it has become warmer instead of cold. This is very unusual..." Zhao Yan looked at the sky and said, "If what I predict is true, there may be wind and snow coming, and then there will be wind and snow on the Yangchang Slope Road." Even if you want to leave, you can't get away. The general can now decide whether these six thousand remnant troops, including you and me, are dead or alive. 』

Le Jin remained silent for a longer time, "What if I don't leave?" 』

"Someone will die here tomorrow. ” Zhao Yan said very calmly, “I have recorded everything before and after the battle and sent someone to pass it on to Ye. The general wants us to fight to the death, and it is better to fight to the death here than to die of hunger and cold, only to be laughed at by the ages. 』

"What if we withdraw our troops?" 』

"Reduce the stove." 』

"A strategy to reduce the number of cooking stoves?" 』

"Exactly. 』

Le Jin raised his head and looked at the Huguan Pass, and also looked at the majestic Taihang. Suddenly, he seemed to have aged ten years, "This battle cannot be defeated, Huguan is majestic... You and I are both humiliated..."

Zhao Yan still said calmly: "How can a general be the only person who has suffered defeat and humiliation in military affairs throughout the ages?" Besides...there is still a chance..."

…

…

"Whoosh!" 』

An arrow shot out.

A hare was shot in the head and died instantly.

One of Wei Yan's mountain soldiers stepped forward and grabbed the rabbit. He excitedly raised it to show to Shi Chang, "Shi Chang!" I shot a rabbit and roasted it tonight! 』

Shi Chang glanced at it, neither sad nor happy, and said in a calm tone, "Okay." Open the chest and bleed it first... remember to find some snow to wipe it clean..."

The mountain soldier who shot the rabbit was relatively young and could be considered a newcomer. He looked at Shi Chang with some surprise, and then looked at the rabbit in his hand. He felt that Shi Chang was not very happy, at least not as happy as eating meat as a snack.

A veteran also walked by expressionlessly, "Hey, Erba, there's a snow nest next to you... move faster... it's such a waste of arrows..."

"Uh..." The second son of the young mountain soldier suddenly felt bad all over.

Why did he clearly shoot the rabbit, but others didn't seem happy?

Doesn’t rabbit count as meat?

The recruit muttered under his breath as he handled the rabbit.

By the time the recruits finished handling the rabbit, the group had already walked some distance.

The new recruits rushed to catch up.

Shi Changzhang glanced sideways, then continued forward, looking around, "Are you tired?" 』

"ah? ” The second recruit was stunned for a moment, “Ah, I’m not tired. 』

"Oh, you're not tired, so you're huffing and puffing in vain? 』

"Uh..." Erwa said, "Ah, I'm tired." 』

"Don't do this next time. 』

"ah? What's up? 』

"That's it..." Shi Changzhang glanced sideways at the recruits, "Next time, remember, when you go out to patrol or march, rabbits, foxes, wolves, etc., if they don't mess with us, you don't need to kill them... It's all in vain. That strength..."

"Is this... because of the smell of blood? Erwa raised the treated rabbit and smelled it, "The smell... doesn't seem to be strong..."

"Your nose is made of wood..." Shi Changzhang sneered, "Remember not to get blood on your body." 』

Shi Zhang tilted his head and said, "Old Ma, teach him." 』

The old soldier just responded, paused for a moment, and then walked forward beside the new recruit Erwa, "Just because you can't smell it doesn't mean that tigers and leopards can't smell it... Fortunately, there aren't many mountains and forests in this place. Otherwise, let alone eating roasted rabbit at night, you might even attract a pack of wolves, tigers and leopards! Also, this rabbit doesn’t have much meat in the winter, and it’s hard to pack up... The key is that this rabbit has no oil... it’s very shriveled, and wolf meat is similar, but wolf meat still has four legs, but this rabbit has such small legs ...Hey...you're just wasting arrows. If you want to shoot, you need to find some pheasants or something..."

"Oil? ” Erwa was a little confused.

"You didn't remember it in class before?" ” said the veteran Lao Ma.

Erwa scratched his head, "I talked too much...I can't remember..."

"It's a piece of cake..." Lao Ma sighed, "These are all for your own good... Remember, it is better to eat three ounces of fat than to eat a pound of pancakes. The more winter it is, the colder it is, the more fat you need to eat. Otherwise, people won’t be able to bear it... The pancakes distributed are mixed with oil... There must be no oil on this rabbit, so it won’t be full... That’s why the chief said you wasted your efforts... I understand... Already? Next time you have class, give your kid more snacks! 』

As they were talking, they climbed over a mountain ridge and found the camp of Wei Yan's troops in a mountain col not far away.

Everyone quickened their pace, as if they saw home.

Although Wei Yan and others are familiar with the mountains and can climb mountains and ridges as if they were walking on flat ground, some physiological needs will not be exempted just because they are familiar with the Taihang Mountains.

For example, water...

After passing through a waterless area, they all had to rest for a short period of time to determine the direction of travel for the next stage and to recover from the physical exertion caused by trekking over mountains and ridges.

Thanks to Cao Tai, Wei Yan received a lot of supplies, which allowed him to travel relatively easily and put less pressure on his soldiers.

Now Wei Yan is thinking about it, gathering his strength, and wants to prepare a big gift for Cao Jun...

…

…

The sky is hazy, and above the mountains in the distance, the cold mist is like a veil, floating on the Taihang Mountains.

It's like heaven in the distance, but nearby, under the Huguan Pass, it's like hell.

Jia Qu and Zhang Ji stood side by side on the edge of the battlements of the pass, looking towards Cao Jun's camp in the distance.

"Did you see it?" Zhang Ji pointed at Cao Jun's camp and said, "There is a lot less smoke..."

Jia Qu counted the columns of smoke rising from Cao's army and nodded, "It is indeed much less." 』

Zhang Ji clapped his hands and said, "That's right!" I just think they are missing! Haha, this is because they are short of food and grass! Please quickly order someone to leave the pass and cover up the killing, and we will definitely defeat Cao Jun! Kill them without leaving a single piece of armor behind! 』

"Hmm..." Jia Qu frowned, "Going out of seclusion to cover up the killing?" 』

"Exactly!" Zhang Ji said excitedly, "Cao's army stopped attacking the city and reduced the fire. It must be because of lack of food and grass, so they had to reduce food and repair!" We can just take advantage of this opportunity to defeat Cao Jun in one fell swoop! In this way, we can turn our troops and horses to deal with the enemy coming from the north! Wonderful! That's it! 』

Jia Qu frowned and said, "But since the pass is strong, it can also be used for war and defense, and it can be supported by food and grass. Wouldn't it be more secure?" 』

Zhang Ji pointed at Cao Jun's camp and said, "Envoy!" If we don't take advantage of this opportunity to defeat Cao's army and wait for Cao's army to receive reinforcements, wouldn't we miss a good opportunity? Even if I regret it by then, I’m afraid it will be useless! 』

Jia Qu thought for a long time, "I'm worried about Cao Jun's plan..."

"Use a plan?" Zhang Ji laughed and said, "Cao's army, will you use the belly of the soldiers to make plans?" Your Majesty is just too careful! Someone is willing to issue a military order! This battle will definitely kill the head of Cao Jun's thieves! 』

Jia Qu remained silent.

Zhang Ji jumped to his feet and said, "I know that your Majesty is just always cautious!" But if I miss this good opportunity now, I'm afraid I won't be cautious, but... I'll be cowardly! 』

After hearing this, Jia Qu's eyes became more and more worried. Although Zhang Ji didn't say it clearly, how could he not feel the anger contained in his words.

That's what he's been worried about.

Zhang Ji is older than Jia Qu. Although Zhang Ji has always said that he obeys Jia Qu's orders, this was when there was no war on weekdays. There was no conflict between civil and military forces, so naturally there would be no disputes. But now in the face of the war, Jia Qu uses civility to control military affairs. Zhang Ji didn't say anything on the surface, but more or less the meaning of what I used to do penetrated...

Feeling these, Jia Qu felt that he had faintly smelled something unusual.

Jia Qu did not allow Zhang Ji to attack before, not because he really wanted to "fight to the last ditch", but to rely on the city wall pass defense, which is obviously much safer than an assault in the mountains. When the surrounding situation is unclear, he will not easily get involved in areas without In areas where intelligence is mastered, some opportunities will be missed, but at the same time many dangers will be avoided.

But Jia Qu now has some difficulty convincing Zhang Ji, who is already extremely excited.

Jia Qu said that he felt it, and Zhang Ji could also say that he felt that once Zhang Ji really had a disagreement with Jia Qu, it would have an extremely bad impact on the entire Huguan defense.

Jia Qu looked at Cao Jun's camp under the city.

Within Cao Jun's camp, there were indeed significantly fewer soldiers.

This phenomenon can be said to be Cao Jun's lack of food and grass, so he had to repair and reduce daily consumption, but it can also be said to be Cao Jun's plan to lure troops. Between the virtual and the real, how can it be explained clearly in words?

Zhang Ji urged from the side, "Envoy! The city must not be defended! This was mentioned in the martial arts lecture hall! 』

Yes, this is not wrong, but the martial arts hall also said that you must not attack a city while defending it...

There are many such contradictory words in the Art of War. Different battlefields must have different situations. How can you seize one sentence and regard it as a guideline?

Jia Qu stared at the city, was silent for a long time, and said: "General Zhang... If we really want to fight, I have some ideas. General Zhang, please listen..."

…

…

To the north of Shangdang is Huangniuti Mountain.

It got its name because the mountains are like ox hoofs with deep valleys in them.

Shi Jian looked up, his brows furrowed so tightly that he could kill an insect, "Can we go around it?" 』

He led his soldiers to attack the military stronghold in Huangniuti Mountain. He had been fighting for two or three days, and the damage was considerable. The important thing was that he failed to cause any obvious damage to the Huangniuti military stronghold. Because the Yellow Ox Hoof Army Stronghold is stuck in the gap between the ox hoofs, the expansion area is not large, and the number of soldiers invested at one time is limited, which really gives Shi Jian a headache.

"It's possible to go around it..." the guide said with a frown, "but it's not easy to walk... To the left, there are no people along the way, and there is no water source. There is no water until Xiaowangou. Hundreds of miles... Go to the right, enter from Bafeng Mountain, and you can walk along the Zhuozhang River, but this road is longer..."

Shi Jian scratched his head, "No water?" ! 』

this is a big problem.

From Shexian County to Shangdang, it seems that the distance in a straight line is not that far, but it is not that close when walking.

Because Cao Jun needs to march along the water source, even if he leaves the water source line, it must be for a short period of time. He must find a new water source within at least two days and at most three days...

And after leaving the Taihang Mountains, many of the mountains are not high, so it is impossible to use the ice and snow that does not melt all year round on the mountain tops.

Perhaps in the minds of many people in later generations, water is not a problem at all.

Where can there be no water?

As soon as the faucet is turned on, if it doesn't work, go to the supermarket. How can you live without water?

But now, the water problem has really hindered Shi Jian, Le Jin and others...

Shi Jian's goal is to follow the land between the two mountains between Wuding Mountain and Taihang Mountain to join Lejin.

There is a vertical mountain range in Shangdang, running north-south. To the north is Laoding Mountain, in the middle is Wuding Mountain, and to the south is Shaoding Mountain. As for why it is called "Ding", it is said that there are two mountain peaks, Yanhuang Mountain and Yanhuang Mountain. The emperor's relics are items left behind before Yanhuang ascended to heaven, but these legends actually exist in other places, so the details cannot be studied.

Compared with its eldest brother, the Taihang Mountains next door, this long mountain range is simply a younger brother. If you really want to climb over from the dense forest on the top of the mountain or between the valleys, it is not completely impossible, but the problem is The problem Shi Jian is facing now is the same, there is no water.

Even in later generations, when there was no crazy large-scale infrastructure construction, many villages in the mountainous areas of Shanxi still had to look at God's face to drink water, and they had to walk dozens of miles of mountain roads to get a bucket of water. There was also a story about a young daughter-in-law who fell down on the way home while fetching water, and the water poured out. She collapsed on the spot and hanged herself in the middle of the night...

The story may not be true, but it is true that drinking water is difficult in this area.

This situation is a difficulty that Cao Jun, who came from Shandong, cannot understand at all and cannot adapt to.

You know, in the era of the Han Dynasty, there was a large swamp called Wuchao in Jizhou, and more than half of the land in Jiangxia, Nanjun, Jingzhou and other places was covered with Yunmengze, which stretched for hundreds of miles...

Places with water and roads were basically blocked by the defenders, such as the Huguan Pass, or the Yellow Ox Hoof Army Village in front of Shi Jian.

Although there is no one to guard the places without water, Cao's army can come and go at will, but the question is how to get water?

Cao's army was mostly infantry and could not move any faster.

"attack! attack! Boost! Take turns to attack! Shi Jian gritted his teeth and roared, "Send someone else to find all the containers that can hold water!" Bring them all! 』