kvmb Chapter 327: The Divided Coalition
Chapter 327: The Divided Coalition
Chapter 327: The Divided Coalition
The next day, after breakfast, the various troops held a small meeting. Then, under the leadership of Yuan Shao, the army set out, entered Runan County, and headed straight for Ruyin.
The total number of soldiers from all directions was close to 150,000, and they were scattered all over the place, so the scene was very grand, and the flags spread for who knows how many miles.
Similarly, after the various troops were integrated, they were given names and those who refused to be "merged" were reduced to only eighteen.
And these eighteen routes were divided into many factions, intentionally or unintentionally, as can be seen from their marching routes.
Led by Yuan Shao, the largest number of princes gathered around him, as many as ten groups, following him on both sides.
Cao Cao, Sun Ce, Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao and others approached "unintentionally".
The exception was Liu Bei, who neither got close to Yuan Shao nor tried to stay away from Cao Cao. There was no one following him, and as the governor of Xuzhou, he seemed quite lonely.
Guo Jia rode on his horse and drank wine, following Cao Cao, and said with a smile: "The army moves very slowly, but for such a large army that is not unified, it is understandable."
Cao Cao raised his head and looked ahead, saying, "We haven't reached Ruyin yet."
Le Jin rode forward and whispered, "General, there have been some strange people wandering around our army lately, trying to sneak in."
Cao Cao's narrow eyes flashed with disdain, and he said, "Yuan Benchu's people are probably worried that I have falsely reported the number of troops."
Guo Jia smiled and shook his head.
Yuan Shao's suspicion was correct, Cao Cao did hide his troops.
Le Jin asked, "Do you want to kill him?"
Cao Cao turned around and looked at the somewhat lonely Liu Bei not far away, and said, "Don't worry about it. Fengxiao, tell me, should I win over Envoy Liu?"
Guo Jia's eyes darkened, and he smiled and said, "General, this Liu Shijun has been defeated in many battles, why do you attach so much importance to him?"
Cao Cao's eyes flashed with strange light, and he said: "Fengxiao, you are wrong. This Liu Shijun is known for his 'benevolence and righteousness'. He seems not good at fighting, but he has a tough character. He keeps fighting after repeated failures. He is not arrogant when he wins and is not discouraged when he loses. Such a person will become a great man in the future!"
Guo Jia drank the wine silently, and said thoughtfully: "If the general forms an alliance with Envoy Liu, it will probably split the coalition forces, which will be disadvantageous to the fight against Dong."
Cao Cao's face twitched slightly, and he nodded gently, saying, "What do you think of Sun Ce?"
Guo Jia looked back and saw that not far away, Sun Ce was leading his troops, not too far away, like a guard, following the left side of Cao Cao's army.
"A young hero who should not be underestimated,"
Guo Jia examined it again and again, turned around and said: "If it is a sharp sword, unsheathed, it is sharp and unstoppable. With a clear purpose and the ability to bend and stretch, it may achieve great things."
Cao Cao looked up at the sky and sighed, "Feng Xiao is right. Sun Ce is much stronger than I was when I was young."
When he was young, Cao Cao was a willful knight-errant who loved fame and sex. He could be said to be a complete playboy from an aristocratic family.
In his early years, Cao Cao followed many famous generals to fight in various battles, but he had no military achievements to show for himself, so he had always been at the bottom of society. It was not until six years ago that he became a lieutenant with the help of his family. That year, he was 34 years old, and at this time, he was already "on his deathbed".
What's more, he is now forty years old, and the Wei Qing he admires has already become famous throughout the world, has made unprecedented military achievements, and is admired by hundreds of millions of people.
In a few years, Wei Qing would die of illness.
Guo Jia naturally sensed Cao Cao's inner urgency and said thoughtfully, "General, a battle against Dong Zhuo may earn you great merit and fame in front of the world."
Cao Cao laughed, calmed down his emotions, and said loudly: "As long as I can destroy the traitors, I won't gain any merit or fame. Even if I, Cao Cao, die here, what's the harm?"
Guo Jia, Le Jin and Xiahou Dun were all excited when they heard this and did not doubt what Cao Cao said.
"Fight quickly!"
Suddenly, a messenger rushed by and shouted, "General, pass the message. Dong Zhuo's ambush has been discovered ahead. All troops, be on alert!"
The messengers ran around, delivering orders everywhere.
All the armies and soldiers gathered together in a hurry and approached Yuan Shao, but Cao Cao remained unmoved, as if he didn't hear anything.
Guo Jia was drinking when his hands suddenly paused. He stared at Cao Cao's back and said with a smile, "It's strange to find Dong Zhuo's ambush here."
Cao Cao heard this and looked at the flags fluttering everywhere. He said calmly, "When the army moves, every tree and grass looks like an enemy. Yuan Benchu is no exception."
Xiahou Dun listened to what the two said and stepped forward and said, "General, Military Advisor, is this, fake?"
Guo Jia drank the wine leisurely and said casually: "I guess the rear general deliberately faked it in order to annex other troops. Don't take it seriously."
Cao Cao's expression changed slightly, he looked in the direction of Yuan Shao's camp and snorted coldly.
Le Jin, on the other side, said, "General, should we just pretend?"
"No need,"
Cao Cao maintained his original speed and said indifferently, "Let's see what Yuan Benchu can do!"
Guo Jia rode his horse and shook his head silently.
This should have been a vigorous "battle against Dong Zhuo", but from the very beginning people had different opinions and impure motives, and this kind of thing happened right after the troops were dispatched.
He could already clearly foresee that this battle against Dong Zhuo would be full of twists and turns, and... might not have the results they expected.
Suddenly, Guo Jia turned around and found that Sun Ce's troops had not moved.
Cao Cao seemed to sense something, and turned around at the same time, with a strange look on his face, saying: "This Sun Ce..."
Guo Jia thought about it and said to Cao Cao, "General, have you made up your mind? Do you want to recommend Sun Ce to inherit the title?"
Logically speaking, Sun Jian had died, and as the eldest son, it was natural for Sun Ce to inherit the title of Marquis of Wucheng. But for some reason, the court had not responded and all the recommendations were suppressed, and the palace's decree was delayed.
Cao Cao observed for a while, but did not see any of Sun Ce's men coming. He stroked his beard and said, "This man may be of great use!"
He had clearly sensed that Sun Ce had a strong desire to inherit the title, and Cao Cao could undoubtedly take advantage of this "desire".
Guo Jia looked towards the direction of Yuan Shao's camp again, and seeing that there was no chaos there at all, he couldn't help but wonder: Could it be that this was not the general's work?
According to his inference, this so-called ambush of Dong Zhuo must have been secretly arranged by Cao Cao, with the purpose of making Yuan Shao feel the crisis, forcing him to speed up his march, concentrate his thoughts, and fight a decisive battle with Dong Zhuo as soon as possible.
But judging from Yuan Shao's reaction, it is also possible that Yuan Shao deliberately used this method in order to annex other small princes.
"General,"
Guo Jia drank the wine and smiled as he asked, "Is the vanguard Liu Shijun?"
Cao Cao was startled, and suddenly turned to look in the direction of Liu Bei, only to see that Liu Bei's troops had already joined Yuan Shao. He frowned and said, "Originally, it was, but it seems that Liu Xuande and Yuan Benchu have some other conspiracy, and I don't know."
"It's to slow down the march."
Guo Jia pulled the reins to maintain the speed and distance from Cao Cao, and said, "If this vanguard is in the hands of the general, the speed can be controlled."
Cao Cao shook his head and said, "It's not that simple. Besides, I heard from Liu Xuande that Lu Bu has already arrived in Xiang County."
Guo Jia was not surprised and said, "So Dong Zhuo must have more than 100,000 soldiers and horses available. Huang Zhong of Yanzhou has already retreated to Shanyang County. This battle is destined to be difficult."
Cao Cao's expression suddenly turned cold. He stared at Yuan Shao's central army and said coldly, "Whether to fight or not is not up to Yuan Shao!"
Guo Jia knew that Cao Cao had a plan in mind, and seeing that Cao Cao didn't say anything, he didn't ask and just drank leisurely.
In front, Zhang He led his troops to pursue Dong Zhuo's ambush, but the ambush came quickly and left even faster, disappearing into the mountains and forests like a whirlwind.
Zhang He chased for a while, but fearing there might be more ambushes, he had to retreat.
Yuan Shao sat in the center of the army, calm and fearless. Instead, he was eager to start a war.
However, Liu Bei, Liu Yao, Zhuge Xuan and others on the side looked nervous and were a little overwhelmed by the sudden ambush.
Yuan Shao saw Zhang He coming back from a distance and laughed loudly, "It's just an ambush, why do you need to worry about it? Pass on my order, the army continues to move forward."
Liu Bei was startled and raised his hand quickly, saying, "General Hou, Dong Zhuo's ambush troops appeared here, so there must be something hidden. Please be careful."
Others followed the advice, hoping to investigate carefully and not move forward for the time being.
Yuan Shao suddenly stood up, put his hands behind his back, and shouted: "My lords, could Dong Zhuo really have an ambush here to ambush my army of more than 100,000? It's just to disrupt our marching speed, you don't need to worry about it. If there is an ambush, I, Yuan Benchu, am willing to go ahead and ensure that you are safe!"
Yuan Shao stood with his hands behind his back, dominating and speaking in a sincere and forceful tone. Everyone who was listening was excited and raised their hands, saying, "The rear general is mighty!"
At this time, Zhang He rushed over and said, "General, I have driven the bandits away and the front is safe."
Yuan Shao smiled with satisfaction, sat down, and said in a deep voice: "Continue marching."
After hearing Zhang He's words, the people felt more at ease. After a while of whispering to each other, Zhuge Xuan raised his hand and said, "We are willing to follow the general and fight the enemy together!"
Yuan Shao's eyes flashed with a smile, and he waved his hand and said, "Follow you."
The army moved slowly, and Liu Bei, Liu Yao, Zhuge Xuan and others naturally joined forces with Yuan Shao.
Only Cao Cao and Sun Ce, who were not far behind, followed slowly, looking lonely.
Yuan Shao looked back and sneered in his heart, but didn't care.
Seeing that Cao Cao refused to come up, Liu Bei, Liu Yao and others wanted to send someone to persuade him, but were stopped by Zhuge Xuan and could only sigh.
As the troops joined together, Yuan Shao's marching speed became faster and faster, even traveling day and night, as if he was eager to have a decisive battle with Dong Zhuo.
This move made the other forces in the coalition complain bitterly, and also made Cao Cao doubt whether his and Guo Jia's judgment was correct.
A few days later, they arrived in Ruyin. Because the journey was too urgent, the various princes asked Yuan Shao to take a temporary break, and Yuan Shao naturally agreed.
On this day, Cao Cao came out of Yuan Shao's office angrily, looking very ugly.
In the open space outside the city, Cao Cao stared at the roasted lamb in front of him and said hatefully: "Yuan Shao, he deserves to be killed!"
Guo Jia leaned against a rock and shook his head, "It's not that strange."
Xiahou Dun, standing by, was equally angry and said, "Yuan Shao did not send troops to Qiao County, but instead divided his troops to occupy Runan Prefecture. This is clearly an attempt to annex us!"
Runan had been occupied by Cao Cao before. Now Yuan Shao occupied Runan under the banner of "strengthening the foundation", which led to many conflicts with the garrisons assigned by Cao Cao to various places, and even led to war.
For the sake of the "big picture", Cao Cao could only endure it and watched Yuan Shao annex his foundation. He negotiated with Yuan Shao many times, but was easily rejected by Yuan Shao.
Cao Cao was furious. Thinking about how Liu Bei, Liu Yao, Zang Hong, Zhuge Xuan and others only followed Yuan Shao's lead, he became even more angry and asked, "Feng Xiao, is there any other solution?"
Guo Jia took a sip of wine, looked towards Qiao County, and said calmly: "We don't need to think of a solution, Dong Zhuo will help us."
Cao Cao was startled, his mind racing, and asked, "Are you saying that Dong Zhuo will take the initiative to send troops?"
Guo Jia shook his head, then nodded, and said, "If we go north from Zhongli County and attack from both the north and the south, Dong Zhuo will definitely not be able to finish off the enemy, so it will be easy to defeat him. Yuan Shao insisted on going around Ruyin to take Runan. Going from Qiao County to Xiang County is difficult and dangerous, with passes everywhere. If we delay for two months, winter will surely come!"
Cao Cao suddenly realized and said, "You mean Dong Zhuo will send troops to provoke us and delay time?"
Guo Jia sat up and analyzed seriously: "The delay of Yuan Shao and Dong Zhuo is different. Yuan Shao wants to continue to grow and accumulate strength, and then fight against the court after destroying Dong. Dong Zhuo's delay is to drag the war into winter. At that time, the coalition forces will lack clothes and food, and will definitely split internally..."
Cao Cao understood, took a deep breath, and said, "Then we can't let them delay!"
Then he stood up and strode away.
Xiahou Dun and Le Jin followed closely, and seemed to be saying something.
Guo Jia brought the wine jug to his lips and was about to drink when he suddenly started coughing violently.
His face turned red, tears came out of his eyes, and the wine he had drunk was constantly vomited out.
The soldiers around were startled when they saw this, and they hurried over and asked, "Military Advisor, Military Advisor?"
Guo Jia coughed for a long time before he stopped and wiped his mouth. He felt the discomfort in his abdomen and the dull pain in his chest. He smiled and waved his hands, saying, "I choked on the wine. It's nothing serious. Hey, this wine is too bad. Can you guys find some good wine for me?"
Guo Jia held an extremely high position in the army, and everyone who saw him had to be polite. The soldiers responded one after another and hurried off to find wine.
Guo Jia waited until they left before he frowned and opened his palm, which had traces of blood.
My heart suddenly felt heavy and I couldn't help but look up to the place where Cao Cao had disappeared.
"It seems like I need to see a doctor." Guo Jia whispered to himself, his expression not relaxing at all.
On the other side, Cao Cao called over a few personal soldiers and whispered a few instructions to them. Then the soldiers responded and rode away on their horses.
Then, Cao Cao's narrow eyes flashed with viciousness, and he snorted coldly, saying: "The destruction of Dong is imperative, and no one can stop it!"
As he spoke, he took out a gold medal from his bosom, on which was engraved the words: As if I were here in person.
Cao Cao watched for a long time, and when he heard footsteps, he calmly put it in his arms and said, "Dezu, go and invite Envoy Liu and Sun Ce to come. I want to host a banquet for them."
Yang Xiu was not surprised that Cao Cao heard his footsteps. Instead, he said, "General, there is news from Luoyang that Liu Yan, the governor of Yizhou, has died of illness."
Cao Cao frowned subconsciously, and then said calmly: "I know."