The Three Kingdoms become stronger when they get treasures

Chapter 512 Taking Nanyang

Why didn't Zhang Wu let Xu Shu continue to command the army on the western front?The main reason is that military power is very sensitive and cannot be held in someone's hands for a long time. Even the most trusted people must take preventive measures.This is not only for the security of the country, but also for the good of everyone.

Xu Shu has been leading troops on the western front for a long time, and it is time to return to the central government for a period of time.

Before leaving, Zhang Wu sent orders to those Wei generals who were guarding the frontier and had not yet surrendered.Therefore, they can either choose to surrender to the Chu State, or they can choose to continue to regard themselves as Wei Chen, or they can choose to be temporarily neutral and not help each other.

As long as they guard the frontier with peace of mind and do not fight with the Chu army, the Chu army will not take the initiative to attack them and maintain their current sphere of influence for the time being.The fiscal revenue of the counties and counties is at their own disposal, which is used for the salaries of civil and military officials and the payment of soldiers, food, and weapons.If the financial revenue of a certain county is not enough to support the military defense of the frontier, the shortfall will be allocated by Da Chu.

As soon as this order came out, the former Wei generals and prefects guarding the border areas of Liangzhou and Yongzhou breathed a sigh of relief. This can be regarded as giving them a way to get the best of both worlds.Some people want to protect their reputation and are unwilling to take the initiative to surrender, but if the Chu army is determined to occupy all the counties and counties in Liangzhou and Yongzhou, they will not be able to defend them. It will give those barbarians and robbers an opportunity.

In 219 A.D., Zhang Wu returned to Xiangyang with the main force of cavalry. After half a year of rest, he ordered Guan Yu to be the commander in chief, and Pang Tong and Xu Shu to be the chiefs of staff of the army. , Liao Hua, Zhou Cang, Zong Yu and other generals sent an army of 20 out of Fancheng to attack Wancheng, and wanted to take back Nanyang County.

Nanyang originally belonged to Jingzhou. After Li Jue's defeat, Xiliang warlord Zhang Ji led troops from Guanzhong into the border of Jingzhou to fight Liu Biao due to lack of food in the army. He was shot and died when he attacked Rangcheng.Zhang Ji's nephew, Zhang Xiu, took over the army. When he was in a dilemma, he accepted Liu Biao's call to surrender, stationed troops in Wancheng, and became Liu Biao's vassal force in the north, defending Liu Biao from the northern enemies.

On the surface, Zhang Xiu surrendered to Liu Biao, but in fact the two parties are in a cooperative relationship.Liu Biao provided Zhang Xiu with shelter and food, and Zhang Xiu guarded the north gate of Jingzhou for Liu Biao.

Later, Cao Cao marched south to Wancheng three times in 197, 198 and 199 respectively. Finally, Zhang Xiu followed Jia Xu's suggestion and surrendered to Cao Cao. Thus, Nanyang County, a wealthy and strategically important place, belonged to Cao Cao.

After Zhang Wu took power in Jingzhou, he also wanted to regain Nanyang and build a buffer on the north bank of the Han River, because Xiangyang was on the south bank of the Han River, and Cao Cao's army would soon approach the Han River, posing a greater threat to Xiangyang.But Zhang Wu had no cavalry, and he was no match for Cao Jun in the flat Nanyang Basin, so he had to stick to Fancheng as a last resort.

Fortunately, Cao Cao did not have a navy, and he was eager for success back then. When the navy was not well trained, he rashly attacked Jingzhou. Zhang Wu dug him twice on the Han River and lost 20 elite troops.Afterwards, the two sides stationed troops in Wancheng and Fancheng, and the confrontation lasted for more than ten years.

Guan Yu, the head of the five tiger generals, has been guarding Fancheng for so many years. On the one hand, he used his prestige to frighten Cao Jun in Wancheng, and on the other hand, he also implicitly expressed another meaning.That is, Guan Yu holds military power in Fancheng, which is very close to Xiangyang, and Liu Bei is absolutely safe in Xiangyang, lest some people think wildly.

Now Zhang Wu has cavalry, and defeated the main cavalry force of the Wei army in the Battle of Guanzhong, so he is no longer afraid of fighting the Wei army in field battles.

This is equivalent to winning a wave of team battles on the side road, and demolishing the opponent's second tower by the way, but the high ground on the side road is not easy to reach, so when the economy is relatively dominant, we are going to make a strong push in the middle road.

From the point of view of China's topography, the closest route to the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains was also from Nanyang to Xuchang.

The distance between Wancheng and Xuchang is less than four hundred miles, and there is a flat river. The cavalry can reach Xuchang within two days from Wancheng.Once the Chu army occupied Xuchang, Cao Pi in Luoyang would either flee to Jizhou as soon as possible, or he would be blocked in Luoyang by the Chu army.

It can be said that as long as Wancheng is captured and Nanyang is regained, there is no need to fight Tongguan at all. It is only necessary to cut off the connection between Luoyang and Yuzhou, Xuzhou, and Qingzhou in the east, and the state of Wei may collapse immediately.

Cao Pi and a group of high-level officials in the Wei State also knew this truth and the importance of Wancheng, so they dispatched [-] troops from Tongguan to reinforce Wancheng, Xuchang and Runan. Support each other and cooperate with each other.

Cao Pi asked Cao Zhen and Cao Xiu to guard Tongguan, Cao Ren returned to Runan to guard Yuzhou, Sima Yi, Zhang Jai, Li Dian, Xu Chu, Xia Houba and others all went to Wancheng to assist Cao Hong in defending the city.

After the surrender of Yu Jin, Cao Pi began to be wary of these generals with foreign surnames again. Even the number one general with a foreign surname who claimed to be the most loyal to the Cao family could surrender. Who else is reliable?
Therefore, Wei's military power is firmly in the hands of the clan generals.

The word "Wan" in Wancheng means "high in the four directions and low in the center" in ancient times.In the early Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Chu built a city here as a base for aspiring to the Central Plains, and the name of Wan began from then on.

Wancheng is very important to Wei State. As long as Wancheng can be defended, the hinterland of the Central Plains will be safe, and Wei State will be able to support it for a few more years. After a few years, there may be a turning point.

But some cities are not something you can defend if you want to, such as Chang'an City, if you dare not go out to fight in the field, no matter how tall the city wall is, it will be the same as an earthen wall in front of the powerful gunpowder.Zhang Xiu also defeated Cao Jun many times in Wancheng, but finally surrendered.

It is more convenient for the Chu army to attack Wancheng than to attack Chang'an, because Wancheng is close to the Feishui, the Chu army can march along the river, and can also use the Feishui to transport food, grass and weapons.Although the Nanyang Basin is surrounded by mountains on three sides, the vicinity of Wancheng is as safe as Chang'an.

In order to contain the troops of the Wei army in Yuzhou, Xuzhou, and Qingzhou, Chu generals Gan Ning, Ding Feng, Lu Meng, Feng Xi, Wenpin, Lu Xun, Jiang Qin, Zhu Huan and others gathered the East China Sea Navy, South China Sea Navy, and Inland River Navy. Wan, launched a massive offensive in Huainan, Guangling and the northern coast.

In the summer of 219, after paying tens of thousands of casualties, the Chu army blasted the wall of Wancheng with gunpowder, then occupied Wancheng and recovered Nanyang County.

The Wei army lost a large number of soldiers, and the national power further declined, and the remnants retreated to Xudu.

At this time, Cao Pi faced a dilemma. Should he stick to Luoyang or retreat to Yecheng.

Holding on to Luoyang is to show that you will never give up on the Central Plains. Showing your determination to resist to the end can boost morale to a certain extent, but you will also face the danger of being blocked in Luoyang.

And retreating to Yecheng can avoid being threatened by the Chu army's front, and can temporarily block the Chu army's attack by relying on the natural danger of the Yellow River, and then rely on the manpower and material resources of Jizhou, Youzhou, and Bingzhou to organize a counterattack.But retreating to Yecheng means that Wei State will give up the territory of Yuzhou, Yanzhou, Xuzhou and Qingzhou, and Wei State will change from an orthodox Central Plains dynasty regime to a partial security regime.

(End of this chapter)