Three Kingdoms

Chapter 3201: The circular machine beads move on the market

Compared with the large-scale wars, refugee flows, and population migration in Guanzhong and Longyou, the Hanzhong area is relatively stable. Historically, it was only when Lao Cao migrated to Hanzhong that the foundation of Hanzhong was established. A relatively big blow.

 Humans are land-based animals, so they are born with a certain preference for land. Of course, there are some people who like the sky or the sea, but most people still like to be on land, not with nothing under their feet.

The same is true for Li Dian. He would rather hold on to what he has in his hands and what he has on his feet than think about what else is in the sky or in the deep water. This determines that Li Dian is definitely a very qualified general who can defend the land. However, there will be some shortcomings in external development. In history, Li Dian was posthumously named Marquis Min, and "when he was in the country, he was still worried about Min", which is enough to prove this point.

 When a general does not strive for merit and does not have too strong ambitions, he will naturally be very calm.

 In the camp under the night sky, the commotion gradually began.

Li Dian's soldiers and horses in Hanzhong woke up from their sleep amidst the short whistle. One by one, they began to tidy up their sleeping clothes, lined up to wash up, and then lined up to eat.

No one will make a fuss, because once caught by the military disciplinary officer, they will be starved at the least and punished at the worst.

Preserved meat is usually very simple. Steamed cakes are used to heat the soup.

In Li Dian's camp, in addition to some of the veterans who had followed Fei into Sichuan and some of the soldiers left behind by Zhang Liao in the later period, there were also some newly recruited soldiers, roughly half and half between new and old soldiers.

 Many of them are Di people.

Di people are widely distributed.

The Di people in Nanzheng are relatively closer to the Han people than the Di people in Shangyong area.

The new recruits were a little nervous when they went into battle, but seeing the nonchalant expressions of the old soldiers around them, minding their own business by eating steamed cakes and drinking soup, the nervousness in the recruits' hearts seemed to relax, and he took a few bites of the steamed buns. Cake is like cheering yourself up.

Everyone finished their meal in silence. Soon after, the camp's rallying horn sounded, and the soldiers stood up one after another and arranged themselves according to their respective teams and according to Wush.

 Once the teams have finished lining up, the leaders of each team will begin to check the equipment of their own teams.

 The focus is on the equipment and dry food carried by each soldier.

 In the early days, there were cases where new soldiers could not control themselves, secretly ate the dry food they were given, and were then hung up and beaten.

Dry food itself is for emergencies and is distributed at a fixed time. It is not given to soldiers as snacks.

The commander inspects the soldiers one by one, pulls the silk ribbon of the armor to see if it is tight and fastened, then pulls out the sword to see if it has been well maintained and is rusty, and finally checks the soldiers' dry food. Bag, if there is no problem, I will pat the soldier on the shoulder...

 If there was a problem, it was not a slap on the shoulder, but a slap on the head.

 After the chief has completed the inspection and there are no problems, he will stand in front of his queue and raise a small triangular red flag.

Generally speaking, under the hussars, the configuration of the infantry queues is based on small teams, rather than like Cao's army, where there are shield bearers and archers in a small team.

 Such a team-based arrangement certainly has its pros and cons.

 However, it is a promotion for the effectiveness of cultivating grassroots military academies.

 After the inspection of each queue, the soldiers of the same squad must listen to the team leader's assembled lecture.

 Some teams can't talk nonsense, and some can master this skill. In this process, those who have grown will be qualified to be promoted to higher positions...

　　　『Cao Jun is like a bad wolf! They want to enter our gardens, eat our food, seize our property, and harm our relatives! 』

　　『Think about the life you lived ten years ago! Who gave you the equipment on your body and the stability of your home now? 』

　　　『Whether the land at home can be saved depends on whether we can defeat Cao Jun! 』

　　　『Cao Jun brought disaster to Shandong and massacred in Xuzhou. Tens of thousands of people were killed and the entire county was burned down! Do you want Cao Jun to kill our family? 』

　　　…

Although these instructions are often very simple and even somewhat repetitive, they are just right for these ordinary soldiers, and most of the soldiers will nod in agreement.

As long as the ruling class doesn’t get crazy and do outrageous things, most of the time local defense will have a certain advantage.

So now, is Fei Qian, or Hanzhong under Li Dian's management, angry?

To put it another way, did Shangyong in the hands of the Shen family cause resentment among the people?

 Where is Cao Cao's land in Shandong?

 Or, what does it mean to be devastated and resentful?

"ready to go! Go to Mulan and switch defense! 』

 …

 …

 The sky is gradually getting brighter.

Even though spring has begun, the temperature is still not high, especially in the valleys and mountain roads, it is a bit cold.

Although it hasn't snowed heavily in the past two days, there is a lot of snow on the mountain top and mountainside. Some melted snow water flows down the rock walls of the mountain, adding a bit of chill and making the mountain road appear extremely slippery. at.

Cao Zhen led his men and horses, walking step by step on the mountain road.

 The difficulty of the mountain road exceeded Cao Zhen's original expectations.

Especially in this kind of weather, when you walk fast, the sweat in your body mixes with the moisture from the outside, and then quickly penetrates all the warm clothes. It feels like wearing a damp quilt on your body. Not only will it not keep you warm, it will make you shiver from the cold. If you are walking slowly, let’s not talk about the distance. Who likes to stay longer in the wind and cold on the mountain road?

Since Mulan Sai is called a plug, it naturally has a reason for its name.

If you want to bypass Mulansai, the pass between the two mountains, you must climb the surrounding Qinling Mountains.

Although the tallest eldest brother in the Qinling Mountains is not in the Shangyong area of ​​​​Hanzhong, his younger brother is enough for Cao Zhen to eat a pot. And the most important thing about climbing over the mountain is to have a guide. If you lose your direction, your whole army may be wiped out.

Cao Zhen left a camp in front of Mulansai, set up flags, and then led his people around.

 There is no other way, he can only come in person.

Walking this kind of mountain road, even if ordinary soldiers can walk, they will be useless after walking. However, if Cao Zhen is asked to hand over the elite soldiers in his hands to others, if the others are not strong enough and become lame, then Cao Zhen will be left with nothing. The soldiers of the Di and Shen clan were also useless. Given the choice between two wastes, Cao Zhen would rather control his destiny in his own hands than wait passively.

In addition, if human lives are stacked, one is too late in time, and the other is problematic in quantity. The Cao family has not yet completely fallen out with the Shen family, but with the ordinary people. Historically, Lao Cao also waited until he was about to evacuate Hanzhong before migrating Hanzhong's population on a large scale. This is the same reason.

If the war is really unfavorable, then Cao Jun's trip will definitely not be in vain. No matter what, the Shangyong area will be completely emptied and turned into a white land. It cannot be easier for the Hussar, but in this situation, we still need to stabilize the local gentry. , don’t completely fall out.

 At this time, it was still the honeymoon period for Cao and Shen. Shen Dan also knew that if he attacked Mulan Fortress, there would be a lot of casualties, and a large part of the casualties would be Shen's soldiers, so he cooperated very well after Cao Zhen proposed a bypass strategy, not only contributing a lot In addition to providing food, grass, and warm clothing, they also tried their best to show off outside Mulan Fort to cover up Cao Zhen's movements and create more time for Cao Zhen.

 It’s just that this mountain road is really difficult to walk.

It was extremely cold at night. I hoped the sun would come out during the day, but when it did, the melted snow water not only kept the temperature in the mountains from rising, but also brought with it fog, which filled the top of the mountain and moved in and out. It's all a huge test.

In such an environment, not to mention people, even the native ponies in Sichuan and Sichuan were a little embarrassed. They nodded their heads with difficulty, moved step by step, snorted, and snorted. Everywhere is stained with white frost.

If there happens to be a gust of mountain mist blowing down, the men and horses will shake like chaff in the wind.

Fortunately, those who followed Cao Zhen were all elites of Cao's army, directly under his command. They were stronger than ordinary soldiers of Cao's army. They usually had enough food and clothing, but some of them couldn't bear the hardship. It was fine at the beginning. Gradually, he couldn't suppress his emotions, and low complaints filled the air.

The tribe directly under Cao Zhen is okay. After all, the whole family eats with Cao Zhen. If Cao Zhen dies, it will be an unforgivable sin for them to live alone. So now that Cao Zhen is walking in front, they must follow as long as they have breath.

 But the rest of Cao’s army elites are different...

Some of these elite Cao soldiers are from Qingzhou, some are from Yanzhou, and some were selected by Cao Ren and Cao Zhen in Jingzhou. Although after becoming a unit directly under Cao Zhen, the ordnance and soldiers' pay is more generous, but it does not mean that They can completely obey Cao Zhen.

　　…Isn’t it actually just a military camp? What kind of Wubao or military stronghold were you not attacked in the early years? Why take this careful detour this time? Can't we just do it and be done? 』

　　"This mediocre mountain is really **** up. After climbing one hill, it's still the same one. It's endless..."

　　　　It was not so miserable when we attacked Jizhou! 』

　　　"Isn't it? At least there is still some hot soup and rice to eat in the military camp. Now..." 　　　These complaints and grumblings are neither big nor small.

Of course, Cao Zhen heard all these complaints, but he had a sullen face and did not turn around to exchange words with the grumbling soldiers. To convince these veterans of Cao's army, it is useless to just talk about military laws and regulations, but to rely on the true ability of the general.

 But the question is, how many "records" can Cao Zhen produce?

 So Cao Zhen remained motionless, not even turning his head, but just walked forward silently step by step.

As time went by, the complaints became quieter.

Walking on peaceful ground is different. Climbing mountains and ridges is really tiring. If no one cares about your complaints, then it’s just a fart.

 If you have the physical strength to talk nonsense, it is better to save the physical strength to walk.

Cao Zhen is really not uncomfortable hearing this?

 In fact, not really.

So Cao Zhen also wanted to go all out and try his best to get through and eat meat, but he couldn't make it through...

 …

 …

 Under Mulan.

 The war drums roared.

According to Cao Zhen's instructions, Shen Dan drove some civilians, mixed with some Cao army soldiers, to attack Mulansai.

 Doing nothing is almost a sure sign that something is wrong...

 As for the civilian husband?

Shen Dan didn’t think there was anything wrong in driving away these people in Jing County.

On the one hand, the main power of the Shen family is concentrated in Shangyong, Xicheng City, and there is not much direct asset connection with a small place like Jing County. On the other hand, the small squires around Jing County did not give Shen Yi face, which made Shen Yi Yi couldn't collect food and grass at that time, and the incident of alienation occurred, so now Shen Dan comes to avenge Shen Yi, what's the problem?

 Shen Dan doesn’t think there is any problem at all.

What’s more, food and grass are not unlimited. Reducing the population can also reduce daily consumption.

The war drums of Cao's army roared, and the chaotic civilians were forced to attack Mulansai.

Slippery blood flowed down the mountain path.

Shen Dan frowned and stared at Mulansai.

In fact, the Shen brothers all have the same problem. They look down on Wu Fu and Fei Qian, so they naturally look down on Zhang Liao and Li Dian even more. As sons of the gentry who have been influenced by Shandong Confucian classics for many years, they have never quite figured out why. These meant repeated setbacks for the dull and savage warrior.

 The achievements of Fei Qian, Zhang Liao, Li Dian and others were not unknown to the Shen brothers, but they were exempted subconsciously.

People are born with the ability to see what they want to see, hear what they want to hear, and what they don’t want to see and hear. The brain will automatically block it.

　　　It’s impossible to lose. ” Shen Dan said to himself.

He previously believed that the Shen clan was suppressed simply because of insufficient troops. Now that they have attracted Cao's army, they are enough to compete with Li Dian, so how can they lose?

Moreover, in the hearts of the Shen brothers, he always felt that Wu Fu was like Dong Zhuo, who neither understood the economy nor the people, and more importantly, they did not know how to run the place. Therefore, Shen Dan felt that Li Dian must rely on military strength. After forcibly suppressing the Nanzheng area, due to the arrival of Cao's army, Li Dian had to lead troops to defend Mulansai.

As a result, Nanzheng will inevitably be empty...

“There will definitely be someone...” Shen Dan said to himself, “But why haven’t I heard any news until now? Could it be said that Nanzheng is really stable? Impossible, how is this done?

Shen Dan's eyes wandered back and forth on Mulan Fort, as if he wanted to find flaws in Li Dian's army.

But the more he looked at it, the more he didn’t understand...

The clouds in the sky gradually became filled with a golden halo, the sun was about to set, and Shen Dan gradually felt invisible pressure.

Strictly speaking, he did a good job in the past two days of attack.

 The defenders' physical strength was consumed, as well as a large amount of wood and stone. Two trenches on the mountain road were filled in, and two layers of trenches were destroyed by the horse.

 But not enough.

Far from enough.

Moreover, there have been a lot of civilians consumed in the past two days, and some in Xing County are not enough...

what to do?

If we continue to fight at the current intensity, we will need to replenish a certain amount of cannon fodder, but Xing County has basically been exhausted. If we want to replenish manpower, we have to go further, that is, under the control of the Shen brothers. The region has to allocate population.

 The flesh on Shen Tan's cheek twitched.

never mind…

It's better to save some money and count it as long as you can delay it.

　　　　Mingjin withdraws the troops! 』

 …

 …

After Mulan was blocked, Li Dian watched Cao's army at the bottom of the mountain recede like a tide, splashing with **** waves.

 The defenders couldn't help but cheer.

Li Dian frowned slightly.

Ma Zhong was standing aside. Looking at Li Dian's expression, he couldn't help but ask: "General, what are you..."

Didn’t the boys fight well?

It has withstood Cao Jun's attack for several days, and Cao Jun did not destroy many defensive facilities.

Mulan Fortress does not look big and cannot accommodate many soldiers, but in fact Li Dian adopted a dual defense system of one light and one dark. The Mulan Fortress on the mountain is exposed in the light, and there are not many soldiers, while the military camp at the foot of the mountain They can replenish troops at Mulan Fortress at any time, but due to the mountain's line of sight, Cao Jun was unable to discover the barracks behind Mulan Fortress.

So if the fight continues like this, Cao Jun may not be able to capture Mulansai even if he fights for several months. But why does Li Dian seem unhappy?

Ma Zhong looked down the mountain, then at the Han River in the distance, and said with some incomprehension: "General, are you worried that Cao Jun is coming from the other side of the river?" Don’t we have a sentry tower to monitor us day and night, but we don’t have Cao Jun’s boats? 』

Although there is water running through Hanzhong Shangyong Land, it is not easy to walk. There are too many twists and turns, causing the water flow to be uneven. In addition, although it snows in the Qinling Mountains, it does not affect the river's flooding, which makes Difficulties were encountered when advancing by water. In addition, most of the ships in Jingzhou are concentrated in the southern part of Jingzhou and around Hefei. There are actually not many ships in northern Jingzhou, so it is already very difficult to transport grain and grass to Cao's army and reduce the burden of land transshipment. There are not many ships available to transport soldiers.

Moreover, Li Dian took some precautions. What he was worried about was not the waterway problem...

Li Dian also glanced at the Han River, nodded slightly and said, "The spring floods on the Han River are fierce, and Cao Jun has few boats in Jingbei... If Cao Jun wants to cross here, he can only win this stronghold... I just feel that Cao Jun seems to be A little weak..."

　　　Weakness? Ma Zhong asked.

Li Dian nodded.

Li Dian had been in Cao's army before. He knew what it would be like if Cao's army really wanted to attack and drive out the people to fill the pits...

 But now it is obviously not strong enough.

Li Dian suddenly raised his head and looked at the surrounding mountains, "Cao Jun, could it be that we took a detour?" 』

Ma Zhong was startled, "No way?" This large circle of mountains... there is no water source in the surrounding mountains! 』

Li Dian nodded, but then shook his head, "But...it snowed a few days ago..."

"snow? ” Ma Zhong was stunned and said, “No, General, what you mean is...”

Li Dian frowned and thought for a moment, "To be on the safe side, we'd better send more scouts to patrol..."