Chapter 18 Five, aggressive Cao Xiu

"Zhongda, brother Wei is actually most worried about your journey to the west!" Although Man Chong is Sima Yi's in-laws, he is ten years older than Sima Yi, so of course he should call himself "for the sake of you!" "Brother", "Even if my brother, Cao Da Sima, and Jia Mujun tried their best to attract Sun Quan's main force to the east wing, will the combat effectiveness of your boat division that went down the Han River from Xiangyang pass smoothly?" The open window of Xuchang Accompanied Capital Camp's study room let in a bright sunlight, reflecting a metallic luster on Sima Yi's cheeks.He fixed his eyes on the silk map of the military terrain of the Wu Conquest spread out on the desk, and used a copper ruler to draw an arc lightly in Wancheng, Dongguan, and Xiakou, and said in a deep thought: "This A great plan to conquest Wu of "Soldiers descended from heaven, attack from east to west, and advance by land and water" gathered troops from the four prefectures of Jing, Yu, Xu, and Yang in our great Wei Dynasty. Brother Man, you have 50,000 sailors there, Cao Da Sima has 120,000 cavalry under his command, Jia Jun has 40,000 soldiers in Yuzhou camp, and Yi can bring out 90,000 elite soldiers here-these can be used as a whole. According to Yi's design, Brother Man, your 50,000 The navy will be transferred to my Xiangyang side, and don't startle the Wu thieves from Yangzhou. Your 50,000 navy and my 90,000 elite soldiers will be a perfect combination, and they will surely form a powerful force to take Xiakou in one fell swoop and take advantage of the momentum Cross the Yangtze River and take Wuchang City, the capital of the puppet Wu!

"Similarly, in the east wing area, Cao Xiu's 120,000 cavalry and Jia Jun's 40,000 horses were combined into one, and they were able to overwhelm the Wu thieves with superior force, although it cannot be said that Wancheng and Dongguan were taken at the same time. , but it should be okay to capture either of them? As far as Soochow is concerned, as long as Wancheng and Dongguan lose one of them, their Chaisang Palace will lose their screen protection, so they will definitely try their best to save it. According to Yi's estimation, the puppet Wu Fei has 140,000 to 150,000 troops and cannot rescue Wancheng and Dongguan! In this way, most of their main force will be attracted to the east wing... As far as Yi knows, the East The total strength of the whole country of Wu is 220,000 horses, minus the 140,000 horses who went to the east, and they only have 70,000 to 80,000 soldiers left on the west wing. When all the people come to it, don’t they hit the egg with a stone, and it will collapse at the touch of it?”

Man Chong is also a man who is proficient in military strategy, he nodded slightly when he heard this, but his brows were tightly frowned in a flash: "Zhongda, it's just right for you to deploy troops like this - it's just that when we are fighting across the river on the west wing But we can't ignore Lu Xun's Wuyalou fleet stationed in Changsha County! His fleet is really powerful. If we can't destroy them in one fell swoop, even if our army has 140,000 people, it will be difficult to win! " "That's why Yicai hopes to use Brother Man and your elite navy as the vanguard. At that time, you might as well implement the method of 'fire boat rushing' on the river. Wait patiently until the northwest wind blows, and use hundreds of warships Loaded with gunpowder, smoke, dry wood and other flammable materials, they ignite with the wind and crash into their fleet of Wuyalou ships... No matter how good Lu Xun is at water warfare, he has no choice but to retreat!"

"Good! Good! Good! Zhongda's plan is brilliant!" After hearing this, Man Chong couldn't help clapping his hands happily, "In this way, Zhongda's campaign to conquer Wu can be accomplished—this illustrious feat, I'm afraid that even Emperor Taizu Wu of the past could hardly hold you back!" "Well... Brother Man, you can't say that!" Sima Yi's face changed drastically when he heard it, and he quickly reached out to cover his mouth, "Emperor Taizu Wu's unrivaled feats are beyond the capabilities of mere courtiers!" On the same level? If you spread these few words, the imperial court will punish us for a crime of 'disrespect'!"

Man Chong stroked his beard, laughed and said, "Brother, this is telling the truth..." Just as he was speaking, someone outside the door suddenly slapped the mountain with a "bang bang bang"! "Who is it?" Man Chong was taken aback, and stepped forward to open the door.But he saw Jia Kui rushing in, sweating profusely, standing in the room before he had time to catch his breath, and shouted: "Si... Sima Jun, Brother Man, you are still discussing... what are you talking about in this camp study? Cao Da Sima has already led an army of 100,000 in the outskirts of Xuchang!"

"Wh...what? He...he has already led his troops to set up his camp? Why didn't he even say hello to us!" Man Chong turned pale with shock. Sima Yi's complexion also changed slightly, but he has always been able to control any fluctuations in his heart, and immediately regained his composure, pushed a bench, helped Jia Kui to sit down slowly, and said gracefully: " Don't worry! Take a rest and talk slowly, where is Sima Cao planning to drive the team?" Jia Kui sat on the bench and breathed a few breaths, then reached out and wiped the sweat on his forehead, and then he calmed down a little: "Ah... the thing is like this - early this morning, Cao Da Sima Send someone to call Jia over, and he said that he has received a letter of surrender from Zhou Fang, the pseudo-Wu Poyang prefect Zhou Fang, and he is going to lead an army of 100,000 to meet Zhou Fang..."

When Sima Yi heard it, the light in his eyes flickered a few times. While he was meditating, he saw Man Chong paused and said, "Wu thief's words are repeated repeatedly. How can I be convinced? Zhou Yu and Huang Gai played together back then. Even Emperor Taizu Wu was deceived by the 'bitter trick'! Zhou Fang has always been loyal to the puppet Wu, how could he surrender easily? Could it be a treacherous trick to lure our army into the shortlist? Jia Mujun, you should do your best to dissuade it!" "Oh! Jia also advised Da Sima in the same way! But Cao Da Sima stubbornly refused to listen, and kept saying, "This opportunity is not to be missed, time is not waiting for me. I want to pay my respects, and I will cut it first and then play it." He also invited Jia to lead the The people from the headquarters went south with him to meet Zhou Fang, and seized Poyang to achieve great success! Of course, Jia refused to agree. When Cao Dasima sent me out, he repeatedly told him, "Zhou Fang's surrender can only be done by Jia Jun, you alone know, don’t mention it to others.’ When Jia returned to the camp and thought about it, he felt that Da Sima’s move was very inappropriate, so he hurried over to tell Sima Jun and Brother Man... ...How about this! Let's persuade Cao Da Sima together, maybe he won't be so stubborn?"

Man Chong also touched his forehead anxiously, approached Sima Yi and asked, "Zhong Da, how do you think this matter should be handled?" Sima Yi, who had been silently listening to all this, had a complexion that was always cloudy and sunny, and I don't know how many times it changed in that short moment!Just now when he heard the words Cao Xiu said to Jia Kui, "The opportunity is not to be missed, the time is not waiting for me, I want to do it immediately, cut first and play later", his heart immediately became clear: it turns out that Cao Xiu has always been "good-looking" to him. But the heart is not convinced", secretly wanting to compete with myself!He also wants to learn from his extraordinary move of "worshiping the watch and doing it, cutting first and then playing" when he quelled the Mengda Rebellion!Well, I, Sima Yi, will "adult beauty", let you stand up and fight for this "merit"!Thinking of this, a faint sneer appeared on the corner of his lips.Therefore, he was determined, took Man Chong's question, and said indifferently: "This... this... Yi can't say anything! Zhou Fang's decision to swear to surrender, I am afraid that Cao Da From Sima's point of view, this is a great opportunity for him to make contributions and stand out in the limelight! It can be seen that he has high hopes for this matter. If we forcefully try to dissuade him together, he may be forced to remonstrate at this time Instead of going to meet Zhou Fang. But in the future, he will put all the grievances that he failed to make contributions and show the limelight this time on our account. Cao Da Sima, you are not ignorant, the most important thing is 'I can't talk clearly, I can't stop twisting'... You two should listen to his complaints every day from now on!"

"Why did Zhongda say that? Are we just going to let his impetuous and aggressive move go?" Jia Kui's face straightened, and he said solemnly. Sima Yi sighed deeply: "Yi didn't say that he would let Cao Da Sima's rash and aggressive behavior go! On the bright side, the three of us must not publicly dissuade him. Maybe it's okay if we go In vain, he is eager to make contributions and self-willed at the moment, how can he listen to our harsh words? Jia Jun, you might as well go with him to meet Zhou Fang, so that you can play by ear and act as a protection..."

"According to the circumstances, it's just a defense?" Jia Kui's eyes lit up when he heard it. "Jia Jun, Brother Man, let's let him hit the wall first! As the saying goes, 'The blisters on the head are made by yourself; the blisters on the soles of the feet are made by yourself.' He touched it. This 'nail', maybe I have realized it myself." "That's the only way!" Jia Kui has always been in a hurry when talking and doing things, nodded and said, "Okay! Jia will do as Sima Jun said-it's not too late, Jia is going now! He is at Chenshi Just set up the tent and set off, Jiamou slowed down a bit, I'm afraid it will be too late."

Seeing Jia Kui running out in a flash, the study suddenly fell silent again.After a long while, Man Chong's murmuring voice finally broke the silence: "Zhong Da, then how can we carry out the grand plan of conquering Wu that we set earlier, 'Soldiers descended from heaven, attack from east and west, advance by land and water'? " Sima Yi looked at him quietly, unable to answer for a moment.yes!The two teams of Cao Xiu and Jia Kui have left suddenly and blindly. What is the plan that was made at the Luoyang Imperial Palace Lingxiao Pavilion before the imperial meeting?It was Cao Xiu himself who was greedy for merit, acted without following the deployment, and messed up the whole strategy of conquering Wu! As soon as he thought of this, he was furious for a while, but there was no expression on his face, and he only said softly to Man Chong: "Forget it! Forget it! Since Cao Da Sima did this, our plan to conquer Wu Let's put it aside for the time being! Brother Man, you have been planning with Yi for so long these days, and you must be tired after thinking about it, so please go back and have a good rest!" Man Chong's lips moved a few times, he hesitated to speak, but he looked outside the door, finally heaved a deep sigh, and sadly left. Not long after his figure left the room, Sima Yi, who had been as calm as a mountain, suddenly changed his face, and jumped up violently, like an angry lion, grabbed the silk map of the Wu military terrain, "chucked" a few times, and raised his voice. It was torn to pieces between the hands! Amidst the piles of scraps of pictures, his ferocious gaze almost wanted to choose someone to devour! "Come on!" The shout shook everyone in the house with fear! "Great Governor..." The door opened, and Liang Ji walked in holding his breath. At this time, Sima Yi's tone suddenly became as cold as ice: "Ride fast for 800 miles immediately, take a letter from the governor, and rush back to the Sima Mansion in Luoyang secretly overnight, and submit it directly to Steward Yin !" In August of the second year of Cao Wei Taihe, Cao Xiu led a lone army of 100,000 cavalry deep into Wu territory to meet Zhou Fang's surrender.Unexpectedly, when he arrived at Shiting, he was surrounded and attacked by Lu Xun, Zhu Huan, and Quan Cong, who were ambushing there. All equipment is discarded.Fortunately, Jia Kui came from behind and fought desperately to save him from danger. After Cao Xiu was defeated and returned to Luoyang, he was ashamed and angry, and wrote a letter of apology.Cao Rui originally wanted to ignore it, but a six-character poem that reads "One is true, two is good, and three rests, don't boast in front of others; it is ashamed to lose fifty thousand to the teacher, it is better to hold your head and self-study!" Everyone knows that - Cao Xiu was deeply ashamed, and under the attack of shame and hatred, a month later, he developed gangrene on his back, and he was so angry that he died! On the third day after his death, Sima Yi concurrently assumed the post of General Zhengdong that he had vacated, sitting in Wancheng, and "fake yellow axe" to govern the military, political and administrative affairs of the four prefectures of Jing, Henan, Xu, and Yang! As far as Sima Yi is concerned, he is most pleased with this point: he finally got the yellow ax that represents the supreme authority of "Like My King's Landing"!This also means that Sima Yi has almost completely controlled half of Cao Wei's military and political power. From then on, he can gallop freely on the two fronts in the southeast and carry out his grand plan of conquest of Wu!