Xia Houdun was defeated in Xuchang, so he tied himself up to meet Cao Cao and begged for his life. Cao Cao ordered people to untie the rope. Xia Houdun said: "I was unfortunately tricked by Zhuge Liang, and he burned our army with fire." Cao Cao said, "You have loved fighting since you were a child. Don't you understand that you must be careful about fire prevention on narrow roads? " Xia Houdun said: "General Li Dian and General Yu Jin reminded me, and I regret it!" Cao Cao then rewarded Li Dian and Yu Jin.
Xia Houdun said: "Liu Bei's madness has really become a big worry, and we must get rid of it at once." Cao Cao said, "The only princes I am worried about now are Liu Bei and Sun Quan. I don't mind the rest, so I take this opportunity to destroy Jiangnan. "
Cao Cao sent five hundred thousand messengers, with Coss and Cao Hong as the first team, Zhang Liao and Zhang He as the second team, Xia and Zhang He as the third team, Yu Jin and Li Dian as the fourth team, and Cao Cao sent generals to personally lead the troops as the fifth team, with hundreds of troops in each team. He also ordered Chu Xu to rush and led three thousand troops as pioneers. In the 13th year of Jian 'an (AD 208), we set out on the third day of autumn and July.
Kong Rong, a doctor in Taichung, dissuaded him, saying, "Liu Bei and Liu Biao are relatives of the Han family, so don't punish them lightly. Sun Quan lives in six counties, and the danger of the Yangtze River cannot be easily taken. The Prime Minister's promotion of this meaningless teacher may greatly disappoint everyone in the world. " Cao Cao thundered, "Liu Bei, Liu Biao and Sun Quan are all disobedient ministers. How can they continue to be crazy! "
Cao Cao retired from Kong Rong and ordered, "It's unforgivable to remonstrate again!" After Kong Rong withdrew from the Prime Minister's Office, he sighed in the sky: "How can you not fail if you use it to the extreme?" At this time, a guest of Lv Chi, an adviser to the ancient emperors, happened to hear this sentence and immediately reported it to Lv Chi.
Lv Chi is often insulted by Kong Rong at ordinary times, and he is jealous of Kong Rong. He immediately reported this to Cao Cao, adding fuel to the fire: "Kong Rong often insulted and despised the Prime Minister, and had the closest relationship with Mi Fei. Mi Fei praised Kong Rong as the immortal incarnation of Confucius, while Kong Rong praised Mi Fei as the rebirth of Yan Hui. It turned out that Mi Fei insulted the Prime Minister, and Kong Rong instigated Mi Fei to do so behind his back, otherwise he wouldn't have the courage. "
Cao Cao was furious and ordered Tingwei to capture Kong Rong. Kong Rong has two young sons who are playing chess at home. The left and right hurriedly reported: "Your old father was taken away by Ting Wei and will be beheaded. Why didn't the two sons run away quickly? " The two sons said, "Under the cover of the nest, is Ann finished?"
Words just say that finish, Tingwei arrived. After beheading Kong Rong's family and Cao's second son in the city, Kong Rong's body gave orders in the street, and Jingzhao was crying. Hearing this, Cao Cao was furious and wanted to catch him and kill him. Yu Xun said: "I often listen to Fat Xi's exhortation to Kong Rong:' Being too honest and too upright is the way to take trouble.' Now, after Kong Rong's death, he came to mourn. He is a truly upright man and can't be killed. Fuck life fat to collect the bodies of Kong Rong and his son. Later generations have poems praising Kong Rong:
After Cao Cao killed Kong Rong, he ordered the five teams to start for the first time, leaving only Yu Xun and others guarding Xuchang.
Liu Biao of Jingzhou was seriously ill, so he sent someone to ask Liu Bei to come over and entrust an orphan. Liu Bei led Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to Jingzhou to see Liu Biao. Liu Biao said, "I'm terminally ill and dying. I specially entrusted my affairs to my good brother. " Neither of my sons is promising, and I'm afraid I can't inherit my great cause. After I die, my good brother can command Jingzhou alone. "Liu Bei cried and said," I should try my best to help these two good nephews. How can I have other ideas! Just then, it was reported that Cao had led 500 thousand troops to kill him. Liu Bei hurriedly bid farewell to Liu Biao and rushed back to Xinye overnight.
Liu Biao was surprised to hear the news when he was seriously ill. He decided to write a will, made his eldest son Liu Qi the Lord of Jingzhou, and ordered Liu Bei to assist him. Mrs Cai was very angry when she heard this. She immediately closed the inner door and sent Cai Mao and Zhang Yun to guard the outer door.
At this time, Liu Qi was in Jiangxia. Hearing that his father was critically ill, he hurried to Jingzhou to visit the sick. When he reached the outer gate, Cai Mao stopped him and said, "You shoulder the heavy responsibility and guard Jiangxia on the orders of your father. Now you haven't gone AWOL. If Wu Dong's army is killed, who will organize the resistance? If I let you in to see my master, he will be angry and his illness will get worse at once, which is against filial piety. Go back immediately. "
Liu Qi stood outside the door crying, so he got on his horse and went back to Jiangxia. Liu Biao is seriously ill and can't wait for Liu Qi. On August WuShen Day, Liu Biao shouted and died. Later generations have a poem lamenting Liu Biao:
"I heard that I lived by the river yesterday, and I met Liu Junba in Hanyang. I am always tired for my family all morning, but my pity will soon run out! "
After Liu Biao's death, Mrs. Cai consulted with Cai Mao and wrote a false will, made Liu Cong, the second son of Liu Biao, the Lord of Jingzhou, and then mourned for the funeral. At this time, Liu Cong was only 13 years old and very smart. He summoned all the civil servants and said, "My father just died, my brother is now in Jiangxia, and my uncle Liu Bei is in Xinye. You all made me a god. If my uncle and brother come to beg for sin, how can we explain? "
All the officials were silent, and Li Jue, the curtain officer, replied, "You are quite right. Now I am in a hurry to send a letter of mourning to Jiangxia, asking my eldest son to be the master of Jingzhou and asking Liu Bei to be the director together. The north can resist the enemy Cao Cao and the south can resist Sun Quan. This is a perfect solution. " Cai Mao scolded: "What are you, how dare you talk nonsense and disobey your master's orders!" Li Jue cursed: "You colluded inside and outside, forged your destiny, abandoned your long career and raised a young one, and saw that the nine counties of Jingxiang were going to be destroyed by your Chua's hands! Therefore, the Lord has a spirit and will definitely punish you! " Cai Mao was furious, calling on him to behead him, and Li Jue cursed him to death.
Cai Taizu mainly supported Liu Cong, and Cai's clansmen led the Jingzhou army: they were ordered to rule China and were not allowed to guard Jingzhou, and Mrs. Cai took Liu Cong to Xiangyang to guard against Liu Qi and Liu Bei. Liu Biao's coffin was buried in Yangyuan of the Eastern Han Dynasty in Xiangyang City, but Liu Qi and Liu Bei did not have an obituary.
Liu Cong had just stopped his horse when he arrived in Xiangyang. Suddenly Cao Cao led an army to Xiangyang. Kuai Yue and Cai Mao were invited to discuss the matter. Cao Dong Fu Xun suggested: "Don't worry about the arrival of Cao Cao. Now that the eldest son is in Jiangxia and Liu Bei is in Xinye, we haven't paid our respects yet. If they know that they will plead guilty in the future, then Jingxiang will be crucial. I have a plan to keep the people of Jingxiang as safe as Mount Tai, and to save the master's nobles. " Liu Cong asked, "What is the plan?" Fu Xun said, "I think it is better to dedicate the nine counties of Jingxiang to Cao Cao, who will certainly treat his master well."
Liu Cong scolded: "What a stupid trick! I just took over my father's inheritance, and my seat is still not secure. How can I just give up my site to others? " Kuai Yue said, "What Fu Gongbiao said is very reasonable. As the saying goes, adversity has a general trend, and strength has a fixed trend. Now Cao Cao is going to the north in the name of the imperial court. If the general resists, the name is not justified. What's more, the master has made new moves, and the external troubles have not been removed, and the internal troubles have continued. When Jingxiang people heard that Cao Jun was coming, they were already afraid before the war. How can we fight them? " Liu Cong said, "You have a point. It's not that I don't listen. However, I am afraid that giving away the foundation founded by my late father for many years will be laughed at by the world. "
Before the words were finished, a man in the seat proudly came out and said, "Fu Gong's words are very reasonable. Why didn't your master listen? " You see, the speaker is Yang Shan Gaoping, surnamed Wang Mingxi, named Zhong Xuan. RoyceWong is thin and short. When he was young, he visited Cai Yong, a corps commander. At that time, when the Cai Yong family heard that Wang Can was coming, they greeted them quickly without touching their feet. The guests were surprised and asked, "Why does Cai Zhonglang respect this child so much?" Cai Yong said: "This child is a genius. I can't compare with him. " People can't compare with Wang Can. RoyceWong is knowledgeable and rote learning. He used to read the inscription on the roadside while walking, and he could recite it immediately. Watching others play chess, the table dropped, and the pieces were scattered on the ground. RoyceWong stepped forward to restore them, and there was no difference at all. He is also good at calculation and his articles are wonderful. He was appointed assistant minister of Huangmen when he was only sixteen years old, but he couldn't shirk his responsibility. Later, he came to Jingxiang to escape the war and was regarded as a guest of honor by Liu Biao.
RoyceWong asked Liu Cong, "Master, how do you judge your talents compared with Tso Gong?" Liu Cong said, "Then I can't compete at all." RoyceWong said, "Cao Gong is brave and resourceful. He captured Lu Bu alive in Xiapi, destroyed Yuan Shao in Guandu, exiled Liu Bei in Runan, and destroyed Wu Huan and the world in the White Wolf. Now the whole army is going south to Jingxiang, and it is difficult to reach the enemy. The long-term strategy is the strategy of Mr. Fu Xun and Mr. Kuaiyue. Master, don't hesitate, you will regret it eventually. " Liu Cong said, "What a gentleman says is absolutely right. But I must tell my mother. "
I saw Mrs. Cai turn out like a gust of wind from behind the screen. She said to Liu Cong, "Since Zhong Xuan, Gong Biao and Yi Du have the same view, why should they report to me again?" So, Liu Cong wrote the book and ordered Zhong Song to secretly go to Cao's camp to deliver it. After receiving the order, Zhong Song went straight to Wancheng and submitted a surrender after seeing Cao Cao. Cao Cao was overjoyed, rewarded Zhong Song, ordered Liu Cong to go out of the city to meet them, and made him the eternal Lord of Jingzhou.
Zhong Song bowed to Cao Cao and returned to Jingxiang. I was about to cross the river when I saw a group of people coming, led by Guan Yu. Zhong Song couldn't escape, so he was summoned by Guan Yu and asked about Jingzhou in detail. Zhong Song tried to hide it at first, but was later questioned by Guan Yu, so he had to tell the whole story. Guan Yu was frightened and immediately took Zhong Song to Liu Bei in Niinomi to tell him what had just happened. Liu Bei cried after hearing this. Zhang Fei said, "That's right. We can kill Zhong Song first, then cross the river, seize Xiangyang, kill Cai Mao and Liu Cong, and then go to war with Cao Cao. "
Liu Bei said, "Shut up first, I have my own ideas." He rebuked Zhong Song and said, "If you knew what they had done, why didn't you tell me earlier? It's no use killing you now. You'd better get out. "Zhong Song thank humbly after a brisk walk.
Someone reported that Liu Qi sent Yi Ji, and Liu Beizheng was depressed. Liu Bei was so grateful for Yi Ji's help that day that he went down the steps to meet him and thanked him again and again. Yi Ji said, "The eldest son is in Jiangxia. I heard that his father has passed away. Mrs. Cai and Cai Mao and others can't come to the funeral home through consultation, and they have already supported Liu Cong. My son sent someone to Xiangyang to inquire, and the return was true. I was afraid that you didn't know what was going on, so I was sent to report it with a letter of mourning, asking you to do your best to go to Xiangyang to ask for guilt. "
After reading the letter, Liu Bei said to Ji Bo: "Ji Bo only knew that Liu Cong had usurped himself, but he didn't know that Liu Cong had dedicated the nine counties of Jingxiang to Cao Cao!" Yi Ji was frightened: "Where did your messenger get the news?" Liu Bei said of Zhong Song's capture. Yi Ji said: "In that case, it is better for the monarch to go to Xiangyang in the name of mourning, lure Liu Cong out to meet the enemy, capture him alive by the way, destroy his henchmen, and the land of Jingzhou will return to the monarch." Zhuge Liang said, "What Ji Bo said is completely correct. Your master can follow the plan. " Liu Bei said with tears: "Brother Liu Biao put me in danger. If I take his son and his territory now, how can I see my brother Liu Biao again? " Zhuge Liang said, "If we don't act immediately, Cao Jun will have arrived in Wancheng. What can we use to repel the enemy? " Liu Bei said, "Why don't you take refuge from Fancheng?"
While they were discussing, Agent Ma Fei reported that Cao Jun had arrived in Wang Bo. Liu Bei quickly sent Yi Ji back to Jiangxia to rectify the army, and at the same time discussed with Zhuge Liang the plan to repel the enemy. Zhuge Liang said, "Don't worry, master. A few days ago, a big fire killed most of Xia Houdun's troops. Now that Cao Jun is here again, he will definitely let them fall into this trap again. We can't stay in Xinye any longer, so we'd better retreat to Fancheng as early as possible. " He sent four people to post a list and told the residents: "People, old and young, men and women, who are willing to follow, can follow us to take temporary refuge in Fancheng now, and don't delay." He ordered the allocation of ships to save the people; Mi Zhu was ordered to escort his family to Fancheng.
Then Zhuge Liang summoned his generals to listen to the order, and first sent Guan Yu and a thousand soldiers to ambush the upper reaches of the Baihe River, each with more sandbags to intercept the water of the Baihe River. After the third night of tomorrow, I heard someone shouting downstream, so I packed my bags, put down the water, and killed to meet him downstream. Zhang Fei was sent to ambush 1000 soldiers at Boling Ferry. This place has the slowest water potential. After being flooded, Cao Jun must escape from here, and he can use this opportunity to get help. Then Zhao Yun was sent to lead 3,000 troops into four teams, personally leading one team to ambush outside the east gate, while the other three teams ambushed at the west, south and north gates, first hiding sulfur, flame and nitrate on the roofs of people in the city. After entering the city, Cao Jun must enter the private residence to have a rest. There will be strong wind after dusk tomorrow. As soon as the wind blows, soldiers from the west, south and north will be ordered to launch rockets into the city. When the fire in the city is strong, they will cheer outside the city, leaving only the east gate for them to escape. You will chase from behind outside the east gate. Meet Guan Yu and Zhang Fei at dawn, and then retreat to Fancheng.
Zhuge Liang ordered Mi Fang and Liu Feng to lead two thousand troops, one with a red flag and the other with a green flag, to station in front of Quewei Slope, three miles outside Xinye City. After seeing your arrival, the Red Flag Army walked on the left and the Green Flag Army walked on the right. They must be suspicious and afraid to pursue, so you ambush separately. As long as you see a fire in the city, you can hunt down the defeated soldiers and then meet them in the upper reaches of the Baihe River. Zhuge Liang's allocation has been decided. He and Liu Bei climbed up to watch and wait for good news.
Coss and Cao Hong led the troops with 100,000 troops as the front team, and Chu Xu led the troops with 3,000 armored vehicles to open the way, and they fought for Xinye in a mighty way. At noon that day, I came to Quewei Slope and saw a group of people in front of the slope, all under the banner of green and red. Chu Xu urged the army to advance. Liu Feng and Mi Fang Army were divided into four teams, and the green flag was left and right. Chu Xu bridled the reins and told the soldiers not to move forward: "There must be an ambush ahead. Our army only stops here. " Chu Xu sent a fast horse to report to Coss. Cao Ren said, "This must be Liu Bei's suspected soldiers. There will be no ambush. We can enter the army as soon as possible. I also urged the soldiers to hurry. "
Chu Xu ordered the troops behind him to enter, but when he rushed to the forest to pursue, no one saw him. At this point, the sun is setting, Chu Xu is moving forward, only to hear the mountain talk.
When I looked up, I saw a pile of flags on the top of the mountain. There are two umbrellas in the middle of the flag: Liu Bei on the left and Zhuge Liang on the right. They sat face to face drinking. Chu Xu was furious and led the way to find the mountain. On the mountain, you can't move forward if you hit the stone.
I heard a shout of killing from behind the hill. Xu Kun wanted to find a way to fight, but it was too late. Coss led the troops to arrive and ordered the troops to seize Xinye City and rest their horses. When the police officer came to the gate, he saw four doors wide open. After your breakthrough, you didn't encounter any obstacles, and there was no one in the city. It turned out to be an empty city. Cao Hong said, "This is because Liu Bei was desperate, so he fled with the people. Our army will rest in the city for the time being and March for pursuit tomorrow. " At this time, the sergeant was tired and hungry, and all went to grab the room to cook. Coss and Cao Hong are resting in the county government.
After being on duty for the first time, a strong wind suddenly blew, and the sergeant at the door flew in to report the fire. Cao Ren said, "It must be that the sergeant accidentally missed a small fire while cooking. Just put it out yourself. Let him go. " Before the speech was over, several times in succession, the west, south and north gates were on fire. Coss hurriedly ordered people to mount. At this time, there are fires everywhere in the city, and they are red from top to bottom. This night's fire was much fiercer than the one in Bowangpo a few days ago. Later generations have poems to sigh:
Coss hurried to lead people, braved the smoke and walked back. I heard that there was no fire in the east gate, so I quickly came out from the east gate. The sergeant trampled on himself, causing a lot of casualties. Coss and others just got out of the fire, and there was a shout of ShaSheng behind them, and Zhao Yun led the melee. Those defeated soldiers only wanted to run for their lives, so there was no idea to fight again. Just as he was about to escape, Mi Fang arrived with a charger, and he came in a hurry. Coss fled in defeat, and Liu Feng led another army to intercept for a moment.
By the fourth watch, Cao Bing was overwhelmed, and most of the sergeant was overwhelmed. Escape to Baihe, fortunately, the river is not very deep, people go to the river to drink water, people are shouting, horses are barking.
It is said that Guan Yu stopped the river with a cloth bag in the upper reaches, and after his first watch, he saw a fire in Xinye City. At four o'clock, I suddenly heard someone shouting at the lower reaches of the river, which made the sergeant pull up the cloth bag together, and the water rushed down. Cao Jun and his men were soaked in the water and drowned a lot. Coss led the sergeant to the slow water and fled. When I ran to Boling Ferry, I heard a cry of killing, and a military horse blocked the way. The first general was Zhang Fei, shouting, "cao thief, get your life!" Cao Jun was terrified.
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Written on July 30th, 20 18 (June 18th of the ancient calendar).
Vernacular Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Chapter 39
Vernacular Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Chapter 38
Thoughts on Reading Three Visits to the Cottage
Vernacular Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Chapter 37
Vernacular Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Chapter 36