After a brief replenishment at Xiangyuan, the army continued to advance.
More than sixty miles southeast of Xiangyuan City, we turned south and passed through Huguan and Tunliu cities. Finally, on the fourth day after departure, which was April 18th, we arrived at Changzi City, the headquarters of Shangdang Administration.
"Compared to the two hundred miles a day and night on the battlefield in Hebei, this speed is not fast. But now we are marching in Shangdang County with difficult terrain, and it is a long-distance march. We have covered more than 300 miles in four days, and more than 70 miles in one day, which is actually very fast.
Such speed is mostly due to Wang Yu¡¯s silver bullet opening strategy. Through the ages, the money-throwing offensive, which has been tried and tested many times and is said to be able to control ghosts and gods, has made the counties and forts along the way unstoppable. The news spread as if it had wings. Even the Qingzhou Army's march speed of more than 70 miles a day was only What a surprise.
The scene we encountered when we first arrived at Xiangyuan City never happened again, and the subjective initiative of the Shangdang people was completely mobilized. Not only had they made full preparations in the city early, they also set up multiple lookout posts on the hills outside the city, waiting for the legendary money-spreading army to cross the border.
Seeing a large group of cavalry coming from a distance, the outermost lookout post knocked down the message tree to send the message, and the city began to prepare. Once the flags carried by the cavalry were clearly seen, the formal greeting process began.
There are various greeting methods, the most exaggerated is this time when the army arrives at Changzi City.
First, the village elders came out of the city to welcome him. The village elders who came out to welcome him were all over seventy years old and had children and grandchildren. They hold green bamboo brooms in their hands, pretending to be sweeping the road as they move forward, and from time to time they lean down as if to pull out weeds.
This is a very ancient etiquette, and it is also the most solemn etiquette among the people to welcome nobles. Generally, only in times of peace and prosperity, when welcoming the emperor, would officials organize the people to do this.
Considering Wang Yu's current status and strength, enjoying such etiquette is not considered transgression. However, in troubled times, and in a chaotic place like Shangdang, Leng Ding saw such a great gift and Wang Yu was greeted. It feels a little awkward and surprising.
¡°But he couldn¡¯t refuse. He had originally intended to win over the people in Bingzhou. To achieve this goal, joining the party was the top priority. Only when Bingzhou is completely settled and there are no future troubles can Xu Shu's Western Front Army use Bingzhou as a stepping stone to launch a strategy for Guanzhong and Hedong more quickly.
It is better for the people to show goodwill than to continue to remain in a state of hostility and distrust.
The real surprise came after entering the city. As soon as the forward cavalry entered the city gate, a large number of people came out cheering on both sides of the street. Zhao Yun, who was walking in front, was startled and almost thought that these people were just pretending to be respectful on the surface, but in fact they had evil intentions.
Fortunately, the person walking in front was Zhao Yun, who had a calm temperament, otherwise there might have been trouble. In fact, the people were just too enthusiastic.
"General, come to our house! The freshly steamed flour cakes and the hare we just hunted yesterday are plump and delicious!"
"The rabbit has just passed the winter and is very skinny. What can he eat? Our family has freshly ground japonica rice"
"General, we have fish at home, we have fish!"
After Zhao Yun was surprised, a warm and slightly absurd feeling filled his heart.
How many years have you not seen such a scene? Well, maybe I¡¯ve never seen it, but I¡¯ve only heard about it in legends, right? Wherever the king went, the people greeted him with baskets and pots of food. This kind of rhetoric can often be seen in the writings of historians. But it is hard to say whether it is true or whether it is based on speculation by later generations. Anyway, Zhao Yun has never seen it himself, and he has never heard anyone dare to claim to have seen it with his own eyes.
At that time, Gongsun Zan conquered the east and west and defended the northern border, and his reputation among the people was pretty good. However, Gongsun Zan had little experience in governing, and running the army followed a very traditional model. Most of the people in Youzhou respected and feared this powerful army.
"I respect the soldiers who fought bloody battles on the battlefield and kept the beast-like Xianbei and Wuhuan out of the country, so that they could not harm our homes.
What is scary is that these same good men have brought heavy pressure and burden to the people of Youzhou and even the northern Hebei region, which is not a disaster.
At that time, when people who were protected by the Youzhou Army mentioned this powerful army, they would probably comfort each other with words like this: No matter what, it is better than being attacked by a wild dog.
As for Liu Yu, he is a pure bureaucrat. His good reputation comes entirely from the local wealthy families. As the Lord said, only those who get benefits will behave to those who give benefits. Liu Yu relieved the burdens of wealthy families and passed them on to the common people, and he would naturally gain the heartfelt support of the former.
As for the scene he saw now, Zhao Yun was already filled with pride.
Although my lord will never talk about benevolence and righteousness when he has nothing to do, what he is actually doing is good governance that benefits the country and the people. The New Deal benefits the people, so it is supported by the people. The reason is that simple.
"If the elders are so enthusiastic, we can't live up to this intention. Send the order, and all the ministries will be divided into units of tens and corps to eat in the city!" Zhao Yun waved his hand and ordered, smiling: "Go and tell Kong Ming and the others, There is no need to open fire in the army today, so eat and drink enough, and hurry up and hit the road."
"Here!" The ordering soldier took the order flag and left happily.
The food of the Qingzhou Army has always been good, but that was during normal times. When a war is approaching, everyone's supplies are tight. The highest goal of the quartermaster's efforts is to feed the entire army. Details such as whether the food is good or not are generally not taken into account.
There are two main types of dry food in the Han army, called meal and embarrassment. It is to fry rice, wheat, sorghum and other grains, and then mash them to make it easier to carry. It is similar to the fried rice and noodles in later generations. When eating, you just grab a handful of dry food and send it down with hot water. The armies with better conditions will also be provided with some dried pickles and the like.
Generals are treated better, and they will definitely have dried vegetables. Occasionally, there will be some fresh vegetables and the like, which is considered a cadre-level privilege.
Of course, there will be no shortage of food and wine, but most of them will be reserved until the eve of the war and used as a trump card to boost morale. It can be seen from this that a general who is interested in these special supplies will definitely not become a famous general. He will either retreat to the second line early or die an untimely death.
The military provisions of the Qingzhou Army are better than those of the Han Army in the past, but only in peacetime. After leaving the country to fight, they are actually about the same. Where can I find fresh stuff so easily? Even if they were found, it would be impossible to supply thousands of troops.
This is the case in the Central Plains, not to mention that we are now in Bingzhou, which has been in chaos for decades, and in Shangdang, where the chaos is the most intense!
When he first learned that Wang Yu had decided to change his route and set off early without waiting for Xu Shu to deliver food, Zhao Yun felt uneasy, fearing that he might not be able to deal with the fierce Shangdang people. As a result, things went very smoothly. Not only did the supplies arrive, but we also got the unexpected surprise of improved food.
During this period of time in Bingzhou, the soldiers were also very indifferent. Although I won't complain, I will definitely be happy to hear that I have the opportunity to eat meat.
The people of Shangdang are so enthusiastic that they have almost given everything they have. Are they still afraid that they will not be able to enjoy themselves? Of course, you can't eat for free, you have to pay after eating. However, for the Qingzhou soldiers who received generous military pay, they were never afraid of expensive things, they were just worried that they would have nowhere to spend their money.
Zhao Yun has a strong sense of responsibility. Although he knew that there was little possibility of something going wrong, he only rushed back to the Chinese army after arranging the troops to disperse and eat.
"Thank you for your hard work, Zilong. Come on, sit down and eat." The Chinese army was stationed at the city guard's mansion in the center of the city. When Zhao Yun arrived, a round table had been set up here, waiting for him.
Wang Yu smiled and waved to his beloved general: "Don't tell me, the things made in this small stove are much better than those in the big canteen. This is the party's crouching tiger, hidden dragon. When the world is peaceful in the future, maybe something will happen. A few chefs and so on."
"This day is not far away." Zhao Yun replied with a smile and sat down in his seat. Before he could pick up the chopsticks, Taishi Ci's chatterbox started.
"The gangsters are really amazing. We were marching so fast, but they actually got the news faster than us! Those mountain people can climb mountains, take shortcuts, etc. It's not surprising that they are faster than us, but they came out to meet us. The etiquette and supply specifications are getting more and more outrageous!"
It sounded like he was just expressing emotion, but Wang Yu heard that there seemed to be something in Taishi Ci's words. He looked up at him and asked, "Ziyi, what do you want to say?"
"I just wanted to" Taishi Ci carefully looked at Wang Yu's expression and said hesitantly: "These people are leaving so fast. What if someone goes to Hanoi to report the news? In the past few days, we have not received any news from Yanzhou at all. With the news coming, if Cao Cao is really in Hanoi and we find out that we are now that will be very difficult."
Wang Yu raised his eyebrows slightly and asked, "Are you worried that Cao Cao will intercept you in advance?"
"That's what it means, but it's more than that"
Taishi Ci seemed very hesitant, and kept mumbling for a long time. Wang Yu became a little impatient before he revealed his true intention: "I'm just wondering, my lord, what did you write in that brochure? Is it because the military advisor just wanted to If we follow the above strategy, we will definitely be able to force Cao Cao to Hanoi. If that is the case, we must guard against leaking the news!"
After thinking about it, he added: "There is something weird here in Changzi City. There are very few officials and powerful people here who are dying or escaping. How could they think of that move to greet them? Don't tell me that someone is planning to have an affair with Cao Cao as a way to delay the war, right?"
The generals all had smiles on their faces at first, but when they heard this, their expressions changed.
Tai Shici seems to be determined to impress everyone these days, and has put a lot of thought into it. The section he came up with is indeed very reasonable and contains a lot of risks.
With this change of route, there are only two roads that can be taken, Baixing or Taihangxing. If Cao Cao receives the news in advance, he can cause great trouble to himself as long as he sends thousands of elites to defend the danger.
During this period, the Lord just focused on marching and had no intention of contacting Yanzhou's remaining army. Everywhere they arrived, although there was a grand welcome scene, in reality, it was a silent military march.
Now, everyone has no idea what¡¯s ahead. They don¡¯t know whether Cao Cao will send troops to intercept them in the canyon. They don¡¯t know how the battle in Yanzhou is going. It¡¯s completely dark.
What if Cao Cao spies on him and rushes into the encirclement?
What should I do if I am intercepted at Baixing or Taihangxing?
What if Cao Cao is not in Hanoi at all?
There are too many questions, and they are beyond the reach of the party and the people.
And the biggest question is the contents of the brochure. Although no one has any doubts about their lord's intelligence and strategy, how can one feel at ease if this mystery is not solved?
"Even if Cao Cao is not in Hanoi, wouldn't it be faster if we take this road than the detour from Jingxing? As for Cao Cao setting up an ambush for us, I don't think he is that capable. Until now, I haven't decided which road to take. If Cao Cao wants to set up an ambush, he has no choice but to split his troops into two groups. If he really splits his troops, it will be a dream come true."
Wang Yu put down his chopsticks and Shi Shiran explained: "If he sends troops to block the road, it will be a bit difficult. But again, there must be a road before the car reaches the mountain. If there is no road, we will use the swords in our hands to cut out a road. It's just a matter of time. As for the tips Haha, it's not time to reveal the answer to the mystery yet, so please be patient. Eat, eat, and after eating, we have to go on the road."
What he said made the generals feel excited and full of doubts. My lord has never been in the habit of telling people off, and there is no way he can't trust anyone here. Why is it so secretive this time? How strange!
No matter what thoughts were in their hearts, the road still had to move forward, but the minds of the generals were gradually not on the march, but on an inconspicuous point on the map
The third of the eight famous Taihang Mountains - Baixing! (To be continued. Please search Piaotian Literature, the novels will be better and updated faster!)