Three Kingdoms King of the North

The two of them had been on the road for two days, when suddenly a messenger came to report: "To the two generals, Lu Bu and Sheng Jia have already entered Hangu Pass. Now the gate is closed and the city is heavily guarded. It seems that preparations have been made for a long time. "

"Damn it," Li Jue couldn't help saying angrily when he heard the reward from the scout, "What's the matter with the guard in Guanzhong? Hangu Pass is easy to defend but difficult to attack, so how can a brave and foolish man like Lu Bu take it?"

Guo Si considers the problem more comprehensively than Li Jue.He analyzed Tan Ma's words carefully, and guessed the clue: "Children, it's not that the guards in Guanzhong took the initiative to open the city to welcome Lu Bu, but that he has been murdered long ago."

"He was murdered?" Hearing what Guo Si said, Li Jue asked with a blank face, "Who will murder him?"

"Who else could it be?" Guo Si pouted and said, "Of course it's Guan Zhong's deputy general Dong Cheng."

"Dong Cheng, he's not Niu Fu's former subordinate, how could he have poisoned the guard?" Just as Li Jue said this, he suddenly remembered something, he raised his hand and slapped himself on the forehead, and said angrily "Damn it, damn it, how could I have forgotten that Dong Cheng's daughter is the most beloved Concubine Dong by the Holy Majesty today. It seems that Dong Cheng saw the holy cavalry arrive at Hangu Pass, so he killed the guard and switched the switch on his own to welcome Lu Bu in." close."

Thinking of this, he quickly raised his hands above his head and ordered the brigade to stop.When the cavalry stopped advancing, Li Jue quickly called a Dubo, and ordered him to lead his men to Jia Xu's camp quickly, and let him rush over day and night to join him. Guguan is not too late.

According to Han Zhan's original idea, let Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty rest in Hangu Pass for a day, and then drive to Jizhou non-stop for the second time, and leave this dangerous place as soon as possible.But after seeing the false imperial decree issued by Li Guo and others, his thoughts changed. He knew that even if he abandons the customs right now, Li Guo and others can lead their troops to follow and kill them. , even if he has the ability to steer heaven and earth, he can't turn things around.

So early the next morning, he summoned Jizhou Wu to the meeting hall to discuss matters.Dong Cheng, Lu Bu, Zhang Liao and others also attended the meeting.After the meeting started, Ju Shou came out first and said to the crowd: "According to reports from the scouts, the [-] cavalry led by Li Guo are only forty miles away from the city. If we abandon the pass at this moment, the two thieves Li and Guo will definitely lead their troops to follow. Don't say that the holy car will be taken away by them, even your and my lives will be in danger."

"Ju Supervisor Army," as soon as Ju Shou finished speaking, Dian Wei stood up and said, "If the two thieves, Li and Guo, come to attack, please let Dian to fight, and I will definitely kill them all."

"Li and Guo are nothing to worry about," Han Zhan said, "Their military adviser, Jia Xu, is a difficult character. If he is there, it is basically impossible for us to defeat Li and Guo."

Lu Bu, who has always been proud and arrogant, couldn't help standing up when he heard what Han Zhan said, "What Han Jizhou said is very true. I have fought against Li Guo and others. In the battle, I was still invincible. Li Guo and the others fled in anticipation. However, there was Jia Xu, who used a vicious strategy. On the one hand, he let Li and Guo hold me back; They couldn’t look at each other from head to tail, and ended up in a big defeat.”

Zhang Liao, who was standing nearby and listening, couldn't help but sneered when he heard what Lu Bu said. He said in his heart that if you hadn't thought about the beauties in Chang'an and insisted on going back to Chang'an, you would have almost wiped out the entire army.If he hadn't been lucky, he would have died in the chaos.

Since he visited Han Zhan in private yesterday, he expressed his intention to take refuge in Han Zhan.But Han Zhan didn't agree immediately, but said euphemistically: "This is a major event in life, so don't make a decision lightly. You might as well go to Jizhou with me and live for a while. If you still feel that This Marquis is a lord who can take refuge in him, if he is still willing to come and take refuge, this Marquis will definitely sweep the couch and treat him."

After learning about Han Zhan's thoughts, Zhang Liao returned to his residence and explained Han Zhan's meaning to Cheng Lian, Song Xian and others.Although Han Zhan just asked everyone to follow him to Jizhou, Song Xian heard a different taste from it, and he quickly saluted Zhang Liao, "Congratulations to Captain Qi, it seems that Han Jizhou is ready to accept you. "

After Zhang Liao reached a consensus with Cheng Lian, Song Xian and others, his attitude towards Han Zhan and Jizhou Wu became more respectful.Hearing Lu Bu talking about how difficult it was for Li Guo and others to deal with at this moment, he couldn't help being angry. After Lu Bu finished speaking, he stepped forward and said, "Tinghou, if you can trust me. Please send me 5000 troops, and I will definitely You can take the heads of Li Jue and Guo Si to meet."

"Please stand up from far away." Seeing Zhang Liao voluntarily asking for a fight, Han Zhan thought to himself, and hurriedly got him up, and said at the same time: "Although there are not as many soldiers in Guanzhong as Li and Guo, but if they want to capture Hangu Pass, they will have to fight." It’s like ascending to the sky. After they come to the city, we might as well hold out, and it’s not too late to go out of the city for a decisive battle after they run out of food.”

Hearing what Han Zhan said, Zhang Liao quickly agreed and retreated into the queue again.On the other hand, Lu Bu, seeing Zhang Liao being so respectful to Han Zhan, couldn't help snorting heavily.Then he cupped his fists at Han Zhan and said, "Han Jizhou, I still have important things to do, so I won't bother you anymore. Let me go!" Then he walked away.

Seeing Lu Bu's back, several generals in Jizhou were so angry that their heads were smoking.Dian Wei said angrily: "My lord, Lu Bu is rude, please allow me to bring three thousand soldiers and horses to fight him to the death."

Han Zhan had heard the Jizhou version of "Three Heroes Fighting Lu Bu" mentioned by Ju Shou, and knew that Dian Wei was not Lu Bu's opponent, so he quickly comforted him and said, "General Dian, don't be angry. Be more arrogant. You don't have to argue with him."

When he finished speaking, Han Zhan cast a look at Jushou, motioning him to say, "You see, I said Lu Bu is not easy to deal with, right?"

Jushou naturally knew the meaning of Han Zhan's eyes, nodded and said: "My lord's words are very true. Lu Bu is superb in martial arts. Looking at the world, there is no one who can single out the winner with him, so it is inevitable to be a little arrogant. Classic General, don’t ask me to see you.” Seeing that Han Zhan and Jushou said so, Dian Wei could only talk obediently, and retreated angrily to his standing position.

Ju Shou and Dian Wei retreated into the queue, and suggested to Han Zhan, "My lord, if what Shou expected is correct, Jia Xu must not be in the army at this moment."

Jia Xu was the only one that Han Zhan was afraid of. Hearing that Jushou said that he was not in the army, he asked curiously, "Gongyu, how do you know that Jia Xu is not in the army?"

"Li Guo and others invaded Chang'an from Xiliang, but it was to avenge Dong Zhuo." Ju Shou looked at Han Zhan and explained to him: "Now that they have broken through Chang'an, they must leave people in the capital to search for Dong Zhuo's bones, and then Great funeral. Zhang Ji and Fan Chou must not be able to handle these tedious matters. Therefore, I feel that Jia Xu must still be arranging Dong Bandit's funeral in Beijing and has no time to go to Hangu Pass."

For Jushou's analysis, everyone present nodded in approval.Han Zhan even asked, "Gongyu, what do you think we should do now?"

"Li and Guo have many soldiers, but most of them are newly attached and have not yet returned." Jushou said confidently: "If we send a cavalry to attack and harass, it will surely cause chaos in the Li and Guo army. As long as two People are afraid and dare not lead troops to attack Hangu Pass. We will have enough time to prepare for defense. We can even take the opportunity to send someone to escort Shengjia away first. When Shengjia arrives at a safe place, we will leave Hanguguan again. Not too late."

Han Zhan had originally wanted to give Li and Guo two a chance, but when he heard what Jushou said, he nodded, then turned to look at Huang Zhong and said, "In this case, wait for Li and Guo to lead their troops. When he came to Hangu Pass, Han Sheng led [-] cavalry out of the city to show them some color."

Huang Zhong, who was standing in the queue, heard Han Zhan's order, hurried out of the queue, bowed his fists and saluted, and said loudly: "The last general takes orders! When the troops of Li and Guo arrive tomorrow, the last general will definitely kill them." It's a mess."

Chapter 217

Li Jue and Guo Si were afraid of Lv Bu in the pass, and they dared not lead their troops to attack the pass, but set up camp ten li away from the pass.And Han Zhan in Guanzhong was unable to take the initiative to attack because he had too few troops in his hands, and the two sides entered a confrontation.

After a stalemate between the two sides for four or five days, Dian Wei was a little impatient, and came to Han Zhan to ask for a job: "My lord, as far as the general knows, Li Jue and Guo Si are both average in martial arts. Please let the general lead the troops." Go to fight. If you can't take the heads of the two back, you will be willing to do it in military law."

The reason why Han Zhan didn't fight was because he had a lot of worries. Although the original guard of Hangu Pass was killed by himself, it is still unknown whether the defenders in the city were subdued by Dong Cheng.If he led the troops to battle, the defenders in the city mutinied, killed Dong Cheng, and closed the city gate, his troops would be in a desperate situation.

Ju Shou, who had just arrived at the conference hall, guessed what Han Zhan was thinking, and said quickly: "My lord, Shengjia should not stay in Hangu Pass for a long time. Among the subordinates, we should send someone to send him back to Jizhou as soon as possible!"

Han Zhan had long intended to send Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty away. The reason why he did not move was because Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty had been bedridden since the second day after arriving at Hangu Pass. He was deeply afraid of any accidents on the way, so It was a long time before there was no action.Hearing what Jushou said at this moment, he quickly asked: "Gongyu, I wonder how your Majesty's condition is? When will you be able to go on the road?"

"It's getting better, and it will take time to recover." Ju Shou frowned and said to Han Zhan: "Most of the two thieves, Li and Guo, will arrive at Hangu Pass in the near future. Not much, if they surround the pass, once the food is exhausted, our army will collapse without fighting."

Jushou's statement was exactly what Han Zhan was worried about.Don't look at the dangerous terrain of Hangu Pass, it is difficult for Li Guo and others to attack, but because it is too far away from Jizhou, his own army stays here, and sooner or later it will be impossible to escape the end of the entire army, so he has to think in advance. road.

He stood up, walked back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, stopped and said to Jushou: "Gongyu, tomorrow you will take Dianwei, Xiahoulan, Xiahouyun, and two thousand soldiers and horses to escort Shengjia back Jizhou. By the way, bring Lu Bu and Zhang Yuan with you."

Jushou knew that Zhang Liao wanted to seek refuge in Jizhou, and it was understandable to take him back to Jizhou, but Jushou was a little reluctant to take Lu Bu away with him.He was worried that Lu Bu would suddenly go crazy on the way, hijack Sheng Jia and go to Yuan Shao or Yuan Shu, and all his efforts would be in vain.So he asked puzzledly: "My lord, since you also feel that Lu Fengxian and I are not of the same mind, why did you let him go back to Jizhou with us? Are you not afraid that he will rob the holy car halfway and go to seek refuge with other princes?" ?”

"I'm afraid, why am I not afraid!" Han Zhan said bitterly, "If you leave him in Hangu Pass, Benhou will be even more afraid. Maybe at any time, he will rush in with Fang Tian's painted halberd to take my head. Then go and dedicate it to Li and Guo to reach an understanding between the two parties. As for the worries of the public, the Marquis has also considered, so he sent Dianwei and Xiahou brothers and sisters to go there. Three people are enough to deal with Lu Bu."

Unexpectedly, as soon as Han Zhan finished speaking, Dian Wei said in a rough voice: "My lord, let the general stay at Hangu Pass to protect you. As for escorting Shengjia to Jizhou, Xiahou brothers and sisters, Zhang Liao and others are enough. Although Zhang Yuan's martial arts is slightly inferior to that of the last general, there is no problem in dealing with Lu Bu together with the Xiahou brothers and sisters."

"No, Dian Wei, you must escort Sheng Jia to Jizhou with the supervising army." Han Zhan rejected Dian Wei's offer without hesitation, and explained to him specifically: "Although Zhang Yuan is loyal to the Han Dynasty, but he After all, both of you and Lu Bu are from the Bingzhou Army, if Lu Bu wants to hijack Shengjia, even if he doesn't join forces with Lu Bu, he won't help you, at best, neither will help you."

He put his hand on Dian Wei's shoulder, and said gratefully: "Dian Wei, what you mean, Ben Hou understands that you are worried that Ben Hou will be in danger, so you ask to stay. But don't worry, there are still people here. Huang Zhong, when you are far away, we can abandon the pass at any time. We are all cavalry, and it may not be so easy for the troops of the Li and Guo thieves to catch up with us."

Jushou saw that Han Zhan had made up his mind to send Emperor Han Xian away as soon as possible, so he suggested to him: "My lord, I have a suggestion, can I order Dong Cheng to lead the defenders of Hangu Pass to escort the emperor with us?" Go to Jizhou. The subordinates inspected the city recently and found that these soldiers and horses are all ready-to-fight soldiers. Although they are brought to Jizhou, they will be of great use in the future whether it is to conquer Qingzhou in the east or Bingzhou in the west.”

"That's right, that's right." As soon as Ju Shou finished speaking, Dian Wei said excitedly: "With these [-] elite men and horses traveling together, I think Lu Bu will not dare to use his brains on the road, but can strengthen our Jizhou. strength."

"This is a good way." Han Zhan felt that if all the defenders of Hangu Pass were transferred away, there would be no one to hinder him. Whether he would leave or stay in the future could be arranged according to the specific situation.Thinking of this, he quickly told Dian Wei: "Dian Wei, hurry up and invite Dong Guozhang here, and tell me that this Marquis wants to do business with you."

Coincidentally, as soon as Dian Wei walked out of the conference hall, he saw Dong Cheng coming in a hurry, and hurried forward to greet him: "The last general, Dian Wei, met Dong Guozhang!"

"General Dian is free!" Dong Cheng saw that the person who greeted him was Dian Wei, and asked with a pleasant smile: "I wonder if Marquis Ting is in the meeting hall?"

"Yes, my master is in the meeting hall. He just ordered me to come to invite the head of the country, but unexpectedly the head of the country came first." After Dian Wei finished speaking, he moved his body and stretched out his hand to make a gesture of invitation. : "Patriarch, please talk inside."

Han Zhan and Jushou were talking, when they suddenly saw Dianwei go and come back, and were about to ask him what's the matter, but saw Dong Cheng behind him, stood up quickly and bowed his hands: "It turns out that Dong Guozhang is here, I'm here Hou You is far away, please forgive me."

"Tinghou," Dong Chengchao and Han Zhan cupped his hands and said anxiously, "I take the liberty of coming here today because I have something important to discuss with you."

Although Han Zhan said that he had something to discuss with Dong Cheng, but seeing his anxious look at the moment, he said politely: "The father-in-law has something to say, but it's okay to say it. I'm all ears."

"Tinghou, I see that the follow-up army of Li and Guo's two thieves is about to arrive." Dong Cheng asked anxiously: "I don't know what Tinghou's plan is?"

"Guo Zhang," Han Zhan said to Dong Cheng with a smile, "I ordered Dian Wei to invite you, and I have one thing to discuss with you. Although Hangu Pass is easy to defend and difficult to attack, if Li Guo's army stays outside the pass and does not go Sooner or later, the pass will fall due to the exhaustion of food and grass. Therefore, this Marquis intends to let the Jujian army lead people to escort Shengjia to Jizhou tomorrow."

"But Shengjia is in poor health and is not suitable for long-distance travel!" Dong Chenggang wanted to dissuade Han Zhan from changing his mind, but suddenly remembered his purpose here, so he changed the subject in time, "I don't know how many people Tinghou plans to send to escort Sheng drive?"

"Benhou originally planned to send two thousand soldiers and horses to escort Shengjia." Han Zhan deliberately did not talk about everyone's concerns about Lu Bu, but said bluntly: "However, considering that the journey to Jizhou is far away and the journey is not peaceful, I plan to send you to Lu Bu. Dong Guozhang borrowed some soldiers and horses to escort Sheng Jia to Jizhou."

Hearing that Han Zhan was going to ask him to borrow troops, Dong Cheng immediately said straightforwardly: "I wonder how many troops Ting Hou plans to borrow?"

Han Zhan raised his right hand, turned his fist into a palm, and said, "This Marquis wants to borrow five thousand soldiers from Dong Guozhang."

"What, borrow five thousand soldiers?" Hearing what Han Zhan said, Dong Cheng couldn't help but smiled bitterly and said, "Tinghou should know that there are only 5000 defenders in Hangu Pass, and you borrowed them all, so who will accept them?" Pass?"

"Master, please listen to me." Seeing Dong Cheng's displeased expression, Han Zhan quickly explained to him, "Hangu Pass is too far away from Jizhou, and our soldiers and horses can only block Li from here." The two thieves of Guo are temporarily, once the food is exhausted, the soldiers and horses in the pass will collapse without fighting. Therefore, I plan to ask the head of the country to take all the defenders in the pass and escort the cars to Jizhou. As for Hangu Pass, I will lead three thousand The cavalry guards, and when you get to a safe place, the Marquis will abandon the gate and leave."