"Brother, Zi Hezhi is not at fault for my younger brother's improper command. I should apologize to the Prime Minister in a formal way. Today, the vanguard of the Youzhou bandit army has arrived. The main force is probably not far away. Please make a decision as soon as possible." .”
Although Xia Houyuan was good-looking, he was still a responsible person, and he did not hide that Cao Chun's death in battle was related to his improper command. However, compared to pleading guilty, Xia Houyuan was more concerned about how to deal with it at this time. The Youzhou Army arrived in large numbers.
"Hmm... According to my second brother, what is the combat effectiveness of the Youzhou Army?"
Although Xiahou Yuan did not say it clearly, his words clearly conveyed the intention of temporarily avoiding the edge of the Youzhou Army. This was true in the army, and it was also true when facing brave men like Lu Bu. Even though he was seriously injured, he still dared to fight. But now he only lost one battle, and he actually had the intention to retreat, which shows the combat effectiveness of the Youzhou Army. I'm afraid it's not that simple.
"As far as their cavalry is concerned, they are probably only slightly inferior to the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry."
It was a matter of military aircraft. Xia Houyuan did not dare to hide anything. After thinking for a while, he gave an objective evaluation.
"oh?"
Hearing that the Youzhou cavalry was so powerful, Xiahou Dun frowned immediately. Although he still had two thousand cavalry, they were not tiger and leopard cavalry. Most of them were temporary cavalry returned from Qingzhou counties. The combined strength of the stragglers, plus the more than 600 tiger and leopard cavalry who returned from defeat, the total strength of the cavalry is only more than 2,600. It is obviously a bit difficult to compete with the Youzhou Army with such a small number of cavalry. Not enough to see.
"Brother, fighting with our backs against the river will definitely build up the courage of the whole army. However, if we make a slight mistake, it may not be a good thing. It is not too late to withdraw across the river first and prepare for the enemy to attack."
Seeing his brother's hesitation, Xia Houyuan obviously lost his temper, and immediately gave an admonishment from the side.
"Well... pass the order, and the whole army will break out of camp immediately and withdraw across the Yellow River!"
Xiahou Dun could ignore the more than 30,000 Yuan family troops in Pushan City, but he had to pay attention to the large-scale killing by the Youzhou Army. After thinking for a moment with a frown, he finally decided to play it safe...
"Report, Sir Envoy, the bandits outside the city are dismantling their camps and are suspected of withdrawing."
Cao's army moved very quickly. As Xiahou Dun's order was issued, all the more than 50,000 people immediately moved into action, dismantling tents and loading baggage. It was obvious that one group was about to withdraw its troops. This situation could not be concealed from the Yuan army on duty at the city head. With the eyes and ears of the sentinels, a captain on duty soon reported the changes in the enemy's situation to Yuan Tan.
"Oh? Let's go and take a look, my second brother!"
Yuan Tan was discussing with Yuan Xi and his generals how to fight the battle to defend the city. Suddenly, when he heard that Cao Jun was about to withdraw, he couldn't help being surprised. He frowned and thought for a while, and was stunned. I couldn't figure out what kind of medicine Xiahou Dun was selling in his gourd.
"Brother, the bandit army is really going to retreat. I'd like to ask you to lead your troops to pursue the last battle. It's hard to win a big victory."
Yuan Tan and others rushed from the city guard's mansion to the south city gate. Looking in the distance, they saw the hustle and bustle of Cao Jun's camp. They looked like they were preparing to retreat in an emergency. Yuan Xike couldn't help but I was tempted, so I said something from the side.
"It's inappropriate. There may be some fraud involved. I'm ordering all the ministries to strictly guard the city wall. No one is allowed to open the door and leave the city without the general's order!"
Yuan Tan had lost a series of battles and had long since lost the courage to compete with Cao's army. In addition, he had not yet heard about the arrival of the Youzhou army, so he did not have the courage to take a chance...
"Report, sir, a large number of soldiers and horses suddenly appeared outside the North City. The flags indicate that they belong to former general Gongsun Ming."
Cao Jun's withdrawal was very decisive. In less than two hours, with the cooperation of the boat division, the entire army retreated across the Yellow River. Yuan Tan waited on the south wall and saw no ambush troops from Cao Jun. In the midst of uncertainty, he saw a soldier rushing over along the city wall in panic. As soon as he saw Yuan Tan's face, he kneeled on the ground and panted to report the sudden military situation.
"What? How many soldiers and horses are coming?"
Not to mention the old grudge between the Yuan family and Gongsun Ming, even though they are now married, the relationship is not much better, not to mention that Yuan Tan tried to trap Gongsun Ming to death several times in the previous period. When his son heard that Gongsun Ming was coming with a large army, Yuan Tan immediately panicked.
"The number of men and horses must be no less than 60,000, and the number of cavalry is probably no less than 20,000."
Seeing that Yuan Tan was so anxious, the reporter who came to report the matter did not dare to delay at all, and immediately gave a rough answer.
"hiss……"
Hearing that so many soldiers and horses had arrived from the Youzhou Army, Yuan Tan couldn't help but take a breath, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.
"Report, Your Majesty, the Youzhou Army in the north of the city shot a letter. Please send it to Your Majesty."
Just when Yuan Tan was panicking, another messenger hurried over, holding a letter stuck on the headless arrow in his hand.
"Brother, what did Gongsun Xiao'er say?"
Yuan Tan was anxious to know what was written on Gongsun Ming's letter. He did not use a durable knife to shave off the paint on the letter. He tore open the seal with his hands and poured out a letter full of words from the inside. After reading the paper, he was stunned on the spot. When he saw this, Yuan Xike couldn't help it, and asked a question from the side.
"Second brother, take care of it yourself."
Yuan Tan obviously hadn't woken up from the shock, so he just murmured and handed the letter to Yuan Xi.
"this……"
After reading the letter quickly, Yuan Xi was also dumbfounded, because what he said in the letter was really unbelievable to Yuan Xi - Gongsun Ming actually said that he was here to help the Yuan army retake Qingzhou, and detailed it. After explaining the story of the battle in Pingyuan, Yuan Xi just figured out why Xiahou Dun was in a hurry to withdraw his troops. It was because he was severely beaten by the Youzhou army yesterday.
"Hmph, how can a weasel be so kind as he wishes a rooster a happy New Year!"
Yuan Tan thought that he had only hatred but no friendship with Gongsun Ming, so he did not believe the promise made by Gongsun Ming in the letter. Seeing that Yuan Xi seemed to be interested, he immediately snorted with disdain.
"Hmm... Big Brother Mingjian, I think that no matter what, the plains can be recovered only through the power of Gongsun Ming. If not, our army's retreat may be cut off. Now, since he has invited my brother to come out of the city to talk, the little brother Just go and take a trip, watch his words and actions, and it’s not too late to make further calculations later.”
Yuan Xi had never participated in the fight for the right to inherit the heir, and he had no old grudges with Gongsun Ming. He did have some contacts when he was in Yecheng, and he thought that he would not be plotted by Gongsun Ming, so he recommended himself.
"That's fine, that guy is cunning, second brother should be more careful."
Yuan Tan himself was absolutely unwilling to meet with Gongsun Ming, but he was also afraid that Gongsun Ming would attack the city out of anger. After thinking about it, he finally decided to let Yuan Xi go and find out the truth before making a decision...
