Cao Hong was waiting for reinforcements outside Tongguan, but was told to redeploy his troops. Xu Huang and Sima Yi crossed the Weishui River to Guanzhong, and he was so angry that he jumped up and down and cursed.
But he had lost Tongguan and knew that he had a heavy responsibility, so he had no choice but to order troops to be transferred from Hongnong nearby. He barely gathered 5,000 men and horses. Just when he was helpless, Han Hao sent someone to inform him and invited him to Chang'an to take charge of important matters.
Cao Hong thought he had heard wrongly and asked the messenger again and again. He was overjoyed and hurriedly led his troops to Tongguan. Sure enough, he saw the Cao army flag being raised again at the pass.
Han Hao welcomed him into the pass and pointed to a piece of red cloth on the table: "The military advisor ordered us to take Ma Teng's head, persuade the defenders to surrender, and send it to Xuchang to report the victory."
"Ma Teng... is dead?" Cao Hong's eyes widened in disbelief. He stepped forward to uncover the cloth, and it was indeed Ma Teng's head.
Since Ma Teng rose in power in Xiliang, he has always been a great threat to Guanzhong. He fought with Ma Teng in Guanzhong for nearly a year, but was still ambushed by him.
Faced with the sturdy city of Chang'an, they were helpless. But when Sima Yi arrived, he not only recaptured Chang'an but also killed Ma Teng so easily
Han Hao sighed and told Sima Yi that he had tricked the Western Liang army out and made them kill each other, then took the opportunity to seize Chang'an. He lured Ma Teng and his son into the city and shot them to death with arrows, and almost all of the 100,000 Western Liang army was wiped out.
"Good fellow—" Cao Hong took a breath and said after a while: "This young man!"
Han Hao hesitated and said, "It's just that the killing this time was too heavy. I'm afraid..."
"They deserve to be killed!" Cao Hong gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice, "The Xiliang Army is indeed a great threat to Guanzhong. Ma Teng and his son insulted the Prime Minister's ancestors. They deserve to be killed. I will report this matter to the Prime Minister."
Cao Hong was furious after being scolded by Ma Xiu a few days ago, and coupled with the sneak attack on Chang'an, he already hated Ma Teng and his son to the core, and felt that this was the only way to vent his hatred.
A mere 100,000 people was not a big deal in Cao Hong's eyes. He had followed Cao Cao in massacring Xuzhou, Yecheng, and Wuhuan, often massacring hundreds of thousands of people, and he had long been accustomed to it.
He immediately ordered Han Hao to send Ma Teng's head to Xuchang, and he rushed to Chang'an to celebrate the victory. Sima Yi was a promising boy and should be promoted.
After thinking about it along the way, Cao Hong suddenly felt that something was wrong, so he rushed to Chang'an. Xu Huang and Sima Yi went out of the city to greet him and asked him to take charge of important matters.
As Cao Hong walked, he asked, "I lost Tongguan, but you did not come to rescue me. Instead, you crossed the river to the north and attacked the enemy. Could it be that you have been waiting for this scene?"
Xu Huang turned his head and looked at Sima Yi. In fact, he was thinking the same thing in his heart, but he just didn't dare to ask.
When the troops were divided at the beginning, he was worried that Cao Hong would not be able to hold on. He reminded Sima Yi several times, but he was not worried at all. After crossing the river, he was not in a hurry to advance. He waited until the news of the fall of Tongguan came before crossing the river to the north. This was clearly something he had expected.
Sima Yi, however, was calm and said with a fist: "General, you worry too much. I was just waiting for Ma Teng's reinforcements to arrive. His army was short of food and grass, so they would naturally transport food from Chang'an. I used a trick to defeat them, so that the father and son of the Ma family could rescue each other, lure the tiger away from the mountain, and take Chang'an in one fell swoop. Ma Teng was unable to send troops outside the pass, so I did not rescue him. Please forgive me, General."
Cao Hong laughed and said, "As long as we can recapture Chang'an and stabilize Guanzhong, I am willing to be the bait!"
After retaking Chang'an and eliminating Ma Teng, Cao Hong's worries were completely gone. He felt proud and naturally no longer cared about these things with Sima Yi. He ordered a banquet to celebrate the victory.
In Chencang City, Han Sui received a report from Ma Teng and was preparing to march out. However, as the vanguard moved, some defeated soldiers fled back and reported the news to Chang'an.
Han Sui was shocked and asked, "Shou Cheng had 100,000 elite soldiers and had occupied Tongguan, how could he be defeated overnight?"
The military officer Cheng Gong said: "There are many capable generals in Cao's camp. General Ma underestimated the enemy and advanced rashly. He will surely fall into their trap."
Yan Xing asked, "Father-in-law, why don't you take advantage of the situation to send troops to avenge General Ma, recapture Chang'an, and take over Guanzhong?"
Han Sui's heart moved, and he stroked his chin and said, "Cao's army has taken Chang'an again. If I take advantage of their unstable foothold and recapture the city, wouldn't Guanzhong be in my hands?"
"No!" Cheng Gongying hurriedly advised: "General Ma's 100,000 elite troops were defeated, and the three of them, father and son, have nowhere to go. The blood in Chang'an City has not yet dried. We can't hold on alone. How can we advance rashly?"
Han Sui was startled and quickly ordered his men to be recalled, saying, "Go and invite Ma Chao from Xiliang!"
…
While the fighting in Guanzhong was intense, the war in Huainan was in a stalemate.
Liu Qi crossed the river and headed north to meet Zhou Yu's army. He went to the front to inspect the terrain. The importance of Ruxu to Jiangdong was no less than that of Hefei.
In history, Cao Wei and Sun Wu fought over this pass more than ten times, confronting each other for decades, with both sides winning and losing. It was also one of the focuses of the Cao-Sun War.
If the Eastern Wu army wanted to advance northward into the Central Plains, it had to capture Hefei and occupy Shouchun. If Cao's army wanted to take Jiangdong, it also had to capture Ruxu and occupy the Yangtze River defense line.
Now Sun Quan was defeated in his attack on Hefei and lost Ruxu instead. He lost more than he gained and Jiangdong was in a state of emergency.
Although Zhou Yu recaptured the Yangtze River defense line, he also knew that this was because Cao Cao knew that his navy was no match for him and retreated to the land route. However, if Ruxu was not captured, the crisis in Jiangdong could not be resolved.
Chaohu Lake is surrounded by mountains and has a complex terrain. Ruxukou is the outlet of Chaohu Lake. The water of Chaohu Lake flows southeast, passing between Qibao and Ruxu Mountains. Ruxukou is built on the east side of Ruxu Mountain.
Liu Qi personally went to the battlefield and observed the terrain. He saw that the mountains were steep and rugged, and the banks were facing each other like a gate. Rushu Water Fort became the throat connecting the north and the south.
After Sun Quan's defeat in Hefei, he built a fort at Ruxu to protect Jiangdong. It was surrounded by mountains on three sides and faced the water on one side. But when it was only half built, it was suddenly attacked and snatched away by Cao's army and used as a gift to others.
The Cao army also built fences and strongholds on Qibao Mountain to the west. The two camps supported each other, and the water and land transportation were so poor that even with Zhou Lang's wisdom, he was helpless.
The two armies had been facing each other for more than a month. On the seventh or eighth day, neither side had moved. Liu Qi sighed and said, "With such a war, when will this fire start?"
Xu Shu said, "To start a big fire, we need something to start the fire. The time has not come yet, so we have to wait patiently. When Kong Ming sends the news, Zhou Lang still refuses to send troops, so we have no choice but to return to Jingzhou first. The matter of the two rivers is more important."
Liu Qi helplessly spread his hands: "I originally wanted to go to Jianye to discuss the matter of opening a branch of Shuiyunjian with Lu Zijing, but now I am trapped in the military camp, which delays my making money!"
Ever since the trip to Xiangyang, Lu Su had been obsessed with the various arrangements and livelihoods of Shuiyunjian. Xi Guan then invited him to jointly open a Shuiyunjian in Jiangdong. However, Lu Su was hesitant as he was busy with official business and could not discuss personal matters.
When they met in the camp this time, Liu Qi secretly brought two taels of Du Kang wine, which made Lu Su still not satisfied after drinking it. He took the opportunity to bring up this matter again, and Lu Su was quite moved.
But in the army, the priority is to resist Cao, and Lu Su was unwilling to discuss the matter in detail. Liu Qi was helpless with this stubborn guy who clearly distinguished between public and private matters, so he had to agree to talk in private in Jianye.
Just when he was bored, Zhuge Jin suddenly came to ask for help. Sun Quan added another 5,000 reinforcements and asked Zhou Yu to defeat Cao as soon as possible so that Liu Qi could escape earlier and go to Jianye.
Liu Qi asked in confusion, "Why is the Lord of Wu so anxious all of a sudden?"
Zhuge Jin sighed, "When the Queen Mother of Wu heard that the general was coming to Jiangdong, she was very happy and wanted to meet the general in person. She asked about the general every day. The Marquis of Wu was a very filial man and did not want the Queen Mother to worry too much, so she sent more troops to help."
Liu Qi asked Zhuge Jin to go back first, and then he arrived after he was ready. He turned around and asked Xu Shu, "Could it be that Sun Quan has another trick up his sleeve?"