Yuan Shao lost the first battle, the army retreated to Liyang, and he returned to Yecheng to behead Liu Bei. But Yuan Shao's suspicious and indecisive personality is destined to prevent Yuan Shao from becoming a big deal. He was actually settled by Liu Bei in a few words, not only did he not behead Liu Bei, but also used Liu Bei as the deputy general of the vanguard army to attack Cao Cao for the second time.

Frustrated, who had already left angrily, he actually didn't go far, and was still waiting outside for Yuan Shao to discuss the outcome of sending troops again.

For Fu Zhu, he is actually a conservative, and he prefers to be able to develop conservatively and ensure the stability of Hebei. All he cares about is the life and death of the people of Hebei.

Regarding Yuan Shao's decision to conquer Cao Cao, there has always been a sense of unease in his heart. He was worried that Yuan Shao would fail, so he buried hundreds of thousands of children of Hebei people.

It can be said that no one has a clearer understanding of Hebei, Yuan Shao, and Yuan Shao's army than Fu Zhu. Although Yuan Shao has an army of millions, how many soldiers can be real soldiers in this million army? What's more, they are honest ordinary people, these people are young and strong, one is attracted by Yuan Shao's military salary, and the other is the military horses that Yuan Shao forcibly recruited.

Speaking of Yuan Shao's development history, Fu Zhu felt that it could really be described as crazy.

Well, let's put it this way, how many military horses did Yuan Shao have at the beginning? Not to mention far away, let's start from when he joined forces with Gongsun Zhan and Liu Yi to attack Zhang Yan in Montenegro. At that time, Yuan Shao was only about 100,000 military horses, and after defeating Zhang Yan of Montenegro, Yuan Shao began to expand his army frantically. It's just a few years. The army expanded from 100,000 horses to more than 1 million people. Among them, more than 100,000 and 200,000 horses were deducted from the soldiers and horses of the Yellow Turban Thieves in Montenegro, plus about 100,000 or so military horses collected from Gongsun Zhan. Other words. More than 600,000 people and horses are strong men recruited by Yuan Shao from the people of Hebei regardless of the consequences.

Only the frustrated mind is clear, don't look at the current Yuan Shao seems to be very powerful, he is known as a million army at every turn, and he can directly dispatch nearly 800,000 military horses to defeat Cao Cao. But as long as you look at the land of Hebei, you can see that the land of Hebei is already far away. At any moment, it is possible to fall into a period of great chaos.

How many people can there be in the land of Hebei?

For this, Yuan Shao has not systematically counted it. At the beginning, he had listened to Tian Feng's suggestion, and if he wanted to implement more effective governance of Hebei, it was necessary to rebuild the household registration, but. Yuan Shao did not agree to Fu Zhu's request. No new household registration has been made for the areas of Hebei.

However, although there was no demographic and household registration to give him an idea of Jizhou, he was able to get a rough estimate of the population of the entire Hebei region.

In the heyday of the Han Dynasty, Hebei had a population of about 10 million people, accounting for almost one-fifth of the entire Han Dynasty at that time.

However, in recent decades, for various reasons. Hebei's population plummeted, and its population declined sharply. Years before the Yellow Turban Riots. Because of natural disasters and famines, hundreds of people were killed and injured, and after the Yellow Turban Riots, the situation was even more miserable. The population of Hebei is estimated to be between three million and five million.

In the battle between the imperial court and the Yellow Turban Army, although the imperial court suppressed the Yellow Turban thieves, it is undeniable that most of the hundreds of thousands of Yellow Turban thieves were Hebei children. This killed and injured hundreds of thousands of young and strong Hebei men, and it was definitely a nightmare for the people of Hebei.

Don't forget, there was also such a situation in history, when the Seven Kingdoms War was in turmoil, the land of Zhao was the land of Hebei. Zhao was killed by Bai Qikeng, the general of Qin, and 400,000 Zhao were young, which directly put Zhao into a situation of no return, which was also the root cause of Zhao's demise.

Although, the two events occurred in different historical periods, in different dynastic backgrounds, and the nature of the two is also different. However, the impact on Hebei is the same. This is a heavy blow to the children of Hebei.

Now, in the land of Hebei, the people who are still living in Hebei, these people's homes, a family, if a family of ten, can have two men, it is considered good, if there are three men, then it is the envy of others. If there are four adult men, then they will become the backbone of a village, or if there are more than four adult men in a family, then the family can walk sideways in their village.

At that time, there was a royal decree that a man must marry more than ten wives, and the women of his country must also be pregnant and have children, in order to recover in a short period of time.

Well, that's a matter of vitality.

Now, he is struggling with Hebei's vitality.

In the past, during the Zhao period, the ratio of men and women in the Zhao State was one to ten. Now, it's about three to ten, which is about the same as it was back then.

Yuan Shao's crazy expansion of the army directly led to a serious shortage of men in Hebei, and the ratio of men and women among the people of the people is really comparable to the original Zhao period at this moment.

For example, in a village of more than ten households, now, almost all the families are women, and there can be ten normal young and strong men, they are already snickering.

Such a situation really abounds in Hebei,

The population of the people is decreasing, the number of men is decreasing, what damages the vitality of Hebei's children, and what makes the people of Hebei even more miserable is that the men have been conscripted into the army by Yuan Shao, who will support the family? This directly made the people of Hebei, who had just gained a little time to recuperate, fall into a dead end of rapid regression and decline.

In the face of such a situation, Fu Zhu hopes that there will be no more wars, and only if there is no war will no one die, and only then can Hebei's vitality be preserved.

It's a pity that there is no way to stop Yuan Shao from sending troops, and in such a situation, he can only hope that Yuan Shao can win this big battle that is related to the survival of the children of Hebei.

Now, Yuan Shao lost the first battle and lost tens of thousands of military horses at once, which made Fu Zhi deeply uneasy. This is not a good omen.

However, the funny thing is that this Yuan Shao is actually just Liu Bei who said that. completely believed Liu Bei's words, and credulously believed that the person who defeated Zhang He was not Guan Yu, and actually used Liu Bei and made Liu Bei the deputy general of General Gao Lan of the vanguard army.

Alas, I've seen stupid people, but I've never seen such stupid people. Who is a good person and who is a bad person, who can really think about him Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao really can't see it at all? thinks of himself and a group of advisers, although they usually fight with each other and dump each other. However, for Yuan Shao, he is still loyal, how to say it. Wait for someone yourself. It's much more credible than Liu Bei, who is a wolf's ambition. This Yuan Shao, does he really not know whether he is alive or dead? Still in the company of wolves?

Frustrated outside, after learning of Yuan Shao's decision, he was so angry that he jumped to his feet.

Although he knew that Yuan Shao was not waiting to see him now, he still broke into the meeting hall and stopped Yuan Shao, who was about to leave, and said, "Lord, I heard that you are about to go on an expedition again?" ”

After Yuan Shao sent Liu Bei away. Ben was going back to the harem to have a good night, and when the day came to come, he went to Liyang again to lead the army to cross the Qing River and attack Cao Cao in White Horse City.

See frustration at the moment. Yuan Shao didn't get angry about the fact that he was angry and left angrily, and hurriedly said to the frustrated teacher: "Gonghe (frustrated words), I'm really sorry, after all, it was Yuan who didn't figure out the truth of the matter, so he tied up Liu Bei and killed him, the matter is clear, Yuan can't get off the stage for a while, for this, I will blame you, Wan Wanggong and Mo Blame." ”

Hehe, don't feel strange that Yuan Shao is so kind and angry to Xiang Fu, Yuan Shao is actually such a person. The reason why his advisers are fighting endlessly is actually caused by Yuan Shao's character.

Or, Yuan Shao thought that in this way he could show his courtesy corporal, so he thought that he could show that he was a master who was very easy to get along with, that he could accommodate different talents, and that he could show his broad mind to his subordinates.

Many times, in front of this subordinate, he can accompany him to be dissatisfied with so-and-so, turn around, and say which subordinate is not with so-and-so. Yuan Shao thought that in this way, he could balance the people around him, so that they could all serve him wholeheartedly and be loyal to him.

However, at this moment, where do you still have the heart to say this to Yuan Shao? Fu Zhu said directly to Yuan Shao: "My lord, at present, our army has just lost, and the morale of the sergeants is low, so it is not appropriate to attack Cao Cao again for the time being." Please take back your order and stop the army for the time being. ”

When Yuan Shao heard that he was persuaded to stop his troops at this juncture, he suddenly felt a little unhappy in his heart. However, Fu Zhu is a famous man in Hebei and Yuan Shao's old minister, and Yuan Shao just made Fu Zhu feel wronged in order to be able to step down in front of Liu Bei, and it is not good to reprimand him again at this moment.

Yuan Shao kept a little smile and said, "Hehe, Gonghe, this ...... The military order is like a mountain, and since it has been decided, this repeated change doesn't seem very good, right? If I Yuan Shao didn't dare to send troops to fight Cao Cao again because I was defeated for a while, how do you think the world would think of me Yuan Shao? Say I, Yuan Shao, am afraid of him Cao Cao? Say I'm incompetent? Therefore, don't talk about this anymore, Gonghe, if you are tired, you don't have to go out with Yuan this time, you can recuperate in Yecheng for a period of time, and in the future, after defeating Cao Cao, you will have to rely on Gong and you to govern Yuan. ”

Frustrated Zhu couldn't help but glance at Yuan Shao in his heart, you girl, still thinking about defeating Cao Cao? Don't want nearly a million Hebei children to be buried, it's not bad.

However, looking at Yuan Shao's appearance, it was really difficult to change his decision to send troops again, his mind was spinning rapidly, and he thought about it before saying to Yuan Shao: "Since the lord has decided to attack Cao Cao again, then his subordinates hope that the lord will not attack White Horse City along General Zhang He's offensive route again." ”

"Oh? Why? Yuan Shao pressed his patience and listened to the frustration.

"My lord, before General Zhang He, it can be said that he attacked and killed White Horse City at the fastest speed, crossed the Qing River, and it only took one day to kill under White Horse City, but in this day and night, Cao Cao led an army to White Horse City, and finally let General Zhang He come back from defeat." Fu Zhu said: "My lord, you can think about it, General Gao Ran, what is the point of leading another 100,000 pioneers to attack White Horse City? If Zhang He can't attack it, Gao Ran will definitely be able to? These few days have passed, Cao Cao must have more troops transferred to White Horse City now, and now we will attack White Horse City again, how many chances do you think there is still to win, lord? ”

"This ......," Yuan Shao said with a little hesitation. After all, he can also imagine this, Zhang He's 100,000 horses were defeated by Cao Cao and came back, if he sent another 100,000 troops and horses. When Cao Cao is very likely to have more troops in White Horse City, is he sending the army to death? Give Cao Cao a head? Frustrated and asked him what chance he could win, Yuan Shao really didn't have any confidence in his heart.

"So, what do you mean?" Yuan Shao is really facing up to what he said now.

"What do I mean?" Frustrated: "What I mean is naturally to ask the lord not to rush to send troops for the time being, to confront Cao Cao first, and after Cao Cao reveals his flaws, we will find an opportunity to attack, of course." The most important thing is to use the time when we are resting to send someone to investigate whether Liu Bei's second brother Guan Yu is in Cao Cao's army. If it is confirmed that Zhang He was really defeated by Guan Yu, the lord will behead Liu Bei first......"

"Stop! Okay, no need to say it again, why did you talk about Liu Bei again? Yuan Shao listened to the frustration and seemed to remember the matter of killing Liu Bei. I couldn't help but feel angry. I don't really want to listen to him anymore.

"Okay, then don't talk about Liu Bei." It was useless to say this now, Yuan Shao couldn't listen to it at all, so he had to say: "My lord, now, it is advisable to first put on a posture of crossing the Qing River to attack White Horse City, attracting Cao Cao's army and horses to assemble in White Horse City, and then we will advance along the upper reaches of the Qing River." Directly from the north bank of the Qing River crossed the White Horse City, taking advantage of Cao Cao's unpreparedness. Then cross the Qing River and directly attack Yeonjin in the west of White Horse City. As long as we seize Yanjin, we can directly cross the Yellow River and occupy Guandu. As long as Guandu is captured, hehe, the overall situation has been decided, and Cao Cao will be defeated. ”

As mentioned before, Puyang, Baimacheng and other areas are a piece of land sandwiched between the main road of the Yellow River and the Qinghe River, the old branch of the Yellow River, which is more than 100 and 200 miles wide, and a long area of more than 1,000 miles to the Bohai Sea.

And at the top of this terrain is Yeonjin. As long as Yuan Shaojun captures Yanjin, then he can completely ignore Puyang and White Horse City, or even Yanzhou, and directly cross the river from Yanjin and attack Guandu.

Guandu is in Henan, across the river from Yanjin.

Guandu is not far to the south, it is Chen Liu, and not far away, it is Cao Cao's heart Xu Du.

Another point is that the opposite bank of Yanjin is Guandu, but on the other side of Guandu, there is not only Yanjin, but also Hanoi. Well, yes, that's Hanoi. That is to say, as long as Yuan Shao captures Guandu, then Yuan Shao's army will not only enter Henan from Yanjin, but also directly from Hanoi, so that Yuan Shao can do an endless stream of troops into Henan, no longer have to fight with Cao Cao's army and horses in Yanzhou, and directly take Xudu.

However, in order to smash Cao Cao's lair, it is necessary to attract Cao Cao's soldiers and horses to the area around Puyang, and to seize Guandu, you must first seize Yanjin, which is a stepping board for the capture of Guandu.

According to the meaning of the frustration, it is to set up a decisive battle with Cao Cao's army in the Puyang area before the main road of the Qing River or the Yellow River. Let Cao Cao's military horses lay heavy troops on the banks of the two rivers, which is almost thousands of miles of defense line, once Cao Cao's military horses are laid out in the defense line of the Qing River and the Yellow River, then, when the time comes, concentrate forces to attack a little bit and directly attack Cao Cao's throat, at that time, even if Cao Cao is aware, it is too late to gather back those military horses guarding the defense line of the two rivers in a short time. In this way, Yuan Shao's main army can directly attack Yanjin, take advantage of Cao Cao's army to assemble, and then take Guandu, after getting Guandu, you can directly transport supplies from Hanoi to support Yuan Shao's army to cross the river into Henan, and the soldiers will be directed at Chen Liu and Xu Du.

Yuan Shao listened to the advice of Fu Zhu, and thought it was true, and felt that this plan was wonderful.

But what made Fu Zhu almost angry was that Yuan Shao decided to immediately let Wen Chou lead the vanguard army to Yanjin, and let Liu Bei escort the grain and grass to follow Wen Chou's army forward, and he himself decided to return to Liyang, raise a large army, and directly march west along the north bank of the Qing River, and directly capture Yanjin and Guandu.

Yuan Shao didn't want to wait for a moment now, he couldn't defeat Cao Cao immediately, so although he adopted the strategy of frustration, he did not follow the prerequisites of frustration.

This is the reason why Yuan Shao was almost angry and frustrated. Because, Yuan Shao's army advanced so much, its target intention was immediately seen through by Cao Cao, Cao Cao could be prepared before Yuan Shao's army arrived, across the Yellow River, could Yuan Shao still cross the river so easily?

Originally, Fu Zhu hoped to open a breakthrough that could defeat Cao Cao through Guandu, but Yuan Shao led his army so blatantly, it was tantamount to forcing Cao Cao to fight him in Guandu. Under the circumstance that Cao Cao had time to mobilize military horses, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao fought a decisive battle, and this victory or defeat was really not too certain.

Frustrated by Yuan Shao was so angry that he had nothing to say, knowing that the strategy of talking to Yuan Shao was equivalent to playing the piano to the cow, he was angry and walked away again, which was also the last time that he had made a plan for Yuan Shao.

And Yuan Shao thought he had a plan, spent the night in Yecheng, and immediately rushed to Yecheng the next day, and Gao Lan, who left Yecheng one step first, had already set off from Li Point with 100,000 military horses as the vanguard after receiving Yuan Shao's new order.

Of course, in order to achieve the goal of "the speed of the soldiers", Gao Ran only brought 70,000 horses first, leaving 30,000 horses and Liu Bei, and asked Liu Bei to escort the grain and grass and then follow up. (To be continued......)