Chapter 2851 Cao Cao retreated eastward urgently, Bai Qiyuan attacked Dingtao


    Chapter 2848: Cao Cao retreated eastward urgently, Bai Qiyuan attacked Dingtao


    As the Grand Governor of Yingchuan, whoever gets Cao Bin’s head will undoubtedly get the greatest contribution to this battle.


    Now Cao Bin falls into the hands of Ma Chao and Xu Chu at the same time, and obviously neither of them wants to let go of this first skill, so they both stare at each other and refuse to give in.


    "Ma Chao, if I hadn''t clamped the blade first, Cao Bin would have been dead now, so I would have been the first skill." Xu Chu shouted.


    Ma Chao sneered, "So what? Since there is no life or death, then Cao Bin''s credit will be whoever he has, and you can see who Cao Bin is in now."


    Ma Chao was naturally also a meritorious person to capture Cao Bin alive, but if he still had the meritorious person to share the meritorious person to kill Cao Bin, he would rather strangle Cao Bin to death and take over the meritorious person to kill Cao Bin. Who told Xu Chu to have nothing to do to mock him?


    "I... you little guy actually did this with me. Do you believe it or not, let me let Cao Bin commit suicide and chop off your hand."


    Xu Chu was a little angry, but Ma Chao showed disdain and said lightly: "Let go, let go."


    Ma Chao said this, but Xu Chu was in trouble. Not to mention that Cao Bin is more valuable, just Cao Bin''s strength may not be able to break Ma Chao''s inner qi gauze coat, but once he let go, the credit will have nothing to do with him.


    "Wow, you are deliberately looking for trouble, right?"


    Xu Chu pretended to be fierce, but how could he scare Ma Chao?


    Seeing that Xu Chu and Ma Chao had started arguing about competing for merit, Cao Bin, who was captured alive, was speechless. Then he sowed the dissolution and said, "How about you two fighting, whoever wins, will win, and who will win will be the credit for capturing me alive..."


    Before Cao Bin finished speaking, Ma Chao and Xu Chu scolded each other in unison: "Shut up."


    Ma Chao and Xu Chu are not stupid. Although they are a little inconsistent with each other, they are not at the point of taking action. How could they fight just because of Cao Bin''s words?


    Soon, Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong also rushed to the Wei Palace. Looking at the two who were not allowed to stare at each other, both of them showed helplessness.


    "Okay, don''t fight anymore. Just now, news came from behind that only Cao Bin cannot kill himself and must be captured alive, so you two share the credit for capturing Cao Bin alive."


    Hearing Zhao Yun''s words, Xu Chu was overjoyed. Although Ma Chao was a little unhappy, he was also glad that he did not strangle Cao Bin to death.


    The orders from the rear must be captured alive, which will definitely be of great use. If he killed Cao Bin without knowing it, although it would not be considered a mistake, this contribution would definitely be lost.


    "Zilong, I have never said before that I can''t kill anyone. Why did such an order come from the moment I approached the inner city?" Huang Zhong asked in confusion.


    "this…"


    Zhao Yun also showed confusion and said, "Maybe Your Majesty and the military advisor have other considerations. Okay, the most urgent task is to organize the cavalry to pursue as soon as possible."


    For Zhao Yun, although there were not many remnants of Cao''s army that escaped from Xuchang, Zhang Guifang and Zhu Hai were among them. If he let him go, he was worried that it would cause disaster.


    In addition, the inner city has been broken and the entire Xuchang has fallen into the hands of the Qin army, so we can clean up the battlefield and clean up the entire city as soon as possible in order to welcome His Majesty outside the city into the city.


    Zhao Yun was preparing to lead three thousand light cavalry to pursue him and leave Huang Zhong to clean up the city, but at this time, two imperial edicts from Ying Hao came.


    The first way was to order Ma Chao and Xu Chu to lead a thousand light cavalry to pretend to be five thousand cavalry and not to attack.


    The "unable to catch up" in the imperial edict made Zhao Yun and other generals present stunned. Although they didn''t understand why they could do this, it was obvious that His Majesty and the military advisor had other plans.


    As for the second path, Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong led 20,000 infantry and cavalry and immediately marched northward to capture the last city of Yingchuan, Yanling, and the two cities of Weishi and Fugou in the southern part of Chenliu, and prepare for the subsequent encirclement of the Wei army of Chenliu.


    In terms of geographical location, Xuchang, located in the northeast corner of Yingchuan, is actually not suitable as a capital of Yingchuan. After all, there are only three cities in the northeast, Xuchang, Yanling and Xinji.


    So relatively speaking, Yangdi, located in the central area of ??Yingchuan, is naturally more suitable as a capital city.


    However, although Xuchang is not suitable for being a capital of Yingchuan, it is precisely because it is located in the northeast corner of Yingchuan and has a wider radiation range to the Central Plains, so it is suitable for being the capital of the Wei State.


    Now Xuchang has been captured by the Qin army, and Yingchuan is left with only Yanling and Xinji, so the next goal of the Qin army is naturally to capture these two cities.


    Zhao Yun also knew that the next main attack direction of the Qin army must be to attack Yanling north, then attack Chenliu, and siege and kill Cao Cao, but he did not expect that he would break through Xuchang so quickly. Before the battlefield was cleaned, he asked them to continue to march. It was really a bit anxious.


    However, since it is an imperial edict, Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong can only abide by it.


    In this way, the Five Tigers of the Great Qin who had finally gathered together, followed Dian Wei''s injury, Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong went north, Ma Chao and Xu Chu went east, and the five people went their separate ways again.


    Of course, Dian Wei''s injury is not serious, it is just a skin trauma, and it will not take long to recover.


    After Zhao Yun and other generals led their troops to leave Xuchang, the task of cleaning the battlefield fell on Jiang Jiong''s head. After a day and night of cleaning, the results of the battle were finally calculated.


    Bai Qi captured Puyang in just ten days, while Ying Hao captured Xuchang in six days.


    In the Xuchang offensive and defensive battle, the Qin army dispatched 130,000 troops to attack the city, while the Cao army defended the city with 55,000 troops.


    After six days of tragic war, the Qin army accumulated 7,000 casualties, of which 6,000 were all in the first five days. However, the final casualties were very small, only more than a thousand.


    Compared with the seven thousand casualties, the Qin army achieved a record of killing Cao''s army of 23,000 and captives of 22,000.


    More than 20 generals of the Cao army were killed, including: Xue Ju, Qiu Yin, Zhang Shan, Yin Poubai, Yin Chengxiu, Han Rong, Han Sheng, Han Bian, Lin Shan, Lei Kai, Cao Rong, Cao Ding, Cao Chi, Cao Yu, etc.


    The thirteen generals of Cao Wei were captured, including: Cao Bin, the governor of Yingchuan, as well as E Chongyu, E Shun, etc.


    After this battle, except for the 8,000 remaining troops led by Cao Wei, the remaining troops were all annihilated by the Qin army, and there was no more land or soldiers south of Chenliu, Wei State.


    Outside Xuchang City, within the Qin army camp, Ying Hao and Guo Jia were discussing the issue of the Yingchuan clan.


    The Yingchuan clan was the foundation of Cao Cao''s origin. All the major families in the Central Plains suffered heavy damage. Only the Yingchuan family made a fortune by supporting Cao Cao. Not only did they recover their vitality, but they were even more prosperous than before.


    This is also the main reason why most Yingchuan clans are unwilling to surrender to the Qin Dynasty.


    Although the Qin Dynasty''s attitude towards aristocratic families was not as harsh as the Ming and Sui Dynasty, it was far less favorable than the Wei and Song dynasties, and there was basically no privilege to speak of.


    The Yingchuan family that was used to enjoying in the Wei State was naturally unwilling to lose their privileges and became a rich commoner in the Qin Dynasty.


    After Guo Jia flipped through the letter in his hand, he smiled faintly: "Lord, the four major families of Yingchuan led by the Xun family, and the 36 clans of Yingchuan, jointly asked His Majesty to go to Xuchang for inspection and voluntarily donate one million taels to reward the army."


    After Xuchang City was captured, the major families in Yingchuan in the city were panicked. They thought that the Qin and Wei war had nothing to do with them, but they did not expect that in order to defend Xuchang, Cao Bin forced the soldiers of all tribes to defend the city. Therefore, he was naturally worried that the Qin Dynasty would settle the score in the future, so they all went to the four most powerful families to plead with each other.


    The four major families in Yingchuan are: the Yingyin Xun family represented by Xun Yu, Xun You and Xun Kan, the Xuchang Chen family represented by Chen Da, Chen Qun and Chen Tai, the Changshe Zhong family represented by Zhong Hao, Zhong Yao and Zhong Hui, and the Wuyang County Han Shao and Han Fu.


    Among the four major families in Yingchuan, many people also took office in the Qin Dynasty, such as Xun Yu, Xun Kan, Zhong Yao, Han Xin, etc., so all the major families in Yingchuan felt that the Qin Dynasty would definitely not liquidate these four major families.


    But what they didn''t know was that the four major families in Yingchuan were also suffering, especially the Xun family, the leader of the four major families.


    Because Xun You was determined to go the same way as Cao Cao, most of the powerful factions in the Xun family also turned to Xun You.


    Because of Xun Yu and Xun Kan, the Qin Dynasty may not vent its anger on the Xun family, but it may not vent its anger on the people in power.


    If that is true, the Xun family will naturally be the Xun family, but it is not their Xun family.


    In order to protect himself, the Xun family had contacted Xun Yu long ago, but unexpectedly, in order to avoid danger, Xun Yu did not even see the people from the Xun family. Xun Kan even hid when he saw the people from the Xun family, so the Xun family could only attack Xun.


    As the Supreme Elder of Confucianism, Xunzi was at the moment of breaking through the quasi-monopoly, so he naturally had no time to pay attention to the Xun family.


    Xun Yu ignored it and Xunzi ignored it. This made the Xun family members irritated, but there was nothing they could do. Who made these two people surpass the family itself? Besides, they didn''t listen to these two people at the beginning.


    The Yingchuan family wants to ask the Xun family to come forward to seek peace, but the Xun family is now unable to protect themselves, so how can they care about other families?


    After the breaking of Xuchang City, the old housekeeper of the Xun family took out a letter written by Xun Yu three months ago, saying that he had to take it out after the breaking of Xuchang City.


    This letter was also regarded as hope by the Xun family, but unexpectedly, the content written in it made the Xun family convince the Yingchuan family, honestly knelt down and accepted the punishment from the Qin army, and voluntarily handed over 90% of the land and 50% of the assets.


    After some discussion, the Xun family decided to do what Xun Yu said. Under the threat of the fox and tiger, the major families in Yingchuan also decided to bow their heads and accept the punishment. After all, if they don’t bow their heads, they will lose it, but their life. Inviting Ying Hao to Xuchang to inspect and reward the army is their letter of fame.


    After Ying Hao looked at the Yingchuan family''s "vote letter" and then he couldn''t help but look satisfied. It has to be said that the Yingchuan family is still very cognitive.


    "Cao Cao did everything for money and food, and even took risks to plot against the Demon Sect, but he didn''t know that he was raising fatter pigs around him." Ying Hao couldn''t help but smile.


    "Cao Cao naturally knew, but he didn''t dare to attack the Yingchuan family, otherwise the Wei army would be free from his ties, and the price would be much greater than offending the Demon Sect." Guo Jia said.


    So Cao Cao was still smart and would rather offend the Demon Sect than offend the Yingchuan family, just to maintain Cao Wei''s already fragile centripetal force.


    "Lord, the Yingchuan family has shown sincerity. Are you entering the city?" Guo Jia asked.


    Ying Hao had not entered the city before, so he could use his talent to break through Xuchang. The city was in chaos and was not safe as a reason.


    But now the city has been cleaned up, and public security has not been restored to the pre-war period, but it is relatively stable.


    Ying Hao has not entered the city at this time, which makes it difficult for the Yingchuan family to not think too much, and think that Ying Hao is still dissatisfied with them and wants to attack them.


    Ying Hao was originally planning to kill some people to kill a chicken to warn the monkey. After all, these aristocratic families are all mean bones. It is useless for you to reason with them. They will never know that it hurts without touching the knife.


    But Ying Hao didn''t expect that the Yingchuan family would be so sensible. He even slapped him out even when he knelt down. The Yingchuan family brought his face to him and asked him to beat him. After that, he said that he was right, which made him embarrassed to continue.


    "Forget it, since the Yingchuan family is so sensible, then I will go to the city to see their sincerity."


    Ying Hao smiled faintly. Now he was a little curious. What kind of expression would Cao Cao look like when he learned that Xuchang City was captured and the Yingchuan family collectively turned against each other.


    I guess it must be very exciting.


    The eyes returned to Chenliu’s Cao Cao’s side


    The news that the north of Daxing City was captured by Li Jing and the Sui Kingdom was about to perish, was soon passed back to Chenliu, and Cao Cao received the news of the fall of Puyang again.


    This is a big blow to Cao Cao. After all, the fall of Puyang means that Cao Wei''s northern defense line is completely lost. Except for the 20,000 troops from Yinshou in Yan County, Cao Wei no longer has any troops in Dongjun, but the Qin army can go south to attack the rear of Cao''s army at any time.


    In addition, the fall of Puyang City also caused Cao Wei to lose a large number of generals and talents.


    The Grand Governor Le Yi will not say much. He was the only general in Cao Wei who could fight against Bai Qi, except Cao Cao, but he committed suicide after the city was broken and apologized.


    The general of the personal guard came evilly. He was the third-ranked general in Cao Wei''s strength in addition to Yin Shou and Dan Tai Yu. He was also the most trusted and close general in Cao Cao''s hands. He also died at the hands of Li Cunxiao. His death in battle, plus Yu Rongwang, Le Jin and other generals...


    When Cao Cao thought of losing so many beloved generals at the same time, it made Cao Cao feel heartbroken. He had not recovered yet, and even worse news came one after another.


    Puyang, which has 45,000 defenders, was defeated by Bai Qi in just ten days, but it was not yet irreversible.


    But Xuchang City, which had 55,000 defenders, was captured by Qin again, which was quite fatal to Cao''s army. After learning about it, Cao Cao was so angry that he vomited blood and fainted.


    Cao Cao''s dizziness made the senior officials of Cao Wei such as Fan Li, Xiahou Yuan very anxious. After all, at such a critical moment of life and death, if Cao Cao was in a coma for a few days, their retreat would probably be completely cut off by the Qin army.


    But except Cao Cao, no one present could do it, even Fan Li and Xiahou Yuan were the same. Therefore, Cao Cao must be awakened, and at least he had to wait until the order to withdraw his troops was issued before he was dizzy.


    Cao Cao didn''t faint for too long. Less than half an hour later, he was rescued by the imperial physician Wu Qi of the Song State.


    Wu Ji (tao Yi) was a figure in the Northern Song Dynasty. He had excellent medical skills, noble medical ethics and famous. He wrote the book "Bencao of Wu Ji".


    Wu Qi was a good doctor to save the world during his lifetime, and countless people received his kindness. The people called him Zhenren Wu. The villagers built temples to worship him as a "miracle doctor". After his death, they were posthumously named Dadao Zhenren and Baosheng Emperor by the court. They were also a powerful figure in the title of God.


    Cao Cao suffered from cerebral disease but it was difficult to cure it. The fundamental reason was that he had overworked illness. In order to prevent it from happening during the war, Cao Cao borrowed Wu Zi from Zhao Kuangyin.


    Although Cao Cao woke up, he would rather not wake up because when he woke up, he had to face the current dilemma, but this could not be solved by manpower.


    The Xuchang battle report received by Cao Cao was sent by Cao Wei before breaking through. It only stated that the inner city was defeated, Xue Ju, Qiu Yin, Yin Poubai and others were killed in battle. Cao Bin personally left behind to cut off the rear to win time, while he would lead 8,000 elite troops and Zhang Guifang and Zhu Hai and others to break through.


    Cao Cao did not know that Cao Bin had been captured alive, but since Cao Bin had left behind himself, he could imagine how dangerous the situation in Xuchang was. He could only pray that Cao Wei could break out smoothly and retain some vitality for Cao''s army, while thinking about how to get rid of danger.


    The maximum number of troops on the western front of Cao Wei was only 300,000. After the fierce battle in the first month, nearly 100,000 troops were lost. However, after several replenishment from the county soldiers and the strong men, plus the reinforcements from the Wei and Song dynasties, the total force did not exceed 300,000, but it barely maintained the situation of traveling west.


    Before Puyang and Xuchang were captured, not counting the reinforcements of the Wei and Song dynasties, Cao Wei still had nearly 220,000 troops on the Western Front.


    In other words, as long as the hundreds of thousands of demon sect rebels in the rear and the newly recruited Cao Wei army in the east form an army, it will greatly alleviate the pressure on the front line, and at least it can fight a war of attrition with the Qin army for a period of time.


    What Cao Cao lacks most now is not soldiers and money and food, but time, but time is not on Cao Cao''s side.


    Although the Cao army suffered great losses before, it was accumulated in nearly two months. Now, in just two days, Puyang and Xuchang fell one after another, which made the Cao army lose the two famous generals Le Yi and Cao Bin, but the five war gods of Elai, Yu Rongwang, Xue Ju, Qiu Yin and Zhangshan, and there must be not many left in the 100,000 defenders in the two cities.


    No matter how many troops the two cities can break through, even if there are, there will definitely not be many. Without the 100,000 troops of Puyang and Xuchang, Cao Wei''s total troops on the Western Front were only 120,000, and he was still attacked from three sides.


    At this time, if Cao Cao takes a wrong step, the entire army will be wiped out when he waits for Cao''s army.


    The blessing in disgrace is the last retreat, that is, the capital of Jiyin County, Dingtao County, is still in the hands of Cao Wei.


    If Dingtao also falls, the remaining 120,000 Cao''s army will be cut off and face three encirclements, and the entire army will be wiped out.


    "After passing the order, all the front-line cities will be abandoned, and the entire army will withdraw to Jiyin County."


    Shortly after waking up, Cao Cao issued an order to withdraw his troops, and this was the only correct way. After all, it would be too late to escape.


    When Fan Li heard this, he spoke with a serious expression: "My lord, you can''t just retreat like this. Zhang Liao is still staring at us. If the entire army retreats without preparation, once the Zhang Liao army catches up, we will cause the entire army to be defeated."


    After Li Cunxiao was transferred by Bai Qi, Cao Cao faced a lot less pressure, but he still had to face Zhang Liao''s more than 100,000 Qin troops directly.


    The information between the Qin army must be interoperable. If Zhang Liao learned about the fall of Puyang, he would naturally not allow Cao Cao to lead his army to retreat easily.


    Therefore, for Cao Cao, the difficulty lies not in how to withdraw his troops, but in how to get rid of Zhang Liao''s pursuit.


    Hearing Fan Li''s words, Cao Cao also reacted, and was so anxious that he felt sweaty. He paced back and forth and said, "What should I do?"


    After Bai Qi captured Puyang, he would definitely capture Dingtao at any cost. Although Chen Liu was closer to Dingtao, with Zhang Liao here, it would be difficult for our army to withdraw in a short time.


    In addition, Dingtao has neither a strong army nor a strong general, and our army has no time to support it. The Dingtao defender will definitely not be able to stop Bai Qi..."


    The more you analyze Cao Cao, the more desperate it is. This is simply a situation of death without life. He hopes that he has not woken up now, because there seems to be no difference between waking up and not waking up.


    At the critical moment, Fan Li was the most reliable. He took the initiative to offer his advice: "Lord, we can first transfer all the cavalry to support him. However, if you want to block Bai Qi''s morale, you may need to lead the army yourself to support him with a strong general."


    "But if we transfer all the cavalry, can Chenliu''s army still retreat?"


    Cao Cao asked the key to the problem. After all, without these 120,000 troops, there were only new recruits and county soldiers in the eastern counties, it was naturally impossible to stop the Qin army. So what''s the point of continuing to struggle? It''s better to surrender directly.


    Fan Li knew that Cao Cao could not surrender, so the reason why he asked this was that he was unable to seek medical treatment after losing his temper, and it might be that he was testing his meaning.


    After hesitating for a while, Fan Li said, "As long as Bai Qi can arrive in Dingtao first and insist on going to the front line to withdraw the army, Bai Qi will naturally retreat.


    As for how to get rid of Zhang Liao and withdraw troops? Li has a plan. If it goes well, he may have deceived Jia Xu, but he will have to pay a certain price. ”


    Cao Cao was overjoyed. Given the situation facing Cao''s army now, it is impossible to withdraw its troops in a complete manner. The only difference is how high the price is.


    Compared with the crisis of annihilation, paying a certain price to get out of trouble is not unacceptable.


    "Can you really hide it from Jia Xu? That old thing is not easy to cheat."


    Cao Cao was also afraid of Jia Xu''s plan and he was unwilling to mention his name. He also knew that the biggest obstacle to withdrawing the army was not Zhang Liao, but Jia Xu.


    Although the chief general of the Qin army was Zhang Liao, Zhang Liao listened to Jia Xu. It was almost impossible for Jia Xu to hide his general strategy from him with Jia Xu''s strategy.


    "Lord, although Jia Xu is terrible, he is also a human being. If he is a human being, he will make mistakes."


    After saying that, Fan Li leaned over to Cao Cao''s ears and told Cao Cao in a low voice, but Cao Cao''s face became more and more ugly as he heard it.


    Not to mention that if you follow Fan Li''s plan, there is indeed a high probability that you have deceived Jia Xu, but although this price is within the scope of Cao''s army''s tolerance, it is emotionally difficult for Cao Cao to accept it.


    Seeing Cao Cao''s hesitation and embarrassment, Fan Li couldn''t help but smile and persuaded, "Lord, every time you hesitate, Bai Qi is closer to Dingtao, and there is no time to continue hesitating."


    Cao Cao''s body was shocked when he heard this, and then gritted his teeth and said, "Come according to the military advisor''s plan and immediately transfer cavalry to support Dingtao."


    "Lord, if you just transfer the cavalry to support, you may not be able to defend Dingtao. After all, Li Cunxiao is in Bai Qi''s army.


    Li suggested that the lord lead the army in person this time, and brought all the three generals, Dan Tai Yu, Cao Ning and Xiahou Yuan, and also ordered General Yin Shou from Yan County to lead all the cavalry to support him. ”


    Fan Li didn''t know that Li Cunxiao led his army alone to pursue Lan Yu, and then fought with Niu Kuiyuan Jiuling, but is not in Bai Qi''s army now.


    Of course, even if he knew that Li Cunxiao was not there, he would still make the same suggestions because he saw much further than Cao Cao.


    In such a dangerous situation, Cao Cao was given priority to how to protect the 120,000 army on the Western Front.


    Although Fan Li understood that this was not impossible, the possibility was very low. Unless he calculated every step he would do, would Jia Xu''s old fox really be so obedient?


    Fan Li was not sure, but he could not propose it in person, so he told Cao Cao that the strategy was reserved, and the priority was to save Cao Cao''s life first and retain as much vitality as possible, rather than what Cao Cao wanted to protect all the army.


    Cao Cao may not be able to see Fan Li’s idea at all. Perhaps there is no better way, or he cannot be this bad guy, so he cannot propose it. It is just right to let Fan Li be this bad guy, so he can’t understand it.


    Of course, Cao Cao still hoped that Fan Li''s plan would go smoothly, and only in this way could he have the confidence to continue to fight.


    Under Fan Li''s plan, Cao Cao personally led Chenliu''s five thousand tiger and leopard cavalry, and transferred three thousand cavalry of sour jujube, four thousand cavalry of Fengqiu, and three thousand cavalry of Yan County, totaling 15,000 cavalry, and rushed to support Dingtao.


    These four cavalry came from four cities, with different distances and distances, so Cao Cao did not wait for the troops to arrive before setting off, but instead took Chen Liu''s five thousand iron cavalry to Dingtao overnight.


    Cao Cao was afraid that Bai Qi would arrive in Dingtao before him, and he was even more afraid that Dingtao guard Liu Tichun would not be able to withstand the pressure, so he surrendered to Bai Qi directly.


    Cao Cao''s worries are actually not unreasonable. Liu Tichun was the surrendered general who was conquered by Cao Cao when he pacified Mount Tai. At that time, generals such as Niu Jinxing, Song Xiance, Liu Tiren, Li Chixin, and Ma Shouying were also surrendered.


    After Liu Tichun surrendered, although he was always loyal to Cao Cao, no one can guarantee that he would not betrayal under such dangers.


    So before leaving, Cao Cao specially asked Cao Ning to bring the military talisman and let him ride alone to Dingtao as fast as possible and take over the military power from Liu Tichun.


    It would be fine if Liu Tichun agreed. If he disagreed, Cao Ning would kill him and forcefully seize the military power.


    Just as Cao Cao was rescuing Dingtao at full speed, Bai Qi was also rushing to Dingtao at full speed.


    After Bai Qi captured Puyang, he did not even enter the city and did not make any stops. He led his army south to attack Jiyin counties, attempting to cut off the Cao army''s retreat, and in just half a day, he arrived at Lihu County, the northernmost part of Jiyin County.


    It was already dark when Bai Qi arrived in Lihu County. It was actually very dangerous to march at night, but in order to race against time, Bai Qi chose to march overnight.


    Lihu guard general Ma Shouying was ready to go to bed, but when he was told that a large number of Qin troops appeared outside the city, he was frightened and rolled out of the bed. After hesitating for a while, he finally decided to open the city and surrender. After all, hundreds of county soldiers could not defend Lihu County.


    Ma Shouying''s understanding also saved Bai Qi a lot of effort. He repaired it in Lihu County that night. After leaving three thousand defenders the next day, he led the remaining troops to Dingtao.


    "General Ma, are you and Liu Tichun, the general of Dingtao, old acquaintances? Then are you sure to convince Liu Tichun to abandon the darkness and turn to the light and submit to my Great Qin?" Bai Qi asked at Ma Shouying.


    Ma Shouying said decisively without thinking, "Reporting to the General, Liu Tichun and the Mo General both took action and belonged to General Li Zicheng''s subordinates. Later, they were forced to surrender to Cao Cao together. If the Mo General went to lobby, they would definitely convince Liu Tichun to surrender."


    "Okay, if you can convince Liu Tichun to surrender, I will report to Your Majesty that you are the Chief of Jiyin."


    The commander of a county was just a colonel in the Qin army system, but Ma Shouying didn''t know this. He was ecstatic when he heard Bai Qi doing this and hurriedly thanked him, "Thank you, the Grand Commander."


    Looking at the background of Ma Shouying''s departure, Bai Qi smiled and nodded. If this trip went well, Ma Shouying would bring back more than one city, as well as Cao Wei''s 120,000 main army.


    Of course, Bai Qi would not put all his hopes on Ma Shouying. Even if Ma Shouying failed, he would forcibly break through Ding Tao to cut off Cao Cao''s retreat.


    (This chapter ends)