Chapter 451 The Battle of Hongnong
To be honest, if he had enough time, Ma Su would have had 10,000 ways to lure Cao Shuang away from Hongnong, and then he would have done it all at once.
But because Sima Yi was not much slower than him, two or three days were too tight to complete the task of cutting off the road and blocking the Wei army in Guanzhong. So after careful consideration, Ma Su had to choose a slightly risky move.
That’s strategic change!
After some calculations, Cao Shuang fell into the trap and led his entire army north to counterattack Pubanjin. When his main force headed straight for the Yellow River ferry, Ma Di led five thousand elite troops to quickly attack Hongnong County from the easternmost side of Pubanjin, brushing against the Wei army.
Cao Shuang deployed stay-behind troops in Hongnong County, but unfortunately, the Hongnong Yang family and Cao Wei were not of the same mind. Ma Su led his troops to a surprise attack on the city, and the Yang family opened the city gate.
In just two days, Ma Su quickly completed the strategic change of family, and at this moment, Sima Yi was still riding on the way...
When Ma Su's flag flew over Hongnong County, the situation instantly became delicate. Especially Cao Shuang from Hebei County, when he saw this flag, he was so frightened that he almost fainted.
"Ma Su!! Didn't he go back to Chang'an? Why is he here!"
At this moment, Ma Di's reputation in Cao Wei is equivalent to Zhang Liao's in Soochow. When hearing his name, even the children dare not cry. When Wei Jun saw this flag, he subconsciously wanted to roll up his armor and follow it.
The reason why they didn't run away was not because they had courage, but because Ma Su blocked their retreat road and left them no place to run...
Just when 30,000 Wei troops were blocked in Pubanjin, unable to advance or retreat, and people were panicking, Sima Yi also led the Guanzhong Army to the Huayin line in fear.
Because Cao Shuang refused to cooperate, only Wang Ji sent 3,000 soldiers to Huayin as a symbolic response.
But what surprised Sima Yi was that after running wildly in Weinan for half a month, he did not encounter any attacks from the Han army. Even Ma Di heard no news after he captured Chang'an, and seemed to have no plans to pursue.
This made Sima Yi's half-month escape, although there were nearly 10,000 escapees left behind. But so far, there are still 30,000 people, and the backbone of the Guanzhong Army is still there.
Sima Yi must bring this group of veterans back to Guandong and use this as a basis to expand the army again. Otherwise, if there is no backbone of veterans, the combat effectiveness of the army cannot be guaranteed at all.
On the battlefield, the most valuable thing is the veterans. As long as they follow you, they are the greatest wealth.
In Huayin, Sima Yi met with the supporting troops sent by Wang Ji and breathed a sigh of relief. After running here from Chang'an in one breath, even if the Shu army wanted to pursue them, it would probably take a long time.
Now it is heard that the Baier Qin Pass from Tongguan to Hangu is still in the hands of the Wei army, which means that so far, he is safe.
"This place is only thirty miles away from Tongguan, and there are supporting troops coming, so there should be no possibility of an ambush. In other words, we are safe now." Sima Yi turned around and looked at Weinan again, and shook his head gently. He shook his head and said,
"But speaking of it, Ma Di was able to watch our army flee without taking any action. From this point of view, his wisdom is only that, and he will regret this decision in the future!"
Having said this, Sima Yi subconsciously continued to laugh hard to boost his morale. Then he saw the panic on the faces of Guo Huai, Sun Li and other generals, and quickly became highly vigilant.
Every time the governor laughs, something bad is bound to happen. After following Sima Yi for so long, these Guanzhong veterans have gained experience.
Sure enough, before Sima Yi's laughter ended, he saw an envoy coming from the direction of Tongguan on horseback. He rushed all the way to Cao Wei's army and reported to Sima Yi in panic.
"Captain Sima! Hongnong has been lost! The Shu army went south from Pubanjin and captured Hongnong County! Its commander is... Ma Su, the butcher of Western Shu!!"
"What!!"
Sima Yi's smile suddenly froze. He had never expected this situation.
Didn’t it mean that Hongnong’s defense line was impregnable? Isn’t it said that it is impossible for a mouse to crawl from Weibei to Weinan?
You call this impregnable?
In short, after learning the news, Sima Yi couldn't sit still at all.
He didn't even think about letting the troops take a rest, and urgently led the Guanzhong Army into Tongguan. Under Wang Ji's explanation, Sima Yi also understood why Hongnonghui was lost.
It was all because of Cao Shuang's great cleverness that he went out without authorization, but was directly replaced by Ma Di.
But while he was speechless, Sima Yi also learned about Ma Di's deployment. After reading all these arrangements, Sima Yi immediately became 100% sure that the Shu general blocking Hongnong County was indeed Ma Su.
Only he dared to make such a death-defying arrangement.
At this time, there were only five thousand Han troops blocking Hongnong, and they were all infantry. The most important thing was that the Han troops did not defend the city at all, but instead camped behind the city.
Although Sima Yi lost miserably, he still had 30,000 people at hand. The defenders of Tongguan and Cao Shuang's troops totaled 40,000 troops.
Surrounded on three sides by 70,000 Wei troops, Ma Su was probably the only one who dared to defend with only 5,000 men.
"It seems that Ma Su has calculated his troop deployment correctly and plans to have a final decisive battle with me on the Hongnong front line." After reading it several times, Sima Yi also understood Ma Su's plan.
Time is not on Sima Yi's side now. Once he escapes for a long time, when the Han army from Chang'an arrives, he will inevitably fall into the dilemma of being attacked from both sides. Therefore, Sima Yi's only choice was basically to attack Hongnong, force his way out of the Shu army's blockade, and escape back to Guandong.
Ma Su only led 5,000 men, which gave Sima Yi a reason to fight. There are 70,000 people on our side. Under such circumstances, it would be unreasonable to fear his 5,000 infantry.
"Ma Di is very confident! Does he really have the confidence that five thousand men can defeat my 70,000 army?" Sima Yi looked a little ugly, and after pondering for a moment, he quickly made a decision.
"Since Ma Su is actively seeking death, let's go meet him for a while!"
"Send an order to Cao Shuang, instructing you to lead your troops south to join our army in Hu County. The three armies must assemble, rectify their morale, and then attack Hongnong. Capture Ma Su with his men and horses!"
…………
…………
…………
Sima Yi entered Tongguan, quickly took over the highest command, and deployed the final breakout battle of the Wei army in Guanzhong.
If this battle is lost, then none of Guanzhong Qu will be taken away, and they will all be left in Guanzhong. In order to complete his victory in one battle, Sima Yi sent all his troops up.
Except for the 5,000 defenders left at Tongguan as an early warning, all the other troops came on stage. At the same time, Sima Yi also ordered Cao Shuang to bring 30,000 Kwantung reinforcements south to join the army and fight against Ma Su together.
The final battle of the Guanzhong War, the Battle of Hongnong begins!