Chapter 040: The Sword Offering of Wan City

  The second year of Jian'an, in the first month, which is also New Year's Day.

  Cao Cao, who was appointed as the Grand Commander-in-Chief, led his troops in two divisions to conquer Wan City.

  Cao Cao's cousin, Adviser Counsellor Cao Hong, led troops from Kunyang County in Yingchuan Commandery and broke through Ye County on the same day. His army aimed at Duyu and Zhe counties. The newly appointed Governor of Henan Province, Xiahou Dun, led troops from Fangshan County in Runan Commandery and marched against the current of Ru River. On the second day of the first month, his army arrived at Zhongyanshan Mountain, directly pointing to Wuyin County.

  Cheng Yao, the county magistrate of Wuyin, surrendered without a fight, holding the seal in both hands and offering the city's surrender.

  Cao Cao led the central army himself and followed up afterwards.

  Yu Jin was appointed as Pingkou Colonel and sat in charge of the rear army, escorting the transportation of grain and supplies.

  For a time, Nanyang Prefecture was filled with ominous winds and dense clouds of war!

  ————————————————————————————————————

  As for Cao Cao's expedition this time, Cao Peng had expected it early on.

  Moreover, he was also clear that Cao Cao's expedition to Wan City would inevitably end in defeat. Because by Zhang Yue's side, a terrible guy was hiding.

  That person is also Cao Peng's extremely admired idol, Jia Yu and Jia Wen.

  Cao Peng really wants to tell Cao Cao that after you arrive in Wan City, don't get involved with any women or be infatuated with beauty, otherwise even your son will suffer.

  But the question is, how will he report to Cao Cao?

  Who would believe him and let him get close to Cao Cao?

  It is known that Cao Cao now serves the Emperor to command the vassals, and has become a leader of a state. Even Cao Piao and Huang She cannot see him, how can he be seen by Cao Cao? This was also one of the reasons why he opposed going to surrender to Cao Cao at first. Without a recommender, they found it difficult to stand firm. Cao Cao is also good at showing respect for talents and using people without being bound by conventions. The problem is that these people are at least somewhat famous.

  He wanted to get close to Cao Cao, it was really too difficult...

  Deng Ji led a hundred men with armor and weapons, as well as sufficient grain and fodder, back to the camp at Yiyang.

  Even before he had time to catch his breath, Deng Ai was dragged into the main tent by Wei Yan to discuss matters. In any case, as the commander of Yizyang, Deng Ai would have a multitude of tasks to attend to if Yizyang were to go on campaign.

  In the Art of War, it is said: "When using troops, there are a thousand chariots and a thousand leather carts. The expenses for internal and external affairs, guest etiquette, glue and lacquer materials, chariot and armor maintenance, daily expenditures amount to thousands of gold... Then an army of 100,000 can be raised... In the case of Yiyang's troops, which are less than 100 people, even if they want to go out on a campaign, they still need to make many preparations. Various materials and supplies must be prepared properly before departure. Even if it's just from Jiunü City to Wan City, whether you take two days or three days, you still need to rack your brains.

  This is what a holiday is all about.

  Wei Yan finally felt the effect of having an excellent assistant officer.

  Those messy things, no longer need him to worry about, Deng Ji will arrange everything properly.

  The transported armor and weapons were registered, then distributed one by one, and the old and broken ones were collected back to be returned to the military logistics officer. As for whether the military logistics officer would repair or discard these worn-out armors and weapons, it had nothing to do with Deng Ji.

  After finishing all these, Deng Ai began to prepare for the expedition.

  How to break camp and set up a new one, whether to rest along the way, and other trivial matters must be planned and prepared.

  After finishing all these things, when I returned to the small account, it was almost midnight.

  Deng Jie was exhausted and collapsed onto the couch, feeling his eyelids fighting and his head spinning dizzily.

  "Brother-in-law, wake up!"

  "Afu... is there something going on? I'm a bit tired today. If it's not too urgent, can we talk about it tomorrow when I wake up?"

  Cao Peng saw Deng Ji about to close his eyes and hastily pulled him up by the arm.

  "Brother-in-law, this matter is very important!" He looked serious and solemn. Deng Ji was originally sleepy, but seeing Cao Peng's expression, he couldn't help but perk up, looking at him with suspicion. Cao Peng said: "Brother-in-law, I think...I know a bit about Huang She's plan."

  "Plan on?"

  "Brother-in-law, Cao Gong has sent out his troops!"

  Deng Jiqiang took a deep breath, yawned and nodded: "Yes, it's said that the army is advancing very quickly, has already crossed Lushan and entered Nanyang."

  "Huang She asked if we should escort the grain to Wan City?"

  "Yes, set off early next day, about 5,000 stones, must arrive in Wan City within three days."

  "At this rate of Cao Jun's advance, when we arrive at Wan Cheng..."

  Cao Peng didn't continue speaking, but Deng Jie suddenly reacted.

  "When we arrive at Wan City, Cao's army will also be approaching the city. At that time, even if we don't want to join the battle, I'm afraid we won't have a choice."

  "Borrowing a knife to kill someone!"

  "That's right, it's murder by proxy!"

  Deng Ji couldn't help but take a deep breath of cool air, looking at Cao Peng with a bitter smile on his face.

  "This yellow shot is indeed a very poisonous and ruthless move."

  By this time, Cao Peng and Deng Jie had more or less guessed Huang She's plan.

  At first, Huang She summoned Deng Ji over to frame him and implicate his whole family. But unexpectedly, Cao Peng came voluntarily, so Huang She didn't need to make any further moves. Cao Cao sent troops to Wan Cheng, not even needing to frame them. He directly sent Deng Ji, Cao Peng and others to Wan Cheng, letting them fend for themselves there...

  Zhang Xiu wins, Cao Peng and his men may not survive; Zhang Xiu loses, they will also find it hard to stay alive!

  "A Fu, let's... run."

  Deng Ji no longer felt sleepy, and he lifted his head to speak.

  Run?

  It's probably not that simple...

  Cao Peng smiled wryly and said, "Brother-in-law, you think Huang She won't make a comeback?"

  "You're saying..."

  Cao Peng bit his lip and said in a low voice, "I can guarantee that Huang She has definitely sent someone to monitor our home now. As long as we make any unusual moves, Father, Mother, and Sister will definitely be implicated... Brother-in-law, we really can't run away now, the knife is still in Huang She's hand."

  Deng Jie fell silent!

  "So, what do you suggest we do?"

  "Let's take it one step at a time!" Cao Peng stopped pacing in the small tent, "There's something else, I saw Wei Ping and Wei Du today, they were being suspiciously secretive, don't know what they're up to. Yiyangtun is not a solid entity either, Wei Du seems to have some contradictions with Wei Tun. I think if Huang She wants to deal with us, he'll definitely start with Wei Du and Ma Yu..."

  The grudges between us and Ma Yu are not difficult to investigate.

  "Huang She, this person is very good at borrowing power... previously he wanted to borrow Yiyang Tun to conflict with us; now he wants to take advantage of the Wan City incident to deal with us. If that doesn't work, he will buy off Wei Doubo and use Ma Yu's hands... Brother-in-law, Huang She this person seems not to be underestimated."

  Deng Ji's fingers tapped rapidly on the bed rail.

  "Alright, starting from tomorrow, I'll arrange for you to follow Wei Tunjiang."

  Wen Chang is highly skilled in martial arts and has a strong sense of justice. Being by his side, you might be able to protect Zhou Duan. However, should we tell Wen Chang about the Wei Du Bo incident?

  "It's better not to tell, our relationship with Wei Yan is not that good yet. If we suddenly go over and talk about this matter, who knows if they'll think we're trying to stir up trouble. I don't have a problem being by Wei Yan's side, but you alone are in some real danger, we must find a way to get Hu Tou over here. Also, Wei Dou Bo has always been in charge of the swordsmen, and having four swordsmen by your side doesn't make me feel very at ease."

  Deng Ji thought for a moment and smiled calmly.

  "Don't worry about this, I'll think of a way to get them to leave."

  Cao Peng found that Deng Ji had lost his initial tension and suddenly became relaxed.

  That feeling has a bit of a strategic and tactical flavor, with a hint of winning a thousand miles.

  He also laughed!

  After going through all these things, I believe Deng Jia Bi has matured a lot compared to before.

  "In short, from now on, we must all be careful." Deng Ji's rhythmic knocking on the fence gradually slowed down, as if he was saying to Cao Peng, but also seemed to be muttering to himself: "Actually, things may not be that bad. Huang She letting us go to Yiyangtun is a big mistake!"

  ——————————————————————————————

  Tense preparation, with the passage of time, gradually stabilized.

  Although it was a sudden expedition, for the Yiyang Wu soldiers who had been through hundreds of battles, it seemed to have little impact. Just like their slogan: When the enemy strikes, the Wu soldiers will be the first to go. Perhaps from the day they gathered, the Yiyang Wu soldiers had anticipated this outcome.

  There is an enemy attack, and the brave warriors should take the lead!

  Deng Jie found an excuse and had Cao Peng go to Wei Yan's side.

  Then he brought Wang Maoyou over, and after consulting with Tang Ji, he excused the four knife-handlers for not being of much use in his own role, and sent them back. Tang Ji didn't think too much about it, and summoned the four knife-handlers again, sending two long spear-hands to follow along as well.

  A day's time is spent unknowingly in this busy state.

  The next day, at the fifth watch, Yiyang Tun started a fire to cook food. At the sixth watch, after reviewing the troops, they escorted 5,000 dan of grain and fodder, loaded on 41 horse-drawn carts, and set off in grand style from the Jiuniu City camp. Wei Ping led the vanguard army with six cavalrymen opening the way at the front; Wei Yan led twenty long spear soldiers plus twenty knife-shield soldiers to guard the center. Tang Ji was the rear army, with thirty-four long spear soldiers under his command.

  Under Deng Ji's deliberate arrangement, Ma Yu and others appeared in the rear army as long-handled halberdiers.

  More than 40 horse-drawn carriages, with a total of 80 people, proceeded along the main road...

  Cao Peng rode on the back of that inferior horse, following behind Wei Yan. Wearing a suit of leather armor, he stood out in the crowd, holding a Han ring knife in his hand, and another Long Que big knife hung on the horse's back.

  "A Fu, this Long Que (Dragon Bird) of yours is quite impressive."

  Wei Yan was a connoisseur and at a glance, he saw that Cao Peng's dragon-crested great knife on his horseback was a good knife.

  He also used a large knife, but this large knife was obviously inferior to Cao Peng's Long Que. All great generals love their precious horses and divine soldiers. When Wei Yan glanced at the large knife on Cao Peng's horseback, he couldn't move his eyes away...

  "This is the Longque that my father had specially repaired for me before I went on a campaign."

  Cao Peng single-handedly pulled out Long Que and handed it over to Wei Yan.

  "Hey, can you fight with a knife?"

  "Ah, he's a blacksmith......" Cao Peng urged his horse to take two quick steps forward and said in a mysterious low tone: "General Wei Tun, what do you think is special about this Dragon Bird?"

  Wei Yan took over Long Que and weighed it in his hand.

  "Your dad is the same, this heavy knife is for you to use, I'm afraid you can't even swing it two or three times, and you might end up cutting yourself. Hehe, the knife is a good one... yeah, it's got some age on it. Your dad should be a repairman. But his craftsmanship is indeed not bad, better than mine by a hundredfold."

  As he spoke, Wei Yan swung his sword with one arm and made a slash in mid-air.

  The dragon bird bursts into the sky, letting out a sharp whistle.

  "What a great sword, it's truly a great sword!"

  Wei Yan couldn't stop praising him and nodded repeatedly.

  It can be seen that this dragon bird's portion is just right for his appetite.

  The Dragon Sparrow Big Knife was originally made to be twice as heavy as the ordinary seven-foot Dragon Sparrow. This knife requires extremely strong arm strength and waist strength when used with one hand. Ordinary people can't use it at all. Wei Yan held the Dragon Sparrow in one hand, and his original big knife in the other. With both hands dancing, he displayed his skills on horseback, only to see flashes of light from the knives and gusts of wind, so that Cao Peng couldn't even see a shadow of a person.

  This guy is indeed a brave general of the Three Kingdoms!

  "Brother Wei, if you like it, I'll give this Long Que (Dragon Bird) to you."

  Wei Yan was taken aback, "To me?"

  "Originally, my father was going to give it to Tiger Head. But you also saw that Tiger Head doesn't like using knives, but instead likes using snake spears."

  So this Dragon Bird is mine now... You also said, I really can't use this sword right now, putting it in my hands would be a waste of its value. As the saying goes, "red powder for beautiful women, precious swords for brave warriors." This Dragon Bird can only find its true worth in Big Brother's hands.

  "This..."

  Wei Yan hesitated for a moment. It was clear that he really liked this Dragon Bird.

  "Don't be hesitant, big brother. Since you like it, why hesitate? I've said it before, this knife is useless to me, and it's just right for big brother to build his achievements."

  Wei Yan heard this and couldn't help but burst out laughing.

  "Ah Fu brothers, since you said so, then I won't be polite!"

  He said, and with a single motion, he sheathed his twin blades on the horse's back.

  In the distance, Deng Jia silently watched them.

  When Wei Yan took over the dragon bird, he let out a sigh of relief and smiled slightly, with a hint of relaxation on his face.