The marriage between Ye Zheng and Lu Lingqi was finally finalized in February of the fourth year of Tai'an, that is, the 12th year of Jian'an (207 AD). However, in order to avoid Ye Zhao's fraud again, Lu Bu was detained in Wancheng and would not be sent back until after the marriage.

Nanyang was busy organizing Ye Zheng's marriage, while Ye Zhao continued to restrain Cao Cao at Hulao Pass and sent small elite troops to attack Cao Cao's retreat from time to time. Although there was no war again, small-scale frictions were never interrupted. Because Ye Zhao wanted to ensure that Cao Cao's every move was very wide, the battlefield almost covered the areas from Hanoi to Xuchang, and small troops on both sides had friction almost every day.

Although Ye Zhao's troops are elite and well-equipped, if they encounter twice or even three times the enemy in the wild, they have to kneel down.

In just one month, although the two sides had not started a war, the accumulation of such small-scale friction losses was also caused by Ye Zhao and Cao Cao's fear. After being worse than January, even if the scouts between the two sides met in the wild, they were mostly vigilant to keep a distance rather than fighting blindly.

Xingyang, the prefect's office.

Cao Cao rubbed his eyebrows tiredly, and Xun You frowned and said, "Lord, Ye Zhao's move is obviously to consume with our army. After the Nanyang matter is settled, we can't afford to take action. We can't afford to spend it with him!"

It's really unaffordable!

Cao Cao nodded bitterly. Although the Central Plains was rich, in recent years, Cao Cao had almost never stopped fighting against Xuzhou, Yuan Shao, and then fought against Liu Bei. He also treated some food and grass as a military posture. Now Jizhou, Youzhou and Qingzhou are all new places, and are now restrained by Ye Zhao. It is difficult for these three places to transform their potential into actual combat power in a short period of time. War is always a money-eating machine. This newly acquired three places is good without losing money. In a short period of time, it is probably difficult to provide too much help to Cao Cao.

Although Yanzhou, Xuzhou and Yuzhou are rich, they have not had much food to support Cao Cao in the south and north over the years. After defeating Yuan Shao, the granary in Jizhou gave Cao Cao some confidence, which would allow him and Ye Zhao to spend money here now, but it would definitely not take long.

Although Ye Zhao's battle was a bit sudden because of the Hulao Pass, although there have been wars in recent years, he faced mostly the forces such as the Huns, Xianbei and the Western Regions. The blood drawn from the other side was enough for Ye Zhao to control the territory. In addition, the accumulation of the country of Tianfu in Shu over the years, Guanzhong, Xiliang, Bingzhou and other places can now bear their own profits and losses, and the troops Ye Zhao mobilized was not as large as Cao Cao.

In addition to Ye Zhao, Cao Cao also had to guard against Sun Ce, who was now very restless. Ye Zhao only needed to supply military supply and demand in Luoyang, Bingzhou, and Hedong, and there were various checkpoints stationed. The generals of Bingzhou and Hedong were also selected by Xu Rong and Ding Li, who were mainly stable, had a much smaller investment in military strength than Cao Cao, and the logistical pressure was naturally much easier than Cao Cao. The most important thing is that what Ye Zhao lacked the least now was food. Relying on the right place, Ye Zhao could afford it completely, and Cao Cao did not have the confidence of Ye Zhao.

Cao Cao's situation is very awkward now, and he can't fight and can't afford it. If he wants to seek a decisive battle with Ye Zhao, Ye Zhao stays in Hulao Pass and cannot come out. Cao Cao even thought about how to deal with Ye Zhao's elite soldiers, but Ye Zhao doesn't give him any chance at all. This makes Cao Cao feel like a dog is gnawing a hedgehog. The most important thing is that this hedgehog is so powerful than a dog.

"Even if the Nanyang incident can be accomplished, I guess it will be difficult for Ye Zhao to threaten." Xun You sighed.

If Lu Bu was willing to agree to cooperate before, he would have the power to fight. After all, Lu Bu himself is not inferior to others in fighting. The two families join forces, Yique Pass, Xuanyuan Pass, Arc deputies, and Hulao Pass can break one, and the other levels will be abandoned. By then, it will be difficult for Ye Zhao to not fight with them.

But if another person is replaced, no matter who gets Nanyang, it will probably be difficult to reach Lu Bu's level. At that time, it would be equivalent to giving Ye Zhao a reason to send troops. At that time, the battlefield would probably be transferred to Nanyang, but Cao Cao could not concentrate on an attack, and Hulao Pass must also watch it. Otherwise, if Ye Zhao sends troops from here, the entire Yanzhou and Yuzhou would be shrouded within Ye Zhao's attack range.

Of course, it is impossible to let go of it. Now Lu Bu is determined to join forces with Ye Zhao. If the two families succeed in joining forces, Cao Cao will face Ye Zhao, Lu Bu and Sun Ce at the same time.

These three princes are all warlike and extremely aggressive. Even Cao Cao could not stop them even if he was covered in iron.

Cao Cao had a headache and lost a Hulao Pass. He had unexpectedly expected the chain reaction caused by Cao Ang's death. If he had known this, he would not have sent Cao Ang out with a fever. If he was an ordinary envoy, even if Chen Qun and Zhong Yao were killed, there would be room for maneuver. Of course, if Lu Bu was willing to discuss at this time, even if his own son died, Cao Cao would be willing to swallow this and discuss the joint efforts with Lu Bu again.

But Cao Cao's people were active, and Ye Zhao also sent people to the event. In addition, Ye Zheng is now in Nanyang and is about to become Lu Bu's son-in-law. Even though Cao Cao had sent three groups of people to discuss with Lu Bu, they were flatly rejected by Lu Bu.

"Lord, I have a plan!" Cheng Yu pondered for a moment, bowed to Cao Cao and said.

"What's the plan Zhongde has? Come quickly." Cao Cao's eyes lit up and he looked at Cheng Yu.

"Ye Zhao's army is well-equipped, and it is indeed unwise for our army to collide head-on. The river has not yet thawed yet. I wonder if we can send some elite troops from Henoi to capture Mengjin. If we can get Mengjin, our army can go straight to Luoyang!" Cheng Yu bowed and said.

When Cao Cao heard this, his eyes lit up.

Mengjin was called Mengjin in ancient times. Although it was known as the Eight Pass of Luoyang, it was actually a small ferry on the bank of the Yellow River.

However, although the ferry crossing is small, it is not small. It was the place where King Wu of Zhou summoned the princes and made blood to form an alliance. It is close to the present. The destruction of the Qin Dynasty by Xiang Yu, the overlord of Western Chu, also occurred in Mengjin. The ancients included the terrain around Mengjin in one sentence, which was "Three Mountains and Six Tombs and One Branch Rivers". Mengjin was stuck on a branch river between the three Mountains and Six Tombs. It was both a ferry crossing and an important barrier north of Luoyang.

If you start from Hanoi with hundreds of miles of face, you can only reach Luoyang through this place. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is the gateway to Luoyang.

But in fact, Mengjin is far less important than Hulao.

As for the reason, the most important point is that most northern troops are not accustomed to water wars, and the river water is frozen every year enough to allow the army to pass through only about half a month. At other times, if you want to cross the river, you can only rely on the navy.

The navy is definitely a rare group of troops in the north. Even if there are ships, it is mostly used to transport troops. If you want to fight on the water, it is no different from seeking death. Therefore, although Mengjin is small, relying on the convenience of the terrain, if someone really dares to row a boat to attack, only eight hundred people will be enough to make tens of thousands of troops futile.

Therefore, although the location is dangerous, war will not happen most of the time. Therefore, the strategic significance and status are naturally inferior to those of Hulao Pass and Yique Pass.

But if you can break through Mengjin and march quickly, you will be able to arrive in Luoyang in half a day.

Although Luoyang is now a wasteland, it is an important grain transfer station for Ye Zhao. If Cao Cao could defeat Mengjin and capture Luoyang, he would not need to defend himself. He only needed to burn the food and grass that Ye Zhao had stored in Luoyang. No matter how fierce Ye Zhao's army was, he would probably have to be defeated and withdraw from Sili's route.

"Good!" After thinking clearly about the essence, Cao Cao couldn't help but lit up his eyes and looked at Cheng Yu with approval.

"But..." Zhong Yao frowned when he heard this, "Now Ye Zhao is full of scouts. If you want to break through Mengjin without disturbing Ye Zhao and take Luoyang directly, you may..."

"It's okay, then don't dispatch troops from Xingyang and Ao Cang. The scouts from Hanoi need to be cleared!" Cao Cao stood up with a smile. What he was worried about before was how to defeat Ye Zhao. Now that he has a direction, no matter how difficult the problem is, he can always come up with a solution.

"From Ye Zhao's military deployment, the food and grass are indeed very likely to be in Luoyang. Zhongde's plan is very good, but to do this, a general needs to be... " Xun You looked at Cao Cao.

Cao Cao pondered for a moment and said, "You all think, what's the wonderful talent?"

The wonderful talent is Xiahou Yuan. Not only is he skilled in martial arts, but he is also first-class in command of military command, but his best attitude is to fight surprise attacks. If Xiahou Yuan goes to fight, the success rate will be extremely high.

When Xun You and others heard this, they nodded one after another. Although Cao Cao has many generals under his rank, the one who is suitable for this battle is still Xiahou Yuan.

Seeing everyone's agreement, Cao Cao immediately ordered someone to recruit Xiahou Yuan and ordered Xiahou Yuan Xing to ride alone to Hanoi at night. If he was dispatched from Xingyang or Ao Cang, he would probably be noticed by Ye Zhao, so Cao Cao could only send troops from Hanoi to achieve success.

After Xiahou Yuan received the order, he rushed to Hanoi without saying a word. The next morning, Cao Cao led his army to Hulao Pass as usual.

Ye Zhao was cunning. In order to avoid Ye Zhao seeing the clues, Cao Cao did not make too many moves, just like in the past.

This time, Ye Zhao did not notice it, and although Ye Zhao did not think that Cao Cao would attack, there were still thousands of troops stationed in Mengjin's direction.

Even if the general of Meng Jin is not as good as the general under Ye Zhao, he is not an unknown person. He is Wu Yi, the general of Shu who was surrendered when he was in Shu.
Chapter completed!