It was said that after Cao Cao's death, Ma Teng, Han Sui, and others rebelled against Cao, gathering more than a dozen lords and intending to launch a surprise attack on Chang'an with their armies.
Unexpectedly, word of this leaked out, and Guo Jia, Jia Xu, and the others foiled their plan instead. Ma Chao, Ma Xiu, and Ma Shi, his sons, all died in the fighting within the city.
Meanwhile, the Cao army once again lost the great general Cao Hong. Both sides won and lost in turn, remaining locked in a standoff outside Chang'an.
At this time, Xiahou Dun withdrew from the three commanderies of Shangdang, Hedong, and Henei, gathering his troops west of Pujin Ferry.
According to Guo Jia and the others' original plan, they would first hold off Ma Teng and Han Sui's forces, then counterattack once Xiahou Dun arrived.
Yet behind Xiahou Dun, Yuan Shao followed Tian Feng's plan and advanced hard on his heels, tracking him all the way to Hedong.
This was also part of Tian Feng's calculations. Ever since they had entered Shangdang, Yuan Shao had originally intended to wait until Xiahou Dun withdrew into Guanzhong before taking the several commanderies. Yet Tian Feng advised Yuan Shao to raise his army at once and pursue Xiahou Dun!
For in Tian Feng's eyes, Xiahou Dun's retreat inevitably meant that some upheaval had occurred in Guanzhong and troops were urgently needed there as reinforcements.
After all, following the defeats in Hanzhong and Nanyang, Guanzhong had fallen into a delicate situation. Liu Bei and Liu Zhang's allied army stood to the south, Ma Teng and Han Sui to the west, while Luoyang to the east had also been sealed off.
Though the overall situation dictated that Cao Cao would withdraw from Hebei, Cao Cao was