Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

Although it was the first day of the new year, the atmosphere inside Jianye Palace remained oppressive.

Martial law remained in effect in Jianye City, and Gu Yong, like everyone else, was confined to his home. The palace eunuchs and maids dared not even breathe loudly. News of the emperor's illness, reported yesterday, had already spread throughout the palace.

"Your Majesty, General Wei's reply has arrived." Attendant Xu Xiang hurriedly entered from outside, carrying a sealed letter.

Sun Quan remained half-reclining on the couch, seemingly having regained some strength: "Ziming, please read this for me."

"Yes." Xu Xiang opened the letter in front of Sun Quan and read it aloud slowly.

After reading it all, Xu Xiang tentatively asked, "Your Majesty, shall we summon the Attendant-in-Ordinary and Attendant-in-Ordinary Hu?"

“Alright,” Sun Quan replied, and after Xu Xiang left, he closed his eyes to rest.

To be honest, General Wei Quan Cong's military expertise seems to surpass that of Emperor Sun Quan of Wu, as well as the combined achievements of Yi Hu Zong and Xu Xiang.

Quan Cong's letter makes this clear.

It's obvious that Sun Quan received three urgent reports on the same day, which was undoubtedly arranged by Wei. Such a coincidence is impossible. The more Wei schemed and the more they threw the Wu army into chaos, the more suspicious the matter became.

The State of Wei has a long-standing tradition of advancing its troops in three routes.

Now, troops have been dispatched from Xiangyang, Jiangxia, and Wancheng, making a total of three routes. The Great Wu court received the news on the same day, and there will inevitably be discussions about which to rescue first and which to rescue later. However, in terms of timing, it is clear that the Wei army that captured Guangling was the first to set out.

At this critical juncture, the most important thing is to determine the size of Wei's military strength in the area around Guangling and Tangyi.

If the Wei army has a large number of troops in Yangzhou, then the Wei army will launch a four-pronged attack.

If the Wei army has few troops here, then it is a bluff to lure the Wu army in Yangzhou to this location, thus aiding their offensives in the other three areas. Moreover, the fact that the Wei army has been stationed here for two months without launching a single real attack is highly suspicious.

In any case, the best solution for Wu is to first fight a battle with Wei in Yangzhou, drive out the Wei army in Guangling, and then calmly send troops upstream.

Quan Cong proposed that, in addition to sending reinforcements to Shiyang, the remaining troops from Jianye should be quickly transported by water to Tangyi, attempting to engage the Wei army in battle within a few days to test their strength, with the primary objective of recapturing Guangling.

This is the only way to break the Wei army's strategy.

Sun Quan leaned against the couch, closing his eyes to rest. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Quan Cong's words were extremely wise. Let them come from several directions, first confirm that the area around the capital Jianye is safe, then combine the central army to break through it, and then advance westward along the Yangtze River!
After Shi Yi, Hu Zong, and Xu Xiang arrived, Sun Quan briefly summarized Quan Cong's words and then said:

"Wei's troop strength in Dantu is unknown, as there has been no battle for nearly two months," Sun Quan said in a deep voice. "Wei Ze, immediately issue an order to Sun Shao to send 20,000 reinforcements to Quan Cong. The rest should remain in Dantu awaiting orders."

"Time waits for no one." Sun Quan coughed lightly and struggled to sit up on the couch. "I will depart now for Tangyi to personally oversee the battle!"

Shi Yi and the others then tried to persuade Sun Quan from the perspective of his health, but Sun Quan rejected their suggestions. Upon hearing this, the three almost instantly agreed with Quan Cong's plan. The most difficult thing to solve in the world is to use one's intentions against the unintentional.

Moreover, the Great Wei already possessed the power to destroy the Wu Kingdom, yet it still spared no effort in scheming against Wu. These seemingly minor victories accumulated and grew increasingly significant.

On January 2nd, Sun Quan personally arrived at Tangyi.

In total, there were 4,000 Wu soldiers guarding Tangyi City, and Quan Cong originally had 10,000 men outside the city. With the addition of 20,000 reinforcements, there were a total of 34,000 combat-ready soldiers here, which was already a considerable number.

"General," Xiahou Xian walked in from outside the tent and reported to Guanqiu Jian, the general in charge of the army, who was sitting in the center of the tent, with a bow: "The scouts ahead have discovered that the Wu army has reinforced its troops here, at least ten thousand. Moreover, the Wu scouts have also increased the range of their probing into our camp, and it seems that they intend to launch an offensive."

When Guanqiu Jian became their commander, Wang Ling, Xiahou Xian, and Hu Zhi all accepted it readily, but their reactions were somewhat different.

Hu Zhi was a general with a miscellaneous title who had served for many years. He was just an ordinary person who had always led troops in prefectures and counties, and he had no opinion on this matter. He would just follow the orders of whoever the emperor appointed as commander-in-chief.

Although Wang Ling and Xiahou Xian readily complied with the imperial decree, they still harbored some resentment deep down. Xiahou Xian was relatively calm, but Wang Ling, being older and proud of his years of military experience, felt more dissatisfied.

But neither of them dared to show it at all.

Guanqiu Jian laughed after hearing this, saying, "Just as Your Majesty predicted, Sun Quan is in a hurry."

"Since Sun Quan is in a hurry, we can't help but be good people here and give him some face," Guanqiu Jian said. "In that case, General Xiahou will lead his troops to retreat eastward to Guangling later. If there are Wu troops near Guangling, then retreat eastward to Hailing and join forces with General Hu's five thousand troops from various prefectures and counties."

"General, is it not a good idea to retreat before even engaging in battle?" Xiahou Xian instinctively asked.

Guanqiu Jian, being the commander-in-chief for the first time, was not in a hurry. After stroking his beard and thinking for a few moments, he said calmly, "I will not only mobilize General Xiahou's troops. I will also order General Wang's 10,000 elite guards to withdraw 6,000 men back to the old city of Guangling, leaving only 4,000 lighter soldiers here."

Seemingly sensing that Xiahou Xian was about to ask another question, Guanqiu Jian explained, "The court's allocation is east first, then west, Yangzhou first, then Jingzhou. If this is the case, the Wu army will inevitably have to be transferred from Yangzhou to Jingzhou in the west."

"You don't know yet, according to the court's assignment of the three routes of Man Zheng Nan, Xiahou Ping Nan, and Huan Zhen Bei, Sun Quan should have received the urgent reports from these three places on the same day three days ago. Even if it wasn't on the same day, it should have been close to that. Jingzhou is in danger, and Yangzhou north of the Yangtze River has our army, so what we should do is make Sun Quan think that we are bluffing here."

"The five thousand cavalrymen in my central army camp are more elite than General Xiahou's five thousand cavalrymen. The five thousand cavalrymen and four thousand infantrymen there are all elite cavalry and infantrymen of the central army, which is enough to maintain the army's appearance and prevent Sun Quan from taking advantage of it, so that we can retreat slowly."

Xiahou Xian also understood this principle.

Whether it's bluffing or feigning defeat, it's a matter that severely tests the soldiers' quality and the army's training level. Clearly, Guanqiu Jian wanted to stage a scene where he was forced to retreat by Sun Quan or feigned defeat and fled back to Guangling, so that Sun Quan would feel at ease to send troops to Yangzhou.

"Understood, sir." Xiahou Xian cupped his hands in greeting. "I will go and prepare to withdraw immediately, but I would like to ask the general to send out the cavalry of the leading camp as scouts within half an hour. The Wu army scouts are pressing hard outside."

"No need for the general to worry," Guanqiu Jian said with a smile. "Just go directly to Guangling." (End of Chapter)