Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

The straight-line distance from Chaisang to Wuchang is only 300 li. Even if the roads and rivers are winding and meandering, the distance is only 400 li. An army can reach Wuchang in eight days.

The army set out on the tenth day. On the eleventh day, Cao Zhen's troops in Jiangnan and Cheng Xi's and Huan Fan's troops in Jiangbei captured Xiazhi in Jiangnan and Xunyang in Jiangbei, respectively, allowing the army to establish a base in the cities. Taking these two places was no difficult task. The army had already been recalled to Wuchang by Sun Quan, and the people in the city, having heard of the infamous reputation of Wei, fled in droves as the army approached.

This is the result of Sun Quan's decades-long propaganda efforts.

Objectively speaking, among the six routes simultaneously advancing by the Wei, Man Chong's route faced the most difficulties. On one hand, his army was large in number but of lower quality compared to Yangzhou's, and also bore the significant responsibility of drawing enemy fire. On the other hand, Man Chong's army was the only one transporting supplies along land routes. The other routes all had rivers and waterways available, so for Man Chong, if things became unfeasible, quickly retreating to secure supply lines was the most important thing.

On the afternoon of the 11th, when Cao Rui arrived at the small town of Xiazhi, General Man Chong, who was in charge of the Southern Expedition, also took advantage of the fact that Zhuge Liang's entire army had not yet arrived and retreated north to Dangyang. He then deployed his troops along the Zhangshui River in the west, with Dangyang as the core of the defense. The core of this defense was Maicheng.

That's right, it's Maicheng, the city where Guan Yu suffered his defeat back then.

Jingzhou has numerous waterways, but there is no direct river between Xiangyang and Jiangling. The Zhangshui and Jushui rivers flow from the northwest upstream, merge together, and then flow into the Yangtze River west of Jiangling.

Maicheng is a small city nestled between the Zhang and Ju rivers. With two rivers and a fortified city as its base, it was a strategically vital location. However, this was only true if the army was in good order. If Guan Yu had been defeated and his troops were demoralized, no fortified city would have been of any use to him.

Maicheng is only forty li from Dangyang, and it is where the Guanzhong Army, under Fei Yao, Man Chong's most capable rear general, is stationed. Maicheng is also only one hundred and twenty li from Jiangling.

It can be said that Man Chong has positioned himself in a position where he can both attack and defend. His scouts have long since discovered the massive size of the Shu army, and when the Wu and Shu armies join forces, Man Chong should give way slightly.

It was Man Chong who besieged Jiangling, and Man Chong's news was always much faster than Zhuge Jin's. When the Wei army had all returned to Jiangbei and was about to march north, Zhuge Jin only then learned of Shu's military campaign.

When Wu's Grand General Zhuge Jin and Crown Prince Sun Deng heard that the allied forces of Zhuge Liang and Bu Zhi were approaching, they were filled with immense fear. Man Chong, based on human nature, predicted that the brothers Zhuge Jin and Zhuge Liang would join forces, but things always take time to develop.

Faced with Sun Deng, Zhuge Jin was so embarrassed that he could hardly speak. He could only pretend to resign from his post to the Crown Prince Sun Deng, and at the same time inform Sun Quan, who was in Wuchang, of this news.

And Sun Deng... Sun Deng also lost his composure upon hearing this news!
The long-standing feud between the Han and Wu kingdoms was unknown to others, but Sun Deng was well aware of it. Now, it was unclear how Bu Zhi had agreed to join Zhuge Liang's campaign. With Zhuge Jin still alive, he could maintain a delicate distance and independence from Zhuge Liang's forces thanks to Zhuge Jin's prudence and loyalty.

If Zhuge Jin were to resign at this critical juncture, and if Zhuge Liang were to immediately turn hostile and bring up the past events involving Liu Bei and Guan Yu, and then attack Jiangling, how would the exhausted army of Jiangling cope? Their morale would probably not be able to be maintained for even half a day!
Just like when Zhuge Jin received the 'Prince of Langya' seal promised by Wei, Sun Deng used flattering words and empty gestures to keep Zhuge Jin calm, and said that he would vouch for the General to his father, saying that the General was safe.

Zhuge Jin, seizing the opportunity, adopted an attitude of unwavering loyalty. He found the current situation increasingly perplexing. In such a turbulent time, Zhuge Jin considered himself a loyal subject of Wu and believed that commanding the army was the best option for Wu, especially since no one else besides himself could control the Jiangling army.

As for Bu Zhi? Bu Zhi has already led the Shu army here, how can we still trust him?

Within a few days, Sun Deng was so anxious that a large blister swelled up on the left corner of his mouth, making him look quite miserable. But despite his miserable state, Xiling and Jiangling were only five days' march away, and they finally awaited the arrival of Zhuge Liang's troops.

Since the two armies were allies, Bu Zhi led more than 4,000 men into Jiangling City first. Zhuge Jin and Sun Deng gave Zhuge Liang's troops the camp located in the west of the city, which the Wei army had not had time to destroy when they retreated.

Bu Zhi led his troops into the city, where Zhuge Jin and Sun Deng had been waiting for some time. "Zishan."

"General Bu."

The two greeted each other in unison.

Bu Zhi sighed deeply and bowed respectfully: "I intended to share the burden of the court, but I failed to defend Xiling and led the Han army to Jiangling. Your Highness, General, this is my fault!"

"Zishan, what exactly happened?" Zhuge Jin asked with a serious expression.

Bu Zhi, looking dejected, recounted his previous encounter with Wei Yan and the others. Zhuge Jin and Sun Deng listened in astonishment, taking a long time to process what he had heard. Finally, Sun Deng sighed and said:
"General Bu has done his best, and I am aware of that. I believe that in the face of national crisis, General Bu's act of bringing reinforcements is meritorious and without fault! I will later write to my father, the Emperor, to inform him of the arrival of General Bu and the Han army, and request that he issue an edict to commend him."

"Why should I be praised?" Bu Zhi gave a bitter smile: "If it weren't for the national crisis, I would have resigned and returned to my hometown today!"

After the Wei army withdrew north, Bu Zhi and Zhuge Liang resumed communication with Zhuge Jin and Sun Deng in Jiangling. The situation in the east could not be concealed; all the land east of Chaisang had been lost. Zhuge Jin also personally informed Zhuge Liang of this in a letter.

As a result, Bu Zhi became increasingly frustrated, and Zhuge Liang, Wei Yan, Fei Yi, and others also became more and more serious.

They understood the principle of "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold" (meaning that if one's lips are gone, one's teeth will be cold). All the most valuable lands of Wu were now under the control of Wei. If Wu couldn't even hold onto Jingzhou, then the Han Dynasty would also be in dire straits!
“Your Highness, General.” A military advisor strode in from outside, cupped his hands and said, “Prime Minister Zhuge of Han has sent someone into the city to invite the General and the Crown Prince to come out of the city for a meeting.”

"Absolutely not!"

As if startled, Bu Zhi immediately raised his voice several octaves and hurriedly shouted.

The people in the hall looked at Bu Zhi with a slightly strange expression. Clearly, although they did not criticize Bu Zhi harshly, they still had some doubts about his handling of affairs and his wisdom.

Bu Zhi quickly coughed lightly: "What I mean is, either the Crown Prince should come out of the city, or the General should come out of the city, or we can have Prime Minister Zhuge come into the city to see me directly!"

The military advisor added, "Prime Minister Zhuge clearly stated that he would not enter the city and requested the Crown Prince and the General to leave the city."

Now it was Sun Deng's turn to be in a difficult position.

He wasn't comfortable letting Zhuge Jin go out, but if he went himself, he feared he'd repeat Bu Zhi's mistake! (End of Chapter)