Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

Jiang Wei was completely bewildered by Lu Xun and couldn't figure out what was going on, so he had no choice but to report the whole story to Man Chong.

The army was large and its march was somewhat slow due to the orderly movement of its troops. Although Zhijiang was only 150 li away from Xiling, Man Chong and his Right Martial Guard General Xiahou Xian's troops, which were his main force, were still 50 li away from Xiling.

"Hmph, how can Lu Boyan be so negligent? Does he think he can't command troops now that he's been granted a title?" Man Chong frowned, his right hand, which was holding the military report, drooped heavily. "The imperial army's use of troops is not child's play. What is he doing here, vying for credit and giving away achievements?"

Huang Quan stroked his beard and advised, "Lord Man, please don't be angry. Taking Xiling is a good thing. Since it was abandoned by the Shu soldiers, what does it matter who takes it or not?"

Man Chong's expression remained grim: "It's not that there's anything to it, but rather his stagnant attitude. Does he really think that the imperial court's deployment of 200,000 troops guarantees victory? No matter how great the advantage, it only counts if we fight a serious and decisive battle!"

"Someone, convey my order to Lu Boyan: command him to lead his troops without lingering outside Guchengzhou. Begin the attack on Xiling Gorge at dawn tomorrow! A large army should not stop even for a day during its march and battle!"

……

The distance between Yangping Pass and Yang'an Pass is 150 li, which is exactly the same as the distance between Zhijiang and Xiling.

In the original timeline, Yangping Pass, which guarded the throat of Hanzhong, was gradually abandoned due to natural and human factors, and Yang'an Pass was renamed New Yangping Pass, continuing to shoulder the important responsibility of being the gateway to Sichuan.

One hundred and fifty li is a very close number for an army of tens of thousands, a number that can be reached in two days of forced march to begin the battle.

The State of Wei was a powerful state, and it often exercised restraint when it did not wish to wage war. For more than a decade, it never initiated any battles in Guanzhong, but instead quietly accumulated its strength. However, this was somewhat frightening from the perspective of the State of Shu. The opponent had a much stronger military than Shu, yet it remained patient and did not act, only hoping to settle the score in one decisive battle when war broke out. The pressure this brought was enormous.

By July of the thirteenth year of Taihe (which was also July of the seventeenth year of Jianxing in Shu Han), this pressure had become fully tangible.

On July 4th, the vanguard of the Wei army, led by General Fei Yao, arrived twenty li in front of Yang'an Pass and set up camp on the spot.

The Wei army had a total force of 90,000 in the Guanzhong region. Generals Guo Huai on the left and Wang Chang on the right took 35,000 of them. Of the remaining 55,000 soldiers, General Cao Tai of the Left Guard led 10,000 of his own troops and Guo Huai's 5,000 Hanzhong soldiers to guard Yangping Pass. Cao Rui himself led 40,000 troops to attack Yangping Pass.

Fei Yao led 8,000 of his own troops and 5,000 infantrymen transferred from Guo Huai's troops, totaling 13,000, as the vanguard of the army, marching at the forefront.

"Commander Chen, the Minister of the Guards has ordered me to escort you back here." Fei Yao bowed slightly to Chen Zhi, the envoy from Shu Han, and said, "Farewell."

"Thank you for your trouble, General." Chen Zhi bowed and then led his entourage back to Yang'an Pass.

As Chen Zhi had expected, Prime Minister Zhuge Liang was indeed waiting for his return at Yang'an Pass.

Upon seeing Zhuge Liang's figure in the distance, Chen Zhi bowed respectfully from a distance of two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) and said, "Reporting to the Prime Minister, I am ashamed to say that I did not see Cao Rui once in the Wei army camp."

Zhuge Liang was not surprised and slowly said, "Great powers give and take. Fengzong's trip to deliver a letter to Wei on behalf of the Prime Minister is a great achievement, as it does not dishonor the dignity of the nation. We need not concern ourselves with any practical matters."

"Did Cao Rui come with the army?"

"Yes." Chen Zhi lowered his head slightly: "I heard that Cao Rui is in the army. He must have seen the Prime Minister's letter. Perhaps he was displeased by it and did not see me. Instead, he had Wei Zhen, the Right Minister of the Ministry of Personnel of Wei, talk with me for two hours."

Wei Zhen was also an old acquaintance of Zhuge Liang. During Zhuge Liang's fifth Northern Expedition, Cao Zhen fell ill, and Wei Zhen was ordered to urgently take over Cao Zhen's post to take charge of the military affairs in Guanzhong, which lasted for several years. He was awarded the title of Duke for his meritorious service in pacifying Guanzhong.

These matters were known within the Shu Kingdom.

Zhuge Liang raised an eyebrow and looked over: "Is Wei Zhen to be the general this time?"

“It shouldn’t be,” Chen Zhi said. “Wei Zhen said that Cao Rui led a large army here this time. Wei Zhen is like a Confucian scholar, only talking to his subordinates about the lofty principles of Confucian classics, trying to persuade the Prime Minister to surrender through his subordinates. Of course, his subordinates refuted all of them.”

"Moreover, Wei Zhen also discussed many domestic political affairs of Wei with his subordinates."

Zhuge Liang remained calm: "What did they say?"

Chen Zhi sighed deeply: "They were talking about trivial domestic affairs, such as how Yingzhou, Qinzhou, Xiangzhou, Jiangzhou and other prefectures were divided up, and how Shuozhou was re-established in the abandoned land during the Jian'an period last year, the course of Wei's pacification of the Jiaozhou rebellion this year, the division of Jiaozhou into Guangzhou and Jiaozhou for separate governance, and the restoration of Zhuyai Prefecture, etc. Wei Zhen even shamelessly said that Yizhou was so vast that it should be divided into three prefectures for proper governance."

Zhuge Liang, with great composure, asked, "How does he intend to divide it?"

Chen Zhi dared not meet Zhuge Liang's gaze directly: "I say that the south should be one province, the area north of Chengdu and Hanzhong should be one province, and the area south of Chengdu and Sanba, Fuling, and Yong'an should be one province."

Zhuge Liang nodded: "I understand. Did Wei Zhen say anything more about politics?"

Chen Zhi's face flushed slightly, and he cupped his hands in a respectful gesture: "Prime Minister, I think we should discuss this another day. With a formidable enemy at hand, it would be best not to distract you." Gao Xiang, seeing Chen Zhi's demeanor, couldn't help but gasp, looking at Zhuge Liang's profile with some concern.

"Speak!" Zhuge Liang's voice suddenly rose a few octaves, and a hint of displeasure finally appeared on his face: "What's wrong with saying a few words? Can't the Prime Minister and the Han even hear a few words about the politics of Wei?"

"Yes, yes." Chen Zhi dared not contradict Zhuge Liang's authority at all. He pursed his lips and then said, "Wei Zhen also said that Wei has completely eliminated civilian settlements. Last year, the tax burden of Wei's original prefectures was reduced from 35% to 30%, and the tax burden of the prefectures in Jiangnan obtained from Wu was directly collected at 25%. He also said that Wei has built more than 30 copper mines in various parts of Jiangnan, which can produce nearly 200,000 catties of copper every month."

"The rest are all minor matters, such as the Imperial Academy having graduated twelve classes of students, totaling over a thousand, all of whom have been appointed to official positions; the Wei Kingdom occupying islands at sea and relocating its people; and the establishment of separate administrative units for the Hu people in Shuozhou, etc..."

The officials of Shu Han were all elites of their time; how could they not understand the key points?

Compared to threatening words like "when the army arrives, everything will be destroyed," these actual political events are far more awe-inspiring and intimidating, demonstrating in every aspect that Wei's national strength far surpasses that of the Han Dynasty. These are the truly intimidating words.

Zhuge Liang took a deep breath, gradually gathering his thoughts, and said in a calm and resolute voice, "No matter what, we hold a strategic pass, and should exhaust their army and blunt their advance to achieve victory! They have come with unjust acts, which is a path to their own destruction!"

Everyone in the hall responded in unison.

Yang'an Pass is the northernmost and most formidable pass of the Han Dynasty. A formidable pass is not merely a single city blocking the road, preventing enemy passage; rather, it is a comprehensive defensive system comprised of multiple cities, fortified villages, and camps. Even if the enemy could cross the mountains, their logistical supplies would be impossible to transport across. Controlling vital transportation routes was the primary function of this pass.

Cao Rui knew that Zhuge Liang was right across from him, and he did not expect Zhuge Liang to make a mistake and reveal a weakness. Therefore, he only ordered the vanguard general Fei Yao to build a camp twenty miles northeast of Yang'an Pass, waiting for his main army to come to join the battle. He was prepared to fight a steady and methodical battle and launch a serious attack on the city with catapults.

Cao Rui wanted to put pressure on Zhuge Liang, forcing him to stay at Yang'an Pass, the front line, and personally confront him.

Not to mention the 20,000 men under Guo Huai on the left flank and the 15,000 men under Wang Chang on the right flank, Man Chong's more than 100,000 troops are still eyeing the east!
If Zhuge Liang were alive, he would be powerless to manage other areas. If Zhuge Liang were not alive, it would be much easier for the army to conquer the pass.

This is a calculated scheme that Zhuge Liang could not avoid.

……

Man Chong did not arrive in Xiling City with the army until July 5th.

It took Man Chong four years to finally stand atop the city wall of this small town, which was only 150 miles away from Zhijiang.

Lu Xun was right about one thing. If the Shu army abandoned the defenses of Xiling and Zuojin, then this area would be the heartland of Wei, and these defenses would be of no use to Wei, and would probably have to be dismantled again in the future.

From the top of the city wall, Man Chong looked west and saw the naval fleet outside the ancient city island to the west.

"Where is Jiang Boyue?" Man Chong turned around and asked.

"Your subordinate is here!" Jiang Wei stepped forward and clasped his hands in response.

Perhaps due to his advancing age, Man Chong made no attempt to suppress his emotions, and said with obvious anger, "Go and ask Lu Boyan for me. I gave him a military order the day before yesterday to advance into Xiling Gorge. Why hasn't he made any progress after two days?"

Jiang Wei bowed in response, and as he was about to turn and leave, he glanced worriedly at Huang Quan, who was standing beside Man Chong. Huang Quan shook his head almost imperceptibly, raised his chin slightly, and gestured for Jiang Wei to leave.

Less than half an hour after Jiang Wei left, he returned to Xiling City with Lu Xun's reply.

"What did Lu Boyan say?" Man Chong asked.

Jiang Wei bowed and said, "Reporting to Lord Man, King Lu said that the Shu army's defenses on the river are too tight, and the wind direction has been wrong in recent days. The navy is downstream, which is not conducive to attacking upstream, so they have stopped here."

Man Chong was furious and pounded on the crenellations of the city wall: "What are all these excuses for! If the wind is not right for ten days, will he not attack for ten days? If it is not right for a hundred days, will he not attack for a hundred days? With 40,000 naval troops and hundreds of ships, how can he be so cowardly in battle!"

Jiang Wei was at a loss for words. Conflicts between high-ranking officials of this caliber were not something a general like him could get involved in.

Huang Quan noticed Jiang Wei's predicament and waved his hand, signaling Jiang Wei, along with Zhang Hu and Cao Zhao who were nearby, to leave together.

Only after the three generals had gone far away did Huang Quan look at Man Chong and whispered his advice:

"Lord Man, it's clear that Prince Lu is unwilling to launch a full-scale attack. Our army already has the advantage; perhaps waiting a while will be even more advantageous. Why must you repeatedly get angry, Lord Man?" (End of Chapter)