Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

On February 15th, Sun Li's Hu cavalry and Bei Yan's Liaodong cavalry had surrounded Fucheng on all sides. Fucheng was the seat of Zitong Commandery and a key transportation hub connecting Shu Commandery and Hanzhong.

Heading south from Hanzhong along the Jinniu Road, after passing Jiange, the path is filled with low mountains and hills, offering no further obstacles.

Fei Yi made grand pronouncements, declaring that he would firmly defend Fu County for Liu Shan. In reality, although Fei Yi had served in the military for many years, he had always held internal and logistical positions and was not particularly skilled in command, even being far inferior to Yang Yi, who had served as Chief Secretary for many years.

In the rush, Fei Yi was unable to resolve two important issues.

Firstly, Liu Yin's tribe was currently in a standoff with Deng Ai's tribe, who were besieged in Jiangyou Pass, in the valley of the upper reaches of the Fu River.

Secondly, Wang Ping still has 10,000 soldiers guarding Guanzhong at Jiange on the northeast side.

Both Wang Ping's and Liu Yin's forces faced the same problem: Fuxian was not a strategic pass, and they would inevitably be surrounded by the Wei army arriving from the rear. Liu Yin's camp in the river valley was likely to be caught in a dilemma, unable to advance or retreat. Wang Ping's Jiange Pass was steep to the north and flat to the south, making it untenable for long.

Due to the high mobility of the Wei cavalry, Fei Yi had no way to deal with it and could only send a message to Wang Ping and Liu Yin to hold their ground.

From a more objective perspective, the successive actions of Liu Shan, Chen Zhi, and Fei Yi led to Yang Yi's defection and forced him to defend Fucheng to the death. This gave Shu a better chance of winning than Yang Yi's strategy of concentrating forces for field battles in the Guanghan area.

There's no point in saying more now; the outcome can only be revealed on the battlefield.

It took Cao Rui five days to lead his main force on a forced march from Guanghan to Fuxian, a distance of three hundred li, only two days later than his vanguard Sun Li and Bei Yan.

The central army camp was located fifteen li south of Fucheng, on the right bank of the Fu River. Inside the main tent, Cao Rui stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the map hanging on the wall, listening to Lu Xun recount the military situation.

With Xu Shu absent, Lu Xun now oversees military affairs before the emperor, a role similar to that of a privy councilor.

"...The situation has now become much clearer. The cities of Shu are like ripe fruit, just waiting for the imperial army to pick them." Lu Xun said loudly, "After General Hu Zunqian of the Right Valiant Guard arrived in Langzhong, Liu Gan, the governor of Bazhou in Shu and a native of Nanyang, surrendered the city and submitted to the emperor. The route from Jiameng Pass, Langzhong, Nanchong, Anhan, to Guanghan is now unobstructed."

"At present, the Shu Kingdom only occupies the three counties of Guanghan, Shu, and Jianwei. In Zitong County, only Fucheng, Jiangyou, and Jiange are the three places where the Shu army is putting up a stubborn resistance, and they can no longer pose a threat."

Huang Quan chimed in from the side: "In that case, the main army should break through Jiangyou South and Jiange, and lead Xu Shumi's 20,000 troops and Deng Ai's 5,000 troops from Jiangyou south to Fucheng to join the main army."

Cao Rui nodded approvingly: "That's how it should be."

Lu Xun chuckled and looked at the emperor: "Your Majesty, when Your Majesty arrived in Fu County, the destruction of Shu was already a foregone conclusion, and there was no turning back. If I may be so bold as to say this, Your Majesty should now consider what method of victory would be most beneficial to Your Majesty and to the Great Wei."

Cao Rui chuckled a few times and said, "Boyan, tell me, what's my plan to win?"

Lu Xun said, "Either win or force them to surrender. This approach can be used not only against the three Shu armies in Zitong County, but also against the three armies in Guanghan, Shu County, and Jianwei. If we want to be on the safe side, we can deal with the remaining enemy forces in Zitong first. If we want to be quick, I think we can send cavalry straight to Chengdu to demoralize the enemy and force them to surrender. Wouldn't that be faster?"

Cao Rui thought for a moment and then calmly said, "The priority for the army is to proceed with caution. The situation is on my side. What harm is there in giving them a few more days? It would be better to take the Shu army in southern Jiangyou and the Shu army in Jiange first."

Because of his familiarity with the military situation and his recent surrender, Yang Yi was allowed to attend the military council in addition to Lu Xun, Huang Quan, the four cabinet ministers, and several generals, standing at the back as a guest. Upon hearing the emperor's words, Yang Yi stepped forward, cupped his hands, and loudly proclaimed, "Your Majesty, I am willing to go to Jiange to persuade Wang Ping to surrender!"

"Is Minister Yang confident?" Cao Rui asked, raising his eyes.

All eyes turned to Yang Yi, but Yang Yi showed no fear: "Your Majesty, Wang Ping was once a colonel under Emperor Wu, and later joined Liu Bei, which is similar to my experience. Moreover, I once served as the chief secretary of the Prime Minister's office in the Shu army, and had many dealings with Wang Ping. Among the people in the central government, I am most familiar with Wang Ping."

Cao Rui then asked, "What if Wang Ping remains stubborn and refuses to surrender?"

“Wang Ping will definitely surrender,” Yang Yi said with certainty. “Wang Ping is from Bazhou, and is of Bazhou origin. His family is all in Dangqu County, Bazhou. In the past, the Liu family occupied Bazhou, and Wang Ping surrendered to the Liu family. Today, Bazhou is in the hands of the Great Wei, and the Shu ruler has fled to Chengdu, Zhuge Liang has just passed away, and Jiange is attacked from both sides. There is absolutely no reason for Wang Ping not to surrender!”

Cao Rui thought for a moment and readily agreed: "Since Minister Yang is confident in doing this, you shall go to Jiange tomorrow. I will give you fifty riders to do this."

"Your subject obeys the decree!" Yang Yi clasped his hands in response, full of confidence.

……

The next day, Yang Yi led fifty horsemen north along the Jinniu Road to Jiange, while the main army around Fucheng was also fully mobilized.

The war has been going on for more than half a year since July of last year. The only obstacles in the way of the generals of Wei are a few small cities in Fuxian and Shujun. Chengdu is just around the corner, victory is within reach, and with the emperor overseeing the battle from here, everyone is naturally fighting bravely.

Guo Huai led his 15,000 troops as the vanguard, advancing towards Mianzhu in the southwest.

Cao Rui, having spent a long time in the army, was well aware of the thoughts of most of his generals. In the previous campaign to conquer Wu, many armies received rewards, but the generals and soldiers of the Guanzhong region remained idle and made no progress. Therefore, in the campaign to conquer Shu, the Guanzhong troops should be prioritized.

Bei Yan led his 5,000 cavalry and 5,000 infantry towards Jiangyou. His orders were to establish contact with Deng Ai's forces in Jiangyou and either force the surrender of Liu Yin's Shu army or completely annihilate them.

Jiange is 300 li away from Fuxian, so there is no need to send troops there for the time being. Yang Yi's round trip will only take five or six days. If Yang Yi's attempt to persuade them to surrender fails, it will not be too late to launch an attack later. The Right Valiant Guard General Hu Zun's troops, which had previously marched to Langzhong, are already on their way back.

The remaining tribes were all around Fuxian, cutting down trees and quarrying stones to prepare siege weapons and launch a strong attack on Fuxian.

Naturally, a strong attack is necessary. Fuxian County controls the north and south and is a vital location in Sichuan.

Just as the army arrived today, an envoy left Fuxian County, claiming to represent Liu Shan, the ruler of Shu, and wishing to negotiate with the army.

Cao Rui would not believe that Liu Shan would be trapped in the city. The Wei camp was full of shrewd people who had worked in the military and the court. Who could not see that this was a delaying tactic by the Shu army in Fuxian, or Fei Yi?

The Left and Right Armies of the Martial Guard were both here, about to smash open the city to demonstrate the might of the Great Wei army.

Liu Shan left Fuxian on the thirteenth day, and it took him six days to travel nearly three hundred li to Chengdu. When he arrived in Chengdu again, the scene before him filled him with sorrow. (End of Chapter)