Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

The atmosphere in Chengdu is becoming more and more serious every day.

For officials residing in the capital, discussing current affairs had become an extremely risky business. The Grand Secretary Jiang Wan in Chengdu employed an iron fist, executing those who "incited the people" almost daily. However, suppressing public opinion was more difficult than controlling a river; when officials met privately, communication was completely cut off.

Compared to the majority of the Wei army stationed in Fuxian, the Wei detachment stationed outside Guangdu City to the south terrified the people of Chengdu.

Chengdu, along with Xindu to the north and Guangdu to the south, were collectively known as the Three Capitals. Xindu and Guangdu were only forty li (approximately 20 kilometers) away from Chengdu as the crow flies, which was already a very dangerous distance.

Jiang Wei led the vanguard to the front, followed by Guanqiu Jian who besieged Guangdu from all sides. Meanwhile, Jiang Wan, who was in Chengdu, refused to send troops out of the city to relieve the siege, citing the need to defend Chengdu, which greatly disappointed the city's residents.

After leaving Guangdu, Jiang Wei's cavalry headed southwest to attack Linqiong. After besieging the city, the Linqiong garrison surrendered. Following Linqiong, Jiangyuan, west of Chengdu, and Pixian and Fanxian, northwest of Chengdu, also surrendered within three days.

The tide had turned, and few were truly willing to die for the Shu Han court. Moreover, most of the county magistrates in Shu Commandery were from Dongzhou or Jingzhou, and having been unable to return home for decades, they were more or less weary and exhausted by the Shu Han regime.

Of course, these people also harbored resentment towards Jiang Wan.

There are still more than 20,000 troops in Shu Commandery, but Jiang Wan has concentrated them in Chengdu and the two cities of Xindu and Guangdu, which guard the north and south. In these small counties, only officials are left to command a hundred or so soldiers and conscripted auxiliary troops to guard the cities.

How terrifying is the sight of the Wei army's ten thousand cavalry! You abandoned me first, but do you think we can't abandon you?
Jiang Wan was not a particularly talented military commander, and he had few other options. The only reason he had been able to hold out until now was his unwavering loyalty and willingness to risk his life.

News of the surrounding cities falling one after another within a few days finally reached Chengdu. Jiang Wei's cavalry also made a large detour from the west and surrounded Xindu to the north of Chengdu.

It was now February 23rd.

When Jiang Wei arrived at Xindu, Guo Huai's scouts had already reached the outskirts of the city.

The two armies, one to the south and one to the north, maneuvered through the heart of Sichuan before finally meeting outside the city of Chengdu.

If we were to be precise, Jiang Wei's troops first helped Guanqiu Jian capture Jiangzhou, and then successively captured the cities of Bidao and Nan'an on their march. Next, together with Guanqiu Jian, they captured Wuyang, and then successively captured the four cities of Linqiong, Jiangyuan, Pixian, and Fanxian.

It can be described as an eight-battle victory.

On the 24th, Guo Huai led his troops on a forced march to Xindu, where they met Jiang Wei, who had besieged the city.

"Boyue," Guo Huai said with exceptional enthusiasm, dismounting ahead of time and walking towards Jiang Wei, "I heard from the north that you have already taken over all the counties surrounding Chengdu, which is truly delightful. You have indeed had a long and arduous journey of over a thousand miles from the south to get here!"

"I dare not." Jiang Wei was also quite respectful to Guo Huai. Jiang Wei had always been a taciturn figure in the Wei army, never offending anyone and never relying on his status as a confidant of the emperor to compete with others: "General Guo has come from the north and captured several cities. This place is connected with Fu County, so the army can go straight in without any problem!"

"By the way, General, what's the military situation in the north?"

Guo Huai replied, "I only heard the urgent report yesterday evening. Zhuge Liang had passed away, Yang Yi had surrendered, Fei Yi led his army to garrison Fuxian, and the army had completely surrounded Fuxian. The news from the Fuxian imperial court said that Wang Ping of Jiange had surrendered, and Xu Shumi was now reorganizing the newly surrendered Shu army in Jiange and was going to dismantle the Jiange city tower. He would be heading south to Fuxian in a few days."

"The situation in Jiangyou isn't good. I've heard that Shu general Liu Yin is exceptionally stubborn, holding out in the Fu River valley and refusing to surrender. Deng Ai's troops have long been demoralized in Jiangyou, and General, your forces only number five thousand infantrymen, roughly the same size as Liu Yin's, making it difficult to capture in the short term. However, His Majesty has sent another five thousand infantrymen as reinforcements, led by Wang Zhenxi, so it seems that capturing Liu Yin will be a matter of days." "Boyue," Guo Huai smiled and patted Jiang Wei's shoulder, "Now that we've arrived in Xindu, what are your plans?"

“Me?” Jiang Wei shook his head: “Attendant Cui and General Guanqiu ordered me to conquer the counties around Chengdu. I have already done this, and there are no new orders to be issued at the moment. Now that the northern route is open, I plan to send a letter to the Fuxian government office requesting instructions.”

"General, please forgive me," Jiang Wei said with a slight apology, bowing slightly. "My unit belongs to the central army, and every move we make requires orders from the central command. It is not appropriate for us to cooperate with you rashly."

Guo Huai said, "Boyue, what are you thinking? Of course I won't make you obey my orders, but now that you have autonomy, I have a suggestion for you."

Jiang Wei clasped his hands in a fist and said, "General, you have long been in Guanzhong and are familiar with the land of Shu. Please give us your instructions."

Guo Huai stroked his beard and said, “I have been in Guanzhong for more than 20 years, so I can be considered half a Westerner. You are also from Longxi and have been under my jurisdiction for many years. We can be considered half fellow countrymen, so I will say a few more words to you.”

"When Liu Bei attacked Liu Zhang in the past, he ordered Ma Chao to lead cavalry to garrison north of Chengdu to intimidate Liu Zhang in the city. Sure enough, within ten days of Ma Chao's arrival in Chengdu, Liu Zhang abandoned his 30,000-strong garrison and two years' worth of grain, and surrendered. Your eight victories in eight battles have instilled fear in the city. Isn't that due to the advantage of your cavalry?"

"Take my advice: I'll take the attack on the new capital. You can lead your cavalry and station them directly north of Chengdu!"

Jiang Wei thought for a moment and realized that this was not a bad idea. So he cupped his hands to Guo Huai and thanked him, saying, "Thank you for your guidance, General. It is useless to besiege the city of Xindu with cavalry. It would be better to go to Chengdu to intimidate them."

"I will lead my army south in another hour."

"That's it," Guo Huai said with a smile. "If Boyue can achieve further merit in Chengdu, the imperial court's reward will be a given!"

Jiang Wei nodded, took his leave, and departed.

……

Outside Fuxian County, at the Emperor's temporary residence.

Lu Xun sketched on the map, then put down his vermilion brush and looked in Cao Rui's direction:

"Your Majesty, the situation has now become much clearer. Guo Zheng's southward march to Chengdu will be unimpeded. He only needs to capture Chengdu to achieve his goal. Now that Jiange has also surrendered, he only needs to deal with the Shu army in Jiangyou and take Fucheng before he can march south with his army."

Huang Quan also spoke up, saying, "Back in Wuhan, Lord Pei suggested that the court establish seven capitals, but now only Chengdu remains. After taking Chengdu, the Great Wei dynasty will be even more secure!"

At this point, the atmosphere in the Wei army camp was quite relaxed.

Upon hearing Huang Quan's words, Pei Qian laughed and said, "Chengdu should be established as a capital. In addition, Yizhou is also quite large, so it should be divided into two or three prefectures for easier governance."

"Now that there's nothing happening in the camp, shouldn't we start making some plans for this matter?" (End of Chapter)