Three Kingdoms: The Kingdom Cannot Be Partial

Chapter 12: The Red Crow's Announcement of Good News Begins the Rise of Zhou (4.5k)

It would have taken the Han army two days to travel from Xi County to Qishan, but the journey took only one day.

When the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty set up camp again at the same place where he came from, he once again took the same officials to inspect the same camp.

A feeling of being in another world and having completely changed all over the place quietly arose in this world, and with every step and every breath this group of people took, it permeated the land and the air.

The mood of this group of people has changed from being full of confidence when they first came to being disheartened now, and this mood is most deeply felt by the Han Prime Minister wearing the Jinxian crown.

He stood with his hands behind his back, looking deeply at the Qishan Fort that rose from the ground and was carved out of the mountain. He wondered what he was thinking.

After a long time, he sighed.

"Order the three armies to rest at 11 pm and prepare dinner at 11 pm."

Turn around and go back to camp.

There are still many things waiting for him.

midnight.

Wei Yan is here again.

What he said was nothing more than wanting to capture Qishan Fort, saying that we have already set up the camp. The Qishan defender Gao Gang was terrified.

Just give me one day, just one day, and I can make Gao Gang surrender his fort. Then the Prime Minister can withdraw his troops quickly. Why not give it a try?!

The prime minister rejected Wei Yan again.

This is the only fierce general in the Han Dynasty who has the qualifications and ability to command tens of thousands of troops and act independently.

It would take only half a day to capture Qishan.

So what?

How could he be trapped in Qishan?

And if it were someone else, how could they have the ability to hold Qishan? Would the soldiers guarding the mountain dare to believe it?
Wei Yan's hair and beard stood on end, and he beat his chest in hatred, but he could not sway the Prime Minister in the slightest.

Just as the two were about to part ways unhappily, Fei Yi rushed in again with a scroll of inspection, shouting that the Shizhong Changshi had printed another letter.

Wei Yan, who was already resentful, pushed Fei Yi over and snatched the sword from his hand.

Without looking at Fei Yi's shocked expression, he did not remove the seal or untie the knot. He simply broke the knot with force, threw away the lid, pulled out the bamboo slips inside, and unfolded them with a tug.

Another silk book fell down.

Fei Yi, who was half lying on the ground, quickly reached out to grab it, then stumbled to his feet and ran to the Prime Minister: "Wei Wenchang, what are you doing!"

But Wei Wenchang ignored him and just stared at the bamboo slips in a trance.

After a while, the anger that made his hair stand on end had completely disappeared, and turned into an expression of disbelief on his face.

Fei Yi stared for a while, and was in doubt. When he looked down, he found that the prime minister holding the silk book had an expression almost identical to that of Wei Wenchang.

The same doubts, the same shock.

Fei Yi hurried to look at the silk book.

As a result, he was soon completely stunned as if struck by lightning.

The late emperor sent a dream?

How could it be a dream sent by the late emperor?
"Ma Su relied on the southern mountains, refused to descend and hold the city, cut off the water supply, and fled in defeat?"

Is this a dream sent by the late emperor?

Is it true that this is a fake book written after someone heard of the defeat?
Otherwise, how could it be described so accurately? !
He continued to look.

When I saw "If Ma Su's defeat is irreversible, then the direction of Jigu may continue the fortune of the Han Dynasty", I was confused again.

How to renew?
General Zhao has less than 20,000 old and weak men under his command, and he has no power to fight at all!
Even if there is a one in ten thousand chance of winning a small victory by luck, wouldn't it be of no help to the overall situation in Longyou?

With shock and confusion, Fei Yi continued reading.

As a result, he soon broke out in a cold sweat.

——The emperor will lead the army in person.

Logically, he would just find it ridiculous because this was not something the emperor in Chengdu would do.

But when the emperor wrote about personally leading the army to war, his handwriting was unrestrained and sloppy, with a force like a rainbow. Occasionally, he would pause and break the pen with such force that it seemed as if the force would penetrate the back of the paper.

This alone is enough to give us a glimpse of the emperor's determination when he put pen to paper.

Fei Yi became more and more horrified. He felt his hands and feet go cold and his body tremble. When he read to the end of the article, he felt as if the world was spinning.

I was in a trance for a long time.

There were many large areas of blurred words on the silk book, which made him feel as if the emperor was writing quickly and tearfully in front of him.

The last sentence, "The king may die for the country," sucked away all the air around him, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.

While Fei Yi was in a daze, the prime minister, who also looked a little confused, had been bending over and searching for the mud seal on the ground.

Not finding it, he simply bent his knees and knelt on the ground, putting his ear to the ground, to see if Wei Yan had thrown him under the table.

Sure enough.

He took out the two clay seals and checked them again and again to see if they were the seals of Jiang Wan and Dong Yun. He then turned around to check if there were any signs that the seals had been opened.

No.

It really is the seal of Jiang Wan and Dong Yun.

The handwriting is also the emperor's handwriting.

Wei Yan had already walked over with his scroll of bamboo slips, stuffed it into the prime minister's hands, and then snatched the silk book from Fei Yi.

The Prime Minister took a look at the bamboo slips.

The first thing that appeared was the debate written by Jiang Wan and delivered by Liu Chan.

"During the Former Han Dynasty, Emperor Gaodi... braved danger and suffered injuries, narrowly escaped death, and thus established the Han Dynasty."

"During the Later Han Dynasty, Emperor Taizu... took such a risk that he finally dominated the world and established his rule."

"The late emperor... used a brilliant plan to take on a dangerous situation at Dingjun, and braved arrows and stones at Yangping. Cao Cao was left without a plan, and his foundation was thus solidified."

"..."

"..."

"From this perspective, during this time of war and chaos, when the world is still unsettled, one cannot shoulder the weight of the world and enter a tiger's den to fight for it on horseback."

"Yet he abandoned his responsibilities and entrusted his orders to his counselors and brave generals, sitting back in his camp, waiting for success or failure outside the battlefield, yet he was able to enjoy the fruits of his labor. He has never ruled the world without a horse!"

"This has never happened before, and I am no exception!"

The Prime Minister had a complicated expression.

Even though he wanted to refute this well-cited, well-reasoned and passionate argument, as he did not want the emperor to lead the army in person, he could not find any examples to refute it.

But he really couldn't believe that these words would come out of Adou's mouth one day.

He began to doubt.

Did Jiang Wan and Dong Yun read his letter and feel that Ma Su was exaggerating and would lead to defeat, so they instigated the emperor to lead the army in person?
But this is really not the style of Wan Yun and the others.

At the end of the bamboo slips, Jiang Wan and Dong Yun describe their thoughts and deeds:
The Prime Minister once said in his "Memorial on Leaving the Capital", "Your Majesty should also make your own plans."

At present, rumors are spreading everywhere and people are in an uproar. Although Ma Su is being employed, it is actually difficult for him to live up to his expectations. Internally, he is afraid that disasters will arise from his side, and externally, he is afraid that the country will be defeated.

Thanks to the wise spirit of the late emperor who supported the country in his dreams, Your Majesty has changed his mind and is full of vigor and vitality.

An unshakable resolve is born overnight, plans and tactics are made in a moment, and the stubborn thought of serving the country without regard for death may have the ability to save the country from danger and stabilize the situation.

Your servant Wanyun dare not disobey or betray you.

If Your Majesty succeeds in this expedition and Longyou is recovered, I, Wan Yun, will imprison myself and be exiled to the border to express my gratitude to the Prime Minister.

If Your Majesty is in trouble, even if I die a hundred times, I cannot thank the world, but I can only express my gratitude by destroying my family and clan.

...

...

The prime minister held the bamboo slips in his hands for a long time without saying a word.

Wan Yun and the other's resolute attitude left him speechless.

These two people are not frivolous people and always know what is important.

He didn't understand why they were so resolute and unanimous in agreeing and supporting the emperor to lead the army in person.

It is impossible that it is just a bunch of false prophecies.

That's not them.

After much thought, the Prime Minister could only conclude that Wan Yun and the others also felt that there might be a glimmer of hope if His Majesty went to Jigu.

why?
The Prime Minister was still puzzled.

"Prime Minister, what should we do now?" Fei Yi was afraid that the Prime Minister would be furious.

The failure of the Northern Expedition was a heavy blow to the Prime Minister.

If something happens to the emperor again, the prime minister will probably go crazy. Jiang Wan and Dong Yun will be killed ten times.

"What else can we do?!" Wei Yan was so excited that he almost lost his mind. "His Majesty said in the letter that the Prime Minister should gather troops and grain in Qishan, to secure a retreat route and resist the Wei rebels. Wait for any news from Jigu!"

He has never had a good impression of Liu Adou, who is weak, cowardly and unlike the previous emperor.

But this time, he felt that Liu Adou was okay and finally looked a bit like the former emperor.

Just as Liu Adou said in the letter, the late emperor used a clever plan to take the risk in Dingjun, braved arrows and stones in Yangping, and was not afraid of bloodshed and sacrifice before he finally captured Hanzhong.

It was a time of turmoil.

How can you rule the world without shedding some blood?
Because you were born in a royal family?
Who obeys you? !

"Wenchang, talk less!" Fei Yi lowered his voice.

He was a man of many talents and had a good personal relationship with Wei Yan. Whenever Wei Yan and Yang Yi had conflicts, he would mediate between them. He was the only official in the government who could sit down and drink with Wei Yan.

Wei Yan chuckled coldly, "Could it be that the Prime Minister is planning to disobey the orders of His Majesty while the troops are away?"

The Prime Minister glanced at Wei Yan and ignored him, then looked through the scroll and the paper book again.

After a long time, he spoke slowly with doubt:
"This letter was written on February 21st, when Ma Su hadn't yet been defeated, yet Your Majesty was able to foresee the situation... Could it be true that the late emperor had appeared in a dream?"

"It must be so!" Wei Yan believed most in miraculous things like dreams.

“In my opinion, the statue of the late emperor being smashed by the beams and pillars is not a bad omen at all!
"The late emperor sacrificed his life to protect Your Majesty and the people of Chengdu from the earthquake!
"And that strange bird that keeps chirping in the late emperor's temple, I don't think it's a zigui, but a red crow!
"The book says that when the Zhou Dynasty was about to rise, a large red bird carrying grain seeds gathered at Wangwu.
"This is what the Red Crow announces: the beginning of the rise of the Zhou Dynasty!

"The Red Crow has appeared in the temple of the late emperor, proving that the Han Dynasty will rise!"

Wei Yan began to present his arguments.

Although I didn’t see the strange bird, who says it couldn’t be a red crow?
It has to be said that Wei Yan was a brave general with some culture.

Most of the powerful and military men in the Eastern Han Dynasty had a special yearning and obsession for the identity of scholars.

Many generals who came from powerful families were keen on cultural learning, and were even more keen on training their sons and nephews to become scholars, hoping that they would become generals or ministers.

One of the reasons is that the second generation of the Cao and Xiahou families rarely produced powerful generals, but instead produced literati like Cao Zhi and Xiahou Xuan.

The same is true of Zhang Fei's love and respect for gentlemen and his disregard for villains.

The same was true for Wei Yan, so he would read history whenever he had the chance. However, he never expected that the useless knowledge would actually come in handy today.

Fei Yi was shocked by Wei Yan's words.

He never expected that the ominous sign that had frightened him yesterday, the sign of the country's demise, could be explained in this way.

After a long time, the Prime Minister seemed to have made a decision.

"Your Majesty should have reached Jigu by now. The news of Ma Su's defeat and our retreat will surely reach Guanzhong in the next two days.

"The war in Guanzhong is about to break out, and no matter how hard I try to persuade Your Majesty to return to Chengdu, it will be of no avail.

"Fortunately, General Zhao is mature and prudent, and will not follow Your Majesty's will. With him protecting you, Your Majesty will surely be safe."

The Prime Minister could only comfort himself in this way.

Maybe it was really a dream sent by the late emperor?
He suddenly thought of this again.

His biggest worry before was that Cao's army in Guanzhong would know about Ma Su's defeat earlier than General Zhao.

If General Zhao is not prepared, he may suffer another defeat.

And now that the emperor could predict defeat in advance, General Zhao must have been prepared in advance.

On the other hand, Cao's army did not know that General Zhao had already predicted that Ma Su had been defeated.

Maybe we can really use this to surprise people?
The emperor has already brought to Hanzhong all the great scholars who are best at stirring up trouble and have the power to spread public opinion, so public opinion in Shu will not be ignited in a short time.

Thinking of this, a spark of hope slowly ignited in the Prime Minister's heart.

"Wenchang, you will lead your army to besiege Qishan Fort tomorrow. If Gao Gang surrenders, you will take 6,000 men and horses and a year's supply of food and fodder to defend it.

“I will lead the army southward, station troops at Chencang Road, reinforce Lieliu City, and await news from Your Majesty.

"If Qishan is still not conquered by noon the day after tomorrow, the entire army will return to Chencang Road, secure our retreat route, and resist the Wei rebels. You are not allowed to raise the issue of conquering Qishan again!"

Wei Yan clasped his fists excitedly and said, "Yes!"

Wei Yan was known for his good care of his soldiers. He thought that none of the soldiers he led were afraid of death or willing to surrender.

That was why he dared to repeatedly propose such risky and fearless strategies as the surprise attack on Ziwu Valley, climbing the city wall like ants, and nailing Qishan to the ground.

The brothers under him are too eager to achieve success.

If we can capture Qishan Fort tomorrow, we will be able to block the Wei army's pursuit southward.

Then he will become Lai She of Ji Han, and relying on Qishan, he will be able to stop Zhang He's attack of tens of thousands of troops!
Or if Zhang He surrounded the city without attacking and continued to pursue the Prime Minister, he would become Guo Huai, and Qishan would be his Shanggui.

The Wei army must allocate at least 10,000 to 20,000 troops to besiege Qishan and protect the grain road, otherwise they will never dare to continue pursuing the Prime Minister's army.

And if Adou could really win, then Zhang He would have to return to Chang'an!
Cao Rui was in Chang'an.

He dared not to reply.

By then, the situation in Longyou will change drastically.

...

...

slanted valley.

The sky is bright.

More than two hundred riders galloped on horseback among the ridges of the fields.

A white horse stood up, its front hooves raised into the air.

The man in armor and helmet on horseback drew his bow like a moon and shot an arrow to the side.

A large deer ran a few steps and then fell down.

"Your Majesty is truly a master archer!"

The short-legged general who had been riding a horse to protect Liu Chan on both sides clamped his horse's belly, stood up tall, raised his horse bow and shouted loudly.

More than 200 riders followed closely behind and shouted loudly:

"Your Majesty's perfect shot!"

"Your Majesty's perfect shot!"

The sound shook the mountains and valleys, startling the birds in the forests and sending them flying high into the sky.

Liu Chan was so upset that his face almost turned red.

In fact, the emperor in armor had already shot seven or eight arrows in a row.

Finally, he felt so ashamed that he stopped his horse and shot an arrow.

Horseback archery is indeed difficult!

Who could have thought that this fat Moose would flatter like this?

But it must be said that even though he knew that this was shameless flattery and it made people blush, Liu Chan almost lost himself in the shouts of His Majesty's brilliant shooting.

After all, the deer was estimated to be more than 40 meters away, so it was already quite impressive that I could hit it!
On second thought, could this be the beginning of treacherous ministers and incompetent rulers?

"Wei, practice one more with me!"

As Liu Chan spoke, he kicked his horse's belly and galloped forward.

The short-legged general quickly spurred his horse to catch up and passed Liu Chan.

Liu Chan then drew his bow and aimed at the short-legged general, but saw that the armored short-legged general hugged the horse's neck and hid under the horse's belly, completely disappearing from Liu Chan's sight.

Liu Chan reined in his horse and ran to the other side, but before he could draw his bow, Mi Wei flipped over again and rolled from under the horse's belly to the other side.

Repeat this process.

The two ran like this for a while, and Liu Chan finally gave up.

So Mi Wei slowed down so that he could ride side by side with Liu Chan, and once again stood up high with his hands on the horse's belly, and roared loudly, as if doing so would make him look more powerful.

Liu Chan couldn't help but admire the magic of creation.

How could a chubby guy who is just over 1.6 meters tall and whose ancestral home is from the coastal area be so good at riding a horse and shooting so well?

Family talent?
In Adou's memory, Laodun Mizhu was also good at riding and shooting. Adou learned horse riding and archery for the first time from Mizhu.

Emperor Zhaolie was devoted to his own business and hardly ever interfered in Adou's education.

The few of them rushed forward, sometimes fast and sometimes slow, and soon they saw the stone gate before dawn.

The mountains are shrouded in mist.

A dragon banner stood there.

Three thousand battle-hardened soldiers had been waiting for a long time.

"Your Majesty," Deng Zhi stepped forward to pay his respects.

Liu Chan dismounted and helped Deng Zhi up.

"Sorry for the long wait, my dear."

(End of this chapter)