Three Kingdoms: The Kingdom Cannot Be Partial

Chapter 71: Unwavering Mind
March 27th.

The sky is bright.

The damp fog in the early morning, as usual, shrouded the small town of Chencang in the western part of Guanzhong.

The old general who was staying in the corner tower at night had a light sleep. A burst of hurried footsteps and the rustling of armor made him instantly alert and he stood up suddenly.

Then someone suddenly pushed open the wooden door, bringing in a gust of foul wind. Who else could it be but Fu Qian? "General Zhao is in trouble!"

The man's face was ashen, his eyes were bloodshot, his chest was heaving, and his breathing was rapid. General Zhao was instantly shocked and confused.

After all these years of being together, I have never seen the usually calm Fu Qian so anxious.

"What's wrong?" The old general rushed to the man without even having time to put on his clothes and shoes.

"A large group of Wei invaders are marching south of the Wei River, heading towards Wuzhangyuan!"

"What?!" Zhao Yun's hair and beard stood on end when he heard the sound. He pushed Fu Qian away, walked to the city wall in three or two steps, and leaned against it to look out.

Trying to look towards the south bank of the Wei River through the mist.

Sure enough, four or five miles to the south, I saw a dark figure stretching for several miles, holding torches and slowly walking towards Wuzhangyuan in the east.

The Wei Bridge south of Chencang was demolished when Zhao Yun retreated from Sanguan to Chencang.

In order to avoid being attacked halfway across the river, the Wei army built a bridge fifteen miles upstream from Chencang.

Last night I traveled fifteen miles west to Fuqiao, then turned back east after reaching Weinan. Now I am just south of Chencang City.

"No one saw it last night?" Zhao Yun first turned his head to the right and looked at the Wei army camp farthest to the southwest, and then he felt relieved.

Chencang City was built on the back of a plateau, and the flat land south of the city was not wide, only two miles from north to south.

All the Wei troops coming down from Longshan camped south of Chencang City.

The camp was divided into dozens of small villages, more than ten miles long from east to west.

The farthest camp in the southwest is estimated to be five or six miles away from Chencang, which is even farther than the Wei army that is currently marching in Weinan.

If you grope in the fog and in the dark, you really can't see it.

"So it seems the Wei invaders who left here with such fanfare a few days ago were just a decoy," Zhao Yun pondered. "Right now, the Weinan troops are Zhang He's elite."

"General Zhao, what should we do now?" Fu Qian asked anxiously.

"The day before yesterday, Weinan was cut off from traffic by a few hundred Wei invaders, and your Majesty's scouts were unable to investigate.

"If Your Majesty judges that the Wei invaders who went east a few days ago were the main force, and since the Wei invaders have to divide their forces to defend Chencang, and you believe they have no extra troops to use, wouldn't that be unprepared?"

The previous judgment on Zhang He was that once he found out the strength of Guanzhong, he would most likely lead elite troops to rescue from the narrow road along the Wei River, just like the story of defeating Ma Chao.

Therefore, all the arrangements made by the Han Dynasty were aimed at dispersing Zhang He's forces.

In order to avoid direct battle with them as much as possible, wait for the prime minister to report the victory in Longyou.

It was indeed unexpected that Zhang He would lead his troops to launch a surprise attack from Weinan.

After all, that place is not suitable for marching and cannot transport food and grass, and there are definitely no ships on both sides of the Wei River that can be used to transport food.

Zhao Yun leaned against the city wall, facing south, and said in a daze:

"Zhang He had not known the true strength of Guanzhong before. After seeing Cao Zhen's head, he was afraid that the false emperor would be surrounded by our army in Chang'an, so he had no choice but to retreat to Long.

"This time, they raided Weinan with the intention of besieging Wei to save Zhao, hoping to force me to break out and rescue Your Majesty."

"But shouldn't we go?" Fu Qian was already confused and anxious.

Zhao Yun heard the voice and looked a little troubled. After thinking for a long time, he said:

"Wuzhangyuan is easier to defend than Chencang. Even if Your Majesty is completely unprepared, leaving one or two thousand men on the plateau will be enough to resist."

Fu Qian was stunned for a moment, somewhat unable to believe it.

Your Majesty personally led the army to fight, and the strategy of besieging Wei to save Zhao was almost unsolvable.

Even Zhang He was going to lead his troops down to Long to rescue the fake emperor. This Zhao general who had fought in Changban seven times to save his lord, would he really just ignore Your Majesty?

Zhao Yun clearly saw what Fu Qian was thinking. He sighed and asked, "Gong Quan, even if the few thousand defenders of Chencang could break through the encirclement, how do you think we could rescue them?"

Fu Qian, who was in a panic, was stunned at first, and then finally calmed down a little, looking towards the city thoughtfully.

Chencang was built with its back to the plateau, and faced the enemy only from the south. Two or three thousand Wei troops had completely blocked the road.

With fortifications ahead, it is not impossible to break out by force, but it will inevitably cost hundreds or even thousands of people.

And what happens after breaking through?

How to rescue?

Cross the Wei River and chase Zhang He's army in Weinan?

Zhang He only needed to lead his troops back to join forces with the Wei invaders who were chasing them from Chencang City, and first wipe out these three or four thousand people in Weinan.

Thinking of this, Fu Qian, who was determined to save his master, finally calmed down a little:
"General Zhao, are you saying that perhaps Zhang He isn't planning a surprise attack on Wuzhangyuan at all, but is instead trying to lure the Chencang defenders into breaking out?"

Zhao Yun looked at the torches moving eastward from Weinan and shook his head:
"Not necessarily. Perhaps it's a combination of both. They want to lure out the Chencang defenders, and also to catch Your Majesty by surprise and launch a surprise attack on Wuzhangyuan."

Fu Qian's pupils widened again, and he took a deep breath. He then looked intently towards Wuzhangyuan. After a long moment of contemplation, he said in a serious and urgent voice:
"General Zhao, we all request that you lead your brave men out of the city, exit from the dense forests of Jiayuan to the north, then secretly cross the Wei River to the east and report to His Majesty!

"If Zhang He wants to launch a surprise attack, he must take advantage of the morning fog and darkness; otherwise, he will not succeed.

"It is already daybreak, and the enemy army is still seventy or eighty miles away from Wuzhangyuan. At this rate, they will arrive tomorrow.

"All of you and your brave warriors must disperse and march quickly. Someone must be able to report to Your Majesty before tomorrow!"

Zhao Yun thought about it and shook his head:
"How could Zhang He not have thought of this?

"I'm afraid the east bank of the Wei River is already filled with light cavalry, waiting for us to fall into their trap.

"Send someone to investigate first. If Zhang He hasn't set up defenses, we can send a death-defying soldier to deliver the message. If he has, there's no need to cause more casualties."

Cao Wei sent six or seven hundred light cavalry to patrol the surrounding area every day to cut off traffic, and it was unknown how many scouts were sent for fixed-point reconnaissance.

In such a situation, how difficult would it be to avoid so many eyes and ears and walk the seventy or eighty miles from Chencang to Wuzhangyuan in just one day?

Fu Qian hesitated for a moment, and after hesitating for a long time, he finally decided to speak:
"General Zhao, although Wuzhangyuan is easy to defend, it is difficult to attack.

"But if Your Majesty really... really puts himself in danger because of the bandits who escaped from under the city of Chencang.

"If I don't come to Chencang's rescue, I'll probably be criticized by some villains in the future, and I don't know..."

Fu Qian stopped speaking here.

I wanted to say that I don’t know what Your Majesty would think.

However, judging from His Majesty's behavior in dealing with people in the past month,

Your Majesty has completely inherited the legacy of the late emperor and is by no means a mean and ungrateful king like Cao Cao and Cao Pi.

Zhao Yun knew what Fu Qian wanted to say. He first gave him a meaningful look, then smiled and said:
"Your Majesty and I are of one mind and soul, how can we compare to Zhang He and that false emperor?

“If I were to fall into Zhang He’s plan of besieging Wei to save Zhao, and forcibly lead my army to break out, thus ruining Your Majesty’s grand plan, I would be ashamed to see Your Majesty.

"Rest assured, Your Majesty is thoughtful and talented.

"With Dong Yun, Deng Zhi, Zong Yu and other wise and strategic generals by our side, there will be no problem in protecting Wuzhangyuan for a few days."

Fu Qian thought about it and nodded, finally feeling a little relieved.

However, Zhao Yun's expression suddenly turned serious: "If Zhang He still refuses to retreat after three days, you and I will lead our forces to break out!"

Fu Qian was startled and immediately bowed:

"Yes!

"No matter what, now is definitely the time when the Wei invaders' defenses are the most strict, and it is not easy to break through by force.

"But this kind of vigor and energy can't last. Just like the first burst of energy, it weakens after the second, and is exhausted after the third. The timing of breaking through again after three days will indeed be better."

(End of this chapter)