The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 18 My Mighty Will Never Disobey

Supervisor: "You mean, we should move to Jiangnan ahead of time, just in case?"

“Not everyone, only a portion!” Miwei explained.

"And it doesn't matter if this group can't take the city."

"Since Sun Charioteer intends to become the ruler of Jingzhou, how could he treat the scholars who come to him voluntarily with disdain? He will certainly treat them with great favor."

"In this way, you gentlemen can safely protect a portion of your clansmen."

"That makes some sense," the supervisor said, somewhat intrigued.

"However, we have a large family and business in Jiangbei, and we cannot relocate everything in haste. Young master's plan can only preserve some of our assets..."

Upon hearing this, Miwei smiled confidently:
"No, if this plan succeeds, your families and clansmen, regardless of whether they are in the north or south of the country, will all have a chance to be preserved!"

The crowd was puzzled and looked at each other blankly.

"Ah, I understand!"

After remaining silent for a while, the Prefectural Clerk, the chief official of the prefecture, suddenly spoke up.

"Because some people escaped, those who remained in Jiangling had something to rely on!"

Seeing that everyone was still puzzled, the clerk explained:
"Gentlemen, imagine that when the armies of Sun and Guan are locked in a stalemate across the river, General Sun will surely try his best to win over the hearts of the people in Jingzhou, so that the clansmen who have gone to Jiangnan will have no worries."

"As long as Guan Yu doesn't completely lose his mind, seeing Sun's actions, he certainly won't take drastic measures against those left in Jiangbei, lest the people of Jingzhou completely side with Sun and the overall situation collapse."

"If that happens, as long as the people north of the river promptly declare that they are severing ties with their clansmen who have migrated south, and donate more military supplies to Guan Yu... they might be able to preserve both sides!"

"What the clerk says is quite right!"

Miwei seized the opportunity to summarize:
"Ultimately, in a battle between tigers and wolves, if one side cannot win quickly, it will inevitably try to increase its claws and foes and strengthen its momentum."

"If you gentlemen do not wish to fall into the belly of tigers and wolves, you have no choice but to choose one of them and become their henchmen. What other way out is there?"

Everyone finally realized what was happening and then showed thoughtful expressions.

They seemed to be calculating how many people they could send south and how to divide their family business.

Mi Wei breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this.

They've managed to fool the old guys.

However, some people remained clear-headed and did not waver easily.

The younger inspector then spoke up to question:
"May I ask, young sir, how can you prove that Guan Yu was able to return to Jiangling before Sun Quan crossed the river?"

"If he can't even make it back to the city in time, why should we bother with this?"

The older inspector also spoke to Mi Fang:

"Although this boy is the uncle of the Prefect, he is more like father and son with General Anhan! His roots are in Yizhou, by the side of the King of Hanzhong, and he is not of one mind with us!"

Upon hearing this, Mi Wei looked at Mi Fang.

But the latter seemed to intentionally or unintentionally avoid his gaze.

I'm afraid the one who really wants to ask these two questions is this cheap uncle, right?
Mi Wei understood perfectly, but showed no fear on his face. He first responded to the young inspector's questions:

"From Xiangfan to Jiangling is more than 400 li. The route is mostly open plains. Cavalry can travel lightly and quickly, and it only takes three days to reach the destination."

"Back then, Liu Cong surrendered Jingzhou to Cao Cao, and Your Majesty had no choice but to take the old and the young and retreat to Jiangling. However, Cao Cao's cavalry caught up with you for a day and a night and defeated you at Changban in Dangyang... Have you all forgotten this?"

"And how many days has Fei Shi been gone?"

"Isn't this... different?" The young inspector did not easily admit defeat.

"Cao Cao's army had more horses than boats, so they were naturally good at land raids; while Guan Yu had more boats than horses, and had previously advanced along the Han River."

"Now that the rivers of the Yangtze and Han Rivers have entered the dry season of autumn and winter, it is difficult for the army to return south quickly."

"As for horses, even without considering the losses in the Northern Expedition, there are only about two thousand."

"Even if, as you say, we are traveling light, it is still more than 400 li (200 kilometers) long, and each person will need at least two horses to take turns."

"If we calculate it this way, even if Guan Yu arrives in three days, he won't have more than a thousand cavalry!"

Upon hearing this, Mi Wei immediately responded with a cold laugh:
"General Guan is a match for ten thousand men. Who gave you the audacity to underestimate the thousand elite cavalry he personally led?"

"Is it Yan Liang, Cao Ren, or Yu Jin and his tens of thousands of surrendered soldiers currently imprisoned in the Jiangling dungeon?" "If he really leads a thousand cavalry to the city walls, would you dare to go up to the city walls to fight him?"

The young inspector's face immediately turned red.

Miwei, having gained power, was relentless:
"As for the main force, don't underestimate me because of my youth and think I don't understand military affairs. You should know that I have followed the king in his campaigns since I was a child, and I have been exposed to military matters from a young age."

"The army is far from the border and has been fighting abroad for a long time. The consumption of food, supplies and weapons is huge, so it is indeed necessary to rely on the convenience of river transport."

"But is returning to Jiangling the same as going north to fight?"

"Guan Yu could have abandoned the boats and gone ashore, and instead used carts and horses for transportation."

"While the transport capacity of carts and horses is far inferior to that of boats and ships, it is still sufficient to support a ten-day march."

"And as long as we successfully return to Jiangling..."

Mi Wei paused, then ignored the embarrassed young inspector and looked directly at Mi Fang at the head of the table.

“Uncle, with the city’s reserves and the wealth of the families of all of you here, why would he need to worry about the subsequent transport of supplies?”

Having nowhere to hide, Mi Fang could only ask:
"Can Guan Yu really arrive in ten days?"

That's certainly not possible.

Mi Wei thought to himself without hesitation.

His analysis was actually based on the most ideal assumptions.

But in reality, things can't go that smoothly.

Will there be any unexpected events on Fei Shi's journey?

Does it take time to persuade Guan Yu?
Would Guan Yu himself have any doubts?

Even if Fei Shi persuaded Guan Yu to retreat, wouldn't Cao Cao's army take the opportunity to pursue them?
Even if Cao Cao's army didn't pursue at all, did Guan Yu really not take any precautions?

This time, Guan Yu's army failed to capture the city and returned in defeat.

Even to prevent a retreat from turning into a rout—a situation all too common in history—the army's dispersal still required a certain method of orderly deployment.

The so-called "front shield, rear support, left and right wings" situation determines that the main force cannot move too fast.

Perhaps Guan Yu wouldn't have been willing to give up the boats and equipment on the Han River.

In order to make a second Northern Expedition possible in the future, he would first cover the fleet's retreat to a safe place to the south... This is another unpredictable factor.

To be on the safe side, the army's return journey should take at least double.

This is the fundamental reason why Milwaukee is trying to fool the old guard.

You must always prepare for the worst.

We cannot entrust our lives to the enemy arriving slowly while reinforcements arrive quickly.

But then again.

The "worst-case scenario" here is based on the positions of Mi Wei and Guan Xing.

For Mi Fang and others who were openly or covertly surrendering, their thinking was the opposite.

Their worst-case scenario was that Guan Yu's main force would return to Jiangling in the shortest possible time.

Mi Wei: "This matter concerns life and death, the rise and fall of the family. Uncle, you must not harbor any illusions!"

Upon hearing this, Mi Fang fell silent once again.

Mi Wei ignored him for the time being, took out a scroll of books that he had prepared in advance from his sleeve, and first glanced at the older inspector.

That is, the one who just questioned his stance.

Then he held the scroll high in front of everyone.

"Someone just now suspected that I had ulterior motives and wasn't truly planning for everyone's future."

"This volume of Song Zhongzi's commentary on the Fayan is proof of my sincerity!"

(End of this chapter)