dognovel Chapter 788 Liu Bei made a big show of it.
Chapter 788 Liu Bei made a big show of it.
Cao Ren was not in Xuchang but in Zhangling recently. Xu Huang had made such a mess of the battle, so as the Grand General, he naturally had to come and see for himself. Then he received a summons from Cao Pi.
Cao Ren dared not delay and rushed to Wancheng. Upon entering the palace, he was led before Cao Pi and bowed, saying, "This old minister greets Your Majesty. Has something happened that Your Majesty has summoned me back so abruptly?"
Cao Pi handed over the battle report and said, "Shen Yi has once again made a flanking maneuver, and all four southern passes of Luoyang have fallen. We can no longer return to the capital."
"What?" Cao Ren snatched the letter and quickly read it. After reading it, he couldn't help but sway three times. He had to hold onto the table to stand up, and he frowned and fell into deep thought.
Cao Pi continued, "In addition, a few days ago, scouts discovered Han cavalry in the Xia Road of Fangcheng. Although there were only three or four thousand men, they were still cavalry. Their presence there was most likely because they were eyeing our supply lines."
Cao Ren pondered for a good quarter of an hour before saying, "If this news reaches the army, it will cause chaos in the army's morale. Therefore, the most urgent task at present is to take back the Guangcheng and Dagu passes before the front-line army receives the news."
Cao Pi smiled wryly and said, "It's impossible. Guangcheng and Dagu Passes are already very strategically important. Guangcheng Pass also contains 300,000 shi of grain and over 100,000 arrows that were just transported from the Central Plains and have not yet reached the front lines, so..."
What is that?
Cao Ren was so angry that he almost overturned the table.
You've got so much grain stored inside Guangcheng Pass, are you trying to get yourself killed?
One shi of grain is 120 jin. Assuming each soldier has 3 jin of grain per day, 300,000 shi of grain is enough to feed an army of 10,000 for three years.
In this situation, how many days would it take for the Wei army to defeat the Han army and recapture the Guangcheng and Dagu passes, which have both food and strategic importance?
The question is, will Liu Bei give you that time?
Cao Pi continued, "With the four passes fallen and the Han army occupying the central section of Tongbai Mountain, they are supporting each other from afar. Let alone retaking the four passes, they probably can't even annihilate four thousand Han cavalry to clear the supply lines."
The situation was dangerous, but Cao Pi's tone was calm, as if he had completely resigned himself to his fate and was ready to give up, thinking, "Whatever happens, happens."
Cao Ren smiled bitterly and said, "In that case, there is only one way left: shrink the defensive line, retreat to the Xinye and Anzhong area to redeploy the defenses, and fight Liu Bei in a decisive battle there. It will be a quick battle to decide the outcome, whether we live or die."
Now the Wei and Han armies are separated by the Han River, so they can't have a decisive battle. But if they shrink their defensive lines, it will be different. Once the Wei army leaves, the Han army will definitely press forward and follow the Wei army deep into Nanyang territory.
Nanyang is a basin surrounded by mountains on all sides, but flat in the middle. In a decisive battle on a plain, the Wei army has a significantly greater chance of winning.
Cao Pi said, "In that case, why not simply retreat to Wancheng and fight Liu Bei to the death under the walls of Wancheng? If we win, we will rule the world; if we lose, we will die."
Cao Ren stared at the map for a moment and said, "Alright, since Your Majesty has made up your mind, this old minister will go back and prepare to fight Liu Bei to the death."
After seeing Cao Ren off, Cao Pi summoned Liu Ye and said, "Minister Liu, I probably won't be able to go back this time, and I don't plan to go back either. Go back for me and convey my decree to appoint my eldest son, Cao Rui, as the crown prince. The rest is up to him."
He did not have a good relationship with Cao Rui and his son, so as soon as he succeeded to the throne, he followed Cao Cao's will and abandoned Cao Rui and his mother Zhen Mi in Ye City immediately after Cao Cao's death.
Furthermore, Cao Cao left him with a very substantial foundation. Even if the Wei army was completely annihilated and lost Luoyang in this battle, Cao Wei would still occupy the entire area north of the Yellow River, as well as Xuzhou, Huainan, and Guanzhong, and might still be able to fight Liu Bei.
Furthermore, he was not prepared to surrender. Even if Liu Bei was merciful and spared his life, he was unwilling to surrender. After all, Cao Zihuan was the son of Cao Cao, the Emperor Wu of Wei, and he could not grovel and embarrass his father.
Therefore, he decided to fight to the death, determined to cripple Liu Bei even at the cost of total annihilation. In this way, Liu Bei would be unable to advance north after capturing Luoyang, giving Cao Rui some breathing room. This was also the last thing he, as a father, would do for his son.
As for whether Cao Rui surrendered directly or ascended the throne to continue fighting against Liu Bei, that was Cao Rui's business, and he couldn't and didn't want to interfere.
Thinking this, Cao Pi took out the letter Cao Cao had written to Liu Bei from his sleeve, unfolded it, read it again, and then casually threw it into the brazier to burn.
Looking at the flames, Cao Pi said slowly, "I am the Emperor of Great Wei. An emperor can fail and die in battle, but he does not need anyone's pity."
As he spoke, he raised his head, and his gaze toward Xiangfan held a hint of fearless courage, as if he were ready to die for his cause.
……
Guangcheng Pass.
Shen Yi and Sha Moke successfully reunited. After arranging the defenses, Shen Yi led three thousand infantry and four thousand cavalry away from Guangcheng Pass and returned to their garrison at Tongbai Mountain.
After waiting a day for Zhang Bao to return to his post, Shen Yi convened a meeting of his generals. He then left the infantry to Li Kuan to conduct guerrilla warfare in the mountains, while he himself led three generals, Zhang Bao, Hao Yu, and Sha Moke, along with four thousand cavalrymen, out of the mountains to begin guerrilla warfare. Their aim was to destroy the Wei army's grain transport teams and prevent the Wei army from transporting a single grain into the Nanyang Basin.
While choosing to attack, Shen Yi also prepared a defensive plan, which consisted of only one sentence: if you can't win, run away. If the Wei cavalry attacks, immediately run into Tongbai Mountain and hide.
He had at least 20,000 to 30,000 troops, plus the grain and fodder he had captured, so he could hold off the Wei army for a short time. As for a longer period of time, well, he still had Liu Bei.
I believe Liu Bei wouldn't let his small force withstand the main force of the Wei army.
……
Xiangyang.
Compared to Cao Pi, who had written his will and arranged his affairs after his death, Liu Bei was clearly in a much better mood.
Moreover, he didn't have much work to do, so he left all the miscellaneous tasks to Zhuge Liang. Liu Bei's daily routine consisted of going to various battlefields to chat with his soldiers and have meals with them. His life was easy and stress-free.
That day, Liu Bei went to inspect Guan Ping's cavalry again. He was personally feeding the warhorses with Guan Ping's company when Zhuge Liang and Guan Xing arrived together.
Liu Bei looked up and asked, "What brings you two here? Has something happened?"
Zhuge Liang handed over the battle report and smiled, "Shen Yi has sent another report of victory. The four passes of Yique Valley, Guangcheng, and Huanyuan have all been captured, and Cao Pi's route back to the capital has been blocked."
"Oh..." Liu Bei took the battle report, glanced at it, and said calmly, "As expected. You all go to the command tent and wait for me. I'll come over after I've finished feeding them to discuss the next steps."
Zhuge Liang, Guan Ping, and Guan Xing bowed and took their leave. Liu Bei watched their retreating figures, and after they disappeared, he finally couldn't hold back any longer. He jumped up and down and shouted in a low voice, "Well done! That's fucking great!"
Still not satisfied after venting his anger, he hugged the horse's head and kissed it several times, excitedly saying, "Guangcheng Valley has been recovered, and Luoyang is just around the corner. I'm finally going to succeed!"
After speaking, he quickly composed himself, straightened his clothes, and, after confirming that everything was alright, put his hands behind his back and slowly walked towards the commander's tent with the air of a hermit master.
It has to be said, he really pulled off a convincing stunt.
Liu Bei entered the command tent and sat down. After glancing at the victory report, he said, "With the road back to the capital blocked, Cao Pi will have no choice but to detour eastward to Xuchang. Kongming, do you think Cao Pi will retreat?"
Zhuge Liang shook his head and said, "No, retreating like this would not only be unwilling but would also severely damage the morale of the Wei army. Cao Ren would never allow such a thing to happen. Therefore, both I and Anguo believe that the Wei army is very likely to engage in a decisive battle ahead of schedule, and we should prepare."
Liu Bei asked, "Will the Wei army counterattack Guangcheng Valley? Can Shen Yi hold out? Do we need to send troops to support him?"
Guan Xingbai said, "No need for now. If Shen Yi really can't hold on, he will send someone to ask His Majesty for help. At that time, with Shen Yi's ability, he will definitely hold on until the reinforcements arrive, so His Majesty doesn't need to worry about this."
Liu Bei laughed and said, "Then there's nothing more to say. Send men across the river to closely monitor the movements of the Wei army. Whether it's a decisive battle or a retreat, the Wei army will definitely make a move in the next few days."