Spring water just blooms, public should go quickly.
In the first month of the eighteenth year of the Jian'an era, Sun Quan sent these eight characters to Cao Cao. After fourteen years, they were finally returned to Sun Quan by Emperor Cao Rui, the second emperor of the Wei state.
As the officials in the camp heard the emperor's words, they laughed and clapped hands in unison, dispelling the long-standing feelings of oppression in their hearts.
It's been a long time indeed.
Since Cao Cao's withdrawal from the Ruyu Camp and his return to the Central Plains, he felt that his time was running out. Upon returning to the court, he hastened his steps to seize power and rise to a higher position.
Cao Cao used Dong Zhao's strategy to first raise his position to a Prince of Wei, increase gifts, establish the state of Wei and set its capital at Yanzhou. Three years later, in the 21st year of Jian'an, Cao Cao raised his position again to King of Wei, with a realm of three households and above the ranks of feudal kings. He could report without kowtowing and refuse to accept imperial edicts. He wore robes and flags with imperial banners, set up ritual music for sacrifices to heaven and earth.
Almost like an emperor.
However, as Cao Cao's title rose higher and his age grew older, the internal and external situation of Wei quickly deteriorated, and the disputes between factions in the court became increasingly intense. During a time of domestic and foreign troubles, there was no sense of vitality as there had been in recent years.
In the 23rd year of Jian'an, Liu Bei attacked the Yangping Pass, while the Wuhuan and Xianbei tribes raided the northern frontier. The garrison commander of Yancheng, Hou Yin, rebelled.
In the 24th year of Jian'an, Huang Zong, a commander under Liu Bei's army, slaughtered Xiahou Yu at Dingjun Mountain. Cao Cao was forced to lead his troops personally from Chang'an to Hanzhong, and had to abandon it himself. Simultaneously, Guan Yu attacked Xianbei in Xiantan and Zhongduan and submerged seven armies, causing fear in the central plains. Thanks to Sun Quan's betrayal, the crisis in Xiantan was relieved.
In the first month of the twenty-fifth year of Jian'an, Cao Cao died in Luoyang. That same year, there was unrest throughout the court and across the country. Cao Wei replaced Han, and he bestowed numerous titles and honors.
The next were Cao Pi's three campaigns against Wu. The first campaign saw a three-pronged attack but returned without any gain. In the second and third campaigns, at Guangling, they barely encountered the Wujun.
This decisive victory undoubtedly served as a strong boost for Cao Wei, the emperor, and all officials and generals. From then on, the Wei state regained its momentum and was finally able to fully exert its military might.
Cao Rui looked at the group of officials in the tent, whose expressions were filled with excitement. His smile began to fade slightly: "This morning, General of the Army has already led 40,000 infantry and cavalry towards Wuan City. By noon tomorrow, it is expected that they will arrive at the Wu army's camp."
"According to the statements of the Wu army prisoners, this time the Wu army brought all its strength, with nearly 80,000 men almost wiped out. Sun Quan is left with only about 20,000 men at Wuan City and Wuankou."
"Now that the large army is here, where should we next move in accordance with the momentum? Please discuss with Your Majesty."
Now that Cao Xiu has led his troops westward to Wuan City, the army here naturally falls under the command of General Cao Zhen. However, when Cao Zhen received his assignment, he appeared quite embarrassed.
From Cao Zhen's perspective, he had merely led 45,000 central troops from Luoyang to Shouchun. In the battle at HuaChe, he led 20,000 infantry of the central army and arrived at WuQiangkou last, only to arrive on the battlefield just as the battle was about to end. He didn't even get to fight a proper battle.
However, Cao Rui did not share this view.
Cao Xiu and Cao Zhen, the two most important generals of the Cao clan, are indeed the two pillars of Cao's military power at this stage.
Although Wei's infantry are numerous, the truly elite troops are the cavalry. Besides letting the familiar-with-the-land Right General Zhu Gai command 10,000 cavalry and leaving 5,000 for his personal guards, the remaining 30,000 cavalry have always been under Cao Xiu's command.
The Battle of HuaChe was when Cao Xiu's cavalry played a decisive role in splitting the battlefield, turning inwards to encircle, and compelling the Wu army not to advance westwards.
And Cao Zhen led a force of 20,000 central infantry at the rear of the battlefield, firmly securing the retreat route for Emperor Cao Rui.
Although the specific command of this battle was largely discussed among Emperor Cao Rui, Sima Yi, Cao Xiu, and several other officials, it was Cao Xiu and Cao Zhen who held the most elite troops that provided the backbone for Emperor Cao Rui's decision to launch this campaign.
Seeing the emperor engage in discussions with his officials about the next offensive, the Grand Secretary and Visitors regularly accompanying the emperor remained silent for a moment. The generals responsible for operations also didn't know how to speak up, afraid of saying something wrong after a major victory that might affect their original military achievements.
Cao Rui swept his gaze around and, seeing no one speak, turned to Cao Zhen: "What are your thoughts, General? Speak to me about it."
Cao Zhen heard the emperor's question and remained silent for a moment before slowly speaking: "Your Majesty, with the great victory at Huache, the Wu army at Wanchuan City on the west is certainly something we must take."
"However, after recapturing the area near Wanchuan City, there are two possible routes for our military operations."
"The first option is to continue southwestward, attacking Songzi, Xunyang, and Qichun in the north of the Yangtze River, ultimately connecting with Jiangxia where Wen Ying of Jingzhou is stationed, thus integrating the region north of the Yangtze River with Jingzhou."
"This is also the option to continue conducting land-based operations."
"The second option is to march south along the Wan River, capturing Qiankou and then recapturing Wanpu, where the Wan River flows into the Yangtze."
"In this way, our great Wei will seize a base in the north of the Yangtze, thereby being able to compete with Sun Quan for control of the Yangtze River, and thereby resolving the long-standing difficulty of our navy not being able to cross the river."
Cao Rui nodded in agreement. From the map, after capturing Wanchuan City, there were only two options for further advancement: south along the Wan River and into Yuanpu, or continuing south along the road to attack Songzi and Xunyang. It was clear that if they did not take advantage of this major victory to advance further, it would be a waste of an opportunity given by heaven.
"But... the choice of which route to advance is not just about military strategy itself anymore." Cao Zhen continued.
Cao Rui furrowed his eyebrows slightly, fixing his gaze on Cao Zhen's eyes.
Cao Zhen stroked his short beard before speaking: "Your Majesty, I mean that with the current momentum of our victory, whether it be Wuankou or Qichun or Xunyang, we would certainly be able to take them if we choose to."
"But what to do with them after capturing them, this is where it becomes more complicated."
Cao Rui pondered for a moment, then sighed softly, "Is it because there's no one here to support the troops?"
Cao Zhen replied, "Exactly so."
Cao Rui looked at the officials: "Who remembers this clearly? Speak to my Majesty and the officials."
Jiang Ji rose from his seat and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I am originally from Huaiyang, and I am more familiar with the affairs here. Please allow me to explain it to Your Majesty."
Cao Rui nodded in agreement, and Jiang Ji stood up and began to speak from the root cause of this matter.
Jiang Ji addressed the emperor and the officials in the tent: "In the 14th year of Jian'an, while serving as a subordinate official in Yangzhou, I was assigned to pay homage to Emperor Wu at Qiaoxian."
"In the year before the 14th year of Jian'an, the state had just suffered a defeat in the Battle of Red Cliffs, losing troops and officers. With weakened forces, there was no power in Huaiyang to counter Sun Quan's incursion."
"I remember very well, that day Emperor Wu told me, he wanted to transfer the people of Huaiyang into Henan, just like during the Battle of Guandu, when the people of Yanjin and Baima were transferred to Yanchuan and Baima. I had advised against it, but the Emperor did not listen."
"Therefore, in the 14th year of Jian'an, after the court ordered the people of Huaiyang to migrate northward, more than 10,000 households fled to Jiangdong."
"In the 18th year of Jian'an, Emperor Wu again wanted to evacuate all the people from the north bank of the Yangtze River. As a result, the people between the Jianghuai region again fled, and the counties of Lüjiang, Jiujiang, Qichun, and Guangling were almost deserted. The people had all fled to Wu."
Although the events were personally caused by Cao Cao, the third generation of people like Cao Rui cannot say anything. However, it is still necessary to understand why the local people fled.
Cao Rui shook his head slightly: "The people's flight must have some reason. Mr. Jiang, please tell the truth without hesitation."
Jiang Ji, having spent many days with the emperor, knew that the emperor would not hold words against him, so he spoke carefully, "The reasons for the people's flight are indeed numerous."
"For example, they may be afraid that if they become tenant farmers in Henan and lose their freedom, or they may be afraid that they will be conscripted, or that envoys from Sun Quan will encourage and say that they will be killed to exterminate the people of Huaiyang."
Jiang Ji did not hide the truth. The honest words sounded not just sharp, but too sharp.
As Jiang Ji said, in the late Han dynasty, once the refugees were settled on land as tenant farmers, they basically said goodbye to the concept of freedom.
If there are no soldiers, they will naturally recruit from among the refugees, without any mercy or softness.
The idea that Sun Quan will kill all the people of Huaiyang may be unsubstantiated, but Cao Cao was not completely free of acts of massacres.
Since the issues of homesteading and military recruitment are difficult to resolve at this time, we can only address some superficial problems. That is, after the victory, whether or not to send troops to hold Wancheng (Wuan City), Wuankou (Wanpu), Qichun, and Xunyang.
While war is certainly important, it ultimately serves the purpose of politics.
Just like this war, the reason for its occurrence was Sun Quan's feigned surrender of Zhou Feng to Cao Xiu. In order not to repeat the historical defeat at Shiting, Emperor Cao Rui mobilized troops from six states and led all his central forces to Huaiyang, which led to the military victory we saw yesterday.
There are many reasons why Emperor Cao Rui wanted to fight this war. He wanted to improve his reputation, clean up the decline, punish the Wu country, and strengthen his military power. In conclusion, it can be judged that this war can be fought.
If they take Wanchuan City and continue the campaign, they face an extremely difficult choice: whether to leave troops to garrison the city.
Emperor Cao Rui gently tapped the table with his knuckles, then turned to the assembly and said, "Actually, during yesterday's battle, I received a military report from Jingzhou. Since it was during wartime, I didn't rush to discuss it with you all."
"I made an agreement with Chen Qun that we would both move out on January 1st. However, when Chen Qun's 500 ships sailed down the Han River and reached the narrow river near Jingzhou, they were blocked by Wu forces stationed on the ships in the middle of the river."
"Chen Qun's defeat resulted in the loss of 200 ships, and he was unable to join forces with Wen Ying. Since Wen Ying had no ships on the north bank of the Yangtze, Chen Qun's and Wen Ying's troops could only retreat and defend themselves at Jingshi and Xiangyang."
Cao Zhen thought for a moment before bowing and saying, "Your Majesty, since General Piaojichi has not made any headway in Jingzhou, there is little point in our desire to occupy Qichun in order to connect with Jingzhou. Qichun is isolated on the north bank of the Yangtze, and there are no local people there. Attacking it would be futile."
"I remember in the third year of Huangchu, after the Wu rebel general Jinzong surrendered to our Wei, the late Emperor appointed him as the governor of Qichun. Less than six months later, Wu General He Qi led an attack on Qichun and regained control of it."
Cao Rui nodded: "Since that is the case, let's put Qichun aside for the time being. After General Dasmu has repelled the Wu army from Wancheng, we can discuss Wuankou then."
The officials in the tent also agreed.
(The end of this chapter)
