Zhuge Liang sat silently in the hall, lost in thought for over a stick of incense.
No one dared to disturb him when the Prime Minister was thinking.
But just now Wei Yan and Yang Yi argued in the courtyard, which caused the Prime Minister to come out himself. The Prime Minister first sighed and then fell into silence, which made both of them nervous.
Wei Yan and Yang Yi exchanged a glance, though both had resentment and anger in their eyes, they still simultaneously asked for forgiveness from Zhuge Liang.
"Prime Minister, please forgive me for my impoliteness just now," Wei Yan said first, bowing his hands in respect.
Yang Yi then said: "Disturbed the Prime Minister's official business, please punish me, Prime Minister."
Fei Yi couldn't help but roll his eyes in his heart, thinking, "You two were making a scene in the courtyard, and now you know to beg for forgiveness?"
Why didn't you do it earlier!
Zhuge Liang spoke slowly, "Wen Chang and Wei Gong, both of you are heavyweights in the state and are the stock-bones that I rely on for my Northern Expedition. Colleagues should extend a hand to each other and not slander each other."
"A gentleman may disagree but not with conflict. Do you need the Prime Minister to explain this to you personally?"
The general has his mighty bearing, while the aide is of scholarly grace.
But under the stern gaze of Chancellor Zhuge Liang, who did not need to raise his voice to be commanding, both men faltered for a moment and could only bow their heads to apologize, vowing never to repeat the offense.
"Wen Chang, your forces in Hu Lu Valley should also move." Zhuge Liang spoke softly.
"Does the Prime Minister want me to head north?" Wei Yan asked with a touch of surprise.
"No, not at all," Zhuge Liang shook his head and said. "Your troops are currently the furthest north. You will withdraw first, followed by Wu Yi's troops, and then the bulk of the entire army will withdraw last!"
Wei Yan stared in disbelief at Zhuge Liang, "Prime Minister... are you going to withdraw the army?"
"Yes." Zhuge Liang nodded slightly.
"We still have control of the western county and Fu City. The Qianshan pass may also be captured, and there is a possibility that the southern edge of Gansu may be taken. How can we withdraw?" Wei Yan asked with great urgency.
At this moment, Wei Yan is individually courageous and excellent in leading troops in battle, but when it comes to military strategy, he still falls short significantly.
Before Wei Yan served as the military supervisor of Hanzhong, he was just a fierce commander who led troops under the direct command of the late emperor and fought battles alone.
This is where the difference between Wei Yan and the Cao Wei generals lies.
The Cao family has been building their army for over thirty years, winning countless battles and also suffering many defeats, with numerous occasions of stalemates or prolonged stalemates. The commanders of the Wei state have undergone several generations of replacement, but the current Han army's officers lack such extensive experience.
Even if the two armies are in a stalemate for a long time, in essence, it is still for the purpose of defeating the enemy and gaining victory. Why bother to continue the stalemate if there is little hope of winning?
It's not like the previous emperor's battle for Hanzhong against Cao Cao. Qianshan and Xixian are remote areas and not as crucial as Hanzhong.
The army has come here only to waste supplies, while the Wei army has already set up a complete defense in Shangguan and cannot be defeated.
Why not withdraw now? Will we wait for the Wei army to attack us?
Since the battle at Lueyang, Zhuge Liang had already heard that both Cao Zhen and Emperor Cao Rui of Wei had arrived. Facing an emperor directly, it is even more difficult to maintain composure in one's own territory. What benefit is there in emptying our resources here?
"This time is merely a withdrawal, not the defeat of the army!" Zhuge Liang's expression grew serious, and his words were resolute: "After the withdrawal, my official residence will still be in Hanzhong, training troops and farming together with the main force of the army."
"I can stay in Hanzhong, and can the Wei army keep station in Longyou? Eventually, Cao Rui, Cao Zhen and others will have to return to Luoyang."
"In one or two years, I will definitely lead troops to conquer Longyou again! At that time, we will definitely occupy the entire Longyou and Liang states!"
Wei Yan and Yang Yi looked at each other in astonishment, neither of them had expected that the argument they had in the courtyard just now would turn out to be the last straw for the Prime Minister to decide on withdrawing the army.
The Prime Minister has accumulated great authority over time, although the loss of more than 20,000 soldiers is only slightly below 30,000, it has not hurt the vitality of the Great Han. Of course, the generals in the official residence would naturally agree.
Wei Yan and Yang Yi stayed in the hall, while Fei Yi, following Zhuge Liang's orders, gathered the officials under the official residence and the generals near Xixian camp to the county magistrate hall.
The order for the withdrawal had been issued, and with Zhuge Liang's personal explanation, everyone was able to accept it. It must be said that in terms of unifying thoughts and reaching a consensus, Zhuge Liang had trained the Han army in the Northern Expedition very well.
After setting the order of withdrawal, the officials and generals under the official residence received their orders and went off to prepare for the withdrawal.
However, Zhuge Liang left Fei Yi and Wei Yan behind.
"Wenwei," Zhuge Liang looked at Fei Yi, "There were over 3,000 households moved from Ji County, in addition to over 3,000 people from Linwei, totaling approximately 13,000 civilians."
"When Wen Chang leads the troops to withdraw first, you are to arrange for his troops to take all these civilians and move them together to Chenggu County in Hanzhong Prefecture, where they will farm."
"There are 1,000 households in Xixian. You will arrange for them to be taken with Wu Yi's troops during their retreat and also stay in Chenggu. Remember not to make a mistake."
"Understood, my lord," Fei Yi and Wei Yan bowed simultaneously.
"There is another matter." Zhuge Liang said: "A few days ago, Gao Xiang did not return a proclamation written by Cao Zi?"
"The Prime Minister himself wrote a response to him. Wen Chang, send an envoy from the army to deliver this text to Shangguan, and remember to hand it over to Cao Rui."
Wei Yan thought for a moment before bowing and saying, "I will send someone to deliver it. Whether Cao Rui can see it is something I cannot know."
"It's fine. Just do your best." Zhuge Liang waved his hand lightly.
...
Meanwhile, the Wei army in the Yellow River Right branch wasn't idle either.
Ten days earlier, the latest General Cao Hong had arrived with his troops in Longyou. At the moment, the middle army of Wei had all gathered there.
With the emperor himself present in Shangguan, local officials from the four counties of Longyou and the leaders of the Qiang and Di tribes from surrounding regions were also arranged to pay homage to the emperor.
The previous arrangements for Qiuling, Zhiwu Dai, and other Qiang people of Longyou were too generous, causing many local Qiang and Di to be envious and also requested to be brought under the imperial umbrella.
Given the enthusiasm of these Qiang and Di people, as well as the sparse population in the three territories of Yongzhou, Qizhou, and Liangzhou of Wei, Emperor Cao Rui, together with his ministers Sima Yi, Cao Zhen, Yang Fu, and Chen Jiao, decided to move ten thousand Qiang and Di people from four counties of Longyou to settle in Gansu and farm.
There are only twenty or so families among the ten thousand Qiang people.
For the Great Wei, it's just adding a few dozen marquises and ten thousand-character-level marshall officials. But the increase in population is real, and can be considered a good policy for replenishing the counties and prefectures.
During the turbulent times of the late Han Dynasty, Yong and Li were some of the most rebellious regions. Particularly the Gao Zhou Plain near Chang'an, which was ravaged by numerous rebellions from the Qiang people of the Later Han Dynasty, uprising in Yong and Li, and waves of disasters caused by people like Dong Zhuo, Han Xuan, and Ma Chao. Many places became virtual wastelands.
These lands that should have been good farmland, if left empty, were just waiting to be used.
The Qiang people, who were brought from the remote ravines, could serve as the tillers of the fields for the Great Wei and make a living through farming. Although they still paid taxes in a 50/50 split, what they kept would still be more than before.
The chieftains received official positions and titles, entering the official and noble system of the Great Wei.
The Wei also gained human resources.
A policy that satisfies all three sides, bringing joy to everyone.
The Qiang people from Liangzhou supplement the population in Longyou, and the Qiang people from Longyou supplement the population in Gansu. This also avoids the harm of local officials gaining power and becoming too influential, and it further disperses the original tribes.
This is the advantage of the emperor personally coming to visit.
With the emperor present, along with generals, ministers, and grand secretaries all present, it was almost as good as being in Luoyang.
In the afternoon, Emperor Cao Rui was looking at letters from Luoyang inside the county magistrate's office when Jiang Wei walked in from outside, bowing and saying, "Your Majesty, Commander Lu Sun of the Qiang Protection wants to see you."
Emperor Cao Rui looked up at Jiang Wei and nodded lightly before continuing to read the documents.
Commander Lu Sun slowly entered and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I have selected eight thousand Qiang cavalry from the three thousand Qiang cavalry I brought according to Your Majesty's order. They are all between the ages of twenty and thirty-five and are strong and healthy."
Emperor Cao Rui nodded: "Did you encounter any trouble?"
"There were some, but not many," Lu Xun paused for a moment before explaining carefully: "Your Majesty, ten tribes that have already expressed their willingness to pledge allegiance to Wei have not encountered any problems. However, the chieftains of the other tribes still have some complaints."
"It's normal to have complaints." Emperor Cao Rui said calmly: "They didn't get a title this time, had to give up the cavalry from their tribes, and were not allowed to have some complaints?"
"How did you handle it?"
"Your Majesty, I ordered the chieftain of the Pulao tribe who caused the most trouble to be killed as a deterrent. This person wanted to order his subordinates to retreat to Liangzhou, and incited trouble and tried to lead other tribes to act in the same way."
"It's difficult to demonstrate Wei's authority without killing this person."
Emperor Cao Rui gave Lu Sun a slightly approving glance: "Commander Lu, you did the right thing. Wei has given them face and pointed them in the right direction. Such behavior by this person does indeed harm Wei's dignity."
"As the commander of the Qiang Protection, you need to practice both benevolence and authority. You cannot just give them everything, otherwise, no matter who they are, they will all become greedy in the end."
"You will lead these eight thousand Qiang cavalry volunteers. Together with the two thousand volunteers you had already assembled in Xiping Prefecture, advance to Lin'tao in three days."
"Remember to prioritize recruitment on this journey. But if there are tribes that do not submit to Wei's rule, after executing their chieftains, move all the civilians back with them. Longyou is in need of people, and the Qiang civilians are also my subjects."
Lu Xun bowed and said, "Your Majesty is wise, Your Majesty's orders will be carried out as soon as possible."
Emperor Cao Rui looked at Lu Sun: "By the way, Commander Lu, I have another matter to discuss with you."
At this moment, Lu Sun was somewhat puzzled.
Since his submission to Wei, all the conversations he had with the emperor were mostly about Qiang matters, with little private conversation.
Just as the Qiang arrangements had been concluded, the emperor spoke in such a manner, does he have any other matters?
As Lu Sun was confused, Emperor Cao Rui's few words sent a shiver through Lu Xun: "Commander Lu, I received a letter from Sun Quan about your family." (Chapter ends)
