After an hour, all the officials and generals gathered in Zhuge Liang's tent.
Since withdrawing from Qishan, it's the first time that the people have been gathered together so abruptly.
Zhuge Liang had not yet arrived, when the chief of staff Xiang Lang stood with a stern face, counting the attendees, making the atmosphere inside the tent even more oppressive.
Wu Ban turned his head to look puzzled at his cousin Wu Yi, but was met with a fierce glare. He then bowed his head and stopped looking around.
After half a stick of incense, Zhuge Liang hurriedly walked into the tent from behind, without taking a seat, but instead straightened his expression and addressed the crowd:
"Today, I have summoned all of you to this place and there are two things I want to inform you all about. Both have been approved by the king's orders."
"Firstly, Ma Su, a forward officer and an advisor to the chancellor, was unable to make a decisive decision during the battle at Lueyang, leading to defeat. He has been demoted to Longshan Prefect."
Upon Zhuge Liang's words, the silent tent became a sea of exchanged glances among the attendees, each one showing a look of astonishment.
"Longshan Prefect"? "Longshan Prefect?"
What is this remote place? Many generals did not even know where the Longshan Prefect was located.
Zhuge Liang's expression was stern, but in his heart, he felt a strange mix of gratitude or something else towards the Great Han Emperor far away in Chengdu.
Although Ma Su had lost the battle, he was not sentenced to death due to his military crime, and the larger Wei army opposite him was not a fiction. Therefore, in his report to Liu Can, Zhuge Liang only requested that Ma Su be demoted from his position and relieved of duties, be reduced to a civilian, and that he himself be demoted three grades.
It is unclear whether it was Liu Can's own thoughts or the advice of someone else that led to the reduction of each of Zhuge Liang's proposed punishments by one grade.
Clearing his throat, Zhuge Liang continued: "As the chancellor, leading the northern campaign, my responsibilities cannot be overlooked lightly. However, since the troops have not returned and we are still in a state of war with the Wei rebels, the edict has decreed that I be demoted to Commander of Cavalry and take on the duties of the chancellor, overseeing the army as before."
Upon Zhuge Liang's words, the people in attendance began to intercede. It wasn't that Liu Can's edict was wrong, but rather that some were advocating for Zhuge Liang's behalf and others were speaking of his hard work.
The general gist was that it was not a war crime.
"How dare you all try to absolve me of guilt?" Zhuge Liang coldly looked at the crowd: "I am strict in both politics and military affairs. I still cannot shirk my responsibility for my own mistakes, let alone yours!"
Zhuge Liang furrowed his brow and loudly declared: "This is Chi ting, just 180 li from Yangping Pass! Behind us lies Hanzhong, and there is no room for retreat!"
"The two generals, Wei Yan and Zhao Yun, who are most eager to fight, have been appointed as vanguard and rear guard, respectively, stationed at Xiabian and Wu Xing."
"I will stand with all of you at Chi ting, holding the position against the Wei army, as we did nine years ago at Dingjun Mountain!"
"Do you hear me? Any more talk of retreat within the army, I and everyone beneath me shall be subject to execution for violating military law!"
"Understood!"
"Following the orders of the chancellor!"
Upon Zhuge Liang's statement, the hall filled with a chorus of responses from both the military officers and the civil officials.
After this matter was temporarily concluded, Zhuge Liang assigned several tasks for the military garrison and the generals and officers bowed and left to return to their respective camps.
Wu Ban pulled Wu Yi aside and whispered, "Brother, do you think the defeat is our fault, and both Ma Su and the Chancellor have taken it upon themselves?"
"Be careful!" Wu Yi looked around and then turned to scold, "We haven't left the camp yet; how can we talk about such things?"
"However, your words just now seem to be correct. The Chancellor does not wish to punish the generals."
Wu Ban said: "Then we must thank that young Ma Su. He has been demoted to the Longshan Prefect? I have heard of this place, but always can't remember where it is."
"Ai Lao..." Wu Yi furrowed his brow and thought for a moment, then suddenly said with realization, "I remember now! Ai Lao County was the land of the ancient Ai Lao Kingdom. During the Eastern Han Dynasty's Yongping period, the Ai Lao people submitted to the empire, and a county was established in their territory."
"It is located on the west of Bowei County, which can be considered the most remote area of the Han Empire at present."
"Bowei County?" Wu Ban said: "Is it Yunnan or Yongchang Prefecture?"
"You should read some books!" Wu Yi flicked his sleeves: "Bowei County was where the former Emperor Wu placed the Lu Buwei clan, and it is the seat of Yongchang Prefecture."
After saying that, he left by himself.
Wu Ban's camp was in the other direction, so he scoffed and then turned to leave.
No matter how far away Ai Lao County is, it's still within the Han Empire. After returning to Chengdu, I'll send some gold and precious goods to Ma Su as a thank you for bearing so many accusations.
According to the geographical divisions of later times, Ai Lao County should be located near the China-Myanmar border, with Myitson opposite on the other side of the border.
It's unknown what destiny awaits Ma Su in the future.
......
Dian Man returned from Xiabian on the 21st day and arrived in Wu Du on the morning of the 23rd.
Although the cavalry had returned to Wu Du a day earlier after their charge through the city, Dian Man's information was still of great importance to Zhang He.
"Then it seems that the Shu army has stationed themselves once more in Xiabian?" Despite the fact that over half of the two thousand cavalry sent out were killed or wounded, Zhang He did not reprimand Dian Man. Being able to bring back military intelligence was a feat in itself.
"If it does need to be dealt with, it would be up to General Cao Zhen. Zhang He is only temporarily commanding the vanguard, and he is not willing to incur the disfavor of the main army."
There were no mountains in his eyes, but every corner of his mind was a mountain.
The military intelligence from Wu Du reached Qishan at noon on the 24th, nearly half a month later. By then, the camp fortifications built against the backdrop of Qishan Fort were already completed, and soldiers had begun to build city walls.
"Lian Man lost over a thousand horses at Xiabian?" Cao Rui furrowed his brow and looked at Cao Zhen: "Zhuge Liang seems to be determined to hold Xiabian in front of the emperor."
Cao Zhen was silent for a moment, and then replied: "Currently, it's not about whether we can capture Xiabian or not, but about the issue of connecting Xiabian and Hechi and preventing the large army in Qinshou from joining up with Xiahoubu."
As Cao Zhen followed the direction of Cao Rui's gaze, he hurriedly added: "A letter was sent to Xiahoubu from Qishan on the tenth day of the second month. It's been thirteen days now. If we follow the plan to reach there on the eighteenth and start the campaign on the nineteenth, Xiahoubu should just have arrived in Yichuan County."
"If we send a message now, we should be able to catch up with their forces in Gusu County."
Yichuan County, Gusu County...
Cao Rui understood that sending a message from Qishan to Xiahoubu would have to be routed around from Longyou, which would take at least six or seven days.
That's the most critical issue. Although the two armies are separated, they cannot communicate and act in real time, and they have to wait for at least six or seven days for a message to travel between them.
Cao Rui gritted his teeth and said, "Since the emperor has authorized Xiahoubu to be in charge of all military affairs in Guanzhong and ordered him to lead the troops southward, the emperor will not doubt him."
"General Cao Zhen, inform Xiahoubu of this military situation here and let him act accordingly."
"From Qishan to Xiabian is 280 li. It seems that when we arrive at Xiabian, Xiahoubu should also have reached Gusu."
Cao Zhen nodded: "If Xiahoubu arrives on time, he should be able to reach Gusu."
"That's good." Cao Rui abruptly stood up: "Since Zhuge Liang is waiting for me at Xiabian, as the Emperor of the Great Wei, I cannot let him wait in vain!"
"Commander! Leave three thousand infantry to guard Qishan, with the remaining 25,000 main forces following the emperor south tomorrow! Hurry and order Zhang He to set off first, prioritizing stability and avoiding dangers. Wait for the emperor's main forces to arrive!"
Cao Zhen, who was well-informed about the situation of the large army, asked, "Your Majesty, isn't it better to wait for news from Lu Sun?"
"Don't wait!" Cao Rui replied decisively: "Whether he has made any progress in the west or not, I will still go to Xiabian."
"If I have already annexed the Wu Du Garrison to Qinshou, how can I abandon it halfway? I led troops to urgently reinforce Lueyang when I had it. Now that we are only 280 li away, how can we stop?"
"Understood!" Cao Zhen answered solemnly: "I will go and arrange for the advance tomorrow!"
......
As Cao Rui personally led the 25,000 main forces from Qishan, the Wei army moved simultaneously from Qishan to Wu Du.
In fact, it might seem a bit strange.
At first, the Wei army held the position of Shuanggu, facing Qishan across two hundred li. After Zhuge Liang left, the Wei army advanced to Qishan.
Since Zhuge Liang was already defending Chi ting, Cao Rui finally decided to personally go to Wu Du. It has a bit of the feeling of a turn-based game.
Actually, that's not the case.
In the past, when Cao Cao unified the Central Plains, the distance between cities in Henan, Hebei, or any of the other provinces was short, some 20 to 30 li or more, depending on the terrain. Whether advancing or retreating, there were always enough cities to rely on.
The plains and water networks were dense enough to provide numerous avenues for advancing troops.
However, between Longyou and Hanzhong, the vast territory is mountainous and remote, with not enough roads to accommodate the large army for advance.
Moreover, since the people of Wu Du have already been moved away by Cao Cao in the past, it has become effectively a deserted area. It's not necessary to control the city and territory to gain the support of the people.
This is the reason for this bizarre situation.
There is another place that is similar to Wu Du, and that is Huaiyang.
Similarly, because of Cao Cao's early-year resettlement of the people, the vast territory along the river from Lujiang County to Guangling County in Huaiyang was almost deserted, with several hundred li along the river.
The several battles between Wei and Wu were fought mainly for the city of Lu An and Wucheng in Lujiang Prefecture, and for Hefei and Ruoxu in Huainan Prefecture. There was little to fight for in Guangling Prefecture.
The only exception might be Jingzhou. Although Jiangxia, where Wen Pin is located, is close to the Wu army, the people of Jingzhou were also moved away by Cao Cao in the past. Deng Ai was among them.
One could say that Cao Cao used a policy of resettling the people to shape the rules of battle between the three regions of the west, middle, and east.
It's quite interesting.
On the 25th of February, as Cao Rui led his troops on a march, just the next day and as they had just reached Jianwei, he received a piece of news from Cao Zhen that came as quite a surprise to him.
"Lu Xun has captured Yang Nian in Dangchang and has sent him to the emperor?" Cao Rui asked, raising his eyebrows: "When did Lu Xun reach Dangchang and how did he capture Yang Nian?"
Cao Zhen smiled and said, "Lu Xun had his chief of staff send Yang Nian to the emperor. This person is named Zhou Duo. Does Your Majesty remember him?"
"Zhou Duo?" Cao Rui pondered for a moment, then said with some skepticism, "I seem to have a faint recollection. Wasn't this the person Your Majesty had the Grand General send to Lu Sun after the battle in Huaiyang?"
"Your Majesty seems to remember, wasn't it this Zhou Duo, sent by Zhu Gai as an envoy to Lu Xun's camp during the battle, and lost a horse in the process?"
"That's right." Cao Zhen nodded and said, "He is waiting outside."
Cao Rui laughed, "Then, summon Zhou Duo to come in." (The chapter ends)
