Thirty thousand troops marched north, almost at the speed of one city per day.
Departing from Xuchang on the 16th, they arrived north of Yanzheng on the 17th, at Yushizhi on the 18th, crossed Kaifeng on the 19th, and arrived at Junyi in the afternoon of the 20th.
Junyi was a small county west of the Chenliu commandery, yet it was situated beside the Langdang Canal, a crucial transportation hub connecting the Yellow River and the Huaihe Rivers. The military supplies transported south from Hebei often passed through Junyi.
After Cao Rui arrived in Junyi, he met with the visiting Yanzhou Military Inspector Sun Zhi. Sun Zhi had been serving in Yanzhou for more than two years since being exiled outside Taihe in the first year of Taihe. As the military inspector of a large state, it was not a great hardship for him.
The troops would only stay for one night. After Sun Zhi rushed to see him and left, the Viscount of the Chancellery Yi Qian followed to request an audience.
It was nearly midnight, and Cao Rui was feeling tired. Sitting on the mat, he looked at Pei Qian and yawned: "What matters does the Viscount of the Chancellery wish to discuss with me?"
Pei Qian bowed respectfully and said: "Your Majesty, regarding the affairs of the Yanbi and Yuan tribes, I have a suggestion to make."
Cao Rui nodded slightly: "Speak."
Pei Qian said, "I have been contemplating the matter of recruiting the Wuhuan, Xianbei, Hun, and various other steppe tribes recently. I believe that the court should make a decision sooner rather than later."
Cao Rui was puzzled: "According to previous discussions, shouldn't recruitment of the Wuhuan, Xianbei, Hun, and other steppe tribes be carried out in Datong and then by the military governors of Yunzhou and Xuanzhou, Tian Yu and Xia Hao Xian?"
Pei Qian nodded: "Yes. However, after much thought, I still feel that it is too late."
Cao Rui took a shallow breath: "How so? Why is it too late?"
Pei Qian said: "Your Majesty, based on the army's current travel speed, reaching Datong by mid-February would be possible. However, sending messengers to recruit various tribes and minorities may not be able to notify them until late February or early March."
"Huns reside in the western regions of the commandery of Datong, such as Xihu and Taoyuan. The Xianbei are divided into three parts, while most Wuhuan are located in the border regions of Yanmen, Daiyue, Shanggu, and Yuanyang."
"I merely feel that if the gathering is delayed or if there are any mistakes made, it may not be possible for the imperial army to reach Liaodong before the end of summer."
Cao Rui pondered for a moment: "So, you are suggesting that we should proceed with the recruitment of various tribes earlier? If some do not comply, we can still enforce them after battle."
Pei Qian nodded seriously: "Exactly."
Cao Rui's expression became serious as well: "Pei, you once served in Daiyue commandery, and you are well-acquainted with the Wuhuan, Xianbei, and other tribes. In your opinion, how many men can each tribe be recruited to provide?"
Pei Qian said: "Your Majesty, the route to Liaodong is far away, and it is difficult to maintain supplies and logistics for large-scale recruitment. It would be better to recruit only a few elite troops from each tribe."
"Huns are poor. The five tribes of Datong, each left with a Han ethnic affairs official and six hundred elite troops from their respective departments, would be able to recruit a total of three thousand horsemen."
Cao Rui nodded: "What about the Wuhuan and Xianbei?"
Pei Qian said: "This is also a problem that I am concerned about."
"Wuhuan is easy to deal with, and selecting and recruiting five thousand horsemen from the various tribes would be considered good governance."
"The Xianbei chieftain Ke Biniang, since being defeated by the Protector of the Wuhuan Commandery Tian Yu in the first year of Taihe, has nominally submitted to the Great Wei and has continuously made contributions over the years."
"If Ke Biniang is obedient, Xianbei can be recruited with ten thousand horsemen. If he does not wish to be enrolled, then we should first launch an attack on him and then unite all the tribes and proceed to Liaodong together."
Cao Rui nodded: "I understand your intentions."
"All right, we will send messengers early tomorrow morning to inform Tian Yu in Bingzhou and Xia Hao Xian in Youzhou, ordering them to recruit the various tribes respectively."
"The Xiongnu, western Xianbei, and Datong Wuhuan will gather in Yanmen Pass, while the central Xianbei, eastern Xianbei, and Youzhou Wuhuan will gather in Daiyue Commandery."
"I will personally travel to Yanmen Pass by the end of February and early March to meet with the chieftains of various tribes."
Pei Qian had thought a great deal when he came, but he had not expected the emperor to agree so quickly, so he hesitated and said, "Your Majesty, wouldn't it be better to discuss this with the Secretariat first?"
Cao Rui chuckled and said, "It's alright, I have already discussed this roughly with the Secretariat. There should be no problem."
"Since you, Pei, have come to seek me at this late hour and suggested that we move quickly, would you be willing to go ahead for me?"
Pei Qian bowed and inquired, "Your Majesty, are you sending me to Bingzhou or Youzhou?"
Cao Rui said, "With Tian Yu in Yanmen Pass, there is no need for Pei to go to Bingzhou."
"Pei, did you not serve as the prefect of Daiyue commandery before? Just carry out the recruitment in Youzhou on behalf of Your Majesty, and I will issue an imperial edict authorizing Xia Hao Xian to assist you. This way, he can also free himself up to prepare for military training."
Upon hearing the emperor's words, Pei Qian deeply bowed: "I will not fail Your Majesty's trust!"
Cao Rui yawned again: "Since you have come to seek me at this late hour and suggested that we move quickly, I will let you leave tomorrow."
"Yes." Pei Qian continued to ask, "It would be better if Your Majesty could give me a deadline."
Cao Rui said, "It is currently the twenty-first day of January. As for Youzhou, it is far away, so I will give you two months."
"Will it be a problem if they all arrive in Daiyue Commandery by March 20th?"
Pei Qian asked again, "Your Majesty, what about the recruitment of the central Xianbei and the eastern Xianbei?"
Cao Rui waved his hand: "Pei, you will handle it yourself. Tian Yu and Liu Ye are both reasonable people. You can discuss the recruitment and how to avoid causing the rebellions of the tribes yourself. How could I possibly manage everything so meticulously?"
"Please leave, I am going to bed."
"According to your command, I understand." Pei Qian bowed and then slowly left.
The newly recruited Imperial Guards official Zhong Yuying entered the large tent, slowly extinguished the oil lamp, and quietly left.
...
At the same time, inside the fortress of Yangping Pass in Hanzhong Commandery, Yizhou.
Yangping Pass is a key area connecting Zhong Commandery and Hanzhong Commandery. The Great Wei's occupation of the pass prevents the Shu state from entering Hanzhong via the Qinling Pass.
In the military commander's residence within the pass fortress, Xin Pi, Guo Hui, and Hao Zhao were gathered around the hearth, discussing military responses.
Guo Hui's hand was stuffed into the thick sleeve of his robe, and he spoke in a low voice, "If we calculate the time, Your Majesty should have received our dispatch by now."
Xin Pi nodded: "I have roughly calculated the time. From Yangping Pass to Chenzheng is seven days, from Chenzheng to Luoyang is four days, and from Luoyang to Xuchang is one day. If we add three more days, the message should have arrived about fifteen days ago."
Hao Zhao sat beside them and nodded as he said, "Zhuge Liang didn't come early or late, but he arrived at the Yangping Pass on the first day of the New Year."
"Why don't the Shu people celebrate New Year? How can he be so troublesome?"
In the defense system of the Great Wei's Hanzhong Commandery, it was based on a structure of three cities and twenty thousand troops.
Guo Hui was stationed in Mianyang, overseeing the three cities of Yangping Pass, Mianyang, and Nanzheng.
Nanzheng was guarded by Hu Xun, and Yangping Pass was under the command of Hao Zhao. It was said that it was the emperor himself who suggested Hao Zhao to be stationed at Yangping Pass during his visit to Chenzheng, the Commandery.
In Hanzhong Commandery, there were 20,000 troops. Ten thousand were foreign troops, and the other 10,000 were the Qiang troops recruited and supplemented in the past two years. The Qiang troops were not proficient in open-field battles, but if they were used for garrison duties and exerted themselves in defending the city, they would not differ much from foreign troops.
Guo Hui said, "Who among us really understands Zhuge Liang's character?"
"The Commandery has already told us that he will not lead his army to Hanzhong, but will instead encamp at Chiting."
Hao Zhao asked, "To the west of Chiting is the lower Bin County in Wudu Commandery, and to the south is Wuxing Pass. Is General Da Dang trying to divert his troops from Yangping Pass by feigning an attack there, while launching a real attack in Wudu or Tazhong?"
Guo Hui shook his head: "It's hard to say. General Da Dang also has his considerations. With our two ten thousand troops garrisoning three cities, we should be safe, and we should not interfere with General Da Dang's orders."
The flames in the hearth flickered and danced, casting intermittent shadows on the faces of the three men.
Xin Pi looked at Guo Hui: "Boji, I have a general idea in my mind, and I would like you and Bo Dao to listen to it."
Guo Hui smiled and nodded: "Since Xin Commandery has been conducting a tour, if it weren't for Zhuge Liang's invasion, Xin Commandery would have returned to Chang'an long ago. What is your high opinion?"
Xin Pi said, "Think about it carefully. Could this be Zhuge Liang testing the Great Wei's troop deployment?"
Guo Hui's smile on his face slowly faded, and he began to look serious: "Testing the Great Wei's troop deployment, how could he test it? Xin Commandery, please explain."
Hao Zhao also earnestly said, "Please show us the way, Xin Commandery."
Xin Pi said, "Since both of you have long served in the western part of the country, I do not need to search for any maps. I will directly explain to you."
Guo Hui nodded: "Xin Commandery, please go ahead and speak directly. From as far west as Ta Zhong to as far east as Nanzheng, the geography, mountains, rivers, and strategic locations are all in my mind. Say whatever you need to say without hesitation."
Xin Pi nodded: "As you can see, Qinzhou and Hanzhong Commandery are actually front lines against the enemy. They are divided into three parts due to mountains and rivers."
"At the far eastern end is Hanzhong Commandery, in the middle are Wudu and Lower Bin Counties, and at the far western end is Tazhong. Hanzhong is under your command, General Guo, Lower Bin is under Zhuang General, and Tazhong is under Lu General."
"In April of last year, when Zhuge Liang invaded Tazhong, Zhang He went ahead to Tazhong, and General Da Dang stayed at Lower Bin to secure the position."
"And now that Zhuge Liang has attacked Yangping Pass, how would the Wei army respond in the eyes of the Shu people?"
Guo Hui frowned: "The Shu might think that Zhuang General should advance to Hanzhong, and General Da Dang should also join him."
"Tazhong would be isolated!" (Chapter ends)
