Conquering Myriad Worlds from the Mythical Three Kingdoms

When Ma Liang woke up, Shamoke was already waiting for him.

"How long have I slept?"

Ma Liang felt refreshed and in better condition than ever before, and couldn't help but ask Shamoke.

"One day and one night!" Shamoke picked up the wine jar and took a swig.

"This is a priceless treasure of the Five Streams Barbarians! Even I don't usually get to drink it!"

Ma Liang was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then quickly examined Shamoke.

"You are hurt?"

"After you went to sleep, the enemy attacked the city. I was stabbed a few times, but it's nothing serious!" Sha Moke told Ma Liang everything that had happened.

"How could something like this actually happen!"

Ma Liang froze, but said nothing.

"You get some rest. We have a tough battle ahead of us!" Ma Liang said to Sha Moke with a serious expression.

"Seeing you so energetic makes me feel relieved!"

After confirming that Ma Liang had recovered, Sha Moke picked up the wine jar, dusted himself off, and walked outside.

"I'll keep watch outside, the rest is up to you!"

After Shamoke left, Ma Liang quickly went to the map.

He solemnly reviewed the intelligence gathered during his slumber.

"What a terrifying Du Yu!"

Ma Liang's expression was solemn. Based on Shamoke's account and the information Ma Liang had, he came to a conclusion.

That is, Du Yu was a talent far superior to him.

The timing of the surprise attack was precisely when he was under immense pressure; if he were in his state before falling asleep, the enemy's surprise attack would succeed.

He didn't even dare to imagine how he would react; he might be crushed by the immense pressure.

Fortunately, Shamoke intervened and prevented the enemy's night attack in time, thus defusing an extremely dangerous scheme.

Otherwise, Xiangyang would probably have changed hands by now.

Ma Liang dared not even imagine the terrible consequences that would result from a large group of shadow assassins entering the city.

Even now, Ma Liang is not sure whether there are any shadow assassins who have infiltrated the city.

No wonder Shamoke was with him; he was protecting him.

"Someone inside the city has tipped off Du Yu..."

Ma Liang reviewed the intelligence and came to a conclusion.

However, this conclusion does not help the situation at all.

He couldn't even be sure how many people in the city were loyal to Du Yu.

Du Yu has been cultivating Xiangyang for a long time. Heaven knows how many loyalists he has hidden among the people. If I were to carry out a large-scale purge, it would inevitably provoke a rebellion from the people in the city, which would be tantamount to destroying my own defenses.

Therefore, this matter must not be escalated.

Fortunately, the prisoners in Xiangyang were all taken away by Sima Yi and his men, and the city was mostly inhabited by barbarians and Han soldiers; otherwise, the situation would have been even worse.

"The enemy force is conservatively estimated to be 100,000, and there may even be reinforcements later. Leaving the city is a dead end, and even if we hold out to the death, we probably won't be able to hold out for long!"

Ma Liang was extremely troubled, as internal and external troubles came at the same time.

But no matter what, we must first stabilize the city; otherwise, being attacked from both inside and outside could easily lead to problems.

"Issue my military order: a curfew will be imposed immediately, sealing off both inside and outside the city, prohibiting anyone from leaving. Set up community service points where people in need can apply for assistance!"

"Send more men to guard the granaries, armories, and other places. Spread out information about the Shadow Assassins, telling them that the Shadow Assassins plan to cleanse the city and create panic!"

After much deliberation, Ma Liang issued a series of orders.

Instead of attacking Du Yu directly, he exaggerated the terror of the Shadow Assassin and smeared the Shadow Assassin.

Ma Liang did not intend to have anyone impersonate the Shadow Assassin; he merely intended to use this method to limit the Shadow Assassin and win over the hearts of the people.

They treated the people of Xiangyang well, so as long as the Jin army's impression worsened, their image would improve.

"Send someone to contact other units; we need support!"

Ma Liang had a clear understanding of his own position.

He didn't think he could defeat Du Yu at all, after all, the other side had almost destroyed them with just a slight move.

Therefore, he only needs to stall until the main force returns.

When Sima Yi received the news, he was also in a dilemma.

The enemy is clearly using a strategy of "besieging Wei to rescue Zhao." If he doesn't go back, they will definitely launch a fierce attack on Xiangyang and cut off their communication with the east and west.

But if he retreats, it will be troublesome if he wants to attack again next time.

The existence of Houtu's army was a variable that allowed him to enter Bashu so easily and then advance triumphantly.

With Chengdu so close at hand, how could we possibly retreat now?

Sima Yi was also well aware that it would take him some time to completely conquer the Bashu region.

The remaining troops in Xiangyang number less than 30,000, which is absolutely no match for the siege of 100,000 troops, especially one commanded by a large army like Du Yu's.

It would be ridiculous if we conquered Sichuan but couldn't hold onto it.

Sima Yi gritted his teeth in hatred; the timing of the enemy's attack was simply too perfect.

Not only did they exploit the vulnerability of Xiangyang, but they also put him in a precarious position. If he becomes greedy, he might end up losing everything.

Moreover, even if he gave up fighting in Chengdu and returned to Jingzhou along the Yangtze River.

There is a high probability that the enemy will set up defenses along the river and launch a siege to intercept reinforcements.

At that time, they will be isolated from both inside and outside, and will be at a disadvantage in terms of military strength. On the other hand, Du Yu will be positioned between the two sides, seemingly being attacked from both sides, but in reality, he will be in an invincible position.

What's worse is that his opponent blocked his path to build up his invincible momentum. This retreat greatly reduced his momentum, and if he were to encounter an ambush, his fortunes would be further jeopardized.

Sima Yi had no choice but to take Du Yu's sudden attack seriously; the timing of the attack was too brilliant.

If you go slowly, the turmoil in Xiangyang will subside; if you go quickly, he will turn back halfway.

It's only when things are stuck in this in-between moment that it's truly frustrating.

"Marshal, should our army fight or retreat?"

Wei Yan also saw the problem, but the problem was that the Jin army's resistance was very strong, and it would take them a lot of time to take it down.

Even if we capture it, we still need to defend it, otherwise it will become another enclave.

If they defend it, they won't be able to go back to save Xiangyang, seemingly creating a vicious cycle.

We had no choice but to retreat.

However, this retreat completely puts them in the opponent's rhythm, which is a major taboo in military strategy for experts.

"Should we ask the rear for some more reinforcements?" Wei Yan asked cautiously.

"If everything has to be resolved from the rear, what's the point of our existence?" Sima Yi was quite annoyed and kept thinking of a way to break the deadlock.

Du Yu and Yang Ku were like a pair of pliers, firmly holding Jiangdong in check from both ends.

It's like a great dragon being captured and unable to unleash its full potential.

"How about I lead the troops back first?" Wei Yan thought for a moment and offered another suggestion. "Dividing the troops at this moment is not a good strategy either!" Sima Yi shook his head.

This is also the drawback of blitzkrieg: if you fight fast enough, the results will be infinitely large, but once you get bogged down, a series of drawbacks will immediately become apparent.

"How about our army marches north to Hanzhong?" Wei Yan looked at the map for a while and made a bold suggestion.

"Hanzhong? You mean go down the Han River and attack the Jin army from the rear?" Sima Yi thought Wei Yan must have been kicked in the head by a donkey.

The straight-line distance isn't far, but anyone knows how difficult the mountain roads in the Sichuan and Chongqing region are to traverse.

Wait a minute, Sima Yi suddenly looked up at Wei Yan.

“If others can’t get through, we can!” Wei Yan pointed to the mountains on the map.

"Let Houtu's army pave a road, and we'll pretend to continue attacking Chengdu, but actually we'll feint and attack Hanzhong directly."

"Moreover, my legion can switch to the mountain warfare talent, allowing us to go ahead and occupy the pass first, ensuring that the exit is not blocked!"

Wei Yan's imaginative ideas enlightened Sima Yi.

While conventional troops are indeed limited by terrain, the unique nature of both Wei Yan's all-around legion and Hou Tu's legion allows them to do things beyond the norm.

Sima Yi hadn't thought about it this way before, but now that he thought about it, everything became clear.

Yes, what does the difficulty of the mountain road have to do with them?

Wei Yan's army could easily traverse mountains and valleys, and Hou Tu's army could also easily pave roads and build bridges, and even dig a tunnel directly out of the mountain to pass through.

Chengdu's importance was immediately diminished, while taking Hanzhong would give them more flexibility in advancing or retreating.

"We won't take the Han River route. Du Yu is no ordinary man. Even if our army launches a surprise attack from behind, we might not be able to take him down directly. The idea of ​​attacking from both inside and outside is simply absurd!"

"At most, Ma Liang and his men will hold Xiangyang to the death. Even if our army marches south, we don't have much of a chance of winning!"

Wei Yan was speechless upon hearing this; he had indeed overlooked this point.

"We'll attack Luoyang!" Sima Yi sneered.

Du Yu and Yang Ku led their army south, and Luoyang must be vulnerable at this time. As long as they besiege the city, they can launch a siege to rescue Zhao.

"Can we take Luoyang?"

"As long as we capture Hanzhong and have Hanzhong relay the intelligence about Houtu's army to Luoyang, Sima Yan will naturally urge Du Yu to return to the capital!"

Sima Yi thought about it carefully and realized that Wei Yan's plan was indeed a brilliant scheme.

The so-called "surprise" is giving someone a pleasant surprise in a way that no one else would have thought of.

In that case, Wei Yan's ingenious plan was certainly unexpected.

More importantly, this ingenious plan had a backup plan: in the worst-case scenario, they could turn back and attack Chengdu.

Or perhaps they need to request support from the rear.

With someone backing you up, you can naturally be bolder in your actions.

If successful, the rewards will be absolutely astonishing.

"For the past two days, you have led your men to the city walls to taunt and challenge us to battle, and then used lighting and shadows to create the illusion that our army is all inside the camp!"

"I'll lead my men north ahead to pave the way. You can come after us in three days. Don't dismantle the camp; leave it for them to guess!"

Sima Yi quickly assigned tasks to Wei Yan.

"Yes, sir!" Wei Yan was overjoyed and hurriedly went out to prepare.

"Wei Wenchang is truly a man of great talent!"

Sima Yi's eyes gleamed. It was a pity that Wei Yan was Zhuge Liang's man, and he also needed to find someone to train as his deputy.

Unfortunately, both Deng Ai and Zhong Hui were too young, and he couldn't think of anyone he could groom as a deputy.

On the other side, Zhuge Liang frowned repeatedly after learning of Sima Yi and Wei Yan's plan.

He could see the feasibility of Sima Yi and Wei Yan's ingenious plan, but it was too dangerous, and he disliked this approach.

In Zhuge Liang's view, the right choice at this moment should be to retreat safely, or to head south along the Han River to reinforce Xiangyang.

Either way, it's much safer than Sima Yi's final choice.

In Zhuge Liang's view, even if there were insufficient manpower, Sima Yi would not be able to defeat Du Yu, but there would be no problem in protecting Xiangyang.

However, Sima Yi's plan to strike directly at the heart of the enemy's territory was essentially throwing the risks to Xinghan and leaving him to clean up the mess.

If he succeeds in becoming Sima Yi, he will reap huge profits; if he fails, he will have a headache and will have to organize people to help Sima Yi.

After all, they had invested so much; they couldn't just stand by and watch Sima Yi's situation collapse.

"Pass on my order: have the Tenth Knight be ready to attack at any time!"

Zhuge Liang pondered for a moment with a dark expression, and then decided to use his own people to clean up Sima Yi's mess.

As one of the kings, his involvement is quite reasonable.

If the regular Xinghan army were to be sent to the rescue, it would inevitably cause other problems.

The only way to deal with Sima Yi's situation is to establish it as a case of mutual assistance and support among the various regions where kings were enfeoffed. Otherwise, it would be too unprofitable and would not be a good outcome for any party.

After making the arrangements, Zhuge Liang immediately wrote a letter to Sima Yi, severely criticizing him in an official tone, and warning him that this was the last time.

If Sima Yi dares to shift this risk again, they would not recommend replacing him with someone else as the Prince of Jin.

You can take advantage of the empire's backing, but you can't exploit it.

In addition, Zhuge Liang also wrote a letter to Ma Liang, offering his own perspective as a reference.

He only intended to train Ma Liang, not to kill him; the training was indeed quite difficult.

But if he can really pull through, Ma Liang can be considered as someone who can stand on his own.

After handling the military arrangements, Zhuge Liang picked up the documents on political affairs.

There was indeed a Luoyang Magistrate, Jiang Wan, but there were too many entanglements within Luoyang, so after Jiang Wan finished making his arrangements, he still had to present them to Zhuge Liang for a look.

Because Jiang Wan had made most of the annotations and comments, Zhuge Liang was able to read it relatively quickly, basically memorizing it after just a glance.

"A private feud between the Romans and the Parthians?" Zhuge Liang noticed a piece of information that caught his attention.

Although it was just a private fight, it still showed the marks left by previous conflicts between various countries.

It's not so easy to eliminate it in a short time.

Especially between ancient enemies like Rome and Parthia, although both have now been brought under the control of Xinghan, friction still occurs between them.

The men who started the fight were former Parthian soldiers and Roman soldiers, who got into a brawl after drinking.

Jiang Wan's judgment was fair and just, and he did not show any favoritism towards Rome because of his relationship with Zhuge Liang, so Zhuge Liang had no objections.

However, similar incidents have already occurred three to five times in Luoyang.

This was not a good sign. Zhuge Liang thought about it and decided to arrange some activities to allow both sides to release their hatred.

Instead of blocking, we should guide and manage; instead of constantly preventing and controlling, we should develop some projects.

Or find a partner so that you can face this together.

A legion popped into Zhuge Liang's mind: the First Yellow Heaven Legion.

He was a walking target within the Star Han Empire, and his hatred level was greater than that of the Tenth Knight in Rome.

Perhaps the First Yellow Heaven Legion could mediate the conflict. (End of Chapter)