Wei Ni

In midsummer, May, the countryside outside Luoyang, the capital, is lush with vegetation, presenting a vibrant scene of life and flourishing of all things.

The battle reports that came back from Liaodong also greatly encouraged the court and the public.

In early summer, in April, Guanqiu Jian personally led more than 10,000 elite troops and 5,000 cavalry from the Wuhuan and Xianbei tribes who had allied with Wei to march east out of Xuantu County to attack Goguryeo.

Having already learned of the news, the Goguryeo royal palace gathered 20,000 elite infantry and cavalry and recruited more than 6,000 warriors from its servant tribes to defend the strategic location of the Boiling Stream Valley and meet the enemy.

It must be said that Wei Gong's courage is commendable.

They believed that they were familiar with the terrain, had a geographical advantage, and had the upper hand by outnumbering the enemy.

However, they were no match for the well-equipped Wei army, whose morale was high due to their desire to be promoted.

In this battle, over ten thousand Goguryeo soldiers were killed in battle, and countless others fled into the mountains and disappeared without a trace. Wei Gong fled to Liangkou, but before he could gather his scattered troops, the Wei army pursued him relentlessly. Forced to fight again, he suffered another crushing defeat. Only a thousand or so cavalrymen remained, who escorted Wei Gong to Dongwoju for refuge.

This time, Guanqiu Jian did not pursue them.

Instead, he ordered Prefect Wang Qi of Xuantu to remain at Liangkou with his troops. During this time, he was to take the opportunity to pacify the people in the occupied territories, quell the remaining bandits and those who refused to submit, and pave the way for future military advances to retake the territories and open up supply routes for grain.

He himself led the main force south, heading towards the Goguryeo capital, Wandu Mountain Fortress.

They planned to first attack and destroy the capital to undermine the will of the Goguryeo subjects and vassal tribes, and then exterminate the Goguryeo royal family.

The campaign against Xiahou Ba, who was in charge of the various tribes of Han and Hui, was progressing quite smoothly.

Because of Guanqiu Jian's dispatch of troops from Xuantu Commandery, Xiahou Ba could only mobilize troops from the three commanderies of Liaodong, Lelang, and Daifang, plus a number of miscellaneous troops, including commoners who had joined the campaign, which amounted to a mere eight thousand infantry and cavalry.

But it's enough.

Thanks to the Qingzhou navy and the convenience of merchants transporting grain and supplies, Xiahou Ba's fighting style was very bold, somewhat resembling his father Xiahou Yuan's "speed is of the essence" approach.

He then ordered Liu Mao and Gong Zun, the governors of Lelang and Daifang counties respectively, to each lead two thousand soldiers south to intimidate the three Han tribes (Mahan, Chenhan, and Byeonhan) and cut off the support of Han Ye Bu Nai Hou.

He himself led four thousand infantry and cavalry lightly eastward, heading straight for Bunai Castle (present-day Anbyon County, Gangwon Province).

Such a direct attack on the enemy's stronghold is very dangerous.

It should be noted that the city of Bunai is located on the east coast of the peninsula. The Marquis of Bunai only needed to fortify the city, clear the fields, build high walls and deep moats, and he could cause the Wei army, which was unable to find a battle, to run out of food and supplies and collapse on its own.

Xiahou Ba originally had this concern as well.

This was the first time in his life he had been entrusted with a major mission, and he didn't want to waste the rest of his life on the battlefield because of a moment of willfulness.

But he was persuaded nonetheless.

During the pre-battle planning, Zhuge Dan and Wang Jun, who proposed this strategy, dared to guarantee with their lives that Han Hui would inevitably come out to fight the Wei army in open battle.

The reason is simple.

The Yemaek tribes, sandwiched between Goguryeo and the Three Han, have always governed themselves independently and cannot even be called an alliance.

Han Hui Bu Nai Hou was merely the most powerful tribe among them.

In this situation, if the Marquis of Bu Nai, who was previously persuaded by Goguryeo to invade the territory of Wei and provoke the Wei army to retaliate, were to cower in his own territory and not dare to come out to fight, leaving the other Yemaek tribes along the way to suffer the ravages of war, what would the chieftains of those Yemaek tribes do?
The answer is self-evident.

Naturally, they obeyed the will of Heaven, welcomed the king's army with food and drink, and gathered tribal warriors to serve as the vanguard of the Wei army.

At that time, the Wei army, which had no worries about food supplies, and with the help of the Huimo tribe who were familiar with the terrain, would hardly be able to hold the city.
Therefore, the best option for Han Hui Bu Nai Hou was to adopt a stance of fighting to the death, using the common ancestry and the protection of the territory and people as a pretext to call on all tribes to join him in resisting the foreign enemy.

Even if Hou Yi were incompetent, cowardly, and simply stayed within the city walls, the Wei army wouldn't need to worry about food supplies.
With so many weak Yemo tribes along the way, is it really that difficult to sustain war through warfare?
As for whether the Wei army, with only four thousand infantry and cavalry, would be defeated in open battle due to exhaustion and being outnumbered after such a long march, this remained to be seen.
None of the Wei soldiers and generals were worried about this.

When the Former Han Dynasty attacked the Xiongnu, one Han general was worth five Xiongnu generals; when the previous dynasty attacked the Xianbei, one Han general was worth three Xiongnu generals.

The combined forces of the mere Yemo tribes are not worth the Wei army's concern about being outnumbered.

The same is true.

Han Hui could not bear Hou's choice but to fight back with all his might.

He mobilized all the troops within his territory and, with the promise of honor and great rewards, rallied the various tribes of the Ye and Mo to form a coalition army, totaling 12,000 infantry and cavalry, to meet the Wei army.

The two armies met at the Linjin River.

Xiahou Ba rallied his troops, saying, "We are now leaving the country. To flee is certain death, to advance is certain life. All of you, follow me and crush the enemy, so that we may be rewarded with honors and titles by the court!"

He then ordered Gongsun Yi and Wei Shu to lead cavalry to flank the enemy lines on the left and right, while he himself acted as the vanguard, leading the infantry to charge into the enemy ranks.

The soldiers roared with determination and fought bravely, overwhelming the numerous Ye-Mao allied forces, who retreated in disarray. Seizing the opportunity, Gongsun Yi and Wei Shu charged into the enemy ranks from both flanks, throwing the allied forces into chaos. The soldiers lost their bearings and collapsed completely. Many Ye-Mao tribal chiefs were captured.

Xiahou Ba treated them with kindness and released them.

They claimed that the Wei army had only come to punish the ringleader, Bu Naihou, and had no ill intentions towards the chieftains who had been coerced. They said they would not pursue the matter today, but hoped that the chieftains would not make mistakes in the future.

Actually, his magnanimity was calculated.

Firstly, it was the method used by the Central Plains dynasties to govern remote areas: eliminating the powerful and leaving the weak to pacify the local people through a policy of appeasement, with the aim of gradually assimilating them.

Another reason is that the Wei army did not have enough military rations to take in prisoners.

Killing them all would only incite other Yemo tribes to rebel and side with the Lord of Nai, making the war more difficult.

Let's release them; there won't be any future problems.
To the Wei army, these men were nothing more than meat on the chopping block, posing no threat whatsoever.

Releasing prisoners and winning over hearts and minds made the war go increasingly smoothly.

Those chieftains of the Huimo tribes who had witnessed the might of the Wei army were still filled with fear and unease after returning home. They were worried that the Marquis was unable to resist the Wei army and that their tribes would be subject to accusations when they were ruled by the Wei army in the future. Therefore, they brought provisions and supplies to surrender and sent their sons and nephews to serve as guides (hostages) for the army, hoping that the past would not be punished in the future.

Given their current weakness, it's understandable that they might change their tune depending on the circumstances.

Even the Marquis of Bu Nai, who had fled back, sent an envoy to surrender.

However, he was one of the chief culprits in the emperor's edict and was not to be pardoned, so his request was rejected.

Therefore, unaware that the Goguryeo royal palace had already been defeated, he had no choice but to select his trusted soldiers and generals, plunder the city's valuables and money, and prepare to escape into Goguryeo territory to seek refuge before the Wei army arrived.

As for why they abandoned their base and fled the city...
This was a choice made out of necessity.

Other Yema tribes had already abandoned him, and many people in the city were not among the ringleaders. Even his wife's family, brothers, uncles, and nephews were unwilling to be buried with him.

If he hesitates any longer and clings to the past, his head may become a stepping stone for others to advance their careers.

After the battle reports from the two armies were relayed to the capital Luoyang, Emperor Cao Rui praised them with a hand gesture and was overjoyed. While issuing an edict to commend them, he was already looking forward to the possibility that the war in Haidong would end before the end of the year, allowing him to be honored with the merit of expanding the territory.

Of course, there were also things that made him feel melancholy.

For example, when the position of Minister of Works had been vacant for half a year, he deliberated for a long time before choosing Han Ji, the Grand Master of the Palace, to take up the post.

As a result, Han Ji was appointed to his post in February and died of illness in April.

Just like before, Chen Jiao's tenure as Minister of Works lasted only a little over a month, which was quite a headache for him.

In this regard, Xiahou Hui even indulged in unrealistic fantasies, wishing that Cao Rui would transfer Grand Commandant Sima Yi to the position of Minister of Works. In that case, Wei would have had a minister who could rise to both high office and be remembered for his loyalty! Therefore, he wasn't cursing Sima Yi, but genuinely concerned for him, not wanting Sima Yi to be criticized a thousand years later.
Yes, he is going there to pay his respects.

Xun Can passed away a few days ago and was buried in the mountain mausoleum in the southern suburbs of Luoyang. At the time of the burial, more than a dozen famous scholars came to mourn him.

Fu Gu, who was on good terms with Xun Can but had only taken a day off yesterday, sent someone to his residence to ask Xiahou Hui if he was free to come along.

With nothing else to do, Xiahou Hui recalled that he had previously interacted with Xun Yi, and that when he was working with Liu Shao and Yu Yi to formulate the "Examination and Assessment Method for Capital Officials," Yu Yi had specifically introduced himself as a scholar from Yingchuan. So he accompanied Xun Yi on the trip.

Indeed, unlike Fu Gu's sorrowful condolences, he went with ulterior motives, wanting to see how much foundation the Xun family of Yingchuan still possessed.

The result was that he deeply felt that even a starved camel is bigger than a horse.

Even after the day of burial had passed, people continued to come to pay their respects.

Although many of those present were Xun Can's friends and scholars who admired and followed his talent and ideals, many influential officials and ministers sent their sons who had not yet entered officialdom to help with the funeral arrangements. Besides relatives by marriage, such as the Sima family of Hanoi, Cao Hong's youngest son Cao Fu, and various families from Yingchuan, there were also people from the families of Minister of Works Wei Zhen, Commandant of the Capital Region Cui Lin, Grand Master of Ceremonies Chang Lin, and various ministers. Even Du Shu's son, Du Yu, was present.

The bustling scene was enough for Xiahou Hui to know how profound the legacy of Lord Xun was.

Led by Cao Fu, who was acting as a guest, Xiahou Hui, who kept walking, nodded in greeting and walked past the crowd, heading straight for the tomb. He didn't even glance at Sima Shi when he passed by.

Since we're destined to be friends due to our differing perspectives, let's not bother each other any further.

Striving to be each other's most formidable adversaries is also a unique kind of confidant, the highest form of recognition between us.
"I am deeply grateful to Zhiquan for taking the time to come in person."

Xun Yi, the host who had set up a thatched hut in front of the tomb to receive guests, was slightly surprised by Xiahou Hui's arrival and took the lead in bowing to express his gratitude.

His bloodshot eyes and haggard expression revealed the great impact of his younger brother's death on him—not only because the loss of all his brothers left him all alone, but also because the once prestigious Xun family of Yingchuan would now depend on him alone.

I wonder if his will remains the same as before? (End of Chapter)