Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

Chapter 584: Battle (Part )

According to the system of the Wei Dynasty for decades, when important generals were leading troops outside, their families were required to live in Luoyang or Yecheng. Although Cao Zhen did not need to abide by this rule, apart from Cao Shuang, he only brought his third son Cao Xun with him.

At this moment, inside the military tent, Cao Xun was kneeling beside the couch and helping Cao Zhen sit up straight. Cao Zhen's chest heaved, as if he had accumulated a lot of strength, before he opened his eyes and looked around at everyone.

"Everyone." Cao Zhen's tone was as dignified as usual: "Although I am unable to attend to current affairs due to my headache, the affairs of the country cannot be neglected because of me alone. Nearly 50,000 troops gathered in Wudu County to encircle the Shu army from east to west, annihilate the enemy and serve the country. This is the right thing to do."

"Your Majesty has ordered Wei Pushe to come here with a special seal to prepare for any emergency. As the Great General of Wei, Marquis of Shaoling, and Commander-in-Chief of Guanxi Military Affairs, I have entrusted the responsibility of the war here to the Minister of the Left Pushe and Guanxi Guard Wei Zhen, who will lead all the troops. Zhang He and Lu Xun will both be under Wei Zhen's command."

"If you have no objection, please obey my command and bow to the Guards together."

Cao Zhen knew in his heart that now that he was outside Xiabian City, the pattern of besieging the Shu army from the east and west had been formed, and there would be no more strategic changes. What the commander-in-chief needed to do was to supervise the troops and generals to fight hard to avoid any discord.

Cao Zhen had always been aware of Wei Zhen's abilities and believed that he was qualified for the job.

Wei Zhen had already prepared himself mentally. He stood with his hands behind his back beside Cao Zhen, looking at everyone in the tent with a stern look.

Among all the generals in Guanxi, apart from Cao Zhen's fake jieyue and Zhang He's fake jieyue, Wei Zhen's jieyue was the one who best represented His Majesty's status. In fact, in the late Han Dynasty and early Wei Dynasty, the fake jieyue, fake jieyue, jieyue, etc. all represented the emperor, and there was no difference in rank. The specific decision still depended on the emperor's will. No one dared to question Wei Zhen's status.

Fei Yao bowed quickly, and Guo Huai, Cheng Xi and other generals followed suit. Only Du Xi stared at Cao Zhen's face for a long time before he sighed and bowed.

Cao Zhen did not do anything about handing over the seal. Everyone knew that Wei Zhen's status was noble, and just holding the imperial seal was enough.

Wei Zhen cleared his throat and said in a deep voice: "There are nearly 50,000 troops fighting here. The general and I have discussed that three days later, that is, November 13, we will advance from the east and west at the same time and press down on the Shu army. In this battle, the Wei Dynasty will win!"

"Must win!"

"Must win!"

"The Great Wei will win!"

All the generals started to cheer together. However, although this kind of encouragement was full of energy, it still seemed a bit perfunctory, and all the generals' eyes were fixed on Cao Zhen.

Cao Zhen was also a man who had spent most of his life in the army. Seeing this scene, how could he not know what the generals were thinking? After a long sigh, he shouted softly: "Uncle Zhao, Gongwei, help me stand up."

"Yes, father." Cao Xun replied in a low voice, and Fei Yao hurried over to help.

With the help of Cao Xun and Fei Yao, Cao Zhen managed to stand firmly. He rested for a while with his hand on his forehead, and then said to everyone: "Everyone, since the power and responsibility here have been transferred to Wei Pushe, I will take the carriage back to Chencang now."

Are you going back now? It's already dark outside, which is really puzzling.

Du Xi was surprised for a moment: "General, it's getting late, why are you in such a hurry? Can't you leave tomorrow morning? Please take care of your health and don't be too anxious."

Cao Zhen shook his head slightly: "One army cannot have two masters. Let's go now and rest in Hechi. Military Advisor, you also come back to Chencang with me. I still need your help with the food and grass matters."

How could Du Xi not understand? He said he was helping with food and logistics, but in fact, it was because his position of not wanting to fight in the past few days was inconsistent with the situation, so they took the opportunity to take him away to prevent him from getting in the way!
Du Xi bowed and said, "General, I obey your orders. But every word I have said these days is out of the public interest, and heaven and earth can bear witness to that!"

Cao Zhen nodded, glanced at Wei Zhen again, and then said nothing more. With the help of Cao Xun and Fei Yao, he put on his fur coat and walked out of the tent slowly. The wind and snow outside the tent had become stronger, and the cold wind rushed into the tent, blowing the bright flames of the firewood in the stove to jump.

Cao Zhen left resolutely without stopping. The military order was issued from the camp at night, and on the morning of the 12th, Zhang He in the west also received the order from Wei Zhen.

The sky was gray and there was a thin layer of snow on the ground outside the military tent. Zhang He looked at the military order for a long time, then looked up at the weather before ordering Lu Xun, Chen Ping and Li Yan to come to his side.

"This is the military order issued by the general." Zhang He waved the military report at the three people and said, "Tomorrow the whole army will march forward and attack from the east and west."

Li Yan had no position and was considered an idle person. Lu Xun and Chen Ping both bowed and accepted the order. Zhang He stared at them for a few seconds before continuing:
"There is one more thing you two should know. Due to the heavy workload on military affairs, the general's headache recurred and he has already set out to return to Chencang. The whole army is led by Wei Gongzhen, who holds the imperial seal. The troops under my command and General Lu's are also under the command of Wei Gongzhen."

Chen Ping didn't say anything, but Lu Xun hesitated: "We are in the west, blocking the Shu army's way back, while the rest of the army is in the east. Does the Wei Pushe military order say what to do if the Shu army marches towards us?"

Zhang He stroked his beard and sighed, and handed the general's order to Lu Xun: "Bo Yan, take a look yourself. Wei Gongzhen has made it clear that we must hold our ground and not retreat, considering the overall situation. This battle cannot be lost again for Zhuge Liang, and for Wei, the Shu army cannot be allowed to retreat easily. We must break the backbone of the Shu army!"

Lu Xun looked at the document and silently handed it back to Zhang He: "What do you think, General Zhang?"

Zhang He asked in return: "What does Bo Yan mean?"

Lu Xun bowed his head slightly. "The Art of War says to surround three places and leave one place open, so as to prevent the trapped beast from fighting to the death. General Zhang and I are in the west, which is not a good position indeed."

Zhang He took the letter, put it back in his sleeve, looked up at the sky again, sighed and said slowly: "The military order is like this, just follow it. In any case, the anxiety these days is really unbearable. Just fight! Boyan is also a veteran of many battles, he has fought in countless battles, big and small, he should understand this principle."

Lu Xun responded, "General Zhang is right. We should just follow his orders. Why worry about fortune or disaster?" At the same time, in Wei Yan's camp, several miles away from Zhang He's camp, Zhuge Liang and all the generals in the army gathered here. They climbed up the gentle slope south of the camp and looked at Wei Yan's camp and the surrounding terrain together.

"If nothing unexpected happens, this will be the battlefield tomorrow. Everyone, take a look." Zhuge Liang raised his hand and pointed to the mountain valleys on the north and south sides, and said loudly.

Before the Qiang Rebellion a hundred years ago, Wudu County was also a densely populated area, with a population of at least 100,000 households. After several Qiang Rebellions, warlord melees at the end of the Han Dynasty, and years of competition between Cao and Liu, Wudu County was completely turned into an uninhabited area with no people living there.

Among the counties of Wudu, Xiabian was the seat of the county in the past. The vast valleys between the mountains from Sazayama to the vicinity of Xiabian City were once fertile fields, but now they are overgrown with weeds and have become wilderness again.

Wei Yan's camp was located in the middle of the wilderness, blocking the path from the west to the lower reaches. The flat land was about two miles wide, and to the south were hills about two or three miles wide, and further south were insurmountable mountains. To the north were low hills, and Wei Yan also found two strategic locations to build small camps in the north of the camp.

After hearing Zhuge Liang's words, the generals behind him looked at the surrounding terrain. Except for the three generals Wang Ping, Gao Xiang, and Ma Zhong who stayed in the east, and the Right General Zong Yu who stayed in Xiabian City, all the other generals came here.

General Zhenbei Wei Yan and General Liu Yong who commanded 8,000 infantry, General Yingyang Chen Shi who led 3,000 troops, as well as General Suppressing Rebellion Wu Ban, General Ningyuan Huang Xi, General Zuo Zhonglang Ju Fu, and Tiger Infantry Captain Meng Yan who were directly under Prime Minister Zhuge's command, were all behind Zhuge Liang.

Chief Clerk Yang Yi and Military Assistant Fei Yi were also here.

Wei Yan was most familiar with the geography of this place. He raised his hands and asked, "I just heard from the Prime Minister that we will attack tomorrow. I wonder how the battle situation in the east is going?"

Zhuge Liang said slowly, "In the past two days, the Wei army has been making more and more moves in the east. The military camp that used to be two miles away has also been digging trenches and building low walls to approach our military camp. According to this trend, it will only take two or three days for the Wei army to launch a full-scale advance."

"In that case, I will distribute the military orders here!"

Zhuge Liang's tone became a little heavier, and the generals behind him also responded solemnly.

Zhuge Liang turned around and looked straight at Wei Yan: "Wei Yan!"

"I'm here!" Wei Yan bowed.

Zhuge Liang said: "Among all the armies of the Han Dynasty, yours is the most powerful. Tomorrow we will attack Zhang He and use your troops as the front center to destroy the enemy's power!"

"I obey your command!" Wei Yan replied in a deep voice.

"Liu Yong!"

"My subordinate is here!"

Zhuge Liang said: "Your unit will be the right wing of the front army. Use the mountain to push forward and coordinate with General Wei on both sides!"

"Yes, sir!" Liu Yong shouted.

"Chen style!"

"My subordinate is here!"

"I order your troops to be the left wing of the front army. Cooperate with General Wei and move forward. There must be no mistakes!"

"Please rest assured, Prime Minister. I will fight to the death!" Chen Shi said in a firm voice.

"Wu Ban, Huang Xi!"

"I'm here!" the two of them answered at the same time.

Zhuge Liang said: "General Wu's troops will be the central army of our army, following behind General Wei. General Huang will follow behind General Chen."

"In addition, Ju Fu and Meng Yan, the two of you are my rear guard and will follow my orders."

"Yes!"

Zhuge Liang nodded slowly, looking at the vague outline of Zhang He's camp to the west, and said in a deep voice:

"In the previous northern expeditions, I attacked while the enemy defended, and I suffered greatly. Now, relying on God's help, the Wei army will attack from both sides. Wang Ping's 10,000 men are enough to resist Cao Zhen. I will lead 21,000 men to meet Zhang He and avenge the defeat at Chiting two years ago."

"The restoration of the Han Dynasty depends on this battle! Everyone, do your best!"

(End of this chapter)