The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 142 Give it a try

Several days later, Liu Bei's central army arrived at the south bank of the Wei River, west of Ji County.

Meanwhile, Huang Quan's vanguard had already captured Luomen, the westernmost point of Tianshui County.

It was also an important stronghold on the south bank of the Wei River.

In reality, although the counties of Longyou and Guanzhong in Longzuo are separated by the Longshan Mountains, they appear to be divided into two geographical units.

However, because the Wei River runs through the middle from east to west, it still maintains a certain degree of connectivity.

This is why when Cao Pi re-established Liangzhou last year (it had been abolished at the end of the Han Dynasty), he specifically kept Longyou in Yongzhou.

It is precisely through the Wei River basin that it connects Longyou and then controls Liangzhou to the west.

So, returning to the present situation, Liu Bei, in a surprise attack on Didao to participate in the siege of Su Ze, would naturally take whichever route was the shortest.

That being said, it was still a long-distance raid involving tens of thousands of troops.

If logistics can't keep up, the raid will become a joke.

Therefore, a temporary camp was specially set up in Zhuwei Mountain, southwest of Ji County.

Used for stockpiling supplies and as a backup for the main army.

Later, the military governor Zhang Nan was in charge of the garrison.

On this day, Mi Wei, in his capacity as military supervisor, passed through this area to transport grain and fodder.

Zhao Yun suddenly sent an urgent report.

It is said that Guo Huai, the governor of Yongzhou under Cao Wei, suddenly crossed the Longshan Mountains from the Wei River valley along the Chencang-Linwei line.

The vanguard has already reached Shanggui, a major town in the southeast of Ji County.

The size of Guo Huai's forces is currently unknown.

Zhao Yun asked Liu Bei whether he would still launch a westward attack.

If so, should he continue to hold the area around Xixian and Lucheng?

If Guo Huai were to march south and recapture these two cities, the Wei army would sever the connection between the Qishan camp and Liu Bei's main force.

If this happens, Liu Bei will be at a loss unless he successfully reaches Didao and joins forces with Ma Chao and Wu Yi.

Upon hearing this news, Mi Wei didn't even have time for lunch and rushed back to Liu Bei's central camp overnight.

When he finally met Liu Bei...

Huang Quan, the commander of the vanguard, sent another urgent report from Luomen.

It is said that scouts discovered a large army, suspected to be that of Zhang Ji, the governor of Liangzhou under Cao Wei, deep in the mountains north of the Wei River.

News from both sides piled up.

The entire Xingzai Bureau was immediately thrown into an uproar!

The two Cao Wei reinforcements, one from the east and one from the west, arrived neither too early nor too late.

They all arrived at the same time, precisely after Liu Bei had headed north.

Could it have been pre-arranged?

Looking at it this way, the fact that the Ji County garrison had taken the initiative to retreat earlier seems even more suspicious.

Of course, there are still some doubts.

For example, Liu Bei's decision to turn west, while not entirely unpredictable, was still largely a matter of chance.

Since Zhang came from the direction of Liangzhou, it's possible to guess.

But what about Guo Huai from Guanzhong?
For example, the strength of the two enemy reinforcements has not yet been ascertained.

The size of the enemy forces directly determined whether they were coming to ambush Liu Bei or simply to defend Longyou.

It should be noted that Liu Bei's main force, after deducting the three thousand soldiers Zhao Yun left to guard Qishan, still numbered close to thirty thousand.

This doesn't even include the young and strong Di people who came to join earlier.

It's not something Wei Jun can simply wrap up like dumplings.

But precisely because it was a surprise attack, speed was of the essence.

A decision must be made as soon as possible.

Just when Liu Bei was caught in a dilemma.

Fu Jian, a powerful and influential figure from the Di people, suddenly requested an audience.

"You mean that Zhang didn't come from Yuzhong to rescue Longyou on his own initiative, but was defeated and retreated because he couldn't defeat the generals of Liangzhou?"

Liu Bei stared intently at Fu Jian, his gaze so sharp it seemed as if he wanted to devour him.

Fu Jian dared not meet his gaze, and quickly replied with his head down:
"We have received Your Majesty's great favor in saving some of our clansmen. How could we not think of repaying this kindness?"

"This matter was indeed obtained by my clansmen at great risk from Ji County. They said that Zhang Ji had already sent envoys across the river to summon the local powerful families!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei suddenly stood up and paced back and forth around the map.

A moment later, he turned to Miwei Road:
"What do you think, Qing?"

Miwei countered:

"Does Your Majesty think it's closer to go to Didao from Yuzhong or to come here?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei's breath hitched, and he said:
"So Zhang Ji was indeed defeated and unable to join forces with Su Ze, who was nearby, he could only flee to the mountain valleys north of the Wei River to avoid being pursued by the Qiang cavalry?"

Mi Wei cautiously replied, "I believe the possibility of retreat or rescue is fifty-fifty."

"Since Su and Zhang have divided their troops, it means that they neither want to completely give up Hexi, nor do they want to lose Longyou."

"But as the cavalry, together with the Qiang people, blocked Su Ze's retreat, Zhang Ji had to make a choice between the two." "He was either trying to rescue Su Ze, but unfortunately he was defeated by the Qiang cavalry on the way and eventually ended up here."

"Or they might have abandoned Hexi to protect Longyou from the beginning, but to avoid encountering the Qiang cavalry, they chose to travel through the mountain valleys north of the Wei River."

"Or perhaps he really did have an agreement with Guanzhong to ambush the imperial carriage from afar... But what then?"

"The current situation is..."

"With Zhang Ji's arrival from afar, in Didao, Yuzhong, and the entire Hexi horse-breeding area, only Su Ze's Wei army remains capable of fighting!"

"Even if it really is Wei army bait, as long as the royal army annihilates Su Ze's troops first, no one can stop His Majesty from swallowing Liangzhou in the short term!"

Upon hearing the words "Liangzhou".

Liu Bei's breathing suddenly became heavy.

Tiger's eyes stared intently at Mi Wei.

Miwei met his gaze without fear.

Because he knew that what Lao Liu needed most right now was not a sycophantic minister.

He wasn't even a strategist who analyzed and planned for him.

Instead, he was a teammate who encouraged him and strengthened his resolve.

It's just that Mi Wei really couldn't write a masterpiece like "Ten Victories and Ten Defeats," otherwise he would have wanted to write it on the spot and make a name for himself in history.

That day, Old Liu said at the foot of Qishan Mountain that what he had fought for all his life was a sense of pride.

Now is the crucial moment to fight for this cause!

Even if it's bait, we have to swallow it!
After a moment, Liu Bei calmed down a bit and said:

"So what about Guo Huai?"

Miwei pointed to the Guanzhong region on the map and said:

"Since ancient times, there have been two routes for troops from Longzuo to Longyou."

"One route is through the Wei River valley from Chencang to Linwei."

"Secondly, it turns north from Chencang to Qianshui, passes through Yumi and Qianxian, crosses the gentlest section of Longban, and then heads south from Jieting."

"If we only consider the distance, it's shorter to take the route along the Wei River."

"However, the section of the Wei River that passes through the Longshan Mountains is characterized by steep cliffs, deep ravines, and narrow roads, which are not conducive to the passage of a large army."

"On the contrary, although the Qian River Valley is a long detour, the road is much flatter, which is conducive to the army's departure from Longyou."

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei understood Mi Wei's meaning.

Since Guo Huai chose to take the "narrow path," it means that his troops would not be too large.

This further illustrates that Cao Wei's army in Guanzhong was indeed constrained by factors such as the mountain bandits of Fengyi, the Lushui Hu of Anding, and Wei Yan who marched out of Xiegu.

If Zhao Yun were to be cautious, he might not necessarily be unable to defend Qishan.

"As for me," Liu Bei clenched his fist.

"It's time to go all out and launch a full-scale attack westward!"

Hey!
The fist is thrown, and there's no turning back.

Liu Bei immediately replied to Zhao Yun, instructing him to prioritize the preservation of the area south of Qishan.

As for when to abandon the two cities of Xi and Lu, that is up to them to decide.

If necessary, the Qishan camp can be abandoned.

He then deliberately left the emperor's yellow canopy and left the left banner behind Zhang Nan, and instead rode in the carriage of Feng Xi, the governor of the central region, westward.

This was done to lull the enemy in Weibei and Jixian into a false sense of security.

After all, Huang Quan was able to discover Zhang Ji in Weibei.

Zhang Ji naturally found Huang Quan in Weinan without much difficulty.

The two sides are separated only by the Wei River Valley, passing each other between the mountain gullies on both banks.

At this point, it comes down to who has the stronger strategic resolve and the more efficient tactical execution.

As it turned out, the intelligence that the Fu Jian people risked their lives to gather was reliable, at least in the most crucial part.

When Liu Bei's central army arrived at Luomen, Huang Quan came to report again.

It was said that Zhang Ji had marched so quickly to this point that the army had become separated from the main force, and the supplies had fallen far behind.

The nearest grain depot is located in a valley north of Luomen.

This is also a matter of course.

The journey from Yuzhong to Jixian is nearly 500 li.

No matter how capable Zhang Ji himself was, how could his army not be affected by such a long and arduous expedition?

At the very least, the negative state of "a spent arrow cannot pierce even the finest silk" is always unavoidable, right?

Not to mention, this intelligence corresponds to Zhang Ji's dispatch of an envoy to Ji County.

It was clearly a shortage of supplies that necessitated requisitioning on the spot.

Thus, a natural opportunity for a fighter jet emerged:
Send a detachment north to destroy Zhang Ji's grain depots, thus eliminating the possibility of him returning to Liangzhou in the short term.

This gave Liu Bei a valuable opportunity to conquer Hexi.

This time, Liu Bei did not hesitate at all and appointed Mi Wei as his general!
(End of this chapter)