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

Chapter 192 His literary skills rivaled those of Xiao He and Cao Shen, and his military prowess rivaled that of Wei

What are the weaknesses of this section of the Han army's defensive line?
Miwei knew this from the very beginning.

The cavalry was far fewer than the enemy's.

Cavalry was the best and most advanced land-based mobile force of that era.

It can both disrupt enemy formations and break through enemy lines.

It is better able to undertake complex tactical maneuvers such as flanking maneuvers and intercepting enemy forces.

Therefore, the scarcity of cavalry meant that if the Wei army successfully broke through the encirclement, and there were no reserve cavalry, it would be difficult to pursue them.

But after Wenxiu's sudden attack, Miwei still decisively chose to send the six hundred cavalrymen to attack ahead of time.

Because he knew that a veteran like Wen Ping would not act unless he saw a clear opportunity.

They will absolutely not launch a rash attack.

They would rather be trapped in the tunnel and dismount to fight on foot.

They wanted to lure the veteran into making a move.

You must give the other party a suitable opportunity and reason.

Wenpin, as expected, seized this opportunity.

Just as the six hundred Han cavalrymen had finished dealing with the remaining Wei cavalry on the western slope.

The Wei cavalry, still possessing an overwhelming numerical advantage, had already stormed up to the foot of Dongpo.

thereafter.

Under the relentless baptism of arrows, they resolutely followed the banner of words and charged forward.

The momentum only slowed down when it was blocked by a large number of antlers and wooden fences.

On this hillside, Miwei also deployed improved repeating crossbows.

Under the full force of the barrage, three or four hundred cavalrymen were either killed or wounded in a short time, losing their fighting ability.

However, more than a thousand cavalrymen still managed to storm the northwest side of the hill.

At this point, only human effort could stop them.

Without hesitation, Mi Wei beat the drums and marched forward.

The three thousand Han soldiers, who were well prepared, marched in orderly and thunderous steps to fill the gap that was about to be breached.

When the last layer of antlers was overturned, the Han infantry had already stopped and formed their attack formation.

The drumbeats then paused.

At that moment, the entire battlefield seemed to fall into a strange pause.

But the next moment, the Wei army, already battered and bruised but having broken through the encirclement, once again followed the banner with the inscription and charged into the enemy ranks without hesitation.

Meanwhile, the Han troops from all sides on the battlefield also took this opportunity to gather from various places.

In an instant, the battlefield was a scene of carnage, with men and horses falling to the ground.

After nearly a month of intrigue and backstabbing.

The Battle of Jiangxia finally brought about the grand finale.

There were no more ingenious plans.

There will be no more sowing discord or deceit.

All that remains is the most primal, bloody, and instinctive killing.

This battle raged from midday until sunset, and it was still not over.

Under the hazy moonlight, they went through a night battle that was bound to be chaotic, but which they absolutely could not let go of.

Finally, at dawn the following day, the curtain fell.

……

"Rather die than surrender?"

Ma Zhong looked at the official seal of the Prefect of Jiangxia of Cao Wei, stained black with blood, his expression shifting between light and dark.

General Zhao Han had planned this battle for a long time and made thorough preparations.

Although Wen Ping was formidable, he was forced into a passive position, and his defeat was inevitable.

It's simply that the opponent is an experienced veteran and a formidable general.

Even on his deathbed, he still managed to tear a piece of flesh from the enemy, causing considerable losses to the Han army.

The number of regular infantrymen was reduced to just over two thousand.

More than a thousand of the county soldiers died on the spot.

The cavalry, however, suffered minimal losses because they arrived a step too late.

However, considering that we still need to head north to conquer the pass, this loss is truly painful.

However, if this can lead to Wen Ping's surrender, all these sacrifices will be worthwhile.

Unfortunately……

"After Wenpin surrendered to the Cao family, he was cared for by the father and son for many years, so it was inevitable that he would remain chaste."

“Generals of this rank are not easy to recruit. Yu Wenze is one of the few.”

"In short, you two and three have done nothing wrong in this battle!"

Mi Wei comforted Ma Zhong and then ordered him to collect Wen Ping's body to prevent it from being damaged again.

He then ordered Wang Ping, Zhan Sifu, and others to handle miscellaneous matters such as accepting surrenders, treating the wounded, and inventorying spoils of war.

Once the battlefield was mostly cleared up, he took Wenpin's seal and quickly returned to Anlu City to find Prefect Deng Zhi.

Mi Wei: "This is an opportunity we must seize. Our troops will soon march north to the Three Passes."

"I request that Your Excellency use this seal to assist Xiang Juwei in persuading the counties of Sui, Pinglin, Anchang, and Caiyang to surrender, thus ensuring the stability of the eastern flank of the Northern Expeditionary Army." This was the proper course of action, and Deng Zhi had no objection to it.

However, upon receiving the seal of office, he asked with some doubt:

"Although I do not know how the general plans to capture the three passes, now that Wen Ping has been killed, he will surely use the prestige of killing a general to boost his momentum."

"If we don't use official seals, how can we subdue enemy generals? Are we to use corpses?"

Miwei shook his head and said:
“Wenping died upholding his chastity; his body should not be desecrated, lest it anger his son.”

"But I have other ideas about this seal of office."

“Yesterday, Jiang Boyue returned and said that he had thoroughly investigated the three passes. The mountain roads there are treacherous, making communication difficult. Even the small paths can be easily blocked.”

"Therefore, I plan to first send troops to surround the passes and block the roads, so that the three parties will not know each other."

"If the Prefect could then persuade a few counties to surrender and bring their magistrates and chiefs to the pass, wouldn't that be far more convincing than mere inanimate objects?"

Deng Zhi suddenly realized.

If you break through one of the three barriers, the remaining two become meaningless to defend.

Therefore, if there is a lack of trust between each other, timely communication is necessary.

Deng Zhi: "General, this plan seems familiar!"

Mi Wei chuckled:
"It was the very strategy we devised two years ago to allocate the counties and prefectures of Hexi!"

"However, the Hexi region is vast, and it is difficult to implement such measures. At that time, we can only rely on the methods of His Majesty and the gentlemen."

"The three passes are currently narrow and easy to maneuver, and I alone am sufficient to handle them!"

"In the end, our army has already cracked the toughest nut; all that's left is to go with the flow!"

Deng Zhi nodded heavily.

Suddenly, he pointed to a paper letter on the table and laughed:

"Yesterday, Zhuge Qiao wrote a letter saying that his brother was praising Lu Boyan's achievements everywhere, saying that he had quelled the Qichun Rebellion and was a match for ten thousand men in the world, not comparable to the generals of the western neighbor."

"But when these words reached his father's ears, he immediately wrote a letter to rebuke him, saying that Mi Zhao was comparable to Xiao He and Cao Shen in literature and to Wei Qing and Huo Qubing in martial arts. If he were arrogant and looked down on heroes, he would surely bring disaster upon himself in the future!"

When Mi Wei heard this, he simply assumed that Zhuge Ke was indulging in his delusions of grandeur again and didn't take it seriously.

He then complained:

"Why does Lord Zhuge have to use the analogy of Xiao He, Cao Shen, Wei Qing, and Huo Qubing to teach his son?"

"If others hear these words, won't they think I, Mi Wei, am arrogant and look down on heroes?"

But Deng Zhi said:

"However, Zhuge Ziyu also said in his letter that he was comparable to Xiao He and Cao Shen in civil affairs and to Wei Qing and Huo Qubing in military affairs. This was Lu Boyan's private assessment of the general!"

Miwei's expression immediately turned strange.

No.

Why is Lu Xun starting to brag about me too?

……

North of the Nanyang Basin lies a majestic mountain range stretching for hundreds of miles, known as the Funiu Mountains.

The Funiu Mountains and the nearby Xiong'er Mountains block the north-south passage, dividing the Nanyang Basin and Luoyang Basin into two major plates, north and south.

Legend has it that after Laozi (Li Er) left Hangu Pass, he traveled all over the world and eventually lived in seclusion in this mountain.

What is true and what is false, we cannot know.

However, in these chaotic times, this mountain located in the heart of the Central Plains has indeed become a good place for many hermits to escape the world.

After all, a hermit is still a "scholar".

If the world were not in chaos and one were forced to protect oneself, who wouldn't want to help the world and seek fame?
As for Sun Lang of Luhun...

The most famous hermit in the village was Hu Jushi from Yingchuan.

Hu Jushi, whose given name was Zhao and courtesy name was Kongming, was a learned man and a master calligrapher.

However, he did not have the airs of an ordinary scholar and was highly respected by the villagers.

Legend has it that when he was seeking refuge in Ji Province, he refused Yuan Shao's appointment.

Later, upon returning to his hometown, he refused Cao Cao's offer of service and continued to live in seclusion.

Therefore, it became famous for a time.

The villagers' respect for him is largely due to this experience.

After all, Sun Lang and his fellow countrymen neither understood the classics nor calligraphy, so how could they know how skilled Master Hu was?

It's simply based on a basic understanding:

A talent who could simultaneously gain the favor of the Yuan family, a family that had held high office for four generations, and Prime Minister Cao.

That must be a great sage of our time, right?
So four years ago, Sun Lang and others had no choice but to rise up in rebellion and then accept Guan Yu's seal of office.

They had once made a vow to never trespass on the place where Layman Hu lived.

Now, four years later, Sun Lang and his companions are finding life in the mountains increasingly difficult.

Yet he still kept his oath and did not commit any offenses.

Fortunately, the hard times are coming to an end.

Recently, General Guan has once again led his troops on a northern expedition with great momentum, and has already surrounded Cao Cao's army in Wancheng.

It looks like it's about to merge with this area.

Sun Lang and the others finally made up their minds.

General Guan, descending the mountain to Nantou!
On this day, Sun Lang personally came to Hu Zhao's residence, intending to bid farewell to this respected elder of the village.

(End of this chapter)