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

Chapter 196 Heading North and Heading South

"So, in order to launch a surprise attack on Huainan, Jia Kui did not go directly east along the Huai River to Shouchun, but instead first went south to Xiyang, and then marched along the northern foothills of the Dabie Mountains?"

"So the men Wen Ping sent into the mountains earlier were not to contact Wen Dai at Wuyang Pass, but to warn Jia Kui on the other side of the mountain to be wary of my group?"

After capturing the three passes of Yiyang, overcoming physical and geographical obstacles.

Intelligence from the Huai River and Runan directions was gradually uncovered.

Mi Wei was finally able to get a glimpse of the various deployments of the Wei army on the two fronts.

This resolved many of the earlier doubts.

To be honest, it's because I know "history".

The marching routes and military deployments of the Wei army were not actually unexpected to him.

But this does not mean he can underestimate his enemies.

On the contrary, when he actually came to these places and learned about the terrain, landforms, and local customs, he became more aware of them.

I have come to a deeper understanding of how much a march and mobilization of troops over a distance of nearly a thousand miles tests the comprehensive military capabilities of generals and commanders.

Take, for example, Jia Kui's surprise attack this time.

It is said that nearly 30,000 soldiers, 50,000 to 60,000 laborers, and millions of units of grain, fodder, and weapons were conscripted.

Mi Wei had only seen military operations of this scale two years ago when he followed Liu Bei on his northern expedition to Longyou.

If he were in charge, he would simply rely on the Huai River system to flow eastward.

Even so, there's no guarantee that nothing will go wrong.

How did Jia Kui manage to advance smoothly even when he was far from the river?

Mi Wei was both confused and impressed, and at the same time secretly rejoiced.

Fortunately, I arrived at the perfect time, just when Jia Kui had already traveled most of the way and was unable to turn back.

Of course, this is assuming Jia Kui can turn back at any time.

The three gatekeepers, led by Wen Dai, are unlikely to surrender so easily.

It can only be said that military intelligence and human relationships must be considered together.

In short, not only have the three passes been captured, but Runan, the heartland of the Central Plains, is now undoubtedly vulnerable.

Given Miwei's position, he is bound to take action.

Even if it wasn't to save a certain King of Wu of Wei.

Shouldn't we make some small, insignificant contribution to Guan Yu's army in Nanyang?

"The heartland of Cao Wei is right before our eyes, where should we strike first..."

As Mi Wei looked at the captured maps and books, his mind immediately became active.

North of Yiyang Sanguan, the first thing you face are the four Huaihe River counties of Meng, Pingchun, Yiyang, and Anyang.

Among them, Meng and Pingchun are in Huainan, both belonging to Jiangxia Commandery.

Yiyang and Anyang are located north of the Huai River.

The former was located in Nanyang Commandery.

The latter was located in Runan Commandery.

These four locations actually represent two different routes of advance.

If Miwei wants to move towards Nanyang, he should first take Pingchun in the northwest, and then cross the river to take Yiyang.

Afterwards, they could establish a foothold in the two cities or harass the Wei army's supply lines to Nanyang from the north.

Alternatively, they could capture several small towns on the eastern flank of Wan County for Guan Yu, further isolating Xiahou Shang and Xu Huang.

These all have great potential.

Although this route did not penetrate deep into the heart of Runan County, it had already reached the edge.

You can easily reach Ancheng, the capital of Yuzhou, by simply wandering around.

This could somewhat disrupt the counties behind Jia Kui, thereby affecting his ability to subsequently wage war in Huainan.

As for the other direction, it is to first take Meng County in the northeast, and then cross the river to take Anyang.

This direction is certainly closer to the Huainan battlefield.

But it really was only "a little" closer.

This was not enough to directly support Sun Quan.

Therefore, it is necessary to continue to penetrate deeper into the counties of Huaibei and Runan, harass and plunder everywhere, and even probe Xinxi, where the county seat is located.

If we can alarm Cao Pi in Luoyang, and force him to issue an edict to mobilize troops from various regions, such as Jia Kui's troops who are closest to us.

That would roughly achieve the strategic goal of "besieging Wei to rescue Wu".

At the same time, it can also relieve some of the pressure on Guan Yu's army in the Nanyang direction.

As for crossing the Ru River further, or even heading north to Yingchuan, or even directly to the eight passes of Luoyang... well, anything is possible in a dream.

In short, there are two routes.

Heading northwest would be more direct and effective in helping Guan Yu, but less so in helping Sun Quan, and it would also require gambling on Jia Kui's strategic resolve.

Heading northeast would not be as directly helpful to Guan Yu, but it would be much more effective in helping Sun Quan.

After careful consideration, Miwei decided to head northwest. This wasn't solely due to differences in kinship.

Furthermore, due to the eastern route, he needed to penetrate deep behind enemy lines for a wide-ranging feint and sabotage.

It is difficult to operate, high-risk, and the returns are not guaranteed.

It would be more worthwhile to directly assist Guan Yu.

Having made up his mind, Mi Wei immediately ordered all the troops in Jiangxia to quickly head north from the three passes.

At the same time, spies were sent to Pingchun County to try to persuade them to surrender.

By mid-June, Mi Wei had amassed over ten thousand troops near Pingchun City.

Of Xiang Chong's troops, there were still more than 3,000 infantrymen remaining.

Mi Wei still had about two thousand infantrymen left from Nan Commandery.

The former was still under the command of Xiang Chong, while the latter was handed over to Ma Zhong.

In addition, there were more than 10,000 auxiliary troops, all of whom were gathered by prefects such as Liao Hua and Deng Zhi from all over the country to provide full support.

Prefect Deng Zhi of Jiangxia personally went north to Wuyang Pass to oversee the situation, looking after Mi Wei and managing logistics.

In addition, Miwei concentrated the cavalry from various units for use.

Even the two hundred Hu horses that Liu Bei gifted to Sun Quan were directly blackened.

In the end, a total of over eight hundred cavalrymen were gathered.

It is divided into two parts, front and back.

The vanguard of four hundred cavalry was led by Wang Ping.

The rear 400 cavalrymen were led by Mi Wei himself, with Jiang Wei as their deputy.

The latter, having distinguished himself in assisting in the capture of the three passes, has been promoted by Mi Wei to the rank of Attendant Gentleman.

Finally, I got a decent, substantive position.

With well-trained troops and ample provisions, Mi Wei immediately marched towards Pingchun County.

One day later.

The local county officials, who had long been divided by spies, opened the gates and surrendered, handing over their official seals.

Mi Wei successfully captured the first city on the Huai River.

After this.

They entered the city, set up camp, prepared their troops and horses, allocated provisions, and gathered nearby boats to cross the Huai River to the north.

At the same time, spies were dispatched to the other side of the river to persuade Yiyang County to surrender.

This time, however, the people of Yiyang County not only refused to surrender, but even killed the messengers sent to persuade them to surrender.

Although Mi Wei did not expect to be easily persuaded to surrender, the other party's resolute resistance still exceeded his expectations.

It was a small county town with a garrison of less than a thousand men.

Who gave them the courage?
That section of the upper reaches of the Huai River, which is not actually that wide?

Regardless, we must advance north; this city will surely fall.

Therefore, after Mi Wei had gathered enough ships, he immediately supervised the construction of a pontoon bridge to cross the river and attack the city.

……

Summer showers come and go suddenly.

Just like the expression on Sun Lang's face, sometimes he was overjoyed, and sometimes he was terrified.

He could only occasionally jump into the Ru River to clear his mind with the cool water and fight off his increasingly restless heart.

It's impossible not to be restless.

Since he came down from the mountain, his forces have grown steadily, far exceeding the original thousand or so men.

When we arrived at Liang County, there was a huge crowd of people. Standing in the middle, I couldn't see the beginning or the end of the line.

Ten thousand people?

Twenty thousand people?
Thirty thousand people?
Sun Lang has lost count.

He had never commanded an army of this size in his entire life.

To put it even more bluntly.

He had never seen so many people walking together at the same time in his entire life!
So it's less about him commanding these people on the march.

It's more accurate to say that everyone just happened to be traveling together, starving, and randomly picked someone to be their leader.

This is precisely the kind of "rebel army" or, in other words, displaced people of this size.

The government cannot turn a blind eye.

What if the soldiers arrive?
Tens of thousands of people scattered in panic, creating chaos. His thousand or so men were probably swallowed up by the torrent in an instant!
Just when Sun Lang was completely at a loss.

A middle-aged man dressed as an official rode up on horseback.

Upon seeing the other person's face clearly, Sun Lang felt as if he had been granted a pardon and took the initiative to step forward.

"Mr. Li, you've finally arrived!"

(End of this chapter)