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

Chapter 265 Uniting Forces Inside the Pass, Connecting East and West

"Does Master Shan have a way to quickly capture Chang'an?"

On the city wall, Guan Ping stared wide-eyed at Mi Wei.

It was less a sense of surprise and more a sense of anticipation.

Mi Wei glanced at the nearly intact Wuguan Pass at his feet, but did not reply.

Asked rhetorically:
"How many days did it take your unit to capture Wuguan? How much did you suffer in losses?"

Guan Ping immediately replied:
"From the initial attack on the city to the first wave entering the city, it took no more than five days."

"Less than 10% of the soldiers were killed; most of them were civilians who were shot by the garrison when they were filling in the trenches in the first two days."

Seeing that Mi Wei nodded without speaking, Guan Ping thought for a moment and then reminded him:
"Although the losses in this battle were not significant, Wuguan's reputation is well-deserved."

"It was only because when I knocked on the gate that Generals Zhang, Wei, and Zhao had already ridden into the pass, and the Wei army had no need to defend Wu Pass alone."

"This battle was less about our troops breaking through Wuguan, and more about the Wei army at Wuguan receiving orders from the rear to voluntarily retreat and vacate the pass."

Miwei then responded:
"It seems that Cao Pi and Sima Yi really intend to outlive the old man."

"No wonder Cao Pi wanted to enter Guanzhong to boost morale, but then temporarily stopped at the treacherous and narrow place of Hongnong... This is to prevent our army from having any chance to accelerate the decisive battle!"

Before Guan Yu and Zhang Fei could even ponder the meaning of "old man Ao," he quickly followed up with:
"If we only consider military factors, the Wei army is delaying the decisive battle, and we have only two ways to deal with it."

"One is to follow the Prime Minister's current plan, first consolidate the cities and passes that have already been captured, and then advance step by step to Chang'an."

"Although this method is slow and costly, it can still ensure that the military situation will not change significantly in the event of a mishap."

"As long as we withstand this offensive by the Wei army, our army will have a firm foothold in Guanzhong, and Chang'an will be within our grasp sooner or later."

Guan Ping and Zhang Yi nodded in agreement.

Both men learned of Zhuge Liang's orders through different channels.

"Second."

“We should do the opposite, disregard the gains and losses of the pass and ignore the Xianbei people, raise a large army and take Chang’an.”

"The importance of Chang'an is known throughout the land. If we capture this city, the Wei army will have no choice but to fight, even if they don't want to."

This time, Guan Ping did not nod.

Zhang Yi stated even more bluntly:
"Does Your Excellency intend to use 'city-capturing cannons' to quickly capture Chang'an?"

Mi Wei nodded and said:
"That's exactly what I was thinking. Otherwise, why would I have been in such a hurry to summon Lord Zhang to the north?"

"But don't worry, Lord Zhang, now that I know the shortcomings of this cannon, I will not place all my hopes for victory on it."

"To be honest, after I learned of Cao Pi's movements, my strategy was to play it safe."

“However, we can all seek stability and wait another year, two years, or even ten years.”

"Your Majesty... if I may be so bold as to say this, I'm afraid we can't wait any longer."

Hearing this, both of them felt somewhat disheartened.

But it was just a somber mood.

The seriousness of matters of national importance dictates that one cannot act on emotion at such times.

The two also knew that Mi Wei was definitely not someone who couldn't distinguish between what was important and what wasn't.

Mi Wei: "In fact, if His Majesty had not been seriously ill, the emperor himself would have been able to lead the expedition to Chang'an, which would not only have boosted the morale of the three armies but also intimidated the enemy."

"Even those mountain bandits of Fengyi, the Xianbei chieftains, will probably all be opportunistic and difficult for Cao Pi to use."

Upon hearing this, Guan Ping finally understood Mi Wei's intentions.

His body tensed slightly, and he solemnly advised:
"That's where the problem lies."

"His Majesty is indeed seriously ill."

"The fact that we were able to successfully exit Baoxie Road is already a testament to the Prime Minister's efforts and the blessings of Heaven."

"If we insist on personally leading the army again... even if we only travel by carriage to the gates of Chang'an, something terrible will happen!"

Zhang Yi also advised:
"How could you generals not know the significance of the Emperor's personal campaign? And how could you not know that His Majesty longs for Chang'an?"

"But if this shortens the emperor's lifespan and we fail to quickly capture Chang'an, it would be a losing proposition!"

Therefore, although the generals fought desperately, none of them dared to disturb the carriage too much.

Zhang Yi paused slightly, stepped forward, and lowered his voice:
"A critical argument: If the emperor were to die in the midst of a battle between two armies, the general commanding the troops, regardless of whether he acted with impartiality or not, would inevitably be criticized by the world in the future."

"Your Excellency is young and promising, with a bright future ahead of you. Why take this risk?"

Yes.

Why did I have to defy the world and cause trouble one last time before Lao Liu died?

Why can't we just follow Zhuge Liang's plan, weather this storm steadily, and then slowly take Chang'an?
On his way to Wuguan, Mi Wei asked himself these questions countless times.

But when he actually arrived here, he remembered Emperor Zhaolie of Han, who is still one of his spiritual pillars.

All his previous concerns had long been put aside. Apart from military considerations, he did have some other factors to consider.

More importantly.

He simply wanted to fulfill Liu Bei's wish.

To restore the Han dynasty and return to the old capital.

If the former really can't wait any longer.

At least it remains the old capital.

In the capacity of the Emperor of the Han Dynasty.

They entered the capital of the Han Empire with dignity and honor.

Then die a spectacular death here.

Just like the emperors of the Han Dynasty who were buried around Chang'an.

This serves as proof to future generations.

The ideal that this group of people fought for.

It wasn't called the Shu Kingdom.

He should be called a "big man".

Once his thoughts had settled, Mi Wei said to the two of them:
"I've made up my mind."

"If I cause trouble this time, I will take full responsibility and will not implicate you all."

"Before that, I hope you gentlemen will lend your full support and join me in taking Chang'an!"

Upon hearing this, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei recalled Mi Wei's past achievements and could only sigh slightly.

In the end, they didn't stop them anymore.

……

As a powerful herdsman holding the reins of authority and guarding the region, when Miwei made his decision...

Unless figures of Liu Bei, Guan Yu, or Zhuge Liang come forward to express their explicit opposition.

Otherwise, even a veteran like Zhang Fei wouldn't have been able to stop Mi Wei's actions.

Guan Yu clearly supported Mi Wei.

I even feel a little regretful that I couldn't come with Miwei.

Since the Battle of Wuling, Liu Bei and Guan Yu had not seen each other for four or five years.

But that's the norm in this era.
In short, Cao Pi's whereabouts and the Wei army's strategy gradually became clear.

The strategic direction of the Ji Han Jingzhou army was also quickly adjusted.

Guan Yu and the generals of Fangcheng, who were originally the main force of the attack, switched from offense to defense.

Deploy defenses along the Ru River.

From north to south, Guangcheng Pass, Liang County, Jia County, Fucheng, Xiangcheng, Dingling, and Yan County together formed the front line of defense against the invasion of the Wei army in Luoying.

The original Fangcheng defensive perimeter has become the second line of defense.

Guan Yu personally stationed himself at Kunyang, guarding the vital passage into Nanyang.

This undoubtedly greatly reduces the military maintenance burden in this direction.

The saved manpower and resources were then redirected to the Nanxiang and Wuguan areas in the west.

The supply troops continued their northward advance along the Danshui River valley.

By the end of the first month, thanks to the Wei army's proactive and large-scale withdrawal from Weinan.

Guan Ping successfully opened up the Yaoguan Pass, the uppermost point of the Dan River.

They then quickly seized Lantian and Duling counties, located southeast of Chang'an and along the Ba River.

At the same time, Wei Yan's troops had already entered Hu County, located southwest of Chang'an, between Fufeng and Jingzhao counties.

Therefore, in the Weinan area south of Chang'an.

The armies of Ji Han from Jingzhou and Yizhou successfully made contact.

The two main forces were once separated by the Qinling Mountains, one on the east and one on the west.

Finally, at the end of the first month of the fifth year of Zhangwu.

They formed a line.

Once the road was open, Mi Wei immediately entered the pass to see Liu Bei.

(End of this chapter)