Dingjun Mountain?
Ever since Zhang He was taught by the emperor on the spot in Qishan and had to compose a poem facing the West Han River, Zhang He no longer found anything the emperor thought strange.
Dingjun Mountain is not a historical site or a tourist attraction. The only thing worth remembering is that it is the site of the war between Wei and Shu in the 24th year of Jian'an.
Zhang He was an eyewitness to that war. How could he not know what the emperor was thinking?
Zhang He bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Dingjun Mountain is ten miles south of Mianyang City. Although it is not far from Mianyang, the army has not yet reached there."
"Hanzhong is not yet pacified. How about waiting for some time and then I will go to the surrounding area to clean up the mess and then invite Your Majesty to stay there."
Cao Rui nodded slightly and was about to speak, but Zhang He continued:
"Your Majesty, after I arrived in Mianyang, I went to look for the tomb of Xiahou Zhengxi. I heard from Fu Xin, the magistrate of Ju County, that Xiahou Zhengxi was buried by Liu Bei at the foot of Dingjun Mountain with the rites of a commoner."
"And I heard that it was Xiahou Qing, the niece of the late Xiahou Zhengxi, who advised Liu Bei that he could be buried."
Cao Rui nodded slightly: "Where is Xiahou He?"
Zhang He cupped his hands and said, "Xiahou Yiquan should be in Chenggu at this time. Your Majesty, do you want me to call him over?"
"In Chenggu?" Cao Rui waved his hand: "Since he has military duties to attend to, we can talk about it after he finishes his military duties."
"The siege of Chenggu has been going on for eight days, right?"
Zhang He nodded and said, "Your Majesty, the defenders of Chenggu refused to surrender. According to the general's intention, he wants to wait until Mianyang is captured before letting me lead the infantry to attack Chenggu."
"This arrangement makes sense." Cao Rui asked, "The deceased Zhang Kai was really unlucky. Let's ask him if he has any descendants or relatives, and choose one of them to inherit the title."
"And the Ju County Magistrate Fu Xin, call him here. I want to see him in person."
Zhang He cupped his hands and said, "I will go and call Fu Xin right away."
A moment later, in the Wei army camp west of Mianyang City.
"Your Majesty, I, Fu Xin, pay my respects to you!" Fu Xin paid his respects with great ceremony, prostrating himself on the ground without daring to breathe or even raise his head.
Cao Rui glanced at the kneeling Fu Xin and asked, "Fu Xin, right? Raise your head! I heard that your family and clan are all in Zitong. Why did you surrender to the Wei Dynasty and ignore your clan?"
This is a multiple-choice question, but also a life-or-death question.
The key to the problem lies in the choice between loyalty and filial piety.
If Fu Xin answered well, he might be entrusted with an important position based on his achievements in the past few days.
If he doesn't answer well, he can only rely on this title to support himself in his old age.
Fu Xin raised his head obediently, still not daring to look at the emperor, and knelt on the ground and said: "Your Majesty, although I once served in Shu, now that I know the will of heaven and have submitted to the Wei, I have no more thoughts of changing my mind."
"The Shu army attempted to invade Wei, but was defeated by the royal army. I think the Shu Kingdom will be destroyed in a short time! Why should I worry about my clan?"
Cao Rui turned his head to look at Zhang He, then at Sima Yi, clapped his hands and smiled, "You are quite quick-witted."
"I am in a good mood today, so I will give you a chance to choose. You are now the magistrate of Ju County with a salary of 500 dan. You can either join the Shangshutai as a Shangshulang, or serve under the Sili Xiaowei, or join the Zhongjun Army as a military officer."
"You choose one."
Fu Xin kowtowed again and replied: "Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your grace. As long as I can serve the Great Wei, I am willing to take any position!"
Cao Rui chuckled and said, "Then go to the Ministry of Civil Affairs. I saw in the military report of the general that you have talent in logistics, so go to the Ministry of Civil Affairs to gain some experience."
"I thank Your Majesty for your grace!" Fu Xin kowtowed again.
After waving his hand to let Fu Xin leave, Cao Rui stood up and went around the camp to inspect it in person, accompanied by Zhang He, Sima Yi and a group of personal soldiers.
Just in the afternoon, news came from Mianyang City, east of the camp.
Facing the ultimatum from the Wei army, defending general Lu Kai was unwilling to surrender to Wei even though he heard that the Wei emperor had come to the city of Mianyang in person. He drew his sword and committed suicide in the government office in the city, and left a will asking Wei to treat the Shu army in the city well.
After Lu Kai's death, the Shu soldiers in the city no longer hesitated and opened the city gates to surrender to the Wei army.
Generals Hao Zhao and Lu Pan led their troops into the city quickly, disarmed and guarded the 2,000 Shu troops in the city, and occupied various key locations in the city.
After hearing the news, Cao Rui just sighed: "When the general situation collapses, it's like mud and sand are washed away."
"Some people, like Fu Xin and He Dan, surrendered and sold their cities and armies to seek wealth and status for themselves. Others, like Zhang Kai, were unlucky and their heads and bodies were separated."
“There are also people like Lu Kai who committed suicide without violating the principle of loyalty and righteousness.”
"General Zhang," Cao Rui turned his head and looked at Zhang He, "Give Lu Kai a proper burial! Such a loyal and righteous man should be buried in peace."
"I understand." Zhang He said, "Since Mianyang City has been captured, why don't you go into the city to rest today? Since leaving Shanggui, Your Majesty has been staying in the army for two months."
"It's okay. I'm used to living in the army. You don't need to be so considerate." Cao Rui looked at Zhang He and said, "Since Mianyang has been taken, I will not go to the cities of Nanzheng and Chenggu in the east."
"I will stay in Mianyang. Leave two thousand infantrymen to me. The rest of the army, you can attack Chenggu! The Chenggu garrison is acting like this and killed the newly appointed Tinghou of Wei. There is no need to persuade them to surrender."
Zhang He replied, "I will leave for Chenggu tomorrow morning!"
……
On the 24th, Cao Rui stayed in Mianyang. Zhang He led his troops eastward to attack Chenggu, the eastern end of Hanzhong. Chenggu was 150 li away from Mianyang, so Zhang He's 8,000 infantry were enough.
With four times the number of troops, it would not be a problem for Zhang He to lead the attack on Chenggu, which was guarded by only 2,000 Shu troops.
Since he had the support of the infantry behind him, there was no need to waste Cao Zhen's more valuable cavalry in siege warfare.
Cao Rui was in Mianyang because, on the one hand, Mianyang was a key location that supported Yangping Pass and connected Ju County and Wuxing.
With the 10,000 cavalrymen provided by Xiahou Xian, if there is an emergency at Wuxing or Yangping Pass, there will be time to provide timely support.
On the other hand, Hanzhong is actually quite monotonous and boring.
Hanzhong is surrounded by mountains. Except for the mountain passes on all sides and a few dangerous places scattered here and there, the rest of the place is plain. It doesn't make much difference whether you are stationed here or there.
"Meng Da?" Cao Rui smiled and looked at Sima Yi: "Why did Sikong think of this person?"
Sima Yi stroked his beard and replied, "The Han River runs through Hanzhong. Shangyong, where Meng Da is, and Xiangyang, where Chen Huqi is, are both beside the Han River."
"Since your Majesty ascended the throne, Meng Da has never paid homage to you once. Now that your Majesty is in Hanzhong and so close, it is time for him to come."
Cao Rui smiled and said, "Hanzhong and Xiangfan are sandwiched between Meng Da. He has no bargaining chips in front of me anymore."
"Then follow the instructions of the Minister of Works and summon Meng Da to Hanzhong to see me! How long will it take for him to arrive?"
Sima Yi replied, "The general's military report this morning said that Nanxiang was conquered with the announcement of the order. The road from Hanzhong to Shangyong is no longer blocked."
"From Mianyang to Shangyong is about 900 li. If we calculate leniently, 20 days is enough for Meng Da."
Cao Rui nodded: "Okay, I will give Meng Da 20 days. I will send an envoy today and ask Meng Da to come to Mianyang to see me within 20 days!"
Sima Yi bowed in agreement.
During the time that Cao Rui set out from Chiting, Zhuge Liang had not moved at Yang'an Pass.
It’s not that Zhuge Liang didn’t want to, but that he couldn’t.
On the one hand, after the news of the defeat at Chiting reached Chengdu, Liu Chan and the ministers in the Chengdu court unanimously agreed that Zhuge Liang should use his troops with caution and not allow the military to lose any more strength.
And the order was issued in the form of an imperial edict.
The so-called "the government is controlled by the Ge family" is just a saying.
How could Liu Chan not know Zhuge Liang's loyalty? How could the officials in the Chengdu court think that Zhuge Liang would disobey the imperial edict?
The decree was issued, and there was nothing wrong with it from the perspective of the system and human relations.
The 80,000 troops that Zhuge Liang had previously assembled for the Northern Expedition were troops gathered from all over Yizhou, not Zhuge Liang's private army.
If there were repeated victories on the front line, Liu Chan would certainly not interfere with Zhuge Liang's use of troops.
But now, Longyou lost more than 20,000 soldiers, and Chiting lost more than 10,000. Although the battle of Baishui Pass was fought beautifully, how could Shu Han afford such a war?
If we lose another battle and lose another 10,000 soldiers, I'm afraid Shu Han will be destroyed directly, right?
Liu Chan was just a little mediocre, but he was not someone who could not understand the situation.
Hanzhong is naturally important, but compared with the life and death of Shu Han, it is an option that can be discarded.
There is nothing wrong with losing an arm to survive. Just get it back someday!
Of course Zhuge Liang wanted to fight, and he thought that he had more than 30,000 soldiers available and still had the strength to fight.
Either they should go north to recapture Wuxing and cut off Wei's retreat route, or they should capture Yangping Pass and hold out against Wei in Hanzhong.
Either way, the probability is not zero.
But all the officials in Chengdu were strongly opposed to it.
Zhuge Liang had no choice but to accept the imperial edict. While comforting the soldiers at Yang'an Pass and trying to restore their fighting power, he continued to present a memorial to Chengdu to seek Liu Chan's approval again.
As Zhang He's infantry marched eastward, after assigning duties to his generals, Cao Zhen followed Xiahou He's 3,000 cavalry and returned to Mianyang.
There was a light drizzle at the foot of Dingjun Mountain.
Cao Rui sat quietly on a white horse, under a black and red imperial umbrella, calmly looking at Dingjun Mountain in the south.
Dingjun Mountain is shaped like a saddle. The north side, which faces Mianyang and the Mian River, is steep and easy to defend but difficult to attack. The south side is flat and more suitable for large-scale military garrisons.
In the past, Liu Bei fought with Cao Wei for half a year at Dingjun Mountain, killed Xiahou Yuan, forced Cao Cao to retreat, and seized Hanzhong.
Sima Yi raised his eyes and glanced at the emperor's serious expression, and his heart couldn't help but move.
Apart from Xiahou Yuan, what else could be worth the emperor's consideration at Dingjun Mountain?
As expected, Cao Rui turned around and asked, "Are the general and Xiahou He not here yet?"
Sima Yi bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, the general sent a message yesterday saying that he would arrive before noon today. It is almost noon now, so he should be here soon."
As the two were talking, the sound of horse hooves gradually came from the north. (End of this chapter)
