Leaving the Ziwu Road and raiding the Guanzhong Plain was indeed a risky move, but for the traveler Liu Chan, he had to take the gamble.
This is also something he has been planning since he time traveled.
If the bet wins, the Han Dynasty will be able to make a comeback. If the bet loses, it can only find a way to escape. If it doesn't work, it will be broken into parts and then returned to Hanzhong.
Liu Chan was well aware of the situation in Guanzhong at this time. After the death of the late emperor Liu Bei, the Han Dynasty never sent troops north again, not even harassing them.
There is also a confirmation in history.
The defense in the Guanzhong area is weak. Except for Chang'an, which has thousands of defenders, most of the other cities have one or two thousand, and at most, three or four thousand defenders. The remaining main force in Guanzhong is Cao Zhen's 30,000 troops.
He has to be quick.
Calculating the time, Prime Minister Zhuge Liang will rush to Qishan soon. If historical development is followed, Cao Wei did not discover the Han army until Zhuge Liang's army appeared near Qishan, which immediately shocked Cao Wei's court and everyone, and the counties in Longyou were in an uproar.
Jun Kaicheng surrendered.
This is time.
After Liu Chan made his decision, 15,000 new troops secretly entered Ziwu Road early the next morning. In addition to carrying their own weapons, the sergeants each carried enough compressed biscuits for more than a month as dry food.
The Ziwu Road runs through the Qinling Mountains, and the road is steep. Liu Chan was nervous when he entered the Ziwu Road for the first time.
Many mountain roads are on cliffs and are paved with planks of wood. Because few people walk on them, the wood makes strange creaking sounds from time to time when walking on them.
Because the army wanted to raid Guanzhong, they did not dare to slow down their march. Whenever they encountered such a cliff, Liu Chan and the sergeants could only bite the bullet and pass quickly.
In addition to these plank roads hanging on the cliffs, the remaining mountain roads are even more difficult to navigate. Most of them are less than half a meter wide, and they are also uneven mountain roads. These mountain roads are also very difficult and dangerous. In addition to being supported by a mountain on one side, the other side
It’s an abyss.
For those who are traveling this way for the first time, let alone leaving, even when they see the tens of thousands of cliffs, their hearts will already be in turmoil.
Fortunately, this new army has been training in the mountains for more than a year. When passing by, Liu Chan realized how wise his decision was.
The sergeants walked through it with ease. Only Liu Chan and Zhang Shaochu walked this road. Whenever they encountered a difficult road, they would hold on to the sergeants in front and behind them to help them pass quickly.
The entire Ziwu Road is more than 600 miles long. According to historical records, Wei Yan once said that it would not take ten days for the army to reach Chang'an.
Later generations also said that Wei Yan was just bragging.
The reason for Wei Yan's bragging is mostly based on the fact that Cao Zhen took the Ziwu Road when he conquered Shu. As a result, heavy rain on the road delayed the march of the army. In the end, it took Cao Zhen more than a month to complete the Ziwu Road.
p>
But many people don’t know.
Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition was in early 228 AD. It was rare to see continuous heavy rains here during this season.
This is also true.
This time Zhuge Liang sent troops to the Northern Expedition in late February, and Liu Chan entered Ziwu Road at the end of February.
Nine days later.
Liu Chan and fifteen thousand soldiers went through all kinds of hardships and arrived at the north entrance of Ziwu Road, thirty miles south of Ziguan.
Liu Chan did not immediately lead his army to rush through Ziguan, but ordered the army to rest where it was. He needed to wait for news from the leading force Yang Tongshan.
Although before entering Ziwu Road, Liu Chan had already learned from the news sent back by spies lurking in Guanzhong that the entire defense in Guanzhong was very weak at this time.
However, Ziwu Road is dangerous. Some people in later generations once said that if Cao Wei and Zikou deployed one or two thousand troops, it would be difficult for the Shu army to pass Ziguan no matter how brave they were.
Just in case.
Liu Chan then asked Yang Tongshan to lead a thousand people in disguise and go ahead, because Yang Tongshan had been traveling in and out of Han and Wei in the past two years, and he had walked along this Ziwu Road several times.
Let him lead people to investigate first, which will be conducive to the safe march of the subsequent troops.
Yang Tongshan arrived one day earlier than Liu Chan and others.
Ziguan is right in front, and there is no so-called ambush nearby. However, Ziguan is not empty at this time, and there are hundreds of Wei troops guarding it.
Although there were hundreds of Wei troops guarding here, their defense was very loose because they did not expect that the Han troops would suddenly appear.
So when Yang Tongshan suddenly appeared, before the Ziguan defenders could react, the pass was captured by Yang Tongshan's troops.
After occupying Ziguan, Yang Tongshan was worried that these Wei troops secretly reported to Chang'an, so after quickly capturing Ziguan, he did not give the Wei troops a chance to surrender, but killed them all.
After learning that Yang Tongshan had captured Ziguan, Liu Chan breathed a sigh of relief and led his army into Ziguan that evening.
Passing by easily, Chang'an City is right in front of you.
Liu Chan was a little excited.
The first issue that future generations worry about is whether they can pass through Ziwu Road quickly. Liu Chan and others did it.
For nine days and nine nights, the weather is good. The first three days are clear and the skies are clear. The next six days are cloudy and foggy.
Passing the Ziwu Road is only the first step of this plan. Calculating the time, Zhuge Liang's troops should have been discovered by the Wei army when they left Qishan.
Liu Chan didn't dare to take a break. What he wanted to fight for now was time. If he delayed even a little bit, he would suffer disaster.
So after Liu Chan briefly explained to the generals, he led his army to attack Chang'an at night.
The whole journey from Zikou to Chang'an was only a few dozen miles. The Han army marched in a hurry all night, and in the middle of the night the army arrived at the gate of Chang'an.
In the middle of the night, a large number of Han troops suddenly appeared outside the city, which immediately shook Chang'an City.
"The Shu army is coming!"
"The Shu army is coming!"
The streets of Chang'an City suddenly became chaotic, and the sergeants rushed to the city in a hurry, preparing to resist the attack that the Shu army might launch at any time.
At this time, General Anxi and Governor Xia Houmao in the city were already in a state of confusion.
"How many people from the Shu army came?"
Xia Houmao asked a young guard anxiously, and the guard hurriedly said: "There are torches everywhere. I don't know how many Shu troops there are. It is estimated that there must be at least tens of thousands."
Hiss——
Xia Houmao suddenly took a breath of cold air.
The Shu army dispatched tens of thousands of troops to suddenly attack Chang'an, the capital of Xijing. Can Chang'an be defended?
Xia Houmao kept thinking about countermeasures.
Because he was stationed in Chang'an, the garrison at this time only had more than 5,000 people. How could this resist the tens of thousands of Shu troops?
Run——
When this idea first appeared, he shook his head quickly, and then suddenly ordered: "Send the order, close all doors, and guard against death."
"No!"
The guard ran out in response, while Xia Houmao was pacing back and forth in the room.
He knew that everyone in the world said he was cowardly, but he knew his identity better and the consequences of running away.
Xijing Changan cannot be lost.
Once Chang'an is captured by the Shu army, he will face the crime of losing the city, a crime he cannot afford.
There is a more important point. Chang'an is located in the Guanzhong Plain, surrounded by fertile fields for thousands of miles. The Shu army suddenly entered Guanzhong in order to catch the Wei Dynasty by surprise.
However, the city of Chang'an has a high wall and the Shu army cannot capture it quickly. They only need to hold on for a few days, and reinforcements will come to rescue Chang'an.
Xia Houmao thought of this, and then arranged for a team of cavalry to leave the east gate overnight.
Luoyang must be notified as soon as possible.
The Shu army invaded Chang'an——
……
……
This chapter has been completed!