Naturally, Wu State's large-scale military mobilization in Jingzhou could not be hidden from Sima Yi.
Moreover, there was a special agent who spread the news of the barbarian rebellion in southern Jingzhou very quickly.
When he learned that at this critical moment, there was a large-scale barbarian rebellion south of Jingzhou in Wu State, Sima Yi's first reaction was not to be happy, but to feel a chill on his back.
His majesty in Luoyang has such far-reaching plans?
This time, the news from southern Jingzhou reached him so quickly. If he hadn't been prepared in advance, Sima Yi would definitely not believe it.
In addition, at this critical moment, the rebellion of the Wuxi barbarians in Wuling County happened to divert most of the attention of the Wu Kingdom and Jingzhou.
At that time, he will be able to lead the army westward without any scruples.
Is this really a coincidence?
Thinking of Liu Ye's evaluation of Cao Rui, Sima Yi couldn't help but exclaimed:
"The First Emperor of Qin, the wife of Xiaowu of Han Dynasty? Our Majesty is really ambitious."
Thinking again of Cao Rui's various actions since he ascended the throne, Sima Yi's eyes showed some unknown meaning:
"It's just that the Qin Shihuang and the Han Dynasty were filial and capable, but they were both cruel and cruel. What's more, His Majesty is not as talented as him?"
He sat there, his expression changing, and he didn't know what he was thinking.
After a long time, he shouted: "Here comes someone!"
"General, do you have something to give me?"
The guard guarding the door came in and asked respectfully.
"Send the order and ask the Jingzhou Navy to intensify its efforts to supervise the construction of ships. Anyone who dares to neglect will be dealt with according to military law!"
"promise!"
At the same time that the news from southern Jingzhou reached Sima Yi, it reached Luoyang as quickly as possible.
After Cao Rui got the news, he immediately issued military orders to Cao Zhen in Chang'an.
The hundreds of thousands of Wei troops in Guanzhong who had been nervously preparing for nearly a month were like a flash flood, pouring toward Hanzhong along the various channels between Guanzhong and Hanzhong.
Cao Zhen's main force, known as three hundred thousand, set off directly from Chang'an and headed towards the entrance of Ziwu Valley.
The Wei troops guarding Chencang and Qicheng also took action at the same time.
The Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty, who was thinking of the Northern Expedition to Guanzhong and returning to the old capital, had already started building Lecheng, Hancheng, Golden City and other pass cities at the entrance of the road from Hanzhong to Guanzhong last year.
One was to prevent a large-scale invasion by the Wei army, and the other was to facilitate the subsequent Northern Expedition from Hanzhong to Guanzhong.
At the same time, he not only sent many sentries on various roads leading to Guanzhong, but also built fortresses in dangerous places.
Therefore, the Wei troops in Chencang and Qicheng not only had to tightly blockade the valley entrances of Chencang Road and Baoxie Road, but also sent forwards to clear the Han Guanzhai on each pavilion road.
The Wei army's cleaning operation quickly triggered the Han Dynasty's alert, and the Wei army's movements in Guanzhong were immediately reported to Zhuge Liang.
The sentinels from all walks of life were anxious, and Zhuge Liang frowned.
Even if he was as intelligent as others, he would not be able to make a judgment on the main force of the Wei army without the support of sufficient intelligence.
Although the Battle of Longyou resulted in a great victory, it is undeniable that the Wei army almost reversed the situation.
Whether it was the fall of Lueyang or the almost fall of Jieting.
Even Wei Yan's Northern Expedition failed to achieve great results, and Zhao Yun was forced to retreat to Hanzhong by Cao Zhen.
In addition, Wu Yi's advance was too slow, which gave Shanggui and Linwei enough time to respond, and a considerable part of their troops were dragged down. These things all exposed the shortcomings of the Han army.
As negative examples, there are Feng Yong's two battles of Longguan and Jieting, as well as Zhuge Liang's own battles of Xiabian and Longxi.
These things finally made the Han Prime Minister understand one thing:
The more soldiers the better, but the better.
Therefore, after the Battle of Longyou, for more than two years, Zhuge Liang has been selecting good generals in Hanzhong, conducting military exercises, and at the same time reducing a considerable number of old and weak men.
Compared with the first Northern Expedition, the number of Han soldiers at this time was only around 60,000, even if the 20,000 soldiers later brought by Li Feng from Jiangzhou were included.
On the other hand, the Wei army, in addition to the main force of 300,000 that entered Hanzhong from Ziwu Valley, there were also 100,000 troops each on Baoxie Road and Chencang Road.
Facing the menacing army of 500,000, Hanzhong's small number of troops seemed too small.
Yang Yi, who came to report the military situation, saw the worried look on the prime minister's face, and said that the prime minister was because the enemy and we were too different, so he suggested:
"Prime Minister, the Wei army is coming in force. Should we ask Jincheng to recruit some more servants?"
Zhuge Liang shook his head:
"Although Cao's bandits are claimed to have 500,000, according to the information discovered in the past two years, the Guanzhong bandit army is only 150,000 or 60,000 at most."
"Kuang Longyou is on the right side and can swoop down to Guanzhong at any time. Therefore, the number of soldiers Cao Zhen can use against Hanzhong is no more than 100,000."
"In addition, it has been raining for days and days. We are close to the mountains and can withstand them. If we can keep them in the mountains for a month, we may be able to wait for an opportunity to defeat them."
The prime minister of the Han Dynasty, who had always dreamed of entering Guanzhong, had worked tirelessly and advanced over the past two years to ask people who were familiar with the terrain about the roads connecting Hanzhong and Guanzhong.
He has even read every one of them in person, and is extremely familiar with them.
Coupled with the support of the Nanxiang engineering team, the newly built Guancheng at the intersection, and Hanzhong's reclamation over the years, it has become an important grain-producing place for the Han Dynasty.
The big man has no logistical worries at all in this battle.
Therefore, the Han Prime Minister, who has 60,000 elite soldiers, is really not afraid of Cao Zhen's 100,000 troops.
"In that case, what worries does the Prime Minister have?"
Yang Yi didn't understand.
"The one I am concerned about is the Son of Heaven..."
Zhuge Liang had a worried look on his face, frowned, and glanced south involuntarily.
What he was worried about was not whether Hanzhong's small number of troops could stop the "500,000" Wei army.
Worryingly, the Emperor of Han Dynasty had already left Jincheng in early August and was heading towards Hanzhong.
Counting the days, the time when the emperor arrived in Hanzhong was exactly the time when the Wei army entered Hanzhong.
Even the prime minister of the Han Dynasty could not afford the excuse of putting the emperor in danger.
Otherwise, wouldn’t it be in vain that Your Majesty has called you your “xiangfu” for so many years?
After being reminded by the Prime Minister, Yang Yi suddenly remembered and couldn't help shouting:
"The military situation in Hanzhong is urgent, I forgot about this!"
As he spoke, Yang Yi's expression finally changed drastically, and he said anxiously:
"Prime Minister, fortunately the emperor has not arrived in Hanzhong yet. Why not send someone quickly to invite the emperor to return to Jincheng."
Zhuge Liang smiled bitterly and whispered:
"The Emperor of the Han Dynasty wants to inspect Hanzhong. It has been spread since the time he left Jincheng. If he heard that Cao Cao was coming and returned halfway, what would the world think?"
Yang Yi was startled.
Although Confucianism has become increasingly popular since the Later Han Dynasty, the legacy of martial arts still remains.
If the emperor of the Han Dynasty heard that the traitor army was coming, and turned around and went back to Jincheng to escape, then the restoration of the Han Dynasty would probably become a joke to deceive the world.
The emperor of the Liu family fled in the face of battle, how could he revive the Han Dynasty?
But if the Emperor of the Han Dynasty comes to Hanzhong and goes to the battle in person, what if something goes wrong...
"Then what should we do?"
After figuring this out, Yang Yi asked anxiously.
Compared to Yang Yi's anxiety, Zhuge Liang was calmer after all. He thought for a moment, and finally gritted his teeth and said:
"The only plan now is to ask Your Majesty to move as slowly as possible. If we can force the Cao thieves back before Your Majesty reaches Hanzhong, that would be the best."
"If not, then we must at least try to stabilize the situation in Hanzhong and never put His Majesty in danger."
In order to show his intention to revive the Han Dynasty, the emperor must not retreat.
But as the father-in-law, he must never let the emperor be in any danger.
Having made up his mind, Zhuge Liang sent his men without delay and immediately set off towards Jincheng.
After arranging the emperor's affairs, the Han Prime Minister remembered something again and cried out: "No!"
The Prime Minister's repeated gaffes today made Yang Yi panic: "Prime Minister..."
"Longyou!" Zhuge Liang said anxiously, "That boy is still trapped in Wudu. If Longyou protects the Qiang Colonel's mansion and leaves him, I'm afraid there will be no one to take charge of the overall situation!"
Today, Han and Hu in Longyou live in peace, and the imperial court can even collect a lot of livestock and wool from Longyou, which plays an important role in protecting the Qiang Xiaowei's mansion.
It can be said that Feng Yong is an indispensable general in stabilizing Longyou.
Now he was asked to come to Hanzhong in advance, but he didn't expect to be blocked by heavy rain halfway, making the exchange of news extremely inconvenient.
Normally, Zhuge Liang would not be worried to this extent.
But it's different now. After all, the emperor is on his way to Hanzhong, so there is no room for any mistakes in this battle!
When Yang Yi heard Feng Yong's name, she felt an inexplicable feeling in her heart.
Zhuge Liang did not notice his expression, and immediately gave the order again, sending fast horses towards Wudu.
It can be said that because of the two itineraries of Jincheng and Longyou, one in the south and one in the north, the Cao thieves made a large-scale attack this time, and inadvertently intercepted the point where the Han was most unprepared.
Hanzhong was able to get the news of the abnormal mobilization of the Wei army in Guanzhong as soon as possible, but Longyou had to wait two or three days later.
After all, Longshan not only separated Guanzhong from Longyou, but also slowed down the transmission of news.
In Longyou in August, the weather was much cooler than two months ago.
In the Secretariat, one of the core offices of the Protector Qiang Lieutenant's Mansion, Zhang Xingyi was lying on the table carefully verifying the various documents delivered today.
A dress made of light gauze fabric hung down and covered her chair. If she hadn't seen the back of the chair, she would have thought she was bending over to read documents.
Hidden by the skirt and invisible to outsiders, a pair of calves were hanging in the air, kicking back and forth.
Probably because she was tired from watching, she stopped and yawned, then rubbed her eyes again.
Only a small complaint could be heard in the empty room: "It was better when that heartless person was around, it wouldn't be so hard."
When someone is around, there are some things that she can't control, so she can just turn around.
Some minor matters should be handled by oneself and verbally reported afterwards.
It's not like now, no matter how big or small, everything has to be sorted out and then reported to the hostess who is left to guard the Qiang Xiaowei Mansion.
For matters that the Secretariat has no authority to deal with, a plan must be proposed in advance for the mistress of the house to make a decision.
Alas, after all, the hostess is not as easy to talk to as the male host.
Although the mistress never showed it clearly, Zhang Xingyi knew that the mistress kept a close eye on her secretary.
As the chief officer of one of the most important departments of the Qiang Guards Office, Secretary Zhang said that he is under a lot of pressure these days.
Zhang Xingyi clenched his fists and encouraged himself, hum, I won't let you get the hang of it!
A certain hostess who was talked about as evil was sitting peacefully in the backyard, looking at her son and daughter on the floor, with a loving smile on her face.
Although the two sons and daughters of the Feng family were born within an hour of each other, their personality differences were revealed very early on.
The daughters are both more lively and active. Now they are sitting there by themselves, holding the small paper tube tightly in their right hand, waving it from time to time, hitting it on the floor mat, making a "chacha" sound.
Then she grinned and laughed to herself like "Hahahahaha", not knowing what she was enjoying.
As for his younger brother Ah Chong, he was much more clingy. No matter which direction he was placed on the floor, he would crawl back to Guan Ji's feet before he could calm down.
Then every once in a while, she would stretch out her hands, trying to catch Guan Ji and attract her mother's attention.
Then a smile broke out on Guan Ji's face, she bent down, played with him for a while, and then put him further away.
Ah Chong started crawling back again, and sometimes when he passed by his sister, he would be hit by her sister with a paper tube.
The backyard is filled with fun.
A rush of footsteps broke the silence.
Guan Ji looked up and saw Zhang Xingyi appearing at the door, holding her skirt and running along:
"Sister, it's not good, the Cao thief in Guanzhong is in trouble!"
Seeing Zhang Xingyi's appearance and seeing the red feathers on the official document in her hand, Guan Ji's heart sank and she quickly stood up.
She reached out to take the document handed over by Zhang Xingyi and browsed it quickly. Her expression suddenly became serious.
This was a document that had just been sent from the Longyou Governor's Mansion. As soon as Zhang Xingyi got it in his hands, he immediately put aside all his affairs and delivered it to Guan Ji himself.
After reading the official document, Guan Ji did not hesitate for a moment and made a decisive decision immediately:
"Let the military, staff, secretariat, and all the chief officers come to the meeting hall!"
Zhang Xingyi nodded, turned around and ran out again.
"Someone, help me change my clothes!"
Guan Ji drank.
As he spoke, he raised his legs to leave.
Unexpectedly, Ah Chong reached out and tried to grab the hem of her skirt, but failed to catch her. Then he saw his mother just leaving like that, and finally opened his mouth and let out two moans.
Guan Ji ignored him.
Then the crying started.
Guan Ji turned around and saw that the wet nurse was unable to coax her. Then she looked at her daughter who was grinning silly.
Then he raised his eyes and shouted at his son: "Don't cry!"
Facts have proved that the tiger girl is still as powerful as before. She can control her husband at the top and suppress her son at the bottom.
The son, who was about to open his mouth to cry, didn't know if he was frightened, but his cry turned into "uh huh" again.
After telling her son to stop crying, Guan Ji turned and left without looking back.
The ordinary clothes at home were soon replaced by narrow-sleeved and tight-fitting military uniforms. His hair was tied up, and the martial arts-savvy and unparalleled handsome Shiro Seki appeared again.
With quick steps, Guan Suo, dressed in military uniform, entered the meeting hall, walked to the main seat, turned around and looked down coldly:
Zhang Ni, Jufu, Zhao Guang, Yang Wanwan, Huo Yi and other major generals protecting the Qiang Xiaowei Mansion have arrived, as well as Gongsun Zheng, the chief of staff of the General Staff Department, and documents from the engineering battalion have been listed.
Even Zhang Xingyi has a seat, and it is the seat closest to the main seat.
Seeing Guan Suo come in, everyone saluted in unison:
"I've met General Guan!"
Guan Suo nodded slightly and gestured: "Everyone, sit down."
Although on the surface, Zhang Yi's official position is the largest, since the time of Emperor Zhaolie, there has been a tradition in the Han army of using the small to control the big.
For example, during the Battle of Hanzhong, Huang Zhong, the general who conquered the West, needed troops from Zhao Yun, the general of the Yi army.
Similarly, after capturing Shangyong, Liu Feng, the deputy general, was able to command Shen Dan, the general in the northern expedition, and could even often bully Meng Da.
This is related to the difficult process of Emperor Zhaolie's founding of the country.
After all, in order to appease the generals who were later demoted, they were always given official titles in name.
But the actual power was still in the hands of Emperor Zhaolie's most trusted person.
Because of this tradition, when Feng Tubao left Pingxiang, he also followed the same example and pretended to be his own servant to take charge of the affairs of the Qiang school and captain's office as a Qiang protector.
With the Secretariat and the General Staff Department present, as long as nothing major happens, Guan Ji can keep the Qiang Guards' Mansion running normally even if she just acts as a facilitator.
Who knew that such a big thing would happen now?
Without Feng Yong as the backbone, everyone looked hesitant and uncertain in their hearts.
Even Zhang Yi frowned.
At this time, he was not the general who had quelled the rebellion of the Southern Yi many times in history, and also served as the prefect of Yuexun for fifteen years, and was deeply loved by the Yi people.
He was just a growing young general discovered by Feng Yong in advance.
But Guan Ji is different.
She personally experienced the changes in Jingzhou, wandered on the edge of life and death, and managed to escape back to Shu at the risk of her life.
In addition, Huang Yueying gave her personal guidance and even passed the Prime Minister's eight formation diagrams to her, so Feng Junhou's decision to ask her to pretend to protect the Qiang Xiaowei Mansion was not considered nepotism (black whistle).
After Guan Ji sat down, she glanced at the people below and said straight to the point without saying any more nonsense:
"According to the news from the Dudu Mansion, there is a lot of movement among the Cao thieves in Guanzhong. It is very likely that they will invade Hanzhong or Longyou."