Baoxie Valley is divided into three sections, namely Baoxie Valley, Xie Valley and Ji Valley.
As the names suggest, Baogu and Xiegu correspond to Baoshui and Xieshui respectively, while Jigu is the small basin where Yaling Mountain is located (formerly Zhao Yun and Chen Bing, now Taibai County). [Note 1]
Among them, Bao Valley is rugged and narrow for nearly 300 miles, and many places require the use of plank roads to pass.
The Xie Valley is about 60 miles away, so it is not difficult to travel through the valley.
This is the reason why Niu Jin, the superintendent of troops sent by Sima Yi, rushed to the entrance of Xiegu and attacked without any delay.
If you want to compete with the Han army at the loss of soldiers and lose both sides, you can only occupy the Xie Valley and enter Ji Valley to gain space where the Wei army can use its superior strength. Moreover, once the Wei army can enter Ji Valley, the Han army will have to turn back and fight head-on.
Because of the heavy baggage, the Han army could not quickly pass through the rugged and difficult Bao Valley.
Or, cut off the tail to survive!
Or, the whole army can turn back and fight to the death, repel the Wei army's pursuers, and then return calmly.
Sima Yi was certain that Shu Prime Minister Zhuge Liang would definitely choose the second option.
In other words, one of the reasons why the Shu army was more powerful than the Wei army was that the Shu army never left its soldiers to die. Even though it is common sense among military strategists to say that "kindness cannot lead an army".
It's just that the Xiegu, which is about sixty miles away, is not so easy to occupy.
However, it was said that after the Niu Jin Superintendent arrived, he immediately used his most elite armored soldiers as the vanguard and ran headlong into Meng Yan's troops who were waiting for them.
There is nothing wrong with this kind of command.
Without him, with elites equipped with sophisticated equipment and armor as the vanguard, we can defeat the enemy's strength.
As Sun Tzu said, "Three armies can seize power."
At the beginning, the battle was exactly as Niu Jin expected. The Shu army, which had no Yuanrong crossbows to rely on, retreated step by step under the attack of the Wei army's elite armored soldiers who were not afraid of death.
Ling Niu Jin saw it from behind and couldn't help but feel happy for a while.
It can be said that the anger that was suppressed by Yuan Rongnu earlier was relieved.
But after the Shu army fought and retreated, and the array entered the Xie Valley one by one, the elite Wei army suffered heavy casualties.
Wearing heavy armor, they are too cumbersome!
It was difficult to move and dodge in the mountain road, and he was frequently stabbed in the neck by the Shu army who sometimes used the force of rocks to jump up. Because the ground under his feet was uneven, his center of gravity was unstable when he was unloading force, and he fell to the ground and was killed.
Only then did Niu Jin realize that the Shu army that had been retreating was just luring the Wei soldiers into the valley path because they were well-armored and unable to kill them with a single blow.
I realized this a bit late.
By the time Niu Jin replaced the leather soldiers and Ge Yi light soldiers and went into battle, more than 700 elite soldiers had already died.
However, he was not depressed either.
When the supervisor arrived, Sima Yi also told him privately not to slow down the offensive out of concern for the lives of the soldiers, and not to let the kindness of women jeopardize the country's achievements.
Because of this, the purpose of this pursuit is to injure both sides.
Therefore, Niu Jin, who was in the rear formation, personally held the drumsticks and used the loud sound of war drums to announce to all the soldiers the general order "Those who retreat will be killed."
This approach allowed the Wei army to advance steadily in Xiegu.
It also caused heavy casualties to Wei's soldiers. Almost every step forward, some people fell to the ground.
But Niu Jin's heart was extremely hot at this moment, and all the soldiers under his command were fighting fiercely and marching forward bravely.
Because the great scroll of Shu Prime Minister Zhuge Liang has always been looming in front of him.
If you can cut off this banner and return, even the humblest soldier can be awarded an official title and soar into the sky! Even if you are illiterate and have no strategy, you will be among the nobles, and the rest of your life will be glorious.
Wealth and honor are endless!
At this time, Sima Yi's rear guard arrived.
After the messengers who came and went reported the progress of the war in detail one by one, he frowned and stroked his beard, silently thinking to himself.
Being equally familiar with the terrain of Baoxie Valley, he suddenly felt that Shu Prime Minister Zhuge Liang had deliberately left the banner behind to lure the Wei army to continue to penetrate deeper.
Because the terrain is flat and spacious, Jigu can be ambushed!
Judging from the past wars between the Han and Wei dynasties, Zhuge Liang, the Prime Minister of Shu, was by no means a man without generals.
How could we not know that once the Wei army breaks into Ji Valley, the Shu army will face the dilemma of cutting off its tail to survive?
Since he had already realized this, he still deliberately hung the flag at the rear. Could it be that he was already ready for a fierce battle with the Wei army in Jigu?
For example, relying on geographical advantages to set up an ambush first?
Thinking of this, Sima Yi's eyes turned slightly cold.
But soon, he thought of another possibility.
Perhaps Shu Prime Minister Zhuge Liang deliberately hung behind to encourage the soldiers to fight to the death, so that the Shu army in front could have more time to retreat into Bao Valley.
As long as the Wei army occupied Xie Valley later than the Shu army entered Bao Valley, the Shu army would be able to escape the pursuit smoothly.
At that time, Shu Prime Minister Zhuge Liang only needs to order all the plank roads in Bao Valley to be burned down, and the Wei army will have no choice but to look back and sigh!
Sima Yi could not confirm these two inferences for a while.
However, as the war progressed, he quickly made a decision.
In the close combat in the inclined valley, the casualties of the Han and Wei soldiers were roughly one to two, or even two to three.
This was in line with his expectations.
The Shu army, which was well organized and morale-free in pursuit, could achieve such a proportion of battle losses. The Wei army's combat power was already better than when Cao Zhen was the governor of Yongliang. After all, the geographical advantage was on the side of the Shu army, which was fighting and retreating.
Moreover, the Shu army, which consisted mostly of barbarians, was better at fighting in the mountains than the Wei army.
The most important thing is that this battle loss ratio has achieved Sima Yi's strategic purpose: to fight the loss of soldiers, both sides will suffer.
Fighting fiercely in the rugged mountain roads, the Shu army is still unable to overwhelm our Wei army. When they reach the flat land of Ji Valley, even if they set up an ambush, it is not a worry, right? With our army's current decisiveness, even if the Shu army has an ambush, they can still
Let's compete?
Sima Yi asked himself quietly.
As he looked around at the soldiers around him, his eyes slowly began to grow colder, as if he were looking at grass.
"Pass the order."
There was no emotion in his voice, "Order General Niu to accelerate the advance, and all the rear army units will enter the Xie Valley in turn. If the Shu army is not defeated now, I swear not to return to the army!"
Jigu, at the northern foot of Yaling Mountain.
Several soldiers held the Han army's large banner and dropped it into the vertical pit that had been dug long ago to fix it.
The wind roared wildly into the valley, tugging at the red banner embroidered with black characters, stretching the Chinese character "Han" between heaven and earth. Even the two banners embroidered with "Recover the Central Plains" and "Return to the Old Capital" were embroidered on both sides.
The sound of hunting.
The prime minister, who had been slowly luring the enemy behind, finally arrived at the preset battlefield and sat quietly on the plain carriage waiting for the Wei army to arrive.
"Report~~"
A messenger with an order flag on his back came from the rear. The crowd came to Prime Minister Suyu, bowed and said, "Prime Minister, there are no Wei troops coming from Suiyang Xiaogu."
Yes, the prime minister also asked Zong Yu to send more than a thousand soldiers to guard the valley road of Mawei River and monitor whether there was any movement of the Wei army at all times.
Since Sima Yi led his army to pursue him, the cautious prime minister naturally had to be wary of the possibility that he would send other troops through the small valley of Suiyang into the Baoxie Valley to cross into the Han army's formation.
"Um."
Nodding gently, the Prime Minister said slowly, "Go back and tell General Huizong to continue to be on guard and not to relax."
"promise!"
The messenger accepted the order and turned around.
"Prime Minister, you are too cautious!"
When the messenger had gone away, an old general beside Su Yu said with a gurgling smile, "Our army has been deployed properly. Even if another army comes from the Suiyang Valley against the Wei Dynasty, it will only add military merit to the soldiers! Why do we need to do so frequently?"
Is Lao Xin evil?"
He is Wu Yi, the left general guarding Hanzhong County.
As early as two days ago, he ordered more than ten thousand soldiers to come here!
This is also the reason why the Prime Minister expected Sima Yi to lead his army in pursuit - Wu Yi's troops would set up an ambush at the watershed between Baoshui and Xieshui, and destroy the entire Wei army here!
From Xiegu to Yaling Mountain, there is a broad platform leading from the mountain road.
As long as the Wei army left the mountain road, even if they were alert to the ambush of the Han army, they could not turn back in a hurry and squeeze into the narrow mountain road to return!
They will all become dead souls under the powerful bows and crossbows!
Furthermore, the prime minister also asked Wu Yi to separate hundreds of people and climb the mountains on both sides of the south entrance of the Xie Valley.
When the Wei army was ambushed and tried to escape into the sloping valley, they pushed the rocks and trees down the broken road.
Setting up an ambush like this will definitely succeed!
As for why it was only intended to destroy the front of the Wei army?
The prime minister just wanted Sima Yi to know how powerful the Han army was, so that he would not dare to invade easily in the future, and there was no need to be greedy and increase the casualties of his soldiers.
"It's exactly what Ziyuan said."
Hearing this, the Prime Minister smiled grimly, "However, there is nothing wrong with being cautious. And when approaching battle, regardless of whether the enemy is coming or not, soldiers should always be on guard."
"good!"
Immediately, Wu Yi raised his palms and praised, "The Prime Minister is on guard against subtle changes and has far-reaching concerns. If you are as stupid as me, you can't know!"
"Haha~~~"
The Prime Minister chuckled and waved his hand. He was about to say something, but was interrupted by a report.
"Report!"
The scouts who came this time came from Xiegu, "Prime Minister, the pursuit against Wei has slowed down. Both Meng Jianjun and General Zhang thought that he wanted to stop the war and return!"
Um!?
Sima Yi actually stopped chasing?
He was already approaching the south entrance of the Xie Valley. He could be in ambush in half a quarter of an hour at most. Why did he stop so suddenly?
Could it be that the soldiers lying on both sides of the mountain road were not well hidden and showed their traces, and were discovered by the enemy?
As soon as they heard this, the Prime Minister and Wu Yi couldn't help but look at each other.
We also saw the same doubts in each other's eyes.
"Prime Minister, please wait a moment."
Wu Yi quickly saluted and said in a deep voice, "I will send someone to check to see if the ambush has been discovered by Ni Wei."
"good."
The Prime Minister nodded and had no other words to say.
But before Wu Yi could send his personal guards to rush over, another scout rushed out from the sloping valley.
Before anyone arrived, the voice came, "Report! Prime Minister, we are slowly retreating against the Wei Dynasty! Meng Jianjun and General Zhang both asked the Prime Minister, can you allow the soldiers to return to pursue the battle?"
Alas, indeed!
In the past, Mengda was killed in the past, and Gongsun was killed in a secret attack in Liaodong. Now he succeeds Cao Zidan as the governor of Yongliang, supervising an army of more than 100,000 people. It can be seen that Sima Zhongda did not rise to the high position by relying on his service to the third generation of the Wei Dynasty.
Perhaps, in the future, he will also be our great enemy in the restoration of Guanzhong!
The reason why the Wei army stopped pursuing was attributed to Sima Yi's insight into the generals who might have set up an ambush for the Han army. Such thoughts arose in the prime minister's mind.
He also made a decision and gave instructions to the messenger.
"No need. Send an order to Generals Meng and Zhang to stop their troops. After the Wei army comes out of the Xie Valley, they will clean the battlefield, rescue the wounded, collect the bodies of the dead, and return to Hanzhong."
"promise!"
The messenger responded loudly, and was about to turn around and rush back to deliver the order, but he stopped abruptly.
Because at this time Wu Yi also hurriedly said, "Prime Minister, the morale of our army is strong and we cannot let Ni Wei leave calmly! I am willing to lead my troops in pursuit! If we lose, I am willing to serve as a military judge!"
"Stop doing useless things."
The Prime Minister shook his head slightly, and his tone was a bit sad, but also with unquestionable majesty, "The opportunity to fight has been lost, and it is useless to fight. If you are far away, let the soldiers who set up an ambush return to the battle line."
"promise."
Wu Yi, who had white beard and hair and a face full of ravines, responded with his hands.
The frustration in his heart made him turn around and leave, his back a little lonely and his steps heavy.
The prime minister, who had caught an inadvertent glance out of the corner of his eye, suddenly remembered that among the generals in the Han army today, Wu Yi was the eldest.
Moreover, his age is the same as when Zhao Yun died of illness!
Now he has no chance to fight.
And when the big man recuperates, and after several years of accumulating strength, he can finally launch the battle to restore Guanzhong, I'm afraid he won't be able to wait any longer.
Just like Zhao Yun in the past, he didn't even wait for the battle of Liangzhou.
well.
Involuntarily, the Prime Minister sighed quietly in his heart.
It’s not that I thought my decision to reject Wu Yi’s proposal just now was wrong.
Instead, he lamented that life is unsatisfactory nine times out of ten.
Perhaps, we can take advantage of the achievements of this battle to give some comfort to the many old officials of the Han Dynasty who worked hard to revive the Han Dynasty and did not care about their own lives in the old capital.
Guanzhong is on the right side of Fufeng, at the entrance of Xiegu.
In accordance with the order, Niu Jin evacuated all his soldiers from Xiegu, asked his generals to lead the soldiers back to the camp, and then galloped away towards Chang'an with several retinues on horseback.
It was only after he looked for the robes of the rear army that he found out that Sima Yi had gone to Chang'an.
He also ordered all the ministries in Guanzhong to return to their bases immediately and not stay in Beiyuan.
Such scheduling is incredible.
But Niu Jin had no intention of thinking about this.
Now he only wanted to catch up with Sima Yi and find out why he suddenly ordered him to stop the offensive and the entire army to withdraw from the Xiegu.
It was obvious that in half a quarter of an hour at most, his soldiers could rush out of the inclined valley, no longer limited by the terrain, and could confront Ni Shu! It was obvious that Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of Ni Shu, had a big banner in sight, and it only took one sudden attack to defeat the enemy.
The opportunity to make great achievements!
But at this moment, he actually received the general's order to withdraw his troops!
After chasing for dozens of miles, the soldiers suffered numerous casualties and were all in vain.
How can this be unreasonable! Even if the governor has the trust of the emperor, how can he retreat without permission and miss the country's merits?
Niu Jin, who didn't know that he had escaped, was filled with dissatisfaction.
I also temporarily forgot the difference between superiority and inferiority.
When he was galloping to catch up with Sima Yi, he immediately handed over his hand and said in an unreasonable and slightly accusing tone, "Our army pursued for dozens of miles and lost countless soldiers! However, when a great victory is in sight, why did the governor order the retreat?"
Sima Yi was not annoyed by this and did not answer.
He just glanced at him expressionlessly, and immediately threw the silk he had been holding in his hand over.
Well?
Niu Jin was stunned for a moment.
When the fluttering silk was almost swept away by the autumn wind, he hurriedly let go of the horse's reins and went to fish it out with both hands.
The silk fabric is not large and there are not many words on it.
Niu Jin unfolded it and immediately opened his eyes.
I looked back and forth several times with an expression of disbelief, but I didn't dare not believe it.
Because this is a handwritten letter from Emperor Cao Rui.
What he said is related to the military situation in Huainan: Hefei New City has been captured by the bandit Wu! Shouchun City is trapped by the bandit Wu army and is attacked day and night. It is in danger!
[Note 1: According to "Hanshu Geography" on the right side of Fufeng Wugong County, the Xieshui River flows out from the north of Yaling Mountain and reaches the Wei River. "Fangyu Minutes" Volume 55 of Yaling Mountain in Yixian County, the Baoshui River flows out to the south, and the Xieshui River flows out
To the north, the area between Yongliang and Liang is called the barrier, commonly known as Ma'anshan.]
