Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1325 Hometown
Zhuge Liang saw that the rain was getting heavier and heavier, gradually becoming a downpour, and even his vision was blurred. In this situation, neither swords nor bows and arrows were effective. Moreover, it was chaotic and difficult to distinguish between friend and foe, and it was easy to hurt anyone by mistake. He hesitated for a moment, then ordered his soldiers to stop chasing and informed Yuan Xi at the same time.

Soon, news came from Yuan Xi, asking Zhuge Liang to retreat to Danzhuling.

An hour later, Zhuge Liang met Yuan Xi and said that it was difficult to catch up in the heavy rain. At the same time, he said unwillingly: "It was just a little bit short."

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "It's okay. Sima Yi is lucky, but good luck doesn't last forever. When we fight him next time, he won't be lucky every time."

Zhuge Liang said: "They must have retreated to Changping Pass. Should we take advantage of the situation to pursue them and attack the pass?"

Yuan Xi asked, "Military Advisor, do you think he will be able to defend the pass?"

Zhuge Liang thought for a moment and said, "No, given his character, he will probably retreat quickly. After all, the area south of Changping Pass was where Zhao Kuo was besieged. He will definitely not stay here."

Yuan Xi asked again: "Can we march quickly to stop him?"

Zhuge Liang said, "He should not retreat southwards to avoid encountering Wei Yan's army, but should leave the main road, go west over Kongcang Mountain, and retreat directly to Xudu."

"Although marching on mountain roads is dangerous and soldiers can easily get separated, it is the best option compared to fighting us."

"Your Majesty, will you send an army in pursuit?"

After hearing this, Yuan Xi said, "Forget it. Summer is here and it will rain more often. Our superior reconnaissance and communication methods, balloons and rockets, are no longer effective. Let's go and support Zilong."

Zhuge Liang also nodded in agreement. In this situation, it was meaningless to chase Sima Yi to death. It would be better to rush to Guanzhong Road as soon as possible and capture the frontline stronghold of Luoyang.

So in the pouring rain, the Jin army began to put on straw raincoats to cover their weapons and armor, and walked northward on the muddy road, one step deep and one step shallow.

Sima Yi, on the other side, was feeling lucky to have escaped while crossing mountains and ridges in Kongcang Mountain. It took him more than ten days to reach Xu Du, a distance of more than 300 miles.

However, many of the soldiers he brought with him were lost along the way, and the number was less than half of the number he had led before. This was his most devastating defeat in recent years, so as soon as he entered the city, he went to Cao Pi to apologize.

Cao Pi had already received the news, so when he met Sima Yi, his face was also very ugly. He leaned on the throne and said to Sima Yi: "Zhongda, you won first and then lost, which makes me a little disappointed."

Sima Yi knelt on the ground with his butt raised high. "I have failed your majesty's trust and deserve death. Please punish me, Your Majesty."

Cao Pi waved his hand and said, "Get up. After all, we are facing that fierce tiger and Zhuge Liang. I can't blame them too much."

"By the way, did you know about the emergency in Luoyang?"

Sima Yi was shocked. "I have never heard of this. What is going on?"

Cao Pi said, "In Luoyang, Xiahou Shang sent an urgent letter saying that the Jin army along the Huaicheng route is attacking in a big way and he can no longer hold on."

"The enemy not only has Zhao Yun and Xu Huang, but also Zhang Xun's Black Mountain Army. Even Gao Gan's Bingzhou Army has appeared. They have formed a three-way encirclement of Luoyang."

"Xiahou Shang is defending the city alone, and Ma Chao and Han Sui's Liangzhou cavalry are alone on the periphery. They are simply unable to form an effective defense for Luoyang."

"So if you rush to Luoyang to help now, do you have the confidence to repel the Jin army?"

Sima Yi was surprised and delighted to hear that Cao Pi not only did not blame him for the defeat, but also wanted him to continue leading the army. He thought about it and suddenly his face changed. "Your Majesty, may I ask when did this news come?"

Cao Pi said, "Five or six days ago, what happened?"

Sima Yi gritted his teeth and said, "Forgive me for being blunt, but I'm afraid it's too late now."

"After Zhuge Liang defeated me, he would never just go back. Since he did not take the opportunity to approach Xu Du, he must have gone directly from Changping Pass to Luoyang, which is more than 300 miles to the north."

"According to the time, their army has already arrived at the city of Luoyang. Now it seems that their ambush on me was originally intended by the Jin army to clear out the Wei army around Luoyang and complete their siege of Luoyang."

"If General Xiahou insists on defending the city, it will be very dangerous. If he doesn't leave, he will be surrounded and killed in the city sooner or later."

Cao Pi's face was extremely grim. "Are you saying that Luoyang can no longer be defended?"

"If Luoyang is lost, won't Xudu be in danger?"

Sima Yi replied: "This should be the real purpose of Xionghu, so he gave up attacking Xudu and focused on breaking through Luoyang."

"If they take Luoyang, Xudu will be cut off and surrounded at any time. I hope Your Majesty will make plans early."

"Xiong Hu attaches great importance to speed when deploying troops. If he takes Luoyang and marches forward, I'm afraid by the time Xu Du gets the news, it will be too late."

Cao Pi stood up and paced back and forth anxiously, "Do you think we can defend Xudu?"

Sima Yi had already known more or less what had happened in the city before he arrived. After thinking it over, he said, "Although I am not sure, we may not be able to hold it." "However, Your Majesty should not put your precious body in danger. You should retreat to Chang'an, which is safer."

Cao Pi said unwillingly: "According to you, should I escape?"

Sima Yi bowed and said, "The safety of Wei State depends entirely on Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will endure the humiliation and emulate the story of Gou Jian who destroyed Wu State. It may not be impossible for you to make a comeback in the future."

"Of course, Xudu still needs to be defended. If Your Majesty does not abandon us, I am willing to defend Xudu to my death to repay Your Majesty's great kindness."

Cao Pi heard this and waved his hand, saying, "I understand. I will be in the court tomorrow to discuss the matter with the ministers."

"Military advisor, you have had a hard time. Go back and rest first."

"The future of Wei still depends on the military advisor."

Sima Yi was deeply moved and choked up, saying: "I am deeply grateful for your majesty's grace. I will repay you with my life!"

After Sima Yi left, Cao Pi took out a bamboo tube from the cabinet beside him. After unfolding it, he found that it was filled with evidence of Sima Yi's intention to rebel.

Cao Pi naturally did not believe that what was written above was true, but the problem was that some of the evidence was true and some was false. Some of them were quite absurd, but some sensitive matters were very plausible and had already crossed Cao Pi's psychological bottom line.

Cao Pi looked at the words on the bamboo slips, and after hesitating for a long time, he finally rolled up the bamboo slips and threw them to the bottom of the cabinet.

The next day, in the court of Cao Wei, the ministers engaged in a heated debate on whether to withdraw from Xu Du. After all, moving the capital was a very serious matter. If the Wei court left Xu Du, people's hearts would be completely dispersed, and Xu Du would most likely not be able to be defended.

This involved the assets of many local officials, and many people were naturally unwilling to accept it, but Zhong Yao saw it clearly. He said, "Although the situation in Luoyang is unclear, I suggest that we prepare for a rainy day."

"If Luoyang is lost, the Jin army can cut off the passage from Luoyang to Chang'an, and then take the opportunity to move south and surround Xudu. At that time, we will not be able to leave even if we want to."

"I hope Your Majesty will set off as soon as possible to avoid encountering the Jin army and threatening the king's safety."

Once these words were spoken, the tone was set for the Yingchuan faction. All Cao Wei officials spoke out in agreement. When Cao Pi saw that the opinions of his ministers had been unified in a short period of time, a trace of gloom flashed across his eyes and he felt a little unhappy. How come Zhong Yao's prestige was still so high!

But he quickly calmed down and said, "Okay, in that case, from today on, all the ministers will return to their official residences to sort out official documents and be ready to move at any time!"

At the same time, Yuan Xi was in the camp dozens of miles outside Luoyang, reading the battle reports from the front line.

This time he did not personally supervise the battle, but handed over all command power to Zhuge Liang, while he himself was responsible for logistics in the rear army camp.

At this time, Gao Lan came from Yecheng carrying grain. When the two met, Yuan Xi briefly described the battle situation. Gao Lan was also very happy to hear that the battle was going well. Then he showed an unwilling look and sighed, "It's a pity that my injuries keep coming back and I can't personally lead the battle. I really don't want to."

He was injured in the Battle of Jizhou a few years ago. Although he has been recuperating and also participated in the Battle of Jinyang, his health has not only failed to return to its peak, but has been getting worse and worse. So now he has retired from the position of vanguard general and focused on assisting in coordinating the rear. What he does is somewhat similar to Xiahou Dun.

After hearing this, Yuan Xi consoled him: "A general may die in a hundred battles, and a soldier may return after ten years. But in the end, how many people can last ten years in battle?"

"It has been twelve years since I went to Beixin City. The soldiers who followed me at the beginning have either died in battle, been injured, or retired. Almost all of them have been replaced by new faces, and only about two or three out of ten are left."

"They followed me in order to have their wives and children blessed and to live out the rest of their lives in peace. Who would have thought that I would repeatedly mobilize the army and only a few would survive?"

"This is the case when I didn't suffer a major defeat. It's even harder to say about the other princes. The soldiers of Wei have been replaced several times. You say the generals are unwilling to accept the defeat, but the soldiers who died on the battlefield didn't even have the chance to be unwilling to accept the defeat."

Gao Lan remained silent, and then listened to Yuan Xi: "Last year I wrote a letter to Ziyi, who lived in seclusion on the coast of Qingzhou, inviting him to come to Yecheng, but he refused."

"He is just like you, he also wants to show off. I'm afraid his physical condition is much worse than yours. With his self-esteem, he would never want to appear in front of others like this."

"I have no other choice but to confer him a title of marquis and fiefdom when I proclaimed myself emperor the day before yesterday. That was enough to comfort me."

"I hope that you will not risk your life in the future, to avoid any accidents. My wife and sister will definitely hate me."

Gao Lan couldn't help but smile when he heard this. "It is my luck to meet Your Majesty. Now that I have a son, I have no regrets even if I die for Your Majesty."

"If that happens, I hope Your Majesty will take care of me."

Yuan Xi couldn't help but shook his head and said, "Don't worry, but now the situation of our Jin State has been established. I'm afraid there won't be many opportunities for a general like you to risk your life in the future."

As the two were talking, news came from the soldiers in front that the north gate of Luoyang had been breached and Xu Huang had led his troops into the city!

Yuan Xi was in a good mood after hearing this. He stood up and said, "The last time I came here was to raid Cao Cao in Wancheng and attack Yuan Shu's army. So many years have passed, and Luoyang is finally back in my hands again."

"Come on, let's go into the city together and see if this ancient capital, which has been through so much war, still has some semblance of its original appearance!"

(End of this chapter)