Ji Han Da Sima

Chapter 723: Luoyang Incident Settled
In August, in order to force Man Chong to surrender, Huo Jun ordered all troops to attack Luoyang.

Luoyang is surrounded by mountains on all sides and has a narrow basin. It is surrounded by eight passes and the distances to the surrounding passes are very close, making it a natural military defense system.

Man Chong's strategy of defending Luoyang was to use the narrow terrain to quickly support the surrounding passes and fight the enemy to the end. Even if the Han army bit the hard bone, it would still break a few teeth.

Therefore, the reason why Man Chong had an ambiguous attitude was that he relied on the rugged terrain of Luoyang and the natural military fortress system in Luoyang, which would become a nightmare for the attacker.

Luoyang has eight passes, which means it is open to the wind from all directions. There are many roads leading to Luoyang, and any of them leads to the city.

In response to the current situation, Huo Jun adopted a method of advancing troops both by land and sea. Quan Cong led boats into the Yellow River, occupied Wudujin in Henei County, went south to harass Mengjin and Xiaopingjin, blocked the route between Luoyang and Hebei, cut off Luoyang's contact with the outside world, and made it an isolated island.

After blocking Luoyang by water, the Han army launched an attack by land.

Zhao Yun sent out troops from Liang County and took Guangcheng Pass from the south; Pang Tong and Zhuge Ke set out from Xuchang and divided their troops to attack Dagu Pass.

Zhuge Liang led an army of tens of thousands to attack Xuanyuan Pass; Zhou Cang and Gao Xiang led an army of 30,000 to attack Hulao Pass.

The above five armies were aimed at the north, east and south of Luoyang respectively, but Man Chong had only tens of thousands of old and weak soldiers under his command. In order to deal with the five-pronged advance of the Han army, he had no choice but to divide his troops and occupy them.

At the same time, in order to support Huo Jun's attack on Luoyang, Lu Xun in the Guanzhong area divided his troops with Huang Quan, ordered Huang Quan to guard Hexi, and personally led the army to attack Tongguan.

Starting from August 20th, Luoyang was besieged from the east, south, west and north.

There is no need to say much about Hulao Pass in the east. It is close to the river and backed by steep mountains, and it is not easy to break.

Xuanyuan Pass is located between Mount Songshan. The mountain road is winding and rugged, making it easy to defend but difficult to attack.

Although Dagu Pass is one of the eight passes, it is not as dangerous as Hulao Pass and Xuanyuan Pass.

Although Guangcheng Pass is located between two mountains and a river, its location in the south is actually disadvantageous for Man Chong to defend it.

Therefore, in the strategy formulated by Huo Jun, he and Zhuge Liang acted as a feint army to attract Man Chong's attention to Xuanyuan, Hulao, Mengjin and Xiaopingjin. In fact, he sent Liao Hua and Zhu Huan to the south to help Zhao Yun break through the pass.

Zhao Yun surveyed the terrain of Guangcheng Pass. While the main army was besieging Guangcheng Pass, he sent Liao Hua to lead elite troops to cross the mountains, bypass Guangcheng Pass, occupy the city behind the pass, and cut off the communication route between Guangcheng Pass and Luoyang.

In September, because the troops in Zhuwei and Ju reported urgently, Man Chong had the mission of rescuing Zhuwei and did not dare to leave Luoyang in person, so he sent General Pei Hong to lead troops south in an attempt to defeat the Han army that was bypassing.

Liao Hua judged the situation and decisively led his troops to fight Pei Hong, defeating him at the foot of Kongtong Mountain. Pei Hong led the remaining troops to flee back to Luoyang. Seeing that the situation was hopeless, the defending general surrendered to Zhao Yun under the persuasion of his subordinates.

Zhao Yun followed the old road where Sun Jian started his army, broke through Guangcheng Pass, and approached the flank of Dagu Pass.

Seeing that Guangcheng Pass had been breached and the Han army was approaching Luoyang, Man Chong lost his usual composure and became very panicked. He summoned all the troops to withdraw from Luoyang and ordered people to burn the floating bridge outside the city. He also called in his close confidants to discuss the issue of defending Luoyang.

Inside the government office, Man Chong looked solemn and asked, "Now that Guangcheng Pass has been lost, how can we defend Luoyang?"

Chief Clerk Jiang Chong did not dare to speak directly, so he said tactfully: "General, our army has only over 100,000 soldiers in Hebei, and most of them are new soldiers. South of the Yellow River, the only army that can fight against the Han army is our army. Moreover, we can only rely on Luoyang and the outer passes. Now that Guangcheng has been lost, the situation is not favorable to us!"

Hearing this, Man Chong understood Jiang Chong's intention. He looked at his confidant with sharp eyes and asked, "From what Zi Bo said, you don't want to defend Luoyang?"

Jiang Chong coughed and said, "General, the reason why the eight passes of Luoyang were breached was not because the passes were not steep enough, but because there were not many soldiers stationed at the passes. The general has only 30,000 or 40,000 men under his command. It is easy to defend one place, but difficult to defend everywhere."

"If Your Majesty wants to defend Luoyang, you should send 100,000 troops to guard the border passes. However, the reason why Your Majesty did not do so is that Your Majesty wants to defend Hebei, not Luoyang. Now I am entrusting the general to guard Luoyang, just to wear down the Han army's strength."

Jiang Chong said with a bit of helplessness, "Luoyang is only a few hundred miles around, with a big river to the north and mountains on three sides. Now the big river is owned by the Han navy, and the food and supplies are cut off by boats. Luoyang has become an isolated city."

Man Chong frowned slightly and asked, "Your Majesty wants to ask the Xianbei to send troops south. I wonder if this will change the situation?"

Seeing that his general was trapped in a situation and unable to make a decision, Jiang Chong said bluntly: "Your Majesty, if you give up your land and seek war, how can you win the hearts of the people of Hebei? The Xianbei came for profit, so how can they fight to the death for the country?"

After a pause, Jiang Chong pointed out more bluntly, saying: "The defeat of our army was not due to the failure of the battle, but also due to the depletion of the treasury, the rampant corruption of officials, and the cruelty of the people. Therefore, since Huo Jun swept across China, many people were left hungry wherever his troops passed."

"Forgive me for being blunt, but Luoyang cannot be defended, let alone held. General, you'd better think of a way out early and negotiate with the Han people, maybe you can get good treatment from Lord Huo."

Man Chong looked at Jiang Chong in surprise. He never thought that his confidant, who had followed him for almost twenty years, would directly tell him to surrender and stop resisting.

But Jiang Chong's words made Man Chong sober up. Cao Wei was doomed and it was not worth it for him to work for him. Now Huo Jun broke through the outer passes, which was more like a warning to him for his previous ambiguous attitude.

Man Chong pondered for a long time, confessed his worries, and said: "To be honest, Wang Kai came to persuade me to surrender, and I was very tempted. But I am worried that people will call me a traitor in the future, and I can't be loyal to my original intention."

Jiang Chong smiled bitterly and said, "In the past, King Zhou was tyrannical and immoral. King Wu was his minister, but he led an army to attack him. Now, General, can you see anyone praising King Zhou and insulting King Wu for his treason?"

"Now that the general has surrendered Luoyang and preserved the palaces of the capital and the temples of the two Han dynasties, the scholars of the world will surely praise the general for his great sense of justice, and Lord Huo will treat the general well for this reason."

Jiang Chong then added more information, saying: "If you hesitate now, when Lord Huo's troops are at the gates of the city, the situation will be different."

Listening to Jiang Chong's constant admonition, Man Chong sighed and said, "For the sake of the people of the capital and the innocent soldiers under my command, I should discuss surrender with Lord Huo."

"General, you are wise!" Man Chong thought for a moment and asked, "Has Xiahou Mao made any moves?"

"Xiahou Mi is lustful and pleasure-seeking, and pays little attention to military affairs!" said the deputy general.

Xiahou Mao did not want to stay in Luoyang, but was forced to stay by Cao Rui. However, after Xiahou Mao stayed and talked with Man Chong, he put aside his anxiety and indulged in wine and sex every day.

"it is good!"

Man Chong stood up from the couch and said, "I have asked Zi Bo to leave the city and tell Lord Huo that I intend to surrender."

"I wonder what the general's request is?" Jiang Chong asked.

Man Chong hesitated for a while and said, "I hope Lord Huo can allow me to leave the troops to lead the army and see if I can be appointed as a county marquis with a fief of no less than a thousand households!"

Since he was ready to surrender, Man Chong still hoped to gain some benefits for himself. After all, he had worked hard for decades, rising from a small county official to a general, and at least he could keep some fiefs, otherwise it would be too unfair to himself and his descendants!

"Please rest assured, General. We will do our best to fight for it!"

"good!"

In order to prevent Xiahou Mao from discovering his intention to surrender to Huo Jun, Man Chong asked Jiang Chong to leave the city at night and bring his letter to visit Huo Jun.

Jiang Chong first went to Gao Xiang's army to explain his purpose. Under the escort of the Han cavalry, Jiang Chong came to Xingyang and met Huo Jun.

In the government office, Huo Jun was reading the military report submitted by Zhao Yun and discussing the next strategy with his subordinates.

When he learned that Jiang Chong had come here on orders, Huo Jun smiled and said to his attendants, "Now that Guangcheng Pass has been breached, the troops are about to reach Luoyang. Man Chong has finally recognized the current situation."

"almost!"

Jiang Ji stroked his beard and smiled, saying, "The old capital of Luoyang has been recovered, and the next step is to move the capital."

The joint memorial signed by Huo, Ge and other generals seemed to be a memorial, but in fact it was an order to Liu Chan. Liu Chan did not have the option of not moving the capital, he only had the option of moving the capital.

According to the plan of Huo Jun and Zhuge Liang, in October, the army recaptured Luoyang and wiped out the remaining forces; in November, Liu Chan and other officials set out from Wuhan and arrived in Luoyang at the end of the month; in December, Liu Chan offered sacrifices to the temples of the emperors of the Han Dynasty and officially announced the recovery of the two capitals of Chang'an and Luoyang.

While chatting and laughing, Jiang Chong walked into the hall, bowed deeply to Huo Jun, and presented him with an apology letter written by Man Chong himself, expressing his regret for his previous actions.

After reading the letter, Huo Jun smiled and said, "Your Majesty and I will not pursue the past. Now that Lord Man has surrendered the city and returned to the right path, do you have any other requests?"

Jiang Chong said truthfully: "My general has only two requests. One is that you can allow the old troops to stay and guard the border for the Han Dynasty; the other is that you can be made a county marquis and your descendants will enjoy it forever."

Jiang Ji and Huo Jun looked at each other and said, "In the past, the eight passes of Luoyang had not been taken, so the governor approved the request to keep the troops and make him a marquis. Now that the passes of Luoyang have been taken, how can the request be the same as before?"

Jiang Chong hesitated for a moment and said, "Our army is scattered, so it is difficult to defend the eight passes of Luoyang. Now that we are gathering our troops in Luoyang, I am afraid that your army will not be able to take it easily."

Jiang Ji smiled and said, "We will know whether we can easily break the city if we try. But I hope Jiang Jun can understand that once the war starts, the situation is irreversible!"

Jiang Chong's face was not looking good. The current situation was indeed not in Man Chong's hands, but in the hands of the Han army. So it was not them who made the request, but they had to accept the conditions set by the Han army.

Jiang Ji stroked his beard and said, "The soldiers and horses are not allowed to be retained by themselves. Only the county marquis can be granted. As for whether it can be inherited from generation to generation, it depends on what the general does in the future."

"This~"

Jiang Chong was a little confused and asked, "Could it be that my general only has a title but no official position after surrendering?"

"rest assured!"

Seeing that the conversation was almost over, Huo Jun put down the teacup in his hand and said with a smile: "I have heard a lot about Lord Man's talents. If Lord Man surrenders now, I will not treat him lightly. Not only will I grant him the title of county marquis, but I will also appoint him to a high position because of his talents."

"I wonder what Mr. Jiang thinks of this promise?"

Huo Jun was not stingy and said with a smile: "If Luoyang surrenders, you can be granted the title of Marquis of Guannei."

Hearing this, Jiang Chong was overjoyed and said, "How dare I not believe what Mr. Huo said!"

"Then when can we surrender?" Huo Jun asked.

"How about five days later?" Jiang Chong asked tentatively.

"allow!"

(End of this chapter)