Chapter 188: War is an Art

Yintan City.

Liu Zheng, Qingyang Shuo, Qin Zhangfeng, Jiang Xuan, Pei Qianyun, and others were gathered before a sand table, discussing with great fervor.

"I never expected Sun Xiang to actually surrender. Hahaha, what a coward!"

Jiang Xuan laughed heartily.

Liu Zheng smiled and said, "The King of Shu has kept his word and has not harmed the common people in the city. But with things as they are, the hearts of the people in Hanzhong will become unstable..."

Jiang Xuan said excitedly, "This is the result we wanted. Hanzhong cannot hold out and will have no choice but to seek aid from our Yinzhou!"

Everyone laughed heartily.

At the same time, they felt once again that Qingyang Shuo's strategy was nothing short of divine.

A gift list was like a key that unlocked the years of hatred between Shu and Hanzhong; the brilliance of this man's strategy had reached a level of perfection.

Qingyang Shuo, however, said modestly, "In truth, the two regions have harbored deep-seated grievances for a long time, the greatest within the Longyan Dynasty. Once the current Emperor passes away, I fear it will truly trigger a war of annexation. Therefore, Young Master, you have effectively saved Hanzhong this time."

Liu Zheng asked curiously, "Does the teacher believe Hanzhong has no strength to fight?"

Qingyang Shuo smiled and said, "What strength to fight, and what is Hanzhong defending? Shu is vast and rich in resources, with many soldiers and generals, and ample provisions. To the north lies Shangjing, to the south Shuzhou, to the east Wuguan and Jingzhou, and to the west Yinzhou. It is a thoroughfare for several provinces, which could lead to a prosperous age, but it also makes it a target in chaotic times! Even if Shuzhou does not attack, how could others leave Hanzhong alone?"

Everyone nodded, deeply agreeing.

In fact, this so-called plot to seize Hanzhong was not truly about annexing it. Although Liu Zheng was not a Feudatory King, if you annexed a small province like Yangzhou or Kezhou and governed it well, that would be one thing. If you truly wanted to annex Hanzhong, I fear not only would the imperial court disagree, but the entire world would not allow it.

Therefore.

Qingyang Shuo's plan was originally to incite Shuzhou to attack Hanzhong. When Hanzhong could not withstand it, it would naturally seek aid from its "in-laws," Yinzhou. Once reinforcements were stationed in Hanzhong, they could propose establishing a "military base" belonging to Yinzhou in Hanzhong.

By that time...

With the development of Yinzhou, what would become of Hanzhong if not something Yinzhou could manipulate at will?

Liu Zheng added, "The conflict has been raging for half a month, but the imperial court has only issued a reprimand and has taken no major action."

Qingyang Shuo laughed and said, "The Emperor is obsessed with the Dao and seeks immortality, and his physical condition is extremely unstable. Furthermore, the Feudatory Kings are powerful, and even repelling the Xiongnu is so difficult; what major action could the court possibly take?"

Everyone sighed, filled with worry.

The current imperial court was indeed decrepit.

Liu Zheng asked again, "Teacher, if the Emperor passes away, what of Yinzhou?"

Qingyang Shuo's eyes flickered: "If Yinzhou can station troops in Hanzhong, it can ensure its own safety!"

"If the Emperor passes away, the world will fall into chaos."

"The first to bear the brunt will be Hanzhong and Qingzhou!"

"What?"

Liu Zheng looked bewildered.

That Hanzhong's geographical location made it a target was one thing. But why would the King of Wei in Qingzhou, the number one Feudatory King in the world, also be the first to bear the brunt? But immediately after, he realized.

The nail that sticks out gets hammered down!

It was precisely because the King of Wei's power was too great; if the world truly fell into chaos, he would inevitably become a thorn in the side of the other Feudatory Kings! If one Feudatory King couldn't defeat you, what about two? If two couldn't, what about three?

Liu Zheng suddenly recalled the history of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods.

At that time, among every hegemon state and every leader, was there any who didn't die?

Zheng State, Song State, Jin State, Qi State, Wei State, Zhao State, and Chu State had all once been glorious, but because they were too high-profile, they were eventually destroyed by other states acting together.

The only leader who lasted until the end was Qin State.

But Liu Zheng knew that the Qin State of that time had also faced a "leader crisis," but perhaps it was truly destined by fate; just as the leader crisis was about to begin, the Battle of Huayang suddenly occurred. In the Battle of Huayang, Bai Qi achieved legendary status, slaughtering 150,000 of the allied forces of Wei and Zhao, completely opening the gateway for the Qin State to move east. From then on, the iron cavalry of the Qin State began to sweep across the six states, and no one could stop them.

"Teacher, I have learned much!"

Liu Zheng bowed down to Qingyang Shuo once more.

Qingyang Shuo said calmly, "This Battle of Hanzhong has the world's attention, but the Shu Army is elite and fierce, and the King of Shu, Xie Mao, is well-versed in military strategy and famous from a young age. The King of Yong is good at internal affairs but not military matters, and he has no great generals under his command. In at most a month, Hanzhong will be nothing but a lonely city."

As he spoke, he used his hand to explain on the sand table.

The others listened with great interest, completely engrossed.

The fortresses, checkpoints, ports, official roads, and crossbow towers around Hanzhong were all calculated by Qingyang Shuo one by one.

War...

At this moment, in the hands of Qingyang Shuo, it had become an art.

When he reached the most brilliant parts, the others suddenly felt enlightened and saw the light.

Qingyang Shuo chuckled and said, "The King of Shu will surely first cut off Liuguan, Fengguan, and Chengkou Port to sever reinforcements, intending to trap the prey in the cage. By then, in this lonely city of Hanzhong, there will be only one passage left, and that is Shangcheng Port!"

Everyone took a deep breath at the same time.

Shangcheng Port was the closest to Yinzhou!

Qingyang Shuo's calculation from beginning to end lay right here!

"Young Master must not act low-key; you must make a high-profile entrance, and you must be overwhelming to raise the name of Yinzhou."

"If not..."

Qingyang Shuo looked at Liu Zheng and sighed: "When the world truly falls into chaos, I fear you will lack the foundation, Young Master."

Liu Zheng's spirit stirred: "The teacher's words are absolutely correct."

The 200,000-strong Shu Army had been besieging the city for half a month.

The Shu Army consisted mostly of blade infantry and infantry, and with the help of siege engines, catapults, and giant logs, they had attacked the gates of Hanzhong no fewer than dozens of times.

The sturdiness of Hanzhong's city walls was naturally world-renowned; furthermore, the 200,000-strong Hanzhong Army was defending, while the 200,000-strong Shu Army was attacking. It was truly not easy to breach the gates of Hanzhong so quickly.

But even so, the Shu Army still held the upper hand in morale.

This was the habitual fear the Hanzhong Army had developed toward the Shu Army over so many years.

What remained was the King of Shu's deployment of troops, which could be called quite seasoned. During the first few days of the siege, he feigned attacks on the city gates, but had already dispatched his soldiers to capture the key points of Hanzhong one by one, including three ports, four official roads, five fortresses, and seven watchtowers.

It could be said that half a month later, Hanzhong was left as nothing but a lone city.

The Prince of Yong had already issued an order for Anding Commandery, Jiangyang Commandery, and Hanyang Commandery within the borders of Hanzhong to remain stationary for the time being and await dispatch. In fact, once Wudu had fallen, whether these commanderies and counties could come to reinforce them was no longer that important. If they came, they would only fall into the trap of the Shu Army.

The Prince of Yong was waiting.

This fellow, who had seemed muddled in the past, had instead displayed his seasoned ruthlessness during this war.

Facing the aggressive Shu Army, he appeared very composed and calm.

One hundred thousand soldiers were divided to defend the remaining key points held by Hanzhong, while another one hundred thousand soldiers took the initiative to attack, seeking to recapture the lost official roads; if they succeeded and reinforcements arrived, Hanzhong would have natural barriers to rely on, and with sufficient grain and fodder in the city, they would not fear this siege by the Shu Army.

The mood of the common people in the city remained stable for the time being.

"Your Highness, Your Highness!"

The Prince of Yong was in full military attire; although he looked somewhat incongruous, his appearance on the city wall still caused morale to soar instantly.

"How is it?"

"Your Highness, Fengguan was just taken, but it has been lost again!"

The Prince of Yong's face darkened: "Fight, keep fighting for me! No matter the losses, Fengguan must be retaken for Mandarin!"

"Yes!"

The officers and soldiers also knew that this Fengguan led directly to Anding Commandery, and beyond that was Jinghua.

The Prince of Yong was not only waiting for news from the imperial court, but also waiting for those fifty thousand reinforcements from Anding Commandery!

"Your Highness, Your Highness, Liuguan has been lost again!"

Someone came to report again.

"What?"

The Prince of Yong was trembling with rage: "Useless, a bunch of useless fools!"

Sikong Zhen sighed from the side: "Your Highness, with Wudu having surrendered first, the army's morale is scattered, and they only seek self-preservation; if this continues, I fear..."

The Prince of Yong said angrily: "Do you really think that King of Shu is kind-hearted?"

"Wudu is just playing tricks to disrupt the morale of Mandarin's army; if Hanzhong is taken by him, the entire city will be looted clean, and even that Wudu, he will turn back to deal with it again—who doesn't know the greed of that old man!"

Sikong Zhen looked bitter: "But Your Highness, there is still no news from the imperial court... perhaps we should, perhaps..."

The Prince of Yong's gaze turned cold: "Perhaps what?"

Everyone said in unison: "Your Highness, let us seek reinforcements!"

"Your Highness, if this continues, I fear that in three days, we will only be able to hold onto one port!"

"Your Highness!"

"Your Highness, make a decision soon!"

The crowd knelt down one after another.