Chapter 79 Stereotype It seems to be true! If the emperor's words were true, if Zhuge Liang had the intention of launching a northern expedition, wouldn't the cities in Guanzhong and Longyou not know until the enemy was at the gates? It's just like a ghost story. Seeing the expressions of the generals of the Cao and Xiahou clans present, Cao Rui sighed quietly in his heart. No wonder when Zhuge Liang launched his first northern expedition, the Wei government and the people were terrified, and the three counties of Longyou surrendered. The Wei Kingdom had never made a plan to deal with the northern expedition of Shu Han. Since Cao Zhen, Zhang He, Xiahou Mao and other generals who have been in Yongliang for a long time are all here, and there is still more than a year before Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition in history, we might as well explain to them today what should be done about the Yongliang issue and how to deal with the threat from Shu Han while ensuring the attack on Eastern Wu. Cao Rui coughed lightly and said, "My Lords, who among you knows the geography of Yongliang the best?" Cao Rui glanced at everyone, and Cao Zhen, who often served as a mouthpiece, glanced at Zhang He. Zhang He was helpless, so he took the initiative to cup his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I know a lot about the geography of Yongliang." Cao Rui glanced at Zhang He and said, "Well, let me ask you, if Zhuge Liang leaves Hanzhong, how many routes can he take?" Between Hanzhong and Guanzhong, there is the 800-li Qinchuan Pass. The climate and environment south of the Qinling Mountains and north of the Qinling Mountains are quite different. Therefore, the Qinling Mountains, together with the Huai River, became the geographical dividing line between north and south China in the future. Today, the area south of the Qinling Mountains and the Huai River is also the geographical boundary for the wars between Cao Wei and Shu Han, and between Cao Wei and Eastern Wu. In this era, compared with the magnificence of mountains and rivers, human power is indeed insignificant. A mountain or a river is often more powerful than a hundred thousand troops.
Zhang He said without hesitation: "Your Majesty, there are five roads that can be used." "From east to west, they are Ziwu Road, Tangluo Road, Baoxia Road, Chencang Road and Qishan Road." "Except for the Qishan Road which leads to Longyou, the remaining four roads all lead to Guanzhong." Cao Rui said: "Four roads lead to Guanzhong, and one road leads to Longyou. So if we are planning the defense of Shu Han, we should divide it into two parts: Guanzhong and Longyou?" Zhang He responded, "That's right. There are two roads connecting Guanzhong and Longyou: the Weishui Road and the Longshan Road. The Weishui Road is winding along the Weishui River valley, but the Longshan Road is quite wide and very convenient for the army to move." Cao Rui continued Zhang He's words and said, "General Zhang's summary is good. Let me ask you one more question. If you were Zhuge Liang and wanted to attack Wei, would you attack Guanzhong or Longyou?" Zhang He was speechless for a moment. After thinking for a moment, he said, "How can I know where Zhuge Liang wants to attack?" Cao Rui looked at Cao Zhen again: "What do you think, General? Where will Zhuge Liang attack?" Cao Zhen was also confused: "How can I know where Zhuge Liang is going to attack? From a military perspective, attacking Longyou and attacking Guanzhong each have their own reasons." Cao Rui smiled and shook his head and said, "There are five roads from east to west, Ziwu Road, Tangluo Road, Baoxia Road, Chencang Road and Qishan Road. I don't know where Zhuge Liang will attack. But the roads that Zhuge Liang can take are nothing more than these five." "I want to ask you now, which road can prevent Zhuge Liang from taking it?" This... Everyone was silent for a moment because of Cao Rui's question. Cao Hong then cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I am not as good as the general and the left general (Zhang He) in leading the army, but I think if we take the initiative to destroy the road, wouldn't it show the enemy that we are weak?" Cao Zhen and Zhang He were now somewhat confused about the emperor's intention. When they heard Cao Hong ask, they remained silent and waited for the emperor's words. Cao Rui shook his head slightly: "General Wei, I think the so-called avoiding showing weakness to the enemy is just a way to prevent the enemy from knowing our strengths and weaknesses and to preserve ourselves when the two armies are facing each other and can attack or defend." "If we don't need to show weakness to the enemy, what if we are already weak? Do we still need to put on airs to show our strength?" Cao Zhen frowned upon hearing this: "Your Majesty, how come we are weak? Shu Han is a small country with weak people, so they are the truly weak party, right?" "Shu Han only occupies one state, and has suffered two disastrous defeats in Xiangfan and Yiling. How can it have the energy to attack Wei in the north?" Cao Rui suddenly remembered a sentence, which was not quite appropriate, but also had a similar meaning: "Weakness and ignorance are not obstacles to survival, but arrogance is." Cao Rui cleared his throat and said, "Today, the Wei Dynasty has 300,000 soldiers, most of whom are in the Central Plains, Jingzhou, and the southeast. The Wei Dynasty's military force in Yongliang is only 20,000 foreign troops and 20,000 soldiers from prefectures and counties, which together make up no more than 40,000."
"General, if Zhuge Liang of Shu Han goes north to attack Yongliang, how many troops can Zhuge Liang mobilize?" Cao Zhen thought for a moment and said, "When Liu Bei attacked Hanzhong, the Shu Han army in Hanzhong had only 50,000 or 60,000 soldiers, and it was already difficult to transport them. The Shu Han also suffered two major defeats in Xiangfan and Yiling. I think that if Zhuge Liang went to Qishan, he would have at most 40,000 or 50,000 soldiers." Cao Rui shook his head when he heard Cao Zhen's words. Cao Rui remembered very clearly that in the original history, when Zhuge Liang launched his first northern expedition, he dispatched about 80,000 people. Can 40,000 and 80,000 be counted the same? 80,000 people went out of Qishan and entered Guanzhong. With only 20,000 foreign troops and 20,000 prefecture troops from Yongliang, they could only wait for the central army to come to their aid from Henan. 40,000 against 80,000, isn't this considered weak? Cao Zhen's idea was not a big problem, and it was in line with his estimate of the normal situation in Yizhou. However, at this point in time, the Wei officials did not know how terrifying Zhuge Liang was. He was able to handle both military and political affairs, and to unite the complex Shu Han into a rope to march north. This was indeed a serious concern. Cao Rui said: "I remember that the Minister Liu Ye commented on Liu Bei: 'Although Shu is small and weak, I plan to strengthen myself through force and will certainly use the people to show that I have more than enough'." "In my opinion, since Shu Han calls itself Han and is an enemy of Wei, if they are separatist and self-defensive, how can outsiders like Zhuge Liang and Liu Chan stay in Yizhou for a long time? They must attack externally to the best of their ability in order to unify the internal forces and suppress the discord. It is impossible for them to have only 40,000 or 50,000 people." "I think we should be prepared for Zhuge Liang to march north in full force from Yizhou, with 80,000 or even 100,000 troops." Everyone fell silent after hearing the emperor's slightly exaggerated assumption. In their opinion, Liu Bei was dead and the Shu Han was ruled by the powerful minister Zhuge Liang, so how could they go north without hesitation? However, Cao Rui's assumption and remarks just now undoubtedly clarified the Shu Han, the biggest threat in Yongliang and the western part of Wei. As Cao Zhen was thinking, an idea suddenly occurred to him. Cao Zhen was thinking, as expected, His Majesty is holding a meeting here again. How could an emperor in his twenties be willing to simply have a meal with a group of old ministers like us? (End of this chapter)