My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 610 Zixiao Meets a Setback
Cao Ren left Chang'an and traveled along the Jinniu Road straight to Hanzhong, arriving at Baima Pass just before the heavy snow blocked the mountain passes.

Zhang Lu went out to greet them again, and they met up with Cao Ren at Baima Pass.

Zhang Fan, Cao Ren's military advisor, read the imperial edict to Zhang Lu as a special envoy of the court, bestowing upon Zhang Lu the title of Marquis of Langzhong, appointing him General Who Conquers the South, and granting him a fief of ten thousand households.

Subsequently, by order of the Grand General, Han Hao, a Lieutenant General, was appointed as the commander of a detachment, leading 10,000 troops to garrison Huangjinshu.

Zhang Lu had absolutely no objection to the transfer order; on the contrary, he breathed a sigh of relief.

Although Zhang Lu was not particularly outstanding in military strategy, he had at least led troops to conquer Hanzhong and even killed Sima, a trusted confidant sent by Liu Yan to contain him.

Therefore, Zhang Lu did possess basic military skills.

After Zhang Wei went south, he repeatedly drew troops from Hanzhong. After Cao Ang arrived, he only left 4,000 men at Baima Pass and even withdrew the Hanzhong troops from Huangjin Garrison.

He's been on tenterhooks lately, so he recruited several hundred of his troops from Hanzhong to scout the mountainous area east of Huangjinshu and closely monitor the movements of the Left Guard Army of Shangyong West City.

Cao Ren finally breathed a sigh of relief after arriving at Baima Fortress.

Now that he heard that Cao Ren had left 10,000 troops to strengthen the defenses of the Golden Garrison, he was overjoyed and would certainly not object.

Cao Ren did not stay in Hanzhong for long. After communicating with Zhang Lu, he bluntly asked for supplements.

Zhang Lu's face was somewhat grim. He had previously put in a great deal of effort to support Zhang Wei's southward march from Hanzhong, and when Cao Ang marched south, Zhang Lu personally procured a large amount of supplies.

Now Cao Ren has come to demand supplies again, and in even greater quantities than when Cao Ang came. Even though Hanzhong is wealthy and Zhang Lu has accumulated considerable wealth in Nanzheng, they are finding it difficult to afford such supplies.

Cao Ren seemed to sense Zhang Lu's hesitation and felt a little displeased. However, Cao Ren was not as materialistic as Cao Hong, nor as impatient as Xiahou Yuan. With the demeanor of a great general, he explained the situation to Zhang Lu.

The army set out from Chang'an, but it was not a garrison stationed there; it was drawn from various places including Yanzhou, Yingchuan, and Nanyang. Even the Guanzhong army was reorganized in Luoyang before arriving in Chang'an.

Yanzhou and Yingchuan are both more than a thousand miles away from Chang'an. Although Nanyang is closer, and one can enter Chang'an through Wuguan Pass, it is still seven or eight hundred miles away, and most of the roads are mountainous. The only good thing is that this road connects the Nanyang Basin and Guanzhong, so an official road was built for it and it is maintained year-round.

After the army gathered in Chang'an, they did not rest for more than a few days before setting off south again. They traveled day and night, enduring wind and rain, and arrived in Nanzheng after more than twenty days.

If we count from their original encampment, these soldiers had traveled nearly two thousand li in the past two months, and the army was already quite exhausted. What's more troublesome is that the army cannot rest yet; they must continue their journey south, covering another thousand li before they can rest once they reach Luocheng.

Without a large amount of supplies and wealth to reward him, even with Cao Ren's prestige, he would need to rest in Nanzheng for ten days to half a month first.

Normally, this amount of time wouldn't be a big deal.

But now is not only a critical moment where every second counts, but the weather is also getting colder and colder, and it might start snowing at any time. If the heavy snow closes the mountain passes and the army is trapped in the Qinling Mountains, unable to move forward or backward, then things will be in serious trouble.

Cao Ren's explanation was reasonable and well-founded, and Cao Ren was indeed the top general among the imperial clan. The only one who could be ranked above him was Xiahou Dun, a military and political "all-rounder".

Zhang Lu considered that he had already submitted to Cao Cao, and he could not afford to offend Cao Ren, a pillar of the imperial clan. Moreover, if he could gain the support of the imperial clan when he preached in the north, it would surely be twice as effective with half the effort.

In the end, Zhang Lu gritted his teeth and used his savings to plunder Nanzheng again, sending Cao Ren a large amount of wealth and supplies. Among them, the wealth alone amounted to more than 22 million coins, and there were more than 11,000 bolts of silk, including 200 extremely precious Shu brocades.

In addition to these goods, Zhang Lu also sent 400 pigs, 600 sheep, more than 3,000 chickens and ducks, 300 shi of wine, and 20 shi of high-quality well salt.

Cao Ren was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly. That very day, he distributed all the wealth and cloth and rewarded the entire army with wine and meat. This immediately drew shouts of "Wow, victory!" from Cao's soldiers, instantly dispelling their fatigue from days of travel.

After restoring morale, Cao Ren's army rested for only three days at Baima Pass, replenished its supplies and provisions, and rewarded the troops before setting off again to continue south.

We rushed all the way and arrived in Jiameng City in mid-January.

However, because Zhou Tai firmly guarded Jiameng Pass, it would be time-consuming and laborious for the army to sneak across, and they would also be unable to carry supplies.

All the large carts and most of the livestock had to remain along the Jiameng City line, and then be carried up the mountain by manpower from the northern foot of Niutou Mountain to Tianxiong Pass. From there, the goods were transported to Sichuan.

This series of complex processes demonstrates its tediousness and complexity, and the manpower and resources consumed are countless. However, if Jiameng Pass could be captured, the official road along the Bailong River and Jialing River could be taken directly. This official road was not only smooth but also very flat, allowing not only large armies to travel but also large carts to travel side by side.

Most importantly, this route allows you to ascend the gently sloping southern foothills of Niutou Mountain directly, so you don't need to unload the grain and military equipment; you can simply ride in a large cart and pass through Tianxiong Pass.

It was this stark contrast that led Cao Ren not to immediately sneak across Tianxiong Pass after arriving at Jiameng City. Instead, he deployed his forces and attempted to launch a strong attack on Jiameng Pass using the siege equipment that the Hanzhong army had built during this period.

If we can capture Jiameng Pass, not only will our retreat be completely cleared, but our supply lines will also become much smoother. The speed of transporting supplies such as food and military equipment will be at least ten times faster than before.

If Guanghan Commandery hadn't offered virtually no resistance to the Hanzhong army and surrendered immediately, the Hanzhong army wouldn't have been able to hold out in Zitong for more than a few days due to their terrifyingly inefficient logistical transport.

Cao Ren's idea was good, and he had made thorough preparations well in advance.

He first sent his valiant general Han Qin with 3,000 elite troops to sneak across Tianxiong Pass and circle around to the south of Jiameng Pass. At the same time, he personally led the main force, selecting elite troops, intending to attack Jiameng Pass from both the front and rear, aiming to take it in one fell swoop.

Unfortunately, Cao Ren arrived too late. By then, the garrison in Jiameng Pass had increased to seven thousand men, all of whom were soldiers of the Left Guard Army; the Shu troops had been replaced. Moreover, Zhou Tai, Huo Du, and others had used this time to transport a large amount of military equipment and materials from the Jialing River, and had built a large number of fortifications and weapons on the spot. Now, the city not only had catapults, but also repeating crossbows, crossbow carts, and other defensive weapons, and even counterweight catapults.

Meanwhile, the unique attributes of Jiameng Pass were causing Cao Cao's army considerable trouble. Jiameng Pass was the only pass among all the passes in northern Shu that also possessed extremely strong defensive capabilities against the south. Unlike Jiange and Tianxiong Pass, which were strong defensively against the north but offered no advantage to the south of Shu, it was not a strong pass against the south.

Cao Ren was greatly alarmed by the attack.

The excellent city defenses of Jiameng Pass, the elite troops, and the superior equipment all greatly exceeded Cao Ren's expectations, directly shattering a large part of his arrogance.

Cao Ren had initially harbored some doubts, believing that the Hanzhong army was too weak, which allowed Jiameng Pass to be a thorn in the side of the supply route. But at this moment, Cao Ren realized that it wasn't the Hanzhong army that was too weak, but rather the defending forces that were too strong, and Jiameng Pass that was too treacherous.

Even though Cao Cao's army was far superior to the Hanzhong army, they still did not gain any advantage and even suffered more casualties because they were more valiant.

Cao Ren dared not continue. Soldiers were human beings; if the casualties were too heavy, morale would plummet. Even if they went to the Chengdu Plain, they would only be adding tens of thousands more mouths to feed for Cao Ang, which would truly ruin everything.

Soon, the sound of gongs rang out from Cao Cao's army formation, indicating that they were signaling to retreat.

**
Cao Ren suffered a setback at Jiameng Pass, while Liu Feng arrived in Jiangzhou smoothly.

Lu Xun, along with generals such as Gan Ning, Sun Ce, Huang Zhong, Wei Yan, Lü Meng, Wen Pin, Ling Tong, Zhang Nan, Feng Xi, Lü Dai, and Cuan Yang, went to the dock to welcome them. It can be said that all the generals and officers from the front-line camps were present.

Liu Feng was also very happy and chatted with Lu Xun, Gan Ning and others for a long time.

Since Lu Xun asked Liu Feng for permission to go south to Jiaozhou and penetrate deep into Nanzhong two years ago, he has not seen Liu Feng for more than two years.

Before this meeting, Lu Xun was a little worried that he had become estranged from Liu Feng, but he did not expect that Liu Feng would treat him as close as before.

Despite his gentle and reserved appearance, Lu Xun was actually ruthless at heart, yet he was also a man of strong principles, deeply loyal and devoted to his friends. In particular, the Lu family's political stance deeply resonated with Liu Feng.

Lu Xun's political stance was relatively secular, meaning he valued family status, which was not much different from that of most gentry in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

This is also why Lu Xun devoted himself to serving Sun Quan after being employed by him, and it also shows that Lu Xun himself did not have overly subjective political beliefs.

This also means that Lu Xun's current political stance will closely follow Liu Feng's, after all, he already bears the deepest imprint of Liu Feng.

Unlike Lu Xun, Lu Ji, the current patriarch of the Lu clan and Lu Xun's cousin, was a staunch supporter of the Han dynasty. Like his grandfather Lu Kang, Lu Ji admired Liu Han and remained loyal to him until his death.

At the Battle of Red Cliffs, Lu Ji was one of the gentry members in the Eastern Wu regime who actively promoted the alliance with Liu Bei against Cao Cao. Lu Ji always insisted on "supporting the Han and opposing Cao Cao", while Sun Quan gradually shifted from "respecting the Han" to "establishing himself" (ultimately becoming emperor) during the process of establishing his career in Jiangdong. The two had obvious conflicts in their political lines.

Lu Ji later saw through Sun Quan's ambition to establish his own independent regime and publicly predicted that "the Han dynasty will decline and the world will be divided into three parts," subtly implying that Sun Quan had a desire to carve out his own territory.

Before the Battle of Red Cliffs, he firmly opposed Sun Quan's compromise with Cao Cao and advocated an alliance with Liu Bei against Cao Cao. However, his radical attitude was incompatible with Sun Quan's pragmatic and flexible style.

Lu Ji was different from Lu Xun; he had his own political beliefs.

Most interestingly, both Lu Ji and Lu Xun received a posthumous reputation for integrity, and their names were recorded in official history as having "no surplus wealth."

However, the two were actually very different. Lu Ji was truly penniless, and all the members of the Lu family in his lineage were poor. Lu Xun, on the other hand, was completely different. Although Lu Xun himself was indeed penniless, his collateral relatives were extremely wealthy, and the Lu family was even known as the most powerful in Jiangdong.

This also reflects the significant difference in their personalities.

Therefore, Liu Feng did not use one to dismiss the other because of the special relationship between Lu Xun and Lu Ji. On the contrary, Lu Ji was now entrusted with an important task by Liu Feng and left in Jiangzhou to assist Zhuge Liang in managing all logistics matters.

That evening, Liu Feng held a grand banquet for his generals in Guangdu City and rewarded the three armies.

Liu Feng's supplies far exceeded those of Zhang Lu in Hanzhong, especially after receiving support from the local gentry of Yizhou, with pork, mutton, wine, and meat being delivered in a continuous stream.

That evening, the three armies had an extra meal. Each soldier received a pound of meat, a fish, half a pound of wine, two eggs, and plenty of white rice. There were also several kinds of pickled vegetables to eat with the rice.

In addition, Liu Feng also distributed rewards and honors to the meritorious soldiers who had worked over the past year. Various medals, wealth, and official titles were distributed generously, and soldiers kept shouting the name of General Zuo Wansheng.

All the soldiers were rewarded, and Lu Xun and many other generals were also commended and promoted.

Because of his great achievements in Yizhou Commandery, the results of the northward campaign to Jianwei Commandery and Jianwei State, and the gains from the Battle of Zhao Wei, Lu Xun was promoted to Lieutenant General by Liu Feng, and the others were also rewarded.

"My lord, when shall we take Chengdu?"

Gan Ning looked at Liu Feng with excitement: "I would rather be the vanguard and present the brocade palace to my lord!"

Since returning home in glory after entering Shu, Gan Ning's condition has improved significantly. The fierceness he once carried has dissipated considerably, and his overall demeanor has become more spirited. He genuinely wants to help Liu Feng conquer Chengdu in order to repay Liu Feng's immense kindness to him.

"Xingba, don't be anxious."

Liu Feng smiled and reassured them, then his gaze swept over the generals in the hall, most of whom had eager eyes.

If Gan Ning hadn't been a trusted and beloved general personally promoted by Liu Feng, and hadn't followed Liu Feng for many years, repeatedly achieving military merits and being one of the four great leaders of the navy, many people would have stood up to compete with him for the position of vanguard when he volunteered.

Even so, Wei Yan, Huang Zhong, and the others were filled with envy and jealousy, their eyes fixed on Liu Feng with longing, hoping to gain his favor.

"Gentlemen, you have been fighting for more than a year, and the army is exhausted."

Liu Feng stroked the downy hair growing at the corner of his mouth and said with a smile, "There will be no more fighting this year. Before the spring of next year, I intend to withdraw the army back to Wuyang for rest and reorganization."

Although the field camp was well-equipped, it was ultimately not as comfortable as living in the city. Liu Feng also considered the hardships and toil of the soldiers and could not bear to have them stationed in the field during the New Year.

Gan Ning was shocked. If it were anyone else in front of him, even Lu Xun, he would have already hurled insults at them. But when facing Liu Feng, he could only honestly ask, "My lord, the situation is so favorable now, how can you so easily suggest retreating?"

(End of this chapter)