Jinting Han people

In June of the third year of the Tai'an era, the Hedong army, which suddenly crossed the river, shot forward like an arrow, resolutely advancing behind Tongguan. Liu Xian personally led 20,000 troops to the foot of Fengyi Plain, less than ten li from Linzhi Plain, where Tongguan was located. The purpose of this attack was to contain the enemy. According to Lu Zhi's advice, the most direct option was to directly attack the cities of Heyang and Linjin in Fengyi Commandery, and then use them as a springboard to attack Chang'an. However, Liu Xian did not even glance at these cities, and directly led his troops to approach Tongguan.

June of the third year of the Tai'an era was hotter than usual. After days of thunderstorms, a bumper harvest was expected.

At the end of March, Liu Xian's complete silence after entering Hedong was interpreted by some as his inability to cope with the encirclement of Guanzhong, while others said that it was the busy farming season, and Liu Xian's base in Guanzhong was shallow, making it impossible for him to mobilize a large number of farmers to fight against the will of the people. Opinions varied. But no matter what, Hedong did not have the resources to stall for time with Guanzhong, and since Liu Xian did not take the initiative to launch an attack, the Western Expeditionary Army was happy to see it.

In fact, the Western Expeditionary Army Command had also dispatched numerous scouts to investigate the situation in Hedong, and indeed found that the entire region was still busy with farming. Therefore, they anticipated that the Hedong army would not make any moves before July. However, the busy farming season had not yet completely ended, and Liu Xian had already led his army to attack, which was something they had never expected.

The general who remained at Tongguan at this time was Zhang Fu, the governor of Fengyi, whose 30,000 troops were troops who had previously planned to attack Hedong but had withdrawn afterwards.

Since withdrawing his troops from Hedong, Zhang Fu had remained in the Tongguan-Huayin area, responsible for the transport of supplies between Hongnong and Fengyi. He felt no shame for his earlier voluntary withdrawal from Hedong; on the contrary, he believed he had uncovered a plot by Liu Xian. Seeing Liu Xian arrive with his troops, he pondered for a moment longer and immediately sent an envoy to the King of Hejian to report:
"Liu Xian seems to have sensed our army's impending offensive, so he crossed the river to try and provoke us into launching a counterattack so we can divide and conquer him. Please rest assured, my king, I have seen through Liu Xian's intentions and will not leave the city to fight recklessly. With the natural defenses of Tongguan, Liu Xian has no chance of breaking through! My king can send troops to flank him from the rear and seize this opportunity to annihilate him in one fell swoop."

Zhang Fu believed that the Hedong army's proactive attack was yet another scheme.

Tongguan Pass is a renowned natural fortress, not only because its fortifications are constructed of the highest quality bricks and stones, but also because of the terrain it occupies, the Linzhi Plain, which is accessible only by a single, rugged ditch hundreds of feet high. This makes a frontal attack extremely difficult. It should be noted that when Ma Chao occupied Tongguan, Cao Cao, with a force several times larger, could not conquer it directly. Instead, he had to cross the river, bypass Tongguan, and fight a decisive battle on the Weinan Plain to recapture it.

Given past examples, it's easy to understand that Liu Xian had no chance of capturing the city except to lure the defending Western Army out of the city to fight.

Despite Liu Xian's repeated challenges to a duel failing, he showed no intention of retreating. Instead, he built fortifications at Fengling Ferry, making it appear as if he intended to fight to the death at Tongguan. The soldiers of the Hedong Army even posted proclamations in the surrounding fortified villages, openly declaring that the King of Hejian was a tyrannical ruler who slaughtered the people and had committed a grave crime against the world. The Duke of Anle, acting on behalf of Heaven, vowed to kill the traitor King of Hejian, and that any remaining followers who could repent and surrender would not be prosecuted.

By spreading such rumors, Liu Xian's stance was no longer one of proactive attack, but rather an indication that he intended to conquer the Guanzhong Plain. This meant that the relationship between Liu Xian and the King of Hejian was now irreconcilable, practically a fight to the death.

"What does Liu Xian mean by this? Does he really intend to take over the entire Guanzhong region with the strength of Hedong alone?" When the news reached Shanxian County, Sima Yong asked Yan Ding in disbelief, almost muttering to himself.

"I don't think so. This is most likely a trap. If he really intends to fight Your Highness, he would never choose Tongguan as the location."

Yan Ding believed that if the goal was to conquer Guanzhong, attacking Tongguan would be a foolish idea, as conquering Tongguan would be far too difficult, even more impossible than conquering Chang'an. Liu Xian must have had other intentions.

"But the problem is, the Hedong Army has mobilized a lot of people, so they shouldn't be underestimated!"

Based on the scouts' reports, Sima Yong sketched out the movements of the Hedong army on a map.

"The total number is at least 20,000. With the current manpower of Hedong, mobilizing 40,000 would be the limit. He brought more than half of his troops to Tongguan. If he didn't come to conquer Tongguan, what was he here for? Was he just going to charge into a dead end and let us surround and annihilate him?"

But things have come to this point, and even if they don't understand Liu Xian's intentions at all, the Western Expeditionary Army Command must respond. Otherwise, it would be too unreasonable for a 100,000-strong army to be harassed by 20,000 men without responding, and it would greatly affect the morale of the Western Army.

Sima Yong then ordered Peng Sui's troops, who were originally preparing to attack Xiayang, to lead their army to Tongguan. This brought the total force at Tongguan to 60,000, including a considerable number of veteran and elite soldiers. With this overwhelming numerical advantage, engaging Liu Xian head-on in battle would be difficult for Liu Xian to overcome, regardless of his strategies.

The day Peng Sui led his troops out was the third day after Liu Xian's army approached Tongguan. However, less than half a day into their journey, another shocking piece of news arrived:

"What?! All the ships at Tongguan have been burned!"

Upon learning this news, Sima Yong could no longer remain seated in Shanxian. He entrusted various miscellaneous affairs to Yan Ding, and led a few hundred men on light cavalry to catch up with Peng Sui's army ahead, then headed towards Niutouyuan in front of Tongguan.

Upon arriving at Niutouyuan, a heavy rain began to fall. This was no ordinary rain. The rain that started in the morning continued unabated until midnight, like someone constantly pounding one's temples with drumsticks. Gradually, the path turned into a stream, the stream into a river, and the river into a sea. The torrential rain did not stop until the next morning.

Sima Yong passed through the peach grove behind Niutouyuan and, less than five li from Tongguan, happened to run into an envoy sent by Zhang Fu, who said that the Hedong army had taken advantage of the rain to cross the river and return to the north bank of the Wei River.

Next, he set foot on Tongguan Pass and saw the devastation at the foot of Linzhi Plain. Although the heavy rain had washed away the traces of the fire for a day and a night, it still could not erase them. The area at the foot of Linzhi Plain was blackened, with broken wreckage and fragments of boats everywhere. A large area of ​​the reeds along the riverbank had also been burned. Under the surging river, the dark brown wood chips clattered back and forth on the bare riverbank, and a foul smell of ashes was nauseating.

"After the enemy arrived, we had already gathered all the ships west of Tongguan, thinking that since they could not break through Tongguan, these ships would be very safe. However, we did not expect that their target was not Tongguan at all."

Zhang Fu's voice was low, completely devoid of his usual high spirits. The others remained silent, the silence almost eerily quiet. Sima Yong, the Prince of Hejian, was silent, his eyes filled with a murderous glint. But he wasn't the kind of mediocre man who would blame his subordinates for a defeat; he quickly regained his composure, took a deep breath, swallowed his bitterness, and addressed his men:
"It's all in the past now, and I never expected him to be after this. It's no use being upset now. I should think carefully about the impact of his actions and how to make amends."

Liu Xian's battle plan was indeed beyond people's understanding. Ordinary people's thinking about war is either about cities and passes or about the strength of the army and civilians, but Liu Xian's focus is not on these two. He clearly realized that in the current Guanzhong war, what determines the course of the war is neither the strength of the troops nor the warhorses, but the ships.

The Wei River and the Yellow River divide Guanzhong into three regions: North of the Wei River, South of the Wei River, and East of the Yellow River. For an army to move freely between these regions, a considerable number of ships were required. Furthermore, ships disrupted water transport and logistics, consequently affecting morale at the front. Liu Xian thus realized that destroying the ships possessed by the Western Expeditionary Army would severely restrict the enemy's movements and deployment capabilities. This led to this unconventional attack. By the time the Western Army understood Liu Xian's intentions, a grave mistake had been made, and it was too late.

Sima Yong asked Zhang Fu, "How many ships have we lost, and how many are left?"

“Your Highness, we previously gathered 646 ships from the three prefectures, and they are mostly here. Liu Xian sent more than 20 fire ships loaded with firewood in the middle of the night, and they burned this place down in almost half an hour. Even though we tried our best, we could only save a dozen or so small boats in the end,” Zhang Fu replied weakly.

A dozen or so small boats were practically useless. Zhang Fu further indicated that most of the ships in Guanzhong were stationed there, and it would be impossible to replenish them in a short time. This greatly discouraged Sima Yong, who then asked, "How long would it take to build more ships?"

“This requires specialized shipwrights. Even if we recruit shipwrights from all the counties, it will still take at least a month.”

"A month?" Sima Yong's brow twitched, and he suppressed his dissatisfaction again, immediately giving instructions: "Then do it right away! Also, track down Liu Xian's current whereabouts!"

In fact, Liu Xian is not far from Sima Yong. He is currently camped about 20 miles from Tongguan, at the confluence of the Luo and Wei rivers, and is discussing the next steps with He Pan.

"This is a great place," He Pan remarked, looking around Sanhekou.

Because the two rivers meet, a natural bend in the river is formed at your feet. Moreover, this place is located on a mudflat with a slight elevation, offering a wide view. If anyone is crossing the river within a ten-mile radius, they will be spotted very quickly.

This means that if a camp is established here, anyone wanting to cross the Wei River from Weinan to Weibei will inevitably be harassed by this camp. To eliminate this problem, the only option is to launch a frontal attack on this fortified camp surrounded by water on three sides, which is undoubtedly an extremely difficult and foolish undertaking.

Liu Xian valued this point, which is why he came to Sanhekou.

He said to He Pan, "Master He, after burning those ships at Tongguan, how long do you estimate we can hold off the Western Army?"

He Pan pondered for a moment and said, "If this were in Sichuan, I estimate it could be delayed for at most twenty days, but this is Guanzhong. I estimate there are not enough shipwrights, and it will probably take one or two months to restore the original scale of ships."

"One or two months? Then let's say one month." Liu Xian frowned slightly and added, "But according to our plan, it will take at least three months."

"Lord He, I'll leave you five thousand men and a hundred boats to guard this place. You must ensure that after one month, you can hold out for another two months, preventing any Western army from crossing the river and threatening the people migrating north of the Wei River. What do you say? Can you do it?"

He Pan stroked his beard and joked, "Please rest assured, my lord. After all, I participated in the campaign to destroy Wu and oversaw the construction of the navy. Although we may not be as good as the Western Army in land battles, when Wang Xiangyang (Wang Jun) and I went to Jianye, these people were still nursing somewhere!"

Hearing this joke, Liu Xian couldn't help but smile. He recalled that after the campaign to pacify Wu, when He Pan followed Wang Jun to the capital to present gifts, he was only seven or eight years old. This made him feel emotional, and he bowed to He Pan and said, "Then I will trouble you, Lord He."

To be honest, the start wasn't exactly smooth. Although Liu Xian successfully burned the Western Army's ships at Tongguan, a heavy rainstorm had turned the land into mud, which would cause many unnecessary problems for the urgent relocation work.

But this was something that had been anticipated. Although he was no longer in Hedong, Liu Xian trusted his subordinates and believed they could always find a solution.

In fact, in the three months following the decision, the entire staff had been contributing their wisdom and expertise to the best of their ability. They all knew they were undertaking something beyond the imagination of others, and that success would fundamentally transform the entire group's strategic posture. Therefore, they set aside all previous conflicts and disagreements, becoming a completely united whole and demonstrating astonishing efficiency.

Although the Western Army perceived the Hedong region as having fallen into a period of silence over the past three months, in reality, the Hedong Army had quietly completed all preparations for the relocation of the people.

First, the army was expanded; the Hedong Army rapidly grew from just over 20,000 men to nearly 50,000. Then came the mobilization of the populace; officials went to great lengths to persuade people in the villages and counties to migrate after the summer harvest, a task that was highly successful. The vast majority of the remaining populace eventually agreed to the migration, with only a small number choosing to stay. Meanwhile, various miscellaneous tasks such as organizing supplies, charting routes, and contacting allies were also completed smoothly, except for a few pending results.

In fact, there were many signs at play. If the Western Army's scouts had been more attentive and investigated further in this direction, it wouldn't have been difficult to deduce the truth. However, because the entire plan was so illogical, the Western Expeditionary Army, from top to bottom, failed to detect this possibility for a full three months.

Now that Liu Xian has burned the Western Army's ships at Tongguan, the first step of the plan has been completed.

This means that all the planned steps in the scheme must be implemented simultaneously. Regardless of the reaction of the Western Expeditionary Army or any unforeseen events, the plan must proceed without hesitation. After all, this grand plan is like a boulder being pushed down a mountain; once the first step is taken, there is no turning back. As a member of this scheme, Liu Xian can only go with the flow and wait for the end to be reached.

And indeed, after handing over the agreed-upon supplies to He Pan, Liu Xian did not linger. Instead, according to pre-arranged plans, he led the remaining troops northward. Next, he would wreak havoc throughout Guanzhong in the shortest possible time. (End of Chapter)