Jinting Han people

After entering Anhan City, Luo Shangjun rested briefly. Then he sent men to search the surrounding area for civilians and gather intelligence.

That night, scouts found more than ten people. After questioning them one by one, they learned that more than half a month ago, Li Ju had guessed that Luo Shang was going to attack Bazhou, so he began a large-scale relocation of people. Li Ju said it was a scorched-earth policy. The city of Dangqushui was difficult to conquer and could be left idle for the time being, but there were many people along the Xihan River, and the city was located by the river, making it difficult to defend. It would be better to relocate most of them to Hanshou. And about ten days ago, the residents of Anhan and Nanchong had already moved north almost completely.

Upon hearing the news, Luo Shang was immediately shocked. He hadn't expected Li Ju to have such courage, actually taking the initiative to retreat north. Moreover, he was forcibly retreating north with most of the people. Wasn't this the last thing he wanted to see? He had originally intended to encircle and annihilate Li Ju's forces in Langzhong, but he never imagined that Li Ju had already made plans to completely withdraw from Brazil, leaving several empty cities for him.

What use would he have for a few empty cities? Thinking of this, he couldn't help but feel anxious and asked repeatedly, "What is the situation in Langzhong?"

"I don't know," Luo Yu, who was in charge of the interrogation, replied.

"How could I not know? This is a big deal!" Luo Shang immediately dispatched light cavalry northwards to gather intelligence along the way.

Early on the third day, the cavalry rushed back and reported that a large number of people, along with their livestock and provisions, had gathered near the city of Langzhong, and it seemed they would soon be leaving.

Luo Shang then discussed the matter with his generals, who were all amazed by Li Ju's courage. They concluded that Li Ju must have known that without a navy, it would be difficult to fight our army head-on, so he made a bold decision to evacuate the people to Jiameng to minimize the losses.

This was an extremely difficult decision. After all, Li Ju was on the defensive, and it wasn't impossible for him to hold out in Langzhong for a year or two until Liu Xian returned to reinforce the city. The losses from relocating the civilians would be enormous; pointless migration would breed resentment among the people, which would then affect Li Ju's reputation and position in the army. Yet Li Ju did exactly that. Without fighting a single battle, he abandoned all hope, preferring to bear the losses rather than reveal any weakness to the Jiangzhou army. This was truly a case of a brave man cutting off his own arm.

But this was undoubtedly something the generals of Jiangzhou Army did not want to see. Zhang Luo immediately volunteered to fight, saying, "Li Ju is going to take all the troops and people with him. If he succeeds, won't we have made a wasted trip? Marshal, while there is still time and Li Ju has not left completely, we should rush north and surround him in Langzhong."

This statement immediately gained the approval of most people. Qiao Deng also said, "Since he wants to relocate people, even if he leaves the city, he shouldn't be able to walk very fast. Let's chase after him immediately. Even if we catch up with him on the way, it will be a great opportunity to capture him all at once!"

Listening to the generals' discussions, Li Xiu couldn't help but frown, for in her view, Li Ju was proving to be even more troublesome than she had imagined. To the Jiangzhou generals, Li Ju's move was likely a timely attempt to cut his losses, but Li Xiu astutely realized that Li Ju had seized the initiative on the battlefield through the relocation of the civilians. In the original situation, Li Ju's forces were at a significant disadvantage, and logically, he should have been forced to passively engage the enemy, allowing the Jiangzhou army to choose the location and time of the battle. However, Li Ju had cleverly used this tactic of actively relocating the civilians, thus shifting the burden onto the Jiangzhou army.

Now the Jiangzhou army is forced to make a choice: either quickly head north to search for the enemy, or watch helplessly as the enemy forces leave. One option carries the risk of being ambushed, while the other means accepting nothing. It's obvious which choice everyone will make.

“Those who first occupy the battlefield and await the enemy are at ease, while those who arrive later and rush into battle are weary. Therefore, the skillful strategist brings the enemy to his own ends, rather than being brought to his own ends.” Li Xiu silently recited this key military principle in his heart, and couldn’t help but admire him. From this point of view, Li Ju’s military skills were indeed superb.

Even so, Li Xiu did not dissuade the generals around her. Firstly, she did not know what Li Ju would do next. Secondly, she had been humiliated by Luo Shang in public last time, so she had learned her lesson and there was no need to cause trouble for herself this time.

Luo Shang was indeed considering heading north, but he was considering whether to accelerate the entire army's northward march or to divide his forces and head north first.

After all, the entire army numbers nearly 60,000. No matter how fast they speed up, a march of 100 li per day is the limit. Anhan is still nearly 500 li away from Langzhong. Even if they travel day and night, and considering the rest time, it will take about six or seven days. By then, Li Ju might have already withdrawn almost completely. If they take mountain trails, how could they possibly catch up?

Dividing the forces is feasible; the southwest winds have been blowing these past few days, and with the navy's warships sailing upstream, they can cover 200 li a day. The problem is that if the navy goes first, with the current number of warships, they can only send out 6,000 troops at a time to block Li Ju. How effective that will be is unknown.

He shared his considerations with his generals, and after pondering, Wang Ji analyzed, "If we look at it this way, it's naturally best to divide our forces. According to the current intelligence, Li Ju has no navy, so what is there to fear in dividing our forces? The warships roam the river; to defeat them, we need warships, not warships. As long as we don't sail down the river, we have nothing to worry about if we head north. If we can delay Li Ju's departure and allow the main force to catch up, wouldn't that be a great achievement?"

Upon hearing this, everyone agreed that it made sense and volunteered to take credit for it. Luo Shang smiled and said, "Let the elders handle this. The young people should focus their energy on fighting." With that, he named Yao Xi, the prefect of Jiangyang, as the vanguard and put him in charge of the matter.

Yao Xi was a long-time follower of Luo Shang. When Luo Shang was fighting Li Xiong in Chengdu, Yao Xi was in charge of transporting grain and fodder from Jiangyang to Chengdu. Yao Xi's support was at least half the reason Luo Shang was able to hold out in Chengdu for three years. And this time, when Luo Shang wanted to send someone to intercept Li Ju, the first person he thought of was this old subordinate.

After the military council, he kept Yao Xi behind and said, "This northward expedition is of great importance. Among so many people, do you know why I chose you? Because there aren't many old brothers left around me, and you are one of them. This battle concerns whether the court can recover the two prefectures. Only success is allowed; failure is not an option! You must stop Li Ju for me, understand?"

Yao Xi's expression was solemn. He cupped his hands and replied, "Please rest assured, my lord. Suppressing rebellions for the country is always a man's greatest pleasure, and this is how I encourage my soldiers. Although I am not talented, I dare not fail to give my all, both to report to the court and to repay your kindness."

"Very well, I hope our next meeting will be at a banquet to celebrate our achievements." Luo Shang finished speaking, handing Yao Xi a token as proof of his command, and patted Yao Xi's chest. The matter was thus settled. Early the next morning, a hundred warships took the lead, heading north along the river. Although the main army set off together, it was clear that the warships were much faster. In just one or two hours, the warship fleet disappeared into the winding river valleys. Accompanying him were Zhang Shun, the Protector of the Western Garrison, and Yang Xian, the Military Advisor of Anxi, among others. Behind them, messengers estimated the distance, traveling daily between the main army and the vanguard to confirm the fleet's progress.

On the first day, Yao Xi and his men had already separated themselves from the main force by eighty li. However, the envoy Luo Shang, who had come to make contact, was not satisfied and instructed Yao Xi, "Before the envoy left, he said he hoped that you, Yao, would travel two hundred li a day. How can you travel so little?"

Yao Xi explained, "The wind stopped for half a day today, so the boat can't row that fast."

“Then rest a little later and make up for the journey.” The envoy emphasized, “This matter is of great importance. The envoy specifically stressed that if you cannot catch up with the enemy, you need not come back to see him!”

After the messenger left, Yao Xi had no choice but to convene his generals for a meeting and inform them of the news.

Upon hearing this, Yang Xian was greatly dissatisfied and immediately complained, "There's no wind, there's no wind. Is that our fault? Magistrate Luo said we should travel an extra twenty li. He makes it sound so easy. We're human too. Doesn't rowing get tiring?"

These words naturally resonated with everyone. Sailing is not like horse racing. Horse racing involves raising horses and spending money, but if something goes wrong while sailing, the boatman has to find a solution himself. It's fine when the wind and current are favorable, but if the boat accidentally runs aground in shallow water, the soldiers have to act as towmen, which is extremely exhausting.

But Yao Xi said, "Do you think I don't know? Lord Luo has always been ruthless in his military campaigns. Back then, Zuo Si refused to give him face because he was short of supplies. What was his fate? Have you all forgotten? In terms of military achievements, can you compare to Zuo Yamen? In terms of difficulties, can you compare to Lady Zhang?"

Thinking of Zuo Si and Zhang Xin's fate, everyone fell silent for a moment. Yao Xi comforted them, saying, "It's just making us travel a little further, it's not like we're risking our lives. Just bear with it."

The next day, Yao Xi and his men set off an hour early, then sped forward by fast boat. Everyone was mentally prepared and didn't want to be scolded by Luo Shang. They indeed widened the gap in one day, and by the time the messenger came to check on Yao Xi's troops that night, it was already midnight. The messenger said with satisfaction, "In another day, Lord Yao will reach Langzhong. If Li Ju hasn't left by then, we can go ashore and set up camp. If there's no one in the city, we can continue our pursuit."

However, the soldiers were already showing obvious signs of discomfort from such a high-intensity forced march, with many experiencing dizziness and fatigue. Yao Xi dared not refuse Luo Shang's request, so he ordered the army, "Hold on for one more day. We will reach Langzhong tomorrow, and the whole army will eat fish that night."

On the third day, the entire army continued marching from morning till night without stopping. Finally, after rounding a mountain, they came into view of Langzhong.

It was already evening, and in the dim, yellow afterglow of the setting sun, a thumb-shaped plain could be seen protruding from the mountains, surrounded on three sides by golden waves. This plain was about six li wide and eight li long, practically a natural place to build a city and garrison troops, its area almost equal to that of Luoyang. And they could just see a large city standing at the southern end of the plain, on the riverbank, where water plants and reeds grew as thick as clouds.

Yao Xi's nephew, Yao Min, led a warship to observe the situation. As the warship passed, it startled a flock of water birds, and withered, yellow lotus leaves floated on the rippling water. They drew closer, trying to determine if the enemy troops remained on the city walls. Soon, they breathed a sigh of relief. Soldiers were still standing on the walls, shouting and firing arrows at them. This at least indicated that the Hanzhong army had not completely withdrawn.

Yao Min quickly steered the warship back to the squadron and informed Yao Xi of the news. Yao Xi was exhausted by this point, and upon hearing the news, he was greatly relieved, as it meant he could report back to Luo Shang. He immediately ordered the troops to dock and rest.

The Jiangzhou army naturally anchored on the opposite bank of Langzhong City. After docking, the main force rested on the spot, while Yao Xi sent several hundred men south to scout out the local people and, incidentally, to buy some meat. There were actually quite a few Ba people in the army, who were very familiar with the terrain of Langzhong. According to them, there was a large market and village about two miles south of the dock. Yao Xi had already decided that there was no energy left to build a camp, so it would be simpler to find local houses to stay in.

Within half an hour, the men sent out returned. Yao Tai, the leader, reported to Yao Xi that there were indeed some people left in the village, but upon seeing the Jiangzhou army's banners, they scattered and disappeared before anyone could say anything. After all, under Luo Shang's rule, the court's reputation had long been tarnished, a fact the people vividly remembered. Seeing they couldn't catch anyone, Yao Tai and his men, too lazy to waste any more time, simply searched the houses for grain and fodder, requisitioning it on the spot. Yao Tai then asked Yao Xi if they should simply stay in the village that night.

There happened to be a tributary of the river that led directly to the village. Yao Xi thought about it and realized there was no other way, so he agreed. The group sailed the warships one by one into the tributary, leaving dozens of people to monitor Langzhong City, while the rest rested in the village houses.

After three days of forced marching, everyone was exhausted, and this sleep was exceptionally sweet. They slept soundly, as if they had attained eternal peace. Of course, this was an illusion; as long as one is alive, peace can only be fleeting. Late at night, a wind began to blow through the valley, and amidst the howling, the faint sound of barking dogs could be heard in the distance. The vigilant sentries nervously looked around, trying to locate the source of the barking.

Yao Xi was also awakened by the barking dogs. He quickly put on his long robe and went outside to look up. He saw a cluster of torches on the northern hilltop, gradually forming a fiery dragon that hovered and swayed in the night sky. It was an enemy attack! Yao Xi was startled at first, but then he estimated the distance and realized that he still had time to react. He quickly sent his men to wake up his soldiers and tell them to hurry up and board the ships. As long as they sailed the warships into the river and formed ranks, what could these enemy soldiers do to them?
The soldiers boarded the boats very quickly, and then set off downstream to the river mouth. At this time, the enemy troops on the mountain were still quite a distance away, and in theory, although they had disturbed Jingmeng, they were not in danger.

But what happened next quickly plunged the Jin army's morale to rock bottom.

When the first Jin warship arrived at the river mouth, they were astonished to find a pile of rolling logs floating there, completely blocking their path. Not far away on the main river, dozens of warships were lined up in a semi-circle, surrounding the river mouth like a gaping maw, waiting for the Jin army to walk right into their trap. (End of Chapter)