Since receiving Sima Yan's imperial edict and being named the governor of the three prefectures of Yongliangyi, Chen Qian, a famous general of the Jin court who had fought against the Eastern Wu and Shu Han, knew that he would be in trouble and take over a mess.

This is the case. After running from Yuzhou to Chang'an in a hurry, Chen Qian was welcomed with no flowers or applause. Some of them were just defeated soldiers of the Jin army who were killed by the Han army and were frightened by the Han army. There were also the military deployments that were messed up by the Han army, and the difficult dilemma of lack of money, food, and even soldiers.

The first thing that made Chen Qian worry was the issue of military strength. After many defeats, the Jin army's Western Front Army, which had reached almost 200,000 at its peak, had been killed by the Han army to less than 100,000. Among them, nearly 30,000 troops were stationed in Liangzhou far away from Guanzhong. The remaining troops were not only counterattacked Hanzhong and Yizhou, but also wanted to save Guanzhong, but it was difficult for Longxi to be.

The second is the military deployment that was completely disrupted by the Han army. He was undecided to give up the useless treasure of the Taurus Road. More than 20,000 troops were scattered and deployed at various passes of the Taurus Road. Among them, the food road at Jiameng Pass has been cut off by the Han army. They either give up on their own initiative or quickly counterattack Baishui Pass and clear the food road. They must make a choice as soon as possible.

The third is the morale and fighting spirit of the army. After losing consecutive battles, the Jin army on the Western Front was already afraid of the Han army like a tiger. When they mentioned the powerful combat power of the Han army, they were frightened. At the same time, they could eat delicious junk food by surrendering to the Han army. They were also known by the Jin soldiers on the Western Front, which led to many Jin soldiers' priorities not how to fight to the death, but how to surrender safely and enjoy the delicious food in the Han army's prisoner-of-war camp.

Forced by helplessness, Chen Qian had to start from scratch. While trying his best to appease the soldiers and stabilize the morale of the army, he stationed grass and grain to supplement military supplies, racked his brains to calculate how to adjust the deployment and rebuild the defense line. He soon made a decision to strategically give up the Taurus Road with no choice, and took the initiative to withdraw the isolated Jiameng Pass and Guancheng defenders. Even Wu Xing, who was struggling to supply, gave up and withdrew all the garrisons in the three places to Chencang.

In addition, the Baishui defenders who had previously escaped to Yinping were also ordered by Chen Qian to transfer back to Wudu for food to reduce the transportation consumption of food and grass, and also returned the land and city south of Wudu to the Han army and Zhang Zhi.

Although some people objected during this period and felt that Chen Qian's concessions were too great, Chen Qian ignored such a voice at all, but he just said hello to Sima Yan and insisted on doing this. Fortunately, after making great strides, the Jin army's internal forces were still much more abundant at once, and at the same time, they basically defended several key positions, which made it more difficult for the Han army to go north by Qishan Road and Chencang Road.

Chen Qian's next big move was to replenish the cavalry. Previously, because he was fighting in mountainous areas such as Jinniu Road and Baoxi Road, it was difficult for the cavalry to play a role, so neither Sima Liang nor Sima You drew too many cavalry from Liangzhou and Longxi to participate in the battle. The next step was to fight defensive wars in the Guanzhong Plain. The importance of cavalry was also highlighted at once. Therefore, Chen Qian almost did not hesitate to draw cavalry from Liangzhou and Longxi to advance eastward to strengthen the cavalry's cavalry strength of the Guanzhong Jin army, and prepare to use the maneuverability of the cavalry to fight against the Han army.

However, Chen Qian soon regretted his decision. After a large number of Liangzhou Jin troops retreated eastward, the already ambitious Xianbei leader Tufashu Jimeng seized the opportunity to attack suddenly. Not only did he lead the Xianbei tribe to fight back and kill the Han soldiers and civilians in Liangzhou, he also killed Hu Zai, the governor of Liangzhou who led his army to suppress the rebellion, causing chaos in Liangzhou.

The Han army had not yet thought of a way to deal with the threat, and the Tufashu Ji took the opportunity to rebel. Of course, Chen Qian had to have a headache with a headache. What made Chen Qian cry even more was that Sima Yan also handed him over the errand of quelling the rebellion in Liangzhou. While arranging a short Liangzhou Governor Su Yu to replace Hu Qi, he urged him to quell the rebellion as soon as possible and recover the lost land in Liangzhou as soon as possible.

"Your Majesty, do you want the fate of your ministers? Your subordinates' military strength is now seriously insufficient in Guanzhong. You are still forcing me to send troops to Liangzhou. The pseudo-Han thief army suddenly came. How should I resist?"

No matter how much wailing, it is useless. Not to mention that Sima Yan's will cannot be disobeyed, Liangzhou, which produces war horses, must not be abandoned. With no choice, Chen Qian had to desperately ask Sima Yan for reinforcements, while arranging Wen Yang, Huangfu Chang and other elite soldiers to assist Su Yu in advancing west, intending to fight quickly and quell the Liangzhou rebellion as soon as possible, and then free up his hands to deal with the Han army with all his strength.

In addition, Chen Qian certainly had to pray for God's blessing, so that the Han army would launch the Northern Expedition later, and give himself more time to prepare for war and quell the rebellion.

However, Chen Qian soon discovered that his bad luck was just the beginning. It happened that in the summer of this year, there was a severe drought in Guanzhong, Longxi and Liangzhou. There was no rain for several months, which led to a serious reduction in autumn grain production in Yongliang and the other two prefectures this year, which made the logistics of the already overwhelmed Jin army even worse and posed hidden dangers to the situation in Guanzhong.

Then, at the end of September, Chen Qian received accurate news that Zhang Zhi had led the Han army to withdraw to Chengdu, and immediately began to prepare for the Northern Expedition, and began to organize a large number of civilians to transport large quantities of military supplies to Hanzhong.

Given the seriousness of the situation, Chen Qian could only hold a military meeting to discuss countermeasures, and said directly at the meeting: "Everyone, you may already know that Zhang Zhi's rebel thieves have retreated to Chengdu with the main force of the pseudo-Han thief army, and have also begun to transport large quantities of military supplies to Hanzhong. If nothing unexpected happens, within one or two months, Zhang Zhi's rebel thieves will most likely lead the main force of the thief army to head north to launch an attack on Guanzhong or Longxi."

The civil and military officials of the Jin army attended the meeting did not say anything. Chen Qianze said: "We are sure that you are very clear about our current situation. Since I took over the Western Front, Your Majesty has only sent us 20,000 reinforcements, and they are all temporarily recruited new soldiers. The combat effectiveness is difficult to guarantee. The rebel Hu in Liangzhou has restrained our 40,000 troops. We now have only more than 70,000 troops available, but we have to guard the long defense line from Longxi to Chang'an. The troops are short of strength. I wonder what are your opinions about how to face the enemy?"

The civil and military officials of the Jin army still didn't say anything. When Chen Qian saw it, he smiled bitterly and said, "Why don't you talk? Is there nothing you can do?"

After Chen Qian's repeated urging, Wang Hun gritted his teeth and said, "The general, the last general, and others have no choice. The pseudo-Han thief army is protected by the demonic power of Zhuge. They don't need to carry food and grass to march. No matter where we send troops to garrison, the pseudo-Han thief army can pass around the city and camp, or cut off our food routes or fight our empty troops. How can we fight such a battle? How can we set up defenses?"

"General Wang, do you really think that Zhang Zhi's rebels can supply food and grass everywhere without relying on the food route?" Chen Qian asked.

"Mo Jiang didn't believe such a ridiculous thing at first." Wang Hun said helplessly: "But over the years, the pseudo-Han thief army has indeed been able to penetrate deeper without relying on the food channels. In addition, the mountain Shizhong saw that Zhang Zhi's thief created food out of thin air, so Mo Jiang just wanted to do not believe it."

The civil and military officials of the Jin army agreed, and they were all very troubled by the bugs that the Han army could not transport grain, and they didn't know how to deal with such bugs. Chen Qian said loudly: "You believe it, I don't believe it! I don't believe it. The pseudo-Han thief army can really create endless food forever. If this is the case, then what else can we fight? It's better to hang ourselves collectively! The famine in Guanzhong and Longxi next year is a foregone conclusion. Without the need for the thief army to take action, the thief army can buy our heads from the people with food!"

"And," Chen Qian added: "Even if the thief army really has the food that can never be eaten, they always have to replenish bows, weapons and armor, as well as their palm thunder and artillery, they also need to replenish them? As long as we spend all these things, what else do they use to fight?"

"What the General said is extremely true!"

A different voice suddenly sounded among the civil and military crowd of Jin army, saying loudly: "Even if the pseudo-Han thief army does not need to transport food, their weapons and supplies must be supplemented from the rear, and it is impossible to leave the rear for a long time to fight. Moreover, the officials believed that the pseudo-Han thief army would definitely not intersperse and detour on a large scale this time, and would only seize our land and cities one by one. We only need to deploy properly, and we can force the pseudo-Han thief army to retreat by means of cutting off the military supplies of the pseudo-Han thief army."

"Wang Shizhi." Chen Qian recognized the person who spoke as Wang Jun and said, "Why do you think the pseudo-Han thief army will not intersperse and detour on a large scale this time?"

"Because this time the pseudo-Han thief army must have wanted to seize Guanzhong or Longxi, instead of taking Chang'an and burning food, immediately withdrawing back to Hanzhong as before." Wang Jun said firmly: "So the officials believed that the pseudo-Han thief army would definitely adopt conventional offensive tactics to seize Guanzhong and Longxi's city and land as before, and would never take any opportunity to go deeper and run away after the battle."

"It's reasonable." Chen Qian applauded and said, "Everyone, have you heard it? Shizhi's words came to the nail on the head. Since the thief army came north this time for the land of the city, it would never run around and pick empty places to fight. It would only seize our city land one by one. We only need to guard a few key positions, so we have to be sure that we must rely on the pseudo-Han thief army that was supplying supplies from the rear."

After careful consideration, he found that this is indeed the truth. The civil and military officials of the Jin army nodded one after another, and the atmosphere of the meeting became slightly active. Chen Qian struck while the iron was hot and asked Wang Jun again: "Shizhi, in your opinion, how should we deploy defense next?"

"Gather heavy troops and focus on guarding Tianshui!"

Wang Jun immediately replied: "The officials dare to assert that Zhang Zhi's rebel thieves will inevitably go north to Qishan Road to take Tianshui first, cut off our connection with Liangzhou first, and then advance slowly, first seize the four counties of Longxi, and then plan to enter Guanzhong. Therefore, as long as we defend Tianshui, we will have hope to waste the pseudo-Han thief army retreating."

Chen Qian's eyes flashed with disappointment, and Hu Lie said, "What should we do in Guanzhong? We only have more than 70,000 troops in total, and we concentrated our heavy troops in Tianshui. How can the remaining troops guard such a large Guanzhong plain? If the pseudo-Han thief army explores the virtual and solid forces, what should we do if we take the opportunity to enter the hinterland of Guanzhong?"

"The bandit army cannot attack Guanzhong first!" Wang Jun replied confidently: "First of all, the flat terrain of Guanzhong is conducive to our advantageous cavalry's ability to play its mobile strengths, while the Tianshui and Longxi are different. The complex terrain there is beneficial to the infantry of the bandit army. Secondly, after the bandit army captured the four counties of Longxi, they can Xijie Qiang people, obtain war horses, expand cavalry, and offset our cavalry's advantage. Thirdly, they can cut off our liaison with Liangzhou, make it difficult for us to echo our heads and tails, and it is conducive to defeating our Liangzhou soldiers and Guanzhong soldiers."

"Talking about war on paper." Wang Hun snorted coldly and said, "The thief army has the advantage of not having to transport grain. Seeing our Guanzhong empty, we will definitely go straight to Chang'an and destroy our command center, and then go east to Tongguan to cut off the connection between Guanzhong and the Central Plains. Then you can eat the land of Guanzhong in one bite and then take down the entire Guanzhong Plain."

After saying that, Wang Hun turned to Chen Qian and said, "General, Guanzhong is the foundation of our western front of Jin. There must be no mistakes. The last general believes that we should prioritize Guanzhong. As for the four counties of Longxi, we don't need to pay too much attention. Even if we are temporarily taken down by the bandit army, the bandit army will definitely not be able to stand firm for a while. When they basically take over the four counties of Longxi, our Liangzhou rebellion will definitely be basically put down. At the same time, the reinforcements given to us by Your Majesty will definitely be in place. When we attack from east to west, it will be easy to recover the four counties of Longxi."

"The best strategy." Hu Lie also said: "Longxi has a severe drought this year, and the food shortage is a foregone conclusion in the coming year. Even if the bandit army enters Longxi, it will inevitably take out military rations to help the people of the four counties in Longxi. Otherwise, it will never be possible to gain a foothold in Longxi. It has suddenly added so much burden. Even if the pseudo-Han bandit army has given food from Zhuge demons, it will definitely be unbearable."

Chen Qian finally nodded, and after a moment of calculation, Chen Qian made up his mind and said, "Let me do this, ask Wudu Prefect Guo Ning to defend the enemy, block the way the bandits' army walks on Qishan Road to advance to Tianshui, and let Wei Guan lead 20,000 troops to defend Chencang, block the way the bandits' army enters the hinterland of Guanzhong from Chencang Road. The remaining main forces will be stationed in Chang'an for maneuvers, and give priority to protecting Guanzhong. When Your Majesty gives us subsequent reinforcements, he will make plans."

"As for Tianshui," Chen Qian hesitated for a moment before saying, "Tianshui Prefect Li Yan is a local rich man with many private soldiers. Send him three thousand troops and provide him with some baggage weapons and ask him to defend with all his strength."

The civil and military officials of the Jin army sang their promises, but Wang Jun remained silent. After a while, he said helplessly in his heart: "Just do your best. Guanzhong's broken stall has become like this. No matter how defense and deployment are, they will survive. There is only a question of how long they can last."

…………

Unlike Chen Qian, who was worried and worried, Zhang Zhi was talking and laughing at the Han army meeting to discuss the Northern Expedition, but he seemed extremely relaxed. The most discussed with the Han army's civil and military officials was the issue of how many troops were sent to the Northern Expedition and how many troops were left to defend Yizhou. He also decided to make a special trip to Du'an before the Northern Expedition to purchase high-end timber there locally to reduce the burden on the transport of wood for the people of Du'an and give the Han army more confidence to deal with the upcoming Guanzhong famine.

In addition, although he did not have much hope, Zhang Zhi adopted Chen Can's suggestion and arranged an envoy to the Eastern Wu, asking the Eastern Wu to follow the alliance and send troops to attack Jin at the same time as his own army.

Given that Huo Yi was already old and sick, Zhang Zhi still decided to leave Zhu Xiang to assist Huo Yi in defending Yizhou, and at the same time decided to dispatch nearly 60,000 troops, including the Jiange defenders, to the northern expedition. The defensive task of the eastern front was still entrusted to Luo Xian and Fu Gong, and the 10,000 troops who left Hanzhong were handed over by Zhang Zhi to Wang Su, the former goalkeeper of Nanzhongya. At the same time, Zhang Zhi also ordered a group of reserve officials to be brought with him so that after seizing the new city land, there were relatively reliable officials to be appointed.

It was only after all these were arranged that Huo Yi suddenly remembered a big event and said hurriedly: "The latter general, there is an important issue that has not been discussed yet. Which road will we take to the Northern Expedition this time? Where can we fight first?"

"Let's talk about it when we arrive in Hanzhong." Zhang Zhi replied in a very relaxed and simple manner, saying: "If the main force of the Jin bandit army guards Guanzhong, we will take the Qishan Road to attack Longxi, first capture the four counties of Longxi and then slowly advance to Guanzhong. If the Jin bandits place their main forces in Longxi, we will go north on Baoxi Road and then go straight to Tongguan, first seize Tongguan and cut off the connection between Guanzhong and the Central Plains, and then turn around and eat Guanzhong bite at a time."

"It's that simple?" Huo Yi was a little stunned.

"Isn't that simple?" Zhang Zhi smiled and said, "We don't have the burden of food and grass. Of course, we can fight there if we want. We still have to consider any complicated tactics? Do you think so?"

The Han army and civil and military officials nodded one after another, and Zhao Quan shouted arrogantly: "We not only want to fight there, but also make us angry. After we hit Tongguan, we will take Luoyang directly, chop off Sima Yan's head to make a chamber pot!"

Perhaps some friends don’t know that when Liu Laosan went north from Hanzhong to Guanzhong, the waterway of the Han River could pass through a huge lake called Tiandi Daze, and directly send the grain ship to the city of Chencang. At the same time, the grain from Chengdu could also be transferred to Tiandi Daze through the Jialing River, and directly send the grain to Chencang City.

However, due to the later Wudu earthquake, the super large reservoir of Tiandi Daze, which caused a significant reduction in flows in the upper reaches of the Han River and the upper reaches of the Jialing River and could not continue to be navigated. Therefore, Zhuge Villageman and Jiang Wei had to transport grain through the long and rugged Qinling Mountain Road, and fell into a bitter state of frequent food outages. It also allowed the five-hour drive of the Growth Expressway in the future, which made Zhuge Villageman and Jiang Wei not complete it for a lifetime.

This was also common in later generations. Because there was no waterway to transport grain, no Shu forces could enter Hanzhong from Sichuan. So basically, it can be said that the Wudu earthquake was equivalent to breaking the dragon veins in Shu.
Chapter completed!