The plan for the Northern Expedition has been decided.

Next, the main forces of the Han army gathered inside and outside the pass, with camps stretching for several miles.

It looks quite large and impressive.

Subsequently, Liu Bei, the king of Hanzhong, also summoned all the civil and military generals to discuss the plan to advance the army again.

I heard that I wanted to mobilize all my troops to leave the Qinling Mountains and march north to Guanlong.

Zhenyuan General Wei Yan, who had been guarding Hanzhong for many years and was always eager to achieve military glory, stood up this time, with a solemn look on his face, and asked:

"Your Majesty, please also allocate 5,000 elite soldiers to the last general and 5,000 civilians to transport food, totaling 10,000 people, and lead the troops from Baozhong to the east, follow the Ziwu Valley, turn north, and reach Chang'an in less than ten days.

"

"At that time, your Majesty, you will personally lead your troops to march east along the west of Longxi. The general will join the army at Tongguan and encircle Guanzhong, just like the story of Han Xin."

"If this strategy is successful, we will definitely succeed in one battle, and the land in Guanzhong will be ours!"

As soon as he said these words, Wei Yan's expression became more and more smiling, and he was quite confident.

Obviously, in his opinion, this soldier's dangerous move will definitely succeed.

After Liu Bei heard this, he was quite moved for a moment and felt that this strange plan was very feasible!

However, he did not make a decision on the spot. Instead, he habitually tilted his head towards Fa Zheng and asked with a relaxed face:

"Does Xiao Nao think Wen Chang's plan is feasible?"

As soon as these words came out, Fazheng looked blank and said slightly: "Your Majesty, I just thought that dividing the troops might be feasible, but it is not feasible to cross the Ziwu Valley east of the Qinling Mountains!"

"Why is this?"

When Liu Bei heard this, he quickly asked.

"The Ziwu Valley strategy proposed by General Wei may be a good idea under normal circumstances, but it must not be followed this time."

"The reasons are as follows: First, when Cao Cao heard that our army was going all out for the Northern Expedition, he would personally take charge of Chang'an, and the area around Chang'an would be heavily guarded."

"The Ziwu Valley is inaccessible and the rugged area is difficult to navigate."

"Even if we send troops to make a surprise attack, we can only reluctantly send a small-scale light army to advance."

"But once they enter Guanzhong, the light army of several thousand people is already exhausted. How should we deal with the large number of defenders who are already prepared?"

"Without attack equipment, how can we break through the big city of Chang'an or the important town of Tongguan that is stuck in Kanto?"

As the words slowly fell, Fazheng's expression gradually became serious, and he analyzed all the disadvantages of this trip to Ziwu Valley.

He is originally from Guanzhong. First of all, he is very familiar with the terrain of the Hanzhong Five Plank Road connecting Guanzhong, and he knows the difficulty of traveling in Ziwu Valley.

Secondly, from a tactical perspective, it is basically difficult for our main force to imitate Liu Bang, the great ancestor of the Han Dynasty, and Han Xin, who left the border to join forces.

To the west of Longshan, Cao Jun placed heavy troops on guard.

He saw the situation clearly. Even if the main forces gathered together, it would be difficult to break through the Liangzhou defense line and join forces in Guanzhong.

Therefore, although Fazheng has always been good at coming up with strange schemes, after considering the current situation, he also rejected Ziwu Valley's strategy.

He was not the only one who opposed it.

The remaining Zhao Yun, who has always been calm, and his adviser Huang Quan all spoke out against it.

Huang Quan looked serious, cupped his hands and said in a deep voice:

"Before setting off for the expedition, Zhuge's military advisor also advised your Majesty that if we are to repel Cao's army's large-scale invasion and counterattack the Northern Expedition, we must not rush for quick success."

"The army should prepare for the attack step by step. The main strategy is to first capture the Liangzhou area west of Longshan, and then steadily attack eastward to defeat Guanzhong."

"General Wei's strategy is too risky. If you are not careful, your entire army will be wiped out!"

With the advisors on the left and right and general Zhao Yun speaking out against it, Liu Bei naturally could not refute the opinions of the public and could only abandon them.

When Wei Yan saw this, he sighed and could only retreat into the queue, his face looking a little unhappy.

There is a loneliness that cannot be hidden in his eyes.

When he was stationed in Hanzhong, he had always imagined that he could lead the Northern Expedition on his own and regain Guanzhong.

This time my suggestion cannot be adopted, so naturally I can't get excited.

After rejecting Wei Yan's "Ziwu Valley Plot", the military discussion continued.

In the end, the plan formulated by Fazheng was established, and two groups of suspected soldiers from Zhao Yun and Wu Yi were assisted, and they attacked Jiacheng and Chencang along the Xie Valley respectively.

The army then marched from Qishan Road and captured Longyou.

The decision is made.

All departments are stepping up their preparations.

The hinterland of Hanzhong is also continuously transporting logistical supplies such as grain, fodder, ordnance.

After all the preparations have been made, it is already the time of late August.

After counting, the grain is expected to last more than a month.

The subsequent replenishment of soldiers and food will require continuous transportation from Bashu.

After a short rest, the main force of the Han army began to gradually march northward.

Zhao Yun and Deng Zhi first led the troops along the sloping valley.

Wu Yi led his partial army into Sanguan Road and directed his troops towards Chencang.

Halfway through the two groups of troops, the information was naturally captured by Cao Jun's spies who had been placed around after the troops had withdrawn, and were quickly sent back to the rear.

Cao Cao had just returned to Chang'an with his main army, and before he had time to deploy instructions on rescuing Xiangfan, the Han army in Shu had already counterattacked.

For a moment, he couldn't help but feel a headache again, as if his long-lost headache had returned.

But he could only pat his head, force himself to calm down, and think carefully about how to deal with it.

The current situation in Xiangfan is critical. Whether it is to ensure the safety of the clan general Cao Ren or the peace of the states and counties in the Central Plains, Cao Cao absolutely cannot ignore it!

But he also knew that this time Guanlong was facing a massive attack by the Shu army, and he could not leave easily. He had to stay in Chang'an to stabilize the overall situation.

If not, even if Xiangfan is saved, the defense line to the west is extremely likely to be breached.

Based on this, Cao Cao thought for a long time and sent Xu Huang to lead his headquarters out of Wuguan along the direction of Lantian in the southern part of Guanzhong to assist the battle in Jingzhou.

However, due to the failure in the previous battle of Hanshui and the subsequent decisive battle, Xu Huang's department also suffered a lot of losses.

Cao Cao also ordered him to recruit new troops on the spot after arriving in Wancheng.

Xu Huang was arranged to support Jingzhou. In view of his outstanding military rigor and good commanding ability, he just put down some of his worries.

Then, he turned around and began to deploy various defense lines in Guan and Liang to prevent the Shu army's offensive.

He first ordered Cao Xiu to shrink his troops and retreat to the front line of Chencang to set up defenses based on the steep terrain such as Dashan Pass to prevent the Shu army from raiding Chencang.

Then he sent an order to General Zhang He to continue attacking Qishan.

If something goes wrong, you can return to Lucheng to deploy defenses at any time.

He also heard that Zhao Yun and Deng Zhi led their troops along the Xie Valley to raid the Baji City. Cao Cao knew that this place was the hinterland to the west of Chang'an and could not be missed!

Otherwise, Zhao Yunjun could gallop across the Guanzhong Plain and disrupt the situation.

Cao Cao then sent Cao Zhen, a young clan general, and his troops to take control of it!

As Cao Cao is actively deploying various lines of defense.

When Liu Bei, the King of Hanzhong who was stationed at Yangping Pass, saw that the enemy's attention had been attracted by his suspicious soldiers, he immediately issued an order and ordered the army to quickly set off towards Qishan Road.
Chapter completed!