Chapter 99

When I arrived in Hanzhong, the war had already begun.

Liu Bei passed through Yiling and joined forces with Guan Yu of Yangfan. Ma Chao, accompanied by Wang Ping and Gu Bu, headed north and reclaimed his position from Bang Deok, who had been holding Tianshu in his stead.

Soon, Liu Bei would lead a large army, including Guan Yu’s Jingzhou troops, to attack Wancheng.

And ahead of Liu Bei, Ma Chao had already begun mobilizing his forces. The battle at Tianshu would mark the beginning of this Northern Expedition, with Ma Chao as the vanguard of our nation.

In the military meeting held at Nanjing County in Hanzhong, Ma Chao’s military actions were being recreated on the map.

“Currently, General Ma is advancing towards Long County, where the enemy general Yang Bu is stationed.”

Yang Bu, Ma Chao’s old rival, was holding out in Long County, northeast of Qixian. As the prefect of Tianshu, Yang Bu had successfully repelled Ma Chao in the past, but this time would be different.

“With Military Advisor Bang by his side, even Yang Bu won’t be able to hold out. What about Seomak of Longxi County?”

“General Wang Ping has been given 5,000 soldiers to block him.”

“With Wang Ping, we can trust him.”

The Wei forces in Xiliang could be broadly divided into three groups.

Yang Bu guarding Tianshu, Seomak guarding Longxi, and Sima Yi guarding Jincheng. These were individuals who had proven their abilities through numerous achievements.

Further north, there were also Guan Qiuxing, the prefect of Wuwei, and Zhang Ji, the governor of Yangzhou. However, those regions were remote and barren, and Wei had largely abandoned them, so they posed little threat. At most, they might send small reinforcements.

For Jiang Wei, a native of Tianshu and a former Wei official, these names were particularly burdensome.

Looking at the names of the Wei forces marked on the map, he spoke gravely.

“Yang Bu, Seomak, Sima Yi… none of them are easy opponents.”

They were all talented individuals who had quelled the rebellions of the fierce Xiliang tribes and brought them under Wei’s control through a mix of carrot and stick.

If they had continued to guard Yong and Yang Provinces in the original history, Zhuge Liang’s first Northern Expedition might have been halted before the Battle of Jieting.

‘In Zhuge Liang’s Northern Expedition, they weren’t there.’

In the original history, after Liu Bei’s devastating defeat and death at the Battle of Yiling, Shu was no longer considered a threat, and they were recalled to the central government.

But now, with Wei’s vigilance against Liu Bei still high, Cao Pi had left them in Xiliang.

Hoping they would faithfully guard Yang Province against Liu Bei.

‘Unaware that this was a mistake in personnel policy.’

The others were excellent choices. Yang Bu had repeatedly stopped Ma Chao, making him an expert against Ma Chao, and Seomak had deep trust among the tribes, making him unshakable.

But Sima Yi was a different story.

In the original history, when Cao Pi received the abdication from Emperor Xian and ascended the throne, there were two figures in Wei who wore mourning clothes and wept bitterly.

Cao Zhi and Sima Yi.

With history twisted, changes had come to them as well.

Cao Zhi, who had lamented losing the throne that could have been his, dared not make a sound under the intensified scrutiny.

Sima Yi, who had stopped mourning upon belatedly realizing that Emperor Xian was still alive, remained in the frontier and did not cease his mourning.

Had Sima Yi been given more time and leisure, he might have discerned Emperor Xian’s survival, but circumstances did not permit. He had to prepare for the Northern Expedition that followed immediately after the abdication.

‘And one more thing.’

Pang Tong, who had not stopped scouting in preparation for the Northern Expedition, sent me a letter as soon as he heard about Sima Yi. It was a letter discussing the attempt to persuade Sima Yi to defect.

Only after reading it did I recall the original history and reply that Sima Yi was a plausible candidate. At the same time, I recommended someone to take charge of persuading Sima Yi.

It was Deng Zhi, who had successfully rebuilt the Shu-Wu alliance after the Battle of Yiling.

If Sun Qian had been in charge of Shu’s diplomacy in the past, Deng Zhi was now equally capable. Liu Bei had personally promoted him to the high position of Minister of the Household, recognizing his wisdom and righteousness.

Deng Zhi readily accepted our request to venture into enemy territory, just as he had sought out Sun Quan, who was almost an enemy, after the Battle of Yiling and Liu Bei’s death in the original history.

Mobilizing Deng Zhi, who held the same position as Yu Pa, was also to show Sima Yi how much our state valued him.

And Deng Zhi demonstrated why he had earned Liu Bei’s recognition through his achievements.

“Sima Yi has expressed his intention to defect to our state.”

“Really? Is that true?”

To deceive the enemy, you must first deceive your own side.

Pang Tong and I had kept the plan to persuade Sima Yi a secret from everyone except Liu Bei and Ma Chao.

But now that the Northern Expedition had truly begun, it was safe to reveal it.

“Yes. If Sima Yi defects, Wei won’t be able to stop us with just the forces of Liang Province.”

Ma Chao alone might be slightly unreliable, but with Pang Tong by his side, Yang Bu and Seomak alone wouldn’t be able to stop our forces.

Of course, Wei wouldn’t just sit back and take it. If Liang Province falls, we could target Guanzhong from both Xiliang and Hanzhong. And if they can’t save Liang Province, there’s him in Anding Province, right next to Liang Province.

Zhao Chang, who commands the largest and strongest force in Yong and Yang Provinces.

“Zhao Chang is being cautious, so we’ll need to push him from behind.”

Even though Ma Chao’s attack alone would be enough to lure them into Xiliang, to draw Zhao Chang in, I added one more thing to Sima Yi’s defection.

“Deliver the military order to the camp. We will also march into Xiliang.”

Zhao Chang will have no choice but to go to Xiliang.

§

“Sima Yi has betrayed us?”

Upon hearing the messenger’s report that Sima Yi had attacked and absorbed the reinforcements from Guan Qiuxing, the prefect of Wuwei, Zhao Chang threw down the letter from Yang Bu and sprang to his feet.

He and his deputies, Zhao Yu and Xiahou Yuan, had considered every possible scenario, but Sima Yi’s betrayal was beyond their expectations.

“He’s really made up his mind, he really has!”

Someone like Sima Yi wouldn’t defect overnight, so there must have been behind-the-scenes negotiations before the war started.

Sima Yi’s betrayal was one thing, but the fact that they hadn’t noticed any of this maneuvering was even more infuriating.

“General, this is no time for this. Liang Province is about to fall entirely!”

After Xiahou Yuan’s urgent cry, Zhao Yu’s calm voice followed.

“Calm down. The situation hasn’t reached the point of no return yet. In preparation for their targeting Liang Province, our forces are stationed here in Linjing County. We can enter Liang Province before they block Jieting.”

Jieting, the mountain pass dividing Liang and Yong Provinces.

In Zhuge Liang’s first Northern Expedition, which aimed to cut off Jieting and separate Liang Province from Yong Province to subjugate it, Jieting was the pivotal point that determined the war’s outcome.

Zhao Chang, aware of its importance, had chosen Linjing County near Jieting as his base. This allowed him to respond quickly whether the enemy attacked from Liang or Yong Province.

“That’s right… Liang Province was always going to need Yang Bu’s support. Isn’t Chang-ran also advancing towards Tianshu?”

“Yes, reports from the messengers say she’s advancing west from Nanjing.”

West of Nanjing, the center of Hanzhong, is Wudu Commandery. Tianshu Commandery is just north of Wudu.

After confirming Chang-ran’s movements, Zhao Chang nodded and said.

“This is actually good. We’ll settle this in Liang Province.”

“Should we also request support from the Governor of Yong Province?”

Guo Huai, the Governor of Yong Province, was guarding Chang’an. If their true target is Liang Province, it would be wise to focus our forces there, but Zhao Chang remained cautious.

“His Majesty instructed me to lead the cavalry and confront the enemy, while Governor Guo guards the rear and supports me. We’ll leave Governor Guo as is. We’ll go to Liang Province on our own.”

Zhao Chang’s forces, mostly cavalry, crossed Jieting in an instant upon receiving the order.

Zhao Chang’s movements quickly spread to both Wei and Shu forces.

For the Wei forces, struggling with inferior numbers and internal instability, this was like rain after a drought.

The Wei forces, panicked by Sima Yi’s betrayal, regained their morale upon hearing of Zhao Chang’s reinforcements, while the Shu forces, who had been pushing forward with full momentum, hesitated.

After joining forces with Yang Bu, Zhao Chang faced Ma Chao’s army and waited for Chang-ran to arrive, but as time passed, there was no sign of Chang-ran or even the golden cloak of the Lanling Army.

Zhao Chang had assumed Chang-ran was heading towards Tianshu, but that premise was flawed.

At the very moment Zhao Chang was passing Jieting, Chang-ran had already turned her horse north.

“By now, General Ma must have engaged Zhao Chang in battle.”

Chang-ran’s words were almost to herself, but Jiang Wei answered dutifully.

“That’s likely.”

“Then they must have noticed.”

Chang-ran’s focus was no longer on Tianshu, where Ma Chao and Zhao Chang would clash.

Tianshu was Ma Chao’s battlefield. Chang-ran had her own battlefield.

“That we’re crossing the Jinling Mountain Range.”

Further east of Tianshu. The land that unfolds north of Hanzhong, Guanzhong.

That was Chang-ran’s battlefield.

And the path Chang-ran chose to cross the Jinling Mountain Range into Guanzhong was the Yagu Road, also known as the Running Wild Road.

The path Zhuge Liang chose in his final Northern Expedition, leading to Wuzhang Plains where he ultimately fell without achieving his goal.

Chang-ran headed there.

To succeed in the Northern Expedition.

§