Xiang Chong told the story in detail how Meng Huo and others were discovered and how they were defeated at the hands of the Wei army.
After Zhuge Liang heard this, he was silent for a moment, and then let out a long sigh,
"When it comes to long-distance raids, Yang Ziyi is the expert in this area."
"It is reasonable for the Southern Barbarians to be discovered by the Wei army."
Xiang Chong smiled bitterly and said,
"Of the tens of thousands of Southern Barbarian troops, less than five hundred were able to come back alive."
"It is said that the Nanman King's concubine, Mrs. Zhu Rong, also fell into the hands of Yang Ling and suffered all the humiliation."
Hearing this, Zhuge Liang's expression changed slightly, and he suddenly thought of Huang Yueying.
"and after?"
"After the Southern Barbarians returned in defeat, the Wei army's artillery was transported from the rear."
Xiang Chong said helplessly,
"The Prime Minister should also know the power of artillery. How can Fucheng be defended?"
"Your Majesty and other courtiers were unable to resist, so they had no choice but to abandon Fucheng and retreat to Mianzhu Pass."
"According to what the messenger said, Your Majesty and the others have planned to re-build their defense line around Chengdu."
Zhuge Liang stood up and walked to the hanging map with a serious look on his face.
In this case, Shu Han has reached a critical moment of life and death!
Most importantly, what should I do?
If he stays in Jiangzhou, once Yang Ling besieges Chengdu and fails to attack, he can detach another army and Pang Tong's navy to attack him from both sides.
But if he leads his troops and leaves, Pang Tong's navy can land ashore and go north to join Yang Ling's troops.
Looking at the collapsed situation on the map, even though Zhuge Liang was so smart, he was confused for a moment and had no idea!
"Prime Minister, Prime Minister..."
Zhuge Liang came back to his senses after calling Xiang Chong in a low voice.
He pondered for a moment and finally said helplessly,
"Send the order and withdraw the troops!"
"But when retreating, all roads and bridges that can be destroyed must be returned!"
"Here!"
Xiang Chong took orders and left quickly.
"well……"
Zhuge Liang looked at the map again and let out a long sigh.
He was young and full of energy, but now he looked extremely haggard.
This Yang Ling... seems to be born to restrain me, a big man!
…
Mianzhu Pass.
Liu Bei and his party, who had withdrawn from Fucheng, were resting here.
Although he had sent someone to notify Zhuge Liang, Liu Bei was still hesitant as to whether to defend Chengdu.
After all, sticking to Chengdu means completely giving up strategic depth.
Once Chengdu cannot be defended, the only thing waiting for the Shu Han is destruction!
"There is no other way, Your Majesty."
Fazheng sighed,
"The Wei army has powerful ordnance such as artillery, and we simply can't defend it."
"Can Chengdu be defended?"
Zhang Fei said a little depressed.
Ever since the Wei army attacked Jiange, he had almost never fought against the Wei army.
Either in retreat or on the way to retreat.
"The worst possible outcome is that we will both perish together!"
Liu Bei seemed to have made up his mind.
However, at this moment, Chen Dao ran in quickly, looking quite nervous.
"Your Majesty, Mr. Ziqiao (Zhang Song) sent news from Chengdu that many Yizhou nobles have colluded together and have rebelled!"
Hearing this, Liu Bei was shocked.
The Wei army is now unstoppable. If there is a fire in the backyard, this battle will be a fart!
He did not hesitate at all and said decisively,
"Mr. Xiaozhi, let's go back to Chengdu immediately!"
"But what should we do here at Mianzhu Pass?"
Fazheng said hesitantly.
"I believe in Mr. Xiao Nao's ability, you will definitely be able to make arrangements!"
Liu Bei patted Fazheng on the shoulder, stood up, and walked away with Chen Dao, Zhang Fei and others.
Fazheng was confused and froze on the spot.
It wasn't until Liu Bei left that he realized that Liu Bei had thrown him a hot potato.
For the current Shu Han people, Mianzhu Pass is like a useless place.
Although its terrain is difficult, it is the last gateway to Chengdu.
But in the face of the Wei army's absolute strength and powerful artillery, they may not be able to defend it for even a day.
Fazheng pondered for a moment and looked at the remaining civil servants and generals.
Everyone quickly lowered their heads, not daring to look at Fazheng.
Fazheng couldn't help but feel angry.
These people usually call themselves loyal ministers of the Han Dynasty, why are they shrinking at this juncture?
Finally, his heart changed and he said in a deep voice,
"Youchang joins the army!"
Ma Su looked stunned. After a moment, he hurriedly responded,
"The general is here!"
"It's up to you to guard Mianzhu Pass!"
"The last general...take the order!"
Ma Su nodded reluctantly.
When the others heard this, they all breathed a sigh of relief.
Everyone knows that in this situation, guarding Mianzhu Pass is a dead end!
"You can go down first. Ma Canjun and I have a few words of advice."
Fazheng waved his hand, and everyone hurriedly left as if they were impressed.
After the others left, Fazheng's expression softened and he whispered,
"I know that it is indeed a bit unkind to let Youchang stay at Mianzhu Pass."
"But there is really no other way right now."
"You Chang, you have met Yang Ling several times. Since he wouldn't kill you before, he won't kill you this time either."
"You just need to hold on for a while, and when you see the situation is not right, just surrender!"
After hearing what he said, Ma Su's face looked much better. He cupped his hands and said,
"Please rest assured, Grand Sima, my subordinates will definitely live up to everyone's expectations."
A stone fell to Fa Zheng's heart. He encouraged Fa Zheng a few more words, then turned around and left.
Since Mianzhu Pass was not large, Liu Bei only left two thousand guards for Ma Su, and then hurriedly took the people away.
Looking at the few remaining soldiers and horses, and the small Mianzhu Pass, Ma Su felt like crying without tears.
Even the steep Jianmen Pass could not stop the Wei army, so relying on his few soldiers and horses was really a strong man locking men.
No matter what, since His Majesty and Da Sima have given orders, he must also know how to be a man!
Ma Di comforted himself a few words, and then ordered the soldiers to guard the city gate and give advance warning.
On the second day after Liu Bei left, soldiers came to report early in the morning that the vanguard of the Wei army had arrived at Mianzhu Pass.
Ma Su did not dare to neglect, and immediately ordered his troops and horses to come to the top of the city in person.
However, when he stood at the top of the city and looked out, his whole body went numb!
Tens of thousands of Wei soldiers were seen forming formation outside the pass.
In front of the military formation, there were ten black cannons!
This was fine, but what shocked Ma Su even more was that there were several strange floating objects hanging in the sky.
Although they are far apart, many Wei soldiers can be vaguely seen among them.
"This...what is this?"
Ma Su took a breath of cold air.
But the surrounding Shu Han soldiers were also shocked by the hot air balloons in the sky and were speechless at all.
There are even more superstitious people who regard hot air balloons as immortal mounts, and they can't help but kneel down to beg for mercy.
While they were in a daze, they saw Jiang Wei riding out and saying loudly,
"The city guard will come quickly to answer the question!"
