Sima Yi is not stupid, and Zhuge Liang is even less stupid.
And even if Zhuge Liang is really stupid, there is still Zhang Xi here. Zhang Xi is Zhuge Liang's own admission that he is more cautious in using troops than him.
When Zhang Xi received a letter from Zhuge Liang telling him to hold on and not agree to the Wei army's battle, Zhang Xi looked puzzled.
How could Sima Yi, that old turtle, still take the initiative to fight? !
I do not know how? !
Zhang Xi's brain is not stupid, and his reaction is not slow. In addition, Zhuge Liang also wrote his guess about Wei Jun's initiative to send troops in a letter and informed Zhang Xi. Therefore, Zhang Xi now understands why Wei Jun took the initiative to send troops, and Why did Zhuge Liang hold on?
But Zhang Xi immediately replied to Zhuge Liang and asked Zhuge Liang a question: Is the general going into battle Sima Yi? !
Anyway, Sima Yi did not take the initiative to fight at the west gate where Zhang Xi was, so Zhang Xi asked Zhuge Liang if Sima Yi went to the south gate to find Zhuge Liang for a fight.
Or maybe it wasn't Sima Yi who went to battle, but just Sima Yi's generals? !
If Sima Yi takes the initiative to show up to fight, there is nothing to say. Just hold on and hold on. The longer Sima Yi is delayed here, the more advantageous it will be for Wei Yan and Pang Tong to advance troops all the way.
And if the only ones who fight are Sima Yi's subordinates, given Sima Yi's character and IQ, an old fox, he might be planning some conspiracy now.
Zhuge Liang was reminded by Zhang Xi and suddenly came to his senses. Indeed, if Sima Yi played the trick of "building the plank road in the open and secretly visiting the warehouse" and slipped out from under his nose, he would be very embarrassed.
Therefore, Zhuge Liang thought about it for a while and wrote a letter. When Wang Ling came to challenge the camp again, he gave it to Wang Ling and asked him to pass it on to Sima Yi.
In fact, it was Zhuge Liang who told Sima Yi that if you want to fight, you can, and I agreed. But the problem is that the status of the commanders is not equal.
After all, I, Zhuge Liang, am also the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty. I am the commander-in-chief of this Northern Expedition. My opponent should also be you, the general who stayed in Luoyang and conquered the west of Cao Wei.
You send a subordinate to invite me to fight. It's strange that I agree.
This is a matter of identity, status, and etiquette, and it cannot be confused.
If you, Sima Yi, really want to invite a battle, then in three days' time, at the south gate of Luyang, we will each be the commanders of an army, and each side will have 10,000 soldiers to decide the outcome.
When this letter was handed into Sima Yi's hands, Sima Yi was actually a little tempted.
His original intention was to seek a moderate victory, and then take advantage of the Shu thieves' rest period after their defeat to quietly withdraw his troops and return to Luoyang to aid. This way, he would not have to worry about the Shu thieves pursuing him too quickly.
After all, they had just experienced a defeat, and the Shu thieves must have been demoralized. Even if they were aware of their retreat, they would not be able to organize their troops to catch up. Even if they caught up, the threat would not be too great.
Moreover, compared to the difficult Zhang Xi, Zhuge Liang has always appeared as a civilian official. He may have a certain military level, but compared with Zhang Xi, there is a high probability that he will be inferior.
Yes, Wang Ling was bullied miserably by Zhuge Liang, but Sima Yi didn't think Wang Ling's military skills were very good. If he came to fight Wang Ling himself, he could bully him miserably, which doesn't mean anything.
So, why don't you agree? !
Anyway, there are only three days, and Luoyang can't afford to be unable to survive even these three days. Didn't I reply to Xinpi and ask Xinpi to last at least ten days?
There is still some time for this.
And just when Sima Yi wrote to Zhuge Liang, preparing to agree to the battle, Xinpi's second recall letter was sent to Sima Yi's army.
After Sima Yi read Xin Pi's recall letter, he immediately started walking around in his camp.
The development of things was completely beyond Sima Yi's expectation.
Sima Zhao took the initiative to lead troops to rescue Hangu Pass. This incident not only made Sima Yi happy, but also felt a burst of pain.
What is gratifying is that Sima Zhao is the son he taught after all. He has a good strategic vision and sees the importance of Hangu Pass.
What's heartbreaking is that with only five thousand soldiers guarding the north road of Hangu Pass, it's basically gambling with your life on whether you can hold out until reinforcements arrive.
Obviously, one of the reinforcements from Sima Zhao and others was Sima Yi's returning troops.
Unfortunately, based on what Xin Pi said in his letter, I am afraid that Sima Yi's reinforcements will be the only reinforcements that Sima Zhao can count on.
Hedong County was actually hesitant to support Luoyang at this critical moment.
Sima Yi himself is a member of the Hedong family. Hedong and Hanoi are not divided into families, so Sima Yi knows very well what the Hedong family is thinking.
But the problem is, at this time, if Luoyang cannot be saved and the Han Dynasty returns to Luoyang, how many of us Hedong families who originally supported Cao Wei will not be liquidated by the Han Dynasty? !
Other aristocratic families don't know, but his Sima family will definitely not be able to escape.
After all, among the Hedong families, the Sima family was the first family to seek refuge with Cao Wei. Even Cao Cao's official career was recommended by Sima Yi's father, Sima Fang.
If the Han Dynasty were allowed to return to Heluo, how many of the big and small families in Hedong would be able to distance themselves from Cao Wei? !
But Sima Yi was able to figure this out. The Hedong aristocratic families were temporarily confused by their interests. In addition, coupled with the virtues of the aristocratic families that Cao Pi had cultivated over the years, these aristocratic families always felt that the court would not be able to govern the government without leaving the aristocratic family, which made their minds a little confused. Not sure anymore.
In any case, reinforcements from Hedong can no longer be counted on for a while. On the Yanzhou side, Jia Kui himself has a lot of defense tasks. In addition, Soochow is not a fuel-efficient lamp, and he will not take advantage of the situation once or twice. It is unrealistic to expect him to lead troops to rescue Luoyang.
As for Wang Chang of Tongguan. Really, at this time, if Wang Chang can still hold on to Tongguan, he will be considered a loyal minister of the Wei Dynasty. You can't expect Wang Chang to take the initiative to attack Hongnong.
Even if they do counterattack, they may not be able to win.
Therefore, if Sima Yi does not return to Luoyang, his son Sima Zhao will be dead at worst, and Luoyang may not be saved at all.
And once Luoyang is lost, the two counties of Hedong and Hanoi will not be able to hold it. At that time, not to mention the future of the Wei Dynasty, to be selfish, the future of the Sima family will also become bleak.
We must return to the army as soon as possible.
But how to return to the army as soon as possible and at the same time deceive the Shu thieves outside Luyang City and prevent them from pursuing rashly? !
Sima Yi didn't have any ideas for a while. He walked around in the camp just thinking about this problem.
Sima Yi really didn't have any ideas at first, until he accidentally saw what he was writing, preparing to reply to Zhuge Liang's letter asking for a battle.
An idea flashed in Sima Yi's mind.
But if this idea is really used, then I am afraid that my reputation will be destroyed in one day.
So Sima Yi was very confused about whether to use the method he thought of.
No, I don't have a suitable excuse to deceive the Shu thieves. It is simply wishful thinking to take these 40,000 people back to defend Luoyang.
After all, you are a child of a noble family. Fame is greater than heaven. Sometimes you can risk your life for reputation.
Sima Yi weighed it for a long time and finally decided - use it!
There is no way, my own life is not important, but my son's life is important.
For the sake of his son, Sima Yi decided to risk his reputation.
Before returning to his case, Sima Yi continued to write a reply to Zhuge Liang, promising him a decisive victory at the south gate of Luyang in three days.
And Sima Yi emphasized that this was a battle of honor, and he hoped that Zhuge Liang would never miss the battle, otherwise he would be laughed at by the world.
After writing this letter, Sima Yi sent someone with his own banner to deliver it to the Han army camp with great fanfare and in a very formal manner.
But turning around, Sima Yi immediately ordered the entire army to organize their weapons and supplies and prepare to withdraw.
Yes, Sima Yi risked his reputation and agreed to a battle with Zhuge Liang. At the same time, he made a big fuss and made the fuss as loud as possible just to make Zhuge Liang believe that he would continue to hold on to Luyang City.
At least before the formal battle, Zhuge Liang would not suspect that he had any intention of withdrawing his troops.
In other words, Sima Yi used his reputation to buy the Wei army three days to withdraw.
Three days later, Zhuge Liang personally went out to fight with 10,000 soldiers, and Zhang Xi led 5,000 soldiers and horses to the south gate of Luyang City. Only then did he realize that something was wrong.
The entire south gate of Luyang City was quite quiet, almost unbelievably quiet.
Yesterday, I could still vaguely see a lot of Wei troops patrolling back and forth on the city gate tower. Today, everyone is standing there as if standing still, motionless? !
Especially if it's a scam? !
The battlefield selected by Sima Yi was too far away from the Luyang Tower. No one had a telescope in these days, so it was difficult to see clearly. For this reason, Deng Ai immediately understood with a wink from Zhang Xi and took the risk of approaching with 500 personal guards. Arrive at the south gate of Luyang City for close investigation.
As a result, when he was about a hundred steps closer, Deng Ai finally saw clearly that the Wei army was not alive at all. The towers of Luyang City were now filled with scarecrows.
Sima Yi ran away regardless of his reputation! ! !
(End of chapter)
