In August of 226 AD (the seventh year of Huangchu of Wei), after making all the war preparations, King Sun Quan of Wu began to mobilize troops in Wuchang one after another, preparing to send troops to attack the northern part of Jingzhou, with Xiangyang and Shiyang as the main battlefields.

At the same time, Cao Rui and Zheng, who were in Luoyang, discussed how to deal with the matter.

Cao Rui looked at the huge map hanging on the wall and turned around to ask Sima Yi, Cao Zhen, Cao Xiu and Chen Qun's opinions:

"I think Sun Quan will send troops in a short while. This time he is coming in full force. Do you guys have any good plans?"

After the four of them pondered for a while, Cao Zhen took the lead and said to Cao Rui:

"Your Majesty, according to my opinion, Sun Quan's attack will definitely not be a separate action. He will actively obtain joint forces with Liu Chan of Shu Han, and then intend to encircle us from the west and south. I have received a secret report from Hanzhong. The facts prove that Shu Han Prime Minister Zhuge Liang had already arrived in Hanzhong in person and mobilized Zhao Yun's troops to station near Jigu. It can be seen that they have ulterior motives and have to guard against them."

At this time, Sima Yi also stood up and bowed and said:

"What the general said is very clear. Zhuge Liang's intention to fight the Northern Expedition is already very clear. Looking at the court, the only one who is familiar with Guanzhong, Longyou and even Hanzhong generation terrain and enemy situation was the general. Therefore, the general suggested that the general supervise Yongliang's troops be stationed in Longyou to shock Zhuge Liang so that he dare not act rashly."

Sima Yi's words surprised Cao Zhen very much, because according to Huan Fan and his analysis, Zhuge Liang's dispatch of troops to Hanzhong was already before Cao Pi's death, and Yongzhou Governor Guo Huai had already reported the abnormal movements of the Shu army to the court. Zhuge Liang was a smart man, so he naturally would not take the risk of attacking even though he knew that Cao Wei was guarding.

But in Cao Zhen's view, the inevitability of the attack on the Eastern Wu is beyond doubt. Now, Sima Yi is the regent minister and also serves as the general of the Fu Army. It is natural to give military power. Cao Rui's trust in Sima Yi is very comparable. Once Sima Yi is involved in the military power and leads his troops south, he will be in danger.

It is precisely because of this that Cao Zhen deliberately exaggerated the dangers in Hanzhong, with the purpose of transferring Sima Yi to Hanzhong, so that he would not have the opportunity to lead troops and make meritorious contributions.

But he didn't expect Sima Yi to do this for him, which really caught him off guard.

Cao Rui also believed that Cao Zhen led troops to the west all year round and was very familiar with the situation of Shu Han. When Cao Pi ascended the throne, Cao Zhen personally supervised Hao Zhao and Su Ze defeated the Quyan rebellion in Hexi, which was indeed the most suitable candidate. So he asked Cao Zhen:

"I wonder if I'm willing to work hard for me?"

At this time, Cao Zhen had no power to refuse. He knew that he had no room to intervene in the war against Wu, so he could only take the order. However, he was not helpless with Sima Yi. While accepting the order to guard Longyou, Cao Zhen strongly recommended Cao Xiu as the commander of the army against the invasion of the Eastern Wu army, so Sima Yi would have no room to stretch.

He thought Sima Yi would strive to win the power to lead troops to attack Wu, but Sima Yi's actions surprised him here:

"Your Majesty, Changping Hou has followed the late emperor to attack Wu three times, and has always been in charge of the military of Yangzhou for many years. He has enough prestige and ability. This time, he is the only candidate to lead the army to attack. I agree with the general's proposal."

On the surface, Sima Yi completely agreed with Cao Xiu's leadership of the army, and had no intention of leading the army as the commander.

At this time, Chen Qun and Sima Yi's eyes met, and stood up and said to Cao Rui:

"Your Majesty, there are not many guards on the southern line who have sufficient experience and ability. Famous generals such as Cao Ren, Xiahou Dun, Zhang Liao, Li Dian, and Le Jin have passed away one after another. The veteran general Xu Huang is also seriously ill. Even if Changping Hou is brave and good at fighting, he will be alone without the support of a capable person. I suggest that Wuyang Hou assist Changping Hou and jointly go south to resist the invasion of the Eastern Wu."

For Cao Xiu, who was eager to lead the troops to fight, Sima Yi was the two important officials of Cao Cao and Cao Pi, Xiahou Yuan, Zhang He and other famous generals praised him very much. Cao Zhen was about to set off for Longyou, and Chen Qun did not know how to lead the troops. At this time, only Sima Yi could have the ability to compete with him for the power of command, but he willingly gave up the position of commander of the three armies to himself. He was very grateful in his heart, and naturally he would not have any objection to him as the deputy assistant.

Cao Zhen, who was standing beside him, then realized that Sima Yi's original intention of voluntarily giving up his position in fighting for the position of commander, but it was too late.

Cao Rui finally issued an edict, with General Cao Xiu leading the entire army, Sima Yi, the general of the Fu Army, as the deputy commander. The two led the troops to resist Sun Quan together, while Cao Zhen was in charge of Yongzhou and Zhang He was the deputy, together intimidating the so-called agitated Zhuge Liang in Hanzhong.

At the same time, he adopted Chen Qun's strategy, which was to take the funeral of the late emperor Cao Pi on the surface, so as to paralyze Sun Quan.

Afterwards, Cao Zhen was full of Cao Xiu's minds and led troops to fight, but he often felt a headache for the simple thinking of not caring about open and secret struggles in the court. But now Cao Rui has opened a gap to let Sima Yi take control of substantive military power, and he has no choice.

After returning to the mansion, Huan Fan heard Cao Zhen tell the whole story and couldn't help but smile: "We wanted Sima Yiyuan to be transferred to Longyou, but we never thought that he would rebel against Yijun. Now we can only watch him make achievements..."

When it was late at night, Fu Ruoxin passed by the corridor and found that the candlelight in Sima Yi's study was still on, so he walked to the door.

Just as she was about to speak, she found Sima Yi sitting alone on the collapse, staring at the tasseled helmet and iron armor hanging on the rack, as if she was thinking about something, but she didn't realize that Fu Ruoxin had walked behind her.

"I will lead the troops to fight tomorrow. My husband should rest as soon as possible. You have been watching this armor for a long time..."

Fu Ruoxin gently placed his hands on Sima Yi's shoulders and massaged them. Only then did Sima Yi notice her existence.

"Nothing, I'm just a little unaccustomed to it..."

He reached out his hand and patted Fu Ruoxin's back of his hand and sighed:

"War is not unfamiliar to me. I have grown up in the continuous baptism of war since I was a child, and I have been giving advice in many wars. However, it is the first time for me to lead the troops to command the battle myself..."

In contrast, Fu Ruoxin was more worried about Sima Yi's safety during this trip, because she knew that war meant death, and that either the enemy or herself died. She did not want Sima Yi to be involved in the bloody and bloody battles in the court. However, she also knew very well that Sima Yi had been waiting for this day, and now she finally obtained military power, and no one could stop him from moving forward.

At noon the next day, Cao Rui burned incense and sacrificed to the sky in Yique south of Luoyang, and made a journey to Cao Xiu and Sima Yi who were about to go to war.

Cao Rui personally handed the tiger talisman to Cao Xiu and Sima Yi, and told them: "This battle is my first battle since I ascended the throne. I hope that the two beloved ministers can give me a head-on attack on the Eastern Wu bandits and promote my great power!"

After taking the tiger talisman, Sima Yi and Cao Xiu knelt on the ground together, raised the tiger talisman in their hands and replied in unison:

"I must do my best to live up to the holy grace!"

With the eyes of the ministers and Cao Rui, Cao Xiu and Sima Yi led an army of 60,000 to march south...

When the army arrived in Runan, Sima Yi and Cao Xiu had already received the battle report:

Zhuge Jin and Zhang Ba set out from Nanjun to advance to Xiangyang, while Sun Quan personally led a large army to surround Shiyang City, guarded by Wenpin. In addition, Wu general Shen De also launched an attack on Jiashi from Wancheng to the border between Wei and Wu. It can be said that the three routes were launched at the same time, with great momentum.

After analyzing the situation of the battle, Sima Yi put forward his own ideas. He pointed to the hanging map and analyzed to Cao Xiu:

"General, now the three armies of the Wu army are attacking our Jingzhou and Yuzhou borders. Zhuge Jin and Zhang Ba have 40,000 troops attacking Xiangyang, Shen De, who attacked Jiashi, led 10,000 troops, while Sun Quan personally led the army to surround Shiyang. If we also divide into three groups to fight, then we, who originally had no advantage in the army, would fall into an unfavorable situation."

Listening to Sima Yi's analysis of the battle, Cao Xiu touched the beard on his chin, nodded and said:

"The current battle situation is not good for us. Judging from the forces we have at hand, it is difficult to divide the troops into three groups. It is inevitable and feasible to divide the troops into two groups. But the question is how these two groups of troops deal with the enemy troops of the three groups?"

At this moment, they received a letter from Jia Kui, who was in charge of Shouchun, asking him to lead his troops to resist Shen De's troops.

But since Cao Pi was assassinated, Cao Xiu has instinctively become hostile to Jia Kui, so he naturally will not trust him.

Cao Xiu replied to the envoy: "It is not only Jia Liangdao who leads troops to fight. With the general and Wuyang waiting there, he doesn't need to point fingers in front of us. You go and tell him and let him guard Huainan well for me and don't let Lu Xun take advantage of the loopholes!"

The rejection of Jia Kui's request for action invisibly helped Sima Yi further isolate and weaken Jia Kui's sense of existence.

After the messenger left, Sima Yi continued to discuss with Cao Xiu's views on how to deal with the current situation:

"The last general agrees with the marshal's suggestion of dividing troops from two groups, but at this time Sun Quan is coming in full force, so we can only take risks."

"oh?"

Cao Xiu became interested when he heard this: "What good strategy does Zhongda have, but it's okay to talk about it."

Sima Yi explained: "Now Sun Quan attacked in three ways, with Zhuge Jin and Shen De on his left and right wings. Wen Pin, who guarded Shi Yang, was a famous general in the city. In the past, Guan Yu failed to succeed in attacking Jiangxia many times. It was all because of his contribution. So the plan was as follows: the last general led 10,000 troops to Xiangyang to resist Zhuge Jin and Zhang Ba's attack, and the marshal led the remaining elite troops and 50,000 cavalry to quickly attack the weakest Shen De's troops, and then passed through Shiting and Qichun to the base of Sun Quan's capital. It would be best if he could seize Wuchang. Even if he could not, he could force Sun Quan to retreat. In this way, the danger on the Jingzhou border could be resolved."

After saying that, Sima Yi had some concerns: "It's just that this battle is a deep-seated land for the general to the enemy's heartland. It's too dangerous. If the general has doubts, it's better to let the subordinates defeat Shende and raid Wuchang."

But Cao Xiu was in high spirits. He waved his hand and said, "I once crossed the Yangtze River and burned Sun Quan's thousands of camps. Now I have 50,000 elite soldiers in my hands. What's the difficulty of defeating a small Shende? But Zhongda, you can use ten thousand troops to fight against Zhuge Jin and Zhang Ba's 40,000 troops. You are under a lot of pressure."

Sima Yi smiled and said, "After many years of construction by Cao Ren and Xu Huang, the city is strong, easy to defend but difficult to attack. Besides, I am just restraining Zhuge Jin's troops and buying you time, and there will be no problem."

"good!"

Cao Xiu patted Sima Yi’s right arm when he auditioned: “If you succeed this time, Zhongda, you should be the first to be successful!”

After the plan was determined, Sima Yi and his two deputy generals Cheng Wu and Niu Jin led 10,000 troops toward Xiangyang, and Cao Xiu also personally led 50,000 iron cavalry to attack Jiashi at night.

After Sima Yi's army arrived in Caiyang, he was not in a hurry to advance to Xiangyang, but ordered everyone to camp on the spot.

Zhuge Jin and Zhang Ba, who surrounded Xiangyang, received reports of Sima Yi leading troops to aid, but what surprised them was that after Sima Yi led his troops to Caiyang, he never took a step forward, but drank and had fun with the generals every night.

After seeing such a war report, Zhang Ba laughed and said, "I see that Cao Wei is about to end. It is so stupid to rescue Xiangyang with a so-called strategist who has never led troops to fight and can only talk big."

But Zhuge Jin was not optimistic because Xu Huang, a veteran general who guarded Xiangyang, ordered them to surround Xiangyang for several days and could attack the city. Now Sima Yi is leading the troops out again, but he and Zhang Ba are in a situation of being surrounded. For this reason, he reminded Zhang Ba:

"I think this is not a solution. Since Xu Huang shook the city and refused to fight, we will attack Sima Yi and lead him out of the city to rescue him. Then we set up an ambush halfway and block Xu Huang outside the city and gather and annihilate him."

Zhang Ba agreed to Zhuge Jin's suggestion, so Zhuge Jin led 20,000 troops across the Han River to sneak attack Cai Yang, and before leaving, he deliberately revealed the news to Xu Huang in the city so that he could restlessly. He took advantage of the empty defenses outside the city to break through to rescue Sima Yi, while Zhang Ba deliberately exposed the gap in the east gate of Xiangyang and led his troops to ambush the road halfway.

Judging from the situation at that time, Zhuge Jin's approach was understandable.

But when he arrived in Cai Yang quickly, he found that Sima Yi's army was missing...

When he arrived in Cai Yang, Sima Yi's troops suddenly appeared behind Zhang Ba, who wanted to ambush Xu Huang, and launched a sudden attack on them. Just when Zhang Ba was caught off guard, Xu Huang in the city also led 20,000 troops out of the city, and attacked Zhang Ba in the inside and outside. Zhang Ba was unable to resist and had to break through, but was cut off by Niu Jin during the breakout.

After the news of Zhang Ba being killed reached Cai Yang, Zhuge Jin knew that even if he rushed back, it would be useless, so he spread bad news at this time:

Sun Quan attacked Shiyang for a long time, but Cao Xiu led 50,000 troops and quickly defeated and killed Wu general Shende with lightning speed. Then the army suddenly turned around and launched a fierce attack towards Wuchang City, conquering the trailer one after another. Long Feng fought with a strong force along the way to Wuchang County, which was only a river away from Wuchang, and the troops were at the foot of Wuchang City.

At that time, Lu Xun was far away in Jiangling and had no way to rush back to Wuchang to resist Cao Xiu in time. As a result, Cao Xiu adopted the strategy set up by Sima Yi for him in advance, and used the gap that Han Zong and Sun Quan had long been alienated to lure the generals guarding the city. Zhai Dan and his family were taken out of the city to surrender. Wuchang City had no generals guarding the city and thus fell into an unprecedented crisis.

Sun Quan had no choice but to withdraw his troops, and at the same time ordered Zhuge Jin to quickly meet with him to break the siege of Wuchang.

Zhuge Jin did not dare to neglect, so he quickly led his army to Shiyang and Sun Quan to meet, but was hit by Cheng Wu's five thousand ambush soldiers in Anchang due to excessive anxiety. Zhuge Jin's troops suffered heavy losses, and eventually lost more than 10,000 soldiers and rushed out of the ambush circle in a very embarrassing manner.

After the meeting, Zhuge Jin and Sun Quan rushed to Wuchang to retreat to the enemy again. At this time, Cao Xiu's supply line was too long because he went deep into the enemy territory. In order to prevent the Wu army from cutting off his own retreat, Cao Xiu decisively ordered the withdrawal of troops.

This battle was entirely supported by the cooperation of Sima Yi and Cao Xiu, and was able to defeat Sun Quan's three-way invasion.

After the war, Sima Yi and Xu Huang met with their troops, and Xu Huang asked Sima Yi:

"I didn't expect you to use the suspicious tactic to attract Zhuge Jin to divide his troops to attack you, and then secretly move to the outside of Xiangyang City to carry out a counter-ambush on Zhang Ba. However, I don't understand one thing. You and I have never had any contact with you. Where did you get the courage? Just relying on the 5,000 soldiers and horses in your hands to ambush Zhang Ba who has 20,000 people? What if I don't go out of the city to attack him with you, what do you think?"

Sima Yi smiled and explained:

"The old general is a powerful general on the battlefield who has experienced many battles. Zhou Yafu is often praised by Emperor Wu. With rich experience, he should naturally be able to guess the intention of the last general, so there is no need to know in advance. As for the fact that I deliberately divided half of the only 10,000 troops and horses in Anchang, it was because I expected that when Cao Xiu entered Wuchang, Sun Quan and Zhuge Jin would definitely be frightened. Zhuge Jin, who was determined to return to Wuchang to retreat, would not have expected that I would send troops to block him. This is what is called surprise."

After hearing this, Xu Huang nodded frequently. As early as when he was fighting with the Guanzhong Allied Forces in Tongguan, he and Xiahou Yuan and Zhang He vaguely realized Sima Yi's unfathomableness. Unexpectedly, he was not only a first-class strategist, but also an excellent general with enough command ability in front of the battlefield. It was really amazing.

This battle was the first battle for Sima Yi to command the battle himself. He first used the suspicious tactic to attract Zhuge Jin to attack on the initiative. After the enemy was dispersed, he joined forces with Xu Huang to attack Zhang Ba. He also used the enemy's eagerness to return to aid to set up an ambush for the second time, and achieved the brilliant record of beheading Zhang Ba, defeating Zhuge Jin, and beheading more than a thousand people.
Chapter completed!