Chapter 582 Cut off the wings first

Chapter 582 Cut off the wings first

"In just a few years, Xishu has already become such a behemoth. With this pace of progress, can we really persist until Zhuge Liang and Ma Su themselves die of illness?"

As a steady stream of intelligence came back from the front line, Jiang Ji became increasingly unsure.

Judging from the information currently detected, the total strength of the Shu army must be upwards of 100,000. Moreover, thanks to the fact that the Qin and Han Dynasties established their capital in Chang'an, the two hundred miles of Yaohan Road were supported by the water of the Yellow River, which made logistics extremely convenient.

I'm afraid it will be more difficult to get rid of the Shu army this time than it was when Sima Yi was in Guanzhong.

"Da Sima, the army of Western Shu has left Hangu and is marching towards Xin'an. Yiyang, Jianchi and other places are all threatened by it!" Jiang Ji's general reported to him urgently, looking extremely nervous.

"In addition, the Shu army also sent a group of soldiers and horses south from Heyang to attack Mengjinguan. We are hostile to us and are attacking from two sides. The situation is very critical!"

"Why are you panicking! Hold on still!" Perhaps sensing the general's fear, Jiang Ji frowned and couldn't help scolding him.

"The strength of our army is no less than that of the Shu army, and we are fighting on our home turf. Luoyang is our old capital of the Wei Dynasty. It has strong city defenses and abundant warehouses. No matter how hard it is, Western Shu cannot survive us!"

"To the east of Hulao Pass, there are hundreds of thousands of troops from the Wei Dynasty. Before, it was because Xishu was hiding in the mountains and we couldn't fight them. Now they come out to die on their own initiative. Should we be the ones who are afraid?"

"150,000 vs. 100,000, I have the advantage!"

As the captain of Sizhou, Jiang Ji was given full responsibility for Luoyang Yin's defense by Cao Rui. There were 150,000 Wei troops in the entire Luoyang Basin and the passes in various places. This was the reason why Jiang Ji dared to sit in Luoyang.

Previously, you in Guanxi were within the projection range of your Xishu power, and I, the Great Wei, were beyond our reach. And now that you have come to fight in my home field of Wei Dynasty, no matter what happens, I will not be completely wiped out by you, right?

After reprimanding his subordinates and trying to boost morale, Jiang Ji began to think about how to resist the Shu army.

The first thing to rule out is to take the initiative to fight. With the combat power of the Shu army, Jiang Ji has no confidence to fight. But Luoyang was the heart of their great Wei Dynasty. The city defense here was strong and the logistics were smooth. It was not so easy to defeat.

Therefore, Jiang Ji quickly deployed defense lines based on Luoyang's terrain. Among them, one hundred thousand troops were stationed at various passes in the southeast of Luoyang to protect Luoyang's logistics. At the same time, all the troops west of Luoyang were withdrawn, and the entire army defended Luoyang City.

Luoyang is located at the junction of Luoshui and Jianshui, and there is Yishui to the south. It is the most critical hub of the Luoyang Basin. Moreover, it is the capital of the Later Han Dynasty and has extraordinary political significance. Normally, it is impossible for the Han army not to be tempted.

Therefore, Jiang Ji's strategic plan was very simple, and he took the initiative to expose Luoyang, which was the most difficult to attack. Then it attracted the main force of the Shu army to attack with all its strength, and relied on Luoyang's city defense to slowly consume the strength of the Han army.

As for how much power Xi Shu can consume, it depends on fate.

"I hope this solid city head of Luoyang can use up a little more of Xi Shu's strength." Jiang Ji shook his head, looking at the tall city head of Luoyang, feeling somewhat comforted in his heart.

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At the same time, a heated discussion was breaking out in the Chinese military tent of the Han army.

"What? General, do you plan to bypass Luoyang and capture Hulao first?" Deng Ai asked in confusion, looking confused.

The other generals were also confused by Ma Su's deployment, and even Liu Yin found it difficult to understand.

Their hundreds of thousands of troops came out of the pass to attack Sizhou. Wasn't it just to attack Luoyang? Now that the enemy has been exposed on his own initiative, how can he still ignore the fundamentals and pursue the inferiors?

"Yes, you can leave Luoyang alone and capture the passes around Luoyang Yin first! This is a military order!" Ma Di nodded and reiterated his order.

"It is indeed our general strategy to capture Luoyang, but is Luoyang that easy to fight? It is the old capital of the Puppet Wei. Not only is it difficult to defeat, but most of the wealthy families inside are supporters of the Puppet Wei."

"We are fighting fiercely now. How many people will we lose before we can defeat it? And the Puppet Wei has the entire Guandong on its back. If we don't pull out its wings, how much will we lose?"

When encountering such a major strategic event, Ma Su did not dare to act impulsively. It was time for his brain to come online.

Since four years ago, Ma Su had not planned to attack Luoyang first during the Eastern Expedition. If we have that kind of troops and resources, wouldn't it be better to cut off its backup first? We have to compete with a broken city.

Of course, Ma Di can't blame the generals for not understanding. After all, until the Sui Dynasty in history, Luoyang was the focus of the strategy for Sizhou.

However, although the generals did not understand, after Ma Su made the decision, everyone quickly accepted the military order. No one in the army was worried about this, and they all accepted Ma Su's deployment immediately.

Ma Su then began to deploy various places and ordered the generals to divide their troops to attack various passes.

Deng Ai and Zhang Yi were responsible for leading troops south from Heyang to capture Mengjing Pass in the south. Jiang Wei and Shu Ji led their troops southward, aiming directly at Yique Pass.

General Wu Ban was responsible for leading troops north to launch an offensive against the Wei army in Beiman Mountain, and responded to Deng Ai's request.

The two Han armies, totaling 70,000 people, launched a roundabout offensive from the south to the north.

After all, Luoyang is just a big city with a large population. As long as all the eight passes of Luoyang are cut off on all sides, taking Luoyang will be like searching for something.

However, Liu Yin discovered a problem. Among all the combat deployments, Ma Di did not have his own mission. After many years of experience following Ma Su, Liu Yin immediately realized that the general was planning to go wandering on his own again.

However, Liu Yin glanced at Li Mu next to him and finally remained silent.

Sometimes, good subordinates know when to shut up and do it for their leader's convenience. And Liu Yin is obviously a good subordinate...

In October of the 16th year of Jianxing, one hundred thousand Han troops, under Ma Su's deployment, officially launched an offensive against Sizhou, and the Battle of Luoyang began.

The war had just begun, but the situation had already seriously deviated from Jiang Ji's plan.

The Han army only dispatched 40,000 troops to Luoyang City, and then just stationed on the spot, with no intention of attacking the city. Instead, a large number of main forces were dispatched to attack the surrounding areas of Luoyang, with the intention of encircling the entire Luoyang.

In just half a month, bad news came first from the north: Mengjinguan was broken by the Shu army. The Wei army in Beiman Mountain was therefore trapped in a dilemma of being attacked from two sides, and was forced to seek help from Luoyang.

For this reason, Jiang Ji could only mobilize troops from Luoyang City to assist Beiman Mountain. As a result, as soon as the troops to support Beimang Mountain were dispatched, Yique Pass in the south was in emergency, giving Jiang Ji a headache.

The only good news may be that the road from Hulao Pass to Luoyang is still open. In other words, as long as the first wave is sustained, the subsequent Kwantung reinforcements can successfully reach Luoyang.

But, is this so?