In the 18th year of Jian'an, Cao Cao was enthroned as Duke of Wei, and at the suggestion of ministers such as Dong Zhao, he accepted the ceremony of the nine-four ceremonies that mean the highest treatment.

All the civil and military officials and generals under their command also mentioned promotions. Zhou Yang was also appointed as the General of the Western Expedition, commanding the two prefectures of Yong and Liang, and immediately launched an army to attack Hanzhong to seal the throat of Liu Bei of Western Shu.

When Xiahou Yuan, Cao Xiu, Zhang He and others arrived, the Luoyang army immediately set off for Meixian.

Liu Ye, a counselor who accompanied the army, suggested: "The so-called "the army should not move, food and grass should be taken first. Zhouxiang Hou should arrange a reliable army to serve as a logistics supply, which is one of the necessary resources for war."

Zhou Yang had no experience in leading the commander, but now he is in a high position and powerful position and holds military power. Cao Cao has already determined the successor.

Giving him such an opportunity at this time obviously has high hopes for him to help him inherit the world in the future.

Liu Ye was also one of the early strategists who followed Cao Cao's early days, and with experienced generals such as Xiahou Yuan, Cao Xiu and Zhang He, they helped him.

Zhou Yang naturally took a humble attitude and immediately adopted the suggestion and ordered Zhang He to be responsible for the supply work of this battle.

The army set out from Mei County, and Zhang Lu, Hanzhong, had already received military information and asked Shu for help.

Liu Bei knew that this was a battle with cold lips and teeth, and he would never give up Cao Cao to Hanzhong.

Although Liu Zhang had just been destroyed, there were still many internal problems that were not yet stable, and many generals and troops were transferred to various places to be responsible for suppression, public security, defense and other work, 10,000 infantry were still drawn, led by general Wei Yan, and rushed to Hanzhong to support him.

"Wei Yan?" Zhou Yang murmured this name that was definitely not unfamiliar.

According to the records, the two most outstanding generals under Liu Bei were Zhang Fei and Wei Yan.

Zhang Fei in history was not a reckless man, but a brave and resourceful general. At least half of Liu Bei's status today was defeated by Zhang Fei.

As for another person who was extremely powerful in leading troops to fight, it was Wei Yan.

Since he was loyal to Liu Bei, this person has made almost many military achievements. Later, he led his army to defeat Wei generals Guo Huai and others in the Northern Expedition, and proposed the famous "Ziwu Valley Strategy" of Chang'an, becoming the most troubled figure in Cao Wei.

It’s a pity that under Zhuge Liang’s power, he was unable to display his true talent. He ended up in hatred and was tragically killed by the three clans.

What is the so-called Wei Yansheng’s theory of rebellion in the Romance is all empty talk about fallacies.

This outstanding general never betrayed Shu Kingdom from beginning to end, but Zhou Yang hoped that he would really have a rebellious body, so that he could poach him like he did when he was digging Xu Rong and then use it.

"Does Zhou Xianghou also know this person?" Liu Ye asked.

"I know a little bit." Zhou Yang quickly became modest and said, "Does Mr. Liu have any suggestions?"

"Just write a letter and return to Xudu, I can guarantee that no soldiers will be abandoned, and the Shu army will return without attack." Liu Ye said with a smile.

"Then write it right away!"

So according to Liu Ye's proposal, Zhou Yang ordered a quick horse to send the letter back to Xu Du that night.

It turned out that after Liu Bei captured Shu, Sun Quan sent someone to return the Jiangling land in Jingzhou that he borrowed from him, but he was repeatedly evaded, and there was already a gap between the two sides.

When Cao Cao's army was approaching, Sun and Liu's coalition forces jointly fought against the powerful enemy. Now the hardships have passed, and Liu Bei's strength is no longer inferior to Sun Quan, which is another matter.

Therefore, Sun Quan planned to take back the land of Jingzhou in a few words, which was simply a fool.

This has long aroused dissatisfaction from the Eastern Wu side, so Liu Ye believed that as long as he compiled a letter and sent him back to Xudu, Cao Cao would send someone to the Eastern Wu to enthrone Sun Quan with the emperor's edict, and at the same time make friends with him, Shu would naturally be wary of it.

After all, Liu Bei's current total combat power is sufficient to compete with the two major powers of Wei and Wu, but it is not easy to gather a warable army for a while.

In addition, Wu and Shu are obviously inferior to their previous relationship, so they must be prevented from each other.

As expected by Liu Ye, when Zhou Yang's army arrived at Yangping Pass, the Shu army had already evacuated.

Zhang Lu knew that this battle was inevitable, so he immediately dispatched troops from Hanzhong to Guanzhong to defend. The Wei army also set foot forty miles away from Yangping Pass.

Zhou Yang and his generals stood on the hillside, looking at Yangping Pass north by Qinling Mountains, south by Han River and Bashan Mountain, across the west by Xian River and the west by Hanzhong City on Zoumaling, locating at the Jinniu Roadkou where Bashu is connected to Bashu in the west and Chencang Roadkou where Qinlong is facing north. It is the momentum of Dingjun Mountain and Tiandang Mountain in the north and south of the Han River. It is the western gateway of the Hanzhong Basin and the northern frontier of Bashu to Guanzhong. Its geographical location is very dangerous.

"Advance is good for attack, retreat can defend." Xiahou Yuan said, "If you can take down Tiandang Mountain, you can look at Hanzhong, which will pose a very headache to Yangping Pass."

"But the terrain of Tiandang Mountain is dangerous, so it is not easy to attack around the mountain." Cao Xiu said.

"No matter how difficult it is, is it difficult for us to surround Hulao in the past?" Zhou Yang said.

"It's different." Liu Ye said, "When the eighteen routes of the lords in front of Hulao Pass, the marquis of Zhouxiang were able to sneak up to the mountains and forests in the north of the pass, mainly because Luoyang was far less important to Dong Zhuo than to Zhang Lu in Hanzhong."

Zhou Yang sighed, thinking that he was right.

When Dong Zhuo lost Hulao Pass, he could also take the opportunity to plunder money and burn the city to escape west.

But if Zhang Lu lost Yangping Pass, Hanzhong would be anxious and had no way out. His only choice was to defect to Liu Bei or open the city to surrender to the Wei army.

Therefore, Tiandang Mountain must be heavily guarded. You only need to send a steady and reliable general and bring hundreds of archers and infantry with you. No one can steal half a step up the mountain.

Cao Xiu suggested: "Every time we follow the lord personally to the expedition, we will first write down the surrender letter to the other party."

Liu Ye praised: "This is a good idea."

Zhou Yang said: "How could the other party surrender so easily?"

Liu Ye explained: "The purpose of the book of surrender is not entirely to make the enemy surrender without fighting. Of course, it would be the best if this could be done. But even if the enemy insists on fighting, it can still be effective in hitting the morale of the enemy!"

Xiahou Yuan nodded in agreement and said, "Especially, our Great Wei army is strong and has excellent combat power. No one is willing to help Zhang Lunar fight in the enemy's soldiers and the people of Hanzhong."

Liu Ye said again: "So, surrendering books and spreading rumors need to be done in both ways. Otherwise, if we only attack Yangping Pass, we will have to spend a lot of time and resources."

Zhou Yang heard everyone speak well, and he was originally learning.

All of these people were generals and strategists with rich battlefield experience and strong military capabilities. He heard that they were sure of it, so he handed over the task to Liu Ye.

Ten days after the surrender book was posted to Hanzhong, I finally received a reply from Zhang Lu.

Liu Ye took the letter and looked at it carefully, but his face showed a sad look.

Xiahou Yuan asked quickly: "What did the letter say?"

Liu Yeqi said: "From Zhang Lu's attitude, it seems that he does not intend to be innocent, and he is also very disgusted with war. He has no intention of fighting with our army. He just means the letter, but it is written in a very tactful way, as if he is not going to defend Hanzhong."

Cao Xiu said: "There is a younger brother under Zhang Lu's command named Zhang Wei. He is a stubborn person and he should be the one who advocates fighting but does not surrender."

Liu Ye's eyes never left the letter, and said in a heavy tone: "I'm afraid not only Zhang Wei is willing to fight to the death, but also the people of Hanzhong and the soldiers in the army are all willing to take blood on the battlefield to defend Hanzhong!"

Zhou Yang asked, "How could this be?"

Liu Ye shook his head and said, "The letter is written very clearly. Even if he, Zhang Lu, does not want to fight, is willing to defend Hanzhong to the death."

Xiahou Yuan said in surprise: "Five dou of rice?"

Zhou Yang suddenly realized and remembered that in the Records of the Grand Historian, Zhang Lu was the tenth-generation grandson of Zhang Liang, the Marquis of Liu of the Western Han Dynasty, and the grandson of Zhang Ling, the founder of Taoism in Wudoumi.

After the death of his grandfather and father, he continued to spread the five-dove rice path in the Hanzhong area and called himself "Shijun".

As for Zhang Ling, it is known to Taoists as Zhang Daoling, Zhang Tianshi, Zhengyi Zhenren, Zu Tianshi, etc. It is said that this person lived in his 120s in the world, and at the same time he has a deep connection with the Taiping Sutra.

Zhang Lu did not rely on Taoist theory to confuse the masses like Zhang Jiao, but instead treated the people well with the five dou of rice, and had a high prestige in the Hanzhong area.

Therefore, if Cao's army planned to attack Hanzhong, it would pay a very painful price, and the result would inevitably be that the gain would be more than worth the loss.

But it was neither war nor surrender, but Zhou Yang felt a headache for a moment.

In addition, there are Yangping Pass, which is easy to defend and difficult to attack, to prevent the advance of the Wei army, and the convenience of supply in Hanzhong, whether it is arms, food, arrows, etc. to be transported to Yangping Pass for support, it is easy to do.

If you persist in this way, it will be more than worth the loss after conquering Hanzhong. Even if you have to lose troops and conquer this barrier in the future, it will probably be quite difficult in the short term.

The siege cars, catapults, snatch bows and other weapons made by Liu Ye can be used.

"But the problem is that these weapons are very slow to operate." Xiahou Yuan said, "especially siege cars and catapults, both soldiers need to promote and complex operating procedures, which is very suitable for smashing walls and doors. If you deal with this flexible combat power that has both a hard barrier, a high morale and a full range of soldiers, it will be very troublesome."

"General Xiahou's meaning is to protect these siege weapons, which has become a key issue." Zhou Yang said.

"That's right, Zhouxiang Hou please look at the soldiers on the wall of the pass." Xiahou Yuan pointed to the distance and said, "The enemy also has oar bows and strong bows. According to the details, Hanzhong is transporting a catapult to Yangping Pass."

"They also have catapults?" Zhou Yang said in surprise.

"War weapons that are very useful for both defense and siege, how can other forces not imitate and strive to adopt them first?" Xiahou Yuan said.

In this era of war, any invention will become a very important winning point, so there will always be infiltrating detailed works between forces, and they will never be able to catch them.
Chapter completed!