"Zixiu, a major incident has occurred!"
Yin Shangchong burst into Shangguan Qi's room and addressed his former friend Jiang Wei directly.
"What other major incident could there be? The peaceful Ji County has already been captured by the Shu forces!" Although Shangguan Qi lived in Yin Shangchong's household and could understand some of Yin's thoughts of switching allegiances to Shu, there was still some resentment in his words.
"What's wrong with Master Yin's face?"
"Yin Shang didn't respond; instead, he said directly, 'Zixiu, do you know? The Han army has been soundly defeated at Lueyang! Gao Xiang forced me this morning to take out all the household registers from the mansion, load them onto carts, and transport them to Hanzhong, intending to relocate all the civilians!' "
"If it weren't for the defeat, how could they even give up good old Longyou? Moreover, the Wei forces must be very close; otherwise, why would they leave so soon today?"
Shangguan Qi quickly rose from his mat, barefoot and standing, to greet with a bow: "Master Yin coming to seek me out now, does he have some matter for me to attend to?"
"That's right!" Yin Shang, with half of his face swollen, still approached and earnestly grabbed both hands of Shangguan Qi: "My defection to the Han is an act of necessity. Governor Ma Zun has ignored Ji County, and as a local resident, I naturally have to stand up for the county's interests. Can you understand me?"
Shangguan Qi nodded in agreement, without saying much more.
Yin Shangchong continued, "Now Zhuge Liang wants to relocate the residents of Longyou to the south of Hanzhong, and I am not going to be able to avoid this. However, Zixiu, you are different; they do not recognize you!"
Shangguan Qi bowed, "Please, Master Yin, speak directly."
Yin Shangchong no longer hesitated: "I surrendered unwillingly, but I still have some loyalty to the government. The city is in chaos at the moment. Please take my token and ride east as fast as you can to find the imperial army, and explain the situation in Ji County to them at once!"
Shangguan Qi took the seal of the prefectural scribe of Xiatian, the senior district of Wei, from Master Yin. At this moment, he hesitated slightly: "Master Yin will go to Hanzhong himself. How can this favor be used with him gone?"
"Not necessarily useless!" Yin Shangchong said seriously, "I have long known that you are a talented person, but Governor Ma Zun was unwilling to use you! Should there come a day when you rise to power, and you can spare the lives of my family, then take this seal as evidence!"
Shangguan Qi sighed, "Master Yin, you are an older person, and I can understand some of the difficulties in your household and among your clan. However, who knows what will happen in the future?"
"I will remember Master Yin's words, and we will discuss it later. I'm sorry, but I cannot make any promises to Master Yin at this moment!"
Yin Shangchong bowed and said, "Thank you, Zixiu!"
Shangguan Qi hurriedly returned the courtesy as well, thanking Yin Shangchong for his care and support over the past month: "Please, Master Yin, give me two good horses, some water, dry food, and horse feed. I will leave immediately!"
Yin Shangchong grabbed Shangguan Qi's hand and led him outside: "Zixiu, come with me. Let's get it done right away!"
…
At this moment, just outside of the city of Lueyang, it had become a transfer point for grain and supplies.
Grain and supplies from the Guanzhong region have been transported through the 480-mile Longdao road to Lueyang, and divided into two routes to supply Cao Zhen and Zhang He.
Many of the fortifications, barb wire, and fences left by both the Wei and Shu armies when they were in stalemate were dismantled, leaving behind only the camp built by Wang Ping at the Broken Pass and later reinforced by Zhang He and others.
Holding the position at the Broken Pass is sufficient for the current situation of Lueyang.
The county hall in Lueyang city is already the best house in the area.
Cao Rui was sitting in the hall, discussing military affairs with Sima Yi. Yang Fu held a document and quickly walked in from outside.
"What military report is in Yang Shizhong's hand?" Cao Rui asked.
Yang Fu presented the military report with both hands and said, "This is General Huan Fan's report."
"After the General broke the Zhiwings troops, a large part of the troops fled to the mountains. The General was eager to march and did not pursue them. Instead, he dispatched scouts to send back their location."
"Early yesterday morning, Huan Yuanze led three thousand cavalrymen to set out and searched several nearby villages, finding these Shu troops. Their supplies of grain and forage had been burned by the General, leaving them severely short of food."
"The commander of Guanghan, Zhang Yi, led his troops to surrender under the promise that Huan Yuanze would spare their lives."
Cao Rui nodded and looked at Sima Yi with a smile, "The name of this Shu general is suitable for an official in Liang State."
Liangzhou?
Sima Yi was taken aback for a moment, then he laughed and stroked his beard, saying, "Your Majesty is right. Liangzhou has Zhangyang Commandery, which means 'protecting the country with its arms'. If this person is Zhang Yi, then he can be called 'protecting the country with its wings'."
Yang Fu continued, "Huan Fan mentioned in the report that he would return to Lueyang before nightfall today."
Cao Rui nodded lightly and looked at Yang Fu, "Since you're here, Yang Minister, why don't you sit with me? Just now, I discussed matters of Longright with the Marquis of Dou. I would also like your advice on this."
"In compliance with the order." Yang Fu bowed and gestured, sitting opposite Sima Yi.
"Yang Minister, I have this idea." Cao Rui said slowly: "This time, the Great Wei used troops from Guanzhong and Luoyang, but the path they took was still quite a distance."
"From Luoyang to Chang'an is eight hundred li, Chang'an to Chencang is four hundred li, and from Chencang to Shanggan via the Longshan Pass, it's another six hundred li. Not to mention anything else, but this distance is just too far."
"Yang Fu nodded thoughtfully, "Your Majesty is correct. The Inspector of Yong Province, Left General Zhang He learned about the alarm in Longyou and rode at a speed of one hundred twenty li per day, arriving a day earlier than the Shu troops."
"If Zhang He had arrived even one or two days later, the situation in Longright would likely not be what it is today."
"Yes, that's what I thought as well," Cao Rui lamented, "Yongzhou is too vast and Liangzhou is too far away. The situation in Yong and Liang provinces is indeed the most concerning issue for me at the moment."
"However, since I am now in Longyou, the top priority is to drive back the Shu troops and the second priority is to resolve the urgent situation in Longyou."
Sima Yi nodded and said, "Historically, the four provinces of Longright have been called by name, referring to the four provinces of Longxi, Nan'an, Tianshui, and Guangwei. Some also refer to it as the five provinces of Longright by adding the province of Anning."
"Yang Minister, the various provinces of Longright either belong to Yongzhou or Liangzhou. The intricacies among them, you should be more familiar with than I am."
"What the Marquis of Dou said is very true," Yang Fu bowed and said, "During the Later Han Dynasty, the four provinces of Longright first belonged to Yongzhou and then to Liangzhou."
"In the seventeenth year of Jian'an, Emperor Wu reestablished nine provinces from the original thirteen, which led to the abolition of Liangzhou and the inclusion of areas from Guanzhong to Dunhuang as part of Yongzhou."
"After the former emperor ascended the throne, he unified the seven counties in Hexi into a new Liangzhou. It was then that the territories of Yongzhou and Liangzhou were shaped as they are today."
Cao Rui listened to Yang Fu's words and nodded repeatedly in agreement.
In fact, in the seventeenth year of Jian'an when Cao Cao reestablished the nine province system, it was primarily out of consideration for his own interests rather than an intentional imitation of some ancient system.
If Cao Cao established the Wei state in Ji Province, then wouldn't the larger Ji Province mean a larger Wei state?
Following Dong Zhao's suggestion, the three largest prefectures of the realm - Hedong in the Commandery of Sirai, Henan in the Commandery of Hennan, and Pingshan in the Commandery of Qingzhou - were also incorporated into Cao Cao's Wei state.
As for Liangzhou... At that time, who cared about Liangzhou?
But now Cao Rui cares about it.
After hearing Yang Fu's introduction, Cao Rui sighed, "According to what I say, the division of Yong and Liang regions is not reasonable!"
"You see, General Chao Qun is holding back the Wu state in Jingzhou, and Marshal Cao Huo is doing the same in Yangzhou."
"Jingzhou against Jingzhou, Yangzhou against Yangzhou."
"On the other hand, in Yong and Liang, a Longright and a Guanzhong are both facing a small Hanzhong Prefecture!" Cao Rui sighed, "I do not want Zhe He to have to make such a long journey again."
Yang Fu hesitated and asked, "So, Your Majesty wants to...?"
Cao Rui did not hesitate, asking directly, "Marquis of Dou and Yang Minister, do you think it's possible to set up a new state in Longyou?"
Set up a state alone?
Not only was Yang Fu surprised, but even Sima Yi, who had been discussing Longyou with the emperor for an hour, was taken aback and opened his mouth in shock.
Sima Yi was easier to convince. Setting up an additional state would simply add to the existing thirteen, which had previously been merged into nine and then redivided into thirteen. The emperor, observing the remote location of Longyou and finding it difficult to manage, decided to set up a new state there, a decision that could be understood.
But Yang Fu was not thinking in this way!
Yang Fu, being from Longyou, was born and raised in Tianshui, Jizhou. If Longyou could be set up as a separate state, given the current momentum of the Great Wei defeating Wu in the Huainan campaign and defeating Shu in Lueyang, it would be very difficult for the Wei to maintain their current status...
It's possible that the state of Longyou, set up alone, could last for hundreds of years! Wouldn't his own home county of Jizhou become the capital of the state then?
Yang Fu's heart pounded in his chest, and he forced down the surging emotions. Then, he stood up and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I believe it is feasible!"
"How can this be feasible?" Cao Rui raised his corners of the mouth and asked Yang Fu.
Yang Fu said calmly, "Whether it be from the perspectives of geography, military strategy, or public sentiment, combining the four counties of Longyou into a single state is definitely feasible and even very good!"
However, Cao Rui shook his head and said, "Yang Minister, you are mistaken."
"I think that just considering the four counties of Longyou, it is definitely not enough. At least, one more county, Wudu in the south, should be added!"
"If we can conquer Yinting County, then adding Yinting County as well would be good! Five or six counties would make a state more appropriate; four counties are too few."
Sima Yi nodded and said, "I completely agree with Your Majesty! As long as the Wei army conquers Longyou, they will certainly be able to pursue the victory and recover Wudu!"
Cao Rui nodded: "In the past, after the Battle of Hanzhong, the court voluntarily gave up Wudu Prefecture. Now, to recover Wudu is indeed a reasonable move."
"If we were to truly establish a state, what name should we give it?"
Seeing that Sima Yi and Yang Fu were both deep in thought, Cao Rui smiled and said, "I have an anecdote in mind. How about we write down the names we come up with on our hands and compare them?"
Sima Yi was also not disappointed, smiling and bowing his hands, "Your Majesty has a good spirit! If we were to say this, I would seriously consider it."
Yang Fu seemed more serious, just nodding without saying much.
"Boya, bring the pen!" Cao Rui called out.
Since that day when Jiang Wei followed the emperor, Cao Rui has reinstated Jiang Wei's position of Chaoyi Zhengcang and served him in close attendance.
Jiang Wei, who stood in a corner of the hall, overheard the emperor's conversation with the two senior ministers and could not hide his excitement for a moment. However, mindful of his duties, Jiang Wei did not say much and quickly fetched the pen.
After a moment of thought, Cao Rui wrote a word on his hand, as did Sima Yi.
Only Yang Fu hesitated and delayed in not writing. (Chapter complete)
