Chapter 420

Chapter 420

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Final Volume: The Rise and Fall of Royal Power, Unification of the World, Chapter 420: Sword Pointing at Ye City

The shorter the slogan, the more powerful it seems during such a military campaign.

The goal of pacifying the world carries a more majestic aura than mere “certain victory.”

As the fully assembled army marched from the southern outskirts of Chang’an towards Tong Pass, crowds of onlookers lined the official roads to bid them farewell.

This time, however, they were not witnessing their beloved monarch ascending to the throne, but rather watching her embark on the final battle to reclaim the land!

The fireworks celebrating the dynasty change in March were an indescribably splendid sight, filled with vibrant colors.

Yet, this military campaign in July, though clad in the cold steel of armor, also presented a scene that no painting could capture.

The sunlight shone brightly, and the armor gleamed.

Their Son of Heaven, clad in armor, seemed even more awe-inspiring than in the previous royal attire.

“After I temporarily leave Chang’an, any matters requiring my decision should be sent to Luoyang and then forwarded to River North. Once the world is pacified, I intend to establish the capital in Luoyang. This can be considered a preliminary transition,” Qiao Yan said to Qiao Lan, riding beside her. “Other matters can be decided by you and Zhongde. Entrusting everything to the Three Dukes at this early stage of my reign might invite criticism. With your position as Zongzheng and your status as a member of the imperial family, overseeing matters would not be overstepping your authority.”

“Among the Three Dukes, General Huangfu has shown me great favor, and I regard him as an elder to be respected. Zhongde has been steadfast in managing the rear for many years, never faltering in administrative duties. His loyalty is unquestionable, and he can be trusted. As for Minister Huang… the affairs of the Yanzhou noble families have already intimidated him. If he dares to stir up trouble, it would mean he truly values his life little. You should keep this in mind.”

“Additionally, Ji and Qing Provinces cannot be pacified in a day. After pacifying them, we must secure the eastern front and eliminate the remnants of the Han dynasty’s influence. It will be difficult to return to Chang’an before October. Proceed with the autumn harvest in Guanzhong as usual; there is no need to consult me. I have already discussed this with the Grand Minister of Agriculture.”

Qiao Lan replied, “I understand.”

What she understood was not just Qiao Yan’s parting instructions but also that, with Chang’an temporarily without its ruler, it was the perfect time to see if her imperial family could shoulder the responsibility.

Qiao Lan’s gaze at Qiao Yan was filled with gentle determination, as if silently answering the question.

Why not?

If not for Qiao Yan’s unique path of growth for the two sisters, even if they had taken the bold step of joining her, they would never have been able to face the upper echelons of power as they did today. Instead, they might still be studying at Leping Academy.

One never knows their limits until they push themselves.

Without exploring the broader world, one would never realize they could influence the tides of history.

Now, having gained Qiao Yan’s favor and become a member of the Qiao imperial family, it was only right for her to share the burden at this moment.

With the Son of Heaven leading the campaign and the imperial family assisting in court affairs, guarding against any opportunistic moves, this was her duty.

Seeing that Qiao Lan understood her instructions, Qiao Yan turned her attention back to the marching troops.

With much of the military supplies already sent to Luoyang by specialists when she issued the recruitment orders, the current procession was predominantly composed of combat soldiers, not laden with carts, giving it a more formidable appearance.

She added another instruction to Qiao Lan, “I have ordered Tian Zitai to assist in allocating the necessary food supplies for the upcoming battles. Any documents should be cross-checked once more; there is no need for further inquiries. I have also entrusted the supervision of the escort to the Commandant. Although these two were former subordinates of the Duke of Anyi, they can be used without issue.”

Qiao Lan replied, “Your Majesty’s intention is to demonstrate the legitimacy of the Han-Yong transition while suppressing the false court. I understand.”

Tian Chou and Xianyu Fu were indeed former subordinates of Liu Yu, but the former had served under the Grand Minister of Agriculture for many years, rarely involving himself in court politics, focusing instead on farming in Guanzhong. The latter had not participated in Wang Yun’s schemes and was instead a victim, treated well after Liu Yu’s abdication, and thus held a sense of gratitude towards Qiao Yan. They were indeed “usable without issue.”

Placing these two at the nexus between Chang’an and Luoyang was, as Qiao Lan said, a signal before the campaign against Ji Province.

“I will say no more on other matters.” Changes in official positions, optimizations of the imperial examination system, and further developments in production should all wait until the world is unified under a single command. There is no need to rush for answers while she is personally leading the campaign against Yuan Shao.

Let us see the outcome when the thirteen provinces are unified!

With these words, she whipped her horse forward. The reinforced Tong Pass of the Jian’an era opened before the ten thousand elite soldiers, and the dust of the Xiaohan Road rose under the blazing sun. Yet, the procession moved forward like the mighty Wei River converging with the Yellow River, unstoppable in its advance.

After several days of marching, Cao Cao in River North County welcomed Qiao Yan’s grand army.

Including the Luoyang garrison, those responsible for escorting supplies, the troops stationed in River North, and those transferred from Hedong, the total force numbered around fifty thousand. The people of Luoyang, who had previously faced Yuan Shao’s invasion at Mengjin, were not afraid to participate in this battle once more!

And let us not forget, this was just one of the routes.

Amidst the fluttering banners and the grand display, Qiao Yan looked towards Wei County in Ji Province to the east. Following Cao Cao’s pointing finger, she could see Gao Gan and the Hebei troops who had recently arrived.

“Gao Yuan has a reputation for great talent and military prowess, quite different from Yuan Xianfu, whom Mengde captured earlier.”

Cao Cao replied, “Unfortunately, the troops he commands may not follow his orders. With the balance of power already decided, even Gao Yuan cannot change the inevitable defeat of Yuan Benchu.”

Qiao Yan smiled, “Then I shall trouble Mengde to secure this victory for me in half a month.”

This long-awaited joint campaign, though marked by changes in personnel and shifts in identity and hierarchy, could still be considered a fortunate event after years of chaos and warfare.

However, the first shot of the August campaign would not be fired at the border between River North and Wei County.

There was a more suitable place for that.

But for now, she merely stationed her troops here, taking no further action. The mere mention of “Qiao Yan’s military campaign” was enough.








Enough to make the court in Ye City shrouded in dark clouds.

Who can maintain a calm heart at this moment and not feel nervous because of it?

After a series of negotiations with Liu Bian, the noble families of Hebei indeed temporarily reached an agreement to defend the city to the death, but this does not mean that all officials in Ye City have the determination to coexist and perish with the Han Dynasty.

Fearing that there might be traitors among them who would interfere with the plan, Liu Bian and Yuan Shao did not intend to inform everyone of their intention to assassinate Qiao Yan.

Even now, there are a few people missing in the court.

A typical representative is Yang Biao, who should have stood at the head of the line with the status of one of the Three Excellencies.

Liu Bian did not dare to offend the Hongnong Yang family, which also has disciples all over the world, at this critical moment, so naturally, he would not execute Yang Biao like Guo Tu and Feng Ji. However, he was also afraid that Yang Biao’s usual indifference to everything would turn into an inside-outside coordination with Yang Xiu at this critical moment, so it was better to let him be temporarily detained under the pretext of “illness.”

If their plan succeeds, Yang Biao will be their bridge to the Chang’an court.

He should know what the right choice is.

If their plan fails, perhaps Yang Biao can still plead for them as an old minister of the Han Dynasty.

After all, if it were not for the grace of the Han Dynasty, how could Yang Biao have such a background of four generations of Three Excellencies!

But when thinking about it, there are means to advance and retreat, and the Han Dynasty has been able to turn danger into safety for hundreds of years. However, when he heard the news that the emperor had indeed followed the imperial edict and personally led the expedition, Liu Bian couldn’t help but shiver.

He resisted the urge to propose moving the capital again and asked Yuan Shao, “In the opinion of the Grand General, do we still need to send more troops to the direction of Liyang?”

Gao Gan is indeed a talent, and he is a rare person among Yuan Shao’s nephews who can take on responsibilities, but who is he facing?

It’s Qiao Yan!

In more than ten years, she has never had a defeat in commanding battles, while Gao Gan’s only notable achievements were accomplished in cooperation with Ju Shou.

Even if they still have the river as a barrier to intercept, Dong Zhuo, who was in Luoyang at the time, couldn’t stop her offensive with the dangerous passes of Luoyang. Would Gao Gan’s presence only boost the enemy’s morale?

If this is the case, if they can’t even slow down Qiao Yan’s side a bit, how can they engage in a tug-of-war with her and find the opportunity to assassinate her?

Yuan Shao’s gaze was heavy, and he replied, “There’s no need to send more troops. Without a fortified city to defend, facing this army of more than 50,000, even if Yuan Cai had ten thousand more men, it would be difficult to change the outcome.”

“Since we are meeting in Ye City, let’s put all the manpower we can muster here!”

Rather than wanting both ends and ending up with a nondescript result, it’s better to go all-in and bet on this decisive place at this moment.

“If Your Majesty insists on sending more troops, I suggest sending them north.”

Add this part of the troops to Ju Shou and Shen Pei’s side, so they can still intercept the Youzhou troops coming south!

But will the troops that will arrive at Ji Province’s Wei County from the north and form a pincer attack on Ye City with Qiao Yan’s side really only be this Youzhou army?

While Zhang Liao handed over the affairs of Youzhou to Zhuge Liang and others and led his troops south to coordinate the two armies of Lü Bu, Lü Lingju, and Tai Shici, Gan Ning, another army also took action at this time.

Zhao Yun did not follow Qiao Yan on this march from Chang’an to Henei. Instead, before the selection of the Guanzhong garrison, he had already returned to Bingzhou via the Qin Straight Road and joined forces with the Eastern Expeditionary General Qu Yi. While Xi Zhicai was stationed in Bingzhou and overseeing the battle situation in the Fukou Pass and Jingxing directions to prevent Yuan Shao from making any desperate moves to invade Bingzhou, Zhao Yun and Qu Yi set out from the Niuyin Mountain Bai Pass, north of Jingxing and south of Feihu Pass.

This place is the source of the Zi River that flows into Ji Province. Although it is still a place of high mountains and deep valleys in the Taihang Mountains, there is a path to follow. More importantly, when crossing the Taihang Mountains via this route and arriving in Ji Province, the place reached is Changshan!

Zhao Yun’s hometown—Changshan!

This army, which appeared out of nowhere, followed the Zi River down at the beginning of August, crossed Fang Mountain, and headed straight for Lingshou County.

Yuan Shao’s second son, Yuan Xi, was in Changshan at this time, but he was stationed in Shang’ai, which is connected to Jingxing. Even Yuan Shao did not pay attention to the northwest corner of Ji Province, and Yuan Xi inevitably overlooked it.

As a result, the fall of Lingshou came as a complete surprise.

The troops under Qu Yi and Zhao Yun were not numerous, but the military discipline of the two commanders was strict, and they were not inferior to Gao Shun. At this time when the morale of the Ji Province army was unstable, they could exert a combat effectiveness far beyond the ordinary.

This army did not even stay in Lingshou County. Instead, they sent people to Zhongshan State to report to Lü Bu while quickly capturing the next county town.

After replenishing military supplies and resting in this place, this elite cavalry continued to advance eastward, aiming directly at Zhending in Changshan.

When Zhao Yun sought out Qiao Yan, it was to prevent the elders of Zhending and even Changshan from being harassed by the bandits of the Taihang Mountains. Before officially serving under Qiao Yan, he had returned to his hometown to inform them of the situation.

For these people of Changshan, they would not care whether Zhao Yun’s actions were treasonous to the Han Dynasty. They only knew that in the past, when the people could not survive, they fled into the Taihang Mountains and became bandits, almost causing them to suffer from plunder. This lifeline was given to them by Qiao Yan after Zhao Yun found the right person.

Today, when the Da Yong army entered the territory and was about to arrive at Zhending, and Zhao Yun informed them that he would restrain the army and ensure that they would not harm the people, why should they make a desperate resistance for the so-called Han Emperor Liu Bian?

The news from Bingzhou had been continuously transmitted to the Changshan area through the mountain passes for several years, making it easier for them to make this decision when changing sides.

The change of hands in Zhending was much easier than Zhao Yun and Qu Yi had imagined, while Lü Bu, supported by the wealthy merchants of Zhongshan, also found it easy to move south from Beiping County to Wuji County in Zhongshan State.

These two armies, one coming from the west and the other from the north, had a unified destination—Xiaquyang, which was also—

The place where Shen Pei was currently stationed.

“Xiaquyang… this is not an auspicious place.”

Qiao Yan sat in the military tent in Henei County, planning the speed and timing of the troops’ movements in various places, while drawing the attack trajectories of various routes on paper.

Although military reports from various places were not so convenient to deliver to her at this time, whether it was Zhao Yun, Qu Yi, or Zhang Liao’s route, she had enough confidence that they would not slack off or make mistakes in striving for merit and contributing to Da Yong at this time.

Even if there were any troubles, the coordinated movements of these two armies would surely compensate for each other.

At this moment, Shen Pei in Xiaquyang must have received the news of the impending military disaster.

Xiaquyang is indeed not so auspicious.

It was the place where Zhang Bao, the General of the Earth in the Yellow Turban Army, was captured during the Yellow Turban Rebellion!