The moon hung high at its zenith, and the open fields lay in utter silence.
Yet from within Chang'an, waves of sound rose layer upon layer, surging upward and outward, sweeping away the cold and the exhaustion of the night.
"Chang'an is recovered. The Three Qins are restored."
Even though he strained his voice, Liu Bei's shout from the top of the city wall could hardly be called loud.
But fortunately, he was not the only one who wished to cry out those words.
Zhang Fei swelled his chest and did his utmost to spread the words outward, and the soldiers holding torches joined in, shouting in unison.
Those eight short words fell from the walls of Chang'an into the city below, swept briskly through the streets in a single circuit, and then, borne by countless voices, rolled outward toward the distant darkness.
Torches linked the city together. Lines of fire flowed into Chang'an. The blazing lights seemed to restore a fragment of the great city's former splendor.
With ten thousand voices as one, the sound shook the Three Adjuncts. Even the silent Guanzhong plains seemed to awaken once more under this surge of fervor.
Liu Bei covered his ears to ease the shock from having stood so close to Zhang Fei's roar, but as he listened to the waves of sound spreading farther and farther away, a smile gradually appeared on his face.
Then he suddenly remembered something. He grabbed Kongming's hand and started pulling him down.
"We cannot delay. Now that…"
Kongming helplessly pulled his lord back instead.
"Now that Chang'an is taken, we should seize Tong Pass next, correct?"
Seeing the smile on his strategist's face, Liu Bei finally understood. He slapped his hand and laughed loudly.
"Kongming is always thorough. Since you say so, then surely…"
"At midday, once Chang'an was secured, I immediately ordered Zilong and Zhongmiao to lead over a thousand elite cavalry, two thousand Qiang riders, and more than a thousand mounted heavy crossbowmen straight for Tong Pass."
This was also why, after Zhu Ling regained consciousness on the city wall, he was able to approach Xiahou Yuan directly. Almost all available manpower had been assigned to maintaining order in key areas and guarding the surrendered troops. The remaining forces had been dispatched with Zilong to strike Tong Pass. There were not even enough men left to clean up the battlefield.
Hearing this, Liu Bei grew a little worried instead.
"Tong Pass is a natural stronghold…"
Kongming laughed heartily and pointed downward with his feather fan.
"When Zilong went, he carried a personal handwritten letter from Inspector Zhong."
A look of delight bloomed across Liu Bei's face, and the weight on his heart finally lifted.
The reason he had marched through the night was precisely to strike the enemy unprepared and swiftly secure the Three Qins.
That was also why he had brought Xiahou Yuan with him. He had planned to negotiate, even to trade Xiahou Yuan's return east in exchange for Chang'an or Tong Pass if necessary.
But events had unfolded far more smoothly than he had imagined. Liu Bei laughed.
"Inspector Zhong truly has the common people in his heart. This is great virtue indeed."
At this moment, Kongming instead rested both hands on the city wall, gazing at the scene within with eyes full of intoxication.
"What worth is merely breaching a city? The Three Adjuncts hold fertile land stretching a thousand li. Chang'an should not be left in such ruin."
Unlike Jing Province, pressed close to Jiangdong and hemmed in by difficult terrain.
Unlike Yi Province, wrapped in mountains and hard to enter or leave.
The Eight Hundred Li of the Three Qins lay flat and open, like a scroll spread beneath a brush.
More than a million people in Guanzhong, broken soil awaiting revival, calling for bold action.
Ambition surged and churned in Kongming's chest. He reached out as if grasping the future itself, already eager to set to work.
The realm lay close at hand.
This joy stood in stark contrast to Chang'an's celebration.
In Bowang County, Zhao A watched as Advisor Xu tore open a packet of medicinal powder and carefully applied it to his wound. The powder touched the injury, and Zhao A sucked in a sharp breath, baring his teeth.
"Bear with it," Xu Shu said calmly. He then took a strip of leg wrapping cloth that had been boiled in hot water and wound it around the wound, layer by layer.
After tying it off, he was about to give instructions when Zhao A beat him to it with a grin.
"I know, I know. Eat well, rest well, recover fast, then go kill the enemy."
Watching Zhao A leave, Xu Shu placed his hands into the hot water beside him and let out a satisfied hum.
Before the New Year, he and Yunchang had already written a long letter and sent it into Yi Province.
The message was simple. My lord, act without restraint. Northern Jing can hold.
As for Cao's movements, Xu Shu, together with Kongming, Pang Tong, and Fa Zheng, had been able to deduce them with fair accuracy.
Now that Liu Bei had taken Hanzhong and cast a hungry eye toward Guanzhong, taking it carried the taint of prophecy.
But everyone under Heaven knew that after Dong Zhuo, Li Jue, and Guo Si had ravaged it in turn, Guanzhong's former wealth existed in name only. There was little to be gained by taking it.
Northern Jing, on the other hand, was the most important corridor for advancing north from the south. Its waterways were dense, its farmlands abundant.
To gain it was to stand only one step from the Central Plains, ready to march in force at any time, especially after Cao Cao's recent defeat there.
Thus, Liu Bei's strategists unanimously believed that compared to Guanzhong, Cao Cao would find the loss of Northern Jing far more intolerable.
Looking at the situation now, that judgment had proven entirely correct.
Once the great armies had been set in motion, the tasks left to Guan Yu and Xu Shu were simple. Hold Northern Jing without loss, and victory would be theirs.
For half a month, the cities of Duyang and Wuyin had stood like two unyielding nails, firmly blocking Cao's westward advance.
Guan Yu himself led heavy forces and camped at Bowang, ready at any time to support Duyang and Wuyin and deter any bold thrusts.
Before the fighting began, Xu Shu had thought that Northern Jing's greatest reliance would be its heavy crossbows and Guan Yu's cavalry.
But after half a month had passed, Xu Shu only wanted to write Kongming a letter every day to praise a single thing.
Coal briquettes were divine.
They were not as easy to light as charcoal, but they burned for several times longer and were even easier to transport.
With ample supplies of them, the soldiers lacked neither hot water nor warmth. Even during rest, their clothes could remain dry.
Each of these things seemed minor on its own, but once the coal briquettes addressed them all, the resulting boost to morale was like streams converging into the sea. Even Guan Yu took notice.
In addition to the coal briquettes, the leg wraps that proved remarkably useful, canned fruit that allowed ordinary soldiers to eat fruit in winter, and sugarcane water and cinnamon twig soup that could be drunk even in extreme cold all drove morale higher and higher.
By comparison, the heavy crossbows and iron cavalry once thought decisive no longer ranked first.
Xu Shu also knew that the soldiers here frequently followed Yunchang out to intercept Cao's forces. The morale boost these items gave to the garrisons at Duyang and Wuyin would likely be even more pronounced.
A few small things had unexpectedly turned the course of the Northern Jing front toward optimism, leading both Xu Shu and Guan Yu to feel that they had gained new insight into the art of war.
As the water in the basin gradually cooled, Xu Shu reluctantly withdrew his hands.
A small coal briquette stove stood in his room, with a piece of Cong cloth draped nearby. He pulled it over to dry his hands. In his good mood, he could not help but mutter to himself.
"One who excels in warfare cultivates the Way and preserves the law, thus governing victory and defeat."
"Sunzi's words truly strike at the heart."
Guan Yu pushed the door open without such sentimentality.
The red faced general had not yet removed his armor. From Xu Shu's angle, he could also see Wei Yan, who had arrived as reinforcement half a month earlier, standing outside holding his crescent blade.
Guan Yu spoke as always with brevity.
"The Cao army's offensive may slow."
Xu Shu gathered his relaxed mood and turned his thoughts.
"Good news from Guanzhong?"
Guan Yu raised his brows slightly, a rare expression for him.
"Word from Hanzhong. Xiahou Yuan has been defeated in the Wei River valley. More than ten thousand Cao troops have been captured alive."
Xu Shu's brow smoothed. He took the secret letter Guan Yu handed over and read it quickly.
From the handwriting, Xu Shu could tell it was written personally by Kongming.
The letter had come through Fangling and Shangyong, so there was no worry of it falling into Cao hands. Kongming therefore explained the Guanzhong situation very clearly.
Xiahou Yuan's force was annihilated. Zhao Yun and Ma Chao roamed Guanzhong freely. The encirclement of the Bao and Xie roads would be lifted. Kongming himself would soon arrive beneath Chang'an's walls.
"Kongming says in the letter that Chang'an will fall within five days."
Xu Shu flicked the paper and laughed.
"My friend always acts with caution. If he says so, then Chang'an will likely fall in three days."
Guan Yu stroked his beard with a smile. He had already read the letter and could judge the direction of the campaign.
With the main army lost, even if Tong Pass could be held, it would not last long. Once one passed east of Tong Pass lay Hongnong, and Cao Cao would certainly have to divert troops to respond.
"Within ten days, the crisis in Northern Jing will resolve itself."
After saying this, Guan Yu himself chuckled.
Calling it a crisis was somewhat misleading. In reality, the Northern Jing front had already settled into a stalemate.
Cao's forces had a numerical advantage but had failed to achieve surprise. With Guan Ping, Huang Zhong, and others guarding key passes, Cao could not break through.
Though a fierce general might slip past Duyang and Wuyin into Northern Jing's heartland, Guan Yu had stationed heavy forces at Bowang precisely to guard against this. Several engagements had already occurred, all repelled.
Cao could not advance. Guan Yu could not break out. This was the situation in Northern Jing.
Once Cao divided his forces to defend Hongnong, the Northern Jing battlefield would enter a complete deadlock.
"There is little left to say about the fighting here," Xu Shu shook his head and concluded.
"The next shift in the war will be in southern Jing."
In Xu Shu's judgment, although Guanzhong would be fully recovered, the land itself was already too ruined.
Even pouring all of Hanzhong's strength into it would barely suffice to stabilize Guanzhong, let alone push east beyond Tong Pass.
Once the Guanzhong campaign ended and the Northern Jing armies faced off, the only remaining point of rupture would be southern Jing.
And unfortunately, Xu Shu had already anticipated this as well.
From Cao's perspective, what was Jiangdong like?
The sons of Jiangdong were rich in talent. Its navy was unmatched under Heaven.
The fire at Red Cliffs had burned Cao Cao into humiliation.
The Battle of Nan Commandery had driven Cao Ren into headlong flight.
These were real, undeniable achievements.
Though Zhou Gongjin had passed away, could Jiangdong truly fail to stand without Zhou Yu?
Thus, Cao's forces would likely be content to stalemate in Northern Jing, calmly waiting for Jiangdong to seize southern Jing, then march north and join forces to crush Guan Yu in a single blow.
But Guan Yu and Xu Shu understood better than anyone that Jiangdong with Zhou Yu and Jiangdong without him were entirely different.
Moreover, the one who truly could shoulder the burden after Zhou Yu, Lu Su, seemed to have lost power, with Lü Meng now appointed as Administrator of Jiangxia.
Back then, Lü Meng had been nothing more than a fighting general under Zhou Yu. At Red Cliffs, he could barely read. Could he command troops like Zhou Yu?
Xu Shu felt he could not.
Thus, if matters truly came to a stalemate in Northern Jing, Xu Shu would welcome it.
Especially since he and Guan Yu had already devised a counterattack.
Zhao A, whose light wounds had healed, quite liked this counterattack, because it meant returning to the familiar giant ships.
Land warfare in Northern Jing was exciting, but a single mistake could cost one's life. Zhao A did not enjoy it.
Moreover, since his injury, Cao's forces had rarely crossed Duyang and Wuyin to attack. Stationed at Bowang, each day passed idly.
Fortunately, these idle days did not last long. With General Guan ordering the navy to regroup and secretly move south, Zhao A once more set out on campaign.
It was only a pity that General Guan still had to remain in Northern Jing to oversee the front. This time, the navy would be commanded by Little General Gan.
And this Little General Gan was the complete opposite of General Guan in style.
"I'm going to sail those giant ships right up in front of Sun Zhongmou and shoot till I'm satisfied."
Before all of them, Little General Gan swore it boldly.