The Three Kingdoms: I asked you to save Guan Yu, not to destroy Sun Quan.

Chapter 215 Is Sima Yi going to fight to the death?

"You traitorous Cao Cao and Wei dogs on the other side, General Zhang Fei has already reached Jieting and cut off your retreat. You have no way to go home now."

"You are about to die in Longxi. Think of your parents, your wives, and your children. If you all die, your wives will sleep with other men, and your children will call other men 'Dad'."

"So run! It's not too late to get home now. Once General Zhang Fei reaches Jieting, it will be too late to go back."

Guan Ping led five hundred cavalrymen to constantly patrol and make noise near the Wei army camp. When the Wei army chased after him, he would run away, and when the Wei army retreated, he would go back and continue shouting. He was a gentleman who used words but not fists.

Cao Zhen stood in the camp, his face turning green with anger as he watched Guan Ping come over again to spout nonsense.

This bastard has been acting like he's taken the wrong medicine lately. He runs to the Wei army camp every day shouting and yelling, and he's as slippery as an eel, no matter how hard he tries, he can't catch up with him.

These days, Cao Zhen has really tried every means to deal with Guan Ping. Not only did he use all his cavalry, catapults, and crossbows, but he even went out of the camp in the middle of the night to sneak up and ambush Guan Ping on his usual route. But the damned Guan Ping seemed to be able to read Cao Zhen's mind. Cao Zhen hid for several days but still couldn't catch him.

Gradually, Cao Zhen gave up hope and stopped paying attention to Guan Ping.

Guan Ping, however, seemed encouraged and began to visit the Wei army camp more and more frequently, shouting more and more enthusiastically. He kept shouting even when his voice was hoarse. Aren't you afraid of making yourself mute?

Cao Zhen stared at Guan Ping fiercely for a long time, and after confirming that Guan Ping would not take the initiative to attack and that he could not catch up with him even if he left the camp, he decisively turned around to see Zhang He, no longer wanting to suffer here.

When Cao Zhen arrived at the commander's tent, he found Sima Yi there as well. Too lazy to mince words, he went straight to the point: "General, strategist, that damned Zhuge Liang is clearly trying to demoralize our army by having Guan Ping shout out, and then launch a general attack when Zhang Fei arrives at Jieting, delivering a fatal blow to us. So we can't let this go on any longer. We must find a way to break this deadlock, otherwise, if we drag this out any longer, we'll just be waiting to die."

They had already received Hao Zhao's message. On the day they received the message, when they learned that Zhang Fei and Huang Quan had crossed the Guanzhong Plain and stormed into Dazhen Pass, and were about to attack them from behind at Jieting, the men in the tent were completely dumbfounded.

Liu Bei and Zhang Fei actually ignored the Wei army in Guanzhong and ran directly from Mei County to Dazhen Pass. Aren't you afraid of being surrounded and killed by the Wei army in Guanzhong?

Damn you big-eared thief, damn you ring-eyed thief, you two are almost sixty years old, how come you fight even crazier than when you were young?

And Guo Huai and Fei Yao, what good are you two? You let Zhang Fei easily kill his way to Dazhen Pass.

Upon learning that Zhang Fei was attacking from behind, Zhang He was so frightened that he immediately lost his composure and was about to order a retreat into Jieting to kill Zhang Fei.

He knew all too well how formidable Zhang Fei was. Not to mention the recent Battle of Xiabian, heaven knows how badly he was beaten by Zhang Fei.

Now Zhang Fei is attacking from behind again, is he trying to kill me?

Zhang He was extremely anxious, but fortunately Sima Yi remained calm and said that Hao Zhao was blocking the road in Longshan, so there wouldn't be any major problems for the time being.

Then, it was suggested that Zhang He send troops to strengthen the defenses of Jieting, and make sure to block Zhang Fei tightly in the Longshan Road, trying to delay until the day when Zhang Fei's food supplies run out.

Zhang He adopted his suggestion and sent people to Jieting to build a defensive line. At the same time, he kept praying in his heart that Hao Zhao could hold out for a few more days on Longshan Road, so as to buy him more time to build the Jieting defensive line.

To be fair, Zhang Fei's army, having ventured deep into enemy territory alone, must have carried very little food. If they had fought and retreated along the Longshan Road, they could have easily bled Zhang Fei dry, like blood being drained from a tiger.

So Sima Yi wasn't in a hurry, but that damned Zhuge Liang wouldn't stop. Not only did he release the Wei prisoners, but he also had Guan Ping shout outside the camp every day, which made the Wei army's morale start to waver.

That damned Guan Ping never gets tired of it and enjoys doing it every day.

Sima Yi comforted him, "Zidan, don't panic. It's precisely at times like these that you need to remain calm and composed. You must not lose your composure."

Cao Zhen said helplessly, "Then what do we do now? Continue to wait for Zhang Fei's news? While waiting, we should also prepare for the worst. What if Hao Zhao can't stop Zhang Fei and that ring-eyed bandit gets to Jieting? We need to have a plan."

"Report..." Before the words were even finished, a loud shout came from outside the camp.

Everyone in the tent hurriedly looked up and saw a messenger rush into the command tent, kneel down and say, "General, something terrible has happened! General Hao Zhao has been captured, and Zhang Fei is about to attack Jieting."

Well, the worst has happened.

Zhang He had already mentally prepared himself for this, so he didn't show too much surprise and calmly said, "I understand, you may leave."

After the messenger left, Zhang He sighed, "Zhang Fei's attacks are as fierce as ever. I'm afraid we can't hold him at Jieting for more than a few days. Moreover, Zhuge Liang will probably receive Zhang Fei's message soon. Once Zhuge Liang receives the message, he will definitely launch a general offensive. Zhongda, what do you think we should do?"

Sima Yi pondered, "There are only a few options: either retreat to Jieting and eliminate Zhang Fei first, or retreat to Jincheng for temporary refuge, or take the initiative to attack the Shu army and defeat the main force of the Shu army before Zhang Fei breaks out of Jieting, or strengthen the defense of Jieting and continue to stall, wearing Zhang Fei down first."

These solutions were exactly the same as those Zhuge Liang had given Liu Bei. The problem was that each method seemed feasible, but each had a fatal hidden danger. Therefore, Zhang He was undecided and did not know which one to choose.

Zhang He rubbed his temples and said painfully, "Isn't there any other way?"

Sima Yi frowned, struggled for a moment, and gritted his teeth, saying, "Yes..."

Zhang He's eyes lit up and he quickly asked, "What method?"

Sima Yi struggled for a long time before finally saying, "Abandon Ji County and retreat to Jieting, then fight the Shu army with our backs to Jieting."

"Ji County is 180 li from Jieting. The distance is too far for us to keep in touch with the Jieting garrison in time. If Zhang Fei breaks through Jieting, we will not be able to respond in time. But if we retreat to Jieting, this problem will not exist."

"Not only that, retreating to Jieting can also extend the Shu army's supply line, which is only beneficial to us. We will use 50,000 main forces to defend Jieting. I don't believe we can hold out until Zhang Fei runs out of food."

"Moreover, it's impossible for Commander Zhang to abandon us. He must be launching a fierce attack on Dazhen Pass right now, doing everything he can to get here. If we can hold out until Commander Zhang arrives, Zhang Fei, who is trapped at the exit of Longshan Road, will be doomed."

Zhang He nodded and said, "You're right, but even if we retreat to Jieting, we'll still be attacked by Zhuge Liang. It would be good if we could win, but what if we can't? In other words, what if we can't hold out until Zhang Fei runs out of supplies or Zhang Shijun arrives?"

Zhang He had little confidence in facing Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang.

Sima Yi, equally lacking confidence yet unwilling to admit defeat, pondered for a moment and said with a ferocious expression, "Then let's trade one for one with the Shu army. We'd rather perish together than let the Shu army be completely crippled."

"The main force of the Shu army led by Zhuge Liang is the elite of the Shu army, but it is also Liu Bei's only elite force. If we can replace it at the cost of the annihilation of our 50,000 troops, Liu Bei will be left with no troops. At that time, how will Liu Bei resist Your Majesty's counterattack?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang He and Cao Zhen both gasped in shock. They fought the Shu army to the death, even willing to perish together with them. That was just too ruthless.

Wars are fought to win; this is the first time I've seen someone willingly throw their life away.

Sima Yi continued, "War is always about people, and we have an absolute advantage in this regard. Send someone to inform You Chu, the governor of Longxi, to keep a close eye on the situation here. Once the decisive battle is over, immediately lead your troops to recapture Lucheng and block Zhuge Liang in Tianshui County."

"You Chu can't take back Lu City now, but things will be different after the final battle. Even if Zhuge Liang wins, he will suffer heavy casualties. What will he use to stop You Chu then?"

"Moreover, His Majesty will definitely dispatch troops to Longxi for reinforcements upon receiving the battle report. General, think about it, what kind of scene will the reinforcements see when they arrive in Longxi? Naturally, it will be a scene of us dead and Zhuge Liang crippled. At that time, even if Zhuge Liang is so wise that he is almost supernatural, without troops, he will be helpless!"

"More importantly, if we could really replace the main force of the Shu army with 50,000 troops, even if Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang escaped back to Bashu, they would be unable to launch a northern expedition in a short period of time."

"War comes at a price. I think it's worth it to exchange 50,000 troops for the long-term stability of Longxi. More importantly, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang were worth the price."

Upon hearing this, Zhang He was torn between his thoughts and his own. After struggling for a long time, he finally made a decision, slammed his fist on the table, and said with a ferocious expression, "Let's do it this way. For the King and for the court, I'm going all out."