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Only when Lie Fan and his party were well beyond effective range did Cao Cao finally exhale. The tension snapped. Officers rushed to restore order, barking commands, forcing shaken soldiers back into discipline. But something fundamental had changed. The truth was out.
Xun Yu stepped closer to Cao Cao, voice low. "Your Majesty… the matter of the Crown Prince—"
"We will address it to the soldiers and the people," Cao Cao said quietly. "Later when the time is right."
Guo Jia closed his fan. "He has seized the narrative," he said. "Among the troops, among the people. Even among our own hierarchy. This parley cost us… but not doing it might have cost more."
Xi Zhicai nodded slowly. "The truce buys us two days. No more."
"Two days," Cao Cao repeated. "Then the real test begins."
He looked west, toward Chang'an, toward the shrinking heartland of Wei.
"Prepare for withdrawal contingencies," he said at last. "Quietly. If Tong Pass falls… it must not become a tomb."
Xiahou Dun clenched his jaw. "And the enemy, Your Majesty?"
Cao Cao's gaze hardened. "Let them celebrate the New Year when the truce happened. Let them think me beaten."
He turned back toward the vast enemy camp, eyes burning with defiance. "Because the end," he said softly, "has not yet spoken its final word."
The ride back to the Hengyuan encampment was a study in controlled triumph. The seven riders moved at an easy canter, the tension of the parley melting away with each stride away from the looming shadow of Tong Pass.
Behind them, they left not just a fortress, but a psychological bomb whose fuse they had lit. As they crossed the final stretch of open ground, Lie Fan could feel the eyes of his entire army upon them, a mix of relief, curiosity, and swelling pride.
Their emperor had ridden into the lion's mouth and returned unscathed, having clearly left the lion disoriented and bleeding from the ears.
At the edge of the encampment, a larger reception party had gathered. Sima Yi stood as a pillar of anxious expectation, but he was no longer alone.
Crown Prince Muchen had joined him, flanked by his ever present guardians Zhao Yun and Ma Chao. Around them stood the other key minds of the campaign, Chen Deng, Zang Hong, Xu Shu, and Pang Tong. It was a council of war and future, gathered to hear the first words of the endgame.
Lie Fan swung down from Pangu with a grunt, patting the great horse's sweat damp neck before handing the reins to a waiting groom.
His generals dismounted around him, their expressions ranging from Zhang Liao's grim satisfaction to Taishi Ci's still buzzing energy. The standard bearer saluted and melted back into the ranks.
Sima Yi was the first to step forward, bowing. "Your Majesty. We are relieved to see you return safely. What… what did Cao Cao want?"
Lie Fan rolled his shoulders, as if shaking off the chill of the walls and the weight of the conversation. A faint smile curved his lips, not mocking, not triumphant, but sharp with understanding.
"He wanted to make a request, Zhongda. A sentimental one. He asked for a truce. For the last day of this year, and the first of the next. So our poor, weary soldiers, his poor, weary soldiers, might have a moment of peace to mark the turning of the year." He delivered the explanation with a theatrical flourish, making the request sound as flimsy as old parchment.
Sima Yi's eyes narrowed instantly. "A trick," he said without hesitation. "A transparent one. He is buying time. Time to shore up his defenses, to let his men rest and perhaps forget the terror of Hongnong, to let the news of his captured generals and son fade. He is trying to reset the morale clock."
Ma Chao let out a short laugh. "Classic Cao Cao."
Chen Deng nodded vigorously. "Master Sima Yi is correct, Your Majesty. It is a classic stalling tactic from a cornered opponent. Every hour he holds Tong Pass is an hour he hopes fortune changes."
Zang Hong's voice was quieter, but no less firm. "If he can steady the hearts of his troops, even briefly, it complicates our assault."
Xu Shu pushed his glasses up his nose. "The psychological benefit for his army, even two days without the threat of imminent assault, could be measurable."
Pang Tong simply sniffed. "He's scared. And he's hiding it behind a holiday banner. A clever ploy, dressed in courtesy."
Lie Fan listened to their chorus of caution, a broad, knowing grin spreading across his face. He let out a loud, hearty laugh that cut through their concerns. "Of course it's a trick! Of course he's buying time! Did you think I rode out there and was charmed by his silver tongue?"
He shook his head, still chuckling. "Cao Mengde is many things, but a convincing humanitarian is not one of them. Did any of you truly think Cao Mengde would suddenly grow sentimental about the turning of the year?"
He strode past them, leading the group toward the command tent. "But here is what he, and perhaps you, are missing. His two days of 'recuperation' are meaningless. The new year is still a week away. We have time. And more importantly…"
He paused, turning to face them, his eyes glinting with lethal intent. "…his soldiers may rest for two days, but they will spend every moment of that rest listening. Listening to the relentless thump of our trebuchets testing his walls. Listening to the hiss of our hwachas firing over their heads, pinning them in their trenches. And most of all, listening for the BOOM of our cannons. We will not assault. But we will not be silent. We will give them a symphony of coming annihilation."
His eyes gleamed. "Their 'truce' will be the most traumatizing two days of their lives. They will dream of the noise. And when the truce ends, they will be more broken, not less."
He looked at his son, Muchen, who was absorbing every word. "And our own men? They have earned a celebration. They have been away from home, living in mud and blood, for over half a year. They deserve hot food, extra wine, and the sight of their emperor toasting their courage."
His voice softening just a fraction, "Morale is a weapon for us too. We will let them feast, let them feel like the conquerors they are, while the men across the way cower in their holes. Cao Cao thinks he is playing for time. I am playing for their souls."
The logic was brutal, comprehensive, and utterly persuasive. Sima Yi's initial frown smoothed into a look of reluctant admiration. He bowed his head.
"Your Majesty's perspective… is, as always, encompassing. You see not just the move, but the three moves after, and the mood of the pieces themselves. Forgive my limited view. The soldiers do indeed deserve recognition. And a terrified enemy is a defeated enemy."
"Good," Lie Fan said, clapping Sima Yi on the shoulder. "Then tomorrow, we begin our 'non assault'. We hit them with everything that makes noise and breaks stone. We give them a preview."
He then turned to Xu Shu and Pang Tong. "You two. Find Huang Chengyan and Liu Ye. I want a full inventory of cannonballs. I want exact numbers, how many cannonballs remain, how many can be fired before resupply becomes critical. Understood?"
Xu Shu bowed. "At once, Your Majesty."
Pang Tong grinned. "And if the answer is 'not enough,' I assume—"
"—you will have more sent from Xiapi immediately," Lie Fan finished. "No delays."
Both men nodded and departed, their cloaks vanishing into the darker maze of the rear encampment, where siege engines squatted like slumbering beasts.
Lie Fan then refocused on Sima Yi. "Now, while Cao Cao licks his wounds behind his wall, what of our southern jaw? Fa Zheng. Can he join us at Chang'an when the time comes, or is he still bogged down?"
At this, a genuine, pleased smile, a rare sight, touched Sima Yi's lips. "Your Majesty, I have excellent news on that front."
Lie Fan's interest sharpened. "Oh? Don't tell me he's taken Hanzhong without a fight. Or that Wudu simply opened its gates."
Sima Yi's smile widened. "Your Majesty's foresight is almost prophetic. It is not without a fight, but the fight ended… diplomatically. The report from Fa Zheng arrived just before you rode out. As they pressed the siege on Hanzhong, Governor Zhang Lu elected to surrender."
"The city is ours, with its granaries and armories intact. More importantly, his entire force, some fifty thousand men, has sworn allegiance to the Hengyuan banner. Their generals, their advisors, their infrastructure… it all folds into Fa Zheng's southern army, not just replenishing his losses but strengthening him considerably."
A wave of satisfaction, deep and profound, washed over Lie Fan. This was not just a military gain, it was a political landslide. It signified the crumbling of the very idea of resistance.
He let out a low whistle. "Zhang Lu… the man who bowed to Cao Cao to save his skin. Now he bows to me. The wind has well and truly changed direction."
He glanced at Muchen, ensuring the boy was understanding the significance. "This is how an empire is built, son. Not just by breaking gates, but by making the gatekeepers decide to open them."
Muchen nodded, his young face serious. He was learning that victory was a complex tapestry of fear, force, and foresight.
Sima Yi continued, "There is more, Your Majesty. Zhang Lu's terms for surrender were… notably modest. He asks only to remain as Governor of Hanzhong and for his religious sect to be left unmolested."
Lie Fan snorted. "Modest, or brilliantly calculated? He asks for what he already has and what costs me nothing. He presents himself as no threat, only a caretaker. A wise move."
"The wisdom, according to Fa Zheng's assessment, belongs not to Zhang Lu, but to his chief advisor, a man named Yan Pu," Sima Yi clarified. "It was this Yan Pu who counseled surrender to Cao Cao years ago to preserve Hanzhong, and it is he who counseled surrender to us now."
"Fa Zheng writes that the man possesses a keen, unsentimental mind for realpolitik. He suggests that such a talent is wasted managing a provincial governor's survival and could be of significant use in a larger administrative capacity."
Lie Fan's eyes gleamed. Talent. He was a collector of talent, as was Cao Cao. To strip a rival of his land was one thing, to identify and acquire the minds that made that land function was another and he also knew of Yan Pu from his past life as well.
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Name: Lie Fan
Title: Founding Emperor Of Hengyuan Dynasty
Age: 35 (202 AD)
Level: 16
Next Level: 462,000
Renown: 2325
Cultivation: Yin Yang Separation (level 9)
SP: 1,121,700
ATTRIBUTE POINTS
STR: 966 (+20)
VIT: 623 (+20)
AGI: 623 (+10)
INT: 667
CHR: 98
WIS: 549
WILL: 432
ATR Points: 0