The plan to "drive the tiger to devour the wolf" was essentially a scheme to have Shangguan Si and Miao Yuan perish together with Zhang Fang, thereby eliminating two unstable elements in Luoyang.
As for why Shangguan Si had to be removed, the reason was simple: this guy had gone too far! His soldiers had been rampaging, burning, killing, and looting, affecting even the high-ranking families.
Although he had recently restrained himself, only seeking wealth and not harming people, he had still provoked widespread anger.
Moreover, he had taken control of the crown prince, displaying an ambitious demeanor that made everyone fear him.
It was only natural that they conspired to eliminate him.
Before Wang Yan left, he shared a few pieces of news.
Gou Xi, the Northern Army's commander, didn't dare return to Luoyang and instead turned towards Xuchang, seeking refuge with Fan Yang Wang Sima Xiao—this news, though its source was unclear, was likely true.
In Ye City, Sima Ying intended to have the emperor issue an edict to depose Crown Prince Sima Tan and Empress Yang Xianrong—this was probably leaked privately by Wang Cheng, an official in the Ye government.
Pei Kuo and Pei Xia had fled back to Hedong to observe the situation—this news was definitely spread by Pei Xia, as he was Wang Yan's son-in-law.
Due to the movements of Sima Teng in Bingzhou and Wang Jun in Youzhou, Sima Ying, after much hesitation, recommended Liu Yuan, the Left Virtuous King of the Xiongnu, as the Champion General, overseeing the military affairs of five regions, with his son Liu Cong as the Crossbow General.
The emperor approved this—this was also leaked by Wang Cheng.
After achieving a great victory, Sima Ying questioned Sima You, the Prince of Dong'an, who had previously advised him to surrender.
Sima You had no response and was killed.
In this matter, Sima Ying was less magnanimous than Yuan Shao, who only killed after losing a battle.
All these pieces of news, coming from various sources, revealed the vast network of the Langya Wang family.
This power was truly astonishing.
The accumulation of several generations of aristocratic families was indeed not to be underestimated.
Previously, seeing Zhang Fang killing members of aristocratic families like chickens, one might have underestimated them.
But in the end, the seemingly mighty Zhang Fang might very well be outmaneuvered and killed by these people.
Thinking of this, Shao Xun became even more determined to build his own forces from scratch.
He needed to form a community of interests with his officers and soldiers, so that without this group, everyone would be bullied, forcing them to stick together.
Only magic can defeat magic.
To counter the aristocratic family system, the fastest and most effective method currently was the military merit system, which was also the direction of development in the Northern and Southern Dynasties.
This was one of the significant factors contributing to the decline of the aristocratic system after it peaked in the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
By the time of the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the so-called aristocratic families no longer had many estates, lands, or private armies, gradually becoming decorative appendages to imperial power.
If the aristocratic ancestors of the Wei and Jin Dynasties saw this, they would probably laugh their heads off—how could this be called an aristocratic family?
"Commander," Chen Yougen entered and saluted.
"Inform the training team not to push too hard these days. Let the soldiers conserve their energy," Shao Xun said while wiping his ring-pommel sword.
"Is there going to be a battle?" Chen Yougen asked, startled.
"Yes," Shao Xun nodded, then added an explanation for his trusted subordinate: "Wang Yifu wants to eliminate Shangguan Si, having him go out of the city to fight Zhang Fang. Regardless of the outcome, we will act. Shangguan Si and Miao Yuan are doomed this time."
Upon hearing this, Chen Yougen became excited: "I've long disliked Shangguan Si. What kind of person is he? At the Taiji Hall, he dropped his weapons and knelt, begging for his life. Now he's acting all high and mighty. He deserves to die!"
"He has offended everyone. What else can he expect?" Shao Xun was always amazed by people who lacked political acumen.
In the late Han Dynasty, there were Dong Zhuo, Li Jue, and Guo Si.
Now there were Zhang Fang, Shangguan Si, and Miao Yuan.
What were they thinking? A little analysis would show they couldn't control the situation, so why force it? Were they driven by the desire to vent?
In the Han Dynasty, there were people like Wang Yun who deceived warlords, making them dance to their tune.
Now there was Wang Yan.
After Wang Yun killed Dong Zhuo, he became complacent.
Who knows what Wang Yan would do?
In the afternoon, Shao Xun accompanied Mi Huang and Wang Bing to meet He Lun.
"Commander, why follow Shangguan Si out of the city?" He Lun asked with some dissatisfaction.
"Our army has many new recruits in each squad and platoon, and they don't know each other well. How can we fight the enemy in the field?"
"If we don't send anyone out, Shangguan Si might become suspicious," Mi Huang knew this wasn't ideal but insisted.
"Send the new recruits out. We don't need many, a thousand will suffice. The lower army will also send a thousand, temporarily under your command, to go out and face the enemy."
After speaking, Mi Huang glanced at Wang Bing.
Wang Bing understood and immediately said, "We will definitely allocate a thousand soldiers to you."
Two thousand men would be enough.
No one knew how many deserters the Kingdom Army had taken in, and Shangguan Si wouldn't have high expectations for their combat effectiveness.
Shao Xun remained silent.
This thousand men would definitely be chosen by him.
As for who he would choose, it went without saying.
They weren't from Luoyang, but they had been training for six or seven months and were relatively trustworthy.
This time, a newly formed thousand-man auxiliary unit would be sent.
In critical moments, trust was more important than anything else.
Seeing Wang Bing also step forward, He Lun knew there was no changing the decision and sighed heavily.
He was well aware that Wang Bing and Shao Xun wouldn't spare their elite troops for him.
In this doomed battle, he had better think carefully about his escape route to avoid dying senselessly, which would be too unjust.
At this moment, he felt a surge of anger and began to harbor resentment towards Mi Huang, Shao Xun, and Wang Bing.
Seeing He Lun accept the situation, Mi Huang breathed a slight sigh of relief.
In this conspiracy orchestrated by Wang Yifu, with their cooperation, no one was noble.
Each and every one of them was ruthless, calculating from start to finish, even including Zhang Fang...
On the fifth day of the ninth month of the first year of Jianwu (304), north of Luoyang, the sky was high and the clouds were light, with a gentle breeze blowing.
On two roads, one large and one small, a large army surged southward.
In the fields on either side of the roads, cavalry galloped, their hoofbeats like thunder.
Fifteen thousand infantry, six thousand cavalry, plus the deserters gathered along the way, made up Zhang Fang's entire force of about twenty-seven to twenty-eight thousand men.
The vanguard, consisting of three thousand infantry and five hundred cavalry, had already arrived, with another three thousand cavalry remaining in the Mang Mountains, awaiting orders.
Zhang Fang led his personal guards to the outskirts of Luoyang, surveyed the area from a distance, and ordered a camp to be set up north of the city.
A seasoned veteran, he had already envisioned several scenarios in his mind.
Seeing the soldiers on the city walls of Luoyang scurrying about in panic, he snorted coldly and left.
Wang Yan, Shangguan Si, Miao Yuan, Man Fen, Chen Zhen, and Mi Huang also ascended the city walls to observe.
For some reason, Shangguan Si suddenly felt a pang of fear.
"Last year at this time, the western troops weren't much. But after a year, they've become much more formidable and disciplined. Why is that?"
Wang Yan was somewhat surprised.
In his view, the western troops from last year and this year were the same.
Why the fuss?
Mi Huang, however, had some insight.
After a careful look, he explained to Wang Yan, "The western troops have been fighting every year. At first, they might have been weak, but over time, they've improved. This western army before us is well-organized and disciplined, not a weak force."
Wang Yan suddenly understood.
So, they had improved through constant fighting.
Thinking about it, Sima Yong, the Prince of Hejian, had indeed been actively involved in the Luoyang campaigns, sending troops each time, ranging from twenty thousand to seventy thousand, gaining considerable experience.
It was said that Huangfu Zhong in Qinzhou was still holding out, and Chang'an had also sent a large army to participate.
The western troops had fought many battles.
Of course, Luoyang had fought even more battles, but having just suffered a devastating defeat at Dangyin, the soldiers' morale was low, making it hard to compare.
"Pass the order: assemble the entire army and go out to face the enemy," Shangguan Si suddenly commanded.
Wang Yan was startled.
"General Shangguan, this is..."
Shangguan Si, being patient with his future "in-law," explained, "The enemy has come from afar and is not yet settled. It's the perfect time to strike and blunt their momentum."
That's what he said, but what he thought was: gather a large force, outnumber the enemy, and strike their vanguard before they can set up camp, dampening their morale and boosting our own.
As for whether to continue fighting when Zhang Fang's main force arrives, he leaned towards not doing so.
In short, he regretted his decision and wanted to rely on the city's defenses to wear Zhang Fang down.
As for whether this betrayed his promise to Wang Yan, he couldn't care less.
The order was quickly passed down, and the already prepared troops began to exit the city in order.
Shangguan Si descended the city walls, mounted a horse, and led his five thousand veteran central army.
Miao Yuan's three thousand, Chen Zhen's one thousand, Man Fen's two thousand, and He Lun's two thousand gradually converged.
The entire force of thirteen thousand, mostly infantry, with the cavalry from various units barely reaching a thousand, was somewhat pitiful.
But it was enough.
The enemy vanguard was only about three to four thousand infantry and cavalry.
With triple the numbers, overwhelming the enemy with superior force, victory was certain.
Wang Yan watched from the city walls for a while, his expression conflicted.
Today wasn't the agreed-upon day for action.
Zhang Fang's main force hadn't arrived yet, but Shangguan Si was sending out the entire army, hoping to gain an advantage.
This way, even if they engaged, Shangguan Si wouldn't suffer many losses and might even capture some enemy troops, boosting his prestige.
In that case, could they still act against him? Would Chen Zhen and Man Fen change their minds at the last moment? Wang Yan instinctively felt uneasy, already thinking about how to further deceive Shangguan Si if the situation changed.
Ah, what a miscalculation! Why were there so many unexpected twists?
The thunderous drumbeats snapped Wang Yan out of his thoughts.
He widened his eyes, staring intently outside the city.
Over ten thousand men were chaotically forming a square formation.
The front line had three thousand armored soldiers, with three thousand on each flank, two thousand in the rear, and three thousand in reserve.
He didn't know this was the standard square formation since the Cao Wei period, only that it somewhat resembled a variant of the Eight Trigrams.
Once the formation was set, the drumbeats suddenly quickened.
Under Shangguan Si's command, the entire force of over ten thousand men charged forward, heading straight for the western army.
The western army, still setting up camp, hastily assembled and sent out cavalry to harass and delay, buying time.
Shangguan Si also sent out cavalry, and the two sides clashed head-on, engaging in battle before the infantry could join.
The drumbeats continued, and the two sides drew closer.
The battlefield was already filled with the sounds of arrows whistling through the air, and soldiers screamed and fell.
Wang Yan clung to the city wall, his fingers slightly curled as if trying to dig into the stone.
Moments later, the two sides finally engaged in close combat.
Wang Yan watched intently.
So, a battle involving over ten thousand men was this vast and brutal.
"Minister, we're going to win," Zhou Fu, the Minister of Justice, approached with a complex expression.
Shangguan Si indeed had some strength, no wonder he was so arrogant.
The three thousand central army armored soldiers initially held their ground against the enemy, with both sides suffering heavy casualties.
But as time passed, the western army gradually faltered, retreating until their formation was in complete disarray.
The Luoyang central army was truly formidable! Zhou Fu sighed, far superior to the Xuzhou militia, but unfortunately, they were mostly wiped out—though there might still be many scattered deserters, in terms of organization, the central army was effectively gone.
"Kill!" A burst of enthusiastic cheers erupted on the battlefield.
Zhou Fu and Wang Yan turned to look.
"Boom, boom, boom..."
The drumbeats grew more intense, signaling the pursuit of the fleeing enemy.
The morale of the over ten thousand men soared as they chased the retreating enemy in formation, shouting and fighting fiercely.
"We've won," Zhou Fu said expressionlessly.
Wang Yan remained silent, frowning in deep thought.
The enemy fled in increasing disarray, and the pursuers also became more scattered, with the front and rear severely disjointed, the formation loose and no longer as tight as before.
And at that moment, from the Mang Mountains came the sounds of men shouting and horses neighing.
Soon, squad after squad of cavalry slowly descended.
After a rough formation, they began to trot, gradually picking up speed, flanking the pursuers from both sides.
"It's over..."
Zhou Fu's mind went blank.
He hadn't expected Zhang Fang to have this trick up his sleeve, nor such a twist in this battle!
Wang Yan, after the initial shock, suddenly turned around—Mi Huang was already gone! He didn't dare delay, immediately calling several people and ordering them to find Commander Mi.
(End of Chapter)