The Strategic Debate at the Qin Mountains

The state of Wei had appointed Xiahou Mao The son of the famous general Xiahou Yuan; he was a son-in-law of the Wei imperial family. as the Commander of Guanzhong GuanzhongLiterally "Within the Passes," the strategic heartland surrounding the capital of Chang'an.. Chancellor Liang Zhuge Liang, the brilliant Prime Minister of Shu Han. was preparing to launch an invasion of Wei and consulted with his subordinates on the plan of attack.

Wei Yan A brave but headstrong general of Shu. proposed: "Mao is the Emperor’s son-in-law; he is cowardly and lacks any strategic foresight. If you grant me five thousand elite troops and five thousand more to carry supplies, I can strike directly from Baozhong. By following the Qin Mountains eastward and then turning north through the Ziwu Valley, I can reach Chang'an The great western capital and a major military objective. in no more than ten days.

When Mao hears that I have arrived so suddenly, he will surely abandon the city and flee. We can seize the grain stored in the Hengmen granaries and the supplies left by the fleeing civilians; this will be enough to sustain our troops. By the time reinforcements can assemble from the East, it will take about twenty days. In that time, your Excellency can arrive with the main army via the Xie Valley. If we do this, then in one single stroke, everything west of Xianyang can be secured."

Liang, however, considered this a perilous plan. He believed it was better to proceed safely along the level roads, whereby they could easily take Longyou The region west of Mount Long, modern-day eastern Gansu.. He felt this was a ten-to-one certainty of victory without any risk of disaster. Therefore, he did not utilize Yan’s plan.

Instead, he publicly announced that they would take the route through Mei via the Xie Valley, and he dispatched Generals Zhao Yun and Deng Zhi to lead a decoy army A "Yijun" or feint army meant to distract the enemy while the main force attacked elsewhere..