The Wei Army could not form a unified force in the Yong-Liang Region. Cao Zhen retreated to defend Anding Commandery due to shortages in troop and grain supplies. Most of the counties under Sanfu had been seized by Liu Bei, who had Deng Ai open up vast military farms across the fertile lands of Guanzhong, allowing Liu Bei to firmly establish himself in the Guanzhong region.
The military pressure in Yong-Liang reached all the way to Luoyang. Rumors sprang up one after another within the city that Liu Bei was the true Son of Heaven—that Liu Xie had originally intended to pass the throne to his kinsman Liu Bei, only to be forced by the ministers of the State of Wei to abdicate in favor of Cao Pi.
The rumors appeared as nursery rhymes and street tales, after which the Yangtze Daily spread them throughout the Central Plains. The paper once again denounced Cao Pi's illegitimate claim and declared that his usurpation would leave a stench for ten thousand years. The State of Wei could only passively ban the paper in city after city.
External conflicts intensified, while internal rumors erupted without end.
Every day, the memorial reports Cao Pi received left him vexed. With Jia Xu's illness having worsened over the past two months, Cao Pi could scarcely even find someone to consult.
One night in mid-May, Cao Pi clutched Cao Xiu's memorial as he sat alone on the stone steps outside the hall. He had no mind whatsoever to summon beauties to attend his bed.
Recently, Guan Yu had shifted all troops east of the Yushui River westward. He stationed Guan Ping and Pang De, along with over ten thousand elite soldiers, at Xinye to threaten Wan City, while the rest of Jing Province's main force joined Liu