From Yuan Tan down, everyone who heard Xun Chen's words was shocked by this bad news.
Yuan Tan looked astonished and could hardly believe his ears.
Yuan Tan had actually heard the news that Yan Liang was gathering troops and planning to march north to the Central Plains, but what frightened him was not Yan Liang's invasion, but the fall of Kunyang and the death of General Jiang Sui.
Doesn’t Kunyang have thick walls and plenty of soldiers and food?
Before leaving, didn't I tell all the generals to stay and wait for reinforcements and not to go into battle?
But why were these losers disobedient and actually took the initiative and put their necks under Yan Liang's blade?
In an instant, Yuan Tan was frightened and confused. He couldn't understand why such an unexpected situation occurred.
At this time, Xun Chen, who had regained his breath, had just told Yuan Tan how Jiang Qi and others fell into Yan Liangsheng's plan of attacking from the east to the west.
At this moment, Yuan Tan and everyone suddenly realized.
"I knew that Yan Liang, a thief, was full of tricks, but I was angry that Xin Zhongzhi fell into Yan Liang's plan again. If I had known this, I should not have left him to guard Xu Capital."
Yuan Tan was angry and resentful, and scolded Xin Ping for a long time.
Next to him, Xinpi heard his brother being scolded, and his face was filled with embarrassment.
Seeing that Yuan Tan's anger had subsided, Xin Bi said cautiously: "Yan Liang's dog thief is extremely cunning, and it's really helpless for my brother to fall into his scheme. Your Majesty, Xu Du is currently under siege, and the rear is in danger of falling, so Pi thinks it's time to do so."
The best strategy is to withdraw from the siege of Yecheng and return to Xudu quickly south to thwart Yan Liang's invasion."
Xin Pi's advice made Yuan Tan, who was emotionally agitated, finally calm down.
Although Yuan Tan controlled the three prefectures of Si, Yu, and Yan, his core hinterland lay in the three counties of Yingchuan, Henan, and Chenliu.
These three counties were originally the core areas of Cao Cao's rule, with a dense population and a prosperous economy. However, Yuan Tan took over all of Cao Cao's base, and these three counties became the rear area that provided food, grass and military supplies for Yuan Tan's campaigns in all directions.
Now Xudu is besieged. Yingchuan County is in danger, and the neighboring counties of Henan and Chenliu are also threatened. Their foundations are damaged. How can Yuan Tan ignore it?
"Your Majesty, if our army withdraws and returns south, and Yuan Shang takes the opportunity to send his army south, what should we do?"
The person who reminded me was Yuan Tan’s general Cen Bi.
Yuan Tan frowned, and a look of worry appeared on his face.
Xin Bi said: "Yuan Shang suffered a series of defeats. He was able to defend but not attack enough. Moreover, his Pingyuan County is being attacked by Liu Xuande. If the king withdraws his troops, the first thing Yuan Shang must do is to relieve the danger in Pingyuan. Liu Xuande will delay him.
In ten and a half days, the king has already solved the siege of Xudu, so why should we fear him raising troops to go south?"
Xin Pi's analysis suddenly relieved Yuan Tan's worries. His frown finally relaxed a lot.
Looking at Yecheng from afar again, Yuan Tan secretly gritted his teeth and said bitterly: "Yuan Shang, let you linger for a few more days. After I have driven away the thief Yan Liang, I will come and take your head -"
Yuan Tan's whole body was filled with the desire to kill, which only frightened the civil and military officials on both sides.
Reining his horse and turning around, Yuan Tan shouted: "Send the order to the entire army to withdraw and return south immediately!"
Seven days later, Yuan Tan's army marched non-stop and under starry nights, and finally reached the north of Xudu.
The speed with which Yuan Tan withdrew his troops somewhat surprised Yan Liang. Although Xin Ping fell into the trap and lost most of his troops, he was not mediocre after all. With five thousand troops and the high city of Xu Du, he
He had to withstand Yan Liang's fierce attacks for several rounds and hold on until Yuan Tan returned south.
The atmosphere in the Chinese military tent was quite solemn.
"Yuan Tan, this boy, can return troops faster than a rabbit. It seems that he expected Yuan Shang to be restrained by Liu Bei and did not dare to pursue him."
Xu Shu stroked his beard and revealed Yuan Tan's thoughts.
At this time, Wen Chou said boldly: "What if Yuan Tan's son returns, let's defeat him first, and then attack Xu Capital City."
When Wen Chou called for battle, the other generals became enthusiastic and asked for battle one after another.
No wonder, in the battle of Kunyang, nearly ten thousand Yuan's troops were destroyed. When the morale of the generals was at its peak, why should they be afraid of Yuan Tan, a defeated general under his command?
Yan Liang was not too excited. As a coach, he knew that he had to keep calm at all times. It was okay to feel a little proud, but he must not underestimate the enemy because of his pride.
Now he has more than 40,000 infantry and cavalry troops under his command, as well as fierce generals such as Wen Chou. Yuan Tan, who has returned to the army, only has 40,000 troops. In terms of morale and strength, he has the upper hand.
Yan Liang was fully confident in fighting Yuan Tan to the death, and was confident in defeating the second generation ancestor who had been defeated by him twice.
However, Yan Liang did not get angry and decide to fight, but turned his attention to Tian Feng, "Mr. Yuan Hao, what do you think of the current situation?"
Everyone's eyes were focused on the old man in the corner. When it comes to matters in Hebei, who has more say than Tian Feng.
After coughing a few times, Tian Feng said slowly: "With my lord's current strength, if I fight with all my strength, I can naturally defeat Yuan Tan. But as the saying goes, killing one thousand enemies and damaging yourself eight hundred, even if the lord wins in the end, doesn't that violate the law?"
Our original intention of entering the army in the first place."
Isn't the original intention of marching into the army just to make a profit for the fishermen?
Yan Liang nodded slightly, understanding what Tian Feng meant.
When he decided on the Central Plains, he originally planned to take advantage of the internal fighting in the Yuan family and the emptiness of the Central Plains to grab a handful without any effort, instead of losing troops and losing generals and using the blood of countless soldiers to capture Xu Luo with difficulty.
Although Yan Liang's strength had greatly increased at this time, he was not yet strong enough to wantonly sacrifice the lives of his soldiers.
"In your opinion, sir, what should I do?" Yan Liang asked.
"Retreat to Kunyang, do not retreat without fighting, gather troops and wait and see." Tian Feng simply stated the twelve-character strategy.
Upon hearing these words, Wen Chou couldn't help but said: "Our army came with a hundredfold confidence. If we can only win a mere Kunyang City in the end, this time's invasion of the Central Plains will be no different from failure."
Wen Chou's words also represented the aspirations of most generals, but Yan Liang waved his hand slightly to indicate to them not to get excited and to wait until Tian Feng finished speaking.
Tian Feng's expression was as calm as water, as if he regarded Wen Chou and others as air, unmoved at all.
He took his time and continued: "My lord just mentioned Liu Bei. In my opinion, this man is the best at adapting to changes. The reason why he helped Yuan Tan was simply to use Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang to entangle him.
Make profit from the sidelines and take advantage of the opportunity to make a fortune."
Tian Feng's words hit the nail on the head and touched Yan Liang's heart.
After a pause, Tian Feng continued: "Now that Yuan Tan retreats, Yuan Shang can concentrate his forces to deal with Liu Bei. With Liu Bei's intelligence, he will not fight Yuan Shang alone. Besides, the Wu people are surrounding Shouchun, and Liu Bei will not worry about his future.
Return to Qingzhou, row the river to defend yourself, and lead the army to rescue Shouchun. With Liu Bei's retreat, Yuan Shang's danger is gone. My lord, think about what will happen to him next."
"What else can I do? Of course it's his good brother who sent troops south to take revenge."
Yan Liang said without thinking, his face still filled with excitement, obviously he was deeply excited by Tian Feng's analysis.
At this time, Xu Shu also happily said: "As Mr. Yuan Hao said, Yuan Shangruo raised his troops to cross the Yellow River south, and Yuan Tan had no choice but to send troops from Xudu to resist Yuan Shang. The enemy's strength was reduced during the intervening period. Isn't it true?
This is the opportunity for our army to deploy troops."
Tian Feng was indeed Yuan Shao's former mastermind. With a few eloquent words, he analyzed Yuan Shang and Liu Bei clearly.
Yan Liang touched his chin, weighed it for a moment, and nodded slightly with a handsome face. He deeply believed what Tian Feng said.
After a while, a sneer appeared at the corner of Yan Liang's lips, "Give me the order to withdraw the entire army to Kunyang. When the two boys from the Yuan family start fighting again, we will come back to reap the benefits."
The order was passed on, and on the same day, the 45,000-strong army withdrew from the siege of Xudu and withdrew in an orderly manner to the newly acquired Kunyang City.
On the third day after Yan Liang retreated to Kunyang, Yuan Tan also led nearly 40,000 troops and rushed to Xudu in a dusty journey.
Yuan Tan, who returned to the south, was determined to fight Yan Liang to the death, but what surprised him was that the common man whom he deeply feared retreated without a fight.
Yuan Tan was naturally overjoyed as he managed to break the siege of Xudu without a single soldier or a single blow.
However, after a brief period of joy, Yuan Tan's mood was soon shrouded in gloom.
Because Yan Liang did not retreat, but instead gathered 40,000 people in Kunyang, which was only a hundred miles away from Xu Capital City, staring at Xu Capital City with eager eyes.
If Yan Liang did not withdraw his troops and return to Jingzhou, Yuan Tan would not dare to leave Xudu without authorization. As a defeated general who had been defeated twice, Yuan Tan did not dare to take the initiative and lead his army to recapture Kunyang, completely expelling Yan Liang.
Yan Liang's refusal to move made Yuan Tan feel like a thorn in his back every day, but he was helpless.
Two armies and two cities were facing each other quietly, separated by more than a hundred miles.
######
Thousands of miles away, south of Pingyuan City.
The vast water surface sparkled with golden waves under the fiery red sky. A red sun emerged from where the water and sky met, and the landscape and scenery suddenly turned into hazy red silhouettes.
The vast reed grass rolled with long golden and red waves, and the continuous military tents, chariots, banners, flags, and spears formed a magnificent company camp, forming a huge arc with the Yellow River as its back.
On the official road on the shore, a red horse galloped over, looking like a flying boat in the long waves of reeds.
The fast horse rushed into the camp and reached the Chinese army's tent.
At this time, Liu Bei had just sat in front of the long table and was about to have a meal when he heard the neighing of horses outside the big tent.
Liu Bei was slightly startled when the guard at the tent already shouted loudly: "The scouts from Yecheng have arrived——"
Liu Bei suddenly felt a bad feeling in his heart.
Before he could get up, the scout hurried into the tent, pulled out a copper pipe from his back and held it in both hands.
"Yecheng is making an urgent report. Please open it, my lord."
At this time, military advisor Chen Deng and others also entered one after another.
In front of everyone, Liu Bei took the copper tube, unscrewed the copper cap at the top, pulled out a roll of parchment and opened it.
Two lines of large characters came into view: Yuan Shang personally led an army of 30,000 people, starting from Yecheng and heading straight for the plains.
Liu Bei's gray and flat forehead immediately showed an imperceptible fine line.
