"What? Xiapi has been lost? How is this possible?"
After a night of fleeing, he finally escaped from Shengtian and arrived near Xiapi. Liu Bei was left with only a few personal guards. The battle was miserably defeated.
Guan Yu, who led the remnants of his troops to cut off the rear, was nowhere to be found. They were facing Wang Yu's main force, and they were probably more likely to be in danger than good. Those who cut off the rear were very dangerous, and those who followed Liu Bei were not much stronger. He Yi was stabbed by Wei Yan.
The leader of the owl, He Man, was captured alive by Zhao Yun...
Cao Bao on the other side saw that the situation was not good, so he ran away without even saying hello. Judging by his appearance, he probably didn't even want to go to Xiangcheng anymore, and even his old friend Jian Yong was missing.
Liu Bei originally thought about returning to Xiapi to regroup and fight to the death, but who would have thought that the spy who explored the route first brought back the worst news with a pale face - the one flying on the top of Xiapi City was already the belongings of the Hussars General.
Big flag!
The news was like a thunderbolt. Liu Bei, who had not yet recovered from the disastrous defeat, was hit with black eyes and a buzzing mind. The cruelty of reality exceeded his imagination. Xiapi, which was defended by the main force, was lost.
?Is there anyone more miserable than myself in this world?
He was in a daze, but the guards did not dare to be dazed. Qingzhou's pursuers were chasing after them, making it clear that they would kill them all. Since Xiapi City was lost, the danger here has doubled. When the Qingzhou army stabilized the city
, it will definitely clean up the surrounding areas, and then you won’t be able to escape even if you want to.
Several people gathered around Liu Bei and mounted their horses, and fled westward in panic - there were still soldiers in Pengcheng! Zhang Feitong led five thousand elites to guard Pengcheng. It was of course impossible to recapture Xiapi, but it was still possible to ensure safety. Pengcheng's strategy
The importance is not much worse than that of Xiapi. With Zhang Fei guarding it, it is still very safe.
Halfway through, Liu Bei gradually came to his senses and asked the scouts who were exploring the way: "There was a message from Xiapi yesterday, why did it happen overnight..." If he couldn't figure out the answer to this question, he would really die.
Close your eyes.
"Reporting to my lord, in fact..." The scout was also a subtle person. He just looked around a few times and asked the villagers a few questions, and then he had a thorough understanding of the whole process.
"As expected..." Liu Bei murmured: "I should have thought of it..."
The signal for help sent by Wang Yu last night once made Liu Bei's confidence high. Later, the Hidden Mist Army suddenly showed up and the situation reversed. He just ran for his life and had no time to think about it. Now after being reminded by the scout, he finally realized that the signal last night was not a request for help at all.
, but the clarion call for a general attack.
Now that I think about it, it's too late. It only makes me regret more. I regret my own cleverness and hate Wang Yu for being cunning and deceitful.
It seemed that God was not going to let Liu Bei, who was at the end of his rope, stop. Just as he was regretting it, one of his guards suddenly screamed. Liu Bei looked up in shock and could not blame the guards. The sight he saw shocked him, and his mind was completely occupied by new doubts.
Already.
It has changed hands, and Xiapi City, which has not experienced too many battles, is actually rising in smoke!
Liu Bei and others were shocked. They came out of the hidden woods. They climbed a small hill and looked towards Xiapi.
I saw the opening of the city gate. A large crowd rushed out of the city gate, passed the suspension bridge over the Yishui River, and rolled towards the west. It looked like there was a turmoil in the city, and there were troops loyal to Liu Bei who were unwilling to surrender.
As if running away from the door.
But after Liu Bei had suffered so much, he was no longer as naive as before. He did not believe that a famous general like Zhang Jaw could not control the city defense and ended up in such an embarrassing situation when most of the city surrendered.
Even if Wang Yu's existence is not considered, the defeat he suffered in the plains is still fresh in his memory.
Therefore, he not only ignored the excited reminders of his guards, but also suppressed the imminent moves of several people, telling everyone to be calm and not to be impulsive.
His caution was justified. Just after those who looked like deserters had crossed the river, another group of cavalry walked out of the city gate. According to the cleanup, they should be pursuers, but it seemed that they were not in a hurry and had enough time to take care of themselves.
His posture is nothing like that of his pursuers.
What started up at the same time as the cavalry were the warships on the Yishui River. The drafts of these ships were relatively deep, but there were no people on board, so it was obvious that they were all carrying baggage.
Behind the cavalry is a large group of infantry. The lineup is neat, but the weapons are a bit messy. Walking in the front is a young general, carrying a huge iron caltrop bone on his shoulder, followed by dozens of strong men in the same attire.
It's full of murderous intent and extremely tough. It doesn't look like a good move at first glance.
Of course, it was not a good choice. Just when several of the guards began to rejoice at their lord's foresight and did not act recklessly and ran into the enemy's ambush, Liu Bei was one step ahead again and realized what the purpose of opening his jaw was.
Chain plan!
This is a chain plan!
While annihilating all the elites of his main force, he ordered Zhang Jiao's main force to quickly go south, relied on prisoners and tricks to deceive the city gate of Xia Pi, and took Xia Pi lightly. Finally, he relied on Xia Pi's surrender troops and beacon fire to plot Zhang Fei's plan.
…
Complete three strategic goals in one day and night, and pacify most of Xuzhou! This is Wang Yu's plan! Any alliance with Yuan Shu, Que Xuan, or alliance to propose marriage are all fake. From the beginning, his goal is himself, Xuzhou!
When he suddenly realized this, Liu Bei felt like he would jump into the water and die.
Okay, come here to grab Xuzhou! If you don't come, is it possible for Yuan Shu to reconcile with Qingzhou? When the two sides start fighting, if you come to help the fight, the situation will be too favorable, too much...
It was fine that he had come, but he was fascinated by Xu You's vision, and he actually thought about a showdown with Wang Yu in Xiapi, and thought about some surprise attack.
Now, I finally saw what it means to be a surprise soldier. Liu Bei laughed miserably and almost cried. He defeated Xuzhou in three battles in one day. As a foil, he was not an ordinary person.
"My lord, my subordinate is willing to risk his life to report the message to the third general, so that he will not fall into the enemy's plot." The very alert scout clasped his fists and begged for orders.
"It's too late..." Liu Bei shook his head sadly.
Pengcheng is more than a hundred miles away from Xiapi, which is not too close. If we march step by step, it will take at least two days. But now that the Qingzhou Army is sure of victory, they don't need to think about their retreat. They just need to march with all their strength. Plus they have ships.
When the team is transporting baggage, they can rush forward with light troops. The distance of a hundred miles can be covered in less than evening.
Liu Bei suspected that the opponent's strategy for taking Pengcheng was probably different from that of taking Pi. Although there were many defenders in Xiapi, they were mainly composed of Yellow Turbans. Pengcheng was his stronghold as a retreat and there were not many defenders.
But its composition is relatively simple. It is a subordinate of Zhou Ang, and it is the most complete and most effective unit among Yuan Shao's old troops.
With such an army, commanded by a fierce general like Zhang Fei, even if the Qingzhou Army could deceive the city gates, they would still have to fight hard and pay a heavy price to capture Pengcheng.
Thinking about Wang Yu's habit of leaving the most difficult tasks to himself, Liu Bei doubted whether Zhang Fei would get the chance to show off his bravery.
As for reporting the message, the chance of the messenger reaching Pengcheng before Zhang Jiao is very low. Zhang Jiao's army is marching at a slow pace and is well laid out. The cordons and scout nets are widely spread. Starting from Liu Bei's position, there are only two ways to do it.
When you arrive in Pengcheng, you have to either force your way in or go in a big circle.
While he was talking, the south gate of Xiapi was also opened, and hundreds of soldiers formed small groups and filed out. They ran in different directions, like a big net, spreading to the south bank of Surabaya.
"Let's go!" Liu Bei didn't know that this was a hunting net aimed at him. He didn't hesitate at that moment and rushed down the hillside at the lead. He ran wildly towards the continuous mountains in the southwest.
"Lord, those three generals..."
"It's too late. I just hope that Yide will be able to escape from this catastrophe." Liu Bei smiled sadly and shook his head. The second brother may be dead, but Wang Yu should not kill the third brother. After all, the war was not over yet for the second brother.
Once settled, there is still the possibility of recurrence, and if the third brother falls into the trap, there will basically be no suspense in the war.
Based on the friendship between Wang Yu and his third brother, he will definitely not die. And his third brother has a deep sense of loyalty and will not abandon him. As long as he is alive, there will be a chance to meet again in the future!
…
While Liu Bei was comforting himself and escaping, Zhang Fei was looking at the beacon fire in the distance in surprise.
According to the prior agreement, the three cities of Pengcheng, Xiapi, and Xiaxiang will form horns with each other. If one city lights up a beacon, it means that the city is under attack, and the other two parties should make rescue efforts as appropriate.
Now that Xiapi has been attacked, and the beacon fire continues for a long time, it is obvious that it is in a very critical situation, and it is reasonable to do so, and you should try to rescue it.
But Zhang Fei had seen Xiapi's city defense and Chen Dao's defense, and felt that no matter how strong the Qingzhou army was, they should not be in danger so quickly.
Zhang Fei was extremely torn between brotherhood on one side and the overall situation on the other. He did not rush to send troops, but sent a large number of scouts to the east to spy. He waited impatiently for more than two hours, and around noon, someone finally came to report back.
"Three...three generals, something bad has happened! Xiapi City has been breached. Gongdu has rebelled and surrendered to the enemy. Generals Liu and Huang died in battle when the city was breached. General He Man gathered more than a thousand remaining soldiers and was fleeing towards Pengcheng.
come over!"
"What?" Zhang Fei's scalp exploded, and his beard stood up like an angry hedgehog. He picked up the scout who reported the news and roared loudly: "Brother, where are the second brother and the others? Where are they now? He Man
He can escape, but with my second brother’s bravery, there’s no reason why he can’t be killed?”
The scout couldn't breathe well and answered with difficulty: "Liu Shijun and General Guan went to ambush Wang Pengju, but..."
"What...what..." Zhang Fei let go of his hand in a daze, almost unable to believe his ears. After a long time, he suddenly woke up, stood up with a start, and shouted: "Come here! Take my robe."
Come, send troops immediately, I want to save my two brothers!"
"Third General, Commander Liu and the others are missing. Where are you going to rescue them?"
"You can always find it. Even if you can't find it, you can't let Pengju pursue it unscrupulously!" Zhang Fei obviously didn't have any feasible plan and just sent troops for the sake of sending troops.
"Then...Pengcheng."
"I will take care of He Man first and let him defend the city!" As he spoke, the bodyguard had already presented him with a snake spear and led the black horse. Zhang Fei did not hesitate, mounted the horse with the spear, and ordered his troops to leave the city, like moths flying into the flames.
Facing the Qingzhou army heading toward Pengcheng.
Two hours later, He Man led the remaining soldiers into the city. A moment later, the big flag with the word "Liu" at the top of the city overturned, and the four words "General Hussars" were written on it, and the flag was slowly raised like fire.