flstandardbreds Chapter 238 Liu Bei is ecstatic
Chapter 238 Liu Bei is ecstatic
A battle between two armies is like a balance scale; only when the two sides are evenly matched can a prolonged stalemate be achieved.
Conversely, if either side shows signs of fatigue, the other side will go all out to expand its gains, resulting in a situation where the strong become stronger and the weak perish.
The battlefield before us was like this: after the Han army withstood the fierce attack of the Wei army and launched counterattacks from multiple directions, forcing Zhang He to flee, the situation began to turn one-sided. Wherever the Han army went, the Wei army knelt down and surrendered like wheat being harvested.
Upon seeing this, Liu Bei excitedly shouted a few times before throwing the drumsticks to his soldiers. He then jumped off the drum platform and rushed to Zhuge Liang, who had also climbed down from the arrow tower, and asked nervously, "Strategist, is this it?"
The victory came too easily, making him feel like he was dreaming.
The main reason is that the results of this battle were too great. Not only did they completely defeat the main force of the Wei army, but they also captured Jieting. Holding Jieting is equivalent to blocking the Wei army's westward advance. In other words, from now on, the entire area west of Longshan will belong to Liu Bei.
West of the Longshan Mountains are the three prefectures of Tianshui, Jincheng, and Longxi. If we also include Wuwei, Zhangye, Jiuquan, and Dunhuang west of the Yellow River, that makes a total of seven prefectures.
Seven counties! Such great results achieved in just a few months! Anyone who came here would be stunned.
You have to understand that the Battle of Hanzhong took him three whole years to fight Cao Cao. In those three years, he only managed to capture the two counties of Hanzhong and Wudu, which were empty counties where all the people had been relocated. In contrast, now, he has recovered seven counties in less than three months. The huge victory made Liu Bei feel like he was in a dream, and everything felt so unreal.
In contrast, Zhuge Liang appeared much calmer, waving his fan and laughing, "Zhang He and Sima Yi have already fled. Without their leader, the Wei army can no longer fight. Your Majesty need not doubt, we have truly won."
Upon hearing this, Liu Bei breathed a sigh of relief and reached for his sword hilt, saying, "Let's go, let's go see what's going on at the front lines."
He intended to draw his sword and rush to the battlefield to strike the stubborn enemy while appeasing the surrendered Wei soldiers. However, when he gripped the hilt with his right hand, he couldn't muster any strength. He struggled for a long time but couldn't pull the sword out of its sheath. He stood there, his face burning with embarrassment.
He couldn't draw his sword not because he was old, but because he had played the drum too hard. After throwing away the drumsticks, his arms trembled violently as if he had Parkinson's disease, and he couldn't exert any strength at all. It felt as if his arms had detached from his body and no longer belonged to him.
That's still considered good. After a good night's sleep, my arms will start to ache when I wake up tomorrow morning. At that point, I'll probably have trouble even holding chopsticks, let alone drawing a sword.
Liu Bei was mentally prepared for this, but he had just been too hot-blooded and pulled out his sword with all his might, and now that he couldn't pull it out, he felt somewhat ashamed.
Fortunately, Zhuge Liang was sensible and turned around smoothly the moment Liu Bei grasped the sword hilt, unaware of what happened behind him.
Liu Bei glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention, then casually lowered his arm and changed the subject, saying, "Strategist, do you think Zhao Lei and Xi Zhen can block Zhang He in the narrow pass of Chencang?"
Once the outcome is decided, it's time to expand the results. The biggest victory in this battle was the capture of Zhang He, Cao Zhen, and Sima Yi. If these three could be killed or captured alive, then this Northern Expedition would be perfect.
Thinking of the impact of capturing the three men alive and the blow to Cao Cao, Liu Bei couldn't help but chuckle to himself, his smile stretching almost to his ears.
Zhuge Liang, however, shook his head pessimistically and said, "The chances are slim. Zhang He suffered a crushing defeat at the Battle of Red Cliffs and should soon realize that there is an ambush in the narrow pass of Chencang, and thus choose to go directly into the mountains."
When Zhuge Liang left Shehu Valley that day, he specifically ordered Zhao Lei to stay behind to guard the main camp to prevent the Wei army from launching a surprise attack. As it turned out, his choice was correct, and the Wei army actually did come.
Unfortunately, the Wei army discovered the presence of the ambush at Shehu Valley. After a brief probing, they abandoned the attack and retreated to their main position, leaving the ambush at Shehu Valley empty-handed.
However, the troops left behind at the Shehu Valley camp were also a fighting force. They couldn't just stay in their camp and sleep while the bloody battle raged on here. So, Zhuge Liang, adhering to the principle of "let's take it one step at a time," ordered Zhao Lei to lead the ambush troops from Shehu Valley to Chencang Pass.
Although the narrow Chencang Pass was blocked, Zhuge Liang did not think he could catch Zhang He because of it. Zhang He was cunning and would turn and run when he saw that things were not going well. He had been defeated for decades and had never been caught by the enemy.
Therefore, Zhuge Liang guessed that Zhang He would soon realize that there were ambushes in the narrow pass of Chencang, and thus abandon the narrow pass and go directly into the mountains.
But then again, if they had guessed Zhang He's intentions, why did they still have Zhao Lei block the narrow passage instead of going into the mountains to surround him?
Nonsense, it's not that I don't want to, it's that I can't do it.
The foot of the Qinling Mountains stretches for hundreds of miles from Jieting to Shanggui, with countless entrances to the mountains. Where can you possibly get stuck in traffic?
Do you really think Zhao Lei's small force can block a defensive line that stretches for hundreds of miles?
How can it be?
Upon hearing this, Liu Bei looked disappointed, but still said with a hint of despair, "Where else can Zhang He go if he doesn't take the narrow pass of Chencang? He can't possibly cross the Qinling Mountains to go back, can he? He brought tens of thousands of cavalry with him. Putting aside everything else, just the provisions alone would be enough to make him suffer."
Zhang He fled in such a hurry that he didn't bring any food. What would so many people eat and drink in the Qinling Mountains? Did he really think the Qinling Mountains were so easy to cross?
Zhuge Liang shook his head and said, "The Qinling Mountains are not like the wild mountains of Jiangnan. There are not so many snakes, insects and rats that can kill people. It is not difficult to cross them. As for food and drink, there are warhorses when we are hungry and springs when we are thirsty. We will not die. Your Majesty, please don't worry about this. Let's go and gather the surrendered soldiers first, and then discuss the next step."
Liu Bei knew that capturing Zhang He alive was wishful thinking, so he nodded and said, "Let's go."
After saying this, he led Zhuge Liang to the battlefield. With their addition, the Wei army surrendered even faster. Almost as soon as Liu Bei stepped forward and shouted, the Wei army knelt down and shouted that the King of Hanzhong was wise.
at the same time……
Guan Ping led over a thousand elite cavalry in a full-scale pursuit of Zhang He, and soon caught up with Zhang He's rear guard, charging towards the rear of the fleeing Wei army.
The shouts of battle behind him startled Zhang He, who was running. He turned around in the middle of the road and saw that Guan Ping had caught up and was killing people. He was furious and gritted his teeth, saying, "Damn Guan Ping, he dares to chase my army with a mere thousand men. He is not taking me seriously at all. Zhongda, you continue. Zidan, follow me around to the rear. Let's wipe out Guan Ping first."
Anyone who has led troops knows that when you are being pursued by the enemy, you must not just run away. The faster you run, the more eager the enemy will be to catch you. There is only one way to stop the enemy from continuing to pursue you: turn around and block the enemy, hurt them so badly that they dare not pursue you, and then you can escape in peace.
Zhang He had retreated voluntarily and was far from being rendered helpless by the enemy, so he naturally wouldn't allow Guan Ping to slaughter at will behind him.
Zhang He and Cao Zhen led the vanguard to turn left on the spot, making a large detour to avoid being hit by their own men before charging towards Guan Ping, shouting as they charged: "Guan Tanzhi, you brat, you dare to chase after this old man? Do you really think you're your father, Guan Yunchang?"
If it were Guan Yu chasing him, Zhang He would definitely run away without saying a word. But what makes you, Guan Tanzhi, so disregard me when you're not even riding Red Hare?
If I let a junior like you chase me to the brink of despair today, I might as well give up my life.
Upon hearing his father Guan Yu's name, Guan Ping's lips twitched a few times, and he decisively turned and fled. He knew that his small force was no match for Zhang He and it was not suitable for a head-on confrontation. Moreover, there was no need for a direct fight. He only needed to keep Zhang He and the main force from catching up.
Seeing that Guan Ping chose to avoid battle, Zhang He did not pursue him, but instead stayed behind to cover the retreat of the main force.
Guan Ping was now at a loss. If he charged forward now, Zhang He could easily entangle him and buy time for the fleeing Wei army to react. It would be troublesome if the fleeing Wei army turned around and surrounded him.
Therefore, Guan Ping did not charge forward, but instead stayed far behind, ready to strike at any moment.
After stalling with Zhang He for about half an hour, the sound of horses' hooves came from the northwest. Guan Ping turned around and saw that it was his father-in-law, Zhao Yun. He decisively accelerated and charged towards Zhang He.