Chapter 273 Bad Situation
After a busy night, the black bear woke up at eleven o'clock the next day.

The sky was covered with leaden clouds and fine rain was falling.

In the temporary camp, Zhang Liao and Guan Yu arrived at daybreak and were now resting in a barracks.

Both of them had bathed and changed into new clothes.

After a simple wash, the black bear changed into a bright red scarf to wrap his head.

He was wearing a light green coarse cloth robe, which was the mainstream in spring. As soon as he arrived at the large round tent for receiving guests, Guan Yu and Zhang Liao were led in by Yang Fu.

The floor of the big tent was suspended two feet off the ground, and was covered with felt carpets and animal skins.

The weather is cold and gloomy today. Based on common sense over the past few decades, the possibility of sudden heavy snowfall cannot be ruled out.

Therefore, a fire pit in the middle of the round tent had been lit, and a personal soldier who was good at frying and roasting lamb was sitting in front of the fire pit and grinding cumin.

The cumin that is crushed on site has the richest flavor.

In front of the tent door, Guan Yu and Zhang Liao smelled the scent of cumin.

The two entered, took off their sandals along with Yang Fu, stepped forward on the felt carpet, bowed and said, "Han Shou Ting Hou Lieutenant General Guan Yu, Guan Nei Hou Lieutenant General Zhang Liao, greet Liang Hou Grand Marshal!"

"Take a seat and talk."

Black Bear gestured with his arms, and said to Yang Fu, "Yishan, you have made tea for us today."

"What kind of tea would you like, my Lord?"

"Milk tea, please."

Black Bear looked up at the skylight in the middle of the round tent. The skylight was five or six feet in diameter. "Maybe the weather will change. Drink some milk tea to replenish your strength."

Yang Fu asked again: "Is it rock honey milk tea or caramel milk tea?"

"Caramel milk tea."

Black Bear thought for a moment and said, "Get two more plates of wheat cakes."

"Here."

Yang Fu saluted, took a few steps back and walked out of the tent, then bowed to Guan Yu and Zhang Liao who were sitting down. The two men also bowed in return.

What we respect is not these two people, but the titles they hold.

Guan Yu's title of Tinghou came from the fact that he personally killed Yan Liang in the battle; Zhang Liao's title of Guanneihou came from the fact that Zhang Liao cooperated with Guan Yu and accomplished the feat of killing Yan Liang in the battle.

After Yang Fu turned around and left, Guan Yu first went to look at Lu Bu who was kneeling upright behind the black bear. Although Lu Bu was wearing a mask and gilded heavy armor, it was difficult for Guan Yu to ignore him as he was kneeling upright there.

The same goes for Zhang Liao. Even with his eyes closed, he could sense Lu Bu's presence.

Zhang Liao was also very curious about this Grand Historian Wen Gong. Although he led his troops to surrender to Cao Cao only after the fall of Xia Pi City and the hanging of Lu Bu...but he had really seen Lu Bu's head.

When passing Lü Bu's head around, Cao Cao was extremely generous. He wished that Lü Bu's former subordinates would hold the head in their hands and look at it carefully, trying to see every hair as clearly as possible.

Seeing that the two men's emotions were stabilizing, Black Bear said, "I was busy with official duties last night and slept a little late. Please don't mind, Generals."

Guan Yu just laughed, stretched out his arm and pointed at Zhang Liao beside him: "Grand Marshal, this is Zhang Wenyuan from Yanmen, who has returned here in response to the emperor's imperial edict."

Zhang Liao stood up and left his seat to the middle, bowed to Black Bear and knelt on one knee: "I received a handwritten letter from Wei Yangzu and a handwritten edict from the emperor, so I came to you. I hope the Grand Marshal will take me in."

During this time, Zhang Liao and Guan Yu were observing Lu Bu out of the corner of their eyes, but they did not see Lu Bu make any movement, not even the slightest movement of turning his head.

The mask also covered his eyes, so he couldn't see the changes in his expression.

"Now that we have the help of General Wenyuan, we have no worries in the north."

Black Bear said as he turned to look at Lu Bu behind him: "Hurry up and help General Wenyuan up."

Then Lu Bu stood up and walked forward as if he was carrying a child. He grabbed Zhang Liao's right arm with both hands and made Zhang Liao stand up in a strange rising posture.

After Lu Bu turned and left, Zhang Liao stood there in a daze, feeling a little confused.

"General Wenyuan, please take a seat."

The black bear stretched out his arms to signal, but Zhang Liao was slow to react and returned to his previous position and sat down.

He turned his head to look at the black bear, then looked at Lu Bu who had returned to his original position, and was even more confused.

At this time, Black Bear looked at Guan Yu and said, "Mr. Gongyou is still in Yecheng, and General Yunchang is here with me. General Yunchang should tell you in detail about Lord Xuande's campaign against the traitors this year."

He originally wanted to secretly take Guan Yu to Hebei to rescue the situation, but he didn't expect Yuan Shang to give it a try and take advantage of Cao Cao's division of troops to catch Cao Cao off guard.

The fighters seized the opportunity skillfully, fought decisively, and the timing of their withdrawal was even more exquisite.

Otherwise, if the stalemate continued, whether Cao Cao's central army arrived from Henei, or Cao Cao transferred Zhang Liao and Xu Huang from the south bank back to Liyang, it would be something Yuan Shang could not bear.

It was precisely because Yuan Shang preserved his main force and evacuated quickly that he was able to clamp down on Cao Cao. Just as Cao Cao was gathering the central army in Henei to explore Yuan Shang's intentions, Zhang Liao on the south bank decisively resigned.

Zhang Liao's resignation gave Cao Cao a formal excuse to withdraw his troops.

So now Cao Cao's main force has not suffered much loss, and it is equivalent to another Battle of Bowangpo.

This also means that when Liu Bei invades the Central Plains, there is a high possibility that he will have a heavyweight clash with Cao Cao's main force.

In a collision of this magnitude, if Liu Bei was not careful, his group might be wiped out.

As for the terrain of Wankou, the black bear actually ran several laps. If it was really defeated or its retreat was cut off, it would basically be annihilated.

Guan Yu was a little confused for a moment when he saw Black Bear was so direct.

According to the situation before the battle of Liyang, it should be to attack from multiple sides, allowing Cao Cao's troops to spread out and defend separately, like an eggshell. But now Cao Cao has given up Hebei, and there are only two directions of attack before Cao Cao. One is to clear Qingzhou and recapture most of Qingzhou on the south bank of the Yellow River.

This was a secondary battlefield. Even if they won and eliminated the powerful people and commanders in Qingzhou, they would only be able to recruit some troops and collect more tax revenue, thus curbing the possibility of Zang Ba annexing Qingxu.

Qing Xu and Zang Ba are actually not that important.

Like Liu Fu and Sun Quan, Zang Ba would not threaten Cao Cao's control over the court in Xu Du.

However, Yuan Shang and Liu Bei could.

So there is no need to think too much about it. After Cao Cao withdrew his troops from Hebei, he could only deploy heavy troops at Wankou.

If Liu Bei dares to come, Cao Cao will dare to put all his efforts into it!

Only the rich but weak Jingzhou could quickly replenish Cao Cao's vitality and inspire the fighting enthusiasm of Cao's soldiers.

Liu Bei is in a difficult situation now, and Black Bear is very curious whether Liu Bei's combat strategy will deviate.

Originally, after the Battle of Guandu, Cao Cao had the idea of ​​killing Liu Biao in one fell swoop. Once he sent Cao Hong deep into Nanyang, and another time he led his troops to Wankou in person. However, Xun Yu urged him not to do so, and Zhang Xian, the leader of the four counties in southern Jing, died of illness, so Cao Cao withdrew his troops to the north.

Not only Black Bear was curious, Zhang Liao was also curious whether Liu Bei dared to fight a decisive battle with Cao Cao.

If Cao Cao really turns around to attack Jingzhou, what decent strategy will Jingzhou's good allies adopt?

Also, when the people of Jingzhou and Liu Qi learned that Cao Cao had stationed his troops in the Wankou area, would these people still support Liu Bei's expedition to the Central Plains?
Or let’s put it this way: after losing the troops, money and food support from Jingzhou, would Liu Bei dare to lead his troops out of Wankou?

You know, since Sun Quan of Jiangdong ascended the throne, he has been lacking a battle to establish his prestige.

The people of Jingzhou not only had to consider Cao Cao, who had gathered a large number of troops at Wankou, but also had to worry about Sun Quan.

Although it seemed that Cao Cao suffered a loss in Liyang, he was strategically liberated.

And what about Liu Bei?

You can only choose whether to fight or not, there is no choice as to where to fight.

The atmosphere inside the round tent became depressing, and Guan Yu also felt the situation was difficult.

It is impossible for a crippled Nanyang County to defeat Cao Cao, who controls the two states of Yan and Yu.

For Liu Bei, it was no longer a question of whether to fight or not, but how to resist Cao Cao's all-out attack.

Liu Bei was crushed by a single punch, so how could Cao Cao let go of Jingzhou?

Therefore, Liu Bei’s choice determines Guanzhong’s choice, and Guanzhong’s choice will affect the choices of Yuan Shang, Xianyu Fu, and even Gongsun Du, Zang Ba and others.

Guan Yu could almost be Liu Bei's plenipotentiary envoy. At this moment, he thought seriously and asked, "If Cao Mengde gathers a large army at Wankou, what will the Grand Marshal do?"

"What our army chooses depends on Liu Xuande and Cao Mengde. General Yunchang also knows that Guanzhong is exhausted. Our army can mobilize soldiers to go to war only after the summer harvest. I can't send troops out until the end of July; before that, a good cook cannot cook without rice, and the will is there but the strength is not enough."

Black Bear couldn't help but smile as he spoke. Once the Danshui canal transportation was restored, a large amount of grain would surely be transported north.

Liu Qi had to find a way to transport grain to himself, and he had to go through the previous plan of exchanging grain for horses with Jiangdong.

If the three million shi of grain were transported to Nanxiang, there would be no need for Cao Cao to send troops himself, and he would not have gone deep into Nanyang.

It is not so easy to advance into Nanyang. Once the retreat route is blocked, the only fate that awaits you is the annihilation of the entire army.

The Nanyang Basin is a huge arena.

The original defender was Zhang Xiu, and now the defender is Liu Bei.

Jingzhou was famous for its weak soldiers, and the cruel Colosseum was not a suitable place for the people of Jingzhou to be.

The current mental state of the people of Jingzhou is really not suitable for participating in such a brutal fight.

Therefore, the accumulation of three million shi of grain in Nanxiang meant that the soldiers in Guanzhong had the motivation to attack.

Even if they did nothing after arriving in Nanxiang and just closed the camp and ate rice, it was not something Cao Cao could ignore.

In order to be on guard and alert, how many troops should Cao Cao divide?
Too few soldiers will be useless, and too many soldiers will make them top-heavy like tadpoles. How many defenders can be left at the Wankou Pass?
Zhang Liao watched in silence, and Guan Yu understood after a little thought that as long as they stored enough food in the south, the black bear would be able to ensure the survival of Jingzhou and Nanyang.

Even if Cao Cao sent troops into Nanyang, he did not dare to mobilize the main force, and Cao Cao did not dare to lead his troops deep into Nanyang in person.

As long as Cao Cao doesn't come, who would Liu Bei be afraid of?

Therefore, after meeting the black bear's conditions, Nanyang is actually safe.

But this is not the situation that Liu Bei and Guan Yu want to see.

Guan Yu narrowed his eyes in thought, and asked, "Does the Grand Marshal think that the area around Wankou will be a place where the two armies will fight in the future?"

"Well, if you defend it for too long, you will lose it. With the current size of Nanyang, it is difficult to support 20,000 troops. Cao Cao only needs tens of thousands of soldiers and horses to take turns to garrison and hold out against General Zuo. At most half a year, General Zuo will be impoverished and his officials will be resentful."

"Personally, I am still happy to see General Zuo actively attack the traitors, but Hebei is in urgent need of recuperation, and Guanzhong is exhausted and poor. We can send troops to cooperate with General Zuo to wipe out the thieves in the Central Plains, because this will give us food from the enemy. If we rescue Nanyang, Hebei can only harass across the river, and our foundation is unstable, so it is difficult to attack with all our forces."

Black Bear had a look of regret on his face: "Before, Cao Cao was trapped by fame and fortune, and one of his arms was nailed to Liyang. Now that his arm is free, it is no longer something we can easily kill."

Guan Yu nodded slightly, acknowledging his own difficult strategic position, and asked, "The Grand Marshal's tactics are unpredictable, do you have any good plan to defeat the enemy?"

Black Bear remained silent. At this time, Yang Fu returned to the round tent with the tea set.

Both the tea leaves and maltose have been roasted. Now Yang Fu boils hot water to brew the tea leaves and malt caramel, and at the same time boils a pot of milk.

Zhang Liao observed the milk tea cooking technique. He also had strategic awareness and understood Guan Yu's predicament.

(End of this chapter)