Tiger Guards

Chapter 422 The Evil Consequences Appear
On the other side, various military camps on the outskirts of Chen County.

As the sun set, the various military camps began to pack up their equipment, and key components of some catapults were dismantled and loaded onto trucks.

Various reusable resources throughout the camp were being recycled. Apart from the military tents where they would be camped for the night, everything else was being recycled, packed, and loaded onto trucks.

Even the ropes would be untied by the soldiers, loaded onto vehicles, and taken away.

Before nightfall, Zhao's troops sounded the evening drums to enforce the curfew and ceased accepting messengers or documents from Xuchang.

On the east bank of the Honggou River, the four tribes of the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou were also preparing to break camp.

As per Pei Xiu's orders, Guan Hai and Xu He will lead their troops to guard the first half of the night, while Guan Cheng and Sima will each lead their troops to guard the second half.

But who can sleep?

The camp was painstakingly built by collecting wood and bundles of grass. Apart from the outer walls necessary for defense, they dismantled many of the building materials for the internal areas and started a grand bonfire.

Under the light of the campfire, Guan Hai and his men even packed up their military tents and loaded them onto trucks in advance.

Following the demonstration by the four Yellow Turban tribes on the east bank, the armies on the west bank also began burning unnecessary timber used for night defense in their camps. Some armies even piled up and set fire to their prepared siege equipment to provide illumination.

Between Chen County and Ruyang lies Zhang Liao's camp.

The orders to transfer Zhao Ji and Lü Bu arrived one hour apart, one after the other.

Zhao Ji ordered him to break camp at the fourth watch the next day and choose his own route to advance towards Yanzhou; Lü Bu ordered him to immediately regroup his troops and move to the east bank of the Honggou River to take over the defense of the east bank.

The former involves breaking camp, which requires taking away all sorts of miscellaneous living and combat equipment from the camp; the latter simply involves carrying out combat and relocation missions, requiring only wearing armor and carrying some dry rations and weapons.

But what if we go to carry out Lu Bu's mission lightly now, and then Lu Bu gives us another order to surround and forcibly disarm the four Yellow Turban tribes?
Military supplies and equipment are mostly located here, as are the personal property of officers and soldiers.

If we go to the east bank and then try to follow Zhao Ji's orders... the army will be very resistant.

Based on Zhang Liao's own understanding of Lü Bu, Lü Bu was most adept at breaking down your psychological defenses step by step.

Since we're already flirting with Zhao Ji, it would be best for us to just leave with him.

When the two sides meet again in the future, Lu Bu can hold your hand and reminisce.

But if I stay here, once a suitable replacement is found, my life will be over.

Therefore, upon receiving Lü Bu's order, Zhang Liao immediately summoned all the officers and presented Lü Bu's order: "By order of the General, our army will take advantage of the cool night to break camp on the east bank of the Honggou Canal."

After displaying the military order once, Zhang Liao said, "To avoid any misunderstanding by Sun Taolu's troops, immediately send them to explain our intentions. Tonight, our officers and soldiers will wear armor and pass by their camp four or five miles south, so that they will not be alarmed."

A battalion commander spoke up: "General, our army is breaking camp at night, visibility is poor, and it is difficult for us to coordinate our movements. What should we do if Sun Taolu's troops misunderstand and attack our army?"

"With the entire army in full armor marching, what fear is there of Sun Quan's campaign against the enemy?"

Zhang Liao looked around and said, "Prepare plenty of torches tonight. If anyone attacks, fight back fiercely!"

"Here!"

The men bowed and accepted. They were military officers whom Zhang Liao had personally trained and mentored, so they naturally dared to counterattack Sun Ce's troops.

Not to mention Sun Ce, even if Zhao Ji or Lü Bu's armies dared to attack, these people would dare to fight back on the spot.

At the west gate of Chen County, Yuan Shu, clad in armor, walked along with a solemn expression.

The large-scale burning of timber in various siege camps outside the city is certainly not for a night attack, indicating that the conflict between Zhao Ji and Lü Bu has intensified once again.

This is easy to understand. Previously, Cao Cao was suppressing Zhang Yang, who controlled most of Chenliu County. If he was not careful, he would be attacked and wiped out by Cao Cao's subordinate generals.

Fortunately, Zhang Yang had the support of Hanoi, most of Shangdang, and Yin Bichen of Henan, so he was always able to maintain an army of more than 10,000 men.

If the entire army were assembled, Zhang Yang would have more than 20,000 men.

However, given Zhang Yang's material reserves, such extreme mobilization could not sustain a prolonged war.

Therefore, Zhang Yang was in a state of constant threat, yet Lü Bu relied heavily on Zhang Yang as an outer shield.

Zhang Yang was one of the few people in Lü Bu's group with a legitimate official career. Zhang Yang's position as the governor of Yanzhou meant that Lü Bu also had the support of a local prefecture, which was very important in terms of public opinion and political influence.

Without Zhang Yang, Lü Bu would have been in a very difficult situation.

While Cao Cao was alive, Lü Bu had to befriend and tolerate Zhao Ji. Only in this way could Zhang Yang, caught between three or four parties, continue to survive.

But now that Cao Cao is dead, Zhang Yang, upholding the righteous cause of the imperial court, can quickly gain the support of the counties and prefectures of Yanzhou, and Zhang Yang will expand rapidly.

In this situation, what is Lü Bu most afraid of?
Of course, they were afraid that Zhao Ji would cause trouble, damage Yanzhou, or disrupt Zhang Yang's process of recapturing Yanzhou.

Even if Cao Cao's former troops defected to Yuan Shao in the north, the manpower left in Yanzhou could still muster an army of twenty to thirty thousand.

Between the increase and decrease of these 20,000 to 30,000 men, their influence would be at least on the scale of 50,000. Strategically speaking, when Zhang Yang's forces expand to 50,000, he will have the ability to resist Yuan Shao and Zhao Ji. Even if it only delays them for three to five months, it will bring about a fundamental leap for Lü Bu.

This means that Lü Bu will have about six months of opportunities to launch external offensives!

This effectively freed Lü Bu from the emperor's side, giving him strategic opportunities to attack and plunder others, which would greatly increase his ability to coerce and negotiate with foreign powers.

Many who refused to submit to Lü Bu would naturally adopt a better survival strategy when they realized that Lü Bu could leave Xuchang to attack them.

Many things only reveal their true impact after they happen and after taking a few steps.

Zhao Ji's plot to lure and kill Cao Cao was sudden and happened too quickly. All parties need to gradually digest and adapt to the impact and changes brought about by this event.

As Yuan Shu observed the changes outside the city, Yang Hong advised, "Your Majesty, observing the changes outside the city, a golden opportunity to defeat the enemy will arrive tonight."

"He can withdraw his, I'll withdraw mine."

Yuan Shu clenched his fist and tapped lightly on the crenellation, then smiled and said, "No matter what Liu Bei thinks, he would never have imagined that I could suddenly withdraw from Chen County. What use would a small victory be if we were to fight Zhao Ji? After Zhao Ji is defeated and leaves, there is still Lü Bu to recuperate."

Perhaps because of Cao Cao's sudden death, Yuan Shu has been in a good mood these past few days, his smile even brighter: "There's no need to fight a battle that has no meaning. Now that Cao Cao has been executed and Lü Bu and Zhao Yun are about to become enemies, the world is becoming more and more interesting."

As for Liu Bei daring to take risks and speculate in Huainan... Yuan Shu hated people like that the most.

Yuan Shao, who has remained inactive to this day, seems quite composed, with the intention of striking later.

Yuan Shu is in no mood to deal with Yuan Shao right now.

First, we need to drive Liu Bei away and reorganize the Jianghuai region before slowly fighting against Lü Bu and Liu Bei.

In Xuchang, Lü Bu has moved to the garrison camp in the east of the city.

He stood in front of the map hanging on the tent wall, wearing armor and holding a butter lamp in his right hand, squinting as he tried to guess Zhao Ji's intentions.

No matter what choice Zhao Ji makes, Lü Bu will not be surprised.

The charge of allowing the traitor Yuan Shu to break through the siege would not harm Zhao Ji at all, nor would Zhao Ji take it seriously.

Both sides are well aware that the military is the key.

As long as the army is stable and its vitality remains, even if we sit down face-to-face with the traitor Yuan Shu to drink and patronize prostitutes, it won't make any difference.

But when the army is damaged or gone, even the most flawless reputation is useless, and passersby can kick you while you're down.

Therefore, Lü Bu concluded that Zhao Ji's withdrawal of troops was definitely genuine; it was even more impossible for him to have withdrawn ahead of schedule.

Now, Zhao Ji's besieging troops are on high alert, so how could they possibly leave the camp's protection at night?
Only when the sun is out, and there is sufficient light and good visibility, will Zhao Ji's besieging troops withdraw.

Lu Bu surveyed the cities and towns along the banks of the Yellow River in Yanzhou, raised his left hand and repeatedly pointed at Puyang, squinting as he stared intently.

I have a growing feeling that a decisive battle is about to break out in Puyang, or perhaps it's just the vanguard.

This vanguard battle can only be fought by Cao Cao's old troops. If they fight well, Yuan Shao will definitely intervene and follow up.

And what about yourself?

Zhao Ji unfortunately holds the warhorse resources of Bingzhou and Liangzhou. If he cannot carve out a piece of them, no matter how strong the Central Plains court becomes, it will not be able to become very strong without enough field cavalry.

If Zhao Ji is forced to abandon Liangzhou, the court's predicament will be immediately alleviated.

A person like Zhao Ji would never cede territory through negotiation.

Even if the negotiations resulted in a cession of territory, based on Lü Bu's understanding, Zhao Ji would definitely find a way to break the agreement.

Neither the court's guarantees nor threats could do anything to Zhao Ji.

Zhao Ji currently wields immense power. He only acts as the Grand Marshal of the Han Dynasty when he needs to; when he doesn't, Zhao Ji dares to do other things.

Holding the Empress and the eldest prince in his hands, if Zhao Ji were to press too hard, he would dare to trample on the four-hundred-year-old dignity of the Han Dynasty.

Therefore, if we want Zhao Ji to voluntarily relinquish Liangzhou, we must break one of his arms, rendering him powerless to control and govern Liangzhou.

Given that Zhao Ji's strength is insufficient to completely suppress the people of Liangzhou, the people of Liangzhou will find their own way out.

The emperor was still on his side. He slapped Zhao Ji and knocked out several of his teeth. What could Zhao Ji do?
The more devastating the losses suffered by Zhao Ji, the stronger his dependence on the influence of the Han court became, and the less likely he was to rebel.

Lu Bu's expression shifted, and he tapped repeatedly on the ground with his left hand, pondering and analyzing the possible changes in the battle situation.

At this time, Lü Bu began to worry about Yuan Shao. Perhaps he could give Yuan Shao the title of General of Chariots and Cavalry to help Yuan Shao stabilize Gongsun Zan.

(End of this chapter)