Tiger Guards

Chapter 435 Solution
On July 19th, as dawn broke, clusters of clouds passed by.

Song Xian's troops packed their belongings in the middle of the night and withdrew from Yongqiu at dawn.

The only thing they did in Yongqiu was to collect and bury all kinds of skeletons in the city.

When they arrived, the army was divided into three groups and moved with great care. When they withdrew, the five thousand men were also in perfect order and in a very orderly manner.

About ten miles south of Yongqiu, at the fork in the road.

The scouts of Song Xian, Zhao Ji, Cheng Lian, and Lü Bu traveled frequently, and these scouts were very restrained when they were on the road.

They can escape the road, but if they encounter each other in the wilderness, they may be attacked in a sneaky manner.

Around 10 a.m., Song Xian, who was heading south, and Cheng Lian, who was heading north, met at the crossroads; and Zhao Ji, leading more than a thousand cavalry troops, also arrived at the crossroads to the northwest, which led to Chenliu County.

The three parties gathered, each forming their own ranks, and remained vigilant towards one another.

Cheng Lian also commanded 5,000 men, and when deploying them, he evenly distributed troops on both flanks, and Song Xian was also on high alert and on defense.

Zhao Ji observed the enemy's natural pincer formation, turned to look at his own messenger team, and pointed his whip at Song Xian's location: "Go and urge him immediately to head south. Do not delay or refuse!"

Upon hearing this, several messengers in the front row spurred their horses forward, each carrying two flags on their backs.

Song Xian had already dismounted and stood in front of the formation, observing left and right while secretly clenching his fists.

His scouts have repeatedly investigated, and he has joined forces with Cheng Lian, making their strength ten times that of Zhao Da Sima!
If we make a move now, we can definitely drive Zhao Ji away!

What he could detect, Cheng Lian, whose cavalry numbered much higher, could definitely detect as well, yet Cheng Lian hesitated to give any hints or test him.

Even when Cheng Lian deployed his troops, he followed the conventional formation along both flanks of the road, rather than targeting Zhao Ji by reinforcing his forces on the left flank.

Song Xian had the idea of ​​giving it a try, but he just didn't want to take responsibility for failure.

Besides, even if you win this kind of battle, how much real benefit can you gain?

If ten thousand men were to attack Zhao Da Sima's thousand-plus chariot and cavalry forces from both sides and win, the general would have the initiative and would be able to negotiate with them in any way.

However, if they lose, the central army group personally led by the Grand General will not be able to cross the border of Yan and Yu provinces, and the culprits will be severely punished.

While Song Xian waited, Cheng Lian in the south was also waiting for Song Xian's decision.

Here, he and Song Xian are of equal rank, so there is no question of one commanding the other.

One can easily take action while the other sends troops to assist allies in taking sides or bolstering their momentum.

Song Xian's concerns were also Cheng Lian's concerns.

Fortunately, the two are at the same level. If neither of them takes the initiative, the responsibility will be shared, which will make it easier for both of them.

Thus, Cheng Lian patiently observed the changes in Zhao Ji and Song Xian, so that he could act accordingly.

As Song Xian grew anxious, Zhao Ji's messenger rode to the front of the battle, pointing a triangular command flag at Song Xian with his right hand and shouting: "By order of the Grand Marshal, General, you are hereby ordered to immediately regroup and march south in columns toward Fule! This order must not be delayed or shirked!"

Song Xian's expression turned serious, his breathing quickened, and he whispered to those around him, "If we don't seize such a good opportunity, I'm afraid I'll regret it later."

His personal guards approached and whispered, “I’m afraid the general will regret it after starting the war. General, the Grand General’s actions are unpredictable and beyond our comprehension. I’m afraid the Grand General’s messenger is already on his way. If we take the initiative to start the war, we might invite severe punishment from the Grand General and the court.”

Song Xian frowned and remained silent, then turned to look at his military friend and advisor: "The situation is urgent, what should we do?"

The friend, a native of Dai County, immediately replied, "Then, has the General ever explicitly ordered our army to provoke conflict with the Grand Marshal's troops?"

Without hesitation, Song Xian replied, "No, the General only ordered me to garrison Yongqiu."

The friend then asked, "Did the general's close attendants and subordinates speak of this matter to his face?"

"I have never heard of it, nor is there any written record of it."

Song Xian's expression was somewhat unnatural: "Isn't the General's intention obvious? All the officers and soldiers in the army know this, and I am not making malicious speculations."

His friend sighed, "Since there is neither a general's order nor an imperial edict, how could there be a handwritten letter from a high-ranking official?"

Song Xian fell silent; he didn't even have a proper written agreement.

Is this a written agreement?

This is his lucky charm!
He did not respond to the messenger at the front lines for a long time, so Zhao Ji's messenger questioned him loudly again: "General, are you disobeying the Grand Marshal's orders and intending to rebel?"

"Don't dare!"

Song Xian immediately answered loudly, pointing to Cheng Lian's formation to the south: "General Cheng's troops are blocking the road. I request the Grand Marshal to order General Cheng to clear the way. If the road is clear, my troops will immediately march south without delay!"

"Alright!" the envoy replied, turned around at the dock, and they left together.

Song Xian let out a long sigh of relief and said to the military officers around him, "The rear guard should retreat two hundred paces, the left flank should contract, and the right flank should remain stationary."

Fearing that Cheng Lian might pull the same tactic, he took the initiative to withdraw the more than a thousand men who were lined up in the fields east of the road.

Just as his messenger was about to relay the order, Song Xian suddenly grabbed his shoulder: "No, our left and right flanks must not move! If I move first, Cheng Lian will definitely shift the blame to the General, making me take the responsibility."

"Here."

Several military officers around him responded in hushed tones, knowing that if Song Xian was held accountable, they would not fare any better.

If we keep passing the buck like this, it's not a bad way to deal with the situation.

Soon, Zhao Ji's messenger returned to his camp and recounted what he had seen and heard.

Zhao Ji smiled upon hearing this and said to the person beside him, "If I were to go and deliver the order to Cheng Lian now, he would probably ask Song Xian to make way. I never expected to encounter such a mirror-like situation."

As he spoke, Zhao Ji reached into the horse harness and pulled out a palm-sized bronze mirror. He held it up and looked at himself. Long hours of intense mental work had made him look a little old, and even the downy hair around his mouth looked thicker.

He handed the mirror to a messenger and said, "Tell Cheng Lian about Song Xian's reply, and give him this mirror as well. If he makes up a similar excuse, in my eyes he will be defying orders and rebelling! I will immediately punish him and shove this bronze mirror down his throat!"

"Here!"

The messenger responded loudly, took the mirror with both hands, stuffed it into his leather armor, and led his companion to deliver the message to Cheng Lian two miles away.

Cheng Lian, being tall and imposing, dared not refuse Zhao Ji's messenger. He personally stepped forward and extended both hands to receive the bronze mirror. The messenger then calmly explained Song Xian and Zhao Ji's attitudes, leaving the difficult task to Cheng Lian.

Cheng Lian felt the bronze mirror in his hand was heavy, and his voice became hoarse: "May I ask the envoy, did the Grand Marshal only order his subordinates to clear the way, and there were no other orders?"

The envoy scrutinized Cheng Lian: "Whom do you mean, General Cheng?"

"I am carrying out the orders of the Grand General to lead troops to Yongqiu. If the Grand Marshal were to order me to move troops south, wouldn't that conflict with the Grand General's orders? As a subordinate of the Grand General, I cannot obey the Grand Marshal's orders."

"General, please don't be troubled. May I ask if the General's order only instructs you to garrison Yongqiu, and if there are any other instructions afterward?"

"Not yet received."

"Since we haven't received it, once General Song's troops have moved south, General Cheng can reorganize his forces and march north to Yongqiu in an orderly manner."

The envoy smiled as he spoke, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Unless Lü Bu issues a special order emphasizing anything, Cheng Lian will receive Zhao Ji's order to retreat south tonight.

Cheng Lian understood. He preferred to lead the army back and forth, since the weather was cool now and he wouldn't suffer.

Just as Cheng Lian was directing his troops to clear the way, Lü Bu's messenger arrived from the rear. He galloped through the gaps in Cheng Lian's ranks, holding up a command: "By order of the General, Song Xian and Cheng Lian's troops are to immediately return to Yongqiu! Anyone who obstructs this will be treated as a rebel!"

"By order of the General, the troops under Song Xian and Cheng Lian shall immediately march north to Yongqiu without delay!"

His voice was so loud that Zhao Ji at the crossroads heard it. He immediately reached for his bow, dismounted, and stood in a shooting stance, holding a long arrow.

He glanced at the other person's back and saw that the other person remained unmoved even when they were a hundred paces away. At the same time, he observed the surrounding leaves and the swaying of flags near and far in his peripheral vision.

When the other person rode about 120 or 130 paces, Zhao Ji stared at the other person's back. In that instant, his field of vision shrank, and only the other person and his horse were moving; all other scenery was blurred.

Without hesitation, Zhao Ji released the bowstring.

The long arrow pierced the air, its afterimage flashing by, and few people around could observe it.

When the messenger was fifty or sixty paces away from Song Xian, he was still repeatedly shouting, "By order of the Grand General, Song..."

The long arrow pierced through his armor from behind, the arrowhead breaking through the leather armor on his chest. The messenger's two legs, which were tightly gripping the horse's back, loosened and went limp. He fell off the horse and rolled forward a little with the momentum, his neck twisted, and he fell silent.

Song Xian swallowed hard, looked at Zhao Ji, whose outline was indistinct in the distance, blinked, and asked those around him, "Did anyone hear me clearly?"

"what?"

His personal guards approached him with questions, and one of the officers shook his head: "I don't know."

Song Xian blinked; he needed to calm down, but he just couldn't.

Immediately tell those to his left and right: "The right wing, change to a single column, and advance first!"

"Here!"

(End of this chapter)