Han Ji

In mid-June, at Cangting.

Yuan Tan stood on the city wall, gazing at the southern horizon. Guan Yu's vanguard had arrived, their camp set up ten miles south of Cangting. Blue tents stretched out one after another, and the smoke from their chimneys rose only to be dispersed by the wind.

Yuan Tan's hand rested on the battlement, his knuckles white. The bricks on the battlement were scorching hot from the sun, but he felt nothing.

Guo Tu climbed up from the city wall. His robe was covered in mud, his boots were worn out, and he walked with a limp. "Young Master, Guan Yu is on the other side. Yan Liang died by his blade. We, the men of Cangting, can't stop him."

Yuan Tan didn't turn around. "I have to stop him even if I can't. Where else can I retreat to? Liu Bei wants the entire Ji Province, not just my life."

Guo Tu said, "Let's ask Ye City for help."

Yuan Tan turned to look at Guo Tu. "Ask Yuan Shang for help? He stole my position, and I'm expected to kneel down and beg him?"

"Young Master, Yuan Shang has seized your position, but he still has troops. There are still 20,000 men in Ye City, and Shen Pei still has grain. If you don't ask for help, Cangting won't last ten days. Once Cangting falls, Ye City will be the next isolated city. By saving you, he is also saving himself."

Yuan Tan picked a clod of dry mud from the battlement, crushed it, and powder leaked through his fingers. "Who should I send?"

"Xin Pi. He has influence with Yuan Shang."

Xin Pi was eating dry rations in his tent when he received the order. He put down the bread, wiped his mouth, said nothing, went out, mounted his horse, and rode off towards Ye City.

He rode a fast horse for an hour, covering forty li from Cangting to Yecheng. When he reached the west gate of Yecheng, the guards on the city wall saw him and raised their crossbows, asking who he was. Xin Pi looked up and shouted, "Xin Pi, from Cangting! Young Master Yuan has an urgent report!"

The city gate opened a crack, and Xin Pi squeezed through. The city was quiet, and the streets were nearly deserted. Long queues formed outside grain shops, and some people squatted against the walls with empty bowls in their hands. Xin Pi ignored all of this and headed straight for the governor's mansion.

Yuan Shang sat in the main seat of the hall, with Shen Pei standing beside him. Yuan Shang was a little shorter than Yuan Tan, with a round face, fair skin, and a sparse beard. He wore plain clothes and a hemp belt around his waist. When Xin Pi entered, Yuan Shang's gaze swept across Xin Pi's face and then back.

Xin Pi knelt down. "Young Master, urgent news from Cangting! Liu Bei's vanguard, Guan Yu, has arrived at the walls of Cangting with over ten thousand troops. The eldest son only has eight thousand men, and they cannot hold out. Please send troops from Ye City to provide reinforcements."

Yuan Shang did not answer immediately. He looked at Xin Pi. "Beg me? Why didn't you beg me when you left Ye City, elder brother?"

Xin Pi lowered his head. "Young Master, what's past is past. Liu Bei has reached our doorstep. Cangting is the southern gateway to Ye City. If Cangting falls, Liu Bei's next target will be Ye City. Saving Cangting is saving Ye City."

Shen Pei took a step forward. "Young Master, he's right. With Cangting lost, Ye City is completely exposed to Liu Bei's army. There are no other strongholds south of Ji Province. If the two armies join forces, we can still fight Liu Bei. If we don't, we'll be defeated one by one, and none of us will survive."

Yuan Shang remained silent for a moment. "Send troops. Shen Gong, how many men will you take?"

Shen Pei said, "Ten thousand. We still need to leave troops to defend Ye City, so leave ten thousand for the young master."

On the day of Shen Pei's execution, 10,000 troops were mustered and marched hastily from the south gate of Ye City towards Cangting. It was very hot; the armor was scorching hot, and sweat dripped down from the edges of the helmets.

Some people fainted from the heat and collapsed by the roadside. Their companions helped them up, dragged them to the shade of a tree, poured a ladle of cool water on them, and they woke up and continued on their way. Shen Pei, riding on horseback, did not urge them on, but simply told the group to maintain its pace. After traveling forty li (approximately 20 kilometers) until nightfall, the city walls of Cangting came into view.

Shen Pei's troops entered the city through the south gate. Yuan Tan waited at the city gate. His face was expressionless as he looked at Shen Pei. Shen Pei dismounted and bowed to Yuan Tan. "Young Master, I have come to your aid on the orders of the young lord." Yuan Tan said, "Come in."

The ten thousand soldiers assigned to Shenpei entered Cangting. The number of soldiers in the city suddenly doubled, and there weren't enough tents for everyone. Many soldiers slept on the streets, using a mat as a pillow and their weapons as a pillow. Horses were tied to the doorframes of houses, horse manure was piled up by the roadside, and flies buzzed around.

Yuan Tan and Shen Pei stood on the city wall, looking south at Guan Yu's camp. The two armies combined numbered nearly 20,000, and their morale was slightly boosted. The soldiers guarding the city wall regained some color in their faces when they saw the reinforcements entering the city. Someone tapped the back of their sword twice on the battlements, making a clanging sound, and said that they could fight now.

Guan Yu did not immediately attack the city. He rode his chestnut horse around the outer perimeter of the warehouse and saw that the number of troops on the city wall had increased significantly, and a new layer of deer antlers had been added outside the moat.

He sent a battle report back to the central army: the garrison at Cangting had increased to about 18,000 to 20,000, and suggested waiting for Zhang Fei on the left flank to arrive before encircling the enemy.

When Liu Bei received the battle report, he was leading his central army northward from Liyang. He handed the silk scroll to Jia Xu. Jia Xu glanced at it.

"Shen Pei acted quickly. Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan joined forces. Shen Pei knew that Cangting could not be held, but he also knew that with the two armies combined, we would have to expend even more effort. He was betting that we wouldn't suffer too many casualties."

Liu Bei said, "It's better to unite. It saves us from fighting them one by one. Order Guan Yu to surround Cangting but not attack. Wait for Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun to arrive before closing in."

Over the next few days, Zhang Fei's left flank moved from the direction of Guandu to the east side of Cangting. Zhang Fei, riding a black horse, stood on the high ground outside the east gate and looked down for a while before turning his horse back to camp.

Zhao Yun's right-wing cavalry circled around from Yanjin to the northwest of Cangting, cutting off the official road leading to Yecheng.

The three armies formed a circle outside Cangting City. Yuan's army watched from the city wall as Liu Bei's camp expanded outwards layer by layer, the sound of digging trenches echoing from morning till night.

Yuan Shang also arrived at Cangting. He had brought five thousand men from Ye City to personally oversee the battle. Upon entering the city, he met Yuan Tan at the city gate. The two stood a dozen paces apart, exchanging a glance. Yuan Shang called out, "Brother!" Yuan Tan merely grunted in response and turned to leave.

The relationship between the two men put Shen Pei and others in a difficult position, forcing them to act as intermediaries. Yuan Tan advocated for an attack outside the city, as his troops had been cooped up in Cangting for too long and their morale was starting to decline.

"If we don't fight another battle outside the city, our army will be ruined. Besides, Liu Bei's army is not yet firmly established, so perhaps we can launch a night raid on their camp."

Shen Pei objected: "Liu Bei's main force consists entirely of veterans from Guandu; they can't win a direct confrontation. Continue to defend until he himself makes a mistake." Yuan Shang listened to Shen Pei. Yuan Tan didn't say anything more, but his face became even more rigid.

That night, Yuan Tan drank alone in his tent, lost in his own thoughts. The tent flap was lifted, and Guo Tu entered. Guo Tu's voice was low: "Young Master, Yuan Shang and Shen Pei are working together to suppress you. The situation is not quite right. If they want to defend, you must leave the city. After this battle, regardless of victory or defeat, the troops will be yours. If you don't leave the city, our troops will all be under the command of Shen Pei and Yuan Shang." Upon hearing this, Yuan Tan put down his wine bowl, slamming the bottom heavily onto the table with a thud.