I, Zhou Cang, am the number one tank in the Three Kingdoms.

When Liu Bei and Xu Shu led their troops to the Wancheng camp, another battle had already ended at Gualijin.

"Second brother! How is the battle going?" As soon as Liu Bei and Xu Shu arrived at the camp gate, they immediately dismounted and trotted toward Guan Yu who was coming to greet them.

"The strategist is brilliant. Zhang Xiu returned to the city the day before yesterday and tried to seize the Gualijin camp that very night. Fortunately, Liao Hua defended it to the death. My third brother and I attacked from both flanks and almost wiped out his army."

Guan Yu smiled and reported to Liu Bei.

"Oh? Did Zhang Xiu lose his life?" Xu Shu was surprised, not knowing that Zhang Xiu had returned to Wancheng, and asked with concern.

"Zhang Xiu did not lead the attack; the one who came was Hu Che'er, one of his generals. He was extremely brave and very familiar with the terrain of Gualijin. Unfortunately, he managed to escape."

"It's alright, it's alright, Yun Chang has done a great service!" Xu Shu was relieved and entered the tent with the others.

"Mr. Kuai Yue has arrived!" No sooner had the group arrived than a lowly soldier came in to announce the arrival.

Liu Bei quickly turned around and went out to greet Kuai Yue.

When Kuai Yue entered and saw that the strategist beside Liu Bei was none other than Xu Shu, who had once been a guest at Liu Biao's residence, Kuai Yue exclaimed in astonishment, "Yuanzhi?!"

Xu Shu laughed and said, "Lord Yidu! It's been so long since we parted ways in Xiangyang, I never imagined we'd meet again so soon!"

Kuai Yue had been wondering who Liu Bei's strategist was, that he could enable Liu Bei to turn the tide and defeat Cao Cao repeatedly in a short period of time.

I never imagined that this person was once right in front of me.

"Yuanzhi?" Guan Yu asked, puzzled.

Since the expedition from Runan, communication between Guan Yu and Liu Bei had been limited, so Guan Yu naturally did not know about Xu Shu's identity.

Liu Bei laughed and explained Xu Shu's real name and past to Guan Yu, and also briefly recounted how Zhou Cang saved Xu Shu's mother.

Guan Yu secretly praised him after hearing this. No wonder Xu Shu got along so well with these "old folks" like himself. He was a loyal, righteous and filial person.

After exchanging pleasantries, Kuai Yue got down to business: "Yuanzhi, when do you plan to launch a full-scale attack on Wancheng?"

Xu Shu nodded, then had someone bring a map of Wancheng, which he hung in the center of the tent, and began to introduce the situation of Wancheng to everyone.

"This city is no ordinary city; its defenses are extremely strong. It is divided into an outer city and an inner city, forming a U-shape."

"Outside the outer city, the Yu River was diverted to form a moat around the city. The moat was twenty zhang wide and about two zhang deep, which was incomparable to the moat of a small county like Yancheng."

"The outer city has three gates on each of its four sides, and each gate has a barbican for ambushing troops. Residential buildings, markets, granaries, and other facilities are all located inside the outer city."

"The inner city has two gates on each side, and government offices, treasuries, military camps and drill grounds are all located in the inner city."

After briefly describing the city, Xu Shu pointed out to the area outside the city.

"The east gate of Wancheng is right next to the Yu River, which leads directly to Jingzhou and Xiangyang. Our army camp is located here, so Mr. Yidu must have come from the north by waterway."

As Xu Shu spoke, he looked at Kuai Yue, who nodded.

"The north gate of Wancheng leads directly to Xialu. Going north along the road, passing through Bowang, Fangcheng Pass, and Yexian, one can reach Xudu directly."

"There is a ferry crossing in the northeast of the city called Guali Ferry. It controls the Xia Road to the north and the Yu River to the south. General Liao Hua stationed his troops here. The area around Guali Ferry is a vast reed field. The three generals are currently stationed here."

"The south gate of Wancheng connects to all counties in Nanyang. The road is flat and unobstructed, leading directly to Xinye."

"At the west gate of Wancheng, there is a post road, and the main road leads directly to Wuguan, reaching as far as Hanzhong."

After Xu Shu finished speaking, he looked at everyone's expressions, all of which were extremely serious.

Lord Liu Bei suddenly asked, "I wonder why the strategist knows so much about the inside and outside of Wancheng?"

Xu Shu said, "To my shame, when I was wandering the world, I stayed in this city for a few months, so I know a little about it."

Only then did everyone understand why the strategist was able to arrange the capture of Gualijin in advance while he was in Runan.

Seeing that no one had any questions, Xu Shu continued, "Our army has now occupied Gualijin, east of the city. General Wenping is in charge of the west of the city, and the south of the city is blocked by moats. Wancheng is now surrounded on three sides."

"Zhou Cang, listen to my command!"

"Your subordinate is here!" Zhou Cang shouted as he stepped forward.

"When I arrived, I had already sent people to build granaries on the east bank of the Yu River."

"Therefore, Yun Chang's camp is located with its back to the Yu River and its north connected to Guali Ferry. It is of utmost importance to the safety of our army's supply lines. I will leave you under Yun Chang's command to guard this camp together."

"Your humble servant obeys!" Zhou Cang accepted the order and retreated behind Guan Yu.

Xu Shu then looked at his lord Liu Bei, who was sitting in the tent.

"Tomorrow morning, my lord can take Zilong and lead three thousand troops to move to the north of the city and set up camp, turning Wancheng into an isolated city."

Liu Bei readily agreed.

"Order General Liao Hua of Gualijin to send soldiers to cut down all the reeds around Gualijin starting tomorrow, so as not to give the enemy any opportunity to launch a fire attack."

"Order the three generals to move their camp to the southwest of Gualijin, directly to the northeast corner of Wancheng, and link up the two camps to the east and north of the city, so that the cavalry can provide support to both sides."

Xu Shu looked at the messenger, and after the messenger wrote down the order, he quickly turned to Kuai Yue.

"Lord Yidu, I have heard that General Wang Wei has sent another two thousand troops to assist us. Please tell General Wang to move his troops south of the moat south of the city and build many earthen mounds and arrow towers. If anyone comes out of the city to fill the moat, shoot them with bows and crossbows."

Kuai Yue nodded and agreed.

"If Zhang Xiu wants to break out, he must go through the North Gate and take the Wangxia Road. I hereby order that, starting tomorrow, except for General Wang Wei's main camp in the south, all the other three camps must be dug deep and fortified with three layers of chevaux-de-frise."

Everyone accepted the order.

After making the arrangements, Xu Shu ordered all the scouts in the army to go and scout along the Xia Road to prevent Cao Cao's army from going south to provide support.

After the banquet ended, Xu Shu invited his lord Liu Bei to accompany him to Gualijin to visit Liao Hua.

The camp was bustling with activity as soldiers were busy repairing the walls and equipment damaged by Hu Che'er's night raid.

After praising Liao Hua for his bravery in battle, Liu Bei and Xu Shu ascended the watchtower.

Xu Shu stared silently in the direction of Wancheng.

"Is the strategist perhaps worried that Zhang Xiu will not surrender?" Liu Bei asked.

Xu Shu shook his head, then turned and looked northeast.

Now Liu Bei knew what Xu Shu was worried about, and said, "I am also often worried about Yuan Shao's battle at Guandu."

Chen Zhen had been gone for a long time, and several scouts had gone out, but none of them returned. Liu Bei was often worried that Yuan Shao, who appeared to have a strong and powerful army, would not be able to hold out until Liu Bei's army reached Xuchang.

"My lord, you are wise," Xu Shu replied helplessly, his eyes closed.

If Yuan Shao were to be defeated, and Cao Cao were to recover and personally lead a large army south, whether he were to directly attack Runan or aid Nanyang, the troops in Wancheng and Yanxian would find it difficult to stop him.

Not only was there a situation at Guandu, but Mi Zhu and Mi Fang, who had been in Huainan responsible for containing Jiangdong, had also been out of contact.

To win the hearts and minds of the people, the first step is to win the hearts and minds of Zhang Xiu, a former general who was betrayed by Cao Cao despite the pain of losing his son and who was even related to him by marriage.

It was inevitable that Zhang Xiu would fight to the death; we blocked his counterattack and cornered him until he was in despair.

This risky move not only gambled on the fighting capacity of their own troops, but also on the opportunities left on both the Guandu and Jiangdong battlefields.

While the two were immersed in great anxiety about the future, a messenger hurriedly climbed the watchtower.

"Report! Urgent report from General Chen Dao of Yan County!"