Goose Three Kingdoms

Chapter 555: Attacking the Heart
Two days later, the Chanhebi camp was surrounded on three sides.

In the morning, fog gathered near Chanhebi, and visibility was poor.

The scouts outside the camp had already started a confrontation, and Black Bear's vision was blocked, so he could only give a patrol route and then release the Iron Cavalry.

When the fog was about to dissipate, the cavalry brought back more than a hundred heads and more than seventy horses.

If a horse is handed in, it can be converted into one to three levels of merit depending on its quality.

An individual could only keep one-third of the horses and had to hand in the rest; but the Iron Cavalry Team handed in all of them, and another round of merit was recorded in the accounts.

Black Bear went out of the camp again to observe the Wuhuan camp on the west side.

In order to guard against Liu Bei, Tadun led the main force of the Wuhuan people to station about ten miles west of Chanhebi.

During this period, Tadun gathered more than 20,000 small tribes of Wuhuan and miscellaneous Hu from various counties and deployed them to the south of Chanhe Pond; to the north, Tian Yu gathered together the powerful people of Dai County, and there were nearly 30,000 people.

About 80,000 infantry and cavalry surrounded the city on three sides, while the east side was left for the Hebei troops who would come to attack later.

While Black Bear was observing Tadun's camp, the Hebei soldiers finally arrived near the battlefield.

Yuan Shang rode in an equally huge chariot. With the black bear's experience as a learner, Yuan Shang also used a chariot that exceeded the specifications, pulled by eight horses.

Under the green umbrella, Yuan Shang left the battlefield to inspect Chanhe Pond.

A few miles away, they saw that the camp was sturdy and all the trees around it had been cut down. “Is this the camp that Liu Xuande had established before?”

Li Fu was riding in the same carriage, standing at the edge of the carriage, holding the guardrail with one hand: "Yes, it was built by Zhao Zilong sent by Liu Xuande."

He also knew why Yuan Shang asked this question, so he explained: "Later, Liu Xuande abandoned the camp and led his troops to Pingcheng, leaving a few soldiers to guard the camp. The soldiers in Dai wanted to destroy the camp, but they were concerned about Liu Xuande's reputation and the more than 30,000 soldiers in Pingcheng, so they turned a blind eye. Later, the black bandits escaped here and were able to occupy it."

"This shows Liu Xuande's position. No wonder the tribes that were attached to him left him."

Yuan Shang thought for a moment, then said to Li Fu, "Tell Tadun to divide his troops and set up camps to alert Liu Xuande to send troops to help the black bandits break the siege. Ma Teng has led tens of thousands of cavalry out of Wuyuan. With the speed of the troops outside the Great Wall, they can reach Gaoliu Great Wall in five days. Since they are eager for help, their vanguard can arrive in as fast as three days."

"Send a message to Tian Yu, and tell him to be vigilant against Liu Xuande's attack on Gaoliu Pass."

It doesn’t matter whether Gao Liusai can stop Ma Teng. What’s important is that it must be under our control so that it can serve as a warning.

After all, Liu Bei has been governing the six counties for a year, and there must be an insider hiding in Tian Yu's place. Even the current war situation is not ideal, and many people are wavering in their positions.

If Liu Bei obtained the corresponding pardon permission from Black Bear, he would be able to instigate many Youzhou rebels.

If Pingcheng was suddenly abandoned and the troops were led to Gaoliu Pass, it would be very likely that with the help of internal support, the northern passage would be seized at lightning speed.

In this way, it would be impossible to warn or predict when Ma Teng would arrive and how many reinforcements would come, which would be very unfavorable for the subsequent war.

As for whether Tian Yu would suddenly rebel... Yuan Shang had no such concerns. After all, what did Tian Yu want to achieve after all the incident had become so serious? What did the Youzhou heroes want to achieve?
If the black bear lets Tian Yu go, it would be tantamount to condoning him, and other areas would also be unstable in the future.

Yuan Shang pondered for a moment, then said, "Send an envoy to the enemy camp. I want to invite the black bandits to meet at noon. I will meet alone, without any guards. You should carefully consider how to meet them."

"Yes, I understand the importance of this matter."

Li Fu agreed. He was naturally aware that he had to be wary of Tai Shi Wen Gong's sudden action during this meeting.

During the meeting, the distance between the guards of both sides must be carefully arranged.

For a decisive battle of this scale, given Yuan Shang and Li Fu's understanding of Black Bear, the other party would not refuse a meeting.

At noon, hundreds of cavalrymen gathered on both sides, and their guards were one mile apart. Hei Xiong and Yuan Shang drove forward separately.

There was no curtain in the middle, only two umbrellas, each with a table, a carpet, and simple fruits and food.

Black Bear drove his chariot closer and looked at Yuan Shang carefully. He saw that Yuan Shang had begun to grow a beard and his appearance and demeanor were more stable than before.

Yuan Shang couldn't see anything through the mask, and Black Bear was stronger than the thin boy in his memory, filling up his armor.

Just by looking at Black Bear's posture, Yuan Shang knew that the person under the mask was the one who often caused him insomnia and restlessness.

The tanks of both sides circled the umbrella canopy half a circle, each facing the direction of its own guard.

Yuan Shang reined in his horse and jumped off the carriage. Black Bear also got off the carriage, raised his hand to take off his mask, and smiled: "General, you are more elegant than ever. Have you thought of a way to defeat me?"

Seeing that Black Bear was as handsome as himself, Yuan Shang smiled and said, "When two armies are fighting, they still need to rely on officers and soldiers to fight. How can we talk about winning strategies?"

As he said this, he took off his sword and threw it onto the chariot with his backhand, making a crisp sound. Seeing him like this, Black Bear smiled even more: "I led a light force to Fanyang earlier, hoping to find you to face us and clarify the misunderstanding, so as to stop fighting and make peace. I never thought that the Hebei troops were so majestic, and because of the general's repeated refusal, many officers and soldiers died in vain, which is a pity."

"Strike back and repair it?"

Yuan Shang threw his cloak and took a seat, examining Black Bear's face: "You also know that it is not for me to decide whether to fight or make peace, but for them."

He stretched out his arm and pointed to the distance to the east, where there was an array of Yuan's troops and soldiers digging trenches.

Black Bear sat down and looked at him with a sidelong glance: "So, if I take them away, you will stop fighting and make peace with me?"

Yuan Shang smiled but said nothing. Black Bear looked at Yuan Shang's face and said, "You have all the troops in the country. Aren't you afraid that Cao Cao will attack Yecheng with only a few troops?"

"What's the point of him doing this? After he conquered Hebei, he didn't have time to take over the counties. He also knew that the Grand Marshal would not allow him to become too powerful, and would take the opportunity to attack with all his might. Instead of wasting his military resources, it would be better to accumulate military supplies and wait and see how the situation changes."

"That's right. But from what the general said, it seems that he has determined that we will lose this battle?"

"This depends on the officers and soldiers of both armies, and cannot be determined by a verbal confrontation between you and me."

Yuan Shang smiled and asked, "You acted frivolously and caused this war. Don't you regret it? From what I know, most of your soldiers in the central army have been killed, which has damaged the foundation. Aren't you afraid that the other generals will rebel?"

"I was able to defeat them once, so I won't hold back the next time. As for the foundation, after all the sands are washed away by the waves, what remains are the real gold and pillars."

Black Bear did not deny the other party's tentative guess, and said: "You should not use common sense to speculate Cao Cao. He does not intend to seize Hebei, but he has the intention to attack Yecheng and kill the officials and civilians. Even if it is a small victory, it is a big victory for him."

Now Qingzhou has basically restored order, but what it lacks is foreign military results. It really doesn't matter how big the results are, the key is to have them, to prove the advanced nature of Qingzhou's system.

Black Bear continued to attack Yuan Shang: "You know, I didn't mean to deceive you, nor did I want you to split your forces and march south. I just don't like Cao Cao taking advantage of me. I don't like this man. I would rather you return intact than have him take even a tiny bit of advantage."

Yuan Shang remained silent. Cao Cao's policies were more radical than those in Guanzhong. The surrounding heroes and nobles were more afraid of Cao Cao than the black bear.

So far, the Guanzhong soldiers have not massacred the city, let alone killed the surrendered troops.

As for the captives and surrendered soldiers from various Hu countries who were tortured to death by heavy work after surrendering, these people were actually not considered human beings in the eyes of traditional scholars like Yuan Shang.

Therefore, if Cao Cao attacked Hebei, without cities or strong fortresses for defense, no one would dare to resist. They would either submit and accept Cao Cao's iron fist, or migrate their entire families far away in advance.

It cannot be said that Guanzhong's bottom-line behavior encouraged the courage of the powerful families in You and Ji states to fight back, but rather the appearance of the Black Bear Light Soldiers in the border counties aroused the gambling nature of the powerful families.

Seeing Yuan Shang remained silent, Black Bear said, "After this battle, govern Jizhou for me. I will not send troops to attack you even if you claim to be king or emperor, and you should not interfere with my work. I will fight you in a decisive battle after I have sorted out the internal affairs. If you can learn from Cao Cao, I will not interfere. Also, please give my regards to Lord Zhengnan, who took you in and entertained you in the beginning."

He pointed at his chariot and said, "There are some Shu brocade and tea in the chariot. I wanted to send an envoy to deliver them to you after meeting Liu Xuande. Now you can take my chariot back and bring these gifts back with you."

"I'll take it."

Yuan Shang asked curiously, "You have no intention of capturing me in battle, so how can you defeat my army of more than 100,000? As far as I know, it will take your father-in-law four or five days to reach Gaoliu Pass. Once my soldiers have a day to rest, we will launch a general attack. The fortifications at Chanhe Pond are strong, and they are not earthen walls, so I am afraid they will be difficult to support."

"I can win this battle based on three points."

Black Bear stretched out his palm and moved his fingers: "First, you have more than 100,000 troops. Second, I am the best at conquering the barbarians. Third, you have selfish motives and have not tried your best."

After a pause, Black Bear asked, "There are more than 100,000 Wuhuan people in the three counties. Will there be troops to follow up?"

"Yes, but they are not as strong as the elite troops led by Tadun, who number about 20,000 to 30,000. They are marching through Jundusai and will be able to reach the city in two or three days."

Yuan Shang stood up and raised his chin to look at the blue sky. His mood calmed down. "It's not that I don't want to try my best. It's you who want to fight, and I'm just passively fighting. Even if they lose this time, their children will defect to Gongsun Kang or Liu Xuande, and you will have to fight again in the future. Why not leave a way out, turn resistance into help, and settle the world sooner?"

"The earlier you settle, the sooner you will be in chaos. I don't like worldly affairs."

Black Bear also stood up and glanced at the sky: "I will clean the house thoroughly and then leave it to my offspring. I want to go out and see how big the world is. This way, when I come back, even if the house is dirty, I can clean it up again. If the world was settled earlier, I would have to fight these thieves for the rest of my life, which would be very tiring."

"I'm better at killing people than fighting with wits."

After that, Black Bear bowed to Yuan Shang, and then handed over the mask hanging on his waist: "This was made in Hebei, you keep it, and I will give you a son in the future. With Yuan Tan around, I believe he will be a wealthy man."

Yuan Shang was discouraged and sighed, then stepped forward and caught it with both hands.

Then Black Bear walked towards Yuan Shang's chariot, grabbed the reins and shook them, then drove back to the camp.

Yuan Shang stood still, and only after Black Bear led his men to evacuate back to the camp did his guards approach.

(End of this chapter)