webnovelfull Chapter 482 Liu Bei Asks Guan Xing for Advice
Chapter 482 Liu Bei Asks Guan Xing for Advice
Most things in this world are easier said than done. No matter how well a plan is made on paper, various variables and unexpected events will occur during execution.
The same applies to warfare. The situation changes rapidly, and things can't always go smoothly according to your wishes. If everything goes perfectly, you should be wondering if you've fallen into a trap.
Guan Xing understood this principle and was prepared for a difficult journey and a fierce battle with Xu Huang. However, Xu Huang ran away, so he didn't have to fight and could go directly to meet up with Liu Bei.
Guan Xing felt very uncomfortable with how smoothly things were going, as if something was missing.
But what could be done now? They couldn't possibly chase after Xu Huang along the Meridian Road. Guan Xing knew all too well how Gao Yingxiang, the rebel leader at the end of the Ming Dynasty, was killed by Sun Chuanting.
Guan Xing had no choice but to abandon his army and head straight for Shangyong with Zhu Ran, Hu Zong, Pan Zhu, and a thousand personal guards.
Small boats are easy to turn around, and fewer people make the road easier to travel. From Fangling to Shangyong, a distance of over 120 li, Guan Xing covered half the distance in three hours without the burden of a large army. Then, he ran into the scouts sent by Liu Bei.
After identifying themselves and explaining the situation to the scouts, they joined forces and sped up their journey, soon encountering Liu Bei, who was leading his army towards Fangling.
Upon seeing Liu Bei's battle flag in the distance, Guan Xing left his personal guards behind and, along with Zhu Ran, Hu Zong, Pan Zhu, and others, jogged forward to Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and the others who had also left their main force behind to advance a little further. He bowed and said, "Uncle, your nephew is so glad to see you."
Upon hearing the words "uncle," Liu Bei trembled and felt a surge of anger. He stepped forward and slapped Guan Xing on the back of the head several times, yelling as he did so, "Who told you to fight Yu Jin to the death? Don't you know your own limitations?"
Liu Bei was so anxious that his voice cracked, which made Zhu Ran, Hu Zong, and Pan Zhu all envious. They also wanted this kind of well-intentioned beating.
Guan Xing raised his head, pouting and looking aggrieved, and said, "Uncle, this journey has been so difficult for me. I haven't had a good night's sleep in ages."
While complaining, she blinked rapidly, trying to squeeze out a few tears, her affected manner resembling that of a manipulative woman.
Liu Bei, however, was actually falling for this. He grabbed Liu Bei's shoulders, looked him up and down, and then turned him around to examine him carefully before asking with concern, "Are you injured? Does your wound hurt?"
Guan Xing honestly replied, "It hurts..."
This distressed Lao Liu greatly. He was about to call the army doctor to check on Guan Xing when Zhang Fei couldn't bear to watch any longer. He came up, put his arm around Guan Xing's neck, and scolded, "Alright, stop being so dramatic. What's a little injury to a grown man like you? It's not like you'll die."
Liu Bei kicked him and scolded him angrily, "How dare you talk like that? Anguo is still a child. And you're supposed to be Anguo's third uncle? Is this how an uncle should act?"
Zhang Fei: “…”
Brother, do you feel guilty saying that? Is your kid treating a famous general like a chicken?
Seeing Zhang Fei's unfriendly expression, Guan Xing decisively fled, pried Zhang Fei's hand off, stepped aside, and pointed at Zhu Ran, Hu Zong, Xu Xiang, and the others, saying, "Uncle, let me introduce you..."
The three men quickly stepped forward and bowed to Liu Bei. Liu Bei accepted their bow with peace of mind before helping them up and praising them generously: "You are all exceptional young talents. With your assistance, I finally have hope of restoring the Han Dynasty."
Liu Bei was the same age as Zhu Ran's adoptive father Zhu Zhi and Sun Quan's father Sun Jian. Hu Zong was Sun Quan's pageboy, and Pan Zhu was the same age as Guan Xing. From this point of view, Liu Bei was fully qualified to treat them as juniors.
After comforting the group for a few moments and chatting idly with Guan Xing, Liu Bei led Guan Xing on their way to Fangling.
He kept asking questions along the way, and after finding out every detail of Guan Xing's experiences after his father's defeat at Maicheng, he patted Guan Xing on the shoulder and sighed, "Child, you've had a hard time these past few days. Leave the rest to your uncle."
These words are absolutely sincere and without any exaggeration. As elders, they don't want their children to suffer and they all want to work hard so that their children can enjoy a good life. But what did Guan Xing do? He started his own business and kept running around. The things he encountered were exhausting even just to hear about them.
Old Liu also built his empire from scratch, so he deeply empathizes with Guan Xing's hardships on his entrepreneurial journey.
After finishing his reflection, he continued, "Xu Huang's withdrawal to Guanzhong is enough to prove that Cao Cao has given up the offensive and is preparing for defense. I estimate that he has already entered Wuguan Pass. Anguo, what do you think we should do next?"
Guan Xing had already thought about this problem on the way here, and upon hearing it, he answered without hesitation: "There are only three ways. First, we must capture Xiangyang and confront the Wei army across the Han River. Xiangyang is the gateway to Jiangnan and must be recovered. With Xiangyang, we can block the Wei army north of the Han River and cultivate land south of the Han River, making full use of this plain. However, if we lose Xiangyang, this plain between Xiangyang and Jiangling will only become a buffer zone and will be constantly trampled by the Wei army. Therefore, Xiangyang must be recovered. Not only must it be recovered, but we must also build a city and strengthen the defense line, making Xiangyang an insurmountable barrier for the Wei army."
The importance of Xiangyang only became apparent during the Southern Song Dynasty. At present, Xiangyang is just a medium-sized city that has been burned to ruins by war, making it a dispensable and useless place.
But Guan Xing knew the importance of Xiangyang and would never let it fall into the hands of the Wei army.
As for Fancheng in Jiangbei, let's forget about it. A single city can't withstand the Wei army's fierce attack, so taking it wouldn't be of much significance.
Liu Bei stroked his beard and said, “An Guo is right. Cao Cao occupies the fertile lands of the Central Plains. We don’t have as much grain-producing land as he does. If we want to fight him at a cost, we must be careful with our resources. We cannot waste an inch of fertile land. The fertile land south of Xiangyang must not become a buffer zone for the Wei army to trample at will. We must take Xiangyang.”
Having experienced poverty firsthand, Liu Bei was acutely aware of the bitter consequences of insufficient supplies and the disparity in arable land between himself and Cao Wei. He was determined not to let Cao Cao squander the fertile land in the southern part of the Han River Plain and insisted on developing it for his own grain production.
But to achieve this goal, Xiangyang must be captured to keep the Wei army at bay on the south bank of the Han River.
Having figured this out, Liu Bei asked, "What about the middle strategy?"
Guan Xing: "..."
When did I ever say that there were three strategies: superior, middle, and inferior? Please don't assume that.
Guan Xing continued, "Let's take Xiangyang first, send a general to garrison Xiangyang while leading the rest of the troops eastward, and join forces with my father and Shen Yi to attack Cao Ren from three sides, trying to take a piece of his flesh."
Currently, Guan Yu is in the east, Shen Yi is in the south, and if Liu Bei and Guan Xing attack from the west, Cao Ren will be surrounded on three sides. In this situation, Cao Ren can only retreat along the Yangtze River back to the north bank, but the three Han armies will not let him retreat too smoothly and will definitely tear something off him.
Liu Bei excitedly said, "We can consider it. What's the best strategy?"
Guan Xing replied, "Xu Huang has withdrawn from the Ziwu Road back to Guanzhong. As a result, there won't be many troops left for Xiahou Shang to guard Xiangfan. If we concentrate our forces, we might be able to cross the Han River and capture Fancheng in a short time, and drive Xiahou Shang to Wancheng."
"But that's not the point. The point is that Cao Cao is heading towards Nanyang along the Wuguan Pass. If we turn around and attack Wuguan after defeating Xiahou Shang, we might be able to seize Wuguan before Cao Cao passes through, block him in the Wuguan Pass, and force him back to Guanzhong. Then, we can have my father continue to hold Cao Ren back, and we can lead our current army and Shen Yi's 60,000 troops straight to Luoyang."
Liu Bei's hand, which was stroking his beard, suddenly trembled, pulling out several hairs that brought tears to his eyes from the pain. But he ignored the pain and asked incredulously, "Say it again: block Cao Cao at Wuguan Pass and then march straight to Luoyang?"