webnovelfull Chapter 480 Liu Bei was filled with deep regret
Chapter 480 Liu Bei was filled with deep regret
Upon hearing Liu Feng's report, Liu Bei was utterly dismayed. He had finally assembled a large army and was ready to fight Xu Huang, only to be told that Xu Huang had escaped.
What's even more speechless is that it ran along the Meridian Path?
If Xu Huang retreated back to Xiangyang along Shangyong Fangling, he could still lead his troops to pursue him. But if he retreated from the Ziwu Road, he would be unable to help him. He dared not pursue him on the terrain of the Ziwu Road, nor was there any need to.
Liu Bei had no choice but to leave his army outside the city to rest for the night. At dawn, he ordered Liu Feng to continue guarding the western city, while he personally led his army eastward along the Han River.
Because of Xu Huang's retreat, the journey was exceptionally smooth, so smooth that Liu Bei felt it was unreal.
He has fought half his life, and every time he faced numerous obstacles and every victory required overcoming countless difficulties. He has never had it go so smoothly as he has now.
Having endured so many beatings, he suddenly found it difficult to adapt to things going smoothly.
Walking along the road and looking at the calm Han River, Liu Bei suddenly felt as if he had been transported to another world.
The three eastern prefectures where he is currently located are a secluded paradise nestled between the Daba Mountains and the Qinling Mountains. They are not valued in peacetime, but they are of great strategic value in wartime. Once captured, they can echo Jiangling and pose a fatal threat to Xiangyang.
That's why, after the Battle of Hanzhong, he sent Meng Da and Liu Feng to recover the three eastern commanderies and open up the passage from Hanzhong to Jingzhou. However, before he could even settle down after taking the three eastern commanderies, Guan Yu was defeated and fled to Maicheng. The three eastern commanderies also fell due to the infighting between Liu Feng and Meng Da, and he was trapped in Bashu again.
That period was truly Liu Bei's darkest hour. Liu Bei originally thought that there was no hope of regaining Jingzhou and the three eastern counties in a short time. Who knew that Jingzhou and the three eastern counties would be regained so quickly, and not only that, but he also gained control of Jiangdong.
The feeling of regaining what was lost was simply exhilarating. Overjoyed, Liu Bei let out a merciless roar towards the Han River. The roar echoed across both banks of the river, releasing all the pent-up frustration and excitement that Liu Bei had kept hidden in his heart for so long, and also shouting out the voices of some others.
As Liu Bei roared, several dark figures darted out from the nearby Dabashan Mountains, quickly attracting Zhao Yun's attention, who shouted, "Who goes there?"
As Zhao Yun rebuked him, his personal guards rushed forward to intercept the other party. Seeing that he had caused a misunderstanding with the army, the man quickly shouted, "This humble general, Colonel Zhaoxin Dong Hui, is here on the orders of General Xiao Guan to see Your Majesty. General, please do not misunderstand."
Liu Bei's roar stopped abruptly, and he turned his head sharply and shouted, "Summon Commandant Dong here!"
Dong Hui rushed forward, his face weary but his eyes gleaming with excitement, and bowed, saying, "Dong Hui greets Your Majesty. It is truly wonderful to see Your Majesty here..."
Liu Bei had no time for his nonsense and waved his hand to interrupt, asking, "Where is Anguo?"
Dong Hui quickly swallowed the words he was about to say and hurriedly changed his tune, saying, "General Xiao Guan led his troops to attack Fangling, intending to attack Fangling and Shangyong to block Xu Huang's retreat, and then join you in attacking Xu Huang from the west. But Your Majesty, why are you here? Where is Xu Huang?"
Upon hearing this, Liu Bei immediately cursed, "Damn it..."
Guan Xing came to join him in attacking Xu Huang, but he ended up letting Xu Huang escape?
What a great opportunity to annihilate Xu Huang! We just missed it like that?
Liu Bei immediately felt like he had missed out on a fortune, and he was filled with regret. He gritted his teeth and questioned, "Why didn't you say so earlier? If I had known Anguo was coming, I would have sent troops to block him at the Ziwu Road in advance."
The terrain of the Ziwu Road was such that even a few hundred or a thousand men could have prevented Xu Huang's tens of thousands of troops from advancing an inch. However, after he withdrew to Hanzhong, he only wanted to defend and consolidate the gains of the Northern Expedition and did not intend to attack. So he just guarded his doorstep without doing anything out of line, and as a result, he let Xu Huang escape.
Damn it...
God, let's make a deal, can I go back to half a month ago and start over?
Liu Bei was filled with regret, beating his feet and pounding his chest. Dong Hui, on the other hand, rolled his eyes. What do you mean I didn't say so earlier? I received the order and rushed all the way without daring to stop for a moment. Do you know how many mountains I crossed to get to you? And what do you do? You don't even comfort me, and you complain that I'm too slow. Your Majesty, are you being reasonable?
Knowing that there was no reasoning with Liu Bei, Dong Hui had no choice but to change the subject and asked in surprise, "Xu Huang has escaped through the Ziwu Valley, what should we do? General Guan is still on his way here."
Liu Bei shook his head to compose himself, clearing his chaotic thoughts and returning to the main topic. He stared at Dong Hui and asked, "Tell me about the situation in Anguo. How did Anguo end up in Fangling, and how did you join forces with Anguo?"
Dong Hui immediately straightened his chest and replied with high spirits, "That's a long story..."
Reporting to your superiors is an art. It requires subtly highlighting your achievements while also subtly undermining your rivals. These two aspects are the essence of reporting. Simply reporting honestly would be foolish.
Dong Hui was a seasoned veteran of the officialdom, and he understood the significance of reporting very well. Therefore, instead of directly revealing the answer, he chose to start from the beginning, which was naturally when he accompanied Fei Yi on his mission.
Dong Hui began by recounting how he was ordered to accompany Fei Yi to Jiangling to sow discord between Lü Meng and Fei Yi, only to have Lü Meng die as soon as they entered Jiangling. He vividly described how Fei Yi had a power struggle with Jiang Ji, but was instead brutally beaten by Jiang Ji with an imperial edict, and spent several months recovering from his injuries.
Having recovered from his injuries, Fei Yi was preparing to retreat to Bashu to report back when news of Lu Xun's capture reached Jiangling. Fei Yi immediately took the initiative, contacting Zhang Zhao to persuade Sun Quan to surrender, and continued this effort until Guan Xing launched a general offensive and annihilated Yu Jin...
Besides praising Guan Xing, Dong Hui focused on recounting his and Fei Yi's contributions. However, despite his lengthy and detailed speech, Liu Bei didn't listen to a single word.
Liu Bei's attention remained focused on Guan Xing. Upon hearing that Guan Xing had challenged Yu Jin to a duel, he exploded on the spot, nearly losing his composure as he roared, "What? You're saying that An Guo went to fight Yu Jin and almost got killed by him?"
Dong Hui had been speaking animatedly for a long time, and was about to get to the exciting part about personally shooting Yu Jin. He was preparing to use a technique of first highlighting the danger Guan Xing was in, then emphasizing his own bravery in rescuing Guan Xing, thus elevating the significance of his killing Yu Jin. However, before he could even begin to praise him, Liu Bei's shout made him tremble and forget his words on the spot. He stammered, "Yes, but..."
Liu Bei had no time to listen to the "but," and roared angrily, "What were you thinking? Not only did you send Anguo to the front lines, but you also made him fight Yu Jin to the death! Anguo isn't good at martial arts; how could he possibly fight that old bastard Yu Jin? What if something happens to him..."
Liu Bei was genuinely frightened. He was an old acquaintance of Yu Jin and knew Yu Jin's strength. He also understood Yu Jin's mindset of having no way out and seeking death. Wouldn't it be crazy to let Guan Xing fight Yu Jin, who was preparing to take others down with him? What if something happened to Guan Xing?
Moreover, Guan Xing is a strategic commander, not a vanguard like Zhang Fei or Zhao Yun. How could you send a marshal to the front lines to fight the enemy? Have you forgotten how Xiahou Yuan died?
The thought of Guan Xing being taken away by Yu Jin sent a chill down Liu Bei's spine, even with his composure.
Dong Hui was scolded mercilessly and felt wronged. Guan Xing was the commander and we were just soldiers. What could we soldiers do to stop the commander from doing what he wanted?
Dong Hui inwardly complained but dared not refute, so he could only try his best to argue, "Actually, Young Master Anguo's martial arts skills are quite high, not comparable to..."
Liu Bei said impatiently, "Do you think I don't know Anguo's own capabilities? Do you need to tell me?"
To be honest, Guan Xing's martial arts skills were indeed not bad. He could be ranked among the top masters of the time. Looking at the entire Han Dynasty, you could count the number of people who could beat Guan Xing on two hands.
But the problem is that all the people who could defeat Guan Xing are standing next to Liu Bei: Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and Chen Dao. Aren't they all capable of tossing Guan Xing around like a chicken?
If Guan Xing is a first-rate master, then Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Chen Dao, and others are top-tier masters. They really wouldn't care about Guan Xing's petty tricks.
That's why Liu Bei lost his composure when he learned that Guan Xing had personally led the charge. Damn Guan Anguo, do you think you're your Uncle Zilong?