The battle on the second day suffered another defeat, which made Chen Chong feel frustrated and depressed.
Although the generals under his command did not take it seriously, they believed that the Han army was outnumbered and could almost win the victory today, and there would naturally be a chance tomorrow. But Chen Chong knew clearly in his heart: this attack could not accomplish anything, and the flaw Liu Fan exposed in the Chinese army today would never happen again in the future. Under vigilance, the Shu army is likely to change its strategy. If Liu Fan no longer fights with him, he will build a camp with deep trenches and high fortresses, unable to get out. So in this situation, how should you break the situation?
Chen Chong had a lot of thoughts in his mind. In order to think about the next step, he tossed and turned in the middle of the night. When the moonlight was silent on the Western Mountain, he fell asleep. However, only two hours later, he turned over and woke up from the couch.
It was just getting dark at this time, so he put on his clothes and stood up, when he saw the golden sunlight shining from the southeast, which was eye-catching. Coupled with the velvet-like dead grass in the wilderness, the earth looks bright and boundless. The weather has been sunny for so long, the temperature has risen slightly, and the wind has become milder. At this time, Dong Bai was drying clothes by the well next to the tent. When he saw that he was awake, he put down everything he was doing, brought him a basin of hot water and a cloth, and asked him, "What's the matter? Can't you sleep well?"
Chen Chong took the steaming wet cloth and said with a smile to himself: "I haven't been on the battlefield for a long time, and I walked another round yesterday. Haha, I'm not used to it." But under the smile, there were still some words that he couldn't say: He The grasp of fighter opportunities has become slow, and the judgment of the battle situation has begun to make mistakes. Can he really still win?
These words only flashed through his mind, and Chen Chong covered his face with a wet cloth, rubbing his eyes and forehead back and forth, finally dispelling all these distracting thoughts and fatigue.
Dong Bai saw that he was upset, so he didn't say much and turned around to get breakfast for him. When he came back, he saw Chen Chong talking to Hu Zhen and Zhang Ji. However, he only said a few words before the generals dispersed with a relaxed look. It turned out that they came to ask Chen Chong about today's arrangements, whether they would continue to join the battle or have other arrangements.
Chen Chong's answer was to rest. Soldiers are not pigeons. After two consecutive days of hard fighting, even these veterans of many battles left behind by Dong Zhuo will be overworked due to excessive physical strength. If they do not rest for a few days to recover, I am afraid it will be difficult to maintain military morale. What's more, Hu Zhen's scouts came to report that while the Shu people were building fences and digging trenches in the camp, they were resting in the wild. In the wild villages near Luo Valley, we even saw Jinfan thieves hunting and escorting prostitutes. Obviously Liu Fan also made the same choice.
When everyone left, Chen Chong breathed a sigh of relief. When he saw Dong Bai walking over with a food box, he unconsciously walked up to him and said, "Ah..." He almost blurted out Cai Yan's name. As soon as the words came out, he realized something was wrong and quickly changed his words: "Abai, are you still used to being in the army?"
After capturing Wugong, Chen Chong originally wanted Dong Bai and Dong Yao to stay in the city. Dong Yao had no objection, but Dong Bai refused. Chen Chong knew that she was extremely opinionated and could never be persuaded by others, so he had no choice but to agree.
Dong Bai was extremely sensitive and could sense what Chen Chong was thinking in just a moment. But she didn't care in her heart. She boldly took Chen Chong's hand and walked into the tent with him. She smiled sweetly and said, "You are the one. You said this yesterday." Chen Chong couldn't help being surprised and confused when he heard this. "Really?" Dong Bai sighed slightly and said softly, "You forgot, after you finished dinner last night, I gave you medicine. That's the first thing you said."
Chen Chong remembered it. He saw Dong Bai's beautiful face full of worry for him, and he couldn't help but feel guilty. He laughed at himself and said, "I actually forgot what I said to Ah Bai. What a fool!" Seeing him showing negative emotions for the first time, Dong Bai felt more and more melancholy in his heart, but he pretended to be angry: "Of course, I knew you were the first time I heard about you!" After saying that, both of them remembered the first time. When they met, they both burst into laughter.
After a while, Dong Bai asked Chen Chong to sit down. He stood in front of him and said, "We have a daughter's farewell song in Longxi. It was handed down from the distant past. I will sing it for you to listen to."
After saying that, she rolled up her sleeves, held each other up with her hands, looked at Chen Chong steadily with her eyes, and began to sing:
"The king is like the moon in the clouds, and the farmers are like shadows on the water. The moon appears and disappears among the colorful clouds, but the shadows are not separated.
The king is like the water in Longtou, and the farmers are like the sound of spring rocks. The water flows eastward and waves rise in all directions, and the sound never stops.
The king is like a wild goose in the sky, the farm is like the wind under the wings, and the wild goose is silhouetted
Boundless, the long wind reflects the sun.
I hope that your heart will be like that of a farmer, and you will march thousands of miles to mark your return. I will come home and come back, and we will be together for the rest of our lives. "
After singing, Dong Baizhong sat back next to Chen Chong. She held Chen Chong's hand again and said softly: "It's just a temporary setback, why bother so much? There are so many people in the world who believe in you, and there must be a way out for everything. So should you. Confidence is the key!" Unlike Cai Yan, Chen Chong saw not only worry but also strong support in Dong Bai's eyes, which made him feel relieved. Chen Chong thought: Yes, if you are not confident that you can win, then victory will never come.
After breakfast, Chen Chong continued to plan the offensive strategy in the tent. At this time, he thought, if it were the famous ancient generals, how would they break this situation?
If it were Han Xin, would he show weakness to the enemy, lure him to fight, retreat while fighting, and then send out surprise troops to attack the enemy camp?
If it were Liu Xiu, he would have deceived the enemy, set up an ambush on the road, and used a flanking attack to win, right?
However, since he almost broke the formation yesterday, Liu Fanying became wary. This strategy of luring the enemy might not be useful anymore. Chen Chong shook his head, realizing that he might have to attack head-on. When he thought about this, he turned to think of the famous generals he knew.
If it were Sun Jian, maybe he would transfer the main force at night and launch a night attack somewhere dozens of miles away?
If it was Huangfu Song, maybe he would have the front troops tie up pines and other objects, use rockets to shoot at the enemy camp, disrupt their front formation, and then send out cavalry to break the formation?
Thinking of this, Chen Chong had some ideas, but he also had troubles: his own troops were already stretched thin, far less than the Shu army, and the military formations of the two armies were too close, and there might not be as many Shu army scouts surrounding the camp. More than a hundred people, how can they launch an attack without concealing it from these people? Should we divide our troops first? It is too risky to divide the troops. Once Liu Fan discovers after dividing the troops and attacks one part of the army first, it is very likely that the whole army will be annihilated!
Just when he was hesitating, the soldiers suddenly came to the tent and said: "Your Majesty, there is an envoy from Guandong asking to see you. We have never heard of it, but he said that he knows the envoy. All he needs to do is give the token to the envoy." Come on." When Chen Chong heard that it was someone from Guandong, he couldn't help being surprised. He quickly called his soldiers in and handed over the lacquer box containing the token. When I opened it, I found that it was a stone seal with the words "Chen Song's First Letter" engraved on it.
Chen Chong immediately knew that Huangfu Jianshou was here. He put the stone seal back into the box and went out to greet him personally. At this time, Huangfu Jianshou was wearing a gray sheepskin felt, accompanied by two personal attendants and four Hebei horses. Huangfu Jianshou was the only son of the late chariot and cavalry general Huangfu Song. After Chen Chong entered the capital, he thought highly of him, so he recommended him to the Ba Mansion to discuss military aircraft. However, after the two parties separated in the first year of Yanxing, Huangfu Jianshou and his family moved to Jinyang, and apart from exchanging letters, they had not seen each other for several years.
Seeing Huangfu Jianshou standing in front of him with a calm face, saluting and saying hello to him, Chen Chong felt much relieved. Thinking that he must have something urgent when he came from Luoyang, Chen Chong quickly welcomed him into the tent to talk in detail. Huangfu Jianshou took off his leather hat and leather rug that was covered with dust, and sat on the bed, watching the servants make a fire. Dong Bai brought him a bowl of hot soup. He thanked him and took a sip. Only then did he react belatedly. He looked at Dong Bai in surprise and said, "Weiyang?"
Dong Bai bowed down to salute Huangfu Jianshou and said slowly, "Uncle, long time no see." Dong Zhuo loved Huangfu Jianshou very much during his lifetime and often lamented that his sons were not as good as Jianshou. Then he often let Jian Shou come in and out of the Grand Master's house, and ordered Dong Bai and other grandchildren to address him as uncle, so the two became very familiar with each other.
Huangfu Jianshou waved his hands repeatedly and glanced at Chen Chong, as if he wanted to ask something, but he didn't say anything. Chen Chong knew that he was surprised, but he did not want to talk more about this matter. Instead, he asked straight to the point: "Why did Xuande send you here? Is Cao Jun's offensive accelerating?"
When Huangfu Jianshou saw that the topic was about to begin, he quickly let go of his worries and said seriously: "Cao's army's offensive is indeed fierce. When I came from Hedong, I heard that Cao's army had already attacked Xingyang and occupied Guoting and Aocang."
After hearing this, Chen Chong felt anxious. If both Aocang and Xingyang are lost, it means that Cao's army has arrived at Hulao Pass. This also means that Cao Cao is only one step away from Luoyang. If he does not win the battle, Bafu will no longer have a foothold in Guandong, and it is probably unknown whether Guanzhong can be saved. Xuande must have been under great pressure at this time, so he sent Jianshou to ask for help!
But Chen Chong thought: Regarding the current situation, it is extremely difficult for him! At this time, the battle with Liu Fan was in a stalemate. Whoever breathed a sigh of relief first might mean that Guanzhong changed hands. Am I going to lead my troops away and see my seven years of business being destroyed in one fell swoop? What should I do?
Just as Chen Chongtian and his men were fighting, Huangfu Jianshou stood up and said slowly: "But what the general meant was that Guanxi is more important than Guandong, so I told you not to worry. After he heard that your envoy raised troops in Chencang, Thinking that Shijun's troops were insufficient, he transferred the Taiping Colonel (Xu Huang) back to Hedong. Five days ago, the news that Shijun had captured Wu Gong reached Puban, and the counties in Hedong were rejoicing. Brother Gongming was also leading his troops. I came here this time to inform the envoy of this news."
Chen Chong was stunned when he heard this, and looked at Huangfu Jianshou blankly, and then a feeling of warmth rose in his heart. He stood up and opened the tent, just in time for the slanting sun to shine through the tent door, sweeping away the darkness inside the tent. Chen Chong thought comfortingly: Everyone still believes in himself and believes that he can turn the situation around, so they are all helping each other, so he must not let them down.
With Xu Huang's reinforcements and his previous hard thinking, Chen Chong quickly had a new plan in mind. He turned to Huangfu Jianshou and asked, "How many people did Gongming bring? How far is it from here? Is the baggage enough?"
"We have brought about 12,000 people from the Thirteenth Battalion. We estimate that we will arrive at Lianshao today, which is still more than two hundred miles away. The general has specially made up the baggage, and everything is included."
"Did anyone notice it on the road?"
"Chang'an should have noticed, but did not stop him."
Chen Chong closed his eyes slightly, then opened his eyes after a moment and said, "Jianshou, I have to trouble you to make a trip. Whether we can recapture Guanzhong this time depends on Gongming."
On that day, Chen Chong and Huangfu Jianshou discussed for nearly an hour and confirmed the opportunity to go to war together. After lunch, Huangfu Jianshou and Chen Chong said goodbye again and hurriedly left the Han army camp with two guides.
