Lu Jian and Xu Shang originally had more than 10,000 troops stationed in Deng County, but when they finally fled to Chaoyang County, there were less than 1,000 troops. The shortage of war preparation materials and the gap between commanders caused Cao's army to be almost wiped out.
Zhang Liao ordered all his troops to march to Deng County. Lu Jian no longer wanted to suffer with him, so he stayed in Chaoyang with the remaining troops and waited to apologize to Cao Cao.
The 20,000-strong army slowly advanced southward. Halfway through, they discovered something was wrong. When they arrived at the scout's warning area, Zhang Liao's army often encountered cavalry running and moving on the left and right wings and directly in front of them. Patrol troops were sent to pursue them but could not. On the way, the missing scouts never returned to the camp to report.
Only then did Zhang Liao realize that Lu Jian was not lying. Guan Yu did have a cavalry that was good at attacking and spying, and his marching movements were clearly known by the opponent.
Such terrifying reconnaissance and flexible combat capabilities may not be comparable to Cao Cao's Tiger and Leopard Cavalry. He didn't know that Gao Shun's scouts were also selected from the best, and their number was only limited to 500 people, because they trained a Tai not easy.
Under the surveillance of the scouts, Zhang Liao ordered the entire army to be uniform and not dispersed, and asked them to stay on alert day and night to prevent the enemy from sneak attacks and hijacking camps.
After passing through the bleak and mottled wilderness, Zhang Liao's troops arrived in the northern part of Deng County. They saw a military camp blocking the way to the village. He saw that the layout of the camp was very familiar, and his suspicions about Gao Shun deepened.
Because the city of Deng County was too small, it was impossible for all the tens of thousands of troops to be stationed in the city, so Guan Yu ordered Gao Shun's troops to camp outside the north gate. Meng Da's troops were stationed in the west of the city for the left wing, and Xiu and Fu Fang's troops were stationed. The right wing was in the east of the city, and the main force was stationed in the city to coordinate the various ministries. Pound's cavalry was still monitoring Cao Ren's movements in the south, and set up a forward formation with Deng County as the center.
Zhang Liao's army slowly advanced southward. At this time, the flags in Gao Shun's camp followed the soldiers, and soon several military formations were standing neatly outside the camp gate.
Because the scouts conveyed the news, the trapped troops had been waiting for work for a long time. However, Zhang Liao was very cautious during the march and did not reveal any flaws. Gao Shun had no choice but to open up his formation and attack him head-on.
The two armies lined up, the enemy and we stood solemnly, and the whistling north wind blew the flags flying in the sky.
Zhang Liao stopped the rear army. Regardless of the objections of his generals, Zhang Liao walked between the two armies alone. He looked at the opposite side and shouted loudly: "Isn't it Bo Ping on the opposite side?"
At Lan Tian's signal, Gao Shun rode forward, clasped his fists and saluted, saying: "General Zhang, you are well and well. I have often heard your name over the years. Although the general has a prosperous official career, he looks a lot older..."
Because of his good personal habit of being strict with himself, Gao Shun has not changed much from twenty years ago. Zhang Liao was good at dealing with people under Cao Cao and spent a lot of energy on other things. Although he is younger than Gao Shun, But the appearance has changed a lot.
Zhang Liao did not get angry because of Gao Shun's teasing. He replied very calmly: "It turns out that Boping is really alive. I often think of you and I as colleagues in my dreams at midnight. I didn't expect to see each other like this."
"General Zhang, why do you need to talk about your comrades? Do you feel half guilty for surrendering to Cao Cao, your master's enemy, and then rising all the way?" Gao Shun asked with a frown.
"General Lu is ambitious and talented, but he is not a wise master. Besides, he and I have no master-servant relationship. Do you want me to die for him when Xiapi is defeated? Wei Xu is married to him and has surrendered to the king of Wei, let alone Zhang Liao, an outsider?"
Zhang Liao felt sad when he thought about the past. Many people secretly accused him of seeking glory behind his back, but who knew the real reason?
Zhang Liao was from Mayi, Yanmen, and the same hometown as Lu Bu in Bingzhou. In his early years, Lu Bu was the chief clerk of the governor Ding Yuan, and Zhang Liao was recruited as Ding Yuan's clerk. Both of them were subordinates of the governor of Bingzhou. Later, Zhang Liao was sent to Luoyang by Ding Yuan to join the army and became a subordinate of General He Jin. Because of his outstanding performance, he was sent to Hebei to recruit troops.
When Zhang Liao went to Hebei to recruit troops, He Jin encountered the "Shi Chang Shi Rebellion" and died. Later, his old boss Ding Yuan was killed by his old colleague Lu Bu during a power struggle with Dong Zhuo. Dong Zhuo supported and controlled Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty and became the talker of the Eastern Han Dynasty. He Jin's old troops were all recruited by him. Zhang Liao was not spared when he recruited troops at this time, so he became a colleague with Lu Bu. Dong Zhuo incorporated him into Lu Bu's army. In the army.
After Dong Zhuo's death, Zhang Liao followed Lv Bu in various conquests. In fact, the two had always had a colleague relationship, which was very different from Gao Shun's master-servant relationship. Zhang Liao had always followed the Eastern Han Dynasty to do things, and finally surrendering to Cao Cao may also mean surrendering to the emperor. After all, at that time, Cao Cao "served the emperor's orders but refused to submit."
After hearing Zhang Liao's rebuttal, Gao Shun was startled. Comparing the other party with himself was really far-fetched, so his expression softened. He pulled out his sword and pulled back the corner of his clothes and said: "Everyone has his own ambitions and it's hard to force him. General Zhang will follow." Gao Shun disagrees with the Ming Lord in his heart. When we meet today, we should cut off our robes and sever our ties."
"Slow down." Zhang Liao stretched out his hand to stop him, and then raised his own question: "Bo Ping has always been loyal and loyal. What he just said was meant to sacrifice for General Lu, but why did you switch to Liu Bei now? Don't you hear what you said? Don’t do it to others if you don’t want it?
Bo Ping should understand that General Lu's end was also related to Liu Bei, but why do you only hold such grudge against the King of Wei? The King of Wei traveled all over the world and conquered all the wastelands. He could soon bring peace to the world and end this troubled world. Can't such a hero be called the Lord of Ming? "
Gao Shun had a calm look on his face: "I don't know about heroes and strategists, but loyalty is the foundation of a life. Gao Shun has never regarded others as his masters. The reason why he did not die for General Lu is mainly because his orphan is still alive."
Zhang Liao asked in surprise: "Could it be Miss Lingqi? Is she married to Liu Bei's general?"
"General Zhang's guess was correct. The young lady married the brother-in-law of the King of Hanzhong, who is now Jiaozhou Mu Lantian and Lan Ziyu." Gao Shun explained.
"Lantian, Lan Ziyu... this name is so familiar..." Zhang Liao said to himself, thinking non-stop, suddenly grabbed the saddle and exclaimed: "Could it be that farmer who told you and the lady stories back then?"
"General Zhang really has a good memory. My husband is a man of great talent, not comparable to your so-called Ming Zhu. From my point of view, his talent is ten times better than that of Cao Cao. Remember that we were once in the same army, so why not just surrender? To avoid catastrophe." For the first time, Gao Shun began to persuade him to surrender.
Zhang Liao looked shocked. He sneered and shook his head: "Impossible, absolutely impossible. Lan Ziyu is unknown, how can he be on par with the King of Wei..."
Gao Shun and Zhang Liao were reminiscing in the front, and Zhang Fei poked Lan Tian's waist behind the formation. He heard in the city that Zhang Liao was leading his troops to attack, so he took the initiative to run over and help Lan Tian suppress the formation.
"I don't think Gao Boping can really talk. I, Mr. Zhang, have never seen him talk so much."
"It's normal for former colleagues to talk more." Lan Tian smiled.
At this time, the soldiers behind the formation suddenly gave way, and saw a general with red face and long beard, green scarf and green robe, carrying a green dragon sword, and sitting on a red rabbit horse. It was Guan Yu who was sitting in the city.
"Second brother? Why are you here?" Zhang Fei scratched his head in confusion.
