Cao Cao probably didn't get any answers, because at this time Liu Bei was busy recruiting his soldiers, and it was impossible to return to Juan County to answer his questions.
Xu Rong's soldiers were indeed well-trained elites, and their recruitment was effortless. In just two hours, more than 4,000 soldiers had been integrated.
At the beginning, Xu Rong had 6,000 Luoyang Imperial Guards under his command, leaving hundreds of people behind to guard the city when he left Xingyang. Although they fought fiercely for several days at the foot of Juan County, they did not lose much troops at all. When they withdrew to Gangou Shui, there were nearly 5,000 men left.
The only bloody battle he experienced was the surprise attack led by Guan Yu just now, which cost him hundreds of troops. Now there are just over 4,000 people left, all of which were captured by Liu Bei.
Of course, it is just a compilation. If you want to use it with confidence, you have to absorb and digest it for a while.
After finishing his work, Liu Bei asked Zhang Heng for his opinion. "Ziyi, where should we go now? Lead the army back to Juan County, or go directly to Xingyang?"
"Both sides have to go." Zhang Heng replied, "Xingyang is a choke point. It will be our barrier for a long time in the future. We must send a large army to guard it. As for Juan County... Xuande Gong might as well ask the people in the city if they wish. Don’t you want to move to Xingyang?”
Juan County is too close to Jujube, and Zhang Heng is not sure about those Guandong princes. It is better to control the most important strategic resource, population, in his own hands.
"How is this possible!" Liu Bei shook his head and laughed, somewhat unbelieving.
Now that Juan County is safe, and since he is guarding Xingyang, he is not afraid of Dong Zhuo coming, so there is no need for the people to move their families.
Zhang Heng shook his head and said: "It's better to ask. Where to go is up to the people themselves."
"Okay, I will gather the people when I return to Juan County. Those who are willing to go to Xingyang will go with the army, and those who are unwilling will not force it."
"Xuan De Gong is wise." Zhang Heng cupped his hands and said with a smile.
"Then we will divide our troops into two groups. You and Yide will lead the army to station in Xingyang first, while Yunchang and I will return to Juan County to pack up our belongings."
Zhang Heng shook his head, "No, it is better for Duke Xuande to go to Xingyang and I will return to Juan County."
"Why?"
"Who does Xuande think is the biggest contributor to this battle?" Zhang Heng did not answer, but asked a seemingly unrelated question.
"Of course it's you Zhang Ziyi!" Liu Bei replied without thinking.
Zhang Heng shook his head and said with a smile: "Thank you very much, Mr. Xuande, for the compliment, but the biggest contributor to this battle is not me, but Zhang Wenyuan."
"this……"
Liu Bei shook his head and did not agree with Zhang Heng's point of view. Although Zhang Liao's raid on Xingyang was a crucial turning point in the entire battle, Zhang Heng's overall overview, planning step by step, and ultimately driving Xu Rong to death was the biggest contributor.
Liu Bei's idea is very simple. If the entire battle is divided into several stages, then Zhang Liao will only shine in the most important stage. However, Zhang Heng coordinated the overall situation at every stage, which was an indispensable contribution.
Seeing that Liu Bei still didn't understand what he meant, Zhang Heng changed his explanation.
"Mr. Xuande, I would like to ask you boldly, what is Mr. Xuande's ambition?"
When adults in later generations tease children, they often tease: What do you want to be when you grow up?
Then the children will enthusiastically answer: I want to be a scientist, I want to be a lawyer, I want to be...
But in this era, asking about ambitions is a very serious matter, because as long as you say it, it means that you will spend your whole life working hard in this direction, and you will die without regrets!
So the expression on Liu Bei's face immediately became serious.
"My ambition is to kill Dong Zhuo. Ziyi already knows that, so why ask again."
"Mr. Xuande has misunderstood." Zhang Heng said with a smile, "I mean, if the Dong thief is killed, what will Mr. Xuande plan to do?"
Hearing this, Liu Bei couldn't help but smile bitterly and shake his head.
He really hadn't thought about this issue.
Although he struggled throughout the first half of his life, he was floating around like a rootless duckweed. It's not that Liu Bei has no ambitions, it's just that he can't see the current direction clearly and can't think of a way to realize his ideals.
Seeing that Liu Bei could not answer, Zhang Heng was not embarrassed. Instead, he slowly said, "Does Mr. Xuande know my ambition?"
"Oh, would you like to hear the details?" Liu Bei said seriously.
After spending these days together, Liu Bei had some understanding of Zhang Heng's character. However, Zhang Heng always dealt with things calmly and calmly, so Liu Bei had no chance to listen to his true feelings, so he was very curious.
Zhang Heng raised his eyes high, looking at the withering scene in the distance under the chill of early spring, and couldn't help but sigh.
"I'm not afraid of Mr. Xuande's jokes. I'm actually a man with no ambitions. I just want to live my own life peacefully. However, I encountered troubled times and couldn't help myself, so I joined the fight against Dong Lianjun."
He thought he could hear Zhang Heng's inner voice, but unexpectedly he heard such depressing words. Liu Bei couldn't help but frown.
"Zi Yi's words are wrong! If a man lives his life in a mediocre way, how is he different from rotten wood and rotten grass?"
"Mr. Xuande, don't be anxious, I haven't finished speaking yet." Zhang Heng laughed at himself and continued, "Mr. Xuande, you still remember that I rushed all the way from Luoyang to Suanzao, and encountered many groups of bandits and bandits on the way. See also There are many people whose wives and children have been separated and their families have been destroyed due to the turbulent times.
The heaven and earth are unkind, and the gods are immoral, causing all living beings to be devastated and the roads to be filled with corpses. The common people have no place to stay, and the common people have no place to stand. So I am thinking about whether I can do something for the world. Even if it is just the fluorescence of rotten grass, he is still willing to use his meager strength to protect a living being. "
When Zhang Heng said these words, his speaking speed was no different from normal, but the emotions he showed were real and moving.
Before traveling back in time, although Zhang Heng was busy making a living all day long, he could still eat and drink well, at least he didn't have to worry about his life being in danger. So when he saw this troubled world where human life was like a piece of grass, he was completely shocked.
I've been caught in the rain, so... I want to hold an umbrella for others.
Even if... this umbrella is not big and cannot protect many people, it is enough.
After hearing Zhang Heng's ambition, Liu Bei was also infected, shook his head and sighed:
"Zi Yi's kindness is admirable!"
"Mr. Xuande has given me the reward." Zhang Heng said with a smile, "So, I don't need rewards or merit. These are just passing clouds to me. I only want to do things that I think are important in my life."
Liu Bei nodded, "Understood. In that case, Ziyi, you and Yide return to Juan County, and Yunchang and I will station in Xingyang."
Zhang Heng also smiled, "After Xuande arrived in Xingyang, he will give Wen Yuan, the number one hero, a lot of praise. This man's talent is not inferior to that of Yun Chang. If he can win his heart, he can be compared to a hundred thousand elite soldiers!"
"What Ziyi said is that Wen Yuan is brave and I also love him deeply."
After saying this, the two looked at each other and smiled, with an unspoken understanding between them.
Not long after, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei came over and reported that the army had been integrated and ready to go at any time.
Liu Bei immediately ordered his troops to divide into two groups and rush to Xingyang and Juan County respectively.
Just as the army was preparing to march, dust was flying in the distance, causing a rapid sound of horse hooves.
Everyone's expressions changed, and just when Liu Bei was about to order a response, Zhang Fei suddenly laughed and said: "Brother, Cao Mengde is here!"
Liu Bei took a closer look and saw a big word "Cao" written on the banner of the team in front. Combined with the direction in which the team came, it was basically certain that it was Cao Cao.
"Let's go, come with me to greet Brother Meng De!" Liu Bei said with great joy.
At this time, Cao Cao also saw Liu Bei's team and ordered his soldiers to slow down.
As for why Cao Cao is here, the reason is simple, because he is anxious!
After he led his army to Juan County in the early morning, he only saw the messy battlefield. Cao Cao, who was not sure why, quickly led his army to the city, but the soldiers in the city were unwilling to open the door.
Cao Cao naturally understood what the soldiers were doing, and immediately asked Liu Bei where he was going, but the soldiers in the city still refused to tell him.
Just like when Zhang Liao raided Xingyang, the soldiers in the city said, if you are really a friendly army, then just wait outside the city and wait for my lord to come back, everything will take care of itself.
Of course Cao Cao would not attack the city like Zhang Liao, but he also refused to wait outside the city.
Looking at this posture, Liu Bei had clearly led his army out of the city to fight. As for who his opponent was, he knew it was Xu Rong without even thinking about it.
In the previous battle, Xu Rong almost left Cao Cao with a psychological shadow. He was worried that Liu Bei would be defeated, so he quickly led his army to pursue Liu Bei along the traces of his march. Finally, he arrived when everything was settled. Once again, he lived up to expectations and achieved perfection. Missed the team fight.
