Liu Bei glanced around the city tower again. Although there was a moat and the city was strong, densely packed Wu soldiers were still coming to kill them. Without Lu Xuan's extraordinary troops, he could still hold on to Nanzheng City with the help of it.
Now, I can't hold on anymore.
Liu Bei was not an indecisive person and said decisively: "Withdraw the troops."
He took Zhang Fei and ran quickly towards Beicheng.
When it comes to experience in retreat, Liu Bei has always been at the forefront, with rich experience and the ability to seize opportunities. He and Zhang Fei hurried on at full speed. In a short time, they got rid of the pursuers from behind and had already evacuated with Jian Yong and others.
Liu Bei retreated, allowing more Wu troops to ascend the tower. At the same time, Zhao Yun and Gan Ning led people to the city gate, opened the city gate, lowered the suspension bridge, and allowed the Wu army outside the city to quickly enter the city.
The fortified city was immediately broken.
Lu Xuan was directing the war outside the city. He found that the city had been taken and there was no resistance on the towers. Knowing that Liu Bei had escaped with Zhang Fei, he arranged for Zhang Lu to be responsible for the overall situation of Nanzheng. To take stock of the chaos in Nanzheng, he led a large number of cavalry He quickly headed towards Beicheng to cover up the enemy.
Even so, it was still a step too slow.
Lu Xuan arrived at the North City with his cavalry, only to see a large number of Liu Bei's infantry fleeing outside the city gate. In front of this group of infantry, there was also a cavalry group of several hundred people who quickly evacuated. It was obvious that Liu Bei was in the front cavalry group.
Lu Xuan judged in an instant that in order to cover up and kill Liu Bei, these scattered fleeing infantry would first stop him. If the cavalry kills them, killing the infantry will delay time, and Liu Bei will have the opportunity to retreat calmly.
"Kill, the whole army covers them up."
Lu Xuan ordered the attack.
Even though Liu Bei escaped, Lu Xuan still ordered the killing.
However, Lu Xuan encountered the fleeing infantry and his pursuit slowed down.
After Lu Xuan slowed down, Zhao Yun, Xu Chu and Gan Ning all grabbed the horses and rode up with their troops to kill him. The armies converged, and Lu Xuan led his men to pursue Liu Bei.
When Lu Xuan was chasing him, Zhang Ren selected the garrison camp thirty miles east by north of Nanzheng.
Outside the military camp, a large number of Cao's troops were attacking, and Zhang Ren was commanding the soldiers to defend. After his army was stationed, he deployed a large number of defensive weapons such as horses and antlers on the official road leading to Ziwu Road to block Cao's cavalry.
Cao Cao got the news about Zhang Ren and came directly to kill him.
When the army encounters horses and deer antlers, they must be removed along the way, so the army moves very slowly. When Cao Cao's army arrived outside the military camp and launched a fierce attack, Zhang Ren was well prepared.
Outside the camp, there were also horses to resist, and iron caltrops were placed around the road outside the camp gate to specifically block the charge of cavalry and infantry. In the surrounding area, trenches were dug, and sharpened wooden stakes were inserted into the trenches.
There are also defensive equipment such as catapults in the camp.
Bows and arrows are even more available.
With Zhang Ren's adequate preparation, Cao Cao's first wave of fierce attacks was blocked, and Cao Cao's plan to defeat Zhang Ren in one go failed.
On the contrary, Zhang Ren was put in a dilemma.
Cao Cao wanted to capture Zhang Ren's camp, but Zhang Ren desperately resisted and was unable to capture it. They want to go directly to Nanzheng, but if Zhang Ren is ignored, subsequent supplies of grain, grass and other materials will be cut off by Zhang Ren.
In desperation, Cao Cao could only order a fierce attack. Even tiger generals like Dian Wei were sent up, but Zhang Ren was still defending.
In Zhang Ren's military camp, the archers were shooting arrows like rain for free.
There is another formation of spears blocking the front.
Many traps outside the camp also restricted Cao's army. Although Dianwei's offensive was fierce, such a tiger general was still blinded when he encountered a spear formation, and it was a spear formation that was not afraid of death.
Even if he could break through the defense line and advance a certain distance with his personal bravery, he would be repelled in the blink of an eye.
"Block it, even if you die."
"As long as you hold on to this battle, each of you will be rewarded when your merits are judged. Your family will be proud of your struggle, and you will become the pride of your family."
"We are soldiers of the Kingdom of Wu, and behind us is the King of Wu. If you die in battle, your family will be taken care of, and all pensions will be sent to your family. Priority will be given to your family."
"We can't retreat. Our mission is to stop Cao Cao."
Zhang Ren kept wandering around and shouting.
"Can't retreat, stop Cao Cao!"
Some generals among the soldiers shouted, and many soldiers shouted together.
Zhang Ren's eyes were solemn, and he continued to encourage the soldiers with a big gun, and continued: "Cao Cao frequently massacres cities and robs them. If he is allowed to gain a foothold in Hanzhong, his family will be robbed, and his wife and children may be snatched away at any time."
"For ourselves, for our families, kill!"
"Let's start the killing today so that Cao Cao thieves like Cao Cao can see the style of Yizhou Erlang."
"A son of Yizhou is not afraid of a battle."
Zhang Ren encouraged the soldiers and said loudly: "The King of Wu has many generals under his command, each of whom has made meritorious deeds. Today, our Yizhou son will also perform meritorious service, so that the King of Wu knows that I, the Yizhou son, are not weaker than others."
"Not weaker than others, not weaker than others."
The Yizhou soldiers kept roaring.
As Zhang Ren shouted, every time he passed by, the soldiers followed him and shouted, and their morale was boosted. The fighting in the military camp is still continuing, but the fighting spirit of the Yizhou soldiers under Zhang Ren has not diminished at all, and they are not afraid of Cao Cao's elite attack.
Zhang Ren's defense was impregnable, which made Cao Cao furious.
Cao Cao ordered strong attacks one after another, but still failed to make any progress and could not shake Zhang Ren's camp in the slightest.
Outside the camp, on the hillside in the distance.
Cao Cao was wearing armor and a bright red cloak. He put his hand on the hilt of his sword and looked at the battlefield at Zhang Ren's camp down the hillside. His expression was unusually grim because the fighting was still going on and there was no sign of victory.
The situation is still at a stalemate.
Guo Jia stood aside and said: "Your Majesty, we cannot defeat Zhang Ren in a short time. I suggest that the main force continue to attack Zhang Ren and dispatch tiger and leopard cavalry to the direction of Nanzheng to harass Lu Xuan's army so that Lu Xuan cannot concentrate on attacking Nanzheng." Zheng.”
Cao Cao stared at the fighting battlefield without saying a word.
Guo Jia continued: "If we storm Zhang Ren's camp and capture it quickly, that's it. We destroy Zhang Ren and then fight to Nanzheng to flank Lu Xuan. Now Zhang Ren's defense is immovable. Can’t take it.”
"The general direction of the current war is in our favor. After continuous cover-up attacks for a day or two at most, Zhang Ren's defensive equipment will be exhausted and the main force will be exhausted. It will be easy for us to capture Zhang Ren."
"But it takes time."
"It just so happens that what we need to compete with Lu Xuan is time. Let Liu Bei guard Nanzheng and hold off Lu Xuan's army. Generally speaking, a war must have broken out in Nanzheng, otherwise Lu Xuan would not let Zhang Ren come to stop it. "
"Liu Bei is in Nanzheng. The more secure he is and the longer the delay is, the better it will be for us."
"Essentially, the Zhang Ren in front of us is Liu Bei of Nanzheng. Our plan and Lu Xuan's plan are actually exactly the same. It all depends on who can kill the enemies in their way first."
Guo Jia said: "If Lu Xuan takes Nanzheng first and breaks through Liu Bei's defense, he can come over and join Zhang Ren and defeat us in one go. If we defeat Zhang Ren first, we can cooperate with Liu Bei inside and outside, and attack Nanzheng from a flanking attack. We will suffer a lot of losses." Big Lu Xuan."
Xun You said solemnly: "I second the proposal due to my humble position."
Cheng Yu's eyes were deep and he said, "Your Majesty, actually we have another advantage."
Cao Cao's stern expression softened slightly and asked: "Zhongde, do you think there are any other advantages?"
Cheng Yu stroked the beard under his chin and said confidently: "According to the news from Xun Shangshu, Zhong Yao persuaded Ma Teng and Han Sui, and both sides led troops to send troops from Xiliang. Moreover, they did not go south via Chencang Road. It’s going south from Ziwu Road.”
"According to the estimated time, I am afraid that we have entered Ziwu Road and will soon be coming to the front line to join the battle."
"At this stage, leaving the main force of infantry to attack Zhang Ren and sending tiger and leopard cavalry to attack Lu Xuan will definitely be able to contain Lu Xuan, further coordinate Liu Bei, and ensure that Liu Bei will not be captured by Lu Xuan."
Cheng Yu said loudly: "Feng Xiao is right. Our main force attacks Zhang Ren and consumes Zhang Ren's supplies. We will definitely win tomorrow at the latest. By then Ma Teng and Han Sui's elites will arrive, which will be more conducive to our battle."
After hearing this, Cao Cao had a smile on his face.
yes!
He had elite soldiers from Ma Teng and Han Sui.
Lu Xuan was blocked outside Nanzheng City. He lost his troops by attacking Liu Bei, and he arranged a surprise attack by tiger and leopard cavalry. Lu Xuan could not break the situation, but he could break it. The one who lost in the end must be Lu Xuan.
The more Cao Cao thought about it, the more excited he became. He was no longer worried. Instead, he became more motivated and shouted loudly: "Cao Chun!"
"The general is here!"
Cao Chunche immediately came to answer,
Cao Chun was twenty-nine years old, with a strong physique, sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and was very majestic. He is Cao Ren's younger brother. Cao Ren was killed before. Cao Chun felt sad and angry, but had no choice but to endure the grief and continue to participate in the war.
Cao Cao ordered: "You lead two thousand tiger and leopard cavalry and rush to Nanzheng to harass Lu Xuan's rear. You don't want to kill the enemy, just hold back Lu Xuan's army. In short, you can't be entangled by Lu Xuan's elite. In Before the army arrives, it will be very dangerous for you to be entangled by Lu Xuan's army."
"Here!"
Cao Chun answered with cupped fists.
He quickly mobilized troops and horses, and led two thousand tiger and leopard cavalry to leave aggressively in the direction of Nanzheng.
