Chapter 351: Restoring the Three Qins

The key to dealing with night attacks is to find a way to stabilize the front line.

Because no matter what, the party attacked at night will stay in their own camp. As long as there is no camp roar, they will have the advantage of terrain.

Stabilize the front line, and the enemy will retreat.

This is the best way to deal with night attacks.

Therefore, after waking up in the central army tent, Xiahou Yuan’s first thing was to quickly put on simple armor and then put on a very conspicuous and recognizable helmet.

After leaving the tent, he met Zhang Ji and the two of them asked him to beat the drum without saying anything.

The sound of the drum is the simplest and most effective way to convey orders on the battlefield at this time. Even if Zhang Fei’s voice is louder, can it be better than the war drum?

Zhang Ji took the order very cooperatively, and Xiahou Yuan himself summoned his personal guards and ordered them to erect the general flag near the central army flag, and burn as many torches as possible at all costs, trying to illuminate the entire camp.

Xiahou Yuan also had a clear idea of ​​his position. He stood on the observation tower and let his guards shout and pass on the order, so that they could see clearly that Xiahou Yuan had not fled, so as to stop the panic.

It should be said that this move was quite effective.

Although it was cold on the observation tower, Xiahou Yuan could see the battle situation clearly.

Just like a small flame was lit on a piece of dry grass, the light of the torch gradually lit up with Xiahou Yuan as the center.

The torches and the belated drums, as well as the shouting of Xiahou Yuan's guards temporarily dispelled the panic of the surrounding Cao soldiers.

A stable atmosphere gradually spread with Xiahou Yuan's position as the center.

Xiahou Yuan breathed a sigh of relief: That's it!

As long as the front line gradually stabilizes, the bandits who attacked at night will inevitably retreat.

After getting through tonight, perhaps we should really consider Du Zixu's proposal to withdraw.

In fact, what Du Zixu said was not wrong. Now that the attack is not going well, we can consider withdrawing.

We can deploy troops in Chencang and Weixian to block Yongliang's attack on Guanzhong from the river valley and Jieting.

When my brother kills Guan Yu in Jingzhou to avenge Zilian, I will have time to sort out Yongliang and take Hanzhong back from Liu Bei.

But... when I think of Zhang Fei's voice, Xiahou Yuan is furious, and his waist and abdomen are still aching.

They actually killed him! So vicious!

Therefore, Xiahou Yuan admitted that he was selfish for staying in Linwei.

But now it seems... we have to retreat.

We have no shortage of food with the help of Jiangdong, but there is not much charcoal left for heating.

Now we are attacked at night, and our morale has fallen to the bottom. Even if we insist on attacking the city, it will only increase Zhang Fei's prestige.

Xiahou Yuan, who was standing on the observation deck, felt a little bored for a while. After all, he didn't have a loud voice and was sick. Now he could only stand here so that the soldiers could see his eye-catching helmet and tassel when they looked up, so as to stabilize morale.

But soon, Xiahou Yuan, who was standing on the observation deck, felt something was wrong.

As the torches gradually lit up, as the drums of many places echoed across the battlefield, as the disaster of the camp roar was eliminated, the enemy army should have retreated. Why did the sound of fighting at the main gate become louder?

And soon a messenger came running over. Perhaps because it was too cold, Xiahou Yuan watched the messenger fall down and was about to struggle to get up to report the battle situation.

But Xiahou Yuan had heard Zhang Fei's full-throated roar again:

"The main gate is broken! Cao's army is defeated!"

The main gate... Xiahou Yuan asked directly:

"The main gate was taken?"

The messenger was helped up by his comrades around him, and immediately bowed down after hearing the words:

"The bandits broke in."

Break in! Xiahou Yuan's heart tightened, thinking that Zhang Fei was really reckless, forcing the soldiers to attack in the cold night?

Enslaving the soldiers like this, and wanting to put himself to death like this?

A trace of sadness rose in his heart, but Xiahou Yuan would not show it. After a moment of hesitation, Xiahou Yuan also made a decision:

"Move the central army forward."

This means to fight.

Although I don't know how Zhang Fei made the soldiers forget death and cold, the most urgent task is to retake the main gate.

If the bandits can enter and exit the military camp as if they were in an empty place, then this military camp is not easy to defend.

The guards naturally had no objection, and Xiahou Yuan's orders were also sent to various places by the messenger again.

Now that they were going to meet the enemy in the cold night, the guards had found warm clothes to help Xiahou Yuan put on.

"Derong, look, General Xiahou has moved forward!"

Du Xi and Zhang Ji were now on a military drum platform, where the view was also very good, and they could clearly see the movement of the troops.

Zhang Ji turned a deaf ear to it and just swung the drumstick at the big drum in front of him.

Therefore, he did not hear that Du Xi's voice at this moment was filled with unconcealed worry.

Du Xi was a famous scholar, and he naturally knew a lot about military books.

Moreover, he knew in his heart that Zhang Fei was now a veteran general, not a fool.

He led his troops to attack at night and fought fiercely until this point, so he must have something to rely on.

What he relied on must be something that the enemy had that I did not have, and something that the enemy knew that I was ignorant of.

These may very well determine the direction of the battle tonight.

Xiahou Yuan put on his clothes and took a deep breath while riding on his horse.

The cold air entered his body, making him shiver uncontrollably.

But then, his anger towards Zhang Fei quickly took over his mind again.

With his legs lightly clamped on the horse's belly, Xiahou Yuan led the central army that he had settled down and slowly approached the main gate.

Xiahou Yuan, who was wearing all his armor and riding on a horse, looked mighty and extraordinary.

This quickly calmed down the Cao army that was approaching Xiahou Yuan, and they marched towards the main gate with their general.

Xiahou Yuan could occasionally hear the sound of soldiers sneezing, which made him more anxious. He had to drive Zhang Fei away quickly!

With the entry of Xiahou Yuan, the Cao army that was fighting fiercely with Zhang Fei and others at the main gate became more fearless.

A Cao soldier rushed up to hug Zhang Fei's waist, but was hooked by the iron hook in Fan Jiang's left hand halfway.

The cold climate slowed down the pain, and the disappearance of a large piece of flesh and blood did not make the Cao soldiers wail, but just slowed down their movements.

Zhang Da, who was beside Fan Jiang, had already aimed, holding the ring-headed sword with both hands and exerting force together, and one knife disintegrated the general's intention.

Zhang Fei said nothing, but a short spear suitable for foot combat was wielded vigorously, and a sweep repelled several people.

"General!" Fan Jiang also saw Xiahou Yuan and shouted immediately.

Zhang Fei's response was unusually concise:

"Follow me!"

Xiahou Yuan originally thought that he was the one who needed to win quickly, but he didn't expect that Zhang Fei was more impatient than himself.

The first moment he saw Zhang Fei, Xiahou Yuan saw that this guy swept his short spear continuously, knocking Cao's soldiers around him to the ground, and then rushed straight towards him.

Xiahou Yuan stood still. Such a simple situation did not require any orders at all, and the guards around him naturally moved.

As the guards were mobilized, the soldiers also blocked between Zhang Fei and Xiahou Yuan.

Zhang Fei was brave and everyone knew it, but now it was a foot battle. Did he really think he was the reincarnation of the Overlord?

On the contrary, Xiahou Yuan was also keenly aware that after Zhang Fei's troops launched the charge, they were out of touch with the rear army, and immediately issued a simple order:

"Cut off the enemy! Encircle and kill this beast!"

Since Zhang Fei had previously killed him, Xiahou Yuan was no longer polite at this time.

All the depression was poured out with this order, and Xiahou Yuan was determined to win!

But often, the development of the situation is difficult to be satisfactory.

For example, at this time, in Xiahou Yuan's imagination, even if Zhang Fei could fight one hundred, could he be more powerful than King Xiang?

King Xiang was surrounded and killed, and now Zhang Fei should be captured and killed in a moment.

But Xiahou Yuan soon realized that something was wrong. First of all, this place was near the main gate and the space was not wide, so there were not many soldiers who could participate in the encirclement and killing of Zhang Fei.

Secondly, Zhang Fei moved around in the crowd, and a short iron spear was danced out of the afterimage. Not only did he not look like he was captured, but he was constantly approaching him!

Xiahou Yuan narrowed his eyes and soon understood:

It's not that Zhang Fei is too fast, but that Cao's soldiers are too slow!

These Cao soldiers were originally resting to keep warm, and they were waiting for a hot meal the next morning to dispel some of the cold in their dreams.

But Zhang Fei's night attack forced Cao's soldiers to get up.

It was fortunate that there was no camp roar, but it was completely a fantasy to expect combat effectiveness to remain unchanged in the midst of hunger and cold.

Xiahou Yuan could even see that some soldiers' legs were shaking unconsciously, not because of fear, but mostly because of freezing.

Zhang Fei and other thieves were different. Their faces were ruddy, and their heads even seemed to be steaming, as if they were completely unaffected by the cold.

Xiahou Yuan's heart was alarmed, but at this moment he had no choice at all.

Morale was finally stabilized. If he turned around and fled at this time, he would certainly save his life, but the coach's move would probably cause the camp to explode in an instant.

Seeing Zhang Fei break through one after another and get closer and closer to him, Xiahou Yuan was surprisingly calm.

Without much thought, Xiahou Yuan drew out his sword, pointed at Zhang Fei and roared for the first time tonight:

"I will never turn back!"

So Xiahou Yuan's guards followed almost immediately and shouted in unison:

"I will never turn back!"

That's what they shouted and did.

When the siege of Zhang Fei was difficult to work, these guards simply used their frozen and slow bodies as weapons, rushed towards Zhang Fei's spear, and then hugged the enemy's thighs tightly to create opportunities for their comrades.

This roar was like a signal. Zhang Fei found that no one was afraid of his spear, and everyone rushed straight up as if they couldn't see it, just to cause him some trouble.

The short spear was locked by the chest of two Xiahou Yuan's guards, and Zhang Fei had to abandon it.

But this was not a problem for Zhang Fei. He gritted his teeth and bulged his muscles, trying his best to shake off the Cao soldiers hanging on him.

Zhang Fei snatched the ring-handled knife from the Cao soldiers and glared at Xiahou Yuan. His intention was obvious, but more Cao soldiers were blocking this road.

"General!" Fan Jiang shouted behind him, forcing Zhang Fei to look back in a moment.

The death fight of Xiahou Yuan's guards was a trouble for Zhang Fei, but it was an absolute crisis for Fan Jiang and Zhang Da. One of the guards who followed Zhang Fei to kill had died, and the remaining few could only form a formation to resist stubbornly and could not enter again.

Looking at Xiahou Yuan with regret, Zhang Fei chose to turn around and rescue the guards.

Xiahou Yuan's eyes were full of murderous intent. Although Zhang Fei was repelled, it was at the cost of the guards' fearlessness of death.

Moreover, if Zhang Fei retreated at this time, his subordinates could not stop him at all.

More importantly, since Zhang Fei could do this once, he could do it again. I'm afraid everyone knows it.

As Zhang Fei's surprise attack on Xiahou Yuan failed, this night attack came to a temporary end.

The next day, the worried Du Xi finally got the long-awaited order from Xiahou Yuan:

"Retreat to Chencang!"

Looking at the unmoved Linwei, Xiahou Yuan felt his heart bleeding after counting the losses last night.

But as a rider entered the camp, Xiahou Yuan soon found that the bleeding was too early.

Du Xi, who was present at the scene, stood up and repeated in disbelief:

"Chencang was lost?"

Du Xi was in a high position and knew the battle situation and the division of troops in Guanzhong very well, so he asked directly:

"Where is General Junyi?"

There are only two main roads in Guanlong Road. Now that the river valley road is well guarded, how could there be a large number of enemy troops to raid the enemy's rear?

As expected, the messenger lay on the ground motionless, but his words were very clear:

"The enemy is strong in Jieting, and General Zhang's troops are outnumbered and retreat to Yong County."

"More than 15,000 enemy cavalrymen attacked Chencang, but General Zhang's assistance still failed and Chencang was lost."

Du Xi also felt dizzy, and a name suddenly popped up in his mind: Zhao Yun!

This cavalry must be mainly composed of Zhao Yun's elite cavalry, supplemented by Ma Chao's Qiang cavalry!

Ma Chao was just a defeated general under Cao Gong, and the Qiang cavalry under his command were just bullying the minority with the majority, and it would be impossible for them to succeed. It must be Zhao Yun's fault!

This kind of force composition made Du Xi almost immediately pop up a name in his mind:

Western Liang Iron Cavalry?

Du Xi almost immediately felt cold from head to toe, and his body almost went limp.

Xiahou Yuan, who was in the lead, had seen a lot of battles before. He made a decision in a moment:

"Quickly move the camp, abandon the baggage and return, and we must retake Chencang!"

But today, it seemed as if God was against him. As soon as he gave the order, a messenger came in with a hurried tone:

"General, the enemy troops in Linwei City are out in full force and are ready to attack."

Xiahou Yuan was so angry that he laughed:

"They have few soldiers. Do they really think they can bully me by attacking at night?"

"Meet the enemy! Kill Zhang Fei, then march east to retake Chencang and kill that little Ma Chao!"

Xiahou Yuan in the tent was furious and spoke loudly.

Xiahou Yuan, who was on the battlefield, was silent and pale.

Zhang Fei was riding on a horse, his face still a little sleepy, complaining:

"Dr. Zhang's Guizhi Decoction is really effective. I drank a few bowls of it with two taels of sugar. I didn't feel cold after fighting all night, but I feel a little nauseous now."

"Brother, you must thank Dr. Zhang for me later."

Liu Bei, who was riding on a tall horse, smiled and said:

"When Dr. Zhang comes to Guanzhong, Yide will tell you these things in person."

Behind the two of them, in addition to the soldiers and horses in Linwei City, there were also more than 10,000 reinforcements brought by Liu Bei.

The Linwei Army was already proud of the successful night attack, and now with reinforcements, the morale was even higher.

After chatting with Zhang Fei for a while, Liu Bei took over the command and pointed to the front:

"Recover the Three Qins, today!"