Guan Yu led his troops and disappeared in the distance. Zhang Liao was shaken on his horse, his sword slipped out of his hand and he almost fell.
The personal soldiers hurriedly supported him and took him off the horse, only to find that his armor was soaked, and they couldn't tell whether it was sweat or blood.
Zhu Ling ordered his men to carry Zhang Liao back to the camp and inquired about his injuries. Zhang Liao just shook his head and said nothing, leaving two lines of tears.
Zhu Ling was shocked and asked, "General, what's wrong with you?"
"Of the eight thousand elite soldiers, only a few remain..." Zhang Liao said sadly, "It was my uselessness that killed them."
Zhu Ling sighed inwardly, hearing that the attack on the camp had failed and that the Armored Army and Zhang Liao's personal troops had been killed, with Zhang Hu also nowhere to be seen. Anyone would have collapsed at this point.
While he was trying to comfort him, Jia Xu came into the tent and bowed deeply to Zhang Liao: "It was my fault that I underestimated the enemy and made no calculations. I should not have let you take such risks that the whole army was annihilated."
"It has nothing to do with you, sir!" Zhang Liao took a deep breath, managed to calm his mind, and said with emotion: "The central army camp arranged by Zhuge Liang is not only very strong, but also quite strange. If you are not careful, it will be far away from the main tent, and you will fail several times."
Jia Xu pulled his beard and pondered, "I have heard for a long time that Wolong is proficient in the Five Elements and Eight Diagrams, and Qimen Dunjia. It seems that his words are true. He is so steady at such a young age. His intelligence is extraordinary. I am afraid he is comparable to Guo Fengxiao. This man will definitely be a threat to our army in the future."
Zhang Liao's heart sank when he heard this. He knew very well how highly Cao Cao thought of Guo Jia. If this man had Guo Jia's strategy, it would definitely not be a blessing for Cao's army.
After a moment of silence, Zhang Liao clenched his fist and said, "I have received great favors from the Prime Minister. I will never let Guan Yu set foot in the Central Plains. Although Zhuge Liang escaped, he never expected that I would raid his camp again. All I need to do is set fire to it. No matter how many tricks he has, it will be in vain."
Zhu Ling was shocked and said, "General, you must not do that. Guan Yu has already returned to the camp. If we attack rashly and he stops us, we will be in big trouble!"
Zhang Liao gritted his teeth and said resolutely: "As long as I can get rid of Zhuge Liang and protect the Cao family's foundation, why should I fear death?"
In today's battle, all the former troops of the Xianzhen Camp were wiped out, Hou Cheng was killed, and Zhang Hu was probably in danger as well. Zhang Liao was filled with grief and anger, and only wanted to die in order to save Zhuge Liang's life.
Jia Xu said: "A general should consider the overall situation, not be angry or sad, otherwise he will fail! General, you are highly valued by the Prime Minister, and now you are entrusted with the important task of guarding Xuchang, you must not act on impulse."
Zhang Liao was extremely grief-stricken, his eyes were red, he took a deep breath again, suppressed his grief and anger, and said in a deep voice: "If we raid the camp again tonight, Guan Yu will be unprepared. I have my own way to escape, don't worry, military advisor."
Jia Xu shook his head and said, "I am worried about this. Zhuge Liang has already strictly guarded the central army before the enemy, which shows that he is cautious in using troops. Not only can we not rob the camp tonight, but we must guard against the enemy's attack."
Zhang Liao's eyes were slightly stern, and he nodded, saying, "Military Advisor, your words make sense. Guan Yu is a proud person, and he must be unwilling to be tricked this time. Seeing that we are seriously injured, he will definitely come to rob our camp."
Jia Xu's triangular eyes gleamed with brilliance, and he chuckled, "General, go and rest first. General Zhu Ling will take care of the affairs in the camp. If we can kill Guan Yu, the soldiers of Jingzhou will be in great chaos and lose their fighting spirit. Zhuge Liang will not dare to advance!"
"When two tigers fight, one of them will be injured!" Zhang Liao sighed and said slowly: "Guan Yunchang, in the battle of Kunyang, only one of you and me can survive!"
…
Guan Yu led his troops back to the camp. Zhuge Liang had already pacified the generals, tidied up the battlefield and redeployed the defenses, and everything was back to normal.
When Guan Yu arrived at the tent, before he could speak, Zhuge Liang said, "I didn't expect Jia Xu to see through my plan. He pretended to attack Mobei but attacked the main camp. Zhang Liao almost succeeded and Yun Chang was frightened."
Guan Yu clasped his fists and said, "Why do you say that, Military Advisor? It is also my fault that I left the formation rashly, which gave Zhang Liao an opportunity to take advantage of me."
Guan Ping apologized, "It's all my fault. If I could kill Dong Heng and his two generals and seize Cao's main camp, Zhang Liao's coming would be in vain."
In this battle, he and Zhou Cang ran back and forth three times, but not only did they fail to achieve any success, they almost lost the camp, and they felt extremely ashamed.
Zhuge Liang quickly gathered his thoughts, his eyes regained clarity, and he smiled, "This battle was a close call, but Zhang Liao's desperate attempt to sink his boats failed. Cao's army will surely lose morale, like the setting sun, and will gradually decline."
This battle was very thrilling, but the West Camp was disrupted by Zhang Liao alone, and countless soldiers and horses were killed and wounded. Although the elite troops of Cao's army were wiped out, no one was happy.
Guan Yu was even a little frustrated. He was unwilling to give in and said, "Cao's elite troops have all been lost, and Zhang Liao is exhausted. I will also raid the camp tonight and will definitely be able to win back a city."
Zhuge Liang said, "Zhang Liao's desperate move shows that Jia Xu is very shrewd and can manipulate people's hearts. I think he must be prepared."
Guan Yu stroked his beard and said unhappily, "Can I just give up after being tricked by this old villain?"
At this moment, Gan Ning escorted a man into the tent and laughed, "The old thief escaped, and we caught a little thief!"
Zhang Hu was furious and turned around and shouted, "You are the thief, the Jinfan thief, the pirate!"
"You bastard, you're being stubborn. I'm going to slap you in the ear!" Gan Ning was furious and reached out to hit him.
Guan Yu stood up to stop him, staring at Zhang Hu and sighing, "Little Tiger, don't act on impulse!"
"Humph!" Zhang Hu turned his head away and snorted coldly: "Kill if you want to, no need to pretend to be kind and righteous."
Guan Yu stroked his beard and sighed, "Although Wenyuan and I serve different masters, we are of the same mind. I only regret that we cannot fight the enemy side by side and support the Han Dynasty together. It is really fate that makes people play tricks on us!"
Gan Ning sneered at the side, "Yun Chang, this kid has never experienced the vicissitudes of life. He is just tough on the outside. Leave him to me and see how tough he is!"
Guan Yu waved his hand and said, "Tanzhi, take him down first!"
"God is so naive!" Gan Ning pouted and shook his head, then went up to Zhuge Liang and asked, "The military advisor dug trenches and built walls in the camp, and told us to only go through the Yellow Stone. I wonder what the secret is, but Zhang Liao took several detours."
Zhuge Liang smiled and said, "This is the method of the Eight Formations, which is perfect for protecting the central army."
Guan Yu collected his thoughts and said with emotion: "If it weren't for the military advisor's arrangement, I would be ruined today and become a laughing stock like Sun Quan!"
"Bi Yan'er can only run away when encountering trouble. How can he compare with you, my Lord?"
Gan Ning looked disdainful and suddenly said, "Zhang Liao dared to come alone to raid the camp. He is taking advantage of the fact that there is no one in our army. Why don't we also raid the camp?"
Guan Yu was moved again and looked at Zhuge Liang: "Military Advisor?"
Liu Qi led Zhang Fei and his men to the west, fighting against the enemy in all directions and were doing very well. Guan Yu had been training his troops in Jingzhou for many years, gathering his strength and hoping to win the first battle. However, he was restricted everywhere and felt very unhappy.
Zhuge Liang suddenly laughed and said, "Generals, there is no need to raid the camp tonight. I think Zhang Liao will come again."
Guan Yu's eyebrows were twisted into knots: "Zhang Liao has been exhausted today, and all his men and horses have been killed. Can he come again?"
Zhuge Liang asked in return: "What would you two generals do if you were faced with this situation?"
Gan Ning answered without hesitation: "My brothers are going to die in battle, and my own son is also going to die. It is better for us to die together."
Guan Yu also stroked his beard and sighed: "A real man should die on the battlefield to establish his achievements. If he abandons his people and lives alone, his heart will be like a frying pan, which is not what a hero does!"