Vol 9 Chapter 101 (1/2)

VOLUME 9 CHAPTER 101: DON’T TELL ME THIS IS A RAID ON FAN CITY (5)

Liu Bei POV

“a.s.suming Yuan Zhi’s a.n.a.lysis was on the mark, could it mean that the enemy only has 20,000 troops?” I asked softly as I looked at Yuan Zhi, who had a troubled look on as she muttered ‘It should be 20,000’ over and over under her breath.

“Yuan Zhi?”

“Ah,” Yuan Zhi finally realised I was calling out to her and blinked when she looked at me, “Un, I got it, I got it.” Yuan Zhi then nodded a few times before walking along the edge of the tower.

“Ah… Yuan Zhi…” I began to feel nervous and could not figure out what was going on? I decided to go up and grab her but when I saw her looking into the distance and thinking, I decided against it.

“Lord Liao Hua, where are the enemy troops now?”

I stood beside Yuan Zhi as Liao Hua frowned and looked at me. I pointed at Yuan Zhi as I returned her gaze and Liao Hua responded, “The enemy is moving very fast and should be pa.s.sing through the valley by now.”

“How many hours before they get here?”

“About 2 hours or so.”

“2 hours huh…” Yuan Zhi spoke to herself and stopped speaking.

“Yuan Zhi,” I thought for a long while before I finally decided to speak up, thinking that someone else would do so even if I did not, “Could it be that the enemy decided not to move out with all their–”

“No, that is impossible.” Before I could finish, Yuan Zhi replied definitively. I looked at her and saw a firm resolve on her airheaded face, “The enemy will definitely move out with everything they have. If they only number 10,000 then that means that Cao Cao’s entire vanguard is only 20,000 strong.”

“But…”

“Liao Hua.” Liao Hua wanted to add on but I held out my hand and stopped you. I know what Liao Hua is thinking, that it’s getting riskier. But this strategy was inherently risky to begin with. And besides, as Yuan Zhi said, if we only stay and defend Xinye, there is no way for us to advance.

“Yuan Zhi, are you sure?” I asked as I stood beside her and looked into the distance as well. However, I could not feel confident in the strength of the bricks and could not lean against them like she did, “If you don’t, we can still get Yun Chang to return.”

“…” Yuan Zhi did not speak and continued to look ahead. I do not know if it’s just my misconception but it seems like she has wavered significantly. Just then, Yuan Zhi looked at me and nodded, “I’m sure. Everything will proceed as it should.”

“Alright.” I nodded. Since she is going to go that far, I will not say anything else.

“Besides, judging from our present circ.u.mstances, it will fine even if the enemy has left behind a sizeable garrison.” Just then, Yuan Zhi seemed to have backed up a little. When I looked at her, it seemed like she had weakened her stance slightly, “Neither side has an overwhelming advantage over here. If Lord Guan Yu finds that there is a sizeable garrison in the city, she will definitely return. When the time comes, we can even engage in a pincer attack.”

I do not know if it’s because her stance has weakened but she never looked at me as she said so. But I have to admit that what she said is true. Even if we cannot take Fan city, we will not lose our advantage. There is also the possibility that the enemy’s numbers are really just 20,000.

“Alright, I got it.” I nodded and looked at Liao Hua, “Liao Hua, send a messenger to Feng Xian and the rest. Tel

l them to get ready to leave the city in a bit.”

“Yes.” Liao Hua saluted me. She seemed like she still had more to say but she left it be and bowed before leaving.

As for me, I continued to stand at the city tower with Yuan Zhi as we looked outside. There were times when I thought I caught a glimpse of enemy troops in the distance in between the leaves of my gra.s.s circlet but when I blinked, I found that it was just an optical illusion.

It was clear that this battle has far more uncertainties than the last one. That said, battles are unpredictable to begin with and I, as a man from the future who does not have much of an understanding of this era, has no choice but to count on my talented companions at this time.

And so, I have chosen to believe in Yuan Zhi, who has brought us victory. At the same time, I will pray for Yun Chang and the rest to safely return.

Yun Chang POV

*Shashasha*.,,

After leaving Xinye city, Guan Ping, Zhou Cang and I made our way at top speed along with our light infantry to the off-road. We then dismounted, dismantled our siege weaponry and made our way into the forest.

By right, a 10,000 strong force ought to make its way through the dirt road but to avoid detection, I specifically made us go through the forest at the side of the road.