Chapter 346 (1/2)

“Is it not possible to go any faster?” Liu Mang asked.

“Milord. This is the fastest we can go!” The general of the navy, Gan Ning, was helpless. The Huai River was a small river where the wind only blows gently. All the wars.h.i.+ps had their sails up but Liu Mang was still unsatisfied.

Liu Mang sighed. He knew this fact but he was still anxious. The messengers he dispatched to Shouchun have not returned. He knew that the roads had been blocked off and Liu Bei was the only one that could do this. He knew Liu Bei did this to make use of Lu Lingqi. How could Liu Mang not feel anxious?

Xu Shu was a loyal and righteous man. This was his strong point but it was also his weak point. Liu Ye had already told him that is Pang Tong were to use Lu Lingqi, Shouchun would fall. This made Liu Mang even more anxious.

“Milord. There is nothing more we can do even if you are worried!” Liu Ye said to Liu Mang. “We must believe in Yuanzhi. He will hold out until we arrive.”

“No.” Liu Mang shook his head. “I am worried about Yuanzhi because I believe in him! This man is straightforward and loyal. While this is good, it is also his weakness! I am afraid he would act in justice!” Liu Mang was afraid as Xu Shu was straightforward while Pang Tong would use anything to win.

In the original timeline, Pang Tong wanted to put pressure on Zhuge Liang and even used himself as bait to lure out an ambush when attacking Sichuan. Although he died for it, he had helped Liu Bei split the land into three.

This goes to show that Pang Tong would do anything to win and is a person that Xu Shu cannot handle.

As Liu Mang and Liu Ye discussed this, the s.h.i.+p left the Huai River. The water current there was stronger, allowing the s.h.i.+p to move faster.

“Milord, we are almost there.” Gan Ning said the momet they were close to Shouchun. He had pa.s.sed by that area many times before during training.

Liu Mang nodded. The closer he was to Shouchun, the further his heart sank. This is because there were only a few people stationed at the water camp. This showed that there was a change in Shouchun.

“Milord. What do we do now?” Liu Ye also did not know what to do. The safest course of action would be to avoid Shouchun and take the troops back to Lujiang to prepare for a counter attack.

“We cannot leave! All soldiers, prepare to enter Shouchun!” Liu Mang had a terrible expression. He had spent a lot of effort on Shouchun. It was his biggest project since he entered that turbulent era. Zhao Yun and Xu Shu were also behind those walls. They were like his right hand man. Liu Mang would regret it if he loses Shouchun. He also did not want to see how far Liu Bei could expand with Shouchun.

“Milord. If we enter Shouchun now, we might end up getting obliterated!” It would have been safe if Shouchun had not yet fallen. However, it would also be extremely dangerous if Shouchun was already in Liu Bei’s hands. Besides that, the sky was already turning dark. Not only would the soldiers become confused during battle but they also had a higher chance of falling into an enemy ambush. Last but not least, most of the Urban Army and Black Flag Army had seasickness, lowering their capability to fight.

“We must enter either way! There is no time left!” Liu Mang gritted his teeth. Shouchun must not fall. Even if it falls, he needed to get Zhao Yun and Xu Shu out. “Brothers! Can you guys hold out?” Liu Mang asked the Urban Army and the Black Flag Army.

“We can!” The soldiers replied but their voices lack energy. This showed that they actually can’t do it.

“Milord! Let us from the navy follow you!” Gan Ning went over to Liu Mang and said. There were over five thousand soldiers in the navy.”

“The navy?” Liu Mang hesitated. The navy was once of Liu Mang’s weapons. However, he needed them to deal with Sun Ce and as a result, treated them like a precious treasure. He was unwilling to dispatch them regardless of what kind of battles he faced.

“Milord. We have trained a lot but we still do not have actual combat experience. Are we supposed to be side lined forever?” Gan Ning asked with a hint of anger. He still haven’t partic.i.p.ated in a single battle ever since he joined the navy in Yangzhou. Gan Ning had been given s.h.i.+ps and had been training all these while. Liu Bei’s navy would definitely be inferior to his. He wanted to help Xu Shu at Shouchun but was refused. He may have been Liu Mang’s trump card but he was not patient enough to continue watching from the side lines.

“Hm?” Liu Mang furrowed his brows. He finally noticed that his treasuring of the navy had been too excessive and made Gan Ning unsatisfied. Now that Liu Mang had no one else to use, it should be time for them to s.h.i.+ne. After all, the soldiers still needed to be bloodied to truly become powerful.

“Alright. Gan Ning, take five thousand men and follow me to the city! Ziyang. You, the Urban Army and the Black Flag Army are to remain behind and take precautions!” Liu Mang left behind a thousand navy to take control of the s.h.i.+ps.

“Understood!” Liu Ye nodded. He knew he was not able to help Liu Mang in entering Shouchun. After all, he was only a scholar that could not fight. It would be better for him to remain behind.

“Gan Ning. Ready the soldiers!” Liu Mang said to Gan Ning.

“Brothers! We’ve got a job to do!” Gan Ning said cheerfully. He was still unable to supress his bandit like nature and immediately showed his cheerfulness. Fortunately, Liu Mang paid no mind to these things. If he had been Yuan Shao, he would have immediately sacked Gan Ning.

The camp was empty. Gan Ning’s men climbed over the escalade and then opened up the gates. They then quickly went towards the city.

“Xu Sheng and Cheng Yu. Take your armies to the camp!” Liu Ye ordered the moment Liu Mang left. “Make preparations so that we could immediately give a.s.sistance to the Lord when needed.

Xu Sheng and Cheng Yu looked at each other for a moment. They then cupped their fist and nodded. “Understood!”

Liu Ye looked towards the direction Liu Mang left in. He already did the best he could out of this terrible situation. If needed, he would have the Urban Army and the Black Flag Army attack Shouchun. Regardless of the number of casualties, they would need to drag Liu Mang back out.

__________

Zhang Xiu left to deal with the Wolf Cavalry. However, the lack of news from Shouchun made Liu Bei anxious.

“Military Advisor. How are things?” Liu Bei asked again. Liu Bei was a man that could keep his composure but on that day, he was so anxious he kept asking Pang Tong about the situation at Shouchun every few moments. This showed how important Shouchun was to him.