"Hanshui… the supply route?"
The generals immediately locked onto the key phrase.
They might not have coined something as neat as "wars are fought on logistics," but anyone who had seen enough campaigns knew the truth instinctively—
The fastest way to win a war was to cut the enemy's food.
"Cao Cao moved too fast," Guan Yu said, tracing the map in the air with his finger.
"He must have traveled light. To move large quantities of supplies, there's only one option—water transport."
"Supplies leave Chang'an," he continued calmly,
"float downstream along the Bao River, reach the Han River junction, then go upstream into Hanzhong."
Huang Zhong squinted at the terrain, then pointed decisively.
"Then the battlefield must be… Yangjia River."
"Mountain on one side, water on the other. A mandatory passage."
"Intercepting Cao Cao there would be like reaching into a bag and pulling something out."
[Liu Bei had no way to crack Cao Cao's turtle-shell strategy, so he chose to split his forces and sever the supply line.
Zhao Yun was placed in command, with Huang Zhong accompanying him.
The detachment marched east from Mount Dingjun through mountainous terrain for roughly ten kilometers and established camp on the northern hills along the eastern bank of the Yangjia River.]
"Just as General Huang predicted," Guan Yu said without hiding his approval.
Huang Zhong flushed slightly, pleased—but then his expression darkened.
"Cao Cao won Guandu by burning Yuan Shao's granaries," he said slowly.
"A man that skilled at cutting supply lines would never leave his own unguarded."
And in the back of his mind, a troubling thought lingered:
The light screen hasn't mentioned me since killing Xiahou Yuan… could something go wrong?
[Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong soon encountered Cao Cao's supply convoy at the Yangjia River.
Though the enemy's strength was unclear, Huang Zhong volunteered to attack.
Zhao Yun agreed—but set a time limit. If Huang Zhong failed to return by the appointed hour, Zhao Yun would personally ride out to rescue him.
What Huang Zhong hadn't expected was just how absurdly well-funded Cao Cao was.
The escort force was massive.
The old general was chased all over the mountains, and before he could disengage, the agreed time had already passed.
Worried, Zhao Yun led several dozen light cavalry out to investigate, ordering Zhang Yi to hold the camp.]
"Attacking without scouting the enemy?" the generals murmured uneasily.
Most of them clearly disapproved.
Zhang Fei, however, shook his head.
"Big Brother left Chengdu with limited troops. He split forces twice at Yangping Pass, then again at Mount Dingjun."
"That means Zhao Yun and General Huang can't have many men."
"In that situation, repeated harassment to force Cao Cao to scatter his troops along the river and search the mountains—that is the only way to open a window to strike the supplies."
Classic Zhang Fei.
While others were debating caution, he'd already built a plan full of brute force and instinct.
"Let's see what Zhao Yun does," Guan Yu said, his phoenix eyes narrowing.
[Huang Zhong's probing alerted the enemy.
Cao Cao's escort force dispatched cavalry scouts, and the two sides clashed.
Zhao Yun's group was quickly entangled, and more Cao troops poured in.
Hopelessly outnumbered, Zhao Yun relied on superior horsemanship—cutting through enemy lines again and again—finally breaking free and retreating toward camp.
But several subordinates, including Zhang Zhuo, were wounded during the breakout and fell behind, quickly surrounded.
Zhao Yun turned his horse without hesitation and charged back in—piercing the enemy formation once more to rescue them.
Blood soaked his battle robes.
Seven charges, seven withdrawals—who could rival this?
This time Zhao Yun wasn't carrying Liu Shan while slaughtering his way through—but his war-god bearing surpassed even Changban.]
Was this real?
That was everyone's first thought.
Then they remembered.
Oh. Zhao Yun.
That checked out.
Zhang Fei slapped Zhao Yun's shoulder, baffled.
"Zilong, are you the exact opposite of the Marquis of Huaiyin?"
"Huh?" Zhao Yun blinked.
"Han Xin commands troops—more is better."
"You, though? Both times you fought alone."
"If you were given a hundred thousand men to attack Cao Cao… would you somehow be worse?"
The hall exploded with laughter.
Even the servants sneaking glances from outside were curious—what on earth had Liu Jingzhou found so amusing near year's end?
"But isn't the light screen wrong?" Jian Yong asked, puzzled.
"At Changban, Liu Shan was only a few months old. How was he 'slaughtering' anything with General Zhao?"
Zhang Fei answered solemnly.
"Advisor Jian, you're missing the point."
"What can a baby do?"
"Cry loudly."
"And what was Zilong doing at Changban?"
"Slaughtering."
"So Zilong holding Liu Shan—"
"Isn't that crying while slaughtering?"
Jian Yong fell silent.
…Was that logic legal?
Sun Qian noticed Liu Bei's expression darkening and spoke gently.
"My lord… the dead cannot return."
Liu Bei shook his head.
"She married me and within a few years was driven from place to place."
"Captured by Cao Cao, rescued by my second brother… barely lived in peace before being hunted again."
"In the end, she threw herself into a well."
Mi Zhu's face paled as well—his younger sister had died at Changban.
Zhao Yun hurriedly stood to kneel, but Liu Bei stopped him.
"What crime is yours, Zilong?"
"Looking back… perhaps it would have been better to save Mi Zhen and abandon A-Dou."
No one dared respond.
The words entered one ear and left the other—never to leave the hall.
[After rescuing his men, Zhao Yun returned to camp.
Cao Cao's troops followed closely, but hesitated when they saw a fortified position.
Zhao Yun judged that with so few men, defending the camp would only end in annihilation.
So he ordered the gates thrown wide—and all banners taken down.
Some later believed this incident inspired the Romance of the Three Kingdoms' version of Zhuge Liang's Empty City Stratagem.]
The hall fell silent.
No one knew what to say.
Zhang Fei finally exhaled.
"Zilong… you really don't fear death."
Zhuge Liang frowned slightly.
The Romance made things up again? Don't drag my name into this…
[Unable to make sense of the situation, Cao Cao's troops withdrew cautiously.
The moment Zhao Yun saw them retreat, he gave the order:
'Raise the banners! Beat the drums! Pursue!'
The silent camp erupted into firelight and thunderous war drums.
Cao Cao's formation collapsed in panic.
Zhao Yun charged again, and Cao Cao's troops trampled one another to death—countless soldiers drowned as they were pushed into the Han River.]
Even Guan Yu and Huang Zhong thought the same thing:
Impressive… but too dangerous for my taste.
Huang Zhong also felt a stab of guilt.
If not for his earlier probe, Zhao Yun wouldn't have needed to gamble like this.
Zhang Fei, meanwhile, was practically glowing.
Another move learned.
And this one Zilong hasn't used before!
Guan Yu rested a hand on Zhao Yun's shoulder and sighed.
"Could it be, as Third Brother says…"
"That the more troops you command—"
"The more they restrain you?"
[Because of this battle, Cao Cao finally decided to abandon Hanzhong.
Oh, right—this is also where Romance of the Three Kingdoms places Yang Xiu's famous 'chicken rib' incident, where he guessed Cao Cao's intent to withdraw and promptly got himself executed.
Historically, Yang Xiu died because he involved himself in the succession struggle between Cao Zhi and Cao Pi.
Cao Cao was still strong enough to swing the knife back then, and Yang Xiu became a warning—to both the court and the Ru-Ying clique.
In both history and fiction, he ended up the unlucky chicken used to scare the monkeys.
Thus ended the Hanzhong Campaign.
Liu Bei claimed Hanzhong—and at last possessed the qualifications to contend for the empire.
Well… this episode ran long.
Next time, we'll naturally move on to the Battle of Xiangfan—arguably Shu-Han's closest brush with total unification.
Unfortunately, it was also the chance that Liu Bei's own family helped destroy.
History can be very ironic.]