"I am not particularly worried."
Liu Bei turned back with a faint smile as he explained,
"I am merely curious whether Mengde's head ailment has flared up again."
Kongming smiled at that. He closed the military reports on the desk, stacked them neatly, then rose and carefully marked the changes described in those reports onto the campaign map.
"Yide has already taken Jia County, Xiangcheng, and Fanchang in succession. By now he has most likely met Yu Jin's forces."
"If Yu Jin wishes to continue withdrawing north, he must cross the river. Shiyuan has already led troops to reinforce the front. I imagine Yu Jin's surrender will come within a day or two."
Liu Bei nodded. A flicker of anticipation rose in him.
"Let us just hope Mengde is not too frightened when the time comes."
With Kongming at his side, every new piece of military equipment blended smoothly into the army. Combined with his reorganization of the various commands, it was no wonder that later generations would speak somewhat dismissively of the Hanzhong campaign, supposedly led single-handedly by Liu Bei for half a year.
Natural barriers no longer inspired fear. Strong cities could no longer be relied upon. The rhythm of warfare itself had changed.
Preparations before battle were orderly and precise. Once war began, the four directions moved like storm clouds, the offensive striking like thunder.
It had only been twelve days since the agreed moment to begin the campaign.
Already, Cao Cao's situation was approaching a dead end.
Just as the two were speaking, a new report arrived.
Kongming glanced at it once and immediately smiled.
"Shiyuan reports that Linying has been retaken. Yu Jin has surrendered."
Two years ago, hearing that one of the famed Five Elite Generals had been captured might have kept Liu Bei awake with excitement.
Now he merely nodded and asked,
"And Cao Xiu?"
"Cao Xiu refused to surrender and fought to the end. Yide personally entered the battle line, knocked him unconscious, and captured him alive."
Liu Bei let out a small breath of relief.
"That is good."
Whether Cao Cao admitted it or not, Kongming's explanation had already made the broader situation clear. With the outcome nearly decided, Liu Bei did not want complications. If one defeated general died fighting while another surrendered, it could easily plant resentment in the heart of the captive.
"If so… tomorrow?"
Liu Bei's tone carried a hint of inquiry.
Kongming nodded.
"Tomorrow."
---
Across the river, in Cao's camp, everyone knew that the Chancellor's temper had grown worse by the day.
The soldiers did not know the details of the wider war, but they had eyes.
They saw the strategists' increasingly grave expressions.
They saw that since Liu Bei had camped on the opposite bank, the Chancellor had not smiled once.
They saw that every messenger arriving from other fronts looked pale and anxious.
And ever since Liu Bei's army appeared across the river, the Chancellor had ordered fortifications built day and night.
Meanwhile, Liu Bei's camp showed no defensive works at all. It looked exactly the same as the day it arrived.
Who feared whom was obvious without saying.
Two days ago, scattered desertions had already begun. Some swam across the river. Others slipped north in secret.
Only after the order of collective punishment and mutual surveillance was issued did the trend finally slow.
To the ordinary soldiers, however, there was only one regret.
Why had that crossbow shot days ago not flown a little straighter?
With that thought lingering in their sleep, the front-line troops were awakened the next morning by a great commotion from across the river.
The river was not wide, and soon the shouting became rhythmic and unified. The words carried clearly.
"Order from the Left General. The Cao camp will be bombarded in two ke!"
"Those who do not wish to die should withdraw six hundred paces from the river!"
Cao Cao, also awakened by the noise, sneered.
"To attack from six hundred paces away? Does Liu Xuande truly believe the Marquis of Huaiyin has descended from immortality to aid him?"
"This must be a feigned attack to confuse the masses."
He raised his voice.
"Send the order. Any man who retreats will be executed."
"I will personally go to the front and defend the line with the troops."
Dong Zhao was immediately alarmed.
"My lord must not!"
The reports arriving these past days had made something very clear. The rebel army's method for breaking strong cities followed a pattern.
Heavy crossbows suppressed defenders. Then elite soldiers approached the walls and busied themselves below.
Often within two ke, the city gate would explode apart with a thunderous blast. Some weaker walls even collapsed outright.
Only the fall of Guangcheng Pass had been strange. No crossbow suppression. No troops approaching the walls.
Dong Zhao oversaw the craftsmen of the state workshops and understood some of these matters. He could not help suspecting Liu Bei might possess some way to hurl those gate-shattering devices from hundreds of paces away.
If so, the warning from across the river might not be empty words.
Thus he tried with all his strength to dissuade him.
"Gongren."
Cao Cao drew his sword and slowly wiped the blade, his expression utterly resolute.
"Do I still have a path of retreat?"
"Liu Bei is not like that child Sun Quan, content to cling to safety."
At this point Cao Cao spoke openly, though even mentioning Sun Quan made his breathing uneven.
The Cao-Sun alliance was something he hardly wished to recall.
He had fought bitterly in northern Jing. Even so, he had still sent elite cavalry south to honor their agreement.
And what had Lü Meng done? He had seized Jiangling and everything south of Jiangxia, leaving not a scrap for Cao's forces. In the end, even Cao's own troops were buried beneath the walls of Jiangling.
If those hundred thousand Jiangdong soldiers had marched north to block Guan Yu's retreat…
Enough. Counting such things on the battlefield was not his style.
Cao Cao steadied himself and spoke one final sentence while gripping his sword.
"There is no room left to maneuver. Fight and live. Seek safety and die. That is all."
Cao Cao had never lacked the courage to stake everything on a single battle.
It was that courage that had buried Zixiu at Wan City.
And it was the courage lost by Zihuan at Wan that had helped lead to this present ruin.
Now, pressing forward and fighting might bring survival.
Retreating toward Xudu and waiting to be surrounded by the rebel armies would mean certain death.
He could only hope Liu Bei's threat was nothing more than intimidation.
---
As Cao Cao's order spread, the atmosphere in the front lines grew so heavy it felt almost tangible.
Ahead lay Liu Bei's camp across the river, bustling with activity as strange iron barrels were pushed forward.
Behind them stood the supervisory officers, blades already drawn, faces cold as they watched the backs of the soldiers' necks.
The army had no reliable timekeeping method, so the waiting stretched painfully long.
Then they knew the two ke had passed.
Because a roar rose up, like the howling of underworld spirits.
Cao Cao raised his sword in confusion.
No enemy crossed the river.
Instead, the fortifications they had labored to build these past days twisted and collapsed as if some immortal hand had slapped them aside.
Soldiers stumbled and ran in panic, not even understanding what had happened.
Cao Cao himself stood stunned.
He wore armor. He had sharpened his blade. He had prepared for a desperate battle.
Yet within two hundred paces there was not a single enemy he could strike.
The defenses were shattered. The soldiers he had forbidden to retreat were flung through the air. Even his personal guards were caught in it.
One veteran from Chenliu lay near him, his lower body entirely gone, yet somehow still alive, reaching out toward him.
Without thinking, Cao Cao took the man's hand and leaned closer to hear.
"Chancellor… return to Chenliu… raise the brothers again…"
His words stopped. His hand fell.
From across the river the shouting rose once more, already clear before it fully unified.
"Next bombardment in forty breaths. Those who do not wish to die, withdraw at once!"
The time was short. Too short to organize a forced crossing with his guards.
Yet it was also long enough for the stunned soldiers to recover and turn their blades on the officers behind them.
Amid the chaos, the guards began dragging Cao Cao backward by force. Anyone could see staying here meant nothing.
Some desperate soldiers had already noticed the Chancellor and were rushing toward him like moths to flame, blades raised.
The retreat slowed.
Then the forty breaths ended.
Another thunderous roar.
The clash of weapons stopped instantly.
A vast force swept in from behind. Cao Cao felt himself lifted into the air, thrown to the ground, rolling twice before darkness took him.
---
When he opened his eyes again, the sunlight was blinding.
A dark face suddenly filled his vision.
A thick finger rose before his eyes and waved once. Cao Cao's gaze followed it instinctively.
At once he was sprayed with spit.
"Big brother! This Cao dog ain't dead! He's still alive!"