Chapter 41: Wan City's Sunset Gathering

  I want to apologize to everyone first here.

  Due to attending the author's salon gathering, Lao Xin has been shuttling between Chengdu, Nanning and Beihai since the 11th.

  Yesterday, I went to Nanning first, and then immediately to Beihai. Today at noon, I returned from Beihai to Nanning again. Tomorrow, I will return to Chengdu... To be honest, these two days have been exhausting, and I'm feeling weak. Everyone knows that my old document is broken, so I don't have any drafts on hand. I can only write and upload in real-time at the hotel.

  The update is a bit disappointing, but after returning to Chengdu next week, I will make up for it. Please forgive me.

  Also special thanks to book friend 123a456 for becoming the first ally of "Cao Zei".

  Old and new weekly updates on Monday, must be added more thanks.

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  In later generations, there is an interesting data in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", called loyalty!

  Cao Peng never expected to get Wei Yan's loyalty, and with his current situation, he also had no capital to ask for loyalty.

  But without loyalty, it can add good feelings...

  The idea of offering the sword originated from Deng Ji. Although he didn't have much contact with Wei Yan, Deng Ji was able to somewhat understand his personality. This person had a very proud bone, but wasn't completely unfeeling. As long as someone is human, they will have seven emotions and six desires, and will have likes and dislikes. Deng Ji felt that in order to safely pass through this disaster, building a good relationship with Wei Yan was undoubtedly the most important thing.

  Then he thought of the strategy of presenting a sword!

  Although Wei Yan was a hundred-strong battalion commander, he actually didn't have any savings.

  A good knife on the market, opening one's mouth is at least a few thousand dollars, or even tens of thousands of dollars... You can't even bargain, this price is not too high. The good knife mentioned here is actually just an ordinary dagger. For example, the dragonfly dagger in Cao Peng's hand, if put on the market, would be worth no less than several hundred thousand dollars, don't even think about it. As for a truly precious knife, that's priceless. Even hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars may not necessarily get you one.

  Wei Yan's large ring knife in his hand was a standard ring knife, worth only a few thousand coins.

  Just as Cao Peng said, a hero matches a precious sword. If he had a good sword, Wei Yan's combat effectiveness would increase by at least several fold.

  But Cao Peng was unable to summon the Dragon Sparrow.

  It would be better to give the sword to Wei Yan and win his favor rather than waste it by keeping it with him.

  In the past, Deng Jie would never have done such a thing and wouldn't even stoop to it. But now, he seems to have opened his eyes and started thinking about some insignificant actions that aren't worth mentioning. However, it's often these small actions that can be of great use at critical moments...

  Cao Peng was very pleased with Deng Ji's change!

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  The convoy was moving slowly, even at a snail's pace.

  This was originally just a very ordinary mission. But with Cao Cao's dispatch of troops, this escort became somewhat unusual.

  Wei Yan had been in constant communication with Deng Ai along the way.

  Two people walked side by side, while Cao Peng and Wang Mai trailed behind them.

  "Be careful, Brother Tiger."

  "What's wrong?"

  "Keep an eye on Ma Yu, that guy is too quiet!"

  "I know."

  As for Cao Peng's reminder, Wang Mai won't go ask about the reason.

  In his opinion, since Ah Fu said so, he must have his reasons. Ah Fu's vision is good, and he pays attention to many things. Some things are said, and even he himself may not understand them. Since it can't be understood, why bother asking more questions? Just do as Ah Fu says...

  On the first day of the first month, Wang Buyi fought with Wei Yan outside Yiyangtun and was slightly injured. However, Wei Yan did not have malicious intentions, so the injury was not severe. Wang Buyi's foundation was originally good, and after following Cao Peng to practice Bagua for over 20 days, his recovery was not difficult.

  In just two days' time, there's no major problem anymore.

  "A Fu, who do you think will win this time?"

  "Huh?"

  "It's Cao Cao and General Zhang Fei..."

  "I reckon Cao Gong will lose out this time!"

  "Why? I heard that Cao Cao is quite capable in battle and has many able men under him, can General Zhang win against him?"

  Sometimes, when things go too smoothly, one becomes arrogant and forgets oneself.

  "This man, once he becomes arrogant and forgets his place, will invite disaster... Cao Gong's army advanced too smoothly, almost without shedding a single drop of blood they entered Nanyang Commandery."

  Cao Peng was teaching Wang Mai with a pretentious attitude.

  Of course, he couldn't say that he knew Cao Cao would definitely lose and lose miserably. So he could only communicate with Wang Mai in this way. Wang Mai was a down-to-earth person, and after listening to Cao Peng's words, he didn't refute them, but instead thought seriously and nodded in agreement.

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  The sky was getting late, and the convoy continued to move forward.

  Just as Wei Yan and others were pushing their vehicles and had just crossed a river from a ferry, preparing to continue on their journey, a horseman came galloping from afar.

  "Where is Wei Tuan? Where is Wei Tuan?"

  Wei Yan galloped out on horseback and shouted loudly: "Halt, I am Wei Yan."

  The man immediately pulled the reins, dismounted and knelt on one knee in front of Wei Yan's horse, "I came from Jiuniu City, under the order of Huang Bing Cao Shi. I request that General Wei temporarily halt his advance and set up camp here to await further orders from Huang Bing Cao Shi. Fortunately, I managed to catch up with you."

  As he spoke, he presented a command arrow with both hands.

  Wei Yan dismounted his horse, stretched out his hand to receive the token arrow, and after a glance, confirmed that this token arrow was indeed from the main camp of Jiucheng.

  "This is going well, why stop advancing?"

  "This..."

  The messenger hesitated for a moment, and said in a low voice: "Without deceiving General Wei Tuo, at noon today, I just received a report from the scout that Zhang Yang had surrendered to Cao Cao yesterday."

  "What?"

  Wei Yan was greatly shocked and his face changed color.

  Cao Cao's army advanced rapidly, and on the second day of the first month, after breaking through Ye County, his advisor Cao Hong took down Dangyang. The counties of Zhi and Bowang surrendered on the same day. Zhang Miao had sent an envoy to Bowang yesterday to request surrender, and it is said that Cao Cao has agreed to accept his surrender.

  Huang Bing Cao Shi received the news and immediately sent his subordinate to chase after the general... Huang Bing Cao Shi said, "The battle between Zhang and Cao is full of variables. If Zhang Xiu surrenders, then there's no need to send these 5,000 units of grain to Wan City. But for now, the situation is still unclear, so I can only ask Wei Tun Jiang to temporarily station his troops... My subordinate has finished conveying the message and needs to return to Jiuniu City to report back. Does Wei Tun Jiang have any other orders?"

  "Oh, I'm free for now, go back and report to General Huang, tell him Wei Yan obeys orders!"

  "Ah!"

  The messenger stood up, clasped his hands together in a salute, then turned and mounted his horse, whipping it into a gallop as he departed.

  Wei Yan was getting a headache...

  "Deng Jie, I've just received military orders. General Huang commands you to set up camp on the spot and wait for further instructions."

  Wei Yan's conversation with the messenger just now didn't attract much attention. Deng Ai was busy adjusting his armor and arranging things, so he didn't notice either.

  As soon as Huang Shao let them camp on the spot, Deng Ji and Cao Peng couldn't help but feel a sudden chill in their hearts.

  What's going on here?

  "We've just received news that Zhang Bojun has surrendered!"

  "Ah!"

  Deng Jie was shocked, while Cao Peng looked confused.

  "Who is Deng Jie and Zhang Bolan?"

  Deng Ji glared at Cao Peng and said in a low voice: "Zhang Bo Ruan is General Zhang, the young general of Yanmen, Zhang Heng."

  Cao Peng felt Wang Mao's puzzled gaze, as if asking him: Didn't you just say that Cao Cao would definitely lose, how did Zhang Lu surrender?

  This kind of thing is really hard to explain.

  So Cao Peng could only temporarily endure Huang Shi's slap in the face.

  Deng Ji asked: "Since General Zhang has surrendered, shouldn't we return to Jiu Nu Castle? Why do we need to camp here?"

  Wei Yan stroked his chin, where a faint stubble was growing, and smiled wryly: "How would I know General Huang's intentions? But I reckon that Zhang Bao's surrender is still unconfirmed at the moment. So General Huang has us stay here temporarily to wait for confirmation from Ye City. Once Zhang Bao truly surrenders, we'll return immediately. This place is less than a day's journey from Neiyang County; if it's fake, we'll continue to escort."

  It seems like there's no other way to interpret it!

  Deng Ji couldn't see any problem with this and nodded his head saying: "In that case, I'll arrange for us to set up camp immediately."

  "Thanks for your hard work."

  Wei Yan finished speaking and signaled for Cao Peng to follow him.

  Having taken advantage of others' benefits, one should naturally offer more care in return.

  At this point, Wei Yan was not someone who didn't know what's good or bad...

  Cao Peng gave Wang Mai a look, and Wang Mai nodded in understanding.

  Then Cao Peng followed Wei Yan, riding his horse slowly. Along the way, Wei Yan didn't say a word either, with a pair of long eyebrows tightly locked, as if he was preoccupied with thoughts.

  "General Tun!"

  Wei Ping led six horsemen and arrived in front of them before they had gone far.

  Wei Ping asked: "How can it suddenly stop advancing when everything was going well?"

  "General Huang has given orders for us to set up camp on the spot and wait for new commands... Wen Bo, have you reconnoitered what place this is?"

  Wén Bó, is Wèi Píng's courtesy name.

  He bowed his head on horseback and replied, "Return to the camp, this place is called Xi Yang Ju, it is the border between Ji Yang County and Wan Cheng. If we retreat now, we will be in Ji Yang County; but now, we are within the borders of Wan Cheng. If we continue northward, we can reach Wan Cheng by tomorrow evening."

  "It's really a fork in the road."

  "Shall we retreat or stay put?"

  The sunset gathering is a very interesting place.

  Thorny water connects Yu Shui, which is the boundary between Wan Cheng and Ci Yang County. At the same time, this Xi Yang Ju is also the boundary between Wan Cheng and Nie Yang County. Going south along Ci Shui for about ten miles is the county seat of Nie Yang County. In general, this Xi Yang Ju is a place where three counties do not manage.

  Wei Yan thought for a moment and replied, "Let's camp here. If we retreat again, it'll be troublesome. Even if General Huang allows us to return to Jiunü City, we can still pass through Niyang. It doesn't make much difference, so there's no need to bother... The brothers have been walking all day, and they're tired enough. Let's rest early and wait for General Huang's orders... Wen Bo, but you'll have to suffer a bit more."

  "Please give orders!"

  "With the sunset as the center, advance thirty miles north and explore for any enemy situation."

  "I've just received news that Zhang Yi has surrendered... I'm worried that if it's true, there will definitely be Cao troops lurking around here, you must be extra careful."

  "You will understand eventually!"

  Wei Ping intervened and accepted the order, leading six riders away with a flourish.

  Wei Yan scratched his head in distress and turned back, saying: "Let's go, let's go back. First, we'll settle the camp, then wait for news."

  Cao Peng did not comment and is not qualified to comment.

  As Wei Yan returned directly to the ferry crossing, he saw that the carriages and horses had been replaced by a circular formation, a simple camp, which had already taken shape.

  Just as they were about to enter the camp, a large banner inserted on the horse cart suddenly collapsed with a loud noise, causing a series of chaos. Tang Ji hurriedly ran over and lifted up the banner again. Wei Yan's face turned extremely ugly.

  According to the saying of this era, the big flag is broken and the big banner falls, which are all ominous signs.

  Cao Peng stretched out his hand at this time and muttered: "The wind is rising!"