Chapter 559: Shanfu

Bai Lang had not traveled more than a few miles before he ordered the various armies to disperse and rest. A subordinate general asked him, "What if the Governor asks for reinforcements?" Bai Lang laughed loudly and said, "Shanfu is using a stratagem; this time we will surely win a great victory, so why worry?" Having said this, he set up wine for a grand gathering, only sending out scouts to gather information. Sure enough, a short while later, scouts from two directions reported that ZhaoYun had killed Lü Kuang, ZhangFei had killed Lü Xiang, and the five-thousand-strong Cao army had been almost completely wiped out. It was a great victory for Xuande.

Returning to see Bai Lang so relaxed and at ease, even Xuande remarked, "Yuzhu truly has a fine temperament." Bai Lang smiled, "I simply trust in the stratagem of Military Advisor Shanfu." Now that LiuBei's army had received the sixteen thousand elite troops brought by Bai Lang, the forces at Xinye exceeded forty thousand, with an additional six thousand Bingzhou heavy cavalry. If CaoRen had not come with his entire army, a standoff would not even have been possible. Moreover, CaoZixiao had carelessly lost two generals and five thousand troops.

The small city of Xinye could manage for a while, but in the long run, it could not support the army Liu Xuande now possessed. "Replace the old and weak, and keep the elite. The soldiers who are replaced can be allotted land for military farming; it would be even better if we could find them wives." Without Bai Lang needing to say it, LiuBei's subordinates, such as the strategist Shanfu, had already proposed the solution. The world had been in chaos for a long time; even Jingzhou now had plenty of surplus land that could be granted to the officers and soldiers, not to mention the land that could be reclaimed.

Liu Xuande began to farm the land in Xinye, reducing the forty-thousand-plus soldiers to thirty thousand. The older and weaker soldiers who had been recruited for self-protection could be discharged, and even those officers and soldiers who lacked the physical strength to burst forth their Qi could be transferred to become farming households. "I feel we could further reduce it to twenty thousand; in the final analysis, having so many soldiers now is useless," Bai Lang said. Whether it was thirty thousand, forty thousand, or twenty thousand, if CaoCao were to lead his entire army south to attack Jingzhou, they would not be able to stop him.

CaoCao's grand army could mobilize at least four hundred thousand, ten times that of Liu Xuande, and it would be good enough if the troops and generals under Liu Biao didn't hold them back. Bai Lang even stated directly that if CaoCao moved south, most of those civil and military officials in Jingzhou would likely surrender immediately; that was his opinion.

After CaoRen suffered a setback, he remained still, but when Liu Xuande began replacing the old and weak, he and LiDian gathered fifty thousand troops and charged straight toward Xinye. Liu Xuande went to see Shanfu, "How should we meet them?" Fu said, "If he brings all his troops, Fancheng will be empty; we can take advantage of the opportunity to seize it." Xuande asked for the plan. Fu whispered in his ear, "Do this and that." Xuande was overjoyed and made preparations accordingly. Xuande led his army to meet the enemy. When the two formations were set, ZhaoYun rode out to call for the opposing general to speak. CaoRen ordered LiDian to ride out and engage ZhaoYun. After fighting for a dozen bouts, LiDian realized he was no match and turned his horse back to the formation.

Bai Lang stood with his spear, mounted behind Xuande, and nodded, "Zilong's martial arts are becoming more and more refined. However, Li Mancheng didn't expect that he could actually last a few bouts now." But for that day, the two sides considered the battle over, and LiDian led his army to retreat directly.

The next day, CaoRen beat the drums to advance, setting up a formation, and sent someone to ask Xuande, "Do you recognize my formation?" Shanfu climbed to a high place to observe it, then said to Xuande, "This is the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation. The eight gates are: Rest, Life, Injury, Stagnation, View, Death, Surprise, and Open. If you enter from the Life, View, or Open gates, it is auspicious; entering from the Injury, Surprise, or Rest gates will cause injury; entering from the Stagnation or Death gates will lead to death. Although the eight gates are arranged neatly, they lack a commander in the center. If you strike from the Life gate at the southeast corner and exit toward the View gate in the due west, the formation will surely be in chaos."

Bai Lang looked at CaoRen with strange eyes, "I never thought Zixiao would have this kind of ability. However, what kind of colorful formation is this? If I led the elite cavalry and just picked a direction, I could break it in one strike." Bai Lang's words were heard by Xuande and Shanfu, and both of them had expressions of twitching on their faces. "Lord Xuande, let me handle this formation; no need for many. Three hundred cavalry will suffice! Remember to take advantage of the momentum to cover and kill!" After saying this, Bai Lang urged his Qingzhi horse, and with just a raise of his long spear, the three hundred elite cavalry behind him raised their banners and followed.

Bai Lang rode out of the formation, wearing a Black Tiger Pattern Robe, clad in Mail Armor, with an Eight-Faced White Tiger Helmet on his head, and holding a Cloud Water Spear. Bai Lang led the three hundred cavalry, not caring about any Life or Death gates, and chose the nearest direction to charge in. This charge was like a raging wave crashing against the shore; CaoRen in the center could not block it at all. There was no one in front of Bai Lang who dared to stand as an enemy; he and the three hundred cavalry behind him transformed into a white tiger, roaring as they slaughtered their way into the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation.

The so-called gates were not worth mentioning; any Cao soldiers running back and forth in front of Bai Lang were stabbed to death with a single thrust of his spear, and Bai Lang went straight for CaoRen. CaoRen hurriedly fled the formation. Xuande and Shanfu, watching the battle, sighed, "Yuzhu's bravery is rare in the world. As for the so-called formation..." Seeing that CaoRen had already fled far away, Bai Lang immediately turned back and charged in again, and the Cao army was routed. When CaoRen returned to the camp, he was filled with shame, "How could a formation trap such a fierce general..."

CaoRen said, "Tonight, we will raid the camp. If we win, we will make further plans; if we don't, we will retreat to Fancheng." LiDian said, "No. LiuBei must be prepared." Ren said, "If you are so suspicious, how can we use troops!" Thus, he did not listen to LiDian's words. He led the army as the vanguard, and had LiDian act as the rear guard, raiding the camp at the second watch that night.

However, Shanfu was discussing matters with Xuande in the camp when a sudden wind rose. Fu said, "CaoRen will surely come to raid the camp tonight." Xuande said, "How shall we resist him?" Fu smiled and said, "I have already calculated it." Thus, he secretly made the arrangements. Bai Lang was also in the camp, and hearing these words, he only laughed, "Mysterious and spooky, forget it." Bai Lang himself lay high on a cloud bed, letting CaoRen raid the camp if he wanted. By the second watch, CaoRen's troops were near the camp, only to see fires rising all around the camp, burning the fences. CaoRen knew they were prepared and hurriedly ordered a retreat.

On the road, he met ZhaoYun and ZhangFei, and after losing two battles, he fought his way across the river, only to find that Fancheng had already been captured by GuanYu. At that moment, he could only fight his way back to Xuchang with LiDian. Along the way, he heard that it was LiuBei's military advisor Shanfu who had set the plan. "LiuBei used to lose often, simply because he lacked intelligence. Now that a wise man has joined LiuBei, and he has Bai Lang, Guan, and Zhang as his claws and teeth, LiuBei is hard to control." CaoRen sighed sadly but still fled back to Xuchang to explain everything to CaoCao.

Liu Xuande entered Fancheng, quite pleased. Bai Lang yawned and followed behind LiuBei nonchalantly. LiuBei had adopted a son named LiuFeng, which Bai Lang thought was fine because LiuBei's legitimate son, Adou, was still an infant in swaddling clothes. Given LiuBei's age, under normal circumstances, his son should have been that old long ago. As for GuanYu's opinion, Bai Lang just pretended not to hear it, but he could see that GuanYu was not very happy about LiuBei's adopted son.

Finally, ZhaoYun was left with three thousand infantry to guard Fancheng, and LiuBei took the generals back to Xinye.

When CaoCao heard CaoRen talk about the loss of troops and generals, he was not angry, "With the bravery of Yunchang and Yuzhu, your defeat is normal. It's just that in the past, Xuande had Yunchang but could not fully utilize him; now he has a wise man who can plan, but I don't know who this person is?" ChengYu smiled and said, "This is not Shanfu. This person loved to study and fence when he was young; at the end of the Zhongping era, he once killed someone to avenge a friend, and was caught by officials with his hair disheveled and his face painted. When asked his name, he did not answer, so the officials tied him to a cart and beat drums as they paraded him through the market. Now the people in the market recognize him, and even those who know him dare not speak, but his companions secretly rescued him. He changed his name and fled, turned his heart to learning, visited famous teachers everywhere, and once discussed with SimaHui. This person is XuShu from Yingchuan, courtesy name Yuanzhi. Shanfu is just a pseudonym he used." ===== CHAPTER 560 =====