It was another calm day, and Xiangyang remained as still as a mountain. Even if the enemy suddenly appeared near Dangyang Changban and Jingcheng downstream, as long as Xiangyang did not take the initiative to attack and let the enemy sway in front of them, they would not have any chance.
worries.
This is the reason why Xiangyang is the strongest city in the middle line of the Wei Kingdom.
Therefore...even if Cao Ang really doesn't come to discuss the war, it won't have much impact on Xiangyang's city defense.
But... is it really because of what Chen Jiao thought - is Cao Ang unable to come out of seclusion just because of Lu Chang's attack?
——
It's night again... Cao Ang is not in Xiangyang, but has arrived at Fancheng to the west of Xiangyang.
Fancheng has 5,000 soldiers brought by Cao Ang from Yecheng. Naturally, even without the tiger talisman, he will obey his command.
It's not that Cao Ang didn't listen to what Lu Chang said yesterday. He also knew that he couldn't have much influence on this battlefield, but... regarding Cao Ren, no matter what happened, he couldn't just sit back and watch.
If Xiangyang's soldiers and horses could not be commanded at will, then he would take five thousand soldiers and horses and go to Cao Ren's aid alone.
With this determination, Cao Ang secretly began to implement his plan.
Just when Chen Jiao and others were in Xiangyang during the day and were wondering about Cao Ang's absence, Cao Ang had already arrived in Fancheng and started preparing supplies.
In the evening, when the sun set in Fancheng during the war, the city would be closed. Cao Ang took advantage of this time to quietly lead his troops to the north gate of Fancheng. Once night fell, he was ready to go directly around the north side of Xiangyang.
Go alone to rescue Cao Ren.
But at night, things seemed not as simple as Cao Ang imagined.
The night was as dark as ink, and the only sounds above the streets were the sounds of night cats and wild dogs walking through the streets.
Inside the outer wall of the north gate of Fan City, Cao Ang, who was already ready to set off, suddenly heard some strange noises when he was calling his soldiers to open the city gate.
"Why is there the sound of horse hooves outside the city?"
"Did you hear that?"
Cao Ang immediately asked the soldiers around him, and the answers he got were all negative.
But... he believed in his hearing, so he hurriedly called to the soldiers on the city who were controlling the city gate:
"Hey! Go see if there is anything unusual outside the door."
Naturally, the soldiers on the city responded immediately, but when they disappeared behind the wall, it took a cup of tea and they did not come back.
This made Cao Ang a little impatient to wait.
"Where are the people on the wall?"
It wasn't until he called again that a figure slowly leaned out from the wall and responded to him:
"General...general...outside the door...outside the door..."
"What's going on outside the door?
Is someone coming?
I heard the sound of horse hooves, could it be the enemy?"
Cao Ang immediately thought of the possibility of enemy attack, and even wanted to prepare the soldiers behind him, but——
"No...no, General...there is indeed someone outside the door but..."
I saw the people on the city hesitating, looking at Cao Ang, and at the same time looking towards the other side of the city wall with some confusion.
"Open the city gate!"
Seeing that the soldier kept silent, Cao Ang was already ready to fight, so he just told him to open the city gate quickly.
Not long after, the city gate's chain slowly twitched, and the door opened. However, the scene outside the door was beyond Cao Ang's expectations.
"this…"
Cao Ang froze on the spot, looking out the door with a look of disbelief...
Because in that darkness, Chen Jiao, who shouldn't have been here, appeared... and there were so many Xiangyang soldiers that they couldn't be seen at a glance.
Yes, at this moment... outside Fancheng, there are hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of soldiers waiting for something.
And the reason for all this is naturally inseparable from Cao Ang and Chen Jiao in front of him.
"What...what's going on?
Lord Changshi, what are you..."
The soldiers behind Cao Ang were also quite surprised. Even after Cao Ang told everyone what happened yesterday during the day, many people now just thought that Chen Jiao was planning to come to stop them in the name of Lu Chang.
For a moment, there was a sense of tension between the two parties.
But... Chen Jiao's explanation completely destroyed this atmosphere:
"My lord, if we want to save people, how can we do it with only five thousand soldiers and horses?"
"Lord Chang Shi... you mean... ah! Could it be that you came here without telling Mr. Lu... No, no, no... that can't be the case! Wouldn't this put Xiangyang in danger?
If Lord Lu Chang is not informed about this matter, you will not be able to get away with it when it comes to investigating..."
"I came here for the assessment, and the personal guards I brought with me were also trained by me. Even if I am really defeated later... my father will only hold me responsible if he pursues it. This is a decision I made alone, together with you all
It’s irrelevant, please…”
Cao Ang was able to say these words, which naturally showed that he knew the general situation and the current situation - Lu Chang had given him a heads-up before, and it was not to make him wake up - but after he woke up, the reason why he still went to the rescue was because
It's not just a sigh of relief in my heart, but for the uncle who has been taking care of him for many years... Cao Ren's approval is the reason why Cao Ang can strengthen his confidence.
So... after that, he regarded rescuing Cao Ren as his own private matter.
If Chen Jiao and other innocent people were implicated as a result, Cao Ang would absolutely not accept it.
It's just that Chen Jiao laughed after hearing what Cao Ang said. In front of Cao Ang's confused face, Chen Jiao put his hand into his arms and slowly took out a small package.
He opened the package and what was revealed inside really shocked Cao Ang.
"This...is this tiger talisman?
Lord Changshi, where did you get the Tiger Talisman?"
"My lord, if the tiger talisman is here, then the general will be there. With the tiger talisman, what do you have to worry about?"
Cao Ang was shocked beyond words. In just a moment, he thought of a possibility, so he asked with some fear:
"Could it be that Mr. Chang Shi stole this from Mr. Lu?
?”
Cao Ang's people were numb. If Chen Jiao and others did not hesitate to steal the Tiger Talisman to rescue Cao Ren with him... no matter success or failure, the guilt at this time could not be easily deceived by relying on his identity as the heir apparent.
As a result, Cao Ang's thoughts frightened Chen Jiao. When he heard that Cao Ang was so excited, just because he thought he had stolen the tiger charm, Chen Jiao burst out laughing:
"Hahaha... Sir, you are worrying too much, or... this matter should be explained this way. Do you really think that Lord Lu will not know anything about the fact that I have brought so many troops here?"
"Ah...this...you mean?"
"good…"
Chen Jiao nodded slightly and then said affirmatively:
"This matter was ordered by Mr. Lu... Even this tiger talisman... was left to me by Mr. Lu without any trace."
"As for why your Excellency opposed your proposal in court yesterday, I think... there are probably two reasons."
Following Chen Jiao's explanation, Cao Ang finally understood Lu Chang's good intentions.
I also understand why when Cao Ren was stationed in Xiangyang for so many years, he would always leave the matter of acting as governor to Lu Chang.
