Chapter 100 Yuan Shao: I am waiting for Zhang He to capture Chang'an, what are you waiting for?
After beheading Yan Liang and Wen Chou, many people thought that Ji Hao would make a final move and engage in a decisive battle with Yuan Shao.

But to everyone's surprise, Ji Hao did not send troops, but continued to guard Luoyang, tying down Yuan Shao's main force, as if waiting for something.

At first, Liu Bei thought he was waiting for him.

Even if we killed two enemy generals, it was still 180,000 soldiers against 1 million. It would be difficult to win by taking the initiative.

On average, one person has to fight more than five.

But after Liu Bei came, things were different: in recent years, the "King of Backers" Liu Huangshu occupied Sizhou and Yizhou, and with the name of the orthodox court, he recruited soldiers on a large scale, and the number of soldiers and horses exceeded 300,000.

A total of 200,000 people were brought with him on this expedition.

Only Zhang Fei was left to lead the remaining 100,000 troops to join forces with Xing Daorong to guard Chang'an.

After the reunion, there were 380,000 troops.

Although there is still a big gap, there is no absolute disadvantage anymore. Throughout history, there is a saying in marching and fighting that "twice the advantage is a threat, three times the advantage is unstoppable."

What this means is that if the quality of the troops on both sides is similar, anything less than twice is not considered an advantage.

Three thousand versus five thousand, it can only be said that they are evenly matched.

It needs to be more than twice to establish an advantage, because after it is more than twice, you can divide your forces. Dividing it into two will not be a problem at all, and dividing it into three will still make it difficult for the opponent to defeat one part easily.

But it is just an advantage. If the opponent's equipment is slightly better, or the general is more powerful, the advantage will be eliminated.

Only if we have three times more troops will there be an irreparable gap.

Before, Ji Hao's number of troops was less than one-fifth of Yuan Shao's, and the gap in military strength was the kind that could not be bridged. But now that Liu Bei has arrived, his military strength exceeds one-third of Yuan Shao's, and the gap is no longer unbridgeable.

Of course, nothing is absolute. Ji Hao also had a record of breaking through 300,000 with only 10,000 of them.

But those were all “narrow victories”, not absolute strength.

If the opponent does not make mistakes, the difference in troop strength cannot exceed three times, otherwise there will be no chance of winning.

"I can't believe that we were once as close as brothers, but later became enemies, and now we are fighting side by side again!" Liu Bei led his troops to meet up with Ji Hao, and said with emotion.

In fact, he had hesitated at first about whether to become sworn brothers with Ji Hao.

Although Ji Hao showed a poor background and lacked in both civil and military skills at that time, he was a smooth and insightful person with a unique vision in business, which was a good thing.

But in the end, he gave up.

It was just because Ji Hao had no respect for the Han Dynasty. He could control such a person under his command, but if he swore brotherhood with Guan and Zhang, he was worried that one day they would turn against each other, which would affect his relationship with Guan and Zhang.

Therefore, he would rather turn against Ji Hao than let him be included in the ranking.

He doesn't know whether it's right or wrong.

But what he said at this moment was not false, and the emotion and sigh in his tone were also sincere.

But everything is over.

If at the beginning, Ji Hao knew that Liu Bei actually had some affection for him, he might be happy and feel that he was not a complete failure. But after embarking on the road of conquering the world, with the fame and wealth of the entire Ji camp and the safety of thousands of people at stake, his mentality had already changed.

The past is all gone like clouds and smoke.

The common man named "Ji Hao" is dead. Now he is the king of the city, the descendant of Emperor Huangdi, and the descendant of Emperor Zhou!
"If life could always be like the first time we met, why would the autumn wind make the painted fan sad? People's hearts change easily, yet they say that the hearts of old friends are easily changed." Ji Hao said.

These words made Liu Bei silent, and Lu Bu next to him also fell silent.

The fickleness of human hearts is a topic that cannot be avoided throughout history.

But now was not the time to be sentimental, so Liu Bei asked, "Chengtian, how do you plan to fight?"

Upon hearing this, Ji Hao said only one word: "Wait." This made Liu Bei confused.

"What are you waiting for?"

"The secret cannot be revealed!" Ji Hao said.

So, what confused everyone was that after Liu Bei and Ji Hao joined forces, there was no further movement, and they did not fight with Yuan Shao until the beginning of winter.

As for Yuan Shao, out of caution, he did not act rashly.

Everyone is waiting.

It was not until the beginning of the following spring that the situation in Chang'an City took a sharp turn: Yuan Shao sent Zhang He to attack Chang'an because he knew that he could not defend it with a wretch like Xing Daorong, but he did not succeed at the beginning.

There is also a Zhang Fei.

He is rough but meticulous, and extremely brave, which is something Zhang He cannot do.

But as he waited, Zhang He finally got his chance: although Zhang Fei was brave and not stupid, he had a hot temper and liked to beat and scold his soldiers. When he stayed behind, he came into conflict with Mi Fang, another general of Liu Bei.

Mi Fang followed Liu Bei in Xuzhou and has followed him until now.

Fame, wealth and honor were also obtained.

However, because of his merchant family, he was marginalized everywhere and his life was not satisfactory.

It was fine when Liu Bei was around, but when Liu Bei was not around, Zhang Fei treated him like a dog, beating and scolding him at will. Mi Fang, who could no longer bear it, made up his mind and secretly defected to Zhang He.

While Zhang Fei was drinking, they opened the city gate and let the army in.

Directly broke into the city.

Zhang Fei escaped drunk and was fine, but he lost the city and his troops. Xing Daorong was not drunk, but when he learned that the attacker was Zhang He, he turned around and ran away.

He fled towards Liu Bei with Zhang Fei, but was blocked by Zhang He and was captured in less than one round.

Zhang Fei was so shocked that he was stunned.

"Damn it, is Zhang He so ferocious?" Zhang Fei was shocked, but he had no choice but to fight with all his might. However, he found that after his extreme burst, Zhang He was far from his opponent and was defeated after just a few rounds, so he let him escape.

This was while he was drunk.

If you calculate carefully, he is just first-rate, or around mid-level - although he can be called a fierce general of the time, his strength is just so-so. Zhang Fei estimates that Ji Hao can crush him with one hand and kill him in one round.

As a result, Xing Daorong was defeated in one round?

"Damn it, General Lingling, he's just a fake!"

Zhang Fei reacted.

He went to Liu Bei and cried as he told him what he had seen, which shocked Liu Bei.

After receiving the news, Yuan Shao laughed heartily and came to the city in person, saying proudly: "Ji Chengtian, Liu Xuande, Lu Fengxian, I am waiting for my beloved general Zhang He to capture Chang'an, what are you waiting for?"

These words stumped Liu Bei.

He never dreamed that Xing Daorong was actually a fake and had been bragging all the time.

He did not expect that Zhang Fei would be defeated by Zhang He because of drunkenness. He did not expect that Mi Fang, whom he regarded as his confidant, would betray him without any hesitation.

How is this still playing?
But soon, he reacted and looked at Ji Hao's face, which became unfriendly.

"Chengtian, I need an explanation!" Liu Bei said, "The three coalition forces are already able to fight Yuan Shao head-on, why have we been defending the city and avoiding fighting?"

(End of this chapter)