NOVPUB"Wang Wu, have Wang Heng and his men not returned yet? How many other scouts have come back so far?" the Scout Sima asked the Team Leader who was tallying the numbers, even though he was counting the returning scouts himself.
"Wang Wu and his squad haven’t come back yet; I’m guessing they’re conducting a thorough investigation. We dispatched two hundred seventy-three scout squads, and two hundred sixty-four have returned. That leaves nine squads that haven’t yet come back," the Scout Squad Leader conducting the tally replied to the Sima. It was getting late, and soon it would be time to start cooking.
A sound of a horse being reined in came from afar, "Huh." The Scout Sima and the Team Leader looked in the direction of the sound simultaneously, just in time to see two more scouts returning.
"Two hundred sixty-five squads have now returned; eight are still out there, with no special military intelligence reported," the Scout Squad Leader reported.
"Alright, you continue waiting here, I’m going to report to the Generals and the military advisor," the Scout Sima said, glancing at the two scouts who had just returned without expressing any suspicion towards the other eight patrols that had yet to come back.
"Report!" Guo Jia and Guan Yu were sitting inside the tent, discussing the marching plans for after their rendezvous with Zhang Fei. Although they had gone over this military matter many times, whenever Guo Jia had free time, he would rehash the subject with Guan Yu.
"Speak!" Guan Yu glanced at the Scout Sima and uttered a single word. The Scout Sima felt a wave of dignified and haughty aura hit him. Even though he had reported to Guan Yu many times, every time he saw Guan Yu stroking his Big Beard and slightly opening his eyes to survey him, the Scout Sima had the same impression—an imposing and aloof demeanor, a testament to how a person’s image is established.
The Scout Sima, with his head bowed, repeated all the intelligence reports, making sure nothing was omitted, and then waited for Guan Yu’s orders.
"Two hundred seventy-three squads, with two hundred sixty-five returned, leaving eight still out?" Guo Jia murmured, and after confirming that the numbers were within the normal range, he nodded to Guan Yu without asking further.
"Bring me the details about the scouts who have not returned. You may leave now," Guan Yu’s deep voice ordered.
The Scout Sima hastily presented the prepared Bamboo Slip, and Guo Jia took a quick glance, his brows furrowing slightly. The wine cup he had picked up was consequently put down as he took the Bamboo Slip and examined it more closely, his expression turning grim.
"Is there a problem?" Guan Yu, having worked with Guo Jia for a long time, realized something was amiss when he saw him not drinking and instead focusing on the Bamboo Slip. Thus, he asked.
"I’m afraid there might be an ambush in this area," Guo Jia let out a sigh. Seven or eight scout squads not returning was indeed a normal occurrence; scouts, those mystical creatures that delved deep into enemy territory, sometimes returned late. With groups of scouts, two people each, numbering in the hundreds, it was common for seven or eight not to come back!
"The enemy’s numbers won’t be large, and they are likely lying in wait to our west. The number should not exceed a thousand. The likelihood they are hiding from us is high, but there’s also the possibility of an attack, and the leader might be of the Inner Qi Manifestation Rank," said Guo Jia, speculating based on the bamboo slip in his hand, which hinted at the general situation.
"Good, then let’s prepare early," Guan Yu didn’t for a second doubt the accuracy of Guo Jia’s conjecture. Having worked with Guo Jia for so long, Guan Yu knew his insights were seldom wrong. The notion that a simple bamboo slip with no direct information could lead to such deductions was indeed astonishing, but regarding Guo Jia, Guan Yu had nothing but absolute trust.
Guo Jia sighed. He actually quite liked explaining things to others, but unfortunately, Guan Yu, after collaborating with him for so long, no longer asked him about the whys as before.
"Show me the map and let me locate the enemy. Once we identify their troop type, it would be even better if we could ambush them," Guo Jia said, seemingly out of boredom.
Guan Yu fumbled in the fold of his clothing and threw a leather map at Guo Jia. Guo Jia ran his knuckles across the map, pondering before he eventually sighed quietly, "I underestimated the enemy."
"Even you can make a mistake, Fengxiao?" Guan Yu said with a chuckle, rubbing his beard. He found it quite interesting to see Guo Jia at a disadvantage.
"It’s not that I’ve made a mistake; it’s that the enemy is quite far from us and all of them are cavalry, approximately a thousand strong. They’re lying in ambush in the hills to the northwest. Moreover, they had previously moved in the same direction as us, and their target indeed seems to be us," Guo Jia clicked his tongue in astonishment, admiring the enemy’s audacity.
"This time you’ve even managed to estimate their troop type?" Guan Yu was surprised.
"Given the distance, they’d have to make a charge to attack. Scouts taking too long to return would arouse suspicion, so they cannot delay. We have the advantage in strength; even if they attempt a night raid, they can only aim to demoralize our troops. Given their courage and meticulousness, they certainly won’t fight to the death. So, a quick battle and hasty retreat is the King’s Way," Guo Jia explained calmly, and Guan Yu understood the analysis.
"All cavalry, huh? If we have cavalry here, it must be Lyu Bu’s, so it can only be the Wolf Cavalry. And with the terrain advantage, if the enemy doesn’t rush into our trap, they will certainly escape successfully," Guan Yu nodded and said.
"I am curious, though, which general under Lyu Bu’s command would have such courage and also be this cautious and meticulous," Guo Jia mused curiously. "It’s a pity that we’ve been fighting in the north and Jizhou lately and haven’t had much time to keep up with intelligence on the rest of the world; otherwise, we might have guessed who they are."
"But this is enough!" A cold gleam flashed in Guan Yu’s eyes. "I will order my men to tighten their vigilance immediately."
Guo Jia didn’t say anything. He was now curious about a top general who could instantly kill two scouts from a considerable distance without giving them time to react and, even knowing the opponent was Guan Yu, still decided to launch a sneak attack with only a thousand men!
[It seems that he’s not faring well under Lyu Bu’s command. With that in mind, perhaps we could try to persuade him to join us.] Guo Jia closely examined the direction where the eight scout squads had not returned and finally confirmed that the enemy had indeed killed a scout squad and then moved in the same direction as them.
[Audacious and meticulous, with substantial strength. If they actually attacked tonight while we are making dinner, this person could be considered first-class in all aspects of the present age.] Guo Jia pondered silently, giving Zhang Liao, whom he had not yet met face to face, a very high evaluation on their first encounter.
[It’s a pity that they never considered that I’ve recently assigned numbers to three hundred and sixty scout squads. With them spread out, I can calculate exactly where you are. Having killed eight scout squads, at this distance, I can guess how many men you have quite accurately. Let them try a night attack!] Guo Jia thought with a cold sneer.
Zhang Liao was completely unaware that before he had even made his move, Guo Jia had already figured him out, right down to his last trick. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
