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  Liu Feng and Zhao Yun rushed together into Liu Bei's quarters.

  As soon as they entered, Liu Bei's attire shocked them. At this time, Liu Bei was pacing in the great hall, his green robe tightly wrapped around his heavy iron armor, his right hand resting on the sword at his waist, his left hand holding a leopard-patterned helmet, his mustache slightly raised, and his eyebrows furrowed into a knot, looking as if he was worried.

  Xu Shu had already arrived one step ahead of the other two, and was sitting in a lower seat, leisurely sipping the tea in his cup with an air of calmness and tranquility that formed a stark contrast to Liu Bei.

  "Father."

  "My lord."

  The two men paid their respects one after the other, and Liu Feng stared at Liu Bei's armor-clad figure, puzzled: "Father, it's so late, yet you're still wearing your helmet and armor; surely there must be some urgent military matter that can't be delayed?"

  Liu Bei saw that they had arrived and returned to his seat, placing the iron helmet on the table. He turned his gaze to Xu Shu: "Xu Shu, come and explain."

  Xu Shu stood up, his mouth smelling of tea, and said six words: "The lord wants to go to Fan Kou."

  Liu Feng and Zhao Yun's eyes simultaneously turned to the left side of the main hall, where a large map of Jingzhou was hanging on the wall.

  Fan Kou is the water mouth where Fan Shui enters the Yangtze River, located north of the Yangtze River and east of Xia Kou. It originally belonged to Jiangxia County. However, in recent years, Sun Shangxiang's Wu army launched a large-scale attack on Jingzhou, breaking through Sha Xian and killing Huang Zu, then took advantage of the situation to occupy several counties in eastern Jiangxia. Later, Liu Qi was appointed as the governor of Jiangxia, but he could only defend himself and did not dare to send troops eastward to recover the lost land. Therefore, at this time, Fan Kou was actually within Sun Quan's sphere of influence.

  "Father, Mr. Kongming is still on his way to Chaisang, and the alliance with Jiangdong has not been settled yet. In theory, we are still in an enemy state with the Sun family. Father's retreat to Fan Kou at this time may be a bit risky." Liu Feng was also unclear about the true intention of Liu Bei's decision, but it did not affect his timely expression of concern for his father's safety.

  "As a father, I have no choice but to do so." Liu Bei's tone was somewhat helpless.

  Xu Shu continued: "It's like this, just received scout intelligence, Cao Cao's appointed fake Jiangxia Governor Wen Pin has led 5,000 troops to arrive at Anlu, with a strong tendency to attack Xiakou from the south. That's why the lord temporarily decided to set out overnight and lead some troops to retreat to Fan Kou, building a second line of defense, in preparation for any unexpected situation."

  Liu Feng had never met Wen Ping before, but he had heard of his reputation. This man had been living in Jingzhou for a long time and was one of Liu Biao's veteran generals. In the past when Liu Biao was still alive, he always used Liu Bei's troops to defend against the invasion from the north, and Wen Ping was not reused for many years. After Cao Pi surrendered Jingzhou this time, he decisively reused him and let him participate in the Battle of Changban Slope. Now he is appointed as the governor of Jiangxia and entrusted with a large army, making it clear that he wants to use his understanding and prestige in Jiangxia to attack Liu Bei.

  However, Wen Pin was only a general of the garrison troops, with less than 5,000 soldiers under his command and no naval support. With the current troop deployment at Xiangkou, there is no need to be intimidated. It seems that Liu Bei's retreat to Fan Kou was not simply due to fear.

  "My lord, Xia Kou has an army of 10,000 and several hundred warships. As a mere Wen Pin, why should I be afraid?" Zhao Yun spoke on behalf of Liu Feng, expressing the doubts in his mind.

  Xu Shu sighed, "Earlier, our lord and Zi De Gongzi had several discussions, although Zi De Gongzi agreed to ally with Jiangdong and allowed the Wu army to enter Jiangxia, he only permitted the Wu army to be active in Jiangnan and firmly refused to allow the Wu army to garrison at Xiakou. Cao Zhen's next military move will certainly involve a two-pronged attack on Xiangyang and Jiangling, converging on Xiakou. If we don't let the Wu army garrison at Xiakou, whether our current forces can withstand the enemy from the north coming along the Shun Han River is an unknown quantity."

  Xu Shu's explanation made Liu Feng and the others suddenly enlightened, but Liu Feng had doubts again: If following the trajectory of history, the allied forces of Sun and Liu should have fought against Cao Cao at Red Cliff, but listening to Xu Yuanzhi's analysis, it seems that the location of the battle may change. If so, wouldn't the outcome of the war also be likely to change?

  Liu Feng did not want history to change too much, at least before the Battle of Red Cliffs, only in that way could he avoid the impending disaster of Cao's southern invasion, otherwise all his plans and efforts for the future would be in vain.

  "Your Excellency, there is something I don't know if I should ask or not." Zhao Yun's expression suddenly turned solemn.

  "Zi Long just said it doesn't matter."

  Zhao Yun walked to the center of the main hall, the dim candlelight flickering in his eyes. With a resolute gaze, he looked straight at Liu Bei: "My lord set up a second line of defense at Fanchuan, does that mean if we lose the battle at Xiakou, are you prepared to lead us to take refuge under the protection of the Sun family?"

  In the two eyes that converged into a line, a few hints of helplessness flowed out. Liu Bei walked down from his seat and stood with his hands behind him in front of the large map on the wall. On the vast map, black stars dotted the regions occupied by Cao Cao. As he swept his gaze over it, almost the entire world had been taken over by blackness.

  "When all else fails, I'll have no choice but to take the old road again."

  From that sentence "the old road of the past", Liu Feng vaguely heard a few points of bitterness from his heart. Qingzhou attached to Gongsun Zan, Xuzhou attached to Tao Qian, Jizhou attached to Yuan Shao, Jingzhou attached to Liu Biao, this is the old road that his father Liu Bei has taken for many years. Many years have passed, those who were once dependent on him have all died, but he is still stubbornly alive.

  Zhao Yun's mouth twitched slightly, and his sharp gaze surged with determination. After a moment of silence, he suddenly said loudly: "Don't worry, my lord. In the Battle of Xia Kou, I will fight to the death to repay you."

  Zhoa Yun's sudden statement, seemingly a declaration of loyalty to Liu Bei, but in Liu Feng's eyes, it seemed more like the eruption of long-suppressed anger. It seems that this time he has made up his mind to die, determined to defend his dignity with his life, and would rather die in this great battle than drift to Jiangdong and live a life of dependence on others again.

  Zhao Yun made a statement as an outsider, and Liu Feng, as his son, naturally couldn't remain silent. He immediately put on a resolute expression and said in a serious tone: "I am the same as Uncle Zhao, this battle will be fought to the death, to repay my father's kindness."

  Looking at the two trusted men, Liu Bei's tightly knitted eyebrows slightly relaxed, his mouth curved upwards, revealing a few hints of a relieved smile. He walked forward, gently stroking their shoulders with both hands, and said with delight: "With Zhang Fei and Guan Yu holding down Jiangxia, I can rest assured about this battle."

  As soon as Liu Bei said this, Liu Feng's heart skipped a beat.

  Although he was generous with his words, and seemed willing to die for his father, in reality he would not be willing to sacrifice himself for Liu Bei. He had originally thought that when Liu Bei retreated to Fankou, he would bring him along as well, so even if they lost the Battle of Xiaokou, he could still save his own life.

  But now hearing Liu Bei's words, he actually plans to withdraw alone to Fankou, not to mention Zhao Yun, even his own son who is closer to him doesn't plan to take with him.

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