Sailing north along the Yu River for just over a hundred kilometers—less than three hundred li of waterway—their journey was upstream, but every man aboard was strong and sturdy. Taking turns rowing, they moved faster than seagoing ships relying solely on wind. After one night, they appeared near Liucheng.
They went ashore, disembarked, and formed ranks. Elite troops were elite troops; they had finished assembling in just a few hours.
Liucheng was in Liaoxi Commandery, but it was not the commandery's largest city. The seat of Liaoxi Commandery was Yangle County, whose walls were tall and imposing. Liucheng lay dozens of li west of Yangle. The reason the Wuhuan people had chosen Liucheng as their stronghold was that it was close to the grasslands.
As the Wuhuan people's stronghold, this place gathered more than fifty thousand of them. Aside from the warriors, the rest were their families. All twenty thousand of the Wuhuan people's standing troops were gathered here. With so many cavalrymen, they could not be sustained anywhere but near the grasslands.
More than fifty thousand people, along with horses, cattle, and sheep, naturally could not all fit inside the cramped Liucheng. Tents belonging to the Wuhuan people were scattered everywhere outside the city. After breakfast, the Wuhuan people were preparing to leave and graze their livestock.
At that moment, inside Liucheng, Tadun was still troubled by Liu Bei's impending northern expedition. Should he send troops to engage Liu Bei in a prolonged battle beyond the Great Wall, or fortify the land, clear out all supplies, and retreat to the Liaoxi Corridor to lengthen the enemy's supply lines? Each choice had its advantages and disadvantages, making Tadun unable to decide for a time.
Sometimes, an army being too well-trained was also a problem. Wang Xuan looked helplessly at