At dawn the next day, the forces besieging Chencang from the east and southeast broke camp and withdrew, while the army at the West Gate also eased its offensive.
Liu Bei's unusual movements immediately aroused the suspicions of Chencang's defenders. Zhang He climbed the battlements to look out and indeed saw Liu Bei's main army departing.
"Could this be Fa Zheng's scheme?" Zhang He murmured to himself, stroking his beard.
His subordinate Wang Sheng responded, "Word is that Chang'an has already fallen to Wei Yan. Yesterday at dusk, while I was inspecting the eastern wall, I also spotted reinforcements approaching from the east. Their banners bore the character Wei. They should be Wei Yan's troops."
Zhang He narrowed his eyes. "Liu Bei has already surrounded the city on three sides. Could Fa Zheng have deliberately sent troops back and forth as a feint?"
"That shouldn't be possible, should it? As far as the eye can see, the troops outside the city are Liu Bei's. Yesterday's force definitely wasn't the original one. It's just hard to believe Chang'an was taken." Wang Sheng kept shaking his head.
Zhang He, on the contrary, felt that nothing was impossible. If Wei Yan had truly appeared behind them, then it would be stranger for Xiahou Mao to have held the city with his abilities. Yet Liu Bei's current maneuvers were far too suspicious; after fighting north and south for decades, Zhang He had never seen anything like it.
"Withdrawing the eastern and southeastern forces while leaving more than ten thousand men at the West Gate alone... Does Liu Bei want to lure me into striking his rear, then seize the city with the troops outside the West Gate?" Zhang He sank into thought.
"General, what should we do?" Wang Sheng pressed.
"We can only wait