At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 339 Cao Mengde cuts off his beard and abandons his robe

"Leave me alone and fight your way out of the siege!"

Even though Xia Houyuan felt like he had a splitting headache and his head was a little groggy, he still struggled to shout loudly.

"boom!"

Ma Zhong didn't like the prisoner, so he slashed the back of Xia Houyuan's neck with his knife.

"what!"

Xia Houyuan felt pain and turned to glare at Ma Zhong.

Ma Zhong couldn't help but be a little embarrassed when he saw this. He was still not proficient in the secret channel business, so he couldn't knock the person unconscious with a knife.

"boom!"

Next, Ma Zhong chopped it down with a hand knife. Xia Houyuan immediately rolled his eyes and collapsed to the ground.

Although Xiahou Yuan was knocked unconscious, Cao Jun nearby had already heard what the other party had just said. Many generals immediately rushed over with weapons waving, trying to rob Xiahou Yuan.

"General, save me!"

Ma Zhong looked at the generals of Cao's army who were rushing towards them regardless of the lives of the hostages. In addition, most of them were Cao's soldiers nearby. He couldn't help but feel a little afraid and hurriedly shouted to Xu Chu for help.

Xu Chu, however, was not afraid at all. He stepped forward to protect Ma Zhong and shouted: "Take Xiahou Miaocai, follow me, and kill in the room!"

Ma Zhong nodded like a chicken pecking rice, then he and a subordinate held the unconscious Xia Houyuan, and followed Xu Chu.

Xu Chu was good at foot combat, and this was a small city. He quickly fought his way through and rushed into nearby residences.

With the house as a cover, there is no need to worry about attacks from all directions. Even if Cao's army charged fiercely several times, they were all killed.

At the same time, Zhou Yu saw that Cao Jun was reluctant to surrender, so he immediately ordered his soldiers to attack.

In an instant, arrows rained down one after another, and the Cao army in front suffered heavy casualties.

After several rounds of arrow rain, the morale of Cao's army dropped sharply, and Zhou Yu immediately ordered his soldiers to attack.

The Yizhou Army was already good at infantry warfare and had an advantage in strength.

The most important thing is that as the party ambushing Cao Jun, they already have high morale.

Under the situation of one and another, Cao's army was soon defeated and retreated, and continued to advance towards the city gate.

But the generals of Cao's army saw that Xu Chu was so brave that he was able to defend the houses with only a dozen soldiers. No matter how fiercely Cao's army attacked, they could never get in.

Seeing the Yizhou Army advancing continuously, they had no choice but to abandon Xia Houyuan and lead their troops towards the city gate.

As these people retreated, Cao's army, which had been defeated by the Yizhou army, also swarmed towards the city gate. Cao's soldiers even pushed and trampled each other.

They finally managed to defeat the hundreds of Yizhou troops who were guarding the suspension bridge, but were helpless to find that the noose responsible for lowering the suspension bridge had been cut off in advance.

Although it is very easy to replace the noose, it does not take long.

But this was an urgent battlefield, and there was no spare noose at all. Sergeant Cao's soldiers could only look at the moat outside, unable to do anything.

"Those who surrender will not be killed!"

"Those who surrender will not be killed!"

"Those who surrender will not be killed!"

Seeing the moat in front of them and the pursuing troops behind them, and hearing the Yizhou Army's shocking voice of persuading them to surrender, many of Cao's troops finally collapsed and dropped their weapons and knelt down to surrender.

Some of Cao's soldiers who didn't believe the Yizhou Army actually jumped into the moat.

Of course, the soldiers who dare to jump into the moat are basically good at water, but these people are only a minority. After all, the northern soldiers are not good at water.

This battle did not last long. Cao Cao had just led his troops to the Yangping Pass in a hurry. The soldiers were still panting, and he met those soldiers who jumped into the moat and escaped.

When he learned the details of the battle and that Xia Houyuan had been captured alive, he was furious.

He stared at Yang Wei beside him with red eyes, and shouted sternly: "How dare you pretend to surrender and want to die?"

Yang Wei was horrified and said hurriedly: "Your Majesty Mingjian, the common people are sincerely surrendering without any second thoughts!"

"Qiang!"

However, Cao Cao, in a rage, did not listen to the other party's excuses and directly drew the sword from his waist.

"Pfft!"

Cao Cao has practiced martial arts since he was a child. He is a good ranger and has extraordinary skills. He took a sword and stabbed Yang Wei with one step. The sword immediately pierced Yang Wei's heart.

"Pfft!"

He drew his sword, without even looking at the fallen body of Yang Wei, and then shouted sternly: "Order Xia Houyuan to lead the troops to retreat, and the rest of the people will retreat to the camp with me!"

The Art of War goes like this: If an army marches a hundred miles and strives for profit, the general will be defeated; if an army marches fifty miles and strives for profit, the army will be halfway there.

Although Cao Cao's soldiers and horses only marched twenty miles at night, their marching intensity was no less than those who marched a hundred miles. The reason why no one fell behind was because the distance was not too far.

Cao Cao urged the march in such a hurry because he wanted to support Xiahou Yuan as soon as possible.

Unexpectedly, instead of hearing the news of Xia Houyuan's successful attack on the city, he heard bad news one after another.

The reason why Cao Jun has been able to hold on until now is that his morale was constantly boosted during the march. All Cao Jun knew that as long as they worked hard tonight, they could break through Yangping Pass and then occupy the entire Yizhou.

At that time, all meritorious soldiers will be rewarded.

Precisely because he could see the coming victory, Cao Jun could still maintain a strong fighting spirit even after marching for twenty miles.

If Xia Houyuan really attacked the city, they would still be able to fight.

Unfortunately, Xia Houyuan was defeated and captured, and the rest either died in battle or surrendered. This was obviously a trap set by the Yizhou Army.

The belief collapsed, and the breath that was held in the heart was released. The morale of the soldiers plummeted, where was the fighting spirit left?

Cao Cao understood this and did not dare to lead his troops to stay here. He did not even dare to rescue those Cao soldiers who jumped into the river. He just wanted to retreat as soon as possible.

He also hoped that the Yangping gatekeepers would be more cautious and would not dare to lead their troops to rush out before matters in the city were settled.

Otherwise, with the current situation of Cao's army, they will definitely lose.

The reason why Xiahou Dun was asked to lead his troops to cut off the rear was to put enough pressure on the Yizhou Army so that the other side would not dare to easily leave the city to pursue.

On the city wall, Zhou Yu saw that Cao's army had changed its formation, obviously planning to retreat, and a smile appeared on his face.

Wei Yan said in a deep voice: "Captain, do you want to go out of the city to pursue us?"

Zhou Yu said: "Wait a little longer!"

Not long after, most of Cao's troops had turned around and started to retreat. Zhou Yu no longer hesitated and shouted: "Send my order, go out of the city and kill the enemy!"

"Crench!"

"Crunch!" "Crunch!"

The city gate was opened wide, and the suspension bridge that had been installed with a new noose was slowly lowered. The Yizhou army, which had been waiting for work for a long time, led their troops to fight out of the city under the leadership of Xu Chu, Wei Yan, Dong Xi, and Pan Zhang.

The roaring war drums sounded, and Cao Cao, who had just ordered a retreat, felt as uncomfortable as eating shit.

Not long after the retreat order was issued, the soldiers, who had lost all morale for a long time, just wanted to retreat. If the order was changed overnight and the soldiers were allowed to return to fight the Yizhou Army again, their officers would definitely not be willing.

If he does not turn around and fight hard at this time, Cao's army will inevitably be defeated when all the Yizhou troops rush out.

Cao Cao had no idea that Zhou Yu, as a junior, would be so accurate in grasping the opportunity to fight, and he couldn't help but grit his teeth in anger.

However, Cao Cao was a hero after all, and he quickly came up with the strategy of cutting off his tail to survive, and immediately sent an order to Xiahou Dun: "Be sure to stay near the suspension bridge. The army is not allowed to withdraw within an hour of retreat!"

Cao Cao believed that with Xiahou Dun's loyalty, he would unswervingly carry out this order.

The soldiers and horses under Xiahou Dun's command have also been following the opponent for a long time. Many of them are fellow countrymen recruited from Qiao County, and their loyalty is unquestionable.

Letting them stick to the northern end of the suspension bridge can greatly reduce Yizhou's advantage of having more troops.

However, after this battle, Xiahou Dun's subordinates will inevitably suffer heavy casualties. Even Cao Cao would be heartbroken by such casualties.

But the matter has come to this, Cao Cao can only choose to do this.

Sure enough, when Xiahou Dun received Cao Cao's order, even though he knew that the battle was dangerous, he still led his two thousand men to defend the suspension bridge.

Unexpectedly, when Xiahou Dun was guarding the suspension bridge, Zhou Yu sent people to cross the moat directly by boat, and then attacked Xiahou Dun from both sides.

Although Xiahou Dun's soldiers were not afraid of death, the gap in strength between the two sides was here, and there were fierce generals like Xu Chu and Wei Yan on the opposite side.

The two sides fought for half an hour, and in the end Xiahou Dun had no choice but to return in defeat.

Zhou Yu still refused to give up and ordered Xu Chu, Wei Yan and others to continue pursuing Cao Jun.

The Yizhou Army had experienced two major victories in succession, and its morale had risen to its peak. Moreover, it was waiting for work, and its physical strength was obviously better than that of Cao's Army.

Most of the soldiers and horses led by Xu Chu were locals who were good at hunting at night. It was normal to cross mountains and ridges, and they soon caught up with the exhausted Cao army.

"kill!"

Xu Chu rushed to the front, followed by more than 3,000 soldiers, who killed Cao's army and fled in panic, leaving behind their helmets and armor.

Seeing Xu Chu abandoning the rest of the sergeants and leading his troops towards the place where his banner was, Cao Cao's troops and horses had been cut into several sections due to the rugged mountain roads, making it difficult for them to see each other. Many people had no idea that Cao Cao was in danger.

Seeing that Xu Chu was chasing after him and there were not many soldiers around him, Cao Cao had no choice but to clap his horse and shout to Xu Chu: "You and I are both from Qiao County, why should Zhongkang force each other so hard?"

Although Xu Chu couldn't see Cao Cao's face clearly, he could see what he was wearing, but he also guessed that this person might be Cao Cao, and immediately said in a deep voice: "The two armies are fighting, and each has its own master. Although you and I are from the same hometown, we have never been friends with each other. Moreover, my lord, the King of Chu, is also from the same county as a certain person, and he has the kindness to know and meet a certain person."

"You have invaded my territory many times without any reason. If you are willing to dismount and accept surrender, I will not take your life. I guess based on the friendship between my lord and Cao Gong, I will definitely ignore the past grudges. Instead of taking your life, I will give you great preferential treatment. Wouldn’t this make everyone happy?”

Cao Cao said: "Although Gu and Ziyi are close friends, they do not want to be inferior to others."

Xu Chu immediately shouted: "If that's the case, don't blame someone for being ruthless under the knife!"

After saying this, Xu Chu came over with a sword and took Cao Cao directly.

Cao Hong came out to meet Cao Cao from behind, and the two horses fought. After more than ten rounds of fighting, Cao Hong was defeated.

When Le Jin saw it, he hurriedly attacked Xu Chu. The two fought for twenty rounds, but Le Jin was also defeated.

Li Tong came out to greet him, and Xu Chu fought bravely. During the battle, he killed Li Tong under his horse with a single blow.

Xu Chu was eager to kill. He roared angrily and took the lead in chasing Cao Cao. Seeing Xu Chu's bravery, the Yizhou army's morale was greatly boosted, and they shouted to kill. Cao's army was defeated.

The Yizhou army came with a fierce force, and Xu Chu was brave and unstoppable. Cao's soldiers were horrified and fled in panic.

Xu Chu saw Cao Cao hiding in the army and wanted to take advantage of the chaos to escape. He immediately shouted sharply: "The one wearing the red robe is Cao Cao!"

Cao Cao was so horrified that he took off his red robe directly on the horse without waiting to dismount.

Xu Chu had very good eyesight. When he saw the fleeing Cao Cao taking off his red robe, he shouted again: "The one with the beard is Cao Cao!"

Cao Cao panicked and secretly cut off his beard on his horse with a saber.

Someone in the army told Xu Chu about Cao Cao's beard cutting, and Xu Chufu shouted again: "The one with the short beard is Cao Cao!"

When Cao Cao heard the shouting, he immediately pulled up his clothes and wrapped his chin and ran away.

But this is: Yangping was defeated and fled, Meng De took off his brocade robe in panic; he was frightened when his mustache was cut with a sword, and Zhongkang's reputation was as high as the sky.

As Cao Cao was walking, a general came from behind. When he turned around, he saw that it was Xu Chu.

Cao Cao was horrified. Seeing Xu Chu chasing him, the generals on his left and right fled for their lives. Only a dozen personal guards remained, but they were quickly killed by Xu Chu.

Xu Chu shouted sternly: "Cao Mengde, why don't you get off your horse and accept surrender!"

Cao Cao was so frightened that he threw away his riding whip. He dared not respond and ran away desperately. Xu Chu kept chasing him, but couldn't catch him. He suddenly became angry and took a stone from his arms, trying to use the ability of flying stones to hit people.

Seeing that Cao Cao's life was hanging by a thread, he suddenly heard a loud shout: "Xia Houyuan is here, the thieves will not hurt my lord!"

It turned out that after Xiahou Dun was defeated from the suspension bridge, he took the remaining soldiers and horses under his command and fled back. During this period, he was also caught up by Xu Chu.

However, Xu Chu only wanted to capture Cao Cao alive, so Xiahou Dun escaped.

When Xiahou Dun learned that Xu Chu was going to pursue Cao Cao, he couldn't help but feel anxious. While asking his soldiers to use their own flags to collect the defeated troops along the way, he also asked the defeated Cao army to find Cao Cao's traces.

Xiahou Dun hurriedly hurried and finally caught up at the critical moment.

When Xu Chu was in Qiao County, he had heard of Xiahou Dun's name. He immediately did not dare to neglect, and hurriedly gave up his thoughts of throwing rocks at Cao Cao, and instead faced Xiahou Dun who was coming to kill him with a sword.

The two sides fought for fifty rounds. Although Xiahou Dun gradually gained the disadvantage, Xu Chu could not win in a short time.

The defeated soldiers of Cao Cao did not know that Xiahou Dun was gradually at a disadvantage. Seeing that they actually had generals who could fight Xu Chu to death, they all cheered up and joined Xiahou Dun's command.

In the era of cold weapons, the personal bravery of generals can indeed greatly inspire people.

It is better to follow Xiahou Dun, a fierce general, than to run away randomly by yourself, which has a higher chance of survival.

Xu Chu couldn't help but feel anxious when he saw that Xiahou Dun could not be captured in a hurry, and more and more Cao troops were gathered under his command.

Seeing that it was already difficult for his soldiers to advance, the Cao army who gathered around Xiahou Dun and fled became a force that cannot be ignored.

Xu Chu knew that he would not be able to catch Cao Cao tonight, and he was too far alone. Once Cao Cao's army gathered more, he might be in danger.

Just when this thought flashed through Xu Chu's mind, he suddenly heard loud shouting in front of him, and saw Cheng Yu leading his troops to kill him. He shouted sternly: "General Xiahou, don't panic, Cheng Yu is coming!"

In desperation, Xu Chu fought with Xiahou Dun for another round, then suddenly turned his horse and drove away, taking away his soldiers.

Xiahou Dun was already encouraging and supporting him. When he saw Xu Chu leaving, he dared to pursue him? He had to let the other party leave.

However, Xiahou Dun and Cheng Yu joined forces to collect the defeated troops while looking for Cao Cao.

(End of this chapter)