Ji Han Liu Zhang

Pei State, Qiao County.

When the imperial court's army that was heading to conquer Yuan Shu in Huainan passed through this place, Cao Cao, the prime minister who was born in Qiao County, was moved by the past and so the army stayed in Qiao County for one night.

That night, the moon was bright and the stars were sparse, and the fields were clear and bright.

In the county temple of Qiao County, a meeting on the situation in Huainan was underway.

Guo Jia, the military chief who had recently joined Cao Cao's army and was highly valued by Cao Cao, reported the situation in Huainan in detail: "When the traitor Yuan Shu heard that the army was coming to attack him, he panicked and led his army across the Huai River to escape, leaving only Zhang Xun, Qiao Rui and others to defend the Qinyang area, and Li Feng, Le Jiu, Liang Gang and others to stay in Shouchun."

Cao Cao laughed and clapped his hands when he heard this. "This is what I expected... Yuan Shu, I used to be friends with him. I know he lacks courage and has no ambition. He is really a slave. When he heard that my army was leaving, Yuan Shu dared not to face the front of my army. Now he really left."

As Cao Cao's eldest son, Cao Ang was taken with him to the expedition to Huainan. On the one hand, Cao Ang could gain some merit during the expedition and make some progress in his official position later. On the other hand, Cao Cao intended to train this benevolent and filial eldest son so that he could be capable of taking on important tasks. After all, Cao Ang was the eldest among his sons and was Cao Cao's first choice for successor.

Cao Ang sat at the head of the right seat. With a smile on his face, he cupped his hands and congratulated Cao Cao, saying, "Father, Yuan Shu has fled, leaving only two or three of us to defend the Huainan area. This shows that his army has lost its courage and will. It is time for us to march forward and defeat the enemy with one blow."

Cao Ang was very optimistic about the upcoming battle in Huainan. Now that the enemy commander was frightened and had fled far away, how much determination would the people left behind have to hold on?
"Indeed, if Yuan Shu escapes, Huainan will be easy to pacify." Cao Cao nodded in approval. He added, "But you still need to be careful. As the Art of War says, arrogant soldiers will be defeated. You must be careful." Cao Cao used a teaching tone to carefully warn his eldest son with the latter sentence.

"I understand, son." Cao Ang bowed and agreed, accepting Cao Cao's teachings.

"Liu Bei, the governor of Yuzhou, has stationed his troops in Pei City and is willing to lead troops to help. He handed over a letter." Guo Jia talked about another thing.

Cao Ang laughed when he heard this and said, "Liu Yuzhou is a member of the royal family. Seeing the rebels rampant, he wants to lead his troops to help. This shows that he is a loyal person, just like Liu Jiyu and Liu Jingsheng who sent troops to help."

"I'm afraid it's not true." Guo Jia shook his head. "Sir, Yuan Shu is now rebelling in Huainan. First, Lü Bu of Xuzhou was at odds with him and attacked Yuan Shu. Then Sun Ce of Jiangdong wrote to Yuan Shu and broke off relations with him. Yuan Shu is alone and weak, and the situation is declining. This is the time for his defeat."

"Now, the princes and lords of the royal family all around know that Yuan Shu will be defeated, so they either send troops or lend their support, all for the reputation of defeating the enemy. If we say that they are loyal, it is difficult to discern their true intentions." Guo Jia expressed his speculation in a firm tone.

Cao Ang was refuted by Guo Jia, but he did not take it as an offense. He smiled and replied: "Judging from their deeds rather than their hearts, Liu Jiyu, Liu Jingsheng, Liu Xuande and others helped the court to fight against the rebels, which shows that they have some loyalty and righteousness. They are not like Yuan Shikai in Hebei, who did not send troops to help because he was from the same family as Yuan Shu, and has not expressed anything until now."

Guo Jia remained silent. He just nodded lightly and did not continue to refute Cao Ang. After all, Cao Ang was the eldest son of Cao Cao, the leader. It would be inappropriate for him to refute him repeatedly in the meeting.

When Cao Cao heard Cao Ang's remarks, his expression was somewhat wavering. On the one hand, he was impressed by Cao Ang's simple character, which was commendable, but being too simple was not what a monarch should have.

"The world is bustling with people, all for profit. The world is bustling with people, all for profit." Cao Cao used a literary saying, and he warned Cao Ang: "Ang'er, you need to think deeply about what the chief priest said, and don't just think positively."

"Yes." The filial and brotherly Cao Ang bowed again in agreement.

Cao Cao then gave his judgment on Liu Bei's intention to lead troops to help: "Liu Xuande's subordinate Guan Yu is extremely brave. We can use Guan Yu in the current expedition to Huainan. You can send a letter to Liu Xuande and ask him to lead his troops to help as soon as possible."

"Yes." Guo Jia accepted the order.

The meeting continued in the dead of night, and Guo Jia brought up a piece of bad news: "Chen Gui and Chen Deng, father and son, handed over a message saying that Yuan Shu sent his chief clerk Yan Xiang to bribe Lu Bu with a large sum of money. Lu Bu was greedy for money and promised to lead his troops to help Yuan Shu fight against the imperial army..."

Upon hearing this news, Cao Ang was surprised and said, "Lü Bu is brave and invincible, and Yuan Shu has a large army. If Yuan Shu and Lü Bu are connected, and Xu and Yang are united, it will be a big threat."

Guo Jia calmly comforted the somewhat panicked Cao Ang: "Don't worry, sir. Lü Bu just marched to Huainan and fought against Yuan Shu. Although Lü Bu is greedy for money, both sides are hesitant and may not be able to work together and trust each other... As it is, even if Yuan Shu and Lü Bu are connected, it won't cause any harm. At most, it will delay our army's progress in conquering Shouchun."

After Cao Ang pondered for a while, he said: "Father, as the chief priest said, there is no need to worry too much, but our army should still take some precautions to deal with possible enemies in Xuzhou."

"Of course." Cao Cao gave his conclusion. The goal of his trip was to capture Yuan Shu's old nest, Huainan. No matter what the stumbling blocks were, they could not stop him from achieving his goal.

The night passed quietly, and Cao Cao's troops continued to march. He soon arrived at Qiyang and joined forces with Xiahou Yuan's vanguard troops who were blocked in Qiyang.

In the morning, Cao Cao got up early. He heard the sound of gongs and drums. The sound shook his ears and he asked, "What's going on outside?"

At this time, Dian Wei, a guard, happened to lift the curtain and reported the situation outside in a loud voice: "Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui led the rebel army out of the camp, and it seems that they want to challenge our army to a fight."

"How dare you." Cao Cao sneered contemptuously. He took his time to wash up with the help of his servants, and instructed the two generals Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren who had rushed over to lead the army out of the camp and form a battle line.

Not long after, Cao Cao finished washing, put on his armor, and climbed onto the back of the charcoal-black Jueying horse, which was free of a single strand of hair on its body. He then headed out of the camp, guarded by his two personal guards, Dian Wei and Xu Chu.

Arriving at the place where the army was arrayed outside the camp and climbing up the earthen slope where the central army was located, Cao Cao looked up at the troops of Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui opposite him and silently calculated the number of enemy troops, which was about 20,000, which was about the same number of soldiers he had arrived in Qinyang.

Cao Cao chuckled and said, "The land south of the Huai River is indeed rich. The bandits have many soldiers and their armor also looks good."

Cao Ang, who was accompanying Cao Cao, had a trace of worry between his brows. He didn't expect that the troops of Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui on the opposite side were no less numerous than theirs. If they wanted to win this battle, they would probably have to fight a hard battle.

"Brother, I would like to lead the army to break through the enemy's formation and crush the enemy's morale." Cao Ren asked. His tone was very bold, which showed that he was very courageous.

However, Cao Cao shook his head when he heard Cao Ren's request. He raised his eyebrows and said, "Zhang Gongyi, who is under the command of the Grand Marshal, is the General of the Cavalry. He must be quite brave. Now the Grand Marshal is sending Zhang Gongyi to help, so let Zhang Gongyi go forward first."

Upon hearing this, Xiahou Yuan smiled mischievously and said, "Yes, let Liu Jiyu's men march first, otherwise Zhang Gongyi's trip to help the court conquer Huainan would have been in vain." At Cao Cao's command, Zhang Ren, who led his troops to the left wing, saw the flag order from the central army and also heard the flag and drum ordering him to advance.

Zhang Ren's face was as calm as water. He took the helmet from the hand of his personal guard and put it on his head. He gripped the spear tightly in his hand, spurred his horse and took a few steps forward. The 800 cavalrymen he brought with him followed Zhang Ren tacitly without waiting for his orders.

Cao Cao, who was standing on the slope of the central army, saw Zhang Ren's troops taking action. He smiled and prepared to see the result of Zhang Ren's next attack. To be honest, he didn't have much hope for this. It was just that the enemy's morale seemed to be high at the moment, so he let Zhang Ren, an outsider, take the lead to wear down the enemy's morale and save his brother Cao Ren from taking the risk of attacking.

If Zhang Ren comes, we should do something for him.

Next, Zhang Ren was seen leading his cavalry out and heading towards the Huainan army. His men had an indomitable momentum and were constantly closing the distance between them and the Huainan soldiers.

Two hundred steps...

One hundred and fifty steps...

As the distance between Zhang Ren's troops and their own side continued to narrow, the Huainan Army took the lead in launching an attack, using strong bows and crossbows to launch long-range attacks on Zhang Ren's troops.

It's just that the Huainan army fired arrows too early. They fired arrows before Zhang Ren's troops came within the attack range, resulting in no damage to Zhang Ren's troops.

Zhang Xun, the general of the Huainan Army, saw this and angrily said, "What a bunch of useless people! How can you shoot arrows when the enemy cavalry is not close?"

However, Zhang Xun knew the reason. He had just recruited his troops not long ago, and many of them had no experience in battle. They were suddenly confronted with a large cavalry charge and were frightened, so it was understandable that they shot arrows in advance.

In addition, in panic, the archers in the array shot arrows in some confusion. The arrows were not shot in unison, and the standard of a rain of arrows was not met. Either many arrows were shot at the same point, or a few arrows were scattered at intervals.

"Order the archers to retreat and let the spearmen move forward." Zhang Xun shouted. He knew that the archers could not cause much damage to the enemy cavalry. If the archers stayed in front of the formation and the enemy cavalry got close to them, the front formation would collapse instantly. Now he had no choice but to let the spearmen move forward to block the enemy cavalry's charge.

Under the command of Zhang Xun, Zhang Ren approached the front line of the Huainan army within a hundred steps. He realized that the Huainan soldiers were not familiar with martial arts because the Huainan archers fired arrows in advance. In addition, he saw that the enemy was changing its formation, with archers retreating and spearmen advancing, so he urged his cavalry to charge regardless of the consequences.

One hundred steps...

Fifty steps...

Thirty steps...

Zhang Xun watched the enemy cavalry getting closer and closer to the front line, his heart in his throat. He felt a little relieved when he saw that the archers in the front line were finally switched to spearmen when the enemy cavalry was within thirty steps.

"If you have the guts, charge!" Zhang Xun looked at the enemy cavalry who had not slowed down and said sarcastically in his heart. After all, he was a veteran general, so he knew that cavalry would not take the risk of charging, so he was very relaxed.

What disappointed Zhang Xun was that when the enemy cavalry approached his front-line spearmen, they continued to charge despite the spearmen's tilted and raised spear tips.

Zhang Ren, who was leading the way and standing in front of his cavalry, leaned down slightly and saw the tilted and raised spear tips of the spearmen on the opposite side. There was no fear on his face, and his whole face was as calm as an ancient well.

When Zhang Ren was ten steps away from the front line of the bandit army, he got the result he expected. The spearmen on the opposite side faced the fearless charge of their cavalry and showed a look of fear. Some retreated, some lost their way, and the spear formation became loose.

At this moment, Zhang Ren found an opening. He swung his spear, pushed aside several spears, rode his white horse across the gap, leaped over the spearmen, and stepped down into the air.

Pegasus soars through the formation.

The next things were much simpler. Zhang Ren broke into the enemy's formation and wielded the spear in his hand. As the best among spear generals, he was invincible. Every time the spear came out like a dragon, he took the life of a Huainan soldier.

In addition, the cavalry under Zhang Ren's command were all brave and sharp soldiers. Facing the Huainan infantry who had lost their will to fight, it was like a tiger entering a flock of sheep. The tiger was rampant and the sheep fled.

Within a few moments, the front line of the Huainan Army collapsed.

Zhang Ren fought fiercely and broke through the front line of the Huainan army in one wave. At this time, he did not lead his troops to retreat, but instead stared at Zhang Xun, Qiao Rui and others under the banner of the Huainan central army.

"Gentlemen, follow me to kill the general and seize the flag."

With a faint smile on his face, Zhang Ren pointed his spear at the center of the Huainan Army. The elite cavalry under his command naturally understood his intention, and they galloped to follow him, charging towards the center of the Huainan Army.

Zhang Ren had been recuperating for a long time since the Battle of Guanzhong last year. He was now in the state of a tiger out of the cage and an eagle spreading its wings. The spear in his hand had been thirsty for a long time and was now eager to drink the enemy's blood. So he decided to retreat instead of advance and charge towards the central army of Huainan.

Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui, who were standing on the slope and watching the battle, were still stunned when they saw that the enemy cavalry had broken through their front formation in just a few breaths. They couldn't believe that there was such a brave man in the world who was fearless and led the cavalry to charge at the infantry formation and actually broke through the infantry formation.

But when they saw that the brave general among the enemy cavalry, after breaking through their front formation, did not advance but retreated and rushed towards the two of them, Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui could not help but swallow their saliva secretly, feeling a little frightened.

"Follow me and stop the enemy cavalry quickly." Zhang Xun gave orders, urging the soldiers in the middle formation to step forward to stop the enemy cavalry. However, once the front formation was broken, the army was in panic, and many soldiers wanted to retreat. Even if there were loyal soldiers who stepped forward to stop them, they were like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, and they could not stop Zhang Ren's advance.

Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui looked at each other and understood each other's thoughts. The next second, they both operated their horses synchronously, turned their horses around, and made a desperate move. (End of this chapter)