The Rebellious Officials and Traitors of the Late Han Dynasty

Chapter 292: Night Attack on Wuchao
In the big tent, Qin Shou's face was as gloomy as water, and the atmosphere in the big tent seemed very depressing.

"Yuan Shao actually sent people to harass our rear, incited the powerful to rebel, and attacked our food supply. This is extremely abominable. I have decided to retaliate against him and prepare to attack their food storage area, Wuchao."

Qin Shou finally decided to attack Wuchao.

"My lord, I am willing to lead the army to attack their food supply route." Huang Zhong came out immediately.

Ding Feng and others also stepped forward.

"No, I plan to go there myself this time. When we get to Wuchao, I will decide whether to fight or retreat. Huang Zhong and Gao Lan will lead 5,000 cavalrymen, wearing Yuan Shao's army armor and flying his flag, and cross the Yellow River at sunset."

"After nightfall, we can break into Wuchao."

"When we saw the fire in Wuchao, it should be early morning. Wenhe mobilized the troops and the entire army took the opportunity to attack the north bank and eliminate Yuan Shao."

"Once the fire breaks out in Wuchao, the three armies will advance and anyone who disobeys orders will be executed."

Qin Shou's face was solemn, with a cold look flashing in his eyes.

Seeing this, the generals took a deep breath and showed excitement on their faces.

The decisive battle came so suddenly that the generals were unprepared. Of course, Yuan Shao was certainly not prepared either.

"We will attack them when they are unprepared. At this moment, Yuan Shao probably still thinks we are dealing with those traitors! Humph, does he think I will adopt a soft policy towards them? No, I will kill one to warn the rest. Anyone who has any suspicion will be killed by me."

"I want to see if Yuan Shao can stop my attack."

Qin Shou felt angry.

The army assembled quickly, and it was because of the Tiger and Leopard Army that they assembled so quickly.

We also have to thank Yuan Shao for preparing a large number of ships to rescue his son. Otherwise, it would not be an easy task for 5,000 cavalry to cross the Yellow River.

The atmosphere in Yuan Shao's camp was quite lively, with bursts of laughter being heard from time to time.

"This Xu You is quite capable. Right now, there is war in Yanzhou. Those aristocratic families and local tyrants have taken action and robbed the cavalry army's food supply. Qin Shou is suffering terribly now."

Yuan Shao threw the bamboo slips in his hand aside.

"This is all due to the great reputation of the lord. The powerful men in Yanzhou also surrendered to the lord because they admired the lord and believed that the lord would definitely be able to defeat the Cavalry Army."

Guo Tu said quickly.

Everyone nodded, and even Yuan Shao showed a proud look on his face.

If it weren't for Yuan Shao's reputation as one of the three highest officials in the country, how could so many people work for him? These people risked their lives to help him destroy the Cavalry's food supply route.

"Send someone to keep an eye on them. In order to protect his own food supply, Qin Shou will inevitably embarrass these powerful people. We can't let them lose their lives. Send someone to contact the officials in the court. We can't let Qin Shou kill our people."

Yuan Shao was still a little worried.

"My lord, the law does not punish the masses. No matter how fierce Qin Shou is, he can't kill all the powerful people in Yanzhou."

Guo Tu said indifferently: "If we let the lord of the court take action, it will easily arouse Qin Shou's hostility. The other party cannot cause trouble to those powerful people, but can kill the ministers of the court."

After hearing this, Yuan Shao suddenly realized and said quickly: "What Guo Tu said is very true. The law cannot hold everyone responsible. Qin Shou cannot kill those powerful people, but he can kill one or two officials." In front of the court ministers and local powerful people, Yuan Shao made his choice very happily.

"Qin Shou must be extremely worried and miserable at this moment. Those local tyrants cannot be killed, and cannot be kept alive either." Guo Tu laughed.

"My lord, I think we should also be cautious to prevent Qin Shou from getting desperate and attacking our food supply." Ju Su suggested: "We should strengthen the defense of the food supply at this time. Wuchao has only 10,000 soldiers and horses, so it is better to be cautious."

"Do you think Qin Shou will launch a surprise attack on Wuchao? Wuchao is only forty miles away from us. Chunyu Qiong is also a famous general. He has an army of 10,000, which is enough for defense. Once we encounter a surprise attack by the enemy, our troops will be able to arrive quickly." Yuan Shao said indifferently.

He thought that Qin Shou couldn't even find his food storage area, let alone take the risk of attacking his rear. Did he really think that the other party was like him and had a large number of powerful people in Jizhou to help him?
"Master Ju, Qin Shou doesn't have the energy to care about us right now. His food and grass can only last for ten days or half a month at most. I'm afraid he can only transfer food from Guanzhong and Xuzhou now. How can he have the energy to launch a surprise attack on us?" Guo Tu retorted.

Ju Su's face changed when he heard this. In fact, this was just his worry. In his heart, he didn't think that Qin Shou had the time and energy to attack Yuan Shao.

"The Cavalry has set up a beacon tower on the bank of the Yellow River. I think we should do the same."

Ju Su said again.

"Why is Mr. Ju Shou so afraid of Qin Shou? What will happen even if his troops cross the Yellow River? Does he have enough food and grass?" Guo Tu said disdainfully.

After hearing this, Yuan Shao nodded with satisfaction.

It is impossible to support a large army without sufficient food and fodder.

For thousands of years, the Yellow River has never been crossed at night, mainly because the river contains a lot of silt, which creates many whirlpools in the river. Once a ship touches a whirlpool, it is easy for the ship to be destroyed and people to die.

Although the Yellow River at that time was not as turbid as it is in later generations, not every boatman could cross the Yellow River at night. Yuan Shao's army was also aware of this situation, so they were still confident about the Yellow River at night.

However, what they did not know was that the patrol patterns of Yuan Shao's army had long been mastered by the Cavalry. In the evening, when the sun was still setting in the sky, Yuan Shao's last wave of scouts left the bank of the Yellow River, and three hundred ships carrying five thousand cavalry crossed the Yellow River.

Although the journey was somewhat dangerous, the five thousand cavalrymen crossed the Yellow River in the dark.

Qin Shou and others also changed into the armor and flags of Yuan Shao's army.

Gao Lan looked at the cavalry around him and sighed deeply.

If nothing unexpected happens, the food and grass stored by Yuan Shao in Wuchao will be burned to death tonight.

"Let's go to Wuchao. We can go slower. Gao Lan, you and the Hebei accent will be in charge of greeting people."

Qin Shou looked at Gao Lan, whose face was covered with beard, and chuckled.

"promise."

Gao Lan stroked his beard and a bitter smile appeared on his face.

In this situation, if someone still recognizes me, it would be God's will.

The army marched slowly, as if they were walking in their own back garden. The military flags, armor and even command arrows were all Yuan Shao's. The captain leading the army also had a Hebei accent. Everything was fine.

Yan Liang and Wen Chou died in battle, Zhang He and Gao Lan surrendered, and although there were many generals left, they were all second- and third-rate generals. Although they encountered some scouts along the way, no one suspected this leisurely cavalry.

No one under Yuan Shao's command would have thought that a cavalry unit would appear right under their noses and be about to attack their food and forage camp.

(End of this chapter)