My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 638 The storm is coming
The relationship between Cao Chun and Cao Xiu was that of cousins, just like that between Cao Cao and Cao Xiu.

Cao Chun was Cao Ren's younger brother. The two were cousins ​​of Cao Cao. Their father and Cao Song were brothers, and they also had another brother, Cao Xiu's grandfather.

Cao Xiu's father, Cao Ding, was a direct cousin of Cao Cao, Cao Ren, and Cao Chun. They were not only very close by blood, but Cao Cao also treated him like his own son. He specially arranged for Cao Ding to live and go out with Cao Ang to cultivate their relationship so that he could help Cao Ang in the future.

Similarly, Cao Cao also highly valued Cao Chun. If he treated Cao Xiu like a son, then he regarded Cao Chun as a brother and right-hand man. Even Cao Ang, with his high status, had to show the respect due to a nephew when facing Cao Chun. How could Cao Xiu dare to be arrogant and conceited in front of Cao Chun?

After a moment, Cao Ang seemed to come to his senses and turned to Cao Xiu, instructing him, "Wenlie, you'll have to work hard this time."

Upon hearing this, Cao Xiu was greatly surprised and quickly replied humbly, "Uncle, if you have any instructions, please give them. How could I dare to complain about the hardship?"

Cao Chun nodded: "If I'm not mistaken, there will likely be a fierce battle when we cross the river this time."

A look of shock flashed across Cao Xiu's face, and he asked with some surprise, "Uncle, what brings you this worry?"

Cao Chun frowned slightly and shook his head: "The Left Army camp in the distance is clearly marked, and the troops are in good order. They have already left the main camp in a short while. Judging from their advance and retreat, they are heading north."

Cao Xiu said somewhat dismissively, "It's only a few thousand soldiers. I hope they can be a little bolder and win a battle to boost morale and report their achievements to the young master."

Cao Chun stared at Cao Xiu, who immediately felt a chill run down his spine.

"Wenlie, your strong and resolute nature is a good thing, but you must not be too stubborn and refuse to listen to others, lest you fall into the trap of being headstrong."

After commenting on Cao Xiu, Cao Chun changed the subject and said, "If I am not mistaken, there must also be a large army of the Left Guard in the east of Fucheng. I am afraid that their troops will be our first opponent."

Upon hearing this, Cao Xiu was first startled, then horrified: "Uncle, are you saying that He Qi's troops have already reached the east of Fucheng?"

"Why not?"

Cao Chun chuckled lightly and said coldly, "Zitong has been under siege for a long time without success, and its terrain is treacherous, making it difficult to deploy a large army. In that case, why not shift the troops to Fucheng? Do you think that the Left Army is full of incompetent people who are idly stuck under the walls of Zitong without knowing how to make a better move?"

Cao Xiu was both surprised and suspicious, and his mind was filled with uncertainty.

Cao Chun ignored him and instead gave orders: "I will lead the cavalry first. Wen Lie, you will be in charge of the rear. All the provisions and supplies are your responsibility."

In situations like crossing a river, the infantry should usually go first, and only after the infantry has established a foothold on the opposite bank should the cavalry cross the river.

This time, however, Cao Chun did the opposite. He wanted to use the cavalry's advantage to give the Left Guard Army a taste of their power. There were three reasons supporting his decision.

Firstly, he was confident, as Cao Zihe was the top cavalry general in the Cao family.

Secondly, he knew himself and his enemy. His cavalry was the elite of Cao Cao's army. Although they could not compare to heavy cavalry, they naturally had a great advantage in open field battles against enemy infantry.

Thirdly, and most importantly, Cao Chun's actions, though seemingly impulsive, were actually not, because he knew that Li Zheng would definitely come out of the city to meet him and cover the battlefield for him, giving him a chance to cross the river at ease.

Cao Xiu also agreed with this, but regretted that he could not be the first to act.

The situation actually progressed much as both sides had predicted. The heavy rainfall in spring and summer led to a significant increase in the water volume of the upper reaches of the Fu River, and the mudflats along the riverbanks also became more extensive.

This forced Cao Chun to detour to the ferry crossing six miles north of Fucheng to cross the river.

This detour gave Zuo Mujun time to take a detour.

Four thousand Yue soldiers from the eastern camp of Fucheng had already arrived at the north of Fucheng and were surprised to find that Li Zheng had personally led four thousand elite troops out of the city and was building a defensive line against the city walls in hopes of blocking the Zuo Mu army in the east.

The Left Army was led by He Qi, who left Zitong to his trusted clansman He Jin for siege, seeking neither merit nor demerit. He himself led five armies—Yao Hong, Han Yan, Hong Ming, Hong Jin, and Yuan Yu—along with eight hundred of his personal guards, and brought a large amount of siege equipment to the walls of Fucheng, where he successfully joined forces with Zhou Yu.

At noon today, He Qi had just finished his patrol of the camp and was about to sit down with the soldiers to have lunch.

He Qi's army numbered 20,000, of whom more than 80% were Yue people from the mountains.

At that time, the two sides were adversaries, and He Qi naturally used all sorts of methods to torture the Yue people to the point of ecstasy.

Now that these mountain warriors were his own soldiers, He Qi changed his usual cunning and scheming style, adopting a more caring approach towards his soldiers. Unless there were other important matters, He Qi would usually eat lunch with his soldiers.

He Qi's move was clearly very effective, and the underlying estrangement between the commander and the Yue soldiers quickly dissipated.

After the hatred faded, it was replaced by worship and admiration.

The Yue people have always admired heroes, and He Qi was already very famous among them when he was an enemy. Now that the Yue soldiers are serving under him, they are naturally even more convinced of his abilities.

At noon that day, He Qi also received news that a large army had appeared in the north.

He immediately dispatched all his scouts and cavalry to gather intelligence, while appointing Yao Hong as his deputy to remain in the camp as backup. He Qi himself led 4,000 men under the command of the Hong brothers, Hong Ming and Hong Jin, along with 800 of his own troops, out of the camp to seek an opportunity to engage in battle.

After leaving the camp, He Qi turned north to avoid the threat of long-range fire from the east of the city, while also expanding his field of vision and room for maneuver.

He Qi's troops were mostly Yue soldiers from the mountains. They were strong, had great endurance, and were equipped with leather armor and bows and arrows, so they could march very fast.

Just an hour later, they arrived at a point seven or eight li to the north and discovered that Li Zheng's several thousand troops had also left the city and were marching north. The two armies were now running side by side, only two or three li apart.

Just as He Qi was considering whether to approach, a group of messengers suddenly galloped towards them from afar, frantically urging their horses on, clearly carrying an important military report.

He Qi immediately paused his decision and stepped forward from the queue to greet him.

Upon seeing He Qi's banner, the messengers quickly approached and immediately reported: "General of Cavalry, a large contingent of Cao Cao's cavalry has crossed the river five miles from here. Over a thousand cavalrymen have already landed and will encounter our army in no more than half an hour."

Upon hearing the military news, He Qi's heart sank. He hadn't expected that Cao Cao's reinforcements would include so many cavalry. He immediately asked, "How many men does Cao Cao have?" Hearing the general's question, the messenger continued to report, "There are already over a thousand cavalrymen who have landed. On the opposite bank, there are numerous cavalrymen, scattered across the riverbank, numbering at least several thousand. In the distance, there are also infantry troops, numbering several thousand as well."

He Qi immediately estimated in his mind that this wave of Cao's troops probably numbered at least six or seven thousand, and possibly as many as ten thousand.

Therefore, He Qi immediately issued an order for the entire army to halt its northward march and instead form ranks to rest and replenish their water supply.

At the same time, he sent people to urge reinforcements from the rear, assuming that Yao Hong would have already sent reinforcements by then.

At this point, he had to relay the situation to his rear guard, firstly to remind the reinforcements to be careful and wary of a cavalry attack, and secondly to urge them to speed up so that they could successfully rendezvous with his own troops before encountering the enemy.

After the order was given, He Qi's troops immediately changed formation, with Hong Ming's troops in the front and Hong Jin's troops in the rear, while He Qi's eight hundred retainers and six hundred mountain archers drawn from the two Hongs formed the middle formation, ready to fight.

At the same time, most of the soldiers were ordered to remove their armor and rest on the spot.

This was not an overestimation of He Qi's abilities, but rather the result of careful calculation.

This place is still more than six miles away from where Cao Cao's cavalry crossed the river, and Cao Cao's cavalry force is less than two or three-tenths of its strength. It will take at least an hour for them to arrive here.

Even if the enemy launches a rapid attack with their current thousand or so cavalry, it will still take more than two cups of tea's time to reach the battlefield, giving the soldiers enough time to prepare their gear. Otherwise, if the enemy's main force crosses the river before advancing south, our side will become a weary army.

Sure enough, not long after, about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Cao Cao's scouts appeared on the horizon in the distance, but there was no sign of a large force behind them. On the contrary, the scouts of the Left Guard reported that Cao Cao's cavalry were resting on their horses, feeding and watering them, and showed no sign of heading south.

Although He Qi had guessed Cao Jun's movements correctly, he felt no joy whatsoever.

The more restrained Cao Jun's cavalry general appears, the greater his ambitions are likely, and given the current battlefield situation, he himself is very likely to become the enemy's target.

At this moment, He Qi only hoped that the reinforcements behind him could speed up and join him as soon as possible.

If He Qi could join forces with reinforcements, he would have 8,000 troops. Even if Cao Cao's army charged into battle on horseback, it would be difficult for them to wipe him out in one fell swoop.

He Qi's attack this time may seem a bit reckless, but in fact it is not.

Cao Cao's army came to their aid in large numbers, while the Left Guard Army numbered 30,000.

If Cao Cao's reinforcements were to easily enter the city without firing a single arrow, it would be a significant blow to the morale of the Left Guard Army. Moreover, the fact that Cao Cao's army crossed the river from the north of the city shows that he is quite wary of the Left Guard Army. In addition, the fact that the enemy had traveled a long distance makes this the perfect time to test them.

Therefore, although the situation was somewhat dangerous, He Qi never considered retreating. Retreating at this point would not only mean losing all previous gains but also handing Cao Cao's cavalry their rear, which would truly be courting death.

Seeing that He Qi had stopped, Li Zheng, who was opposite him, also stopped moving.

Li Zheng assembled his troops, transitioning from a marching state to a battle formation. He then ordered the entire army to remove their armor and rest on the spot.

Upon hearing this order, several of Li Zheng's trusted subordinates were stunned and hurriedly tried to dissuade him.

But Li Zheng laughed: "You are all charging into battle, ready to die without hesitation, why are you being so cautious? Just do your job with peace of mind, the Left Army will not attack me."

Although Li Zheng had never fought against He Qi and had never heard of his reputation, he could tell from the fact that He Qi's troops were disciplined, well-organized, and highly motivated that their fighting strength was likely no less than that of his own troops.

As for Li Zheng stopping, that is naturally a basic quality of a famous general.

His main task was to cover Cao Cao's army crossing the river. If He Qi continued north and threatened the landing point, he would naturally follow closely. But now that He Qi was not leaving, why should he continue north?
Li Zheng's best option now is naturally to form ranks on the spot, allow his soldiers to rest and recover their strength. Whether he covers Cao Cao's army's entry into the city or directly cooperates with Cao Cao's army to wipe out He Qi's forces, it is likely to be a fierce battle.

However, his subordinates were still quite hesitant. Li Mu, a relative of Li Zheng, then asked to leave half of the troops in armor and take turns resting.

Li Zheng, however, lost his temper and ordered that the order be carried out immediately without delay.

Li Zheng held immense prestige in the army and was known for his absolute authority. Seeing his anger, his subordinates dared not argue and quickly obeyed their orders and withdrew.

Li Zheng's anger was half genuine and half feigned, partly stemming from his irritation with his trusted confidants. While these men were brave and fearless in battle, none of them could offer him any strategic or tactical support.

The situation is so simple, yet these people can't see through it. Not to mention that He Qi is unlikely to attack, even if He Qi were to go mad and attack, Li Zheng would be more than happy to accept it. In fact, his order for the entire army to disarm was partly a ploy to lure the enemy.

In fact, anyone with strategic vision could see that the two sides were only six miles away from Cao Cao's cavalry at the ferry. Even if you include sending someone to deliver a message, Cao Cao's more than a thousand iron cavalry could arrive at the battlefield in the time it takes to eat a meal.

Even though all of our side had disarmed, most of He Qi's side had also disarmed.

With just a few leather-armored soldiers who hadn't removed their armor, how could they possibly break through their own battle formation in the time it takes to eat a meal, only to then face a surprise attack from over a thousand cavalry? Wasn't that just suicide?
"Ah, if Mancheng were here, he would surely understand my feelings."

Li Zheng sighed, thinking of Li Dian in Zitong. It seemed that Mancheng was the only one who could succeed the Li family in the future.

As Li Zheng had predicted, after the Li family's troops disarmed, He Qi's troops not only did not attack, but also disarmed themselves, just like the Li family.

This scene left Li's generals and officers dumbfounded and bewildered, but it made Li Zheng deeply wary, realizing that He Qi was no ordinary general.

For a moment, the tense battlefield was surprisingly peaceful.

It wasn't until half an hour later that the situation on the battlefield was broken. Rumbling dust appeared on the southern horizon, clearly indicating that reinforcements from the Left Guard Army had arrived.

Only then did Li Zheng order the donning of armor and change the formation to a circular formation.

At this time, after resting, both Li's troops and He Qi's troops were in high spirits, especially the latter. Upon seeing reinforcements approaching, their morale soared, and many officers volunteered to sacrifice Li Zheng's troops as a sacrifice to the flag. However, their commander, He Qi, refused outright and forcibly ordered all troops not to move without authorization.

(End of this chapter)