The Three Kingdoms: Zhaolie, the strategist, and the rise of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 134: In the annals of history, a stroke of the pen made the people cry
"After not seeing each other for several years, I didn't expect that my elder brother is still as charming as ever."

"Today, General Liu was sighing as he faced the enemy on the battlefield."

Guan Yu came up and expressed his goodwill.

However, Xu Huang understood that his life was not actually very good. On the surface, he was following the General of Chariots and Cavalry, but in reality, he was just a traitor.

How many people in the world acknowledge that the Baibo Army is a government army?

Besides, Xu Huang is also Gongming's brother.

He, like his other brother Gongming, was thinking of surrendering.

Therefore, when the emperor returned to the east, it was Xu Huang who stood up and urged Yang Feng to protect the emperor and support the royal family.

The purpose was to recruit and submit to the imperial court and get rid of the identity of Baibo bandits.

Guan Yu raised his eyebrows and said seriously:
"Brother, your courage and strategy are rare in the world. Why do you have to serve Yang Feng and Han Xian?"

"General Liu is a contemporary hero. His courtesy and respect for others are well known to the world."

"Today on the battlefield, I saw your bravery and I respect you very much."

"So I couldn't bear to let my best soldiers fight to the death, so I was specially sent to invite you, my elder brother, to work with you in Xuzhou."

"Yang Feng and Han Xian are both incompetent men, and now they have lost their support."

"A tiger without claws, a bird without wings, these two disciples will be captured by others sooner or later."

"Brother, why don't you take this opportunity to turn from darkness to light and accomplish great things with Yu?"

These words touched Xu Huang's heart. After pondering for a long time, he sighed:

"I also know that Yang Feng and Han Xian are not people who can establish themselves in a career, so I want to look for someone else."

"I just regret that there is no way out..."

Guan Yu stood up and said seriously:

"A wise bird chooses the tree to roost in, and a wise minister chooses the master to serve."

"General Liu sent me here to persuade you to give up the dark and join the light."

"From now on, we will work hand in hand to support the Han Dynasty and leave our names in history!"

Xu Huang nodded, stood up and thanked him:
"What Yunchang said is very good. I would like to follow your advice."

Guan Yu was overjoyed when he heard this, and stepped forward to hold Xu Huang's hand, saying:

"When Guan was under General Liu's command, I often missed my elder brother and longed to work with him."

"But I don't know where you are, brother. Seeing you here today is truly God's will!"

Guan Yu is a typical man of the world, who places great emphasis on feelings and loyalty.

On the contrary, Xu Huang, like Zhang Liao, is a typical workplace person.

Like later when Xu Huang and Guan Yu fought the Battle of Xiangfan, the two armies confronted each other.

Guan Yu and Xu Huang were talking from a distance, reminiscing about the past.

He came up to me and asked, "Big brother, how are you?"

As they were chatting, Xu Huang suddenly changed his attitude: Whoever gets Guan Yu's head will be rewarded with a thousand pounds of gold.

Guan Yu was shocked and said, "Brother, what are you talking about? We are brothers."

Xu Huang replied that this was a matter of state and he dared not sacrifice public interests for personal ones.

In this battle, Xu Huang defeated Guan Yu.

I guess Xu Huang was laughing at Guan Yu in his heart. How could he be so naive when he was almost sixty years old?

In fact, Guan Yu is not naive.

It is the environment that shapes character.

No matter where Guan Yu went, he was praised by Cao Cao, spoiled by Liu Bei, coaxed by Zhuge Liang, and given way to by his colleagues.

Although this was Guan Yu's happiness, it also made him frivolous.

Thanks to the indulgence of Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang, Guan Yu remained a man of the world until his death, and he placed too much emphasis on loyalty.

Like Zhang Fei, his character flaws in his later years were infinitely magnified.

In Guan Yu's opinion, maybe Xu Huang would be embarrassed to fight with him because they were old friends and would remember their friendship.

Give yourself the opportunity to kill Cao Ren.

But Xu Huang's heart was as clear as a mirror. Before I was your brother Guan Yu, I was also a subject of the King of Wei.

Since the general is well-versed in the Spring and Autumn Annals, he must have known its meaning and not to neglect the king's affairs for the sake of his own family affairs.

On the battlefield, it’s a fight to the death, and no one cares about your relatives.

And Guan Yu is like this: I will not deceive you, and you will not be suspicious of me.

He was a ranger until his death and had no idea about the workplace.

Fortunately, Guan Yu and Xu Huang are reunited at this moment and no longer have to fight to the death.

"There is no time to lose, let's go tonight!"

Guan Yu took Xu Huang with him and left the camp.

Xu Huang brought only a hundred or so trusted soldiers with him, and left the camp with Guan Yu overnight and headed straight for Liu Bei's camp.

Someone had already reported this matter to Yang Feng.

When Yang Feng heard that Xu Huang had joined Liu Bei, he became furious:
"How dare this kid from Yang County carry me on his back?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he ordered his troops to chase after them that night.

Xu Huang and Guan Yu were on the road ahead when they heard loud shouting behind them. They realized that Yang Feng had noticed them and was leading his troops to chase them.

"Now that Yang Feng is leading his troops to pursue us, how about I go with you to meet the enemy?"

Xu Huang shook his head and said seriously:
"It is unjust for a minister to attack his former master. I will never do this!"

Upon hearing this, Guan Yu was overjoyed and said:
"Brother is a true righteous man!"

"In this case, big brother, you can lead your troops to General Liu's camp first, and the military advisor will definitely send someone to meet you."

"Guan I will lead the army here to cover the rear for you, elder brother."

Xu Huang raised his eyebrows and said:

"Yun Chang's troops are few in number and may not be able to stop Yang Feng's troops."

Guan Yu raised his eyebrows and said disdainfully:

"I regard all the rats in the world as grass!"

"Today, I watched Yang Feng's army in front of the battlefield. They were nothing but clay chickens and clay dogs, with their heads put on the flag and sold."

"Brother, you can go by yourself. I will be there soon!"

Xu Huang did not suspect anything and went straight to Liu Bei's camp.

Guan Yu brought only a hundred or so followers with him to block their way here.

Yang Feng led his troops to attack, and seeing Guan Yu blocking the way, he shouted sternly:

"Who are you to block my way?"

Guan Yu glanced at Yang Feng and said in a deep voice:
"For the sake of our friendship, I do not want to take your life."

"You can leave quickly!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Feng's face was covered with a layer of frost, and he shouted coldly:

"Xu Huang betrayed me, I must kill him."

"If you block my way, I will chop you into pieces!"

Guan Gong was furious when he heard this:
"What ability do you have to dare to make such a bold statement?"

After he finished speaking, he raised his knife and walked forward, ready to kill Yang Feng.

Two strong warriors appeared beside Yang Feng and went to meet Guan Yu.

A general stabbed with a spear, but Guan Yu dodged sideways.

When two horses meet, there is only one move.

Where the blade was raised, corpses lay under the horses.

The other warrior was horrified when he saw this and turned his horse and ran away.

Guan Gong rode his horse and rushed over, charging straight into Yang Feng's army.

Seeing that Guan Yu was coming fiercely, Yang Feng hurriedly reined in his horse and retreated to the center of the army.

The brave general was unable to dodge and was caught up by Guan Yu, who chopped him into two pieces with just one strike of the sword.

The Baibo troops in the front row were all defeated and were easily defeated by Guan Yu.

When Yang Feng saw how brave Guan Yu was, he believed what people said, saying that he was a general as strong as a bear or a tiger and could defeat ten thousand enemies.

He was just about to return to the camp to call for reinforcements.

Suddenly, I heard loud shouts from all directions and the sound of drums and gongs.

Torches were lit on the mountains and hills.

The ambush troops came out from all directions, with Liu Bei personally leading the army, with Li Yi standing beside him.

"Yang Fengxiu, please leave. I have been waiting here for a long time!"

"Use all your forces to attack the enemy and don't let Yang Feng escape!"

Yang Feng was horrified and wanted to return to his army, but he was surrounded by Liu's army coming from all sides and could not escape.

He had no choice but to draw his sword, go into battle personally and fight to carve out a bloody path.

Liu Bei looked at Yang Feng trapped in Gai Xin, smiled, and said to Li Yi beside him:

"The military advisor sent Yunchang to say that Xu Huang had surrendered, and took the opportunity to lure Yang Feng to send troops."

"We will set up an ambush here and accomplish our goal in one fell swoop."

“It really kills two birds with one stone.”

Li Yi smiled slightly and said:

"Yang Feng is a man without strategy, why should we worry about him?"

"Even if I am not captured by my lord, I should die at the hands of others."

Speaking of which, Yang Feng in history was killed by Liu Bei.

After he was defeated by Cao Cao, he still kept his nature as a thief and made a living by looting everywhere.

As a result, they robbed and ended up in Liu Bei's territory.

Liu Bei directly set up the Hongmen Banquet and beheaded Yang Feng at the banquet, which could be regarded as eliminating harm for the people.

It can be said that it was God's will that Yang Feng fell into Liu Bei's hands again this time.

The two armies were engaged in a melee and Yang Feng could not escape.

Guan Yu and Zhao Yun were both in the army, leading the troops to charge into the battle.

The Baibo army was unable to resist and fled in all directions.

In the melee, Yang Feng was hit by a stray arrow, hitting his left arm.

Yang Feng saw that the arrow was inserted deep into his body and it was extremely painful. The pain was so severe that cold sweat dripped from his forehead.

He then gritted his teeth and stretched out his right hand to pull out the arrow.

Unexpectedly, Guan Gong suddenly arrived and scattered the troops.

Yang Feng was shocked when he saw this and ran away quickly.

Guan Gong raised his sword and slashed it down, chopping off the leader's head and left shoulder which was hit by the arrow, and knocked him off his horse.

All the troops were dispersed, and Liu Bei took advantage of Yun Chang's charge to disrupt the enemy and took advantage of the situation to attack them.

At one time, countless people surrendered.

On the other side, Han Xian heard that Yang Feng had led his troops out, and also wanted to lead his soldiers to rescue.

However, seeing that Liu's army was gaining momentum, he did not dare to engage in battle and could only watch quietly from a distance.

See Liu Bei kill Yang Feng's troops.

Han Xian thought to himself that he was isolated today and with Yang Feng dead, it would be difficult for him to seize the throne.

He then led his troops south and surrendered to Yuan Shu.

Liu Bei withdrew his troops back to the camp and ordered a banquet to celebrate the victory.

Guan Yu brought Xu Huang to see Liu Bei.

Liu Bei was overjoyed and held Xu Huang's hand and said:

"I have been waiting for Commander Xu for a long time. I am lucky enough to see him today. It is a great relief for me."

Liu Bei changed his usual way of expressing intimacy by calling people by their given names.

This time, Xu Huang was deliberately called a captain, because Xu Huang followed Yang Feng and got the title of cavalry captain.

But Yang Feng was a traitor, and even his title as General of Chariots and Cavalry was not recognized by others, let alone Xu Huang?

But Liu Bei still chose to call Xu Huang the captain because he knew that Xu Huang cared about this.

Brother Gongming is eager to be recruited and recognized by the court.

As the Left General of Han, Liu Bei took the lead and set an example by recognizing your position as Cavalry Commander.

Xu Huang immediately returned the favor and said:
"I have long heard that General Liu is respectful to the wise and kind to others, and I have long admired him."

"I have now abandoned the dark and joined the light, and am willing to go through fire and water for you."

As a typical workplace person, Xu Huang expressed his loyalty right from the start and tried to leave a good impression on his new boss.

But this was not the end yet, Xu Huang suddenly lifted his clothes and bowed again.

Liu Bei was startled and quickly reached out to help:
"Why is Gongming like this?"

Xu Huang cupped his hands and said solemnly:

"Although Yang Feng was born into the Baibo bandits, he worked with me after all."

"We have been together for a long time, and I really can't bear to see his body thrown out."

"I beg the general to agree to let Huang lead his men to collect his body and bury it in his hometown."

Although Xu Huang was speaking for his old master, it undoubtedly demonstrated his loyal side.

Liu Bei was also moved and sighed:

"Gongming is a true hero!"

"Although Yang Feng is a thief, he has served the emperor and made contributions to the country."

"It's not far from here to Chen County. I will report to the court to show my achievements."

Xu Huang was overjoyed and thanked Liu Bei repeatedly.

Liu Bei sent the letter back to the imperial court.

Liu Xie did not feel sad after learning that Yang Feng had died in battle.

"Although General Yang is a bit overbearing, he has fought against Liang Ni many times to protect the emperor. He is a loyal minister after all."

"Since I have died in Chen today, I might as well be buried in Chen."

Therefore, Liu Xie issued an edict to bury Yang Feng with great honor and posthumously confer the title of marquis on him.

He also ordered people to recruit Yang Feng's troops.

Among the Baibo army, Yang Feng had the strongest force, with more than 7,000 soldiers.

After being killed by Liu Bei for a while, only four or five thousand were left.

Liu Xie issued an edict to pardon Yang Feng's troops for the crime of looting prefectures and counties.

Everyone was grateful.

In order to recruit these troops, Liu Xie also had to give Liu Bei enough face.

He issued an edict to officially appoint Xu Huang as a colonel.

It can be said that he has completely gotten rid of the identity of a bandit.

Liu Bei was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly.

For him, Xu Gongming alone is enough to defeat thousands of troops.

Not to mention the thousands of bandits?
On this side, Liu Bei happily accepted Xu Huang and planned to continue to implement Li Yi's strategy of going south.

Before setting out, he asked Xu Huang for advice, saying:
"This year, there is a shortage of food. I have recruited many new soldiers in Xuzhou, so there are many more mouths to feed."

"It is not a good idea for soldiers to sit here and guard."

"Gongming, do you have any good advice for me?"

There was nothing wrong with what Liu Bei asked.

In many Three Kingdoms games, Xu Huang's skills are all strategic.

Because among the five best generals, Xu Huang was the one who was best at and most fond of using strategies.

For example, there are countless methods such as persuading surrender, cutting off food supplies, attacking the heart, making a feint to the east and attacking in the west, etc.

Therefore, Brother Gongming is as good as Xu Huang in the Three Kingdoms.

Xu Huang, the newcomer, was also eager to show himself, and immediately suggested:

"The Yellow Turbans looted counties and prefectures everywhere, taking away a lot of gold, silk, and food."

"It is especially prevalent in Runan and Yingchuan."

"These bandits are easy to defeat. Once they are defeated, we can take their food and use it to feed our army."

"This is the best strategy."

Liu Bei was overjoyed and said:
"Gong Ming's words are exactly what the military advisor taught me!"

He then ordered the entire army not to return to Xia Pi for the time being, but to leave Chendi and march towards Runan.

Runan was mainly Yuan Shu's sphere of influence.

The remnants of the Yellow Turbans, led by He Yi, Huang Shao, Liu Pi and others, gathered in Yingchuan and Runan with more than tens of thousands of people.

Although these people were Yellow Turban bandits, they actually sided with Yuan Shu.

That is why people say Runan is Yuan Shu’s territory, because Runan is full of Yellow Turban bandits.

But there is one exception.

That is the Langling area in the western part of Runan. It is the territory of the local tyrant Li Tong, and the Yellow Turban bandits are powerless against him.

As for Yuan Shu and Lu Bu.

They mainly stationed their troops in the Xincai area south of Runan.

If Liu Bei only led his troops to fight the Yellow Turbans in the north of Runan, Yuan Shu and Lu Bu might not notice it.

Even if you notice it, what can you do?

After all, Liu Bei was fighting against bandits around the State of Chen and was suppressing the evil on behalf of the emperor, so he had every right to do so.

Even though the Yellow Turbans of Runan were Yuan Shu's men, Yuan Shu had no choice but to suffer the loss.

Liu Bei's army marched south and stopped at Xinyang.

Ahead was the Ying River, so Liu Bei ordered his men to set up camp first.

He also sent people to inquire who was the leader of the Yellow Turban bandits in the Xinyang area.

Later it was reported that the Yellow Turban bandits in the Xinyang area were He Yi and Huang Shao.

These two were the most powerful among the Yellow Turban bandits in Runan, and each of them was said to have more than 10,000 men under their command.

But Liu Bei did not take these Yellow Turban bandits seriously.

Because although the Yellow Turban Army was called an army, it was actually just a group of poorly trained, under-equipped, and reckless men with nothing but bravery.

Like when Zhang Jue started the uprising, he claimed to have a million Yellow Turban soldiers.

As a result, many people would be lucky to have a piece of coarse cloth to wear, let alone leather armor.

Many people even use branches and sticks as weapons.

No wonder they were chased and beaten by tens of thousands of people when they met the imperial court's regular army later.

A well-equipped and well-trained elite army.

One versus twenty is definitely not a problem.

Li Yi came out to analyze the battle situation:

"The Yellow Turban bandits lack long-range weapons and are mostly single-soldier infantry. We can first deploy the Jue Zhang soldiers to form a battle formation."

"Shoot and hold back their attack, wait until their fighting spirit is completely weakened, and then have Gongming and Zilong lead the cavalry to drive straight in and break up their formation."

"Then the Yellow Turban rebels can be defeated immediately."

Liu Bei followed his advice.

This expedition to Runan was carried out under the pretext of suppressing the Yellow Turban bandits, especially those around the State of Chen.

Chen Wang Liu Chong was very generous and lent Liu Bei 500 soldiers.

These warriors were all very good archers.

Greatly enhanced the long-range firepower output of Liu Bei’s army.

After arranging the battle plan, Liu Bei ordered Guan Yu to lead his troops to attack Xinyang and lure He Yi and Huang Shao to attack.

Someone had already passed on the military report that Liu Bei led his troops to Xinyang to He Yi.

He Yi was surprised:

"These officers and soldiers are really not worthy of being human. The day before yesterday, Liu Pi was defeated by Cao Cao in Yingchuan, and today Liu Bei is leading his troops to capture Xinyang again."

"You don't want to give me a way to survive?"

Huang Shao hurriedly asked Liu Bei how many troops had come.

The number of people reported ranged from five to six thousand to over ten thousand.

In ancient times, information flow was slow and Runan was full of jungles and mountains.

It is difficult to calculate the exact number of enemy troops, we can only give a rough estimate.

"Liu Bei has few soldiers, so he might be able to fight."

Huang Shao analyzed.

But He Yi looked solemn and had a lot on his mind.

"We Yellow Turbans usually engage in looting, so it's OK for us to attack ordinary people."

"If we encounter regular soldiers, it will be difficult to defeat them."

"Besides, I heard that Liu Bei is a military genius, invincible in every battle and every conquest."

"His adviser Li Yi is a man of great talent, capable of managing the country and saving the world. He is a man of great strategy and has made every possible effort."

"Furthermore, they are as brave as Guan and Zhang, and they are both enemies of ten thousand people."

"If you want to defeat Liu Bei, you must have ten times as many troops as him to win."

Huang Shao's face darkened and he scolded:

"How can He Shuai boost others' morale and destroy his own prestige?"

"Liu Bei was just a warrior in the north. He was lucky enough to get such a big province as Xuzhou."

"Now they are still not satisfied, and they have invaded our counties with their troops. They deserve to be punished."

After a pause, he continued:

"Besides, even if Liu Bei is good at using troops, our army is guarding the Ying River, so why should we be afraid?"

"Although Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are brave, it is a waste of their talents to bring them here just to fight against the Yellow Turbans in Runan."

"I don't think he's here."

"As for Li Yi, I heard that he is just a country bumpkin, only a few years old."

"How can a young boy like you talk about strategy?"

"I think he is just a man seeking fame and reputation."

"Why should I be afraid?"

Although Huang Shao was eloquent, he belittled Liu Bei's group as nothing.

But when facing a strong enemy, especially when the enemy is already right in front of you.

All the denigration is nonsense unless Huang Shao can lead his men to defeat Liu Bei's army on his own initiative.

Only after he wins a great victory will everyone believe what he says.

Huang Shao saw that all the generals had serious expressions and said nothing.

I knew that I had to win a game, so I said:

"Forget it, since you are afraid of fighting."

"Tomorrow I will lead an army out of the city to meet Liu Bei."

"See what he can do!"

The next day, early in the morning.

Huang Shao immediately led several thousand soldiers from his own army and marched out of Xinyang to fight Liu Bei.

Although there are many bandits, they are all gangs of scoundrels and have no organized formation.

Thousands of people came to meet them, but there was no formation at all.

……

(End of this chapter)