Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 404 The army besieges Xindu, Gao Lan begs for surrender.

As dusk fell, the evening glow painted the sky outside Xindu City.

Five thousand soldiers lined up along the road, their banners fluttering in the evening breeze. From a distance, they appeared as a dark, imposing mass, exuding a chilling aura of men and horses.

"Report!"

A scout galloped up and reported, "Gao Lan's troops are only twenty li away!"

Xu Huang looked at Zhao Yun and said, "Thank you for your trouble, Zilong!"

Zhao Yun nodded, cupped his hands in greeting to Xu You, and said, "Lord Xu, are you ready to depart?"

"Can!"

Although Xu You was unwilling, he dared not refuse now.

A short while later, Zhao Yun led several riders, carrying command flags, to escort Xu You forward. All of them were dressed in white and only carried ring-handled swords.

More than ten miles away, they saw Gao Lan directing his cavalry into formation and leading his troops slowly forward. They were traveling in the opposite direction from Zhao Yun. Not long after they came across Yuan's army, Zhao Yun sent a messenger to inform them that Xu You was requesting an audience with Gao Lan.

"Xu You wants to see me?"

Gao Lan's expression changed slightly, and he asked in return.

"Exactly!"

Deputy General Ma Yan said, "According to reports from scouts, flags are flying all over the city walls of Xindu, and a large army is arrayed outside the city. The troops are strong and powerful, and they are the elite troops from Shanxi."

As he spoke, Ma Yan whispered a reminder: "General, Xu You has defected from Zhang Yu and has come to meet with you today. I'm afraid he wants to persuade you to surrender."

Gao Lan, with his hand on the reins, hesitated for a moment and said, "Now that Xindu has fallen and we have led our troops here, we should first see Xu You and inquire about the safety of his family."

Seeing that Gao Lanyi wanted to inquire about the safety of his family, Ma Yan nodded and said, "Then General, go and return quickly."

"good!"

As night fell, Gao Lan, accompanied by a trusted aide, rode forward and stopped ten paces away from Xu You.

“I have little connection with Mr. Xu. Why has he invited me to come forward today?” Gao Lan asked loudly.

Xu You smiled and said, "General, you possess military talent and are a renowned general in Hebei, yet Yuan Shao fails to value you. Now that Shen Pei has been beheaded and Xindu has been captured by the Grand General, the various counties of Hebei will soon surrender. Yuan Shao's fate is sealed; why must you die for him?"

Gao Lan narrowed his eyes and asked, "Lord Yuan has treated you well, how can you betray him?"

Xu You snorted coldly and said, "My surrender to the Grand General is not of my own volition, but rather forced by Yuan Shao. I have followed Yuan Shao for ten years, helping him to take control of Ji Province and sweep across four provinces. However, he first heavily relied on officials such as Shen Pei, Ju Shou, and Tian Feng, while only granting me honorary titles. Later, he heavily relied on Shen Pei, imprisoning my wife, children, and family, intending to punish me."

"General Gao, have you ever treated Yuan Shao with great kindness?"

As he spoke, Xu You cupped his hands to the east and said, "If it weren't for the General's surprise attack on Xindu and his rescue of my family from prison, my wife and children would probably be dead at the hands of Shen Pei. As a father, I cannot even protect my own flesh and blood. How can you, General Gao, say that Yuan Shao has treated me well!"

Gao Lan had assumed that Xu You had defected without cause, but he never expected there to be such a secret story behind it. He was speechless.

Xu You seized the opportunity to continue, saying, "Yuan Shao is indecisive and cold-hearted. Tian Feng has followed him for many years and has repeatedly devised strategies to defeat Gongsun Zan, but now Tian Feng has been imprisoned. Yuan Shao's power is waning. Although he holds the coastal lands, he has enfeoffed his sons and favors his youngest son, which will inevitably lead to chaos sooner or later. General, your family is in Xindu. Why not surrender your army and gain the General's favor?"

Gao Lan was not a die-hard loyalist to Yuan Shao, but after hearing Xu You's words, he suddenly hesitated.

After all, in his eyes, Zhang Yu's conquest of Xindu not only resulted in the capture of his own family, but also of Yuan Shao and his sons' wives and children. Apart from these factors, Zhang Yu consistently held the upper hand in the overall battlefield situation, essentially dominating Yuan Shao.

Perhaps Zhang Yu really can unify the world!
While Gao Lan was pondering, Zhao Yun suddenly spoke up, saying, "A ruler chooses his ministers, and a minister chooses his ruler. Since the General has entered Xindu, he has not committed any offenses. The General's mother is still alive, so the General should personally visit her to appease her fears."

Gao Lan's attention was drawn to Zhao Yun, and seeing Zhao Yun's extraordinary bearing, he said, "Please convey my thanks to the General!"

Zhao Yun took out the letter from his bosom, stepped forward and handed it to Gao Lan, and said with a smile, "When it comes to expressing gratitude, there is no need to trouble someone else to do it on your behalf."

"The general's name resounds throughout Hebei, and the Grand General has praised him greatly. Therefore, he has specially ordered me and Mr. Xu to persuade the general to surrender."

Gao Lan opened the handkerchief and saw that it was written to his elderly mother. The letter expressed his longing for her and mentioned that the Bing army had not harmed her in the slightest and that Zhang Yu had treated her with respect. It also advised Gao Lan to be sensible and act accordingly.

With this letter, Gao Lan's hesitant heart finally sided with Zhang Yu.

After putting away the letter, Gao Lan bowed to Xu You and Zhao Yun, exhaled, and said, "Lord Yuan Shao is fickle in temperament, indecisive, and slow to act; he is not suitable to work with on grand plans. Lord Zhang acts swiftly and decisively, his military strategy is like that of a ghost or god, and his temperament is open and generous, much like the two ancestral emperors, Gao and Shi. I admire him greatly. Now that Lord Zhang does not despise my humble appearance, I am willing to lead my troops to surrender to the Great General."

Xu You intended to offer words of comfort, but seeing Zhao Yun step forward to soothe him first, he felt displeased.

After Gao Lan returned to his army, he spoke with Ma Yan and his generals. They were all worried about the safety of their families, so they listened to Gao Lan's advice and led three thousand cavalrymen to surrender to Zhang Yu.

Night had fallen when Gao Lan and his generals arrived at the front of the battle formation. They saw the infantry of the Bing Army arrayed on the left and right, clearing a path a hundred paces wide. On either side, fierce warriors, armed with spears and clad in armor, held torches and raised flags. Looking along the path, they saw Zhang Yu and his generals standing at the far end, waiting for Gao Lan and his generals to approach.

The group exchanged glances, and although they were somewhat intimidated by the imposing and robust cavalry, they boldly stepped inside under Gao Lan's leadership.

About halfway through, Zhang Yu said to his men, “Now that Gao Lan has led his elite troops to surrender to us, we have no choice but to welcome him.”

So Zhang Yu, with his hand on his sword, strode forward first, followed by Xu Huang, Xu Chu, Ma Dai, Yan Xing, and other generals, their faces solemn, following closely behind.

"Gao Lan, the surrendered general, pays his respects!" Gao Lan removed his helmet and led his men to kneel on one knee.

Seeing this, Zhang Yu laughed a few times, quickly stepped forward, helped Gao Lan up, and said, "I have long heard of Dingyuan's (Gao Lan's courtesy name) reputation, so today you have led three thousand elite troops here, while I have led six thousand soldiers to meet you, fearing that we are no match for Dingyuan!"

As he spoke, Zhang Yu reached out and helped up the generals who followed him up, laughing loudly, "Your coming to join us is like Ma Yuan returning to Han, or Han Xin leaving Xiang Yu."

"Dingyuan may temporarily assume the position of Lieutenant General, and will be appointed Marquis of Duting. The rest of you will all receive titles and rewards."

Gao Lan was overjoyed and declared, "If Your Majesty does not despise me, I am willing to serve Your Majesty with utmost loyalty and devotion."

"good!"

Looking at the joyful generals who had surrendered, Zhang Yu let out another hearty laugh.

Zhang Yu had too many talented generals under his command, and Gao Lan alone was actually dispensable to Zhang Yu. However, Zhang Yu valued the significance of Gao Lan's surrender and the defection of three thousand elite cavalry.

Gao Lan's surrender can be seen as the beginning of the collapse of Yuan Shao's Hebei troops after Xindu was captured, and he would lead more and more people to Zhang Yu's side. The three thousand elite cavalry were cavalrymen trained by Yuan Shao himself. It should be noted that Yuan Shao only had more than ten thousand cavalrymen. The surrender of the three thousand elite cavalrymen was undoubtedly a heavy blow to Yuan Shao.

"My lord, good news has arrived from the city!"

While Zhang Yu was pacifying the generals, a scout arrived on horseback with news.

"speak!"

The scout reported truthfully: "According to General Pang's report, Shen Pei led his troops out of the inner city. General Pang led his troops to surround and attack, and greatly defeated Shen Pei's forces. Now Shen Pei has led his remaining troops back into the city. His troops suffered heavy losses, with only a few hundred surviving."

"it is good!"

Zhang Yu smiled and nodded, saying, "Although we failed to capture the city in one fell swoop, we have dealt a heavy blow to Shen Pei. Tomorrow, the whole army will gather firewood and set fire to the south gate."

"As ordered!"

Before Gao Lan arrived, Zhang Yu planned to use fire to burn down the inner city gates and enter the city. However, after Gao Lan arrived, Zhang Yu decisively changed his plan, sending the captured Shen Rong back with a message that Gao Lan had led a large army to the outside of the city, in order to lure Shen Pei out of the city to join him. Meanwhile, Pang De was secretly lying in wait to severely injure Shen Pei and see if they could capture the inner city.

Zhang Yu's words of persuasion to Gao Lan stemmed from his knowledge of history from his previous life. He believed that if Gao Lan had surrendered to Cao Cao at Guandu, there was no reason for him not to surrender to someone with a greater advantage. Furthermore, Zhang Yu employed deception, using the inner city's location within the main city to trick Gao Lan into surrendering.

As for why Shen Rong helped him but not Shen Pei, the reason is quite simple: Zhang Yu had captured his family and promised to give Shen Rong an official position afterward, so Shen Rong betrayed Shen Pei.

Now that he knew Zhang Yu had not only failed to breach the inner city, but Shen Pei was still holding out, Gao Lan couldn't help but show a look of astonishment on his face.

"All warfare is based on deception. Now that I have captured Dingyuan, the inner city can be taken, and Xindu can be secured!" Zhang Yu laughed.

Gao Lan gave a wry smile and said, "Your Majesty's military strategy is divine, and your feints and real attacks are unpredictable. I am completely convinced!"

"Ha ha!"

Perhaps it was because of the series of good news, Zhang Yu couldn't help but laugh again and said, "Dingyuan, you can come into the city with me. I have some important matters to consult with you."

As he spoke, Zhang Yu looked at Ma Yan and said, "I have already set up camp. You may follow General Xu to the camp and we will enter the city later for a banquet."

"As ordered!"

Upon seeing that Zhang Yu remembered him, Ma Yan excitedly responded.

On the way back to the city, Xu You, who was accompanying the troops, advised, "The families of Yuan Shao's civil and military officials are all in your hands, my lord. Now Gao Lan has surrendered because of this. Therefore, my lord might as well send envoys to persuade Generals Zhang He and Jiang Qi to surrender. If the two can surrender, my lord can not only join forces with the troops of Changshan, but also inflict another heavy blow on Yuan Shao's army, causing the soldiers of Hebei to surrender at the mere mention of his name, and also making Yuan Shao suspicious of his subordinates."

Zhang Yu nodded and smiled, "Ziyuan's plan is excellent. We can proceed according to your wishes."

After walking a few steps, Zhang Yu remembered something, looked at Xu Chu, and said with a smile, "If there are any loyal men in the city who are devoted to Yuan Shao, you may let them all go and join Yuan Shao."

"Ok?"

Xu Chu scratched his head and asked, "Since these people are loyal to Yuan Shao, they are your enemies. If we let them defect to Yuan Shao, wouldn't that be like raising a tiger to cause trouble?"

Seeing that Xu Chu was unaware of the deeper meaning, Zhang Yu laughed and said, "Zhongkang only knows the disadvantages, but not the advantages. Letting the righteous men flee to Yuan Shao will surely let the entire army know about the changes in Xindu, and it will also let everyone know that I treat everyone's families well. At that time, the enemy will have no will to fight and will scatter and flee, and Yuan Shao will be powerless!"

"So, is it worth it to spare the lives of a few, or even dozens, people in exchange for causing chaos in Yuan Shao's army?"

"Worth it!"

"Worth it!"

Xu Chu responded immediately, laughing, "According to your strategy, my army will be able to defeat Yuan Shao without shedding a drop of blood."

"Enter the city first!"

Zhang Yu greeted his generals with a smile and said, "You have all been traveling for several days and are exhausted. Now you can rest well!"

P.S.: The long-overdue third update is finally here!

(End of this chapter)