Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 476 A Forced Surrender
"Before the expedition, I repeatedly instructed you to be careful in your military operations and not to be greedy for merit."

Inside the main tent, Yuan Shu, with his protruding belly, paced back and said angrily, "However, you disobeyed military orders, fell for the enemy's feigned defeat, causing the army to suffer a crushing defeat and ruining one of my generals."

"Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

Zhang Xun knelt on the ground and pleaded, "I know that the Tang army is invading and intends to achieve merit, demoralize the enemy, and enhance the prestige of our army. When we first defeated the enemy, I wanted to observe the enemy general's strengths and weaknesses, but Zu Lang charged ahead and disregarded our orders, so I had no choice but to lead my troops to support him."

"When the enemy ambushes, Zulang is at the forefront and is surrounded by most of the Tang army. It is difficult for me to come to his aid. In order to preserve my troops, I have no choice but to lead them to retreat quickly."

Yuan Shu was dissatisfied with Zhang Xun's attempt to shirk responsibility and loudly asked his men, "Zhang Xun fell into a trap and suffered a defeat. According to the law, what should be done with him?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xun hurriedly winked at Cai Mao, hoping that Cai Mao could save him.

Having accepted Zhang Xun's gold and silver, Cai Mao naturally spoke up for Zhang Xun, so he appeased him, saying, "Your Majesty, we are currently engaged in battle with Zhang Yu. The Tang soldiers are fierce and we are in dire need of capable men. General Zhang is both brave and resourceful. Your Majesty would be better to temporarily pardon him and allow him to atone for his crimes through meritorious service."

Zhang Xun kowtowed repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty, although I was defeated by the Northern bandits, I now know their military tactics and may be able to help Your Majesty defeat them."

Zhang Xun was a loyal follower of Yuan Shu, and now that he had suffered a defeat and made a mistake, Yuan Shu, though furious, had no intention of killing him. Now that he had a way out, Yuan Shu, with a cold face and panting, sat back down on the couch and said, "What strategy do you have to defeat the enemy? Speak quickly!"

“Your Majesty,” Zhang Xun said, “our Danyang troops are strong and fierce, not weaker than the enemy’s infantry. Only the northern cavalry are elite and fierce, which is incomparable to our southern cavalry. Therefore, if we engage the enemy, we should look for an opportunity to suppress their cavalry and prevent them from maneuvering. At that time, our army will use the Danyang infantry as the vanguard and surround them with heavy troops, and we will surely win.”

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shu took a sip of honey water and said irritably, "The northern cavalry are elite and fierce, how could I not know that? Do you need to tell me!"

Then Yuan Shu asked, "Do you have a strategy to stop the cavalry?"

Zhang Xun said, “I have heard that the northern cavalry can break through enemy lines by driving their horses into the enemy formation. If we are to engage the enemy now, we should advance with deer antlers. With deer antlers on the outside and long spears on the inside, we can block the horses outside the formation. If we want to stop the cavalry, we can either set up a formation in a narrow place or move the enemy cavalry far away.”

Yuan Shu's expression softened, and he gestured for Zhang Xun to stand up, saying, "The antler tactic can be used, but it doesn't address the root cause. If we can lure away the enemy cavalry, it would be a viable strategy. However, figuring out how to lure away the enemy cavalry is the real challenge."

"Your Majesty, why be so fixated on the enemy cavalry?"

Yan Xiang bowed and said, "Our army has more soldiers but fewer cavalry, while the enemy has more elite soldiers and more cavalry. If the two armies are to fight in formation, our army can also defeat the enemy if we can find the enemy soldiers' mistakes."

"What do you mean?" Yuan Shu asked.

Yan Xiang said, “Yuan Xi is in Yanzhou, Yuan Shang is in Qingzhou, and Yuan Tan serves the northerners. However, if something happens in Qingzhou, Zhang Yu will likely send troops eastward to relieve the danger on the coast. At that time, Zhang Yu’s forces will be scattered, while our forces will be twice as strong, which will be our hope for victory.”

Yuan Shu nodded and said, "Yuan Tan has written a letter expressing his remorse. If he can unite with Yuan Shang, not only will Qingzhou be safe, but the Central Plains will also belong to our Yuan family. If Yuan Tan can turn against us this time, we may be able to defeat Zhang Yu."

In order to gain Yuan Shu's support, when Yuan Shu wrote to Yuan Tan urging him to defect, Yuan Tan had already contacted Yuan Shu, expressing his regret for joining Zhang Yu and that he would find an opportunity to betray Zhang Yu.

"Your Majesty, General Zhang was defeated by Zhang Yu, and our army has no vanguard to lead the way. Now, we do not know who to send as general to clear the path for the army?" Ji Ling asked, bowing.

"Who is willing to serve as the vanguard, to arrive at Fuman's camp first, and to clear the way for the army?" Yuan Shu asked.

Seeing this, and with Zhang Xun as a cautionary tale, the generals hesitated, pushing and shoving, unwilling to take the lead, fearing a formidable enemy. However, not all the generals were cowardly. As Yuan Shu's general, Huang Zhong was the first to step forward.

"Your Majesty, I am willing to lead the troops north and serve as the vanguard of the army," Huang Zhong said solemnly.

"color!"

Yuan Shu cheered and ordered, "Zhang Xun, you have now fled back to camp in defeat, and you should atone for your crimes with meritorious service. I hereby appoint you as my deputy general, with Huang Zhong as the commander-in-chief, to head north to build a fortified camp to support Man, and to be wary of harassment from the northern cavalry."

"Yes, sir!" The two men accepted the order and withdrew.

Having learned from his experience, Zhang Xun and Huang Zhong headed north to build a fortified camp. Yuan Shu, fearing the return of Zhang Yu's troops, led his army in pursuit.

When Zhang Xun and Huang Zhong marched north to build their camp, Zhang Yu learned of this and ordered Ke Bi to lead his troops south. However, due to the close proximity of Chen's various units, Huang Zhong's personal command of the cavalry, Zhang Xun's steady construction of the camp, and Yuan Shu's large army in the rear, Ke Bi only managed to plunder some soldiers before returning.

On September 8th, Yuan Shu led a large army to Fuman and built his camp on the west bank of the Honggou Canal, facing Zhang Yu across the canal. The two were less than fifty li apart.

On September 9th, Zhang Yu wrote a letter to Yuan Shu, inviting him to a decisive battle.

"Ah!"

Yuan Shu sneered, showing Zhang Yu's letter to his subordinates, and said, "Zhang Yu's letter is arrogant, truly intended to provoke me into sending troops. However, the reason Zhang Yu dares to challenge me to a decisive battle is simply to borrow the strength of his elite cavalry." "Your Majesty," Han Hao said, "we must not grant Zhang Yu's wish. Zhang Yu's desire for battle must have a reason, or perhaps he has a sure chance of victory. Therefore, our army should hold it." He added, "We should also send a messenger to Yongqiu to strengthen Zhang Chao's resolve to defend the city."

"We agree with Han Qing's opinion!"

Yuan Shu asked his men, "Zhang Yu has a large number of cavalry; how can we defeat him?"

"Your Majesty should first hold the fortified camp and observe whether Yuan Tan will raise his troops and return to the right path. If Yuan Tan changes his mind, Zhang Yu will surely react accordingly," Yan Xiang said.

Yuan Shu pondered for a moment and said, "I am worried that Shouzhang cannot be defended for long, and I am also worried that although Yuan Tan is willing to return to the right path, he still cannot coexist with Yuan Shang."

Then, Yuan Shu looked at Kuai Yue and asked, "What are your thoughts?"

Kuai Yue stroked his beard and pondered deeply, then said, “I have heard that Zu Lang has submitted to Zhang Yu. In the past, Your Majesty treated Zu Lang with great kindness, bestowing upon him money and granting him an official position, which enabled him to serve Your Majesty. Now, should we send a spy to contact Zu Lang and tell him that Your Majesty has put aside past grievances and persuades Zu Lang to serve Your Majesty again, and also to have Zu Lang report on military intelligence and investigate the strengths and weaknesses of the Tang army?”

"Persuading Zulang to return to righteousness is a brilliant plan."

Yuan Shu seemed to be thinking about something, and said, "Zu Lang's family is in the south. His current allegiance to Zhang Yu is a last resort."

"Someone, bring my letter to Zu Lang!"

"promise!"

That night, Yuan Shu sent clever scouts to infiltrate the Tang camp and find Zu Lang's tent.

Since Zhang Yu accepted Zu Lang's surrender, he granted Zu Lang the right to command his former troops and the qualification to establish his own independent camp. Zu Lang's camp is now located on the outskirts, making it very easy for Chen scouts to find him.

The lamplight flickered, and suddenly someone opened the tent curtain, startling Zu Lang inside.

"Who is coming?"

"General Zu, I am a man from Chen!" the scout said hastily, fearing that Zu Lang would alert too many people.

Zu Lang frowned as he sized up the scout, unsure whether it was Zhang Yu testing him or a genuine scout from the State of Chen.

“I now submit to the Tang Dynasty, you should leave immediately,” Zu Lang said, sitting up straight.

"How can the general be so heartless as to forget the great kindness His Majesty has shown him?"

The scout was unwilling to leave and said, "If the general doesn't believe me, he might as well read His Majesty's letter first."

As he spoke, the scout handed the letter to Zulang.

Zu Lang accepted the letter with some skepticism, hesitated for a moment, and then opened it. The letter was written in Yuan Shu's own handwriting, detailing how Yuan Shu had treated Zu Lang so well. To win Zu Lang's favor, Yuan Shu even claimed that when they learned of Zu Lang's defection to the Tang Dynasty, everyone wanted to kill Zu Lang's wife and children, but he alone trusted Zu Lang and knew he wouldn't betray him.

Seeing that Zu Lang remained silent, the scout seized the opportunity to say, "His Majesty values ​​the general highly. How can the general surrender to Zhang Yu now that he has been captured?"

Zulang was now certain that the person before him was genuine, but he didn't know how to answer, so he could only sigh.

After hesitating for a long time, Zu Lang said, "Your Majesty trusts me deeply, how could I forget Your Majesty? My surrender to Zhang Yu today is exactly as Your Majesty said, I was defeated and captured and had no choice but to surrender to Tang. Since Your Majesty has come to invite me, I will do my best to repay Your Majesty."

"good!"

The scout was overjoyed and said, "His Majesty has not yet issued any decrees, but only wishes to have the general relay military intelligence. If there is any emergency, I will come to find the general."

Zu Lang nodded and said, "Your Majesty, if we were to fight Zhang Yu, I would be willing to raise my troops and defect to his side."

"I will remember this!"

Seeing that Zulang cooperated without needing to say much, the scout was overjoyed. He said a few words and then emerged from the darkness.

(End of this chapter)