My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

Chapter 269 We should just blindly listen to Grand Commandant Xiao! King Wei, you can't win soldiers who will fight to the death by being a sycophant!

Southwest of Xinzheng, on the west bank of the Wei River.

On the hillside.

Zhao Yun stood on his horse, spear in hand, gazing at the ferry crossing on the west bank.

Behind them, in the mountains and forests, seven thousand cavalrymen stood silently, their mouths gagged and their horses' hooves wrapped in cloth, like terracotta warriors.

Just yesterday, Xiao He's secret order was delivered to him.

Zhao Yun then took three days' worth of dry rations and seven thousand light cavalry, making a large detour north of Xuchang, and under the cover of night, traveled more than sixty li, arriving at the place ahead of everyone else.

Xu Huang's 40,000 Wei troops will inevitably cross the Wei River here.

This is the ambush site that Xiao He chose for him.

Zhao Yun and his seven thousand iron cavalry had been waiting here for a whole day.

As dusk approached, no Wei soldiers were seen.

"General of Chariots and Cavalry, the Wei army has not appeared yet. Could it be that they have realized this is Grand Commandant Xiao's plan and retreated back to Xuchang halfway?"

Zhang Yan, standing behind him, couldn't help but ask, her voice tinged with worry.

"Grand Commandant Xiao said that if people like Cheng Yu and Jia Xu were in Xuchang, they might be able to detect his strategy of 'besieging Wei to rescue Zhao'."

"Dong Zhao, what Chen Qun said..."

A sneer curled at the corner of Zhao Yun's lips, and he said with unwavering certainty:
"In short, you can rest assured. Since I met Grand Commandant Xiao, his plans have never failed me once."

"Since he predicted that the Wei army would come here to their deaths, we don't need to speculate too much. We just need to wait patiently."

Zhang Yan was startled and suddenly realized what was happening.

He had also developed a remarkable ability, surprisingly even questioning Grand Commandant Xiao's judgment...

Thinking of this, Zhang Yan couldn't help but shake her head and give a self-deprecating smile.

The sound of hooves rang out, and a scout galloped in.

"Reporting to the General of Chariots and Cavalry, a large number of Wei troops, numbering over 40,000, are approaching the ferry on the main road one mile to the south. Their banners bear the character 'Xu'."

Zhang Yan instantly dropped her self-deprecating humor and looked at Zhao Yun with delight:
"General of Chariots and Cavalry, the Wei army has indeed arrived! Grand Commandant Xiao is truly a divine being!"

Zhao Yun, however, was not surprised at all, as if it were a common occurrence, and simply smiled faintly:
“Ziyi, I’ve said it before: we should just do what Grand Commandant Xiao says without thinking too much about it.”

Zhang Yan nodded emphatically and gladly bowed.

"General of Chariots and Cavalry, please give the order!"

Zhao Yun brandished his spear and shouted sternly:
"Pass on my order: the entire army must prepare to attack from behind when the Wei invaders cross the river!"

Zhang Yan readily accepted the order.

The seven thousand Chu cavalrymen were all filled with fervor and their fighting spirit was ignited.

Zhao Yun stood on the hillside, calmly looking south.

really.

Moments later, dust billowed in, and tens of thousands of Wei soldiers marched rapidly along the west bank of the Wei River, quickly arriving at the ferry.

Xu Huang was afraid that if he was too slow, Guan Yu would break into Henan Yin first. He didn't even allow his soldiers to rest and have a hot meal before ordering the Wei soldiers to cross the river.

Xinzheng is not a large city, and the number of ferry boats is limited, with a maximum capacity of only a thousand people crossing the river at a time.

Xu Huang, however, could not afford to waste time. He ordered his soldiers to cross the river using the existing boats while dismantling the materials in the ferry dock and assembling them into simple wooden rafts to cross the river.

For a time, more than 40,000 Wei soldiers crowded into the narrow ferry crossing, working busily and intensely.

Xu Huang and his 40,000 soldiers were completely unaware that countless pairs of cold, sinister eyes were fixed on them from the mountains and forests west of the ferry.

It's like staring at prey that's been delivered right to your mouth...

"The time has come!"

Zhao Yun pointed his spear and shouted sharply:
"All troops, heed my command! Follow me into the ferry crossing and slaughter every last Wei enemy soldier!"

Zhao Yun spurred his horse and brandished his spear, like a bright silver rainbow, and was the first to rush out of the woods.

Zhang Yan, carrying a long sword, followed closely behind.

Seven thousand Chu cavalry, like tigers descending from the mountain, surged out of the forest and swept towards the ferry.

Inside the ferry, the 40,000 Wei soldiers were completely unaware that death was approaching, and they were still crowding on the bank waiting to cross the river.

Although Xu Huang had ordered all the timber in the ferry to be dismantled and tied into simple rafts, it was still not enough.

"General Gongming, this is too slow to cross the river. Before dark, we can only get half of our people across at most."

Xiahou Jie couldn't help but remind him.

Xu Huang stared at the river for a moment, then shouted:
"The timber we have at the ferry is definitely not enough to build rafts. You need to quickly send three thousand people to the nearby mountains and forests to cut down timber for rafts!"

Xiahou Jie immediately accepted the order and turned around to mobilize his troops, preparing to head towards the ferry crossing.

Xu Huang's tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly, and he looked towards Luoyang.

"Guan Yu, I must say, your plan to turn the attack on Luoyang was indeed a brilliant move."

"I wonder whether this plan was devised for you by Xu Yuanzhi or Fa Zheng."

"However, those two were not Xiao He after all. Their plan was not quite right, and we saw through it."

"Who will emerge victorious in the Central Plains remains to be seen..."

Xu Huang muttered to himself, lost in thought, a growing confidence radiating from his brow.

Sudden.

I could faintly hear some kind of subtle disturbance.

His instincts as a top-notch military general made him suddenly alert, and he subconsciously looked towards the ferry crossing.

At the edge of the horizon, a thick cloud of dust seemed to be rushing toward the ferry landing.

The river was calm at the time, and it wasn't a windy day, so why did such a large dust cloud suddenly appear?
Xu Huang gripped his long axe tightly, his nerves tensing, and he stared intently at it.

The next moment, he gasped, his face turning pale with shock.

That was not a cloud of dust stirred up by a strong wind.

Amidst the dust, countless cavalry figures could be vaguely discerned, like ghosts descending from hell, appearing and disappearing indistinctly.

A flag bearing the character "Chu" suddenly came into view.

Chu army cavalry.

Countless Chu cavalrymen, kicking up clouds of dust, charged towards the ferry from behind.

"How can this be?"

Xu Huang's eyes suddenly widened, his expression changing drastically as if he had seen a ghost.

Chu cavalry!

Their numbers were as high as seven or eight thousand. Where did so many Chu cavalry come from?
Could it be that our fears have come true, and Guan Yu's attack on Luoyang was indeed a ploy to lure the snake out of its hole?

When Guan Yu learned that he had sent out his main force, he dispatched cavalry to raid Xinzheng Ferry and ambush him there.

This guess suddenly popped into Xu Huang's mind.

Then I realized that wasn't right.

Guan Yu's Jingzhou army was quite adept at discerning the true nature of the forces, as it was primarily composed of infantry.

But what attacked was seven thousand iron cavalry!
Where would Guan Yu have so many cavalry?
Xu Huang looked at the Chu cavalry with surprise, then frowned:
"Guan Yu couldn't possibly have had that many cavalrymen. He must have hung tree branches behind his horses' tails to create dust and bluff."

"Order the entire army to maintain order and immediately form ranks to repel the enemy!"

Xu Huang quickly calmed down and immediately ordered the rear guard to turn around and head towards the ferry to repel the enemy.

At this moment, the Wei army was in a state of panic upon discovering the Chu cavalry's attack.

Xu Huang, relying on his prestige, managed to calm the unrest in the army and urged the rear guard soldiers to hastily form ranks.

The Chu cavalry arrived too fast, bursting out of the dust and mist in the blink of an eye.

The entire Chu army was now clearly visible.

Xu Huang gasped, his expression turning to one of astonishment.

The Chu army was not a small force, nor did they use any tricks like tying tree branches to horse tails to raise dust.

Seven thousand iron cavalry!

The cavalry that came pressing in like a steel torrent numbered seven thousand!
"So many Chu cavalry?"

"How did Guan Yu suddenly acquire so many cavalrymen overnight?"

"What the hell is going on?"

Xu Huang's mind was buzzing, and countless questions exploded like thunderclaps.

The Wei soldiers, who had hastily formed ranks, suffered another blow to their morale, and their steps began to retreat uncontrollably.

Although the Wei army was numerous, they were caught off guard and did not even have time to form a battle formation.

Moreover, more than half of the Wei army was still crowded on the riverbank waiting to board the boats, and had not yet turned around.

To speed up their march, the Wei army discarded heavy equipment such as shields and spears, and instead carried only a ring-pommel sword for light travel.

Without shields, spears, or guns, how could they possibly withstand an attack of seven thousand iron cavalry in this wilderness?
"General Xu, so many Chu cavalry have suddenly appeared, what should we do?"

Xiahou Jie rushed over and shouted, his voice trembling and hoarse with fear.

Xu Huang had no time to think, so he gritted his teeth and shouted:

"Never mind that! Order the soldiers not to retreat! Fight to the death and resist the enemy!"

"Order the vanguard to cross the river as quickly as possible, as many as they can cross—"

Xu Huang knew very well that under such unfavorable circumstances, the hope of resisting the Chu army's iron cavalry charge was extremely slim.

All he could do was to get his troops across the river as quickly as possible to minimize casualties.

Helpless, Xiahou Jie could only sit and watch the Chu army approach with his sword in hand, filled with unease.

In the blink of an eye, the Chu cavalry had charged more than seventy paces away.

"All troops, listen to my command! Fire!"

"Shoot down the Wei invaders!"

The Chu cavalry, on the march, all drew their bows and nocked arrows, unleashing a whistling rain of arrows.

Arrows, like locusts, soared into the air and swept towards the Wei army.

These seven thousand cavalrymen, with the White Horse Cavalry as their backbone, were all skilled archers and horsemen. How sharp and fierce this volley of arrows they unleashed was!

In an instant, the Wei soldiers, who had no shields to defend themselves, were nailed to the ground in droves.

Screams came and went.

Xu Huang then realized what was happening and hurriedly shouted:

"Where are the archers? Fire! Fire!"

The Wei archers were caught off guard and fired wildly at the onrushing Chu army.

One of the drawbacks of the private army system became apparent at this time.

More than half of the Wei army consisted of servants and retainers from powerful and wealthy families, far inferior to the elite soldiers of Cao Cao's army in the past.

These archers, mostly former servants, were poorly skilled and fired wildly in haste, posing little threat to the Chu army.

The Chu army was unstoppable and had already advanced more than thirty paces.

Faced with such an overwhelming and devastating surge, the already panicked will of the Wei army finally crumbled.

The rout begins.

Another flaw of the private army system also became apparent.

The generals in charge of the army were mostly from powerful families, and their troops were all privately owned. When the battle was going well, they were all brave and fierce, vying for credit.

Currently facing adversity, everyone is focused on preserving the strength of their troops, and no one has the will to fight to the death for their country.

In an instant, about 30% of the local strongmen's private soldiers, without Xu Huang's orders, were the first to retreat and run to the shore.

With the private soldiers retreating, the morale of the hereditary soldiers directly under the Wei court was naturally greatly affected, and they involuntarily collapsed as well.

The 20,000-strong rear guard collapsed without a fight, before the Chu cavalry could even arrive.

"Anyone who dares to retreat will be executed!"

Xu Huang was furious and roared, wielding his great axe to kill several fleeing soldiers.

To no avail.

With morale shattered, no one cared about the general's orders anymore; they all only cared about making their way to safety.

Looking at his own army in disarray, Xu Huang was filled with sorrow and sighed to the heavens:

"King Wei, King Wei, do you see this? You have devoted yourself to employing powerful and influential families, so why would they be willing to fight to the death for you?"

Just as Xu Huang cried out in grief and anger, the Chu army's iron cavalry surged forward.

Zhao Yun, like an invincible sword, was the first to pierce into the collapsing Wei formation.

Guns rang out and fell, guns rang out and fell...

Along the way, Wei soldiers were slaughtered like weeds, their lives reaped in droves.

With a sweep of his blood-red eyes, he locked onto Xu Huang, who was crying out in anguish beneath the general's banner.

"Xu Huang, prepare to die—"

With a fierce roar, Zhao Yun spurred his horse, spear in hand, and charged straight at Xu Huang.

(End of this chapter)