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

Xiao He has made his hand out in the open.

The national strength of my Great Chu is now far superior to that of your pseudo-Wei.

I have stronger cavalry than you, more infantry than you, and I'm too lazy to use any tricks or schemes. I'll just go straight for you and fight you head-on. What can you do about it?
Xiao He ignited Liu Bei's arrogance, and he waved his hand domineeringly:

"Alright, let's follow Bowen's plan and have Zilong lead the cavalry to deal with the Wei's border cavalry."

"Let the lone commander lead the army and first crush Cao Cao's outposts!"

...

The next day, it was just before dawn.

Within the ten-mile-long Chu camp, smoke rose from cooking fires, and the aroma of food filled the air.

The hundreds of thousands of Chu soldiers enjoyed a hearty breakfast of rice and meat, and were all in high spirits and full of energy.

As the sun rose in the east, the soldiers, already clad in armor and armed, stood in rows within the camp.

In a short while, the once quiet camp suddenly became agitated.

Under the awe-inspiring gazes of the army, Liu Bei, clad in golden armor and with a double-edged sword at his waist, slowly approached from the direction of the central command tent.

His gaze was fixed on the distant city of Liyang, his eyes filled with an arrogant disdain for the world.

All the soldiers turned their heads and bowed, not daring to look up.

Liu Bei reined in his horse at the camp gate and glanced around at his generals and soldiers.

As far as the eye could see, there were rows of armored soldiers, battle flags like waves, and swords and spears like a forest... The high morale made the world change color.

The morale of the army is high!
Liu Bei nodded in satisfaction and pointed his whip forward:
"Order all troops to crush Cao Cao's right flank in one fell swoop!"

The horn sounded.

The camp gates slowly opened, and tens of thousands of Chu soldiers poured out of the camp like a tide, gathering towards the western wing of Ye City.

Before noon, 100,000 Chu troops, like rivers flowing into the sea, had already arrayed themselves in front of the right camp of the Wei state.

The city wall of the west gate of Ye City.

Upon hearing the news, Cao Cao, supported by Xu Chu and leaning on a cane, ascended the West Gate to watch the battle.

At a glance, the Chu army stretched as far as the eye could see, its might blotting out the sky and making the world tremble with fear.

A chill ran through Cao Cao's feet, and he unconsciously tightened his grip on his cane.

"Your Majesty, judging from the Chu army's formation, they must be planning a strong attack on my right camp to eliminate my left and right arms in Ye City!"

Sima Yi, standing behind them, revealed the Chu army's intentions, his voice equally solemn.

Cao Cao looked down at the right camp, his gaze landing on the banner bearing the character "Sun," and a hint of helplessness and worry appeared between his brows.

The commander of the right flank was Sun Li, and the deputy commander was Chen Qun's son, Chen Tai.

Compared to deceased military generals like Yue Jin and Li Dian, these two can be considered part of the younger generation. While they possess talent, they are severely lacking in experience.

In a crucial battle like this, a veteran general of Yue Jin's caliber should have been entrusted with the important task of guarding the right flank.

Unfortunately, over the past decade or so, most of Cao Cao's veteran generals have perished, and at this moment, Cao Cao only has Zhang He left as a pillar of the army.

Zhang He still had to hold Ye City, so the commander of the right wing could only be promoted to a younger generation like Sun Li and Chen Tai.

Cao Cao was feeling guilty.

But this was the only option; things had come to this point, and we had no choice but to bite the bullet and let these young people take on the main responsibility.

"Sun Li, Chen Tai, the first battle of the defense of Ye City depends on you two."

"You all must hold on for me, don't let me down..."

Cao Cao gripped his cane tightly, silently praying in his heart.

Wei Army Right Battalion.

Sun Li and Chen Tai stood side by side on their horses, their cold gazes fixed on the approaching Chu army outside the city.

Sun Li frowned deeply and remained silent.

A hint of hatred ignited in Chen Tai's eyes.

How could he not remember how his father, Chen Qun, died?

He was executed on Liu Bei's orders and died under the swords of the Chu army.

The hatred for killing one's father is irreconcilable.

"Liu Bei, as long as I, Chen Tai, am alive, you will never destroy Wei, never!"

As he watched the Chu army rolling in, Chen Tai gritted his teeth in anger.

The Chu army formation.

Under the banner of the King of Chu, Liu Bei raised his whip and shouted sharply:
"Beat the drums! All troops, attack!"

"Within one hour, I will raze the Wei camp to the ground!"

The command flag waved, and the king's decree was issued.

"Boom-boom-boom!"

The thunderous sound of war drums suddenly rang out.

The Chu army soldiers' fighting spirit boiled over in an instant.

Zhang Liao, Gan Ning, Guan Xing, Zhang Bao, and other generals of the Chu army led their troops in a massive, sweeping attack on the enemy camp.

Hundreds of troops, large and small, advanced towards the enemy camp along a battle line stretching for hundreds of paces.

Inside the Wei camp.

Sun Li's eyes were like iron. When he saw the Chu army within an arrow's reach, he immediately drew his sword and ordered the arrows to be fired.

Almost simultaneously, countless arrows rose from the Chu army formation and attacked the Wei camp.

The arrows from both armies, as dense as locusts, instantly wove a net of fire in the sky above the Wei camp.

Everyone's ears were filled with a sharp, piercing sound as if something was cutting through the air.

The next instant, the rain of arrows fell to the ground.

Screams suddenly rang out, and blood stained the sky above both armies.

The screams from Wei's camp were clearly more frequent.

There's nothing we can do; this is simply a matter of overwhelming force.

The Chu army that attacked the Wei camp numbered a full 100,000, including more than 15,000 archers.

The total number of Wei soldiers holding the Wei camp was no more than 20,000, with no more than 2,000 archers.

An eightfold difference in the number of arrows!
The Wei army is going to take their heads?

After a volley of arrows, countless Wei soldiers were killed or wounded.

Immediately afterwards, a second and third wave of arrows rained down from the sky.

With their numerical superiority, the Chu army easily suppressed the Wei army's ranged firepower, forcing the Wei archers to keep their heads down. Helpless, Sun Li had no choice but to order a halt to the firing of arrows to avoid casualties, and the archers all raised their shields to take cover.

Taking advantage of their bows and crossbows, the Chu army approached the outer perimeter of the Wei camp with ease and without any pressure.

The sound of the war drums suddenly quickened.

Suddenly, the 100,000 Chu troops accelerated and charged forward like a tidal wave, with the force of an avalanche, towards the Wei camp.

Gan Ning led 10,000 elite troops and was the first to rush to the Wei camp's trenches.

Tens of thousands of soldiers, each carrying a sandbag, quickly threw it into the trench.

The trench, which was over ten feet deep, was filled in in an instant.

The Chu army trod across the trenches as if walking on flat ground, their large shields crashing into the enemy camp walls.

"Kakaka!"

A cracking sound suddenly rang out.

The palisade, stretching for over a hundred paces, immediately tilted and teetered on the brink of collapse.

Sun Guan frowned, spurred his horse forward, drew his sword, and shouted sharply:

"Hold the fortified walls! We cannot allow the Chu invaders to breach them!"

The Wei soldiers, with their swords and shields, had no choice but to bravely charge forward, using their large shields to hold up the palisade.

Chen Tai brandished his silver spear and shouted:

"Archers, stop hiding! Shoot down the Chu invaders!"

The two armies were already engaged in close combat, and the archers in the rear of the Chu army dared not fire arrows indiscriminately for fear of accidentally injuring Chu soldiers.

With the pressure on the Wei army greatly reduced, the archers immediately stood up and began firing arrows at the Chu army outside the camp.

Screams rose and fell as the advancing Chu soldiers were nailed to the ground in droves.

They charged forward relentlessly, fearless, still vying to be the first to reach the camp wall.

At this time.

The spearmen in the rear followed closely behind, their spears and halberds piercing through the gaps in the fence and thrusting towards the Wei army.

Upon seeing this, Sun Li immediately ordered his own spearmen to step forward and thrust their spears at the Chu army.

The two sides then engaged in fierce attack and defense along the camp wall.

Spearmen stabbed each other, while swordsmen and shieldmen rammed each other with their shields and hacked at the camp with their broadswords…

The archers in the back row kept shooting arrows at the enemy.

The Chu army's numerical superiority became apparent at this time.

With a troop strength advantage of nearly five times, and superior combat power and morale, how could the Wei army possibly resist?

After half an hour of attack and defense, the Wei camp had several sections of its walls breached.

Sun Li and Chen Tai had to use their personal guards to barely manage to plug the breach.

"General Sun, this cannot continue. We are afraid that we will not be able to defend the right camp on our own. We must ask the King for help!"

Chen Tai wiped the blood from his face and gasped for breath as he cried out.

Sun Li glanced at the situation again and made a decisive decision, ordering that a flag for requesting help be raised in the camp.

On the West Gate tower.

Cao Cao had a clear view of the battle situation in the right flank, and his palms were sweating with anxiety.

When the distress flag was raised in the right wing of the camp, Cao Cao's heart sank.

"It's only been less than an hour, and Sun Li and his men have already lost the hold?"

Cao Cao tapped his cane on the ground, gritting his teeth inwardly.

Beside him, Sima Yi cupped his hands and said:

"Your Majesty, if the right flank is lost, our Ye City will be crippled. We absolutely cannot afford to lose it so easily."

"I believe that Your Majesty could send an army out of the west gate, pretending to rescue the right camp, while ordering General Zhang to lead all the cavalry out of the north gate, circling around to the rear of the Chu army and catching them off guard!"

Cao Cao's eyes lit up, and he immediately adopted Sima Yi's plan, ordering Li Tong to lead 7,000 troops to feign an attack from the west gate.

Zhang He then led the remaining 1,500 cavalrymen out of the city through the north gate, bypassing the right camp to outflank the Chu army from the rear.

Two Wei armies were dispatched one after the other.

The central army of Chu.

Liu Bei held up a telescope, observing the enemy's situation from afar.

His attention was not focused on the right camp in front of him, but on the direction of Ye City.

Our army has the upper hand in the current battle, and breaking through Wei's camp is a foregone conclusion; it's just a matter of time.

Cao Cao would not sit idly by and watch the right camp fall; he would naturally take action. The changes in Ye City would be the key to the outcome of this battle.

really.

Looking through the telescope, Liu Bei saw a cloud of dust rising in the direction of the west gate of Ye City, with soldiers' flags fluttering in the wind. It was clear that Cao Cao had sent troops to reinforce the right camp.

"Hao Bodao, listen to my command! I order you to lead 10,000 troops to attack the west gate of Ye City and hold off Cao Cao's reinforcements!"

Liu Bei pointed his whip eastward and gave a stern order.

Upon receiving the order, Hao Zhao immediately led 10,000 troops away in a rolling procession.

"Your Majesty, I believe that the Wei army's reinforcements will not be limited to the route from Ximen!"

Xiao pointed his whip northward and said unhurriedly:
"That traitor Cao should know that our army has an absolute advantage in strength and has enough troops to block him from sending reinforcements to the right camp. Why would he still follow the established procedure and send troops from the west gate to reinforce?"

"The only way to save the right wing is to launch a surprise attack."

"I predict that he will send out his remaining cavalry from the north gate, bypass the right camp, and outflank our army from the rear, so as to catch us off guard!"

Liu Bei suddenly realized, nodded in agreement, and then said:

"Deng Shizai, listen to my command! I order you to lead all my cavalry to outflank the Wei camp from the rear. If Cao Cao dares to send cavalry out of the city, we will immediately launch a fierce attack!"

Like Cao Cao, Liu Bei kept a backup plan.

Cao Cao left 1,500 cavalrymen in Ye City as a reserve force to be used as a surprise attack.

On Xiao He's advice, Liu Bei did not send all his cavalry to deal with the Wei cavalry that were raiding the supply lines, but left 1,500 cavalry behind.

Upon receiving the order, Deng Ai led his 1,500 cavalrymen straight towards the rear of the enemy camp, heading towards the north gate of Ye City.

The north gate of Ye City opened wide, and a cloud of dust billowed out.

From the rear of the Chu army, a cloud of dust rose into the air, also whistling as it shot out.

A quarter of an hour later, the two cavalry units clashed head-on. (End of Chapter)