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

For a brief moment, a thought quietly sprouted in Ma Chao's mind:
He even secretly hoped that Zhang Wei would be defeated by Guan Yu.

Among these factors, his friendship with Liu Bei was undoubtedly an important one.

A deeper reason, however, was that he hoped to use Guan Yu to vent the resentment that had been building up in his heart for a long time.

But this fleeting thought of schadenfreude vanished in an instant. The next moment, cruel reality struck him like a heavy hammer, shattering his brief moment of joy.

He suddenly realized that he and his 10,000 soldiers were now deep in Han territory, like lambs entering a tiger's den.

However, the other side had already laid a trap and was on high alert.

If we lose this battle, my life will be in even greater danger!
Ma Chao regained consciousness.

Thinking of this, without further thought, he quickly shouted:
"Sound the retreat! Sound the retreat immediately!!"

The order was given, and the sound of metal rang out in the central army.

At this moment, Zhang Wei suddenly awoke, quickly reined in his horse, and shouted at the top of his lungs:

"Retreat! The entire army must retreat immediately!"

This roar was tinged with fear and panic.

The Hanzhong army, which was charging forward, suddenly stopped like startled lambs and turned to retreat.

It's too late.

How could Guan Yu possibly give Zhang Wei that opportunity?
He wore a disdainful sneer, his lips curling into a mocking smile, and he casually waved his hand.

"Repeating crossbowmen, fire arrows!"

At his command, the two thousand crossbowmen who were already in position immediately pulled the triggers.

"Swish swish~~"

A sudden whooshing sound arose, like the whisper of death.

In an instant, tens of thousands of arrows, like a black rainstorm, rained down from the sky.

The arrow fell, and screams of agony erupted.

The wails of vengeful ghosts echoed from hell.

Under the barrage of arrows, countless Hanzhong soldiers fell to the ground like leaves swept away by the autumn wind.

In an instant, the Hanzhong army suffered heavy casualties.

Zhang Wei was terrified and disregarded the lives of his soldiers, fleeing for his life.

In his heart, there was only fear and the thought of escaping.

Just when he thought he had finally dodged the rain of arrows and escaped death, the bugle sounded again from the city wall.

Immediately afterwards, a chilling bugle call suddenly rang out in the valleys on both sides of Tongguan.

Amidst the towering dust, countless Han soldiers surged forward like a tidal wave.

ambush!

The Han army had also set up an ambush outside Tongguan!
This sudden change startled Zhang Wei, who nearly fell off his horse.

Ahead, Ma Chao saw that all the ambushes outside the city had come out, and he couldn't help but grit his teeth.

"Zhang Wei, you fool! If you had listened to my advice and sent scouts to find out the enemy's strength and weakness, you wouldn't be in this predicament!"

"Fool, how could I, Ma Chao, wait to die with you?"

Thinking of this, Ma Chao hardened his heart, turned his horse around, and left.

The more than 1,000 Hanzhong soldiers who were holding the line in the central army scattered like ants from a broken nest, fleeing in all directions with no will to fight.

Ma Chao withdrew first, and the Han army's ambush troops smoothly cut off Zhang Wei's vanguard's retreat route like a tide, surrounding the 10,000 Han soldiers under the walls of Tongguan.

What followed was a one-sided encirclement and slaughter.

Generals such as Zhou Cang and Liao Hua each commanded 10,000 troops, and surrounded and attacked the Hanzhong army from the flanks and rear. Like the scythe of death, they ruthlessly reaped the lives of the Hanzhong army.

The city gates opened, and Guan Ping personally led eight thousand elite troops, pouring out of Tongguan like tigers and wolves, and pounced on the chaotic Hanzhong army.

Under the onslaught of the fierce storm, the Hanzhong army was utterly powerless to resist.

In an instant, the Hanzhong army was slaughtered, leaving no one alive, and the entire battlefield was littered with corpses.

"Ma Chao, you treacherous dog! How dare you flee without a fight! You've got me killed!"

With his path blocked, Zhang Wei watched Ma Chao's departing banner and cursed through gritted teeth.

At that moment, he was filled with both resentment and despair.

Behind them, a cavalry force had arrived like the wind.

The leading general wielded his crescent-shaped blade wildly, invincible in his path. Every strike of his longsword was destined to kill.

Guan Ping fought his way through the bloody path and charged straight at Zhang Wei's banner.

"Block him! I'll block him!"

Zhang Wei's anger instantly turned into panic. He screamed weakly, as if he had already sensed his impending doom.

The guards on both sides rushed forward, attempting to stop Guan Ping.

Their efforts were futile, like a mantis trying to stop a chariot; they overestimated their own strength.

Guan Ping was invincible, cutting down more than ten of his personal guards as easily as chopping vegetables and melons.

In the blink of an eye, a man and a horse, like a blood-red war god, blocked Zhang Wei's path.

The imposing aura, as majestic as a mountain, instantly made Zhang Wei feel an overwhelming sense of suffocation, as if Mount Tai were pressing down on him.

"A frog in a well dares to be an enemy of the Han Dynasty?"

"Zhang Wei, you're asking for it!"

With a thunderous roar, Guan Ping's long sword swept down with the force of a thunderbolt.

The blade flashed like lightning, tearing through the sky and filling Zhang Wei with utter despair.

He tried to parry with his sword, but was intimidated by Guan Ping's imposing presence. He froze on his horse, at a loss, his body seemingly rooted to the spot, unable to move.

"Snap!"
With a crisp sound, a bloody human head flew out, falling to the ground like a kite with a broken string.

Zhang Wei was beheaded!

The headless, mangled body, gushing blood, crashed heavily to the ground beneath the horse.

With the death of the general, the morale of the Hanzhong soldiers immediately collapsed, and they all abandoned their weapons and prostrated themselves to surrender.

As the sun began to set in the west, the sounds of battle on the battlefield finally subsided.

Guan Yu rode his horse, dragging his sword, out of Tong Pass, and slowly walked across the plains.

The ground was filled with ambushes by Hanzhong soldiers, and thousands of surrendered soldiers knelt on the ground, trembling and weeping silently.

Their cries were as mournful and sorrowful as the faint chirping of insects.

"Reporting to Father Commander, your son has slain the enemy general Zhang Wei in battle!"

"In this battle, our army captured 4,000 enemy soldiers, beheaded 4,000, and almost annihilated the enemy army!"

Guan Ping excitedly stepped forward to report his achievements.

Guan Yu nodded slightly, clearly quite satisfied with his son's performance. His eyes were full of approval.

"However," Guan Ping changed the subject, saying:

"According to the prisoners' confession, Zhang Lu also appointed Ma Chao, the general of Xiliang, as Zhang Wei's deputy general. Ma Chao led two thousand remaining soldiers and withdrew in time, failing to encircle our army."

Upon hearing the name Ma Chao, Guan Yu's pupils instantly contracted.

Ma Chao, known as the bravest of Lü Bu, possessed unparalleled martial arts skills.

Many years ago, he had long desired to compete with Ma Chao.

Upon learning that Ma Chao was also joining the battle, Guan Yu's ambition and fighting spirit were instantly ignited.

"All troops, listen to my command! Follow me and pursue Ma Chao!"

Tens of thousands of Han soldiers followed the defeated troops from Hanzhong, rolling towards the Ziwu Valley.

...

The Han army was in pursuit, but Ma Chao, leading more than two thousand Han soldiers, was fleeing in panic.

There were pursuing troops behind them, but no Han troops blocking their way ahead.

Ma Chao fled for two days straight, and finally, he was about to reach the entrance of Ziwu Valley.

"Fortunately, Xiao Bowen, despite his meticulous planning, overlooked something and didn't lay an ambush at the Ziwu Valley entrance. Otherwise, I, Ma Chao, would have followed in Zhang Wei's footsteps and died without a burial place..."

Looking towards the valley entrance, Ma Chao muttered to himself, secretly rejoicing.

at this time.

A bugle call pierced the sky.

At the once empty valley entrance, countless Han soldiers appeared like ghosts, instantly sealing off the entrance like an impregnable wall.

Ma Chao was terrified. (End of Chapter)