Three Kingdoms: Fusion of Entries, Change of Destiny

Chapter 206 First take Chen, then capture Runan and Pei
Yuan Shu's seven armies advanced triumphantly, and soon found themselves in a stalemate with Lü Bu's army outside Xiapi, Xuzhou.

However, just as Zhang Xun was preparing to launch an attack on Lü Bu, Han Xian and Yang Feng suddenly defected to the enemy.

They led their own troops to attack Zhang Xun's army from the rear.

Taking advantage of the situation, Lü Bu launched an attack, and Zhang Xun's army was thrown into chaos from both sides.

Zhang Xun's soldiers began to flee in all directions, their formation completely collapsed, and they were soon utterly defeated.

Taking advantage of their victory, Lü Bu, Han Xian, and Yang Feng joined forces and immediately marched towards the troops of Yuan Shu's generals, including Chen Lan and Chen Ji, who were arriving later.

The poor generals Chen Lan and Liang Gang thought the approaching force was friendly.

As a result, Han Xian and Yang Feng, without saying a word, gave them a rude awakening.

Chen Lan and Liang Gang, who were knocked senseless and dizzy, were defeated and forced to retreat.

When the defeated army fled, it disrupted the central army led by Yuan Shu, which triggered a domino effect. Yuan Shu's army collapsed like a house of cards, and the situation was completely out of control.

Yuan Shu even managed to meet Lü Bu, yet his 100,000-strong army was defeated inexplicably.

To be honest, Yuan Shu is still completely baffled.

However, the army's defeat was unstoppable. Seeing the situation was dire, Yuan Shu could only lead his personal guards and hastily flee.

Riding the wave when it's favorable, surrendering when it's unfavorable—that's the characteristic of Yuan Shu's army.

His soldiers were of a very mixed background, including many outlaws, bandits, Yellow Turban rebels, or ordinary people who had been forcibly conscripted.

They usually gathered together only for a living, and once the battle turned against them, they would all flee for their lives, showing no fighting spirit whatsoever.

To expect these people to serve Yuan Shu to the death is simply wishful thinking.

Seeing Yuan Shu's army scattered and fleeing across the mountains and plains, how could Lü Bu let them go so easily?

"Hahahaha!!" Looking at Yuan Shu's army, which was scattered and fleeing all over the mountains and plains, Lu Bu felt a surge of heroic spirit.

He raised his halberd high and shouted with high spirits, "My comrades, follow me to kill the enemy!!"

Since the Battle of Hulao Pass, Lü Bu had not had such an exhilarating battle experience for many years.

He had previously been driven out of Chang'an by Li Jue and Guo Si.

They were driven away by Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao like beggars.
In the end, he was beaten by Cao Cao and Cao Yan so badly that he was like a stray dog, fleeing everywhere in a miserable state.

He only managed to seize Xuzhou and establish his own foothold by betraying the honest Liu Bei.

During those difficult years, Lü Bu even became somewhat disheartened.

If Chen Gong hadn't been there to comfort and encourage him, he would have quit.

Now, with only a few thousand men, Lü Bu was finally able to defeat Yuan Shu's 100,000-strong army, who was arrogant and looked down on him. He could finally hold his head high.

……

Now let's look at Cao Cao's side.

Cao Cao, with Cao Yan as his deputy, led a total of 50,000 elite troops to attack Yuan Shu.

Cao Cao, once again, did not bring his most trusted strategist, Xi Zhicai, with him on this expedition.
Instead, he appointed Xun You, the Grand Master of Ceremonies, as his chief strategist, and Cheng Yu, the Military Advisor, and Jia Xu, the Military Commander, as his left and right advisors, forming a personal think tank.

The main reason was that Xi Zhicai had fallen ill due to overwork.

Xi Zhicai was always diligent and conscientious in his work, personally handling everything. Even when Cao Cao, Cao Yan, and Guo Jia took turns trying to persuade him, he did not relax in the slightest.

Long-term overwork, coupled with congenital physical deficiencies, finally took its toll on his body, leaving him bedridden.

To allow Xi Zhicai to focus on his recovery, Cao Cao issued a strict order forbidding him from participating in any military or political affairs and requiring him to stay home and recuperate. However, Xi Zhicai had no relatives or friends, and Guo Jia, worried about him, volunteered to stay and take care of him, thus also being unable to accompany the army to Xuzhou.

Zhao Yun and Xiahou Lan led 10,000 Flying Dragon Cavalry as the vanguard of the army.

This light cavalry, swift as the wind, elegant and slippery, would give any warlord a headache.

During the march,

Looking at the superior weapons and armor of the Qingzhou soldiers and the Yuanyang Army, and then at his own men's old iron armor and spears and halberds, Yu Jin couldn't help but feel ashamed.

Yu Jin's deputy, Dong Heng, couldn't help but exclaim, "Even ordinary soldiers are wearing fish-scale armor. How rich must the Chenliu army be!"

Another deputy general, Dong Chao, said, "General Ren has many ways to make money behind the scenes. Even the Yanzhou Chamber of Commerce is controlled by his brother Cao Hong... How can we compare with them?"

Upon hearing this, Yu Jin immediately rebuked him, saying, "The General of the Rear earns all his money cleanly; he is the only one in the world who can afford to support such an army. You two should stop saying such things that could demoralize the troops."

Dong Heng and Dong Chao were startled and quickly apologized to Yu Jin, saying, "Your humble servants know their guilt!"

Although Cao Cao's central army marched swiftly, it still failed to catch up with the first wave of the Chen army.

There was no way around it; Zhang Kai was scared!

Zhang Kai had witnessed Zhao Yun's bravery when he ambushed and killed Old Master Cao.

Upon hearing that Zhao Yun and Xiahou Lan were leading 10,000 cavalrymen to attack Chen, Zhang Kai did not hesitate to abandon his troops and flee.

The disparity in strength between the two sides was too great, and an opportunist like Zhang Kai would naturally not sacrifice his life to defend Yuan Shu's territory.

For him, changing masters was just a matter of changing where he ate.

If Cao Cao hadn't hated Zhang Kai so much, Zhang Kai might have surrendered to Cao Cao long ago.

"Boring! Utterly boring!" Xiahou Lan stood on the city wall of Chen County, looking utterly dejected, and muttered to himself.

Upon hearing Xiahou Lan's words, Zhao Yun couldn't help but laugh and say, "This is just the beginning. There's still a lot for you to fight later. What's the rush?"

Xiahou Lan stroked the spear in his hand and replied, "Ever since I mastered the 'Seven Probing Serpent Spear' that you taught me, Zilong, I haven't even tasted meat yet. I don't know if it's really as powerful as you say..."

Zhao Yun remained calm and said, "Whether I'm good or not, why don't you try with me and you'll find out?"

"I'm not going to fight a monster like you!" Xiahou Lan turned her head away, snorted, and said, "I don't know if it's just my imagination, but it seems like your strength has increased a lot after you fought your way in and out of Wancheng seven times."

This is what I said,

With an extra gold attribute added to his stats, how could Zhao Yun's strength not increase significantly?!

Unfortunately, Xiahou Lan and the others couldn't see the entries on each other's bodies, so they only had a vague feeling and couldn't be sure.

When Cao Cao led his army to Chen County, Zhao Yun and Xiahou Lan had already been waiting there for two days.

With such a powerful army leading the way, the other Cao soldiers didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

After conquering Chen, Cao Cao decided to divide his forces into two routes.

Along the way, led by Yu Jin and with Cheng Yu as strategist, they attacked Yuan Shu's hometown of Runan.

The other route was led by Cao Cao and Cao Yan, marching towards Pei State, which had been occupied by Ji Ling.

Their idea was to first remove Yuan Shu, this thorn in their side, from Xuzhou.

This will eliminate any worries about the supply lines for the army when it marches on Xiapi or Shouchun in the future.

(End of this chapter)