The Three Kingdoms: Hindsight is 20/20, and the Three Revivals of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 124 The enemy outnumbers us ten to one? We're just chickens and dogs, what is there to fear? (5th update)
"Yan Rou greets Your Majesty!"

A slightly disheveled yet feignedly calm figure was brought to the central command tent; it was Yan Rou, who had fled here overnight from Jicheng.

Suppressing the humiliation and elation in his heart, Yan Rouqiang respectfully bowed to the Wuhuan King Tadun before him.

Tadun looked down at Yan Rou, letting out a heavy snort: "Yan Rou, you've been getting quite close to Nanlou these past few years."

Although both were kings of the Wuhuan, Nanlou and Tadun were not on good terms.

Seeing Yan Rou getting too close to Nan Lou, Ta Dun was naturally dissatisfied.

"King Nanlou is dead."

Yan Rou did not defend herself, but simply stated her position quietly.

"Dead?" Tadun burst into laughter. "That old turtle Nanlou should have been buried long ago. Who holds Nanlou's position now? Kunxidun or Guli?"

Yan Rou sighed: "Kunxi Dun and Gu Li are also dead."

Tadun narrowed his eyes slightly: "Kunxidun and Guli are also two good-for-nothings. In the end, will Helinyan or Shaliru inherit the throne of Nanlou?"

Yan Rou sighed again: "He Linyan and Shalilu are also dead."

"Hmm?" Tadun's expression turned displeased: "Yan Rou, did you come here today specifically to make fun of me?"

Yan Rou shook her head, her tone bitter: "How dare I mock Your Majesty! Not only are Nanlou and his four sons dead, but Wang Song, the governor of Yuyang, is also dead. Xianyu Fu has also surrendered to Liu Bei. I am the only one who has managed to escape with my life. Dai Commandery, Shanggu Commandery, Guangyang Commandery, and Yuyang Commandery have all fallen into the hands of General Liu Bei. This traitor Liu Bei is ambitious and vows to pacify the six disobedient commanderies. I'm afraid Youbeiping Commandery and Liaoxi Commandery will also fall into his hands."

"Liu Bei?" Tadun lowered his head and thought for a while, but had no recollection of him at all.

Seeing Tadun's doubt, Yan Rou added, "This man is from Zhuojun. He once studied under Lu Zhi, the General of the Northern Army, along with Gongsun Zan. Before Gongsun Zan attacked Liu Yu, Liu Bei served under Gongsun Zan, first as a separate commander and later as the acting governor of Pingyuan. I heard he even became the governor of Xuzhou, but was later ambushed by Lü Bu and became a stray dog. For some reason, Yuan Shao appointed him as the governor of Zhuojun. Upon taking office, he immediately wanted to punish the six rebellious commanderies. He is truly hateful!"

"So it was him!" Tadun's tone turned vicious. "That shoe-selling brat who abducted over a thousand riders in Liaoxi County back then actually dares to show up again!"

After Liu Yu became the governor of Youzhou, he began to implement a policy of appeasement towards the Wuhuan.

Because Gongsun Zan intercepted and killed envoys sent by the Wuhuan tribes of Liaoxi Commandery to communicate with Liu Yu, the Wuhuan tribes had no choice but to send their envoys on detours to find Liu Yu.

At that time, Liu Bei had just joined Gongsun Zan and was short of troops. So Liu Bei used Liu Yu's name to "recruit volunteers" from various tribes in Liaoxi Commandery, and only wanted Han servants who were good at riding and archery from each tribe.

Because Liu Bei also shared the surname Liu, some of the tribes that were fooled thought that Liu Bei was a relative of Liu Yu, so they offered up Han servants from their tribes who were skilled in riding and archery, which actually allowed Liu Bei to recruit more than a thousand loyal followers.

Tadun, on Qiuliju's orders, took a detour to see Liu Yu, but happened to meet Liu Bei on the way. He was also tricked by Liu Bei into leaving with several skilled Han servants.

It was only afterward that Tadun learned that Liu Bei was not a relative of Liu Yu at all, and for this, Tadun was severely scolded by Qiuliju.

(Note: This is a record from unofficial historical accounts; its authenticity is yet to be determined.)

However, Tadun couldn't tell Yan Rou about this. Now the King of Wuhuan, Tadun had to keep the shameful past to himself, but it also stirred up his anger towards Liu Bei: "This time I led over ten thousand elite cavalry south, and Su Puyan, Wuyan, and Nengchen each led several thousand elite cavalry, totaling over thirty thousand cavalry. How can Liu Bei possibly stop us?"

With over 30,000 elite cavalry at his disposal, Tadun was not afraid of Liu Bei, who had already pacified four commanderies.

In Tadun's view, Liu Bei had only managed to defeat the elderly Nanlou and the useless Wang Song in Yuyang by sheer luck, and then frightened the cowardly Xianyu Fu into surrendering; as for Yan Rou, with few soldiers and generals, it was normal for him to lose.

Yan Rou was secretly delighted and flattered, "Liu Bei has just pacified four commanderies, and the people's hearts are not yet with him. If Your Majesty were to launch an attack now, my old troops in Guangyang, Wang Song of Yuyang, and the remaining forces of Nanlou in Shanggu would surely defect and respond! At that time, Your Majesty could easily reclaim the four commanderies. Gao Gan, the governor of Bingzhou, is Yuan Shao's nephew and can still be governor; Your Majesty, by marrying a woman from Yuan Shao's clan, could you perhaps take over Youzhou?"

Satisfied with the flattery, Tadun stroked his beard and laughed, "Yuan Xi is already the governor of Youzhou, how can I compete with him? It's enough to annex Nanlou's old troops. If you're interested, I can help you become the governor of Youzhou!"

Yan Rou was overjoyed: "If this is truly the case, I will certainly govern Youzhou together with Your Majesty, and I will do my utmost to meet Your Majesty's needs in the future!"

"Good! Yan Rou, I admire your straightforwardness!" Tadun laughed and then ordered Su Puyan, Wu Yan, and Neng Chen to advance towards Youbeiping.

The Wuhuan cavalry came with great force and made almost no attempt to conceal their movements; their whereabouts were quickly discovered by Liu Bei's scouts.

"More than 30,000 cavalry? Did Tadun bring the cavalry from Supuyan, Wuyan, Nengchendi, and other tribes as well?" Tian Chou asked with surprise.

Having spent many years in the fields of Xuwu Mountain, he had a good understanding of the various Wuhuan tribes.

With Tadun's forces alone, it was impossible to muster more than 30,000 elite cavalry.

Then, Tian Chou's tone became more serious: "I originally thought that we only needed to deal with Tadun's army, but now we have Su Puyan, Wuyan, Nengchen Dizhi and other troops. The disparity in strength between the enemy and us is too great."

Liu Bei brought two thousand infantry and cavalry from Jicheng, Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong brought six hundred elite cavalry from Yuyang, and Tian Chou brought eight hundred troops from Xuwushan, totaling only a little over three thousand infantry and cavalry.

Tian Chou was confident that he could deal with only Tadun's forces.

However, dealing with more than 30,000 infantry and cavalry from Tadun, Supuyan, Wuyan, and Nengchendizhi at the same time was beyond Tian Chou's intellectual capacity to calculate.

No matter how he calculated it, Tian Chou couldn't figure out how to fight against the Wuhuan cavalry, who outnumbered him ten to one.

No sooner had he finished speaking than Guan Yu snorted coldly, "They're nothing but chickens and dogs, what's there to fear? I'm willing to lead my five hundred swordsmen as the vanguard to first blunt the Wuhuan cavalry's morale!"

Di Hu, a retainer standing behind Tian Chou, subconsciously swallowed: Only five hundred men as the vanguard, and they're trying to dampen the spirits of the Wuhuan cavalry? Are they going to slaughter the Wuhuan cavalry like vegetables? Is this the style of warfare of the Xiong Hu warriors?
Liu Bei did not grant Guan Yu's request, but instead handed the sword and seal to Zhuge Liang, saying, "In this battle, the strategist will give the orders, and I will personally lead the generals into battle to kill the enemy."

Di Hu was even more astonished: The Left General had actually entrusted command to Military Advisor Zhuge? Could it be that the Military Advisor was more skilled in troop deployment? Wait, the Left General was actually going to personally charge into battle?

Looking around, no one advised Liu Bei against taking the risk, which made Di Hu even more suspicious: General Zuo looks so kind, could he also be a fierce and ruthless man?
With the sword in hand, Zhuge Liang's aura became majestic and imposing, and the air in the tent seemed to freeze.

　Thank you all for your support! Here comes the fifth update.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)