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

Chapter 241 After Ma Chao's ruthlessness got the better of him, he directly raided Liu Bei's camp (3rd update)
"How dare Yang Qiu do this!"

Upon hearing Yang Qiu and Fu Gan's secret conversation, Pang De was both shocked and furious. In particular, when Liu Bei sent an envoy to present gifts, the wine cup he was holding was squeezed so tightly that it cracked, and the wine spilled all over the ground.

What would Zhong Yao think if he learned that Liu Bei had sent an envoy with gifts and that Ma Chao had accepted them?
If Sun Zi hadn't stopped him, Pang De would have drawn his spear and confronted Yang Qiu.

After being persuaded by Sun Zi, Pang Deqiang suppressed his anger and said, "Strategist, please wait in the camp for a while. I will go and bring the general back to the camp. If you encounter any danger, you can go to the supply camp to find Ma Dai. Although Ma Dai is young, he is brave and skilled in martial arts. Moreover, he is a relative of the general and can definitely protect you."

After discussion.

Pang De immediately led several dozen cavalrymen out of the camp and arrived at the city of Pi shortly afterward. However, the city gate officer refused to open the city gates, citing that it was late at night and no orders could be given.

Already worried about Ma Chao, Pang De was now blocked by the city gate guard. His anxiety and anger were intertwined. He immediately drew his bow and aimed an arrow at the guard: "You bastard! Are you blind? You dare to block me, Pang Lingming? If this delays military operations and hinders the general's important affairs, how many heads do you have to lose? I suspect you are colluding with the treacherous officials in the city to plot against the general! If you don't open the gate, don't blame me for being merciless with my arrows!"

The defenders on the city wall immediately became agitated, with shouts and the clash of weapons rising and falling, and archers drawing their bows and lying in ambush at the crenellations.

The sudden turn of events startled the city gate guard, who turned pale and broke out in a cold sweat.

Seeing that the archers on the city wall were all aiming at Pang De, the city gate captain was so frightened that he shouted to his men, "Don't move! Don't move!"

If an archer were to accidentally lose his grip, it would truly be seen as the city gatekeeper conspiring with treacherous officials within the city to murder Ma Chao.

After stopping his men, the city gate officer hurriedly said, "Captain Pang! Don't be impulsive! I'll send someone to ask for instructions right away! Please put down your bow and arrows, Captain Pang, so as not to cause any misunderstanding!"

Pound's face was ashen. When the archers at the crenellations were aiming at him, Pound was so shocked that he almost shot the arrow at the city gate guard.

"Send word immediately!" Pang De retreated to a position outside the range of arrows from the city wall.

Seeing Pang De retreat, the city gate officer hurriedly sent someone on horseback to the county government office.

Upon learning that Pang De claimed to have urgent military intelligence, Zhong Yao and Ma Chao were both taken aback.

"Damn it! Military matters are of utmost importance, how can you obstruct them?" Zhong Yao shouted first, and hurriedly ordered someone to send word to the city gate officer to open the gate.

Ma Chao glanced at Zhong Yao, a question forming in his mind: Strange, even if there is urgent military information, it shouldn't be Ling Ming who comes to deliver the message personally. Why is Ling Ming not guarding the main camp but in such a hurry to see me?

Then, Ma Chao stopped the soldiers and bowed to Zhong Yao to say goodbye: "Since it is an urgent military situation, I should return to the main camp first and will not disturb you any longer."

Zhong Yao did not stop him and let Ma Chao leave.

However, after Ma Chao left, Zhong Yao's expression gradually darkened, and he instructed his men, "If Zhang Ji and Fu Gan return, have them come to see me immediately."

As Ma Chao walked out of the city, he saw Pang De and called him to his side, asking, "What urgent military situation is there? Is Liu Bei attacking?"

Pang De shook his head and lowered his voice: "The strategist told me that if the general stays in the city tonight for the banquet, there may be danger, and asked me to quickly invite the general back to camp. The specific reasons are not convenient to explain here."

Ma Chao's face darkened. Pang De's personal arrival to greet him, coupled with the fact that it was inconvenient to discuss the matter here, must mean that it was no small thing!

"Back to camp!" Filled with doubt, Ma Chao quickly returned to the camp and went straight to the main tent to see Sun Zi.

"Strategist, what's the urgent matter?"

Seeing that Ma Chao was unharmed, Sun Zi secretly breathed a sigh of relief and cupped his hands, saying, "I am at ease now that the general is safe."

Subsequently, Sun Zi truthfully told Ma Chao about Yang Qiu and Fu Gan's secret conversation.

"That Yang Qiu! That Zhong Yao!" Ma Chao's voice was chillingly cold: "I have never mistreated Yang Qiu, yet he dared to secretly collude with Fu Gan! Tonight at the banquet, Zhong Yao pretended to be friendly, but secretly sent Fu Gan to spy on the camp's secrets. He is indeed harboring malicious intentions!"

Unable to contain himself, Pang De said angrily, "Yang Qiu is in the nearby camp. I'll go and kill him right now!"

"Captain Pang, wait!" Sun Zi immediately stopped him: "Although Yang Qiu has ulterior motives, his troops are resting in the side camp. If Yang Qiu is killed suddenly, his troops will surely mutini. Yang Qiu died at your hands right after Fu Gan leaked the secret. Zhong Yao will definitely suspect that you are colluding with Liu Bei. Just now I sent someone to Yan Xing's other camp to investigate. The report said that Yan Xing was drinking with Zhang Ji tonight. If I am right, Zhang Ji should be trying to win over Yan Xing."

Pang De sneered, "What the strategist said makes sense, but if Yang Qiu is not eliminated, it will be like a thorn in our side!"

Ma Chao's eyes were also blazing with anger as he asked in a deep voice, "What does the strategist think we should do?"

A murderous glint flashed in Sun Zi's eyes as he lowered his voice: "General, you can order Yang Qiu to say that Liu Bei's camp is unstable and it's the perfect time to raid it. Send Yang Qiu to raid the camp. To avoid arousing Yang Qiu's suspicion, you can divide the raiding troops into two groups, with Yang Qiu as the vanguard commander and Colonel Pang as the deputy vanguard commander. You will then provide support from the rear. Liu Bei has fierce generals and wise men under his command, so he will definitely be wary of our raid. We can use Liu Bei to eliminate Yang Qiu. If Yang Qiu is lucky enough to survive, Colonel Pang can seize the opportunity to destroy his warhorse. And when Zhong Yao hears that you are fighting with Liu Bei, he will also dispel his doubts about you. Right now, you cannot offend Zhong Yao, so please be patient."

“Good!” Ma Chao was swift and decisive, and immediately adopted Sun Zi’s plan: “At the banquet, Zhong Yao also asked me why I didn’t take advantage of Liu Bei’s unstable camp to launch a raid. I lied at the time, saying that it would be untrustworthy to send troops out in advance. Tomorrow, I can also use the excuse of worrying that the walls are overheard to make an excuse.”

Yang Qiu was unaware that he had already been outmaneuvered by Sun Zi.

If Yang Qiu had not mentioned Sun Zi when he leaked the secret, Sun Zi would not have resorted to such a ruthless scheme. However, Yang Qiu put Sun Zi in a difficult position in order to please Zhong Yao. How could Sun Zi tolerate Yang Qiu's existence?

Although Ma Chao's military order was given in a hurry, Yang Qiu didn't think too much about it. It was a fact that Liu Bei had just arrived and the camp was not yet stable.

On the contrary, fueled by alcohol, Yang Qiu also wanted to vent his frustrations. There were no women in the military camp, so the only way to vent was through killing.

Pang De, who wished Yang Qiu dead sooner, added fuel to the fire: "General Yang, you've had too much to drink today. Why don't you give me the command of the vanguard? I'll give it to you next time."

Yang Qiu, feeling the effects of the alcohol, scoffed, "Just a few cups of wine, and I'll only get slightly drunk. It won't affect my ability to kill the enemy; on the contrary, it will embolden me. Even if it were Zhang Fei, I'd dare to fight him for a few rounds."

Seeing Yang Qiu's boastful words, Pang De sneered inwardly: "Fight Zhang Fei for a few rounds? You think you can?"

They made their way to Liu Bei's camp. Yang Qiu took the lead and shouted, "Tonight is the night to make a name for ourselves! Kill!"

At a command, over a thousand infantry and cavalry charged straight at Liu Bei's camp gate. Liu Bei's soldiers at the gate fled in panic, so frightened that they didn't even notice the warning horn had fallen.

With a single spear thrust, a brazier was knocked away, crashing onto the tent and sending sparks flying. A loud shout followed: "Yang Qiu is here! Who dares to fight him!"

　Update 3 is here!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)