Tiger Owl

Chapter 2: Taking Chestnuts from the Fire
In the second year of Jian'an, Yuan Shu declared himself emperor in Shouchun. Warlords from all over the land rose up against him, but Yuan Shu was deserted by his followers and was defeated by Cao Cao and Lü Bu.

In the fourth year of Jian'an, Yuan Shu was at his wit's end and headed north to seek refuge with his elder brother Yuan Shao. However, he was intercepted by Liu Bei and Zhu Ling, who were sent by Cao Cao. Yuan Shu suffered heavy losses and was forced to retreat to Shouchun.

It was June of the fourth year of Jian'an, and Yuan Shu was already seriously ill and did not have much time left.

Yuan Shu carried a great deal of wealth, and the Imperial Seal of the State, which he possessed, was coveted by various warlords.

..........
On the surface of the Fei River in Shouchun, a fast boat sped along, and in a moment, it disappeared into a reed bed.

Dozens of small boats were in the reed marshes. Gan Ning, shirtless, squatted at the bow of one of the boats, his muscular physique gleaming bronze in the sunlight.

Behind him, three hundred men stood on a small boat, all shirtless. In the sweltering heat of June, the water was as hot as a steamer.

The reeds rustled, signaling the return of the scout boat.

The fast boat stopped in front of Gan Ning, and the lead scout, Wang Ping, knelt on one knee at the bow, clasped his hands, and said, "Reporting to my lord, we have discovered Yuan Shu's whereabouts."

Gan Ning was overjoyed, "Where is he?"

“Yuan Shu is currently on the north bank of the Huai River, about thirty miles away from us, at a place called Jiangting, where he has set up more than a dozen large tents!”

How many men does Yuan Shu still have around him?

"Less than a thousand people remain!"

This is similar to historical records. He was betrayed and abandoned by his followers, and was at his wit's end. His subordinates either died or fled, including his top general Ji Ling, who was also killed by Zhang Fei.

"How many carts are there? Are there soldiers guarding them?" Gan Ning asked again.

"Reporting to the general, there are about thirty carts, all covered oxcarts, and there are indeed soldiers guarding the area."

Gan Ning squinted at the fiery red sunset on the horizon and asked, "Have any other armies been spotted around here?"

"Have!"

Wang Ping nodded. "An army of several thousand men was discovered west of the Fei River on the south bank of the Huai River. There were not many boats. I inquired and it seems to be the army of Liu Xun, the prefect of Lujiang."

As expected of a historical general, Wang Ping was indeed very capable, and Gan Ning praised him a few times.

Gan Ning beckoned his two other generals forward.

When Gan Ning left Ba Commandery, he had 800 men with him. Later, most of them left one after another, and in the end, only 300 young soldiers stayed with him.

His three generals were all very young. Shen Mi and Lou Fa had followed him since they were young and were wandering knights. Wang Ping was only eighteen years old, and Gan Ning himself was only twenty.

Gan Ning whispered to the crowd, "It's so hot outside, the carriage must be stuffy. There can't be anyone inside. Since there are soldiers guarding it so closely, it must contain gold and silver."

All three were very excited and eager to fight; their lord was actually going to seize the pseudo-emperor Yuan Shu.

Gan Ning said to Wang Ping and Shen Mi: "You two lead two hundred brothers to seize the carts. Once the soldiers are alerted, they will surely rush to the rescue. You should pretend to retreat."

I will lead fifty brothers to raid the main tent. The enemy will surely return, at which point you will seize the wagons. Forget the wagons, take only the treasure inside. After you have the treasure, retreat immediately.

"I understand the humble position!"

Gan Ning then said to Lou Fa, "You are responsible for providing support at the riverbank and monitoring the troops on the south bank. If you discover that the troops on the south bank are attacking, immediately launch rockets to notify us!"

"Follow the order!"

The four discussed the details again. Gan Ning stood up, glanced at the setting sun, straightened his back, and said to everyone, "Now get some rest. We'll set off at the first watch!"

..........
As the first watch of the night approached, dozens of ships on the Huai River were continuously transporting troops—the army of Liu Xun, the governor of Lujiang Commandery.

Liu Xun was once a confidant of Yuan Shu. After Sun Ce took over Lujiang County, Yuan Shu broke his promise and gave Lujiang County to Liu Xun.

When a rich person becomes poor and destitute, those who kick him when he's down are often the people closest to him, because they know him best.

For example, Yuan Shu's former trusted generals Chen Lan and Lei Bo occupied Qian Mountain and became bandits, plundering Yuan Shu's grain and supplies.

Then there's Liu Xun, who ultimately devoured Yuan Shu completely. Of course, Liu Xun's real target was the Imperial Seal of the State in Yuan Shu's possession.

Liu Xun stood on high ground, squinting at the river pavilion several miles away. Under the moonlight, he could vaguely see more than a dozen large white tents, and his target was lying inside one of them.

"Pass on my orders: keep a close watch on Yuan Shu's camp, and notify me immediately of any unusual activity!"

..........
Gan Ning's fleet silently docked. With a wave of his hand, Gan Ning's soldiers jumped ashore. The mission was clear and the instructions were thorough. Without any hesitation, Wang Ping and Shen Mi led two hundred men straight to the carts parked there.

Gan Ning then personally led fifty men to attack the main tent. This was Gan Ning's style of doing things: decisive, efficient, and straightforward. However, the Gan Ning of later generations made some slight improvements.

Gan Ning first needed to determine which tent Yuan Shu was in, but the fourteen tents looked exactly the same, and there were no guards standing at the entrance, making it difficult to determine where Yuan Shu was.

However, he had a plan; he was waiting for Wang Ping and Shen Mi to make their move.

Yuan Shu's forces were divided into two parts: one part consisted of his retainers, including his civil and military officials and their families, and the other part consisted of soldiers, numbering about six or seven hundred.

The soldiers had no tents and had to sleep outdoors. The wild was swarming with mosquitoes, and the weather was so hot and humid that it was hard to sleep. Groups of soldiers gathered together, talking quietly. Everyone was heavy-hearted and filled with anxiety about the future.

Just then, a man came running over shouting, "Someone is stealing our wagons! Someone is stealing our wagons!" The soldiers jumped up and rushed to support the wagons parked in the distance. More than a dozen guards rushed out of one of the large tents and headed straight for the tent in the middle of the first row.

"confirmed!"

Gan Ning leaped up, wielding his twin halberds, and charged towards the central tent like a whirlwind, followed closely by his fifty men.

Just then, a rocket was launched from the riverbank in the distance, soaring straight into the sky.

Gan Ning had a bad feeling; Liu Xun was nearby!
That's right. Liu Xun was leading more than three thousand men in a hurry toward Yuan Shu's camp. His men, whom he had sent to keep watch, discovered Wang Ping and the others and immediately reported it to him.

Gan Ning, like a black tiger galloping under the moonlight, rushed to the front of the tent in the blink of an eye. He had no time to think; success depended on this one move.

Just then, someone came out of the tent. It was Huang Yi, Yuan Shu's son-in-law. Huang Yi was stunned when he saw a god-like man in black suddenly appear before him.

A flash of cold light, and blood spurted out. Huang Yi clutched his throat in pain and was kicked into the tent by Gan Ning.

Inside the large tent, six personal guards were squatting, and more than a dozen guards were standing close to the tent. On the ground lay a middle-aged man on the verge of death, with disheveled hair and a emaciated appearance. He was none other than Yuan Shu, who was once a man of great prestige.

At this point, he had reached the end of his life, abandoned by everyone and at his wit's end, but he still held firmly to his dream, the Imperial Seal of the State, which was kept in a sandalwood box.

Just now, the son-in-law Huang Yi tried to take away his imperial seal, but he failed.

With a loud crash, Huang Yi was kicked into the tent like a dog. The dozen or so guards were shocked and drew their swords. A flash of cold light appeared as Gan Ning charged in, wielding his double halberds.

"Ah! Ah!"

Several guards were killed instantly, and Gan Ning combined his two halberds and pierced another man's chest.

Dozens of his men rushed into the tent and intercepted the other guards.

Gan Ning squatted down, snatched the sandalwood box from Yuan Shu's arms, opened the box, and inside was indeed an imperial seal, with gold inlaid in one corner. This was the famous Imperial Seal of the State.

Gan Ning threw away the box, stuffed the jade seal into his robes, and sneered, "So you're Yuan Shu?"

Although Yuan Shu was on his deathbed, his eyes were filled with terror, and his lips trembled.

"My lord, the enemy soldiers have returned!"

Gan Ning nodded, swung his halberd, and blood spurted out as he severed Yuan Shu's neck. He then picked up the severed head and ran outside.

"Retreat! Everyone follow me!"

Gan Ning shouted and led his fifty men in a rapid retreat toward the riverbank.

At this moment, the hundreds of soldiers who had rushed to the cart to provide assistance discovered that something had happened at the main camp and turned back.

Gan Ning and his men had just disappeared into the darkness, within seconds of each other; the god of fate had almost brushed past them.

Suddenly, a dense volley of arrows came from the west, and Yuan Shu's soldiers screamed and fell to the ground. It was Liu Xun leading his troops to attack.

Thousands of soldiers quickly surrounded more than a dozen large tents, raising their spears and shouting, "Those who surrender will not be killed!"

The soldiers were so frightened that they knelt down and raised their hands in surrender. Liu Xun grabbed a soldier by the collar and demanded, "Where is Yuan Shu?"

The soldier was terrified and pointed back to the large tent in the middle of the first row. Liu Xun shook him off and rushed into the tent. He saw that the tent was full of corpses. A headless corpse was lying in the middle, blood was still gushing from its neck, and its head was nowhere to be found. A sandalwood box was lying next to it.

Liu Xun quickly picked up the box and opened it, only to find it completely empty.

"what--"

Enraged, Liu Xun roared, slammed the box to the ground, and rushed out of the tent, shouting, "They've gone to the riverbank! Chase after them! Don't let them get away!"

"follow me!"

Liu Xun's cousin, Liu Xie, shouted and led a thousand soldiers toward the Huai River, which was a mile away.

Gan Ning and his fifty men jumped onto the ship like a whirlwind.

"sail!"

According to their agreed plan, if a rocket is launched, Wang Ping and Shen Mi will lead their men to retreat eastward and meet at the ferry crossing twenty miles away.

Dozens of fast boats rowed together, heading towards the center of the river like arrows. They had only gone half a mile when countless soldiers rushed to the shore, shouting and firing arrows into the river. It was too late.

Gan Ning laughed loudly from afar, "Go back and tell Liu Xun that I will visit him in Lujiang!"

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(End of this chapter)