Three Kingdoms: I, Yuan Shu, Loyal Officials of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 95 Yuan's Military Strategy: Wherever the Army Goes, Infrastructure Is Built

"I failed my adoptive father's trust and was unable to obtain Guan Yu's head."

Sun Ce came to the carriage, bowed and begged for forgiveness, and Yuan Shu chuckled and gestured for him to stand up.

"My son fought Guan Yu for three hundred rounds today and won. He will be famous throughout the world. What crime has he committed?"

Unlike Ji Ling, Sun Ce still cared about his reputation, and upon seeing this, he quickly said that he dared not.

"I took advantage of Guan Yu's heavy armor, and my victory was not honorable. It was purely by chance, and I dare not claim credit for it."

"My son, you are mistaken. In a battle between two armies, where life and death are at stake, many factors determine success or failure. Today, Guan Yu was defeated by you, which can only be attributed to fate and not luck."

After speaking, he addressed his generals:
"My son defeated Guan Yu today, displaying the courage of ten thousand men. He is like Xiang Yu reborn and can be called the Little Conqueror!"

Do you all agree?

When Yuan Shu spoke, no one dared to disagree, and they all said, "Good."

On that day, the story of Yuan Shao's son, Sun Lang, fighting Guan Yu for three hundred rounds and winning the battle spread far and wide, and the name of the Little Conqueror became famous throughout the world.

However, this was not the most terrifying thing. What truly terrified the warlords was that such a fierce general who could defeat Guan Yu was not even the strongest in Yuan Shao's camp.

Rumor has it that Yuan Shu still has a top general under his command, Ji Ling of Nanyang!
It is said that his martial prowess far surpassed that of Lü Bu, and that he could defeat Guan Yu in three rounds, making him the greatest warrior of his time.

When Lü Bu, who was far away in Xuzhou, heard this news, he frowned.

"Ji Ling? He dares to call himself the strongest? I will kill him one day!"

At this very moment, outside Chen County, between the two armies, Yuan's camp was filled with the title of "Little Overlord," and the generals shouted, "Victory!" Their morale was soaring.

Guan Yu came before Liu Bei to apologize, "Brother, I..."

Liu Bei knew that he was arrogant, so how could he wait for him to say anything shameful?
The two brothers warmly approached each other, clasped hands tightly, and said:
"Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war, my second brother, there is no need to worry about it."

Today's defeat is something I know very well, and it was due to the poor condition of my warhorse.

Second brother, rest assured, I will have Mi Zhu search far and wide to find you a fine steed, so that you will no longer have great martial prowess but be repeatedly defeated by your warhorse.

Upon his defeat and return, Liu Bei not only refrained from punishment but also offered words of comfort and explanation, even going so far as to find a fine horse to present to him.

How could Guan Yu not be moved by his elder brother's treatment of him?

"Don't worry, brother. If I find a good horse, I will do my best and never let you down again."

At this point, Guan Yu was also furious. Ji Ling! Sun Ce!
I lost both of my battles on horseback!
It wasn't that he didn't value warhorses; it was simply that Liu Bei's power base was shallow. He could find some ordinary good horses, but he had no way to find exceptional steeds.

Looking at Yuan Shu's carriage across from him, he saw that after giving Sun Ce one horse, someone immediately brought over another precious horse to make up the six horses in the carriage.

While envying the Yuan family's wealth and extravagance, Guan Yu secretly resolved that one day he too would find a peerless steed that could cross water as easily as flat land.

At that time, I will break through the enemy's army like clay chickens and earthenware dogs, and regard the general's head as a mere ornament to be sold. Only then will I live up to my lifelong reputation.

While the Yuan and Liu armies were talking in their respective camps, Zhang Fei and Xu Chu on the front lines were evenly matched, like two equally matched generals.

The man said, "You dark-skinned fellow, you're not bad."

That guy said, "You blockhead, you actually have some skills."

The two spoke in unison, both enraged upon hearing this!
“Hey, today I’ll teach you that your grandfather Xu has more skills than just these.”

"You idiot, do you even deserve to comment on Grandpa Zhang? Today I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget."

So the two fought each other for over a hundred rounds, with neither gaining the upper hand.

Having learned from his sworn brother Guan Yu's fate, Zhang Fei was quick-witted. Worried that his horse might be exhausted and vulnerable to the cunning of Yuan Shao's camp, he deflected Xu Chu's broadsword with his spear and shouted, "Rest a moment! Let me change horses and fight again!"

"You black bastard, hurry up and come back! Do you think I'm afraid of you?"

After the two returned to their camps to change horses, Zhang Fei rode Liu Bei's horse out and challenged him to battle in front of the enemy lines.

"Zhang Yide of Yan is here! Where is that idiot from before? Come and fight your grandfather for three hundred rounds!"

The sound was like thunder, chilling both armies to the bone.

"Xu Zhongkang from Qiao County has arrived!"

"Don't be so arrogant, you black bastard!"

Xu Chu also received a fine horse from Yuan Shu, and deeply grateful for his lord's kindness, he vowed to take Zhang Fei's head.

But then he saw that, in a fit of rage, he had already removed his armor and robes in his own camp, his muscles bulging, and, bare-chested, he took up his sword, mounted his steed, and came to fight Zhang Fei.

Both armies were shocked to see him naked.

One roared like thunder, the other fought bravely naked; the two fought from noon until sunset, and the entire army was terrified.

Only Ji Ling saw that Xu Chu had also obtained a fine horse, and looked longingly at Yuan Shu, as if to say, "Actually, I can do it too, my lord."

However, Yuan Shu pretended not to see this, not because he was reluctant to part with his precious horse, but because with a sharp blade in hand, the desire to kill arose spontaneously.

If one possesses a fine horse and does not engage in duels, what difference is there between this and wearing fine clothes in the dark? How could Ji Ling possibly resist?
As for Yuan Shu, Ji Qing, you no longer need to fight against others. Your precious horse is useless to you; you should leave it to someone who needs it more.

Meanwhile, Zhang Fei and Xu Chu, locked in a fierce battle with no clear victor, continued their fight even as dusk approached. They lit hundreds of torches, illuminating the battlefield as if it were daytime.

Fearing that Zhang Fei might suffer losses in a prolonged battle, Liu Bei, along with Guan Yu, led a large army to attack.

Yuan Shu, together with Zhou Yu, mobilized their three armies to meet them.

You won't know until you fight. Once the three armies come out to fight, Liu Bei will only have Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to protect him.

Yuan Shu's forces included Sun Ce, Xu Chu, Zhou Tai, Huang Gai, Cheng Pu, Han Dang, Li Feng, and many other generals who came to attack. He even had Ji Ling to guard the rear and "protect" Zhou Yu closely.

In an instant, a massive army of 100,000 men appeared, all dressed in white mourning robes, and Yuan's generals were everywhere.

Liu Bei, accompanied by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, charged through the enemy lines, fighting one enemy after another. In a short time, he was outnumbered and unable to escape.

Even if Liu Bei wanted to deploy a large army to defeat them, his troop deployment was like showing off his skills in front of Lu Ban when facing Zhou Yu, who commanded 100,000 troops with ease.

Furthermore, Liu Bei's army was in low spirits because Guan Yu, whom they thought was invincible, had suffered another defeat, and Zhang Fei, who was supposed to be invincible, had also failed to win.

In contrast, even the unfathomable general Ji Lingshang in Yuan's camp had not made a move, which only fueled Yuan's fear.

If they could win quickly this time, that would be fine. But after a long battle, they were surrounded and barely managed to hold out until midnight under the guidance of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. Seeing that Yuan Shao's army was too powerful to be defeated and that his own army was in danger of collapse, Liu Bei hurriedly sounded the retreat and withdrew to Changping County.

Because of the darkness of night, Yuan Jun did not dare to pursue them too far. He scattered the fleeing soldiers in front of him and returned to Chen County to celebrate his great victory.

Soon after, led by a six-horse chariot, Yuan Shu, with 100,000 men dressed in mourning, arrived victoriously and besieged Changping.

This was because although Liu Bei's army suffered a defeat at Chen County, it managed to withdraw in time and still had more than 40,000 troops at its disposal, which were stationed at Changping to confront Yuan Shu's army.

Yuan Shu feared that a direct assault would result in heavy losses for his soldiers, so he did not order an attack on the city. Instead, he besieged Changping and carried out large-scale construction outside the city, building fortifications, digging deep trenches, and constructing strongholds, making it seem as if he were the one defending the city.

Liu Bei: “???”

　One more chapter will be posted tonight.

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(End of this chapter)