The Three Kingdoms: The entire Cao Cao camp thought I was weak and frail.

Guan Yu stroked his long beard, his phoenix eyes slightly narrowed, gazing into the distance without speaking.

Liu Bei's gaze lingered for a long time in the direction where Cao Cao's army had disappeared. He turned around and bowed deeply to Gongsun Zan.

"Senior brother, I have a request for you."

Gongsun Zan looked at him and had already guessed some of what was going on.

"Although I hold a lowly position, I know that it is our duty to uphold the Han Dynasty. Now that Cao Mengde is fearless in the face of danger and has led his army westward alone, I am willing to lead my troops to jointly punish this traitor!"

Gongsun Zan remained silent for a moment, then finally sighed and patted him on the shoulder.

"Xuande, although we are master and servant, our bond is like that of brothers. How could I possibly stop you from having this ambition? Go forth."

"Thank you for your kindness, Senior Brother!"

Soon, another small group broke away from the Allied camp and headed west, following in the footsteps of the pioneers.

After Liu Bei's small but fresh force joined Cao Cao's army, Cao Cao's army finally arrived at Hulao Pass.

Above the gate wall, the Xiliang army flag embroidered with the character "Dong" fluttered in the wind, making a rustling sound. Squads of soldiers, clad in armor and armed with weapons, patrolled back and forth, their movements efficient and their eyes vigilant, a stark contrast to the lazy allied troops in the Suanzao camp.

This is a truly battle-hardened army. The heavy atmosphere made this isolated force, which had just left its comfortable nest, feel unprecedented pressure.

"Set up camp!"

Cao Cao's order broke the silence. Undeterred by the sight before him, he methodically directed his troops to set up camp a few miles from the pass, nestled against a hillside and beside a stream. As soon as the camp was established, his elite scouts were dispatched.

The news brought back was not optimistic. The defenses in front of the pass were tight, with deep trenches and numerous barricades, leaving almost no room for opportunistic maneuvering.

As night deepened, a single oil lamp flickered dimly inside Xun Hao's tent.

He sat at his desk, his face empty, his eyes tightly closed. In his mind, countless war games were rapidly unfolding, attempting to find a path around the formidable pass. However, no matter how he plotted, a tall figure, wielding a halberd, stood like an insurmountable mountain, blocking all his way.

Lü Bu.

The tent flap was gently lifted, and a bitter medicinal smell wafted in. Guo Jia, carrying a bowl of dark medicine, walked to his side and, without a word, placed the bowl to his lips.

Xun Hao opened his eyes, looked at the bowl of medicine, and his brows furrowed involuntarily.

Guo Jia didn't give him a chance to refuse. He held the bowl in one hand and grabbed his chin with the other, forcibly pouring the medicine down his throat.

The bitter liquid slid down his throat, and Xun Hao coughed a few times, his eyes welling up with tears.

Guo Jia put down the empty bowl, took a blanket from the side, covered him with it, and tucked him in. After doing all this, he sat down beside Xun Hao and murmured softly in a tone that was half complaining and half concerned:

"Didn't you catch a cold? What are you still worrying about?"

"Lü Bu." Xun Hao answered instinctively, and Guo Jia immediately exploded, "Lü Bu?"

He tightened his grip on the empty bowl, his knuckles making a slight cracking sound.

"Even in your illness, you're still thinking about other men?" Warm breath brushed against his face, carrying Guo Jia's unique, cool scent. Xun Hao's heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively shrank back, his back pressed against the cold tent wall.

He looked at Guo Jia's handsome face; the man's usual flirtatious eyes had vanished, replaced by a heavy, dark gaze. Xun Hao belatedly realized that this old man's focus seemed to have strayed again.

"Fengxiao, what are you thinking about?" Xun Hao found it somewhat amusing, yet also a little helpless. "I'm analyzing the battle situation."

"Deduce what?" Guo Jia interrupted him, his voice even lower, tinged with a hint of irrationality, "Even a skilled cook can't make a meal without rice."

Cao Cao was unaware that Guo Jia had compared him to a clever woman. The next morning, a muffled sound of war drums came from the direction of the wall.

A subordinate general from Xiliang led a troop of cavalry out of the gate, galloping and cursing in front of Cao Cao's army, using extremely vulgar language, and demanding that Cao Cao come out and face death by name.

This blatant provocation made the hot-blooded soldiers of Cao Cao's army glare angrily.

"How dare you, you scoundrel, insult my lord!" Xiahou Dun, his fiery temper flaring, was the first to lose his temper. He grabbed his spear, strode up to Cao Cao, and volunteered for battle, "This humble general is willing to go and take his head!"

Cao Ren stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "My lord, we must blunt the enemy's momentum."

Cao Cao stood on high ground, holding a scroll of bamboo slips in his hand. His gaze, however, did not fall on the shouting lieutenant; instead, he looked past him and surveyed the towering fortress walls in the distance. He raised his hand, stopping his generals from requesting permission to fight.

"Don't be hasty." His voice was calm. "This is just a test. The enemy hasn't figured out our strength yet, so we mustn't act rashly."

Xiahou Dun was so anxious that he scratched his head, but he dared not disobey the military order.

Just then, a commotion suddenly broke out on the top of the city tower of Hulao Pass.

A huge general's banner with a black background embroidered with gold and a large "吕" character on it was slowly raised in the biting cold wind, surrounded by dozens of armored soldiers.

Immediately afterwards, a figure appeared beneath the general's flag.

He was clad in a chainmail armor with a beast-faced design, wore a purple-gold crown with three prongs binding his hair, and carried a long halberd at an angle in his hand.

He didn't even make a move; he simply stood there, and an aura of domineering arrogance swept over everyone, causing the Xiliang cavalrymen who were shouting below to instinctively shut their mouths, silencing the entire battlefield.

He slowly raised his hand, and the guards behind him immediately handed him a large bow.

Lu Bu drew his bow and arrow, and casually shot it into the sky.

The black arrow drew an arc in the night sky and landed precisely on the flagpole of Cao Cao's main camp commander.

"Duh!"

With a muffled thud, the arrow fletching continued to tremble.

Lü Bu seemed quite satisfied with the effect. He spurred his Red Hare horse down the high slope of the pass.

"Arrogant!"

A general named Mu Shun could no longer contain himself. He spurred his horse and brandished his spear, charging straight at Lü Bu like an arrow released from a bow.

"My lord! This humble general is willing to go and slay this madman! Take this!"

Startled by the commotion outside, Xun Hao wrapped himself in a blanket and stepped out of the tent, where he witnessed this scene.

Guo Jia followed closely behind, draping an even thicker cloak over his shoulders, muttering a complaint under his breath: "What's the point of coming out? He's just a fool going to his death."

Before he could finish speaking, the situation on the battlefield proved him right.

Facing the charging Mu Shun, Lü Bu didn't even move an inch. He simply raised his halberd at the very moment Mu Shun's spear was about to reach him.

A cold light flashed.

Mu Shun's body was still charging forward on horseback, but his head had already flown into the air, his face still frozen with the excitement of achieving great deeds.