Transmigrating to the Three Kingdoms as Lu Bu: I Have a Pseudo-Apocalypse System

Zhang Ren, escorted by his personal guards, climbed to a high point and saw that the entire vanguard had collapsed. His eyes widened in fury: "Crossbowmen, shoot the cavalry!"

A team of crossbowmen barely managed to assemble, but Lü Bu had already set his sights on them.

Having storage space is so convenient. He put away his halberd, took out his bow, and fired a barrage of arrows, sniping from a distance of two or three hundred paces.

The Shu crossbowmen fell one after another, and their formation broke up before it could be formed.

Wu Yi rode up to Zhang Ren and said urgently, "Gongyi, the vanguard has collapsed, the central army is in disarray, and the situation is hopeless! We should retreat to Jianmen Pass and fight again from there!"

Zhang Ren gritted his teeth: "How can we abandon our camp and flee with an army of 50,000? You lead the rear guard to retreat first, and I will lead my personal guard to cover the rear, fighting as we retreat!"

"No, we must go together!"

"Enough nonsense!" Zhang Ren shoved Wu Yi. "You are the lord's brother-in-law. If you die here, how can I explain it to the lord? Let's go!"

Zhang Ren drew his sword and led over a thousand of his personal guards in a counterattack, attempting to stabilize the situation.

His personal guard was the elite of Yizhou, and their armor and weapons were also very good. In addition, Lu Bu's heavy cavalry had run for ten miles and their physical strength was limited. Zhang Ren was also a master of martial arts, so for a time they managed to hold off the heavy cavalry's offensive.

Upon seeing this, Lü Bu spurred his horse and charged straight at Zhang Ren.

Red Hare was as fast as lightning, and in a few breaths it rushed to Zhang Ren's front. The halberd came down, and Zhang Ren raised his spear to block.

"clang--!"

With a deafening clang of metal clashing, Zhang Ren felt a violent jolt in his arms, his tiger's mouth splitting open as his spear flew from his grasp. Lü Bu swept his halberd a second time, and Zhang Ren quickly ducked to dodge, but the gale-force wind from the halberd still stung his cheek.

"General, be careful!" Two guards thrust their spears at Lü Bu.

Without even glancing at them, Lü Bu swung his halberd, deflecting the two spears, and with a swift motion, sent one of his personal guards flying several feet. Another guard was knocked down by Red Hare, the horse's hoof trampling his chest, causing him to spurt blood.

Zhang Ren drew his sword and fought again, but Lü Bu's halberd skills were divine. He struck Zhang Ren in the back with his halberd, knocking him off his horse.

"Tie them up!" Lu Bu shouted.

Several guards stepped forward and bound Zhang Ren.

With their commander captured, the Shu army completely collapsed.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless, Wu Yi led over a thousand cavalrymen in a desperate breakout, fleeing south towards Jianmen Pass. The remaining Shu soldiers either surrendered or fled, leaving the mountains and plains filled with routed soldiers.

Yang Ang led two thousand Hanzhong soldiers to the scene and was responsible for accepting the surrender of prisoners and clearing the battlefield.

In a remote prison, he found Zhang Lu's mother, Lady Lu, and more than thirty family members who had been detained by the Shu army.

Zhang Ren placed him in the rear army camp prison and sent troops to guard him, but the camp was defeated in one battle and the guards also fled.

Lady Lu was nearly sixty years old, her hair disheveled, but she remained calm. Seeing Yang Ang come to her rescue, she asked, "Where is my son, Gongqi?"

Yang Ang knelt down: "Madam, Master is well and is currently guarding Nanzheng. Duke Lü Bu of Jin has defeated the Shu army and has specially ordered me to come and rescue you."

Lady Lu gazed at the distant battlefield, where she saw the large banner bearing the character "吕" (Lü) fluttering in the wind. She sighed softly, "Heaven's mandate has fallen to Lü."

As dusk fell, the battlefield gradually quieted down.

In this battle, the Shu army suffered more than 1,700 dead, 3,000 wounded, and more than 30,000 captured. Wu Yi escaped with only a thousand cavalrymen, while the remaining stragglers fled through the mountains, forests, rivers, and streams and were never seen again.

Lu Bu's army suffered only a few dozen casualties and won a great victory.

Inside the central command tent, Lü Bu sat in the main seat. Zhang Ren was brought into the tent, bound hand and foot, but he stood with his head held high and refused to kneel.

Cao Xing shouted, "A defeated general like you, upon seeing the Duke of Jin, why don't you kneel and pay your respects!"

Zhang Ren sneered: "Zhang Ren only kneels to the Governor of Yizhou and the Emperor of Han, why would he kneel to a usurper?"

Lu Bu waved his hand to stop Cao Xing, and looked Zhang Ren up and down: "I have heard that Zhang Gongyi is a famous general in Shu, with strict discipline in his army and commendable loyalty and bravery. In today's battle, you remained calm in the face of danger and covered the rear to block the enemy. You are indeed a good general."

Zhang Ren closed his eyes and did not answer.

Lü Bu then said, "Liu Zhang is weak and incompetent, and he listened to slander, detaining Zhang Lu's mother, which caused chaos in Hanzhong. Now I have been ordered by the Emperor to pacify the four directions and wish to restore the world to unity. If you are willing to submit to the court, I can appoint you as a general to lead troops in battle, so as not to waste your life's learning."

Zhang Ren opened his eyes: "I appreciate Duke Jin's kind intentions. However, my family is all in Chengdu. If I surrender, my entire clan will surely die. I beg Duke Jin to grant me death so that I may preserve my reputation for loyalty and righteousness."

At this moment, a person lifted the curtain and entered from outside the tent; it was Zhang Xiu.

Zhang Xiu and Zhang Ren were both disciples of Tong Yuan, a renowned master of spear fighting. Zhang Ren was the eldest disciple, Zhang Xiu was the second disciple, and Zhao Yun was the last disciple.

This occurred after Lü Bu learned during his march that the commander of the Shu army was Zhang Ren, so he urgently sent someone to summon Zhang Xiu to persuade Zhang Ren to surrender. Zhang Xiu hurried along and arrived just in time.

"Senior brother!" Zhang Xiu clasped his hands in greeting.

Upon seeing Zhang Xiu, Zhang Ren's expression shifted slightly: "Junior Brother!"

Zhang Xiu said solemnly, "Senior brother, in the present world, Duke Jin, serving the emperor to punish the disloyal, holds four provinces, implements benevolent policies, reforms the system to bring peace to the people, and is a wise ruler. Liu Zhang is weak and incompetent, content with a corner of the country, and is not a capable ruler. Senior brother, with your abilities, why not abandon darkness and embrace light? As for your family, Duke Jin has already planned to take Yizhou, and can rescue them when Chengdu falls."

Zhang Ren remained silent for a long time before looking at Lü Bu: "Can the Duke of Jin truly guarantee the safety of my family?"

Lü Bu said, "If I take Chengdu, I will ensure that my soldiers do not disturb the people, and that officials who surrender will not be punished. As for your family, I will take good care of them."

Zhang Ren took a deep breath and knelt on one knee: "Since that's the case, I am willing to surrender. However, for the sake of my family, I beg you, Duke Jin, not to publicly announce my surrender for the time being. I am willing to act as an inside agent and provide information on the situation in Jianmen Pass and Chengdu. I will publicly submit when you, Duke Jin, have conquered Chengdu."

Lü Bu rose and personally untied Zhang Ren, saying, "Your righteousness and profound wisdom are exactly what I wanted. From now on, you will remain as a prisoner to prevent Liu Zhang from harming your family."

"Thank you, Lord Jin!"

Zhang Ren then gave a detailed report on the defenses of Jianmen Pass: Jianmen Pass currently has 10,000 troops defending it, the pass is formidable, and supplies are plentiful, making a direct assault difficult. However, he suggested sending a surprise force to bypass the pass via the Yinping Trail, and he offered to draw a map and provide guidance.

He then described the situation in Chengdu: Liu Zhang had just ascended the throne, and most of the government orders came from civil officials such as Zhang Song and Wang Lei. Among the military generals, besides Zhang Ren and Wu Yi, there were also generals such as Yan Yan and Li Yan, but each had their own agenda. Chengdu still had 30,000 troops defending it, and the city was high and the moat deep; if attacked by force, it would require a long siege.

Lu Bu noted everything down and ordered his men to take Zhang Ren back to the prisoner-of-war camp, but secretly instructed them to treat him well.

The following day, Lü Bu left Cao Xing to lead the 1st Army to clear the battlefield and reorganize the prisoners, while he himself led the Imperial Guard and Yang Ang's troops back to Nanzheng.

March 21st, Nanzheng City.

The city gates were wide open, and the people in the city were organized by officials to line both sides of the street, all with their heads bowed and hands hanging down, not daring to make a sound.

Zhang Lu, the governor of Hanzhong, removed his Taoist robe and armor, wearing only a plain dark robe and carrying a bundle of thorns on his back. He led more than a hundred civil and military officials, including the prefectural assistant and the chief clerk, to kneel outside the south gate of the city.

At the end of the Chen hour (7-9 AM), the imperial army flag appeared at the end of the official road.

Lü Bu led a thousand imperial guards slowly forward, their military bearing impeccable and their armor clanging. He stopped a hundred paces from the city gate, reining in his horse.

Zhang Lu touched his forehead to the ground and shouted, "This sinful subject Zhang Lu, ignorant of Heaven's will, resisted the royal army and deserves to die ten thousand times! Now I am willing to surrender the entire prefecture and submit to the Duke of Jin's disposal!"

The officials behind him shouted in unison, "Welcome to the Imperial Army's arrival in Hanzhong!"