The Three Kingdoms: The Oath of the Peach Garden, the Rise of the Han Dynasty

Han Sui, who was kidnapped and forced to become a rebel, continued to analyze for Beigong Boyu:

"We need to pay attention to Liu Bei. During the Yellow Turban Rebellion, he was just a commoner, but now he has been appointed as the General of Anxi. He must be very capable!"

Regardless, with Li Wen's defeat, Qian County has fallen. The Han army will inevitably advance westward towards Longguan. We don't have much time left to attack Ji County.

Bei Gong Boyu walked up to the map and pointed towards Longguan:

"Send three thousand men to guard Longguan. No, five thousand. I don't care what methods they use, they must hold them off for a month."

"Ji County will surely fall in a month. At that time, Liangzhou will be completely under our control!"

He turned to Han Sui and said, "Wen Yue, the garrison in Ji County is about to collapse. You will personally oversee the battle. Within ten days, I want to see the flag of my Northern Palace flying atop the city walls of Ji County."

As for those who died, he didn't care at all! There were plenty of people in Liangzhou willing to rebel; as long as he took Liangzhou, he could raise more than 100,000 people!

Han Sui lowered his eyelids: "Yes, sir."

Stepping out of the tent, the north wind of Liangzhou, carrying yellow sand, rushed towards us.

Han Sui subconsciously raised his hand to shield himself from the wind, glancing eastward out of the corner of his eye.

The news that the young general in white robes was gathering Qiang and Hu cavalry had already reached his ears.

The Qiang people fear power but do not cherish virtue!

Han Sui spent half his life in Liangzhou and knew better than anyone the weight of those eight words.

Now that Beigong Boyu has won consecutive victories, the Qiang and Hu tribes naturally obey his orders.

But once the winds change, these people will defect even faster than when they first joined the cause.

What would he do then, being forced to become a traitor?

He glanced back at Beigong Boyu's military tent, where candlelight still shone through the curtains, and he could hear Beigong Boyu's loud, boisterous voice ordering a banquet to be prepared.

……

Qian County.

The speed at which the Qiang people submitted exceeded everyone's expectations.

In just a few days, Zhao Yun had gathered more than 1,200 Qiang and Hu cavalrymen under his command.

These people were all from the upper and middle classes of the tribe, the best warriors out of a hundred, with superb horsemanship and excellent archery skills. With a little training, they could go into battle.

Moji was temporarily promoted by Zhao Yun to cavalry commander, responsible for assisting in training new soldiers. Every day, he would ride horses and shoot arrows on the training ground in the west of the city, with shouts of battle deafening the heavens.

That evening, Li Chang stood atop the city wall, gazing at the dust billowing in the direction of the drill ground, and suddenly spoke:

"Brother, we got a good deal."

Liu Bei stood beside him, somewhat puzzled: "Fourth Brother, are you referring to these Qiang and Hu cavalry?"

"Not only that." Li Chang shook his head, pointing to the drill ground:

"These Qiang people are born cavalrymen. When Beigong Boyu raised an army in Liangzhou, he relied on the cavalry of these tribes."

Now that they're coming to join us, for every one we recruit, the other side loses one.

"But with more people, problems arose. The Qiang and Hu cavalry were assigned to Zilong, and Zilong couldn't manage them all by himself."

Jian Yong is in charge of logistics, Xiahou Lan is in charge of... the rest.

"We are short of people," Li Chang said, looking at Liu Bei. "We lack people who can stand alone, as well as civil and military officials of the middle and lower ranks."

Liu Bei remained silent.

This problem has existed since the uprising in Zhuojun.

They had generals like Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun who could defeat ten thousand men, but they didn't have enough mid-level generals.

It was manageable when there were fewer soldiers, but now with 20,000 troops, a few core generals simply can't handle it.

Just then, Xiahou Lan hurried up from below the city wall, clasped his hands in greeting, and said:

"My lord, strategist, a man has arrived outside the camp. He says he was sent by the strategist."

Li Chang's eyes lit up: "They're here? Let them in."

A moment later, a man dressed in the old armor of a county soldier walked up the city wall.

She's in her thirties; you wouldn't recognize her if you threw her into a crowd.

He stopped seven paces away, clasped his hands in a gesture of respect:

"Your subordinate Xu Rong greets General Liu and the strategist."

Li Chang glanced at him.

This person is not the kind who is eager to show off from the start, but rather a veteran who doesn't stand out in any team, but never makes a mistake easily.

"Commander Xu, I heard from people in your camp that you're the most capable person in the village?" Li Chang asked bluntly.

Xu Rong paused for a moment, then said, "I dare not accept such praise. I've just practiced my marksmanship a few times; it's nothing special."

"How about you go to the training ground and give it a try?" Li Chang pointed to the west of the city. "Zilong is training his troops there. Go and exchange a few blows with Moji, one of his men."

Xu Rong raised his head, glanced at Li Chang, and then nodded: "Yes, sir."

On the training ground, Zhao Yun was leading his newly recruited Qiang and Hu cavalry in practicing charge formations.

After hearing Li Chang explain his purpose, he nodded and gestured for Moji to step forward.

Moji has been thoroughly trained by Zhao Yun these past few days and is now bursting with energy he has nowhere to vent.

Upon seeing that the newcomer was a Han Chinese soldier, he grinned and asked, "Strategist, what if he gets injured?"

"You can't hurt him," Li Chang said with a smile.

Moji, unwilling to accept defeat, mounted his horse and charged forward with his wooden spear in hand.

The Qiang people were indeed skilled on horseback; their horses charged with great agility, and their wooden spears whistled through the air as they aimed straight for Xu Rong's chest.

Knowing that his riding skills might not be as good as his opponent's, Xu Rong waited on horseback until Moji was within five paces of him.

Suddenly, he turned to the side, the wooden spear grazing his chest, while his long spear thrust out, striking Moji's wrist that was holding the spear.

It was from almost the exact same spot as Zhao Yun's strike.

Mogi winced in pain, and the wooden spear slipped from his hand.

His eyes widened, and before he could react, Xu Rong had already sheathed his sword, taken three steps back, and clasped his hands in a fist salute, saying, "You flatter me."

The drill ground was completely silent.

Zhao Yun glanced at Xu Rong again.

Li Changze asked directly, "Commander Xu, how many years have you practiced this skill?"

"Reporting to the military advisor, I joined the army at the age of thirteen, and I am thirty-four this year. I have been training for twenty-one years."

Twenty-one years.

How many 21-year periods does one have in a lifetime?

Li Chang didn't ask any more questions, but just looked at Liu Bei.

Liu Bei nodded.

He stepped forward, stood in front of Xu Rong, and activated his skill to swim arm in arm with him!

"Commander Xu, I intend to transfer you to the central army as a military commander, temporarily acting in your capacity. Are you willing?"

Xu Rong looked up and met Liu Bei's gaze for a few moments.

Then he knelt on one knee, clasped his hands above his head, and said, "Your subordinate, Xu Rong, is willing to die for your lord!"

He's so eager to improve; he needs to seize this opportunity!

Li Changzai watched this scene from the side and silently made a mental note of it.

He knew what the name Xu Rong meant in the original history.

One of the few capable Han generals under Dong Zhuo had defeated Cao Cao at Xingyang. Yet, this man was now merely a garrison commander!

And they happen to be short-staffed.

He lacks manpower, and Xu Rong lacks opportunities.

This matter—no, this person—is of great use.

On that day, they examined Xu Rong's abilities and discovered that his personal martial arts skills were his weakness!

……

Two days later, the provisions were ready, and the army was about to set off.

A military meeting was underway in the main hall of the county government office.

The map was laid out on the table, and Liu Bei, Li Chang, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Jian Yong, Zhao Chang, Xiahou Lan, Xu Rong and others gathered around it on both sides.

Xu Rong wished he could kneel down on the spot!

He just joined, yet he's already in the core decision-making circle!

Zhao Chang had been stationed in Qian County for many years and was most familiar with the terrain of Liangzhou. He first gave a brief account of the situation at Longguan in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

"Longguan is nestled between the Longshan Mountains, with mountains to the north and south, and only one road leading to the pass."

Zhao Chang pointed to the location of Longguan on the map.

"If the rebels defend Longguan, they only need to place archers on both sides of the pass to block the narrow passage. If our army launches a strong attack, the casualties will be very high."

Li Wen was able to reach Qian County by taking the Longguan Pass.

Guan Yu stroked his beard: "In that case, a direct assault isn't out of the question. I'll lead the main force to attack from the front, while my third brother and Zilong might be able to scale the mountain from the flank?"

"The casualties will be huge." Li Chang shook his head. "The rebels have already seized Longguan. According to scouts, Beigong Boyu has reinforced his troops to five thousand. Even if we take it by force, we will lose several thousand men."

Zhang Fei grew anxious: "Then what else can we do besides fight head-on? Take a detour? Go over the Longshan Mountains?"

Li Chang looked at him: "Third Brother, you're right. It is a detour."

He drew a line northwards from Qian County, along the northern foothills of the Longshan Mountains: