"Rebel general! Your defeat is inevitable—why not dismount and surrender now?" The battle had raged on until the moon hung high in the sky, and Xianyu Yin's forces had been utterly annihilated, leaving only him alive.
Xianyu Yin, covered in countless wounds, his hair disheveled and face smeared with blood, looked utterly miserable. The spear in his hand had been broken into two, just like his fate at that moment.
Hearing the enemy's call for his surrender, Xianyu Yin leaned on the broken spear and struggled to stand up. "Scoundrel! You and your rebellious lord, Gongsun Zan, are doomed to a terrible end! My army will surely be victorious!"
With gritted teeth, Shan Jing snatched a longbow from a nearby cavalryman, and without hesitation, he nocked an arrow and let it fly.
The arrow pierced through Xianyu Yin's left chest, and with a groan, he collapsed heavily to the ground...
"You stubborn fool!" Shan Jing cursed fiercely, glaring at the blood-soaked dam in front of him, where even the river flowing downstream had turned a deep red.
At that moment, Shan Jing's deputy rode up swiftly, saluted, and reported, "General Shan, the messenger who tried to flee has been shot through the back by an arrow from me and has fallen dead from his horse."
"Good," Shan Jing exhaled in relief, "Let the brothers rest here for a while. As soon as General Tian gives the signal, we will break the dam!"
Meanwhile, preparations on this side were complete, but Xianyu Fu downstream was still at a standoff with Tian Yu, the two armies facing each other across the river.
Sending scouts upstream too frequently would arouse the enemy's suspicion, which left Xianyu Fu unaware of Xianyu Yin's complete defeat.
Both commanders waited quietly for the other to make the first move. After another hour passed, Xianyu Fu could no longer sit still.
The water upstream had gathered strength, and if they waited any longer, the dam might break on its own, leading to a failed plan.
"Any movement in the enemy camp?" Xianyu Fu asked the scout.
The scout quickly saluted, "General, the enemy has been quiet for the last half hour. Apart from a few patrols, there's hardly any sign of soldiers on guard."
"Hmph, such lax defense. It seems I've overestimated the enemy commander," Xianyu Fu said with relief, "The time is right. Pass my orders—assemble the troops and follow me in a surprise attack on the enemy camp!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Han Bi, you will head upstream immediately to report to General Xianyu, and tell him to release the water after the time it takes for one incense stick to burn!" Xianyu Fu also instructed his deputy, Han Bi.
Han Bi quickly saluted and responded affirmatively.
"Everyone, since the enemy won't make the first move, we will be the battering ram! This night raid is meant to provoke the enemy, so do not get caught up in battle!"
Xianyu Fu donned his armor as he spoke, and the other soldiers quickly finished their preparations, echoing their agreement.
Soon, Xianyu Fu's ten thousand troops had silently assembled. He looked at the scattered firelights moving on the hillside across the river and sneered, "Soldiers! Sound the drums and attack! Follow me to kill!"
"Kill!" With Xianyu Fu's order, the war drums thundered, shattering the silence of the night.
The massive army surged across the water, shaking the ground. In Tian Yu's camp, the night patrols quickly sounded the alarm, "The enemy is attacking! The enemy is attacking!"
Before the second round of alarms finished ringing, Xianyu Fu's forces were already at the camp's doorstep.
The soldiers inside, who had only just begun to react, scrambled to grab their weapons and rush out to resist.
But they were no match for the well-prepared enemy, and within moments, Tian Yu's side had lost over a hundred men.
The battle had begun, and as Han Bi rode upstream, he heard the war drums pounding from downstream, confidently believing that victory was at hand.
Suddenly, under the moonlight ahead, he saw the corpse of a soldier wearing their own army's armor lying on the ground.
Han Bi was immediately alarmed. He hastily dismounted and ran over. Turning the body over, he recognized it as the deputy of Xianyu Yin, Luo Yuchen!
"Damn! We've been tricked!" Han Bi shouted in panic. He scrambled back onto his horse, turned it around, and galloped back the way he came.
"Kill!" Xianyu Fu was fighting fiercely when suddenly, the sounds of battle erupted all around. Tian Yu had long anticipated the night raid and had arranged ambushes in advance.
With the blaring war horns from Tian Yu's side, wave after wave of hidden troops emerged from all directions, surrounding Xianyu Fu's forces.
"Damn it!" Xianyu Fu realized they had fallen into a trap and repeatedly ordered, "Retreat! Do not linger in battle! Retreat!"
It was easy to come but hard to leave. Tian Yu's forces had been waiting for this moment. As the final wave of elite cavalry charged out from the flanks, Xianyu Fu's troops broke into disarray and fled in panic, scrambling back across the river.
"Hold the line!" Tian Yu sneered. The trembling ground and the enemy desperately wading through the river presented a scene too beautiful for him.
"General! The water! The water is coming!" someone shouted, drawing everyone's attention. Upstream, a pitch-black torrent surged down the river, and every soldier in Xianyu Fu's army still crossing the water turned as pale as death...
The roaring flood surged up to nearly ten meters high, like a massive water dragon opening its jaws wide. In an instant, it swallowed Xianyu Fu's remaining soldiers, who hadn't managed to escape, whole.
As the flood passed, the river, once packed with troops, now had fewer than a hundred soldiers floating on the surface.
The water had already overflowed the banks, rushing towards both sides. The remaining soldiers, desperate to survive, turned and fled towards the higher ground where Tian Yu's forces were stationed, creating a scene of utter chaos.
The few thousand surviving soldiers rushed towards the archery lines Tian Yu had set up. With a single wave of his hand, Tian Yu could have these men shot down like porcupines, their bodies washed away by the murky waters.
"Spare us, General! Please spare us!" The defeated soldiers, seeing that Tian Yu had not ordered the archers to shoot, threw down their helmets and armor and cautiously approached the high ground to escape the flood.
"Take all the surrendered soldiers into custody!" Tian Yu finally waved his hand in satisfaction. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he grabbed a surrendered soldier and asked, "Where is your commander?"
"Our commander… he said he'd rather die than surrender and threw himself into the river earlier…"
Hearing this, Tian Yu felt a strange pang of emotion. He silently released the soldier and muttered to himself, "He was a man of integrity after all. What a pity."
...
Meanwhile, a bloody battle raged in Changping, where Gongsun Zan personally led his army to attack the garrison. The area around Changping was all open fields, and Gongsun Zan's cavalry were seasoned veterans.
Generals Qi Zhou and Zhao Gai led their troops into battle against Gongsun Zan but suffered a severe defeat. Zhao Gai was killed in the chaos.
Seeing that they couldn't hold the front line, Qi Zhou retreated with his remaining troops, fewer than ten thousand, into the city of Changping to make a last stand.
Faced with the thick city walls, Gongsun Zan was frustrated. Most of his forces were cavalry, and a direct assault would lead to heavy losses.
Besides, there wasn't a tree or a decent-sized rock for miles around, making a siege unfeasible.
"Cowards! If you have the guts, open the gates and fight me to the death!" Frustrated, Gongsun Zan rode up to the city gate to issue a challenge himself.
"Gongsun Zan! I know your tactics, but I've already ordered my men to clear the fields and fortify the walls. Now, with the city sealed tight, what can you do to me?" Qi Zhou smugly taunted from the top of the city walls, watching Gongsun Zan seethe below.
"You coward! When I break through this city, I'll tear you limb from limb!" Gongsun Zan shouted furiously, pointing his sword at Qi Zhou.
As Qi Zhou continued to mock him, Gongsun Zan started to advance, but arrows rained down from the city walls, nearly hitting him.
"Damn it!" Gongsun Zan cursed as he returned to camp, tossing his helmet aside in anger. His officers tried to console him, but Gongsun Zan was too furious, lashing out at them instead, "Get out! All of you!"
The officers left with their heads down, feeling disgruntled. Only one man walked into the tent, and Gongsun Zan's face softened as he recognized him.
"Calm down, my lord," Guan Jing said, bowing respectfully.
Gongsun Zan sighed and slumped into his seat. "I regret not listening to Shi Qi's advice. Now, just as he predicted, the enemy has sealed themselves in the city. What should we do now?"
Before the battle, Guan Jing had advised Gongsun Zan that without a strategy to annihilate the enemy, they would retreat to the city and hold out. Now that it had come true, Gongsun Zan was filled with regret.
Guan Jing didn't respond directly. "We have enough supplies to last five days. Whether or not the provisions from You Beiping will arrive in time is uncertain."
" If we continue to drag this out, our soldiers' morale will dwindle. The enemy clearly intends to wear us down. What is your plan, my lord? To fight or to retreat?"
"Of course, we'll fight!" Gongsun Zan responded without hesitation, but then he sighed repeatedly, "But the enemy has cut down all the tall bushes within miles. Am I supposed to order siege weapons from Beiping and have them brought here?"
Guan Jing smiled and pulled out a small roll of coarse silk from his sleeve. "Do not worry, my lord. Last night, General Tian Yu wiped out twenty thousand enemy troops outside Anping City and took the city without a fight this morning."
" General Tian is now marching toward Changping with his troops. We should not retreat!"
"Is that true?" Gongsun Zan sprang to his feet, snatching the silk scroll from Guan Jing and laughing heartily. "With Tian Yu on our side, it's like rain after a long drought!"
Guan Jing's expression turned serious. "My lord, we shouldn't worry about the stubborn forces in Changping. Scouts from Xuzhou reported this morning that two days ago, Qin Longyang led an army of fifty to sixty thousand north from Donglai Port by ship, aiming for Liaodong."
"In my opinion, after taking Changping, we should return to Beiping and prepare for the conquest of Liaodong."
"Hmph! Qin Longyang dares to make such a move?" Gongsun Zan exclaimed angrily. "What about Liu Bei? Tell him to act immediately and attack Liaodong before Qin Longyang gets there!"
"Please reconsider, my lord! Liu Bei only has about ten thousand troops. Even though Gongsun Du suffered a great defeat, he still commands no fewer than thirty thousand soldiers."
"If Liu Bei attacks first, he might not win. Since Qin Longyang is leading a large force, Gongsun Du will definitely focus on him. Once Gongsun Du's main forces are tied up with Qin Longyang, we can then have Liu Bei strike. Wouldn't that be a guaranteed victory?"