Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 164 Three Major Illusions in Life
Amidst rising dust and smoke, a warrior, clad in armor and wielding a spear, remained undefeated despite being surrounded.

The battle was basically over. Li Shuang climbed to a high place and looked into the distance. He saw that the enemy general and his dozen or so cavalrymen, who were trapped in the center, still had the strength to fight.

"Is this Peng Le?"

Hou Jing rode up to Li Shuang and chuckled:

"My lord, in this battle, we killed hundreds of cavalrymen and routed them all."

Li Shuang asked:

"Gao Li?"

“Ao Cao has already led his men to burn down their camp. Without the grain and fodder stored in this camp, Yuan Shen’s army will be in serious trouble.”

Hou Jing followed Li Shuang's gaze and saw Peng Le and the others who were surrounded.

"My lord, why don't we shoot them dead with arrows?"

"He was a brave general; it would be a pity to kill him."

"Then leave it to me," Hou Jing assured him, patting his chest. "I'm an expert at catching wild boars!"

Li Shuang waved his hand, and Hou Jing rode off on horseback with several of his men.

Upon seeing Hou Jing arrive, the soldiers who had been besieging Peng Le withdrew.

From a high vantage point, Li Shuang saw Hou Jing and Peng Le seemingly exchanging words, after which the large man chased after them with a long spear.

Hou Jing did not engage in battle with him. Relying on his fast horse, he pulled Peng Le's warhorse, which had already been hit by several arrows, and kept circling it. Soon, he wore down Peng Le's warhorse to death.

Peng Le fell to the ground, and Hou Jing called to his men, who took out lassos and bound his hands and feet.

However, the lasso that could restrain a wild horse did not trap Peng Le. Just as he was about to break free, Hou Jing and his men tied him up several more times, completely binding Peng Le like a dumpling.

The skill displayed in this entire process was so exquisite that it was truly breathtaking.

……

At Hulao Pass, Li Shuang's armored soldiers led Peng Le up.

"You're Peng Le?"

"Exactly!"

Seeing the man in front of him who still refused to bow his head even after being arrested, Li Shuang laughed:
"Knowing there was an ambush, why did you still charge forward?"

"How do you know I can't capture you before I fall into the ambush, and how do you know your ambush can trap me? Since Lord Tang dares to gamble, why shouldn't I?"

Peng Le was from Anding County, but had lived in Longxi since childhood, and later served under Du Luozhou. On the grasslands, the roles of hunter and prey were constantly shifting. This was also why the generals of the Six Garrisons would still charge out even knowing there was an ambush.

First, the bait was too tempting; second, they all believed they were good hunters and could turn the tables!

Of course, their counter-attack techniques are effective against ordinary armies.

Unfortunately, Li Shuang's troops had also grown up in the North and were familiar with the tactics of the Six Garrisons.

"So, have you captured me?"

Upon hearing this, Peng Le finally showed a sullen expression.

"No, I am inferior in skill and am willing to admit defeat. I will have no complaints about whatever punishment Duke Tang wishes to give me."

The generals and soldiers of the Six Garrisons had two advantages.

Brave as a tiger, cunning as a fox.

Be honest when you should be honest, and be cunning when you should be cunning.

Li Shuang laughed.

"He's a brave man, let him go!"

The armored soldiers beside Li Shuang untied his ropes, and Peng Le regained his freedom, stretching his muscles and bones.

"I have long admired the name of Lord Tang, and it is an honor to meet you today. If you are willing, I would like to serve under you."

"Then you may stay!"

Even if Peng Le wanted to leave, he couldn't leave now.

He had already learned that Gao Feng had burned down his military camp.

The military rations, weapons, and even winter clothing that Yuan Shen had arranged for him to guard were all burned to ashes.

Peng Le was too ashamed to go back at this point.

"Thank you, Lord!"
-

Yuan Shen, who was heading south, looked at the battle reports from the front lines and cursed: "They're all a bunch of useless fools! Knowing there was an ambush, they still fell into Da Yeshuang's trap. And that Peng Le, he even lost the main camp and surrendered!"

The supplies were gone, morale was low, and the military camp was burned down, but these were not what Yuan Shen cared about most.

What he found most unbearable was Peng Le's surrender to Li Shuang.

Yuwen Luosheng advised from the side:

"Your Majesty, Peng Le's matter is secondary. What we should do now is address the low morale of the army?"

The defeat of Peng Le's vanguard army plunged the Sixth Division Army, which had been highly motivated, into reminiscing about the past.

On the northern grasslands, they faced Li Shuang's troops, unable to fight them or escape to any other destination.

This feeling of fear and despair, once ignited, is contagious.

Moreover, Li Shuang also released many prisoners.

After being defeated and captured, these people returned to their camps and naturally exaggerated the enemy's bravery and wisdom, thereby reducing their own responsibility for the defeat.

These two factors combined caused morale to plummet even faster.

Yuan Shen was somewhat dissatisfied with Yuwen Luosheng's words, because Yuwen Luosheng didn't care about the things he cared about most.

However, he cannot criticize at this time.

Yuan Shen must appear to be a wise ruler, good at accepting advice, at least on the surface.

"In your opinion, what should be done?"

"First, detain those defeated soldiers who fled back in one place, and prevent them from spreading rumors throughout the camp. In addition, send men to the east bank of the Sishui River to repair the camp, and make sure that the soldiers who have not yet crossed the river do not see the devastation of the burned camp. When the camp is repaired and our army crosses the river, we must make a great show of force to demonstrate our military might."

Yuan Shen nodded upon hearing this.

"Then, we'll go with your suggestion!"

"promise!"

As Yuan Shen watched Yuwen Luosheng leave, his face darkened, and his heart was filled with resentment.

However, this resentment was not directed at Yuwen Luosheng. Yuan Shen thought for a long time and finally decided to reconcile with himself and convinced himself of it.

"No, Peng Le must have been forced. I must save him."

……

In the autumn of the third year of Xiaochang, Yuan Shen led an army of 200,000 southwards, dividing his forces into two routes.

One detachment raided Hanoi and advanced towards the Yellow River ferry crossing on the north bank of Luoyang.

Yuan Shen then led an army of over 100,000 men to advance on Hulao Pass, where he set up camp twenty li east of the pass.

The army numbered over 100,000, with camps stretching for miles, their banners blotting out the sky, creating an imposing and powerful force.

Inside the main tent, Yuan Shen saw the envoy returning from Hulao Pass and asked:

"Have you seen Peng Le?"

"seen!"

What did he say?

He said he thanked His Majesty for his trust, but a loyal minister does not serve two masters. Since he has already surrendered, there is no reason for him to rebel again.

Yuan Shen's face darkened, and he asked:
"Am I really not as good as that Ōnoso?"

Upon hearing this, the envoy dared not raise his head, feeling somewhat fearful.

"of course not!"

"Since I am willing to spend thousands of gold pieces to exchange for him, why is he unwilling to return?"

He said His Majesty had sworn an oath with them—

Hearing this, Yuan Shen became quite angry.

"He even knew we had made a vow, yet he still sided with Ohno Sou!"

“He said that their oath only stipulated that they would treat each other as brothers, but it did not say that surrender was forbidden. Since he wants to surrender, Your Majesty, as his brother, should naturally understand him.”

Yuan Shen clutched his chest, feeling like he'd been tricked, and yelled.

"roll!"

……

(End of this chapter)