The Three Kingdoms: Hindsight is 20/20, and the Three Revivals of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 81 Liu Bei emerges victorious, Cao Cao's divisive tactics follow (3rd update)
at the same time.

Yu Jin, Xiahou Yuan, and others in Cao Cao's camp in Nanban also received orders to go into battle.

Although Cao Cao only had 500 cavalry, he had more than 10,000 infantry!

The cavalry broke through the enemy lines, and the infantry followed up with a fierce attack.

The skillful tactical coordination directly led to a one-sided massacre on the battlefield!

Seeing that Cao's infantry and cavalry were closing in, Wen Chou could not stop his soldiers from trampling each other and could only flee for his life.

Zhang Liao and Xu Huang rode after them at full speed, shouting, "Wen Chou, you dog traitor, don't run away!"

"How dare you, an unknown nobody, insult me!" Wen Chou turned around and saw the two generals catching up. He then gripped his iron spear, nocked an arrow, and aimed at Zhang Liao.

Xu Huang, with his sharp eyes, shouted, "Wen Yuan, dodge the arrow!"

Without a second thought, Zhang Liao ducked and dodged, but Wen Chou shot an arrow that struck his helmet, knocking off the tassel.

Just as he was about to give chase again, his warhorse was shot in the cheek by an arrow from Wen Chou. The horse was in pain and knelt down, throwing Zhang Liao off.

Seeing Wen Chou turn around to take Zhang Liao's life, Xu Huang quickly swung his great axe to intercept Wen Chou and fight him.

Wen Chou was also annoyed by Xu Huang's entanglement.

Not long after they had exchanged blows, Zhang Liao and his personal cavalry changed horses and charged in. Wen Chou dared not linger in the fight, so he feigned an attack and prepared to leave.

Xu Huang and Zhang Liao naturally refused to let Wen Chou escape, and they surrounded him with all their might, wielding swords and axes, determined to kill him.

"How annoying!"

Seeing that he couldn't escape, Wen Chou was both angry and hateful, and began to fight desperately with his iron spear.

In a time of crisis.

Suddenly, more than ten horsemen appeared, their banners fluttering, and a general rode up at the head of the army, sword in hand, heading straight for Zhang Liao. It was Yan Liang from the rear army.

Yan Liang was supervising the infantry in the rear guard as they moved supplies and provisions when he suddenly heard a scout report that the vanguard had been defeated. Yan Liang was so shocked that he thought he was hallucinating.

Although Yan Liang was proud, he wasn't foolish enough to disregard the scout's words. Moreover, Yan Liang had also been ambushed by Cao Cao in the Battle of Baima, which made him believe the scout's words even more.

Fearing that Wen Chou might be in danger, Yan Liang ordered his infantry to form ranks on the spot while he led more than ten of his personal guards to search for Wen Chou. They happened to run into Zhang Liao and Xu Huang surrounding and killing Wen Chou.

"Brother, help me kill those two!"

Wen Chou was in a terrible state. He was exhausted, his helmet had been halved off by Xu Huang's axe, and much of his hair had been cut off. He was disheveled, his face full of shame and indignation, and his general's majesty was completely gone.

Yan Liang, however, saw the banners behind Zhang Liao and Xu Huang and stopped the furious Wen Chou: "I only brought a dozen or so riders, we cannot linger in battle!"

After glancing at the dozen or so riders behind Yan Liang, Wen Chou calmed down. If he didn't leave now, he wouldn't be able to escape later.

When Zhang Liao and Xu Huang saw that Yan Liang had led more than ten riders to their aid, they knew they were no match for him. Just as they were about to turn their horses and flee, they saw Yan Liang and Wen Chou turn their horses and run away first.

Looking back, they saw that Cao Ren, Cao Chun, and other generals were also riding over.

Upon seeing the two generals, Cao Ren shouted, "The Minister of Works has already mobilized troops from the camp to launch a surprise attack. We should strike while the enemy troops are still establishing themselves on the south bank of Yanjin."

Zhang Liao and Xu Huang were both invigorated.

Xu Huang pointed to Yan Liang, Wen Chou, and the others who were fleeing ahead and shouted, "Yan Liang and Wen Chou are right ahead! Don't let them escape!"

In the chaos of battle, it is common sense to kill the general first.

If the general escapes, the scattered soldiers will be gathered together by him.

Zhang Liao also shouted, "The one with the long beard is Yan Liang! The one with the short beard is Wen Chou!" Soon after...

The physical characteristics of Yan Liang and Wen Chou were quickly relayed to the cavalrymen, who shouted "Capture Yan Liang alive!" and "Capture Wen Chou alive!"

Because Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, Cao Ren, Cao Chun and others were pursuing them too closely, Yan Liang and Wen Chou had no choice but to flee and had no chance to return to the infantry formation.

The infantry formation was first attacked by the fleeing cavalry, and then Yan Liang did not return for a long time. Finally, when they saw Cao Cao's troops coming in with their banners, they were all terrified and hurried to the riverbank.

If Ju Shou were to see Yan Liang and Wen Chou's utterly terrible performance in battle, he would probably scold them like sons again.

What is a Supreme General?
A general is one who can govern an army, command troops, and adapt to changing circumstances.

Those like Yan Liang and Wen Chou can only be described as having the courage of a single man.

South bank of the Yellow River.

The boats are scattered about.

Looking at the panicked soldiers on the shore, Guo Tu's tone was full of disdain: "Five thousand cavalry and four thousand infantrymen, and they have been defeated in less than a day. If Yan Liang is still alive, I will ask him again whether this loss of troops is my fault."

Chunyu Qiong's tone was also full of disdain: "When I was the Right Colonel in Luoyang, Yan Liang was just a blacksmith; I didn't even dare to be arrogant in front of Cao Cao, yet Yan Liang dared to boast about capturing Cao Cao alive? It would be better if he were dead. If he were alive, he might even slander us in front of the General."

As they were talking...

Then, from the upstream direction of the south bank of the Yellow River, a cavalry force charged out along the riverbank, led by none other than Liu Bei!

Guo Tu's expression hardened, and he put away his disdain for Yan Liang. He ordered his men, "General Zuo has already gone into battle, so we cannot slacken our efforts! Pass on my order: beat the drums and sound the horns, and go ashore to attack the enemy!"

As the drums and horns sounded, the well-arranged boats quickly approached the shore, and Chunyu Qiong was the first to disembark, leading his troops and shouting: "General Chunyu Qiong, the Fenwei General, is here!"

Upstream, Liu Bei's thousand cavalry charged out, while downstream, Chunyu Qiong's several thousand infantrymen charged out. The routed soldiers, who had been in a state of panic, suddenly felt like they had found their leader.

Some gathered towards Liu Bei, while others gathered towards Chunyu Qiong, making Yan Liang and Wen Chou both ashamed and angry.

What was shameful was that Liu Bei and Chunyu Qiong witnessed the humiliation of their crushing defeat, and what angered them was that Liu Bei and Chunyu Qiong had clearly crossed the river long ago but deliberately remained inactive.

Whether they felt ashamed or angry, the current situation was beyond the control of Yan Liang and Wen Chou. Even if they wanted to reason with Liu Bei and Chunyu Qiong, they would have to wait for Cao Cao's troops to withdraw first.

"Yuan Shao actually appointed Liu Bei to command the cavalry?"

Cao Cao was taken aback when he saw Liu Bei's generals' banners flitting across the battlefield.

Despite all the planning, no one expected Liu Bei to appear, let alone that Liu Bei would appear with Chunyu Qiong, and that he would only appear after Yan Liang and Wen Chou had been defeated.

They could have seized all of Yan Liang and Wen Chou's provisions and horses, but now they have failed to achieve their goal.

"Master, a prolonged war will be of no benefit."

Xun You spoke softly, as always, sparing with his words.

"What a pity!" Cao Cao sighed softly and ordered the troops to retreat.

Although Cao Cao regretted not being able to seize all of Yan Liang and Wen Chou's provisions and horses, he was not discouraged. Instead, he stared in the direction of Yan Liang and Wen Chou's banners and asked Xun You, "Yan Liang and Wen Chou are not dead. After returning to camp, they will definitely clash with Liu Bei. I want to use a divisive tactic to kill Yan Liang and Wen Chou. What do you think, Gongda?"

Xun You's eyes were piercing: "We can release the prisoners and spread rumors that Liu Bei is conspiring with Sikong, inducing Yan Liang and Wen Chou to attack and kill Liu Bei, giving Liu Bei a reasonable reason to take action."

Cao Cao clapped his hands: "Gongda's plan is very much in line with my thoughts!"

Xun You frowned and expressed his concern: "But Liu Bei is able to win people's hearts. I am worried that he is raising a tiger that will eventually cause trouble."

Cao Cao reined in his horse and turned around, his gaze slightly sharp: "Although raising a tiger may cause trouble, Yuan Shao is a major threat. Now that Yuan Shao has not been destroyed, Liu Bei and I are friends, not enemies!"

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(End of this chapter)