Three Kingdoms: I, Yuan Shu, Loyal Officials of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 210 Liu Biao: What? Yuan's army is growing stronger despite our efforts to suppress them?

With Yuan Jun's army attacking from both inside and outside, the Jingzhou troops, caught between two forces, seemed destined for annihilation; it was only a matter of time.

Knowing that defeat was imminent, even while commanding his army from the city wall, Cai Mao, Liu Biao's brother-in-law, would occasionally glance at Xing Daorong with unreadable expressions.

After all, nobody wants to die, especially Cai Mao. You see, his relationship with Xing Daorong, who had suddenly become Yuan Gong's adopted son, was much stronger than that of Chen Guan, the garrison commander of the North Gate.

If Chen Guan can do it, then Cai Mao might be able to as well.

Just as Cai Mao was considering surrendering, Kuai Yue was powerless to reverse the situation, and the people of Jingzhou were filled with pessimism and despair, a group of men shouted in unison and charged in from Quanling City.

"Don't panic, gentlemen! I'll charge into battle and break through the enemy lines!"

"The generals of Jingzhou, follow me! Only by fighting our way out of the city can we survive!"

But in the firelight, the leader, with his blue eyes and purple beard, was none other than Sun Quan.
He did not lead his army himself; instead, cattle, donkeys, and sheep were seen in front of his army formation.

At his command, the soldiers set fire to the tails of cattle, sheep, and donkeys. The animals went berserk and charged wildly at Yuan's army, which was blocking the Jingzhou troops, thus breaking up Zhou Yu's carefully arranged military formation.

Fire Bull Formation?
Kuai Yue had initially wondered where Sun Quan had gone at the crucial moment. If he had been by his side, how could Yuan's army have been so rampant?
It turned out that he had foreseen the dire situation tonight and had gone to plunder cattle and sheep during the battle.

Such theoretical and impractical strategies, which are so outrageous that they would make Tian Dan turn in his coffin, can only be conceived by Sun Quan.

And he certainly did not disappoint Kuai Yue. After the livestock broke through the enemy lines, Sun Quan led the 5,000 fresh troops that Liu Pan had previously entrusted to him to command, and charged in with great force!
Of these 5,000 men, nearly 3,000 were cavalry, indicating that Sun Quan had not only seized many livestock during the chaos, but had also taken all the horses in the city.

Because Yuan Shu had already made arrangements for Yuan's army, when they saw Sun Quan charging into the enemy lines, it was as if a thousand troops were scattered. As Sun Quan swung his long sword wildly in front of them, Yuan's army seemed to part the road. No one could stop Sun Quan wherever he went.

With him leading the way, the group quickly fought their way through a road and arrived before Kuai Yue once again.

Sun Quan quickly stopped his horse, reached down, and shouted, "Teacher, mount your horse!"

At that word "teacher," Kuai Yue was almost moved to tears. Once again, in his desperate situation, Sun Quan had come to his rescue.

He hurriedly scrambled onto his horse, then commanded the remaining Jingzhou soldiers who were still obeying orders to follow Sun Quan. With everyone united, they charged out of the city.

Even Cai Mao, who was on the city wall, saw that there was hope of escaping and had no doubts. He hurriedly led his men down the wall, shouting, "Zhongmou, wait for me!"

Because of Sun Quan, the remaining Jingzhou soldiers gathered together. In order to have a chance to escape, they rushed straight to the city gate with great momentum, and Yuan's army could not stop them.

However, Yuan Jun never intended to block them!

After all, even a hundred thousand troops should not be complacent, and thousands of soldiers should avoid the purple-bearded general. This was a military order that Yuan Gong issued lightly.

However, you, Sun Quan, are the only one I'm avoiding!

At that time, on the battlefield, Sun Quan bravely took the lead, and wherever he went, Yuan's army would retreat and make way for him.

It seemed as if he was invincible and unstoppable, like Xiang Yu reborn.

But you, Sun Quan, we must give way, but what about the Jingzhou soldiers behind you?
It should be noted that Jingzhou was short of horses. Even though Quanling City had gathered 70,000 men, Sun Quan only managed to obtain less than 3,000 horses by scavenging both inside and outside the city.

In other words, even if we clear the way for you to run, Sun Quan may be able to escape with his three thousand cavalry, but how can the tens of thousands of infantry following behind escape?
Therefore, Sun Quan, with an almost unparalleled momentum, fought his way out of the city and led everyone to escape.

Such a free and easy command, treating tens of thousands of troops as nothing, was something that Kuai Yue, who had witnessed it firsthand in Changsha, could only admire. The rest of Cai Mao's group were utterly astonished by this.

Is this guy with blue eyes and a purple beard even human?

However, after leaving the city, they broke through the encirclement of Yuan's army. Sun Quan and his men with horses charged to the front, followed by those who could run fast, and then the ranks gradually became longer and longer.

At this moment, Yuan Jun's elite troops caught up and devoured the fleeing Jingzhou soldier, who was helpless and unable to resist, from back to front.

If it had been earlier at the Quanling city gate, where the two sides fought a bloody battle, Kuai Yue would have felt despair and resolved to fight to the death.

The tens of thousands of Jingzhou soldiers, though cornered, fought desperately. Even if they could annihilate this Jingzhou army, Yuan's army would suffer considerable casualties.

However, because of Sun Quan's almost absurd actions, he led the Jingzhou soldiers out of the city. Yes, these cavalrymen could run away, but the Jingzhou infantrymen who had fallen behind and lost the will to fight to the death had become fish on Yuan's chopping board. How many to cut depended on how far Yuan's army was willing to pursue.

The two sides pursued each other until dawn, finally managing to shake off Yuan's army with Sun Quan. When Kuai Yue looked around at his followers and gathered the scattered men, he found that he had less than 10,000 men left.

Thinking back to the days in Xiangyang, how I advised my lord to mobilize troops, and how the 70,000-strong army that was finally gathered was reduced to less than one-tenth overnight.

Sun Quan also sighed and stepped forward to comfort him, "Teacher, don't blame yourself too much. No one expected this battle. General Xing Daorong would actually betray us for the sake of Yuan's adopted son."

It seems that when Xing Daorong returned to Quanling alone and told us how he had tricked Yuan Jun, he must have already planned everything.

After his betrayal, instead of fleeing, he returned, braving great dangers to penetrate deep into our camp, all to help the traitor Yuan wipe us out in one night, as a stepping stone for his advancement.

General Xing truly lives up to his reputation as the foremost general of Jingzhou. Such a risky and ingenious plan, which he actually succeeded, was something no one could have predicted. Teacher, please don't blame yourself too much.”

"I am not blaming myself."

Kuai Yue shook his head and let out a long sigh.

"Even Xing Daorong betrayed us and became Yuan's adopted son, and in one night, he almost wiped out the elite troops."

Yue truly had no idea how to withstand Yuan's army's advance, and how could he possibly save face by returning to Xiangyang to see his lord again?

"What's so difficult about this?"

While Kuai Yue was sighing and lamenting, Cai Mao, who had narrowly escaped death and felt like he was seeing the light of day again, burst into loud laughter.

Kuai Yue's expression changed drastically. "Cai Mao! It's one thing for him to fight with me over trivial matters."

Today, things have come to this, our lord's great cause is crumbling before our very eyes, and you still have the mind to laugh at me? How can you even laugh?"

Cai Mao just looked at him, shook his head and laughed, "I laugh at you, Kuai Yidu, who prides yourself on your wisdom and strategy, how come you are so stupid today?"

I laughed at you for always having such a discerning eye, how come you can't recognize a gem when it's right in front of you today?

Having said that, without waiting for Kuai Yue to speak, he pointed at Sun Quan and said to him:
As the saying goes, what is lost on one front may be gained on another!
In the past, Cai had misjudged Xing Daorong, that ingrate, and regarded him as a pillar of Jingzhou, hoping that he could withstand the onslaught of Yuan's army.

But things have come to this. Although we have been tricked by him and suffered such a great defeat, even if we lose Xing Daorong, we still have Sun Zhongmou!

Kuai Yue, don't you think about it? Last night, Zhongmou led only three thousand cavalry, yet he managed to rout Yuan's tens of thousands of troops, sweeping through enemy lines as if they were nothing. What if he had thirty thousand? Fifty thousand! Even a hundred thousand!
"I ask you, in this world, let alone Yuan Shu, who can possibly stand against Sun Quan?"

Upon hearing this, Kuai Yue couldn't help but smile bitterly, "How could I not know Zhongmou's abilities?"

However, when he had troops in his hands, he was just a newly surrendered person with little experience and age. With Xing Daorong and Young Master Pan ahead of him, how could he gain the respect of the masses and lead the army?
Now that Xing Daorong has betrayed his country and defected to the enemy, becoming the adopted son of the traitor Yuan, and that Pan Gongzi has also been killed in a sneak attack by Yuan's army, with your approval, Cai Mao, he will naturally be able to take command of the army.

But in this situation, where would you and I find a large army to command?

"Now that Quanling has been lost and all the troops have been wiped out, Lingling cannot be defended. It would be better to retreat to Guiyang."

While Yuan Shikai was subduing the counties of Lingling, they would cooperate with Chen Ying and Bao Long in Guiyang to annihilate the rebel army of the Guiyang prefect. After combining their forces, they would have 20,000 troops.

As Cai Mao spoke, he gazed intently at Sun Quan with a deep look in his eyes.

"As for the rest of the troops, you don't need to worry about them. I will return to Xiangyang and persuade the lord to conscript troops for you."

Unlike the Central Plains, Jingzhou was not embroiled in war. Since the Duke entered Jingzhou, it had been prosperous for many years and had not experienced war for a long time.

This defeat is only temporary; I will persuade my lord to conscript soldiers.

Even if this depletes Jingzhou's resources and causes widespread resentment, I, Cai Mao, am willing to bear this infamy and raise tens of thousands more troops to aid Zhongmou.

As he spoke, he grasped Sun Quan's hand tightly, his words earnest.

"This time we must stop the enemy in Jingnan and never let Yuan Shikai lay his hands on Xiangyang. Zhongmou, do not disappoint me."

Sun Quan never expected that Cai Mao, who usually seemed like a petty person, would have such a generous and loyal side. He quickly shook hands with him tightly.

"General Cai, rest assured, I am sworn to never return until I have destroyed the traitor Yuan!"

After the two parted, Cai Mao rode alone straight to Xiangyang!

Yes, escape.

Jingnan is too dangerous, I need to go back to Xiangyang.

Last night's battle truly terrified him. If Sun Quan hadn't cleared a path for him in time, he would have been surrounded and killed by the relentless Yuan army on the city walls.

What the hell? Why would a perfectly good naval commander fight to the death on land in a city?

He finally found a reason to leave the front lines of this battle. He wanted to return to Xiangyang immediately to protect his lord. As for the Yuan army in Jingnan...

Such a difficult task as stopping Yuan's army should naturally be entrusted to someone capable!
The scene of Sun Quan charging into the enemy ranks last night, causing thousands of soldiers to retreat, truly astonished him.

Since Sun Zhongmou is so strong, he is more than capable of resisting Yuan's army. As for General Cai himself, he can just provide troop support from the rear.

It would be best if Sun Quan could win the battle. Even if he was defeated and Yuan's army reached Xiangyang, Cai Mao could then persuade Liu Biao to surrender.

As long as you surrender along with your lord, it won't be considered disloyal or unjust.

On the other hand, Yuan's army, having chased Sun Quan all the way, and with Xing Daorong's prestigious reputation in charge of persuading surrenders, basically surrendered wherever they were pursued.

Although some fled and others scattered along the way, the tens of thousands of Jingzhou soldiers truly gave Yuan's army a good beating.

After a night of fierce fighting, Yuan's original 65,000 troops suffered nearly 10,000 casualties, leaving only 55,000 men.
However, Xing Daorong managed to gather nearly 30,000 Jingzhou soldiers. Although the fighting strength of these defeated Jingzhou soldiers was questionable, the total number of soldiers was nearly 90,000.

As a result, Yuan Shu not only made rapid progress in Jingnan, but his army also grew larger and larger, and he quickly amassed an army of 100,000 without making a sound.

I wonder what Liu Biao's reaction was when he heard this news from Cai Mao, who had rushed back from Xiangyang.
Meanwhile, in Yuan's camp, in the council hall of Quanling City.

Xu Chu stood to the side of Yuan Shu, his body wrapped in bandages, while Zhou Tai, who was still bleeding, stood on the other side as if nothing had happened.

Sun Ce and Zhou Yu were the leaders in the hall, with civil and military officials standing on the left and right. Kneeling in the hall was none other than Xing Daorong, the General of Huainan.
He was in tears, sobbing uncontrollably, and banged his head on the ground.

"Godfather! Xiao Rong almost didn't see you again. You have no idea how those people from Jingzhou, Kuai Yue and Cai Mao, treated me."

He doesn't trust me at all. He has people watching my every move, and if I overstep the mark even slightly, I'll be shot with arrows.

If it weren't for my silver tongue and eloquence, I would have been in serious trouble.

Xing Daorong spoke eloquently, but his eyes secretly glanced at the high platform. Seeing that Yuan Shu's face was becoming increasingly gloomy, he quickly changed his tune.

"Fortunately, my adoptive father was blessed by Heaven and protected me."

Xiao Rongxing lived up to his mission, fooled the people of Jingzhou, and, with the help of those inside and outside, successfully realized his adoptive father's grand plan!
"Today, all I need to do is send letters to various places, and the counties of Lingling will surely surrender without a second thought, thus fulfilling my promise to my adoptive father to surrender the entire prefecture."

Upon hearing these words and seeing Xing Daorong's attitude and demeanor, Yuan Shu, seated on the high platform, frowned slightly.

Should the inside and the outside fit together?

Who doesn't know that Zhou Tai, who colluded from the inside and outside, stormed in from the north gate?
If I hadn't anticipated that Xing Daorong wouldn't tell the truth and had no good intentions, last night's plan would have failed.

After all, if the Jingzhou soldiers hadn't laid an ambush, and Xing Daorong had indeed come to lead the way, then Sun Ce would have immediately turned against him, stabbed Xing Daorong in the back, and the two sides would have started fighting.

The people from Jingzhou in Quanling City were all woken up by this incident.

Although the city gates were wide open and the capture of Quanling was certain, if there hadn't been an ambush beforehand, the army would have been trapped at the city gates and attacked from both sides.

Kuai Yue was determined to flee with his men, and the army fled to other counties to redeploy their defenses, so Yuan's army was unable to achieve the same results as last night.

Therefore, it is certain that Xing Daorong assisted in the ambush and betrayal.

Yuan Shu originally intended to use this as an excuse to have him forcibly dragged out and executed.

Having completely lost the trust of the Jingzhou authorities, Xing Daorong was now utterly useless.

But who could have imagined that Xing Daorong would be so quick to seize the opportunity? As soon as things changed last night, he decisively turned against them again, using the name of Yuan Gong's adopted son to persuade and subdue the Jingzhou soldiers. In just one night, he managed to gather a total of 30,000 men.

Such a generous gift made it difficult for Yuan Shu to act directly. After all, those 30,000 men were persuaded to surrender by Xing Daorong. If he were to kill Xing Daorong now, wouldn't these men have any wild ideas and cause a mutiny?

(End of this chapter)