The Three Kingdoms: The entire Cao Cao camp thought I was weak and frail.

The city wall instantly transformed into a meat grinder.

Rolling stones, logs, and molten gold were poured down as if they were free. Archers fired frantically, arrows raining down on every inch of the land below the city.

The soldiers, wielding spears and ring-pommel swords, engaged in the most brutal hand-to-hand combat with the Yellow Turban army that had climbed up the siege ladders.

Shouts of battle, screams of agony, and the clash of weapons filled the air.

Defenders were constantly being cut down, and Yellow Turban soldiers were constantly falling off the city walls. Blood stained the city walls and the moat red.

This was the first time Xun Hao had experienced the cruelty of war so closely.

He stood behind the city wall, in charge of coordinating supplies. Baskets of arrows and barrels of tung oil were continuously transported up the city wall from the secret cellars he had personally designed.

His face was pale, and his lips were tightly pressed together. The pungent smell of blood made him nauseous. But he endured the discomfort and calmly issued a series of commands.

"The arrows on the west wall are running low! Quickly send three boxes of feathered arrows there!"

"We don't have enough stones to roll at the South Gate! Quickly! Have the laborers bring up all the spare stones!"

"The North Gate needs tung oil! Go to warehouse number three (甲字三号) and get it quickly!"

He was like a high-speed machine, precisely allocating all the war resources in the city.

Guo Jia stood beside him, looking at his calm and composed demeanor, and the admiration in his eyes deepened.

He had expected the child to be terrified by the bloody scene. To his surprise, the child was not frightened at all; instead, he displayed a calmness and decisiveness completely out of character for his age.

The battle lasted from dawn until dusk.

The bodies of the Yellow Turban rebels piled up like mountains beneath the city walls. The defenders of Yingchuan also suffered heavy losses, with more than half of their troops killed or wounded.

The groans of wounded soldiers could be heard everywhere on the city walls.

As evening fell, the Yellow Turban army finally sounded the retreat and withdrew like a receding tide.

The soldiers guarding the city wall were all exhausted and collapsed on the ground, too weak to even move a finger.

"We...we held on..." a young soldier muttered to himself, leaning against the battlements.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

However, Guo Jia's expression remained grave. He walked to Xun Yu's side and whispered, "Wenruo, Bo Cai is at his last gasp, but even a cornered beast will fight. Tomorrow, he will definitely make a final desperate attempt."

Xun Yu dragged his weary body, one arm still bleeding from an arrow wound in the day's battle. He nodded: "I understand. But our army has suffered heavy casualties, and tomorrow's battle... I'm afraid..."

"We only need to hold out for another half day. After that, things will take a turn for the better. Judging by the time, General Huangfu's army should arrive by tomorrow afternoon at the latest."

Xun Yu accepted the letter and felt much more at ease.

Just then, a commotion broke out in the dark, densely packed Yellow Turban army camp outside the city.

Instead of setting up camp and cooking as usual, they began packing their belongings and assembling their troops.

"They're retreating!" a sharp-eyed soldier shouted from the city wall.

The Yellow Turban army's camp was bustling with noise, clearly indicating that they were about to break camp and retreat overnight!

"It seems Bo Cai has also received news of General Huangfu's arrival." A huge cheer erupted in Yingchuan City, a city teeming with survivors. Many soldiers and civilians embraced and wept.

Xun Yu was deeply worried. If they could attack from both sides with General Huangfu, they might be able to capture most of Bo Cai's main force. But now that they had retreated, the surrounding counties of Yingchuan would become the next targets of the Yellow Turban army's plunder.

Prefect Guo Xun also rushed over, excitedly shouting, "The bandits are trying to escape! Quickly! Issue my order: the entire army must attack, pursue and kill the bandits, and finish them off in one battle!"

"My lord, you mustn't!" Xun Yu immediately interjected, "Although the rebel army has retreated, they remain organized despite the chaos. A hasty pursuit could lead to an ambush!"

"Wenruo, you are mistaken!" Guo Xun waved his hand dismissively. "Military strategy dictates that one should not intercept a retreating army, nor pursue a desperate enemy. But now the enemy army is like stray dogs, their morale utterly destroyed. This is the perfect opportunity for us to strike while they're down and make our mark! How can we let this chance slip by?"

Guo Jia watched coldly from the side, without saying a word. He knew that there was no reasoning with such a fool.

Xun Yu wanted to persuade him again, but Guo Jia tugged at his sleeve and shook his head.

"Wenruo, let him go," Guo Jia said in a low voice. "You can't stop someone who's determined to die."

Xun Yu looked at Guo Xun's greedy face and then at Guo Jia's indifferent eyes, and finally sighed helplessly.

He knew that Guo Jia was right.

Thus, under the strict orders of Prefect Guo Xun, the garrison in Yingchuan City, which had just experienced a bloody battle and should have been resting and recuperating, was forcibly organized, the city gates were opened, and they chased after Bo Cai's army in the direction it had left.

Guo Jia and Xun Hao stood on the city wall, quietly watching the pursuing force, blinded by victory, disappear into the distant horizon.

"They will die a terrible death," Xun Hao said softly.

"This is their own choice." Guo Jia's tone was completely calm. "Stupidity comes at a price."

Xun Hao, Xun Yu, and Guo Jia stood on the city wall, completely out of place amidst the surrounding frenzied atmosphere.

"Brother, do you think Prefect Guo... has any chance of coming back?" Xun Hao asked softly, his voice devoid of emotion.

Xun Yu glanced at the "long dragon" illuminated by torches in the distance, shook his head wearily, and didn't even bother to speak.

The answer is self-evident.

His injured arm was simply bandaged with strips of cloth, the bloodstains soaking through the fabric, causing a dull ache, but nothing compared to the pain he felt in his heart at that moment.

"Come back? Of course they can come back." Guo Jia said lazily, taking out the jade pendant with two fish that Xun Hao had given him from his pocket and tossing it in his hand. "However, whether the person who comes back will be alive or not is another matter."

He patted Xun Hao on the shoulder, his voice soft: "Ah Hao, remember, never take responsibility for other people's stupidity. It's their own choice, and it has nothing to do with you or me."

Xun Hao remained silent.

He knew Guo Jia was right. But the heavy feeling in his heart just wouldn't go away.

"In chaotic times, human life is the cheapest thing." Xun Yu took the opportunity to teach his younger brother, "If they don't die outside the city today, they may die in another war tomorrow. Ah Hao, you must remember, a merciful leader cannot command an army. You should have compassion for those who follow you and trust you, not for your enemies, or for a fool who is courting death."

Xun Hao fell silent. He knew Guo Jia was right. In this era, womanly compassion would only harm oneself and those around them. He just... needed a little more time to adjust.

"What do we do now? Just wait here?" Xun Hao asked.

"What are you waiting for? Go back and report to Lord Xun. You sickly little thing, your legs must be giving way after standing for so long."

Xun Hao let him pull him along, following behind Xun Yu as they descended the city wall.