Liu Bei: My younger brother is a deity.

Chapter 73 Five Armies

Yanmen County.

Xia Yu's army broke camp four days ago.

The Xiongnu general Zang Min has led his troops out of Yanmen Pass.

Sun Jian rode behind Zang Min, full of vigor and ambition.

Gazing at the vast grasslands ahead, he secretly made plans in his mind:

"After this battle, I should be able to rise to the rank of 600 shi, or at least higher. Since the suppression of the rebellion in Kuaiji, he has worked his way up from county magistrate to his current position as acting military marquis, all for a great battle like this."

Sun Jian was a former subordinate of Zang Min.

In the first year of the Xiping era, the rebel leader Xu Chang of Kuaiji launched an uprising and proclaimed himself Emperor Yangming.

At that time, Zang Min was the governor of Yangzhou and led troops to quell the rebellion.

Sun Jian, in his capacity as Sima of Wu Commandery, recruited over a thousand local militiamen to fight the rebellion. After three years of arduous battle, the rebellion was finally quelled.

After the war, Zang Min submitted a memorial to the court, praising Sun Jian's contributions, which led to his appointment as the assistant magistrate of Yandu County.

That was the starting point of Sun Jian's official career.

Afterwards, Zang Min was promoted to Xiongnu General for his merits. This time, he was ordered to attack the Xianbei. Considering Sun Jian's bravery, he transferred him to his command and appointed him as the acting military commander.

Sun Jian gladly came, feeling that this was another good opportunity for promotion.

Although he had never fought against the Xianbei people, he had fought against the Wu County barbarians in his early years.

In his mind, the Xianbei people were no different from other barbarian tribes; they were all uncivilized savages who, though skilled in horsemanship and archery, were weak in battle.

With his martial arts skills and the ferocious Jianghuai youths under his command, he was sure he could cut down enough heads in this campaign and earn great merit.

A rapid sound of horses' hooves interrupted Sun Jian's reverie.

Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was Huzheng, the Chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu who had accompanied him on this expedition, galloping towards him on horseback.

"Whoa~~"

Hu Zheng reined in Zang Min's horse and said in broken and hurried Chinese, "My lord, our army is marching too fast. At this rate, we will engage the main Xianbei force sooner than the other two armies."

Zang Min glanced at him, sneering inwardly, "What do you know? I'm going to fight the Xianbei first and make the first contribution."

He said calmly, "It's alright. My army will advance in three directions. If Tan Shihuai dares to use his main force to attack me, I will teach him a lesson. At that time, I will hold back his main force, which will create an opportunity for Xia and Tian's forces."

Hu Zheng shook his head repeatedly, saying urgently, "My lord, we must not underestimate that Tan Shihuai! This man has unified the grasslands for over twenty years, winning every battle; he is no ordinary chieftain. Dividing our forces is not a wise strategy, and now we are so eager for quick success that we fear... I fear we will fall into the Xianbei's trap!"

Sun Jian, standing behind Zang Min, secretly curled his lip upon hearing this.

He thought to himself, "The Xiongnu have been tamed by the Han Dynasty for a hundred years and have long lost their fighting spirit. They are all afraid of the enemy like tigers. These barbarians are afraid of the Xianbei from the bottom of their hearts. They have lost their courage before the battle even starts. When the two armies clash, I'm afraid they will be of no use at all."

Then another thought struck him: "It doesn't matter. This battle should be fought primarily by the sons of Han. This is the perfect opportunity for us to make our mark!"

Zang Min's unwavering voice rang in his ears: "My mind is made up, there's no need for further words. If you, Huzheng, are truly worried, then send out more of your cavalry to spread out scouts far and wide, and carefully gather intelligence on the Xianbei's movements."

Hu Zheng opened his mouth, but seeing that Zang Min's face had darkened, he dared not persuade him any further. He could only mutter a "Yes" and ride away dejectedly.

…………

General Tian Yan, who had defeated the Xianbei, reined in his horse and stood on a gentle slope, gazing at the devastated battlefield before him.

More than a dozen Xianbei cavalry corpses lay scattered in the grass, while several stray warhorses grazed on the grass not far away.

His cavalry had just routed a small group of Xianbei cavalry, cleanly and decisively, with almost no casualties.

Tian Yan withdrew his gaze, a smile playing on his lips, his heart brimming with pride.

"The Xianbei are nothing special," he muttered to himself.

He couldn't help but burst into laughter, the sound carrying far across the vast grassland.

He was already calculating in his mind: "After this battle, I should be promoted to a rank of two thousand shi, and even... it's not impossible to be enfeoffed as a marquis."

Thinking of this, Tian Yan's smile deepened.

Although he has now been reinstated by the court and given the position of General Who Destroys the Xianbei, this position is only "comparable to two thousand shi" (a unit of grain), not actually worth two thousand shi.

More importantly, his position as the General Who Destroyed the Xianbei was not secure.

After all, it was obtained by bribing the eunuch.

Countless upright scholars in the court are watching closely, waiting to find fault with him.

But as long as we achieve great success in this battle, all doubts will vanish.

The Han Dynasty valued military merit highly, and that was no joke.

From the restoration of the Ming Dynasty under Emperor Guangwu to the present day, countless generals and officers in border regions have been ennobled and promoted to high-ranking positions through military achievements.

Tian Yan firmly believes that she will become one of them.

He patted the sword at his waist and turned his gaze northward.

"Pass down the order: speed up the march!"

Tian Yan raised his whip, his voice filled with barely concealed excitement.

"Don't let Xia Yu and Zang Min steal the credit!"

As the bugle sounded, the army continued its northward advance.

…………

After a day of marching, Xia Yu's army began to be constantly harassed and ambushed by Xianbei cavalry.

These Xianbei cavalrymen moved like the wind, sometimes firing a volley of arrows from the front, sometimes charging and shouting from the flanks.

Once the Han cavalry were deployed, they fled far away, leaving behind only a series of mocking whistles.

Xia Yu ordered the camp to be set up and convened a meeting of his generals in the central command tent.

The generals sat in a circle in the tent, with Xia Yu in the center, his face solemn.

Zhang Kai spoke first, his tone quite disdainful: "My lord, in my humble opinion, the Xianbei have run out of tricks. These scouts are merely trying to delay our advance so they can buy time for their main force to withdraw."

Several people immediately echoed his sentiment.

"General Zhang is absolutely right!"

"The Xianbei people are probably terrified by our three armies!"

Encouraged by the crowd's agreement, Zhang Kai became even more spirited and proclaimed loudly:

"My lord, consider this: I launch a three-pronged attack, totaling over 40,000 cavalry. The Xianbei in the central route, controlled by Tan Shihuai, number only 30,000. Even if they had three heads and six arms, they couldn't withstand a three-pronged encirclement. If they can block my route, the Tian and Zang routes can take advantage of the situation and march straight to Tanhan Mountain. Tan Shihuai isn't stupid. Rather than waiting to be killed, he'd rather take his belongings and flee north like a stray dog."

A burst of laughter immediately filled the tent.

Xia Yu stroked his beard, nodded slightly, and a determined glint flashed in his eyes:

"That makes sense. However, if Tan Shihuai really escapes, it will be a big problem. The vast grasslands and deserts stretch for thousands of miles. Once he escapes into the northern desert, it will be as difficult as climbing to heaven to hunt him down."

He stood up, walked to the hanging map, pointed to the location of Tanhan Mountain, and said in a deep voice:

"Pass down the order: speed up the march tomorrow. We must corner that old scoundrel Tan Shihuai at Tanhan Mountain before he escapes! Once the three armies converge, we can annihilate him in one fell swoop and eliminate this threat forever!"

"Here you go!"

The generals responded in unison, their voices echoing outside the tent.

The wind from the grassland swept through the camp, making the flags flutter loudly.

The generals in the tent were filled with excitement, as if they could already see great achievements about to befall them.