Liu Bei: My younger brother is a deity.

Chapter 75 Taking Chestnuts from the Fire

Just as Xia Yu's army was surrounded by the Xianbei, Zang Min's army had also been fighting the Xianbei for several days and could not make any progress.

This is a narrow mountain pass, flanked by two mountains, with only enough space for three riders to pass side by side.

The mountain is quite steep, with jagged rocks and dangerous slopes on both sides that are difficult to climb.

The Xianbei people built a stone fortress in the middle of the mountain pass, which was high up and looked down on the mountain. Archers lay in ambush on both sides of the mountain ridge, and arrows rained down like rain.

Each time the Han army attacked, they would leave behind more than a dozen corpses in that narrow passage, yet they couldn't even touch the stone walls at the mountain pass.

This mountain is called Wild Wolf Mountain, and the one guarding this place is the Yellow-Headed Xianbei, who are valued by Tan Shihuai.

Sun Jian, his face covered in blood and with two arrows still stuck in his armor, retreated from the mountain pass in a disheveled state once again.

He ripped off his helmet, slammed it to the ground, and roared, "Damn it! How come these yellow-headed Xianbei are so hard to beat!"

He originally thought that the Xianbei were nothing more than mounted archers, and that if they abandoned their horses to fight on foot, they would be tigers without claws.

Little did they know that the Yellow-Headed Xianbei were not known for their horsemanship and archery; their forte was infantry combat.

That group of white-skinned, blond-haired, and blue-eyed barbarians held their strategic positions, advancing and retreating with measured steps, making them extremely difficult to deal with.

"If it were a battle on level ground, I would have wiped them all out long ago!"

Sun Jian spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, turned back to look at the mountain pass that had taken dozens of his brothers, his eyes almost spitting fire.

If this road is not cleared, and these yellow-headed Xianbei remain here, the army's rear cannot be guaranteed to be safe.

"Could we leave a detachment of troops here to feign an attack and besiege the enemy?" suggested a general named Cheng Pu. "The main force should take a detour."

Zang Min shook his head. "No. If we divide our forces to besiege them, leaving too few men will give the Xianbei an opportunity to break out of the fortifications and launch a counterattack, making us easier to wipe out. If we leave too many men, we will weaken our main force, and the troops that detour will not be enough to fight the Xianbei in a decisive battle."

He paused, then sighed, "Moreover, these barbarians number over ten thousand. Besides the Yellow-Headed Xianbei, there are two other Xianbei tribes that have established camps on the left and right slopes, forming a defensive alliance. If I divide my forces, I fear it will play right into their hands, making it easier for them to take advantage of the situation."

Sun Jian said bitterly, "It's a pity that there's so little vegetation in these mountains; they're all bare rocks, you can't even start a fire!"

Zang Min didn't reply, but after pondering for a moment, he said, "We still need to defeat the enemy as soon as possible... I wonder how the other two routes are doing. The Xianbei have deployed so many troops on our side; could they be preparing to launch a major attack on our army? If so, things should be much easier for Xia Yu and Tian Yan, right?"

…………

Tian Yan's expression was extremely solemn.

As the army advanced northward, the number and frequency of Xianbei cavalry coming to harass and block them increased.

At first, it was just a group of about a hundred people who would fight and then run away.

Later, a force of over a thousand men appeared on both flanks of the main army, following at a distance like a pack of wolves eyeing their prey.

These Xianbei people will never engage in direct combat with you.

It's all about harassment, harassment, and more harassment.

Tian Yanjun's actual losses were negligible, but the morale of the army was declining day by day.

The soldiers were unable to eat or sleep properly, and everyone looked exhausted, their eyes burning with anger but having nowhere to vent it.

"Damn it!" Tian Yan slammed his helmet on the table, gritting his teeth, "What the hell are these Xianbei dogs trying to do?!"

The generals in the tent looked at each other, none of them able to answer.

…………

Xia Yu's army only lasted half a day.

He ultimately underestimated the courage and determination of the Xianbei people.

On this battlefield, which Tan Shihuai had chosen in advance, the Han army had no natural defenses.

The Xianbei cavalry charged from three sides like waves, their arrows raining down like clouds obscuring the sun.

Moreover, this time the Xianbei no longer used guerrilla tactics, but instead charged at the Han army wave after wave with fearlessness.

Those who came before fell, and those who came after continued.

Horse hooves trampled over corpses, and shouts of battle shook the heavens and the earth.

The Wuhuan people were the first to collapse.

I don't know who turned their horse around first.

In an instant, the entire left flank was like a burst dam, with thousands of cavalry turning around and galloping wildly, shattering the Han army's formation.

When the wandering knights saw that the Wuhuan people had fled, they also scattered.

They were never a disciplined army; they were only good at fighting when things were going well.

Now surrounded on three sides by an enemy several times their size, and seeing the Wuhuan people collapse, how can they possibly hold on?

The desertion of their comrades affected the morale of the central army.

The vanguard was thrown into chaos first, followed by the Han cavalry on the right flank, and finally even the central army could not be stabilized.

Xia Yu drew his sword and killed several fleeing soldiers, but he could not stop the overwhelming tide of defeat.

Without a word, his guards grabbed his horse's reins and rode south.

"Wuhuan slaves! Wuhuan slaves have ruined me!"

Xia Yu cursed loudly on horseback, but his voice was drowned out by the overwhelming shouts and cries of battle.

The Xianbei cavalry began to pursue and kill the fleeing soldiers, like hungry wolves chasing sheep.

Screams, pleas for mercy, and the sound of blades piercing flesh mingled together, turning the grassland red.

"Ah Quan, what should we do?" Liu Bei reined in his horse, his face darkening as he looked at the rout of the army ahead.

"Let's go! To the rear army!" Liu Quan turned his horse and rode away.

"The rear guard is in chaos!" Liu Bei exclaimed urgently.

"I know."

Liu Quan spurred his horse and galloped wildly, rushing towards Xia Yu's rear army with the fleeing crowd.

Liu Bei gritted his teeth and called Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and the others to follow closely behind.

Xia Yu's rear guard was in complete disarray.

The laborers abandoned their carriages and fled in all directions, leaving the supply wagons lying haphazardly on the road, with grain sacks, clothing, and arrows scattered all over the ground.

Liu Quan glanced at it and said, "Find Jia!"

The crowd dispersed.

Guan Yu was somewhat puzzled and asked Zhang Fei beside him, "What does 'Yuan Gu' mean? Even if we find the armor, we can't take it with us, can we?"

Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "How would I know? Just do as he says. Quan is so smart, listening to him is always the right thing to do."

A moment later, Zhou Cang shouted, "Found it, over here!"

A group of people gathered there.

Liu Quan drew his sword and cleaved open the mud seal of a supply wagon, lifting the reed mat to reveal stacks of neatly folded armor.

He turned to Liu Bei and the others and instructed, "Gather all the armored chariots together, and do it quickly!"

Although Liu Bei did not understand the meaning, he still led Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Han Dang, Yan Liang, Zhou Cang and others to separate and push aside the supply wagons and the vehicles carrying armor together.

Liu Bei assigned Guan Yu and Han Dang to lead men to guard the perimeter, while he himself stayed by Liu Quan's side.

He gazed at the rows of supply wagons laden with armor before him, muttering to himself, "Is Ah Quan about to unleash that magical power again?"

Liu Quan ignored the questioning looks from the crowd.

He reached his hand into the car, his fingertips touching the cold metal. With a thought, the armor pieces silently disappeared into the car.

Iron armor, leather armor, helmets, and shoulder guards were collected one after another in quick succession.

In a short time, all two hundred sets of iron armor and three thousand sets of leather armor were moved away.

Liu Quan glanced at the remaining space and then casually collected several cartloads of fine weapons and bundles of arrows.

"Alright." Liu Quan clapped his hands, mounted his horse, and said, "Let's go!"

Liu Bei didn't have time to ask further questions and spurred his horse to follow closely behind.

After the group rushed out, they were about to run south.

Liu Bei suddenly heard the sounds of fighting coming from behind him and turned to look.

Zhang Xun and Zhang Liao, along with dozens of villagers, were caught up by a group of Xianbei people and began to fight.