Chapter 50
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Rift
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Dong Zhuo rode silently, lost in thought.
At his side were his son-in-law Lü Bo and his advisor Li Ru. After a moment of silence, Lü Bo cautiously spoke up.
"Father-in-law, why did you trust that Lu Bu and hand over Li Jue and Guo Si to him? What if he fails—"
"Tsk tsk, can't you tell just by looking at him?"
Dong Zhuo shot Lü Bo a pitying glance and clicked his tongue.
'Ha, how do all my daughters end up with men who can't see worth in others...'
Lü Bo was sturdy and decent enough with martial arts, but he surrounded himself with cowardly fools with punchable faces.
Dong Zhuo had killed a few, but Lü Bo kept bringing more, so he'd given up by now.
As Lü Bo floundered under the rebuke, Li Ru interjected between them.
"The Governor must have seen the potential in that Lu Bu."
"Well, if even half his battle record and martial prowess are true, he'll succeed just fine."
Dong Zhuo nodded in response. But Lü Bo still looked unconvinced.
"But breaking through over 100,000 cavalry with just 10,000? Does that even make sense?"
Li Ru explained patiently, like he was scolding a child.
"Captain Lü, even if the enemy numbers over 100,000, they're not united as one. They're mostly Qiang and Hu tribes. The moment the tide turns, they'll cut off their leaders' heads and surrender."
Li Ru lowered his voice and added,
"However, if by some slim chance Lu Bu fails to break through, the enemy's morale will skyrocket and they'll unite. The court might abandon all of Yang Province except the Three Fortresses."
Lü Bo's face drained of color at those words. Ignoring his ashen son-in-law, Dong Zhuo spoke.
"Hmph. Still, it's nice not having to lead the army myself under those damn old fogeys. If I were ten years younger, I'd have taken the vanguard myself instead of those fools."
"Hahaha, Governor. Aren't you more than capable even now?"
"With all the men under me? Why risk my neck recklessly? Anyway, we've got our orders to fulfill."
Just then, traces of Lu Bu's army passing by entered Dong Zhuo's view.
It wasn't a battlefield so much as the aftermath of a one-sided massacre. Dong Zhuo bared his teeth at the sight and bellowed to his soldiers.
"What are you lot doing? Kill every scattered rebel! Take everything they have as spoils! I, Dong Zhuo, grant it all to you!"
"Wooooah! Long live the Governor! Long live! Long live!"
"Get lost! That's all mine!!"
His soldiers' eyes glazed over with greed at his words. Roaring, they charged at the scattered rebel remnants.
Dong Zhuo watched the scene with satisfaction and asked Li Ru,
"Humans move best when driven by greed, don't they?"
"Wise words indeed, Governor."
In the hellish battlefield, Dong Zhuo's soldiers hacked off the heads of stragglers, fighting over their horses, armor, and weapons.
After the war council ended, I led 5,000 Bing Province cavalry and 5,000 foreign horsemen out of Jincheng.
Our goal was singular: the enemy's base.
My army pressed on without rest, day or night, until we finally clashed with the first unit Beigong Boyu had stationed ahead.
They were stunned by our arrival but desperately tried to block us.
"Who the hell are you? Hold them! Alert the main force!"
"Get out of the way, you traitors!"
I didn't slow my horse at all, crashing straight into their lines. My spear flashed, mercilessly cleaving the lead riders and carving a path.
The key to this battle was speed.
No time to fight one by one. Crush through, break, and go.
As I tore a hole in their formation, the fresh faces flanking me went wild.
"Die, traitors!!"
Sun Jian swung his fixed spear, tearing into the enemy's flank with his men.
"Kahaha! By the Governor's order! Kill them all!"
Li Jue and Guo Si, sent by Dong Zhuo, were even more brutal and cunning.
They relentlessly targeted weak points, collapsing the lines with minimal effort.
Meanwhile, Du Yuan commanded his unit with veteran savvy, plugging gaps and minimizing our losses rather than charging in himself.
A grin tugged at my lips watching him.
'As expected of those whose names echo in history. Only men like that are fit to follow me.'
They widened the path I'd opened, ripping it into a massive corridor for 10,000 cavalry.
We didn't stop. We just trampled through.
In the midst of shattering their vanguard, a familiar voice called from behind.
"Wait, Strategist? You didn't have to come all this way..."
I turned to see Zhen Feng riding under Wei Sok's guard, face pale as a ghost.
He clearly hadn't adapted to the dust, blood, and breakneck speed of battle.
"I... I thought General Lu Zhi would surely fall. But your achievements changed everything. As your subordinate, if I don't witness your valor firsthand... I can't devise proper strategies... Urk!"
Zhen Feng finally couldn't hold it and vomited from horseback. Wei Sok shook his head in disgust.
"Guh... I'll see it through... This time, I'll witness your valor with my own eyes!"
'...Why are all my subordinates such weak-hearted types?'
I let out a hollow chuckle at his stubbornness.
We broke through countless enemy forces like that, charging ever forward.
After dozens of repeats, we pierced the final unit and emerged onto open plains. Ma Teng rode up beside me and shouted,
"My lord! Zhangye army ahead!"
I nodded.
Our speed had surely exceeded Beigong Boyu's wildest expectations.
'While you tangle with our main force, we'll burn your base to the ground.'
After days of forced marches, both soldiers and horses were exhausted.
Our supplies were running low, so we headed to the rendezvous point. Waiting there were the Hu tribesmen Yang Ang had arranged in advance.
"Welcome. We've been expecting you."
"Hmph, where are the supplies?"
"This way."
The Hu tribes led the way, but Wei Sok muttered anxiously beside me.
"Brother, what if this is a trap...?"
Zhen Feng, looking half-dead, replied,
"Impossible. We've broken through over 80,000 troops just getting here. Even if we're worn out, do they have another force big enough to crush us? If so, Beigong Boyu would've already pressed Xiaping or Jincheng."
At Zhen Feng's words, I eased my guard and followed the Hu.
"Right here!"
A massive warehouse stood there. The Hu ordered the guards to open it, revealing mountains of grain, hay, and weapons.
"Lord Yang prepared all this around here. Take what you need."
'Damn, the new Yang Province Governor's got skills. Using Hu and foreigners in enemy territory to stockpile like this.'
I chuckled, recalling Lu Zhi and Zhu Jun's worried faces over feeding the army.
"Brother! Real grain! Whoa, the new Governor's amazing!!"
"Woooah! Actual supplies!"
"With that much, we can really torch the place properly?"
Wei Sok's shout sent morale soaring.
With ample supplies boosting spirits, I could enact the plan.
Hu tribes scattered in Zhangye had settlements with stockades or stone walls.
Beigong Boyu's foreign supporters lacked that, so I'd sow discord between Hu and foreigners to sow chaos in Zhangye.
"The fiercest resistors: me, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei. Sun Jian! Take your men east! Li Jue, Guo Si! You go west! Zhang Liao, Gao Shun—north! The rest, scatter and burn foreign bases, steal every cow and sheep! Not extermination or plunder—fire! Got it?"
At my command, units grabbed supplies and scattered with cheers.
Sun Jian bolted first. Li Jue and Guo Si vanished with sleazy laughs: "Kahaha! Women and booze are ours!"
"Now, we crush the roots of resistance!"
"Yes, Lord Cavalry Captain!"
My unit charged the largest, most defiant tribe.
I always led, shattering lines; Guan Yu and Zhang Fei followed, stamping out warriors.
Fires rose across Zhangye, black smoke and screams filling the air.
In a week, we herded stolen livestock back to the rendezvous. Pale-faced Zhen Feng analyzed beside me.
"Success, my lord. Beigong Boyu's power comes from these tribes. But we've stripped their wealth and food. Families starving, winter herds gone—they can't stay loyal to a distant false king."
"True enough. 'The people take food as heaven.' He must be cursing Beigong Boyu by now."
As Zhen Feng and I discussed, a scout rushed up excitedly.
"Lord Cavalry Captain! Report from Jincheng front—the enemy's shaking! Smoke from Zhangye has some tribes deserting..."
Before he finished, another scout knelt.
"Lord! A mysterious figure just delivered this, saying it's a secret letter from Han Sui and Bian Zhang!"
I took the bamboo slip wordlessly.
Beigong Boyu could barely contain his boiling rage.
Tribal chiefs and Hu lay flat before the king's fury. Reports from rear Zhangye grew graver.
"What the hell is this? We've 150,000 here! And you couldn't stop one band of 10,000 thieves from turning the rear into an inferno? Are your heads just ornaments?"
Despite his rage, the hardest-hit Qiang chiefs wailed and stepped forward.
"Your Highness! Black smoke rises endlessly from Zhangye! My tribe's home burns!"
"They stole all our sheep and slaughtered them! We'll starve this winter!"
As complaints spread, unrest rippled among the other chiefs and Hu.
Beigong Boyu calmed and assessed coldly.
'I'm still in the advantage.'
But the problem wasn't numbers. It was shattered morale and trust.
Then, the eldest chief rose, glaring at Beigong Boyu.
"Your Highness! When will the enemy retreat? You swore the Han dogs would flee before winter! But spring's here, and they've sent reinforcements!"
Beigong's face twisted viciously; his guards gripped swords. Tension peaked until General Yi Munghu stepped forward.
"Everyone, calm down! This isn't the time to fight among ourselves!"
Yi Munghu bowed to Beigong Boyu and advised,
"Your Highness, stabilize the rear first. I'll hold the Han main force here. You take the army and catch those rear rats—how about it?"
Beigong pondered, then decided.
"Fine. I'll lead 50,000 myself and sever those rats' heads. General, just pin the enemy here till I return. No engagements—stalemate only. Understood?"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
At his order, the chiefs' faces finally brightened.