The Final Desperate Struggle
The conquest of Huiyin was complete. Yue Jin had captured the enemy commander Cheng Lian, earning a tremendous military merit. All that remained was to swiftly secure the enemy positions.
“Military Colonel, some fellow is standing before us requesting an audience with the Colonel.”
“Some fellow? Who is he?”
“He says he is a merchant. If you hear the name Zhang Jia of Shuchun, you will understand.”
“!”
The moment I heard those words, I stepped out of the command tent. I was about to ask where he was when the man approached me with a warm smile, already close by.
“Military Colonel, it has been a while. Have you been well?”
Zhang Jian, courtesy name Ziyi. He was the great merchant from Yangzhou whom I had captured near Shuchun city.
“So it really was you, Master Ziyi? What brings you all the way here?”
“Hahaha, the Chancellor has given this humble one an opportunity. Thanks to him, I have been allowed to operate merchant caravans throughout this entire region.”
“!”
“Besides, battlefields like this are always important opportunities for merchants.”
As Zhang Jian spoke, he clapped his hands twice. Several large wagons rolled in. At his command, the coarse mats covering them were pulled away, revealing countless sets of armor, brand-new swords, spears, and bundles upon bundles of arrows.
“Colonel! This, this is…!?”
“That is not all. Outside there are a hundred fine, well-fed horses from the southern mountains of Jiangnan, along with enough grain to fill the soldiers’ bellies.”
The moment the battle ended, a merchant caravan had arrived bearing military rations, weapons, and warhorses.
“Deputy Commander Yue, please take good care of the supplies Master Zhang Jian has brought and see to the reorganization of the troops.”
“Understood, Military Colonel.”
I invited Zhang Jian into the command tent.
“We are in the middle of a campaign, so I cannot offer you proper tea.”
“That is quite all right. I brought my own.”
At Zhang Jian’s words, his servants brewed fragrant tea and served it to me personally. As I sipped the tea, I wondered what else this man had brought besides supplies.
“Well then, the wealth a merchant caravan brings is never free. What is it that you desire?”
“We offer this purely out of goodwill to help Duke Cao’s son. And since the Huai River region has always been famous for its delicious fish, we thought we might also do a little fishing while we are here.”
Though he phrased it that way, the true meaning was clear: now that Huiyin had been captured, they intended to take control of the commercial rights in the entire area.
“For now, the conquest of Xuzhou takes priority. I will report this matter separately to my uncle.”
“That is most gracious of you. Then, while you reorganize your forces here, please equip yourselves with the new gear and prepare at your leisure.”
I decided to accept Zhang Jian’s goodwill for the time being. Even if his caravan was not on the level of the Wei clan merchants, the fact that Wei Hong himself had acknowledged him meant that Zhang Jian would one day become a major sponsor of Cao Cao, pouring enormous funds into his cause.
“Then please take a good look around the Huiyin region in the name of your merchant house.”
Zhang Jian smiled, finished his tea, and quietly withdrew.
While everything was being sorted out, word soon arrived from Cao Cao’s forces in Pengcheng.
“Ah… this is troublesome.”
“Military Colonel, what is the matter?”
At Yue Jin’s question, I explained the current situation.
“Lu Bu fled to Xiaopei, but the pursuing armies of Xu Huang and Yu Jin were defeated in succession.”
“W-what!?”
Even so, Lu Bu was still Lu Bu. Both Xu Huang and Yu Jin were renowned generals within Cao Cao’s army, yet they had been repelled after clashing with him head-on. In the end, Lu Bu, whom we thought we had cornered, had squeezed out his final strength to drive back the pursuit force. The situation had once again become unpredictable.
“Military Colonel, then shouldn’t our army move quickly as well?”
“I have already sent a report. They say a local administrator will be dispatched to govern the Huiyin region. Once he arrives, we will set out immediately.”
“Understood.”
The conquest of Xuzhou, which had seemed to be progressing smoothly, had its momentum blunted by Lu Bu’s final desperate struggle. After entrusting Huiyin to the administrator who arrived from Shuchun, we immediately marched north.
“Ziye, you have come.”
“This is Deputy Commander Yue, who defeated an enemy general during the conquest of Huiyin. I would be grateful if Uncle would bestow a great reward upon him.”
“Hahaha, of course I will. But first let us finish the conquest of Xuzhou and then divide the merits properly.”
Cao Cao had recalled Yu Jin and Xu Huang, who had been defeated at Pengcheng.
“My lord, we have no excuse.”
“Nonsense. You two fought desperately. I hear that Lu Bu’s remaining forces now number only six thousand?”
Hearing those words, I looked at Yu Jin and Xu Huang once more. Lu Bu’s army, which had broken through with thirty thousand men, had been steadily whittled down through attrition. We had also reduced their numbers considerably while hunting the enemy around Xiaopei. Still, since they had retreated first and reached this point, a loss was a loss. Yet who could truly punish them for it?
“I used to think of him as nothing more than a stupid wild boar, but now I suppose I must call him something else. He has become a wounded tiger.”
Cao Cao, who had always mocked Lu Bu as a strong but brainless fool and a stupid pig, seemed genuinely impressed by that final display of tenacity.
“My lord, if I may speak, it is not just one tiger.”
“You mean Zhang Liao?”
“Yes.”
Though Yu Jin was an outstanding general, it seemed his martial prowess still fell slightly short of Zhang Liao. Indeed, when I had fought Zhang Liao myself, he had proven truly formidable.
“Even so, I believed you could have held out much longer. Is there something else I do not know?”
“It is simply that our military talent was insufficient.”
“Haha, I told you not to say such things. I am reviewing the battle, so speak of everything.”
At Cao Cao’s words, Xu Huang answered this time.
“We continuously used cavalry to disrupt the enemy infantry, trying to reduce their numbers below five thousand. Using our mobility, we gradually bound Lu Bu’s limbs. Yu Wenze bought us time by engaging Zhang Liao, who was pursuing us.”
“Then why did you retreat?”
“Gao Shun brought a unit called the Camp Crushing Unit and struck us from behind.”
“What? Gao Shun!”
At that moment, Cao Cao called out to Cheng Yu with wide eyes. Cheng Yu explained the situation so that everyone could hear.
“Three days ago, General Xiahou reported the capture of Xiaopei. At the time, he said there were no generals or soldiers left inside the city. They had abandoned Xiaopei of their own accord and headed for Xiaopei.”
“Then… they did not abandon the city’s defense to flee, but rather left to save Lu Bu?”
“There is no other way to explain it.”
In that situation, Gao Shun had given up Xiaopei and led the Camp Crushing Unit to Xiaopei to rescue Lu Bu and Zhang Liao, striking the rear of Yu Jin and Xu Huang. It was the act of a true enemy, yet it was a story that made one’s blood boil with admiration.
“Haha, so there is such a general. A man who would abandon even his own city to save his lord!”
Cao Cao clicked his tongue and nodded in approval.
“As a commander he is disqualified, but his loyalty to his lord is truly praiseworthy. Gao Shun and Zhang Liao!”
Cao Cao nodded with a smile.
“From what I have heard, Xu Huang and Yu Jin have done nothing wrong. On the contrary, reducing the enemy to six thousand men deserves a great reward.”
As he spoke, Cao Cao called me over, placed a hand on my shoulder, and addressed everyone.
“Above all, my son Ziye captured Huiyin and took the enemy general Cheng Lian. Thanks to that, Lu Bu has lost even more places to escape to, has he not?”
Hearing him openly call me ‘my son’ made my shoulders straighten with pride. Cao Cao laughed loudly and patted my back several times. My side still ached, but I could not show it.
“Now then, what should we do next?”
The remaining powers in Xuzhou were the independent warlord Zhang Ba in Taishan, the father-and-son pair Chen Gui and Chen Deng in Xuzhou city, Chen Gong who was managing all rear logistics in Xiapi, and the forces of Lu Bu, Gao Shun, and Zhang Liao, who still had fangs and claws left in Xiaopei.
“My lord, in the current situation, we should first detach part of the army that captured Xiaopei to surround Taishan and prevent Zhang Ba’s forces from linking up with Lu Bu.”
“Indeed. If those two join hands, it will also become troublesome.”
“After completing reorganization, the only option left is a direct assault on Xiaopei with overwhelming force.”
Cao Cao nodded at Cheng Yu’s words. Then Dian Wei stepped forward, showing his determination.
“My lord, I will face Lu Bu. From our previous contest of strength, I am confident I can capture him!”
“Dian Wei, you always stick close to my side, yet the moment there is a battlefield you insist on rushing out?”
“I am sorry, my lord! But I wish to achieve the great merit of capturing an enemy general before my lord’s eyes.”
Straightforward and simple-minded, Dian Wei thought of nothing but ‘capturing an enemy general to earn merit.’ Cao Cao chuckled as he looked at him.
“You have taken a new wife, and now your enthusiasm is burning even hotter, eh?”
“T-that is…”
“It has not been long since your new marriage, yet I hear a new life is already growing in your second wife’s belly. How can a man in such a position throw his life away so recklessly?”
“My lord!”
Goodness. After remarrying the head maid in Cao Cao’s household, Dian Wei had apparently gotten her pregnant again. Well, that story could wait. The time to fight had come.
“Very well. If you are truly confident, Dian Wei, then you shall face Lu Bu.”
“Thank you, my lord.”
Then Xu Huang also stepped forward. I had watched him since the escape from Chang’an; he was a considerable warrior, and this recent humiliation must have stung.
“My lord, I beg you to give me another chance to face Zhang Liao.”
“Oh? This time it is Xu Huang?”
“This Xu Gongming feels as though he has met a worthy rival, yet I have only carried out missions while avoiding a proper fight with him. This time, I wish to cross blades with that man called Zhang Liao and truly test our strength.”
“So you will take Zhang Liao? Very well. Then Dian Wei will face Lu Bu, and Xu Huang will face Zhang Liao.”
I could not stay silent here either.
“Then I will take Gao Shun.”
“Hahaha, are my generals overflowing with too much vigor? It seems everyone’s hands are itching to capture an enemy commander.”
Cao Cao swept his red cloak behind him and shouted to all the generals.
“Warriors of Cao Cao! Are you ready to capture the wounded tiger and seize Xuzhou?”
“Yes, my lord!”
“Good. Then we all march on Xiaopei.”
And so everyone prepared for the decisive battle at Xiaopei.