My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 645: Situ's ingenious plan to pacify the world, following him can lead to a title of nobility

As Huang Zhong beheaded Shi Huan and shot Yu Jin, the Cao army, whose morale had already plummeted and whose military spirit had been completely lost, finally collapsed completely like an avalanche.

More than 30,000 Cao soldiers had already suffered several thousand casualties in the fierce fighting that lasted for half a day. Now they collapsed and scattered like birds and beasts.

Huang Zhong drew his sword and rode his horse, pursuing with his bow, cutting down the slow-running Cao army at will.

The soldiers trapped in the camp and surrounded by flames ran like headless flies until they had no way to go and could only surrender in large numbers.

The situation of those Cao army's defeated soldiers who were originally standing further back and successfully escaped from the fire was slightly better, but not much better.

After Huang Zhong roughly cleaned up the battlefield in the camp, he led his own cavalry and the cavalry that Zhuge Jin had just sent from Dangyang City to reinforce him.

A total of five to six thousand people were assembled, and they chased the retreating Yu Jin all the way.

Yu Jin retreated all the way north from Zhangxiang, sparing no effort and fleeing for more than a day before he finally reached Bian County.

When Yu Jin came, he had to march for two days. When he was escaping, his speed increased by more than half. It is really amazing that the desire to escape is sometimes the best medicine to stimulate human potential.

When Cao's army no longer needed to carry bags of dry food, did not need to worry about camping equipment, and could even abandon their weapons and armor just to save their lives, their escape speed could suddenly increase by several times.

In order to avoid being chased by Huang Zhong's cavalry, Yu Jin's army tried to run on relatively rugged roads in the hills on the eastern foot of Jingshan Mountain.

Such terrain is relatively less conducive to cavalry speeding up, while infantry is less affected.

Including Yu Jin's fleeing troops, the number of troops was more than four times that of Huang Zhong's cavalry. If they were separated, a considerable number of them would escape, so Huang Zhong could only catch the big ones and let the small ones go, and chase after a few of them.

When Yu Jin went south to attack, he brought more than 30,000 Cao's infantry and 7,000 cavalry. When he returned, there were only more than 4,000 cavalry and only 12,000 to 13,000 infantry.

Of the more than 20,000 people who disappeared, about one-third died in battle, or were seriously injured and captured and could not get enough medicine for treatment, or could not be cured at all.

Another third were captured with minor injuries, or surrendered as a whole after being surrounded.

The last third, naturally, simply scattered during the escape, and most of them had no intention of returning to the team, and they completely became deserters and rioters.

Huang Zhong chased all the way to the vicinity of Bian County before he reluctantly stopped the pursuit - it was not that Huang Zhong did not want to continue the pursuit, but his army was exhausted after a long raid. If he continued the pursuit, there might be an accident, and the enemy's strength situation might be reversed.

This was also a strict rule that Zhuge Jin had given him before the battle when he explained various possible scenarios. Even if they won a great victory, they should not pursue too far and become too disconnected from their allies. After all, Cao Ren in Xiangyang was still quite powerful. If they chased too close to Xiangyang, Cao Ren would have ambushed Yu Jin and everything would be over.

If they only chased as far as Bian County, because the city of Bian County was still in the hands of Liu Bei's army, Cao Ren would not be able to set up an ambush to provide support even if he wanted to, but he would not be able to do so further away.

Of course, after Huang Zhong actually chased to Bian County, he was surprised to discover some new situations, which made him even more cautious - because outside the city of Bian County, there were actually tens of thousands of Cao's troops stationed there in a strict manner.

These troops were the ones that Yu Jin had left here before to besiege Bian County and protect the logistics and food routes, and they could also provide support to Yu Jin.

After Yu Jin fled back here, he continued to run north without stopping, but he did not order the second and third-line weak brigades that were besieging the city to follow him. Instead, he asked them to cover the retreat, at least for a few days, and to cover the defeated main force's retreat back to Xiangyang.

In fact, of course, it was because Yu Jin knew that these surrendered soldiers under Cai Mao had no fighting power and fighting will at all. At this time, it would be better to let them guard the camp and cover the main force instead of letting them run away.

In this way, when Cao Ren learns of his defeat and sends troops to support, he may be able to take away this army.

If everyone ran together at the beginning, it might block the main force's quick retreat, making it more difficult for the main force to escape.

In Yu Jin's mind, those veteran Cao army soldiers who had come from the north and survived the battles were of course much more valuable than Cai Mao's newly surrendered troops. If he had to leave someone to stop Huang Zhong, he would rather die than let his friend die.

Huang Zhong was blocked by these former Jingzhou troops and could only stay and confront the enemy temporarily in an attempt to defeat the enemy.

However, after only resting for a few hours, Huang Zhong found out the composition of the enemy's troops.

Huang Zhong naturally gained confidence when he learned that the other party was actually Liu Biao's old subordinate who was just being coerced by Cai Mao.

Several of his lieutenants and staff members advised him to be cautious and let the army rest more before fighting again.

Huang Zhong rejected the objections and said, "I have followed the eldest master for many years, and there are still many soldiers in this state who are loyal to the eldest master.

Before, they were forced to follow the bandits because Xiangyang and Fancheng were offered to Cao Cao by the dog thief Cai Mao. They were trapped in the city, and all the gates were guarded by Cao Cao's confidants, so they were unable to resist.

Now that I have come here with the power of a great victory, and I have sent people to spread the news of Cao's defeat and tell them the benefits of returning to their former master, they will surely collapse and surrender! By the way, who are the troops on the opposite side?"

The deputy general in charge of scouting quickly sent another person to conduct additional investigations, and came back to report: "These troops were originally led by Wen Zhongye, but the one leading them now is not General Wen, but Cai Xun, a member of Cai Mao's clan."

When Huang Zhong heard that these soldiers were Wen Pin's soldiers, his confidence instantly increased.

He was very familiar with Wen Pin. When Cao Cao was fighting Yuan Shao at the Battle of Guandu, Liu Biao sent him and Wen Pin to the north to capture Wancheng. Later, until Liu Biao's death, Nanyang County was under the control of the Jingzhou Army until it was sent away by the dog thief Cai Mao.

Therefore, the troops under Wen Pin's command all knew Huang Zhong's reputation and had a good relationship with him.

However, the general who directly commanded the troops this time was forcibly replaced by Cai Xun. Considering that the other party's surname was Cai, it was unrealistic to persuade him to surrender, so he had to fight.

However, it was hard to say whether the ordinary soldiers below were willing to follow Cai Xun. If he could kill the enemy commander, Huang Zhong firmly believed that with his prestige, he could force Wen Pin's old subordinates to surrender.

After thinking for a while, Huang Zhong immediately ordered his generals: "Since this is the case, our army will take a short rest and then launch an attack immediately. The enemy army had previously blocked the city from four gates in order to prevent the defenders of Bian County from breaking out of the city.

The troops are so dispersed that it is convenient for us to defeat them one by one. As long as we break through any of the enemy camps outside the gates and open up communication between the inside and the outside, the friendly forces in the city will join forces with us to attack from both inside and outside, and defeating the enemy will be a matter of days."

After saying that, Huang Zhong ignored the fact that his soldiers were still a little tired and launched a surprise attack when the enemy was unprepared.

The former Jingzhou army led by Cai Xun, who were defending the camp and waiting for reinforcements, did not expect Huang Zhong to be so anxious. He came from afar without even taking a break. They had no choice but to resist on the spot.

Huang Zhong did some research before the battle and knew that Cai Xun was outside the west gate where the largest number of troops was located and the defense was the tightest.

Therefore, the route Huang Zhong decided was to first attack the enemy camp at the South Gate, which was closer to the West Gate and had relatively weak military strength.

This would ensure that before engaging in direct combat with Cai Xun, a gap could be created first, and contact could be made with friendly forces in the city, and then an agreement could be made to attack Cai Xun at the west gate together.

If Cai Xun's main camp was destroyed, there would be no need to fight the enemies outside the east and north gates, and Huang Zhong would be confident that he could persuade them to surrender directly.

After all, those were Wen Pin's old subordinates. As long as the Cai family was dead, why would they still work for Cao Cao?

As Huang Zhong rushed to the enemy camp outside the south gate and ordered his subordinates to shout loudly while charging, the Jingzhou soldiers in the camp soon became chaotic.

"Yu Jin has been annihilated! Brothers of Jingzhou, stop working for Cao Cao!"

"General Huang followed the order of the eldest son to fight against the rebellion and avenge the old envoy. Brothers, quickly abandon the dark and join the light!"

The soldiers in the enemy camp at the south gate were quickly shaken by Huang Zhong's attack. Some soldiers in the front row even shouted, "Look! It's really General Huang!"

"No wonder Yu Jin ran so fast, it turns out his main force was annihilated by General Huang!"

"Brothers, don't die in vain!"

It must be said that Huang Zhong's leading by example was very effective in this situation. Many former Jingzhou soldiers surrendered directly after seeing his face.

With the chain reaction of shaking and defection, Huang Zhong took over a camp without bloodshed.

The morale of the defenders in the county was boosted when they saw the sudden changes outside the city.

The county magistrate and the military commander who was guarding the city hurriedly went up to the tower to watch. Huang Zhong also rode his horse straight to the foot of the city and shouted to the top of the city: "Don't lie! Look clearly who I am! I have been ordered by the Minister of Justice to annihilate Yu Jin! Everyone, follow me to defeat the bandits, achieve merit, and kill Cai Xun!"

"It is indeed General Huang! Open the city gate quickly! Follow the old general to attack Cai Xun together!" After the county magistrate and the military commander on the top of the city confirmed that it was correct, they hurriedly gave orders, and the morale of the county garrison was greatly boosted.

After a while, Huang Zhong brought his own troops, the newly surrendered troops from the enemy camp outside the south gate, and the defenders in the county town. The three forces turned to the east of the city and attacked Cai Xun's camp directly.

At this moment, Cai Xun had just learned that Huang Zhong had attacked the camp outside the south gate. He was still nervously hesitating and deciding whether to rescue the south camp.

As a result, Cai Xun had just gathered his men and was about to leave the camp, and before they had gone a mile, they were met with Huang Zhong's cavalry.

Cai Xun was shocked: "How could they come so quickly? Didn't we just hear that Huang Zhong was attacking the South Camp? Is it a feint? Are they actually coming for me?"

No matter how Caixun thought about it, he never expected that the South Camp had actually been breached and could not even last an incense stick of time against Huang Zhong.

Huang Zhong, relying on the momentum of a great victory, broke through the enemy camps one after another and rushed forward.

When the two armies met, they used the same old tricks right from the start. Huang Zhong led the troops and shouted loudly to Cai Xun's troops on the opposite side:

"You are all my old subordinates, you should all know me! The brothers in the South Camp have already turned from evil to good, you don't need to die for the Cai family in vain! Turn from evil to good as soon as possible, and avenge the old envoy! Support the Han Dynasty and be loyal and good together!"

As Huang Zhong led the cavalry to charge first, coupled with this psychological offensive, Cai Xun's troops were really like waves breaking apart, and they fled to both sides one after another.

Cai Xun was not a brave man, and he had no intention of rushing to the front and leading the charge.

When he went into battle, he always did as his cousin Cai Mao did, shouting at his men, "Brothers, charge!" He never went up himself.

But how come Cai Xun, who was originally in the center of the army, was exposed to the attack by Huang Zhong?

When he realized what was happening, he wanted to turn his horse and flee, but there were only a handful of the most loyal Cai family guards left by his side. The other ordinary soldiers didn't even want to get involved in this mess.

When Huang Zhong saw that he was trying to run, he fired arrows continuously, killing several loyal guards of the Cai family one after another - those people were not loyal enough to block arrows for their master, but they were so numerous and difficult to get around.

Huang Zhong was anxious and didn't dare to aim at Cai Xun's vest, head and neck anymore. He just wanted to avoid the guards as much as possible. He shot several arrows and finally one of them hit Cai Xun's shoulder.

Cai Xun, however, had no willpower and was not insensitive to pain. If someone was shot in the shoulder, most people would have been able to escape by gritting their teeth. When Cao Cao was fighting against Dong Zhuo, he was defeated by Xu Rong. Wasn't he also shot in the shoulder and finally rode away on horseback despite the pain?

But Cai Xun was such a coward that his arms twitched when he felt the pain and he couldn't control the reins, so he was thrown off the horse's back.

Huang Zhong rode his horse at full speed to catch up. Cai Xun had just gotten up in a daze when he saw a flash of a knife coming towards him.

The next moment he felt his whole body lighten and he started to float up. As he was spinning he saw his body standing in the same place and slowly falling backwards.

"The Cai family bastard has been killed! Why don't you quickly abandon the dark and join the light!"

Huang Zhong grabbed Cai Xun's head, grasped the helmet tassel and swung it high.

Although the helmet's straps were still hanging on the head's chin, they could not withstand such a swing.

Huang Zhong accidentally used too much force, and Cai Xun's head was thrown out like a stone thrown by a slingshot.

The former Jingzhou soldiers on the opposite side were stunned and quickly collapsed and surrendered one after another.

Huang Zhong struck while the iron was hot and continued to move into the north gate and west gate. In just two hours, he completely annihilated Cai Xun's troops.

Of the nearly 10,000 former Jingzhou soldiers, Huang Zhong captured and forced them to surrender, with as many as 6,000 to 7,000 of them. Only a few hundred were killed or wounded in the chaos, and another 2,000 to 3,000 took the opportunity to flee.

These people fled, not because they were planning to go back and work for Cai Mao, but because their morale was low and they didn't want to join the army, so they took the opportunity to flee and become civilians.

It is normal that they don't want to be soldiers of Cao Cao or Liu Bei.

It took Huang Zhong only a little over a day to annihilate and incorporate Cai Xun's troops and complete the task of cleaning up the battlefield.

However, because of the time wasted in dealing with Cai Xun, Yu Jin had already escaped back to the Xianshan stronghold south of Xiangyang City, where he was able to rest and catch his breath.

There is nothing that can be done about it. Given limited conditions, it is impossible to have everything and get all the benefits.

Huang Zhong finally counted all the results of the battle and found that he had destroyed the Cao army infantry unit directly under Yu Jin, which was about 20,000 people, and 3,000 cavalry. He also annihilated nearly 10,000 former Jingzhou soldiers under Cai Xun.

After this battle, Cao's army suffered a total loss of more than 33,000 people, and two-thirds of the 50,000 troops that went out were killed directly. Among them, 10,000 were newly surrendered soldiers from Jingzhou who defected again, and the rest were veterans of Cao's army.

Cao Ren originally hoped to further widen the gap in military strength between the two sides, or completely destroy Liu Bei's forward grain storage base before Liu Bei's reinforcements from Yangzhou arrived, causing Liu Bei's entire army to waver.

But in the end, none of the expected strategic goals were achieved, and so many people were sacrificed, which resulted in a large gap in the troop strength between Cao and Liu's armies in Jingzhou.

Originally, even if Guan Yu arrived at the Jingbei battlefield, the total number of Liu Bei's army would still be much smaller than Cao's army. It would take Zhang Fei, Wei Yan and others from Yizhou to arrive before the total strength of both sides could be barely close.

After this battle, when Guan Yu arrived, the total force difference between Cao and Liu in the Jingbei battlefield was not so great. When the Yizhou troops arrived in the future, the total force of Liu Bei's army could even slightly surpass Cao's army.

Cao's army lost more than 30,000 people, while Liu Bei's army gained more than 10,000 people. The combination of positive and negative factors resulted in the total gap being reduced by at least 45,000 people, which was absolutely decisive.

Having achieved such great results, Huang Zhong was already exhausted after days of hard fighting. He knew he could not be greedy anymore, so he immediately went to Bian County to rest.

At the same time, he asked the commander of Bian County, who had been idle for a few days, to take the surrendered soldiers from Jingzhou back to the rear and re-organize them under the command of Zhuge Situ and Liu Qi Gongzi.

Huang Zhong was also very clear that although these were the old subordinates of his old lord Liu Biao, they were forced by Cai Mao to follow the bandits after all, so they must have psychological grudges and it was also possible that Cai Mao had added sabotage to them, so they could not be used directly.

Zhuge Situ is good at commanding the army and also good at winning people's hearts and minds. He will first bring these seven or eight thousand people back to be reformed and reorganized by him, and eliminate the pro-Cao officers and soldiers among them. In less than two or three months, they will be able to regain their combat effectiveness.

……

The news that Huang Zhong had won a comprehensive victory and chased Cai Xun to Bian County to annihilate him was reported back to Dangyang County in just a day and a half.

Zhuge Jin, who was stationed in Dangyang, was also very excited when he heard the news. He immediately led a small team of reinforcements from Dangyang to the north to reinforce the front line of Bian County. He also took the opportunity to express his condolences to General Huang and commend him for his achievements.

Before setting off, Zhuge Jin specially wrote a letter and sent it to Liu Bei in Yicheng to formally report the victory, telling Liu Bei the results, achievements and process of the three battles in detail.

The express messenger naturally moved faster than Zhuge Jin, so three days later, when Zhuge Jin arrived in Bian County from Dangyang, Liu Bei's reward envoy had also rushed to Bian County from Yicheng.

Liu Bei also specifically instructed that if the envoy met Zhuge Situ, he should hand the reward document to Zhuge Situ, who would convey it to General Huang on his behalf.

The messenger strictly carried out Liu Bei's order, and Zhuge Jin took the reward document and met Huang Zhong who came out of the city to greet him.

"I pay my respects to the Minister of Justice! Fortunately, thanks to the Minister of Justice's wisdom, I was able to achieve success!" Huang Zhong, along with some of his personal cavalry, rode several miles out of the city to meet Zhuge Jin. When he saw Zhuge Jin from a distance, he stopped his horse by the road and waited for him to approach before paying his respects.

Zhuge Jin also dismounted and propped himself up with his folding fan: "Old General, there is no need to be polite. You are the first to achieve great success in this battle! My lord has heard that you shot and killed Shi Huan, beheaded Cai Xun, and annihilated 30,000 enemies. He will report to the emperor and promote you to General of Annan! You will be granted the title of Marquis of Bowangting and a fief of 300 households."

Huang Zhong burst into tears when he heard this. He had been in the army for decades and had been with Liu Biao for twenty years. However, Liu Biao had no ambition and he had never had any great opportunities to make achievements.

Eight years ago, he joined hands with Wen Pin and took over Nanyang County while Cao Cao was restrained by Yuan Shao and was at his weakest, thus regaining his hometown. But his contribution was not enough for Liu Biao to confer him a title.

I didn't expect that I would finally officially follow the Grand Commandant, and in just two months, I would be granted the title of marquis.

Huang Zhong couldn't help choking up and said, "How dare I take credit for it! Everything is thanks to Situ's brilliant plan. Even if it is a mediocre general, as long as he strictly follows Situ's strategy, how can he not win?"

(End of this chapter)