The Three Kingdoms: I asked you to save Guan Yu, not to destroy Sun Quan.

Zhang Cheng was really anxious.

It should be noted that there are only two routes from Wushang to Shanyin: Zhuji and Shanxian. If they are blocked, the Wu army will have no choice but to retreat to Damu and then to Shexian.

This roundabout route is over 600 li long. Putting aside whether the grain and fodder can last, they won't even be able to get past the Da Mo pass. Zhang Cheng doesn't believe that Guan Xing has no backup plan at Da Mo.

After seeing Zhang Ming off, Zhang Cheng looked into the distance and sighed, "I hope Zhuji and Shan County are still in our hands. I don't need both cities to be there, just leave me one."

If he keeps one, he still has a way out; if he loses both, he'll be in big trouble.

The idea was good, but it forgot that misfortunes always come in groups.

The scouts quickly reported that Zhuji had fallen, Shan County had fallen, and even the road to the Shanyue was blocked. The Han army seemed to have suddenly appeared out of nowhere, covering the mountains and plains.

Faced with a constant stream of bad news, Zhang Cheng disregarded the insults and accusations and decisively ordered, "Order the army to set off immediately and follow me to Zhuji to annihilate the Han army. We must recapture Zhuji before our supplies run out."

"I will then order Chunyu Shi, the governor of Kuaiji, to lead his army south to Zhuji to join forces with me in attacking Guan Xing. This time, I will make Zhuji Guan Xing's burial ground."

After calming down, Zhang Cheng not only stopped panicking, but also felt a surge of excitement.

At this stage of the battle, what frustrated him most was not that he couldn't defeat the Han army, but that he couldn't find Guan Xing. That bastard was running around all over the mountains, driving him almost to the point of breaking down. During this time, he dreamed of catching up with the Han army and fighting them to the death.

Now that Guan Xing has actually shown up, this is definitely a good thing for him.

Imagining the scene of trampling Guan Xing underfoot, Zhang Cheng mobilized all his forces, leading five thousand elite troops in a mighty march towards Zhuji.

It is only 120 li from Wushang to Zhuji. At this moment, on the road to Zhuji, thousands of Han soldiers are digging pits, and the leader is Guan Xing.

Guan Xing gripped the hoe and quickly dug a small pit about a foot square and a little over half a foot deep. Then he picked up a bamboo skewer about half a foot long and as thick as a finger, with both ends sharpened, and carefully inserted it into the bottom of the pit.

They stuck seven or eight bamboo sticks into a triangle, then placed bamboo strips around the edge of the pit and covered it with soil. The simple trap was made. If anyone accidentally stepped into it, their soles would definitely have several bloody holes.

Guan Xing stood up, clapped his hands, and admired his masterpiece with satisfaction. He then shouted to the Han soldiers who were digging the pits, "Brothers, give it your all and try to lay traps all along the road to Zhuji!"

"Wang Tao, go and meet Ning Huan and Guan Yan. Don't let our scouts fall into a trap we set ourselves, or that would be really embarrassing."

After saying that, he turned around and found Meng Jun shirtless, swinging a hoe and digging frantically, sweating profusely despite the February weather.

Guan Xing stepped forward and patted him on the back, looking at the half-zhang-wide pit at his feet and said speechlessly, "I asked you to set up a trap, not to build a mausoleum for Zhang Cheng. Why did you dig such a big one?"

Meng Jun wiped his sweat and chuckled foolishly, "I was just worried that if the pit was too small, Wu Jun wouldn't be able to fall in."

Guan Xing said speechlessly, "You're quite considerate of Wu Jun, huh? But no matter who encounters this kind of trap, is there any difference between stepping in with your foot and falling in completely?"

"Besides, the traps are not very lethal. As long as one unlucky guy steps in, the rest of the Wu army will stop to check. Even if the Wu army is stupid, they wouldn't knowingly charge into a trap, would they?"

Meng Jun blinked and asked curiously, "In that case, one or two traps would suffice. Why dig so many?"

Guan Xing sighed helplessly, "Why are you northerners so honest? Can't you be a little more flexible?"

"There are only two reasons for setting up traps: one is to disrupt the morale of the Wu army, and the other is to slow down their speed. The Wu army has limited supplies, and if they spend an extra fifteen minutes on the road, the pressure on us to defend the city will be reduced. Therefore, the quantity of traps is far more important than their quality, understand?"

Meng Jun, carrying a hoe, grinned foolishly and said, "Now that you put it that way, I understand. I'll go dig a small trap right now."

Guan Xing grabbed his belt and pulled him back, thinking, "Don't go. Stay here and command the army. Have the first battalion dig the pits, the second battalion go into the mountains to cut bamboo and provide bamboo spikes, and the third battalion set up traps at the bottom of the pits. This division of labor will speed things up."

After sending Meng Jun away, Guan Xing continued to bend over and dig the hole, setting an example for others.

They were located right between Wushang and Zhuji, sixty li away from each city. It would take Zhang Cheng at least a day to get here, so they had plenty of time.

While the Han army was digging pits, the Wu army was marching at full speed. Zhang Cheng learned from Zhuge Ke's lesson and this time he did not dare to separate the grain and fodder from the main army. He escorted the grain and fodder together, so the speed was particularly slow. They only traveled fifty li in a whole day and set up camp to rest at night.

In the dead of night, at the hour of Chou (1-3 AM), all was quiet.

Ning Huan and Guan Yan led a dozen men, carrying a bamboo cage about ten feet square, and quietly approached the vicinity of the Wu army camp.

Grunting sounds kept coming from the bamboo cage. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a wild boar, as strong as an ox and with tusks showing, which Ning Huan and his men had caught in the Kuaiji Mountains during the day.

Upon reaching their destination and setting down the bamboo cage, Guan Yan looked at the wild boar guiltily and said, "Boss Ning, are you sure this thing will charge towards the Wu army camp after it's released, instead of turning around and attacking us?"

Wild boar tusks are terrifying to look at; just thinking about getting gored by them is thrilling!

"We're not sure, so we need to run faster."

Ning Huan took out bamboo shoots and threw them to the wild boar that hadn't eaten all day. While it was eating, he unlocked the chains, turned around, and ran away, calling out as he ran, "Hurry up, hurry up! There's Five-Stone Powder in the bamboo shoots. If you can't get away before the drug takes effect, you'll be in big trouble."

The bamboo shoots were dug up from the mountains, and the Five-Stone Powder was found by Guan Xing in the house of the magistrate of Zhuji County. Ning Huan didn't know whether the combination of the two would be effective against wild boars, so he didn't run far, but hid nearby to watch secretly.

About 15 minutes later, the drug took effect, and the wild boar became restless and kept hitting the bamboo cage. As a result, it broke open with a gentle bump.

The wild boar was clearly stunned for a moment, then its eyes turned bright red as it charged toward the military camp ahead.

Zhang Cheng was no fool like Zhuge Ke. His camp was fully equipped with antler-shaped arrow towers, and the sentries on them were all wide awake. Seeing a huge dark figure rushing towards them from below, they shouted in alarm, "Enemy attack...enemy attack..."

As he shouted, he fired an arrow and successfully hit the target.

Unfortunately, the wild boar had thick hide and tough flesh. Ordinary arrows not only failed to kill it but also aroused its ferocity. The wild boar accelerated again and rammed its head into the deer's antlers, knocking the antlers backward and getting stuck in the gaps between them. It struggled and couldn't get out, letting out a howl that echoed throughout the entire camp.

Wu Junquan, who was fast asleep, was awakened by the noise. Zhang Cheng rushed to the front of the camp and asked unhappily when he saw the wild boar that had been stabbed to death by a hail of bullets, "What's going on? Where did this wild boar come from?"

The soldier couldn't answer and could only give a perfunctory reply: "Maybe it came from the mountains."

Zhang Cheng said helplessly, "You guys continue your posts, the rest of you go back and rest."

The military camp returned to calm. Half an hour later, Ning Huan and Guan Yan brought in another bamboo cage containing a wild boar.

While feeding the child, Guan Yan said, "Brother Ning, isn't what we're doing a bit unfair?"

Ning Huan sneered, "General Guan's mission for us was to keep the Wu army from sleeping, but he didn't specify what method we had to use. Run!"

The scene from before repeated itself: the wild boar, which had taken the Five-Stone Powder, charged into the military camp like a madman. Before being stabbed to death by a hail of spears, it let out a mournful howl that sounded both angry and resentful, successfully waking the Wu soldiers in the camp from their sleep.

Half an hour later, another wild boar charged in.

Even the most clueless Zhang Cheng would know what was going on after receiving three consecutive wake-up calls. He roared in exasperation, "Guan Anguo, you're shameless..."