The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

"Are there still soldiers in Luoyang? Before I came to Hulao Pass, I heard that the Grand Tutor was preparing to move the capital. Now that the situation at Hulao Pass is so precarious, the possibility of moving the capital is probably even greater," Hua Xiong said.

"If the capital really must be moved, we, as subordinates, can only obey orders," Li Jue whispered to Hua Xiong. "Brother, Dian Wei is seriously injured, and our army lacks a general who can control the situation. In addition, the Guandong army's firearms are sharp, so it's impossible to hold Hulao Pass. There are still six thousand cavalry inside the pass. When we can't hold it, we'll take the cavalry and try to leave, leaving the infantry to hold off the Guandong coalition."

"What should we do with the general?" Hua Xiong asked. They couldn't just leave Dian Wei here.

Li Jue pondered for a moment, then said to Hua Xiong, "Send General Dian Wei to Luoyang tonight. Hulao Pass is lacking in medical supplies. Dian Wei is the Grand Tutor's adopted son; if he dies here, it will be a blow to the army's morale, and we won't be able to explain ourselves when we return."

"Send him away tonight?" Hua Xiong hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "It's good to send him away tonight. There really aren't any good doctors at Hulao Pass. Sending Dian Wei to Luoyang will allow the imperial physicians in Luoyang to treat his injuries better."

"Very well, I'll have Hu Zhen personally escort General Dian Wei back to Luoyang, and at the same time, request reinforcements from the Grand Tutor and the Military Advisor," Hua Xiong said.

Li Jue nodded and said to Hua Xiong, "Now that we've made up our minds, let's act quickly. We don't have much time left."

Hua Xiong nodded and immediately summoned Hu Zhen and Dian Wei's confidant Song Xian, instructing them to escort Dian Wei back to Luoyang at the last minute, while also requesting reinforcements from the Grand Tutor, as Hulao Pass was already in imminent danger.

“Alas, back then, Cao Mengde held Hulao Pass for over a month with more than 10,000 regular troops and civilian laborers. Not only that, he was also able to counterattack Zhang Jiao and even defeat Zhang Jiao’s main force. Now, we have only held out for a few days and we are about to fall.” Hua Xiong sighed.

"There's no comparison. Cao Cao faced the Yellow Turban Rebellion, a ragtag bunch. While their firearms were formidable, their fighting spirit was weak. We, on the other hand, face elite forces from various factions. Although there are some miscellaneous troops, they are far superior. Moreover, the allied forces have a renowned general like Lu Zhi in command." Li Jue clearly sees things clearly. The Guandong allied forces after the change of command are no longer the disorganized Guandong army under Yuan Shu's command a few days ago. With Lu Zhi's command and Yuan Shao's coordination, the enemy's formation outside the pass is significantly more compact. Yesterday's and today's battles have given them hope of victory. "Once the news of Wen Hou's serious injury and unconsciousness reaches the Guandong army camp, their morale will reach its peak, making things even more difficult for our army. This is why I'm requesting reinforcements from the Grand Tutor."

"Why is Yuan Shu so useless? He can't even hold his position as alliance leader," Hua Xiong said. He then turned to Li Jue and said, "How about I lead a cavalry raid tonight? Even if it fails, it will disrupt the allied forces' deployment. If we can find the allied forces' Shenwu Cannon camp, that would be great. Destroying the Shenwu Cannons will greatly reduce the defensive pressure tomorrow."

"A night raid?" Li Jue was somewhat tempted by Hua Xiong's suggestion. The allied forces did not have any organized cavalry. If they could launch a night raid with cavalry, even if it failed, they could still escape quickly. Hua Xiong's suggestion was not a bad one. It would be best if it succeeded, but if it failed, it could at least disrupt the deployment of the Kwantung Army and buy time for Li Jue to strengthen the defense of Hulao Pass and for reinforcements to be sent from Luoyang.

"How confident are we?" Li Jue asked Hua Xiong. Hua Xiong thought for a moment and said to Li Jue, "Absolutely 80%. The Kwantung Army will be complacent after their great victory today. We just need to carefully open the gate, sneak along the woods to the south, and choose the weak point of the Kwantung Army to charge in."

“Since you are confident, then go ahead and do it. I will order the garrison commander to be ready to support you at any time,” Li Jue said.

Hua Xiong nodded, "Thank you very much, General Li."

Li Jue laughed and said, "We're all brothers, what's this? As long as we can get through this difficult time, I'll treat you all to drinks when we get back!"

"Alright! Thank you very much, Brother Li!" Hua Xiong said.

After careful preparation, Hua Xiong led his three thousand most elite and best-performing cavalry, all of whom were Xiliang cavalry. At this time, although there were still two thousand Bingzhou wolf cavalry under Dian Wei in Guanzhong, they were not trained by him personally, so Hua Xiong was still a little worried and not as comfortable to command them. Therefore, Hua Xiong did not bring the Bingzhou cavalry, but only used them as a reserve force to be ready to provide support along with the remaining Xiliang cavalry.

Without Dian Wei, the Bingzhou cavalry had no choice but to accept their fate. Without Dian Wei, they were in a very awkward position within the Xiliang army, facing discrimination everywhere. However, there was nothing they could do, since they were not part of the elite forces.

Most of the soldiers in Bingzhou understood this: if they didn't want to go, they didn't have to. They could still earn plenty of credit, but they only had one life. In a night raid like this, they would be lucky to come back with half of their troops.

"Let's go!" It wasn't until after midnight that Hua Xiong led the three thousand cavalrymen who had been resting and recuperating quietly out of Hulao Pass. Not knowing if there were any spies from the Kwantung Army outside the pass, Hua Xiong, to be on the safe side, ordered the gate to be opened only a crack, just enough for one cavalryman to go out. After leaving the city, they walked along the wall to the edge of Hulao Pass to wait for the assemble.

After a third of the cavalry had left, Hua Xiong followed them out of the pass and ordered twenty cavalrymen to set off first to scout ahead. All the cavalrymen had grass in their mouths, and their horses' hooves were wrapped in cloth to minimize the possibility of being exposed.

"General, the allied camp is twenty li ahead. I've observed it briefly, and the allied defenses are very lax. There are very few defensive structures around the camp, only a few deer antlers."

"Pass on my order: the entire army will approach stealthily. Do not accelerate if you are not detected!" Hua Xiong said to his officers. Then he turned to the vanguard cavalry captain and ordered, "Find a way to open up an attack route for the main force."

"Yes, General!"

Half an hour later, Hua Xiong led his raiding party forward. The Xiliang cavalry had already approached within three miles of the Guandong Army's main camp. Hua Xiong could clearly see the bonfires and tents burning all over the Guandong Army's main camp.

"Prepare to attack!" Hua Xiong turned to his soldiers and gave the order.

"Powerful!"

Hua Xiong drew his precious sword from his waist, its blade pointing forward. The Xiliang cavalry slowly advanced, unaware that countless eyes were watching them from the dense darkness not far away.