Han Ji

"Yes, sir!"

At Chenshi (7-9 AM), after an hour of professional training from Zhang Fei, the three hundred loudmouths rode out of the camp and headed straight for Zebei.

When they reached within an arrow's throw of the Yellow Turban camp, they reined in their horses and began to curse.

"Zhu Tao! You rootless bandit, you worthless swine who sells his head for profit! Are you hiding in a woman's crotch, too afraid to show your face?!"

Three hundred riders roared in unison, "Hiding in women's crotches, too afraid to show your faces?!" The sound was like a hammer blow, crashing into the enemy camp, causing an instant commotion.

"What? You Yellow Turban bastards, who only know how to bully women and children and scaveng for graves? Hearing my name, your very spine turns to pus? Zhu Tao! Your pathetic marksmanship, did you learn it from your mistress's waistband? How dare you show your face on the battlefield!"

The three hundred riders laughed in unison: "Disgraceful! Disgraceful!" Their mocking voices echoed across the fields.

Inside the camp gate, the sound of horses' hooves was chaotic, and shouts and curses could be faintly heard, clearly indicating that the morale of the troops was boiling.

"Bah! What Heavenly General! Zhang Jiao is a heretic, nothing but a charlatan from the countryside who sells talismans! Are you following him to be reborn as wandering ghosts, or to be chopped into mincemeat to fertilize the fields? Look at your camp, pale and starving, where else can you go but the City of the Wrongfully Dead if you follow a bunch of fools?!"

The three hundred riders shouted in unison, "Wrongfully killed! Wrongfully killed!"

"Zhu Tao! If you dare to come out today, I'll pierce ten holes in you with my spear within three thrusts, and I'll change my surname to yours! If you dare not, kneel down and surrender immediately, and I'll grant you a whole corpse and leave your wives and children as slaves. Otherwise, I'll raze the bandit camp to the ground, leaving not a single chicken or dog alive, and hang your head at the gate, dousing it with excrement and urine, so that who in the world will dare to emulate you disloyal, unjust, and wreaking havoc on the world, you filthy piece of trash!"

The three hundred riders, their blood boiling, roared hoarsely, "Disgusting waste! Disgusting waste!"

"How dare you insult me, you scoundrel! State your name!" The gate of the stronghold burst open, and a general in black robes and armor, with bloodshot eyes, charged out like a mad tiger, spurring his horse and brandishing his spear. It was none other than Zhu Tao, who was furious.

"Your grandpa is Zhang Fei, Zhang Yide!" Zhang Fei grinned. "Come on, let's exchange a few blows. I'll give you a three-shot advantage!"

Zhu Tao was furious and spurred his horse straight at Zhang Fei.

The two horses clashed, their spears clashed, and sparks flew.

Zhang Fei was strong, but Zhu Tao's spear skills were exquisite; they fought for ten rounds without a clear victor. Zhang Fei feigned weakness and turned his horse to flee, shouting, "So powerful! Your grandpa can't beat you, retreat!"

Three hundred riders then "fled in disarray".

Zhu Tao sneered: "Chase them! Leave no one alive!"

Thousands of Yellow Turban rebels poured out of the camp and gave chase.

After chasing for three miles, they came to an open area where Liu Bei's main force was already lined up and waiting.

Zhu Tao reined in his horse, and seeing the well-organized formation of the government troops, he became wary. But when he looked back and saw that his own forces were numerous, his courage returned.

"Form ranks! Break through the enemy lines!"

The Yellow Turbans lined up and slowly advanced.

Liu Bei stood at the front of the formation, sword raised: "Archers!"

A thousand crossbows fired simultaneously, arrows flying like locusts. The Yellow Turban vanguard fell in droves, but the rest continued to charge forward.

The two armies clashed, and the battle shook the heavens.

Liu Bei commanded from the center, while Guan Yu and Zhang Fei each led a squad to flank the enemy. The Yellow Turbans had a numerical advantage, but their formation was loose and they were cut into several pieces by the government troops.

The battle reached a stalemate at noon.

Seeing that the battle was going badly, Zhu Tao sounded the horn to retreat.

But after retreating only half a mile, Guan Yu's ambush troops suddenly emerged from the reeds on the left, while cavalry charged from behind the earthen slope on the right. Attacked from three sides, the Yellow Turbans were thrown into chaos.

Zhu Tao fought desperately to break through the encirclement and retreated towards the edge of the marshland. There, a small boat was waiting to meet him.

Just as he was about to board the boat, a cold arrow shot out and struck him squarely in the right shoulder. Zhu Tao screamed and fell from his horse.

Guan Yu arrived on horseback, his Green Dragon Crescent Blade raised.

"I am Guan Yu, Guan Yunchang! Remember me well!"

The blade fell, and a head flew off.

With their commander dead, the Yellow Turbans completely collapsed, with most surrendering and the rest fleeing into the reed marshes.

Liu Bei withdrew his troops and tallied the results: over two thousand were beheaded, and three thousand were captured. The government army suffered eight hundred casualties.

Standing by the marsh, watching Zhu Tao's headless corpse being dragged away, Liu Bei remained silent.

"Big brother, we won!" Zhang Fei, covered in blood, grinned.

"Hmm." Liu Bei bent down, picked up Zhu Tao's iron spear, weighed it in his hand, and said, "He was a good man, what a pity."

"What's a pity? He didn't hold back when he killed our brothers," Zhang Fei spat.

Liu Bei didn't say anything, but stuck his iron spear into the ground as a makeshift tombstone.

"Dig a hole and bury it."

"Big brother!" Zhang Fei exclaimed, his eyes wide.

"When a person dies, their debts are settled." Liu Bei turned around.

Zhang Fei muttered a few words, but still did as he was told.

By the time the body was buried, it was nearly dusk.

A mist rose from the lake, turning it into a vast expanse of white. In the distance, water birds occasionally took flight from the reed beds.

Nothing happened that night.

The following day, Lu Zhi led the main force to arrive. Upon hearing of the victory, he nodded in approval.

"With Zhu Tao dead, Zhang Jiao has lost an arm." He pointed to the map, "but his main force is still in Yingtao and Guangzong. Our army needs to advance quickly and defeat them one by one before they can regroup."

"I am willing to be the vanguard," Liu Bei said, clasping his hands in a fist salute.

"No." Lu Zhi shook his head. "This time, you will accompany the central army. Yingtao City is formidable, and we must join forces to attack it."

Liu Bei understood that Lu Zhi wanted him to rest and recuperate, and to gain experience in major battles.

"Yes, sir."

Three days later, the army arrived at Yingtao.

The city wall was three zhang high, its bricks mottled and worn. The defending general Zhang Liang and Zhang Jiao's third brother were already on the city wall, ready for battle.

The real battle has begun.

Dust obscured the sun beneath the walls of Yingtao City.

Lu Zhi's army surrounded the city from all sides, setting up siege ladders, battering rams, and catapults one after another. Yellow Turban flags were densely displayed on the city walls, and rolling logs and stones were piled up like mountains.

Liu Bei stood on the high platform in the center of the army, looking out at the city defenses.

"Zhang Liang's defense of the city is quite methodical," Lu Zhi said from the side. "Look, there's a barbican built inside the city gate, crossbow platforms set up at the corners of the city wall, and boiling oil hidden behind the parapet."

"A direct assault will inevitably result in heavy casualties."

"But we have no choice but to attack." Lu Zhi sighed. "Yingtao is the western gateway to Julu. Without breaking through this city, we cannot advance on Guangzong."

"Could we surround them without attacking, and cut off their supply lines?"

"Zhang Jiao has over 100,000 troops in Guangzong, and their supply lines are long and difficult to cut off in a short time." Lu Zhi shook his head. "Moreover, the imperial court is urging us to quell the rebellion as soon as possible."

Liu Bei remained silent.

He knew why the court was in such a hurry: the Yellow Turban Rebellion had shaken the entire country. The officials and nobles in Luoyang feared that the chaos would spread and jeopardize their own wealth and status.

They didn't care how many people died on the front lines.

"Prepare to attack the city." Lu Zhi turned around. "Xuande, your unit will be the second wave. After the first wave storms the city, follow up and expand the gains."

"Yes."

The war drums sounded.

The first wave of 5,000 men charged with ladders. Arrows rained down from the city walls, logs and stones crashed down, and screams filled the air. Ladders were erected on the walls, and soldiers swarmed up, only to be pushed off one by one.

After attacking for two hours, suffering nearly a thousand casualties, they failed to breach the city walls.

The battle is over.

Lu Zhi's face was gloomy.

"Zhang Liang was prepared." He gritted his teeth. "Order the construction of siege towers to exchange fire with the city walls. Also, dig tunnels to breach the city from underground."

"Teacher," Liu Bei began, "I have a plan."

"explain."

"During today's siege, my students observed that Zhang Liang's defending forces are mostly concentrated on the south and east sides, while the west and north sides are relatively weak." Liu Bei pointed to the west of the city. "Could we feign an attack on the south gate while secretly sending elite troops to break in from the west gate?"

Lu Zhi looked at him for a long time and nodded: "Approved. But we must be careful, Zhang Liang is no ordinary person, he may have already foreseen this."

"The student understands."