The Three Kingdoms: Home Travel

…“The boundary bridge is just over ten li away!” Zhao Yun said to himself, but… “Zilong!” came the voice of Wei Geng, the White Horse Cavalry Commander.

"..." Zhao Yun abruptly reined in his horse, gazing into the distance from his high vantage point. His eyes flashed—barricades! Three layers of barricades! Barricades stretching for dozens of miles!

Behind them was another Cao army camp. Cao soldiers patrolled back and forth everywhere, and there were also many archers and crossbowmen hidden behind them.

"Damn it! I knew it wouldn't be this easy!" Ma Shang, the chief of the White Horse Cavalry, said angrily.

"So what do we do now?" Wei Geng said in a deep voice. "We can't stay here any longer. Should we charge forward or retreat? We need to make a decision!"

"Retreat? We have no way out. Our only option is to figure out how to break through the encirclement..." Zhao Yun shook his head, looking at Cao Cao's camp in the distance, and said, "However, judging from the way Cao Cao's army is well-organized and strictly guards the key roads, if we were to charge... I'm afraid we would lose many comrades..." "This..." Ma Shang hesitated. "Perhaps we should choose a weak point in their defenses and break through?"

"Good indeed. But we no longer have that time..." Zhao Yun's expression suddenly changed, and he said in a deep voice, "Damn it, they have discovered us! We cannot give Cao Cao's army a chance to regroup. The moment to break through is now!"

"Zilong, give the order!" Wei Geng exchanged a glance with the dozen or so leaders and said in a deep voice.

Zhao Yun, wielding the "Heroic Dragon's Gall," glanced coldly at Cao Cao's camp. He whispered, "Gentlemen, our objective is to break through the encirclement. Do not entangle ourselves with Cao Cao's army!"

"Yes! We will certainly obey!" Wei Geng and the other elders replied resolutely.

"Woo-woo..." The alarm horns sounded in Cao Cao's camp, and countless Cao soldiers poured out of the camp to set up defenses behind the barricades.

"..." Zhao Yun turned around and glanced at the five thousand cavalry behind him. Seeing that they were all waiting for his order, he felt a pang of pain in his heart.

As if a massive boulder weighing tens of thousands of pounds was pressing on his chest, Zhao Yun struggled to raise his silver spear. He shouted in a deep voice, "White Horse Cavalry!"

"Invincible!" the five thousand cavalrymen whispered, their morale instantly soaring to its peak.

I know there's a trap here; I also know that if we try to break through, we'll likely be wiped out... Try to find a weak point in the defenses to break through? There's no time for that..."

At least, the tens of thousands of Cao and Yuan soldiers following behind them, who were trailing the smoke signals, wouldn't give them that much time... "So, we have no choice but to move forward... even if it's a trap... But rest assured, my comrades, Yun will be the first to charge."

Zhao Yun pulled on the reins, and the horse reared up with a neigh. It then lurched to the ground. Zhao Yun tapped his helmet with his silver spear and shouted loudly, "Charge! White Horse Cavalry! Charge! My comrades!"

"Drink!" Five thousand cavalrymen also tapped their helmets with their lances, partly to pray for divine protection, and partly to bid a final farewell to their families... There was a common custom in the army regarding this. If a soldier had a family, a sachet would be attached to the inside of his bowl. Inside was his wife's handkerchief and her deepest blessings... This was also a way for ancient women to bless their husbands... "What a fine White Horse Cavalry!" Cao Ren, a general under Cao Cao, coldly watched the thousands of cavalrymen rushing down the distant hillside. They covered the entire mountainside, their momentum like a rainbow... Looking at the soldiers around him, they were all somewhat trembling, some even showing fear in their eyes.

"Hmph!" Cao Ren snorted coldly and shouted, "They are but a few thousand men, while we have twenty thousand. What is there to fear? The lord has decreed that whoever kills a cavalryman will be rewarded with a month's salary, and whoever kills a White Horse Cavalryman will be promoted one rank!"

A soldier being promoted to squad leader, a squad leader to platoon leader, that's nothing special. But what about a clerk? One promotion makes you a centurion! And then a minor general, a deputy general... well, that's... that's...

It's well known that promotion is difficult for low-ranking officers, and now that Cao Ren has said this, who would be willing to give up such an opportunity to someone else?

As for whether this statement is true or false... what Mr. Jiang said must be true!

"Drink!" Cao Bing's morale was instantly ignited.

Nodding in satisfaction, Cao Ren drew his long sword. He coldly watched the approaching cavalry and roared, "Come! White Horse Cavalry, this is your death trap!"

This man must be a general of Cao Cao's army. As long as he is killed, Zhao Yun's eyes turned cold. He spurred his horse and galloped faster and faster, intending to charge into Cao Cao's army formation alone.

"Zilong!" Wei Geng shouted anxiously, but Zhao Yun was focused on killing Cao Ren to break the siege and didn't hear him.

"Hmph!" Cao Ren watched as a general charged towards him. He sneered and raised his right hand, waving it.

To everyone's surprise, half of Cao's soldiers behind the barricades dispersed, leaving behind only crossbowmen. "Crossbowmen, triple volley! Archers, volley!" Cao Ren gave the order amidst Chi Yi's puzzled gaze.

"Puff puff puff!" The first row of crossbowmen fired a volley, then crouched down to let the second row of crossbowmen fire... The archers behind the crossbowmen didn't even look, just looked up and fired... a barrage of projectiles... In the Three Kingdoms period, when crossbows were used for horizontal firing, almost no one understood the meaning and power of barrages. Therefore, Jiang Zhe's tactics truly shocked Ri Huai Rangxi and Yuan Shao... "As expected of the master." In Cao Ren's eyes, the five thousand cavalrymen fell from their horses, but it seemed that few of the cavalrymen with white silk wrapped around their arms had been lost... "White Horse Cavalry!" The four words suddenly jumped into Cao Ren's mind.

"Brothers!" Wei Geng deflected the arrows aimed at him with his spear, turned around, and laughed loudly. "Let those Cao soldiers see the might of the White Horse Cavalry!"

"Drink!" came a shout from all sides.

Amidst the bewildered gazes of Cao Bing and even Cao Ren, nearly three thousand White Horse Cavalry sheathed their spears, drew longbows from their backs, and took out an arrow… Cao Ren's expression changed slightly; he stared ahead in disbelief. Mounted archery? This is impossible!

Nothing is impossible! The incoming arrows have confirmed Cao Ren's thoughts.

The White Horse Cavalry, skilled in archery and horsemanship… “Guards!” Cao Ren was startled by the White Horse Cavalry. He almost forgot to order the protection of the defenseless crossbowmen and archers.

"Damn it!" Cao Ren's face tightened as he looked at the hundreds of archers lying on the ground. His expression turned grim; he had made such a shallow oversight!

Having obtained the master's secret technique, if these thousands of cavalry were to break through again… the image of Xiahou Huang's miserable expression before Jiang Zhe flashed through Cao Ren's mind. He tore off his cloak and shouted, "Stop them! Shoot arrows! Shoot arrows!"

"General! Watch out!" A sudden cry rang out.

Cao Ren suddenly looked to the side, his eyes wide open.

Suddenly, a white horse leaped over three layers of barricades. The general on its back was young, but his imposing presence made Cao Ren wary.

"Clang!" Cao Ren was forced back by Zhao Yun's spear, taking several steps back.

Zhao Yun glanced at Cao Ren, then at the terrified crossbowmen and archers… “Surround him!” Cao Ren shouted. The nearby swordsmen and shieldmen immediately surrounded Zhao Yun. “Ah!” they yelled as they charged at Zhao Yun, raising their swords to strike.

Zhao Yun's heart tightened. He drew his sword from his waist, wielding a silver spear in one hand and the sword in the other, thrusting and slashing left and right. No one could get close to him.

"Impressive martial arts skills!" Cao Ren was greatly shocked. He never expected that the man dressed as a barbarian would possess such high martial arts skills.

"Keep firing!" Cao Ren handed the crossbowmen over to his deputy, while he personally led the swordsmen and shieldmen to surround and kill Zhao Yun.

"Zilong, we've come to lend you a hand!" A loud shout suddenly rang out from the arena. Cao Ren turned around and was greatly alarmed. He hurriedly shouted, "Stop them!"

Dozens of riders charged straight into Cao Cao's army formation. Like Zhao Yun, they leaped over the barricades. The White Horse Cavalry was indeed not to be underestimated. "Don't be arrogant!" Suddenly, a long spear flew straight at them, piercing the abdomen of one of the White Horse Cavalry leaders who had leaped up... Cao Ren turned around in surprise and saw a general riding towards them. Overjoyed, he exclaimed, "Wonderful Talent, come quickly to my aid!"

"Zhang Hao!" Wei Geng roared, his eyes red and swollen, staring intently at Xiahou Yuan.

"Kill!" Xiahou Yuan waved his hand, and the Cao soldiers around him immediately surrounded Wei Geng and more than ten White Horse Cavalry leaders.

Wei Geng fought desperately, but Cao's soldiers surged like a tide; for every man he killed, two more would take his place… It seemed he was destined to perish here today! Wei Geng sighed inwardly, then took a deep breath. But no matter what, he was determined to kill them!

He then turned his horse around, barely managing to push aside the surrounding Cao soldiers, and charged straight towards Xiahou Yuan.

"Well done!" Xiahou Yuan knew exactly what Wei Geng was thinking, and spurred his horse forward, spear in hand, to meet him.

"Clang!" The two guns clashed, and they fought for several rounds.

"The White Horse Cavalry is indeed formidable..." Xiahou Yuan smiled slightly, then his expression turned serious. He slowly said, "While your martial arts are strong, it's a pity you chose the wrong opponent..."

Wei Geng looked at his chest in disbelief at the wound that was bleeding profusely. "Brother Geng, you must come back safely..."

In his hazy vision, Wei Geng seemed to see his beloved wife standing at the door calling him. He stretched out his right hand with all his might, "Ah Xiang... I'm sorry..."

"Bang!" The sound of a heavy object falling to the ground.

Xiahou Yuan glanced indifferently at the corpses on the ground and shook his head. He sighed inwardly, "General Wei!" The three thousand White Horse Cavalry roared, ignoring the barricades in front of them, and charged straight towards Cao Cao's army formation. The first few cavalrymen were instantly killed, horse and all, crashing into the barricades. But as long as they had a breath left, they charged, charged, charged!

More than one hundred people... more than two hundred... three hundred groups

Finally, to the astonishment of Cao Cao's soldiers, the remaining three thousand-odd cavalrymen roared into Cao Cao's ranks, over two thousand of them being the White Horse Cavalry. After all, under such a brutal barrage of arrows, ordinary cavalrymen simply couldn't withstand such a dense hail of arrows… After breaking through several ranks of Cao Cao's soldiers, Gongsun Can's cavalrymen were gradually swallowed up by the tide of men. After all, three thousand cavalrymen were so insignificant among Cao Cao's thirty to forty thousand soldiers.

Xiahou Yuan thrust his spear into Ma Shang's head, throwing him to the ground. He glanced at the frenzied White Horse Cavalry, frowned, and roared, "Shieldbearers in front! Spearmen behind! Block them!"

After shouting a few times, Xiahou Yuan saw that he still couldn't stop the cavalry, and in a fit of anger, he turned to leave.

But he stumbled and almost fell.

"z stared at the four, the salary was the most recovered, the most cautious and the fastest," looking at Ma Shang on the ground, who was clinging tightly to his leg armor. "Gah," he sighed and beheaded him with a single sword stroke.

"I don't want to be a soldier in my next life..."

"Wei Geng! Ma Shang!" Zhao Yun's eyes were bloodshot as he gripped his silver spear tightly. He glanced at the surrounding Cao soldiers and exclaimed, "You all deserve to die!"

Cao Ren immediately felt that the general's spear technique had become incredibly sharp in an instant, killing anyone who touched him and injuring anyone who grazed him... Could there really be such spear technique in the world?

"Woo-woo!" Just then, a horn suddenly sounded.

Zhao Yun was startled and turned around. Just as he had expected, countless Cao soldiers appeared in the direction they had come from… “Reinforcements have arrived!” Cao Ren roared. “Don’t let this army escape!”

But because of one sentence he uttered, Zhao Yun became even more certain: this man was indeed Cao Cao's commander-in-chief. All he needed to do was kill him!

After forcing back Cao Cao's soldiers with a few spear thrusts, Zhao Yun spurred his horse and charged towards Cao Ren, the two already quite close. Cao Ren was startled and immediately drew his sword to block.

"Die!" Zhao Yun roared, and with a single spear thrust, he knocked Cao Ren's longsword away. Cao Ren was terrified, staring dumbfounded at the silver spear aimed straight at his face. "Lock!"

"Hmm?" Zhao Yun glanced at the silver spear in his hand, his expression changing slightly. He stared at the mounted officer before him and asked, "Who are you?"

Cao Ren finally came to his senses. Seeing that someone had seemingly shielded him from a fatal blow, he felt a sense of relief. Turning around, he looked embarrassed. "Yuan...Yuan Rang?"

It was Xiahou Huang who saved Cao Ren?

Cao Ren then anxiously looked around and suddenly saw a scholar standing far away, surrounded by more than ten Tiger and Leopard Battalion soldiers. He was immediately filled with shame.

"Yuanrang, Miaocai, Zixiao, you all go and fight him!"

Xiahou Yuan was directing his chariots to block the cavalry. Upon hearing this, he was stunned and stared incredulously at Zhao Yun not far away.

Even Cao Ren and Xiahou Huang were startled. Could it be...? Cao Ren took a long sword from a nearby soldier, then led a horse over and mounted it, joining Xiahou Huang and Xiahou Yuan in approaching Zhao Yun.

Upon seeing the three generals arrive, the nearby Cao soldiers pushed aside, only vaguely surrounding Zhao Yun. "..." Zhao Yun looked at the scholar not far away with disbelief. His temperament was still so calm and refined, and his eyes were still as honest as ever, but why did he feel so disappointed?

Pointing his gun at Jiang Zhe, Zhao Yun asked with a complex expression, "Who exactly are you?"

"My names are Jiang Zhe and Jiang Shouyi, strategists under Lord Cao..."

"Hmph!" Seeing Jiang Zhe's friendly demeanor towards the general, Xiahou Han was subtly displeased and snorted. "Sir, you are the chief strategist of our army..."

"So that's how it is!" Zhao Yun suddenly raised his head and said coldly, "So, all of this was a trap you set?"

"Do you regret not killing me back then?"

"I'm furious..." Zhao Yun's expression froze. He frowned at Jiang Zhe and said hatefully, "If I knew you were Cao Cao's strategist, I would kill you..."

"Is that so?" Jiang Zhe asked with a smile.

"But..." Zhao Yun wanted to say yes, but recalling that day, he couldn't utter a word. "Why would such a kind person..."

"Now you only have three paths before you..." Jiang Zhe said with a smile, "The first path is death; the second path is surrender; the third path... kill me and escape in the chaos!"

"Huh?" Zhao Yun looked at Jiang Zhe not far away in surprise.

Xiahou Han, Xiahou Yuan, and Cao Ren's expressions all changed drastically. They hurriedly spurred their horses to block Zhao Yun and Jiang Zhe... But if they did that... Zhao Yun watched as the three Cao generals who had just surrounded him retreated, feeling utterly bewildered. Suddenly, he saw Jiang Zhe's smiling expression and was immediately startled.

Zhao Yun turned his horse around and shouted, "White Horse Cavalry, follow me!" He then charged into the enemy ranks, rescuing the cavalrymen deeply trapped in Cao Cao's formation… Cao Ren glanced at Jiang Zhe, lost in thought. He secretly gave an order: Let them go!

With the order given, Cao's soldiers naturally retreated slowly. Zhao Yun looked around suspiciously, covering the remaining three hundred or so White Horse Cavalry as they desperately broke through the encirclement.

As he rode his steed, Zhao Yun glanced behind him. He murmured to himself, "I won't be grateful to you..." (Jiang Zhe)

"...I'm just repaying the favor I did for you the other day!" Jiang Zhe said to himself.

In this battle, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao adopted Jiang Zhe's plan. They set up beacon towers, and after half a month, Gongsun Qing's eight thousand cavalrymen, except for the White Horse Cavalry, suffered heavy losses.

In mid-August of the second year of Zhongping (620 AD), the White Horse Cavalry broke through the Jieqiao defenses. Except for about three hundred White Horse Cavalry who successfully broke through, the rest were utterly wiped out, with losses reaching five thousand, nearly three thousand of whom were White Horse Cavalry… In the Battle of Jieqiao, Cao Cao's army suffered nearly ten thousand seriously and lightly wounded. Nearly four thousand were killed in action, mostly archers and crossbowmen. Yuan Shao conquered the entire territory of Yizhou… It's late, I'm sorry. I really don't know what's wrong with me today. I feel dizzy and lightheaded, like things are spinning… Sorry.”

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