Chapter 19: Afraid of teammates like pigs

  The general is dead, how can the army not be in chaos? More than 10,000 soldiers were chased and killed by Sun Jian like sheep.

  Sun Jian wielded a large ancient sword, exerting great force to chop and kill. Within a radius of several feet around him, both men and horses were cut down, no one could withstand!

  Sun Jian's army finished cleaning up the battlefield and wanted to pursue, but couldn't. It turned out that Hua Xiong saw Hu Zhi defeated and led his troops out of the city to respond. Sun Jian's horses were also exhausted and unable to fight again, plus Hua Xiong had many soldiers. Under helplessness, Sun Jian could only set up camp on the spot and wait for an opportunity to seek a battle.

  "Father, what a relief!"

  Sun Jian's side, a small general with thick eyebrows and tiger eyes, covered in blood, but his face couldn't hide the excitement, truly a war maniac.

  It was none other than Sun Jian's son, the so-called "Little Overlord" Sun Ce! This time, Sun Jian brought his son to the battlefield, precisely to hone Sun Ce.

  Huang Gai gazed at Sun Ce with great admiration and said to Sun Jian, "The young master is brave and invincible, already possessing seven parts of the aura of a hegemon. In the future, he will be unstoppable as he dominates the world!"

  Sun Jian smiled and shook his head, saying: "As the saying goes, there is a heaven beyond the sky, and there are people outside of people. You must not be arrogant and self-satisfied." Sun Ce pouted and stopped speaking.

  But as soon as the news of Sun Jian's first victory reached the Allied Army camp, various lords and nobles were informed, some were delighted while others were worried.

  As expected, Yuan Shu secretly slandered in his camp: "Sun Jian's 30,000 troops were able to win a big victory, which shows the weakness of the Western Liang army! If Sun Jian captures Tongguan and then attacks Luoyang..."

  Yuan Shu's mind turned a hundred times, and his jealous and resentful heart quietly rose. If Sun Jian took down the Guandong Pass, defeated Dong Zhuo, and recovered Luoyang, wouldn't all the great merits be Sun Jian's? I, Yuan Shu, have had four generations of high officials in my family, can't I even compare to a single Sun Jian? No! Can't let Sun Jian win again!

  Yuan Shu's eyes flashed, and he immediately ordered his men to cut off Sun Jian's grain supplies. "Hmph, let's see how he can win a great victory now! He dares to steal the spotlight from me, Yuan Shu? He's looking for death!" Yuan Shu sneered coldly, his malice plain to see.

  Sun Jian was scolding and fighting at the foot of Ziwu Pass every day, but Hua Xiong hung up a sign that said "No War" and refused to come out. Sun Jian used all his tactics, but there was no response. Even though Sun Jian was calm, he couldn't help feeling anxious. At this time, another soldier came to report that their food and grass were about to run out!

  "How is that possible?" Sun Jian shouted: "The rear camp has plenty of food and grass, constantly replenished, how can it be used up?" "General, the rear has not transported grain for two days!"

  "What?!". Sun Jian was furious. However, at this critical moment, Sun Jian understood that even a clay Bodhisattva would get angry if insulted every day, let alone Hua Xiong? Now it's just a matter of who can hold on! As long as Hua Xiong comes out to fight, Sun Jian is confident that he will be able to destroy him.

  Sun Jian is also a bit arrogant, he only has 30,000 troops, mostly infantry, while Hua Xiong has 50,000 Western Liang iron cavalry!

  However, at this critical moment, the grain and hay were exhausted. What to do? Sun Jian thought about it and had no choice but to order people to reduce the supply of grain and hay and tighten their belts. He also sent someone to the rear camp to urge the delivery of grain and hay.

  "Hold out for two days; if Hua Xiong does not come out, I will withdraw my troops. If he comes out, it would be even better!"

  Inside the camp of Hua Xiong, he sat upright in his commanding position, looking at the generals below who came to request battle every day, a sense of helplessness rose up in his heart.

  He has been in the army for many years, how can he not know about Sun Jian's plan? But now the main task is to defend the Xingyang Pass and guard against the possible arrival of the Youzhou Army, rather than going out of the city to fight with Sun Jian, so he suppressed it day by day.

  Now, even I'm getting angry, my mouth is parched!

  "General, let me lead the troops out of the city!" Zhao Cen stood up, his face anxious. "Sit down first." Hua Xiong took a deep breath and pressed his hand down, saying: "Do you all still remember what Taishi instructed?" The other generals looked at each other in dismay.

  "We are here to defend the pass of Tong, not to fight with others. Sun Jian's insults are like a dog barking, I won't bother to respond." Hua Xiong said, feeling that everything was going against his will.

  "But General, that scoundrel insulted us and we could still bear it, but he even insulted the Grand Tutor! If the Grand Tutor finds out, what will become of us?" Deputy general Zhao Cen said anxiously. Hua Xiong was also speechless.

  He followed Dong Zhuo for many years and knew him particularly well. He knew that if Dong Zhuo were to find out about this, he would definitely fly into a rage and even take it out on them.

  "It would be better to wait two more days and send out scouts to gather information before making a decision!" With things having come to this, Hua Xiong could only make some gestures and perfunctorily agree. "Alright." The other generals had no choice but to acquiesce.

  The next day, Hua Xiong washed and exercised his limbs, came to the council hall, and soon received a scout report. "Sun Jian's army is still stationed in the same place, without any movement. But this morning, it was found that the cooking smoke in Sun Jian's army was less than half of what it was in previous days!" The scout said.

  Hua Xiong's eyes lit up upon hearing this and he said, "Summon all the generals to the council hall!" In an instant, over a dozen generals arrived at the council hall.

  "Honorable gentlemen," Hua Xiong said, having finished relaying the scout's report. "What are your views on this?" "General, it seems that Sun Jian's army is running low on provisions and can't hold out much longer; we should reduce their grain supplies!" Zhao Cen replied.

  "Otherwise, I thought this was Sun Jian's sinister plan! He did so to paralyze us, making us attack, while he had already set up an ambush, and caught us all at once!" A general retorted.

  Li Su also furrowed his brow in contemplation, and finally spoke up: "General, I think it doesn't seem like a strategy." "Oh? Tell me more!" Hua Xiong's eyes lit up.

  "Sun Jian was well-versed in the art of war, otherwise... " Li Su glanced at Hua Xiong and said: "He must be setting up a trap, he would never think of reducing food supplies as a plan. You all think about it, if soldiers don't eat their fill, how can they fight? Food is the most basic element in military affairs! From ancient times to the present, no one has ever done this!"

  Hua Xiong nodded slightly upon hearing this. "Yes, Lord Li Su's words are not unreasonable. However, to prevent any unexpected events, we must carefully investigate and verify the situation." Hua Xiong made a summary and then dispatched two teams of scouts: one team to monitor Sun Jian's military camp, and the other team to sneak into Sun Jian's rear to confirm whether there were any grain transport troops present.

  But Sun Jian felt like a year had passed, on the one hand, the soldiers in the army were not full and their energy was greatly reduced; on the other hand, the people who were sent to urge grain had not returned yet, making Sun Jian anxious.

  At this time, Hua Xiong had already confirmed that Sun Jian's army was running out of food and was overjoyed. He immediately summoned his generals to discuss how to deal with the situation.

  "Gentlemen, Sun Jian has indeed cut off the grain and fodder. It seems that there was a problem in the rear camp, and they actually forgot to transport grain and fodder to Sun Jian! Haha!" Hua Xiong burst out laughing.

  "Haha, the 18th route of the Allied Forces is full of hidden intentions. Sun Jian has brought this trouble upon himself!" Li Su immediately understood what Hua Xiong meant. "In that case, I will prepare to defend against Sun Jian's retreat and launch a night attack tonight." Hua Xiong thought to himself, Sun Jian's army had been starving for two days, at least 60% of their combat strength was gone, if he didn't take action now, Sun Jian would escape.

  "We'll cook and eat at the third watch, then launch a surprise attack on the city at the fourth watch! General Zhao will lead the vanguard, while the rest of our troops will follow me! This time, we'll deploy all our forces outside the pass! One battle will decide victory or defeat!" Ah! Hua Xiong finalized his plan and focused intently, waiting for time to pass. Outside the city, Sun Jian sat in his tent, unable to rest.

  The warriors had not eaten their fill for two days, and their combat strength was greatly reduced. If they were to stay here any longer, it would be dangerous if Hua Xiong found out! So Sun Jian made up his mind to retreat the next morning. Immediately, he called in Huang Gai and others, instructed them on the withdrawal matters, and then extinguished the lights to rest.

  At the third watch, Hua Xiong's army at Bomaoguan finished their meal and made all preparations for battle. At the fourth watch, the gates of Bomaoguan city quietly opened wide, and Lü Bu led his troops out of the city. A moment later, Hua Xiong personally led his troops in pursuit.

  At the fourth watch, Sun Jian was fast asleep when he suddenly heard the sound of killing. He got up involuntarily. "What's going on?" Sun Jian asked in surprise. "General, it's not good! The Western Liang army has launched a sneak attack!" As soon as Sun Jian heard this, he felt dizzy and his head spun.

  "Could it be that Hua Xiong knows of our army's predicament?" Sun Jian hastily put on his armor, grabbed his treasured sword, and exited the tent. As he looked around, he saw flames rising in all directions, with cries of killing and wailing sounds unceasing!

  The end is chaotic! At this time, Huang Gai, Zu Mao, Han Dang, Sun Ce and others also surrounded. "Master! (Father)", "Hurry up and tidy up the horses, we retreat!" Sun Jian, who had been through many battles, calmly ordered. "Yes!"

  The generals led their horses and left, going to tidy up the troops. In a moment, a large group of soldiers gathered behind them, heading towards where Sun Jian was. Sun Jian took a look and knew that the loss of the army was not great, with a hint of joy flashing across his face. He immediately mounted his horse and led the army away.

  Behind him, Zhao Cen led the army in a swift pursuit. "Sun Jian, you can't escape!" Hua Xiong shouted loudly, feeling a surge of excitement in his heart. He thought to himself, Sun Jian, you've had your day! You've been cursing me for days, now it's time to pay back!

  "Scoundrel!" Sun Jian spat disdainfully, completely ignoring Zhao Cen's curses. The two armies chased and pursued each other for over ten miles, just as they were about to reach the official road, when suddenly countless figures emerged from the tree thickets on both sides, startling Sun Jian so much that his face turned pale!

  "Hua Xiong is here, Sun Jian! Do you dare to fight me?!" "Hua Xiong?!" Sun Jian gritted his teeth. "Gong Fu, Da Rong, Yi Gong, hurry up and stabilize the morale of the troops, prepare to break through, Ce Er, follow your uncles to gather the horses!" Sun Jian quickly calmed down and gave orders in an orderly manner.

  "Yes!" The various generals hastily responded, Sun Ce frowned, but did not dare disobey his father's words. "Hua Xiong, Sun Jian is here!" The ancient halberd in Sun Jian's hand shone brightly under the faint light of the torches, and Hua Xiong followed the sound and the light, and instantly found Sun Jian!

  "Die!" Hua Xiong's weapon was also a large knife, and this knife was even bigger and longer than Sun Jian's ancient halberd. It looked incredibly powerful. Clang! The two men slaughtered countless people along the way, but eventually they still collided with each other. The two big knives collided, producing intense sparks that were dazzling to behold.

  "Good, indeed the fierce tiger of Jiangdong!" Hua Xiong praised and quickly wielded his large knife, dancing with a mighty wind, making it difficult for Sun Jian to distinguish between victory and defeat! At this moment, suddenly a mournful cry was heard. Sun Jian was startled and looked up to see that Zu Mao had been shot by a hidden arrow and fell off his horse!

  Sun Jian was greatly alarmed, and his mind was thrown into confusion. He was pressed down by Hua Xiong! "Get out of the way!" Sun Jian exerted all his strength to push back Hua Xiong, turned round his horse and went to rescue Zu Mao. Hua Xiong pursued closely without hesitation.

  "Hurray!" Sun Jian finally found Zu Mao, who was seen with his armor scattered all over his body, an arrow stuck on his back, blood flowing from the corner of his mouth, and he was holding his weapon to resist attacks from all directions.

  "Come on!" Sun Jian pulled Zhu Mao down from the horseback! However, just this one move exposed a huge flaw and was caught by Hua Xiong who rushed over!

  "Cut!" Hua Xiong suddenly shouted, and with a burst of energy, he leapt off his horse's back, his massive battle-axe slicing through the air with an earth-shattering force, aiming to chop Sun Jian and Zu Mao into six pieces along with their horses!

  "Master, quickly dodge!" Seeing this, Zu Mao's eyes widened in anger, and with one swift motion, he pushed Sun Jian flying away, turning around to meet the giant chopping knife descending from above!

  "Die!" Hua Xiong saw this and his heart was filled with rage, his blood and energy suddenly surged, and in an instant he chopped Zu Mao into four pieces along with his horse!

  "Hurrah!" Sun Jian's teeth chattered with a loud click, and he raised his ancient sword to fight against Hua Xiong. However, just as he was about to charge forward, Huang Gai and Sun Ce rushed over and pulled him onto the horse, and they disappeared into the chaotic army.

  "Hahaha! Little thief Sun Jian!" Hua Xiong laughed uncontrollably. By the time Zhao Yun rushed up, Hua Xiong had already completely settled the battle!

  In this battle, Zhao Cen led an army of 10,000, while Hua Xiong commanded an army of 30,000, with the sole aim of annihilating Sun Jian's forces. However, Sun Jian's troops had gone hungry for two days, greatly weakening their combat strength. Under the attack of a 40,000-strong enemy force, more than 15,000 soldiers from the 30,000-strong army were killed, nearly halving their numbers!

  The Western Liang army has won a great victory!

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  When Sun Jian burst into the tent covered in blood, Yuan Shao and others were drinking wine! Sun Jian's eyes were red with blood, staring only at Yuan Shu, drew out his treasured sword, and shouted: "Yuan Shu, you little boy is going to die!"

  Yuan Shu saw this and knew that he had secretly surpassed Sun Jian, but just as he was rejoicing in his heart, Sun Jian suddenly made a move, and Yuan Shu hastily retreated behind Yuan Shao, not daring to show his face.

  "Seize him!" Yuan Shao was furious, this Sun Jian was so rude, really not a worthy son! A large group of generals and soldiers rushed forward to subdue Sun Jian, pinning him down.

  "Wucheng Marquis, what's going on here?" Yuan Shao finally asked.

  "You ask Yuan Shu!" Sun Jian glared at Yuan Shu with hatred, gritting his teeth and saying: "Yuan Shu, you little brat, cut off my grain supplies, my great army has gone two days without food, suffered a sneak attack by Hua Xiong, and lost heavily. My brother Sun Mao died in battle! It's all because of you, Yuan Shu, you little brat! Come and surrender!"

  "Lord, calm your anger! Lord, calm your anger! Let's talk things over!" Cao Cao hastily advised from the side.

  Sun Jian became more and more agitated, trying to break free from the people holding him down, wanting to rush forward and finish off Yuan Shu. Seeing this, Yuan Shao hastily gave a signal with his eyes, ordering his generals to step forward again and restrain Sun Jian, who was then unable to break free.

  "What's going on?" said the highway. As an ally, he had to be impartial in order to convince everyone. Although Yuan Shao was unwilling to intervene, all eighteen vassals were present and he couldn't avoid it.

  "I... I... how did I know?" Yuan Shu opened his mouth and unexpectedly pushed one two five six!

  "It's impossible!"

  Sun Jian roared: "You are in charge of transporting grain and fodder. If our army is short of food, you will be held responsible! Don't even think about shirking your duty!"

  Yuan Shu's eyes rolled, and he said: "These past few days I haven't been feeling well, so I had my subordinates handle the matter of transporting grain. Hmm!" Yuan Shu's expression changed: "It must be that person, they've ruined everything! Wu Cheng Hou, this isn't my fault! Come, have that grain official torn apart by five horses!"

  As soon as the words fell, soldiers rushed in to subdue a man and dragged him out without saying a word. A moment later, only a mournful cry was heard, and the man was dismembered to death!

  Sun Jian's eyes widened as he stared at Yuan Shu, his blood-stained fingers pointing at him: "You... you...", "Lord, please consider the overall situation!" Cao Cao advised.

  Finally, Sun Jian let out a deep sigh and said: "With an army of over 500,000 men, if we can work together with one heart, what is there to fear from Dong Zhuo? Alas! Lord Yuan, I bid you farewell!" Having spoken, Sun Jian turned around and walked away without looking back.

  Cao Cao also sighed at this. The newly formed alliance had only been in place for a few days, and already there were cracks! He glanced at Yuan Shu who was secretly sneering, thinking to himself "this villain", then led his generals out of the main tent and back to their camp.

  Seeing Cao Cao return with a gloomy face, Li Yu spoke up and asked: "My lord, what's wrong?"

  "Alas! Wei Yan's words have come true! Yuan Huan, the northern highway's ungrateful son! Indeed, it's not the formidable foes that I fear, but rather the incompetent teammates who are like pigs! Cao Cao, in a fit of rage, struck down several tables with his sword, his heavy breathing lingering for a long time as he remained speechless. He had already begun to lose hope in the allied army."