Chapter 18: The Battle of Changping, King of Chu Kills Han General, Breaks Wei Camp, Wei Army Flees to Duanhui

  The Wei army fled to the top of Xian Mountain (now 30 miles southwest of Xinzheng County) and set up camp, hoping to use the small hills to block the Chu army. The King of Wei was feeling severe pain in his hands due to the injury, and after checking the troops, he found that only 800,000 soldiers were left (200,000 cavalry and 600,000 infantry). Just as the Wei army finished their meal, a fast horse rushed to report to the King of Wei: "The King of Chu has led the main force to pursue us in the direction of Xian Mountain, and they have already arrived at Zhangzhuang, ten miles away from Xian Mountain." The King of Wei immediately ordered the whole army to prepare for battle. A general said to the King of Wei: "Our army has just been defeated, morale is low, and if we fight against the Chu army now, our strength will be greatly inferior. If the Chu army surrounds Xian Mountain, it will be dangerous." The King of Wei said: "I know this, but after a while, the King of Han will bring his main force to reinforce us. The Chu army has been fighting continuously and must be tired. At that time, we can join forces with the King of Han's army and defeat the Chu army." Half an hour later, the King of Chu arrived at Xian Mountain with his main force. The King of Wei did not fight back and defended the mountain instead. The King of Chu ordered his troops to surround Xian Mountain and was about to set up camp when a fast horse suddenly came to report: "The King of Han is leading 100,000 Han soldiers to reinforce the Wei army, and they have already arrived at Tangzhuang, ten miles away, and are marching towards Xian Mountain."

  King Hui of Chu heard the report and ordered his entire army to retreat one li and form a battle array. He then said to Zhao Ying, "Although the combined forces of Wei and Han are as many as 180,000, the 80,000-strong Wei army has just suffered a defeat and their morale is low. Moreover, they have no great generals, while our army has just won a victory and our morale is high. Therefore, the 150,000-strong Chu army can defeat the combined forces of Wei and Han." King Hui continued, "Our army has many cavalrymen, which is an advantage. We can use them to charge at the enemy infantry, and this will also increase our chances of winning."

  King Hui then ordered Zhao Ying to lead a force of 70,000 (30,000 cavalry and 40,000 infantry) to attack the 80,000-strong Wei army, while he himself led a force of 80,000 (40,000 cavalry and 40,000 infantry) to attack the 100,000-strong Han army.

  King Hui ordered his 40,000 infantrymen to form four lines, with 16,000 cavalrymen divided into four teams standing on either side of the infantry. They were preparing to attack the Han army's infantry from both sides and two flanks. He himself led 24,000 cavalrymen to attack the 25,000 Han cavalry.

  Zhao Ying arranged his 40,000 infantrymen in four lines, with 10,000 cavalrymen divided into two teams standing on either side of the infantry. They were preparing to attack the Wei army's infantry from both flanks; he himself led 20,000 cavalrymen to attack the 20,000 Wei cavalry.

  Before long, King Xuan of Han arrived with his 100,000-strong army (25,000 cavalry and 75,000 infantry). When King Hui saw that King Xuan had brought a large force, he also ordered his entire army to charge down the mountain. However, they were blocked by Zhao Ying's forces.

  King Huai of Chu rode forward on horseback and said, "Is the one who has come King of Han?" The King of Han also rode forward on horseback and said, "It is indeed!" King Huai of Chu said, "The struggle between Chu and Wei has nothing to do with you. Why do you want to be hostile towards Chu?" At this time, the King of Han was secretly thinking: Originally, I thought that the armies of Wei and Chu would engage in a fierce battle, even if the army of Chu won, they should have suffered heavy losses. Unexpectedly, the army of Wei was so defeated. If I had known it would be like this, I shouldn't have led my troops here. Therefore, for a moment, he couldn't answer. King Huai of Chu saw that the King of Han didn't respond and became enraged. He urged his horse forward, and with a loud shout, charged towards the King of Han, brandishing his long spear. The King of Han was greatly startled and turned his horse around to flee back to his camp. A general from the Han army rushed out, shouting "Don't harm my king!" and swung his sword at King Huai of Chu. King Huai of Chu swung his spear once, and with a loud clang, the general's sword was knocked aside. King Huai of Chu struck again, and with another loud crash, the general's sword fell to the ground. The general was greatly shocked and turned his horse around to flee, but King Huai of Chu struck him in the back with his spear, knocking him off his horse, and he died on the spot. Two more generals from the Han army rushed forward, but King Huai of Chu charged at them, striking one of their spears out of their hand and sending it flying over 20 feet away. The general was knocked off his horse and died without making a sound. Another general thrust his spear at King Huai of Chu, who struck back with his own spear, knocking the other's spear to the ground. With another swing of his spear, King Huai of Chu crushed the general's skull, and he fell from his horse, dead.

  At that moment, the Chu army roared to the sky, and King of Han saw this, his will to fight was completely gone, and he hastily ordered the main force to retreat back to Xinzheng. King Hui of Chu also did not pursue, allowing the Han army to withdraw. When King Hui of Chu saw that the Han army had retreated far away, he ordered General Zuo to lead 20,000 iron cavalry to attack the Wei infantry. The King of Wei saw that the King of Han had led his main force to retreat and was greatly shocked, hastily ordering the entire army to quickly retreat. When Zhao She saw this, he ordered the Chu soldiers to launch a full-scale attack, and King Hui's 20,000 iron cavalry also charged from the side. The King of Wei, seeing that all was lost, fled back to Yangdi under the protection of over 10,000 horsemen, while the rest of the Wei army scattered in all directions, with only a few escaping, most were either killed or captured and surrendered. Zhao She's Chu army killed more than 20,000 Wei soldiers, captured 30,000, obtained 5,000 war horses, 50,000 sets of armor and weapons, and a large batch of grain and fodder.

  The ancient city, the battle of Xing Mountain, King Huai of Chu took back the ancient city and Xing Mountain from King Hui of Wei, winning a great victory. A total of 150,000 Wei soldiers were killed (35,000 cavalry and 110,000 infantry), 30,000 were captured, 35,000 war horses were seized, 1.8 million sets of armor and weapons were obtained, and countless grains and grasses were obtained. The Chu army lost 55,000 soldiers (12,000 cavalry and 43,000 infantry), but gained 35,000 war horses, making the Chu cavalry grow to 80,000. King Hui of Wei's 200,000-strong army had only 15,000 cavalry escaped back to Yang Jun, and the rest were all eliminated. From then on, the State of Wei never had the ability to confront the State of Chu head-on again. Later, King Huai of Chu ordered the Chu army to occupy Yu Zhou (now Yuzhou City, Henan), Xiangcheng (now Xiangcheng County, Henan), and Lushan (now Lushan County, Henan) in Wei. To avenge King Han's dispatch of troops to assist the Wei army, he also ordered the Chu army to occupy Ruzhou (now Ruzhou City, Henan), Yichuan (now Yichuan County, Henan) and other places in Han, and established Xincheng Prefecture in Yichuan, governing Yichuan, Ruzhou, Yu Zhou, Xiangcheng, Lushan and other places.