Chapter Ten - Bloody Battle with Dong Zhuo!

  When Chen Gong, Yan Yan, Lu Zhi, Huang Quan, Fa Zheng and others in Yizhou learned that Li Yu had changed his route again, the right prime minister Chen Gong immediately ordered the medical team of Hua Tuo and Zhang Zhongjing, who were surrendered by Dong Zhuo's general Fan Chou at the Battle of Yangpingguan, to go to Jingzhou with a force of 10,000 men to escort Li Yu back to Chengdu in Yizhou. Meanwhile, Chen Gong stayed in Chengdu, Yan Yan guarded Yangpingguan, and Lu Zhi and Huang Quan led an army of 10,000 men to Xiamengguan to meet Li Yu. Chen Gong knew the importance of Li Yu in Liu Bei's heart and also understood the importance of Li Yu to Liu Bei's military team. He secretly ordered his troops to enter first-level combat readiness, and if Liu Biao detained Li Yu, Chen Gong would not hesitate to go to war!

  Liu Biao did not give Chen Gong the opportunity to start a war, but Liu Biao indeed wanted to get Li Yu. He also knew it was impossible, so he treated Li Yu with courtesy and visited him every day to discuss the overall situation of the world. He even introduced Li Yu to many famous and influential families in Jingzhou. Li Yu also treated the families of Liu Biao's army in Jingzhou with great courtesy. Although Li Yu was bedridden and unable to move, this did not affect his contact with the families of Jingzhou's military leaders. Li Yu was laying the foundation for Liu Bei to obtain Jingzhou later, because he shared the same views as Zhuge Liang and also attached great importance to Jingzhou. Jingzhou is indeed a crucial place, connecting the south to Jiangdong and the north to Wanluo, and it is an important passage for future conquests. Therefore, contacting these families was a necessary move. Moreover, there was another surprise: Li Yu had saved Wu An Guo, who secretly disguised himself as a ordinary soldier and followed Li Yu back to Yizhou. Kong Rong only knew that he had returned to Beihai to recover from his injuries, but in fact, Wu An Guo had followed Li Yu back to Yizhou. Wu An Guo was a famous general who could fight against Lü Bu for dozens of rounds, which showed his extraordinary abilities. Later, through contact with Wu An Guo, Li Yu learned that Wu An Guo was actually a descendant of Qin's war god Bai Qi and had inherited his exceptional abilities.

  Li Yu stayed in Jingzhou for over a month, including the time he spent traveling from Hedong to Jingzhou and the delay at Tiger Trap Pass. Although Li Yu still couldn't get out of bed, he could now sit up for a short while and turn his body. On this day, the troops led by Fan Qian arrived, and Li Yu bid farewell to Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou, and the local clans. He set off towards Chengdu in Yizhou. After over a dozen days of traveling, Li Yu had recovered under the careful treatment of Hua Tuo and Zhang Zhongjing's medical team. He could now walk with the aid of a cane! This lifted Li Yu's spirits. Indeed, ancient Chinese medicine was not inferior to modern Western medicine; in fact, it was even more effective.

  Fan Chou set out on the day he returned to Yizhou, and every day he sent a messenger with a fast horse to send a letter to Chen Gong, the right prime minister of the country. On the road, it took only one day to arrive at Xiaomeng Pass in Yizhou. Chen Gong, Lu Zhi, and all the officials of Yizhou came out to welcome Li Yu back to Yizhou because Yangping Pass had just been captured, and Chen Gong was afraid that Dong Zhuo's army would launch a major counterattack, so he didn't come to welcome him with a serious face. Li Yu thought Chen Gong did it very correctly and wasn't surprised at all. After all, Chen Gong is a generation of Confucian scholars and a generation of strategists. If he doesn't even have this foresight, it's not worth Cao looking so highly on this person!

  Generally, Li Yu was carefree and smiling as he returned to Yizhou Chengdu. From then on, Li Yu took over all matters in Yizhou, but he was still quite lazy. Usually, only when Chen Gong couldn't make a decision on major issues or military affairs would Li Yu take charge; otherwise, Li Yu was just a figurehead. These days, Li Yu had been taken care of by Wang Xue and had gained over ten pounds, which made him feel depressed. However, Wang Xue said, "It's good to be a bit chubby!" (In reality, it would be great if you were always by my side!)

  Li Yu was not mentioned in the text, but at Guandu, the situation was also stuck. Dong Zhuo sent Lü Bu to challenge every two or three days. Yuan Shao, the commander-in-chief of the alliance army, was so depressed that he had no choice but to convene a meeting with various lords to discuss countermeasures!

  Cao Cao said: "Lü Bu is brave and unmatched, we can gather the eighteen lords to discuss a good strategy. If we capture Lü Bu, Dong Zhuo will be easy to eliminate." However, none of the eighteen lords dared to fight against Lü Bu, it can be seen that in the eyes of the eighteen lords, Lü Bu was already standing like a living Yama on their minds!

  Yuan Shao said: "What a pity! What a shame! Han Xing was injured! Otherwise, what would I fear Lü Bu?"

  Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Guo Jia, and Zhang Ren were also somewhat dissatisfied in their hearts. Apart from themselves who dared to fight against Lü Bu, the other lords avoided him as much as possible!

  At this time, a messenger came to report that Lü Bu had led his troops to the camp gate today and was challenging them to battle. He said that if they did not come out to fight today, he would lead the Western Liang Iron Cavalry to charge into the camp. Yuan Shao had no choice but to order all eighteen vassals to go out to battle together. However, none of the eighteen vassals dared to fight Lü Bu, so Yuan Shao could only force Gongsun Zan to go out and fight Lü Bu!

  Gongsun Zan looked at Lü Bu, and indeed, Lü Bu was a hundred steps ahead in terms of prestige. The story goes that at the foot of Tiger Trap Pass, many lords gathered together. Heroes from all over the world came to pay their respects to the divine might of the First Emperor.

  The two armies faced each other on the battlefield, with Lü Bu wearing a red brocade robe with a hundred flowers embroidered on it, and a beast-faced helmet with a ring-shaped armor. He held a halberd in his hand and sat on a horse called Red Hare. Indeed, he was the greatest among men, just like Red Hare was the greatest among horses.

  Gongsun Zan thought to himself that he couldn't be Lü Bu's match, but General Yuan Shao had ordered him to go into battle, so he had no choice. Lü Bu saw Gongsun Zan looking at him and shouted loudly, "Lü Bu is here! Who dares to come and die?"

  As soon as the words left his mouth, Gongsun Zan from Youzhou Province charged forward with his iron pike, determined to take down Lü Bu. However, he had no choice but to retreat after a few rounds of fighting.

  Gongsun Zan was not an easy opponent either. When he saw Lü Bu swing his halberd, he quickly dodged and counterattacked with his steel pike. The two clashed, with Gongsun Zan's pike flashing in the wind as it struck towards Lü Bu's face.

  Lü Bu used his halberd to deflect the attack, but Gongsun Zan quickly flipped his wrist and struck again at Lü Bu's neck. Lü Bu used a move called "Pushing the Window to Gaze at the Moon" to block the attack, but Gongsun Zan's pike came down again, this time aiming for Lü Bu's horse leg.

  Lü Bu used another move called "Rushing to Heaven with One Incense Stick" to deflect the attack once more. However, after a few rounds of fighting, Gongsun Zan was no match for Lü Bu and retreated in defeat.

  Lü Bu chased after him on his Red Hare horse, which could travel a thousand miles in a day and run like the wind. As he caught up to Gongsun Zan, he raised his halberd to strike at his back.

  Just as all hope seemed lost, a loud shout was heard from the side, and a general with round eyes and upright whiskers appeared, holding a long-handled snake spear. He shouted, "You three-family slave Lü Bu, don't be so arrogant! Zhang Fei, the Yan people's hero, is here! You beast, you will die!"

  A general emerged from the army, his eyes blazing with anger, and charged forward on horseback, holding a long-handled snake spear. It was indeed Zhang Fei!

  Lü Bu had no choice but to abandon Gongsun Zan and turn to face Zhang Fei instead. Zhang Fei's snake spear was not to be underestimated, as he danced it around with ease, striking at Lü Bu's left shoulder and throat.

  Lü Bu saw that Zhang Fei's martial arts skills were impressive and didn't dare to underestimate him. He swung his halberd in a large arc, engaging in a fierce battle with Zhang Fei.

  The two clashed for over 50 rounds, their movements swift and powerful, like the wind and clouds. The soldiers watching from the sidelines were amazed, and the sound of drums filled the air.

  Yuan Shao's eyes nearly popped out of his head as he thought to himself, "How did such a fierce warrior end up with Liu Bei?"

  However, after another 10 rounds or so, Zhang Fei began to gain the upper hand. Just then, a tiger-like general appeared, who was it? It was Guan Yu, also known as the second brother!

  Guan Yu glared at Lü Bu with his piercing eyes and charged forward on horseback, wielding an 82-pound Green Dragon Crescent Moon Blade. The three horses formed a triangle as they clashed, with Guan Yu's blade spinning like a windmill.

  Lü Bu was forced to change from offense to defense, using his halberd to protect himself and his horse. Guan Yu's blade flashed like lightning, striking at Lü Bu with precision and speed.

  Zhang Fei joined in the fray, his snake spear flashing like a shooting star. Lü Bu, also known as the First Emperor, was enraged and shouted loudly, swinging his halberd in a wide arc.

  The battle raged on for 50 rounds or more, with the three warriors clashing fiercely. The sound of their weapons striking each other echoed through the air, shaking the heavens.

  This is indeed a chaotic world, where heroes show their true colors. In a world of chaos, only the brave and strong can laugh with disdain. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, two top-notch generals, engaged in an intense battle with Lü Bu, but Lü Bu did not fall behind, truly deserving of his reputation as the greatest warrior under heaven!

  At the time when the three were fighting hard to distinguish and resolve, in the army of the vassals, a general stood up, holding a pair of male and female swords. It turned out that it was none other than Liu Bei, the sworn brother, the leader of the allied forces, Han Xing Wang Liu Bei Liu Xuande! Liu Xuande wielded his twin swords with great skill, riding a yellow-maned horse, and came to assist in the battle from a slanting direction. The three surrounded Lü Bu. They fought fiercely like spinning lanterns. All eighteen vassals looked on in amazement. Even General Yuan Shao did not expect Liu Bei's martial arts to be so high! Liu Bei Liu Xuande, riding his horse at the forefront, came to assist in the battle. This boosted the morale of the allied army, and Cao even personally beat the drum to come and assist in the battle! This was indeed the combined efforts of the three heroes to attack and kill, with the intention of beheading Lü Bu on the spot to eliminate future troubles!

  Although Lü Bu was brave and unmatched, he couldn't hold out alone. After a long battle, Lü Bu gradually became somewhat overwhelmed. Lü Bu saw that among the three men, Liu Bei's martial arts were the weakest, and when the time was right, he looked at Xuande's face, made a false stab with his halberd, and quickly took Liu Bei. Xuande hastily dodged, and when he looked again, Lü Bu had already ridden out on horseback. Lü Bu broke through the corner of the allied army's formation, turned around, and rode back on horseback. The three men, Liu, Guan, and Zhang, were unwilling to give up, and they chased after him on horseback. The eighteen roads of soldiers shouted loudly, and together they launched a surprise attack. Lü Bu's army fled in disarray; Xuande, Guan, and Zhang followed close behind. It was as if the jade had been released from its frame, and the dragon had flown up onto the Tiger Trap Pass.

  Tiger Trap Pass, divine general heavenly prestige. Peach Garden three heroes, brothers make a name for themselves.

  The ancients had a saying, "Three battles with Lü Bu": The Han dynasty's heavenly fate was at an end, the sun was setting in the west. The treacherous minister Dong Zhuo deposed the young emperor, Liu Xie was weak and timid. Cao Cao issued a proclamation to the world, the feudal lords were enraged and all took up arms. They discussed establishing Liu Bei as the leader of the alliance, swearing to support the royal house and bring peace to the empire. The Marquis of Wen, Lü Bu, was unmatched in the world, his heroic talent was renowned throughout the land. His silver armor shone like dragon scales, his golden helmet had a pheasant tail feather. His precious belt was adorned with beasts, his brocade robe fluttered with phoenixes. His warhorse galloped, stirring up the wind, his painted halberd shone brightly in the autumn water. Who dared to confront him as he emerged from the pass? The feudal lords' courage was shattered, their hearts were terrified. Zhang Fei, a man from Yan, came out, holding an eight-foot-long spear with a snake-shaped head. His whiskers stood on end, his eyes glowed like electricity. The battle raged on, unable to determine victory or defeat, when Guan Yu appeared at the front of the army. His Green Dragon Crescent Blade shone brightly in the snow, his war robe fluttered with butterflies. Wherever his horse's hooves trod, ghosts and spirits wailed, a fierce anger arose, blood was about to flow. The heroic Liu Bei wielded his twin swords, shaking heaven and earth with his bravery. The three men surrounded Lü Bu, fighting for a long time, their battle formation unbroken. The shouting shook the heavens, the killing aura filled the air, cold as the Cowherd constellation. Lü Bu's strength was exhausted, he sought to escape, gazing longingly at his hometown in the distance. He turned his horse around, fleeing with his life, his golden armor scattered, his five-colored banner torn. His horse's reins were broken, Red Hare fled, and he himself leapt onto the Tiger Trap Pass. The three men pursued Lü Bu to the foot of the pass, where they saw a blue canopy fluttering in the west wind on top of the pass. Zhang Fei shouted loudly: "This must be Dong! What's the use of chasing Lü Bu? Let's capture Dong Zhuo first, and that will be like cutting off the snake's head!" He galloped up the mountain to capture Dong Zhuo. Indeed: To capture a rebel, one must capture the rebel leader; extraordinary feats await extraordinary heroes.

  But Zhang Fei rushed to the bottom of the pass, where arrows and stones were falling like rain. Zhang San was furious, dancing with his eight-foot-long spear like a windmill, protecting himself above and covering his horse below. As for Yuan Shao, the commander-in-chief of the allied forces, he should have taken advantage of the high morale of the allied forces to launch a fierce attack on Tiger Trap Pass, which would have surely fallen in one battle. However, Yuan Shao did not do so. He was afraid that Liu Bei would gain merit and secretly ordered Wang Kui, the king of the vassal state, to go and ask Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei to return to the main camp to celebrate their victory.

  Liu Bei was furious and originally wanted to behead Wang Kui, but he feared that killing him would harm the unity of the allied forces. So he danced with his double-edged sword and shouted: "I am the king who has been appointed by the former emperor as the Han Xing King! Now that the rebel Dong Zhuo is trapped in Tiger Trap Pass, I have been elected as the leader of the allied forces and hold the imperial sword given to me by the former emperor. I have the power to behead first and report later!

  Now, I order the allied forces to launch a fierce attack on Tiger Trap Pass, eliminate the rebel Dong Zhuo, and restore the Han dynasty! Those who advance will be rewarded, and those who retreat will be beheaded!" Guan Yu heard his brother's words and danced with his Green Dragon Crescent Blade, replacing the military order. Liu Bei's army of 100,000 saw their commander issue the order to attack the city, singing a military song of loyalty and patriotism. At this time, morale was even higher, and it could be said that morale was high!

  The 100,000 troops did not hesitate and immediately participated in the battle, setting up cloud ladders to launch a fierce attack on the city tower of Tiger Trap Pass! Dong Zhuo's army was shocked, they had never seen such a way of fighting before, singing songs while fighting! Dong Zhuo randomly beheaded several soldiers before ordering his troops to defend the city wall.

  (Li Yu took away 30,000 troops. Later, Liu Bei ordered Zhang Ren to lead an army of 70,000 to protect the grain supplies. This was also Li Yu's secret order! Liu Bei listened to Li Yu's advice and followed it. So after Li Yu left, Liu Bei immediately ordered someone to go to the grain camp to provide support!)

  The vassal king Wang Kuai saw that Liu Bei was determined, so he could only retreat in dismay! The other vassals, having not seen the commander-in-chief Yuan Shao give an order, were also unwilling to engage in another bloody battle and exhaust their own strength, so they stopped advancing again! Just then, a loud shout was heard: "Han Xing Wang is the leader of the allied forces of the vassals, and he did not decline to personally fight against Lü Bu. Now that he has launched a fierce attack on Tiger Trap Pass under the cover of smoke signals, the leader has given an order, and I, Cao Mengde, will certainly follow it! You do not assist the leader in killing the rebel Dong Zhuo, and I will take personal action!" The one who spoke was none other than the initiator of this alliance - Cao Cao, Cao Mengde.

  Cao Cao waved his hand, ordering the troops behind him to form a ladder team and participate in the Battle of Tiger Trap Pass! The first echelon was led by Xiahou Dun, the second echelon was led by Xiahou Yuan, the third echelon was led by Yue Jin, and Cao Cao himself led the fourth echelon to come and assist in the battle.

  Both armies were fighting with all their might, the soldiers of Dong Zhuo's army knew that if they let the allied forces of the lords break through, they would have no way out and could only fight to the death to defend the city, but the morale of the allied forces was high, launching fierce attacks!

  The two armies clashed for less than two incense sticks, and both sides suffered heavy casualties. Dong Zhuo's army relied on the easily defended and difficult to attack Tiger Trap Pass, with solid city walls that were hard to breach. Liu Bei's army and Cao Cao's army had high morale, but they couldn't match Dong Zhuo's army's abundant supplies and thorough defensive preparations. Arrows and bricks rained down on Liu Bei's army and Cao Cao's army, while the other lords watched coldly without joining the battle. Sun Jian wanted to join the fight, but he was hesitant. If he didn't hesitate, it would be even more unbearable for him. At this time, Sun Jian had only less than 20,000 soldiers left, down from his original 50,000 elite troops. He didn't want to lose any more of his men, so he also did not join the battle. After a long and intense fight, Liu Bei's army and Cao Cao's army still failed to capture Tiger Trap Pass.

  Cao saw that his own troops had suffered heavy losses, so he had no choice but to ignore Liu Bei's army and order a retreat. He also secretly sent someone to inform Liu Bei. Liu Bei saw that Cao had already retreated and looked at his own troops' heavy losses - over 100,000 soldiers, with losses of over 20,000-30,000 men. He had no choice but to order his younger brother Guan Yu to retreat. In the end, they counted a loss of over 23,000 men and several low-ranking generals. This was Liu Bei's army's first defeat in battle, and the heavy losses made him think of what Li Yi had said - that the allied forces of the lords seemed harmonious on the surface but were actually at odds with each other.

  Cao sighed, at this time, when he first advocated for the alliance of all the lords to attack Dong Zhuo, it was to revive the great Han dynasty, but unexpectedly, each lord was secretly preserving their own strength! Cao realized that even if they defeated Dong Zhuo in the end, another round of contention would arise.

  Liu Bei was even more resentful, as his own troops had suffered the greatest losses. He wanted to secretly order Zhang Ren to send some troops back, but thinking of Li Yu's parting words, he could only give up! Such a good opportunity given by heaven, was actually missed by the allied forces of the vassals, can't the great Han really be revived? Liu Bei thought so at this time!

  But Guan Yu was a proud and arrogant man, seeing the many lords gathered here today, he gritted his teeth in anger. In this battle to capture the city, Zhang Fei's troops suffered the greatest losses, and Zhang Fei was so angry that he wanted to kill Yuan Shao, but was stopped by Liu Bei and Guan Yu! If Zhang Fei had killed Yuan Shao at that time, the matter would have become serious! Fortunately, it was just in time!

  Dear readers, I'm currently hospitalized for physical reasons and may not be able to update as frequently. Please forgive me!

  I'm waiting for you, hope it's not in vain!