Chapter 7: Turning the tables!

  After Sun Jian left, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and Liu Bei found Li Jue and asked him why he didn't allow them to go out of the war at Tong Pass to attack Dong Zhuo. Li Jue explained: "I think I'm not wrong, this battle Sun Jian will definitely lose!"

  Guan Yu listened and said disbelievingly, "Sun Jian is known as the Tiger of Jiangdong, how can he be compared to that small Huaxiong? I think Sun Jian will surely win this battle!"

  Zhoa Yun also said: "Sun Jian has many brave generals under his command, and his troops are well-trained. In this battle, I think the possibility of a great victory is quite high!"

  Zhang Fei stood on Li Yu's side instead: "Second brother, Zilong has always been known for his clever strategies, I think he must have a good reason!"

  Guo Jia also stood up and said: "The commander-in-chief has a great advantage in this battle, I thought you didn't let the three generals ask for war to preserve your strength, it seems that you have another opinion!"

  Liu Bei also said: "Fourth brother, explain it to everyone in detail. And where did the younger sister go? How come she hasn't been seen all afternoon? The lonely king is also confused!"

  Wang Xue was leading a force of 10,000 cavalrymen sent by Li Yu to protect the grain supplies at Mi Zhuo, so he was not present at the scene.

  "Brother, second brother, third brother, military advisor, General Zi Long! Yuan Shao has sent his younger brother Yuan Xu to oversee the grain supply lines. This man is narrow-minded and would not have hindered our progress if he were not so petty. I observe that all the other lords are just going through the motions and do not intend to engage in a decisive battle with Dong Zhuo! Yuan Xu will surely cut off Sun Wentai's grain supply lines by now, and without food, how can we expect our soldiers to have the heart for battle? Even if Sun Wentai is a mighty tiger from Jiangdong, how long can he hold out against tens of thousands of soldiers? A clever woman cannot cook without rice. As for where my younger sister has gone, I secretly sent a messenger arrow to General Xun ordering him to lead 10,000 cavalrymen to protect the grain supply lines! The consumption of our 200,000-strong army cannot be controlled by others; otherwise, we won't even be able to return to Yi Province!"

  Li Yu finished speaking, and Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and others such as Zhao Yun were all dispelled of their doubts! It was like waking up from a dream! Liu Bei also praised Li Yu for having true military talent! And Lord Guan became even more convinced of Li Yu's abilities! After all, Li Yu was someone from the modern era, who knew too much about military tactics, and most importantly, he clearly understood this period in history! That's why he could make such an accurate judgment!

  As expected, on the second day, the sky was still not bright, and Liu Bei was hastily invited into the main tent by Yuan Shao. It turned out that Yuan Shao had received Sun Jian's battle report and was shocked and lost his color. He did not expect that Sun Jian, known as the "Tiger of Jiangdong", would be defeated at the hands of Hua Xiong. As soon as Liu Bei entered the main tent, Yuan Shao said: "Long live the King of Han! Something bad has happened, we have lost the first battle, and General Sun Wentai was greatly defeated by Hua Xiong, and also lost his famous general Zu Mao! Alas! I did not expect Sun Wentai to be defeated at the hands of Hua Xiong! What can we do now?" Liu Bei listened and, as expected, said: "General, don't worry, losing the first battle doesn't necessarily mean that our army is surrounded. The most important thing now is to gather all the lords to discuss a strategy!"

  Yuan Shao saw Liu Bei's reminder and hastily ordered the transmission of orders to gather all the vassals to discuss this matter. Soon, all the vassals arrived, except for Gongsun Zan, who was late. It turned out that Gongsun Zan had a close relationship with Liu Bei, and they had stayed up late drinking together the night before, so when the transmission soldier came, he hadn't woken up yet. Liu Bei, on the other hand, had been worried all night and hadn't slept, so Yuan Shao had already invited him to take his leave.

  Liu Bei invited all the vassals into the tent and they sat in a row. Yuan Shao saw that everyone was present and began to speak: "The other day, General Bao's brother disobeyed orders and launched a surprise attack, resulting in his death and the loss of many soldiers. Today, Sun Wentai unexpectedly lost to Hua Xiong, which has dampened our morale. What can we do about it? I ask all the heroes of the land to discuss this matter!"

  The vassals were all silent because they too had not expected that Sun Jian, known as the "Tiger of Jiangdong", would be defeated by Hua Xiong under Dong Zhuo's command.

  Yuan Shao looked around and saw five men standing behind Liu Bei, their faces unusual, all smiling coldly. Yuan Shao was very displeased and asked: "Why are the people under Han Xing's command laughing? Are they laughing at me, the commander-in-chief?"

  Indeed, it is you, Yuan Shao, who has failed in your duty. You don't even understand your own brother, and yet you can still appoint him to oversee the entire army's grain supply! Isn't this a self-inflicted defeat?

  Liu Bei, the King of Han, saw this and called out Li Yu to come forward, saying: "This is my sworn brother since childhood, General Li Yu on the left, who conquered the East. On the right are Generals Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who conquered the West and North respectively, and also Gongsun Zan's Left Advisor, Guo Jia." Cao was shocked and said: "Could it be that you are Li Yu, the Deputy Commander of the Han Xing Hou, who defeated the Yellow Turbans?" Gongsun Zan stood up because of his good relationship with Liu Bei and said: "Yes, this is indeed Li Yu, the Han Xing Hou." Liu Bei immediately ordered Li Yu and others to pay respects to Yuan Shao, the leader of the allied forces. Gongsun Zan at this time showed that he had a close relationship with Liu Bei, and deliberately repeated Li Yu's merits and his background again. Yuan Shao saw this and said: "Since you are a member of the Han royal family, a great general under the King of Han, and also the Deputy Commander who defeated the Yellow Turbans! Please take a seat." The soldiers quickly prepared a seat for Li Yu, and Yuan Shao invited him to sit down. Li Yu was humble at first, but seeing Yuan Shao's insistence, he finally sat down. Yuan Shao saw Li Yu sitting down and said: "I do not respect your title or name, I respect you as the hero who defeated the Yellow Turbans." Li Yu could only bow his head to thank Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao then sat at the end of Liu Bei's seat, with Guan, Zhang, Zhao, and Guo Jia standing behind him with their hands clasped together.

  Yuan Shao said to Li Yu, "In the past, General, you commanded thousands of troops and horses, greatly defeating the Yellow Turbans. Today, can you condescend to be the commander-in-chief of the allied army of all the lords under heaven?"

  Li Yu knew what kind of person Yuan Shao was, he wouldn't be so high-minded and righteous, this is just for the sake of showing off to the lords of the world! Li Yu hastily stood up, cupped his hands and said: "General, I am not talented, I dare not command the lords of the world, nor do I have such ability or virtue! I hope General will not humiliate me!" Someone asked why Li Yu didn't kneel when he saw Yuan Shao, this military commander-in-chief of the alliance army. It's because Li Yu had a bad temper and didn't want to kneel. Moreover, in terms of official position, Li Yu was not lower than any of the officials present. Compared to Yuan Shao, who was just a governor of Bohai at that time, he was superior by countless times! Cupping his hands in respect was already giving face to Yuan Shao!

  Cao himself also wanted to let Li Yu become Yuan Shao, after all, letting Yuan Shao become the commander-in-chief of the alliance army was a temporary measure, it can be seen that Li Yu's refusal is not good in words!

  Yuan Shao smiled with satisfaction, he had been under Li Yu's command during the Guangzhou war of the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Seeing Li Yu giving him face, he didn't want to say anything else and said: "That's good enough for now, let's temporarily make Ben Chou the commander-in-chief of this allied army! However, as for the current plan, I'd like to ask General Li Yu if you have any suggestions!"

  Li Yu cupped his hands and said to Yuan Shao: "Now that Sun Wentai's general has just been defeated, the first battle was lost, which had a great impact on the morale of our allied army. If not unexpected, Dong Zhuo's Hua Xiong must have led his troops to attack our allied army headquarters. Let each of you order your men to prepare bows and arrows to prevent Dong Zhuo's Western Liang Iron Cavalry from breaking into the camp. If the Western Liang Iron Cavalry breaks into the camp, it will be a nightmare for our army!"

  That's what he said. Li Yu was not afraid, and he had already ordered the generals in the camp, Cheng Yuanzhi, Deng Mao, Zhang Ren, etc., to prepare for battle. If Hua Xiong dared to charge into Liu Bei's army, Li Yu's violent temper would make him regret coming into this world!

  Yuan Shao, upon hearing Li Yu's words, thought they were very reasonable, and immediately passed down the order that each of the allied camps should support one another, deploying archers and crossbowmen to prevent Hua Xiong from leading the Western Liang iron cavalry in a charge against their camp.

  Just as Yuan Shao had given the order, before two incense sticks' worth of time had passed, suddenly a scout came to report: "Hua Xiong is leading his iron cavalry down from the pass, using long poles to carry the red head of Sun Gong, attacking several routes of the allied army's camps. Because they were shot at by arrows, now they have arrived at the camp entrance, loudly shouting and challenging us to battle." Yuan Shao listened and indeed it was just as Li You had expected. Fortunately, he had heard Li You's words earlier, otherwise the allied army would have suffered a great loss! But now there was no choice but to respond to battle. Yuan Shao said: "Which general dares to go fight that Hua Xiong?" Yu Xu stepped out from behind Yuan Shu and bowed his head, saying: "I am willing to go."

  Yuan Shao was overjoyed, after all, he had seen Yu She's martial arts skills and it would be a feather in his own cap if his younger brother's subordinate could win. So he ordered Yu She to go out and fight against Hua Xiong.

  But Yu She had hardly gone out for a short while, when a messenger came in to report to Cao: "Yu She fought with Hua Xiong and was beheaded by Hua Xiong within three rounds." The crowd of nobles were shocked, thinking that it was no wonder Sun Wentai lost! This is not embarrassing, this Hua Xiong is indeed exceptionally brave! At this time, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and Zhang Ren all wanted to ask for battle. But Li Yu stopped them with a glance.

  There were also those who were not afraid to die. The governor of Taiyuan, Han Fu, said: "Haha, what is there to fear about Hua Xiong? I have General Pan Feng here, and he will surely be able to cut off Hua Xiong's dog head." Yuan Shao was overjoyed when he heard this, because at that time Pan Feng had a great reputation outside, and indeed had the reputation of a general. He hastily ordered him to go into battle. But Pan Feng did not have the actual strength of a general!

  Pan Feng rode up on his horse, holding a large axe. He licked the grass package wrapped around his belly and galloped away! However, he didn't go far before Pan Feng arrived at the front of the two armies, pointing his axe at Hua Xiong and shouting: "You dog thief, haven't you seen that I, Pan Feng, am here? Still not dismounting to surrender?" Indeed, Pan Feng's name was very famous, and Hua Xiong was also taken aback, paying extra attention because of the saying "a man's reputation precedes him". Hua Xiong said: "Dog thief, today you will die under my blade!" However, talk is cheap, and actions speak louder than words. Hua Xiong didn't dare to underestimate Pan Feng, raising his large knife to engage in a fierce battle with Pan Feng! Pan Feng rode his horse, swinging his large axe, and the two began exchanging blows. Pan Feng's axe spun around, aiming straight for Hua Xiong, while Hua Xiong's knife sliced through the air, chopping towards Pan Feng! Suddenly, a loud "clang" was heard... Guess what happened next? Pan Feng was no match for Hua Xiong; with just one blow, Hua Xiong sent Pan Feng's axe flying out of his hands. Pan Feng was stunned, and Hua Xiong couldn't help but laugh inwardly, thinking that this Pan Feng was a mere grass bag! Hua Xiong thought to himself: "Ah, you came to intimidate me? I'll show you my power!" With a swift swing of his knife, Hua Xiong chopped Pan Feng in half from head to toe! Hua Xiong burst out laughing and said: "Let your alliance send out some decent warriors! Don't waste my time with trash like this; it's polluting my hands!" As soon as he finished speaking, a scout rushed in on horseback to report to Cao Cao: "Pan Feng has been chopped in half by Hua Xiong again." Everyone present was shocked. Yuan Shao saw that the messenger still had more to say and asked him to continue. The messenger reluctantly continued: "That scoundrel Hua Xiong said... let your alliance send out some decent warriors! Don't waste my time with trash like this; it's polluting my hands!" Yuan Shao was enraged, drawing his sword and saying: "If only our great generals Yan Liang and Wen Chou were here! With just one person, I'm not afraid of that dog thief Hua Xiong!" Before he finished speaking, a man stepped forward from the ranks, shouting: "I'll take care of that dog thief Hua Xiong! It's as easy as inserting a flag into the ground! I volunteer to behead Hua Xiong and present his head to our commander-in-chief!" The assembled lords looked at him and saw that he was nine feet tall, with a two-foot-long beard, phoenix eyes, and eyebrows like sleeping silkworms. His face was as red as a ripe date, and his voice was as loud as a giant bell. He stood before the tent. Yuan Shao had little impression of this man but knew that he was Liu Bei's sworn brother, whose name he didn't know. He hastily asked who it was. Liu Bei stood up and said: "This is my younger brother, Guan Yu." Yuan Shao quickly asked what position he held. Liu Bei replied: "He follows me as the General of the Righteous Army, Conqueror of the North." Suddenly, Yuan Shu shouted from the tent: "Han Xing King, are you mocking us lords by not having a great general? Let your sworn brother Guan Yu go fight that scoundrel Hua Xiong! If he wins, fine; if he loses, do we still have any face left to continue fighting?" Originally, Yuan Shu was resentful in his heart, thinking: "You Han Xing King, you're so arrogant, but now it's your turn. This Hua Xiong has already fought two battles and is tired. You're just sending someone out now; aren't you trying to steal the credit?" Look at this lord; can he still win?

  Cao Cao saw Yuan Shu hastily stopping him and said: "General, calm down. This man has spoken loudly, he must have bravery and strategy; let's test him by sending out a horse, if he can't win, it won't be too late to blame him. Besides, the great general under the Han Xing Emperor is not someone that scoundrel Hua Xiong can compare with!"

  Yuan Shao said: "If such a great general goes to war, if he loses, he will surely be laughed at by Hua Xiong." Yuan Shao also saw that his younger brother Yuan Shu wanted to have a decisive battle with Hua Xiong. Cao Cao saw this and said: "This man has an impressive appearance, he must be able to behead Hua Xiong!" Li You stood up and said: "If my second brother is not victorious, I will make a military order in front of all the lords, if my second brother is not victorious, I am willing to fight with my head!" Guan Yu saw Li You trusting him so much, his ambition was even more stirred, he immediately said: "If I don't win, please behead me." Cao Cao ordered someone to pour a cup of hot wine and drank it with Guan Yu. Guan Yu said: "The wine is poured, I'll go and come back soon." He went out of the tent, drew his sword, and mounted his horse.

  Guan Yu drew his Green Dragon Crescent Blade, mounted his horse and rode straight out of the camp gate. He was about to engage in a fierce battle with Hua Xiong! As soon as he emerged from the camp gate, Guan Yu declared: "I am Guan Yunchang, the General of the Righteous Army, the Northern Expeditionary General! You treacherous thief, surrender at once! Otherwise, you will be beheaded by my Green Dragon Crescent Blade and become a ghost!" Hua Xiong, who had been winning repeatedly, came to fight Guan Yu with his wheel-shaped knife. Seeing this, Guan Yu said: "Good advice is hard to give to a doomed devil!" He raised his horse and swung his blade straight at Hua Xiong. Before Hua Xiong could even swing his knife, Guan Yu's horse was fast, his blade was swift, and with one stroke of the Flowing Star Chasing the Moon, he struck horizontally at Hua Xiong's neck! Hua Xiong realized too late, and all that was heard was a "pu" sound. Hua Xiong's head had been beheaded by Guan Yu's single stroke, his corpse splattered with blood three feet high! Guan Yu picked up the blade and lifted Hua Xiong's severed head, ready to return to the camp! The famous general Hua Xiong was beheaded by a single stroke of the sword. Such martial arts skills were only possessed by Guan Yu!

  At this time, the various princes in the camp only heard the drumbeats and shouts outside the pass, like thunder shaking the earth, mountains crumbling, and everyone was shocked. They had personally witnessed Hua Xiong's martial arts, but now Guan Yu went out and didn't think he could have such a great battle with Hua Xiong! Yuan Shao was also greatly surprised and was about to send someone to investigate what was happening when suddenly the sound of horse hooves was heard, and General Guan had already arrived at the main tent on horseback. General Guan held up Hua Xiong's head and threw it to the ground. The wine was still warm. Li Yu saw this and his poetic inspiration was greatly stirred, praising General Guan: "The greatest achievement in stabilizing the universe, the sound of drums at the gate is deafening. Cloud-long halts his cup to display his bravery, beheading Hua Xiong while the wine is still warm."

  Cao was overjoyed at this, but only Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu were unhappy in their hearts! However, you said that Zhang Fei would cause trouble if no one kept an eye on him for a moment. Didn't you see that someone was unhappy? It turned out that Liu Bei didn't keep an eye on Zhang Fei. As soon as Zhang Fei walked out from behind Liu Bei, he shouted loudly: "My brother beheaded Hua Xiong, why not kill Dong Zhuo and enter Guandong now?" Yuan Shu became furious and scolded: "We are all humble and yielding among the lords of the world. You are just a general under Han Xing Wang's command, how dare you show off your military power here? Get out of the tent!" When did Zhang San receive such treatment? At this time, not only Zhang San, but also Li Yu was holding his sword in hand, thinking: "Damn it, Yuan Shu, who are you scolding?" Liu Bei was also burning with anger at this time, thinking: "My second brother had cold words and cold language when he went to battle. Now my third brother says this, and there's nothing wrong with that! You don't put me, the Han Xing Wang, the leader of the alliance of lords, in your eyes!" Gongsun Zan also walked to Liu Bei's side at this time. The two groups of soldiers drew their swords and bows, and the main tent was filled with the smell of gunpowder!

  Cao saw this and had to disperse the crowd, saying: "Those who achieve merit are rewarded, can it be like this?" Yuan Shu saw this and was unhappy in his heart, saying: "Since you all only value a single general and do not value the lords of the world! I will take my leave." Yuan Shu finished speaking and left. Cao was like Zhu Bajie looking at himself in a mirror, inside and out not being human! He had to say: "Can we mistake great things because of one word?" Liu Bei was furious but also didn't want to make too much of it, so he took Gong Sun Zan and led Li Yu, Guan, Zhang, Zhao back to their own camp to rest. The officials all dispersed. Cao secretly sent someone with cattle and wine to comfort Han Xing Wang's place.

  Don't mention the other side's sword being drawn, just say that Hua Xiong was defeated and killed, his troops were defeated, and report to Guan Yu. Li Su was stunned. He had no choice but to hastily write an urgent letter, immediately dispatching someone to quickly report to Dong Zhuo in Luoyang. Dong Zhuo received Li Su's urgent letter, opened it and saw that Hua Xiong had been defeated and killed! Now the Tong Pass is surrounded by the allied army and is in danger every day, Li Su is leading his troops to desperately resist the allied army's attack! Dong Zhuo saw this and urgently issued an order to gather Li Ru, Lü Bu, Zhang Liao, Song Xian and many other civil and military officials to discuss how to deal with the allied army. Li Ru said: "Now Li Su says that Tong Pass is in a precarious situation, having lost General Hua Xiong, the enemy's momentum is vast. It's a pity that Han Emperor Liu Bei is the leader of the alliance, and Yuan Shao is the commander-in-chief of the allied army! What can be done about it?"

  It can be seen that Hua Xiong's position in Dong Zhuo's heart is not low either. Dong Zhuo also has a good eye, he is very clear that relying on Li Su is fundamentally impossible to defend the Guandong Pass! So what about the next battle?

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