Chapter 33: Guan Yu Righteously Executes Zhang Wenyan!

  Guo Si was in a precarious situation, and Zhang Liao swept away thousands of soldiers* and retreated. He galloped his horse and wielded his sword to chase after Zhang Ren, but Zhang Ren was originally Zhao Yun's senior fellow apprentice, and his martial arts skills were even higher than those of Gao Shun and Yu Yi. Although he was not as good as Zhang Liao, the difference was not great, and Zhang Liao found it difficult to break through for a while. Just then, Guo Si galloped his horse and wielded his sword to come to his aid, but unexpectedly, he knocked down several people and fled! Guo Si had actually run away with his tail between his legs! Zhang Liao was furious in his heart at this moment! He knew that with such a commander, it would be impossible to win. Just then, Yu Yi and Gao Shun arrived to assist Zhang Ren, and the three of them engaged in a fierce battle against Zhang Liao. Guan Yu shouted loudly from behind, "You three retreat, and let me deal with Zhang Liao!" It was truly a case of "the words reached the horse, and the horse reached the knife," but this time, Guan Yu's sword was not aimed at Zhang Liao, but rather helped to block Zhang Ren's spear. If it weren't for that, Zhang Ren's spear might have ended Zhang Liao's life! At this moment, Zhang Ren, Gao Shun, and Yu Yi heard Guan Yu's command and did not dare to disobey. They retreated from the battlefield, and Guan Yu said to the three of them behind him, "You three quickly clean up the remaining enemies! I will fight Wen Yan alone!" Zhang Ren, Gao Shun, and Yu Yi bowed their heads and replied, "We obey your command!" After that, they each wielded their weapons and charged towards the enemy.

  Guan Yu was now looking at Zhang Liao in a state of utter disarray, his helmet had been knocked off by Gao Shun's spear, his hair was scattered, and he was covered in sweat, panting heavily as he sat on his horse.

  "Ah, Guan Yu is a hero! As the saying goes, 'Heroes respect heroes, and heroes cherish heroes!' Seeing this, Guan Yu bowed his hands on horseback and said: "Wen Yuan brother, Dong Zhuo's evil deeds are already doomed. Brother, don't mind listening to my advice, now that you've returned from your misguided path, it's not too late!"

  Zhang Liao burst out laughing and said: "Brother Yunchang, although I have lost this battle, it was not because of my own abilities. If Guo Si had started attacking the city day and night from the beginning, without giving you a chance to catch your breath, the outcome would be hard to predict! But that coward Guo Si wanted to preserve his own strength, which led to today's defeat! What joy is there in living, what sorrow is there in dying? Now I, Zhang Wenfang, have only one death left, and I will die with the name of a loyal minister! Brother Yunchang, please give me your fatal blow!"

  Zhang Liao finished speaking and didn't wait for Guan Yu to respond, he charged forward on his horse, wielding his sword. Guan Yu listened to Zhang Liao's words and thought even more highly of him, but since Zhang Liao had attacked, Guan Yu could only ride forth on his Red Hare horse, brandishing his Green Dragon Crescent Blade to fight Zhang Liao!

  This battle is not like the previous one, Zhang Liao doesn't have that much physical strength to fight Guan Yu again! In less than twenty rounds, Zhang Liao was already panting! How could General Guan take advantage of someone's weakness? General Guan turned his horse around, took a wine jug from the horse's back and threw it at Zhang Liao, saying: "Brother Wen Yuan, dare you drink a cup with me?" Zhang Liao understood in his heart that General Guan didn't want to take advantage of him, and he respected General Guan even more! Zhang Liao laughed loudly and said: "Today I met Yunchang brother, only then did I know that people like Lü Bu can be called heroes!" After speaking, he opened the wine jug and drank it all up! After finishing, Zhang Liao wiped his mouth, closed the wine jug and threw it back at General Guan, saying: "Yunchang brother, will you drink a cup with me?" General Guan took the wine jug and also laughed loudly, saying: "Today I'm lucky to have found someone who understands me, how could I not drink a cup with Wen Yuan!" After speaking, General Guan also drank it all up!

  "Haha! Refreshing! Refreshing! I, Zhang Liao, Zhang Wenyuan, have never felt this refreshing before! If I were to die at the hands of Yunchang today, please trouble Yunchang to send some wine and dishes on my anniversary. Come on, Yunchang, don't hold back, let's fight another 300 rounds!"

  "Ha! Ha! Guan Gong said with a smile: "Wen Yuan, Wen Yuan! Today I, Guan Gong, have no intention of killing you. Considering you are a hero, if I win or capture you alive, would you, brother Wen Yuan, be willing to surrender?"

  Zhang Liao burst out laughing and said: "Wen Yuan promised today that if Yunchang is captured or defeated, he will definitely surrender to your army! If he breaks this oath, heaven and earth will destroy him! But I don't know if Yunchang can give me a little face, I have an unreasonable request!"

  Guan Er Ye said: "Wen Yuan brother, please come forth!"

  Zhang Liao cupped his hands and said: "Heaven has the virtue of good life, now our army's defeat is already set and cannot be changed. Please, General Yunchang, hand over the remaining troops to me. If I lose, I am willing to lead these defeated soldiers together with you to surrender to your noble army. Or can General Yunchang take charge of this matter?"

  At this time, Tian Feng also led the army to catch up from behind. Ju Yi and Gao Shun, Zhang Ren and others had basically cleaned up the remaining enemy, and most of the remaining resistance were Zhang Liao's subordinates who would rather die than surrender!

  Zhang Ren and Ju Yi, Gao Shun thought to go forward to surround him, but at this time Guan Yu shouted loudly: "The whole army stops fighting. You remnants are lucky to have been rescued by General Zhang Liao, you can retreat behind General Zhang's back. Watch me fight a decisive battle with your General Zhang!"

  Guan Yu finished speaking, and Zhang Liao was greatly surprised. He had not expected Guan Yu to agree to his request so readily. Seeing this, Zhang Liao said to Guan Er Ye: "Brother Yunchang, aren't you afraid that I will clean up the remaining troops and break through the siege?"

  "Guān Gōng heard this and burst out laughing, saying: 'I, Guān, trust Wén Yuǎn's words! Not to mention letting you clean up the remnants of your army, I'll even spare your lives for Wén Yuǎn's sake!'"

  Zhang Liao was even more moved, his tiger eyes filled with tears, and he couldn't control the hot tears welling up in his eyes. Zhang Liao immediately dismounted his horse, knelt down on the ground, knocked his head to the ground, and wept as he said: "No need to fight again! Your army takes the people of the world as its own responsibility! If my master Dong Zhuo had even a bit of your army's spirit, he wouldn't have lost today! Now I, Zhang Liao, am fortunate enough to know someone like General Cloud, how could I not surrender? My family is willing to surrender to General Cloud, willing to surrender to your army! Willing to be the vanguard for General Cloud! No longer having a second heart, willing to use my own strength to help your army eliminate the other heroes and build a great Han dynasty!"

  Guan Yu saw Zhang Liao kneeling on the ground, immediately jumped off his horse, and with both hands helped Zhang Liao up, saying: "Now our army is fortunate to have General Zhang Liao, what fear do we have of the heroes of the world? What fear do we have that the great Han dynasty will not rise again! From today on, you and I are brothers! Together we will assist my elder brother, King Liu Bei of Han, in eliminating the heroes and restoring the great Han!"

  Zhang Liao said: "Today's matter, the outcome is not yet decided, the most important thing is Tianshui City! Wen Yuan wishes to be the vanguard, capture Tianshui City, and atone for his crime with merit!"

  Guang Gong burst out laughing and said: "Wen Yuan's views are in line with our military strategic goals!"

  At this time, Tian Feng also came forward and said: "Congratulations to General Guan for having a loving general! Congratulations to the great king for having an arm! Congratulations to General Zhang Liao for returning from a wrong path!"

  At this time, Zhang Ren and Gao Shun, Ju Yi also arrived at the same time to congratulate Guan Gong and Zhang Liao!

  Zhang Liao saw Tian Feng wearing Confucian attire and cupped his hands, saying: "Thank you for your praise, sir and all the generals!"

  "Here is our military advisor, Tian Feng, Tian Yuanhao! The four generals behind him are Zhang Ren on the left, Gao Shun in the middle, and Ji Ping on the right!"

  Zhang Liao and Gao Shun had known each other for a long time, and they exchanged greetings with several others.

  Tian Feng stepped forward and said: "Now I have another plan, one move can get the Heavenly Water City! However, it requires General Zhang Liao's cooperation!"

  Zhang Liao stepped forward and said: "Since the military advisor trusts me, entrusts me with important tasks! I am willing to die for it, but what I fear is that the military advisor and General Guan will not dare to use me!"

  "Ha ha! Brother Wen Yuan's character is beyond doubt!" Guan Gong exclaimed.

  Tian Feng said: "Now General Zhang, you can lead the army to rush straight to Tianshui City! At this time, Li Su, the defender of Tianshui City, does not know that the general has abandoned the dark and joined the bright side, and will surely open the city! General Zhang can take advantage of the situation to enter the city! Then pretend to be Guo Si's order to let Li Su go out to rescue, and then immediately close the city gate after Li Su leaves the city! We will take advantage of the situation to surround and annihilate Li Su's troops, and seize Tianshui City! Complete General-in-Chief Li Yu's last plan to completely destroy Dong Zhuo's entire army!"

  Zhang Liao didn't wait for him to finish and said: "Your subordinate obeys the order!"

  Zhang Liao finished speaking and mounted his horse, ready to rush towards Tianshui City!

  Tian Feng hastily blocked and continued to instruct: "If Guo Si escapes into Tianshui City, General, you only need to say that he broke through the siege and came out. An hour later, I will see Li Su's army not coming out, and I will know that there is a change in it. I immediately ordered the whole army to attack the city! General Zhang only needs to take advantage of the opportunity to open the city gate and let our army go in! Remember to be careful with everything!"

  Zhang Liao bowed his head on horseback and said, "This general understands, please ask General Guan and Military Advisor Tian to wait for this general's good news!" After finishing speaking, he waved the large knife in his hand as a substitute for military orders. Zhang Liao's soldiers were all seasoned veterans who had been through hundreds of battles. Seeing that Zhang Liao had surrendered to protect their lives, they also knew what was good and what was bad. Moreover, many of Dong Zhuo's troops were forcibly conscripted! They all followed closely behind Zhang Liao.

  Guan Yu and Tian Feng made a final decision, taking stock of the casualties. The 210,000-strong army that set out had now been reduced to 170,000! There were 80,000 cavalrymen and 90,000 infantrymen. Upon seeing this, Tian Feng immediately ordered Ji Yi to lead 20,000 infantrymen back to defend Xishan Pass, while Guan Yu led Tian Feng and Zhang Ren, with Gao Shun commanding an army of 150,000, hastening towards Tianshui City!

  At the same time, in order to prevent Dong Zhuo from knowing that this battle was defeated and sending reinforcements to Tianshui City, Diao Chan led 20,000 troops to ambush the camp and 30,000 infantrymen. Five rows of crossbows with ten seats, four rows of crossbows with twenty seats, three rows of crossbows with fifty seats, four rows of crossbows with one hundred seats, and one row of crossbows with one hundred and fifty seats! To block Dong Zhuo's reinforcements on the right wing!

  Guan Yu and Tian Feng led Zhang Ren and the remaining 100,000 troops, along with all the crossbows and catapults, to rush towards Tianshui City. If Zhang Liao couldn't blast out Li Suo, Guan Yu and Tian Feng would prepare to launch a fierce attack on Tianshui City! Let Zhang Liao open the city gate!

  At this time, Zhang Liao arrived at the front of Tianshui City. The soldiers on the city wall recognized Zhang Liao and went to report to Li Su before he even approached. Li Su personally rushed to the top of the city tower and saw that the soldiers under Zhang Liao's command had abandoned their helmets and armor, so he asked: "General Zhang, why are you in such a state? Have you been defeated on the front lines?"

  Zhang Liao saw that Li Su had already arrived at the top of the city tower and was listening to Li Su's words, still unaware of the news of the defeat at Mount Qi. He understood in his heart that Guo Si must have taken advantage of the situation and escaped directly back to Dong Zhuo's camp! As soon as he thought of this, Zhang Liao immediately said: "General Li Su, quickly open the city gate, we were deceived! Li Yu and the main force of Yizhou are all at Mount Qi, and those in Xiacun are fake! Now our army is defeated at Mount Qi, Song Xian died in battle! General Guo Si ordered me to break through the siege and come to report the news. I hope General Li Su will quickly lead the troops to rescue General Guo Si! Then, together with General Guo Si, we will defend Tianshui City to the death! Please, General Li Su, quickly open the city gate and let me in! I am really exhausted!"

  Li Su saw this scene and didn't know that Zhang Liao was still going to surrender, so he immediately ordered the city gate to be opened and let Zhang Liao and others enter the city!

  After Zhang Liao and others entered the city, Li Su personally came to welcome them. Zhang Liao had originally intended to take advantage of the opportunity to kill Li Su and seize Tianshui City in one fell swoop. However, he saw that Li Su was extremely cautious, although he did not suspect Zhang Liao at all! But there were always some generals or deputy generals on either side. This was because Li Su was a timid person who feared trouble, so he always acted like this. Seeing this, Zhang Liao found it difficult to make his move and could only dismount his horse and say: "Please ask General Li Su to immediately lead the army to rescue Commander-in-Chief Guo Si!"

  Li Su asked, "General Zhang, do you know how many soldiers and horses Li Yu has, which led to your defeat? Also, how many soldiers and horses does General Guo have left?" Li Su was thinking that if Li Yu had too many soldiers and horses, he might not be able to return himself. If there were not many soldiers and horses at Guo's place, then he would not go to rescue them. If there were many soldiers and horses, he would go to rescue them and die together defending Tianshui City! This was Li Su's secret plan in his heart! How could Zhang Liao and others not understand?

  Zhang Liao smiled in his heart and said: "Li Yu's army is numerous, but they are all new recruits, probably around 150,000. Last night, Li Yu suddenly attacked, and the two armies fought fiercely for a night. Our army still has about 100,000 soldiers left, but unfortunately, we are surrounded. Please ask General Li Su to immediately go and rescue General Guo Si!"

  Li Su's heart was filled with joy and he thought to himself: "Great! Yesterday, I saw flames rising high in the direction of Qi Mountain Pass. So Li Yu has arrived with his troops, using the tactic of 'crossing the sea under camouflage'. But there are only this many soldiers, so if I go to join forces with Guo Si's army and we can defeat Li Yu, then half the credit will be mine. If we don't win, it will still be my merit for going to rescue Guo Si and defending Tianshui City!"

  Li Su said: "Don't worry, Wen Yuan, I will immediately lead the troops to rescue General Guo Si, but the defense of Tianshui City will be handed over to you first!"

  Zhang Liao saw Li Su fall into the trap and said: "I am willing to be the vanguard, please General Li Su rest assured, with me Zhang Wenyuan in Tianshui City, I will ensure that Tianshui City is safe!"

  Li Su said upon hearing this: "Then it's troublesome for General Zhang Liao!"

  As soon as he finished speaking, Li Su immediately ordered the whole army to set out! Zhang Liao personally saw Li Su off at the city gate and then immediately ordered the closure of the city gate. He brought all the generals left behind by Li Su and told them that he had already surrendered to Liu Bei's army. Several of Li Su's generals drew their swords, wanting to kill Zhang Liao, but they were no match for him. Zhang Liao killed several people and then took control of the entire Tianshui City with his powerful tactics!

  Tianshui City originally had only 20,000 troops, and Li Su did not dare to take them all away, so he led 15,000 troops to rush to the front line of Qishan Pass! Just as they were walking between the two mountains, the war drums sounded from all around. It turned out that Tian Feng ordered the whole army to occupy the high mountains on both sides, and saw Li Su coming out of the city gate from a distance, knowing that Zhang Liao's plan had succeeded, and Li Su had fallen into the trap!

  At this time, Li Su was not a fool and understood the trick. He immediately led his army to retreat! But it was too late! Only to see Tian Feng waving his hand, the entire army on the mountain, hundreds of rows of crossbows shot out in unison! Hundreds of stone throwers also came under attack. The sky was filled with bows and arrows, the sky was filled with stones! Li Su was stunned! Not to mention that at that time, most people had never seen such a formation! Li Su immediately rolled off his horse and ordered his shield bearers to protect himself and retreat!

  What happened to Li Su's life? See below!

  Brothers, give me some strength! Double updates today! More votes! Bring flowers! Guaranteed double updates!

  Today is August 1st Army Day. I wish a happy holiday to veterans like me, and to soldiers currently serving in the army, happy holiday!