"Bian Lan, you will lead the first team with two thousand soldiers and horses, Li Tao will lead the second team with your own troops, and Xue Ning, you will lead the third team with three thousand shield swordsmen. Attack the mountain with all your strength. There will be no progress in this battle." Retreat, the rear team will supervise the formation of the front team, those who advance will live, those who retreat will die, no matter the cost, we must capture the top of the cliff before dark, I will personally beat the drum to cheer you!"
After stabilizing his soldiers, Xiahou Dun quickly looked around the surrounding terrain, and his heart suddenly sank to the bottom of the valley. No matter what, the ambush location chosen by the Youzhou Army was too vicious - Zi River is at Xiaofengkou. Forced by the cliffs, it turned a ninety-degree corner. The other side of the river was full of cliffs, making it difficult for birds to cross. It was difficult for Cao Jun to cross the river even if he wanted to. However, although the cliff bank of Xiaofengkou itself is not too high, it is very high. It is steep. There is a path on the edge of the cliff. It is less than two feet wide. The terrain is long and narrow. If you want to force it through under the rain of arrows from the Youzhou Army, there is no possibility at all. If you want to pass this level, you have to fight to the death. At Xiaofengkou, Xiahou Dun couldn't even think about why the Youzhou Army appeared here unexpectedly. He gritted his teeth and issued several general orders.
"Dong, dong dong..."
Before the critical moment of life and death, Cao Jun's actions were extremely fast. It took only a stick and a half of incense. Cao Jun's three attacking troops were fully prepared for a strong attack. It took a while for Xiahou Dun to pick up the drumsticks himself. The violent drumbeats suddenly rang in the valley. Soon, Bian Lan, the vanguard general of Cao's army, holding a big sword, led two thousand men who dared to die, shouting war trumpets wildly, carrying ladders and opening up the formation. Launched a full-scale attack on Xiaofengkou.
The terrain at the entrance of the small peak is extremely dangerous. The cliff more than a hundred feet long protrudes from the river, squeezing the Zishui River and forcing it to turn 90 degrees. Not to mention the narrow path on the cliff, the open space on the cliff side is not wide. It's only about twenty feet. There is only one slope with a large slope that leads to the top of the cliff, which is only about three feet wide. The rest are steep cliffs, although the average height is only a dozen feet. But it is not something that Cao Jun's ladder can reach. In other words, if Cao Jun wants to rush to the top of the cliff, he can only fight for the three wide ramps.
"The archers suppress the top of the slope. The rest of the troops follow me and charge up!"
Bian Lan was selected by Xiahou Dun to lead the battle, so he was naturally not an easy person. In his early years, he was a fierce general in the Qingzhou Yellow Turban Army. Later, he surrendered to Cao Cao and was promoted to General Pi. He was one of Xiahou Dun's men who was best at fighting tough battles. Even in the face of such a dangerous situation, Bian Lan did not have the slightest fear. He led his troops to the cliff, immediately issued two general orders, and rushed towards the slope first without fear of death. past.
"The great Han Dynasty is invincible to those who stand in its way. The great Han Dynasty is invincible to those who stand in its way..."
Seeing that their leader was so brave, the morale of Cao's soldiers suddenly soared. They all shouted war cries and started to kill wildly towards the slope. At the same time, as many as five hundred archers Then he desperately stretched his bow and arrows, and sprayed the arrows one after another at the top of the cliff, trying to suppress the officers and soldiers of the Youzhou Army at the top of the cliff.
"Smash the wood and rolling stones! Archers, suppress the enemy's archer phalanx and give me a hard beating!"
Seeing that Cao's army was launching such a fierce offensive, Lu Tao did not dare to be careless at all, and immediately issued two tit-for-tat general orders. In an instant, logs and rolling stones crashed down from the top of the cliff. , the rain of arrows was like locusts, covering the phalanx of Cao Jun's archers.
Courage is only one of the necessary conditions for winning the battle, not a necessary and sufficient condition. Although Cao's army was extremely brave and kept charging forward, what could it do? The officers and soldiers of the Youzhou Army on the top of the cliff were not new recruits. , are either former Bo Navy soldiers or veterans who were converted from the captured Jizhou Army. All of them are masters who have seen blood. Their fighting will is not much worse than Cao's army. In addition, they have absolute geographical advantages. How can you be afraid of Cao Jun's fierceness and death? As for relying on the large number of people to consume the wood and rolling stones of the Youzhou Army, that is even more of a joke. You must know that the Youzhou Army was already lurking in the west in advance. Therefore, Cao Jun had long been prepared for a war of attrition. Under such circumstances, Cao Jun's forceful attack would only result in death, and there would be no progress at all.
"Yuan Rang, we can't fight like this anymore. Once morale collapses, our army will be in danger!"
When the battle reached Tianjiang Shen, Cao's army launched five waves of strong attacks in succession. The vanguard general Bian Lan died in the battle, and the second attack general Li Tao also died in the battle. As many as 3,000 soldiers were killed, and there were corpses on the slopes. They were all fortified in layers, but they had never even rushed to the top of the slope once. Seeing that the morale of the army was about to collapse, Cheng Yu did not dare to sit back and ignore it anymore, and saw him approaching with a solemn expression. Beside Xiahou Dun, a worried reminder came.
"Hmph, why don't you just wait to die, huh?"
Xiahou Dun was extremely disappointed with Cheng Yu. In his opinion, if Cheng Yu had not made random suggestions to withdraw the troops, his nearly 30,000 troops would not be in this embarrassing situation. Now that he heard what he said again, How could Xiahou Dun look so kindly on Cheng Yu?
"Yuan Rang, don't be anxious. I heard someone say that under the current circumstances, it is obviously not advisable to attack the top of the cliff. Any further attack will only be a loss of troops. It is of no practical use. Moreover, it is getting late. If the battle is not going well, it is better to temporarily withdraw the troops and build more rafts in the rear. After sunset, the general can lead the brave men to ride the rafts upstream to see if they can attack the enemy's rear from the back cliff. The flanking attack should make it difficult for the enemy at the top of the cliff to look at the enemy from head to tail. If this is not possible, the general should just take one step ahead and go to Laiwu to bring reinforcements, and then he can lead his troops to deal with the enemy here."
Cheng Yu volunteered to come to Qingzhou this time, originally wanting to accomplish something extraordinary, but after repeated defeats, he was too embarrassed to sheath his sword. He felt ashamed to face Cao Cao, and his desire to die had already sprouted in his heart. At this time, the reason why Xiahou Dun planned a way to escape the danger with dignity was to repay Cao Cao's kindness. As for himself, he was prepared for the worst.
"Well...come here, pass on the general's order, and the entire army will retreat one mile and set up camp."
Although Xiahou Dun had a bad temper, he was not a fool. How could he not understand that Cheng Yu's strategy was actually giving him a chance to escape? What he seeks is not to become a benevolent person, but to enjoy wealth and honor. Not to mention that Xiahou Yuan has been killed in battle. For the benefit of the Xiahou family, he cannot die here. It is precisely because of these considerations that Xiahou Dun never accepted Cheng Yu explicitly. He had good intentions, but ordering the withdrawal of troops was a tacit approval of Cheng Yu's proposal...
