December 3rd
The day after Wuyan City fell.
Wei Hour (around 1–3 PM).
Qing Province — Mount Weishan in the Kingdom of Qi
A messenger from the Qihuo Army entered the Yellow Turban camp hidden within the mountains.
Inside the wooden stronghold’s main hall, Guan Hai sat in the seat of honor while the commanders were seated on both sides below him.
“This subordinate greets General Guan!”
The messenger respectfully cupped his fists and said:
“By order of our lord, General Guan is instructed to lead his army into Taishan Commandery and join General Wang Du in a pincer attack against Ying Shao of Taishan.”
“Answer me.”
Guan Hai frowned and looked at the messenger.
“After Commander Zhang Rao passed away, was it his son Zhang Jing who inherited his position?”
Guan Hai had once been one of Zhang Rao’s old subordinates.
Naturally, he was very familiar with Zhang Jing.
Back when Zhang Rao was defeated in Ji Province and returned to Qing Province, he was constantly harassed by Kong Rong.
As a result, Zhang Rao dispatched Guan Hai to attack Kong Rong and remain behind in Qing Province.
Meanwhile, Zhang Rao led the bulk of the army into Yan Province.
The reason for going to Yan Province was simple:
They lacked food.
Qing Province had already been stripped bare.
Without finding more grain, hundreds of thousands of people would starve.
“That is correct.”
The messenger nodded respectfully.
“After the old commander passed away, our lord inherited leadership.”
“He unified the various branches of the Way of Great Peace and established the army under the name ‘Qihuo Army.'”
“Recently, he defeated Cao Cao, Governor of Yan Province.”
“Yan Province is now effectively leaderless.”
“With the support of renowned scholars from Yan Province, our lord intends to take control of the province and distribute farmland to the common people of the Way of Great Peace so they may rebuild their lives.”
“He therefore invites General Guan to join him.”
Gulp…
As soon as the messenger finished speaking, the sound of people swallowing filled the hall.
“Is this true?”
“Why is this completely different from the news we received before?”
“The lord wants to establish a homeland for the people?”
“Is it really true?”
The generals began discussing among themselves.
Only a short while ago they had received reports that the main army in Yan Province was in dire straits.
How had the situation reversed so dramatically in such a short time?
“Qihuo Army?”
Guan Hai suppressed the shock in his heart and stared at the messenger.
“Indeed.”
The messenger nodded heavily.
“‘Qihuo’ is now the name of our army.”
“General Guan surely understands that the term ‘Yellow Turban’ is merely a derogatory label imposed on us by the Han court.”
“It was never our true banner.”
“Our lord once said:”
“We are not rebels seeking chaos.”
“We are merely ordinary people struggling to survive.”
“Today we take the name ‘Qihuo’ so that the world may truly understand the Way of Great Peace.”
“If the Han court and the warlords refuse to let us live…”
“Then we shall fight them to the bitter end.”
After the messenger finished speaking, silence fell over the hall.
A pin drop could have been heard.
All of them had been deeply moved by that name.
Qihuo — ‘Seeking Survival.’
The two characters felt like a great mountain pressing down upon their hearts.
At the same time, they stirred up a fierce determination within them.
“Qihuo… a fine name indeed.”
Guan Hai took a deep breath.
His expression was complicated.
“The Way of Great Peace today truly should bear the name ‘Qihuo.'”
“Please return and inform the lord.”
“I, Guan Hai, obey his orders.”
“In a few days I shall march on Taishan.”
Since Zhang Jing had already achieved so much, Guan Hai had no reason to break away from him.
After all, Zhang Jing had inherited leadership legitimately.
Not only had he unified the scattered factions, but he had also won a major victory against the Han government.
Whether by duty or reason, Guan Hai could only acknowledge him as his lord.
Meanwhile, Zhang Jing’s generals of the Qihuo Army began advancing into various commanderies.
Wherever they went, numerous small counties surrendered without resistance.
At the same time, Cheng Yu remained in Wuyan.
He directed Geng Ling and Bian Xi in attacks against the fortified estates of powerful clans and wealthy families.
With the aid of trebuchets, strongholds throughout the region were captured one after another.
The tenant farmers gathered from those estates numbered in the tens of thousands.
……………
Yan Province — Dong Commandery
Puyang, the commandery capital
Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, and Cao Ren gathered together once again.
“Miaocai.”
With reddened eyes, Cao Ren spoke first:
“Have you received any news of our lord?”
“None.”
Xiahou Yuan shook his head solemnly.
His heart was filled with unease.
Before Cao Ren could continue questioning him—
“Neither have I.”
Xiahou Dun clenched his teeth and answered directly.
“Sigh…”
Cao Ren let out a long sigh.
Growing increasingly anxious, he said:
“Zihe and Zilian are dead.”
“Our lord’s whereabouts remain unknown.”
“What are we supposed to do now?”
“……”
The scene fell silent.
Tap, tap, tap—
Tap, tap, tap—
At that moment, hurried footsteps sounded from outside.
A junior officer quickly entered the room, his face filled with excitement.
“Report to the three generals!”
“We have received news of the lord!”
“The lord has already reached Xian City. He should arrive here in less than half an hour!”
Clang!
“There’s news of the lord?!”
“Quick, quick! I’m going to receive him!”
Upon hearing the report, Xiahou Dun and the other two generals were overjoyed.
Forgetting everything else, they immediately rushed out of the room and headed toward the city gates.
Half an hour later.
Xiahou Dun finally met the severely wounded Cao Cao.
The moment he saw Cao Cao’s miserable condition, his eyes instantly reddened.
“Is that Yuanrang?”
Cao Cao’s face was deathly pale.
Squinting weakly at Xiahou Dun, he asked:
“How many troops remain in Puyang?”
At this moment, that was the question he cared about most.
“My lord…”
A look of shame appeared on Xiahou Dun’s face.
“After combining my forces with Miaocai’s and Zixiao’s, excluding the wounded, we still have seventeen thousand soldiers capable of fighting.”
“Only seventeen thousand…”
Cao Cao’s eyes dimmed.
After a moment, he spoke:
“To still have nearly twenty thousand men is already fortunate.”
“Far better than what I had several years ago.”
“You’ve done well, Yuanrang.”
“Let’s return to the city first.”
After speaking, Cao Cao seemed to lose the last of his strength.
His head tilted to one side and he fell unconscious.
“Gongliu.”
Xiahou Dun took a deep breath and looked toward a nearby officer who was also heavily wounded.
“Can you tell me why the lord ended up in such a state during this campaign?”
The man he addressed as Gongliu was Shi Huan, one of Cao Cao’s retainers and a junior officer of his central army.
He was known for his martial skill, and Xiahou Dun was fairly familiar with him.
“The Yellow Turbans possess a type of stone-throwing machine.”
Shi Huan gritted his teeth through the pain of his wounds.
“Its power is astonishing.”
“Wherever it strikes, almost nothing can withstand it.”
“Even several sections of Wuyan City’s walls were smashed apart by several feet.”
“As for the defending soldiers…”
He paused before continuing:
“Later, the Yellow Turbans ambushed us twice.”
“Master Gongtai and General Wenqian were both killed in battle.”
“Among the brothers who escorted the lord during the breakout, only two remain alive.”
“As for General Li Qian… his fate is unknown.”
“This…”
After hearing the account, Xiahou Dun felt a chill run through his heart.
He finally realized that the Yellow Turbans were no longer the same enemy they had once been.
It wasn’t merely the stone-throwing machines.
Their sieges.
Their encirclements.
Their ambushes.
Everything had been executed with remarkable discipline.
There was none of the disorder one would expect from bandits.
It was as if the lord had been fighting an army commanded by a famous general.
From that moment onward, Xiahou Dun completely abandoned any lingering contempt he had held toward the Yellow Turbans.
“Report!”
Just as Xiahou Dun was still troubled by these thoughts, a soldier hurried forward.
His expression was tense.
“Report to General Xiahou!”
“Urgent military intelligence has arrived from Fan County!”
“The Yellow Turbans have invaded Dong Commandery and are now advancing toward Puyang!”
“What?!”
Xiahou Dun’s expression changed drastically.
He hurriedly asked:
“Does the messenger know how many Yellow Turbans have entered Dong Commandery?”
“Yes, General.”
The soldier replied respectfully.
“The messenger estimates there are at least one hundred thousand Yellow Turbans.”
“Damn it!”
Xiahou Dun’s face changed dramatically.
For a moment, he had no idea what to do.
Finally, he shouted:
“Return to the city immediately!”
“We will wait until the lord regains consciousness before making any decisions!”
— The end of the Chapter–
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