The Next Day, at Mao Hour (around 5–7 a.m.)
Outside Zhang County, at the Qihuo Camp on the banks of the Wen River.
“The heavens have lost their way, and the Han court has forsaken benevolence!”
Standing atop the camp’s raised platform, Zhang Jing rested a hand on his saber.
His face was filled with righteous resolve as he addressed the assembled soldiers below.
“The people of the Central Plains have been driven into misery and displacement, struggling to survive. The Way of Great Peace arose in accordance with the will of the people, seeking only to save the common folk and free them from suffering. Yet the Liu family’s Han dynasty brands us as rebels!”
“Today, I, Zhang Jing, obey the mandate of the Yellow Heaven!”
“In the name of Qihuo, we rise in arms against the Han!”
With that, Zhang Jing drew his saber and pointed its blade toward the sky.
“If Wuyan does not fall, Qihuo shall not return!”
“If Wuyan does not fall, Qihuo shall not return!”
“If Wuyan does not fall, Qihuo shall not return!”
“If Wuyan does not fall, Qihuo shall not return!”
As Zhang Jing’s words rang out, the officers and soldiers raised their weapons high and shouted in unison, their voices shaking the surrounding wilderness.
Shing!
Zhang Jing sheathed his saber and swept his arm forward.
“March on Wuyan!”
“We obey!”
At Zhang Jing’s command, the entire Yellow Turban camp sprang into action.
Column after column of soldiers, led by their respective officers, advanced in orderly formation toward Wuyan, the administrative seat of Dongping State.
Half an hour later, Zhang Jing’s command banner also began moving forward.
Meanwhile, in Wuyan City.
More than ten thousand Han soldiers stood ready along the city’s walls.
Cao Cao, accompanied by his generals, inspected the eastern gate tower.
Chen Gong wore a worried expression as he remarked,
“Judging from this campaign, the Yellow Turbans appear to have committed all of their elite forces.”
“Zilian.”
Hearing this, Cao Cao’s expression darkened slightly.
“Have we determined how many troops the Yellow Turbans have deployed?”
“Approximately over two hundred thousand.”
A bitter smile appeared on Cao Hong’s face.
“Their movements this time have been extensive. Our scouts probed dozens of li ahead, but in just two days we lost more than a hundred men. As a result, I cannot determine their exact strength with certainty. I only know that their numbers are no fewer than two hundred thousand.”
“Very well.”
Cao Cao frowned deeply but did not blame Cao Hong.
The Yellow Turbans had always possessed overwhelming numbers, and Han scouts naturally found themselves at a disadvantage.
Indeed, this very reason had once led Cao Cao and Bao Xin to leave the city with over a thousand infantry and cavalry to assess the enemy’s true strength.
That venture had cost him his close friend, resulting in a grievous loss.
“If the Yellow Turbans truly have committed all their elite troops,”
Cao Cao gazed eastward, his face grave.
“And if they truly field two hundred thousand soldiers, then today we shall have to fight them in earnest.”
“I only hope that Miaocai and Zixiao can successfully capture Feicheng.”
“Only then can our army secure an unassailable position.”
The current situation was highly unfavorable for Cao Cao.
Should the Yellow Turbans launch a full-scale assault, he would face a bloody battle, and even victory was far from assured.
The one thing that reassured him was Wuyan City’s formidable defenses.
Its walls stood over three zhang high and nearly three zhang thick.
The Wen River had been diverted into the moat, which was six zhang wide, making Wuyan one of the strongest fortresses in Yan Province.
(One Han-dynasty zhang was approximately 2.3 meters.)
“Rest assured, my lord.”
Cao Hong continued,
“Yuanrang, Zixiao, and Miaocai have all sent reports. If my calculations are correct, the three of them should already be approaching Fei and Lu Cities. If the Yellow Turban elites have indeed marched out in force, then Feicheng should fall in a single battle.”
“At that time, the Yellow Turban rebels outside Wuyan will be unable to support one another.”
“We need only withstand their first wave of attacks before finding an opportunity to strike them from both sides.”
“They’ve arrived!”
Before Cao Cao could respond, a commotion erupted atop the gate tower.
Cao Cao and the others looked into the distance.
A massive yellow command banner slowly rose above the horizon.
Then more banners appeared.
And more still.
In an instant, silence fell over the entire eastern gate.
Gulp…
A nervous swallow echoed through the quiet, breaking the stillness.
“Pass down my orders!”
Cao Cao snapped back to attention and spoke in a firm voice.
“Tell the men to keep their spirits up. Though the Yellow Turban bandits appear imposing, they are merely putting on a show. Our army is strong and valiant. The Yellow Turbans are destined to be defeated.”
“We obey!”
Upon hearing Cao Cao’s words, the assembled generals suppressed the shock in their hearts.
They respectfully cupped their fists toward him before quickly departing to their respective positions.
…………
At the seventh quarter of the Si Hour (around 10:45 a.m.).
The entire Qihuo Army led by Zhang Jing had assembled five hundred paces outside Wuyan City.
Soon afterward, they split into three forces and encircled the city.
“Leaving an opening on one side while surrounding the other three?”
Looking down at the Yellow Turbans below, Cao Cao’s face was full of mockery.
“The Yellow Turbans are as foolish as ever. From what I can see, the armies to the north and south number no more than twenty thousand each. Even if Wuyan falls, I need only lead two thousand elite troops to break through either flank with ease.”
“My lord speaks wisely.”
However, Chen Gong’s concern lay elsewhere.
Gazing at the Yellow Turban forces outside the city, he said worriedly,
“Yet the Yellow Turbans outside seem different from what General Zilian reported. From my observation, they appear to number fewer than one hundred and fifty thousand.”
Yan Province was largely flat terrain.
Although Wuyan’s defenses were strong, it also sat at the crossroads of numerous routes.
If Zhang Jing’s army faced no shortage of provisions, he could simply surround the city without attacking, eventually starving the Han defenders into submission.
Thus, even with roughly one hundred and thirty thousand troops outside the city, the broad view from the walls allowed Cao Cao and the others to see nearly the entirety of the Qihuo Army.
“So it is!”
Chen Gong’s observation caused Cao Cao’s heart to skip a beat.
Only now did he realize that the Yellow Turban forces outside were indeed far fewer than the two hundred thousand-plus that Cao Hong had estimated.
Unlike Chen Gong, Cao Cao had seen armies on a grand scale before.
An army’s size could not easily deceive his eyes.
“Gongtai!”
As if suddenly thinking of something, Cao Cao gritted his teeth and said,
“Immediately send fast riders to Yuanrang, Zixiao, and Miaocai. Order them to unite their forces and garrison at Fucheng. Then join me in striking this Yellow Turban army outside the city.”
He had never imagined that the Yellow Turbans would underestimate him so greatly.
Not only had they failed to send two hundred thousand troops, they had not even deployed one hundred and fifty thousand.
If Xiahou Dun and the others were currently attacking Fei and Lu Cities, both defended by substantial garrisons, they would certainly suffer heavy casualties.
“Yes, my lord!”
Chen Gong was equally alarmed.
Upon receiving the order, he hurried off to make the necessary arrangements.
…………..
Meanwhile, outside the city.
Under Xu He’s command, the Qihuo Army methodically assembled their trebuchets.
“That should do. Set them up here!”
Standing one hundred and fifty paces from the city, Xu He commanded in a deep voice,
“Level this ground and clear an open area. Quickly, quickly!”
“The trebuchets in this row should carry counterweights of roughly thirteen dan!”
“The row behind them should carry about eighteen dan!”
“Move faster!”
“How many stone projectiles have been gathered? Ninety-jin stones are sufficient, but fifty- or sixty-jin stones will do as well. We need quantity, and we need speed!”
As Xu He bustled about directing the work, rows of trebuchets rose one after another from the ground.
The machines stood staggered and arranged in two lines.
“Look!”
The activity outside naturally did not escape the notice of the Han soldiers on the walls.
One soldier could not help but cry out,
“What is that?”
“Huh? It looks a bit like a trebuchet.”
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
Gulp…
“Could it be that the Yellow Turbans have trebuchets too?”
“It seems a little different, though…”
The Han soldiers on the walls began discussing it among themselves.
Watching the commotion outside the city, an uneasy feeling gradually spread through their ranks.
— The end of the Chapter–
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