Mythical Three Kingdoms

September arrived, marking the beginning of the school year…

”Report!” A lean man with a slightly sallow complexion walked in from outside, greeting Liu Bei and Chen Xi with a salute, immediately quashing Chen Xi’s plans to impart his thoughts to Liu Bei.

”Wen Ze, have the grains from this transportation arrived at the storage?” Liu Bei asked solemnly, his demeanor turning serious as he saw Yu Jin approaching.

”The eighty thousand dan of grains have all been stored successfully. However, the Zhen Family wishes to come and express their gratitude to Lord Xuande for his assistance,” Yu Jin reported with a salute, his face earnest and devoid of any smiles, not showing pride despite leading the New Army to a victory over the Bandits of Mount Tai.

Liu Bei glanced sideways at Chen Xi, and seeing a subtle nod, he understood Chen Xi’s intentions.

”That sounds good, I shall meet with the Zhen Family of Jizhou, known as one of the Five Great Merchants,” Liu Bei said with a smile. ”Wen Ze, you may stay here, as Zichuan likely has some tasks for you.” Having said that, he departed, understanding from Chen Xi’s expression that the Zhen Family intended to place their bets on him. He knew that while the Aristocratic Nobility might not be attracted to him, the Local Tyrants and rich merchants were still willing to offer their support.

Chen Xi looked at Yu Jin; although he himself had promoted Yu Jin from among his subordinate officers, they had only met once or twice in reality. After giving him a Conscription Order and an appointment letter, he dispatched him to train the New Army under Liu Bei. This rescue mission was a test, and clearly, Yu Jin had done very well, befitting his status as one of the Five Sons’ Good Generals.

”Wen Ze, take a seat. I want to know, can the New Army possibly fight a battle now? Of course, I’m not asking about facing a Regular Army, just dealing with the Bandits of Mount Tai. Moreover, it’s only about rounding up the bandits who were defeated. If any rebellion occurs…” Chen Xi made a merciless slashing gesture as he spoke coldly, by now accustomed to his position. He understood that in times of chaos, strict laws were needed to maintain order.

”If we are to face ordinary Bandits of Mount Tai, there should be no issues. However, Mount Tai has four major bandit groups, known as the Four Bandits of Mount Tai. Their forces are run with military discipline, and in terms of formation and bravery, they are not inferior to a Regular Army. Currently, we can only ensure we won’t be defeated, but victory is difficult to achieve,” Yu Jin replied realistically, not boasting but instead giving a factual assessment of the combat power of the mountain bandits.

”There’s no need to worry about Chang Xi, Sun Guan, Wu Dun, and Yi Li. There are others who will deal with their forces. What I want you to do is to gather the bandits. I don’t wish for these guys’ subordinates to scatter everywhere after we defeat them. As for Zang Ba, I suppose he has been defeated by now,” Chen Xi said with a smile.

Just before Chen Xi made this remark, Zang Ba had just been knocked off his horse by a blow from Zhang Fei’s Serpent Spear, probably breaking half of his ribs. The Zang Ba’s Personal Troops, who were claimed to be comparable to the Elite of Danyang, were beaten without mercy by a group led by Hua Xiong, all of whom suffered from psychological ailments, and coupled with Zhang Fei’s sporadic drumming, they managed to split Zang Ba’s Personal Army into several chunks in the mountain warfare. Consequently, Zang Ba, who attempted to break out, suffered an outright defeat at the hands of Zhang Fei.

Zang Ba’s command was not weak; even though Hua Xiong and Zhang Fei, leading five thousand Bandit Army troops, raided Zang Ba’s stronghold, they did not immediately rout Zang Ba’s Personal Troops. Although they initially suppressed Zang Ba’s Army, which was caught off guard, as soon as Zang Ba took personal command and started issuing orders, the tide began to turn quickly.

What followed was a contest of bravery, dispatch, and the clashing of formations. Hua Xiong united all his soldiers, breathing in sporadic unison, forming a continuous line, constantly using their formation to compress the living space of Zang Ba’s Personal Troops.

Hua Xiong’s dispatch was actually quite ordinary; his cavalry could only execute the Spearhead Formation, but their proficiency allowed for instantaneous formation changes—even while marching—which is why Hua Xiong became the cavalry commander of Xiliang. The speed of his formation changes was so fast that it left no opportunity for counteraction.

Now, Hua Xiong realized that, while his new troops were mediocre in other aspects, there was one terrifying aspect: strict obedience to orders. If ordered to change formation, they would do so without hesitation—even if it meant charging into blades—resolutely completing the formation change.

After discovering this, Hua Xiong, without the slightest hesitation, led his troops through various formation transitions—large enclosing small, splitting and reuniting, dispersing without disorder—using a small number of men to carve up Zang Ba’s personal troops. It took nearly a 20 percent casualty rate to achieve this aim, and of course, as a result, Zang Ba’s personal troops also suffered a 10 percent casualty rate and were utterly demoralized.

This spectacle made Zhang Fei’s body chill, and he looked at Hua Xiong as if he were a Celestial God. In ancient times, sustaining a 10 percent casualty rate without breaking was enough to be called elite troops, and losing 30 percent without fleeing could be considered the elite of the era. And now, Hua Xiong, even after taking a 20 percent casualty rate, continued to slaughter Zang Ba’s personal troops with high morale. This was not something that just any good general could achieve.

Zhang Fei naturally did not know that Hua Xiong had brought his men to the brink of mental collapse; their fear of death had become less than their fear of Hua Xiong. Thus, strict obedience to Hua Xiong’s orders was absolute, and morale, for these men, was a non-issue. The spirited slaughter of Zang Ba’s personal troops was simply because Hua Xiong had not given the order to stop.

Putting aside Zhang Fei’s chilled heart, Zang Ba was stunned. To be honest, part of the banditry of Mount Tai was directly made up of Danyang troops, and the old soldiers led a bandit army whose combat power closely rivaled the once-renowned Elite Troops of Danyang, far outclassing the current Danyang troops. Yet, now the Great Han commander, commanding less than a third of his own forces, had utterly routed him without contest.

Zang Ba’s personal troops had been defeated before; they were defeated collectively by the Four Bandits of Mount Tai during the reclamation, and had also been defeated by the Xuzhou soldiers. But none of the defeats were as clean and decisive as this. From the moment the enemy started changing formations, Zang Ba’s defeat unraveled faster and faster like a rolling stone down a hill until it was unstoppable.

Zang Ba wanted to know whom he had offended, why someone would send such a world-class mountain army, capable of claiming to be elite, to extinguish him. He was not without fault, ruling as a king of the mountain, but surely his wrongs were not as extensive as those of the Yellow Turbans. This elite force, instead of eradicating the Yellow Turbans, came after him. Twenty percent, a full twenty percent of his troops fell, but the enemy remained calm as still water with no sign of retreat, while his own personal army was on the verge of fleeing after a 10 percent casualty rate.

Knowing defeat was inevitable, Zang Ba did not struggle further. The enemy was too strong, each time he attempted to change formation, a few words from the enemy sufficed to break his formation apart. This was no longer a symmetric battle. In Zang Ba’s view, he may have encountered one of the rare masters of military strategy. His own command of troops was not bad, he thought, but it was no match for the indifferent Guanzi man, who left no room for him to maneuver.

Recognizing his inevitable defeat, Zang Ba no longer resisted. His only option was to break out, to shatter a section of the encirclement and rally his troops using their strength to escape the weakest point, dispensing with formation. As for that Han man, Zang Ba had no desire to face him ever again.

Zang Ba managed to do it, easily rescuing about a thousand troops, then without a moment’s hesitation, he prepared to take drastic measures, leading these thousand men to break through the vulnerable Northeast corner. He knew all too well that continuing the battle would surely lead to being encircled and annihilated by the enemy.

The breakout was easy, as if the enemy purposefully allowed it. Witnessing this, Zang Ba felt a chill in his heart, but with no way out, he braced himself and charged ahead. There was only one man, a robust man wielding a Serpent Spear. Vaguely, Zang Ba remembered someone, but before he could fully realize who, the Serpent Spear came crashing down on him.