Chapter 224: Battle of Hulao Pass

"I want to go!"

Jibei Xiang Bao Xin stepped out and clasped his fists, saying, "What the leader said is correct!"

"Even if Dong Zhuo's army is made of iron, don't we have magical weapons that can cut through iron like mud?"

Bao Xin glanced at Cao Cao and said, "The time has come to serve our country!"

"I'm not like some people who are timid!"

Don't make this sarcasm too obvious.

Cao Cao understood what he said, and he stood up and said, "I am looking for the best way from the perspective of military strategy. Don't you understand this?"

At this time, Wang Kuang, the governor of Henei, stood up again and strongly supported Yuan Shao, saying: "The first push is the best, the second is weaker, and the third is exhausted!"

"Morale is high now, it's a good time to launch an attack."

"Are you the only one who understands the art of war?"

Facing the siege, Cao Cao was extremely angry and laughed: "You all misunderstood. I, Cao Cao, am just a coward. Please do as you please!"

After saying this, Cao Cao turned away.

But this joke was taken seriously by others, and they started talking about it.

Yuan Shao's role as the leader of the alliance was reflected: "Stop arguing!"

"Meng De is just confused for the moment. I believe he will figure it out one day."

"The military situation is urgent, everyone actively prepare for war!"

The princes then dispersed to prepare for the next offensive.

Outside Hulao Pass.

Bao Xin, wearing double armor, personally braved the arrows and stones to break through the pass and break the enemy's formation. The morale of the entire army was greatly boosted, and the soldiers rushed forward without regard for their lives.

Dong's army was defeated one after another, but there was no new reinforcement.

Cao Cao immediately noticed something was wrong and went to Yuan Shao and said, "Master, there may be a conspiracy in Guanzhong. Retreat your troops immediately."

Yuan Shao had just saved Cao Cao's face in front of all the princes, but who would have thought that this guy was not only ungrateful, but also wanted to embarrass him again in front of everyone.

You can't stand seeing others achieve great things, right?

outrageous!
"Captain Cao, listen to my orders!"

Yuan Shao was not indulging Cao Cao at all: "I order you to go to the rear army to supervise the food supply. Don't make any mistakes!"

"Violators will be subject to military law!"

Cao Cao wanted to say something else.

suddenly.

There were cheers coming from Hulao Pass.

A flag with the word "Bao" on it was erected on the city wall, indicating that Bao Xin had made great contributions and was the first to break through into Guanzhong.

"Okay!"

Yuan Shao clapped his hands and said in joy: "Prefect Bao is a man of both civil and military talents. If he can bring back the emperor, I will make him the General of the Western Expedition!"

Now it has not reached the point where generals are running all over the place. The "General who Conquers the West" mentioned by Yuan Shao is Cao Cao's lifelong pursuit, a big boss who can set up his own government and hold the imperial seal!

It can also be seen from the side that Yuan Shao was using words to mock Cao Cao.

"Look, Bao Xin is so powerful, he broke through the barriers in one go, and you are jealous." It's probably something like this.

How could Cao Cao not hear it, but as the military advisor of the entire campaign, he had to stand up and explain all the risks.

"Dong Zhuo cheated!"

"Alliance leader, quickly send someone to stop Governor Bao from pursuing us. There must be an ambush behind us!"

Cao Cao wanted to explain a little more. It was clear from the evidence of the defenders' retreat that they were an elite group and could not be easily defeated.

There is only one reason why he could be defeated so easily, and that is cheating!
However, Yuan Shao was so overwhelmed by victory that he was willing to listen.

"The whole army obeys the order!"

"Follow me and help Governor Bao!"

The order was given, but all the princes were queuing up outside Hulao Pass to enter the pass, and Bao Xin's troops in front had not yet fully entered.

There are waterways around, but the coalition forces have no navy.

Everyone waited anxiously.

Three hours later.

Bao Xin, Wang Kuang, Liu Dai, and Yuan Yi's troops, a total of 80,000 people, had entered Hulao Pass, but the fifth person to enter the pass was Cao Cao.

Cao Cao was worried that Dong's army would counterattack and disperse the coalition forces in one go. If that happened, a stampede would occur and the entire coalition would be destroyed, which would be disastrous.

Whatever you worry about will come true.

Cao Cao had just led his troops into the pass, and before he could fully control the defense, the pursuing troops in front of him collapsed and returned.

It goes without saying that Cao Cao's prediction came true and Dong Zhuo was just cheating.

The same is true.

Dong Zhuo sent Xu Rong to lead his elite troops to feign defeat and lure the enemy deeper into the battlefield.
Li Jue was ordered to lead the elite Feixiong Army to intercept the ambush halfway, and defeat the vanguard Bao Xin's troops in one fell swoop, and then use the high mobility of the cavalry to drive away the defeated soldiers like herding sheep and attack the friendly forces.

Bao Xin advanced recklessly and died on the battlefield. His troops were leaderless and unable to organize effective resistance, so they rushed towards Wang Kuang's troops.

Most of Wang Kuang's troops were strong crossbowmen, and there were no decent infantrymen who could stop this group of fleeing soldiers. They were defeated in an instant.

Fortunately, Wang Kuang saw the opportunity early and escaped quickly, otherwise he would have followed in Bao Xin's footsteps.

It was Wang Kuang's behavior that led to the complete collapse of his army.

The main general has run away, so what is there to fight for?
Next, Liu Dai and Yuan Yi had the foresight to stop the fleeing soldiers.

But the two of them together only have 30,000 troops. How can they stop more than 40,000 fleeing soldiers?

By the time they reached Hulao Pass, only 30,000 of the more than 70,000 defeated soldiers were left. They passed through the border like a swarm of locusts, flattening everything in their path.

Cao Cao immediately raised a flag with the Chinese character "Cao" on it and issued an order: "Whoever enters the pass will be shot dead within an arrow's reach!"

When the first wave of fleeing soldiers were killed by Cao's army, some people could no longer sit still and started shouting and cursing.

But Cao Cao turned a deaf ear to it.

The fleeing soldiers are not soldiers, but the enemy's swords. If you are not careful, they will kill you.

Soon, the three main generals Wang Kuang, Liu Dai and Yuan Yi arrived at the pass and knocked on the gate.

"Cao Cao! Open the door quickly!"

As Yuan Shao's cousin, Yuan Yi was the most intimidating to Cao Cao. He was the first to speak and scolded: "If you don't open the door, I will punish you in front of the leader of the alliance!"

Cao Cao did not indulge Yuan Yi and said with a sly smile: "Let's talk about it when you can return alive."

"I'm going to get some sleep first."

Having said that, he really went down the customs.

"Cao Aman!"

Yuan Yi roared in anger, "I can never coexist with you!"

But it turned out to be useless.

Wang Kuang was terrified: "What should the two of you do now? I don't want to die here!"

Yuan Yi and Liu Dai looked at Wang Kuang with disdain.

Liu Dai said calmly: "Those who can still escape are all elite soldiers in the army. If we want to survive, we should organize people to resist Dong's army's pursuit."

"If we can defeat Dong's army, we can then return to settle accounts with Cao Cao!"

"That's right!" Yuan Yi was the first to agree and take action, assuming temporary command: "Gongjie (Wang Kuang's courtesy name) gathers the strong crossbowmen, Gongshan (Liu Dai's courtesy name) organizes the reserve troops, and I will lead my trusted followers to resist in the front."

When life is threatened, the human brain is stimulated and becomes smarter.

Under normal circumstances, the three of them would have had no organizational skills, but now they quickly put together the framework of the resistance army.

When the Flying Bear Army led by Li Jue showed up, Wang Kuang gave the order: "Shoot!"

More than a thousand powerful crossbowmen who had just been organized fired a volley, and the crossbow arrows flew towards the Feixiong Army at an extremely fast speed.

Then, it was scattered on the ground fifty steps in front of the Feixiong Army.

Under such circumstances, Yuan Yi and Liu Dai wanted to kill Wang Kuang.

The opportunity that was finally obtained was wasted. You know, the crossbowmen are very slow in reloading, and one person can't do it, even if there are two people, it will take several minutes.

Such a long time is enough for the Flying Bear Army to rush in and slaughter a group of people.

Unexpectedly, Wang Kuang's cowardly behavior seemed to scare off the Feixiong Army.

Li Jue and his men turned around and ran away.

It was not until the Feixiong Army disappeared that Yuan Yi and the other two seemed exhausted. They lay on their horses, gasping for breath and sweating profusely.

Fortunately, the soldiers were not in a much better condition, and they collapsed to the ground in a humiliating manner.

at this time!

Li Jue made a surprise counterattack and reappeared with a thousand Feixiong soldiers.

Seeing this, Yuan Yi and others were filled with despair.

No one expected that Li Jue would be so cunning, relying on the high mobility of the Feixiong Army to tease the coalition forces back and forth.

but!

People like Yuan Yi don't know that this is the correct way to use cavalry, or rather, the ancient way of using cavalry is to harass and attack repeatedly.

but! !
Yuan Yi doesn’t know, but someone knows!

Cao Cao had anticipated this scene long ago. When the Feixiong Army pretended to retreat, they had already dug open the gate of Hulao Pass.

However, Yuan Yi and others were so focused on fighting the enemy that they did not notice anything unusual behind them.

When the Feixiong Army cast a spell to immobilize everyone, Cao Cao just happened to lead two thousand cavalrymen to break out of the crowd.

When Li Jue saw Cao Cao, he knew that the situation was hopeless and he would not use a thousand Flying Bear troops to attack two thousand light cavalry.

That's too stupid. There are nearly 20,000 defeated soldiers nearby.

Under normal circumstances, there is nothing to be afraid of these rabble, but if the Feixiong Army is entangled by Cao Cao, then it would be hard to say.

With one thousand men against twenty thousand, Li Jue had the confidence to attack back and forth a few times, but he did not have the confidence to report to Dong Zhuo.

So, Li Jue decided to quit while he was ahead and ran away.

Cao Cao thought his prediction was accurate and was very proud of himself.

Yuan Yi and the others didn't have any ideas. They just wanted to evacuate to a safe place as soon as possible. They were scared out of their wits.

However, it is not so easy to leave safely!

Half an hour later.

Li Jue passed the news back to Dong Zhuo, who immediately ordered: "Send out all the cavalry!"

"I want to take back Hulao Pass!"

It has to be said that Dong Zhuo had a very keen sense of war. Within a few hours at night, the ownership of Hulao Pass would change.

And now in front of Hulao Pass, people are still criticizing Cao Cao for not opening the gate just now.

"Cao Cao! I guarantee it! You are really finished!"

Yuan Yi's saliva was almost spitting on Cao Cao's face, after all he was the person with the highest status among all the people present.

Cao Cao is just Yuan Shao's younger brother, but Yuan Yi is Yuan Shao's cousin!
"Open the door for me now!"

After Yuan Yi finished his rant, Liu Dai said sinisterly, "Cao Mengde, I will inform the world of what you did today through a proclamation!"

"Let everyone see what kind of person you are!"

Wang Kuang was the weakest and pleaded with Cao Cao, "Meng De, we are old acquaintances. Please let me pass."

The weather was a bit chilly in late autumn, and Wang Kuang felt a chill in his crotch. He didn't want to stay in this damn place for a moment.

However, Cao Cao still had a sly smile on his face. He rode on his warhorse and pointed behind everyone and said, "Dong Zhuo will come again."

"If I let you pass, and Dong Zhuo is chasing us, your 20,000-plus soldiers will become defeated, and my 10,000-plus troops will also suffer."

"If I am defeated too, then the coalition will be defeated, completely defeated!"

Then, Cao Cao roared: "You only have two options!"

"Either turn back and resist Dong Zhuo, or die here!"

After saying this, Cao Cao turned back to the cavalry formation and ordered his troops to attack at any time.

Yuan Yi and the other two did not expect that Cao Cao would be so ruthless and determined to force them to death.

Wang Kuang was the first to hold back and shouted, "Crossbowmen, get ready!"

"Shoot the thief Cao!"

As humble as Wang Kuang was before, he became as crazy now. He completely ignored the friendly forces and wanted to kill Cao Cao to vent his anger.

Cao Cao never expected that the ally he had just rescued would turn around and give him a blow.

Seeing the soldiers on both sides falling down like wheat being cut, Cao Cao felt heartbroken. He reined in his horse and turned around, his eyes full of bloodshot, and roared: "Kill! Kill these bandits for me!"

Due to lack of defense, this round of shooting caused Cao Cao to lose more than 200 cavalrymen. These were his beloved ones, and they died just like that.

unforgivable!

Thus, the first internal conflict among the Kanto coalition forces occurred.

However, when Cao Cao led his men into the fleeing army, he found that the resistance was greater than he had imagined.

It's like running into a Category 10 typhoon, unable to move forward.

After finally breaking out of the encirclement, they ran head-on into Dong Zhuo's cavalry.

The leader is still Li Jue!

The so-called enemies are extremely jealous when they meet.

Li Jue lost face in front of Cao Cao and vowed to get it back, and he used a killing move as soon as they met.

"You thief! Give me your life!"

In terms of martial arts, Li Jue was clearly superior, and Cao Cao knew he was no match after just one round of confrontation.

"Don't panic, big brother!" Xiahou Dun rode forward and shouted, "I'm here to help you!"

This time Dong Zhuo sent out all his cavalry, not just Li Jue.

"Rebel, look out for the knife!" Guo Si rushed out from the side and met Xiahou Dun.

"Don't hurt my elder brother!" Xiahou Yuan also rushed over.

"Hahaha!" Zhang Ji laughed and said, "Li Jue, Guo Si, I'm here to help you!"

"Look at the gun!"

Li Jue and Guo Si shouted at the same time: "Zhang Ji, get out of here!"

Then they each chased after their opponents.

At this time, Cao Ren and Cao Hong also arrived, and Cao Cao finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Uncle, I'm here to help you!"

Unexpectedly, a handsome young general in a white robe jumped out from behind Zhang Ji. His spear skills were quite mysterious. Cao Ren and Cao Hong were entangled and unable to escape.

"Haha!" Zhang Ji laughed loudly and said, "Xiu'er is worthy of being the proud son of the Zhang family. I will come to help you after I capture this fellow alive!"

Xiahou Yuan was so humiliated that he started to explode: "Old bastard! Die!"

For a moment, Zhang Ji was suppressed and had no words to chat.

Fortunately, Cao Cao saw the situation clearly and knew that it was impossible to do anything, so he ordered: "Sound the horn and withdraw the troops!"

But for a while, he couldn't break free from Dong Jun.

Seeing that there were fewer and fewer soldiers around him, Cao Cao knew that he could not delay any longer and once again demonstrated his ability to escape.

"Follow me to break out!"

Cao Cao determined the direction and led his men to run south. Over there was the towering Songshan Mountain, and he could only pray that there was a mountain road to take.

With the help of four generals, Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan, a gap was opened in Dong's army.

Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji and others wanted to give pursuit, but the soldiers under their command were disobedient and only wanted to kill the defeated soldiers in exchange for military merit.

It was just a matter of letting Cao Cao go. Li Jue and others focused on the present and taking Hulao Pass first.

If things are done well, Dong Zhuo will be easy to talk to. But if things go wrong, no one will have an easy time!
In this way, Cao Cao escaped death again, and fled southward along the rugged mountain road of Songshan with dozens of cavalry.

(End of this chapter)