dtnovels Chapter 333 Protagonist and Supporting Character
Chapter 333 Protagonist and Supporting Character
Chapter 333 Protagonist and Supporting Character
"attack!"
General Yuan Shao handed the order to Cao Cao and said in a deep voice.
"As ordered!"
Cao Cao took the token without saying a word, and headed straight for Pinghu Pass with Liu Bei and Sun Ce.
Hua Xiong went out into the battle line and lined up in front of the pass, holding a large spear, with the momentum of one man blocking the pass from ten thousand.
"You cowardly rat, who's going to fight me!" Hua Xiong's voice was like thunder, rolling and moving.
Cao Cao looked at Hua Xiong and shouted, "Who dares to go out and kill Hua Xiong to strengthen our army's prestige?"
Liu Bei and Sun Ce were stunned. Wasn't it a violent attack? Why did they have to fight?
Without waiting for their response, Xiahou Dun rode out of the line and said in a deep voice: "I am willing to take Hua Xiong's head for you!"
"it is good!"
Cao Cao rode on his horse, dominating and overbearing, and said: "For killing Hua Xiong, you will be awarded the third-class merit!"
Xiahou Dun responded, rushed out on his horse, brandished his spear, and shouted, "Hua Xiong, Xiahou Dun wants your head!"
In the first two battles with Sun Ce, Hua Xiong seemed to have gained confidence and was fearless. He shouted loudly and fought together with Xiahou Dun.
Compared to Sun Ce, Xiahou Dun had more experience in fighting. He had the upper hand against Hua Xiong and completely dominated him.
But this veteran from Xiliang was no pushover. He quickly adjusted his state and stopped fighting head-on with Xiahou Dun, instead launching a defensive counterattack.
As Hua Xiong fought conservatively, the battlefield quickly turned into a stalemate. The two sides fought back and forth, and it was obvious that it would take a while to determine the winner.
This scene made Liu Bei and others puzzled. Liu Bei quietly stepped forward and whispered, "General Cao, the rear general ordered us to attack by force. Is this inappropriate?"
Cao Cao looked calm and said, "Lord Xuande is also planning to attack. I think Lord Xuande only has more than 10,000 soldiers?"
Liu Bei hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Then, how do you explain this to the general?"
Liu Bei obviously did not support a strong attack. His more than 10,000 men would only be wasted in vain at such a critical juncture, without getting any credit at all, and would become a wedding gift to Yuan Shao.
"Don't worry, Lord Xuande. I will take care of it," said Cao Cao.
Liu Bei thought about it and didn't say anything.
Not far away, Xiahou Dun and Hua Xiong were still fighting, and the fight was difficult to determine the winner. They were now evenly matched.
"This Hua Xiong is indeed a famous general of Xiliang." Cao Cao commented, and he actually had the idea of recruiting Hua Xiong into his army. He didn't even remember that it was Hua Xiong who set an ambush and almost took his life.
Liu Bei and Sun Ce no longer care about the front line, but are worried about the rear.
What would Yuan Shao’s reaction be if he saw that Cao Cao did not attack but continued to challenge him?
In the rear, Yuan Shao, who was personally supervising the battle, saw the unexpected scene from afar. His face was expressionless, and the anger in his heart was like a flame.
Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao, Zang Hong and others behind him looked at each other, completely unaware of what was going on.
The military advisors, such as Ju Su, Zhang Dao, Xu You, Tian Feng and others, all had different expressions.
After waiting for a while, Xu You seemed to feel that the atmosphere was too strange and quiet, so he stepped forward with a smile and said to Yuan Shao: "General, this Cao Aman disobeyed orders in front of the battle, he should be punished by military law!"
As soon as these words were spoken, Director Zhang, Ju Shou and others seemed to have been touched by something and started to speak one after another.
Director Zhang said in a deep voice: "General Hou, General Cao's actions have damaged the morale of our army. We must not tolerate it!"
Ju Su raised his hand and said coldly, "General Hou, please recall Cao Cao immediately and order Liu Bei and Sun Ce to attack to stabilize the army's morale. The overall situation of defeating Dong Zhuo cannot be shaken!"
Tian Feng saw these people sharpening their knives, and he felt uneasy. He stepped forward and said, "General Hou, Cao Mengde is the general appointed by the imperial decree. You must not move rashly, otherwise the coalition forces will collapse and the consequences will be disastrous."
Yuan Shao listened to their words, and suddenly waved his hand, scolding them: "Before the battle, how can you have the opportunity to talk nonsense?"
Xu You, Zhang Dao, and Ju Su were startled. Just as they were about to continue speaking, Yuan Shao looked at Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao, and the others and asked, "What do you think?"
Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao and others were loyal to the imperial court and intended to unite with Cao Cao, but under Yuan Shao's manipulation, they believed that only Yuan Shao could destroy Dong Zhuo, so they approached Yuan Shao.
Seeing that Cao Cao was not putting in any effort, he felt torn, but he couldn't really bear to watch Yuan Shao punish Cao Cao by military law at this time.
Zhuge Xuan pretended to be silent and said, "General Hou, it is customary to challenge the enemy before a battle to strengthen the army's prestige. General Cao has been in many battles and should know this. Maybe he has some plans. Let's take a look."
Liu Yao followed up and said, "Brother Zhuge is right. General Hou, please wait and see. I believe General Yangwei and the governor of Xuzhou have their own plans."
Liu Yao calmly pointed out the "General Yangwei" and "Mover of Xuzhou". Not to mention the background of Cao Cao and Liu Bei, just these two official positions were not something that Yuan Shao could easily touch.
Yuan Shao was not angry at all. Instead, he nodded in agreement and said, "You two are right. We don't need to be anxious. You should also stop talking too much and disturb our army. Please retreat."
When Ju Shou, Zhang Dao, Xu You and others saw this, they immediately understood what was going on and raised their hands to retreat.
Tian Feng secretly thought that this was not good. Yuan Shao's remarks pushed Cao Cao, Liu Bei and others to the opposite side of the coalition forces!
Yuan Shao did not react to Cao Cao's disobedience and refusal to attack, but instead reprimanded his staff.
The leaders of the various allied forces looked at Pinghu Pass with different thoughts, but they all felt dissatisfied with Cao Cao's behavior and admired Yuan Shao's magnanimity.
At Pinghu Pass, Xiahou Dun and Hua Xiong fought, and both sides were evenly matched, so they agreed to withdraw their troops.
Cao Cao and others looked at Pinghu Pass again, withdrew their troops, made a fire and cooked, but did not join Yuan Shao.
"Brother, when I see Cao Cao, I don't want to attack by force!" Zhang Fei, who had wanted to go on the battlefield to teach Hua Xiong a lesson several times but didn't get Cao Cao's consent, couldn't help but shouted as Liu Bei and Cao Cao separated.
Liu Bei walked along with a normal expression, saying, "Don't talk nonsense, Third Brother. General Cao has his own arrangements."
Liu Bei knew in his heart that Cao Cao did have his own plans, but he couldn't guess and could only take things one step at a time.
Guan Yu held a long sword in his hand, his eyes full of disdain, and said calmly: "Hua Xiong is just a brave man. I can kill him in less than ten moves."
Liu Bei knew that his second brother thought highly of himself and could not see other people, but he agreed with him and said, "Don't say too much in the afternoon, let's wait and see. I always feel that General Cao has a plan to break through the pass."
Guan Yu was slightly curious, but said, "Brother, our food and grass can't last more than ten days."
Compared with Cao Cao's ability to "raise food", Liu Bei's way of raising money and food was basically to hold up the banner of "benevolence" and "loyalty and bravery" and beg for help everywhere, but it was not very effective, so he had few soldiers and little food.
"I'll find a way." Liu Bei replied without hesitation. He had actually thought about it a long time ago, and the solution was nothing more than borrowing some from Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, who had more soldiers and more food.
On the other side, Cao Cao was also very busy at this moment.
Liu Yao, Zhuge Xuan and others visited one after another, trying to find out Cao Cao's specific movements and purposes.
How could Cao Cao talk to these people? He welcomed them in with a smile and sent them out with a smile, without telling them a single truth.
Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao and others were confused, but they couldn't let Yuan Shao and Cao Cao fall out, so they ran back to Yuan Shao's camp and tried their best to persuade him.
Yuan Shao was even more calm than Cao Cao. He appeased these people and not only promised to recommend them to the court, but also allocated much-needed food and fodder to them, which made Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao and others very grateful.
After Zhuge Xuan and the others left, Director Zhang snorted coldly and said, "General, Cao Cao disobeyed orders, and Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao and the others deliberately protected him. They should be punished with the same crime!"
Yuan Shao stood outside the tent with his hands behind his back, and said, "I am curious about what Cao Mengde is going to do."
Judging from the current situation, Yuan Shao has more soldiers and food, and compared to him, Cao Cao should attack more eagerly.
Cao Cao had tried every trick in the book before, dividing his troops and running to Pinghu Pass. He should have launched a fierce attack, but now he is fighting the generals neither hurriedly nor slowly. Even a fool can see that Cao Cao has other plans!
Ju Su stepped forward and said, "General, according to my order, you still have to win over Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao and others. Even if you deal with Cao Cao in the future, these people will have nothing to say, and the court will have nothing to say either."
Yuan Shao turned a deaf ear and stared in Cao Cao's direction motionlessly.
Xu You immediately saw the fear in Yuan Shao's heart, stepped forward with a smile and said, "General, according to my guess, Cao Cao's granary can only hold out for half a month at most."
Yuan Shao turned around suddenly and asked, "Half a month? Didn't you say half a year before?"
Xu You smiled even more and said, "I guess that's a cover-up. How much food and grass would Cao Cao need for half a year for his 40,000-man army? Yingchuan and Runan are already exhausted, and the court is in trouble. How can Cao Cao get half a year's worth of food and grass?"
Yuan Shao's eyes widened and glowed, and he asked, "Ziyuan, are you sure?"
"Perfect!" Xu You said without hesitation.
Yuan Shao still didn't quite believe it, so he turned to Zhang Dao and Ju Su with inquiring eyes.
Director Zhang and Ju Shou looked at each other, both feeling unsure.
Cao Cao has always been cunning, and no one can judge whether the information leaked from his army is true or false.
Seeing that they were silent, Yuan Shao was a little annoyed and said calmly: "If Cao Cao is still so perfunctory this afternoon, how should we deal with it?"
Cao Cao was General Yangwei and Liu Bei was the governor of Xuzhou, both of them represented the imperial court. Even if there was solid evidence, Yuan Shao could not do anything to them easily, not to mention that they had nearly 70,000 soldiers and horses in their hands!
Zhang Dao was the most radical person. When he saw Yuan Shao asking back, he immediately said, "General, then punish him. Even if we can't punish him, we should make him alienated from Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao and others and isolate him!"
Yuan Shao's most important strategy now is to annex Zhuge Xuan, Liu Yao and more than a dozen other armies to expand his strength.
"insufficient!"
Xu You spoke again, loudly saying: "General Hou, we should attach equal importance to grace and authority, with grace first and authority second. Grace has been given, and the general is now the authority of the world."
Yuan Shao trusted Xu You very much and asked quickly, "Ziyuan, how do you show your power?"
Xu You looked towards Pinghu Pass and said calmly, "No matter what Cao Aman's plan is, we should withdraw him first and let the general personally supervise the battle. We have all seen Hua Xiong, he is just a ruthless man. Cao Cao has been fighting him for many days and has not been able to defeat him. When the time comes, the general will send a senior general to kill him on the battlefield. Who would dare to go against the general's words?"
Yuan Shao was very excited and said, "Ziyuan's plan is better than Su and Zhang's!"
After saying this, he looked at Pinghu Pass and said in a deep voice: "Tomorrow, I will personally lead the army to Pinghu Pass and kill Hua Xiong to restore the prestige of the army!"
"General, you are wise!" Xu You offered the horse immediately.
Zhang Dao, Ju Shou and others had no time to make further suggestions and could only raise their hands in agreement. They glanced at the complacent Xu You with eyes as cold as lightning.
On the other side, after Cao Cao and others finished their meal, they led their troops forward again.
Hua Xiong fought Sun Ce and Xiahou Dun in succession without being defeated. He was even more powerful and was the first to challenge them. Holding a large spear in hand, he shouted, "You are all nameless rats. Cao Cao, do you dare to fight with anyone with a name?"
Upon hearing this, Cao Cao looked around and it seemed that there were indeed no famous generals among his men. Xu Chu, who was extremely powerful, had not yet become famous. As his royal guard captain, he could not go into battle.
Cao Cao clearly sensed that Liu Bei was about to speak, so he said decisively: "Zixiao, you will go to the battle!"
Although Cao Ren was not a general known for his military prowess, he was not afraid. He rode out on his horse, spear in hand, and galloped as fast as lightning.
Liu Bei swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue. Guan Yu, who was standing beside him, had already clenched his sword tightly, and his eyes were flickering with anger.
Liu Bei calmly reached out to stop Guan Yu and stood there with an expressionless face.
Sun Ce took everything in and exchanged glances with Cheng Pu and the others.
Cheng Pu and Huang Gai also realized that Cao Cao seemed to be intentionally suppressing Liu Bei.
Not far away, soldiers from both sides were shouting and cheering for their generals.
Cao Ren and Hua Xiong exchanged a few insults and then started fighting.
Compared with Xiahou Dun's aggressive tactics, Cao Ren was more tactical. He rushed back and forth, looking for Hua Xiong's weaknesses, and did not force a fight.
Seeing this, Hua Xiong waved his spear and shouted, "How dare you, a cowardly rat, challenge me!"
This kind of provocation had no effect on Cao Ren at all. He dodged nimbly and attacked cleverly, making Hua Xiong unable to defend himself and quite annoyed.
The shouting soldiers on both sides stamped their feet on the ground and beat their weapons in support of their general.
Cao Cao looked at Cao Ren who had the upper hand and laughed loudly. He said to Liu Bei beside him, "Lord Xuande, how about Cao Ren?"
Liu Bei was furious, but he smiled and said, "Very brave."
Under normal circumstances, he would have given more compliments, but in front of his second brother Guan Yu, he had to be frugal with his words.
Cao Cao was very satisfied. He stroked his beard and said, "Mr. Xuande, thank you for your praise."
Liu Bei suppressed his anger, put on a smile and said nothing more.
Guan Yu, who was standing next to him, had an arrogant and indifferent expression, and he looked at Cao Ren with more and more disdain in his phoenix eyes.
At this time, a soldier quietly came to Cao Cao and whispered in his ear for a while.
Cao Cao remained calm and asked, "Who revealed it?"
The soldier glanced at Liu Bei and the others, hesitated, and said, "I wonder which military advisor in the rear general's shogunate it is."
Cao Cao thought silently for a while, waved away his soldiers, and said with a smile to Liu Bei, Sun Ce and others: "Lord Xuande, Bofu, the rear general is very dissatisfied with our fight, and has decided to withdraw us and come in person tomorrow."
Liu Bei and Sun Ce were stunned. Yuan Shao was so impatient that he wanted to replace Cao Cao in just one day?
Or fighting generals?
What exactly did Yuan Shao and Cao Cao want to do? What was their plot?
Sun Ce and Liu Bei were relatively "simple" people. They played supporting roles in the coalition against Dong Zhuo. They were greatly confused and puzzled by the fighting between the two protagonists, Yuan Shao and Cao Cao.