Zhang Tai led a group of cavalry and was about to attack and defeat Gongsun Zan's infantry again when he saw a horseman running from the side.
Zhang Tai looked at the lone rider warily, and when he got closer, he saw that it was a red-faced, long-bearded man holding a moon-shaped sword, and it was Guan Yu.
Two Jizhou cavalrymen mounted up and attacked Guan Yu from both sides, wielding halberds.
Guan Yu rode his horse straight towards Zhang Tai without losing speed. After the two Jizhou cavalry thrust out their halberds, he leaned back slightly and drew a cold light with his Yanyue sword.
The two Jizhou cavalrymen felt a chill on their necks and rolled to the ground one after another, leaving only their ownerless horses to continue moving forward.
Zhang Tai felt the cold and murderous intent of the blade. The opponent's sword skills were so precise and neat that his moves looked like an assassin's killing move.
Surrounded by dozens of Zhang Tai's soldiers, Guan Yu's speed did not slow down, and he slashed at Zhang Tai with his sword without fear.
Zhang Tai's hands couldn't help but sweat a little. He asked himself that his spear moves were not as fast as his opponent's. But he still used his excellent kung fu to deflect the sword with his gun.
He needs to get to know this enemy general, because the enemy's attack alone is a challenge. And how could he not be annoyed if he dared to attack and kill his general?
"Guan Yu, Guan Yunchang." Guan Yu said coldly.
"Hejian, Zhang Tai."
After exchanging names, Guan Yu moved his horse forward and slashed at Zhang Tai in a wide arc.
Zhang Tai was able to avoid the blade and lay on his horse, thrusting his spear straight into Guan Yu's chest and abdomen.
Guan Yu took advantage of the situation and sealed the spear with the hilt of the knife. The horse kept slashing at Zhang Tai with diagonal chops.
Zhang Tai also turned sideways to avoid the knife, but he already felt the opponent's strength, and this battle must be very dangerous.
Guan Yu ignored him and rode his horse past Zhang Tai, hacking him. Zhang Tai's personal guards rose up, and dozens of Jizhou knights brandished spears and halberds to surround Guan Yu.
Guan Yu's horses rushed left and right, but no one was his enemy. In a moment, more than ten riders were killed by him.
Zhang Tai was furious when he saw this. This was a naked provocation to a warrior. He stabbed Guan Yu with his spear as if his eyes were red, and this was exactly the result Guan Yu wanted.
Guan Yu blocked the spear move, and after several moves, he suddenly counterattacked with a killing move, which made Zhang Tai unable to defend himself.
After more than a dozen rounds, Zhang Tai gradually became exhausted. At this time, the horse was already a little weak. Unless a divine horse like Chitu can exert power instantly, it will be difficult to escape.
Guan Yu's sword sank one strike at a time, and the killing move caught in between was even more fatal. Guan Yu cut open a piece of armor on Zhang Tai's shoulder with a flick of his wrist, and the Yanyue knife went straight to Zhang Tai's head and neck without losing its force.
Just when Guan Yu wanted to take the opportunity to take Zhang Tai's life, a cold light struck him. The most important thing in Guan Yu's sword practice was surprise attack.
At this time, he was highly concentrated. Although he noticed that Leng Jian had turned sideways in time, the arrow still penetrated into his left arm through the armor. Fortunately, it only pierced the flesh and was not seriously injured.
Zhang Tai took the opportunity to ride his horse out of the battle circle.
Guan Yu looked coldly at the person who attacked him. He was a young man of fifteen or sixteen years old, with a handsome and elegant appearance. He was Yuan Xi who happened to arrive.
When Yuan Xi was excited that he shot Guan Yu with an arrow, he felt Guan Yu's murderous intention as cold as substance.
Yuan Xi usually practiced riding and archery skills with Zhao Yun and others, but they never showed such murderous intent in a real life-and-death struggle to kill people. After all, Yuan Xi was the master and they were ministers.
Yuan Xi was a little out of breath, but after all he was a man who had experienced many trials and tribulations. So what about Guan Yu, a figure who was mythologized by later generations. His martial arts was good but there was still a certain gap compared to Lu Bu. His subordinate Zhao Yun, Xu Chu and Xu Huang were no worse than him.
Moreover, with his arrogant nature, it would not be difficult to kill him in future battles as long as he was properly planned. When he thought about the three bodyguards behind him, he felt even more confident.
Yuan Xi put away his bow, cupped his hands and said, "Is this person Guan Yunchang?"
"That's it. What do you want, Mr. Yuan?" Guan Yu was really arrogant.
"Haha, I wonder what you want here if you are not under the rule of Magistrate Liu?"
"My three brothers are helping Lord Gongsun Zan." Guan Yu said, narrowing his murderous eyes.
Yuan Xi snorted, "Jizhou Mu Hanwenjie wanted to let Jizhou go because of my father's high moral character. Gongsun Zan attacked Jizhou for no reason out of jealousy. It can be said that he has no reputation. Aren't you helping Zhou to commit evil?"
Guan Yu was furious but couldn't think of words to say to him. His red face seemed to be burning.
Xu Chu was afraid that he would get angry and hurt someone, so he held a knife to protect Yuan Xi. Xu Huang also held an ax to defend himself, and Zhao Yun also looked at Guan Yu warily.
Guan Yu knew that the three men were powerful and expected that he would not be able to get any advantage from them, so he handed them over and ran back on horseback.
"Master, why don't you let us chop him to death?" Xu Chu asked.
Yuan Xi struggled for a while, shook his head and said: "Liu Xuande still has value, it is not appropriate to have a grudge against him."
Zhang Tai immediately stepped forward, bowed his hands to Yuan Xi and said, "Thank you, Second Young Master, for saving your life."
Yuan Xi returned the courtesy and said, "We can continue to defeat the remnants of Gongsun Zan's army."
Zhang Tai nodded in agreement, and then everyone continued to lead the army to attack and kill.
When Liu Bei saw Guan Yu coming back with blood on his hands, he exclaimed, "Brother Xian, your injury is serious. Who hurt you?"
Zhang Fei also roared to avenge Guan Yu. Just as Guan Yu was talking to them, Gongsun Zan's cavalry in front finally retreated after their commander fled.
Later, Yuan Shao's army pursued him in a hurry, causing Gongsun Zan's cavalry to trample many of his own infantry. For a time, Gongsun Zan's army was defeated like a mountain. When Liu Bei saw the situation, he couldn't do anything and took Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to escape.
Gongsun Zan organized the remnant army and set up a formation beside the boundary bridge. Ju Yi's first camp also joined a group of infantry and cavalry. Under Yuan Shao's order, the entire army pursued Gongsun Zan's army. He only left more than 300 personal guards.
Ju Yi looked at Zhang Tai, Yan Liang, Wen Chou, Gao Lan, Han Meng, Yuan Xi and others and ordered: "My Lord ordered me to command the entire army to pursue Gongsun Zan's army. What do you think should be done now?"
All the generals shouted that they would take advantage of the victory to attack. Ju Yi nodded and ordered the crossbowmen to line up and fire at Gongsun Zan's remaining army.
Gongsun Zan's gathered remaining troops were already low in morale and became even more unmotivated to fight after several rounds of crossbow volleys.
However, with Gongsun Zan leading his own soldiers to supervise the battle, he had no choice but to erect his shield and hold on hard.
After the rain of arrows, the Jizhou cavalry attacked again with the cooperation of the first camp, and defeated the defenders in a moment.
Yuan Xi couldn't help but feel envious when he saw that he was the first to reach the camp with superb tactical skills, tacit cooperation, and unparalleled bravery.
It's really not easy to defeat Baima Yicong's army. I don't know which one is stronger or weaker than the trap formation practiced by Gao Shun on Lu Bu's side at this time.
After Yuan Shao ordered his troops to pursue Gongsun Zan, he advanced slowly, taking only a hundred strong crossbowmen and two hundred halberd-wielding guards with him.
More than ten miles away from the boundary bridge, a scout came to report that the front had won, and the army pursued Gongsun Zan's army camp.
A smile appeared on Yuan Shao's face. He was a little tired from galloping, so he dismounted, took off his saddle and took a short rest.
Just when he was happy, about two thousand cavalry were slowly surrounded on the right wing, and the scouts hurriedly blew their horns to warn their soldiers.
Tian Feng, who was accompanying him, squinted his eyes and looked at the armor and flags of more than two thousand cavalry, and suddenly felt cold.
It turned out to be Gongsun Zan's escaped cavalry. He realized that the situation was not good and immediately asked Yuan Shao's personal guards to defend on the spot.
The lieutenant in charge of the fleeing cavalry of Gongsun Zan's army on the other side said to the cavalry captain who was leading the army: "If we are defeated, we will be subject to military law. There is a small force of Yuan Shao's army in front. It is better to annihilate it to offset the merit."
The cavalry captain was very impressed and ordered two thousand cavalry to surround Yuan Shao. They did not get close, but took turns riding and shooting. For a while, arrows rained down on Yuan Shao and others.
Several personal guards formed a circle to protect Yuan Shao. Tian Feng also pulled Yuan Shao and asked him to retreat into a low wall. "The enemy army is strong. We will stay away for now. As long as we hold on, the reinforcements will definitely come back." save."
Yuan Shao was furious. He didn't expect that the enemy's defeated army could bully him even after a great victory. In anger, he slammed his helmet on the ground and shouted: "A man would rather rush forward and die in battle. How can he survive by hiding behind the wall?" "
After that, he commanded the crossbowmen to fight, and the defeated army was killed and many of the cavalry were wounded. Yuan Shaoke was more heroic and decisive than Song Zhenzong who was in the Tanyuan Alliance. During the Three Kingdoms period at the end of the Han Dynasty, even the princes of scholar-bureaucrats and aristocratic families were bloody, far from being comparable to the later Song Dynasty.
Ju Yi and others had already led the troops to chase Gongsun Zan first. Yuan Xi, who was still at the boundary bridge, heard the faint sound of fighting behind him and couldn't help being surprised, thinking that Gongsun Zan's army had an ambush, otherwise where would they come from? .
After a second thought, he shouted, "Oh no!" Then he realized that Yuan Shao was still behind him, so he led his cavalry back.
Half of Yuan Shao's three hundred personal guards were dead or injured. If the other party hadn't recognized him and attacked with all their might, he would have been dead and dismembered.
Xu Huang's troops in front had already loaded their crossbows with arrows. After approaching, he led his troops and rode from the side to shoot at Gongsun Zan's defeated army.
The morale of the defeated army was not high to begin with, so the fighting spirit that had been aroused was immediately reduced.
Xu Chu led a small group of cavalry and tiger guards armed with ring-shou swords, and charged into the defeated army from the middle while waving their swords and shouting.
Over there, Xu Huang made a detour and cooperated with Xu Chu to weave among the enemy troops.
After a while, the defeated army was divided into several groups. At that time, they had no intention of resisting and just wanted to escape for their lives. But the more this happened, the faster they retreated.
Xu Huang recognized the enemy commander, raised his ax and struck at him. When he picked up the knife, he killed the Cavalry Commander.
Xu Huang took the opportunity to shout angrily, "Whoever surrenders will not die!"
Gongsun Zan's defeated army, seeing no hope of victory, dismounted and surrendered.
Yuan Xi took Xu Chu and rode up to Yuan Shao, asking with concern: "Is father okay?"
Yuan Shao's face turned a little pale but he smiled and said: "You are little thieves, there is no need to worry, it's just that my son came at the right time."
"The results of the Young Master's troops reflect their cleverness and bravery in combat. It seems that the enemy troops will soon be unable to hold on." Tian Feng said with rare praise.
Jushou didn't say anything, but he still nodded slightly to show his approval.
Yuan Shao said happily: "Our army has won this battle, and Jizhou is stable."
Later historians said that the Battle of Jieqiao was the foundation battle of the Jin Dynasty. From then on, Hebei was completely established. Its political significance was far more important than its military significance. From then on, all the neutral families in Hebei turned to Yuan Shao. The Yuan family has achieved great success, and its potential for dominance has begun to show.
Yecheng
Yecheng is adjacent to the Zhang River in the south and Taihang in the north. It has high walls and thick walls, and is home to many merchants. It is a famous city with great reputation all over the world.
This morning, as soon as the gate of Yecheng was opened, there was a cavalry galloping in the distance like a storm, with a big banner with the word "麴" written on it. At the head, a sturdy Dawan horse with flying hooves leads the tide of cavalry galloping towards them.
The man on the horse has a heavy back and a long sword hanging on his waist. He is looking at Zixiong between his brows and eyes. His eyes seem to be open and closed, as if he does not take anyone in the world seriously, and a long scar on his face is even more... It's daunting.
Seeing this, the soldiers guarding the gate retreated one after another, fearing that they would be trampled under the horses' hooves. After that, everyone whispered: "Could the man riding the white horse in the middle be this arrogant General Qu?"
As this cavalry team of 100 people entered Yecheng, the streets that were originally bustling with people and hawking suddenly became chaotic.
In a corner, a tall and well-dressed young man looked at this scene and muttered angrily. Several fierce soldiers spurred their horses forward and rammed into the crossing carriage. "Ouch, it hurts me to death." The old servant in the carriage fell off the carriage.
"You blind dog slave, how dare you block General Qu's path and not come over to apologize? Do you believe I will strangle you to death?" a fierce soldier said arrogantly. "It was you who rammed my carriage, but not..." the old servant explained while begging for mercy.
The tough soldier was about to whip the old servant with a riding crop when a young man a few feet away stared at him with his hands behind his back. There was a strong man beside the young man.
"Sun Han, what happened? Why did you stop moving forward?"
Just when the soldier named Sun Han was in a dilemma and didn't know what to do, Qu Yi, the recently powerful general in northern Hebei Province, rode out slowly on horseback.
"Let's go back to the general. Just now, an old servant deliberately blocked our way. He clearly doesn't take the general seriously. The general was about to teach this guy a lesson when he was stopped by the young master in front of him..."
Qu Yi waved his hand, interrupted Sun Han's words, and signaled Sun Han to retreat. Then he half-squinted his eyes and looked at the young man in front of him in a condescending manner.
The young man held his head high and looked at Qu Yi without any fear. One is Ju Yi, who is in the limelight recently, and the other is the second son of the Yuan family who is famous all over the world.
If you want to be arrogant, you must have the capital to be arrogant. Obviously Qu Yi has such capital.
Qu Yi betrayed Han Fu, the former shepherd of Jizhou, and assisted Yuan Shao in occupying Jizhou, thus giving Yuan Shao the capital to dominate the world. In the process of Yuan Shao becoming the shepherd of Jizhou, Qu Yi played the most important role.
The following year, Yuan Shao and another powerful prince in North China, Gongsun Zan, met at Jieqiao. Qu Yi led eight hundred elites to charge forward. They were known as "the first to climb to the death" and defeated Gongsun Zan's arrogant "white horse righteous followers". Qu Yi led He led Yan Liang, Yuan Xi and others to kill Gongsun Zan's general Yan Gang, which severely damaged the morale of Gongsun Zan's army and made great achievements for Yuan Shao's army to defeat Gongsun Zan.
This Qu Yi is a good fighter, but it is a pity that he is too tactful in politics, so that "the good bow will be broken before the birds are gone; the lackeys will be cooked before the cunning rabbit is dead." If Gongsun Zan was destroyed, the old man would not be impatient If he had killed Qu Yi, maybe the battle of Guandu would not have been so miserable. Yuan Xi looked at Qu Yi who looked at everything with disdain and sighed.
"Haha, who am I talking about? It turns out to be the second young master. How can the second young master care about it?" Ju Yi said arrogantly.
"Apologise to the old servant and leave." Yuan Xi said calmly. Ju Yi took a breath, took a deep look at Yuan Xi, turned to Sun Han and said, "Apologise to the old man, and then go back to the barracks to get thirty military sticks." Then he rode away without looking back.
Qu Yi didn't want to have any unnecessary entanglement with Yuan Xi. If it weren't for him, damn it, your Yuan family would be where it is today, and you little bastard would dare to teach me a lesson? As Qu Yi rode on, he cursed angrily in his heart.
Of course, I just cursed in my heart, I didn't dare to say it out loud. After all, this is Ye City, and Yuan Shao has many eyes and ears. If this word reaches Yuan Shao's ears, he may be killed. Although Qu Yisui was a martial artist, he was still able to distinguish the interests of others.
Seeing Qu Yi leading his men away in dejection, the women, children, old and young on the street burst into cheers, praising one by one that "the young master of the Zhou Mu family is responsible" and "today we know that there are still many people in Mr. Yuan's family." There is an upright second son."
"Little old man, I would like to thank you for your help. I am very grateful." The old servant saluted.
Before Yuan Xi had time to return the favor, he heard a clear, melodious and beautiful female voice coming from the carriage: "Uncle Zhong, come and pull me out...", and then stretched out a delicate white hand from the cabin, He grabbed the car door and struggled to get out.
The girl had a face as beautiful and refined as a fairy. The fairy's face was covered with frost, her beautiful eyebrows were slightly frowned, and Yuan Xi's heart was beating wildly.
Seeing the old servant hunched over, the girl kept rubbing her back with both hands, as if she had just fallen badly.
Yuan Xi didn't think much, and said: "Old man, take a rest for a while, I'll help you...", then strode to the overturned carriage, reached out and grabbed the jade hand...
However, when the skin was touching and this slender body was held in his hand, Yuan Xi's heart suddenly "thumped" and ripples suddenly appeared...
This hand is so white, better than a lotus root, like snow; and so soft, as if there are no bones, and the skin that can be broken with a finger is glowing with crystal luster, it is not just a piece of handicraft.
"Oh, Uncle Zhong, don't just hold me, use some force to pull me out, I'm going to be suffocated..."
The clear and sweet voice made Yuan Xi hurriedly put away his thoughts. Then he realized that he had lost his composure and hurriedly pulled the girl out of the car.
The moment the girl came out of the car cabin, she was radiant with light, like a fairy descending. She was so gorgeous that Yuan Xi subconsciously stared straight ahead. For a moment, you could hear a needle drop in silence, and the air was condensed by the beauty's appearance.
Her clothes are as white as snow, her silk hair is like a waterfall, her face is like a peach blossom, and her figure is graceful. She is nothing more than a fairy in heaven.
The girl was also a little surprised when she saw that it was not Uncle Zhong who pulled her out. Just now she heard the conversation outside clearly in the carriage. She estimated that the young man in front of her was probably the second young master of the Yuan family who rescued her righteously. She hurriedly broke away from Yuan Xi's hand and saluted Yingying: "Thank you for your help, young master. If it weren't for your righteousness, young master." Frankly speaking, I’m afraid Uncle Zhong and I will be in trouble.”
Yuan Xi calmed down and looked at the girl carefully. She was like the new green growing in the vegetation, delicate, quiet and elegant. The sorrow in his heart drifted away with the water at the moment he looked at her gentle eyes. An opportunity for the beginning of life slowly unfolded in his body. Maybe this is fate.
"Girls don't need to be polite. This is Yecheng, under the rule of my father. This kind of thing shouldn't happen, but we are the ones who are rude to the girl. I hope the girl will understand." Yuan Xi replied happily.
Who knew that this girl was really obedient, and she stopped being polite at that moment. She turned around and asked Uncle Zhong to hitch the carriage and prepare to leave.
This made Yuan Xi very disappointed. Yuan Xi looked at the girl and said infatuatedly: "Its shape is as graceful as a startling giant, as graceful as a swimming dragon. The glory of the autumn chrysanthemums and the lush spring pine trees. It seems as if the moon is covered by blue clouds. , fluttering like snow in the flowing wind...
When the girl saw Yuan Xi looking at her blankly, she was a little angry at first, but when she heard these two words, her eyes suddenly shone with light, as if she was inexplicably inspired by this word.
At this time, Uncle Zhong had already helped the carriage with the help of passers-by, harnessed the bay-red horse, and called the girl to get on the carriage and continue on the road.
Seeing that the girl was about to leave, but he didn't even know her name, Yuan Xi felt inexplicably disappointed. He quickly took two steps, came behind the girl and asked, "Dare you ask her her name?"
The girl smiled brightly: "I am a prostitute, I dare not bother the young master with my thoughts."
Yuan Xi was even more disappointed. It seems that the girl subconsciously does not want to have any entanglement with herself, and just treats it as a chance encounter.
The sound of horse hooves sounded and the wheels of carriages rumbled.
Just after driving a few feet, the car curtain suddenly opened, and the girl poked her head out of the window, smiling brightly at Yuan Xi, showing her neat white teeth: "But we will definitely meet again in the future, we will definitely do it. .”
Looking at the carriage's retreating figure and savoring the girl's words, Yuan Xi's worries turned into joy. Sure enough, there is no way out, but there is another village with dark flowers and bright flowers.
"We will definitely meet again. What do you mean? Why did this girl leave these ambiguous words before leaving?"
Thinking about what the girl said before leaving, Yuan Xi was confused and puzzled.
