Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1146 Unable to withstand the first blow, the momentum was unstoppable

Inside the tent, the candlelight flickered wildly in the wind, casting a dappled glow on Zhang Hong's panicked figure. He paced back and forth, clutching his sleeves, his heels scraping the floor with a frantic sound: "Zibu! What's going on? How could Ma Chao suddenly attack here? Twenty thousand soldiers! How could they have arrived without a sound..."

Zhang Zhao gripped the table, his fingertips turning white from the force, but he forced a calm expression: "What's the panic? It's just a cavalry raid. General Lü Dai is a seasoned veteran; he'll surely hold his ground. Twenty thousand against a few thousand—we have the numerical advantage; we can wear them down."

“But the sounds of fighting outside…” Zhang Hong listened intently to the increasingly close shouts of battle outside the tent, his voice trembling, “This doesn’t sound right, I have to go and see, I have to go and see!”

As he spoke, he rushed out, and Gu Yong, Lu Jun, and the others hurriedly followed, the group rushing towards the camp in a panic. Zhang Zhao lagged behind, and out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the young general He Qi standing at the corner of the tent. He suddenly slowed his pace and secretly gave him a wink.

He Qi was taken aback, then understood. He quietly slowed his pace, and once everyone had gone far away, the two of them quickly disappeared into the shadows behind the tent.

"He Qi, hurry! Prepare the fast horses!" Zhang Zhao lowered his voice, his previous composure gone, replaced by urgency. "If we're too late, we won't be able to leave!"

He Qi hesitated, "Sir, there are still 20,000 troops ahead. General Lü Meng is fighting a desperate battle in Shuxian. Even if our rear is cut off, we may still have a fighting chance..."

"Foolish!" Zhang Zhao grabbed his arm suddenly, his nails almost digging into the other's flesh. "Ma Chao was able to appear out of thin air in Moling and successfully storm this place. Do you think Cheng Pu and Huang Gai are just for show? They must have already conspired with Zhou Yu and Ma Chao! Lü Meng's side is fighting alone, and they're bound to be defeated sooner or later!"

He took a breath, a flicker of fear in his eyes: "Our families have already been moved to Nanhai County. It's remote there, and Ma Chao can't reach us anytime soon. If we join them, we'll have a chance to survive! Stay here? Are we just waiting to be wiped out by Ma Chao? Have you forgotten what happened to those powerful families in Wu County? Their property was confiscated, their land was divided, and any resistance resulted in the execution of their entire families!"

He Qi felt a chill run down his spine at his words. News of Ma Chao's ruthlessness towards powerful families had already spread throughout Wu Commandery; if captured, he would face dire consequences. He dared not hesitate any longer, gritting his teeth, "Sir, you are right! This humble general will immediately prepare the horses!"

The two dared not use the main gate, and taking advantage of the chaos in the camp, they slipped out through a gap in the rear fence. He Qi had prepared ten fast horses in advance, and Zhang Zhao almost fell off when he mounted one, his hand gripping the reins trembling uncontrollably.

"South! Hurry!" Zhang Zhao urged, his voice trembling with fear.

He Qi's personal guards protected Zhang Zhao, and ten fast horses carried them, galloping headlong towards Nanhai County without looking back. The sounds of fighting and screams from the camp behind them grew fainter and fainter. Zhang Zhao glanced back and saw that the battle flag of the Xiliang Iron Cavalry had been raised above the camp. The black flags fluttered in the wind like a death warrant.

He shivered and spurred his horse hard: "Faster! Faster!"

At this moment, he no longer cared about the foundation of Jiangdong or the honor and disgrace of his family; all that remained in his mind was the thought of "escaping for his life."

Meanwhile, Zhang Hong, Gu Yong, and others at the front of the camp were still anxiously rushing to the front lines, completely unaware that their "backbone" had already abandoned them, leaving behind only a group of lambs to the slaughter, facing the impending reckoning.

The shouts of battle outside the camp were deafening. Lü Dai, surrounded by his guards, charged forward, only to see Ma Chao had already broken through the encirclement. His silver armor shone like a blazing fire amidst the chaos. He watched helplessly as Ma Chao swung his spear, sending a lieutenant flying several feet. The blood dripping from the spear tip splattered on the dust, a horrifying sight.

"Lü Dai! Today is your death day!" Ma Chao's voice boomed like thunder. He thrust his tiger-headed golden spear forward, its sharp whistling cutting through the air as it hurtled straight at Lü Dai.

Lu Dai was intimidated by this fierce momentum, and a sudden panic gripped his heart. He forgot to order a resistance. His guards roared and charged forward with their spears, but it was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot—Ma Chao's spear flashed, and with several muffled thuds, several guards were already knocked off their horses, their blood splattering all over Lu Dai.

The golden spear, whistling sharply, aimed straight at his face. Lü Dai hastily raised his sword to parry, but with a loud clang, the blade was jolted out of his hand, and his hand instantly split open, blood trickling down between his fingers. He could no longer maintain his balance and fell off his horse with a thud, landing in the mud.

Ma Chao reined in his horse, his eyes sharp as ice: "Tie him up!"

His personal guards immediately stepped forward and bound Lü Dai tightly. Lü Dai struggled to lift his head, looked at Ma Chao's blood-stained golden spear, and finally collapsed to the ground, utterly powerless to resist.

"General, don't panic! Your humble servant will save you!" Pan Zhang, seeing his commander captured, was furious and charged forward with his sword drawn.

Ma Chao sneered, turning his horse around: "You cowards, how dare you provoke a tiger?" Before his words were finished, his golden spear shot out like a venomous snake, aiming straight for Pan Zhang's heart. Pan Zhang hastily swung his sword to meet the attack, but he was no match for Ma Chao. With a "thud," the spear tip pierced through his chest. Pan Zhang's eyes widened, blood gushed from his mouth, and he slowly collapsed from his horse.

On the left flank, Taishi Ci, despite his shoulder injury, wielded his spear with the ferocity of a storm. The young general Chu Ying initially tried to resist with superior numbers, but after only ten exchanges, he was forced to retreat repeatedly by Taishi Ci, his hands numb. Seeing Lü Dai captured and Pan Zhang killed, he panicked completely. He feinted an attack and turned his horse to flee towards the rear of the camp.

"Where do you think you're going!" Taishi Ci shouted, his left hand flashing out, and a short halberd flew from his back, striking Chu Ying squarely in the back. Chu Ying screamed and fell from his horse, never to be heard from again.

On the right flank, Pang De stood like an iron tower, wielding his broadsword and charging through the chaotic army. He led his troops to outflank the rear camp, where he encountered Dong Xi leading a troop of soldiers in a hasty retreat. Dong Xi, seeing Pang De charging towards him, was terrified, but was pushed forward by his personal guards to meet the attack.

Pang De, too lazy to waste words, swung his broadsword down at Dong Xi's head. Dong Xi barely managed to parry, but as the blades clashed, he felt his arm go numb, and after only twenty or thirty exchanges, he was exhausted.

"General, spare my life! This humble general is willing to surrender!" Dong Xi threw down his broadsword, dismounted, and was about to kneel down.

But the soldiers behind him had already lost their composure and were only concerned with charging forward, causing Dong Xi to stumble. Pang De frowned; he hated deserters the most. Without answering, he swung his sword backhand, and Dong Xi's head was already flying into the air.

"Ah!" Dong Xi screamed once before his body crashed to the ground. Pang De sneered and pointed his sword at the fleeing soldiers: "Anyone who dares to escape again will suffer the same fate as this man!"

Upon seeing this, the soldiers stopped in their tracks, looked at each other in dismay, and finally threw down their weapons and knelt down to surrender.

The wind, carrying the stench of blood, swept across the battlefield, and the sounds of fighting gradually subsided. Ma Chao stood in the center of the army, his golden spear resting on the ground, looking at the routed soldiers and prisoners scattered all over the ground. He said to Taishi Ci and Pang De, "Clean up the battlefield, count the prisoners, take Lü Dai and Dong Xi back to camp, and divide the remaining surrendered soldiers into different camps for guarding. They must not be moved rashly."

"Here!"

The morning light pierced through the clouds, illuminating the dilapidated camp. The Wu army, which had thought it could hold out for a while with its 20,000 troops, now truly understood that all their resistance was futile in the face of the overwhelming force of the Xiliang cavalry.

Outside the central army camp, the Xiliang cavalry surrounded the area, their spears and halberds gleaming coldly. Inside, Zhang Hong, Gu Yong, and Lu Jun had long lost their former dignity. Soldiers had their arms tied behind their backs and pushed them to their knees. Their knees slammed against the cold mud, causing them to grimace in pain, but they dared not make the slightest move, only trembling with their heads down.

Pang De strode up to Ma Chao's horse, clasped his hands and reported: "Your Majesty, in this battle we killed four thousand enemy soldiers and captured more than ten thousand. The rest of the routed soldiers fled in all directions, and we have ordered men to pursue and annihilate them. Zhang Hong, Gu Yong and Lu Jun have all been captured."

Ma Chao's gaze swept over the three people on the ground, finally landing on Zhang Hong. He said coldly, "Zhang Zigang, look up."

Zhang Hong trembled, slowly raised his head, his face ashen, and dared not meet Ma Chao's gaze.

Ma Chao dismounted, his sword clattering as it was drawn from its sheath, its blade gleaming coldly in the morning light. He used the scabbard to lift Zhang Hong's chin, his voice chilling: "Have you ever considered this day? Back then, Bo Fu treated you well, entrusting you with important responsibilities and making you assist Jiangdong. Yet you showed no gratitude, instead colluding with your cronies, using conspiracies and tricks to assassinate our lord, seizing power, and not even leaving him a peaceful posthumous reputation!"

The sword sheath suddenly sank, pressing down on Zhang Hong's neck until it ached. He pleaded for mercy, "Your Majesty, spare my life! This matter... this matter was all orchestrated by Zhang Zhao, it has nothing to do with me!"

"Unrelated?" Ma Chao sneered. "Colluding with each other, how can it be unrelated? If I didn't need to expose your conspiracy in front of the old lady, I would have liked to cut you down with my sword right now to appease Bo Fu's spirit in heaven!"

Just then, Taishi Ci, clutching his injured shoulder, entered from outside the tent and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, we have searched every part of the tent, but we have not found any trace of Zhang Zhao."

Ma Chao frowned, turned to Zhang Hong, and asked in an even colder voice, "Where is Zhang Zhao?"

Zhang Hong looked around blankly, as if only then realizing someone was missing, and stammered, "He...he was just with me, how could he be..."

Gu Yong, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke, his voice trembling and low: "He probably escaped. Zhang Zhao is always overly cautious. Back when Zhou Yu raised his army in Wu County, he secretly moved his family, presumably having prepared an escape route. In the chaos just now, he must have taken advantage of the confusion to run away."

Lu Jun nodded in agreement and added, "When the fighting outside the camp was at its fiercest, I vaguely saw him go to the rear camp with a junior officer. At the time, I thought he was going to coordinate the troops, but now I think it was probably premeditated."

Ma Chao slowly loosened his grip on his sword, the bluish-white discoloration on his knuckles fading. He gazed at the southern horizon and sneered, "So be it, let him flee. Jiangdong is only so big. Even if Zhang Zhao had wings, could he fly out of this territory?"

As he turned, his eyes regained their coldness, and he said to Taishi Ci, "Ziyi, you stay here and gather the remnants of the army. For those who are willing to surrender, first check their identities—if they are the old troops that Bofu brought back, verify their identities and then incorporate them into the camp, and treat them well; if they are private soldiers or sons of noble families, or wolves with the blood of loyal officials on their hands, there is no need to say more, just kill them all as a warning to others."

Taishi Ci, clutching his injured shoulder, clasped his hands in a fist salute: "This humble general obeys the order!"

Ma Chao then looked at Pang De and pointed to Zhang Hong, Gu Yong, and the others who were tied up on the ground: "Lingming, take these people with you back to Moling. Generals Cheng and Huang are still waiting in the city. They should see that these scoundrels who have been causing trouble in Jiangdong have finally been caught."

Pang De responded in a deep voice, "Yes, sir!" With a wave of his hand, his guards immediately stepped forward and dragged Zhang Hong and the others away. Zhang Hong was still crying and begging for mercy, Gu Yong hung his head and remained silent, while Lu Jun bit his lip tightly, his eyes filled with despair.

Ma Chao mounted his horse, his silver armor gleaming coldly in the sunlight. He turned his horse and called out to the Xiliang cavalry behind him, "Back to Moling!"

With a whoosh, the iron cavalry moved in response, their hooves trampling over the ravaged battlefield as they headed towards Moling City in the distance. The wind carried the stench of blood, but it could not dispel the chilling atmosphere within the ranks—capturing Lü Dai was only the first step. Next, it was time to purge those deeply entrenched aristocratic families and show the people of Jiangdong who was truly clearing the shadows from this land.