[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-overthrowing-han":3,"chapter-overthrowing-han-overthrowing-han-chapter-347":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Overthrowing Han",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1223106,1620,"Chapter 347: Waves of Discontent Rise the Fierce Tiger","overthrowing-han-chapter-347",347,"\u003Cp>The winter night wind howled, the stars and moon in the sky both dimmed. Inside the pitch-black Xiaopingjin military camp, Lü Bu and several trusted subordinates, fully armed and armored, stood in the twilight gazing at the equally silent northern bank of the Yellow River, each lost in thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It must be said, yesterday Jia Wenhe presented a plan to Lü Bu, proposing to use five thousand cavalry to smash the thirty to forty thousand troops on the opposite bank. Regarding this, Lü Fengxian was half believing, half doubting... Although he later figured out every step of Jia Xu's scheme, he still found it somewhat unbelievable, because if they followed this plan, it would require Wang Kuang and Yuan Shao to all deploy their forces according to Jia Wenhe's \"directions.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But on what grounds?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On what grounds would these people arrange and deploy as Jia Xu said? Was Jia Xu an immortal? This truly made one doubt the success rate of this scheme.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nevertheless, Lü Bu still accepted Jia Xu's suggestion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were three reasons:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, Lü Bu himself was unwilling to remain obscure. As a martial rustic from the border commanderies, his starting point was simply too low compared to those aristocratic and renowned clans. His family migrated to Taiyuan when he came of age, later went to Jizhou, and then to Luoyang, but no matter where he was, he was always a marginalized person looked down upon by others, always yearning to become part of the core of power. In other words, he desperately wanted to climb up!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And in the process of climbing up, military merit was his greatest personal reliance, while patrons like Cai Yong, Gongsun Xun, Liu Yan, and Dong Zhuo were his greatest external reliance... Winning a battle would not only bring military merit, but also win the favor of Chancellor Dong! He might even earn the praise of his teacher Cai Yong and others! Because just before this, because Wang Kuang was running a secret-police regime in Henei, wantonly implicating and accusing the great clans and wealthy households of the commandery, arbitrarily imprisoning and torturing them, then demanding their families pay with wealth and people to ransom them, just like kidnapping, Cai Bojie had specifically written an article denouncing Wang Kuang, directly calling him a rebel in the text!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In summary, Lü Bu truly wanted to fight this battle!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Second, Lü Bu believed in Jia Xu's ability... Even if he had some doubts about Jia Xu, he would absolutely never question Gongsun Xun's judgment, and the strategist whom Gongsun Xun esteemed must have his unique merits. On this point, Lü Bu never doubted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the final reason, it was Lü Bu's confidence in his own personal valor and these elite subordinates under his command... Crossing the river this time, even if Jia Xu's stratagem went awry and they truly could not win, on such a dark night, with the Yellow River frozen over everywhere, there was ultimately no need to worry about not being able to flee back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And returning to the present, what greatly heartened Lü Bu was that the first step of Jia Xu's stratagem had actually already succeeded... Just as Jia Wenhe had said, the notoriously ruthless Henei Governor Wang Kuang on the opposite side, seeing the decoy troops heading upstream toward Mengjin, actually did not dare cross the river to attack Xiaopingjin, but instead immediately split his forces upstream to adopt a conservative defense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the afternoon, everyone saw clearly that on the northern bank of the Yellow River, a full seven to eight thousand troops moved out in force, pursuing the decoy troops led by Jia Xu upstream, and the banner of Henei Governor Wang Kuang appeared without any doubt among the central army. In other words, if Wang Kuang had not likewise set up a decoy force, then at this moment, the Henei Xiaopingjin ferry on the opposite bank likely had only two to three thousand garrison troops left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My lord, preparations are complete.\" Huang Yuan emerged from the night, leading a divine white steed. \"Horses' hooves wrapped, men with gags in mouth, each man carrying two torches, but forbidden to light them without orders... Please give the command!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Cross the river!\" Lü Bu put away his myriad thoughts, and without any hesitation took the reins of his own Dilu treasure horse, the first to tread the ice northward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Five thousand cavalry, some drawn from the Northern Army, some from the Western Garden, some raised from Liangzhou, some recruited from Guanzhong, and still others brave warriors recruited from Bingzhou... If one had to name some common traits, it was that these soldiers generally possessed sufficient combat experience, and already had excellent riding skills before enlisting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These two combined, paired with the equipment from the Great Han Empire's central armory, were already enough for them to hold their heads high and call themselves elite before those Guandong coalition forces—not because they themselves were so outstanding, but because those Guandong coalition forces, though they had organization, equipment, and courage, truly lacked too much combat experience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the night, at the Henei ferry crossing of Xiaopingjin on the northern bank of the Yellow River, the garrison commander Fang Yue left behind by Wang Kuang had already gone to bed early... As someone from a local powerful family of Henei, it was simply too natural for Fang Yue to lead his clan's sons and younger brothers to follow the local Governor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, not only Fang Yue, Hao Meng, also from a Henei powerful family, was also under Wang Kuang's command at this time, but had gone upstream with him to prepare to defend Mengjin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the choice of these two men, Hao Meng and Fang Yue, to serve was actually what the vast majority of people in this chaotic age did.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did they not know that their former lord Gongsun Xun, who had once governed Henei, held higher rank, had greater ability, and treated his subordinates better? Did they not know that Wang Kuang's militaristic policies had bred resentment throughout Henei? In a word, did they not know that Gongsun Xun was ten times, a hundred times better than Wang Kuang?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there was no helping it—their families were here, and when Wang Kuang became Governor, they were already the commandery's military officers... It was not that their minds were muddled and they chose Wang Kuang, but that they simply did not take the risk to change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the same logic, at this time Zhang He, as a Military Major directly under Wei Commandery, had also been dispatched by Governor Han Fu to Yuan Shao's army as support and was currently in Yuan Shao's army downstream; at this time Dian Wei was also serving with his village's sons and younger brothers under a certain Major under Chenliu Governor Zhang Miao at Suanzao; at this time Cheng Yu was also corresponding with Yanzhou Inspector Liu Dai, accepting his strategic consultations; at this time Yu Jin was serving as a Military Major under his fellow townsman Bao Xin; even Xun Yu, a man of outstanding talent in the realm, even though he saw that his homeland was about to suffer war, chose to accept the protection of his fellow townsman Han Fu; even Jia Xu, and even the vast majority of Luoyang officials—everyone was essentially the same... They were not trying to abet evil, nor were they trying to establish deeds and achievements; it was just that the chaotic age had come suddenly, and everyone followed their instincts and chose the most conservative, or the most responsible, course of action!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, they had families to support, they had elders above and children below; their friends, relatives, fields, wealth—everything familiar was there. On what grounds should they abandon all this to trek over mountains and rivers to seek some wise lord?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And besides, in this realm, have there been few who turned from heroes into rebels?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Dong Zhuo had died a year and a half ago, he would have been the foremost loyal minister of the Great Han dynasty! He would have been the last remaining conscience of the people of Liangzhou!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At a time like this, one truly cannot demand perfection. In fact, at this time, what the people of the realm lacked was not domineering and reckless superiors, but superiors who could show tolerance and leeway... Yet, even the most outstanding Gongsun Xun, in Taiyuan, was he not tolerant to the common people but harsh to the aristocratic clans?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, one more thing must be emphasized here: it is precisely because the vast majority of people, hindered by all kinds of difficulties, had no choice but to drift with the current, that those who went against the tide, who staked everything and pressed forward indomitably for their own ideals and principles, or merely for their goals, or even simply put, for their own selfish desires—these people are all the more admirable, even to the point of winning hearts!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Conservatism and retreat are matters of course; it is just that the wave-riders of the era are a cut above!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Returning to the present, on the opposite side of Xiaopingjin, the military camp and ferry on the northern bank of the Yellow River suddenly erupted in flames!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Yue, after all, was a famed general of Henei, who had gathered a force to protect his home and county as early as the Yellow Turban Rebellion, so he did possess military competence. The man hastily rose, and while hurriedly donning his armor, issued a succession of orders: have the entire army fall in and converge toward him; send trusted attendants out to scout the military situation and ascertain the invading enemy; and have the first-arriving subordinates lead troops to set up layered defenses along the layout of the camp and ferry buildings, while simultaneously gathering the troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once fully armored, Fang Yue personally took up his iron spear and went out, then mounted his steed and led a group of trusted family sons and younger brothers along the camp and ferry streets to meet the enemy ahead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In all fairness, if it were ordinary bandits coming to harass, these measures would have long since turned danger into safety here, and future history books might even record a note praising this Henei famed general for living up to his reputation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But once he went out the gate and onto the street, Fang Yue's own heart sank... Everywhere at the ferry and military camp, the sound of killing shook the heavens, and firelight reflected off the river. Yet what was more terrifying was that the surrounding enemy troops, holding torches, came and went like the wind, numerous but not disordered, and even though they were clearly cavalry, there was surprisingly little sound of hoofbeats!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Yue quickly realized that the number of these enemy troops, the combat strength of these enemy troops, was simply not something he, with only two to three thousand men, could resist. But precisely because he was duty-bound to defend the territory, Fang Yue had no intention of cowardice or flight!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Pass the order down! Have the entire army converge toward me! Those who cannot make it, each defend in place, with self-preservation as the priority! Governor Wang is at Mengjin, just over twenty li upstream, and can come to the rescue at any time! General of Chariots and Cavalry Lord Yuan has thirty thousand Jizhou troops, just forty... over thirty li downstream, and can also come to the rescue at any time... When the time comes, with a pincer attack from both sides, our army will surely win!\" Fang Yue was half boosting the morale of the surrounding soldiers, half persuading himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, his words were quite reasonable. When Ding Yuan had set fire to Mengjin, it was clearly visible from Luoyang city. And now, with the three fords lined up not far apart, Wang Kuang upstream and Yuan Shao downstream had no reason not to see the situation here, and no reason not to come to the rescue!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are you Fang Yue, the former subordinate of General of the Guards?\" Firelight illuminated half the street. Lü Bu and Fang Yue met in a narrow encounter, and Lü Bu raised his long spear, pointing from a distance. \"I hear you style yourself a famed general of Henei?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yue has never boasted of himself.\" Fang Yue leveled his iron spear and cupped his hands in salute from horseback from afar. \"And a mere commandery's famed general is not worth mentioning. But the name 'Fierce Tiger of the Age' resounds like thunder in my ears!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Since you know my name, why not surrender?\" Lü Bu, holding his long spear, stood atop his Dilu horse and laughed aloud. \"If you can surrender, considering your courtesy and that bond of fellowship with General of the Guards, I can guarantee your future prospects.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Though Yue is but a minor general of a single commandery, I still know the duty of defending the territory under orders.\" Fang Yue raised his head and answered resolutely. \"I beg your pardon, but I cannot accept Lord Lü's great kindness!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, Lü Bu not only did not grow angry, but instead admired him all the more, and could not help raising an eyebrow as he spoke: \"Such bearing—truly the makings of a famed general of a commandery or a state! You deserve to die by my hand! Fang Yue! My troops are now stronger than yours, my men more numerous than yours, my equipment finer than yours, and my battle momentum greater than yours... Is this not so?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It is so!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But you, a man of extraordinary bearing, courteous and principled—I, Lü Bu, cannot but respect you as a person!\" Lü Fengxian said, suddenly raising his long spear with one hand and laying it across the side of his horse. \"What say you—dare you fight a duel? If you win, I will disregard the battle and withdraw my entire army! If I win, I will slay you here, to fulfill your name for loyalty and valor!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Yue also leveled his spear in response, showing no fear, but looked to his left and right and said: \"If I die today, I die not for Governor Wang, but truly for Henei...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before his words ended, the man, knowing full well his opponent was a tiger-like general of the age, still took the lead and charged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lü Bu, all the more overjoyed, merely raised his spear and reined in his horse, waiting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The officers and soldiers behind the two generals all paled. They had never imagined that the two armies' respective commanders would, by the firelight of this ferry, stage a duel on the street... just as seven or eight hundred years ago, when the states contended for supremacy, generals would line up their chariots before the battle lines to decide victory or defeat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But tracing the reason, it was not a laughable matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For Lü Bu, it was half his wild nature bursting forth in the night battle, half seeing his opponent maintain courtesy unflinchingly before the battle and wishing to reciprocate with this salute. And for Fang Yue, it was even simpler: the battle situation was unfavorable, his troops were weaker, and now they had met in a narrow encounter, yet he was unwilling to surrender and lose his integrity. Better to fight to the death—if by chance he won, needless to say; even if he lost, it would spare his soldiers from having to resist stubbornly any further...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In an instant, the two generals had crossed horses and exchanged four bouts on the street. Yet with each bout, Fang Yue's strength waned, while Lü Bu fought ever more fiercely. By the fifth bout, Lü Bu struck down with all his might; Fang Yue raised his spear to block. The two blades met in the air, and the latter felt only a numbness in both arms before slumping backward, his iron spear slipping from his grasp as a matter of course.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lü Bu, without the slightest hesitation, thrust out his spear backhanded, striking the opponent squarely in the throat. Alas, Fang Yue, a famed general of a commandery, who had never in his life wronged anyone, yet because he served as a general in a chaotic age, died innocently at the Xiaopingjin ferry... The only thing commendable was that he died without regret.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was thirty-four years old.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With Fang Yue dead, the Henei garrison at Xiaopingjin, already driven to desperation by the night raid, immediately collapsed. And Lü Bu, having easily taken this place, still remembered Jia Xu's stratagem and instructions. So he did not pursue the routed soldiers, nor did he loot and plunder on the spot. Instead, he abandoned those scattered troops and Wang Kuang's main camp, hastily recalled his various units, and still with banners furled and voices hushed, marched downstream toward the direction of Wushe Ford—that is, toward Yuan Shao's main camp, where a full thirty thousand Jizhou and Henei troops were stationed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Yue and the northern bank ferry of Xiaopingjin were merely the appetizer for this long winter night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Five thousand ironclad cavalry, their horses' hooves wrapped in hemp cloth, unhurried and unhasty, under Lü Bu's leadership followed the Yellow River with banners furled and voices hushed, quietly heading east. After traveling for roughly the better part of a double-hour, a distance of less than twenty li, Lü Bu saw with his own eyes that several li ahead, a fire dragon was clearly rushing toward them at speed!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Judging by the sound of hoofbeats and the formation of torches, it was estimated to be four to five thousand men, and all were cavalry!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without a doubt, the second key deduction in Jia Xu's stratagem had also come true—with flames rising upstream, Yuan Shao had, as a matter of course, sent reinforcements, but had surprisingly not dispatched a sufficient main force, instead sending only a flanking force that could be completely crushed head-on!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Bu, already burning hot all over, grew even more elated. He turned and summoned Huang Yuan and Huang Qianjiu, and Huang Yuan immediately nodded. He promptly led his own two-hundred-man company, untied the hemp cloth from the horses’ hooves, lit torches, and swaggered forward at full gallop to meet them… This was truly not a scheme devised by Lu Bu and Huang Yuan — those two lacked the skill for such fine work; it was Jia Xu’s earlier instruction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Yuan’s two hundred riders galloped forward, naturally drawing the attention of the approaching reinforcements. Both forces were cavalry, riding toward each other, and they collided head-on almost in an instant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once the two sides met, without waiting for the other to speak, Huang Yuan shouted on his own: “Are you the reinforcements of the General of Chariots and Cavalry ahead? The Xiaopingjin ferry is under attack! By order of Commander Fang Yue, I have come to request reinforcements… Please, hasten to our rescue!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fiery dragon ahead almost instantly came to a halt, and then several hundred riders surged forward, raising torches and surrounding Huang Yuan and his men. Yet Huang Qianjiu’s face showed only urgency, without the slightest trace of panic… One must understand, Huang Yuan’s two hundred men carried no banners, nor any identifying marks. Moreover, they had truly fought a battle at the north-bank ferry of Xiaopingjin — the bloodstains, smoke smudges, and even wounds on them were all genuine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected, after a brief observation, these men raised no suspicions whatsoever. Soon, an order came down, saying that General Yan was summoning the man who had come seeking aid to answer questions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though Huang Qianjiu had long been prepared, he was still startled upon hearing this: “Could it be that famous general of Pingyuan, Yan Liang, who followed the General of Chariots and Cavalry even back in Luoyang?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is General Yan’s honored name something for you to speak?” The messenger flared up in anger at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It was not an intentional offense.” Huang Qianjiu, realizing his slip of the tongue, hurriedly explained. “I once traveled to Luoyang and long ago heard it said that Wu Chen, the giant among Luoyang’s wandering knights, once recruited brave warriors for Lord Yuan in Hebei. Among them, two — one surnamed Yan, one surnamed Wen; one from Pingyuan, one from Zhending — both possessed valor a match for ten thousand men! Now that the General of Chariots and Cavalry has risen up, he has promoted both to generals in one stroke. Could the one before me be that General Yan?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So that’s how it is!” Hearing this, the messenger officer could not help but turn from anger to delight. “You know of my general’s great name as well? So, now you need not worry about your main camp being overrun, eh?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Yuan glanced back at the north-bank ferry of Xiaopingjin, still burning without cease, and could not help but smile bitterly: “Can we speak the word ‘safe’ only after General Yan has met our Commander Fang?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That is true enough. Quickly, follow me!” The man, hearing this, delayed no further and immediately led Huang Yuan toward the rear, failing to notice that the riders who had come with Huang Yuan, at their officers’ signal, had extinguished their torches.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two hundred men extinguishing their torches naturally drew no attention within an army of several thousand. But when they were all concentrated in one place, and at the very head of the entire force, it was enough for those not far behind them to eventually detect something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, Huang Yuan followed the messenger alone toward the rear. After walking no more than a hundred-odd paces, he arrived at a dense concentration of cavalry. And there, beneath a canopy and banners, surrounded by several men dressed as officers, Huang Qianjiu spotted at a single glance a fully armored and extraordinarily imposing general.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From over a dozen paces away, Huang Yuan did not hesitate. He dropped straight to his knees with a thud before this man, addressed him as General, and kowtowed, begging him to dispatch troops to the rescue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Didn’s Governor Wang send word this afternoon that half the troops at Xiaopingjin had gone to Wushejin and half to Mengjin?” Yan Liang sat on his horse, slightly impatient. “If so, how can Xiaopingjin be under attack, and where would the troops come from?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In reply to the General, on this matter, I, a mere company commander, truly do not know.” Huang Yuan, following Jia Xu’s earlier instructions, acted exactly like a mid-ranking officer who knew nothing and had been suddenly ambushed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then what do you know?” Yan Liang grew even more impatient.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I will not hide it from General Yan. I only know that when we came, about four or five thousand Xiliang troops were crossing the river to strike. It was just that the ice surface was brittle and slick, and they were discovered midway, which allowed our Commander Fang to barely hold a stockade with two or three thousand garrison troops. But now the great fire is spreading, and I do not know how much longer they can hold out… I beg General Yan to hasten to the rescue!” With these words, Huang Yuan kowtowed repeatedly toward Yan Liang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, as he knocked his head against the ground, he had already detected some stirrings from the earth ahead of him, even amid the howling winter night wind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over a dozen paces away, Yan Liang remained on his horse, sighing to himself. For some reason, the man actually seemed somewhat hesitant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But just at that moment, even those around Yan Liang gradually grew suspicious, clearly sensing a massive disturbance drawing nearer and nearer, and increasingly difficult to conceal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And suddenly, from up ahead came a succession of screams, and someone shouted with all his might, crying ‘Enemy attack!’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The event was so sudden that Yuan’s army wavered along nearly the entire line. Even Yan Liang was stunned on the spot, momentarily at a loss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A moment later, Yan Liang came slightly to his senses, but then made a colossal blunder. He drew his saber, yet instead of turning to face the enemy, he glared furiously about, searching for Huang Yuan, intending to kill the man to vent his rage. But just then, thanks to the desperate fighting of the two hundred riders left at the front, the sounds of slaughter had already reached this very spot! And what was interesting was that when these two hundred riders arrived, they did not go to rescue their own company commander, nor did they contend for the many officers ahead. Instead, they halted right there, and even actively parted to open a path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Yuan heard a muffled thunder of hoofbeats approaching from afar, and a flash of understanding rose in his heart. Thinking no further, he simply rolled once on the ground, then pointed a finger at Yan Liang and shouted loudly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That man is Yan Liang!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The words had barely left his lips when a general riding a divine, handsome white horse — as if a Flying General reborn, a fierce tiger lunging at the face — had already led several dozen elite riders, following Huang Yuan’s pointing finger, charging right up to Yan Liang!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a flash of lightning and spark of flint, Yan Liang hastily reined his horse around and raised his blade, but the cold wind brought by the opposing riders struck him, and for a moment he could not open his eyes. Lu Bu, carrying the momentum of his steed, thrust his long lance from afar, striking the man squarely in the throat!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alas, this ‘Great General of Hebei,’ just emerging from the mountains, had yet to accomplish any deeds or establish any merit, had not even earned the title of a famous general of a single commandery, before dying at the hands of a tiger-general of the age. He was twenty-eight years old, leaving behind only boundless regret and a thousand years of mocking fame!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>————I am the dividing line of so-called famous generals————\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“At the end of Zhongping, the Guandong coalition rose together and pledged to attack Dong. Dong Zhuo appointed Lu Bu as Cavalry Commander of the northern route to deal with Henei. Bu came from a renowned school and had long possessed a mighty reputation. Arriving at Xiaopingjin, he raised five thousand cavalry and struck across the river. The Henei garrison commander, Fang Yue, always called a fine general, fought with all his strength, yet was first defeated in battle, then dueled Bu alone on the road, dying after five exchanges. Men of the time lamented him. When Bu shifted his attack to Wushejin, he raised Fang Yue’s helmet and issued a challenge. Yuan Shao’s subordinate general, Yan Liang, always praised for valor, volunteered to meet him. Shao, greatly pleased, warmed wine as a parting gift to fortify the journey. When he went forth to battle, he died beneath the Dilu horse in a single exchange, and the cup in Shao’s hand was still warm, whereupon Shao was struck with terror. Men of the time laughed at him.” — Records of Heroes at the End of Han, by Wang Can\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>PS: Continuing to kowtow and offer New Year greetings…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The new group is 931557287. Those interested may join.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",4565,"2026-06-04T19:42:26.060Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","d9369b0041017ee0dfb70fad7edd05d4db28b989b079bb16bdb7e4f12e110b1a","overthrowing-han-chapter-348","overthrowing-han-chapter-346",548,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Foverthrowing-han-cover.jpg"]