Chapter 412: Truly Knowing the Courage of a Common Man (Kneeling in Thanks to Big Boss Ruobing for the White Silver Alliance)

The edict sent forth the Western Hills generals; in autumn they encamped the Longyou troops.

Because of the distance, by the time Gongsun Xun's main force reached the border of Wei Commandery, it was already late autumn... The grasses and trees were withered and yellow, leaves fell and returned to their roots, and the autumn pools that had earlier swelled would from this time on gradually dry up, until a new cycle descended the next year.

However, as the saying goes, in high autumn the horses are fat — due to the cycles of nature and the laws of agricultural production being what they are, at this time the armies of northern China were inherently at their peak condition.

The flames of war ignited, accompanied by the drifting of autumn leaves; the autumn battlefield review of troops is by no means empty words.

On the border of Wei Commandery and the Zhao Kingdom, Yuan Shao, backed by the three provinces of Qing, Yan, and Ji comprising nineteen commanderies, threw in a solid one hundred thousand troops in one breath — a truly colossal force. Yet after Gongsun Xun assembled the elite troops of nearly twenty commanderies and kingdoms from You, Bing, Ji, and the Three Adjuncts, he too had a cumulative force of fifty thousand battle soldiers and thirty thousand support troops. Counting the units of Shen Pei, Guan Yu, Dong Zhao, Zhang Fei, and others already at the front, his numbers also reached roughly one hundred thousand.

Moreover, because the Youzhou army had over twenty thousand cavalry, and was even equipped with tens of thousands of draft horses and bullocks for support, in terms of the sheer scale and grandeur of the military formation, it far surpassed the opponent. This caused many in the army, high and low, as the great host advanced, to feel their spirits soar and their courage steadily grow.

Returning to the present, that morning, several li southeast of Handan City, Gongsun Xun emerged from behind Jize and rendezvoused with Shen Pei, who had hurriedly marched out from Handan City. Upon roughly learning the situation at the front and discovering that Guan Yu and Zhang Fei had actually managed to pin down Wen Chou's main cavalry force covering the retreat, he was overjoyed and immediately gave the order for all cavalry except the White Horse Volunteers — over twenty thousand riders — to take the field, determined to seize the chance to inflict casualties on the main Yuan army cavalry led by Wen Chou and create better conditions for the decisive battle... Only then did he himself, leading the local dignitaries, high-ranking officers, and trusted advisors who had switched to white horses, proceed slowly southward with the great infantry formation, drawing near.

By noon, when the army reached a point not far from where fighting had already broken out ahead, news arrived that Wen Chou's force of eight thousand cavalry had been pinned by the main Youzhou cavalry and was engaged in battle across the entire line... As soon as this military intelligence came, among the forest of white horses, everyone's faces showed unending delight.

However, Gongsun Xun, who was beneath the central canopy conversing with Shen Pei, upon hearing this news, first looked around left and right, then suddenly turned his head on horseback to stare for a moment at the boundless, slowly advancing forest-like military formation behind him, and then shook his head repeatedly.

This gesture was too deliberate. Shen Pei, beside him, saw it and immediately frowned to ask: "My lord, why do you shake your head? Is there some error in the army's deployment? Or some omission behind us?"

"Not at all." Gongsun Xun turned back and laughed upon hearing this. "Just now I heard Zhengnan speak of Yuan Shao's troop strength, and then I turned to see the troops behind me and realized that in this battle our army's numbers are not much fewer than the opponent's, and our military display is far too grand, so I felt some worry in my heart..."

At these words, Shen Pei and Dong Zhao looked at each other in dismay; Lou Gui and Xun You each remained silent; it was Tian Feng who could not help but voice what everyone was thinking: "My lord, what kind of talk is this? How can having more troops than the enemy be a bad thing? When it comes to warfare, in the final analysis, it is nothing more than the strong defeating the weak, the many defeating the few!"

"Yuanhao knows only the one side, not the other. The matter of strength and numbers has its limits." Gongsun Xun sighed and answered frankly on horseback. "Below one hundred thousand, the essential art of war indeed lies in how to deploy forces so that locally one can strike with many against few. But once both sides' troops exceed one hundred thousand, it is not a case of the more the stronger; rather, there is a sense of the more the weaker... Think about it: since ancient times, counting from the Battle of Muye when King Wu of Zhou attacked the Shang, among all the battles that truly decided the fate of the realm, except for the Battle of Changping which is hard to assess, in every other case, was it not the side with fewer troops that won? Was it not always the side with fewer than one hundred thousand troops that defeated the side with more than one hundred thousand?"

Apart from those cavalry commanders who had been ordered to lead the cavalry out, the many civil and military officials, generals, and advisors at his side, upon hearing these words and pondering them carefully, all changed color one after another.

Because, although Gongsun Xun's words seemed contrary to common sense, upon careful reflection, they were absolutely correct!

Since ancient times, in the great battles that directly influenced the course of Chinese history, except for the Battle of Changping where the troop numbers are in doubt, in every single other battle example, truly every single one, the side with fewer troops won, and the side with troops exceeding one hundred thousand lost:

At the Battle of Muye, Jiang Taigong charged with three thousand tiger warriors, and hundreds of thousands of slaves defected on the battlefield, causing blood to float the shields;

At the Battle of Julu, the various lords all watched from the sidelines, while Xiang Yu alone with tens of thousands of Chu troops broke the cauldrons and sank the boats, routing the four hundred thousand Qin troops;

At the Battle of Pengcheng, Xiang Yu with thirty thousand elite cavalry struck swiftly, driving away the allied forces of the lords totaling five hundred sixty thousand in a single battle;

At the Battle of Jingxing, Han Xin with ten thousand new recruits, with their backs to the river, won a great victory over the two hundred thousand Zhao troops;

At the Battle of Kunyang, the rebel forces Liu Xiu was with amounted to no more than twenty thousand in total, yet they routed the four hundred twenty thousand troops of Wang Mang's new dynasty in a single battle...

And these are only the ones that have already happened, the ones Shen Pei, Dong Zhao, Cheng Pu, Gao Shun, and the others know and have heard of. What they do not know is that there are even more beyond these... In another timeline, among the three decisive battles of the late Han and Three Kingdoms period, the victors — Cao Cao's army at Guandu, the Sun-Liu allied forces at Red Cliffs, the Wu army at Yiling — and even further on, the Eastern Jin's Beifu Army at the Battle of Feishui, Li Shimin's forces at the Battle of Hulao Pass during the Sui-Tang period, and the Tang army in Li Jing's campaign to destroy the Turks — in the end, the winning side was almost always the one with fewer troops, and none of these victors ever committed more than one hundred thousand troops at a time!

"May I ask my lord, why is this?" After a moment of stunned silence, Cheng Pu, the army's chief general who had no concept of survivor bias, could not help but ask.

"The matter is simple. In truth, having too many troops is simply useless." Gongsun Xun laughed and answered, half in jest, half in earnest. "In a decisive battle zone of one commandery, committing one hundred thousand troops at once is already the limit. Any more than that, and if the battle drags on, the logistics and supply, military administration, command division, and even the local terrain and resources will all become unsustainable... It is not that one cannot forcibly assemble more troops in one place, but these extra troops may not even be able to join the battle, while instead severely impacting logistics and greatly slowing command. In terms of victory or defeat, the drawbacks absolutely outweigh the benefits."

"So that is it," Dong Zhao, listening to Gongsun Xun's sophistry of uncertain truth, suddenly had a flash of understanding and could not help but stroke his beard and smile on horseback. "My lord is not troubled that his own troops are too many, but that Yuan Benchu's troops are too few..."

"Indeed. In truth, for the population of the commanderies and kingdoms that I or Yuan Benchu control, and the arsenal reserves we have obtained, fielding a hundred thousand troops is truly as easy as turning over one's hand. The only thing is, Yuan Benchu clearly knows he can only defeat me with numbers, yet he still managed to keep a clear head and did not blindly mass troops in Wei Commandery when provisions were plentiful after the autumn harvest — I must admit I underestimated him somewhat..." As he spoke, Gongsun Xun gazed toward the area ahead where billowing dust was faintly visible and the neighing of warhorses could be dimly heard, showing a trace of emotion. He then directly reined in his horse and turned toward a raised earthen mound. The surrounding advisors all followed closely, while a group of mid-level officers and military clerks, at Cheng Pu's signal, immediately dispersed to direct the troops to halt and form up around the small mound. On both flanks, the two generals Zhang Nan and Jiao Chu each led three thousand infantry forward in a pincer movement to serve as the vanguard guard.

Once Gongsun Xun had taken his position on the small mound, he pointed at the faintly visible chaotic cavalry battle ahead and continued with a solemn expression: "However, my words are not merely in praise of Yuan Shao. The most important point is that I hope you gentlemen can turn it around and think: one hundred thousand troops are enough to decide the fate of the realm! And if a warlord possesses the capital to support a hundred thousand troops, or simply tens of thousands of troops in a decisive death struggle, then no matter what the situation in the realm actually is, no matter how clear the balance of power, that man has the qualification to contend for supremacy... In this battle, not the slightest carelessness is permitted, and though our army is mighty, we must not harbor the slightest intention of underestimating the other side!"

The crowd finally understood. Setting aside the absurd theory that any force exceeding one hundred thousand was doomed to defeat, their lord was mainly worried about arrogance within the army and was thus giving them a warning before the battle. Thereupon, everyone assumed a solemn expression and turned to the south to carefully observe the battle situation.

However, no matter how they looked, apart from being able to tell that the battlefield ahead was exceptionally fierce, they could not actually discern the course of the battle... This was unavoidable. Yuan Shao's sudden alert withdrawal had caused two unprecedentedly massive armies to open the battle on the plains in the strange mode of a tail chase.

On one side were eight thousand cavalry, with thirty thousand troops behind them formed into a wagon fortification to provide support; on the other side were over twenty thousand cavalry who had suddenly received orders to charge forward... Both sides had engaged hastily, with no time for large-scale tactical maneuvers, so both were fighting in company-sized units across the fertile fields between Handan City and Liangqi City, galloping back and forth, then shooting from horseback, thrusting, trampling — simply living or dying.

This mode of combat caused the engagement zone between the two sides to rapidly spread in a flattened pattern across a battle line over a dozen li wide, right between Chen Gong's wagon fortification and the great army Gongsun Xun had just brought up. A man on horseback standing on a small earthen slope — it would be strange if he could see clearly what was going on!

But conversely, since even the onlookers could not see clearly, what exquisite tactical maneuvers could the combatants possibly execute? In a chaotic melee, it was destined that the side with more troops and stronger troops would defeat the side with fewer troops and weaker troops!

In this battle, even though Gongsun Xun had just given them a warning, everyone still firmly believed that the Youzhou army was bound to win. After all, twenty thousand against eight thousand — that had not yet exceeded the limit of one hundred thousand troops, had it? Presumably the old principles still applied here.

"My lord, please be absolutely on guard against a surprise assault!" After the group had stood on the slope watching in a fog for a moment, Xun You suddenly spoke up in a low voice to warn. "Our cavalry is stronger and more numerous. Wen Chou should have only made a brief stand before immediately retreating. That he is still delaying and refusing to leave despite taking heavy casualties must mean he has some scheme... And in this situation, the only thing he could possibly be scheming for is my lord himself. Nothing else is worth his concern!"

The many people beneath the White Horse banners immediately understood.

"If that is so, then I underestimated Wen Chou." Gongsun Xun was also taken aback upon hearing this, but immediately dismissed it. "However, it is of no consequence. On this campaign, every commander has his own responsibility. Cheng Demou is my central army commander, directly entrusted by the military advisors with overall responsibility for marching and formation; Pang Lingming is the commander of the Volunteers, with the duty of close protection resting on him and the Volunteers; Han Yuansi is the Central Army Protector, overseeing the various generals... I see that these three have all done well. Since that is the case, why should I worry about a surprise assault?"

This was, of course, praise from Gongsun Xun — and heartfelt praise at that, after observing the strict vanguard units and the disciplined White Horse Volunteers. Yet as he spoke, the three men whose names had been mentioned all felt their heads swell with pressure. Cheng Pu, though he had already deployed the vanguard, could not help but order Gao Shun and his Formation-Breaking Camp to come forward and conceal themselves behind the small slope. Pang De was even more direct, immediately ordering the Volunteers to inspect their weapons and prepare for battle. Even Han Hao promptly reorganized the ceremonial protocols of the central army once more.

However, before the three commanders could finish their new dispositions, from the dust cloud on the right front, several hundred paces away, a cavalry force of about a thousand men suddenly surged forth. Moving with their banners furled, their armor and robes obscured by blood, grime, and dust, they were exploiting the chaos of the battlefield to attempt to cross in front of the small slope at a slightly oblique angle.

At first glance, they looked just like a unit of Youzhou cavalry that had finished a hard fight and was trying to cross past the slope to seek out the enemy on the other side.

Yet when this unit reached the flank of the vanguard force that Cheng Pu had positioned to the right front of the slope, under the cold gaze of the Youzhou central army commanders, they unfurled their banners without any surprise and directly attempted to break through the vanguard and charge to the very canopy of Gongsun Xun — everyone saw clearly: the banner revealed behind the leading iron-clad general bore the character 'Wen'!

Without a doubt, this was precisely what Xun You had warned of earlier. Wen Chou, risking heavy casualties and refusing to retreat, simply wanted to achieve an extraordinary feat!

Cheng Pu and Pang De almost simultaneously gave a cold laugh. Cheng Demou was the first to step forward and give orders, demanding that Jiao Chu on the right front lead his troops to hold the enemy, while also mobilizing heavy troops from the rear to prepare to encircle them. Pang De, meanwhile, turned his head to look at Gongsun Xun, requesting a signal.

"Send the main force of the Volunteers down." Gongsun Xun glanced at the distant situation, pondered briefly, and immediately gave the order. "But do not permit them to engage. Have them go down, make a turn, and immediately return, heading directly behind the formation of Adjutant Zhang on the left..."

Pang De instantly understood and immediately urged the bulk of the Volunteers to head down to the right front. For a moment, the white horses were like a forest, yet they charged like tigers, their momentum utterly overwhelming.

It must be understood that the attacking unit was already finding it difficult to break through the Youzhou army's well-prepared vanguard. Now, seeing the world-renowned White Horse Volunteers charging straight at them, faintly gathering with the infantry to completely swallow their own force, they were shaken beyond words and for a time appeared quite disordered.

However, the general beneath the 'Wen' banner, seeing that his surprise attack had failed and that he was even in danger of being surrounded and annihilated, was not alarmed but rather pleased. He even turned and personally cut down his own great banner to show his resolve.

But just as he made this move, Pang De immediately wheeled his horse around and, right in front of the battle line, executed a sharp turn. He abandoned the thousand-odd Yuan cavalry in front of the right side of the small slope and charged straight toward the left.

The Yuan general who had cut down his banner instantly turned deathly pale, but it was already completely too late.

It must be explained that earlier, when the main force of the White Horse Volunteers had charged down at an angle and Gongsun Xun's position on the small slope was momentarily guarded by only a few hundred Volunteers, on the left front of the slope, a cavalry unit of only about a hundred riders had already appeared. However, they looked like nothing more than a company of Youzhou cavalry that had spotted the Yuan army's move and was turning back to provide rescue.

And when the White Horse Volunteers fully charged down, seemingly about to plunge headlong into that thousand-strong Yuan cavalry force, this hundred-strong cavalry unit directly wheeled their horses and, exploiting the advantage of small numbers and flexible movement, swiftly threaded through a narrow gap on the flank of the vanguard force and charged straight up the slope. If anyone in the Youzhou army could recognize Wen Chou, they would have discovered that this great Yuan cavalry general, wearing only an ordinary suit of iron armor, was right in the midst of this small force.

Not only that, but virtually every man in this hundred-strong Yuan cavalry unit was equipped with iron armor — they were by no means ordinary troops.

But alas, Wen Chou's brilliant performance was destined to be in vain in the face of Xun You's astonishing prior judgment and the Youzhou army's thorough preparations. Before his unit could even reach the slope, the countless White Horse cavalry that had just seemed to charge out ferociously had already wheeled around to his flank. Next, as Gongsun Xun waved his hand once more, Zhang Nan led the left vanguard force to seal off this unit's retreat, while the remaining several hundred Volunteers, who had long been prepared, charged out head-on under Zhang Ji's leadership. It was clearly a three-sided encirclement to annihilate them completely.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless, Wen Chou raised his head and gave a long sigh. He then dismounted, cast aside his weapons, declared his willingness to surrender, and willingly submitted to being bound. The hundred-odd armored riders, as well as the thousand-odd riders who had served as a decoy and were now trapped in a desperate situation, in their shock and dismay, many also dismounted and declared their surrender.

Cheng Pu, Pang De, and the others at the front surrounded them tightly, binding the surrendered troops while also sending riders at full gallop to report to their lord. Gongsun Xun had already seen Wen Chou lead his men in dismounting from the slope, and his heart was filled with shock and doubt. Now he could only look around at his advisors, seeking their opinions.

"I believe we cannot accept his surrender!" Shen Pei, hand on his sword as he sat on horseback, spoke without hesitation. "Seeing the cunning he displayed today, he is clearly a man who serves Yuan Shao with all his heart and might. Having failed in his surprise attack, he now turns to surrender — it is even more likely that he is unwilling to accept this and is seeking an opportunity to get close to my lord to attempt an assassination, or else he plans to turn on us with his surrendered troops at a critical moment... With the decisive battle imminent, such a man absolutely cannot be spared!"

Gongsun Xun slowly nodded, lost in thought.

"I believe we should accept his surrender," Tian Feng immediately offered a suggestion diametrically opposed to his old friend's. "And we should return his former troops to him, and grant him high office and generous emoluments. With the decisive battle imminent, accepting the surrender of a major general on the eve of battle is enough to strike awe into the enemy army... If we worry about him turning on us, we can send him far away after accepting his surrender, but we need not necessarily kill him. Otherwise, how will the people of the realm view the General's breadth of mind? And would not the Yuan army before us, upon hearing of this, perhaps develop the resolve of an army in grief?"

Gongsun Xun frowned slightly. He was truly in a dilemma... because deep down, he genuinely did not believe that Wen Chou, a trusted general who had followed Yuan Shao for so long, would surrender to him. Yet Tian Feng's argument was also extremely reasonable!

Killing him would be satisfying and would eliminate future troubles, but it would inevitably be seen as lacking in magnanimity, and might indeed strengthen the enemy's will to fight. Not killing him — this man was both brave and cunning... Lady Gongsun had said that Xu Huang was no match for him, and Zhao Yun had fought him to a standstill for dozens of bouts. It was only Guan Yunchang and Zhang Liao striking together in a surprise attack that had slain him in a single battle. And judging by today's battle, he was also a man of intelligence and stratagem... So where could such a man be placed that one could rest easy?

Thus, in his dilemma, Gongsun Xun turned once more to look at Lou Gui, Xun You, and Dong Zhao.

Lou Gui and Xun You fell silent for a moment. Dong Zhao pondered briefly, then suddenly laughed, drawing sidelong glances from everyone. "A defeated subordinate who is of no use — what difficulty does my lord have? When the decisive battle comes, why not return him publicly to Yuan Benchu? It will also let the world know my lord's magnanimity."

Everyone was astonished. Gongsun Xun was initially astonished as well, but then immediately burst into laughter.

As it happened, this cavalry engagement was a sudden encounter, an impromptu eruption. With Wen Chou's surprise attack foiled and himself captured, most of Yuan's cavalry promptly collapsed and fled back toward the wagon formation behind them. This opening battle thus came to an end.

After a short while, the cavalry commanders from the forward units also sent feathered-armor messengers to report: further south, dust and smoke rolled unceasingly — Yuan Benchu had personally led his main army to reinforce Chen Gong and had already consolidated the wagon formation. The forward commanders dared not act on their own and requested instructions.

Gongsun Xun immediately gave the order: withdraw at once, use the cavalry to cover the rear, pull back to Handan, and establish a camp with the city at their backs, making use of Yuan's former encampment. At the same time, he dispatched Ju Zong as an envoy to meet Yuan Shao, delivering a letter of challenge and agreeing to a decisive battle.

Although Yuan Shao had suffered a minor setback and lost a major general (he could not confirm Wen Chou's fate), he showed no sign of weakness. He immediately replied to Ju Zong: three days hence, they would fight at the midpoint between Liangqi and Handan — the very ground where the cavalry melee had taken place that day.

Of course, both sides also agreed that, with heavy casualties on both sides that day, each would permit the other to return to the battlefield to rescue the wounded, retrieve the dead, and summon back the souls, and that neither would attack during this time.

———I am the dividing line of mutual non-aggression———

"Wen Chou was a great general under Shao. At the end of Han, the Yuan clan clashed with the Grand Ancestor, fighting at Liangqi. At that time, the Grand Ancestor's hundred thousand troops arrived suddenly. Chou held the rear with eight thousand men, fighting with all his strength, yet ultimately could not break free. He then reversed course and charged north, fiercely attacking the Grand Ancestor's central army, inflicting heavy casualties, until only a hundred-odd riders were trapped before the central army... The Grand Ancestor admired his valor and strategic mind, but knew his will could not be bent. He sighed: 'The commander of three armies may be taken, but the will of a common man cannot be taken!' He then agreed to return him to the Yuan clan, and only then did Chou lay down his arms and submit to capture." — New Book of Yan, Hereditary Houses, First Volume

PS: Thanks to the great patron Ruo Bing for the White Gold Grand Alliance, and to Wangyun Shanren for the 108th sponsorship... I truly kneel. What virtue or ability do I possess to deserve this?

One more thing to mention: an official Qidian event, the 515 Team Welfare Activity, lasting until the Qidian event deadline. Join the "Fu Han" team. Based on the welfare contribution battle-value ranking within the "Fu Han" team, 16 winners will be rewarded — only 16. After the event ends, the top 50 in the ranking will enter a draw within the group (the draw will be fair and open). 16 lucky winners will be drawn. The first 15 lucky winners will each receive 2888 Qidian coins; the 16th lucky winner will receive 2238 Qidian coins. Event reward slots are limited. Please join the "Fu Han" team and enthusiastically complete the tasks! (PS: Crazy hint: Bi Xin Da Niang, Bi Xin Da Niang... if Da Niang reaches level two, Qidian will celebrate her birthday.)

(End of Chapter)