[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-overthrowing-han":3,"chapter-overthrowing-han-overthrowing-han-chapter-435":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},1223194,1620,"Chapter 435: The Dragon and Tiger of Nanyang Begin Their Struggle","overthrowing-han-chapter-435",435,"\u003Cp>On the twelfth day of the sixth month, just one day after Sun Jian issued his declaration of war, at daybreak, a torrential downpour once again fell upon the Yushui River basin at the southernmost tip of Nanyang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was summer and this was the south; considering the climate of this time and place, such rain seemed only natural. Yet for Zhu Zhi, a man born in Jiangnan and long seasoned in warfare, he sensed an inexplicable hint of something in this great rain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To put it bluntly, once the rain began to fall, Zhu Zhi, who had detached his troops to Chaoyang City on the west bank of the Yushui, inexplicably found himself with far more confidence in this battle. He began to believe that Sun Wentai's will to fight was not without cause... At the very least, no one could deny at this moment that under such rain, the might of Lu Bu's eight hundred cavalry would inevitably be greatly diminished, and their advantage in mounted scouts would also be obscured by the downpour.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was a moment of opportunity!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And sure enough, just after breakfast, Sun Wentai dispatched a trusted guard to Chaoyang County, where Zhu Zhi was garrisoned, to deliver his orders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"General,\" the messenger said with utmost deference to Zhu Zhi, who had already risen to the rank of Commandant with a two-thousand-dan salary back in the Changsha days and was now formally recommended as General of the Household. \"The Lord has orders: you are to lead your entire force across the river to the east bank to rendezvous with him. The crossing must be complete before noon! Leave behind the baggage, banners, and drums, but bring every straw mat in the city!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Junli, who had been mentally prepared, was for once taken aback, because this overly simple military order contained far too many baffling and unexpected elements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Setting aside the matter of the straw mats—likely for the troops to rest on during the rain—and the order for the entire army to move out light despite the downpour, the direction of the river crossing alone was enough to catch one off guard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To explain this, one must first understand the terrain of this battlefield... The Yushui and the Bishui both run roughly north to south, but they merge into one just before reaching Dengxian (the Bishui flows into the Yushui), and then, continuing south for a short distance, they join the Mianshui below Xiangyang City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within this area, Sun Jian's main force was encamped at Xinye City, situated in the narrow triangular strip of land between the Yushui and Bishui. Liu Pan, Cai Mao, Huang Zhong, and Lu Bu were encamped in the open ground west of the Yushui, before Dengxian. Huang Zu and Yuan Shu were below Caiyang City, east of the Bishui... If Sun Wentai wished to attack the former, he needed to cross the Yushui; to attack the latter, he needed to cross the Bishui. And for the two enemy forces to support each other, they too only needed to cross a single river, because up ahead, the Bishui and Yushui merged into one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To put it more simply, take the point where the Bishui and Yushui meet, and three lines extend outward, like the letter Y. The three lines are the unmerged Yushui, the unmerged Bishui, and the merged Yushui. The three armies were situated within these three fan-shaped zones, each separated from the others by only a single river.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under these circumstances, Chaoyang City—located on the west bank of the Yushui, not far from Xinye City but jutting out four or five li to the south, the very place Zhu Zhi was garrisoned with five thousand troops—became exceptionally important. It was both a crucial defensive screen against Liu Pan and Lu Bu in the direction of Dengxian, and a forward base for an offensive. Otherwise, Sun Jian would not have immediately sent Zhu Zhi here upon hearing of the enemy's reinforcements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the problem now was this: if they were going to attack the enemy at Dengxian, shouldn't the entire main force be secretly crossing the river to the west bank from behind Chaoyang City under cover of the rain? Why, instead, was he being ordered to bring his entire force to the east bank?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had he changed his mind at the last moment, deciding to use the heavy rain to launch a surprise attack on Yuan Shu and Huang Zu below Caiyang City on the east bank of the Bishui?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of it this way, it seemed far more reasonable. Crossing a river with nearly twenty thousand troops in a downpour was no simple matter. The Bishui, as a tributary of the Yushui, had a much gentler current and a far narrower channel; a swift crossing would be much easier. Moreover, Huang and Yuan had no advantage in troop numbers or combat strength. And both men were notoriously worthless characters; in such heavy rain, they had likely long since abandoned their troops and were holed up in Caiyang City, drinking and making merry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The entire army is to rendezvous ahead at Xinye City on the east bank?\" With this thought, Zhu Zhi immediately straightened his expression and confirmed the order. \"Or are we simply to cross the river eastward from Chaoyang City and await the main army's assembly in the open field?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Not Xinye City!\" The messenger, having been instructed by Sun Jian beforehand, naturally pointed out the crucial detail at once. \"The Lord wants you, General, to abandon Chaoyang City immediately. Leave behind all banners and cumbersome items, and only make every effort to gather things like straw mats. The rest of the army is to take advantage of the heavy rain, travel light, cross the river eastward, and rendezvous directly opposite Chaoyang City!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi understood in his heart and nodded outwardly. He hesitated no further and acted immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It must be said, Chaoyang and Xinye faced each other across the river, and now, with the armies linked, Zhu Zhi had naturally taken advantage of the city's protection to construct a pontoon bridge in the secure zone to his rear. The heavy rain had just begun to fall, the river had not yet risen, and the pontoon bridge was naturally still safe. Furthermore, with Sun Jian's will to fight so evident beforehand, logistical preparations had also been made. And so, the five thousand troops abandoned all their banners, gongs, drums, war chariots, and even a few warhorses. Each man carried only a day and a night's worth of dry rations and water, bore his armor and weapons, and added over a thousand straw mats hastily requisitioned from the city's commoners and merchants. Just like that, they immediately crossed the river, traveling light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One could only say that Zhu Zhi was indeed a steady and reliable man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By noon, the rain showed no sign of letting up, and there were even faint rumbles of thunder. On the open wilderness within Xinye's borders, opposite Chaoyang City, a great army had indeed gathered. Sun Wentai's entire force of eighteen thousand men had marched out under the rain!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My Lord!\" Zhu Zhi spotted the single great banner, soaked through by the rain, from afar and immediately moved forward to rendezvous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Junli!\" Sun Jian, armored and wearing a sword, with a straw mat rolled around the long spear he carried on his back, stood amidst the rain, surrounded by his generals. Hearing the voice of his trusted commander, he did not bother to look closely but simply raised his voice in reply. \"Have all five thousand troops arrived?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"All have arrived!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Well done! How many straw mats did you bring?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Over a thousand!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That will be more than enough!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My Lord, where are we heading?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"East! Before the water rises further, the entire army will cross the Bishui at that shallow ford five li further downstream, then follow the river downstream along the east bank!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi's heart was completely settled. Without a moment's further hesitation, he immediately ordered his unit's officers at all levels to lead their men southeast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the rain did not lessen, a distance of five li was simply too short. Moreover, with the troops traveling light for a surprise attack and holding a psychological advantage over Yuan Shu's defeated army, they reached the shallow ford in just about half a shichen. And just as Sun Jian had said, the heavy rain had started in the morning, and the runoff had not yet gathered to form a flood peak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, Sun Wentai ordered Jiang Qin to lead eight hundred Jianghan warriors as the vanguard. The entire army crossed the river with ease, then followed the river downstream toward Caiyang, further along.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the way, shielded by the heavy rain and the already rising waters, relying on Jiang Gongyi's ferocity and the Jianghan warriors' acclimation to summer rain and climate, Sun Wentai's force swept aside the outposts set by Yuan and Huang along the route as easily as rolling up a mat, advancing southward without pause.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, in the afternoon, after the entire army had marched south along the river embankment in the rain for a long time, Zhu Zhi suddenly noticed a problem. Sun Jian was simply following the river and showed no intention of turning toward Caiyang. After all, Caiyang City was not like Chaoyang City; it did not sit right beside the river, but was located fifteen li from the east bank... At first, though Zhu Zhi noticed this, he instinctively assumed Sun Jian wanted to use the river embankment for easier marching and to stay close to the river to conceal his movements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But as time passed hour by hour, the entire army had long since passed the Sanchakou where the Bishui flowed into the Yushui, yet they continued to follow the Yushui embankment, maintaining their formation. And now, above the pattering rain, the light behind the clouds had gradually begun to shift... Finally, when the rain eased slightly and Sun Jian ordered the entire army to rest temporarily below the embankment, Zhu Zhi could contain himself no longer. He took the initiative to approach his lord.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My Lord!\" Zhu Junli drew near and, amidst the pattering rain, called out to Sun Jian, who was chatting and laughing with the soldiers. \"On a rainy day, one must pay even more attention to visibility. If we don't turn now and launch the surprise attack, by the time it gets dark, out of these tens of thousands of troops, I doubt many will even be able to find their way to the walls of Caiyang City. While we can still make out the roads, let us head straight for Caiyang!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Who said we are going to Caiyang?\" Sun Wentai halted his steps among the soldiers sitting on the muddy ground without a care. Seeing it was his most trusted commander, he could not help but smile teasingly. \"Did my military order not say to cross the Bishui with the entire army and then follow the river downstream? Where did Caiyang come into this?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi, his face streaming with water, caught up to him in the rain and looked up blankly... In that instant, his mind first went completely blank, and then a nameless panic set in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was only natural... As a veteran general in the army, as the universally acknowledged top commander of a different surname within Sun Jian's faction, as a man who had risen from a commandery clerk to a Filial and Incorrupt appointee, as the one beside Sun Jian always known for his grasp of \"civil affairs,\" Zhu Junli at this moment was utterly without a clue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Truly without a clue!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right now, faced with Sun Jian suddenly negating the military plan to advance on Caiyang and launch a surprise attack on Yuan Shu and Huang Zu, he had no idea what Sun Wentai intended to do, nor could he imagine what the man could do. And yet, at this very moment, the entire army had already been committed!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eighteen thousand men, having abandoned the two fortified cities of Xinye and Chaoyang that formed a mutual horn-like defense, without their baggage train, with only a day and a night's worth of dry rations, had just muddle-headedly crossed the river and entered enemy-occupied territory... How could he not panic? What reason did he have not to panic?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who could have guessed that in the gradually easing curtain of rain, seeing his trusted general so discomposed, Sun Wentai would be pleased rather than anxious: \"If even you, Junli, cannot guess what I intend to do at this stage, then this operation is bound to succeed! You must know, in warfare, the way is deception, and within the concept of 'deception,' the most lethal element is to strike where the enemy least expects it, to catch them unprepared. Since ancient times, how many examples of the few defeating the many, how many overwhelming victories that crushed entire armies, have all been of this kind...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I naturally know this, my Lord, but...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Junli, this stratagem of mine was learned from two battle examples that have become famous throughout the realm—one from the General of the Guard, and one from Lu Fengxian himself!\" Seeing this, Sun Jian simply grabbed the other man and, ignoring the slippery mud, pulled him up onto the river embankment. \"Have you figured it out?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can probably guess some of it,\" Zhu Zhi said, still bewildered, but the words escaped his lips nonetheless. \"Taking advantage of the moment the heavy rain begins and the river has not yet risen to make a stealth crossing, catching the enemy on the opposite bank completely unprepared—that should be the strategy the General of the Guard used when he counterattacked Liucheng and crossed the Dalinghe. And the other strategy must be using the river embankment as a guide to maintain the army's cohesion in the rain—that should be the method Lu Bu relied on when he led several thousand cavalry through the darkness along the Golden Embankment, rampaging back and forth at Sanjin... But my Lord, it is precisely because of this that we must advance quickly! There is no river embankment to serve as a troop movement corridor to Caiyang.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I told you, we are not going to Caiyang.\" Sun Jian, his long spear and straw mat on his back, gazed across the Yushui in the rain and spoke slowly, finally revealing the answer. \"We are going to Dengxian! Did I not say the night before last that we would strike Liu Pan, Lu Bu, Huang Zhong, and Cai Mao? Dengxian is right next to the river embankment. As long as we hug the embankment, even if it is dark and raining, we can still maintain our strength and feel our way to the enemy camp's front.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi's panic intensified, and his look of bewilderment deepened: \"But my Lord, if we are striking Dengxian, why not cross the river from Chaoyang, and then wouldn't it be more convenient to advance along the river embankment on the east bank? Why must we...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"To catch them unprepared,\" Sun Jian answered solemnly. \"Though my will to fight is fierce, I am no fool. Lu Bu and Liu Pan are brave and fierce; Huang Zhong is ferocious and unyielding; add to that Cai Mao, the foremost scion of the local gentry, there to steady the field. Their troops outnumber ours, and they have eight hundred cavalry. If we cannot achieve complete surprise, we will be in grave danger once battle is joined...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But as the saying goes, flat ground can kill an iron horse, and shallow water can drown a man!\" Zhu Zhi, after a moment of stunned silence, pointed at the already swollen waters of the Yushui before them and argued vehemently, a look of absurdity on his face. \"My Lord, I won't even mention that during this single day's march, dozens of men have already slipped and fallen injured by the roadside, waiting for us to take Caiyang and come back to rescue them. Just look at the water—look at this water! It has already risen! This must be the flood peak...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That is why I brought two thousand mats, to cross the river!\" Sun Jian replied, still with a solemn expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi's mind went blank once again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You never imagined this, did you?\" Sun Jian sighed with a laugh at the sight. \"Mats can be used to cross a river. You just wrap up the hollow reeds that are everywhere along the riverbank in summer with the mats, then lash them together with rope and long spear shafts to make rafts. You can cross the river with ease... When I was a boy, Xu Kun's mother wanted to go boating, but the household kept the boats under tight watch. I spent just a quarter of an hour making a small raft out of reeds and a mat, and then took her out into the Fuchun River to pick lotus flowers... Though you are also a man of Jiangdong, you come from an excellent background. I hear you even have some connection to our Wu Commandery's Zhu clan. You bound your hair and became a commandery clerk, came of age and were recommended as Filial and Incorrupt—how would you understand such things? But that is good. If even you do not understand, then how would Liu Pan, a lad from the Central Plains, or Lu Bu, a son of Heshuo, or Cai Mao, a scion of a great house, understand? Even if Huang Zhong is a local of Nanyang, having been appointed General of the Household by Liu Biao, he is surely not from some humble, insignificant family... No matter how cautious they are, no matter how skilled in war, with such heavy rain, they will at most be on careful guard during the daylight hours and send their mounted scouts to probe the east bank as best they can. And if those scouts toil all day and return to report that there is not a single soldier of mine, Sun Jian, west of the Yushui, how could they possibly imagine that I would come crossing the river from Huang Zu's direction at dusk? With rain still falling so heavily, and the river current so swift?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi wanted to speak but hesitated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Say no more.\" Sun Jian grew stern. \"I know you still wish to advise me to turn and attack Caiyang... But Junli, in the affairs of the world, how can there be any principle of not facing difficulties head-on? The situation now is that the enemy force at Dengxian is the true obstacle. If we can smash them, then Huang Zu and Yuan Shu will be like items in a bag, easily taken. But if we smash Huang and Yuan yet cannot defeat them, then we will never be able to pacify Nanyang, let alone advance to take Jingxiang! The moment of opportunity is tonight. You are my deputy commander, my second-in-command; you must have the bearing of a second-in-command. At this time, you can only aid me, not dissuade me!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi immediately composed his expression into one of solemn respect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Has the entire army halted?\" Sun Wentai saw that Zhu Zhi had fallen silent, and that Jiang Qin, Li Tong, Zu Mao, Huang Gai, Sun Ben, and the other accompanying generals had all gathered around. He then gave his orders crisply. \"While the rain has eased slightly and visibility is clear, we shall cut reeds here, roll the mats, and cross the river!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>None dared delay, and they all went to carry out the order.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It must be said, using reeds as the core, straw mats as the outer layer, long poles as the frame, and then binding them with rope into rafts—while not necessarily a widely known technique, any child from a poor family in the south who was familiar with rivers and lakes would grasp it immediately upon seeing it. They might not have done it exactly this way in their youth, but they had certainly done something similar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reeds were everywhere; mats could be taken from old, broken ones at home; wooden poles you could cut yourself; the only troublesome part was the need to twist hemp rope. Who hadn't had such an experience?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, reed rafts — essentially mats woven from reeds — could not withstand prolonged soaking; after a few uses they would rot and fall apart, so these rafts were destined to be single-use only. For that reason, no one ever imagined that one day, having joined the army to seek wealth and rank, they would still have to use them to cross a river.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They themselves had never thought of it, let alone the likes of Liu and Cai on the opposite bank. As for Lu Bu, who came from Heshuo, he certainly knew about sheepskin rafts…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But such is the way of things: speaking of it and thinking of it is simple, yet doing it is exceedingly difficult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The river current was swift, the rain unceasing. The soldiers went barefoot down the riverbank to cut reeds, but one after another, several slipped into the river and were swept away. Even more common, in the wet and slippery conditions, sharp blades and reed fibers easily cut wounds; blood and muddy water mingled together, causing unbearable agony. With such attrition, plus those who had slipped and fallen injured during the previous day's march, the losses had already surpassed a hundred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this is the army, this is the system under military law. Even in ordinary marching and routine tasks, without clashing blades against the enemy, there will be countless bizarre losses. When Gongsun Xun crossed the Daling River in the rain, advancing stealthily to pursue the Wuhuan people, he likewise suffered countless losses along the way, and thousands of warhorses were ruined in the process… But conversely, this is precisely what makes an army mightier than bandits: the sacrifices they make elsewhere — through discipline, marching, and battle preparations — can save far more lives on the battlefield.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sun Wentai planned to emulate Gongsun Xun's stealth river crossing to launch a surprise attack on Liucheng, striking the enemy camp outside Dengxian under cover of night in a deep raid. Back then, Gongsun Xun's battle at Liucheng ended with an overall loss so minuscule it was barely worth counting, while annihilating the rebel Wuhuan tribes of Liaoxi that had stood for a hundred years… It remained to be seen what Sun Wentai could achieve today.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sunlight behind the clouds had already begun to dim, but fortunately these rafts were exceptionally simple. Moreover, Sun Jian had brought two thousand reed mats — not to ferry men back and forth on rafts, but clearly to lash the reed rafts together into a few reed pontoon bridges so crude as to defy belief. And once the pontoon bridges were complete, crossing the river successfully would not be a problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, when the men under Jiang Qin, deeply skilled in water, were lured by heavy reward to take ropes into the water and swim through the flood crest to the opposite bank, successfully setting the stakes, the entire army was momentarily elated and heartened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Cross the river!\" Sun Jian issued the order without the slightest hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At once, his armored personal guards took the lead, carrying spears and escorting the army's sole great banner onto the swaying pontoon bridge to serve as the vanguard… However, the first few steps, secured by the stakes and ropes below the riverbank, were barely manageable. But when they reached the middle of the river, a small swell suddenly rolled down from upstream, and this pontoon bridge — made of straw mats wrapped around reeds — instantly pitched and churned with the current below. The seven or eight personal guards in the very front, armored and bearing spears, could not keep their footing for even a moment; they toppled over one after another like wooden animal plaques and plunged headfirst into the river.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Considering the iron armor on their bodies and the turbid river water under the flood crest, it was imaginable that these most trusted and most outstanding warriors at Sun Jian's side could no longer possibly survive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, the only thing visible, rising and falling, was the shaft of Sun Jian's great banner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The riverbank, which had been a scene of jubilation moments before, fell momentarily silent. The soldiers, as was only natural, shrank back in fear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi opened his mouth, and the half-swelling heroic spirit that had stirred within him moments before was instantly doused. He prepared to step forward and once more urge Sun Jian to turn toward Caiyang. He no longer hoped to reach Caiyang before dark, but with such a surprise attack, as long as several thousand daring warriors could feel their way to the walls of Caiyang, this battle could still be spoken of.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet when Zhu Junli raised his head, he was stunned to discover that Sun Wentai had already begun to strip off his clothes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The outer surcoat, the armor beneath the surcoat — he shed them one by one. Then Sun Wentai, wearing only an undyed inner garment, his red headscarf wrapped around his head, leaning on his ancient Ding sword, stood on the riverbank facing the rain and looked around him with proud defiance: \"Gentlemen! Are there any among you, my countrymen from Jiangdong, who heard my name in our homeland and followed me to the Central Plains to seek renown and achievement?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The men were stunned and at a loss. The words of dissuasion Zhu Junli had prepared were choked back in his throat. Instead, he and Zu Mao directly knelt in the muddy riverbank to pledge their allegiance… The two of them, one a man of Yuzhang and the other of Wu Commandery, were precisely the kind of men Sun Jian spoke of.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nor was it only the two of them; among the surrounding officers and soldiers, many also knelt one after another.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are there any bold and unrestrained men of Xu and Yang, born of the wilds, whom no one in these chaotic times was willing to accept — only I, Sun Jian, ever reckless and brash, a wild man of Jiangdong — so you sought me out all this way, entrusting your very lives to me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Qin led his men in bowing to pledge their allegiance, and Li Tong, after a brief hesitation, also led his own unit in bowing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Are there any from the damp, sweltering lands of Jingnan, who first saw me campaign across commanderies to suppress bandits on all sides, and later heard that I was marching north across provinces to punish Dong Zhuo, and thought me a man who would not betray the state — and for righteousness' sake, abandoned your homes to follow me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Gai also led his men in bowing to pledge their allegiance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"With this scene alone today… I, Sun Jian, am content!\" Sun Jian, seeing that within his sight in the rain no man remained standing, spoke with all his might from the riverbank, his voice ringing out. \"The world mocks us southerners as reckless and thoughtless, making light of life and death — yet they do not know why we make light of life and death! Of all the myriad things under heaven — merit, fame, wealth, rank, even so-called great righteousness and heroic spirit — not a single one belongs to us southerners. We are born possessing nothing, save our lives alone. If we do not stake our lives, how can we obtain even a fraction of these things?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rain pattered on without cease; the Yu River churned unendingly. On the riverbank, from Zhu Zhi on down, many men were already breathing heavily and raggedly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That day in Chen Commandery, I promised you wealth and rank, and a glorious return to your homeland. But today I must tell you: Liu Biao and Lu Bu are at Dengxian. They will not let us return, nor will they permit us to seize wealth, rank, and glory for ourselves… And since they forbid us, we must stake our very lives to contend for them!\" Sun Jian's voice grew harsh and fierce, nearly hoarse. \"Today I have no other words. The spirit of Emperor Guangwu is at Caiyang. If he deems that I, Sun Jian, deserve to die, then let me die at Caiyang. If his favor rests upon me, then let me cross the river safely to Dengxian, and look forward to a great victory! As for you all — those willing to follow me, strip off all your armor, cast aside your long weapons, place your lives in my hands, and follow me across the river to fight! Those unwilling to follow me — leave! Leave on your own!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With these words, taking only his ancient Ding sword, he then picked up from the ground the ration of food and water wrapped in a bamboo tube that he carried with him, turned directly, and stepped onto the churning pontoon bridge that had just swallowed several of his trusted armored warriors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Zhi was the first to rise to his feet and immediately began frantically stripping off his armor. When his hand touched the he-guan cap on his head — the cap that marked his rank as General of the Household — he did not pause for even a moment. He directly untied the cap and flung it onto the mire. Then, with his hair loose and disheveled, he leaped onto the rolled-mat bridge and, together with the other officers, caught up with Sun Jian.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In white clothes and bearing only short weapons, they crossed with ease. Once they reached the opposite bank, Zhu Junli turned back, drew his blade, and shouted: \"Gentlemen, do you see? Our lord bears the mandate of Emperor Guangwu himself! In this battle, we can only press forward without retreat!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three armies were roused to fervor and crossed the river in rapid succession. Sun Jian, without once looking back, followed the last glimmer of daylight, braving the rain, and continued advancing along the great embankment from the western shore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, shortly after the sky had turned completely dark, the vanguard force felt its way to Chouju, located beside the river. Chou was an ancient state from the Spring and Autumn period that had belonged to the territory of Deng, and a small walled settlement remained. But since this place was no more than three or four li from the walls of Dengxian, and the fortifications were dilapidated, only a few hundred soldiers were stationed there, using the convenience of the walls as a temporary logistics camp… In the rainy night, Liu Biao's army was caught completely off guard, and Sun Jian took it head-on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately, the captured garrison troops were all executed. Sun Jian used this place as a foothold to rally the follow-up units and allow them to rest and regroup.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, there was still no sign of movement from the direction of Dengxian.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By midnight, the entire army had finished eating and drinking. The forces gathered at the small walled settlement of Chouju numbered over ten thousand… From eighteen thousand men, after a single day of forced march and one river crossing, only this many remained. From a military perspective, it was hard to say whether this was worthy of praise or lament… However, Sun Wentai still paid it no mind whatsoever. Once again, he left the wounded behind, and without even donning the armor and other equipment captured at Chouju, directly set out again in plain clothes and red headscarf, braving the rain, blade in hand, to attack!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the latter half of the night, outside Dengxian, Lu Bu — who had insisted on returning to his own camp after drinking at Cai Mao's place — was suddenly jolted awake from a deathly heavy slumber by an earth-shaking roar from outside the camp… He turned over, listened blankly for a long moment, and then abruptly sobered up completely!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It turned out that the waves of sound outside, surging one after another, were all in the accents of Jianghan, and what they were shouting was — Kill Lu Bu!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—————I am the dividing line of Rolling Mats to Cross the River—————\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sun Jian, that little fool, is quite adept at using men. You should tell the various generals, so that they know to be wary of him.\" — Dong Zhuo\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ps: Three matters:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>1. Thank you all for your enthusiasm — Dame has successfully reached two stars.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>2. The inspiration for rolling reed mats to cross the river comes from historical records. Sun Jian's younger sister, who was Xu Kun's mother, once proposed a stratagem in a certain campaign to use reeds to construct single-use rafts to carry soldiers across a river. This is not something I invented.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>3. Chou… how is this character pronounced? Also, thanks to Big Boss Hei for the scholarly assistance. At the time, looking at the map, I simply could not make out this character, and in most online versions of the *Book of the Later Han*, whenever this settlement beside the Yu River near Dengxian was mentioned, it was just garbled text. It was entirely thanks to Big Boss Hei's help in looking it up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",5572,"2026-06-04T19:42:52.587Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","c201574a936e392f380e303ecab8dfe9494d1dd0d1da448c0a9ab32ba3acdd97","overthrowing-han-chapter-436","overthrowing-han-chapter-434",548,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Foverthrowing-han-cover.jpg"]