Chapter 388 I don't want false reputation, so what if I am the enemy of the Hu people! troops crossed the Yishui River!
Tadun was terrified.

He raised his head and looked at the Han king in disbelief, as if he was looking at a devil.

According to past practice, the Han emperors did not care about so-called face the most. As long as these Hu people were willing to submit, they would forgive their past sins.

Not only will they not be killed, but they will also be given official titles, money and silk, allowing them to return and continue to lead their own troops.

They will not pay any price for the crimes they committed, such as burning, killing, looting, and wreaking havoc on the border areas.

They only needed to pay tribute on the surface and make the Han emperors feel honored.

The Southern Xiongnu is the best example.

The split between the Northern and Southern Xiongnu was the most vulnerable moment in the Xiongnu's history, while the Han Dynasty was at its peak.

The Han emperor was fully capable of taking advantage of the situation to send troops to wipe out the Southern Xiongnu, thereby resolving the threat from the north in one fell swoop and realizing Emperor Wu of Han's unfinished cause of destroying the Xiongnu.

The Southern Xiongnu chose to surrender to the Han Dynasty. The Han emperor not only happily accepted it, but also moved the Southern Xiongnu to Bingzhou to settle down.

The result was that the Han Dynasty gave its land to the Huns, but in return it only received the false glory of the Huns' superficial submission.

After the Han Dynasty declined, the Southern Xiongnu took advantage of the situation to expand. Now they are all over Bingzhou, and their influence once extended to Hedong.

The Xiongnu Chanyu Yufuluo even led his army across the Yellow River and entered the territory of Yanzhou, cooperating with Yuan Shu to attack Cao Cao.

Tadun naively thought that Liu Bei, a descendant of the Liu family, would be as greedy for the false reputation of being a vassal of the Hu people as his ancestors were, and would be generous enough to spare his life and forgive his past crimes.

Then they would treat him with good wine and delicious food to show their magnanimity.

Then they would follow the precedent and re-appoint him as the Chanyu of Wuhuan in the name of the King of Chu, grant him seals, ribbons, money and silk, and order him to go back and continue to lead the Wuhuan tribes.

That's why Tadun knelt so cleanly.

This kneeling not only saved his life, but also earned him a reward. He could go back and continue to be the Chanyu of Wuhuan. It was worth it to kneel, and it was not shameful...

But who would have thought that Liu Bei would not play by the rules and actually wanted to kill him?
Tadun was completely frightened and could not be dealt with by Liu Bei.

"What are you waiting for? Drag this Hu chief down and behead him!"

Chen Dao shouted to the left and right tiger guards.

The Tiger Guards rushed forward and dragged Tadun up.

It was not until this moment that Tadun reacted, and his astonishment instantly turned into endless fear.

"King Chu, I know I am wrong and I am willing to submit to you. Why do you still want to kill me?"

"Your ancestors have always been kind to us Hu people. As a descendant of the Liu family, why are you so cruel?"

"Liu Bei, Liu Bei, you can't kill me!"

"You cruel lord, if you kill me, you will be the enemy of all the barbarians in the world—"

Tadun suddenly woke up, terrified and howling in agony.

However, Liu Bei had a cold and domineering look as he watched Tadun being dragged out.

Tadun, the Chanyu of Wuhuan, was beheaded!
A bloody human head was hung high on the bank of Yishui River.

When his head was hung high, the 200,000 Chu soldiers all knew the good news that the Wuhuan people were defeated and their Chanyu was beheaded.

The Chu camp, which stretched for ten miles, immediately fell into boiling cheers.

All the soldiers knew that the biggest stumbling block preventing them from crossing the river had been removed by their King of Chu.

It will only take a few days for the 200,000-strong army to cross the river.

All the soldiers were eager to fight, and they all hoped to cross the river and make merit.

really.

Early the next morning, Liu Bei's order to cross the river was issued to all the troops and camps.

After noon, hundreds of thousands of soldiers, after a hearty meal, left the camp and gathered towards the south bank of the Yishui River.

On the shore, the main force of the navy led by Commander Gan Ning had already entered Yi from the sea and arrived at the waters of Yijing.

Hundreds of warships and thousands of bamboo rafts were lined up on the shore, waiting to transport 200,000 troops across the river.

At the command of the generals, hundreds of thousands of soldiers began to board the boats in an orderly manner.

Liu Bei stood on his horse, sword in hand, standing on the bank, overlooking his hundreds of thousands of soldiers boarding the ships.

His gaze crossed the Yishui River, extended to the other side, and fell on the Yijing defense line.

The murderous intent is strong!
"Pass on my decree, and send 200,000 troops across the Yishui River!"

"I will destroy Yijing and kill Yuan Shang!"

Liu Bei drew his sword and shouted loudly towards the north bank.

The trumpets sounded and the flags waved.

The messenger rushed along the river beach, spreading the order to cross the river and launch a general attack throughout the army.

Thousands of boats and rafts started to move, carrying countless Chu soldiers away from the shore. The Yishui River was covered by countless dark clouds and rushed towards the other side.

On the river beach that stretched for ten miles, the Chu army divided into nine groups and crossed the river at the same time, heading towards the north bank.

On the north bank, the sound of warning gongs could be heard everywhere.

In the main city of Yijing, inside the palace.

Yuan Shang had just received his mother, Liu, and was trying to greet her and comfort her.

After learning that the Chu army intended to cross the Yishui River from the lower reaches and head straight for Ji County, he still made preparations for both scenarios.

On the one hand, he ordered Tadun to lead the Wuhuan cavalry to Quanzhou to intercept the Chu army.

On the other hand, he sent someone back to Jixian County, and took his mother to Yijing day and night.

It’s not that he was not confident in Tadun’s fighting ability, but he felt that bringing Liu to his side would be much safer than leaving her in Ji County.

Who would have thought that just as Liu arrived in Yijing, news came back that Tadun had been captured and the main force of Wuhuan had been destroyed.

The whole of Yijing was filled with shock and fear.

And just yesterday, spies on the south bank sent back news that they saw Tadun’s head hanging high on the riverbank.

This news made Yuan Shang and his ministers even more frightened.

"I didn't expect that Liu Bei's methods were much more cruel and brutal than those of his ancestors. I thought he would force Tadun to surrender, and then force the Wuhuan people to bow down and submit to him."

"I didn't expect that he would kill Tadun directly?" "This Liu Bei, his methods are really cruel, really..."

Shen Pei was so terrified that he broke out in cold sweat and was unable to speak.

Yuan Shang shuddered.

The killing of Tadun made him once again feel Liu Bei's decisive side.

He seemed to have a premonition of his own fate from Tadun's death.

"Shang'er, the Wuhuan have been defeated. Can Youzhou still be defended? Can the lives of you and me be saved?"

Mrs. Liu was so panicked that her face turned pale as paper. She grabbed her son's hand and asked in a trembling voice.

"Mother, my son..."

Yuan Shang had a bitter expression on his face and did not answer.

There was a deep atmosphere of despair in the palace.

There were hurried footsteps, and the guards stumbled in and fell to the ground.

"Your Majesty, the 200,000 Chu troops on the south bank have all come out, with thousands of boats and rafts, and are heading towards our north bank in nine directions!"

Yuan Shang's body swayed and he was unsteady on his feet. He just managed to stand with the help of Liu.

Inside the palace hall, all the ministers of Wei State were shocked and fell into panic.

"Shang'er, what should we do? Liu Bei is coming to attack us. What should we do?"

Liu was so anxious that tears were about to fall out of her eyes. She held her son's weak legs tightly and asked.

Yuan Shang had no idea what to do. He shouted to Shen Pei in panic:

"Shen Zhengnan, what do you think I should do?"

Shen Pei's face was gloomy, as if he had already expected that the Chu army would cross the river and attack at this time.

After a moment of silence, Shen Pei gritted his teeth and bowed, saying:

"Most of Ji County has been lost now. It is impossible for us to abandon Yijing and retreat northward."

"Besides, the Wuhuan have been destroyed. Even if we flee back to Ji County, there is no place to defend. It is impossible for us to hold on to Ji County."

"I believe that we have now reached a point where we have no way to retreat. We can only risk the survival of our Great Wei and do our utmost to stop the Chu army from crossing the river!"

"If we can drive the Chu army back to the south of Yishui, we will still have a glimmer of hope!"

Shen Pei's words seemed to have ignited a ray of hope in Yuan Shang's desperate eyes.

After taking a deep breath, Yuan Shang pushed his mother's hand away, grabbed the silver spear, and shouted:
"Everyone, listen up. The survival of the Wei Dynasty depends on this battle!"

"Pass on my order, mobilize all troops to rush to the north bank, and stop the Chu army from crossing the river at all costs!"

Yuan Shang immediately put on his armor and mounted his horse, leading all 40,000 Wei troops out of Yijing and gathering at the shore defense line.

On the shore where the main city of Yijing is located.

Yuan Shang personally led tens of thousands of elite Wei troops and lined up on the beach.

On the Yishui River, hundreds of boats and rafts, carrying nearly 30,000 Chu soldiers, swept in like an overwhelming force.

Zhang He stood at the bow with his sword in hand, his cold eyes glaring at the Wei army that was hastily deploying on the shore.

The royal flag with the word "Wei" on it was clearly visible, symbolizing that Yuan Shang was in charge.

Zhang He knew that his former master was on the other side of the river.

Liu Bei entrusted him with the important task of breaking through the central route and the command of 30,000 troops, which showed his trust in him as a surrendered general.

Now is the time for him to prove himself.

"King of Chu, if you trust me, Zhang He, how can I, Zhang He, betray you?"

"Today, I will defeat Yuan Shang with my own hands to prove my loyalty to the Chu Kingdom!"

Zhang He made up his mind and swung his sword:
"Crossbowmen, release your arrows to suppress the Wei army on the other side!"

As the order was given, more than 5,000 sharp arrows immediately rose into the air and rushed towards the opposite bank.

Arrows flew like locusts, and in an instant the sky above the north bank was dyed with blood.

The Wei army rushed over in a hurry and had no time to raise their shields, and were shot and killed in large numbers in the blink of an eye.

Yuan Shang could only order his soldiers to dodge the arrows and shoot back at the same time.

The gap in military strength became apparent at this time.

The Wei army had less than two thousand archers and crossbowmen, and they were suppressed to the point where they could not raise their heads. They could only fight back with sporadic arrows.

The Chu army's warships were unstoppable and they moved forward despite the enemy's scattered arrows.

In a blink of an eye, the flagship was the first to rush onto the river beach.

Zhang He jumped off the bow of the boat and was the first to jump onto the north bank of Yishui River. He rushed into the enemy group like a killing god.

With a wave of his sword, large numbers of Wei soldiers were chopped down to the ground.

Countless Chu soldiers behind him jumped off the boats one after another and rushed towards the demoralized Wei army.

A steady stream of boats and rafts rushed onto the river beach, and tens of thousands of Chu troops rushed towards the retreating Wei army like a torrent.

Less than a quarter of an hour into the battle, Zhang He had torn a hole in the Wei army's defense line.

The Chu army rushed in violently, tearing the hole bigger and bigger, until the Wei army's defense line collapsed and broke completely.

The escape begins.

The morale of the Wei army was already severely damaged, so how could it withstand the high-spirited charge of the Chu army?

What's more, the Chu army had the advantage in military strength.

After a brief resistance, tens of thousands of Wei troops lost their morale and turned around to flee.

"Can't resist even for a quarter of an hour?"

"Is it really God's will to destroy Yuan Shang, the Yuan family, and the Wei Kingdom?"

Looking at his own army which was vulnerable and in disarray, Yuan Shang looked up to the sky and uttered a sad and desperate cry.

(End of this chapter)