Chapter 296: Flooding Zhang He "If we send troops to rescue, how many soldiers should be left behind at Xiaopingjin Ferry?" Zhang He frowned. This was the first time he encountered such a tough enemy. It is common sense to think that this kind of fake-real fighting method is impossible to break through. However, by using the same strategy of false and real tactics, his scout team and small group of elite cavalry were repeatedly defeated by Cao's army, and the main force he led was unable to capture any of the enemy. It was obvious that there was a qualitative gap between the two sides in this tactic. He even didn't know where the opponent's main force was. This feeling of powerlessness of being led by others made Zhang He quite frustrated. Xun You frowned slightly. With fewer soldiers and horses left, Cao's army could easily turn around and eat up the defenders of Xiaopingjindu. But the army they led had now been reduced from 100,000 to 70,000. If they divided their troops too much, they would be easily taken advantage of by the enemy on their way back. "Leave 20,000 soldiers and lead the rest of the troops to break the siege of Qinshui Camp. Send scouts to contact Gongyou and go to rescue Qinshui Camp as soon as possible." After finally arriving at Xiaopingjin Ferry, Zhang He's army immediately rushed back without stopping.

Fortunately, the soldiers under his command were well-trained, so the military appearance was relatively neat. Along the way, Zhang He received battle reports from the Qinshui camp one after another. Although he had been controlling the marching speed to avoid ambushes, he still inevitably sped up a little. Soon, the army arrived near Chen County, which was located between Qinshui Camp and Xiaopingjin Ferry. Looking at the dense forest ahead with birds flying around, he then looked at the red "small map". Zhang He quickly ordered: "All troops stop and prepare to meet the enemy!" Although there are "red dots" everywhere along the way, there are so many birds flying above the dense forest, which obviously means that a lot of troops are ambushed. "This is the only way we can go. If we take a detour, it will take another two days to get there. Did Cao Mengde arrange so many things just to set an ambush here?" Xun You frowned and looked at the dense forest in the distance. He always felt that things were not that simple. "Whether it's true or not, we can find out by sending scouts to explore the route," said Zhang He. Then, under his command, dozens of scouts carefully entered the dense forest. Soon, the scouts came back with scarecrows in their hands: "General, we didn't find many enemies in the dense forest, and we found a lot of these things." He threw the scarecrow to the ground with an unpleasant look on his face: "It's just bluffing again." A few dozen people delayed their 50,000-strong army for nearly two hours. The anger in his heart immediately filled his mind, and when he thought about the previous battle report of Qinshui, Zhang He confirmed his guess. "Cao Mengde's target must be the Qinshui camp. The entire army will move out and continue northward." Xun You frowned slightly, but did not stop. Although he felt something was wrong, Zhang He was right. The importance of the Qinshui camp was unquestionable. Once the food and grass were lost, Zhang Liao would have to lead his troops to retreat, and the battle would end in vain. Because it was impossible for Zhang Liao to gamble without any scruples like Cao's army. Soon, the army marched northward in a mighty force and arrived near Duanhe River.

Looking at the river with almost shallow water, Zhang He did not notice anything unusual. The water level was the same when we crossed the river before. This year, although the Duan River is a tributary of the Yellow River, it is normal that there is not much water. Moreover, when he crossed the river some time ago, he had explored it up and down and found nothing unusual. Glancing at the "mini map", I saw red dots on both sides of the Duan River. But Zhang He no longer cared. The whole way was surrounded by red dots without stopping, and he had instinctively ignored them. Xun You frowned slightly, and called a few scouts to investigate upstream along the river to avoid being set upon. He had been feeling a bit like a frightened bird during the journey, and he would explore every valley, dense forest, and river he passed by. Zhang He's army, in units of 5,000 men, gradually crossed the Duan River from the bridge. However, just after half of the army crossed the river, Zhang He, with his natural talent, was able to detect the shaking of the earth. His pupils widened instantly. Looking at the upstream direction of Duanhe River, Zhang He realized something at the first moment: "The soldiers crossing the river should speed up. The troops that have not yet crossed the river should retreat quickly. The whole army should be on alert!" After three orders were issued simultaneously, Zhang He's soldiers immediately understood what had happened and quickly acted according to the orders. Several miles away from where the army was crossing the river, Xiahou Yuan looked at the rushing flood after the newly built earth dam was pushed down, with a hint of excitement on his face. A drop of water forms an abyss; a pile of sand forms a tower. This dam was built after Zhang He went south and crossed the river. Although it was only built in a few days, the amount of water intercepted was enough to form a turbulent flood. Although Zhang He's army was well-trained, they were somewhat tired after a long period of rapid march, and their formation was disorganized, so they inevitably moved a little slowly. Although the raging flood was only a single wave, it quickly rushed in front of them, destroying the bridge and the few soldiers on it who had not yet evacuated. And this was not the worst. Zhang He and Xun You, who had already crossed the river, looked at the army that was divided into two with solemn expressions. Fell into a trap! Despite all the precautions, he still fell into Cao Cao's trap. Zhang He was extremely regretful at this time, for not being more cautious as Xun You had suggested. "Quickly send scouts to Youping to ask for help!" Xun You gave the order immediately. "The entire army is on alert and we must surround the enemy with our backs to the water!" Zhang He gave the order at the same time. There are only a little over 20,000 troops around them, and the number of Cao's troops is still unknown, so they cannot afford to be careless. Sure enough, tens of thousands of Cao's troops quickly formed a battle formation and appeared in front of them. Xiahou Yuan, Cao Hong, Cao Xiu and other generals surrounded Zhang He's army, which was facing the water, and launched an attack together. At this critical moment, Zhang He's talent as a famous general was clearly visible. He gave orders calmly and repeatedly, relying on baggage carts, war horses, shield soldiers, etc., to form a semicircular defense line, and quickly deployed archers, spearmen and other echelons to meet the enemy. A fairly standard defensive formation was immediately formed before Cao's army attacked. Relying on the elite soldiers and advantageous weapons and armor, they were not defeated for a while under the siege of many powerful generals of Cao's army, and gradually gained a foothold.

Both sides were firing at full force and the battle was extremely fierce. On the south side of Duanhe River, Zhang He's army, which was somewhat panicked, was also attacked fiercely by Zhu Ling's army. However, the enemy seemed to intend to contain the enemy, and the offensive was not fierce, which made it impossible for Zhang He's army to spare time to build a bridge to rescue the main force. The battle lasted from noon to dusk before both sides stopped. Seeing Cao's army retreating, leaving behind a large number of corpses, Zhang He, who was in a tense state, finally breathed a sigh of relief. This battle was truly brutal. The enemy attacked from three directions. The army he led was caught off guard and was always at a disadvantage, with thousands of casualties. But fortunately it was held. As long as we get through tonight, we can find a way to unite the two armies tomorrow. Then at least we won't have to worry about the danger of destruction. Xun You, who had been assisting Zhang He's command, also calmed down at this time, but he did not show any relief, but frowned. "Something's wrong!" "Military Advisor, what's wrong?" Zhang He couldn't help but ask when he heard it. "Where's Cao Cao?" (End of this chapter)