Chapter 58: Three Mountains and Seven Dragons

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There is a passage in Guo Ban's *Annals of Wei and Jin* that reads: "In the beginning, when Cao Cao lacked food supplies, Cheng Yu raided his native county to provide a three-day supply, which was mixed with dried human meat. Because of this, he lost the esteem of the imperial court, and consequently never attained the rank of a Three Ducal Minister."

The text indicates that during the early period, Cao Cao's army faced a severe food shortage. Cheng Yu devised a way to solve the problem for Cao Cao by forcibly seizing grain in his home county (Dong'a County) to supply the Cao army for three days, and it is said that much of this food reportedly contained human flesh.

These actions severely damaged Cheng Yu's reputation and were likely the primary reason why he never reached the prestigious rank of one of the Three Ducal Ministers throughout his life.

Although the methods might have been somewhat questionable... for a ruler, having such a subordinate at times truly brings peace of mind.

"Ding! The fourth candidate, Huang Chao, intelligence: 95."

"When autumn returns on the ninth day of the ninth month,
After my flowers bloom, all other flowers will perish.
A towering array of fragrance pierces Chang'an,
The entire city is clad in golden armor."

This was a truly ruthless figure; the previous individual pale in comparison to him, like a dwarf before a giant. Consequently, whenever Huang Chao is mentioned today, people's primary impression is that he was incomparably brutal—a super-scale murderer and a man-eating demon.

After the insurgent army entered the city of Chang'an, to solve the problem of military rations, they actually treated innocent commoners as food for the troops. "The rebels captured people to eat, slaughtering thousands daily. The rebels had mortar-querns consisting of hundreds of giant pestles, tossing people in alive to grind them up, consuming bones and all. The scourge they wrought was of such magnitude."

When Huang Chao once again ascended the throne, he began a frenzy of massacres in Chang'an City. Following this holocaust, nearly all the males within Chang'an were exterminated, turning the city into a sea of blood. "Enraged that the commoners of the wards and markets welcomed the imperial army, the rebels ordered a cleansing of the city. Able-bodied adult males were slaughtered to the last, and the flowing blood filled the drainage ditches."

"Ding! The fifth candidate, Xu You, intelligence: 93."

Xu You played a quite significant role in enabling Lord Cao to defeat his childhood acquaintance Yuan Shao at the Battle of Guandu. Had it not been for his strategy advising Cao Cao to launch a surprise raid on Wuchao, the granary of Yuan Shao's army, the outcome of that battle would have been uncertain indeed!

However, in *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, Xu You ultimately failed to control his tongue. Presuming upon his achievements, he uttered wild arrogance, insulted Cao Cao, and looked down upon the officers and men of Cao's army, leading to his execution by an enraged Xu Chu.

"System, remove Xu You and Huang Chao, and summon from the remaining three!"

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Among these five men, Xu You possessed the lowest ability and naturally had to be eliminated. Next was the great fiend Huang Chao; furthermore, for someone with such a murderous inclination as Huang Chao, even if he had ability, it was best to avoid employing him if possible.

Acts like slaughtering cities and consuming human flesh dealt a devastating blow to one's reputation. Even if committed by a subordinate, the ultimate fallout would still fall upon the commander himself.

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining Kuai Tong: command 58, might 52, intelligence 97, politics 92, charm 85.
His implanted identity is the son of Kuai Liang. Recognizing the host as the next Pacifier of the East, he has come to pledge his allegiance and accompanies the host into the capital. Due to a shortage of personnel under Zhao Gao, the host temporarily assigns him to assist Zhao Gao in establishing the intelligence network as quickly as possible."

"What a pity!" Wang Yu could only sigh silently in his heart at this outcome. Among these individuals, the one he desired most after all was Xun Yu. Compared to the other candidates, Xun Yu's abilities across all aspects were clearly a cut above the rest.

..................

"Generals, ahead lies Canglong Mountain, while Peach Blossom Mountain and Two Tigers Mountain stand to the left and right respectively. Each of these three mountains is occupied by bandits who form a tripartite mutual support system, pillaging passing merchants and travelers. Truly, they are a malignancy within our Hebei Circuit!" As the troop transport carriages advanced into a region of the Hebei Circuit, Zhong Baopeng pointed toward a cluster of mountains ahead and spoke.

"Among the three groups of bandits, Canglong Mountain is the most formidable. Their leader calls himself Flying Sky Dragon Li Que, and he has six sworn brothers. Together, they are known as the Three Mountains and Seven Dragons, reportedly gathering nearly a thousand foot soldiers under their command, while Peach Blossom Mountain and Two Tigers Mountain each command three to four hundred bandits," Zhong Baopeng added.

The Zhong family was, after all, one of the prominent clans in Hebei Circuit; their intelligence-gathering was indeed impressive, causing Wang Yu to nod inwardly as he listened.

"Ahem, ahem!" Wang Yu feigned a couple of coughs before speaking, "General, you are the commander-in-chief. How to fight this battle is entirely up to your decision!"

In the Great Cang Empire, although he was an imperial prince, once inside the military he could only be addressed as General rather than Highness.

Perhaps leading troops this campaign was indeed crucially important for the Fourth Prince, Huangfu Mingfeng. Therefore, he raised no objections to the suggestion of using a few minor bandit groups along the way to warm up and test their mettle before tackling the formidable Liangshan bandits in Yannan Circuit.

"We can first dispatch a thousand men forward to issue a challenge, feigning defeat while retreating. The remaining two thousand men will lie in ambush in the surrounding terrain, and once the bandits emerge from all sides to pursue, we will close in for an encirclement!" After carefully observing the surrounding topography, Huangfu Mingfeng spoke slowly.

Looking at this unfailingly calm Huangfu Mingfeng, Wang Yu genuinely had not expected that the mastermind behind the assassination attempt he encountered upon entering the capital would be none other than this man.

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At the very outset, Wang Yu's suspicions had always focused on one of the three major contenders for the succession: the Crown Prince, the First Prince, and the Third Prince. Viewed now, one truly cannot judge a person by outward appearances alone.

"The General's strategy is brilliant, yet those thousand men sent forward to lure the enemy must divest themselves of their heavy armor," Sima Qingrou reminded them at the opportune moment.

It must be said that Sima Qingrou was indeed meticulous. If that thousand-man lure force went forth wearing their standard equipment, their efforts would essentially be wasted.

A thousand-man unit clad entirely in iron plate armor, coupled with such fine weaponry, would immediately reveal itself as an elite regular army. The bandits were not so devoid of sense as to descend and pick such a hard persimmon to squeeze.

"Brother Sima's words are entirely correct," Wang Yu nodded slightly.

"Very well. Send the order to Colonel Xu, commanding his unit to discard their armor, set aside their crossbows, and enter battle armed solely with long spears!" Huangfu Mingfeng proved receptive to good advice, directly adopting Sima Qingrou's suggestion.

In the baseline military organization of the Great Cang Empire, five men formed a *wu*, led by a *wuzhang*; ten men formed a *shi*, led by a *shizhang*; fifty men formed a *dui*, led by a *duishuai*; one hundred men formed a *tun*, led by a *tunzhang*; five hundred men formed a *qu*, commanded by a *junhou*; and two *qu* combined formed a *bu*, commanded by a colonel.

Thus, among these three thousand imperial guards, three colonels accompanied the army this time. The capabilities of these three men were by no means inferior: two were top-tier advanced officers, while the strongest had just stepped into the super-tier. To serve as colonels of such elite forces, they naturally possessed genuine skill. A standard colonel from a regular army would scarcely possess such prowess.

Aside from these three colonels, there were no higher-ranking generals present this time. As for the rest, once they reached Yannan Circuit, they could simply mobilize the local generals.

"General Wang, General Zhao, each of you shall lead a *qu* to take up ambush positions on the left and right. Once Colonel Xu lures the enemy in, both flanks shall strike out to cut off their retreat!" Huangfu Mingfeng issued further orders to Wang Yu and Zhao Congwei.

"This subordinate obeys the command!" Wang Yu and Zhao Congwei replied with solemn expressions.

At this moment, even the normally jiffing and jesting Zhao Congwei turned serious. Both had received strict upbringing from their families since childhood, had tempered themselves within the military for no short duration, and clearly understood when jests were permissible and when absolute solemnity was required.

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