Chương 225: Battle of the Grasslands

The remaining Xianbei leaders—Queji, Suli, Kezui, Queju, and Murong—still wanted to resist, but Lü Bu, Yuwen Chengdu, Zhao Yun, and others had already arrived.

Lu Bu's halberd, like a dragon, pierced through Que Ji with a single blow; Yuwen Chengdu's phoenix-winged gilded halberd swept across, smashing Su Li's head; Zhao Yun's dragon-dauntless silver spear, like lightning, stabbed Ke Zui and Que Ju in succession; Murong tried to escape, but Xu Da personally caught up with him and cut him off his horse with a single stroke.

With all their leaders killed, the Xianbei army was thrown into chaos.

Tribal leaders were either killed in battle or captured alive and beheaded.

Xu Da seized the opportunity to lead his troops to press forward from the front, while Liu Ce launched a fierce attack from the rear.

A pincer attack from both sides.

massacre.

Two hours later, the battle ended.

More than 20, 000 Xianbei cavalrymen were almost completely annihilated.

The battlefield was littered with corpses, severed limbs, and rivers of blood.

Liu Ce ordered the construction of a Jingguan (a mound of skulls) – this time it was piled up exceptionally high, after all, it contained more than 20, 000 skulls.

After a day of rest, Liu Ce left the wounded soldiers behind to be sent back to Youzhou, and led the main force to Bingzhou to support Zhang Liao.

...

Bingzhou, the Xianbei camp.

The 40, 000 Xianbei cavalry led by Rilu, Yanliyou, Qianman, Kebineng, and others also received news that their stronghold had been destroyed.

Qianman went mad on the spot—his mother, his wife, and his children were all in the royal court, and now they were probably all part of the Jingguan (a mound of corpses).

"Kill! Smash into Bingzhou! Massacre the city! Avenge!" Qian Man shouted, her eyes red with rage, ready to fight to the death.

But Rilu and Yanliyou remained calm—they were Xianbei from the west, what did the destruction of their royal court have to do with them? Anyway, their families were all in the west, far away, so they should be fine.

Kebineng was the most conflicted. His wife and children were dead, and he was filled with hatred. But he was also a rational person and knew that fighting desperately now would be tantamount to suicide.

"Retreat," Kebineng gritted his teeth.

"As long as we're alive, we can always rebuild. Kui Tou's forces were ambushed and are still in a stalemate. Now that Liu Ce has taken our base, he must have returned from the grasslands. Kui Tou and his men are in trouble. We haven't even defeated Zhang Liao yet. What will we do when Liu Ce turns his horse around and flanks our rear?"

This statement is reasonable and well-founded.

Rilu and Yanliyou immediately agreed.

Qianman refused and jumped up to curse Kebineng as a coward.

Kebineng slapped Qianman across the face, stunning her and bringing her back to her senses.

"Do you want to get us all killed?!" Kebineng stared intently at him.

"What will we do once Liu Ce finishes dealing with Kui Tou and turns his horse around to block our retreat? We can't even beat Zhang Liao right now, how can we possibly beat Liu Ce?!"

Qian Man covered her face and shouted unwillingly, "Then let it be!"

"What else can we do but forget about it!" Kebineng roared.

"If you want to die, go die yourself! Don't drag us down with you!"

In the end, Qianman gave in.

Forty thousand Xianbei cavalrymen began to retreat.

But Zhang Liao was very clever. As soon as he saw the Xianbei were about to flee, he immediately guessed that Liu Ce had succeeded.

"All troops, attack! Hold them off!" Zhang Liao ordered.

Six thousand cavalrymen—three thousand of the Guiyi Camp Wuhuan cavalrymen and three thousand cavalrymen transferred from Bingzhou and Jizhou—clung to the Xianbei rear guard like a leech, harassing and ambushing them all the way.

Zhang Liao fought with great skill: he didn't engage in direct confrontation, but instead targeted the tail.

As soon as the Xianbei rear guard turned around, he ran; as soon as the Xianbei ran, he chased after them. He was like a piece of chewing gum, impossible to shake off.

The scene was somewhat comical: 40, 000 Xianbei cavalrymen were being chased by 6, 000 men, feeling incredibly frustrated, yet they dared not stop for a decisive battle—fearing they would be bogged down and eventually be surrounded and killed by Liu Ce.

Liu Ce smiled after receiving the intelligence from the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

"Kebineng is indeed clever." He handed the letter to Xu Da and the others.

"He knows to run if he can't win. Too bad... can he really escape?"

Jia Xu said slowly, "Does my lord intend to annihilate them all?"

"Of course." Liu Ce pointed to the map.

"Releasing a tiger back into the mountains will bring endless trouble. This time, we must cripple and destroy the Xianbei, so that they will not dare to invade the south for decades."

So Liu Ce changed his route, skipping Bingzhou and heading north to intercept them.

A week later, in the heart of the grassland.

Liu Ce led his cavalry to catch up with Kebineng and his men.

They waited quietly.

A scout reported: "My lord, the Xianbei army is twenty li from here and is heading north at full speed. General Zhang Liao's six thousand cavalry are in pursuit."

Liu Ce smiled and handed the intelligence to Xu Da, Jia Xu, and Cheng Yu: "Kebineng is somewhat clever; he knows how to run. But can he really escape?"

After examining the map, Xu Da said, "This place is in the heart of the grasslands. They will think it's safe and will lower their guard. We can attack from both sides and annihilate them."

Jia Xu smiled sinisterly and said, "My lord, after this battle, the Xianbei will have no chance of rising again for decades."

Cheng Yu nodded and said, "They should all be executed to prevent future troubles."

As they were talking, dust rose in the distance.

The Xianbei army has arrived.

...

Kebineng and his men marched north, followed closely by Zhang Liao's six thousand cavalry, fleeing in a sorry state.

"This place should be safe now." Kebineng looked around.

As soon as he finished speaking, a cloud of dust rose up ahead.

On the horizon, a dark mass of cavalry appeared.

A large banner bearing the character "Liu" fluttered in the wind.

Pursuers were behind them, and enemies were in front of them.

"Damn it..." Ritsu cursed.

Yan Liyou's face was a little pale.

Qianman saw it too, and was instantly enraged: "Damn it! Do you really think the Xianbei cavalry are afraid?! Charge! Kill!!!"

Kebin tried to stop them, but he couldn't—the morale of the army had already spiraled out of control.

We had no choice but to bite the bullet and charge in together.

"Kill!!!" Forty thousand Xianbei cavalry charged forward like trapped beasts.

Liu Ce sneered and raised his halberd: "All troops—charge!"

More than 20, 000 cavalrymen met them.

In the heart of the grasslands, an unprecedented cavalry battle unfolded.

Tens of thousands of troops clashed and fought each other, like two torrents colliding.

This was a head-on cavalry duel.

There were no conspiracies, no ambushes, just real charges and fighting.

The Xianbei people fought desperately, and their fighting power soared.

However, Liu Ce's army was too well-equipped—their Mingguang armor was impervious to swords and spears, their composite bows had an extremely long range, and their Jingse Iron Cavalry and Iron Pagodas were invincible in their charges.

In addition, Zhang Liao's six thousand cavalry stabbed them in the back.

Liu Ce led the charge, his Heavenly Dragon City-Breaking Halberd sweeping through the enemy ranks. Dian Wei, Xu Chu, Lü Bu, Zhao Yun, Yuwen Chengdu... followed closely behind, like sharp knives piercing the Xianbei army's formation.

Xu Da commanded the central army, advancing steadily and surely; Jia Xu and Cheng Yu coordinated from the rear, identifying and addressing any shortcomings.

The fighting lasted from noon until evening.

The Xianbei people are becoming fewer and fewer.

Ri Lu was shot through the throat by Liu Ce with an arrow; Yan Liyou tried to run away but was caught up by Xu Chu and cleaved in two with a single stroke; Qian Man charged at Liu Ce like a madwoman but was hacked to pieces by Dian Wei.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Kebineng led the remaining 10, 000 soldiers in a desperate breakout and fled north.

Liu Ce wouldn't let him go.

Liu Ce ordered, "Take stock of the casualties. Hand the wounded over to Wen Yuan. Leave the Iron Pagoda Cavalry behind, and cut the rest of the cavalry in half."

"Cut in half?" Zhao Yun and the others were taken aback.

"Yes," Liu Ce explained, "each person has five warhorses, and they are lightly armed. The remaining cavalry and wounded soldiers are all entrusted to Wen Yuan."

Soon, an elite cavalry force of over 10, 000 men was reorganized.

Each person has five warhorses, which they take turns riding, increasing their speed several times over.

"Chase them!" Liu Ce pointed his halberd northward.

"Chase them to the ends of the earth and annihilate them!"