One Hundred and Twenty-Seven: An Irresistible Force

The three hundred men of the Shangmu Battalion showed no fear as they faced the seemingly endless stream of rebel troops on the main road. Though instantly swallowed by the tide of enemies, they acted like a malignant tumor spreading pestilence, carving deep into the chaotic ranks and pushing relentlessly forward. Everywhere they passed, severed limbs and broken bodies littered the ground, throwing the rebels' already disorganized charge into utter disarray.

Cao Hong had not personally fought on a battlefield since his campaign from Xiangyi in Chenliu to Dongwuyang in Dongjun at the beginning of last year. It had been at least ten months since he had last killed a man—a very long time for him. In his previous life, he had made it a point to kill at least once every month, even if it were only a single soul.

Now, wielding his horse-lance, he charged into the fray using a mowing technique that fused the Greek cavalry spear style with the Yang family’s Pear Blossom spear. As his four-meter-long lance plunged into the enemy ranks with the momentum of his galloping steed, two rebels were instantly skewered. Around him, the enemy surged from all directions.

Cao Hong did not stop to defend; instead, he spurred his horse deeper into the heart of the formation. Those rebels, armed with crude, makeshift weapons, were on the verge of reaching his mount when they were pierced by the halberds of the follow-up infantry. These thousand halberdiers decimated the front ranks of the rebels in an instant—a testament to the difference between a professional army and a disorganized rabble.

Of the four hundred personal guards under Cao Hong’s command, many were veterans who had fought alongside him from Xiangyi to Dongwuyang, while the remaining six hundred were new recruits brought by Shi A. Though most had never experienced such a battle, their systematic training—enduring both the scorching sun and rigorous swimming drills—had instilled in them unified discipline and iron resolve. While not as fierce as the veteran four hundred, they held their own.

Although the rebels outnumbered Cao Hong’s forces ten to one, the ferocious charge of the Shangmu Battalion and the lethal precision of the halberdiers brought their momentum to a grinding halt. Yet, they did not retreat; instead, they pushed forward even more wildly. Soon, several men in the vanguard of the Shangmu Battalion were pierced by dozens of weapons simultaneously, turning them into sieves.

Just as the melee threatened to become a stalemate, a great cloud of dust rose in the rear, accompanied by faint shouts and the thunder of hooves. Then, a horn blast sounded. A deafening roar erupted from the left side of the road. The rebels at the front saw the dust ahead and the dense forest of banners on the left, accompanied by cries as thunderous as a mountain collapse. This roar drowned out the voices of their entire ten-thousand-man force.

These displaced people and bandits killed and looted merely to survive. While brave, they were not fearless. The initial charge by the Shangmu Battalion and the personal guards had cost them hundreds of lives, which was not enough to break them. But the dense banners to their left, the overwhelming noise, and the sound of cavalry in the rear caused their morale to shatter. They were not soldiers; when faced with a superior enemy, they instinctively chose to flee.

The rebels at the front began to scream and turn back. A few who had been locked in combat with Cao Hong also turned to run, but a bandit wielding a hoe as a weapon was struck down by Cao Hong’s lance as he tried to escape.

The Shangmu Battalion and the personal guard camp seized the opportunity to pursue the fleeing rebels. A ten-thousand-man army is long; even with ten men per row, they would stretch for a thousand rows. With half a meter between rows, the column was at least five hundred meters long. Thus, while the vanguard broke and fled, the rear was often still pushing forward.

Pushing and trampling ensued. As the forward rebels retreated, those in the rear realized they had encountered a formidable enemy. Seeing the billowing dust, the banners in the tall grass to the left, and hearing the war cries, the rebels descended into chaos. The rearmost groups fled without a thought, while those in the middle were crushed between the surging crowds and, seeing the dense banners on the left, instinctively veered toward the grass on the right. There, two more horn blasts signaled an ambush, and a forest of long halberds emerged from the brush.

Terrified and convinced they were caught in a pincer trap, the rebels lost all heart. Those in the middle and rear were relieved to have avoided direct contact with the government troops, while those in the front were either trampled or forced into the right-hand grass, where they were slaughtered by Pan Zhang’s ambushers.

The ten-thousand-man rebel force was shattered by Cao Hong’s mix of real and feigned ambushes. Cao Xiu’s fifty Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, having discarded the tree branches tied to their horses' tails, charged to the front to join the pursuit. These fifty-two riders chased the thousands of fleeing rebels, using hand crossbows and lances to kill hundreds with each pass, while the thousand men of the Shangmu Battalion and the guards followed closely, finishing off the stragglers.

Cao Hong continued to fire his horn-wood bow at the fleeing rebels until his arrows were spent. By the time he ordered the pursuit to end, they had traveled five miles. The road was littered with the dead, and the grass on both sides was choked with the bodies of those caught by the infantry. At least a thousand lay dead, with fewer than five hundred escaping.

When Cao Hong returned to the main battlefield, the fighting was nearly over. Pan Zhang’s two thousand halberdiers had littered the ground with corpses; only two or three hundred rebels had surrendered and were being guarded by a small detachment, while a few hundred others still offered token resistance.

Seeing Cao Hong’s return, the remaining rebels lost their will to fight and knelt in surrender. Cao Hong had Cao Ang and the laborers clear the battlefield and count the prisoners, while he and Liu Ye chatted on the side.

Liu Ye remarked with admiration: "General Zilian, this battle was truly brilliant. You used your elite troops to break their spirit, then employed the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry to stir up dust and the laborers to create the illusion of a massive force with banners and shouts. You shattered their morale, forcing them to trample each other or flee into the ambush—everything went exactly as you predicted!"

Cao Hong smiled. He finally understood why Gongsun Zan and Liu Bei had been able to crush the Qing and Xu Yellow Turbans, taking seventy thousand prisoners and killing tens of thousands. His own force of only three thousand three hundred and fifty men had defeated over ten thousand. It was clear that in ancient warfare, numbers meant little compared to the strategic acumen of the commanders. The battlefield was too vast for one man to control, and Liu Bei and Gongsun Zan’s ability to coordinate multiple columns against the disorganized Yellow Turbans was the key to their success.

Liu Ye asked, "General, I am curious: which military classic did you study to devise such a strategy?"

Cao Hong replied, "I used the principles of 'Terrain,' 'Momentum,' and 'Military Situation' from the *Art of War* by Sun Bin. It comes down to one word: 'Momentum.' I used my elites to counter their terrain, and the banners and dust to create the appearance of a massive force. With no way forward and nowhere to turn left, the enemy had to flee backward or to the right—that was the inevitable momentum. Sun Bin said, 'Momentum is what compels soldiers to fight.' It is merely the art of creating a situation favorable to one's own troops."

Liu Ye was deeply impressed. "The *Lüshi Chunqiu* says that Sun Bin valued 'momentum' above all—this must be it! The *Art of War* by Sun Bin has been lost for so long; it is surely heaven's will that it has reappeared through you, General. Sun Wu’s *Art of War* speaks of 'utilizing momentum,' but Sun Bin’s 'creating momentum' is clearly superior—it is the art of making something out of nothing, applicable at any time and in any place."

Pan Zhang approached to report: "Young Master, in this battle, the Shangmu Battalion lost thirty-one men with seven wounded. The halberdiers, including the personal guard camp, lost one hundred and sixty-nine with thirty-eight wounded. The laborers suffered no casualties. We have killed about eight thousand enemies and captured seven hundred and sixty-nine."

Cao Hong nodded. "Pass the order: set camp here and move the nearby corpses to be burned."

Pan Zhang replied, "Understood! And what of the prisoners?"

Cao Hong turned to Liu Ye. "What does the advisor think?"

Liu Ye smiled. "Since these are a disorganized rabble with low morale, it is best to use psychological warfare. Release them and tell them that we are an army of justice, and that those who surrender will not be harmed."

Cao Hong agreed. "True. Most of these are impoverished peasants incited by others. Let them return and spread the word; it will shake the morale of the Yellow Turban ranks."

After the night fell, the camp settled. The following day, after resting, they continued their march.

On the road, Cao Hong encountered several smaller rebel groups—some Black Mountain bandits, others Yellow Turbans—ranging from three thousand to over ten thousand strong. Through ambushes, decoys, and displays of force, he defeated or repelled them one by one. Cao Hong advanced like a bamboo being split, though he avoided the main enemy forces in the center of Dongping Commandery.

Even so, his forces suffered losses. The personal guard camp was reduced to under five hundred men, and Pan Zhang’s halberdiers to fifteen hundred. Only the laborers and the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry remained intact.

That day, they reached the borders of Zhang County in Dongping. Rather than rushing to the city, Cao Hong sent the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry to scout whether the county had fallen, while he set up camp by the mountains and water to await news.