My Father in Law is Lu Bu

Chapter 732

Cao Cao's army surrounded Nanpi City like ants but Nanpi stood strong and continued to repel the enemy.

The casualties suffered on both sides were terrible and the vultures in the sky was already attracted to all the corpses. Even the moat was almost filled up with corpses.

“Milord. We cannot continue to fight like this!” Unable to take it anymore, Yue Jin begged Cao Cao. The number of casualties is rising too quickly. Yue Jin originally had five hundred men but now he didn't even have fifty men. If someone like Yue Jin is in such a disastrous state, the others would fare just as badly if not worse.

Cao Cao sighed. He really did not expect Yuan Shao to be so good at fighting. “Yue Jin. We will stop attacking for today. Have the men withdraw and rest!” Cao Cao also felt his heart ache. Half of the casualties were the troops from Guangzhong that followed him all this while. Cao Cao wanted to bring them and build their career, not bring home their ashes.

“Thank you Milord!” Yue Jin quickly kowtowed to Cao Cao.

***

“Phew.” Cao Cao sighed as he shook his head. The corpses outside the city were being cleaned up. They were being carried away by carriages rather than by hand. A large pit was dug to bury the bodies but even then, it could not fit everyone. As a result, the corpses had to be burned. Fortunately, the weather was cold. If the weather was hot, it would have brought the plague.

“Men. Send a letter to Miaocai and have him immediately bring the army to Bohai.” Cao Cao ordered.

“Huh?” The generals were shocked. Why was Xiahou Yuan being asked to withdraw from Fanyang? This was putting the cart before the horse. If they were to withdraw Xiahou Yuan's army right now, the Yuan brothers would be able to escape and even strike back.

“We can lose the battle at Fanyang but not the one at Bohai!” Cao Cao said grimly. He did not take the Yuan brothers seriously at all as they weren't on the same level. If Yangzhou didn't supply Fanyang with weapons and provisions, Fanyang would have already been captured.

But Yuan Shao was different. Cao Cao may have defeated Yuan Shao once but he could not afford to relax. He regards Yuan Shao as his greatest enemy. If Yuan Shao was someone easy to deal with, he would not have been Cao Cao's boss. Yuan Shao was not the eldest son in his family but he managed to to stand out. That shows how powerful he is. Cao Cao needed Yuan Shao to die here.

“Understood!” The others accepted the order and left. Soon, Xu Huang returned.

“Gongming. Have you already dispatched a messenger to Miaocai?” Cao Cao asked.

Xu Huang had a strange expression. He looked at Cao Cao and replied. “Milord. I think Miaocai would not be able to come.”

“Huh?” Cao Cao frowned. He first wondered if the Yuan brothers took the opportunity to catch Miaocai off guard but then he quickly refuted it. In order to prevent a counterattack, Cao Cao purposefully left more than one hundred thousand men behind. Xiahou Yuan was also made their Commander as Xiahou Yuan was calm and cautious.

“Give it to me!” Cao Cao took the letter from Xu Huang and became shocked when he read it.

“Miaocai already breached Fanyang City?” Cao Cao looked back at Xu Huang.

“I don't know!” Xu Huang replied. He had only just received the letter.

“Quick! Send a messenger to Miaocai. I must confirm this news as quickly as possible!” Cao Cao ordered. He was both excited and worried. If the information in the letter is true, then Fanyang would be captured and the war at Youzhou would have been determined. Otherwise, this letter is sent by an enemy to deceive him, which means Xiahou Yuan's army is in danger. ṙ𝔞Ｎо₿ĘŠ

“Understood!” Xu Huang nodded and went out before returning a short while later.

“So fast?” Cao Cao felt that Xu Huang was being abnormally efficient that day. His orders were being completed as soon as it was given.

“Milord. There is no longer any need to send a letter to General Xiahou Yuan.” Xu Huang handed a letter to Cao Cao. There were only a few words on the letter but it had Xiahou Yuan's seal. Because of this, Cao Cao believed it. Xiahou Yuan would not abandon his seal even if he were defeated.

“How could it be?” Cao Cao immediately stood up. His army of three hundred thousand could not breach Fanyang but after taking away some soldiers to Bohai, Xiahou Yuan accomplished just that. It was like a slap in the face.

“Milord. I heard that the Yuan brothers were having an internal strife!” Xu Huang added.

“Internal strife? Impossible! Isn't Yuan Xi there?”

“Yuan Xi?” Xu Huang shook his head bitterly. He felt bitter because capturing Fanyang were the achievements of the Xiahou brothers. It is fine that Xiahou Yuan achieved this but Xiahou Dun would definitely show off in front of the others.

“Milord. The second son of the Yuan Family is here.” Xu Huang said and handed a box in his hand.

Cao Cao opened the box and his eyes grew wide. There was a large human head preserved with lime. The person died with his eyes open.

“Yuan Xi?” Cao Cao had never seen Yuan Xi in person before but Yuan Xi still looked a bit like Yuan Shao. This is how Cao Cao recognized Yuan Xi.

Cao Cao then knew why there is an internal strife. Yuan Xi is dead. According to Xiahou Yuan's report, Fanyang's gates were opened by Yuan Xi's men.

“What a pity. He is such a talented person.” Cao Cao sighed. Yuan Xi is young and more insightful than the generals under his command. Such a promising talent was killed not by Cao Cao but by his own brother. Xiahou Yuan only found Yuan Xi's head while he was pursuing Yuan Tan.

“Milord. Should we hold a grand funeral for Yuan Xi?” Xu Huang asked. After all, Yuan Xi was the one who opened Fanyang's gates. Even if Yuan Xi simply wanted Cao Cao to disrupt the situation, he was still Cao Cao's benefactor.

“Yes.” Cao Cao nodded. Just as Xu Huang was about to leave to make preparations, Cao Cao added. “Not now.”

Xu Huang did not understand what Cao Cao wanted.

“Yuan Xi. In a sense, I can be considered your uncle. Since you helped me capture Fanyang, you should help me capture Nanpi as well!” Cao Cao said before shouting to his men. “Men! Pass down my orders! The whole army is to be in mourning!”

“Huh?” Xu Huang and the others were dumbfounded. Why is the whole army in mourning? The fighting may have been fierce the past few days but none of their generals died.

“Just do as instructed.” Cao Cao said as he waved his hand.

Soon, Cao Cao's army began to raise white flags and wore white clothes.

“Milord! Come and take a look!” Yuan Shao had just returned to the city to rest when he was called by Wen Chou. Cao Cao's army was acting abnormally. Though Wen Chou was a good fighter, he was no match for Cao Cao when it came to tactics. So when Cao Cao was doing something different, Wen Chou's first thought was to wake Yuan Shao up and let him decide what to do.

Yuan Shao's eyes were bloodshot and his body was covered in blood. The battles in the past few days were so fierce that he had to go out to the front lines and fight in person. When Yuan Shao was woken up by Wen Chou, he was unhappy. But his thoughts changed after seeing what happened outside. Did someone in Cao Cao's army die?

If the whole army was in mourning, it must mean that a general died.

“Has any of Cao Cao's general died in the past few days?” Yuan Shao asked.

“Milord. I do not know about others but I did not kill any generals in battle!” Wen Chou shook his head. Although he had the Dajishi and the Xiandengying, the enemy has the Tiger Cavalry and their heavy infantries were also formidable.

“Milord. Let us escape.” Wen Chou tried to persuade. Nanpi City still stood strong but this would not last forever. Wen Chou believed that they should break out city and go to Jizhou or Bingzhou. The nobles there would definitely give their support and then they would have the ability to fight Cao Cao.

“Escape?” Yuan Shao also wanted to escape. He had too few soldiers and Nanpi City would have fallen a long time ago had he not rely on the help of the common people.

However, Yuan Shao shook his head. “No. I cannot escape. At least not now!” Yuan Shao valued his reputation. He may have been defeated but he would not accept staying defeated. He had to gain at least a small victory over Cao Cao to regain his reputation.

“Have you requested reinforcements from Fanyang?” Yuan Shao asked. As long as he had the reinforcements from Fanyang, he would be able to repel Cao Cao.

“I have already sent out a fourth request but there is no reply at all!” Wen Chou shook his head.

“Hmph!” Yuan Shao snorted coldly as he thought of his rebellious sons.

“Cao Cao's army is in mourning. They must have lost a general and morale must have dropped. This may be our opportunity!” Yuan Shao said to Wen Chou. “I will go back and rest for a while. Wake me up later.” Yuan Shao could not hold on any longer. He needed to sleep.

Wen Chou came to wake Yuan Shao less than an hour later. This time, Yuan Shao was not angry as it was Cao Cao who came calling.

Cao Cao came while in mourning. White cloth was hanging on his horse. He rode towards the city with hundreds of cavalrymen by his side.

“Milord. Should we…?” Wen Chou was ready to have the archers snipe Cao Cao. If they succeed, Cao Cao's army would be without a leader.

“No need.” Yuan Shao shook his head. He knew that Cao Cao was afraid of death. Cao Cao would prepare a way out before anything else. If Yuan Shao could guarantee Cao Cao's death, he would do it. Otherwise, it would just be embarassing to shoot at someone coming to parley.

“Brother Benchu. Let us stop fighting.” Cao Cao said.

“Stop fighting? Why should we stop fighting?” Yuan Shao asked with a smile. “Mengde. Do you intend to surrender?”

“Brother Benchu. We must not fight anymore. Many more people will die if we continue. Alas, a great talent of our Han Dynasty has perished. He died so tragically and at a young age. He should have a great official and could have showed his elegance in court. But he died on the battlefield. Brother Benchu. How can you bear this? Let us end this war as soon as possible to that peace can return to the land!” Cao Cao cried miserably. If Xu Huang and the other did not know better, they would have thought that Cao Cao's father has died.

“So that peace can return to the land? Cao Mengde! Don't try to pin this on me! My Hebei, my Bohai, would not be like this if you weren't so ambitious and led your army.” Yuan Shao accused back.

The people of Hebei knew nothing about conquering the world. All they understood was that they had peace and was content when Yuan Shao was in charge. It was Cao Cao who brought war to them.

“Villain Cao! Get lost! You have bad intentions!”

“Get lost!” The common people in the city all have a bad impression of Cao Cao. The countless casualties in the past few days were all Cao Cao's fault.

“Alas! The heroes of the Han Dynasty did not die guarding the border but died from internal struggle!”

“Cao Mengde! Don't be a hypocrite! The death of your generals are caused by you sending them to war! If you want your generals to live, withdraw your troops!” Yuan Shao shouted to Cao Cao.

“Brother Benchu! That is a hero of our Han Dynasty! Are you so inhumane?” Cao Cao asked.

Yuan Shao could not help but laugh. Why should he cry when Cao Cao's generals die especially since they are after his life?

“Today, I, Cao Cao Cao Mengde is here to offer a sacrifice for Youzhou, Hebei and the world. The hero of our Han Dynasty. The hero of our Han Dynasty. The Provincial Governor of Youzhou and the descendant of four generations of high ministers!” Cao Cao knelt down and spoke.

At first, Yuan Shao was pleased but the more he listened, the more it sounded wrong. His eyes widened as he realized who Cao Cao was referring to.

“Cao Aman! What nonsense are you saying? Xianyi is safe and well in Fanyang! Why are you holding a funeral for him here?” Yuan Shao anxiously shouted at Cao Cao. It was an example of how trials showed someone their true feelings.

Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang were both his eldest and favored sons. Yuan Shao believed that he never treat them unfairly. But in the end, the two of them brought him nothing but grief by trying to seize power. Yuan Xi who he never treated well had instead fought for the Yuan Family instead of trying to seize power like his brothers.

During the time Yuan Shao was under house arrest, he had regretted his actions and thought about Yuan Xi. When Yuan Xi was young, he was forced to respect the elder brother and give way to his younger brother. Yuan Shao now planned to make Yuan Xi his heir after making his comeback. As for his two useless sons, he would at the very least allow them to stay idle.

However, Cao Cao was saying that Yuan Xi is dead.

“Brother Benchu. Fanyang has been accidentally captured by Miaocai!” Cao Cao explained. “The reason he could capture Fanyang is because of of Young Master Yuan Xi!”

“Impossible!” Yuan Shao did not believe it at all. Yuan Xi was someone who could look at the overall situation. Someone like him would not have opened Fanyang's gates.

“Brother Benchu. You cannot blame Young Master Yuan Xi for this. He is a good child. He provided Youzhou as a safe haven for his two brothers. But in the end, they plotted against him. They were afraid that you would come back and get rid of them. That is why they plotted against him!” Cao Cao cried as though he really wanted to seek justice for Yuan Xi.

“No!” Yuan Shao started to believe was Cao Cao said. His two rebellious sons were indeed capable of doing such a thing. They would be afraid of their father and decide that they would be spared by killing Yuan Xi. Since Yuan Shao would only have the two of them left, he would have to spare at least one of them or have no more descendants to carry the Yuan Family name.

“Hahaha!” Yuan Shao laughed bitterly. What sin did he commit for the Heavens to punish him like this?

“Brother Benchu. This is all my fault. I could not stop them in time and save Yuan Xi!” Cao Cao started to blame himself and tried to slap himself in public. However, Xu Huang and the others managed to stop Cao Cao in time.

“This Cao Cao is incompetent. I could not save Yuan Xi. I can only bring him back to you!” Cao Cao then took out the box brought back by Xu Huang.

“Milord.” Wen Chou handed the box to Yuan Shao.

As soon as Yuan Shao opened it, his eyes started to turn red. “Xi'er! Xi'er!” Yuan Shao mourned. He suddenly spat out blood and fainted.

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