Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1174 Exploiting the Time Difference to Plan a Night Raid

As darkness fell completely, the shouts of battle beneath Hulao Pass had long since subsided. In the distance, flickering lights illuminated Lü Bu's camp, like the eyes of a beast lurking in the darkness. Gao Shun patted Zhang Liao on the shoulder: "Wen Yuan, let's go down the city and catch our breath."

The two descended the city wall and returned to their camp inside the pass. Just as they reached the entrance to their quarters, Zhang Liao noticed two guards on duty huddled together, whispering amongst themselves. Upon seeing him, they immediately fell silent and stood to the side with their hands at their sides. Zhang Liao paused slightly, but without asking any questions, he went straight into the room.

The meal was already prepared: simple wheat porridge and a bowl of wild vegetable soup. Zhang Liao picked up his chopsticks and suddenly looked at Gao Shun: "Did you hear what those two soldiers at the door said?"

Gao Shun recalled for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I couldn't hear it very clearly, I only vaguely heard the words 'seventy percent'."

"Seventy percent?" Zhang Liao's heart sank. "Could it be the grain supplies?" He shouted, "Call those two guards at the gate!"

The guards entered with trepidation, and Zhang Liao softened his tone: "What do you mean by the '70%' you just mentioned? Speak freely, and I will pardon you."

The two guards exchanged a glance and knelt down with a thud: "General, the rations in the camp have been reduced these past two days. The brothers are only eating about 70% full at two meals a day. They can't sleep at night because they're so hungry, their stomachs are growling..."

"Outrageous!" Zhang Liao slammed his fist on the table, making the bowls and chopsticks bounce. "When has the Xiliang army ever had a rule of letting its soldiers fight on an empty stomach? Summon the quartermaster!"

A moment later, the quartermaster walked in with his head bowed. Upon seeing Zhang Liao's angry face, he knelt down with a thud. Zhang Liao stood with his hand on his sword: "Our army has always had ample food and provisions. Why are you cutting back on the soldiers' rations?"

The quartermaster lay prostrate on the ground, his lips trembling, unable to speak. Seeing his silence, Zhang Liao's anger intensified. He drew his sword with a "whoosh," the cold glint making the quartermaster's face pale: "What? Nothing to say?"

"Wen Yuan!" Gao Shun grabbed his arm and waved to the two guards, "You can leave now." After the guards left, he turned to the quartermaster and said in a steady voice, "Tell me, what exactly happened?"

The quartermaster then spoke in a trembling voice: "I dare not lie to you two generals... The grain supplies for Luoyang should have arrived fifteen days ago, but they have been delayed. The generals have been preoccupied with the siege these past few days, and I dare not trouble you with this matter. I thought I would just wait a little longer, but the grain supplies still haven't arrived."

He glanced at Zhang Liao and continued, "The supplies are almost gone. I was afraid it would destabilize the army, so I didn't dare to make it public. I can only issue smaller rations each day so we can barely make ends meet..."

Zhang Liao then realized he had wronged someone. His sword clattered back into its sheath, and his expression softened. "Get up. I was too hasty." He paused, then asked in a deep voice, "With the current rations, how many more days can we last?"

The quartermaster's voice trembled: "If...if we still only eat 70% full each day, we can only last for five days at most."

"Five days?" Zhang Liao and Gao Shun frowned simultaneously. After five days, let alone defending the city, the army would probably be in chaos before Lü Bu even attacked.

Gao Shun looked at Zhang Liao: "Why are the grain supplies from Luoyang so late? Could there have been a problem on the way?"

Zhang Liao rose and paced a few steps, his brow furrowed. "After Lü Bu besieged the city, the roads were blocked. Perhaps the supply convoys were intercepted." He suddenly stopped, a glint of light flashing in his eyes. "Just now on the city wall, I seemed to vaguely hear the sounds of fighting to the west. Maybe..."

Before he could finish speaking, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the door, and a personal guard rushed in, his face showing rare joy: "General! Great news! Our lord has arrived with reinforcements! And... and the grain supplies from Luoyang have all arrived!"

Zhang Liao and Gao Shun exchanged a glance, both seeing relief in each other's eyes. Zhang Liao grabbed his personal guard's arm: "The lord has arrived? Where is he?"

"They're right outside the pass! They just repelled Lü Bu's supply convoy and are now bringing their grain carts into the pass!"

"Good!" Zhang Liao breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at Gao Shun, "Let's go and welcome our lord!"

The two hurried out of the camp and saw a troop of iron cavalry escorting grain carts to the pass in the distance. The silver-armored warrior at the head of the troop looked even more imposing in the torchlight; it was none other than Ma Chao.

When Zhang Liao and Gao Shun recognized Ma Chao, they were first taken aback, then quickly stepped forward to greet him. Upon reaching Ma Chao's horse, they both knelt on one knee, clasped their hands, and exclaimed in unison, "My lord! What brings you here?"

Ma Chao bent down and helped the two up, a relaxed smile on his face: "I heard that you two were fighting hard against Lü Bu here. When I arrived in Luoyang, I heard about this and thought I would come and meet him." Although he spoke casually, his eyes revealed his concern for the two of them—after all, Lü Bu was brave and fierce, and he was still worried about him.

Zhang Liao and Gao Shun looked ashamed and lowered their heads, saying, "We have troubled our lord. We are incompetent and failed to defeat Lü Bu."

"It's alright." Ma Chao waved his hand, then changed the subject, "It's quite a coincidence. When I arrived, Lu Bu's men were robbing your grain escort team. I took care of them and delivered the grain to you."

Upon hearing this, Gao Shun slapped his forehead and exclaimed in realization, "No wonder the supplies have been delayed! It turns out they've been harassing our supply lines! Your Majesty's arrival is truly a timely help!"

Zhang Liao breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said, "My lord, please let me announce your arrival so that the soldiers can be boosted in spirit!" After days of hard fighting, the soldiers were exhausted, and Ma Chao's arrival was undoubtedly the best morale booster.

To everyone's surprise, Ma Chao grabbed him and laughed, "Don't rush, don't rush."

Zhang Liao looked at him with some confusion: "What does my lord mean?"

A sly glint flashed in Ma Chao's eyes as he lowered his voice and said, "Isn't Lü Bu attacking cities every day? He could never have predicted that I would come to Hulao Pass tonight. Why don't we launch a surprise attack on him under the cover of night?"

Zhang Liao and Gao Shun exchanged a glance, instantly understanding Ma Chao's intention. Having been suppressed by Lü Bu for days, the soldiers were already seething with anger. A night raid, taking advantage of their unpreparedness, would both demoralize the enemy and boost morale—a truly brilliant move.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Liao frowned slightly, cupped his hands, and said, "My lord, you may not know this, but there are indeed highly skilled individuals in Lü Bu's camp. Some time ago, I attempted a night raid, but instead fell into an ambush and lost several hundred brothers." He recalled that defeat, and his tone still carried a hint of frustration.

Ma Chao smiled without saying a word, turning his gaze to Jia Xu beside him.

Jia Xu stepped forward and slowly said to Zhang Liao, "Wen Yuan, times have changed. When you were first besieged, you were full of vigor and your army was newly arrived. They must have been on high alert. They knew you would be eager to break the siege, so a night attack would have been easily discovered."

He paused, then continued his analysis: "But things are different now. You have been trapped at Hulao Pass for months, under attack every day. Your soldiers are exhausted, and to outsiders, their morale has already plummeted. Lü Bu's army has been besieging the city for a long time, and seeing you cowering in and refusing to come out, they are bound to become complacent—that's one reason."

"Secondly, by sending Song Xian and Hou Cheng to raid your grain supplies, they clearly intend to wage a protracted war, deplete your provisions, and force you to collapse without a fight. They have already planned a long siege and are certain that you have no reinforcements, so they naturally do not expect you to dare to launch an attack. Moreover, they have Song Xian and Hou Cheng behind Hulao Pass, so even if reinforcements arrive, Song Xian and Hou Cheng will warn you. Therefore, they are not afraid of reinforcements."

"Thirdly, Lü Bu is confident in his bravery. After repelling your night raid last time, he must have thought you were scared out of your wits and would never have thought you would dare to try again. Moreover, he does not know that our lord has arrived. With this shift in power, their defenses will only become more relaxed."

After Jia Xu finished speaking, he looked at Ma Chao, whose eyes showed a hint of approval.

Ma Chao then spoke up, taking over the conversation: "Wenhe is right. When we defeated Song Xian and Hou Cheng just now, I noticed that they both mentioned infantry. I suppose they came over mountains and valleys and couldn't ride horses. Even if their remnants escaped back, they would have to cross mountains and valleys, so the news would travel slowly. We, on the other hand, took advantage of the situation and moved quickly. They didn't expect us to arrive so quickly, let alone that we would dare to make a move as soon as we arrived."

He patted Zhang Liao on the shoulder and said confidently, "Tonight's night raid will definitely catch them off guard."

Listening to the two men's back-and-forth discussion, Zhang Liao clearly understood the crux of the matter. His previous doubts vanished instantly, and his fighting spirit rekindled in his eyes: "My lord and Mr. Wenhe's analysis is thorough, I understand! I will go and muster the troops now, and the Trapped Camp is willing to be the vanguard!"

Gao Shun also stepped forward: "This humble general is also willing to go!"

Ma Chao nodded: "Good. Wen Yuan will lead his cavalry on the left flank, Zhang Xiu will lead 4,000 cavalry on the right flank, Gao Shun will lead the Vanguard Camp to hold the rear and block the enemy, and I will personally lead the iron cavalry to strike directly at the center. At midnight, use fire arrows as a signal and launch a three-pronged attack!"

"Yes!" Zhang Liao and Gao Shun replied in unison, then turned and hurriedly left to make arrangements.

Jia Xu watched the two figures disappear and said to Ma Chao, "My lord, although Lü Bu is brave, he is also suspicious. If we are defeated tonight, internal strife will surely break out. It will be much easier to find an opportunity to defeat him then."

Ma Chao looked up at the night sky beyond the pass, a cold smile playing on his lips: "Lu Bu, tonight I'll let you taste what it means to be the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind."

As night deepened, a quiet flurry of activity swept through Hulao Pass. After a hearty meal, the soldiers donned light armor, inspected their weapons, and their eyes gleamed with the fire of revenge. Meanwhile, outside the pass, Lü Bu's camp remained sparsely lit, the soldiers lost in their dreams of impending victory, completely unaware that a storm was brewing beneath the surface.

At midnight, the heavy gates of Hulao Pass slowly opened inward, revealing the deep darkness of the night outside through a gap that could only allow a few riders to ride abreast.

Ma Chao, Zhang Liao, and Zhang Xiu's three cavalry units were already arrayed and waiting. The horses' hooves were wrapped in thick cloth, and the metal parts of their armor were tightly bound with strips of cloth. The entire force was so quiet that only the rustling of the banners in the night wind could be heard. Behind them, Gao Shun led his elite elite troops in a neat square formation, their hands on their long halberds, their eyes scanning the surroundings warily, firmly guarding the city gate, which served as both their rear and their shield.

Ma Chao leaped onto his Aurora Steed, his silver armor gleaming coldly in the moonlight. He raised his hand to press down on his helmet, his gaze sweeping over Zhang Liao and Zhang Xiu beside him. His voice was low, yet carried an undeniable authority: "First, sneak to within a hundred paces of the camp. Once you see the rockets take off, charge with all your might."

Zhang Liao gripped his broadsword tightly and replied in a deep voice, "Yes, sir!" Zhang Xiu also brandished his iron spear and nodded in acceptance.

"Let's go." Ma Chao waved his hand and spurred his horse forward.

The three cavalry columns, like three black torrents, silently merged into the night. Their hooves pounded the soft earth with only a soft "thump-thump," and even the night wind seemed to provide cover, swallowing all their movements in the wilderness. Zhang Liao led the left wing of cavalry to the east, Zhang Xiu led the right wing to the west, and Ma Chao personally led the central army. The three columns spread out in a fan shape, like three lurking beasts, slowly creeping towards Lü Bu's camp.