However, she also took advantage of the gap in Lu Bu's attack, and her hands were finally free. She pointed her slender fingers at Lu Bu's forehead, turning herself into a groundhog once again.
But this time, Lu Bu was well prepared. Almost at the moment of transformation, he summoned up his vigorous spirit and physical strength and once again used his iron will to forcibly break the magic transformation. Like an invincible ghost, he once again appeared in front of Yuwen Tai in his original form!
Seeing that there was no hope of winning, Yuwen Tai turned around and ran. It was not luck that this person broke his magic, but she had the secret ancient martial arts such as the Nine Swords!
What kind of fight is this? Unless he joins forces with two other chieftains of the same level, no one can defeat Lu Bu! More than fifty Khorne soldiers rushed into the city, but at the cost of thirty-six deaths, Yuwen Tai was able to escape with the remaining dozen people.
Chapter 137: Survival in Desperate Situation
The current situation is truly hopeless for Yuwen Tai. He cannot fight. He cannot even take Jiexiu City.
The city was not taken today, and the food and grass were only enough for four days. Moreover, Zhang He and other three battalions of soldiers, 7,500 Han troops were rushing towards them, forming the final encirclement. According to scout intelligence, the number of Han troops in Jiexiu City has exceeded 10,000, and the enemy, which is twice their number, is closing in.
The most embarrassing thing was that the Han army had an expert who saw their weakness at a glance - the Xianbei Chanyu was not a Han emperor with centralized power at all, and his power was even lower than that of the Zhou emperor who enfeoffed princes. What's more, he was not even a Chanyu, but just a temporarily elected leader. These ten thousand troops looked very intimidating, but they were a very loose alliance.
Therefore, Jia Xu has been working hard to undermine the morale of the army these days.
Therefore, when the troops were at the gates of the city, although everyone knew that we were surrounded and Liu Zhuang said that we would not be killed if we surrendered, no one mentioned surrender. Everyone wanted to quickly take down the entire city and then return to the grassland or continue to plunder nearby.
However, when the troops found that Jie Xiu was immovable and they could not fight back, some chieftains began to panic and began to consider surrendering. Didn't the Southern Xiongnu and Tuoba Xianbei who surrendered to the Han Dynasty live well? The Han emperor allocated a rich pasture for you to graze and cultivate, and you could integrate into the entire Central Plains market as a Han Chinese, and you could trade without relying on mutual trade.
It's just a change of lifestyle, why risk your life?
What's more, Yuwen Tai could not suppress the information at this time. The other chiefs lost their trust in Yuwen Tai because of the fall of Jiexiu, and sent scouts to investigate nearby. All the chiefs knew clearly that Zhang He and his men were approaching.
That night, a clan of 600 people quietly left the camp and surrendered to Liu Zhuang under the cover of darkness.
Liu Zhuang accepted the other party's surrender with satisfaction, took their weapons and armor, treated them well with food and drink, and publicized the incident widely.
"If you surrender now, I won't kill anyone! Everyone will be treated preferentially! However, if Zhang He and other reinforcements arrive, you will be caught in a pincer attack. At that time, blood will be shed and no one will be spared!"
Yuwen Tai had no other options. She used a few inspiring speeches to barely boost the morale of the alliance that was about to fall apart. In the next three days, she still couldn't conquer Jiexiu. Every day, troops fled and surrendered to Liu Zhuang.
On the fourth day, Zhang He joined forces with the other two camps. Together with the private soldiers of other county magistrates and aristocratic families, they had a total of 8,000 infantrymen, which were less than 15 kilometers away from the main camp.
At this moment, Yuwen Tai was really desperate. He once again summoned all his staff to discuss countermeasures. In the past few days, more than one-tenth of his troops surrendered to Liu Zhuang, and his own soldiers were reduced from more than 10,000 to 9,000.
"There is only one way now."
He Liuhun was also a little desperate. His heart-shaped black-scaled dragon tail kept shaking and flapping restlessly behind him.
"Zhang He and his men have been marching hard for many days and have come to surround us from behind. They are exhausted and their fighting capacity is at its lowest right now. Moreover, most of them are infantrymen. According to scouts' estimates, they only have more than 8,000 men.
Our only chance now is to turn around immediately! While Zhang He is still on the march and has not yet established a firm foothold, we can use a large-scale cavalry attack. As long as we can defeat Zhang He and capture enough prisoners, we can use them as hostages to force the governor of Hedong to let us go home. "
"But, He Liuhun, there is a problem."
Yuwen Tai spoke with difficulty.
"Everyone knows how difficult Zhang He is to deal with. It is not easy to defeat him. I must lead the army myself to suppress and defeat him. However, once the army moves south, Liu Zhuang and his men will definitely leave the city to pursue them. I need to send out a small force to block the Han army in Jiexiu City, buy time for me, and prevent Liu Zhuang from cooperating with Zhang He.
So the question is, now one tenth of the troops have surrendered to Liu Zhuang, which chieftain can take on such a heavy responsibility? Which chieftain can buy me precious time? And which chieftain can resist Liu Zhuang and Lu Bu in this situation, and would rather fight to the death than surrender??? "
He Liuhun was silent. She quickly went through the names of all the horse chiefs in her mind and finally came to the conclusion that no clan, no chief would choose a life-and-death battle with Lu Bu over surrendering and surviving.
"Chief, I have a candidate."
At this time, a man belonging to the Yuwen Xianbei tribe spoke.
"Let He Liuhun and her Han Chinese cover the rear! He Liuhun is the most powerful shaman among us. Her fighting ability is obvious to all, and she will never betray us. You have also seen in Yubi that the Han people hate these traitors to the core. Now all the troops can surrender to Liuzhuang in exchange for a way out, except for these Han Chinese who have no way out! They have already betrayed the Han emperor once and taught us a lot of knowledge and maps. The Han people will never tolerate them! He Liuhun has no choice! She can only fight to the death!"
He Liuhun narrowed his eyes and stared at the man who dared to say anything to his face - damn, did I dig a hole and jump into it myself? ? ?
Yuwen Tai thought about it and felt that it made sense, so he stood up and walked to He Liuhun with extreme solemnity and held her hand affectionately.
"Please, He Liuhun, everyone's life and death depends on your safety. I will divide my personal soldiers into two groups. You will lead half of them, as well as the Han people from Wuyuan and Yunzhong, to stop Liu Zhuang. You only need to buy me one day!"
Yuwen Tai became excited.
"It only takes me one day to lead the other half of the Yuwen Xianbei and the Xianbei cavalry from other tribes to break through the Han army's camp! Capture Zhang He alive and come back to rescue you! Use these generals as hostages to force Liu Zhuang to let us go home.
As long as you can stay in Jiexiu for one day, the first credit for this southward raid will go to you, He Liuhun!"
He Liuhun opened his mouth, but before he could answer, Yuwen Tai took a scepter decorated with gold, silver, bone carvings, and animal hair from the servant and placed it solemnly in He Liuhun's hand.
"If we can return to the grassland alive this time, I will allow you to be the high priest, in charge of all the priest activities of Yuwen Xianbei, second only to the emperor and above all others! You and I will rule the grassland together, and I will never break my promise!"
He Liuhun took a deep breath. Military and national affairs only concerned sacrifices and warfare. The power of the high priest of the grassland regime might be more exaggerated than that of the prime minister of the Han Empire. Yuwen Tai had already offered the biggest bargaining chip to win her over. She had no choice but to kneel on the ground and take the scepter.
Chapter 138: The Han Envoy's Visit
At midnight that day, Yuwen Tai took advantage of the darkness and led 7,000 Xianbei troops to charge towards Zhang He, leaving He Liuhun with 2,000 people to block Liu Zhuang's way south. It was not until daytime that Liu Zhuang climbed up the city wall and found something wrong. Although the troops and tents were still there, the number of people was obviously too sparse, the noisy sound was much weaker, and the south was densely covered with horse hoof prints - they were taking advantage of the night to find trouble with Zhang He!
At this moment, two hours had passed since Yuwen Tai led his troops away.
Liu Zhuang immediately sent a pigeon to inform Zhang He to be on guard, and at the same time, he assembled 2,500 cavalry as a vanguard to rescue Zhang He! As a result, the first few vanguard teams were beaten back by He Liuhun.
Now the problem comes. The mountain pass where Jie Xiu is located is the throat of Hedong. The troops cannot go north, but with them blocking the way, they cannot go south either. They will be hindered by the two thousand men of He Liuhun. If Zhang He really cannot defeat Yuwen Tai in the field battle, then it will be troublesome.
"Don't panic, Lord. I was friends with He Liuhun, no, Gao Huan, when I was a child. Her mother is my aunt, but I haven't seen her since the fall of Wuyuan. I'll go talk to her and see if I can persuade her to surrender."
Guo Huai stood up.
"During this time, the Lord of the Mansion will reorganize the cavalry, weapons, and food. If we can negotiate, then we will negotiate. If we can't negotiate, then we will fight!"
"Okay, I'll let Zilong go with you. Zilong, if you encounter any problems, just teleport back and don't get entangled."
Liu Zhuang thought about it and agreed, and then he organized his troops and prepared for war as quickly as possible. Guo Huai, accompanied by Zhao Yun, went to the camp in person as an envoy.
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"He Liuhun! Another person has come out from Jiexiu Pass!"
"Then beat them back!"
He Liuhun waved his hands in annoyance. Facing the possible attack from Liu Zhuang at any time, the pressure was enormous.
"But there are only two of them. What are they talking about? The Han envoy wants to see you."
He Liuhun shuddered. When he was a Han Chinese, the word "Han envoy" represented the glory and splendor of expanding territory.
But when she was a Xianbei and changed her mind, the Han envoys became synonymous with terror. Wherever they went, war and death spread. She immediately sat upright in the main seat, waved her hand, and signaled her men to let the Han envoys in and listen to what they had to say first.
Under the vigilant gaze of several soldiers, Guo Huai, wearing a flying snow long skirt and a golden plum hairpin in her bun, walked into the camp in a dignified and elegant manner. Zhao Yun, fully armed, wearing silver armor and a white robe, guarded behind carefully, and would run away immediately if he found anything wrong.
He Liuhun stared at Guo Huai's face and felt something was wrong. The more she looked, the more familiar he seemed. When she opened the kettle she carried with her and the fragrance of tea came out, she was finally able to confirm it.
"Guo Huai? Why are you here? Isn't your father the governor of Yanmen? I thought you would be in Yanmen?"
"Liu Zhuang, the governor of Hedong, is my husband. I married him and moved to Hedong. Also, I already have my own name, Boji."
Guo Huai said this neither humbly nor arrogantly.
"Oh, I see. From now on I'll call you Boji."
He Liuhun looked at his childhood friend whom he hadn't seen for a long time, and for a moment he felt that things and people had changed.
"As for you, should I call you Gao Huan or He Liuhun? Why are you with the Xianbei people?"
Guo Huai asked doubtfully.
"What else can we do? Eight years ago, the combined forces of Bingzhou, Youzhou, and Southern Xiongnu were annihilated by the Xianbei chieftain Tan Shihuai, and Wuyuan fell. Tan Shihuai, who was so terrifying that he could kill the Han Zhengbei General and the Southern Xiongnu warlord, personally rushed into our mansion with his personal guards, and no one in the Gao family could escape."
He Liuhun said indifferently.
"When the Xianbei people first rose to power, they lacked an effective ruling system. Tan Shihuai gave our Gao family two choices: either we have our tongues and hands chopped off, or we have our spellcasting abilities taken away by physical means. The men will become prey to be slaughtered at will, and the women will become the lowest kind of prostitutes accompanying the army.
Otherwise, we should accept his reward and become Xianbei civil officials to help him establish the Xianbei civil service system and rule the grassland. In order to help us integrate into the Xianbei, he even gave us a new surname: He Liu. Unfortunately, he died only four years after achieving such a great victory, and the short-lived Xianbei Empire also collapsed. I am now the head of the He Liu family and have joined forces with Yuwen Tai's Yuwen Xianbei. "
"So, after Tan Shihuai's death, no one can control your Gao family. Why don't you come back? Do you really want to work on the grassland for the rest of your life? Do you think this Yuwen Tai will be the next Tan Shihuai?"
Guo Huai asked curiously.
"Yes, Yuwen Tai seems to have the best chance of winning. Even if it's on the grassland, I want to stand at the top! Are you here to persuade me to surrender?"
He Liuhun was equally curious.
"The Han dynasty will not last long. The Yellow Turban Rebellion has exhausted the Han emperor's last breath. The people of Liang Province have rebelled. The Southern Xiongnu are neutral and watching. The general who protected the Xiongnu was killed. The Han emperor has no way to deal with it. His weakness is obvious. The collapse of Bingzhou and Youzhou is only a matter of time. I can see this outside the Great Wall. You can see it in the Central Plains, right? No way, no way?"
"If you ask me, the grassland is safer than the Central Plains now."
"Is this the reason why you haven't come back? Even if Tan Shihuai's rule collapsed and no one could restrict the Gao family, why would you still stay on the grassland?"
Guo Huai asked in disbelief.
"if not?"
He Liuhun's pink eyes flashed with catastrophic desire.
"There is another reason. If we stay in the grassland, our Wuyuan He Liu clan will still be the overlord! Among the grassland tribes grazing in Wuyuan Old County, no one is more powerful than my family!"
"But what can I get if I return to the Central Plains? The Gao family's connections and reputation have disappeared completely with the surrender seven years ago. You all think I am a traitor to the Han Dynasty.
Even if these are still good, do you think I don't know the fate of the clans that fled back to the Han Dynasty? Take the recent Dingxiang noble families for example, weren't they all eaten up by the Yanmen nobles? If they are all relatives, they will eat them up without any scruples, and they will be more ruthless than each other when it comes to eating up the entire family.
The noble families in Dingxiang who fled the country lost their land and were unable to support their slaves, so their slaves left one after another. In the end, even they themselves became slaves of the Yanmen noble families. The once high-ranking young ladies of Dingxiang became singing girls and concubines played by the Yanmen nobles. The arts of music, chess, calligraphy and painting that they learned to cultivate their moral character became lewd tricks to please men. "
He Liuhun sneered, and his incredibly beautiful face revealed a hint of ruthless determination.
"If I return to the Central Plains, I'm afraid my fate will be even more miserable than theirs. I, He Liuhun, would rather be a thief in the grasslands than be a slave in the Central Plains."
Guo Huai stared at He Liuhun's beautiful face. Although she said that the Han Emperor was worthless, based on the experience of the two girls playing together since childhood, Guo Huai heard the voice of the outsiders - Gao Huan was unwilling to go back because the reputation of the Gao family in Wuyuan had been ruined and the family had fallen into decline. Even if she returned to the Central Plains, the Gao family would not be able to maintain their previous status as an aristocratic family and would directly fall to the bottom and be sucked dry and enslaved by other aristocratic families.
Therefore, this is a reality that the eldest daughter of the Gao family, who is used to being superior to others, absolutely cannot accept.
So hurry up and give me the promise of high office and generous salary! If you dare to give it to me, I will betray Xianbei and return to the Central Plains!
The author says:
Author's words: 2100 monthly tickets plus more~
Chapter 139: Offering Loyalty
"He Liuhun, you still have fifteen minutes."
Guo Huai frowned slightly, then used a stern tone and directly called out Gao Huan's Xianbei name as a warning.
"I sympathize with the misfortune suffered by the Gao family, but you first showed the way for the Xianbei people to invade Hedong, then scared away the Jiexiu garrison commander, and finally even built a large number of engineering equipment to attack Yubi. The evil things you did for the Xianbei people are simply too numerous to list! You are still as competitive as you were when you were a child, and you regard victory and ranking as more important than anything else, even above everything else."
"But even now, you are still valuable to the Han Dynasty. Our cavalry will be assembled in fifteen minutes and will go after Yuwen Tai's army. You, the soldiers who are blocking Yuwen Tai's way and buying time, are blocking our way.
If you surrender now and clear the way, I will certainly advise the Lord of the Mansion, who is also my husband, to give you a high position and generous salary. The Lord of the Mansion has just arrived in Hedong and is in great need of administrative staff. Your Gao family can fill this vacancy! Think about it carefully! After fifteen minutes, when the Lord of the Mansion leads the cavalry to attack your camp, you will have no chance to surrender. At that time, the Gao family of Wuyuan will be destroyed in your hands! This is your last chance!"
He Liuhun frowned slightly, and the succubus dragon tail swayed restlessly behind his raised buttocks.
I just said those words because I wanted Guo Huai to give in. Yuwen Tai suddenly asked me to do such a dangerous thing as stopping Lu Bu. I was also very panicked. I didn't know if I could stop Lu Bu, and I didn't know if I would die here. We are all relatives. In terms of status, I am still your cousin. If you promise me that the Gao family can maintain its original status after returning to the Central Plains and that we will not be held accountable for what we did before, I can defect immediately.
But now, Guo Huai did give me a chance to surrender, but she also asked me to admit my mistakes and surrender to her, and she didn't say what specific official position I would be given...
"You are now in the Xianbei army camp. I can capture you anytime I want. You also said that you are the wife of the governor of Hedong. I can use you as a hostage and threaten Liu Zhuang to give me a way out. This is also a solution."
He Liuhun gave Guo Huai a ferocious smile, trying to force his cousin to give in by threatening her.
"Come on! He Liuhun!"
Guo Huai was not afraid at all.
"It's still unknown whether you can capture me alive. I might run away or commit suicide. It's all random and uncertain.
However, the only thing that is certain is that the moment you, the Gao family of Wuyuan, took action, you were doomed to perish in Hedong! I am the wife of the governor of Hedong! The legitimate daughter of the Guo family of Yangqu! Do you think you can survive the anger and revenge of both sides? Do you dare to gamble with me with the lives of your entire family? "
He Liuhun gritted his teeth and realized that the situation before him was indeed a dead end. The Han army had twice the strength of the Xianbei people and had completed a strategic encirclement. Yuwen Tai's only chance of winning was to quickly defeat Zhang He, and the premise for this possibility was that he could block Lu Bu's fierce attack... The cards in his hand were too bad, and he didn't even have the capital to bargain with Guo Huai.
Seeing that He Liuhun was in extreme tension and anxiety, Guo Huai softened his attitude and began to persuade her kindly. He no longer called her by her Xianbei name, but used her Han name.
"Gao Huan, you are my cousin, and your mother is my aunt. I, Guo Huai, guarantee with my life that after you surrender, the entire Gao family will maintain its previous status. All educated and knowledgeable people can serve as grassroots or middle-level officials under Lord Liu. Lord Liu can appoint you as a Sima of another department, and these Han and Hu people in your hands will still be under your command."
He Liuhun, also known as Gao Huan, thought about it for a long time. His black-scaled, red-velvet heart-shaped tail swayed restlessly from side to side behind his hips. Finally, he gave in and stood up from the main seat. He came to Guo Huai and bowed. He took out the flag given to her by Yuwen Tai, raised it high, and then smashed it against his knees with all his strength, breaking the scepter that represented power in half.
"Then, there is only one answer left! Today, Huan is willing to return to his homeland and be a Han minister again!"
After Gao Huan decided to surrender and rebel, he immediately did three things. First, he sent several scouts to Yuwen Tai's military camp to report that a fight had already broken out, that Lu Bu was extremely ferocious and extremely difficult to stop, and that the defense line was shaky. He begged Yuwen Tai to send some soldiers to rescue.
By doing so, on the one hand, Yuwen Tai could divide his troops, thus further weakening the force with which he could attack Zhang He; on the other hand, it could further undermine the morale of the army, making other chiefs feel that their rear was about to collapse, and their morale and confidence would further disintegrate.
Secondly, he quickly summoned the Yuwen generals and chiefs who were responsible for staying behind in the name of discussing how to kill these Han envoys. These people did not suspect any trick and the moment they entered the tent, they were immediately attacked and controlled by the ambushed swordsmen.
Third, she immediately led the Han people of the Gao family to surround the several hundred elite soldiers and horses left for her by Yuwen Tai. These cavalrymen were leaderless and unaware that they were surrounded and controlled by the Han people from Wuyuan under Gao Huan.
At this moment, Liu Zhuang also arranged the cavalry troops, including 1,500 cavalrymen from the Baima Camp, 1,000 cavalrymen from the Zhangshui Camp, and 500 cavalrymen from various aristocratic families and county magistrates. A total of 3,500 cavalrymen rushed towards Yuwen Tai's back!
Yuwen Tai was worried that he would be trapped from behind, so he left Gao Huan behind to block and delay the enemy.
