"General Sun, should we send men to launch a counterattack?"

Yuwen Qi looked at Sun Jian with a tempted expression: "Now that their formation is not yet complete, a surprise attack from the camp should yield some results!"

"No need." Sun Jian glanced at him. "This small victory is meaningless and will only cause unnecessary casualties to our soldiers. Our mission is to lure the enemy deep into our territory, not to kill them!"

"General Sun is right, I was presumptuous!" Yuwen Qi nodded with a look of realization, and stood behind Sun Jian without saying anything more.

The encirclement of Tan Shihuai's army was about to be completed, but the soldiers of Yuwen's tribe inside the camp did not make a sound. Everyone remained motionless behind the fence, watching the movements outside the camp.

One of Tan Shihuai's leaders sent out three thousand men, divided into three teams—front, middle, and rear—to charge towards the front of the camp, intending to test the defensive strength of the Yuwen tribe's camp.

The initial phase went smoothly; the first thousand men advanced to within two hundred paces, while the camp remained silent.

But when they were about a hundred paces from the stockade wall, a horn suddenly sounded, and two thousand archers rose up from behind the fence at the same time.

With a series of twanging sounds, two thousand arrows shot out and flew downwards from the high ground.

In an instant, more than four hundred soldiers in the vanguard let out miserable groans, were hit by arrows, and rolled down the earthen slope.

However, upon closer inspection, most of those who were hit by arrows only suffered minor injuries; very few were killed outright.

Of course, in the context of the steppe wars at that time, being wounded or dying was no different.

After the volley of arrows subsided, the remaining vanguard soldiers got up and continued their charge.

Only when they closed to within fifty paces did the archers of the Yuwen tribe unleash their second wave of attacks.

This time, because of the closer distance, the killing power was much greater than before. More than two hundred soldiers in the front line were shot to death. The soldiers who managed to dodge the shooting were stabbed by spears that suddenly appeared from inside the camp as soon as they got close, and then fell to the ground with a wail.

The probing attack lasted less than half an hour, and after leaving behind five hundred corpses and nine hundred wounded, they retreated in disarray.

"Haha~, okay, okay!"

Instead of being disappointed by the result, the noble leaders at the rear all smiled.

Through their probing, they discovered that the Yuwen tribe's camp was not equipped with powerful crossbows and large bows from the Han Dynasty, and they also had few arrows.

"All troops, attack!!"

After the probing team withdrew, the noble leaders under Tan Shihuai also gave the order to launch a full-scale attack.

The Xianbei soldiers surrounding the camp on three sides surged toward the Yuwen tribe's encampment like a tide.

Soon, the battle turned from initial probing into close combat.

In an instant, the sounds of battle shook the heavens, and countless arrows crisscrossed between the two sides.

Tan Shihuai's army split into three main attack directions, targeting the three gates of the camp, and engaged in fierce fighting with Yuwen's soldiers.

The relentless charge of Tan Shihuai's army was like a series of giant waves crashing against the crumbling gate of the stockade.

An hour passed, and both sides suffered heavy casualties; countless corpses lay on both sides of the fence.

"General Sun, we've run out of arrows!"

"General Sun, we have already lost more than four thousand brothers!"

"General Sun, the east gate can't hold out any longer!"

The leaders of Yuwen's tribe also anxiously approached Sun Jian to report on their respective battle situations.

"Open the back gate and retreat!!"

Seeing that the time was right, Sun Jian waved his hand, then mounted his horse and galloped towards the inner quarters.

"Retreat! Retreat now!!"

Yuwen Qi and the other leaders of the Yuwen tribe also called their soldiers to follow behind Sun Jian.

Thus, the Yuwen tribe's camp fell!

"Tell them to give chase with all their might and to kill every single soldier in the Yuwen tribe!"

Upon receiving the news from the front, Tan Shihuai did not hesitate to issue the order to pursue.

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

The messenger acknowledged the order and then rode away.

Upon receiving the order, the Xianbei soldiers who had just captured the camp did not even have time to rest. They followed Sun Jian and his men and gave chase.

On the other side, Sun Jian led the soldiers of Yuwen's army eastward for fifty miles and arrived at a three-way intersection.

These three roads lead to the three ambush sites.

Looking at the road ahead, Sun Jian immediately ordered, "Yuwen Qi, lead 10,000 men and follow me on the main road. 8,000 men will take the north road and 8,000 men will take the south road."

"yes!!"

Everyone agreed in unison, and then led their respective subordinates to continue their escape along different roads.

Not long after Sun Jian and his men divided their forces, Tan Shihuai's men caught up with them.

Upon receiving the scouts' report, Tan Shihuai's men hesitated for a moment before deciding to divide their forces as well: 15,000 men in the central route and 10,000 men each in the north and south routes.

There was no other way; Tan Shihuai's orders to them were to kill all the soldiers of the Yuwen tribe and to chase them wherever they ran.

An hour later, Tan Shihuai's 30,000 elite troops from Gaoliu finally arrived and stopped at the crossroads.

Han Sui stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, according to the reports from the leaders of the various tribes, the Han army's three ambushes should have the largest number of troops in the central route, followed by the northern and southern routes!"

Tan Shihuai nodded, then looked at Han Sui and Mi Jia: "You two will each lead eight thousand men, and proceed in two routes, north and south. I will lead fourteen thousand men along the central route!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Han Sui and Mi Jia agreed in unison, and then went off to dispatch troops.

Before long, Tan Shihuai's 30,000 elite troops from Gaoliu were divided into three groups and began to march rapidly along the road.

On the other side, after more than two hours of fleeing, the Yuwen soldiers who were fleeing south were the first to arrive at the ambush site.

"stop!!"

Looking at the red flag on the distant earthen slope, the leader of the Yuwen tribe, whose expression softened, immediately ordered the marching team to stop.

He knew that behind that red flag lay his own ambush.

"Everyone dismount, drink some water and rest, then join our ambush troops to wipe out those sons of bitches!"

"yes!!"

The soldiers of the Yuwen tribe all agreed, then jumped off their horses and rushed to the riverbank to wash and water their horses.

On the earthen slope, looking at the Yuwen soldiers resting by the river, Liu Bei couldn't help but sneer.

Zhang Fei and Guan Yu stood behind Liu Bei, remaining silent.

"Put the red flag down, so that Tan Shihuai doesn't see it!" Liu Bei ordered the guard beside him.

"Yes, General!"

The guard agreed and then led his men to take down the red flag on the earthen slope.

"Huh? Why did they take the red flag down?"

The leader of the Yuwen tribe, who was standing by the river, was stunned when he saw the red flag lying on the earthen slope.

Just as he was about to send someone to inquire, a loud rumbling sound came from behind.

The pursuers are coming!