"The Zhen family manor is deserted, all the gold, silver and valuables have disappeared, and only a few grains remain in the warehouse."
When Yuan Shao, accompanied by his generals Yan Liang and Wen Chou, his strategist Xu You, and four thousand elite cavalry, rushed from Julu to Wuji, he found that Zhenjiazhuang was deserted.
"Didn't you say you were going to negotiate with me? Where are you? Why did you run away?"
Upon hearing the scout's report, Yuan Shao flew into a rage, drew his sword, and chopped a locust tree as thick as an arm in two at the entrance of Zhenjiazhuang.
"My lord, please calm your anger!"
Xu You hurriedly advised, "Judging from the state of Zhen Family Village, they must have taken their families and fled to Youzhou with that person!"
“Isn’t that obvious? Where else could he go but Youzhou? Would he dare go to Bingzhou?” Yuan Shao said irritably. “He must know that Liu Wei, who is in Youzhou, has a grudge against me.”
"He took the second young master hostage and brought the Zhen family with him. With so many people, they definitely can't go very far!"
Yan Liang said from the side.
"My lord, let's chase after them, stop them, and rescue the second young master!" Wen Chou grinned lewdly. "I've heard the Zhen family has five daughters, all of them are incredibly beautiful!"
"Don't even think about it, you old black guy!" Xu You said disdainfully. "Of course it's for the Second Young Master!"
"Cough cough cough!" Yuan Shao coughed to stop his subordinates when he saw their demeanor suddenly change and their faces turn somewhat ugly.
"It should be given to our lord, it should be given to our lord!" Wen Chou hurriedly said, "How could we forget our lord about this?"
"Shut up, all of you!"
Yuan Shao shouted angrily, "Can't you be serious for once!"
Xu You, Yan Liang, and Wen Chou quickly shut their mouths.
"The Zhen family is truly despicable. For an unknown boy from Zhuojun, they actually abandoned their family business and went to Youzhou with him. It's simply unbelievable!"
Seeing that no one spoke, Yuan Shao slowly stated his deduction, "The Zhen family is a wealthy family in Hebei, how could they be so short-sighted as to run off with an unknown nobody?"
"Yes, yes, yes, my lord is wise!"
The three men didn't offer their own suggestions, but instead showered Yuan Shao with flattery.
"Therefore, I have decided..."
Before Yuan Shao finished speaking, a thousand cavalrymen saw his banner and hurried on their way from a distance.
Upon closer inspection, they turned out to be Han Meng's deputy generals, Zhu Ling and Guo Yuan, who were stationed at the main camp by the Hutuo River.
The two of them, accompanied by a thousand cavalrymen, hurriedly came to see Yuan Shao.
After exchanging greetings, Zhu Ling immediately reported: "My lord, a cavalry force of about a hundred men from Zhen Family Manor escorted us away early this morning!"
"A hundred cavalrymen?" Yuan Shao seemed to have thought of something.
"That's right, their warhorses are all tall and strong Ferghana horses!"
What!
Yuan Shao remembered that just a month and a half ago, he had commanded the cavalry of the Northern Camp of the capital to fight a fierce battle against Liu Wei's 100 Imperial Guards cavalry at Mengjin, against 2,000 infantry and cavalry sent by He Jin.
As a result, not only did they suffer heavy losses, but Liu Wei also managed to escape right under their noses!
Yuan Shao considered it a great humiliation.
Unexpectedly, we ran into each other again!
So, this person from Zhuojun was able to get Liu Wei to send his personal guards to protect and receive him.
This person is clearly someone of considerable importance!
"Why...why didn't you intercept them?" Yuan Shao asked angrily.
Zhu Ling quickly explained, "We did not send troops to intercept you because Mr. Xu instructed us to remain still and wait for the lord to arrive. Please understand, lord."
Xu You hurriedly explained, "My lord, it was indeed me who told them. Wasn't it because the Second Young Master was captured and General Han had just died?"
"However, there were several carriages and many women in their party, so they probably hadn't gone very far."
"Yes, my lord. We just received a report from our scouts that they are preparing to spend the night at the foot of a mountain about thirty miles away."
Zhu Ling added, "If we chase after them now, we should be able to catch up before sunset!"
"And according to our spies, they have already raised the banner of the King of Clouds!"
Upon hearing this, Yuan Shao immediately issued an order:
"Yan Liang, Wen Chou, and Zhu Ling, the three of you shall lead your troops and set off in pursuit."
"Guo Yuan returned to the main camp, continued to garrison there, strengthened his troops, and monitored the movements of Changshan Kingdom."
Xu You said, "My lord, we are only chasing one or two hundred men. Is it necessary to send five thousand cavalry?"
“Ziyuan, you may not know how formidable these hundred cavalrymen riding fine horses from the Western Regions are. It would take at least two thousand cavalrymen to surround and annihilate them.”
"They will definitely send troops from Youzhou to provide support, so we cannot underestimate them."
Yuan Shao smiled coldly, determined not to let the shame of the Battle of Mengjin be repeated.
Upon hearing Yuan Shao's consideration, Xu You said nothing more.
As the sun began to set, five thousand cavalrymen, like three black dragons, rolled northward.
......
That night, as darkness fell, Liu Wei and his group had eaten and drunk their fill, and their warhorses were well-rested.
Before long, scouts reported that a large contingent of Yuan's cavalry, totaling five thousand, had arrived ten miles away.
The leader was none other than Yuan Shao himself.
The generals who came with him were Yan Liang, Wen Chou, and Zhu Ling.
Liu Wei chuckled: "Yuan Benchu has gone to great lengths to win back his son this time, deploying all his elite troops."
"If we capture and kill the three generals and wipe out the five thousand cavalry that will come, it will definitely cripple Yuan Shao and make it difficult for him to recover within a year."
"Commander Wang, it's so early, but the brothers in the Imperial Guard seem to be full of energy. Why don't you take them for a walk around Yuan Shao's camp and launch a surprise attack under the cover of night?"
Upon hearing Liu Wei's arrangement, Wang Fangyi readily agreed and immediately gathered his troops to set off, quickly disappearing into the darkness.
When Zhen Yi told the Zhen family that Liu Wei planned to formally marry the five daughters of the Zhen family in Ji County, Youzhou, Madam Zhen and her four daughters were overjoyed.
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
