The Three Kingdoms: I, Yuan Tan, intercepted Guo Jia's...

Chapter 109 Today, I, Lou Ban, will teach you what Chinese etiquette is.

The Qingzhou cavalry were well-trained. Upon receiving the order, they immediately split into several groups and began to move at high speed around the Jiangdong army's circular formation. They did not approach the killing range of spears and halberds, but instead used bows and arrows to launch attacks.

Meanwhile, some cavalrymen took spare short javelins from beside their saddles.

Arrows fell from different directions, and soldiers in the Jiangdong army were constantly hit and fell to the ground, but the core of the formation remained firmly in place.

Sun Ce, Jiang Qin, Cheng Pu, and others acted like pillars of strength, constantly moving within the formation, shouting orders, filling gaps, and deflecting stray arrows with their swords.

"Throw!"

Gan Ning spotted a tiny gap in the formation adjustment and shouted sharply.

Taking advantage of their speed, hundreds of cavalrymen hurled their short javelins at the Jiangdong army formation as they swept past!

The javelin was powerful and heavy, with a penetrating force far exceeding that of arrows. It pierced through more than a dozen shields in an instant, pinning the swordsmen and archers behind it to the ground!

The formation shook violently, and the screams were particularly shrill.

"Hold on!"

Sun Ce's eyes were bloodshot; these were the seeds that had followed him for many years!

But he knew that the formation could not be broken; to break it meant death!

Jia Xu watched expressionlessly as the enemy's ranks dwindled.

This kind of attrition warfare, where the enemy is slowly but surely being cut down, is the best way to break down such a desperate battle formation.

He was about to order a second wave of javelin throws.

"Whoosh—thump thump thump!"

Suddenly, a deep horn sounded from the southeast!

As dust rose, a well-disciplined and fresh force, bearing the banners of "Guo" and "Zhang," surged forward like an iron torrent, rapidly cutting into the flank of the battlefield!

The chief strategist, dressed in a blue robe and turban, gently waved a feather fan; he was none other than Guo Jia, Guo Fengxiao. Beside him stood a general with thick eyebrows and fierce eyes, holding a long spear; he was none other than Zhang He, Zhang Junyi!

The arrival of reinforcements forced the javelin, which was poised to be thrown, to be withdrawn, as throwing it again might injure teammates.

But it was precisely this delay that gave Sun Ce an opportunity, and he quickly led his men to rush over.

Seeing this, Gan Ning, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but shake his head.

With Guo Jia and Zhang He's troops arriving, my credit will be much greater.

……

"Report! General! The enemy troops at the front have suddenly returned!"

Lou Ban, who was leading his troops on a forced march, was startled upon hearing this.

Why did the enemy all escape back out of nowhere?

With just a few of us, we might not be able to stop them.

He steadied himself and called out to the scout who had delivered the message:

"I would like to trouble you, brother, to go to Eagle's Sorrow Gorge again and tell our lord that the enemy troops have returned."

The scouts were ordered to leave.

Lou Ban then shouted to the group of brothers:

"The entire army halts its forced march and forms ranks on the spot. A tough battle is about to begin. As the lord just said, whoever beheads Sun Ce will be rewarded with a hundred gold pieces! That's a fortune! With that money, everyone can marry as many wives as they want. Brothers, let's all work hard and not let this sure thing slip away."

Everyone burst into laughter, and morale soared to its peak in an instant.

Although General Louban was a non-Han Chinese and young, he was incredibly loyal and devoted to his brothers.

Therefore, these soldiers were more obedient to Lou Ban.

As Lou Ban saw morale gradually rising, his worries also gradually dissipated.

After following his brother-in-law, he learned a lot about military strategy, one of which was called "Do not stop the army from returning."

Sun Ce's troops have been driven to the brink of defeat, and their morale is probably extremely high.

Furthermore, they were outnumbered in terms of troop strength.

Hopefully, it can hold out for a while.

Just then, Sun Ce's troops suddenly rushed in front of them.

The leader was none other than Jiang Qin, who had escaped from Eagle's Sorrow Gorge.

Hmph! What an impudent pirate!

Today, I'll teach you what Chinese etiquette truly is.

"Brothers! The enemy is advancing. Get ready, don't let the gold fly away."

After calming the troops down, Lou Ban suddenly drew a large bow, and then there was a whooshing sound.

Jiang Qin landed with a thud, but fortunately, the arrow had only pierced his groin and had not injured any other vital organs.

"Huff!"

Jiang Qin was in so much pain that tears streamed down his face. "Are Yuan Tan's soldiers really that toxic?"

Where should you shoot the arrow?

Who taught you to do that?

Sun Ce, who was following behind, quickly helped Jiang Qin up and asked loudly:

"Gongyi, are you hurt?"

Jiang Qin winced in pain, but to save face as a man, he gritted his teeth and said:

"It's alright! My lord, you must be careful. There are skilled archers in the enemy army, and their shooting positions are extremely tricky."

Trickery?

Sun Ce glanced suspiciously at the opposing army, then at Jiang Qin, not understanding for a moment what this meant.

But he had no time to think.

"Brother, rest for a moment, I'll go avenge you!"

After saying this, Sun Ce mounted his warhorse and continued to charge towards Lou Ban's troops with his army.

Lou Ban secretly lamented that his arrow had failed to kill Jiang Qin.

Unfortunately, he did aim for the opponent's head at first, but due to his lack of skill, he ended up hitting the opponent's groin instead.

He was about to draw his bow and shoot again when he saw Sun Ce leading his soldiers to attack. He could only sling his bow over his shoulder, raise his spear, and continuously direct his soldiers to kill the enemy.

One side was after a generous reward, while the other was just trying to survive.

As the battle intensifies, those who were after the generous rewards gradually calm down.

Do I really think I'll live to collect this money?

Gradually, Lou Ban's troops began to show signs of cowardice.

This is understandable, since these people were new recruits later in Qingzhou.

It's normal to be scared when you see something like this.

However, they remembered that their wages were several times higher than others', so they weren't afraid to leave.

But it's definitely true that their combat strength is not as good as before.

Seeing that morale was gradually declining, Lou Ban became extremely anxious.

For some reason, Jia Xu and Guo Jia's troops have not yet arrived.

However, their own formation was already showing signs of collapse.

That's really dangerous.

If our soldiers are already fewer than the enemy's, and their morale is also low, then we are truly on the verge of collapse.

"Archers, increase your firing rate to disrupt the enemy formation! Swordsmen and shieldmen, hold the front line and make sure to hold it!"

As Lou Ban shouted hoarsely.

Yuan Tan's main force finally arrived.

"Governor Yuan is here!"

"Our reinforcements have arrived!"

"The enemy's doom is near! Brothers, charge! To marry our wives, let's fight to the death!"

The morale, which was on the verge of collapse, was once again boosted by Yuan Tan's arrival.

But what does this phrase "marrying a wife" mean?

It's as if I, the dignified Governor of Qingzhou and former General, am preventing you from getting wives.

Yuan Tan clicked his tongue in amazement, but seeing the current battle, he also frowned slightly.

Sun Ce's return clearly indicates that he discovered the layers of traps laid ahead.

This means that all the ambushes he had set up before had gone to waste.

I wonder how Jia Xu and Guo Jia arranged things!

Even two of the most outstanding strategists could have their weaknesses exposed by the enemy.

The key ambush was exposed.

But it will take a lot of effort to summon back the ambush troops I set up earlier.