Chapter 10

（The Great Alliance's move is bold and fierce, thank you!!)

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This is a small abandoned village twenty miles from the Jie Bridge camp, now surrounded by nearly a thousand troops from Youzhou and Heishan. At the center of the encirclement stands a row of earthen houses built along the mountain.

Most of the houses in this small village have been damaged, and no one knows who is inside the earthen houses. However, the courtyard outside is defended by three layers of armored elite soldiers, numbering no less than two hundred, including several dozen cavalry. Judging from the number of fallen corpses, the initial force must have numbered around three hundred.

Three hundred heavily armed cavalry and infantry from Ji Province, with relatively fewer armors and warhorses, is already a high-end force. So, who are they protecting?

This answer is what Du Chang, the temporary commander of the Youzhou army and the leader of the Heishan army, also wants to know. At present, he can only guess that it might be a high-ranking officer of the Ji Province army. Who could it be? Gao Gan, the Governor of Ji Province? Chunyu Qiong, the General of Vigorous Might? Or Ju Shou, the General of Martial Valor? Or perhaps some other important figure. But whoever it is, Du Chang is determined to see with his own eyes—having his men bind them and bring them to him will naturally reveal the answer.

Under Du Chang's strict orders, nearly a thousand troops from Youzhou and Heishan launched wave after wave of attacks.

First, nearly a hundred Youzhou cavalry rode past the village, firing arrows at the earthen houses. Seeing that the arrows posed little threat to those inside, a part of the armored cavalry split off and circled the houses from both flanks. These armored knights did not fire arrows; instead, they held long ropes in their hands, using the acceleration of their horses to throw the ropes and hook them onto the eaves of the earthen houses and the fences in the courtyard. They then fastened the ends of the ropes to their saddles and spurred their horses to run back, causing the ropes to tighten. With a loud crash, the outer two earthen houses, which had been neglected for years, were pulled apart.

Not far away, two formations of over a hundred archers from Youzhou and Heishan took advantage of the collapse of the houses to fire arrows at the exposed defenders. The sound of bowstrings echoed continuously, and arrows rained down from all directions. The Ji Province soldiers raised their shields to defend, but some arrows pierced through the gaps in the shields, causing blood and screams to fly. Others hit the crumbling earthen walls, sending dust flying and creating a continuous din.

With the collapse of the outer houses, only the central earthen house remained, standing alone amidst the ruins.

After several rounds of archery from the Youzhou troops, dozens more Ji Province soldiers fell. By this time, the archers' strength was waning, and the arrows became sparse. Unfortunately, Du Chang had no fresh archers to replace them, causing a break in the attack.

At this moment, the Ji Province army counterattacked.

First, over twenty crossbowmen rushed out of the earthen house, firing a barrage of arrows that felled a group of Youzhou cavalry who were trying to pull down the house with ropes. Then, a general in black armor leaped out of the earthen house, holding a twelve-foot spear. As soon as he appeared, he charged like a fierce tiger into the exhausted and retreating Youzhou and Heishan archers, stirring up a storm of blood and gore.

"It's Gao Lan, the fierce general of Ji Province!"

Du Chang, observing from a hill, was both surprised and delighted. He was surprised that after more than ten rounds of concentrated fire, the enemy could still counterattack. He was delighted because Gao Lan was a renowned general of Ji Province. Regardless of who else was inside, capturing this man would be a great achievement.

With a command from Du Chang, the Youzhou and Heishan infantry surged forward, launching a strong attack. The Ji Province soldiers, encouraged by their generals, stepped over the bodies of their fallen comrades and charged forward with their swords and spears.

The two forces, one large and one small, collided, sending blood mist into the air. The small, nameless village instantly turned into a battlefield of slaughter.

When Ma Han and his scout team arrived, they saw this bloody scene of carnage.

Ma Han immediately noticed the center of the battlefield—the earthen houses in the abandoned village.

Who is inside? This question immediately captured Ma Han's attention. He believed that all the Youzhou soldiers wanted to know the answer, and uncovering it was his duty as a scout.

Ma Han's gaze shifted, and a small, green mountain about twenty zhang (about 66 feet) high, rising abruptly from the ground, caught his eye. The mountain was not very high but was almost vertical and covered with weeds and moss, making it impossible to climb. This was why the Youzhou army could only attack from three sides and not encircle the village. However, for Ma Han, the impossible could become possible.

With his plan set, Ma Han dismounted, handed over his helmet and leather armor to his deputy, and, carrying his sword and bow, and a bag of arrows, ran quickly towards the mountain.

Ma Han had extensive rock-climbing experience, but such a nearly vertical slope, without climbing tools, was extremely dangerous, even for a spiderman. Ma Han, of course, had climbing tools, and his tool was his iron hand!

After climbing to the top from a relatively gentle side, he faced a nearly vertical cliff. Ma Han used his left hand to grip the cliff face, slowly extending his body out. When his entire body was out over the cliff, he slowly descended. From below, it looked as if he was hanging by one hand, supporting his entire body. The first step was not difficult, as long as he had enough arm strength and courage. The real challenge was the next step—finding a support point or a foothold.

The normal support points were cracks in the rock, but not every crack could accommodate a finger or support the weight of a foot. The most terrifying situation was when, halfway up, there were no cracks to be found, leaving one in a terrible position—neither up nor down. So, climbing such a cliff without tools was almost like courting death.

But Ma Han had his own methods. He saw his right hand, fingers together like a shovel, forcefully stab into the rock, sending stone chips flying. The first knuckles of his four fingers were embedded in the rock—special alloy nails that could easily cut through steel were not difficult to use to create holes in the rock.

With these super climbing "rivets," Ma Han, in an almost impossible posture, alternated his hands and slowly descended the cliff. Since he chose the northwest side, which was not the main battlefield, and with the cover of branches and leaves, no one, except his scout team, noticed him. The defending Ji Province army certainly never expected that an intruder had quietly entered the backyard of the earthen house, which was backed by the mountain.

In this era, village earthen houses had no windows. Originally, Ma Han would have had to climb to the roof and peek through the thatch to see inside. But with the collapse of the two side houses, the southwest wall of the earthen house was partially destroyed, allowing him to see inside by getting close.

Ma Han entered the backyard and immediately saw a tall, majestic, snow-white warhorse tied to a wooden post. Ma Han immediately recognized that this was not the common Youyan horse (the predecessor of the Mongolian horse) used in the Youzhou army camps, but a Western Region horse.

Whether it was the Youzhou army of Gong Sunzan or the Ji Province army of Yuan Shao, the warhorses they used, except for the elite units like the White Horse Volunteers who rode the tall Bingzhou and Liangzhou horses, were mostly from the northern grasslands. These horses were endurance-oriented, with strong stamina and adaptability, but they were shorter and had shorter, strong limbs, lacking the speed and sprinting ability of Western Region horses.

The horse in front of him, with its well-proportioned body, smooth coat, long legs, and broad chest, was clearly a Western Region horse—could this be the legendary Da Yuan horse?

Such a fine horse would naturally not be ridden by an ordinary person. This was evident from the silver-embellished bridle and the exquisite, shiny golden and rhinoceros leather saddle. Not to mention, there was a groom carefully feeding the horse with fine beans.

What a fine horse! Ma Han's eyes lit up, and he quietly approached, striking the groom's neck with a hand knife, then took the beans from the groom's hand, gently stroking the white mane of the horse while continuing to feed it. Using his old horse training skills, Ma Han quickly eliminated the horse's hostility and established an initial trust.

"Wait here obediently, I'll take you with me soon." Ma Han stroked the horse's forehead and then noticed that the horse was entirely white except for a tuft of silver-gray mane on its forehead, making it particularly distinctive.

"Hey, Silver Arrow, you'll be called Silver Arrow." Ma Han almost instantly decided on the horse's name.

With the name chosen for his future mount, Ma Han walked lightly to the broken wall, peeked inside, and the situation in the house was clear.

Inside the house, apart from four shield-bearing, sword-wielding soldiers standing guard by the door, there were three people dressed differently.

Two stood on either side, one dressed as a scholar and the other as a general. In the center, a man was kneeling on a thick felt mat, with a short table in front of him, on which a map was spread. Clearly, the kneeling man was the leader of everyone inside, including the soldiers outside.

Ma Han's vantage point was behind and to the side, and he could see that the man was wearing a gilded armor, with a tasseled gilded helmet by the table and a beautifully decorated sword at his waist. He wore a purple cloak that trailed on the ground. Despite the dangerous situation, he remained calm and composed, exuding a sense of stability and authority.

Who is this man with such presence?

At this moment, a sound of hooves came from outside the courtyard. Ma Han looked up and saw a group of Youzhou cavalry galloping past, their bowstrings resounding and arrows raining down, felling the twenty or so crossbowmen in front of the earthen house.

Hmm! This was actually his own scout team! When did Du Chang take control of them?

Several arrows shot into the house through the broken wall, embedding themselves in the earthen wall, causing dust to fall and land on the shoulder armor of the gilded general.

At this moment, the scholar standing beside him, in shock, disregarding the hierarchy, pulled the gilded general, trying to drag him to the broken wall in the backyard for cover. However, the gilded general remained seated, his face pale, and he suddenly grabbed the gilded helmet and threw it to the ground forcefully: "A true man should fight to the death on the battlefield, not hide behind a wall!"

After saying this, he drew his sword, pointed it outside, and shouted, "Gentlemen, follow me, Yuan Shao, to fight the Youzhou army!"

Yuan Shao! It was actually Yuan Shao!

Ma Han's head buzzed, his eyes shining. What luck!

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PS: Yuan Shao's encounter at Jie Bridge, surrounded by Gong Sunzan's army, is a historical fact. The resounding and powerful oath is also from the "Book of the Later Han."

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