Chapter 37: Cao Cao's Counterattack

Cao Cao led Cao Ren toward his own camp and said, "Zixiao, pass the order immediately for all troops to assemble!"

Cao Ren asked, "My Lord, the other three warlords seem unwilling to attack. If we strike alone, isn't that too dangerous?"

Cao Cao stopped in his tracks, frowned, and said, "The risk exists, certainly, but the chance of success is very high. The enemy has just won a great victory and heard that the other warlords only wish to scatter; they certainly will not expect us to counterattack. If we can sow chaos among them, this battle will be won!"

As he spoke, he looked at Cao Ren, patted his shoulder, and said with ironclad resolve, "No matter how great the risk, we must fight this battle. After all, this war itself is more important than the outcome of a single engagement!"

Later that evening, Cao Cao led his nearly thirty thousand troops into action.

Yuan Shao, Sun Jian, and Gongsun Zan, upon hearing the news, looked at each other in dismay, finding themselves in a dilemma. If they retreated, wouldn't they be handing all the glory and benefits to Cao Cao? If they did not retreat, the risk was too great, and fearing the enemy was prepared, they might end up with their entire army annihilated—a fate too bitter to bear.

In the end, they reached a tacit agreement to remain idle for the time being, watching how the battle unfolded before making a decision.

Luo Ang had commanded his various forces to break the allied army of the four warlords in one fell swoop, while simultaneously terrifying the other warlords into scattering, which could be called a total victory. After pursuing the enemy for over a hundred li, he ordered his troops to withdraw and return to Luoyang. At this moment, he was unaware that Cao Cao had led his army in pursuit.

The main force was now divided into two parts. Luo Ang's Youzhou army and the Xiliang forces of Fan Chou, Zhang Ji, and Hua Xiong were marching in front. However, because Li Jue and Guo Si’s Xiliang forces had been too eager to seize credit earlier, they were now trailing at the rear as the army returned.

Hua Xiong rode up to Luo Ang’s side, smiling, and said, "Brother Luo is truly formidable! This battle was a real turnaround from defeat to victory!"

Luo Ang laughed, "General Hua, you are too kind. We owe this victory to everyone’s desperate fighting!"

Lu Bu added, "Upon our return to Luoyang, the Grand Preceptor will surely grant us great rewards. I shall host a banquet at my residence to celebrate your success!"

Seeing Hua Xiong becoming so familiar with him, Luo Ang felt slightly unaccustomed to it, but he cupped his hands and smiled, "General Hua, I shall certainly come to drink your wine!"

Hearing this, Hua Xiong laughed heartily.

Just then, a voice came from behind: "Marquis of Yan! Marquis of Yan!"

Luo Ang reined in his horse, and the others followed suit. Luo Ang turned his horse around and looked toward the sound, seeing an officer of the Xiliang army galloping toward them.

Zhang Ji, seeing this, asked curiously, "That looks like Wang Fang, one of Li Jue’s men. Why is he running here alone?"

Wang Fang reached Luo Ang, pulled his horse to a sudden halt, and cupped his hands, "Disaster, Marquis of Yan! The enemy appeared suddenly; our forces were completely unprepared. Generals Guo Si and Li Jue have both been routed. I beg the Marquis to bring troops to rescue us immediately!"

Everyone was shocked upon hearing this.

Cheng Yu frowned and said, "This must be Cao Cao’s stratagem! He calculated that our army would be completely unguarded after such a great victory, so he launched a counterattack to catch us off guard!"

Fan Chou said to Luo Ang in a panic, "Marquis of Yan, let us retreat to Luoyang quickly! If we are late, I fear we will not be able to pull back at all."

Cheng Yu said decisively, "Absolutely not! If we retreat now, the army will surely descend into panic. The enemy will seize the momentum to attack, and even if we are not completely annihilated, we will suffer heavy losses. The consequences would be unimaginable!"

Luo Ang nodded and said, "Zhongde is right. We cannot retreat now!"

As he spoke, seeing the look of helplessness on the faces of Fan Chou, Zhang Ji, and the others, he stated firmly, "Not only must we not retreat, but we must also turn the entire army around to counterattack. The enemy is attacking in haste; their strength cannot be that great! The other warlords have already scattered, so those attacking now are at most the forces of those four! Those four warlords were already defeated by us, and after suffering heavy losses earlier, their return is merely an invitation to death."

Hearing these words from Luo Ang, the panic among Fan Chou, Zhang Ji, and the others vanished, and their fighting spirit was restored.

Luo Ang ordered, "General Hua, please join Zhongkang and lead all the cavalry to counterattack first. The rest of you, follow me with all the infantry! The army must advance without hesitation. Anyone who shows cowardice will be dealt with by military law!"

Everyone responded in unison. Then, horns blared one after another, and messengers galloped back and forth delivering orders. The returning army immediately stopped their withdrawal and turned around on the spot.

The cavalry converged at the front, and under the leadership of Hua Xiong and Dian Wei, they were the first to gallop toward the east, while the infantry mobilized, following closely behind the cavalry.

This tactic of splitting the army into two parts was something Luo Ang had discovered while playing strategy games. Using a rapid-response legion as the vanguard to execute quick strikes or rescues, while a heavy, slower legion followed as the rearguard, ensured speed and the element of surprise. Even if the opponent resisted stubbornly, they were often caught off guard.

If the vanguard failed to break the opponent, the heavy legion arriving later could crush them while they were busy dealing with the vanguard. If the opponent was too strong and defeated the vanguard, the heavy legion could form a defensive line on the spot to contain the enemy’s momentum, avoiding a total rout.

Luo Ang did not think much of using a strategy he had learned from games on the battlefield, but it left those around him—Cheng Yu, Guan Yu, Zhang He, Cheng Lian, and Dong Yuan—filled with admiration.

The main infantry force led by Luo Ang marched eastward, arriving before a small hill after only half a day. By now, the sounds of battle behind the hill were deafening, and the drums beat like a tidal wave; it was clear that the cavalry led by Hua Xiong and Xu Chu had engaged the enemy.

Luo Ang immediately led his troops to the high ground of the hill, where he saw Xu Chu and Hua Xiong galloping through the ranks, having already thrown the enemy into disarray. The ground was littered with corpses, and even a small stream had been dyed red with blood. Although many enemy soldiers were still resisting desperately, they collapsed one after another under the torrent of iron hooves.

Seeing this scene, Luo Ang finally exhaled in relief.

Chen Gong, who was at his side, noted, "Judging by the banners, only Cao Cao is here. The other three warlords did not come."

Luo Ang lamented, "What a pity; only Cao Cao is a hero! If they had all swarmed us, today’s battle would likely have been difficult to win!"

No sooner had he spoken than he noticed that on the open ground to the northwest of the battlefield, many Xiliang troops were regrouping, realizing those were the remnants of the forces of Guo Si and Li Jue that had been broken by Cao’s army earlier.

Chen Gong said, "My Lord, we don't even need to intervene; Cao’s army is doomed to fail!"