Despite the formidable fighting prowess of the Jiangdong Tigers and the skill of their soldiers,
the attacking side was inherently bound to suffer heavy losses. Furthermore, Hangu Pass was a strategically vital pass, fortified with palisades and ballistae, and flanked by catapults from the mountains.
The casualties were less than a hundred, a stark contrast to Sun Jian's 6,000 losses – a truly egregious ratio.
Many soldiers were killed before even reaching the city gates.
The palisades were incredibly powerful; even a thousand-strong infantry phalanx would be wiped out in a single volley – an absurdly high rate of casualties.
Fa Zheng's strategy was meticulous. During the battle, he went out to collect heavy supplies and ordered the allied soldiers and laborers who came to collect the corpses to pile them together and burn them.
Lu Ming had specifically instructed him that the corpses must be cremated; this battle would be far from over…
And the stench of decaying corpses could spread plague, which had to be avoided.
Having experienced the plague treatment in Beidi Commandery, Fa Zheng was extremely secretive about it.
He resolutely carried out this order, which made the allied forces uneasy. The lower-ranking soldiers knew that if they died in battle, they might not even have their ashes left!
The second wave of attack came from Yuan Shu, who was very cunning; this was a token siege.
The drums thundered, but white flags waved at the front, clearly indicating a bluff.
They didn't want to attack, but that didn't mean they wouldn't be shot.
Therefore, they raised white flags to indicate their unwillingness to attack.
Even so, many were still shot dead.
These were used by the archers for communication; the longbowmen needed more kills to
upgrade, so the infantry watched while the archers unleashed their firepower.
After leaving behind hundreds of corpses, Yuan Shu retreated.
Mission accomplished.
They had considered using nearby civilians as human punching bags, but their plan was firmly rejected.
If the allied forces were to attack the city normally, they could be considered a righteous army; but if they used civilians as targets, their reputation would be ruined!
The first to object was Han Fu, the governor of Ji Province. He valued his reputation and didn't want further conflict with Lu Ming, so he sent troops primarily to provide supplies rather than to fight on the front lines.
After a month of fighting, they hadn't even made a symbolic breach of Hangu Pass.
The ballistae and catapults alone could destroy their siege engines. After killing their soldiers, they could burn them alive with fire arrows, but they hadn't even touched the ground.
Now, the allied forces were demoralized and utterly demoralized.
No one had any illusions about breaking through Hangu Pass. Forget about entering Chang'an; they couldn't even breach the pass in front of them. What was the point of talking about it?
Historically, the allied forces were able to breach Sishui Pass and Hulao Pass only through relentless offensives and when the technological levels of both sides were roughly equal.
Now, with technologies like siege towers and catapults, the allied forces could easily overwhelm them, not to mention the 20,000 elite Tier 3 warriors at Hangu Pass.
Inside the allied camp.
Yuan Shao summoned Cao Cao to discuss countermeasures; some had recently been discussing retreat.
Sun Jian had already left, and news arrived that he had taken the Imperial Seal!
This news shocked everyone…
Faced with questioning, Sun Jian was furious and humiliated. He had fought desperately, gained nothing, and was now being falsely accused. Anyone would be enraged in this situation.
Only Yuan Shu silently took note and, on the advice of his strategist Yan Xiang, wrote a letter to Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou. When Sun Jian returns to Changsha, it will be the day he dies!
Just as Yuan Shao was about to say something, Xiahou Yuan rushed in and whispered something in Cao Cao's ear.
Cao Cao suddenly stood up: "What?"
Upon seeing the letter Xiahou Yuan handed him, Cao Cao's eyes instantly turned red. His wife had been kidnapped by Lu Ming and was still not released.
His father, Cao Song, had been ambushed and killed on the border of Xuzhou, his body never recovered, and even his younger brother had been killed!
Weapons and flags of Xuzhou soldiers were also found at the scene.
Whether it was a frame-up or not, this proved one thing: this matter was inextricably linked to Xuzhou, and even more so to Ying Shao of Taishan Commandery!
"Mengde, what's wrong with you?"
Yuan Shao was actually considering backing out, but how he did so required a carefully chosen pretext.
He needed to save face, but also make it seem reasonable.
"My father was assassinated by Tao Qian's men on the border of Xuzhou. Yuan Shao, I must return to handle his funeral. Farewell."
Cao Cao was furious. He had a tendency towards rage; once enraged, his head would throb, and the rage would overwhelm him, causing him to vomit blood and faint.
"My lord! My lord! Quickly, summon a physician!"
Xiahou Yuan hurriedly helped Cao Cao out, leaving Yuan Shao alone in the tent, bewildered.
Hangu Pass.
Fa Zheng looked at the letter from Chang'an, his eyes flickering.
It was the latest order, instructing him to go to Hanzhong with Huang Zhong, Wei Yan, and Gan Ning to prepare for the attack on Yizhou.
It also said that there was a letter from Zhang Song, the Prefect of Yizhou, indicating that someone was guiding them.
Hangu Pass could be left to Xu Rong to guard; ten thousand elite troops would be sufficient.
Zhao Yun was transferred back to Liangzhou to suppress some unruly forces and reopen the Silk Road.
Lu Ming didn't come…
Because Wang Li and the others were about to give birth, he didn't plan to go on any campaigns.
Wang Yi's child (daughter), once born, would be announced as a boy, and then the system's rewards would be used to disguise it.
A faction with a son meant the lineage wouldn't be broken; even if the lord died, there would still be a young master.
Daughters were mostly for personal enjoyment…
Pretending to have a son was a way to stabilize morale.
Lu Bu's defeat wasn't just because he was trapped in Xuzhou, but also because he had no son, no successor, and no hope of following him, which led to his betrayal.
These past few days, there had been troop movements at Hangu Pass, but the banners there hadn't moved, and it was impossible to tell from outside the pass.
However, the allied forces outside seemed to have begun to retreat. Cao Cao left with his men overnight, followed by Yuan Shu, who slipped away without a trace.
Seeing this, the other lords also retreated, realizing there was no point in continuing the fight.
They hadn't been able to conquer the region for over a month.
They also had to return to their respective territories to attend to official business and couldn't be away for long.
Thus, the eighteen lords, who had come with great fanfare, left in disgrace.