The Three Kingdoms: I asked you to save Guan Yu, not to destroy Sun Quan.

Chapter 187 Is Zhuge Liang going to play dirty tricks?

Han De was stunned by the sudden turn of events. He stood there dumbfounded, staring at the Han soldiers dressed in Wei army uniforms who were charging towards him. He didn't even hear his son's shouts.

Guan Ping ignored all that and ordered the White Feather Soldiers to launch a direct charge. The eight hundred White Feather Soldiers rushed towards Han De in a flash.

Han De was awakened by the shouts of battle. He turned around and found that there were only a few dozen people around him, and they were all still sleepy and obviously not fully awake. How the hell was he supposed to fight them?

In this situation, Han De no longer had time to ponder why the Han army had stormed into the city and rushed towards him. He hurriedly shouted at the top of his lungs, "I surrender..."

He spoke so fast he was afraid that if he spoke too slowly, the White Feather Soldiers' blades would fall on his head.

The white-feathered soldiers, who had already reached Han De and were about to strike Han De's head with their swords, quickly twisted the handles of their swords, letting the blades glide past Han De's cheek.

Nevertheless, Han De was still terrified by the cold blade and broke out in a cold sweat, his legs giving way and causing him to collapse to the ground.

Seeing that their leader had backed down, the guards behind him naturally lost the will to resist. They hurriedly threw down their weapons and knelt on the ground, afraid that if they were too slow, it would cause the Han army to misunderstand.

The White Feather Soldiers stepped forward, confiscated their weapons, and took Han De into custody. Only then did Han De notice his eldest son, Han Ying, who was also being held captive, and asked in surprise, "You've been captured too?"

Han Ying: "..."

So you didn't hear me shouting just now?

Guan Ping ignored the interaction between the father and son, leaving three hundred White Feather Soldiers to guard the Han family, and led the rest of his troops to continue the expedition to strike at the stubborn elements in the city who refused to surrender.

Half an hour later, the city was completely under control, and Guan Ping and Zhang Bao successfully reunited.

Without exchanging pleasantries, Guan Ping immediately ordered, "Xingguo, send a messenger out of the city to report the situation here to the military advisor."

Zhang Bao nodded in agreement, and then asked, "Brother Tanzhi, this time there are as many as seven or eight thousand prisoners, more than twice the number of ours. What should we do with these prisoners?"

Dealing with prisoners is a skill; if not handled properly, it can lead to serious trouble. If the prisoners riot when you're off guard, you'll be in big trouble.

Guan Ping hadn't expected such a brilliant record. Upon hearing this, he gasped and said, "That is indeed a problem. How does Anguo handle prisoners? They have far more prisoners than we do."

He missed his beloved second brother. Guan Xing's achievements in Jiangdong were far more brilliant than his own, and he had captured far more prisoners than him, yet he had never heard of any prisoners causing trouble or riots. How did Guan Xing manage to do that?

Zhang Bao rubbed the back of his head, feeling a headache coming on, and said, "I don't know, Anguo didn't mention it in the battle report either."

Guan Ping smiled wryly and said, "Distant water can't quench immediate thirst. Let's find a way ourselves. Separate the prisoners of the rank of garrison commander and above and lock them up separately, guarded by the White Feather Soldiers. Give the other prisoners only one meal of thin porridge a day, so they won't have the strength to cause trouble. We'll deal with the rest when the strategist arrives."

"But before that, let's boil some hot water for the prisoners to take a bath, lest they all get sick tomorrow, we don't have that much medicine."

"I'll go right away." Zhang Bao went to make preparations, sending a messenger to inform Zhuge Liang while also busying himself with boiling water.

Qishan Road Han Army Camp.

As dawn broke, Zhuge Liang stepped out of his command tent, his face contorted with worry as he looked at the muddy road.

Yesterday's torrential rain also affected Qishan Road, turning the already poor road surface into a mud pit, making it impossible for the army to pass.

Keep in mind that they were walking uphill, and there were many grain carts in the convoy. Pushing carts uphill was already difficult, and if the road became like this, it would be completely impossible to walk. If they insisted on walking, not only would they not be able to move forward, but they might also fall down the slope along with their carts.

Therefore, the army could only find a place to rest and wait for the roads to dry.

But time is of the essence. Every moment they delay, the Wei army may arrive a moment earlier. Once the Wei reinforcements reach Lucheng, this northern expedition will face numerous difficulties.

More importantly, Guan Ping and Zhang Bao have already set off, and if I don't get there in time to meet them, something bad might happen.

Thinking this, Zhuge Liang summoned Cheng Ji and said, "Ji Ran, we can't delay any longer. The longer we delay, the worse it will be for us. I will take 20,000 troops and leave first. You lead the rest of the army and supplies and come back after we've finished our journey."

Cheng Ji also knew the seriousness of the problem, and nodded upon hearing this, saying, "Strategist, be careful, I will try to catch up as quickly as possible."

Zhuge Liang nodded and left to begin preparations. Half an hour later, he led an army of 20,000 men, trudging through the mud, to continue their journey.

They were less than fifty li from the Qishan Pass; if they gritted their teeth, they should be able to get out before dark.

After a difficult three-hour march, around noon, the army suddenly spotted several mud figures approaching. Because they were going downhill, they moved relatively quickly, and when they encountered long slopes, they simply sat down and slid down. After only a few slides, they reached the vicinity of the Han army, identified themselves, and were brought before Zhuge Liang.

The clay figure bowed to Zhuge Liang and said, "Greetings, strategist. I am a messenger of General Guan Ping, sent by General Guan to report the victory to you."

"A victory report?" Zhuge Liang exclaimed with delight, "Lucheng has been captured?"

The messenger nodded, took out a carefully preserved letter from his bosom that was spotless, and handed it to Zhuge Liang with both hands, saying, "This is a letter written by General Guan himself."

Zhuge Liang took a look and handed it to Wu Ban beside him, excitedly saying, "Tanzhi actually attacked the reinforcements first and then attacked Lucheng. This battle was brilliantly fought."

"Order the army to continue its march and try to reach Lucheng before nightfall. We will spend the night in Lucheng and send someone to deliver the good news to Ji Ran, so that he will not worry anymore and can continue the march once the roads are dry."

Zhuge Liang was in a hurry to get there because he was worried that if he arrived late, Guan Ping would not only fail to capture Lucheng but would also be surrounded by the Wei army. Now that Guan Ping had captured Lucheng, his worries were naturally gone.

Zhuge Liang sent the news of the victory to the entire army, and then continued on his journey.

Upon learning of Guan Ping's victory, the morale of the Han army, who were able to rest in Lucheng after leaving Qishan, soared. They moved much faster than before, and by 4:45 PM, they had already left Qishan Road.

Qishan Pass is only a dozen miles from Lucheng. Although the road was still muddy, it could not dampen the enthusiasm of the Han army. The Han army arrived at the city of Lucheng in just over half an hour.

Upon receiving the news, Guan Ping and Zhang Bao immediately went out of the city to greet Zhuge Liang. They bowed before Zhuge Liang and said, "This humble general greets the military advisor. I am fortunate to have successfully captured Lu City. Please come into the city to rest."

Zhuge Liang patted Guan Ping on the shoulder and laughed, "Tanzhi, you fought a brilliant battle! Not only did you capture Lucheng, but you also annihilated the reinforcements and killed Ma Zun. It was truly beyond my expectations. Brilliant!"

Wu Ban chimed in, "This battle was truly exceptional. Tan Zhi is indeed worthy of being General Guan's son; he has the demeanor of the old general."

Guan Ping felt disgusted by these words. What did this have to do with his father? How come his victory was attributed to his father?

If you lose, are you going to say that a tiger father begets a dog son again?

Guan Ping smiled politely but with a hint of embarrassment, and stepped aside, saying, "Strategist, please; generals, please."

Zhuge Liang, waving his feather fan, led the way into the city. Halfway there, he suddenly saw the Han army's battle flags fluttering on the city wall and stopped to ponder, "Tanzhi, is there any news about Zhang He's army?"

Guan Ping replied, "Not for now. The roads are muddy after the heavy rain, and according to the prisoners under Ma Zun's command, there was a landslide on their way here, burying the roads. So Zhang He's army will definitely be a few days late."

Zhuge Liang then asked, "Were there any prisoners who escaped during the capture? I mean, is it possible that Zhang He already knew about the fall of Lucheng?"

Guan Ping shook his head and said, "I'm not sure about that, but it's very unlikely that Zhang He received the message. The rain was too heavy yesterday, and even if some Wei soldiers escaped, it would be impossible for them to contact Zhang He so quickly."

Zhuge Liang pondered, "If Zhang He doesn't know that Lucheng has fallen, he will definitely send troops to support it. Perhaps we can use this to our advantage and launch another surprise attack on the Wei army."

"Take down our battle flags and replace them with Wei army battle flags to create the illusion that Lucheng has not yet fallen. Then come with me into the city to discuss countermeasures."