Chapter 10: Capturing Chu Feiyan

Most of the old and weak soldiers of the Yellow Turban army had already breached the center and were fleeing eastward. At the same time, this exposed the central army. Amidst the chaos in the Yellow Turban camp, a mounted general emerged with a large flag behind him, bearing the name "Yu Du." He charged towards the imperial troops.

Liu Zhan, in pursuit, saw the Yellow Turban general approaching and thought, "Perfect, I'll use you to make an example." He spurred his horse and raised his blade to meet the enemy.

As the two horses closed in, Liu Zhan swung his large blade with incredible speed. Yu Du, who had just opened his mouth to say something, found himself caught off guard. Before he could utter a word, Liu Zhan's blade was already descending. Yu Du's words were swallowed back as he realized the blade was too fast to parry.

Liu Zhan, aiming to intimidate the enemy, altered his strike from a cut to a blow. With a loud "thump," Yu Du's head was crushed by the blade, sending blood and fragments flying.

The sheer force of the blow and the sight of Yu Du's death struck fear into the Yellow Turban army, who saw Liu Zhan as a fearsome demon.

At that moment, another mounted general from the Yellow Turban camp charged out. Witnessing the scene, he was momentarily stunned, causing his horse to slow down.

Liu Zhan's horse didn't stop; after killing Yu Du, he continued his advance and saw this new Yellow Turban general. He spurred his horse and charged at him.

This Yellow Turban general was Chu Feiyan, with a flag clearly displaying his name. Seeing Liu Zhan kill Yu Du made Chu Feiyan hesitant and fearful. However, as Liu Zhan charged, Chu Feiyan had no choice but to grit his teeth and engage.

In the blink of an eye, the two horses were close. Chu Feiyan raised his spear to thrust, while Liu Zhan lifted his large blade from below. With a loud clash, Chu Feiyan's weapon was knocked high into the air, and he was thrown backward off his horse.

Liu Zhan's horse continued forward, and he shouted, "Surrender immediately, or face death without mercy!"

At this moment, Gao Shun and the imperial troops had pressed forward. Several soldiers came up and captured Chu Feiyan. Zhang Liao and Zhao Yun rode around the perimeter of the Yellow Turban camp. Inside the city, the gates were opened, and two young generals emerged with dozens of brave men.

Intimidated by Liu Zhan's presence, many of the Yellow Turban soldiers in the front lines knelt in surrender, while others took the opportunity to escape, sensing the situation was dire.

Given the large number of enemies, Liu Zhan's forces couldn't capture them all. Worried that more might escape, he ordered Zhang Liao and Zhao Yun to monitor the perimeter. Many of those escaping were young and strong—valuable recruits who shouldn't be allowed to flee.

As the soldiers began escorting the captives, Liu Zhan instructed Gao Shun to select the qualified young men and integrate them into the army after some training.

At this point, the two young generals from the city had approached and greeted Liu Zhan with clasped hands.

"I am Zhang He. Thank you for saving Zhongshan from destruction. Please enter the city and rest."

"Ah, so it's Zhang He and Gao Lan. Are you the city's defenders?"

Hearing Liu Zhan's question, Zhang He and Gao Lan shook their heads helplessly.

"General, currently there are no official troops in the city. The officials fled as soon as they heard the Yellow Turbans were invading. Fortunately, the wealthy Zhen family funded the recruitment of young men to defend the city. We happened to be passing through and joined the defense. If you hadn't come to rescue us, the city would have fallen, and the people inside would have suffered."

Liu Zhan understood now and realized why he had encountered Zhang He and Gao Lan. He had already planned to incorporate these two into his forces. Thinking this, he dismounted and walked over to them.