118 Su Ming: I Want Eight Hundred Men of the Vanguard Camp

Page 1 of 3

The Tiger and Leopard Cavalry was the most elite mounted force under Cao Cao’s command. It was divided into the Tiger Cavalry and the Leopard Cavalry.

The Tiger Cavalry consisted of heavily armored horsemen, while the Leopard Cavalry was a light cavalry force.

At most, Cao Cao could afford to maintain five thousand Tiger and Leopard Cavalry troops—two thousand Tiger Cavalry and three thousand Leopard Cavalry.

The Tiger Cavalry was unsuited to long-distance raids, so Cao Cao had Cao Hong lead three thousand Leopard Cavalrymen alongside Su Ming. He had truly paid a heavy price.

He had given Su Ming his most elite troops. In that regard, Cao Cao had treated him rather generously.

Cao Cao was willing to part with three thousand Leopard Cavalrymen for Su Ming, but Su Ming genuinely did not want them.

Su Ming cupped his hands toward Cao Cao and said, “Chancellor, the three thousand Leopard Cavalrymen will not be necessary. This raid on Crow’s Nest will involve scaling the walls.”

“After Crow’s Nest is set ablaze, there will certainly be street fighting. In such close-quarters combat, cavalry cannot perform as they should.”

“Let us make a change. I do not want Cao Hong or the three thousand Leopard Cavalrymen. I only need one infantry unit and one capable general.”

Cao Cao considered the matter carefully and realized that Su Ming was right. He had indeed failed to think it through.

He had focused only on the fact that the Leopard Cavalry was his finest mounted force, without considering that cavalry was not suited to fighting atop city walls.

“Very well!”

“Which general do you want, and which unit?”

“If you can set Crow’s Nest ablaze, you may choose anyone from this entire camp.” Cao Cao looked toward Su Ming after saying this.

He seemed eager to see whom Su Ming would select to accompany him.

Seeing how readily Cao Cao agreed, Su Ming’s spirits rose at once. He replied, “I want General Zhang Wenyuan—and the eight hundred soldiers of the Trapped Camp under his command.”

If Cao Cao’s most elite cavalry was the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, then the finest infantry under his command was undoubtedly the Trapped Camp.

“The will to break through the enemy lines: death before retreat.”

The Trapped Camp had originally been trained by Gao Shun, a great general serving under Lü Bu. After Cao Cao executed Lü Bu at White Gate Tower, Gao Shun refused to surrender and followed Lü Bu in death.

Gao Shun was gone, but his methods for training the Trapped Camp had not been lost.

When they served under Lü Bu, Zhang Liao and Gao Shun had been the closest of friends. Gao Shun had taught Zhang Liao the methods used to train the Trapped Camp.

After Zhang Liao surrendered to Cao Cao, he trained another Trapped Camp within Cao Cao’s army.

The unit numbered exactly eight hundred men. Every one of them had been carefully selected, and each was a hardened elite capable of facing ten opponents alone.

The moment Su Ming said he wanted Zhang Liao and the Trapped Camp, Cao Cao felt an ache in his back teeth.

These eight hundred soldiers of the Trapped Camp were in no way inferior to the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry!

Page 1 of 3

Page 2 of 3

As for the general Zhang Wenyuan, he was far superior to Cao Hong.

At best, Cao Hong was a talented general. Zhang Liao, Zhang Wenyuan, was a commander of the highest caliber.

In terms of devising strategies within the command tent and determining victory a thousand miles away, Zhang Liao was not merely one of the foremost commanders in Cao Cao’s army—he could unquestionably rank among the top three.

In history, during the Battle of Xiaoyao Ford, Zhang Liao personally led eight hundred soldiers of the Trapped Camp and routed Sun Quan’s army of one hundred thousand.

Eight hundred against one hundred thousand. After that battle, the name “Zhang’s Eight Hundred” resounded throughout Xiaoyao Ford.

When Cao Cao heard that Su Ming wanted Zhang Liao, Zhang Wenyuan, as well as the eight hundred soldiers of the Trapped Camp, he thought, This fellow knows every last detail of my household.

Still, the Battle of Guandu was the most urgent matter before them.

The key to victory at Guandu lay in whether they could set Crow’s Nest ablaze.

Thus Cao Cao agreed immediately. “Very well. I shall place the eight hundred soldiers of the Trapped Camp and Wenyuan at your disposal.”

Seeing that his objective had been achieved, Su Ming thumped his chest and promised, “Rest assured, Chancellor. Within three days, you will see Crow’s Nest engulfed in flames.”

Su Ming took his leave of Cao Cao and returned to his own tent to make preparations.

He first sent men to notify Taishi Ci and Qu A, telling them to pack their belongings and prepare to march with the army.

Zhang Liao was a man who wasted no time. As soon as Cao Cao sent someone to inform him, he hurried to Su Ming’s camp without the slightest delay.

Taishi Ci and Qu A had only just arrived when Zhang Liao followed them into the tent.

“Are the three of you ready?” Su Ming asked.

“We are ready!” the three men replied in unison.

Su Ming then turned to Zhang Liao. “General Wenyuan, are the eight hundred soldiers of the Trapped Camp under your command prepared as well?”

Zhang Liao cupped his hands and answered, “Young Master, I notified the entire unit to prepare when I set out. By the time I return, everything will certainly be in order.”

“The eight hundred soldiers under my command can depart at any time.”

After saying this, Zhang Liao asked Su Ming, “Young Master, when shall we set out?”

“Since everything is ready, we will depart at once!” Su Ming ordered.

They were launching a surprise attack on Crow’s Nest.

Around Guandu in particular, Yuan Shao had established numerous visible and hidden sentry posts, along with patrols and guards.

Su Ming and the others could only pass around Guandu at night. During the day, they would easily alert Yuan Shao’s troops.

Page 2 of 3

Page 3 of 3

It happened to be night, the perfect time for marching. If they did not leave that night, they would have to wait until the following evening.

Cao Cao’s army was already suffering from a shortage of provisions. Delaying for another day might lead to all manner of unforeseen trouble.

Therefore, Su Ming ordered them to set out that very night.

Zhang Liao and the others acted with equal decisiveness. The moment Su Ming gave the order, they departed.

Su Ming led Zhang Liao and the others, together with the eight hundred soldiers of the Trapped Camp, traveling by night and resting by day. They skirted the main battlefield at Guandu and raced toward Crow’s Nest.

Zhang Liao’s eight hundred soldiers of the Trapped Camp had originally been heavily armored infantry.

This time, however, they did not bring their heavy armor. The raid on Crow’s Nest would require a long-distance march.

Moreover, to avoid the visible and hidden sentries Yuan Shao had deployed, they could only travel through the mountains.

Without horses to carry the heavy armor, bringing it along on a long march would slow them down.

Even traveling light and fast, avoiding the main battlefield at Guandu was no easy task.

Of all the warlords under Heaven, Yuan Shao was the foremost among them.

The battle between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao at Guandu was a struggle in which the weaker side fought the stronger, and the smaller army challenged the larger.

Not all of Yuan Shao’s men were fools.

Sentry posts, patrols, and other guards had long since been established around the main battlefield at Guandu.

Fortunately, Qu A was with them.

Qu A had been raised by tigers. In these mountains and forests, he was fighting on his home ground.

Moreover, Su Ming had repeatedly sent Qu A to Crow’s Nest to gather intelligence, so Qu A knew the mountain paths in this region extremely well.

It was true that Yuan Shao’s forces had established sentry posts beneath every mountain route. Wherever there was a road, Yuan’s soldiers were stationed.

But Qu A had already found hunters’ trails hidden within the forest.

These trails were the paths mountain hunters used when they went hunting.

Think about it: wild beasts feared people and would naturally avoid the mountain paths that humans traveled most often. Hunters seeking prey, therefore, had to open new routes into the mountains.

Qu A led everyone into the mountains along the hunters’ trails, allowing them to evade the visible and hidden sentries of Yuan Shao’s army perfectly.

End of Chapter