TL: How the Battle of Guandu will proceed from here will be very different from history…

Liu Bei POV

*Dong* *Dong* *Dong* *Dong*…

Messy drums resounded in the skies as 2 sides sought to seek an end to this battle one and for all on these plains.

At this moment, everyone was on high alert. Though the beat of drums on both sides were nauseating, I wasn’t perturbed in the least.

Everyone was waiting. Waiting for that one word, and that one act.

“Un.” Ben Chu seems to have made her resolve as she nodded and drew her sabre as she received a long spear a soldier prepared for her.

“Warriors!!!” She called to all her troops and raised her sword as she roared out, “Whether we win or lose, it will all end today! Now let me hear you all!”

Victory to Yuan Shao! Victory to Yuan Shao! Victory to Yuan Shao!

Following Ben Chu’s cue, several tens of thousands of people yelled out at the top of their lungs in unison which shook the earth and covered the drums.

“Charge!!–”

Ah–

Her troops charged behind the 2 generals leading on the left and right as Ben Chu swung her sword forward and roared.

All I saw were unbroken lines and lines of soldiers. I couldn’t see any particular’s person’s face, and it was as if everyone had become one, and advanced toward one objective for one goal.

“Xuan De, watch as history is being written.” In the midst of the chaos, Ben Chu seemed to have yelled out to me.

By my estimates, of the troops that had charged at Meng De’s camp, they were roughly slightly more than Meng De’s troops but strangely, Meng De’s formation did not change in response to the charge.

“Ha! You intend on defending huh?,” Ben Chu said to herself as she swung her sword again.

Feng Ji immediately changed the drum beat to one that would signal the troops to change their formation when she saw this.

And in the next instant, the troops that charged out positioned themselves in a crane wing formation from a single file to outflank Meng De’s troops. And at either end of the formation, several cavalry battalions were ready to charge in and breaj Meng De’s defensive lines and attack the rear.

“They have so many mobile tactical units… Even if Meng De wants to change formation now, she can’t; and if their army gets separated, they will be destroyed very quickly.” Zi Long said, perhaps to herself, or perhaps to explain what was going on to me as she squinted.

And reflected in my eyes were Ben Chu’s troops who were now just several hundred meters from the Cao army’s first defensive line.

What was Meng De planning?

Even though I was on Ben Chu’s side, I was now worrying for Meng De.

*Dong*! *Dong*!

Un?

“Consecutive firecrackers!? Is Meng De going to do something!?” Ben Chu was shocked by this sound and she hurriedly checked her surroundings.

*Dong*! *Dong*!

“Where is the sound coming from?!”

“They’re coming from both east and west, my lord!” Feng Ji was very anxious as well.

Meng De, you definitely have something going on as expected right?

I began to feel an inexplicable fear and anxiety from being infected by the atmosphere.

Die–

And just then, everyone was shocked as cries for blood could be heard from both sides. Troops could now be seen charging at Ben Chu’s troops from east and west, both of which held the Cao army flags.

One flag had [夏侯] emblazoned on it while the other had [繡].

“My lord, looks like Zhang Xiu has joined Cao Cao!”

“d.a.m.n it, not just that, Yingchuan’s garrison has made it here!” Ben Chu pulled forcefully on the reins of her horse and made it raise its front legs as it got ready readied to charge.

“My lord! Calm down!” Tian Feng who was standing on the ground fearlessly reached out and calmed the horse down, “The Xiahou army is the stronger of the 2, Gao Lan should lead a cavalry unit and stop them! Archers in the back, wait for our lord’s signal to a.s.sist the vanguard!”

Tian Feng slapped Ben Chu’s plate skirt when she finished. And with this a.s.sistance from Tian Feng, Ben Che finally calmed down.

“Archers at the ready–” The sound of hundreds of bowstrings being pulled back filled the air as she raised her sword above her head and pointed it at the sky.

It was silent for a single moment until…

“Fire!–” And in the next instant, the sound of loosened bowstrings filled my ears.

“Watch out, my lord!”

“Watch out, Xuan De!!” Along with Zi Long’s cry, wave upon wave of arrows landed. And the arrows landed right before me.

Eh?

Why were the arrows aimed at our own side?