Chapter 32 Chapter Thirty: A River of Life and Death

When Cao Cao found Lu Bu, he shouted, "That man is indeed Lu Bu!" As he said this, he killed the miscellaneous soldiers who came to block him, and tried to get close to the high ground where Lu Bu was standing.Dong Zhuoai led Li Jue to lead a group of soldiers and horses to swarm up from the swamp, shouting: "Capture Cao Cao alive!" "Don't let Cao Cao run away!" "Cao Cao is the leader of the rebellion!" The army of ambushes swept in together, with only one target, and that was him. The arrows flying from the swamps and cliffs in all directions, and the swords and halberds piercing in front of his eyes, all came towards him alone.

Cao Cao is now completely in danger, life and death are completely controlled by the enemy's strategy. "You are a traitor in troubled times." Once upon a time, this arrogant boy thought that this prophecy was exactly what he hoped for, and he congratulated himself.Now it is in a desperate situation. He was so talented that with his white face, empty fists, eloquent tongue and courage, he mobilized the 18 princes and forced Dong Zhuo to give up Luoyang in the end.His plan has come true.However, his dream is just a dream of a white-faced youth.Reality is impermanent, is he about to complete his final journey?

It seems so.He is ready. At this time, his subordinate Xia Houyuan cut a bloody road and galloped to find the master. Seeing the situation here, he shouted: "Don't kill my lord!" Disturbed a corner, rushed into the fierce soldiers, chased Li Jue, and finally rescued Cao Cao. "Helpless. Since this is the case, life is the most important thing. It is best to withdraw to Xingyang first." Xia Houyuan only led 2,000 remnant soldiers to stay where they were, and took out 500 cavalry to serve as guards for Cao Cao, urging: "Quick! Quick!" Looking back, ten thousand soldiers and horses were defeated, but only three thousand escaped.

Cao Cao ran towards the foot of the mountain. They were constantly threatened by ambushes and surprise attacks along the way.The number of soldiers and horses following him was greatly reduced, and he could only see a dozen or so cavalry around him. With regard to the number of people, those whose mounts were injured or who were seriously injured and could not travel were counted. Cao Cao experienced the tragic situation of the down-and-out warriors on the line of life and death. With a bitter mood, I walked forward in confusion, looking for the way while running, just to go down the mountain.When I came back to my senses, the sun had also set.Crowds of jackdaws were crowing in the sparse forest, and Xiaoyue's figure had already begun to appear by the edge of the forest.

"Ah, it really looks like the mountains in my hometown!" Cao Cao's parents suddenly appeared in his heart.Looking at the big moon climbing up, Jiao Man'er's eyes also glistened with tears of sincerity: "You're not filial!" He turned back into a fragile person, suddenly feeling tired and thirsty. "There is clear water gushing out..." He got off his horse, put his face close to the clear water, and gulped it down.At this moment, the enemy's stubborn shouts came from the nearby forest. "Oh……" Cao Cao was shocked and flew on his horse.In a short while, some of the few remaining followers were killed by arrows, and some were unable to escape and died in the grass.

The new force of Xu Rong, the prefect of Xingyang City, was in hot pursuit.Seeing that the fleeing rider was Cao Cao, Xu Rong drew his iron bow, and with a bang, let out an arrow. The flying arrow plunged into Cao Cao's shoulder. "broken!" Cao Cao yelled and fell on the horse's mane.Xu Rongfang's second arrow whizzed by his ear again.He didn't even have the time to pull the arrow out of his shoulder. The mane and saddle were stained with blood from arrow wounds.The horses galloped bloody. At this time, there was a figure shaking in a forest. "Ah, it's Cao Cao!" Someone said.

It is Xu Rong's soldier.It's the pawns hiding there.A man suddenly raised a gun and stabbed Cao Cao's horse in the abdomen. The war horse neighed and stood up straight, Cao Cao was thrown to the ground. Four or five pawns rushed over at once. "Catch Cao Cao alive!" they shouted, surrounded Cao Cao. Cao Cao lay face up on the ground, drew out his sword, and killed only two people, and his strength was exhausted. Because the moment he fell off the horse, his ribs were trampled hard by the horse's hoof again. At this time.Cao Cao's younger brother, Cao Hong, came out from the rebellious army. He was wandering alone in the area when he heard a strange neighing sound from a horse.

So he came over on his horse, and through the moonlight, he saw his brother Cao Cao being tossed about by a few miscellaneous soldiers at will, and he was about to be cut and tied up. "Grandson!" Cao Hong jumped forward, chopped down one person from behind, and chopped another person horizontally.He did not chase after the frightened enemy soldiers, but immediately picked up his elder brother's body and said, "Brother, brother! Hold on! I am Cao Hong!" "Oh, it's you." "Are you awake? Quickly grab my shoulders and stand up. The soldiers who escaped just now must have called Xu Rong's army."

"I don't...I can't...Cao Hong!" "What are you talking about?!" "Unfortunately, I was wounded by an arrow, and my chest was trampled by a horse. It hurts so much. Leave me and go! Go!" "Don't talk about spineless words! A little arrow wound is nothing serious. The world is in chaos today, but Cao Hong and Cao Cao are indispensable. Even if you live one more day, it is the mission given to you by heaven!" Encouraged by Cao Hong, he untied his elder brother's armor and made him lightly dressed. Then he hugged him under his arm and let him hold on to the horse that the enemy had discarded.

really. "Oh——" Xu Rong's subordinates chased after him from behind. Cao Hong's heart was also blank, with one arm around his elder brother and the other holding the rein, he closed his eyes and prayed in his heart: "I'm fine, now my brother Cao Cao's life is at stake. All Buddhas bless me!" While praying, he ran desperately. He felt that he had run from the mountain to the wilderness below. "Ah, we have reached the bottom of the mountain." He thought. Suddenly, he saw a swollen river lying ahead.When Cao Cao saw this, he turned his face to look at his younger brother in pain, and said, "Ah, it seems that my life is over. Cao Hong, put me down, and I can commit suicide right here. Before the enemy army arrives... "

Cao Hong hugged his brother and got off the horse, but he never let go of his hand. "What? Suicide? This doesn't match your usual disposition!" He deliberately scolded, "There is this big river in front, and the enemy is chasing after us. It seems that our fate will end here. But there is one more sentence As the saying goes, it’s called poor things. Leave our fate to the heavens and let us cross this great river.” Standing by the river, the spray of white waves washes the sand on the bank, and the current is turbulent.Even Feihong didn't come near the water here. Cao Hong threw away all the heavy things on his body, held his sword in his mouth, carried his injured brother on his shoulders, jumped into the muddy current with a plop, and swam towards the middle of the river. The rain clouds connected with the river hang low and spread out, and the sky is bright and dyed.The night passed unknowingly, and the sky began to turn pale.A rainbow rose from the full river, and the figures of the two swam like strange fish, floating in the water. The current was fast, and with his injured brother on his back, Cao Hong could not paddle freely with his limbs.It can be seen that it is constantly being rushed downstream. Finally, the other shore is in sight. "Keep going harder..." Cao Hong swam desperately. The grass on the opposite bank is close at hand, but it is not easy to get up.Because every time the surf hits, a vortex is formed, which brings the water back. On a hill a little far from the river, a group of Xu Rong's troops set up a small village.Two sentries stood watching the river.The beautiful scenery at dawn fascinated them... "Hey, what's that?" A sentinel pointed with his finger. "Strange fish." "not human!" He hurriedly ran to report to the guard. The guard also came over and issued orders to the crossbowmen: "It is the defeated general of Cao Cao's army! Let the arrows go!" How did they notice that it was really Brother Cao Cao.So the crossbowmen lined up slowly and competed in shooting skills. "Whoosh—" "Whoosh—" The arrows sounded and flew towards the opposite water, splashing like raindrops. Cao Hong had already climbed ashore and played dead in the enemy arrows flying around. At this time, he was thinking about "how to escape". But at this time, he instead saw a group of soldiers and horses coming down the river from the far upstream.In the morning, the sky was clear and the clouds were clear. Looking at the flag flying in the distance, it was the elite of Xu Rong, the prefect of Xingyang City. "If they find out, then..." Cao Hong was so panicked that he was trembling even when he let out his breath.Even under the rain of arrows, you can't be afraid now.Wielding his sword, he fends off incoming arrows while running. Cao Cao also threw away the flying arrow.They hug each other and run.In the distance, it is almost impossible to tell whether it is two people or one person. The enemy soldiers on the hills and the soldiers and horses coming along the river saw Brother Cao Cao running away in the rain of arrows, and shouted: "It must be a famous enemy general. Don't let him escape!" They immediately pursued them from east and west directions, raising a cloud of dust.A small group of people quickly ran ahead, blocking their way. Arrows shot from the hills flew one after another. To stop is to die, to go forward is also to die. One difficulty after another.It seems that the god of death will not stop until he catches Cao Cao. "The enemy's corpses will soon pile up into mountains. Even if our Cao family brothers die, we must die in a decent way in the end, and we can't be laughed at. Brother, please be prepared!" Cao Hong finally made up his mind. Then, together with his elder brother Cao Cao, he raised his sword and charged into the enemy group. The enemy was in a commotion and said, "Oh, they said it was the Cao family. It seems to be brothers Cao Cao and Cao Hong." "Unexpectedly, it is a general! How can we not take their heads!" The enemy soldiers surrounded the two like bears and wolves fighting for food. At this time.A yellow wind suddenly blew up in the far field, and ten knights galloped towards us. They are Xiahoudun and Xiahouyuan's subordinates, who have been running around looking for the whereabouts of the main general Cao Cao since last night. "Ah, the lord is here!" The tips of the ten spears stabbed diagonally in unison. "Quick! Quick!" Xiahou Dun asked the Cao brothers to mount their horses and said, "Come on! Let's go!" Take the lead and run away. Arrows came in pursuit like a torrential rain, but Xu Rong's soldiers failed to catch up in the end.When Cao Cao and the others saw a clump of green trees, they finally felt relieved and took a breath.Looking around, there are five hundred soldiers and horses not far away. "Is it an enemy? Or one of our own?" Fortunately, they sent someone to investigate. They were Cao Cao's retainers Cao Ren, Li Dian, Le Jin and others. "Ah, is my lord okay?" Le Jin, Cao Ren and others welcomed the lord, worshiped the sky and the earth, and everyone was happy. The defeat was terrible.In such a miserable situation, they got the greatest comfort.Seeing the ecstasy of his subordinates, Cao Cao felt painfully: "Ah, I was wrong. It is wrong for a general to commit suicide. If I committed suicide from last night to this morning, how sad it would be for these subordinates!" "I have benefited a lot! I have benefited a lot!" He repeated in his heart over and over again. Benefited greatly from defeat.He felt it was a rare experience. "In a war, you should lose. The loser has enlightenment." He was thinking, but he was not unwilling to admit defeat. Out of 10,000 soldiers and horses, there are only 500 horses left.But by no means lost hope of a comeback. "Go to Hanoi County first, to plan for the future." Cao Cao said. Xiahou Dun, Cao Ren and others also said: "It's very good." So he ordered the soldiers and horses to set off. A group of teams left for Hanoi in a lonely way.The mountains and rivers are rustling, sending the defeated general into a sad song. Cao Cao, who was born to grow up willfully and didn't treat others as human beings when he grew up, also had a painful feeling this time. Along the way, he often said to himself: "A prophet once said to me: You are a traitor in troubled times. I am satisfied, and I will start trouble. Good! God, it will be difficult for me. Even if I don't become a traitor, I will He will also be one of the heroes of the world!"