Yuan Shao’s grand army set forth, marching directly toward Guandu. Xiahou Dun, the Cao commander stationed there, sent urgent dispatches requesting reinforcements. Cao Cao mustered seventy thousand troops to meet the enemy, leaving Xun Yu to guard the capital at Xuchang. As Yuan Shao’s forces prepared to depart, Tian Feng, still imprisoned, managed to send a memorial from his cell, advising: “For now, we should hold fast and wait for the right moment from Heaven. Do not rashly commit such a massive army, for it may bring misfortune.” The sycophantic adviser Feng Ji immediately slandered Tian Feng, saying, “Our lord raises a righteous army. How dare Tian Feng utter such inauspicious words!” Enraged, Yuan Shao ordered Tian Feng executed, but his other officials pleaded for mercy, and the sentence was commuted. Yuan Shao snarled, “Wait until I have crushed Cao Cao—then I will settle this traitor’s account properly!” He then urged his army forward. The banners covered the fields like a sea of color; swords and spears bristled like a forest of steel. They advanced to Yangwu, where they set up a fortified camp.
Ju Shou, Yuan Shao’s strategist, warned: “Though our army is vast, their courage does not match that of Cao Cao’s troops. Cao’s soldiers are elite, but our grain supplies far exceed his. His army has no food, so he will seek a quick, decisive battle. We, with ample provisions, should adopt a strategy of delay. If we can stretch this conflict out over months, Cao’s army will collapse without a fight.” Yuan Shao flew into a rage. “Tian Feng demoralized my army, and I will have him beheaded when I return. How dare you speak such words!” He ordered his guards: “Lock Ju Shou in chains within the camp. After I defeat Cao Cao, I will punish him alongside Tian Feng!” With that, he commanded his army of seven hundred thousand men to encamp in all four directions, stretching their lines for over ninety li.
Spies reported this information to Cao Cao’s camp at Guandu. The newly arrived Cao army trembled with fear upon hearing of the enemy’s vast numbers. Cao Cao gathered his strategists for counsel. Xun You said, “Though Yuan Shao’s army is large, it is nothing to fear. Our troops are all elite warriors, each worth ten of theirs. Our advantage lies in forcing a quick battle. If we allow this to drag on, our own grain will run short, and that will be a true cause for concern.” Cao Cao nodded. “You speak my very thoughts.” He ordered his troops to advance with a great clamor of drums and war cries.
Yuan Shao’s army came forth to meet them, and the two sides drew up in battle formation. Shen Pei stationed ten thousand crossbowmen in ambush on both flanks, with another five thousand archers hidden behind the army’s gate banners, all waiting for the signal cannon to fire. After three drum rolls, Yuan Shao rode out before his lines, clad in a golden helmet and golden armor, wearing a brocade robe and a jade belt. Flanking him were his generals: Zhang He, Gao Lan, Han Meng, Chunyu Qiong, and others. The banners and battle-axes were arrayed with perfect discipline. On the Cao side, the gate banners parted, and Cao Cao himself rode out, surrounded by Xu Chu, Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, Li Dian, and others, all bearing their weapons. Cao Cao pointed his whip at Yuan Shao and cried, “Before the Emperor, I recommended you for the post of Grand General! Why do you now rebel?” Yuan Shao roared back, “You call yourself the Han Chancellor, but you are truly a traitor to Han! Your crimes are greater than those of Wang Mang or Dong Zhuo! And you dare to accuse me of rebellion?” Cao Cao replied, “I now hold the Emperor’s decree to punish you!” Yuan Shao shot back, “I hold the Imperial Edict in the Silk Girdle to punish you, the traitor!”
Enraged, Cao Cao ordered Zhang Liao to engage. Zhang He galloped out to meet him. The two generals fought for forty or fifty bouts, neither gaining the upper hand. Cao Cao watched in silent admiration. Seeing this, Xu Chu brandished his blade and charged forth to assist. Gao Lan met him with his spear. The four generals paired off in a frantic melee. Cao Cao then ordered Xiahou Dun and Cao Hong to lead three thousand men each and charge the enemy’s formation directly. Shen Pei, seeing the Cao army’s assault, gave the signal. A cannon boomed, and ten thousand crossbows fired from both flanks, while the five thousand archers in the center rushed forward and loosed a volley. The Cao army could not withstand this hail of arrows and fled south in disarray. Yuan Shao pursued, driving the slaughter, and Cao Cao’s forces suffered a great defeat, retreating all the way back to Guandu.
Yuan Shao moved his camp closer to Guandu and set up new fortifications. Shen Pei proposed: “We should station a hundred thousand men to besiege Guandu. In front of Cao Cao’s camp, we can build earthen mounds. From these heights, our men can look down into his stockade and rain arrows upon him. If he abandons this pass, we can take it and then march on Xuchang itself.” Yuan Shao agreed. He selected strong soldiers from each camp, armed them with iron spades and earth baskets, and set them to work piling up earth right next to Cao Cao’s camp. The Cao troops tried to sally forth to disrupt the work, but Shen Pei’s crossbowmen blocked the vital passes, preventing any advance. Within ten days, they had constructed over fifty earthen mounds, each topped with high watchtowers. Archers were stationed on these towers, and at the sound of a wooden clapper, they rained down arrows. The Cao army panicked, huddling under shields for cover. Whenever the clapper sounded from the mounds, arrows fell like rain, and the Cao soldiers had to lie flat on the ground, covering themselves with their shields, while Yuan Shao’s men jeered and laughed.
Seeing his army in chaos, Cao Cao summoned his strategists for advice. Liu Ye stepped forward and said, “We can build catapults to destroy them.” Cao Cao ordered Liu Ye to produce a design, and that very night, hundreds of catapults were constructed and placed within the camp walls, aimed directly at the watchtowers on the earthen mounds. When the enemy archers began to shoot, the Cao troops pulled the catapults’ ropes in unison. Great stones flew through the air, smashing into the towers. The archers had nowhere to hide, and countless numbers were killed. The Yuan army called these machines “Thunderclap Catapults.” After this, they dared not climb the mounds to shoot arrows.
Shen Pei then devised another plan. He ordered his men to secretly dig tunnels with iron spades, aiming to burrow directly into Cao Cao’s camp. These were called “the sapper corps.” The Cao soldiers saw the Yuan army digging pits behind the mounds and reported it to Cao Cao. He again asked Liu Ye for advice. Liu Ye said, “Since they cannot attack openly, they are trying to attack in secret. They are digging tunnels to enter our camp from underground.” Cao Cao asked, “How do we stop them?” Liu Ye replied, “We can dig a deep trench around our camp. Their tunnels will be useless.” That very night, Cao Cao had his men dig a trench. When Yuan Shao’s sappers reached the trench, they could go no further, and all their labor was wasted.
Cao Cao held Guandu from the eighth month to the end of the ninth. His army grew weary and his grain supplies began to fail. He considered abandoning Guandu and retreating to Xuchang, but he hesitated. He wrote a letter to Xun Yu in Xuchang, asking for his advice. Xun Yu’s reply read, in part: “You ask me to resolve your doubt about advancing or retreating. I believe Yuan Shao has gathered all his forces at Guandu to decide the fate of the realm with you, my lord. You, with the weaker force, are confronting the stronger. If you cannot overcome him, he will surely crush you. This is the great turning point of the realm. Yuan Shao’s army is large, but he cannot use it well. With your divine martial prowess and clear wisdom, what can you not achieve? Though our supplies are low, it is not as dire as the standoff between Xiang Yu and Liu Bang at Xingyang and Chenggao. You are now holding a defensive line, cutting off Yuan Shao’s throat and preventing his advance. When his strength is exhausted and his situation becomes desperate, a change will come. This is the time to use a cunning stratagem. Do not miss this opportunity. I beg you to consider this carefully.”
Cao Cao was overjoyed by this letter and ordered his officers and men to defend their positions with all their might. Yuan Shao’s army pulled back about thirty li, and Cao Cao sent scouts out of the camp. One of Xu Huang’s officers, Shi Huan, captured a Yuan spy and brought him before Xu Huang. Xu Huang questioned the spy about the enemy’s situation. The spy replied, “Soon, the general Han Meng will be arriving with grain to resupply the army. I was sent ahead to scout the road.” Xu Huang immediately reported this to Cao Cao. Xun You said, “Han Meng is a man of mere brute courage. If we send a few thousand light cavalry to ambush him on the road and cut off his grain, Yuan Shao’s army will fall into chaos.” Cao Cao asked, “Who can go?” Xun You replied, “Send Xu Huang.” Cao Cao ordered Xu Huang, along with Shi Huan and his troops, to set out first, with Zhang Liao and Xu Chu following behind to support them.
That night, Han Meng was escorting thousands of grain carts toward Yuan Shao’s camp. As they were traveling, Xu Huang and Shi Huan sprang from an ambush in a mountain valley, blocking the road. Han Meng galloped forward to fight, and Xu Huang engaged him. Meanwhile, Shi Huan scattered the laborers and set the grain carts ablaze. Han Meng, unable to withstand the assault, turned his horse and fled. Xu Huang’s men burned all the supplies. From Yuan Shao’s camp, the soldiers saw flames rising in the northwest. As they were wondering what had happened, defeated troops arrived with the news: “The grain has been seized!” Yuan Shao hastily sent Zhang He and Gao Lan to block the main road. They met Xu Huang returning from his burning mission, and were about to engage when Zhang Liao and Xu Chu’s forces arrived from behind. Attacked from both sides, the Yuan troops were scattered. The four Cao generals then joined forces and returned to the Guandu camp. Cao Cao was overjoyed and rewarded them handsomely. He also ordered a separate camp to be built in front of his main camp, forming a pincer formation.
When Han Meng’s defeated troops returned to camp, Yuan Shao was furious and wanted to execute him, but his officials interceded. Shen Pei said, “In war, grain is of utmost importance. We must guard it with the greatest care. Wuchao is our main grain depot and must be heavily defended.” Yuan Shao said, “I have already decided. You will return to Yedu to oversee the grain shipments. Make sure nothing is lacking.” Shen Pei accepted the order and departed. Yuan Shao then sent the general Chunyu Qiong, along with the commanders Sui Yuanjin, Han Juzi, Lü Weihuang, and Zhao Rui, with twenty thousand men, to guard Wuchao. Chunyu Qiong was a man of violent temper and a heavy drinker, and the soldiers feared him. Once he arrived at Wuchao, he spent his days drinking with his officers.
Meanwhile, Cao Cao’s army had run out of grain. He urgently sent a messenger to Xuchang, ordering Xun Yu to gather supplies as quickly as possible and rush them to the front. The messenger had traveled less than thirty li when he was captured by Yuan Shao’s soldiers and brought before the strategist Xu You. Xu You, whose style name was Ziyuan, had been a friend of Cao Cao’s in his youth but was now serving Yuan Shao. When the messenger’s letter from Cao Cao, urgently requesting grain, was discovered, Xu You immediately took it to Yuan Shao and said, “Cao Cao is camped at Guandu, locked in a stalemate with us. Xuchang must be empty. If we send a force to launch a surprise attack on Xuchang, we can take the city and capture Cao Cao. His grain is now exhausted. This is the perfect opportunity to strike on two fronts.” Yuan Shao scoffed, “Cao Cao is full of tricks. This letter is a ruse to lure us into a trap.” Xu You insisted, “If we do not seize this chance, we will suffer for it later.” Just then, a messenger arrived from Yedu bearing a letter from Shen Pei. The letter first discussed grain transport, then accused Xu You of taking bribes from the people while he was in Jizhou and allowing his sons and nephews to extort excessive taxes, pocketing the grain and money. It stated that his sons and nephews had already been arrested and thrown into prison. Yuan Shao was enraged. “You corrupt wretch! You still have the face to offer me plans? You are an old friend of Cao Cao’s! You have probably taken his bribes and come here to act as his spy, trying to trick my army! I should have you beheaded! For now, I’ll let you keep your head! Get out of my sight and never come before me again!”
Xu You left the tent, looked up to heaven, and sighed, “Loyal words fall on deaf ears. This boy is not worth advising! My sons and nephews have been destroyed by Shen Pei. How can I show my face again among the men of Jizhou?” He drew his sword to cut his own throat, but his attendants seized the blade and urged him, “Why throw your life away so cheaply? Yuan Shao refuses to listen to honest counsel and will surely be captured by Cao Cao. Since you are an old friend of Lord Cao’s, why not abandon the darkness and come to the light?” These words awakened Xu You. He decided to go over to Cao Cao.
A poet of the time lamented this turn of events: Yuan Shao’s heroic spirit once dominated the Central Plains, but he could only sigh in vain as he faced his rival at Guandu. If he had only heeded Xu You’s plan, how could the mountains and rivers of the realm have fallen into the hands of the Cao family?
Xu You slipped out of the camp under cover of darkness and made his way to Cao Cao’s stockade, where he was seized by the patrol. He said, “I am an old friend of your Chancellor. Announce me quickly. Say that Xu You of Nanyang has come to see him.” The soldiers hurried to report. Cao Cao was just undressing to rest when he heard that Xu You had come to join him. Overjoyed, he did not even wait to put on his shoes. He ran out barefoot to greet him. When he saw Xu You in the distance, he clapped his hands with joy and, taking his hand, led him inside. Cao Cao then knelt and bowed before him. Startled, Xu You helped him up and said, “You are the Chancellor of Han, and I am but a commoner. Why such humility?” Cao Cao replied, “You are my old friend. How could I let rank and title stand between us?” Xu You said, “I failed to choose my master wisely and served Yuan Shao in vain. He would not listen to my words or follow my plans. Now I have left him to come to an old friend. I beg you to accept me.” Cao Cao said, “Now that Ziyuan has come, my cause is won! Please, teach me your plan to defeat Yuan Shao!”
Xu You said, “I once advised Yuan Shao to send light cavalry to launch a surprise attack on Xuchang, catching you between two fires.” Cao Cao was shocked. “If Yuan Shao had used your plan, I would have been doomed!” Xu You then asked, “How much grain do you have left?” Cao Cao replied, “Enough for a year.” Xu You smiled. “I doubt that.” Cao Cao corrected himself: “Enough for six months.” Xu You swept his sleeves and strode toward the tent flap, saying, “I came to you in good faith, and you deceive me like this. This is not what I expected!” Cao Cao grabbed his arm and said, “Ziyuan, do not be angry. Let me tell you the truth. We have enough grain for three months.” Xu You laughed. “Everyone says Cao Mengde is a cunning hero. Now I see it for myself!” Cao Cao laughed too. “Have you never heard that in war, deception is the highest virtue?” He then leaned in and whispered, “In truth, we have only enough grain for this month.” Xu You cried out, “Stop lying to me! Your grain is already gone!” Cao Cao was stunned. “How do you know?” Xu You produced the letter Cao Cao had sent to Xun Yu. “Who wrote this?” Cao Cao asked in alarm, “Where did you get this?” Xu You told him about capturing the messenger. Cao Cao took his hand and said, “Since you have come to me out of our old friendship, please teach me what to do.”
Xu You said, “My lord, you are fighting a great enemy with an isolated army, yet you have not sought a way to win quickly. This is a path to death. I have a plan that will, within three days, cause Yuan Shao’s million-strong army to shatter without a fight. Will you listen?” Cao Cao was overjoyed. “I am eager to hear your excellent plan.” Xu You said, “Yuan Shao’s entire grain supply is stored at Wuchao. He has placed Chunyu Qiong in charge, but the man is a drunkard with no caution. Choose your finest troops, disguise them as the army of General Jiang Qi, who has been sent to protect the grain, and then, at the opportune moment, burn the grain stores. Within three days, Yuan Shao’s army will fall into chaos.” Cao Cao was delighted. He treated Xu You with great honor and kept him in the camp.
The next day, Cao Cao personally selected five thousand cavalry and infantry, preparing to march on Wuchao to burn the grain. Zhang Liao objected: “Yuan Shao’s grain depot will certainly be well guarded. Chancellor, you should not go yourself. This might be a trick of Xu You’s.” Cao Cao replied, “No. Xu You’s coming here is a sign that Heaven has decreed Yuan Shao’s fall. Our grain is exhausted, and we cannot hold out much longer. If we do not use Xu You’s plan, we will simply sit here and starve. If he were deceiving us, would he have stayed in our camp? Besides, I have long wanted to raid his grain. This plan must be carried out. Do not doubt it.” Zhang Liao said, “We must also guard against a surprise attack on our own camp.” Cao Cao smiled. “I have already planned for that.” He ordered Xun You, Jia Xu, and Cao Hong to guard the main camp with Xu You. Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan were to hide an army on the left, and Cao Ren and Li Dian on the right, to deal with any unforeseen attacks. Zhang Liao and Xu Chu were to lead the vanguard, with Xu Huang and Yu Jin in the rear. Cao Cao himself would lead the main force. The five thousand men, all carrying bundles of kindling and firewood, marched under Yuan Shao’s banners. The soldiers were gagged, and the horses muzzled. As dusk fell, they set out for Wuchao.
That night, the sky was filled with stars. Ju Shou, still imprisoned in Yuan Shao’s camp, saw the stars shining brightly. He asked his jailer to lead him out into the open air, where he looked up to read the heavens. Suddenly, he saw the planet Venus moving in a retrograde path, intruding upon the constellations of the Ox and the Dipper. He cried out in alarm, “Calamity is upon us!” He immediately begged for an audience with Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao was drunk and asleep, but when he heard that Ju Shou had a secret matter to report, he had him brought in and asked what it was. Ju Shou said, “I have just observed the heavens. Venus is moving backward between the constellations of the Willow and the Ghost, and its light is streaming toward the Ox and the Dipper. I fear there will be a raid to seize our supplies. The grain depot at Wuchao must be guarded with the utmost care. Send elite troops and fierce generals to patrol the mountain paths, or Cao Cao will outmaneuver us.” Yuan Shao angrily rebuked him: “You are a convicted criminal! How dare you spread such nonsense to confuse the army!” He then berated the jailer: “I ordered you to keep him locked up! How dare you let him out!” He had the jailer executed and replaced with another, who was ordered to keep a stricter watch. As Ju Shou was led away, he wept and sighed, “Our army will be destroyed at any moment. I do not know where my bones will lie.”
A poet of the time lamented: Loyal words that offend the ear are repaid with hatred. The tyrant Yuan Shao lacked all wit. When the grain at Wuchao was burned, his foundation was torn away, yet he still foolishly wished to hold on to Jizhou.
Cao Cao led his men through the night. As they passed one of Yuan Shao’s outposts, the guards challenged them. Cao Cao’s men answered, “General Jiang Qi, on orders to guard the grain at Wuchao.” Seeing their own banners, the Yuan soldiers suspected nothing. They passed several more posts, always using the same ruse, and met no resistance. By the time they reached Wuchao, the fourth watch was nearly over. Cao Cao ordered his men to set fire to the bundles of kindling all around. The officers and soldiers then raised a great shout and charged into the camp. Chunyu Qiong, who had been drinking with his officers, was lying drunk in his tent. When he heard the uproar, he jumped up and asked, “What is all this noise?” Before he could finish, he was dragged down by grappling hooks. Sui Yuanjin and Zhao Rui were just returning from a grain run when they saw the flames and rushed to the rescue. A Cao soldier reported to Cao Cao, “Enemy troops are coming up from behind! Please send men to stop them!” Cao Cao shouted, “All of you, press forward with all your might! Only when the enemy is at our backs may you turn to fight!” The Cao troops, spurred on by his command, fought with desperate courage. In an instant, flames rose on all sides, and smoke filled the sky. Sui Yuanjin and Zhao Rui drove their men forward to fight, but Cao Cao wheeled his horse and met them. The two generals could not withstand him and were both killed by the Cao soldiers. The grain was all burned. Chunyu Qiong was captured and brought before Cao Cao. Cao Cao ordered his ears, nose, and fingers cut off, then had him tied to a horse and sent back to Yuan Shao’s camp as a humiliation.
In Yuan Shao’s tent, the news arrived that the sky to the north was ablaze with fire. Knowing that Wuchao was lost, he rushed out and summoned his civil and military officers to discuss sending reinforcements. Zhang He said, “I will go with Gao Lan to rescue the depot.” Guo Tu objected: “No. Cao Cao has personally gone to burn the grain. Since he has left his own camp, it must be empty. We should attack his camp first. When he hears of this, he will have to return. This is Sun Bin’s strategy of ‘besieging Wei to rescue Zhao.’” Zhang He argued, “That is wrong. Cao Cao is full of cunning. If he goes out, he will certainly leave his camp well defended. If we attack his camp and fail to take it, and Chunyu Qiong and the others are captured, we will all be doomed.” Guo Tu insisted, “Cao Cao is too busy burning grain to leave men in his camp!” He repeatedly urged the attack on Cao Cao’s camp. Yuan Shao finally ordered Zhang He and Gao Lan to take five thousand men and attack the Cao camp at Guandu, while sending Jiang Qi with ten thousand men to rescue Wuchao.
Cao Cao, having scattered Chunyu Qiong’s troops, seized their uniforms, armor, and banners. His men disguised themselves as Chunyu Qiong’s defeated soldiers returning to camp. As they were marching along a narrow mountain path, they ran into Jiang Qi’s relief force. When Jiang Qi’s men asked who they were, they replied that they were survivors of the Wuchao disaster. Jiang Qi believed them and rode on. Suddenly, Zhang Liao and Xu Chu appeared, shouting, “Jiang Qi, do not flee!” Before Jiang Qi could react, Zhang Liao cut him down from his horse. All of Jiang Qi’s men were killed. Cao Cao then sent a man ahead to falsely report to Yuan Shao: “General Jiang Qi has scattered the enemy at Wuchao.” Believing this, Yuan Shao sent no more reinforcements to Wuchao, instead adding more men to the assault on Guandu.
Zhang He and Gao Lan attacked Cao Cao’s camp. But from the left, Xiahou Dun charged out; from the right, Cao Ren; and from the center, Cao Hong. Attacked from three sides, the Yuan army was routed. By the time reinforcements arrived, Cao Cao had also come up from behind, surrounding them and slaughtering them. Zhang He and Gao Lan cut their way out and escaped. Yuan Shao gathered the remnants of the Wuchao garrison. When he saw Chunyu Qiong, whose ears, nose, and hands had all been cut off, he asked, “How did you lose Wuchao?” The defeated soldiers said, “Chunyu Qiong was drunk and asleep, so he could not put up a fight.” Yuan Shao, in a fury, had Chunyu Qiong beheaded on the spot. Guo Tu, fearing that Zhang He and Gao Lan would return to camp and expose his own lies, went to Yuan Shao first and slandered them: “Zhang He and Gao Lan are delighted to see our lord defeated.” Yuan Shao asked, “Why do you say that?” Guo Tu replied, “Those two have long intended to surrender to Cao Cao. When you sent them to attack his camp, they deliberately held back, causing our soldiers to be slaughtered.” Yuan Shao flew into a rage and sent messengers to summon the two generals back to camp for punishment. Guo Tu secretly sent a man ahead to warn them: “Our lord is going to have you killed.” When Yuan Shao’s messengers arrived, Gao Lan asked, “Why does our lord summon us?” The messenger replied, “I do not know the reason.” Gao Lan drew his sword and cut the messenger down. Zhang He was horrified. Gao Lan said, “Yuan Shao listens to slanderers. He will surely be captured by Cao Cao. Why should we sit here and wait to die? Let us go and surrender to Cao Cao.” Zhang He replied, “I have long wished to do so.”
The two generals then led their own troops to Cao Cao’s camp to surrender. Xiahou Dun warned, “We do not know if Zhang He and Gao Lan are sincere.” Cao Cao said, “I will treat them with kindness. Even if they had other intentions, this will change their hearts.” He ordered the camp gates opened and welcomed them inside. The two generals laid down their weapons, removed their armor, and prostrated themselves on the ground. Cao Cao said, “If Yuan Shao had listened to your advice, he would not have suffered this defeat. Now that you have come to me, it is like Weizi leaving the tyrant Zhou of Shang, or Han Xin returning to Liu Bang of Han.” He appointed Zhang He as a Partial General and made him a Marquis of a Village, and Gao Lan as a Partial General and the Marquis of Donglai. The two men were overjoyed.
With Xu You gone, Zhang He and Gao Lan defected, and the grain at Wuchao destroyed, Yuan Shao’s army was seized with panic. Xu You urged Cao Cao to press the attack, and Zhang He and Gao Lan volunteered to lead the vanguard. Cao Cao agreed. That very night, at the third watch, they launched a three-pronged assault on Yuan Shao’s camp. The fighting raged until dawn, when both sides withdrew. Yuan Shao’s army had lost half its strength.
Xun You then proposed a plan: “Now we should spread a rumor that we are sending troops on two roads: one to take Suanzao and attack Yedu, and the other to take Liyang and cut off Yuan Shao’s line of retreat. When Yuan Shao hears this, he will panic and divide his forces to meet these threats. When his army is in motion, we can strike and destroy him.” Cao Cao adopted the plan, and his entire army spread the rumor far and wide. When Yuan Shao’s spies reported that Cao Cao was sending two armies—one to take Yedu and another to take Liyang—Yuan Shao was terrified. He hastily sent his son Yuan Tan with fifty thousand men to defend Yedu, and Xin Ming with another fifty thousand to defend Liyang. They marched out that very night.
As soon as Cao Cao learned that Yuan Shao’s army was on the move, he divided his main force into eight columns and launched a simultaneous assault on Yuan Shao’s camp. The Yuan soldiers had lost all will to fight and scattered in all directions. The army was utterly routed. Yuan Shao did not even have time to don his armor. He mounted his horse in his underclothes and a simple headcloth, with his young son Yuan Shang following behind. Zhang Liao, Xu Chu, Xu Huang, and Yu Jin led the pursuit. Yuan Shao fled in haste to cross the Yellow River, abandoning all his baggage, maps, books, gold, and silk. He took only eight hundred cavalry with him and escaped. Cao Cao’s army could not catch him, but they seized everything he had left behind. Over eighty thousand of Yuan Shao’s men were killed. The ditches ran with blood, and countless more drowned in the river.
Having won a complete victory, Cao Cao distributed the captured gold, silver, and silks among his troops as rewards. Among the captured documents, a bundle of letters was found. They were secret communications between officials in Xuchao and men in Cao Cao’s own army and Yuan Shao. His attendants said, “We should check each name, arrest them, and execute them.” Cao Cao replied, “When Yuan Shao was strong, even I could not guarantee my own safety, let alone others.” He ordered the letters to be burned without even looking at the names, and never brought the matter up again.
As Yuan Shao fled in defeat, Ju Shou, still in chains, could not escape quickly and was captured by Cao Cao’s men. Cao Cao had known Ju Shou before. When Ju Shou was brought before him, he cried out, “I will not surrender!” Cao Cao said, “Yuan Shao had no strategy and would not use your advice. Why are you still so stubborn? If I had won your service earlier, I would have nothing to fear in all the realm.” He treated Ju Shou with great kindness and kept him in the camp. But Ju Shou stole a horse from the camp and tried to return to Yuan Shao. Enraged, Cao Cao had him executed. Ju Shou’s expression did not change even in death. Cao Cao sighed and said, “I have wrongfully killed a loyal and righteous man!” He ordered a lavish funeral, built a tomb for him at the ferry crossing of the Yellow River, and inscribed on the tablet: “The Tomb of the Loyal and Righteous Lord Ju.”
A poet of the time praised him: Among the many famous scholars of the lands north of the Yellow River, Ju Shou was the most loyal and true. With a steady gaze, he could read a battle formation; with his face upturned, he could read the stars. To the very end, his heart was as firm as iron; in the face of danger, his spirit was like a cloud. Lord Cao admired his loyalty and righteousness, and so built him a lonely grave.
Cao Cao then gave the order to attack Jizhou.
Truly, the weaker side wins through superior strategy, while the stronger side is destroyed by a lack of it. Whether he would succeed or fail, the next chapter will reveal.