The second year of Chuping.
Gongsun Zan raised an army to invade Ji Province and traded blows with Yuan Shao at Jieqiao.
At the time, Gongsun Zan had an elite cavalry unit formed from battle-hardened archers selected from his volunteer troops. Because they all rode white warhorses, they were called the White Horse Volunteers.
Since their formation, the White Horse Volunteers had crushed the Yellow Turbans and destroyed the Wuhuan, sweeping through their enemies like a hot knife through butter.
Seeing that Yuan Shao had sent only eight hundred men to meet him, Gongsun Zan decided to unleash his cavalry:
"How can we lose with white horses charging straight into their faces?"
"Just charge them and we win."
But he never expected to meet his lifelong nemesis, Qu Yi.
Qu Yi was one of Yuan Shao's officers. Having lived in Liang Province for years, he was well versed in Qiang tactics.
He ordered his eight hundred elite soldiers to hide beneath their shields. When the White Horse Volunteers charged within a few dozen paces, he suddenly stood, pointed at the cavalry, and shouted, "Those white horses—we'll make sure they never return!"
At his command, the soldiers on both flanks fired their powerful crossbows.
"An ambush!"
"Run!"
The White Horse Volunteers were light cavalry. The moment they spotted the ambush, they tried to use their mobility to evade the crossbow bolts.
But it was no use.
Qu Yi shouted, "Now that you're here, don't think you can leave!"
The blessing, Cavalry Ambush! The closer an enemy was to him, the lower their evasion rate became.
And so, in the Battle of Jieqiao, the White Horse Volunteers were almost completely wiped out in a single day.
From that point on, Gongsun Zan's fortunes declined. Lord Yuan drove him step by step into