Chapter Summaries

After Jia Xu, Guo Jia, and Cui Yan reported their swift conquests, Liu Xie reconsidered the campaign against Yuan Shao after learning that Yuan Shao had returned to defend Hejian. Remembering improved catapults and deciding the battle could not wait, Liu Xie declared that he would personally lead the army against Lecheng County.

• Jia Xu reported capturing Julu Commandery in eight days without casualties, while Guo Jia said he took Pingyuan in five days and Cui Yan reported capturing Qinghe in three.
• Liu Xie told the ministers that Duke Wen had taken Anping Commandery, but Yuan Shao had returned to defend Hejian after Zhang Yan failed to hold him back.
• Xun Chen advised withdrawing until spring, while Sima Yi warned that waiting would let Guo Yuan return with thirty thousand troops and threaten their gains.
• Liu Xie remembered that improved catapults could help breach Lecheng County and make a swift victory possible.
• Jia Xu proposed that Liu Xie lead the campaign in person, and Fu Wan, Yang Biao, Xun Chen, Cui Yan, and other ministers objected.
• Liu Xie declared that he would personally march against Yuan Shao, and Jia Xu, Guo Jia, and the ministers hailed him and the Great Han.

Liu Xie sent the Zhen Clan elder plans for powerful new catapults and set out to lead the campaign against Yuan Shao. On the road to Qinghe, he witnessed the misery of displaced people and ordered a grieving mother taken to the city after learning her infant had died.

• Liu Xie asked the Zhen Clan elder to build a hundred improved catapults from his plans before the battle in Hejian.
• Liu Xie departed for the front with Zhao Yun, Taishi Ci, Jia Xu, Guo Jia, and the Feathered Forest Guard.
• On the journey, Liu Xie saw displaced people living in desperate conditions along the road near Qinghe Commandery.
• A woman carrying her dead infant begged the procession for help while three starving men pursued her.
• Zhao Yun learned that the men claimed the infant had died and that the woman had previously eaten meat broth made from her own dead child.
• Liu Xie ordered the men released with dry rations and the woman taken to Qinghe City.

After witnessing the suffering of displaced people, Liu Xie renewed his resolve to end the wars and improve the common people's lives. He reached Hejian Commandery to join his generals and inspect the defenses of Lecheng County before the decisive battle against Yuan Shao.

• Liu Xie entered Qinghe City, where the commoners welcomed him, and was deeply troubled by the contrast between their lives and the misery of the displaced outside the walls.
• Liu Xie retired early at the Cui Clan Residence, and Jia Xu and Guo Jia discussed his compassion and pledged to assist his ambitions.
• Liu Xie left Qinghe the next morning and joined Lü Bu, Zhang Liao, and the other generals in Hejian Commandery.
• Liu Xie told Lü Bu that he had personally led the expedition to strengthen the army's morale and asked to inspect Lecheng County's defenses.
• Zhang Liao explained that Yuan Shao had reinforced Lecheng County's walls and moved the surrounding people and supplies inside.

Liu Xie prepared to assault Lecheng County with powerful Torsion Catapults, then appeared before the city with his army to weaken Yuan Shao’s defenders. Yuan Shao countered the challenge by claiming Liu Xie was being held hostage and ordered Yan Liang to raise morale, leaving Yan Liang to choose a weaker opponent.

• Liu Xie ordered Zhang Liao to stockpile heavy Stone Shot and improve the army’s meals before their assault on Lecheng County.
• Yuan Shao learned that Lü Bu’s army had been gathering stones, then hurried to the eastern wall when the enemy advanced.
• Liu Xie appeared before Lecheng County, and the Dragon Banner unsettled Yuan Shao’s soldiers.
• Yuan Xi denounced Yuan Shao as a rebel and urged him to die, but Yuan Shao claimed Lü Bu and Yuan Xi were holding the Son of Heaven hostage.
• Yuan Shao’s speech restored the defenders’ confidence, and Yuan Xi fled as soldiers prepared to shoot him.
• Yuan Shao ordered Yan Liang to challenge an enemy officer, and Yan Liang warned that he could not face Lü Bu or Zhao Yun.

As Liu Xie’s army prepared to storm Lecheng County, Yan Liang rode out to challenge them, and the generals competed for the chance to face him. Yan Liang chose the seemingly old and vulnerable Huang Zhong, who rode out to accept the duel, while Qu Yi recognized the danger too late.

• After Yuan Xi reported that Yuan Shao had refused to surrender, Liu Xie ordered Lü Bu and Zhang Liao to prepare the army to storm Lecheng County.
• Yan Liang rode out from the eastern gate, prompting Lü Bu, Gao Shun, Zhang He, Zhao Yun, and Huang Zhong to contend for the chance to fight him.
• Zhao Yun asked Liu Xie to let him avenge Gongsun Zan, but Huang Zhong requested the opportunity to earn merit for his sick son, and Zhang Liao supported him.
• Yan Liang surveyed the opposing generals, avoided Lü Bu and Zhao Yun, and decided that Huang Zhong would be the safest opponent.
• Yan Liang taunted Huang Zhong and challenged him to fight, and Huang Zhong eagerly rode out with his saber.
• Qu Yi panicked after seeing Yan Liang choose Huang Zhong, recalling that Huang Zhong had defeated him in fewer than twenty moves at the Battle of Ye City.

Huang Zhong challenged Yan Liang and overwhelmed him, then held off Yan Liang and Qu Yi together until they retreated behind Lecheng’s defenses. Though he could not kill either general, Huang Zhong shot down the city’s banner and received Liu Xie’s praise.

• Yuan Shao ordered his cavalry to prepare arrows in case Yan Liang needed help, while Yan Liang and Huang Zhong began their duel.
• Huang Zhong forced Yan Liang onto the defensive and nearly killed him, prompting Yuan Shao to send Qu Yi into the fight.
• Huang Zhong held off both Yan Liang and Qu Yi, but the two retreated toward Lecheng when they could not defeat him.
• Yuan Shao’s soldiers fired arrows to stop Huang Zhong’s pursuit, and Huang Zhong shot several cavalrymen before the city defenders forced him back.
• Huang Zhong shot down Lecheng’s banner with a single arrow, then returned to Liu Xie, who praised him and dismissed his request for punishment.

Liu Xie used newly built torsion catapults to bombard Lecheng County and launched a full assault, but Yuan Shao’s large garrison held the walls through nightfall. The Han Army’s commanders planned to intensify the siege the next day.

• Liu Xie ordered the army to attack Lecheng County after the duels ended.
• The torsion catapults hurled heavy stones into the city, forcing Yuan Shao to leave the walls and shelter.
• Liu Xie ordered continued bombardment until the eastern gate tower collapsed, then sent thirty thousand soldiers to storm the city.
• Yuan Shao’s defenders repelled repeated assaults and held Lecheng County until nightfall.
• Zhang Liao predicted the city would fall within fifteen days, while Cui Yan proposed attacking three sides and leaving one side open before concentrating on the eastern wall.

Liu Xie rejected the Zhen Clan’s offer to slaughter more plow oxen for additional torsion catapults and ordered a concentrated assault on Lecheng County’s eastern wall. Yuan Shao resolved to defend the city until reinforcements arrived, and both sides committed to a brutal battle.

• Cui Yan proposed a strategy of feints and concentrated attacks, but Liu Xie said the army lacked enough troops and torsion catapults to besiege three walls.
• The Zhen Clan steward revealed that the clan had already slaughtered more than half its plow oxen to build the catapults and offered to kill the rest for more.
• Liu Xie refused the offer, citing the cost to farmers, and ordered the army to keep attacking the eastern wall.
• Yan Liang warned Yuan Shao that casualties and collapsing morale made Lecheng County difficult to hold, but Yuan Shao reprimanded him for losing his duel.
• Yuan Shao ordered better food and rewards for his soldiers, harsher discipline, and a defense of Lecheng County until Guo Yuan’s reinforcements arrived.
• Liu Xie’s forces relentlessly attacked the eastern wall while Yuan Shao’s defenders fought to hold it, beginning a brutal battle.

As heavy snow threatened to halt the Han Army’s siege of Lecheng County, Liu Xie ordered an immediate final assault against Yuan Shao’s defenders. The battle began in the snow, and Lü Bu struck the battered city gate with his Sky-Piercer Halberd.

• After ten days of brutal fighting, Guo Jia advised Liu Xie to rest the army before a decisive assault, but heavy snow began falling as Jia Xu, Zhang Liao, and the others arrived.
• Liu Xie refused to let the snow deter him and ordered the entire army to attack within an hour, declaring that he would kill Yuan Shao.
• Yuan Shao welcomed the snowfall and ordered Yan Liang and Qu Yi to hold the city, believing that surviving one more day would bring him victory.
• Liu Xie led more than twenty thousand Han Army soldiers to Lecheng County and ordered Lü Bu’s force to attack the gate while other generals stormed the walls.
• The Han Army launched its final assault with arrows, boulders, siege ladders, and a battering ram, but the gate remained shut until Lü Bu struck it with his Sky-Piercer Halberd.

After Lü Bu’s forces breached Lecheng County, Yuan Shao fled north with a small escort, only to be ambushed by Zhao Yun. As Zhao Yun’s pursuit closed in, Yan Liang stayed behind to buy Yuan Shao time, while Zhao Yun ordered his troops to bypass him and keep chasing Yuan Shao.

• Lü Bu broke through Lecheng’s gate as Zhang He, Huang Zhong, and other Han generals captured the walls, forcing Yan Liang and Qu Yi to abandon the defenses.
• Yan Liang led Yuan Shao to the North Gate, where Yuan Shao escaped toward Yi City with about five thousand troops.
• Zhao Yun ambushed Yuan Shao’s column with three thousand Tiger Warriors Army soldiers and identified Yuan Shao by his red robe, then his beard.
• Yuan Shao discarded his robe, cut off his beard, and covered his face, but Zhao Yun continued directing the pursuit toward him.
• Yan Liang led a thousand soldiers to confront Zhao Yun and cover Yuan Shao’s escape, while Zhao Yun ordered his troops to bypass Yan Liang and pursue Yuan Shao.

Zhao Yun killed Yan Liang and pursued Yuan Shao through the snow, while Yuan Shao rallied his fleeing army before Zhao Yun caught up. Yuan Shao escaped again after ordering Qu Yi to delay Zhao Yun, and Zhang Yan seethed over losing the chance to earn a County Marquis.

• Yan Liang taunted Zhao Yun about Gongsun Zan, but Zhao Yun overcame him and pierced his chest with the Pear Blossom Spear.
• Zhao Yun ordered the Tiger Warriors Army to continue pursuing Yuan Shao after Yan Liang's men were routed.
• Yuan Shao rested with Qu Yi's troops, lamented losing Hejian Commandery, then rallied his soldiers by promising they would regroup in Yi City.
• A soldier warned Yuan Shao that Zhao Yun had caught up, and Yuan Shao fled with Lü Xiang, Jiang Qi, and a small escort after ordering Qu Yi to hold Zhao Yun back.
• Zhang Yan complained that Yuan Shao's flight had cost him the merit of becoming a County Marquis.

After Liu Xie’s forces captured Hejian Commandery, Zhang Yan saw a chance to seize the fleeing Yuan Shao and win imperial rewards. Yuan Shao escaped Zhao Yun’s pursuit with only a handful of men, while Lü Xiang and Jiang Qi grew resentful of his insults and disregard for their lives.

• Wang Dang told Zhang Yan that Liu Xie’s army had taken Hejian Commandery and that Yuan Shao was fleeing toward Yi City, so Zhang Yan ordered the Black Mountain Army to intercept and capture him.
• Liu Xie inspected Lecheng County with Guo Jia, who reported that Zhao Yun and Gao Lan were pursuing Yuan Shao.
• Zhao Yun ambushed Yuan Shao after he fled Lecheng, killing or capturing a thousand men and killing Yan Liang.
• Yuan Shao stopped to rest with Lü Xiang, Jiang Qi, and about two hundred soldiers, then berated the two generals for urging him to keep fleeing.
• Away from Yuan Shao, Lü Xiang and Jiang Qi complained that he expected them to risk their lives against Zhao Yun and treated them unfairly.

Jiang Qi and Lü Xiang turned against Yuan Shao and set out to surrender him to the Son of Heaven, but Qu Yi’s force blocked their way. Their attempt to claim credit faltered as the gathered commanders realized Qu Yi’s troops had defected and that Yuan Shao’s capture had not gone as they expected.

• Jiang Qi persuaded Lü Xiang to betray Yuan Shao and capture him in exchange for imperial pardon and rewards.
• Lü Xiang and Jiang Qi put their sabers to Yuan Shao’s neck, and Lü Xiang convinced most of his soldiers to help bind him.
• Jiang Qi’s party set off with Yuan Shao toward the royal army but encountered Qu Yi’s force before they had gone far.
• Lü Xiang and Jiang Qi offered Qu Yi the chief credit for capturing Yuan Shao, while Yuan Shao praised Qu Yi’s loyalty.
• Wang Dang examined the bodies and concluded that Qu Yi’s men had been killed in a surprise attack without a royal army nearby.
• Zhang Yan recognized the dead as Qu Yi’s men and realized that Yuan Shao’s generals had defected.

After escaping Lü Bu’s attack, Yuan Shao was intercepted by Qu Yi’s troops, while Jiang Qi and Lü Xiang tried to persuade Qu Yi to defect with them and surrender Yuan Shao to the Son of Heaven. Qu Yi killed the two men to claim the credit alone, then set out after Yuan Shao as Zhang Yan’s Black Mountain cavalry pursued them.

• Yuan Shao’s fleeing party met Qu Yi, who claimed Guo Yuan had arrived and that he had killed Zhao Yun with the reinforcements’ help.
• Jiang Qi and Lü Xiang urged Qu Yi to capture Yuan Shao and surrender to the Son of Heaven, but Qu Yi refused and killed them and their men.
• Zhang Yan arrived with three thousand Black Mountain cavalry, found the slain soldiers, and pursued Qu Yi’s group to seize the credit.
• Zhao Yun and Gao Lan returned to Lecheng County without catching Yuan Shao, and Liu Xie accepted their apology without blaming them.

After escaping Zhao Yun and Gao Lan, Yuan Shao fled toward Lecheng County with Qu Yi, unaware that Qu Yi planned to capture him for Liu Xie. Zhang Yan's Black Mountain Army pursued them, and Yuan Shao reached the city just as Han troops emerged from its gates.

• Qu Yi killed Jiang Qi and Lü Xiang, then freed Yuan Shao while pretending to remain loyal to him.
• Taishi Ci reported that Yuan Shao was approaching Lecheng County with about four thousand men, and Liu Xie ordered his generals to meet them.
• Zhang Yan pursued Yuan Shao with three thousand Black Mountain Army cavalry, hoping to capture him and claim credit.
• Qu Yi told Yuan Shao they could find safety with Guo Yuan's army at Lecheng County, though the Han Dragon Banner still flew above the walls.
• Yuan Shao saw a large force emerge from Lecheng County and began to greet it, but noticed something was wrong.

Qu Yi betrayed Yuan Shao and surrendered him to Lü Bu, Zhao Yun, and their Han Army, while Zhang Yan revealed that the Black Mountain Army had pursued Yuan Shao. Lü Bu brought Yuan Shao before Liu Xie, who greeted his captured rival.

• Yuan Shao recognized Lü Bu and Zhao Yun approaching, while Qu Yi threw down his weapons and declared his surrender.
• Qu Yi's soldiers disarmed and handed Yuan Shao over, and Lü Bu ordered both men taken to the city.
• Zhao Yun identified Zhang Yan's waiting force as the Black Mountain Army and invited Zhang Yan to meet Liu Xie.
• Gao Lan reported that Lü Bu had captured Yuan Shao, and Lü Bu escorted Yuan Shao into the Prefect's Residence.
• Liu Xie greeted Yuan Shao by asking whether he had been well since their last meeting.

Liu Xie received the captured Yuan Shao, who still believed the emperor was being held hostage, and ordered that Yuan Shao be kept alive until the campaign to recover You and Bing Provinces. After Qu Yi and Zhang Yan disputed who had forced Yuan Shao’s capture, Liu Xie pardoned Qu Yi and appointed him General Who Pacifies the North.

• Yuan Shao respectfully greeted Liu Xie, then denounced Lü Bu, Yuan Xi, and the others as rebels who were holding the emperor hostage.
• Yuan Xi nearly drew his saber against Yuan Shao, but Liu Xie stopped him and ordered Yuan Shao detained until Hejian Commandery was recovered.
• Zhao Yun reported that Qu Yi had surrendered and brought Yuan Shao back to Lecheng County.
• Qu Yi claimed he had captured Yuan Shao to seek forgiveness, while Zhang Yan insisted Qu Yi had surrendered only after Zhang Yan’s troops cornered him.
• Liu Xie pardoned Qu Yi’s offenses and appointed him General Who Pacifies the North.

After Yuan Shao was captured, Tian Feng learned of the defeat while imprisoned in Yi City and ordered the remaining commanders to abandon the city and retreat to Bing Province. Zhao Rui challenged his decision, leaving the fate of Yuan Shao and Yi City uncertain.

• Liu Xie rewarded Qu Yi with the title General Who Pacifies the North and promoted Zhang Yan to General Who Subdues the North, then ordered a victory feast.
• In his Yi City prison cell, Tian Feng heard that Lecheng County had fallen, Yan Liang had died, and Qu Yi had captured Yuan Shao and surrendered.
• Tian Feng left prison and questioned an escaped horse archer, who recounted Qu Yi’s surrender and the betrayals of Lü Xiang and Jiang Qi.
• Tian Feng condemned the generals who had betrayed Yuan Shao and declared that Yi City’s forces should withdraw to Bing Province.
• Zhao Rui objected to abandoning Yuan Shao, and Tian Feng asked how three thousand troops could rescue him from Lecheng County, guarded by tens of thousands.

Tian Feng convinced Zhao Rui and Sui Yuanjin to take Yuan Mai to Bing Province rather than risk a futile attempt to rescue Yuan Shao. In Lecheng County, Liu Xie summoned the imprisoned Yuan Shao for a private meeting, and their conversation ended with Liu Xie’s attitude toward him turning cold.

• Tian Feng argued that Zhao Rui and Sui Yuanjin should protect Yuan Mai, Yuan Shao’s only remaining eligible heir, and lead their troops to Bing Province.
• Zhang He brought Yuan Shao from the dungeon to Liu Xie, who ordered everyone else out of the courtyard.
• Liu Xie shared wine with Yuan Shao, who assumed that Zhang He and Gao Lan had been won over and could help him escape.
• Yuan Shao recalled his lost territories and followers, while Liu Xie thanked him and Gongyu for shaping his rise from a refugee.
• Yuan Shao called Liu Xie a Pretender Son of Heaven and mocked the role he had played, prompting Liu Xie to address him as Benchu and coldly challenge his drunkenness.

Liu Xie confronted the captive Yuan Shao with the truth that he had used his imperial identity to build a rival court and seize Yuan Shao’s former allies. Yuan Shao learned how Liu Xie won Lü Bu, the Zhen Clan, and Guo Jia, and was left bitterly regretting his own arrogance and misplaced trust.

• Yuan Shao accused Liu Xie of betrayal, and Liu Xie declared that his imperial sacrifices, officials, generals, soldiers, and territories made him the true Son of Heaven.
• Liu Xie explained that Lü Bu served him because he promised to make Lü Bu’s daughter empress and Lü Bu’s grandson Crown Prince after uniting the realm.
• Liu Xie confirmed that he had promised the Zhen Clan the same support and revealed that Guo Jia had arranged the prophecy surrounding Zhen Mi, helping secure her marriage to Liu Xie and the clan’s backing.
• Liu Xie credited Guo Jia with setting his rise in motion and said that Guo Jia, Zhang He, and Gao Lan had joined him because he treated them with respect as the Son of Heaven.
• Yuan Shao realized that his dismissive treatment of talent and failure to guard against Liu Xie had cost him his power, then drank bitterly and reflected that rank and title must never be lent to others.