The battle commander Zhang Bao had not even arrived, let alone his subordinates.
Guan Hai, Yang Feng, Xu Huang, Liao Hua, Pei Yuanshao...
Who was Xu Huang?
This fellow had fought against Xu Chu and Guan Yu in single combat and was extremely skilled at training troops.
And Guan Hai?
This individual was also a fierce warrior capable of fighting Taishi Ci for a prolonged period.
It could be said that
Guan Hai and Xu Huang alone were enough to trounce the young generals of Luoyang.
Add to that the arriving Yellow Turban rebels, all forged in the crucible of war.
Who could stop them?
Never mind their inferior equipment and fewer swords; they dared to fight to the death!
In the age of cold weapons, especially in large-scale warfare with cold weapons.
Unless your weaponry and equipment were a generation ahead, everything else was futile.
It was like being fully armed heavy infantry; you could stride across the battlefield without issue.
Unless you were exhausted or fell, then you couldn't blame others.
But merely having more swords?
What use was that?
When the Yellow Turban rebels charged with their battle cries, the greenhorns who had never seen blood were stunned into submission.
Even though many veterans tried their best to hold the line, a rout was unstoppable.
There was no alternative!
When a comrade's head fell before their eyes, even a veteran's composure might falter, let alone these fresh recruits.
If they were only tasked with defending the city walls, after a brief adaptation, they might have been able to contribute something.
But how many in Luoyang truly understood military strategy?
Even if there were a few elders, who could restrain the impetuous Emperor Ling?
Thus,
A anticlimactic decisive battle ended in the imperial court's defeat before it even began.
Of the fifty thousand Imperial Guards who marched out, less than twenty thousand returned intact!
While the Yellow Turbans' casualties might not have been less, what use was that?
They could no longer hold the line!
As the Yellow Turban rebels continued to pour in, how long could Luoyang hold out?
No one knew!
Even if Lu Zhi returned with the main force, could they last until then?
Still, no one knew!
Therefore,
The entire city of Luoyang was plunged into despair, on the brink of falling.
...
Luoyang,
The Imperial Palace.
Emperor Ling of Han, Liu Hong, who had not been seen for a long time, sat on his throne with a somewhat pale complexion.
After a long pause,
Liu Hong's lips twitched slightly, and he let out a call from his throat.
"Fa-father~!"
"Yes..."
Zhang Rang, who was prostrate on the ground nearby, quickly moved closer upon hearing the call.
"Your Majesty, this servant is here!"
"Heh heh..."
Liu Hong emitted a sound that was neither laughter nor cry, and asked almost as if murmuring to himself:
"Yellow Turbans, aristocratic families, rebels... Is my Great Han becoming too chaotic?"
"..."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Rang lowered his head, but a trace of sorrow appeared on his face.
This was not feigned!
As the emperor's close attendant, their power was derived entirely from the emperor himself.
Only when the emperor trusted them,
And granted them power,
Could the Ten Attendants become powerful eunuchs who wielded great influence.
But once the emperor lost power...
Considering the dire consequences, Zhang Rang could no longer hold back.
"Your Majesty~!"
Raising his head to meet Emperor Ling's gaze, Zhang Rang gritted his teeth and suggested:
"Why don't we seek Ye Feng's help?"
"???"
Emperor Ling, Liu Hong, was taken aback and then showed an expression as if he were being toyed with.
Seek Ye Feng?
Based on the existing clues and the gathered information on Qin Feng, all of this was Ye Feng's doing, wasn't it?
What was the use of seeking him?
"Your Majesty!"
Sensing the emperor's confusion, Zhang Rang quickly explained:
"Although Ye Feng is a rebel, he is still better than the Yellow Turbans, isn't he?"
"What use is being better?"
Thinking of the Yellow Turbans so close by, the emperor wore a bitter smile.
"Moreover..."
"Even if Ye Feng were willing to help me, there wouldn't be enough time!"
"No..."
Hearing the despair in the emperor's voice, Zhang Rang could no longer care about such things.
"Your Majesty, as long as Ye Feng is willing to help, we still have hope!"
"Oh?"
The emperor looked up, a sharp glint in his eyes, and said with a hint of killing intent:
"Father, do you... also have contact with that rebel?"
"No, no, no..."
Sensing the killing intent in the emperor's tone, Zhang Rang frantically shook his head.
"Your Majesty, this old servant is loyal to you, how could I have contact with that rebel?"
"However..."
After saying this, Zhang Rang hesitated and glanced outside.
"Your Majesty, this old servant does know that someone has contact with that rebel."
"Who?"
"Yu Huatian!"
"Who?"
The emperor narrowed his eyes and searched his mind, but could not recall who this person was.
Seeing this,
Zhang Rang quickly leaned closer and, with a hint of trepidation in his voice, explained:
"It was Xiao Zuizi who brought him in earlier. This old servant, this old servant knew something was amiss with him, but I didn't act for fear of alerting that rebel."
"Is that so?"
The emperor nodded noncommittally, but his tone lacked any hope.
"Even if this Yu something is one of the rebels, what use can he be?"
"Luoyang is about to fall!"
"Once those Yellow Turbans break in... heh!"
"Your Majesty~!"
Seeing that the emperor seemed to be dropping the matter, Zhang Rang's courage grew considerably.
"That rebel has more than one person in Luoyang, not even just a few people!"
"As far as this old servant knows..."
"Many unfamiliar faces have entered Luoyang these days, they are likely sent by that rebel!"
"Hiss~!"
As Zhang Rang finished speaking, Liu Hong gasped and couldn't help but slam the table.
"Scoundrel!"
"Since you knew long ago that people had infiltrated, why didn't you report it to me?"
"This..."
Zhang Rang's words faltered, thinking to himself that he hadn't expected things to be so serious!
Otherwise, he wouldn't have asked for two thousand taels of silver.
Besides,
Just a few more people in the vast city of Luoyang, it wasn't a big deal.
"You, you!"
The emperor pointed at Zhang Rang and guessed the general situation.
But as things stood,
And,
If the rebels could genuinely help them, perhaps this crisis could be averted?
With this thought,
Emperor Ling, Liu Hong, didn't pursue Zhang Rang's matter and changed the subject:
"Even if that rebel has people in Luoyang, why would he be willing to help me?"
"Grant him a title!"
"What?"
Liu Hong jumped up from his throne in shock, staring at Zhang Rang with astonishment.
His expression was as if to say, "Have you been taking too many bribes?"
"Your Majesty~!"
Zhang Rang fell to his knees before the emperor again, his voice choked with tears.
"This old servant truly considers you, and the empire of Great Han!"
"Once those Yellow Turbans arrive, we will have nothing left!"
"Those aristocratic families, those aristocratic families are already negotiating with the Yellow Turbans!"
"They want to cede Luoyang in exchange for their safe departure!"
"???!!!"
As Zhang Rang's words fell, the emperor's eyes instantly turned bloodshot.
"What did you say? They are negotiating? How do you know?!"
"Your Majesty!"
Seeing Liu Hong's panicked state, Zhang Rang almost cried out:
"There are informants of this old servant among the aristocratic families. They have long been secretly contacting the Yellow Turbans, and today they even secretly took people out of the city."
"Your Majesty!"
"Those aristocratic families do not care who sits on the throne; they only care about their own lives and property!"
"You said..."
"Things have come to this point, what other option do they have but to betray you?"
"This, this..."
The emperor's face turned pale as he listened, and he couldn't help but step back and sit on his throne.
Indeed!
If things developed according to Zhang Rang, no, according to facts, the aristocratic families would absolutely do this.
They would not perish with him, the Son of Heaven of Han!
Then,
Other than betraying him to gain survival, what other options did they have?
None!
The facts were there!
As more and more Yellow Turbans gathered outside Luoyang, the day the city would fall was imminent.
Even if Lu Zhi could defeat the Yellow Turbans with the main force, so what?
Before that,
The Yellow Turbans would surely massacre all the aristocratic families, big and small, within Luoyang.
Including him, the Son of Heaven of Han!
Or rather, he, the Son of Heaven of Han, would be the first target!
Even,
The entire Han imperial family, the entire Imperial Palace, including his Empress, would be... by those Yellow Turbans...
"No!"
"Absolutely not!"
The more he thought about it, the more terrified the emperor became, shaking his head vehemently.
"Fa, Father!"
"Quick!"
"Go and find that Yu something, and have him contact that re, Governor Ye!"
"Grant him a title!"
"I will grant him a title!"
"As long as he can protect my empire, I, I am willing to give him half the empire!"
...
Yan Province,
Chenliu,
City of Jiwu.
While Emperor Ling was still pinning his hopes on Ye Feng, Ye Feng was just preparing to depart.
Where to?
Xu Province!
To be precise, it was a lake called Weishan Lake, located between Jiwu and Xu Province.
And why was he going there?
To experiment, of course!
To completely conquer the late Han and the Three Kingdoms, relying solely on infantry and cavalry was absolutely insufficient.
Although Cao Cao's Battle of Red Cliffs might have been exaggerated, the principle behind it was still valid.
Without a navy, there was no control of the seas!
It was a pity that Cao Cao, with his hundreds of thousands of troops, could only sigh in the face of the Yangtze River's chasm.
Therefore,
To avoid following in Old Cao's footsteps, Ye Feng also needed to make some preparations in advance.
Building ships!
Or rather, mass-producing ships!
If he were to build ships from scratch, it would clearly be too late now.
Even for the wooden ships of that era, a single one took several months to build.
And to raise a sizable navy, it would be impossible to rely solely on shipbuilding.
Fortunately!
As a cheat, how could he develop things honestly?
Let's first see if he could cheat!
After all,
Those pirates and the like certainly did not belong to the Han or any other faction.
And based on his experience in the grasslands, after eliminating these bandits, they would likely drop related equipment.
And what was pirate equipment?
Ships!
As long as he could obtain a few dozen ships, his navy would have hope.