Although Gao Pei knew that Zhang Fei was famous, he also thought that he was over-hyped by others and thought he still had the strength to fight. It was not until the moment the weapons touched that he realized how wrong he was.
A huge force was transmitted from his arm, causing severe pain in the palm of his hand, and he could not hold the weapon. There was a loud noise, and before he could even beg for mercy, the tip of the spear pierced his chest.
Deng Xian led his troops to retreat to the front of the army and was just gathering his horses to counterattack and help when he turned around and saw Zhang Fei riding between the lines and flying towards Gao Pei. He was startled.
Just now, he had fought with Gao Pei with all his strength. Although he was pretending to be defeated, he knew that the other party was good in martial arts and could not withstand Zhang Fei's powerful attack.
Lei Tong saw the shock on Deng Xian's face and said with a wry smile: "Now you should understand how lucky I was to be able to surrender at that time."
Deng Xian swallowed his saliva and said in astonishment: "Zhang Fei's courage is so terrifying!"
As he was speaking, Zhang Fei had already led his troops to charge at the pursuing Shu army. He immediately joined Kou Feng and Liu Xian in charging back towards Fushui Pass.
When Yang Huai of Guan Shang saw that Gao Pei was pursuing the enemy, it was useless to sound the horn, so he had to send more troops to guard the city gate and ordered people to investigate in the sentry tower on the cliff and wait for news from the front army.
As I was watching, I suddenly saw people and horses running around in the distance. Soldiers turned away their weapons and abandoned their armor, fleeing in panic. Not far away, flags were fluttering and dust was flying.
Yang Huai felt something was wrong and hurriedly shouted, "Close the gate, close the city gate—"
The defenders immediately retreated into the city, ignoring their own troops who were fleeing back, and closed the city gates tightly. Many deserters rushed to the gates, pushing and knocking hard and shouting loudly.
But at this time the enemy army was chasing them, and Yang Huai was helpless. He ordered everyone to disperse and the entire army prepared to meet the enemy.
Zhang Fei held up his Zhangba Snake Spear to drive away the fleeing soldiers and led the Yanyun Cavalry to the pass first, hoping to take advantage of the chaos to charge into the pass in one fell swoop.
Unexpectedly, Yang Huai was so decisive. As soon as he got close, he was shot back by arrows. He retreated with his spear raised and shouted, "Zhang Fei from Yan is here, surrender quickly!"
Yang Huai sneered, "No matter if you are a eunuch or a gatekeeper, if you dare to approach the gate, you will be killed without mercy!"
Zhang Fei was furious and roared, "Yang Huai, you bastard, I will not be a human being unless I castrate you!"
Yang Huai ignored it and ordered his soldiers to patrol day and night in batches. At the same time, he sent someone to Chengdu to report that General Gao Pei had been killed and support was urgently needed.
Zhang Fei had no choice but to retreat and captured those deserters who had nowhere to go. He set up camp on the mountain outside the pass. He saw that the mountains were high and the water was fast, with steep cliffs on both sides that were inaccessible. It was indeed another natural barrier.
The next morning, Zhang Fei sent Kou Feng, Liu Xian and Lei Tong to lead their troops to challenge Yang Huai, but Yang Huai simply held his ground and refused to come out. The defenses on the tower were tight and impeccable.
For two days, no matter how much he was shouted at, Yang Huai did not dare to go out to fight, and there was no chance of winning the siege. Zhang Fei became increasingly impatient and wished he could climb up the cliff and jump into the city.
On the fifth day, the scouts who went up the mountain to investigate the enemy situation reported that a new group of reinforcements had arrived in the city. The defenders were hiding in the city, equipped with bows and crossbows. Some soldiers were carrying earth and rocks from another gate to make protective gear.
Zhang Fei was feeling very annoyed in the camp, thinking back to when he was defending Wuguan Pass, Cao's army was helpless. Now the offensive and defensive situation had changed, and he didn't have Cao's weapons, so he was even more helpless.
Liu Xianyan said: "The general has given us ten days to remove the guards. Now it is halfway through the deadline. If we delay any further, we may be violating military orders."
Zhang Fei sighed helplessly: "This pass is difficult to attack. There are people shouting and cursing all day long, and Yang Huai doesn't dare to fight. What can we do?"
Liu Xian said: "Yang Huai is frightened by your might, so he dares not leave the city. It would be better if you pretend to withdraw your troops to attack somewhere else, and leave us here to lure Yang Huai to attack. Then we can kill him and break through the city."
Zhang Fei followed his plan and led the Yanyun cavalry to the pass again to shout and curse, telling Yang Huai that if he didn't come to fight, he would go fight with others. The defenders still ignored him. Zhang Fei led his troops to retreat, but did not return to the camp. He retreated fifty miles to the north and temporarily stayed in a ruined temple.
The next day, Liu Xian sent someone to report that Yang Huai had not fallen into the trap and the defenders still did not come out. Zhang Fei returned to the camp, and as there were only three days left before the deadline, he became more and more angry.
That night Zhang Fei was furious in the camp, his roars echoed everywhere, he drank seven or eight jars of wine and whipped the soldiers. The defenders were all trembling with fear, and even Liu Xian and Kou Feng did not dare to persuade him.
After finally making it to dawn, Zhang Fei ordered Deng Xian to lead troops to attack Fushui Pass, but he himself was too drunk and fell into a deep sleep.
The defenders on the city wall had been well prepared, but they were shot back by arrows before they could reach the pass. Deng Xian had no choice but to retreat and wanted to report the military situation, but Zhang Fei was asleep, so the generals had to withdraw their troops and wait.
At dusk, Zhang Fei sobered up and asked about the battle situation. Deng Xian reported it truthfully.
Zhang Fei was furious and said, "I have been ordered to take Fushui Pass. I have three days left. If you fail to take the city, you will be beheaded. How dare you waste a day? This is unreasonable. I will chop off your head first!"
Deng Xian hurriedly said, "It's not that I don't want to try my best, it's just that the defenses at the pass are very strict. If the soldiers force their way in, it will only lead to loss of manpower."
Zhang Fei said angrily, "How dare you speak like that? You are lowering the morale of our army. I ordered you to attack the city, but you are so negligent. I think you are not really willing to surrender and fight to the death. What's the point of keeping you?"
Then he ordered Deng Xian to be beheaded. Kou Feng hurriedly pleaded, "General, calm down. It will be bad for the army to behead a general before the battle. General Deng has made great contributions in taking Zitong. Even if he is beheaded, you should report it to the eldest son first."
Zhang Fei was furious: "If I don't kill this man, everyone will be lazy. How can I attack the city?"
Liu Xian advised: "Deng Xian is a newly surrendered general who has made great contributions. If he is beheaded, it will chill the hearts of the generals in Shu. Who will be willing to surrender in the future? I hope you will think twice about the plan to take Yizhou for the eldest son."
Zhang Fei's face turned pale, and he snorted coldly: "For the sake of you two, I will spare his life! But since he violated military orders, he should be punished. How can I lead the troops in the future?"
He ordered his men to take Deng Xian away and beat him with twenty military sticks at the camp gate as a rule of law, waiting to report to Liu Qi for further action.
Before they knew it, it was time to light the lamps. The atmosphere in the camp was depressing. The firelight in the tent flickered, illuminating Zhang Fei's face, which was sometimes bright and sometimes dark, making him look even more ferocious.
After a long silence, Zhang Fei glanced at the trembling generals and said in a deep voice, "There are still two days left. I can't wait any longer. Follow me to take the city tonight."
Liu Xian asked, "General, what good plan do you have?"
Zhang Fei said, "Tonight at three o'clock in the morning, select five hundred brave soldiers, equip them with hooks and locks, and follow me to attack. You two will lead your troops to ambush on the left and right. When I kill the guards and seize the gate, we will charge in."
Kou Feng hurriedly said: "General, you are the commander-in-chief of the three armies. How can you take risks yourself? I am willing to climb the city and fight."
"Good boy, I admire you very much!" Zhang Fei was overjoyed and ordered Kou Feng to prepare first.
Then he said to Lei Tongyan who looked uncertain: "Deng Xian said that Fushui Pass was difficult to attack. He must be resentful because he was punished just now. Go and tell him that I can break the city tonight. I will make him convinced."
Lei Tong went to the rear camp and told Zhang Fei what he had said, and comforted him: "Zhang Fei has a bad temper and always whips his soldiers after drinking. It's hard to change his nature. When General Liu comes, he will do justice. You just need to relax and recover from your injuries."
Deng Xian was disheartened at this point. He said a few perfunctory words to send Lei Tong away. An hour later, taking advantage of the troop deployment in the camp and the chaos among the soldiers, he quietly left the camp with a dozen surrendered soldiers and fled to Fushui Pass.