Blunt truth offended Yuan Shao,
Too stupid any plan to make,
His stores destroyed this is evident
That Jizhou also is at stake.
Cao Cao's raiding party went along through the night. Passing one of Yuan Shao's outpost camps, they were challenged. Cao Cao sent forward a man to say, “Jiang Qi has orders to go to Wuchao to guard the grain stores.”
Seeing that the raiders marched under the ensigns of Yuan Shao, the guard had no suspicions and let them pass. At every post this ruse was effective, and they got safely through. They reached their objective at the end of the fourth watch, the straw and wood were placed in position without loss of time, and the blaze started. Then Cao Cao's commanders beat to attack.
At this time Chunyu Qiong and his companions were all asleep after a heavy drinking bout. However, when the alarm was given, they sprang up and asked what was the matter. The hubbub was indescribable. Very soon the fuddled officers were caught with hooks and hauled out of their camp.
Yuan Shao's generals Gui Yuanjin and Zhao Rui were just returning from taking grain to the camp and seeing the flames arise, they hastened to assist.
Some of Cao Cao's soldiers ran to him, saying, “The enemy is coming up in the rear. Send reinforcements.”
But Cao Cao only replied, “Press on to the front till the enemy is actually close at hand and then face about.”
So the attack was pressed on and they all hastened forward. Very soon the fire gained strength, and thick smoke hung all around filling the sky. When Gui Yuanjin and Zhao Rui drew near, Cao Cao turned about and attacked them. They could not stand this for a moment, and both generals were killed. Finally the stores of grain and forage were utterly destroyed.
The commander, Chunyu Qiong, was made prisoner and taken to Cao Cao who ordered him to be deprived of ears, nose, and hands. He was bound on a horse and sent, thus horribly mutilated, to his master.
From Yuan Shao's camp, the flames of the burning depot were seen away in the north, and they knew what they meant. Yuan Shao hastily summoned his officers to a council to send a rescue party.
Zhang He offered to go with Gao Lan, but Guo Tu said, “You may not go; it is certain that Cao Cao is there in person, wherefore his camp is undefended. Let loose our soldiers on the camp, and that will speedily bring Cao Cao back again. This is how Sun Bin besieged Wei and thereby rescued Hao ((two ancient states)).”
But Zhang He said, “Not so; Cao Cao is too wily not to have fully prepared against a chance attack. If we attack his camp and fail and Chunyu Qiong should be caught, we shall all be captured too.”
Guo Tu said, “Cao Cao will be too intent on the destruction of the grain to think of leaving a guard. I entreat you to attack his camp.”
So Yuan Shao sent five thousand soldiers under Zhang He and Gao Lan to attack Cao Cao's camp, and he sent ten thousand with Jiang Qi to go to recover the grain store.
Now after overcoming Chunyu Qiong, Cao Cao's troops dressed themselves in the armor and clothing of the defeated soldiers and put out their emblems, thus posing as defeated force running back to their own headquarters. And when they happened upon Jiang Qi's rescue body, they said they had been beaten at Wuchao and were retreating. So Cao Cao's troops were suffered to pass without molestation while Jiang Qi hastened on. But soon Jiang Qi came to Zhang Liao and Xu Chu who cried out, “Stop!”
And before Jiang Qi could make any opposition, Zhang Liao had cut him down. Soon his force were killed or dispersed, and the victors sent false messengers to Yuan Shao's camp to say that Jiang Qi had attacked and driven away the attackers of the granaries. So no more relief were sent that way. However, Yuan Shao sent reinforcements to Guandu.
In due course, the Yuan Shao's force came down upon Cao Cao's camp at Guandu, and the defenders — Xiahou Dun, Cao Ren, and Cao Hong — at once came out and fought them on three sides so that they were worsted. By the time reinforcements arrived, Cao Cao's army, returning from the raid, had also come, and Yuan Shao's army were attacked in the rear. So they were quite surrounded. However, Zhang He and Gao Lan managed to force their way out and got away.
When the remains of the defenders of the grain stores reached their master's camp, they were mustered. Seeing the mutilated state of their one time leader, Yuan Shao asked how Chunyu Qiong had come to betray his trust and to suffer thus, and the soldiers told their lord, “The General was intoxicated at the time of the attack.”
So Yuan Shao ordered Chunyu Qiong to be forthwith executed.
Guo Tu, fearing lest Zhang He and Gao Lan would return and testify the whole truth, began to intrigue against them.
First Guo Tu went to his lord, saying, “Those two, Zhang He and Gao Lan, were certainly very glad when your armies were defeated.”
“Why do you say this?” asked Yuan Shao.
“O they have long cherished a desire to go over to Cao Cao; so when you sent them on the duty of destroying his camp, they did not do their best and so brought about this disaster.”
Yuan Shao accordingly sent to recall these two to be interrogated as to their faults. But Guo Tu sent a messenger in advance to warn them, as though in friendly guise, of the adverse fate that awaited them. So when the orders reached them to return to answer for their faults, Gao Lan asked, “For what reason are we recalled?”
“Indeed I do not know,” said the messenger.
Gao Lan drew his sword and killed the messenger. Zhang He was astonished at this demonstration, but Gao Lan said, “Our lord has allowed some one to malign us and say we have been bought by Cao Cao. What is the sense in our sitting still and awaiting destruction? Rather let us surrender to Cao Cao in reality and save our lives.”
“I have been wanting to do this for some time,” replied Zhang He.
Wherefore both, with their companies, made their way to Cao Cao's camp to surrender.
When they arrived, Xiahou Dun said to his master, “These two have come to surrender, but I have doubts about them.”
Cao Cao replied, “I will meet them generously and win them over, even if they have treachery in their hearts.”
The camp gates were opened to the two officers, and they were invited to enter. They laid down their weapons, removed their armor, and bowed to the ground before Cao Cao, who said, “If Yuan Shao had listened to you, he would not have suffered defeat. Now you two coming to surrender are like Wei Zi leaving the falling House of Shang to go to Yin and Han Xin leaving Xiang Yu to go over to the rising House of Han.”
Cao Cao made then Generals and conferred upon Zhang He the title of Lord of Duting and upon Gao Lan Lord of Donglai, which pleased them much.
And so as Yuan Shao had formerly driven sway his adviser, Xu You, so now he had alienated two leaders and had lost his stores at Wuchao, and his army was depressed and down-hearted.
When Xu You advised Cao Cao to attack Yuan Shao as promptly as he could, the two newly surrendered generals volunteered to lead the way. So Cao Cao sent Zhang He and Gao Lan to make a first attack on the camp, and they left in the night with three thousand troops. The fighting went on confusedly all night but stayed at dawn. Yuan Shao had lost half of his army.
Then Xun You suggested a plan to Cao Cao, saying, “Now is the moment to spread a report that an army will go to take Suanzao and attack Yejun, and another to take Liyang and intercept the enemy's retreat. Yuan Shao, when he hears of this, will be alarmed and tell off his troops to meet this new turn of affairs; and while he is making these new dispositions, we can have him at great disadvantage.”