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After Zhang Xun’s large army had dispersed, Zhao Yun, who had been lying in wait with his men at the rear camp, finally saw his opportunity. They carefully crept forward before charging into the fray. At the same time, Sun Guan burst out of the city gates, while Zhang Fei, having taken a long detour, led his cavalry of over a thousand in a fierce assault.
Caught unprepared and attacked from three sides, Zhang Xun’s forces were utterly routed. He could only desperately fight his way out to the east, following the path left by the three armies. But of the tens of thousands in his great army, only a few thousand managed to escape. After this battle, his capacity even for harassment was gone.
"Strategist Jia, why are we not pursuing them further?" Zhao Yun, seeing Jia Xu make a stopping gesture, reined in his horse and halted the chase of Zhang Xun’s retreating forces, but he was still somewhat puzzled and asked.
"There’s no need. We still need Yuan Gonglu to keep Liu Jingsheng and Cao Mengde in check. After this battle, the three forces can be said to have been weakened," Jia Wenhe said with a calm demeanor, looking as though he could see the prosperous region of Nanyang turning desolate after the fight.
The tunnels on Chen Zichuan’s side had already been dug. Because of the numerous tomb robbers, five tunnels were made, each just wide enough for three people to pass through at most, while the smallest required a person to stoop to move forward.
"Wen Ze, it’s up to you. Give everyone a full meal tonight. Tonight, we take down Pingyu and seal Yuan Gonglu’s return path!" Chen Xi gave his orders solemnly.
"I shall not fail the strategist’s high expectations," Yu Jin said with a salute, clenching his fist.
"Zijian, prepare the cavalry. As soon as the city gate is breached, charge in. Whether it’s setting fires or looting, as long as it can break the enemy, all unconventional tactics are permissible. The narrative of tonight’s events will be written solely by the victors," Chen Xi turned to Hua Xiong and instructed, unwilling to let a moment of mercy lead to the failure of the night raid, especially since Qiao Rui’s force of over thirty thousand was no laughing matter.
"Yes!" Hua Xiong responded, rising to his feet and saluting with his fist.
"Meng Kang, Wen Hou, each of you lead five hundred cavalry to secure the Pingyu Government Treasury and granaries the moment the city gates fall. Make sure Qiao Rui doesn’t burn these resources. The two of you decide amongst yourselves who will guard what, and adjust accordingly. You know the way there, right?" Chen Xi said with a smile, for after spying from the earthen ramp for so long, they would indeed be lost not to know the locations of the treasury and granaries.
"Yes!" Wu Dun and Xu Ding stood up and saluted with their fists.
"Good, I’ll be waiting here for the news of your capture of Pingyu, the administrative center of Runan!" Chen Xi raised his glass to the men before downing it in one go.
That night, Yu Jin led five hundred soldiers divided into five groups into the tunnels. Chen Xi let out a silent sigh, knowing that after this, tunnels would no longer be an option, as guarding against such a strategy was too simple.
[I wonder how Liu Ye and Jia Xu are doing. However, given their capabilities, capturing the administrative centers of Chen State and Pei State should pose no problem.] Chen Xi thought silently as he gazed at the stars in the sky.
[Times of chaos... Plans can never keep up with changes. The strategy for conquering Qingzhou must be accelerated. This battle went better than expected, and with these acquired resources, reclaiming Qingzhou could probably be achieved by this time next year. It seems we can still push the pace a tad more. To have complete control over a grain-producing region means we finally have the capital to contend for supremacy.] Chen Xi assessed the situation in Qingzhou and finally took a long, relieved breath.
Chen Xi quickly calculated the situation across the land, ran through comparisons of the various powers’ strengths and weaknesses, and finally felt completely at ease. As long as no unexpected events occurred next year, he could continue on his solitary journey to becoming an overlord without the need for allies. In other words, after two years, he had finally managed to barely achieve his initial goals!
``` 𝒏𝒐𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝒄𝙤𝙢
Yu Jin climbed out of the well, looked carefully around, and sure enough, the area was already empty. After all, the probability of stones from the stone thrower hitting here wasn’t small, so those who didn’t want to die temporarily moved to the homes of acquaintances inside the city.
"General, we have already assembled the men," a team leader said as he approached Yu Jin, speaking softly.
"Good, let’s move out," Yu Jin whispered back.
Quickly, five hundred men split off a hundred-man squad, then the rest of them all hid within these empty houses. These men were Yu Jin’s trusted aides, whose quality and discipline could be considered excellent.
Yu Jin, leading the hundred men, walked toward the city gate, boldly and arrogantly, for he was dressed in Yuan Shu’s Army armor. As expected, the City Gate Commander mistook Yu Jin for the team leader coming to switch shifts.
"Didn’t expect you guys to arrive so early today!" the City Gate Commander didn’t suspect Yu Jin at all.
"Changing guard!" Yu Jin said, adopting the slightly weird Runan accent.
"This accent..." The City Gate Commander frowned and was about to ask Yu Jin where he was from when, spurred by the City Gate Commander’s question, Yu Jin’s trusted aides, who had already formed an arc blocking the gate entrance, drew their knives at the command to switch guard, immediately rushing towards their identified targets.
"Pff!" In a matter of seconds, several sounds of blades chopping through flesh could be heard, along with screams from within the gate that alerted the guards atop the gate tower. But by this time, it was evidently too late. Yu Jin struck down fiercely on the gate bolt, then led his men to push open the gates of Pingyu City with all their might.
"Haha, kill!" Hua Xiong laughed aloud, slapped his horse, and charged into the city first. The first thing he did was to throw his torch into a house, then bellowed "Capture Yuan Yao alive," and ran towards the center of the city.
"What’s happening? Why is there a commotion in the city?" Qiao Rui, who was indulging in pleasure, glared at the messenger who had come to disturb him at this hour.
"General, it’s bad! The Mount Tai Army has entered the city. General Xun has already led troops to intercept them, but because of the unclear night paths and the unknown number of enemies, we simply can’t counterattack!" The messenger quickly reported everything he knew.
While the messenger was talking, Qiao Rui already heard the distant shouts of "Capture Yuan Yao alive." He sobered up significantly; in this city, anyone could die, but Yuan Yao could not, for Yuan Yao was Yuan Shu’s only son. Qiao Rui knew all too well that if Pingyu was lost, at most he would be demoted, but if anything happened to Yuan Yao, he would definitely die without a doubt!
"Quickly inform Xun Zheng to gather troops to protect the Lord’s family. If the situation is untenable, take the Lord’s family and leave at once. I will go and stop the enemy for the Lord!" Qiao Rui said with a passionate fervor, then picked up his sword and charged out.
"You go and set fires everywhere, create chaos, and the rest of you follow me!" Hua Xiong cut down an opposing fighter with a single strike and immediately ordered several men to set fires while he took on the task of crushing those troops trying to rally!
After receiving Qiao Rui’s instructions, although Xun Zheng was surprised by Qiao Rui’s loyalty, it was clearly not the time to waste. He understood better than Qiao Rui the strength of the Mount Tai Army, and having engaged with them several times, Xun Zheng knew that without a large assembled army, facing the Mount Tai Army in the current situation meant a certain death, so he planned to quickly take Yuan Family and all of the Lord’s family and leave posthaste. Otherwise, if Yuan Family’s lives were lost, no number of heads would be enough to pay for the mistake! (To be continued. If you like this novel, you are welcome to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)
