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After reading the intelligence and listening to Jia Xu’s explanation, Chen Xi completely lost hope for Gongsun Zan; there was simply no way out for him. Tian Feng and Xun Shen had directly sealed the route of return, with Yuan Shao personally taking the field to pursue and kill him. Juo Yi was willing to treat his own life as worthless, Yann Liang and Wen Chou, despite sustaining injuries, had knocked Taishi Ci to the ground. Wasn’t this clearly a rhythm set to eliminate Gongsun Zan? 𝒏𝙤𝙫𝒑𝙪𝙗.𝙘𝒐𝙢
This situation was entirely different from Gongsun Zan’s historical defeat at Jieqiao. Historically, after his defeat there, Gongsun Zan still had the strength to fight back. The White Horse Righteous Followers, numbering ten thousand, still had over two thousand survivors, and the infantry had suffered almost no losses, still retaining the power to fight again. On Yuan Shao’s side, Juo Yi’s Great Halberdiers were almost entirely annihilated, and about eighty percent of the Vanguard Death Squad had lost their fighting capacity. Even so, it was still a glorious victory for Yuan Shao!
Looking at the current battle, let’s start with the daytime fight: The White Horse Righteous Followers were utterly destroyed, and even their Command Banner was cut down. Surprisingly, half of the Great Halberdiers that stood in opposition survived, and only a third of the Vanguard Death Squad were casualties. At night, the wounded Juo Yi led a night raid on Gongsun Zan. The Vanguard Death Squad launched a fierce attack on Gongsun Zan’s army, taking down the main camp and pursuing them for nearly a hundred li. Those who managed to escape with Gongsun Zan were definitely in the double digits!
If the historical battle of Jieqiao had been a glorious victory for Yuan Shao, then this battle was almost akin to a war that resulted in a change of rulers in the North!
Of course, Chen Xi had been prepared for this, and although the defeat was somewhat bizarre, he could accept it. However, what he couldn’t accept was the current situation with Juo Yi!
It seemed that Juo Yi had been subdued by Yuan Shao, causing Chen Xi to furrow his brows upon seeing this intelligence. Compared to Gao Shun and those who hadn’t proven their capabilities in major historical battles, Juo Yi had truly demonstrated his prowess. It should be noted that in history, Juo Yi was the main force behind Yuan Shao’s defeat of Gongsun Zan!
However, Juo Yi was a man of high spirit and pride. After the battle with Gongsun Zan, he was dealt with by Yuan Shao, his two types of troops distributed to Zhang He and Chunyu Qiong, and he was eventually led to ruin...
But the current intelligence clearly showed that Juo Yi had been tamed by Yuan Shao. Charging into the enemy camp with injuries, launching a fierce attack to annihilate Gongsun Zan—that kind of act was not something someone with Juo Yi’s personality would do unless he regarded Yuan Shao as his very life. It’s like how Yann Liang and Wen Chou regarded their own lives as immaterial, thinking that anyone who stood in the way of Yuan Shao’s imperial path must die. Only with that mindset would the high-spirited Juo Yi dare to face death without fear!
The Vanguard Death Squad and Great Halberdiers received by others after Juo Yi’s death were completely different from those led by Juo Yi himself. Being able to defeat the White Horse Righteous Followers, who outnumbered them, regardless of any geographical advantage, at least proved one thing: The combat power of these two types of troops was not to be taken lightly.
"We should discuss how to resolve this now," Chen Xi put down the intelligence and looked toward Guo Jia.
"At present, we absolutely cannot send troops from our homeland. We haven’t stopped fighting at all this year, and if we continue, our soldiers will definitely lose their will to fight. Moreover, this kind of meaningless invasion war isn’t worth it. I suggest we provide materials for others to rescue Gongsun Bogui," Guo Jia immediately rejected the idea of deploying domestic troops, as even with consecutive victories, fighting non-stop for a year was not feasible.
"Black Mountain Army, White Wave Yellow Turbans, Southern Huns!" Jia Xu uttered a few keywords before continuing to rest with his eyes closed. For these forces, once Yuan Shao defeated Gongsun Zan and secured his position, they would all be under Yuan Shao’s sword.
"I heard Han Fu recently died in the toilet," Liu Ye said with a cold smile on his face. "He made a great contribution by offering his land, yet Yuan Benchu could be so heartlessly indifferent!"
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Chen Xi gave Liu Ye a casual glance. This guy was no saint either. Although Han Fu’s death was rather peculiar, anyone with half a brain knew that Yuan Benchu would not kill Han Fu at this moment. Such a statement was nothing more than a signal to the ambitious factions within Jizhou. Whether these factions lived or died mattered little to Liu Ye; he was simply intent on throwing Jizhou into chaos.
"I heard that Lyu Fengxian has recently been in a bit of a tight spot, having some disagreements with Yuan Gonglu. Given that Lyu Fengxian has a strong reputation in Bingzhou, why don’t we support him in returning to Bingzhou?" Lub Su also made a suggestion. If Lyu Bu got to Bingzhou and didn’t bite Yuan Shao, now that would be strange!
"Eliminate that Southern Huns, and with only the Black Mountain Army and the White Wave, find someone to spread some rumors. Ziyang, the matter you mentioned is now in your hands to manage. As for Lyu Fengxian, his return to Bingzhou is not easy to judge, but Zijing can give it a try." Chen Xi approved of the ideas excluding the one about the Southern Huns proposed by Jia Xu. However, they were all solutions too far away to quench the immediate thirst!
"Is Xingba still around the estuary where the Yellow River flows into the sea?" Left with no choice, Chen Xi had to rely on Gan Ning. According to the man’s temperament, there was a ninety percent chance he was lurking there; now, it seemed only the Navy might arrive in time to save the day.
Just as Chen Xi was inquiring about Gan Ning’s information from Jia Xu, a messenger rushed in, "Report! The latest intelligence from Jizhou has arrived!"
With an indifferent expression, Jia Xu took the intelligence report and read through it quickly, "Zichuan, no need to search any longer, Xingba is already in Handan."
"Handan?" Chen Xi was stunned, then immediately realized what place that was. Wasn’t it right next to Jieqiao, meaning this guy had cut off Yuan Shao’s back route?
Yes, he had indeed cut off Yuan Shao’s back route. Nobody expected Xingba to appear there. With only three hundred isolated troops, he set fire to the grain stored in Handan. I think he is now following the Zhang River to rescue Gongsun Bogui. If nothing goes wrong, Gongsun Bogui should have been spared." When Jia Xu spoke these words, there was a single feeling: Gan Ning really had guts!
"It seems fate still favors us. The grain in Southern Youzhou had already been transferred by Gongsun Bogui, and with the granary in Handan burned by Xingba, Yuan Benchu won’t be able to hold out for long. This is truly good news! Xingba has done well!" Chen Xi laughed heartily after hearing this. The timing was perfect, incredibly so.
As for Gan Ning’s audacity, Chen Xi felt no pressure at all. Even if intelligence arrived in a couple of days that Gan Ning had dared to attack Yuan Shao’s camp, Chen Xi still wouldn’t feel stressed. There was no helping it; when it came to sheer courage, Gan Ning was truly unmatched!
"Since that’s the case, let’s continue with our own matters. Ziyi, having taken Xingba’s ship to Youzhou, should know the correct way to evacuate. Yuan Benchu probably hasn’t received the news about Xingba yet, and Xingba has likely already taken Gongsun Bogui along the water route back to Youzhou." Lub Su took a deep breath. If they had allowed Yuan Benchu to annihilate Gongsun Zan, it would have been a disaster; even if Qingzhou didn’t want to join the fray, they wouldn’t have had a choice but to fight.
"I suggest ordering General Guan to lead an attack on Licheng and present an aggressive stance against Jizhou’s homeland!" Liu Ye spoke; if one were to put on a show, it must be a complete one!
"I will go to Licheng this time! Ju Gongyu must be on guard by now, and I do not feel entirely safe relying only on General Guan and General Zang. Zichuan, recommend some new military generals for me to take and temper!" Guo Jia’s eyes flashed with a keen light, and one could not tell if it was an illusion or not, but Chen Xi always felt Guo Jia had a particular interest in Yuan Shao’s territory. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to continue reading.)
