Yang Tao's participation in the battle had poured a basin of hot oil on the originally calm situation.
Huang Song and Xu Bei were solemn and worried, while Jiang Pengji heaved a sigh of relief.
"With Yang Tao's help, taking down Zhe County shouldn't be a problem."
Jiang Pengji had long ordered Cheng Yuan to restrain the troops from Zhe County. The two sides had been in a stalemate for half a month.
Yang Si smiled and said, "Even so, it's hard to say if Yang Tao changes his mind at the last minute."
Jiang Pengji said, "Others might, but it's unlikely for Yang Tao."
Yang Si said, "What if Xu Bei voluntarily offers Zhao Shao to appease Yang Tao's resentment in order to protect himself?"
Half of Zhangzhou had been taken back. Killing Zhao Shao would be Yang Tao's revenge for his father's murder.
As long as Xu Bei endured the pain and sacrificed some of his flesh to appease Yang Tao, he might be able to send Yang Tao away.
"Xu Bei has a fatal strength. He's very shameless." Jiang Pengji sneered coldly. "Zhao Shao voluntarily surrendered to his aristocratic family. Even if he murdered Yang Jian, he didn't harm Xu Bei's interests. If Xu Bei pushes him out to be a scapegoat for his own interests … Not to mention other things, Xu Bei's good reputation of 20 to 30 years will be ruined. After this, which aristocratic family would dare to surrender to him? "
Xu Bei was born into an aristocratic family. His ancestors had a high reputation. These were his political capital, but at the same time, they were his burden.
There was a kind of burden called puffing oneself up at one's own cost. Xu Bei knew that Zhao Shao was a hot potato, but he wouldn't let Zhao Shao be a scapegoat.
Yang Si laughed. "My lord knows Duke Xinzhao very well."
"The human heart is complicated, but he's a simple person." Jiang Pengji said, "There should be good news from Gong Liao's side."
Jiang Pengji had high hopes for Cheng Yuan, and he didn't let her down.
Cheng Yuan was also mischievous. For the past half a month, he'd been following the rules. He didn't make any mistakes, but he didn't have any bright spots either. He didn't give the enemy great pressure. He even gave them the false impression that their military strength wasn't strong. He pretended to be weak and took the opportunity to weaken the enemy's vigilance.
If it were any other lord, Cheng Yuan would have been dissatisfied if he hadn't made any progress for half a month. However, Jiang Pengji let him do it. In order to support Cheng Yuan's plan, Jiang Pengji also asked Qin Gong, who was born in Zhe County, to lead troops and horses to Cheng Yuan's side to support him.
As expected, the governor of Zhe County became more and more arrogant. Usually, he would float on the spot when he walked.
At the spur of the moment, news of Zhangzhou's defeat came from outside.
The commander of Zhe County saw that the morale of his soldiers was low. He felt that they urgently needed a great victory to boost their morale.
If he could achieve a great victory and capture the enemy's leader, he would definitely receive the lord's appreciation and his status and power would increase.
Cheng Yuan narrowed his eyes. "It's about time."
Qin Gong was a native of Zhe County. He was very familiar with the surrounding terrain and had provided Cheng Yuan with many conveniences.
Once again, they sent out their troops to challenge Cheng Yuan. The two sides fought fiercely, and Cheng Yuan's side was still no match for them. After fighting for a while, they began to show signs of weakness.
There was a saying that went, 'Don't chase a cornered enemy', but Cheng Yuan's repeated defeats in the past few days had fueled the arrogance of the defending generals.
When someone advised him not to pursue a cornered enemy, the defending general said angrily, "A cornered enemy, a cornered enemy. Every time they come and go, they say the same thing. An armchair strategist was nothing more than that. We've already probed Liu Gang's forces. They're not as terrifying as the outside world says. Their forces are small, so if we don't chase after them and kill them all, are we supposed to watch them escape? Army, follow me! "
"But … But the place where Liu Gang's forces retreated is covered in tall bushes and dense forests. It's a good place to set up an ambush. We mustn't chase after them. We'd rather let one of them go by mistake than … "Before he could finish speaking, the defending general had already galloped far away.
It was not his fault that nobody listened to him. It was Cheng Yuan's fault for acting several times in the past, so he had long worn off the defending general's wariness.
The defending general led his troops to charge and beat up the remaining soldiers. It was actually somewhat irresistible. They had won repeatedly, and their morale was high.
However, he was not happy for long. Before he could retract the smile on his face, countless arrows shot out from the dense forest on both sides.
The flags representing the enemy were raised, and the enemies popped their heads out one after another. Their battle cries shook the sky.
"An ambush?"
The defending general's heart palpitated. He grabbed the reins with all his might, causing the war horse under him to neigh in agitation.
They were about to retreat, but Cheng Yuan had already sealed off the path they had come from, giving them a chance to catch a turtle in a jar.
"Since you're here, don't leave."
Cheng Yuan heaved a long sigh of relief. He had been under too much pressure recently. Even if he deliberately showed weakness to the enemy, it still affected his morale. As the planner, the pressure he bore was not small. Seeing the enemy fall into the trap, he felt that the grievances he had suffered for the past half a month had all disappeared.
Arrows, rolling logs, and hot oil were all directed at the enemy.
The defending general was not Yang Si, and the troops under him were not the elites that Jiang Pengji had carefully trained for several years. They had already lost their sense of propriety when they encountered an ambush. The army formation was in a mess. How could they maintain order and resist the enemy's retreat? The more chaotic they were, the more casualties they suffered.
In less than an hour, the place was already a river of blood. Broken limbs and remains were everywhere. It was like the inferno of Asura.
Flames rose, and a strange smell floated in the air.
As time went by, the battle cries gradually became deeper.
Early on, when they had fallen into the ambush, Cheng Yuan had divided his troops to attack the city gate at the border of Zhe County.
Once this city was breached, Zhe County would no longer have the protection of the natural stronghold. Cheng Yuan could make use of the water resources in Zhe County to lead his troops straight in. Although there were important military towns along the way, most of the troops had been transferred by Xu Bei to Hu County. As long as Cheng Yuan was not out of his mind, he would definitely not lose.
Seeing that the defense line of Zhe County was about to collapse, Xu Bei and the rest were also anxious.
He tried to send more troops to help, but there was still a god of death blocking the way — Jiang Pengji.
Xu Bei simply abandoned Han Yu's strategy and directly mobilized his troops to engage Jiang Pengji in the largest and most vicious battle since the start of the war. In the end, the more anxious they were, the more disadvantageous they would be. Without the hindrance of the terrain, how could Jiang Pengji's cavalry not run wild and trample on the enemy?
The cavalry of the North borderline was so strong, but in the end, they were still overthrown by Jiang Pengji.
Would she be afraid of a mere Xu Bei?
If Huang Song had not sent more troops along the way to help Xu Bei stabilize the situation, his losses would have been even greater.
At the same time, the emissary sent by Xu Bei also met Yang Tao. From his mouth, he "extracted" the reason for his alliance with Jiang Pengji.
To be honest, Yang Tao originally did not want to get involved in the situation in Dongqing. He only wanted to quietly develop his strength and let the group of immortals fight amongst themselves.
Who asked Xu Bei to accept Zhao Shao's allegiance?
"The hatred of my father's murder is absolutely irreconcilable. How can I allow my enemy to go unpunished?" Yang Tao's voice was deep, and his mature face had the dignity of a superior. "Emissary, there is no need to speak further. I will personally kill that despicable Zhao Shao to comfort my father's soul in heaven."
The emissary choked.
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