Yang Qiu, Wang Yue, and others turned a blind eye to the actions of Lu Qing, Liu Kui, and the rebel armies of Yan and Qing, and did not take any action to intervene. Instead, they sent 5,000 Imperial Guards to the border west of Julu to keep a close watch on the rebels' movements. At the same time, they hurriedly recruited local militia and began to set up defenses.

Huang Zhong, Ma Teng, and Gongsun Du of Changshan also received Wang Yue's orders. Huang Zhong, leading his three battalions of Huang Feng, Lie Huo, and Hei Feng, headed to the border between Changshan and Anping.

Zhang Rang led 10,000 Youzhou troops from Zhongshan toward Hejian.

Hejian was the emperor's fiefdom. After Liu Hong ascended the throne, he treated the people of Hejian very well. As a result, Liu Hong's prestige in Hejian was even greater than that in Luoyang.

As early as the beginning of the rebellion, upon hearing that someone dared to oppose the emperor, the people, knights-errant, and students of various counties and villages in Hejian spontaneously took up arms. Subsequently, under the careful selection of Prefect Li Yu and the officials of Hejian, a local militia of nearly 40,000 people was formed and stationed in Hejian.

As for the scholars and powerful families within Hejian, they had always considered themselves fellow townsmen of the emperor, so Liu Kui and others did not dare to make contact without authorization.

Zhang Qian, in particular, who was in charge of the royal saltworks, actively traveled around, contacting local scholars and powerful figures to donate money and grain.

Zhang Rang, who rushed to Hejian, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Hejian was safe and sound.

After coordinating the defense of the city with the officials of Hejian, Zhang Rang led 10,000 Youzhou troops to garrison in Gaoyang County to prevent a surprise attack by the Bohai rebels.

At the same time, two teams of Imperial Guards, carrying Liu Hong's secret edict, arrived at the Bingzhou and Youzhou camps respectively, ahead of the imperial court's orders.

Upon receiving the secret edict, Zhang Huan and Lu Zhi, while arranging the defense of the Great Wall, also led 20,000 elite troops from Bingzhou and 30,000 elite troops from Youzhou respectively towards Jizhou.

November 20th.

After eight days of slow marching, Lü Bu finally led the vanguard of the Imperial Guard into Xiaohuang County in eastern Chenliu. Fifty li further east lay the territory of Jiyin.

Just as the group was moving forward, a scout caught up with them.

Hearing that the rebels had grown into such a powerful force in such a short time, Lü Bu and the others couldn't help but sigh.

At this point, ten days had passed since the rebels launched their uprising.

As the saying goes, speed is of the essence in war. According to the plan of Lü Bu, Cao Cao and the Imperial Guard trainees, if they had rushed all the way from the beginning, they might have already defeated the rebels in Yanzhou.

Therefore, he still doesn't understand why the emperor would slow down their march, thus giving the rebels ample time to prepare and expand.

Now the rebels are too powerful for their two thousand vanguard to handle.

Just as everyone was sighing in despair, Lü Bu received another order from Huangfu Gui, instructing him to halt his march and station himself in Xiaohuang County to gather intelligence and report back on the latest developments of the rebel army.

That night, Lü Bu summoned Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, Sun Jian, Hua Xiong, Dian Wei, Yan Liang, and Wen Chou into his tent.

Lu Bu looked at everyone and said in a deep voice, "Gentlemen, Mr. Ciming and Instructor Xu Rong are trapped in Jiyin. I have decided to send someone to investigate!"

As soon as Lü Bu finished speaking, Sun Jian was the first to stand up.

"Instructor Lü, I am willing to go!"

"We are willing to go together!"

Hua Xiong, Yan Liang, Wen Chou, and others also spoke up to volunteer.

Lu Bu nodded: "Alright, let's not delay. Wentai, let's set off now. Hua Xiong, Yan Liang, and Wen Chou, come along too!"

"promise!!"

Upon receiving the order, the group left their tent, called over a few friends, and set off for Jiyin under cover of night.

After a long journey, Sun Jian and his men arrived at a forest twenty miles west of Jiyin City at dawn.

At this time, the rebel army in Yanzhou left 40,000 troops to besiege Jiyin, while the rest were still busy annexing and gathering up scholars and powerful families to expand their forces.

Looking at the rebel camp outside the city, Hua Xiong approached Sun Jian and said in a deep voice, "Wentai, the rebel camp ahead is in disarray. It's clear that there are no military experts among the rebels!"

Sun Jian nodded: "It seems we overestimated these rebels. This rabble can be defeated with a single night raid!"

Wen Chou, who was standing nearby, suddenly said, "According to what Wen Tai said, Instructor Xu Rong, who was stationed in Jiyin, couldn't possibly not know this, right? Why did he allow the rebel army to besiege the city?"

The Sheshui Battalion is an elite force of the Northern Army. Although there is a significant numerical disadvantage, with Instructor Xu Rong's skills, breaking through the rebel forces outside the city shouldn't be a problem, right?

"this......!"

Upon hearing Wen Chou's words, everyone was taken aback, and suddenly felt that things were not so simple, but they never thought of the key point.

After confirming that Jiyin was safe, Sun Jian and his men rushed back to the vanguard camp and truthfully informed Lü Bu of the situation of the rebels outside Jiyin.

Lu Bu simply acknowledged the news, sent a messenger to Huangfu Gui behind him, and then ordered the entire army to set up camp to guard against a potential rebel attack.

That night, Cao Cao, carrying a map, quietly entered Yuan Shao's tent.

"Aman, what brings you here so late at night?"

Yuan Shao looked at Cao Cao, who had suddenly rushed in, with a wary expression, while also tightening his collar.

"I'm not interested in you anymore...!"

After giving Yuan Shao a disdainful look, Cao Cao curled his lip and then sat down on Yuan Shao's bed.

Sitting on the couch, Cao Cao looked at Yuan Shao with a solemn expression and said in a deep voice, "Benchu, after listening to the information that Wentai and the others brought back today, and combining it with the situation I learned a few days ago, I feel that this rebellion is not as simple as it seems!"

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