Upon hearing Fa Zheng's words, Lü Bu was immediately taken aback, and then asked, "What do you mean by that, strategist?"

Fa Zheng stroked his beard and said with a gloomy expression, "Fengxian will know when the time comes!"

These strategists were full of cunning schemes, while Lü Bu, being more naive, was completely bewildered by what he heard.

Huang Zhong has already been released, so why does Fa Zheng still say that Huang Zhong will die?

If he couldn't figure it out, he stopped thinking about it. Lü Bu mounted his horse and said, "I'd better go help General Xu."

After saying this, Lü Bu led his troops to support Xu Huang.

Fa Zheng glanced meaningfully at Changsha County, a strange smile curving his lips, and muttered, "Han Xuan, Han Xuan, I hope you won't disappoint me then."

Huang Zhong returned to Changsha County in disgrace; of his 50,000-strong army, less than 10,000 remained.

“General…” Wei Yan looked at Huang Zhong with frustration.

This battle was so frustrating that even now Wei Yan doesn't understand why Huang Zhong insisted on going his own way and forcibly confronting 200,000 Yellow Turban soldiers with only 50,000 troops.

"I'm going to see the prefect. You all go back to your camp first." With that, Huang Zhong waved his hand and dismissed Wei Yan.

He went to the prefect's mansion alone. By this time, Han Xuan had already received the news that Huang Zhong had suffered a great defeat and was raging at the prefect's mansion.

Upon hearing that Huang Zhong was requesting an audience, Han Xuan was furious and shouted, "You scoundrel, Huang Zhong! Weren't you ordered to surround the Yellow Turban Army? Why did you suffer such a crushing defeat?"

Huang Zhong knelt on the ground and begged for forgiveness, saying, "This humble servant deserves to die. Please punish me, Prefect."

He did not offer any explanation, even though he knew it had nothing to do with him and that there were experts in the Yellow Turban Army who had seen through their scheme.

But that's just Huang Zhong's personality. If a mission fails, it's his own fault, and he never shirks responsibility.

Han Xuan glared at Huang Zhong, snorted coldly, and then ordered, "Huang Zhong, out of consideration for your years of service to me, I will not punish you. You must guard Changsha County well from now on, or you will be dealt with according to military regulations."

Upon hearing this, Huang Zhong frowned slightly: "Prefect, shouldn't we send troops to support Wuling County?"

Han Xuan shook his head: "No need, Huang Zhong, you're too stubborn. Sending troops now would be suicide!"

“But…” Huang Zhong hesitated.

"No buts! Step down!" Han Xuan said calmly.

Huang Zhong sighed helplessly, "Yes!"

After Huang Zhong left, Han Xuan sat in a chair and fell into deep thought.

He felt that Huang Zhong was definitely hiding something!

Otherwise, given Huang Zhong's personality, he would have surely died on the battlefield and wouldn't have come back.

Thinking of this, Han Xuan suddenly slammed his hand on the table and exclaimed in alarm, "Oh no! Could it be that Huang Zhong has surrendered to the Yellow Turban rebels? Is he returning this time to launch a coordinated attack from within and without?"

The thought of this possibility made Han Xuan immediately anxious.

If Huang Zhong had truly defected to the Yellow Turban rebels, then Changsha Commandery would be in grave danger.

Thinking of this, Han Xuan quickly wrote a letter and had his steward send it to Liu Biao, requesting help!

On the other hand, the Yellow Turban Army wiped out the troops of the three commanderies of Jingzhou in one fell swoop. With their main force destroyed, the three commanderies of Jingzhou, along with the previously captured Wuling Commandery, all fell into the hands of the Yellow Turban Army.

Upon learning of this, Laifu immediately dispatched troops to occupy the area, and also sent Zhao Yun and Dian Wei with him.

He knew that Jingzhou was extremely important; it was their springboard for their northern expedition to the Central Plains.

Because the Yizhou region is easy to defend and difficult to attack, it is also quite difficult for them to go out, and transporting food and supplies is a big problem.

Before Lu Li fell into a coma, he had told Lai Fu that Jingzhou was something they had to take no matter what the cost.

With Jingzhou, the Yellow Turban Army could continuously transport grain and supplies, giving them sufficient confidence to launch a northern expedition into the Central Plains.

Therefore, after receiving the order, Zhao Yun and Dian Wei immediately led the army towards Jingzhou.

Meanwhile, Xu Huang's army had already reached the city gates and arrived in Changsha County.

With an army of nearly 300,000, attacking a small Changsha prefecture would be a piece of cake.

Surprisingly, Fa Zheng did not order the army to attack directly, but instead chose to have his soldiers fight one-on-one.

"Strategist, with my 300,000 troops, I can take Changsha County in less than half a day. Why..." Gao Shun asked, puzzled.

Fa Zheng laughed and said, "General, don't be hasty. Even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit. If we can take Changsha County without bloodshed, why should we let our soldiers die?"

The generals in the tent all looked at Fa Zheng in confusion, and even Xu Huang didn't understand what he meant.

"General Wen Yuan, I heard that you fought Huang Zhong in a great battle earlier, and were able to fight him for dozens of rounds without a clear winner?"

Zhang Liao's expression changed immediately. He could indeed hold out for several dozen rounds, but he was almost killed by Huang Zhong in battle later on.

"Strategist, I... am no match for Huang Zhong."

Fa Zheng smiled and said, "It's alright, you can go and fight Huang Zhong in a bit."

Zhang Liao immediately forced a smile, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Yes!"

Although he didn't know that Fa Zheng knew he couldn't defeat Huang Zhong, he still wanted him to fight, but Zhang Liao knew that Fa Zheng wouldn't harm him, so he agreed.

Soon, Zhang Liao led his cavalry out and stopped about 100 meters away from Changsha.

"Zhang Liao is here!" Zhang Liao shouted loudly.

As soon as Zhang Liao finished speaking, the gates of Changsha County slowly opened, and Huang Zhong rode up at breakneck speed.

Upon seeing that the person who had just fought against him was Zhang Liao, Huang Zhong did not utter any sarcastic remarks this time.

"Zhang Liao, you are no match for me. I do not wish to kill you. You may leave!"

Even if the Yellow Turban army spared his life, he still didn't want to kill Zhang Liao in battle.

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