At the Lingnan Prince's Mansion, Zhou Xiang was filled with doubt after hearing his subordinates report Chen Zhennan's orders.

"Within three months, the troops will be divided into three routes, one of which will be tasked with blocking Song Xuan's 400,000-strong army. This order from the commander is truly perplexing."

Zhou Xiang muttered to himself that he understood Chen Zhennan's tactical style, which usually involved large-scale decisive battles when he had superior troop strength.

Now, however, they have to disperse their forces, which seems like an impossible task. Hou Jing and Li Can, who were standing to the side, were also full of doubts.

After careful consideration, Zhou Xiang decided to act according to Chen Zhennan's orders, despite the enormous risks involved.

He assigned Hou Jing and Li Can to lead 100,000 and 80,000 troops respectively, to march north to Chongzhou and southwest to form a pincer movement against the capital within three months.

Hou Jing was quite troubled. "Your Highness, the battle lines are too long, and we simply can't keep up with the supply. The commander-in-chief has ordered us to stay put and behave ourselves, this..."

Zhou Xiang pursed his lips and pondered, "When a general is in the field, he may disobey the emperor's orders. After each capture, you should enter the city and confiscate the property of the officials, wealthy merchants, and local bullies."

"If the commander-in-chief finds out about this, I'm afraid there will be trouble," Hou Jing warned worriedly.

"I'll take responsibility if anything goes wrong. How can we fight a war without money and supplies?" Zhou Xiang said firmly.

...

Ten days later, outside Tianyang Pass, Song Xuan sat in a carriage, looking up at the city wall.

"What happened?"

Song Xuan frowned slightly. According to the intelligence he had received, Tianyang Pass had been occupied by the Yan Kingdom's army, but there was not a single person on the city wall.

"What's going on? Why is there no one guarding the city wall?" Song Xuan asked in confusion.

A general stepped forward and whispered, "General, this is very unusual. Could it be a trap set by the Yan Kingdom?"

trap?

It's better if it's a trap, just don't get yourself caught in it.

"Pass down the order to the troops to be on high alert and watch out for ambushes. Order the vanguard to enter the city!"

Song Xuan led his army into Tianyang Pass, but after surveying the entire city, he couldn't find a single person. It had become a completely deserted city.

"General, the city is completely deserted. There isn't even a civilian here, and there are no signs of a battle. I really don't know what Dong Ning is up to."

Song Xuan was also puzzled, but since he was already there, he had to put on an act.

"Give the order that the army enter the city to rest and reorganize, strictly guard all city gate entrances, and send people to gather information and find out the situation on the Yan side."

At Song Xuan's command, his generals followed orders and led the army onto the city walls.

The following night, outside the pass, in the woods.

"Yunyang, you can watch the show in a little while."

Chen Zhennan had a smile on his lips, and although it was dark, Song Yunyang could see him clearly.

"I didn't expect you to have this trick up your sleeve. You're really cunning. I hope nothing happens to them. Those thousand cavalrymen are the elite of the elite."

Chen Zhennan chuckled, completely disregarding her concerns.

"If they weren't elites, they wouldn't have been able to complete the plan. Don't worry, just wait and see, here they come."

Chen Zhennan pointed to a group of cavalrymen not far to his left, carrying torches and charging madly toward Tianyang Pass.

"Chen Zhennan, look, my brother is here. I have a question: with such terrible acting skills, can he really pull it off?"

"Whether it works or not, we'll know once we see the results."

At this moment, inside Tianyang Pass, Song Xuan was preparing to retire for the night when he was interrupted by an urgent report from his guards.

Quickly donning his battle robes, Song Xuan hurried to the city wall. He saw two cavalry squads charging towards Tianyang Pass like a whirlwind in the darkness, their torches gleaming brightly in the night.

"General, what is the enemy's intention?" a lieutenant asked in confusion.

Song Xuan frowned. Even if he didn't know how to lead troops, he wouldn't be so stupid as to use cavalry to attack a city. He must have something wrong with his brain.

"Archers, prepare!" Song Xuan shouted.

The archers quickly took their positions, drew their bows taut, and awaited the next command.

However, just as they were about to fire their arrows, the cavalrymen suddenly dropped their torches. The flames danced on the ground a few times before going out into the night.

As soon as the torches went out, the cavalrymen disappeared into the vast night, as if they had never been there at all.

"what the hell?"

Just then, they saw distant lights, like stars in the night sky, growing more and more numerous and closer and closer.

"It seems they were just scouting earlier. Issue the order: all troops, prepare for battle!"

Outside the pass, Jiang Wenyu sat on his horse, with the 100,000-strong army of the Great Yan behind him.

"Your Majesty, those two cavalry units seem to have entered the city. What should we do?"

Upon hearing Xianfeng's words, Jiang Wenyu's anger suddenly surged.

"Order the attack on the city!"

At Jiang Wenyu's command, the Yan Kingdom's 100,000-strong army was deployed, and a fierce siege began.

The shouts of battle were deafening, and Chen Zhennan, who was far away in the woods, could hear them clearly.

"It actually worked! Chen Zhennan, what kind of trick is that?"

Song Yunyang had read many military books and knew that this was a dog-eat-dog situation. However, she did not know the reason why Chen Zhennan had managed to make hundreds of thousands of troops fight with only a thousand cavalry.

“It’s very simple. During this time, I have been leading Jiang Wenyu’s army to harass them constantly, just waiting for Song Xuan to come. As long as Jiang Wenyu is sure that I am in Tianyang Pass, he will definitely attack the city, after all, you only took away 30,000 men from Dayan.”

Chen Zhennan's tone carried a hint of helplessness, and Song Yunyang could only smile awkwardly, after all, she had let go of the opportunity to take away 180,000 troops.

"What are your plans next? You caused all this trouble just to let them fight, didn't you?"

Chen Zhennan looked at the distant firelight, his smile gradually fading.

"Of course there are other purposes, but the casualties in tonight's battle will definitely be significant. I need to figure out Song Xuan's attitude. If he's tough, then let him go for now."

Song Yunyang was taken aback. "You're not planning to fight him? Then why did you bring him here?"

"I'm not going to fight him. As long as these 400,000 people are locked up here by Jiang Wenyu, that's enough."

Beneath Tianyang Pass, amidst the flames of war, the soldiers of the Great Yan Dynasty surged toward the city walls like a tidal wave.

On the city wall, Song Xuan gripped his long sword tightly, his forehead covered in sweat. If Chen Zhennan led the attack, they would definitely be difficult to deal with, so he was defending with all his might.

"Hold the city walls tight! Don't let a single person in!"

Outside the city, Jiang Wenyu's eyes gleamed with fanaticism. He believed Chen Zhennan was inside the city and launched a desperate attack, determined to capture Tianyang Pass at all costs.

He waved his command flag and roared, "Charge! We will not rest until we break through Tianyang Pass today!"

In the distance, Chen Zhennan stood in the dense forest, his brows furrowed. Jiang Wenyu's offensive tactics were undoubtedly depleting his own forces. Even if he won, it would be a Pyrrhic victory.

"This guy's probably going to fight until dawn."