Tuoba Xiong hurriedly welcomed Han Chang into the central military tent and ordered his men to serve him wine and food.
Only then did he report in detail the recent battle situation, especially the rebellion of Cao and Liu, the siege of his own side, and the attack on the grain route.
Of course, the detail that Han Yanshou secretly instructed him to deliberately consume Cao and Liu's troops was definitely omitted, and only the emphasis was placed on Zhao Muyun's cunning and Cao and Liu's wolfish ambitions.
After all, Han Yanshou taught this kind of thing privately, and it certainly cannot be discussed openly, even to Han Yanshou's nephew.
Han Chang listened, his brow furrowing ever deeper. "So, not only did our army fail to defeat the enemy, but we suffered heavy casualties and are now trapped here? General Tuoba, this... seems far from what my uncle expected."
Tuoba Xiong was furious, but he had to swallow his anger and said, "General Han, please understand. Zhao Muyun is holding a strong city and has the advantage of firearms. It is indeed difficult to win quickly."
"Now that the general has arrived with fresh troops, our army's strength has increased greatly. We can work together internally and externally to break the deadlock!"
Han Chang remained silent, but instead asked, "I heard that the families of the rebel generals Cao Jun and Liu Pan are mostly still in the counties north of Youzhou?"
Tuoba Xiong was stunned for a moment, then nodded, "Indeed. According to custom, when a general goes to war, his family must stay behind..."
He suddenly understood what Han Chang meant.
Han Chang's lips curled up into a cruel smile. "In that case, why not send a letter to the rear immediately to have all the relatives of Cao Jun and Liu Pan, the two thieves, imprisoned and severely tortured to serve as a warning to others!"
"And spread the news widely, so that those surrendered soldiers in Jinyang City will know the consequences of betraying us!"
Some generals in the tent heard this and thought that this plan might be able to undermine the morale of the rebels, so they nodded slightly.
But Tuoba Xiong and his experienced and prudent staff secretly felt that something was wrong.
"General Han, I'm afraid this is inappropriate!"
Tuoba Xiong tried to dissuade him, "Although Cao and Liu rebelled, they still have nearly 20,000 soldiers under their command, and their families are implicated."
"If we attack his family now, I'm afraid it will completely chill the hearts of the many people in Yanyun, Hebei who are loyal to our dynasty, and force them to take desperate measures, which will in turn drive them to follow the young Yinji child wholeheartedly!"
"It would be better to postpone it to show our dynasty's magnanimity and also to divide their hearts."
Han Chang scoffed, "General Tuoba is too soft-hearted! Only drastic measures can deter such traitors! I have made up my mind, and I will send the letter immediately!"
Relying on the fact that he was Han Yanshou's nephew, he ignored Tuoba Xiong's advice and stubbornly wanted to kill Cao Jun and Liu Pan's family.
The order was quickly passed down.
Not only that, Han Chang's next move made Tuoba Xiong even more angry.
The 20,000 reinforcements consumed a huge amount of food and fodder, and the already stretched inventory of the Langyu Camp was decreasing at a visible rate.
Han Chang showed no sympathy and instead demanded that the supply of his own troops be prioritized.
When Tuoba Xiong's men complained about a shortage of food and fodder, he simply replied coldly, "General Tuoba has been managing this place for a long time. How could there be no food? Are you planning to mistreat the army I brought with me?"
In terms of military deployment, Han Chang was also eager to make meritorious contributions.
He ignored Tuoba Xiong's advice of "taking steady steps and breaking through the periphery first" and insisted on concentrating his forces to find the main force of the Jinyang defenders for a decisive battle to solve the problem once and for all.
"I have brought with me only elite troops. How can we waste time here with Zhao Muyun? If General Tuoba is afraid of fighting, you can provide support from behind and see how I defeat the enemy!"
Han Chang was full of confidence, and his words carried a hint of contempt for Tuoba Xiong's recent setbacks.
Inside the Langyu camp, although the military strength seemed to have increased on the surface, there were actually undercurrents, discord between the main generals, and conflicts gradually arose.
The resentment of Tuoba Xiong's subordinates was not only directed at Jinyang, but also began to accumulate towards this domineering "reinforcement commander".
Jinyang City, Prince Jin's Palace.
The information provided by Chen Qian's Ye Bushou and Cao Liu's former subordinates came in like snowflakes.
"Your Highness, General, Han Yanshou has sent his nephew Han Chang to lead 20,000 reinforcements to Langyu."
Shen Qian reported, "According to insider information, Han Chang is a stubborn and self-righteous man who has had many conflicts with Tuoba Xiong. Moreover, he has ordered the arrest of the families of Generals Cao and Liu in the north."
"What!" Cao Jun and Liu Pan stood up suddenly after hearing this, their eyes instantly red and their facial muscles twisted. "Han Chang, you bastard! How dare you do this!"
What they were most worried about when they surrendered was their families, but they didn't expect the other side to act so quickly and so cruelly!
Zhao Muyun raised his hand to signal them to calm down, and looked at Shen Qian calmly: "Anything else?"
Chen Qian continued, "In addition, Han Chang is eager for a battle and has repeatedly urged Tuoba Xiong to send troops to fight me in the wild. Tuoba Xiong seems to be more cautious, and the two sides have different opinions."
"Furthermore, after Han Chang's reinforcements arrived, the Langyu camp's food and fodder consumption increased dramatically. According to scouts, although the rear grain transport convoys have strengthened their protection, General Xi Sheng's harassment still hinders their supply. I'm afraid the camp's food reserves won't last much longer."
Mr. Zhou twirled his beard and pondered, "Disharmony between the commander and the general, and insufficient food and fodder...this is a cardinal sin in military strategy!"
Yinji looked at Zhao Muyun: "Master, it seems our chance has come."
A hint of a strategic smile appeared on Zhao Muyun's lips: "Indeed. Han Chang's arrival is not a bad thing. Instead, it is a catalyst that accelerates Tuoba Xiong's defeat."
He stood up and walked over to the map.
"General Li Mao, continue to reinforce the outer encirclement and maintain a defensive posture. However, you can show weakness and expose some 'flaws' to lure Han Chang into attacking."
"General Xi Sheng, redouble your attacks on the food supply routes, but be careful not to overdo it. Make the enemy feel pain, but don't completely deprive them of their food supply, forcing them to resort to desperate measures."
"General Cao, General Liu,"
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