Chapter 3496 Catch them off guard first!
The soldier's face turned pale and he gasped, "General, Yan Country has mobilized troops!"
"What?!"
When everyone heard this, it was like hearing thunder. No one could believe their ears. Xiahou Jiu even stepped forward and picked up the soldier, gritting his teeth and saying, "Say it again!"
The soldier trembled and said, "General, it's true. News just came from the border. Early this morning, the Yan Kingdom army was mobilized..."
The person holding his clothes by the collar froze for a moment.
Xiahou Jiu was completely stunned.
He had originally thought that once he received his message, the Yan Emperor would definitely lend him a helping hand. After all, for so many years, the peace between the two countries had been driven by both of them, a situation Zhu Feng clearly welcomed. Now, Zhu Feng only needed to help him this time to maintain the current situation and potentially gain more benefits from him, further strengthening the relationship between Yan and Yue.
Why doesn't he want to?
Why did Zhu Feng disagree?
Not only was he unwilling, he even mobilized troops early in the morning. Could it be that he wanted to take this opportunity to declare war on their Yue State?
Xiahou Jiu was panting heavily, and his hands unconsciously exerted force, gripping the soldier like a pair of pliers, making it difficult for him to breathe. The soldier rolled his eyes and struggled. Fan Chenggong and Pan Shixiong, who were standing nearby, saw that something was wrong and rushed forward to rescue the soldier. Fan Chenggong kicked him impatiently, "Get out!"
The soldier ran out crawling as if he had been given a chance to live.
The two men then turned to Xiahou Jiu and said, "General, please don't be angry yet. We need to come up with a plan right away."
"Think of a countermeasure? It's already this late, what countermeasures are you still thinking of!"
Xiahou Jiu became angrier and angrier as he thought about it. He walked back to his chair and sat down, staring at Ruan Wentong with one eye almost red: "Your idea is great!"
Ruan Wentong's face also turned pale.
He stepped forward and knelt before Xiahou Jiu, whispering, "General, please forgive me. I never thought that the Emperor of Yan would actually—but no matter what, his actions now will not benefit him. I'm afraid there must be some misunderstanding."
Fan Chenggong said impatiently, "What other misunderstanding could there be?"
“…”
"The situation is now very clear. Not only is Zhu Feng not helping us, he's actually taking advantage of us!"
Pan Shixiong also said, "That's right. The message we sent over has actually exposed our own weaknesses. Now, Zhu Feng already knows our situation. If he really wants to send troops at this time, I'm afraid we'll be in trouble."
Fan Chenggong continued, "What if he were to expose the fact that we were passing on information? Wouldn't that make us the real target of public criticism?"
Xiahou Jiu slammed the table fiercely: "Fuck it!"
His original wishful thinking completely fell through at this time. What's worse is that he used to hold the initiative, but now he is passive on both sides. If Zhu Feng wants to use troops against the State of Yue, and if Chen Biri is determined to deal with him, he will be attacked from both sides.
At this time, Nguyen Van Dong said softly: "General, it seems that there is only one way to go now."
Fan Chenggong said impatiently, "What else do you want to say? If we hadn't listened to you before, would we have ended up like this?"
Xiahou Jiu frowned and looked up at Ruan Wentong.
But he said in a deep voice: "Tell me, what other way is there?"
Fan Chenggong and Pan Shixiong glared at Ruan Wentong indignantly. Ruan Wentong cautiously stepped forward and said softly, "Strike first."
"Preemptive strike?"
"Indeed, since Yan State has already deployed troops to the border, it means they will use force against us sooner or later. In this case, if we wait for them to make a move, we will be at their mercy. Moreover, we have a weak spot in their hands now. If we don't act, and they make a fuss, won't we be waiting for Chen Biri to use His Majesty to deal with us?"
“…”
"At this time, the best way is to fight!"
“…”
"Only if a fight breaks out and muddies the waters will no one pay attention to this matter."
Xiahou Jiu frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "If we both use our forces, and Zhu Feng spreads this, what should we do?"
Ruan Wentong sneered and said, "Think about it, General. If a fight really breaks out, we will be the enemy. Can we still trust the enemy's words?"
“…”
"Then the general will say that the other party deliberately spread rumors to disrupt the morale of the army."
“…”
"What's more, as long as the war starts, the general will have an excuse to mobilize all the troops. When the war starts, everyone will rely on the general. At that time, why would the general care about what Chen Bi Ri says?"
After this conversation, Xiahou Jiu felt relieved.
More than that, he also felt a sense of relief.
Isn't it true? The reason why he had been in a constant standoff with Chen Biri over the years and unable to suppress him was because he was a military general. In a peaceful environment, his power was limited, but once a war broke out, it was different and he had absolute power.
By that time, it will be up to him to decide how to deal with Chen Biri.
His expression relaxed slightly, and he glanced at Ruan Wentong with the corner of his eye and said lightly, "Get up."
Only then did Ruan Wentong stand up.
Xiahou Jiu looked at his two right-hand men again. Although Fan Chenggong and Pan Shixiong were furious at Nguyen Van Dong's "bad idea", both of them were military generals. War was naturally more beneficial than harmful to them. Only in battle could they demonstrate their value. They all said, "General, no matter what, we have reached this point. We have to fight."
"Yes, we can't let the Yan people take the lead."
Xiahou Jiu didn't say anything, but just kept pinching the armrests of the chair on both sides with his hands, sliding them up and down.
He hadn't touched a sword for many years. Although he was eager to fight, he was indeed unfamiliar with it.
Fan Chenggong and Pan Shixiong exchanged a glance, then both knelt on the ground and said, "General, we can't hesitate any longer. This opportunity is fleeting. Let's go all out and fight this one. Win or lose, at least we've fought. If we really wait for someone to come and take care of us, we'll lose our prestige!"
Hearing them say this, Xiahou Jiu felt a sinking feeling in his heart.
Finally, I made up my mind.
"good!"
He suddenly stood up from his chair and said through gritted teeth, "It has already come to this point. This general no longer needs to hesitate. If we want to fight, then we must fight. Only by fighting can we survive!"
Fan and Pan looked at each other and were overjoyed.
Xiahou Jiu said, "You two, hurry to the barracks and mobilize the troops immediately. We need to catch the Yan people off guard before they make a move!"
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