This army marching along the path towards Puyang was none other than the 45,000 defecting soldiers led by the imposter Lu Qing.
After confirming that they were his own people, Chen Man sent one of the messengers forward to question them.
"I am under the command of Chief Chen Man. May I ask who you are?"
A guard standing next to the imposter Lu Qing stepped forward and said, "This is my leader Lu Qing, who has come from Jizhou!"
The messenger was taken aback, then quickly bowed to Lu Qing and said, "So it's Patriarch Lu. I apologize for my rudeness. May I ask what brings you here, Patriarch Lu?"
Lu Qing sighed, "The army in Jizhou was defeated, the King of Bohai was captured by the enemy, and we were fortunate enough to escape. We have come here to seek refuge with Chief Chen Man!"
"What? The army in Ji Province has been defeated...?"
Upon hearing this, the messenger's expression changed drastically.
Lu Qing urged, "Don't delay, quickly take us to see your leader!"
"Okay!!"
The messenger, regaining his senses, hurriedly called out to his companions. One of them quickly sent a message to Chen Man, while the rest of them took Lu Qing and headed towards Puyang.
Soon, the news reached Puyang. Upon hearing that the army in Jizhou had been defeated and that the imperial army was heading towards Puyang in three routes, Chen Man and the others were greatly surprised and their faces turned ashen.
No one expected that Liu Kui would be defeated so quickly and so thoroughly.
If more than 200,000 people in Ji Province could not stop the imperial army, what could my mere 50,000 men possibly do?
In the afternoon, Chen Man and others welcomed Lu Qing and 45,000 soldiers into the city.
"Patriarch Lu, we are currently facing a menacing army led by Huangfu Gui in front and a 200,000-strong imperial army approaching from behind. What should we do?"
The imposter Lu Qing also frowned and pondered deeply.
After a moment, Lu Qin said, "The most important task at present is to defend Puyang to the death and await reinforcements from Qingzhou!"
Seeing this, Chen Man had no choice but to nod.
Subsequently, Chen Man and Lu Qing ordered their soldiers to intensify the repair of the city's defenses.
Meanwhile, several guards dispatched by Liu Hong, after a rapid journey, delivered secret letters to Wang Yue, Lu Zhi, Zhang Huan, and Huangfu Gui.
Upon receiving the secret letter, Wang Yue, Lu Zhi, Zhang Huan, and the others immediately ordered the army to advance at full speed.
After reading Liu Hong's secret letter, Huangfu Gui burned it in front of his guards and then ordered the army to retreat thirty miles and set up camp on the main road leading to Qingzhou.
Meanwhile, spies from the Investigation Bureau infiltrated Puyang and informed the imposter Lu Qing of the next step of the plan.
Two days later, the armies of Wang Yue, Lu Zhi, and Zhang Huan joined forces, and the five armies—the Imperial Guard, the Luo Army, the Jizhou Army, the Bingzhou Army, the Youzhou Army, and the Hejian Army—a total of 170,000 troops, arrived north of Puyang City.
At the same time, the messenger sent by Chen Man also brought back news of Zheng Hun's defeat in Qingzhou.
Upon hearing the news, Chen Man and the others felt as if the end of the world had arrived.
Chen Man found Lu Qing and said urgently, "Patriarch Lu, now that Jizhou and Qingzhou have been completely defeated and the imperial army is at the gates of the city, why don't we surrender!"
Lu Qing shook his head: "Others may surrender and live, but you and I, the leaders, are definitely not going to survive!"
Chen Man asked, "Then what should we do?"
"At this point, the only way to survive is to abandon the city and flee south!"
Chen Man was taken aback: "Escape? Escape to where?"
"Go to the State of Lu!"
"The State of Lu? Brother Lu, you mean...?"
Chen Man was taken aback, and then she thought of the Kong family in the State of Lu.
Lu Qing nodded: "That's right. As the holy land of Confucianism, as long as the Kong family is willing to stand on our side, why can't we make a comeback?"
Chen Man hesitated and said, "But... what if we offend the Kong family?"
Now that they have been branded as traitors, gaining the support of the Kong family is not something that can be achieved simply by talking.
Chen Man was born into a scholar family and was well-versed in Confucian classics. Naturally, he held the Confucian family in high esteem.
Seeing Chen Man's hesitant expression, Lu Qing narrowed his eyes and said in a deep voice:
"It's either life or death, do we have a choice now? The victor is king, the loser is an outlaw. As long as we win, what can the Kong family do?"
"Brother Lu is right, let's do it that way!"
Faced with life and death, Chen Man ultimately listened to Lu Qing's advice.
Lu Qing then said, "There's no time to lose. Now that Huangfu Gui has moved the camp to the southeast, we can take advantage of the night to leave the city and head straight for Lu from Rencheng!"
Chen Man nodded: "But there is a lot of grain and wealth in Puyang City, which cannot be taken with us all. How about we burn it all?"
Lu Qing hurriedly said, "No, if we set fire now, it will definitely alert us. If a large army comes after us, we will hardly survive."
"It would be better to leave a few thousand old and weak men behind, and spread many flags at Chengtou to create a diversion, making it appear as if we are holding out to the death, thus misleading the enemy and buying us a few more days!"
Chen Man suddenly understood, and then nodded: "Brother Lu is right, let's do it that way!!"
Soon, the rebel army in Puyang began to move, planting all the banners of the army on the city walls and preparing rations for the march. Lu Qing also volunteered to leave his five thousand soldiers in the city.
That night, the south gate of Puyang was opened wide, and Chen Man and Lu Qing led 90,000 rebel troops, leaving Puyang silently and heading towards Rencheng.
The rebels' every move also reached the ears of Wang Yue, Huangfu Gui, Lu Zhi, and others.
Upon learning that the rebels had abandoned the city, the group made no move.
At dawn the next day, the sound of drums thundered, and a total of 185,000 troops, including those under Huangfu Gui's command, besieged Puyang.
The few thousand soldiers left behind by Lu Qing also surrendered the city immediately.
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