After leaving the posthouse, Yan Sikong went straight to the city tower to look for Yuan Nanyu, who had not been able to return home for many days.
In the past few days, they were preparing for war and defending the city. After Zhuoletai was defeated, Yuan Nanyu had to keep an eye on Liang Huiyong so that he would not destroy the bridge after crossing the river. Although Liang Huiyong had helped them before and was a loyal and upright person, there was no guarantee that he would not sell them out to Chen Yi for the sake of the overall situation. After experiencing so many ups and downs and being able to live to this day, first of all, he could not trust anyone easily.
Therefore, Yuan Nanyu almost kept control of the city gate and replaced the Guangning soldiers with Feng's army.
As soon as the two met, Yuan Nanyu rushed in front of Yan Sikong and said, "I just received a message that the ice on the Huangshui River has melted, and the Jin soldiers have been blocked by the Chu army in front of the Huangshui River."
"Good!" Yan Sikong shouted excitedly, "Jin Gou's death has come!"
When Zhuoletai crossed the Huangshui River, he was able to cross the river calmly. Now he is fleeing in panic. It is impossible for so many soldiers to jump onto the boat at once. If they cross the river in batches, everyone will want to escape first, and those left on the shore will be defeated and outnumbered, becoming lambs to be slaughtered. Therefore, they must advance and retreat together."
Yuan Nanyu said worriedly, "But the Chu army has fewer soldiers and horses than the Jin army. Now the Jin army is fighting with the determination to die. The Chu army is likely to be repelled."
Although they and Chen Yi are mortal enemies, this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to annihilate the Jin soldiers is what Da Sheng has been waiting for a hundred years, and Chen Yi must win.
Yan Sikong said: "Don't worry, with Shen Hexuan here, they can't escape."
"What will happen to him?"
"If I were him..." Yan Sikong smiled, "At this moment, the Jin soldiers are fighting to the death, and they are naturally extremely brave. The Chu army will definitely not be able to stop them. I will pretend to be defeated in one battle and retreat temporarily. When the Jin soldiers cross the river in batches, I will come back to kill them. I will take advantage of their instability and attack them halfway across the river. The Jin soldiers will surely be defeated!"
Yuan Nanyu nodded: "Good idea."
Yan Sikong was secretly thinking about something.
"Brother, what are you thinking about? Why did you come to see me?"
"I originally came to you to do one thing, but now it has become two." Yan Sikong stared at Yuan Nanyu with a scorching gaze that sparkled brightly in the darkness.
Yuan Nanyu swallowed his saliva. He was familiar with Yan Sikong's eyes. This was his second brother trying to plot against someone: "You tell me."
"First, send someone to find a hundred rolls of white cloth and sew them into pieces as big as the city gates."
Yuan Nanyu was shocked and asked, "What are you going to do? Where can you get so much white cloth at this time?"
"I'll tell you later. Go to all the cloth shops in the city to look for it. If that doesn't work, go to funeral homes or ordinary people's homes. Mattresses, clothes, funeral clothes, anything is fine. Be quick and prepare them tonight."
"...Yes." Although Yuan Nanyu didn't understand why, he would do whatever Yan Sikong said, "What about the second one?"
"The second thing was decided after I heard the news from the Hong Kong Economic Journal."
"What?"
Yan Sikong narrowed his eyes and lowered his voice unconsciously: "I want you to take 10,000 soldiers to attack the Chu army."
Yuan Nanyu was stunned for a moment, but when he came to his senses, he quickly pulled Yan Sikong aside and said in a low voice, "Second brother, are you crazy?"
"Listen to me. When the Chu army fights the Jin army, the defense behind them will inevitably be empty, and the front and rear will not be able to take care of each other. Moreover, they will never expect that we dare to split our troops and go out of the city. You have to take them down together when they are both defeated and injured. Chen Yi wants to reap the benefits, so we will give him a taste of his own medicine."
"But firstly, the Chu army has already besieged the city, and secondly, there are not many soldiers in the city. If I lead 10,000 soldiers to attack the Chu army, who will defend the city?"
"The Chu army has few troops, and half of them are going to pursue Zhuoletai. They only set up checkpoints in several fortresses to monitor the enemy. They can't stop you. As for Guangning, I will guard it."
"Brother, what are you talking about?!"
"After you break through their checkpoints, Chen Yi has two choices. First, he will send troops to chase you to prevent you from attacking the rear of the Chu army. But this is probably our strategy to lure the tiger away from the mountain. Once he sends troops to chase you, Feng Ye can lead his troops to break out from Guangning. To him, Feng Ye is more important, so I guess he will choose the second option and attack Guangning directly."
"Yes, we can't withstand Chen Yi's attack on the city. If I send more troops out of the city, Guangning will be vulnerable."
"I have a way to prevent Chen Yu from attacking the city."
"What can we do? Could it be... those white cloths?" Yuan Nanyu widened his dark eyes, and sweat dripped down his forehead.
"Yes, it's a long story. You'll know when you come back." Yan Sikong held Yuan Nanyu's frozen face and rubbed it vigorously. "I can only feel at ease if I leave this matter to you. If God is merciful, you can capture a large number of Chu troops. Even if you can't, you can kill Chen Yi's prestige."
Yuan Nanyu gritted his teeth. Although he was full of doubts, he still made up his mind: "Second brother, I will listen to you. If you say it's okay, then it's okay! But, if I leave, who will look after General Liang?"
"Let the Wolf King come to the city gate and take up position in person," Yan Sikong said. "There is no time to waste. Go and prepare now and leave the city before dawn. You must ambush them until both sides are defeated and injured. Then we can decide the outcome in one battle!"
"yes!"
Yuan Nanyu took the order and left. Yan Sikong asked the guards to go to the post station to pick up Feng Ye. With Feng Ye in charge, he could intimidate Liang Huiyong more than Yuan Nanyu.
He could see that Liang Huiyong was dissatisfied with their defensive attitude, but he could not blame them for judging others by their own standards. If Liang Huiyong betrayed them, they would lose everything.
——
Feng Ye soon appeared on the top of the city wall. It was already late at night. When he saw Yan Sikong, he asked solemnly, "Did you ask Que Wang to leave the city to attack the Chu army?"
"Yes." Yan Sikong quickly repeated his plan.
Feng Ye frowned, "What if Chen Yu doesn't fall for this? This man dared to betray his father and his king, and to collude with the barbarians. He could even kill a woman who was pregnant with his own flesh and blood. Is there anything he can't do?"
"Chen Yi raised his army in the name of pacifying the country and clearing the emperor's entourage. He colluded with Zhuoletai in secret. Why did he risk sending troops to chase Zhuoletai? Wasn't it to earn himself a reputation of saving Liaodong? He wanted to be the emperor, so he couldn't give the world a handle to use against him and be branded as disloyal, unfilial, rude and unrighteous. So, he absolutely didn't dare to do that."
"But, after all, those things you made are not real."
"Even though we know it's fake, it should be enough to make Chen Yi a little wary, at least it can delay him for a few days." Yan Sikong looked at Feng Ye, "Besides, even if the 10,000 soldiers were left in Guangning, they would definitely not be able to stop him from attacking the city. It would be better to go out of the city and do something more useful."
Feng Ye pondered for a moment and was convinced: "You are right. Guangning cannot stop him with or without those 10,000 soldiers."
Yan Sikong looked into the dark distance with deep eyes: "Feng Ye, no matter what we do, we can't escape this time. It's just that the more chips we have, the greater the gain. Have you ever thought about it..."
Feng Ye knew what Yan Sikong wanted to ask. From the moment he decided to stay in Guangning, he had been thinking about how to divide the Chu River and Han territory in this big chess game.
The two of them were silent for a long time before Feng Ye said, "I've already thought about it."
Yan Sikong turned his head and looked at Feng Ye deeply.
Despite the difficult situation, Feng Ye's brows and eyes remained arrogant. He opened his thin lips and said word by word: "I want the entire northern border."
——
Before dawn, the soldiers had piled up a small mountain of white cloth collected from all over the city, and recruited a hundred embroiderers to sew the things Yan Sikong wanted stitch by stitch. The stitches didn't need to be dense or delicate, so they were made very quickly. After the sewing was completed, the white cloth as big as the city gate was spread on the ground piece by piece.
Yuan Nanyu led his troops out of the city before dawn. After Yan Sikong saw him off, he walked onto the white cloth in the dim morning light, carrying a large bucket of ink in one hand and a mop in the other.
He soaked the mop in thick black ink, threw it on the white cloth, and moved it with light footwork, leaving rough ink marks. His writing had the force of wind and thunder, the posture of dragons and snakes, and each word was vigorous and powerful, sometimes wandering in the sky, sometimes wantonly in the ocean, and sometimes charging on the battlefield, sweeping away thousands of troops with his pen!
Feng Ye was on top of the city wall, watching Yan Sikong writing and stunning everyone. His eyes were filled with burning desire. He had been attracted to Yan Sikong since the first time he saw her in the capital. The closer he got to her, the more he fell in love with her. This person was the demon in his heart that he could not escape from throughout his life.
——
After dawn, Fu Zhanqing left the city. At the same time, Chen Yi, who had learned of the military situation, was furiously leading his army towards Guangning. Not long after, they arrived at the city of Guangning.
Liang Huiyong looked gloomily at the army gathering under the city. Although their forces were much smaller than Zhuoletai's, their city walls were truly vulnerable at this moment.
Yan Sikong soothed him, "Don't panic, General Liang."
"Sikong." Liang Huiyong said in a deep voice, "Can we really defend Guangning with those things?"
Yan Sikong looked at Liang Huiyong and said sincerely, "I know you don't want to fight. Fighting the gold bandits is a last resort, but fighting the Chu army will just sacrifice the lives of the soldiers."
Liang Huiyong was conflicted and even didn't dare to look Yan Sikong in the eye.
It was indeed Feng's army that saved Guangning, but as the general of Liaodong, how could he act on impulse and ignore the safety of the soldiers and civilians in the city? Besides, he was a minister after all.
"General Liang, you have watched my brothers and I grow up since we were young, and you have saved my life. You are a good person, but as a commander, you should put the overall situation first. You cannot have both loyalty and righteousness. I understand you." Yan Sikong looked into Liang Huiyong's eyes without blinking, "So, I will not let Chen Yi attack Guangning, and I will not let Guangning soldiers die in vain under the city. If these things can't stop Chen Yi, then you can open the city gate."
Liang Huiyong's eyes widened.
Yan Sikong's eyes were firm: "What I said is true. If Chen Yi attacks the city, we will surrender."
Liang Huiyong looked at Feng Ye hesitantly, and Feng Ye nodded expressionlessly. Liang Huiyong then sighed heavily, and said with a guilty look on his face, "Okay, if the King of Chu really attacks the city, then... I'm sorry."
Chen Yu arrived at the foot of the city, Yan Sikong was beside him, and saw Shen Hexuan sitting on a wheelchair, and Fu Zhanqing serving beside him.
The general who had shouted loudly under the city that day once again rode out on his own and shouted at the tower: "Traitors Feng Ye and Yan Sikong, you are stubborn and stubborn. Today, the King of Chu will enforce justice and eliminate the rebels."
The crows and sparrows on the city wall were silent.
"Liang Huiyong!" the man roared again, "As the general of Liaodong, you are the emperor's servant. You should be loyal to him and repay his kindness. But you are colluding with the rebels. Are you committing treason?!"
Liang Huiyong's face was gloomy and his fists were clenched.
"His Highness the King of Chu remembers your hard work in guarding Liaodong. As long as you open the city gate, your merits and demerits will be offset and your past will be forgiven!"
The general roared for a long time, but seeing that no one responded from the tower, he turned his horse's head and looked at the commanders of the three armies.
Chen Yu lowered his head and looked at Shen Hexuan.
Shen Hexuan looked at the tower expressionlessly and shook his head. He knew that Yan Sikong must be cheating, otherwise he would not dare to divide his troops at this time. He came here just to see what Yan Sikong was trying to do.
Yan Sikong took a deep breath and said softly, "Let go."
Hundreds of thousands of Chu troops were lined up in neat rows under the city, staring at the dilapidated Guangning city wall. Eight large white cloths were hung on the wall, and on the white cloths, a line of large characters was written in powerful and vigorous strokes: The throne of the Emperor Gao, who inherited the great destiny of heaven, established the cause of holy virtue, divine merit, benevolence, filial piety, wisdom, martial arts, and great culture.
Chen Yu and Shen Hexuan's expressions changed suddenly.