Only after the other party left did Li Zhu realize it was true; he hadn't expected Su Fengji to have really betrayed him…
"Your Highness, Liu Zhiyuan has two important right-hand men, one is Yang Bin, and the other is Su Fengji. Now that Su Fengji has betrayed him, this is definitely a heavy blow to Liu Zhiyuan..."
Gao Siji spoke earnestly, clearly demonstrating his thorough understanding of the situation in Youzhou and his awareness of Su Fengji's importance…
"In that case, I really should give this Su Fengji a proper welcome..."
Li Zhu said with a smile…
"Your Highness, the people of Youzhou are currently in a state of panic, making this the perfect time to attack. I believe that with your and General Gao's prestige, a mere call to arms will be enough to make the entire Youzhou surrender without a second thought..."
Chen Qingzhi, as expected of a seasoned strategist, immediately spotted the opportunity...
"Alright, then let's send troops immediately and march straight for Shuozhou..."
"Your subordinate obeys!"
Chen Qingzhi and Gao Siji immediately went down to reorganize the troops and prepare for battle…
Yanjing!
Liu Zhiyuan was smashing things again because he had received news that Su Fengji's entire family had disappeared...
"Damn it, do you think I'm stupid? How could so many people just suddenly disappear?"
As Liu Zhiyuan roared, he also regretted not keeping a closer eye on these people. At that moment, he had a bad feeling...
Sure enough, less than two days later, an urgent military dispatch reached Yanjing…
The garrison commanders of Shuozhou and Huanzhou surrendered without a fight, and the two prefectures are now under Li Zhu's control. He is leading his troops towards Yingzhou, and according to the timeline, Su Fengji should be in Yingzhou at this very moment…
It was easy to predict Yingzhou's fate: surrender without a fight. After all, Su Fengji's family had all fled, undoubtedly intending to defect to the New Tang Dynasty...
Liu Zhiyuan looked at the military map in the hall and became more and more shocked. According to Li Zhu's route of attack, Yunzhou was surrounded. Could it be that Li Zhu's goal from the beginning was Yunzhou?
If the goal was to conquer Youzhou, the marching route should have started from Dingzhou, heading north to attack Yanjing. Once Yanjing was captured, the remaining cities simply wouldn't be able to hold out for long...
However, Li Zhu's marching route turned out to be the most troublesome, seemingly aiming to penetrate deep into Youzhou from the very edge of the region...
Perhaps Li Zhu never considered him an opponent from the beginning? Or perhaps he wanted to directly engage in a decisive battle with the Liao Kingdom?
If that's really the case, it would be incredibly hurtful. All this fighting and brawling turns out to be me being the clown...
Little did he know that Li Zhu's target was indeed Yunzhou, but not the Liao army there; rather, it was the coal...
Once we have coal, so many things can be solved, most importantly, it will allow people in the north to get through the winter safely...
After two days of fighting, Li Zhu found that the soldiers' morale had returned, and the effects of the assassination attempt in the central command tent were gradually fading...
However, Li Zhu was not happy at all. The demon god Chi You was like a sharp sword hanging over his head, making him unable to relax for even a moment...
"Your Highness, fighting against you is so much fun..."
Gao Siji excitedly said, following Li Zhu!
"Are we at war?"
Wang Yanzhang retorted irritably, "They've all surrendered without a second thought along the way; they've never laid a hand on us..."
"We'll be arriving in Yunzhou soon. The Liao army is guarding it; I'm afraid you won't have the courage to attack the city..."
Gao Siji brandished the gun in his hand and said!
"Whoever chickens out is a woman..."
Wang Yanzhang also waved the gun in his hand in response!
Seeing that neither of them would give in, Li Zhu was helpless. He glanced at Zhao Feng, who had stirred up such animosity between the two. What a troublemaker…
"Stop arguing. Since you two have so much energy, you two can take turns going up and challenging me..."
Hearing Li Zhu's words, the two men's faces turned bitter. This was truly an undeserved disaster. Provoking others was a thankless task; most of the time, you could shout yourself hoarse and no one would pay any attention to you...
At this moment, both of them regretted it a little. Why did they have to get angry with each other? They were just making trouble for themselves...
Chang'an!
Lan Fenghuang fled westward to Chang'an, but the city was no longer as glorious as it once was; it was a desolate wasteland, the entire city in ruins…
But even from those broken walls and ruins, one can still see the prosperity this place once enjoyed, only that all of that is gone now…
Blue Phoenix took out a special whistle and blew it, and a unique sound echoed throughout the abandoned city…
Then people began to emerge from various corners, all dressed in Miao ethnic costumes. Upon seeing Lan Fenghuang, they immediately showed expectant eyes…
"This time it failed..."
Upon hearing Lan Fenghuang's words, everyone's eyes showed pain...
"But don't be discouraged, we still have a chance..."
Upon hearing Lan Fenghuang's words, everyone showed expressions of shock, as if they had thought of something terrible...
"Chieftain, are you sure you want to go there?"
"We must go. If we succeed, the Demon God will only become stronger..."
Blue Phoenix's eyes were filled with unwavering determination; she would be fearless for the sake of the Demon God!
Outside Yunzhou City!
Li Zhu looked at Wang Yanzhang and Gao Siji, whose voices were already hoarse, but they were still shouting at the city with all their might...
In contrast to the bustling activity outside the city, the council hall inside was deathly silent…
Yelü Bei glared at Yan Yan with resentment, feeling that it was all because of her meddling that the current situation had arisen. If she had agreed to send troops to assist the King of Youzhou back then, they wouldn't be trapped in Yunzhou so quickly now. At the very least, they would have had a lot of strategic space, and even defeating Li Zhu wouldn't have been impossible...
"Who dares to accept the challenge?"
Yelü Bei looked at the military officers before him and asked, but none of them dared to step forward. A person's reputation precedes them; both Wang Yanzhang and Gao Siji were renowned generals, and with both of them appearing together, naturally no one wanted to go out and risk their life…
"Hmph! Why is no one saying anything? Do you expect me to go out and fight? You're all scared by just two people? When have the men of Liao become so cowardly?"
Yelü Bei angrily cursed!
"Your Highness, how about rewarding the challenger with a thousand taels of gold, with the victor rising three ranks, and the descendants of the fallen inheriting a title and a life of wealth and honor..."
At this moment, Consort Xiao spoke softly beside them. Although she didn't say much, it made the eyes of all the generals who heard her turn red. This was a battle to secure a bright future for themselves. Even if they died in battle, their descendants would still have titles and be guaranteed a life of comfort and security...
Yelü Bei's eyes lit up, and he immediately shouted.
"Everyone heard that. The beauty's words are my promise. Now, is there anyone who dares to accept the challenge..."
"Your Highness, this humble general is willing to go!"
Immediately, someone stepped forward to volunteer...
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