Zhu Nao

Indeed, as Jiao Bie expected, it wasn't that Cui Cheng didn't want to inform the city of Yanzhou, but that he didn't have a chance.He was in the enemy's camp, surrounded by spies and eyes, every time he sent a letter to Jiaobie, he had to take a risk. If it was not an extremely important matter, he should not have sent a letter to Yanzhou city easily.

Ordinarily, it is extremely important to lead troops to Huayang County to suppress the Xuantian Sect's garrison. Cui Cheng really should inform Jiao Bie first, and then decide what to do after waiting for his order.But the problem is that Zhu Nao didn't give him such a chance.The night before, Zhu Nao suddenly assigned him a task, and he was asked to lead the troops to set off early the next morning.Is he going to disobey?In the end, he could only obey orders honestly and win the trust of Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji first.

However, the task was completed, and Cui Cheng himself was not sure whether he had gained trust or not.Over the past few days, he has done well in all the things that Zhu Nao entrusted to him, and there is nothing wrong with it.But that's also because Junao didn't give him a chance to make mistakes at all.There are always people watching around him, and the task assigned to him is also assigned, so let him do it immediately.Unless he wants to give up on himself, he has no other choice.

But Cui Cheng also understood in his heart that it was only natural for Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji to act like this.If when he came, the two of them would trust him in every possible way and let him go, then they would have dug a hole and waited for him to jump.

Hence, Cui Cheng could only think about nothing and do things honestly, first to leave a good impression on Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji, and then wait for his own opportunity to act.

Fortunately, this time did not come too late.Perhaps it was because of his reliability, and perhaps Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji thought that the time was ripe, and he was finally summoned by the two again to discuss the plan to attack Yanzhou City.

……

Inside the house, several military officers sat in a circle, Xie Wuji and Zhu Nao sat side by side in the first seat.

Xie Wuji said: "I heard that the morale in Yanzhou City is low and people's hearts are fluctuating. I am going to send troops to surround the city without attacking it. I will send people to persuade them to surrender every day. It would be best if the troops in the city are willing to surrender. If they have not asked to surrender by the beginning of next year , then I will think about the strategy of attacking the city again. What do you think?"

All the officers agreed.

After all, the defenders in Yanzhou City were once their comrades, and no one wanted to fight against each other unless it was absolutely necessary.They still have friendship with the officers and soldiers in the city, presumably the same is true for the people in the city.With emotion, with reason, coupled with force and coercion, I believe that it will not take long for the hearts of the people in the city to collapse.

Even if the persuasion fails, the military rations in the city can only last for a few months.However, the cultivated land in the city is limited and cannot be supported for a long time. When it comes to the spring plowing season, there will be no food and grass in the city, which will make people's hearts fluctuate.At that time, the siege of the city was twice the result with half the effort.

Xie Wuji turned his gaze to Cui Cheng again: "Cui Cheng, what do you think?"

Cui Cheng said calmly: "Return to the general. The army in the city has long been unwilling to fight, and the cult has suffered repeated setbacks. I believe that after the general sieges the city, within a few days, the defenders in the city will surrender. The general does not need to worry."

Xie Wuji said lightly: "You know the situation in the city best. If this is the case, it would be great."

After discussing with each other for a while, they decided on the details of dispatching troops, and then dismissed them and went back to their houses.

=====

Two days later, in the city of Yanzhou.

Jiao Bie, Shi An, and several confidantes of the two also sat in a circle, and everyone looked very serious.They had already received the news from Cui Cheng, and they knew that Xie Wuji and Zhu Nao were going to lead troops to besiege the city soon.

"Success is life, failure is death." Jiao Bie said, "Shi Zhangqi, I will say it straight: No matter what festivals you and I have had before, now we are grasshoppers tied to the same rope. We should abandon the previous suspicions and share the same hatred with the enemy, so that we can turn the crisis into safety."

Shi An's expression was subtle, but his tone was quite straightforward: "That's natural."

Indeed, compared to those conflicts with Jiao Bie, Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji are their biggest enemies right now.If they don't deal with this enemy, they will die.Only after eradicating these two people can the power struggle between him and Jiao Bie continue slowly.

Jiao Bie said: "We are inferior to Zhu Xie and Zhu Xie in terms of military strength and food and grass. We can only win by taking risks. This opportunity is only once, and there must be no mistakes."

After hearing this, everyone's expressions became more serious.

They have already made a plan to fight back against Junao and Xie Wuji, and this plan is very risky.

Jiao Bie and Shi An had discussed it, and they had already managed to pass the message to Cui Cheng. Their plan was as follows: After the Zhu Xie allied forces besieged the city, Shi An was responsible for launching a surprise attack on the besieging army by the outsiders. He also sent troops from the city to attack the coalition forces with the believers.

But they didn't expect to defeat Zhu Xie's coalition army in a pincer attack. Whether it was the believers or the Yanzhou defenders, they were not opponents of Zhu Xie's coalition army.What they played was just to attack the west, making Zhu and Xie mistakenly think that the Yanzhou defenders were preparing to fight to the death, so they would mobilize all the main forces.

And the real focus of this plan is on Cui Cheng - when the main force of the coalition forces is transferred, Cui Cheng will take advantage of the emptiness in the rear and immediately lead people to burn the food and grass of the coalition forces!

You must know that Zhu Xie's coalition army has tens of thousands of troops, and it is impossible to defeat them head-on with only Shi An's disciples and Jiao Bie's troops.If they want to resolve the crisis, they can only start with the food and grass of the coalition forces.

In all time-consuming battles, food and grass are the key to victory.As long as their plan can be carried out smoothly and the food and grass of the coalition army are burned, the morale of the army will definitely be shaken, and they will no longer be able to fight the war of attrition. At that time, the coalition army will be forced to withdraw.And when the allied forces withdrew, the siege of Yanzhou would be resolved, and Shi An had already asked Henry Zhang for help, and asked Zhang Xuan to send powerful people to fight Zhu Naoxie Wuji outside the battlefield-this is the strength of Xuantian Sect!

Shi Andao: "General Jiao, I have no objection to this plan, I only have one question - your lieutenant general, can you make sure he is credible?"

During this period of time, Shi An has accumulated a lot of anger towards Cui Cheng, and he really can't rest assured that he should put his treasure on this person.

Jiao Bie said coldly: "If I don't even believe him, then I don't have anyone else I can trust. I still say this, Shi Zhangqi, you came up with the idea, and it's all done according to your wishes." .If you have a better idea, you might as well say it. If you don't, stop being suspicious. You and I have no choice."

Shi An wanted to say something, but finally endured it.If he had a better idea, why should he wait until now?He could only resentfully said: "Okay...then I will leave the city immediately and gather the disciples."

Xie Wuji had already wiped out his disciple army, and now he could only call up all the disciples who had not been trained, and treat dead horses as living horse doctors.This is his last bet.

But Jiao Bie objected: "Shi Zhangqi, you should stay in the city and leave the matter of gathering the disciples to your subordinates. In this way, if there is any change in the city, I will contact you in time to discuss a plan."

Shi An immediately frowned.

Jiao Bie wanted to keep him, not just for the convenience of contact.You must know that there used to be walls and defenders inside the city, which was safer than outside the city.But once the city is besieged, the inside of the city is more dangerous than the outside!Jiao Bie was afraid that Shi An would go out and leave with the remnants of the Xuantian Sect, regardless of his own life or death.So let him stay, obviously wanting him to be a hostage.

They clearly said that they should trust each other in times of crisis, but how could they completely let go of their suspicions?Jiao Bie is like this, and so is Shi An.

Shi An endured it, but he couldn't hold it back, and said: "General Jiao, you and your lieutenant general won't join hands with Zhu Naoxie Wuji to plot against me, will you?"

Anyone who heard this would get angry, but Jiao Bie suppressed it and did not get angry.He calmly said: "If Shi Zhangqi is worried, the people and things around me can all be taken care of by you temporarily."

It is fair to hold each other hostages.

Shi An hesitated.He wanted to go out of the city to organize it himself, but he was really worried that he would not be able to escape after the city was besieged.But think about it carefully, if Yanzhou is lost, even if he can save his life, he will not be able to get along in Xuantian Sect.Henry Zhang will not reuse him again, and everything he has got now will be lost.Let him start all over again, which is really sadder than death.

Besides, Jiao Bie refused to let him go out, if he forced him to leave, I'm afraid the two sides would tear their skins apart.

Maybe, I really can only give it a go...

After a while, he finally made up his mind and said: "Okay, General Jiao, then I will follow your words. I will stay in the city and deal with Zhu and Xie with you. It's just the concubines in your house and your concubines. Two sons and daughters, I have to trouble them to go out of the city with my disciples to avoid the limelight. General Jiao can rest assured that my subordinates will take good care of them."

Jiao Bie sighed secretly, without any objection.

Under the deterrence of a powerful enemy, this time, they all had to spend their money and work together.

=====

half a month later.

The gate of Yanzhou City was closed tightly, and a group of soldiers stood on the tower, guarding against the enemy's attack at any time.From where they were, they could clearly see the enemy camp on the plain not far away—the Zhu Xie coalition forces had camped outside the city a few days ago and encircled Yanzhou City.

A hundred meters away from the city, a group of soldiers lined up were chanting below the city.

"Listen, soldiers in the city! General Xie has an order, as long as you open the city and surrender immediately, except for Jiaobie and his followers of the cult, everyone else can ignore the previous suspicions and forgive the previous crimes! If you are still stubborn, wait On the day the city is broken, everyone will be treated as the same crime as the traitor!"

The guards on the tower were all his most trusted team selected by Jiao Bie, but even so, there were still many people who were shaken and struggling, but no one acted rashly.

Jiao Bie was also on the tower, but he stood in the shadows and didn't show up.There was no expression on his face, but the hands behind his back trembled slightly.

After a while, he turned around and walked to the other side of the tower, looking towards the inner city.

On the inner edge of the city wall, a large group of soldiers had already put on their armor and led them in formation.An officer ran up and reported to him: "General, the army has been lined up, please show me the general."

Hearing that, Jiao Bie turned his head and glanced at the sky behind him: "Wait for the signal outside. As soon as the rocket arrives, immediately open the city gate and attack!"

"Yes!"

Today is the day when they are going to burn the food and grass of Zhu Xie's coalition army.Originally, both Cui Cheng and Shi An hoped that after a period of time, after the Zhu Xie coalition army besieged the city for more than a month, they would gradually relax their vigilance, and then they would implement the plan.In this way, Shi An's subordinates have more time to gather more believers, and Cui Cheng can also make more comprehensive arrangements.But Jiao Bie insisted that the sooner the plan was implemented, the better—he really couldn't delay it.

Cui Cheng feigned surrender and reported to Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji that the people in the city were panicked and morale was low. On the one hand, this was to relax the vigilance of Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji, but on the other hand, it was indeed the truth.The soldiers in the city rebelled with Jiao Bie, how many of them really believed in Xuantian Sect?Most of them were forced to, or were deceived.

As someone who once betrayed Jiao Bie, would he not know what his subordinates were thinking?Everyone still followed him, mostly because they had already betrayed him once, and they were afraid that even if they went back, they would not be forgiven by Xie Wuji, so they could only bite the bullet and walk to the end.But now Xie Wuji's subordinates are shouting outside every day, saying that only Jiao Bie and the followers of the cult are to be pursued, and everyone else can ignore the past.The reason why there is still no reaction in the city is because everyone does not know what other people think and dare not act rashly.After a while, if Jiao Bie does not fall to the point of betraying relatives, there will be ghosts!

Therefore, Jiao Bie knew very well that he must not procrastinate any longer.While he can still call on his subordinates, he must act immediately!

The rocket is the signal they agreed with the Xuantian Cultists.Outside, the Xuantian believers would charge the Zhu Xie coalition army, and at the same time, they would shoot rockets that ignited the arrow feathers into the sky, accompanied by the sound of attacking drums.As long as they see and hear these signals, they should go out of the city at the same time and attack Zhu Xie's coalition forces with the Xuantian Cultists!

Jiao Bie returned to the watchtower of the city tower again, looking at the coalition forces in the distance.I don't know if it was because of nervousness or anticipation, or other emotions, his breathing became short of breath, and his palms were constantly sweating.

Win or lose, just fight today...

……

outside the city.

Jiao Bie stood on a big rock, looking in a certain direction.He was fully dressed in armor, as if ready to fight at any time.Behind him, the cronies who had come with him to the enemy had also lined up, waiting for orders.

His neck stretched out very long, showing the eagerness in his heart.The appointed time has passed, but the Xuantian Sect's people still haven't appeared.

After a while, I suddenly heard thunder rolling.It was a cloudy day today, but only the sound of thunder was heard, but no thunder or fire.After careful investigation, it turned out that it was not the thunder, but the thunder of horseshoes - a cavalry of hundreds of people was galloping towards them.

Jiao Bie was a little surprised, and put on a defensive posture vigilantly.

The cavalry quickly stopped in front of them, Jiao Bie saw clearly that the leader was Xie Wuji, and couldn't help being extremely surprised.

He hurriedly stepped forward to salute: "The last general kowtows to General Xie."

Xie Wuji rode on the horse, did not get off, looked at him condescendingly: "Jiao Bie, what are you waiting for here?"

Jiao Bie was stunned, feeling a sense of uneasiness in his heart, and said bravely, "Has the general forgotten? Today I am following the orders of the general and Fu Yin. After the third battalion retreats, I will go to the city to call for battle."

Rather than saying that it was ordered by Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji, it is better to say that it was his own request.Yesterday, he used the excuse that he could shake the morale of the army in the city, and specifically asked Zhu Nao and Xie Wuji for orders, so that today he could put on the armor, wear the weapons, and gather the troops.As soon as the cult army and the defenders in the city came to fight and the coalition troops were transferred away, he could immediately lead people to burn food and grass.He has already investigated the location of the grain and grass.

Xie Wuji said indifferently: "Really?"

Jiao Bie thought that Xie Wuji had forgotten about it and was waiting for an explanation, but Xie Wuji continued: "I hope Vice General Jiao is not waiting for someone. Otherwise, the person you are waiting for may not be able to wait."

"What, what?" Jiao Bie was stunned for a moment.

Before he came back to his senses, Xie Wuji suddenly took off the longbow on his back, and took out a long arrow from the quiver. Flint powder had already been applied to the arrow feather. He rubbed it lightly on the armband, and the arrow feather squeaked It burned up!He drew his bow and set his arrows, aiming at Jiaobie.

Jiao Bie broke out in a cold sweat and froze in place, not daring to move.

Xie Wuji sneered, and suddenly raised his bow upwards, loosened his fingers, and the burning rocket flew towards the sky!

As soon as the arrow came out, all the cavalry behind him untied their bows and shot arrows one after another. In the blink of an eye, a large group of rockets flew into the sky, illuminating the gloomy and thick clouds!At the same time, the rapid drumbeat also sounded, high-spirited and vigorous, making people excited.

Rockets, drums.These are the two signals that the cult members communicated with the soldiers and horses in the city today!

Jiao Bie realized that their news had been leaked, and suddenly his body shook, his whole body was icy cold...