Ji Han Liu Zhang

June, the sixth year of Jian'an.

Ever since Dong Zhuo rebelled, there has been endless strife and fighting in the world. This year is no exception. In Taiyuan, Hedong and other places in Bingzhou, the two major forces of Guanzhong and Hebei are either fighting or resisting each other, and are in chaos.

Hedong, jade bi.

On the top of the city wall, Gan Ning and Shen Mi looked at the Hebei troops camped by the Fen River, their eyes flickering as if they were thinking about something.

Not long after, Gan Ning spoke first: "The news from Hebei says that Qu Yi is Yuan Shao's top general. He was the first to break through the enemy's formation and was fearless. The White Horse Volunteers, who were once famous all over the world, were defeated by Qu Yi. His name is so famous that my ears are numb from hearing it..."

"Heh." Gan Ning chuckled and said, "But today, Qu Yi led more than 10,000 troops here, but he stopped and did not move forward. He did not attack the city, nor did he challenge. He just stayed there to defend. This really disappointed me."

"The jade bi is as strong as a city wall." Shen Mi never spoke much, so he only gave a brief explanation for Qu Yi's behavior that went against his nature.

Gan Ning put away his smile and nodded slightly.

Indeed, as Shen Mi said, Yubi City is strong. In the past, Yuan Shao led an army of 100,000 here, but he had to be stopped at the foot of Yubi City and left in disappointment. What's more, today, Qu Yi only led more than 10,000 troops here.

As it was, sending troops to attack Yubi was a very bad idea for Qu Yi's side.

But since Yubi City was not taken, Qu Yi's party did not dare to move forward and could only stay here.

Unable to advance or retreat, this is the dilemma that Qu Yi's side is facing now. On the contrary, the current situation is perfect for Gan Ning.

The Art of War states that a good warrior controls others rather than being controlled by others.

In simple terms, in a war, one should keep the situation under one's control. When to fight, when to withdraw troops, and when to hold the position should all be determined according to one's own wishes, rather than being manipulated by the enemy and letting the initiative of the war be in the hands of the enemy.

Just like the current war, Gan Ning firmly controls the initiative of fighting and peace. If Qu Yi wants to fight, Gan Ning must fight back. If Qu Yi wants to retreat, he must guard against Gan Ning's pursuit. Whether to fight or retreat, the opportunity is in Gan Ning's hands.

into the night.

"Gao Gan has led tens of thousands of troops to Taiyuan. The war in Taiyuan is raging right now, and we have plenty of troops and food in Hedong. We should send troops to help Taiyuan." Shen Mi told Gan Ning what he was thinking: "But Qu Yi is stationed here, so it's not easy for us to send troops. We should defeat Qu Yi as soon as possible, drive away the enemy, and then send troops to help Taiyuan."

"Wenyuan, I thought so too." Gan Ning nodded in response.

"However, as far as driving Qu Yi away is concerned, it is not the best strategy. I intend to keep Qu Yi in Hedong and prevent him from returning to Shangdang."

There was murderous intent in Gan Ning's tone and infinite killing intent was hidden in his eyes.

"Oh?!" Shen Mi leaned forward slightly, pretending to listen attentively: "Xingba, what are your plans? Tell me."

"I will have to trouble you, Wenyuan, to carry out my plan." Gan Ning smiled.

Shen Mi patted his chest and said loudly: "Xingba, just tell us what you want. Just leave Qu Yi behind. It won't be hard or difficult." Qu Yi was the best general under Yuan Shao, and he would be far inferior to him. Therefore, for Shen Mi, he knew that if he could keep Qu Yi's life in Hedong, it would be a great achievement. Even if he was not the first contributor in this battle, his assistance was also a great achievement.

Therefore, Shen Mi's eyes were burning as he stared at Gan Ning, waiting for Gan Ning to give his plan.

Gan Ning smiled and told Shen Mi his plan.

As Gan Ning explained, Shen Mi's eyes gradually brightened. Occasionally, he nodded in affirmation. At the end, Shen Mi clapped his hands and sighed, "Qu Yi is known as a brave general, but this time he will not be able to return to Shangdang in one piece."

"Of course. Even if we can't keep Qu Yi this time, most of Qu Yi's soldiers will be lost here." Gan Ning smiled.

Shen Mi smiled in response: "With this brilliant plan, Qu Yi will surely be captured by us. It will be difficult for him to escape."

On the second day, when the sky had just brightened, it was still dark all around. The gate of Yubi City creaked open a crack, enough for a cavalryman to escape. Then several knights filed out from the crack and left Yubi City in the darkness of the early morning.

After several knights fled and their figures drifted away into the distance, the gate of Yubi City closed again in an instant. After the dust raised by the opening and closing of the gate settled, everything returned to normal, as if the gate had never been opened.

The movements of these knights were detected by the rangers released by Qu Yi, but they did not rush forward to kill them. After all, their mission was to investigate, not to fight in battle. They only passed the news to the main camp.

At that moment, the sun rose from the eastern mountain, and the morning light spread across the earth.

A loud announcement was heard in the central army tent where Qu Yi was standing: "Report, the scouts sent a message saying that several riders ran out of Yubi City this morning and no one knows where they went."

After a long while, there was no response from the central army tent, so the lieutenant who came to report had to report loudly again.

At this time, an echo came from the central army tent, but it was an extremely unpleasant voice: "Do you still need to report such a small matter?" There was some helplessness in the words.

In the central army tent, Qu Yi was awakened by the report of the lieutenant. He was helpless and looked depressed.

It should be noted that when two armies are fighting, it is normal for cavalry to move back and forth. So, there is nothing worth reporting about the fact that several cavalry rushed out of Yubi City, Qu Yi thought.

The information that Qu Yi wanted to get was about the large-scale mobilization of the Qin army, the direction of the mobilization, the time of the mobilization, and the number of troops mobilized. These were information worthy of attention and could be used to find opportunities for war.

Unfortunately, the Qin army adopted a defensive posture and did not make any easy moves, which disappointed Qu Yi. He had no intention of attacking the Yubi City. He only wanted to seek an opportunity for a field battle in order to defeat the Qin army in one fell swoop.

"Not as expected." Qu Yi sighed. The current war situation was not to his liking and made him feel bad. Moreover, if the troops were stationed under a fortified city for a long time, the division would become old and the soldiers would be tired. By then, it would be difficult to withdraw the troops or return to the division.

As for Qu Yi, he was unwilling to retreat when he failed to break through the Yubi and defeat the Qin army. After all, he had mobilized so many troops here, and if he retreated without success, it would greatly damage his reputation as a brave general.

Unable to advance or retreat, Qu Yi felt like a mouse in a bellows, blocked at both ends and being bullied from both ends, with no clear way out.

Hesitation, uncertainty, helplessness, all kinds of feelings surged into Qu Yi's heart. (End of this chapter)