Honglou: This bastard is too persuasive.

Chapter 653 Continue
"Enough!" The Goguryeo king shouted angrily, interrupting Park Yong's words, "I spent a lot of manpower and material resources to build the city and set up defenses, and this is how you defend it? Three thousand defenders were defeated so easily!"

At this time, the counselor Cui Wenyuan bowed slightly and said softly: "Your Majesty, the most urgent task now is to discuss countermeasures, not to pursue responsibility. After Jia Changsheng took over Fengyu City, his morale must have been greatly boosted, and his sphere of influence has also been further expanded. The situation that follows is extremely unfavorable to us."

The King of Goguryeo took a deep breath, suppressed his anger, and nodded slightly: "Then according to your opinion, what should we do?"

Cui Wenyuan pondered for a moment and said, "After Jia Changsheng's victory this time, he will certainly pursue the victory. Judging from his character and the current situation, he is likely to continue to attack our other cities to the north, especially those that are connected to Fengyu City and have relatively weak defenses, such as Qingxi Town and Shixia Pass. We need to strengthen the defenses of these two places as soon as possible, dispatch elite troops to garrison there, and set up checkpoints along the way to keep track of the movements of Jia Changsheng's army in a timely manner."

"No!" General Hong Lie objected loudly, "If we transfer a large number of troops to Qingxi Town and Shixia Pass, the defenses of other places will be empty. If Jia Changsheng makes a feint to the east and attacks our rear, we will be in greater danger."

As soon as these words were spoken, there was a burst of discussion in the hall. Everyone held different opinions. Some supported Cui Wenyuan's point of view, believing that the defense of key locations should be strengthened; others agreed with Hong Lie's statement, worrying that the mobilization of troops would leave the rear empty.

The King of Goguryeo frowned, listening to the arguments of the crowd, hesitant in his heart. After a long time, he looked at the old general Li Sheng who had been silent all the time: "General Li, you have fought for many years and have rich experience. Tell me what you think."

Li Sheng stepped out slowly, his eyes calm and resolute: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, we might as well take two-handed preparations. On the one hand, according to Cui's advice, send some elite troops to Qingxi Town and Shixia Pass to strengthen the defense, but do not concentrate all the troops there; on the other hand, draw troops from other cities to form a mobile force and hide in the rear. Once Jia Changsheng's army changes the direction of attack, the mobile force can quickly attack and support the attacked area. At the same time, we must also strengthen intelligence gathering to grasp Jia Changsheng's next action plan as accurately as possible."

The King of Goguryeo nodded slightly, with a hint of appreciation in his eyes: "General Li's plan is quite comprehensive, let's act accordingly. Park Yong, you are to blame for the loss of Fengyu City this time, but considering your past achievements, I will give you a chance to redeem yourself and make meritorious contributions. You lead a team to gather the remaining soldiers near Fengyu City, and then harass Jia Changsheng's army in the rear and cut off their supply lines. If you can make some achievements, I can forgive you this time."

Pu Yong was delighted and kowtowed to express his gratitude: "Thank you, Your Majesty! I will fight to the death to atone for my previous sins."

"In addition," the Goguryeo king continued, "Cui Wenyuan, you are responsible for intelligence gathering. You must use all means to find out Jia Changsheng's true intentions and movements. Hong Lie, you go to reorganize the defenses of each city, strengthen the training of soldiers, and be ready to respond to Jia Changsheng's attack at any time."

Everyone responded in unison: "As you command!"

In the following days, Goguryeo was busy. The troops heading to Qingxi Town and Shixia Pass set out quickly, strengthening the construction of fortifications along the way; the mobile forces were also intensively organized and trained; Park Yong led the remaining troops to lurk in the mountains and forests around Fengyu City, looking for opportunities to attack Jia Changsheng's supply team.

However, Jia Changsheng's army seemed to have disappeared, and there was no new movement. This made the King of Goguryeo and his ministers even more uneasy, wondering what conspiracy Jia Changsheng was planning.

"Your Majesty, Jia Changsheng has not made any movement for such a long time. Could he be waiting for reinforcements, or planning a larger-scale attack?" Cui Wenyuan said worriedly.

The Goguryeo king's expression became more serious. "No matter what he plans, we must not let our guard down. Continue to strengthen intelligence reconnaissance and report immediately if there is any movement."

As the days passed, the tense atmosphere enveloped Goguryeo like a haze. Everyone knew that Jia Changsheng's next attack could come at any time, and this time, they had to be fully prepared, otherwise, the entire Goguryeo would face a catastrophe...

Just as everyone was anxiously waiting, news suddenly came from the front: Jia Changsheng's army began to move, but their marching direction was somewhat unexpected. This news made the King of Goguryeo fall into deep thought again. What exactly was Jia Changsheng thinking? Did he really change the strategic goal, or was there another conspiracy? The discussion in the hall sounded again, and this time, it was about the life and death of Goguryeo...d
Jia Changsheng's game of wits
In the main tent, candlelight flickered, Jia Changsheng sat at the head, his eyes deep and sharp, scanning the generals and counselors gathered below. This meeting was about the key decision of the next strategy, everyone knew its importance, and they all held their breath, waiting for Jia Changsheng to speak.

Jia Changsheng coughed lightly, breaking the silence in the tent: "Everyone, now that Fengyu City is in our hands, this is just the beginning of our great cause. But Goguryeo will definitely not give up and will definitely strengthen the defense of each city. Next, we have to plan a bigger action to make Goguryeo unable to figure out our true intentions."

After saying that, he looked at the military advisor Xu Shu beside him and nodded slightly. Xu Shu understood, stood up, and gently waved the feather fan in his hand: "My lord, judging from the current situation, if we directly attack other important towns of Goguryeo, we will inevitably encounter their stubborn resistance. In my opinion, we might as well adopt the strategy of making a feint to the east and attacking the west. We spread the word to the outside world, pretending to continue to march north and attack their northern defense line, so that Goguryeo's main forces will be concentrated in the north. In fact, we secretly dispatch elite troops to raid their Liubiancheng. Although Liubiancheng is located in a remote area, it has an important strategic position. Once it is captured, Goguryeo's defense line will be in chaos."

As soon as Xu Shu finished speaking, a discussion broke out in the tent. The vanguard general Zhao Meng frowned and said, "Military Advisor, this plan is brilliant, but Goguryeo also has its share of wise men. If they see through our plan, won't we be in a passive position? Besides, how can we convince Goguryeo that we will go north?"

Jia Changsheng raised his lips and revealed a confident smile: "General Zhao's words are not without reason, but I have a plan. We can first send a small number of troops to march north with great fanfare, deliberately leaving some traces of the march along the way to create the illusion that our main force is heading north. At the same time, let the soldiers spread some words in the camp about attacking important cities in the north, deliberately letting the Goguryeo spies hear it."

At this time, Qian Feng, who was in charge of intelligence, also stood up and said, "My Lord, we have also planted some spies inside Goguryeo. We can let them pass on some false information at the right time to mislead Goguryeo's decision-makers. For example, we can reveal that we are preparing a large amount of winter clothes and food to cope with the severe cold climate in the north, so that Goguryeo will mistakenly think that we will fight in the north for a long time." Everyone nodded and thought that this plan was feasible. However, veteran general Sun Zhen expressed his concerns: "Even so, we may be discovered by Goguryeo patrols on the way to raid Liubiancheng. The terrain around Liubiancheng is complicated. How should we choose our marching route to ensure concealment?"

Xu Shu walked to the map calmly and pointed at a winding path on the map with his feather fan. "General Sun, please look, although this path is rugged and difficult to travel, it is extremely hidden. The surrounding mountains and forests are dense and difficult to detect. We can select elite light cavalry and quickly raid Liubian City along this path. In addition, we can arrange some small troops at key locations along the way in advance to clear out possible Goguryeo patrols and ensure the safety of the main force's march."

Jia Changsheng looked at the map with a gleam in his eyes. "Military Advisor Xu's plan is very much to my liking. However, before we attack Liubian City, we still need to make adequate preparations. The walls of Liubian City are strong, and the defenders inside the city should not be underestimated. We must prepare enough siege equipment, including ladders, catapults, battering rams, etc. In addition, we must send people to investigate the defense layout of Liubian City in advance and find out the weak links in its defense so that we can get twice the result with half the effort when attacking the city."

Everyone took orders and began to discuss the details of the preparations. Li Feng, who was in charge of logistics, said, "My lord, building siege equipment requires a large amount of wood and iron. Although our material reserves are sufficient, it may be a bit tight to supply two operations at the same time."

Jia Changsheng thought for a moment and said, "We should transfer some materials from other non-critical strongholds to prioritize the forging of siege equipment. At the same time, we should have the soldiers cut down trees in the surrounding mountains and forests to make up for the shortage of wood. In addition, we should give generous rewards to the blacksmiths to encourage them to speed up the forging process."

In the following days, Jia Changsheng's army began to prepare intensively. A small part of the troops marched northward in the daytime, with flags flying and drums beating, deliberately creating a strong momentum. The main force quietly marched towards Liubiancheng at night, moving forward cautiously along the hidden path.

Along the way, the small troops successfully eliminated several patrols of Goguryeo, ensuring that the whereabouts of the main force were not leaked. At the same time, the spies inside Goguryeo also passed on the false information that Jia Changsheng was going north to the generals of Goguryeo according to the plan, causing Goguryeo to transfer a large number of troops to the northern defense line.

As Jia Changsheng's army gradually approached Liubiancheng, the defenders of Liubiancheng were still unaware of the impending danger. They still followed the order of the King of Goguryeo to strengthen the defense in the north, and the defense of Liubiancheng was only maintained at the daily level.

Finally, Jia Changsheng's army arrived at Liubian City. Looking at the city in front of him, Jia Changsheng was secretly happy that everything was going according to plan. He immediately ordered the soldiers to quickly deploy siege equipment and prepare to launch a surprise attack on Liubian City.

"My lord, everything is ready!" Zhao Meng came forward to report excitedly.

Jia Changsheng nodded, his eyes revealing a firm determination: "Okay, today is the day we take down Liubian City. Soldiers, listen to my order, attack the city with all your strength. If you take down Liubian City, I will reward you handsomely!"

Suddenly, the trumpets sounded, and Jia Changsheng's army rushed towards Liubian City like a tide. Catapults continuously threw huge stones into the city, smashing some fortifications on the city wall; ladders were also set up, and the soldiers bravely climbed up and started a fierce battle with the defenders on the city wall.

The defenders of Liubian City were caught off guard by the sudden attack and fell into panic for a while. Although they fought desperately, they gradually found it difficult to hold on under the fierce attack of Jia Changsheng's army.

After a fierce battle, Jia Changsheng's army finally broke through the gate of Liubian City and poured into the city. The defenders in the city fled everywhere, and Jia Changsheng successfully occupied Liubian City and won the battle of feinting to the east and attacking in the west.

This victory not only allowed Jia Changsheng's power to expand further, but also put Goguryeo into a very passive situation. Jia Changsheng's wisdom and decisiveness allowed him to gradually emerge in this chaotic world and become a force that all forces dared not underestimate...

The atmosphere in the main hall of the Goguryeo Palace was so oppressive that it was suffocating. The Goguryeo King sat high on the throne, his face livid, his eyes glaring at the generals and counselors kneeling on the ground below, his hands tightly grasping the armrests, his knuckles turning white.

"Tell me! What is going on? In such a short period of time, Fengyu City and Liubian City fell one after another. What are you guys doing for a living?" The roar of the King of Goguryeo echoed in the hall, making everyone's ears buzz.

Li Yong, the general in charge of border defense, raised his head tremblingly, his face full of shame and fear: "Your Majesty, Jia Changsheng is too cunning. When he attacked Fengyu City, he used a trick to disperse our forces. We fought desperately but still failed to hold it. As for Liubian City, he used the strategy of making a feint to the east and attacking in the west. Our main force was transferred to the north, but he succeeded in a surprise attack..."

"Hmph! Excuses!" The King of Goguryeo snorted angrily and interrupted Li Yong. "I have raised you soldiers and generals. You are well fed and well fed on weekdays, but you are so vulnerable at the critical moment! Now that two cities have been lost, the gates of Goguryeo are wide open. The situation is precarious. Tell me, what should we do next?"

There was a dead silence in the hall, and everyone kept their heads down, fearing that they would offend the furious King of Goguryeo. After a long while, the counselor Cui Hao said softly, "Your Majesty, the most urgent thing is to stabilize the situation first. Jia Changsheng has just captured two cities, so he will definitely need time to consolidate the defense line and appease the people. We can use this time to readjust the deployment of troops and strengthen the defense of the remaining cities."

(End of this chapter)