Three Kingdoms: Wolong's brother-in-law, tricking Liu Bei into seizing Jingzhou

At this very moment.

A Tiger Guard rushed into the hall, his expression hurried, and knelt on one knee to report:

"Your Majesty, General Zhao Guang requests an audience!"

In an instant, the ministers who had been discussing the matter fervently in the hall all stopped talking, their eyes all focused on this, their faces full of doubt.

You should know that General Zhao Guang shouldn't have been in Gaochang, right?
He should have assisted General Ma Su in guarding the strategic western frontier and stabilizing the border for the court.

But why would he suddenly rush back to Luoyang City, covered in dust and grime?
The ministers looked at each other, their eyes filled with confusion, and whispered among themselves, making various guesses.

Liu Bei sat upright on the dragon throne, his sword-like eyebrows slightly furrowed, a hint of majesty flashing in his eyes, and spoke:

"Summon Zhao Guang to the palace immediately!"

In a short while, Zhao Guang staggered and almost stumbled into the hall.

He looked haggard, and his clothes were slightly disheveled, clearly indicating that he had traveled a long and arduous journey.

"His Majesty!"

As soon as Zhao Guang entered the hall, he knelt down with a thud and cried out in a sorrowful voice.

"The Yuezhi army has invaded, and Gaochang has already fallen!"

Zhao Guang burst into tears, his mournful cries echoing throughout the hall.

These words immediately caused an uproar in the hall.

The ministers were all shocked by this sudden news, their eyes wide with astonishment and unease.

Xiao Fang's expression changed slightly, his heart filled with doubt, and he couldn't help but ask:
"Ma Su has always been quite resourceful, and he has tens of thousands of elite troops under his command. How could he have lost the city so easily?"

"Reporting to Prime Minister Xiao, the Yuezhi Empress has mobilized the entire nation's army and personally led her troops to conquer us."

She surrounded our army, putting it in a desperate situation.

Moreover, Sima Yi actually had the Yuezhi people replicate the trebuchet, which was incredibly powerful and blasted down the city walls, allowing the Yuezhi army to breach the city walls and enter.

Despite his grief, Zhao Guangqiang recounted the whole story.

Upon hearing this, the ministers were all astonished, and the murmurs among them grew increasingly noisy.

"Sima Yi actually built trebuchets for the Yuezhi?"

"Cao Rui, a Han Chinese, is willing to be the lackey of the Yuezhi Empress. He is utterly shameless!"

The ministers' faces were filled with astonishment and anger, and they cursed loudly with righteous indignation.

As Liu Bei sat on the dragon throne, a murderous aura suddenly ignited in his eyes.

Cao Rui, a Han Chinese, betrayed the court and became a lackey of the Yuezhi.

Sima Yi was even more despicable, as he offered up a thunderbolt chariot to help the Yuezhi Empress bombard the city.

These traitors who sell out their country for personal gain are truly heinous and outrageous!
"You two scoundrels!"

Liu Bei's eyes widened in anger, and he shouted sternly:
"If I don't tear you all to pieces, I am not worthy to be the emperor!"

The ministers were also outraged upon hearing this.

Upon seeing this, Guan Yu quickly cupped his hands in greeting, his expression solemn, and said:

"Your Majesty, Gaochang has now fallen, and the Yuezhi people will surely head straight for Yumen Pass next."

Yumen Pass is an important gateway to the west of our dynasty. If it falls, Liangzhou will be in grave danger.

Your Majesty should immediately send troops on a western expedition, otherwise Liangzhou may be plunged into utter ruin!

"It makes sense!"

Liu Bei nodded slightly, deeply agreeing, and decisively gave the order:

"Jinglue, you must hurry to Chang'an and lead the vanguard to attack Yumen Pass!"

Xiao Fang immediately accepted the order and was about to turn and leave when he suddenly stopped, worried about Ma Su's safety, and asked:

"When Gaochang fell, you managed to break through the siege, but what about Ma Su?"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Guang sighed deeply, his eyes filled with sorrow and helplessness, and slowly said:
"When the city fell, Ma Zhenxi fought desperately to resist the enemy, creating an opportunity for me to break through the siege."

Although I successfully broke through the encirclement, Ma Zhenxi's fate remains unknown, and his whereabouts are still unknown.

After a sigh, Xiao Fang said nothing more, suppressing his worries as he bid farewell to Liu Bei and hurriedly headed towards Guanzhong.

Meanwhile, in Zhaowu City, the capital of Zhangye Prefecture, a fierce battle was unfolding.

The sound of cannons was deafening, as if it would tear the entire sky apart;

The sounds of battle shook the earth; shouts of killing and screams of agony mingled together, sending chills down one's spine.

The Yuezhi army is launching a fierce attack on Zhangye, the capital of the Yuezhi government.

They surged in like a tidal wave, their momentum overwhelming.

After conquering Gaochang, Empress Pinu led her army across the Jade Gate Pass, advancing with unstoppable momentum and penetrating deep into the heart of Liangzhou.

With the "thunderbolt chariots" provided by Cao Rui, the Yuezhi army was invincible, leaving devastation in its wake.

In order to capture the counties before reinforcements arrived, Empress Pinu led a light army ahead, leaving her main force of nearly 100,000 men far behind Dunhuang.

However, today, Empress Pinu and Cao Rui found themselves to have kicked a hornet's nest.

The governor of Zhangye during the Han Dynasty was a young military general named Guanqiu Jian.

He was very knowledgeable about how to defend a city.

Last night, Guanqiu Jian mobilized soldiers and civilians to splash water on the city walls before the Yuezhi army could bombard the city.

Taking advantage of the harsh winter cold, before dawn, Zhaowu City was already covered with a thick layer of ice.

This ice armor was incredibly hard, as if it had clothed the city in a sturdy suit of armor, meaning that Guanqiu Jian had made the city several times thicker out of thin air.

At daybreak, the Yuezhi army was astonished to see the frozen Zhaowu City.

They had never seen such a strange sight before, and they were all terrified.

Cao Rui and Sima Yi knew in their hearts that they had encountered a master.

Guanqiu Jian truly lived up to his reputation.

Empress Vinu, however, was full of disdain. Confident in her superior numbers, she did not take Guanqiu Jian seriously at all and immediately ordered a barrage of attacks with trebuchets.

"Boom boom boom!"

Countless stones rained down on the frozen city, and for a moment, the whistling sound of the stones echoed across the surrounding area.

Ice shards rose into the air, fluttering down like snowflakes, burying the entire city.

The shelling finally stopped when the stones missed their target.

As the ice shards fell, the city came into view once more.

A commotion arose, and all the Yuezhi soldiers showed expressions of astonishment.

Queen Vinu's eyes were also filled with disappointment.

The city of Zhaowu was riddled with ice craters, but the city walls remained standing, as if demonstrating against the Yuezhi army.

"Even a trebuchet couldn't break through it, how hateful!"

Anger flashed in Empress Vinu's eyes, and her teeth clenched so tightly they made a grinding sound.

Cao Rui frowned deeply and gritted his teeth, saying:

"It's unbelievable that Guanqiu Jian has such strength to defend the city!"

I originally thought that with the trebuchets, we could easily breach the city, but I never expected him to thwart it like this.

Sima Yi sighed deeply and said with emotion:
"The Han state is indeed full of talented people, and Guanqiu Jian is one of them."

It seems that this campaign against Liangzhou will not be an easy task.

Both the ruler and his minister wore helpless expressions, secretly lamenting their predicament.

Empress Vinu gave a cold laugh, a ruthless glint flashing in her eyes:
"I do not believe that a mere ice wall can withstand my military might."

Even without using trebuchets, I, the Emperor, will take Zhaowu City by force!

After saying this, Empress Vinu ordered the follow-up army to arrive as soon as possible.

She intends to use her superior forces to raze Zhaowu City to the ground in one fell swoop. (End of Chapter)