The Prodigal Son

Pingyuan County, in the northern part of Gongzhou.

General Shi Hong, the Northern Garrison General of Chu, and his deputy Baili Yunshan were staring intently at the sand table in front of them when a messenger suddenly rushed in.

"General, something terrible has happened!"

The messenger looked flustered.

"What's wrong now?"

Shi Hong raised his head, looking exhausted.

During this period, all sorts of bad news came one after another.

Even he, known for his composure and nicknamed "Stone Buddha," is getting overwhelmed by all sorts of bad news.

Meeting Shi Hong's gaze, the messenger hurriedly reported: "The Ning people have successively occupied the two prefectures of Shiqi and Yuechi, and their troops are pressing towards Mengtang Pass!"

Upon hearing the messenger's report, Shi Hong and Baili Yunshan both breathed a sigh of relief.

They thought something terrible had happened again!

That's it?

Shi Hong's gaze swept across the sand table, and he asked calmly, "How many troops does the Ning people have?"

The messenger immediately replied, "It should be around ten thousand men."

"knew!"

Shi Hong nodded slightly and waved for the messenger to leave.

Watching the messenger depart, Baili Yunshan's face showed a hint of admiration. "Just as the general predicted, the Ning people still intend to invade Yazhou, disrupt our rear, and force us to withdraw our troops to reinforce it..."

In fact, Shi Hong had long anticipated that Ning Ren would take this step.

Previously, wasn't it by unexpectedly invading the rear of Yiling in Min State that Qin Yu turned Min State upside down?

To them, Qin Yu is simply repeating the same old tricks.

If the Ning people want to invade Yazhou, they either need to capture Mengtang Pass, which is located at the border of Gongzhou and Yazhou, or they need to cross Gongzhou, enter Bizhou from the Mangkou Gorge to the west of Gongzhou, and then enter Yazhou from Bizhou.

After anticipating the Ning people's next move, Shi Hong dispatched 20,000 troops from the front to Mengtang Pass in advance. The imperial court also urgently dispatched 10,000 troops to Mengtang Pass, and another 30,000 troops will arrive in succession.

Mengtang Pass now has 30,000 troops, while the Ning people only have a little over 10,000 troops. It is almost impossible for them to capture Mengtang Pass in a short period of time.

Even if they capture Mengtang Pass, they will suffer heavy losses and will no longer be able to cause trouble in their rear.

If the Ning people want to travel through the Mangkou Gorge, they must first get past them.

Under these circumstances, they do not need to worry too much about the enemy force that is attacking from Yuwang Pass.

Shi Hong shifted his gaze from the sand table and said quietly, "The war cannot be allowed to escalate any further. I hope His Majesty will send someone to negotiate peace as soon as possible!"

The 70,000-strong army that came to support the Min Kingdom has been completely wiped out, and even Liang Jingzhe died in the Min Kingdom.

In the coming years, the State of Chu will need to recuperate and heal its wounds.

Baili Yunshan nodded in agreement, then asked with some concern, "General, do you think His Majesty will swallow this insult?"

"You have to swallow it even if you can't!"

Shi Hong walked over and sat down, cursing angrily, "It's all because of those treacherous officials in the court that my Great Chu has suffered such heavy losses! A bunch of sycophantic villains..."

Speaking of this, Shi Hong was furious.

He also knew that in this great struggle for supremacy, the State of Chu had to march its troops north.

The overall strategy of Chu allying with Min was without any problems.

But the timing was wrong!

He always believed that Chu should maintain its relationship with Ning and secretly support pro-Chu forces in Min, waiting until Bei Qi and Ning were both weakened before taking action.

If we don't move, we won't move; but if we do, we'll deliver a fatal blow to Ningguo!

However, the treacherous officials in the court seized upon His Majesty's eagerness for quick success and profit, urging him to take action against Ningguo at an inopportune time.

Now, Ningguo may take the opportunity to annex Minguo, leaving Gongzhou, this gateway region, vulnerable to attacks from both sides.

The State of Chu also suffered heavy losses, and it would take at least several years to make up for the loss of its 70,000 troops!

Even if a real opportunity comes, they probably won't be able to seize it!

This is a classic case of shooting oneself in the foot!

"Ugh!"

Baili Yunshan sighed softly, saying with deep concern, "I hope this defeat will sober His Majesty up a bit!"

……

After occupying Yuechi County, Qin Yu halted his advance.

He also received news that the State of Chu had deployed a large force at Mengtang Pass.

When Xue Lie walked in, he saw Qin Yu staring intently at the map.

Xue Lie stepped forward, waved his hand in front of Qin Yu, and teased, "What mischief are you up to now? You're not thinking of attacking Mengtang Pass, are you?"

Qin Yu snapped out of his reverie and shook his head, saying, "I don't have any particular interest in Mengtang Pass. However, I'm wondering if we could join forces with Yun Zhao to wipe out the main enemy force in northern Gongzhou! That way, the entire Gongzhou, and even Bizhou, would fall into our hands..."

If it really comes to that, it won't be about negotiating with the State of Chu anymore!

Instead, the State of Chu came running to sue for peace!

They don't even need to return the occupied land to the State of Chu!

Hearing Qin Yu's words, Xue Lie's eyelids twitched suddenly, and he quickly advised, "Don't do anything reckless, kid!"

"How can this be called reckless?"

Qin Yu grinned, "Didn't you say that we need to occupy more Chu territory to obtain the greatest benefits?"

"I……"

Xue Lie's face twitched violently, and he suddenly wanted to raise his hand and slap himself.

That bastard is in his prime right now, why did I have to tell him all that!

Don't let this bastard become a runaway horse, or things will get really bad!

"Look at you."

Qin Yu grinned and pointed to the map, saying, "According to the current intelligence, there should be around 50,000 to 60,000 enemy troops in northern Gongzhou! Yun Zhao also has 90,000 troops under his command. If we join forces with Yun Zhao, it is entirely possible to wipe out the main force of the enemy in northern Gongzhou. The current weather is also perfect for attacking Chu..."

Qin Yu spoke very seriously, but Xue Lie became more and more flustered as he listened.

"Ancestor, that's enough!"

Xue Lie yanked Qin Yu away from the map. "We just want to gain more benefits, not become mortal enemies with Chu! If you really occupy Gongzhou and Bizhou, Chu will be fighting us to the death for years to come..."

The capital of the Chu Kingdom was separated from Yazhou by only one Feizhou.

Once they occupy Gongzhou and Bizhou, the threat to the capital of Chu will be significant.

Under such circumstances, it would be strange if the State of Chu didn't fight desperately!

Although the State of Chu did not have a large military force, its war potential was definitely not small!

Once the State of Chu starts to fight desperately, Da Ning is likely to get bogged down in a quagmire of war.

Moreover, their trade with the State of Chu would inevitably be interrupted!

Right now, Da Ning still needs Chu's grain; it's not the time to completely break ties with Chu!

Qin Yu tilted his head and thought for a moment, then chuckled, "We can also make them offer enough benefits in exchange for us returning Gongzhou and Bizhou!"

"Forget it! Even if His Majesty is willing at that point, we might not be!"

Xue Lie gently shook his head. "Right now, we've occupied two counties of Chu with almost no losses, and we've already gained considerable benefits. There's no need to escalate the war further! This current situation is the best possible one..."

Xue Lie was genuinely afraid that Qin Yu was too eager for quick success and instant benefits, so he patiently tried to persuade Qin Yu.

The State of Chu has never been Da Ning's main enemy!

The only true enemies of Da Ning are Bei Qi and Yan!

Once they've dealt with Beiqi and Yan, Chu will be theirs sooner or later!

Hearing Xue Lie's persuasion, Qin Yu couldn't help but smile jokingly: "You're the one who wants to hit me, and you're also the one who doesn't..."

Xue Lie's face stiffened for a moment, then he realized what he meant. "You brat, you never intended to attack the enemy's main force. You're just trying to scare me, aren't you?"

"Not entirely!"

Qin Yu's lips curled into a smile. "I was thinking, we can get moving and put some pressure on the Chu army! If we can gain an advantage, great; if not, consider it training!"

Ok?

Xue Lie lowered his head in thought, then nodded and smiled: "That's a good idea! Even if we can't kill them, we should at least scare them. If we can get any benefits, we should try to get Chu to negotiate with us as soon as possible!"