The Prodigal Son

For the next two days, Yan Wujiu remained inactive.

Because Yan Wujiu failed to respond effectively to Ning Ren's assassination attempts and rumors, rumors about Yan Wujiu himself gradually increased.

Some people even gave Yan Wujiu a nickname: Yan the Turtle.

There are also rumors that because Zong Bi's troops had been completely wiped out, Yan Wujiu was afraid of the Ning people and dared not go into battle.

Some even say that Yan Wujiu is secretly negotiating with Ning Ren, planning to join forces with Ning Ren to attack Hu Yao and seize power.

Upon learning of these rumors, Yan Wujiu couldn't help but curse the Ning people in his heart for being despicable and shameless.

"Your Highness!"

In the morning, while Yan Wujiu was still eating, Cheng Lin, the commander of the personal guard, rushed over to report.

Yan Wujiu put down his chopsticks, frowned, and asked, "What happened?"

Cheng Lin glanced at him cautiously, his expression grave, and said, "We just received news that Panshi Fortress has been confirmed to have been breached by the Ning army..."

Although Yan Wujiu was mentally prepared for this, he still couldn't help but tremble upon hearing the news.

Ning Ren did not lie!

His last hope was completely shattered!

Next, the Ning army will be pressing in!

Cheng Lin slightly raised his eyes, looking at Yan Wujiu's expression, and hesitated to speak.

Yan Wujiu noticed his expression and asked, full of irritation, "Is there anything else?"

Cheng Lin felt a pang of sorrow and lowered his head, saying, "I just received news that a rebellion has broken out in a county in Pangzhou. Hundreds of rioters, led by a group of江湖人士 (jianghu figures), stormed into the county town. The county magistrate and a number of county officials were killed, and they also looted the county's granary and treasury..."

Upon hearing Cheng Lin's words, Yan Wujiu's heart skipped a beat.

A few hundred bandits were nothing, nothing at all under normal circumstances.

But this kind of thing happening at this critical juncture is quite troublesome.

He knew the true situation within the Yan Kingdom better than anyone else. He worried that this was just the beginning, and that such incidents would become more and more frequent, eventually spiraling out of control.

After a brief moment of thought, Yan Wujiu immediately ordered, "You will personally lead two thousand Flying Fang Cavalry to completely annihilate this band of rebels for me as quickly as possible!"

"what?"

Cheng Lin stared at Yan Wujiu in astonishment.

Does this mean he has to lead two thousand Flying Fang Cavalry to deal with it?

"Go quickly! Make sure it's done cleanly and efficiently!"

Yan Wujiu said sternly, "We must make an example of them to show those with ulterior motives that we still have the ability to quell the unrest! Otherwise, the chaos will only escalate!"

"yes!"

Understanding Yan Wujiu's intention, Cheng Lin quickly accepted the order and left.

Yan Wujiu lost his appetite and stood up in a daze, pacing back and forth.

A profound sense of powerlessness welled up in Yan Wujiu's heart.

Beset by internal and external troubles!

The Ning army's massive advance has already exhausted them.

If they start a fire in their own backyard, it will be too difficult to win this battle!

The key issue is that they know exactly where the internal problems lie, but they have no way to solve them and can only watch helplessly as the situation deteriorates further.

It's not even winter yet!

If winter comes, countless starving and freezing people will rebel in order to survive!

A large number of people will die then, and next spring, there might be another plague outbreak!

The most ruthless thing the Ning people did was not to deceive them and launch a surprise attack, but their vicious scheme to wipe out their entire family!

Thinking about all the possible scenarios that might occur later, Yan Wujiu was in a state of utter confusion.

I wonder how Feng Shu's talk with Bei Qi went.

If he could not get a reply from Beiqi, he would be forced to attack once his army had finished assembling.

Otherwise, if this drags on, the situation will only become more and more unfavorable for the Yan state.

If he had to choose between being beaten to death and being worn down to death, he would rather be beaten to death!

Fighting at least gives us a chance to win.

The most frustrating thing would be to be worn down and die.

Yan Wujiu didn't say a word all morning, just stood in front of the sand table.

Those around them dared not disturb them, and could only worry along with them.

The fact that Yan Wujiu, a renowned general from the royal family, was so devoted to this task indicates that the state of Yan was in a precarious situation.

Just as everyone was filled with worry, a personal guard quickly led a somewhat disheveled messenger in, "Your Highness, the Crown Prince has sent someone with urgent news from eight hundred li away!"

"This humble servant greets Your Highness."

The messenger quickly saluted.

Upon hearing the voice, Yan Wujiu was stunned for a few moments before snapping out of his daze and quickly reaching out to the newcomer: "Give it to me right now!"

The messenger dared not delay and quickly took out the letter from his pocket and presented it to him.

Yan Wujiu took the letter and walked to the side, quickly opening it.

As Yan Wujiu read the contents of the letter, his hands began to tremble uncontrollably.

I'm not excited!

Instead, it was grief and indignation.

The Yan state ceded the land north of the Panjiang River and became a vassal state of the Northern Qi, paying tribute in exchange for the Northern Qi sending troops.

Bei Qi will advance from Shuozhou to Zhenzhou, and at the same time send 50,000 elite cavalry and 50,000 infantry to Yan to assist Yan in the war, and try to wipe out all the Ning army that is attacking Yan in one fell swoop.

Bei Qi did not have any surplus grain to give to Yan, so it could only do its best to ensure the supply of provisions for Bei Qi's 100,000-strong army, without requiring Yan to bear any additional burden of provisions.

After Suhe Baoyin's army withdraws, it will first retreat to Huyao and Huzhou.

Yan Li suggested that he feign defeat and retreat to Pangzhou at the right time, thereby opening the door for the Ning army to attack Huzhou.

At that time, the Northern Qi army will press forward and join forces with them to starve out the Ning army that is attacking Yan.

They could also take this opportunity to deplete Bei Qi's forces and strive to reclaim the land north of Panjiang.

But this was just Yan Li's suggestion.

Yan Li placed the utmost trust in him, and the specific decision-making process would mainly depend on his opinion.

Yan Wujiu read the letter several times to make sure there were no mistakes or omissions before he tremblingly put it away.

After a moment's thought, Yan Wujiu's face darkened, and he growled, "Light the lamps!"

Light the lamp?

Why are you lighting a lamp in broad daylight?

The people inside were stunned for a moment before they quickly lit the oil lamp.

Yan Wujiu took the letter to the oil lamp and quickly lit it.

Only after watching the letter burn to ashes did Yan Wujiu blow out the oil lamp.

Yan Li's idea is good.

However, Bei Qi is not stupid.

They wanted to wear down the Northern Qi's forces, and the Northern Qi wanted to wear them down as well.

The Northern Qi sent 100,000 troops into Yan to assist them in their battle. It sounded nice, but in reality, they just wanted to take advantage of the chaos and seize more of Yan's territory!

It's easy to invite a god, but hard to send him away!

Even if the Yan Kingdom successfully annihilates the Ning army, it will be unable to fight against the Northern Qi again!

At that time, those prosperous lands, and even the capital, will likely fall into the hands of the Northern Qi.

They would likely only be able to live in a few states east of Qiyun Mountain, completely becoming vassals of Beiqi, barely surviving under Beiqi's protection.

Yan Wujiu was constantly struggling internally.

He was wondering whether he should stop it all.

But even if we stop all of this, what then?

Without Bei Qi's help, given their current situation, their chances of winning are extremely slim.

Large swathes of Yan's territory either fell into the hands of Ningren or Beiqi.

These descendants were too ashamed to face their ancestors after they died.

After a long while, Yan Wujiu closed his eyes in pain.

That's it!

Let's write a letter back to the Crown Prince!

Explain the pros and cons to him and see how he and His Majesty decide!

If they adopt the attitude of benefiting neither Beiqi nor Ningren, then they should retreat to Pangzhou!

After a long while, Yan Wujiu slowly opened his eyes.

In just a moment, Yan Wujiu seemed to have aged seven or eight years.

Seeing Yan Wujiu's expression, the already worried generals became even more anxious...