In order to become a Heroic Spirit, I had no choice but to cause trouble in history.

Just like Xiang An, Xiang Yu also conquered Qu'a very easily.

However, unlike Xiang An, Xiang Yu encountered relatively greater resistance in Qu'a, and the resources inside Qu'a had long been transferred away by the Qin general guarding the city.

Therefore, Xiang Yu made a rather extreme choice due to concerns about morale.

He annihilated most of the city's defenders and captured the city's commander, but then killed him in public to boost morale.

Although the processes were not exactly the same, the two most crucial cities downstream of the river were captured relatively easily.

The next step is to cross the river.

Xiang Lu had already seized the ferry crossing ahead of Xiang Yu and Xiang An, taking control of all the boats and preparing for the main force to cross the river.

The first batch of troops to cross the river was personally commanded by Xiang Liang, with Xiang Yu bringing up the rear, totaling eight thousand men.

The second batch, led by Song Yi with Xiang An as the rear guard, consisted of slightly fewer people.

Because they had already secured the ferry crossing, crossing the river this time was very easy and effortless.

However, after Xiang Liang and Xiang Yu led 8,000 troops to occupy Guangling with light cavalry, he heard some news that made his blood pressure soar.

......

While Xiang Liang was crossing the river and Chen Sheng was being brutally beaten and betrayed, a group of people secretly began to develop their strength.

"General, another group of people has defected to us!" Fan Kuai ran into the county government office and excitedly told Liu Ji, who was sitting in the head seat.

Small Bookstore

"This...this is already the umpteenth batch! There are so many people! Looks like I'm about to achieve something great!" Liu Ji was drinking when he laughed excitedly twice.

Not long after he became an outlaw in Mangdang Mountain, he killed a large white snake. Many people saw him kill the snake, and someone spread the word. As a result, Liu Ji gained some fame in the area.

Later, several squads of Qin Dynasty infantrymen came from the neighboring county, wanting to recruit Liu Ji's bandit gang. However, Liu Ji was clever and, after a little thought, took the initiative to provoke the Qin army. When they got their hands on him, he drove them away.

Seeing Liu Ji's capabilities, people from several surrounding villages and towns decided to work with him.

After Liu Ji put it together, he thought, "Great idea! This is excellent! And since we already have so many people, let's forget about being bandits. Aren't uprisings all the rage these days? Let's start an uprising!"

Liu Ji gained momentum very quickly, and in a short time he gathered a large group of people, and then attacked in the direction of his hometown.

It was called a fight, but it was actually more like a welcome. Xiao He, the administrator of Fengyi, had an extremely good relationship with Liu Ji, and he and several others, such as Cao Can and Xiahou Ying, immediately decided to follow Liu Ji!

Having conquered his hometown and reunited with his wife and children, Liu Ji, who was already known as the Duke of Pei, still felt that something was missing.

I... don't seem to have any powerful backers...

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Chapter 865 Another "Chu"

After Xiang Liang occupied Guangling City, his generals temporarily settled outside the city, awaiting Xiang Liang's next instructions. Meanwhile, Xiang Liang, Xiang Bo, Fan Zeng, and others were actively contacting the rulers of the surrounding states who had successfully restored their kingdoms, and sent out several strategists to persuade them.

Among these strategists, there was one who was an acquaintance of Xiang Yu and Xiang An, or rather, someone they deeply hated; his name was Wu Ju.

Wu Ju was sent to the State of Wei, which was governed by King Jiu of Wei. The state was originally restored with the help of Zhou Shi, a subordinate of Chen Sheng. However, King Jiu of Wei was clearly not a simple character. He had recently used various schemes to kill Zhou Shi, who had been defecating on his neck, and took control of the State of Wei. Wu Ju's goal was to persuade King Jiu of Wei and King Huai of Chu, Xiong Xin, to form a united front to resist Qin.

Xiang Liang also sent people to the Qi Kingdom, which had been restored to the north, and the Yan Kingdom, which was even further away.

Xiang Liang originally wanted to try to persuade Zhang Chu. Although Chen Sheng was a person of poor character, as the first person to raise the flag, he still had appeal. However, he did not expect that before he could send someone to persuade Chen Sheng, he was killed by Zhang Han and the traitor, which made him somewhat annoyed.

However, what really gave Xiang Liang a headache was that thing sandwiched between Western Chu and Qi.

That other "Chu".

......

Now, after reorganization and expansion, the army of Western Chu has reached more than 30,000 men. Xiang Yu has been promoted to general for his meritorious service in capturing Guangling. Xiang An is still under Xiang Yu's command as the right division commander, and still wears a black sash.

Night had fallen, and Xiang Yu was sitting in his tent, looking at the sand table in front of him, seemingly lost in thought. Yu Meiren lay beside him, her head resting on his lap, fast asleep.

Suddenly, a sound came from outside the tent, and Xiang Yu couldn't help but look outside.

"Brother? Is now a good time?" The person outside the tent called out through the tent flap before coming in immediately.

"Xiang An? There's nothing wrong now, you can come in." Xiang Yu blinked and replied to Xiang An.

Xiang An lifted the curtain and walked in, sitting down next to Xiang Yu. Looking at Xiang Yu's sand table, he subconsciously asked, "Has Uncle's military order been issued?"

Xiang Yu shook his head: "Not yet, I'm just thinking about it myself."

"Actually, I don't think there's much to think about." Xiang An sighed, leaned forward, pointed to the location of Guangling, and then pointed north. "Uncle's next target will definitely be Dongyang or Xutai. Shouchun further west is also a possibility, but the waterways in Shouchun are too complicated. Although we know about naval warfare, there's no need to create more trouble for ourselves, is there?"

Xiang Yu nodded approvingly: "Your thoughts are the same as mine."

He tapped the sand ditch representing the river with one finger, his expression thoughtful: "Although we have crossed the river now, we still cannot officially join the front line. Therefore, crossing the Huai River is Uncle's next goal."

"If we can establish a base at Xutai, we can also ensure the supply of materials for our joint operations with Qi, Wei, and Yan," Xiang An continued Xiang Yu's words almost without pausing.

The two brothers looked up, met each other's eyes, and suddenly burst out laughing.

"I never imagined that the two of us would one day be sitting in a tent discussing which city to attack next." Xiang An shook his head, his smile a mixture of bitterness and genuine joy.

"It would be a lie to say I didn't expect this. You started preparing much earlier than I did, how could I not have foreseen this day?" Xiang Yu laughed and reached out to punch Xiang An on the shoulder.

The brothers' commotion woke Yu Meiren, who was lying on Xiang Yu's lap. She sat up, still half-asleep, and asked, "Lord Xiang Yu... what's going on... why is it so noisy..."

"Huh?...Why is Uncle here...?" She rubbed her eyes and tilted her head to look at Xiang An.

"Brother, is sister-in-law not very bright?" Xiang An's expression turned somewhat helpless as he looked at Xiang Yu.

Xiang Yu gave a polite smile: "Well... how should I put it..."

"Huh? Lord Xiang Yu, why don't you deny it!?" Yu Meiren felt her young heart had been severely damaged, and she pitifully clung to Xiang Yu's arm.

"Yes, you, you're smart, smart..."

Ah, Xiang Yu's gaze drifted elsewhere.

Xiang An was so overwhelmed by this display of affection that he exclaimed that he couldn't take it anymore. He stood up with a disgusted look on his face and waved his hand, saying, "Brother and sister-in-law, I—I won't bother you anymore, I'm leaving now."

As he walked, he kept glancing back, and when he left the tent, he even winked at the couple, leaving them completely bewildered.

"What is your brother trying to say?" Yu Meiren stared blankly at Xiang Yu.

"He might be trying to say..." Xiang Yu stroked his chin, a thoughtful expression on his face, "...want a nephew or something...?"

"Huh!? Lord Xiang Yu—uh!"

......

Xiang An left quickly like a thief, and when he looked back, he saw that the candles in Xiang Yu's tent had indeed gone out. He chuckled, turned and ran, bumping into someone.

"Ouch!" Xiang An and the man cried out in pain and stepped back.

"Fourth Uncle? What brings you here?" Xiang An rubbed his nose and looked closely, only to find that the person he had bumped into was his fourth uncle, Xiang Lu.

"Ouch, that really hurts..." Xiang Lu grimaced and rubbed his forehead a couple of times. "It's Xiang An. I'm here to give your brother some instructions, from your uncle."

“Um…” Xiang An chuckled awkwardly and scratched his head. “Fourth Uncle, you can just tell me.”

"What's wrong?" Xiang Lu was a little confused.

"Big brother, he's a little unwell right now...you probably understand." Xiang An gestured with his lips.

"Huh?.......Oh, oh—" Xiang Lu's eyes suddenly turned strange. "It's inconvenient, it's inconvenient, right? Inconvenient...good that it's inconvenient!"

"Fourth Uncle, as long as you understand." Xiang An nodded with a similarly strange expression.

"Alright then, I'll talk to him again tomorrow morning. Anyway, it's not that urgent, and in the end, you'll probably be the only one who has to go." Xiang Lu waved his hand, turned around, and walked away. "You should get some sleep too! It's already dark, and you have to train tomorrow morning!"

"Oh, I see!" Xiang An said as he walked towards his tent, humming to himself as he went.

But when he thought about what he was doing, he involuntarily stopped and the smile on his face disappeared.

War... war...

He clenched his fist slightly, finally sighed, looked up at the stars in the sky, shook his head, and continued walking away.

He didn't realize that his movements were being observed by a foot soldier who happened to be awake.

"General Xiang An... seems to have something on his mind?" He was slightly thin and looked thoughtfully at Xiang An's back.

His name was Han Xin.

------------

Chapter 866 Qin Jia and Jing Ju, another Chu

The next morning, before dawn, Xiang Yu received his next move from Xiang Lu.

"How did such a thing come about in Pengcheng?" Xiang Yu's eyes turned serious as he looked at Xiang Lu.

Xiang Lu shrugged, looking helpless: "Yeah, who could have predicted that?"

He patted Xiang Yu on the shoulder: "Take your men and go. Your uncle is furious."

Xiang Yu nodded, a thoughtful look on his face, and headed towards his main tent, where he was responsible for issuing orders in the army.

All the generals were already waiting here. Xiang Yu had received the order, and Xiang An had already informed them in advance that the army was about to set off. As long as Xiang Liang gave the order, they could set off immediately.

"All generals, heed my command!" Xiang Yu picked up his military tally, looked at his seated generals, and spoke loudly, his eyes filled with an undeniable killing intent. "Xiang An, Zhu Jishi, immediately lead the left and right divisions to set off and cover the central army's attack on Dongyang!"

"After taking Dongyang, don't rest, immediately go and attack Xutai!" Xiang Yu slammed his hand on the sand table. "We need to prepare for the army to cross the Huai River! The supplies have already been sent out, you go there immediately too, and take these two cities within three days!"

"Your subordinates obey orders!" Xiang An and Zhu Jishi stepped forward simultaneously, kneeling on one knee to present the military order.

Zhu Jishi joined Xiang Liang after Xiang Liang crossed the river. He was originally one of Chen Sheng's generals. After Chen Sheng's defeat, he fled eastward. Hearing that Xiang Liang's rebel army had crossed the river, he simply joined Xiang Liang.

He wasn't particularly famous, but because he was a subordinate of the deceased King Chen, Xiang Liang treated him with respect and gave him the position of a subordinate general of Xiang Yu, which was half a rank higher than Xiang An.

However, Zhu Jishi was not the only general who escaped after Chen Sheng's defeat and death.

The other one is the target of Xiang Liang's anger this time.

This man is named Qin Jia. Just a few days ago, he launched an uprising in Pengcheng and installed Jing Ju, the son of the former King of Chu, as the "King of Chu".

In other words, there are currently two "Kings of Chu" on the surface.

Xiang Liang's King of Chu, Xiong Xin, and Qin Jia's King of Chu, Jing Ju.

Xiang Liang didn't know what Qin Jia was thinking, but that didn't stop him from wanting to rush over and skin Qin Jia and Jing Ju alive.

How can one mountain accommodate two tigers? ?