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

"Okay, I understand, Lao He. You should go and get some rest too." Qin Jia nodded, patted the subordinate general on the shoulder, and said with a hint of helplessness in his voice.

This man's name is He Zhu. Like him, he used to work under Chen Sheng. After Chen Sheng fell from power, he ran away with him and now works for him.

None of them were originally important figures. Chen Sheng raised the banner, and regardless of his ultimate goal or his actual character, he at least gave people like Qin Jia, Zhu Jishi, and He Zhu a chance to step onto the stage of chaos.

Otherwise, with just a handful of them, they probably wouldn't even dare to revolt.

"So...this is our only chance!" After seeing He Zhu off, Qin Jia sat in the pitch-black command tent and suddenly punched his knee.

Boom—

A flash of lightning illuminated He Zhu's face and his scarlet eyes.

"This is my only chance in this life to contend for supremacy, how could I possibly—give it away!" He raised his head, looking south, towards Xiang Yu's direction, "Therefore, Xiang Liang, you cannot stop me!"

......

The next morning, the rain was still falling, but it had clearly lessened considerably.

Tuan Chi was still fast asleep, his neck hunched over in Xiang An's tent, while Xiang An had already gotten up and was now in Xiang Yu's command tent.

"When will this rain stop?" Xiang Yu looked to his side, in the direction of Yi Ke.

"Reporting to the General, we can march after noon; the roads are not particularly muddy," Yi Ke said, bowing slightly.

This area has sandy soil, so even if it gets flooded, it won't significantly affect marching.

"Notify the entire army to prepare. We will march immediately after lunch." Xiang Yu nodded and looked at his generals. "The Grand General will be attacking Dangcheng in two days. We must act before Qin Jia and the others!"

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Chapter 877 Counterattack

After lunch, the heavy rain suddenly stopped.

Xiang Yu's army, having anticipated the move, received news from scouts just as they were about to set off.

"You mean, a hundred miles north of here, there's an army of about ten thousand men stationed?!" Xiang Yu glared at the scout and asked seriously.

"General, it's absolutely true! How could I dare to speak falsely!" The scout knelt on one knee, looking anxiously at Xiang Yu. "The army is flying the Chu flag, just south of Zhan County!"

Xiang Yu took a few heavy breaths, his teeth grinding together.

"It's that bastard Qin Jia!" Xiang An clenched his fist.

"Han Xin! What do you think?" Xiang Yu turned his head and glanced at Han Xin, who was standing thoughtfully to the side, and asked loudly.

"...I ask you, what is the appearance of the military camp like? Are the tents neatly set up, or are they scattered and disorganized?" Han Xin did not answer Xiang Yu's question immediately, but instead asked the scout.

Regardless of the location, as long as an army is large in scale, the encampment should generally follow a regular pattern and be orderly. This is because the orderliness of the military camp is related to its operational efficiency. In fact, the strength and fighting ability of an army can be glimpsed simply from the orderliness of its military camp.

"Reporting back to Han Xin, the camp of the fake Chu army... is not very tidy, and looks quite disorganized." The scout recalled for a moment and reported to Han Xin.

"I see..." Han Xin narrowed his eyes, then looked at Xiang Yu. "General, my suggestion is to send troops immediately!"

"The reason?" Xiang Yu looked at Han Xin.

"The fake Chu army camp was disorganized and its encampment was chaotic. It must have been set up hastily. After all, Qin Jia is a person of some name and status. He would know the importance of a clean and tidy military camp."

"Our last intelligence report was received more than a month ago, and Qin Jia was still in Pengcheng then, but now he's already in Zhan County... This isn't because the intelligence was wrong, but because Qin Jia likely noticed our scouts and, after they left, began a full-speed march, traveling day and night, arriving in Zhan County around yesterday evening." Han Xin held up one finger. "And what happened yesterday evening?"

"heavy rain."

"The torrential rain, which made marching impossible, forced them to set up camp in a panic, resulting in a disorganized army. But what would have happened if it weren't for this rain?" Han Xin's expression suddenly turned serious.

"Our encampment is right next to the Jushui River, with rivers on three sides behind us. If the heavy rain hadn't hindered Qin Jia's march, he would have arrived here with his army this morning. At that time, without accurate intelligence, how would we respond? Generals, you should all know the answer."

Xiang Yu, Xiang An, Zi Juan, Xiang Jing, and even the scouts still kneeling on the ground felt a chill run down their spines.

With the Ju River right behind them, if they were to be ambushed under these circumstances, they would have nowhere to retreat, and due to the hasty response, the possibility of victory would be compressed to the extreme.

"That son of a bitch Qin Jia—" Xiang An cursed aloud.

"Notify the entire army! Move out immediately!" Xiang Yu didn't hesitate, looking at his two division commanders, "Xiao Si, you come with me. Xiang An, you—"

After a moment's thought, Xiang Yu looked at Xiang An seriously and said, "Qin Jia has about 10,000 men stationed in Zhan County. He certainly didn't bring the rest of his troops with him. You take your two divisions and bypass their encampment from the side to distract any reinforcements that might arrive later. If you don't see any reinforcements before nightfall, turn around and join me in surrounding the main force that went ahead and take them down!"

"And Xiao Si and I will fight them head-on!" Xiang Yu's chest filled with rage. "He wants to ambush us? Humph—"

"I'm going to kill him myself!"

Xiang Yu took the Heavenly Dragon City-Breaking Halberd from the side and grabbed the reins of the Cloud-Treading Black Steed.

"Move out!"

! ”

......

Meanwhile, Qin Jia's army, having just realized the rain had stopped, was packing up and preparing to march towards the Jushui River.

Before they knew it, night had fallen. Qin Jia's army had only advanced twenty li before being forced to stop because of the dark clouds in the sky that obscured visibility.

Qin Jia felt restless and uneasy.

He went there with the intention of launching a surprise attack, but now he's frequently stopping and starting because of this damn weather.

"Report—!"

! ”

Just as Qin Jia was feeling troubled, he heard a slightly mournful messenger's voice.

His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly stepped out of the command tent: "Report directly! What happened?!"

"Xiang Yu's army—is attacking!"

! ”

The moon has come out.

A few miles away from Qin Jia's camp, Xiang Yu led a large number of his generals on a frantic march.

He raised the heavy Heavenly Dragon City-Breaking Halberd and pointed it at Qin Jia's military camp.

"Follow me—"

"Smash that fake thief!"

! ”

Oh oh oh oh oh!

!

!

"

"Prepare for battle! Quickly prepare for battle!"

"!" Qin Jia grabbed his spear and roared as he charged forward, "He Zhu! Get ready! That bastard Xiang Yu is attacking! That son of a bitch—"

"I'm preparing too!" He Zhu was also anxious, running around the military camp.

Xiang Yu was less than a mile away from Qin Jia's army camp.

A mile can pass in the blink of an eye.

But Qin Jia managed to reorganize a small group of people.

"Charge! Hold off the first wave of attack!" He gritted his teeth as he rode his horse. "I've already sent out messengers! Fight and retreat! At least hold out until reinforcements from Zhanxian arrive!"

! ”

......

Meanwhile, in Zhan County.

The galloping hooves pounded the city gate of Zhanxian.

Xiang An brandished his three-zhang-long spear, his eyes wide with fury: "Follow me and charge into the city!"

! ”

His tactics were always different from those of other generals. Whether it was charging into enemy lines or attacking a city, Xiang An always led from the front.

For this reason, Xiang An's subordinates always admired this general who was always at the forefront.

"kill!

! ”

Looking at Xiang An's back, everyone under Xiang An felt their blood surging. Even Zhu Jishi, who was just a brigade commander under Xiang An, felt encouraged.

Xiang An, however, had no expression on his face.

There was no one on the main road of Zhanxian County, and the resistance of the troops stationed on the city wall was weak and ineffective. The city gate was captured very easily.

They let a messenger go earlier; he must be rushing towards Pengcheng by now.

If all goes well, the reinforcements should arrive by noon tomorrow.

How many people will there be?

Five thousand people? Ten thousand people?

Or perhaps... more?

Xiang An closed his eyes, spurred his horse, and galloped towards the city.

Xiang An didn't care how many people there were; he only knew that he would rely on his five thousand men to hold off the entire reinforcement army.

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I need to take another day off (please vote for me!).

As the title says, I'm very sorry...

Because I need to organize the follow-up plot of the Qi'an chapter in more detail, as well as prepare to start writing the Qi'an side story "Tunchi Road" in the group on the 10th, and some other important things, I have to ask for another day off. I'm really sorry.

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Chapter 878 Battlefield Between the Yellow and Huai Rivers