Three Kingdoms, Myth

When Chen Xi goes into a rage, it's no small matter. During the battle for Fan County, it wasn't too intense; after all, with seventy thousand troops surrounding a small town defended by an unknown general, they managed to take it down in one swift assault. After that, the entire Ru County was sealed off, leaving the question of whether to retake it for later.

After dividing the forces, Chen Xi's troops significantly decreased, leaving him with only Hua Xiong's seven thousand soldiers, Yu Jin's four thousand veterans, Chen Xi's own five thousand troops, and Xu Yi and Wu Dun's four thousand men—a total of only twenty thousand. Fortunately, all of them were seasoned veterans; otherwise, with such a small number, Chen Xi would have little confidence in attacking Runan across provinces.

The advantage of this time of year is that there was no need to bring food or supplies. Chen Xi marched almost in a straight line, relying on the fertile lands of Yuzhou for sustenance. Yuzhou, a land rich in grain, provided well for the troops as they advanced, borrowing food along the way. Chen Xi's goal was to reach the gates of Pingyu in Runan County within a month.

Maintaining a forced march, Chen Xi's army swiftly captured several towns along the way. Luckily, the defensive forces left behind by Yuan Shu in Yuzhou were insufficient, and after Liu Bei's forces split off, Zhang Xun focused intently on Liu Bei, the sovereign.

By now, Zhang Xun and Liu Bei had fought several battles in Pei County, the Liu clan's ancestral home, but none resulted in a victory for Zhang Xun. On the first day, Liu Bei failed to launch a sneak attack, falling into Jia Xu's trap, losing his camp, and being chased by Zhang Fei's forces through the night.

Later, Liu Bei fortified Pei County but was lured out by Jia Xu's schemes and narrowly escaped death at Zhang Fei's hands. Chased relentlessly by Zhang Fei for three days, Zhang Xun had only just entered Linju when Zhang Fei stormed in after him. Now, Zhang Xun found himself pinned in Qiao County by Jia Xu's weaker forces, unable to break free and forced to send desperate pleas for reinforcements. Yuan Shu would likely receive urgent reports from Qiao County any day now.

Chen Xi was extremely relieved that Yuan Shu had not yet moved his base to Jiujiang County in Yangzhou, the future capital of his self-proclaimed empire in Shouchun City. If Yuan Shu had already moved, Chen Xi would have had to admit defeat, as it would have been too far to reach. Even though Pingyu was still somewhat distant, the obstacles along the way weren't too severe. Chen Xi dismissed Hua Xiong's suggestion to detour through Chen County and instead chose a direct route. Since Jia Wenhe was engaging Zhang Xun effectively, only Yin Zheng and Qiao Rui stood between them and their goal.

Within ten days, Chen Xi, Hua Xiong, and Yu Jin cut a direct path, capturing two cities. While Miuqiu fell through a surprise attack, the subsequent city, Xiayi, was taken by Yu Jin after Hua Xiong lured out Yuan Shu's troops with a forged order from Miuqiu. The city fell within half an hour.

By the fifteenth day, Chen Xi's forces were pressing towards Ku County. However, this time, all his troops wore Yuan Shu's uniforms. Passing through Jianping, Jia Xu had sent over legitimate orders under Zhang Xun's authority, which successfully deceived Yin Zheng, leading to the fall of Ku County.

With Yin Zheng's defense orders in disarray, Chen Xi used the forged orders to capture Ningping and Xiang County.

Finally, on the twenty-fifth day, Chen Xi's army arrived at Runan, with Pingyu now in sight. However, the small tricks that had worked before were now meaningless. Qiao Rui had already been warned by Yin Zheng about Chen Xi's tactics and had sealed off the city gates. The thirty thousand troops in Yuzhou refused to engage in open battle, opting instead to defend Pingyu, knowing that the fall of the city would cut off the vital connection between Yuzhou and Jingzhou—a loss that no number of Qiao Rui's could compensate for.

"Strategist, how should we approach this?" Hua Xiong asked, glaring at the formidable city before them. He had nothing but disdain for Qiao Rui, who had so many soldiers but didn't dare to fight outside the city, choosing instead to hide like a turtle.

"We'll wait and see. If within five days, Yuan Shu shows signs of returning, we'll hold off. But if there's no sign of Yuan Shu's return within five days," Chen Xi sighed as he looked up at the towering city walls, "then we'll have no choice but to take the city. As for how we'll take it…"

Siege warfare is an art. In ancient times, some managed to conquer cities through clever schemes, while others relied purely on numbers. Clearly, with the limited number of troops Chen Xi had, attempting to take the city by sheer force would be suicidal.

Hua Xiong remained silent. The city of Pingyu was well-stocked with food and troops. If Qiao Rui decided to hide within, it would take at least a year, and an army of ten thousand or more, to slowly wear the city down.

It was just like Yuan Shu's current situation in attacking Jiangling. Unless he could take the city in one decisive blow, the prolonged siege might give Liu Biao the chance to turn the tide. It was reminiscent of when Cao Cao laid siege to Ye City, which took over a year and was only conquered after resorting to flooding the city.

The more Chen Xi thought about it, the more his head hurt. If they could take Pingyu, they would hold Yuan Shu's entire family hostage, which would likely throw Yuan Shu into disarray. However, with Yuan Shu having only one son, the city was heavily fortified to protect Yuan Yao, the Yuan clan's heir. The idea of capturing Yuan Shu's family was a fantasy; the focus had to be on how to take Pingyu with minimal casualties.

The news of Liu Bei and Cao Cao attacking Yuzhou had long since reached Yuan Shu's desk. Initially dismissing it as a minor issue, Yuan Shu was shocked when reports arrived detailing how Zhang Xun, Yin Zheng, Li Feng, and Liang Gang were unable to resist Cao Cao and Liu Bei.

Especially Cao Mengde—his rapid advances left Yuan Shu in disbelief. On the first day, Yuan Shu had received intelligence that Cao Mengde had moved out from Yingchuan, prompting Yuan Shu to curse him for courting death and vow to punish Cao Cao upon his return. However, by the following day, Cao Mengde had already captured the three most important county seats in Yingchuan: Yangzhai, Yingyin, and Yingyang!

Subsequent reports from Xiangcheng, Dingling, Kunyang, and Wuyang described them all as being in a state of crisis. Before Yuan Shu's emergency orders could even reach these places, news of their fall was already on his desk.

The situation on Liu Bei's front wasn't much better. However, unlike the mysterious siege techniques employed by Cao Mengde, Liu Xuande's attacks were more predictable. Despite winning all three of his initial engagements, each of his divisions had since been pinned down at the county seats they were trying to capture.

"Summon Fengxian," Yuan Shu ordered the messenger at his side. Recently, Yuan Shu felt that Lü Bu wasn't giving his all. Every day during the siege, Lü Bu would dutifully engage Huang Zhong in battle, but neither of them seemed to sustain any serious injuries. In fact, after each duel, the morale of the Jiangling defenders only seemed to rise. Originally low, their spirits had been lifted to a new height by Lü Bu and Huang Zhong's daily, punctual duels.

"General, Yuan Gonglu requests your presence again," Zhang Liao said with a bow.

"Ignore him. Tell the messenger I'm practicing my martial arts. Apart from calling me to fight Huang Zhong, does Yuan Gonglu ever have anything else to say? I fight diligently every day, and since I arrived here, I've conquered vast territories for him. Yet, instead of rewarding me, he reprimands me for not killing Huang Zhong! How could Yuan Gonglu treat me so unjustly?" Lü Bu raged.

As Yuan Shu's army's morale continued to decline, his resentment towards Lü Bu grew. He completely overlooked the fact that Lü Bu was the hero who had won him vast territories. Moreover, Lü Bu wasn't even his subordinate, so it was no surprise that Lü Bu began to harbor deep resentment toward Yuan Shu as well.