Chapter 178 Chen Lan is so happy
The combined attack of Guan and Zhang was unreserved and an attack they put all their strength into!
Dang~
Wang Jing held the sword horizontally in front of him and steadily took the combined attack from the two men, then he turned his hand and pulled and shook it, using the sword-sheathing technique from "A Hundred Battles Sword Techniques" to absorb all the incoming force and transform it into a rebound, like a bowstring, accumulating the enemy's momentum, and then returning it all when the enemy's strength was exhausted.

This is a high-level application of sword skills, named Huitian Jian Fan.

When the sword came out, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were knocked back by the tremendous force and fell into the frost and snow.

"Hahaha, what a joy! This battle was truly a joy!"

Although Zhang Fei lost miserably and even felt a little exhausted, his face was filled with joy and excitement from the bottom of his heart.

Guan Yu had the same expression as him: "It's really refreshing."

Both of them felt that their strength seemed to have increased a little, and their fighting skills also improved a lot. They benefited a lot from the fight with Wang Jing.

Wang Jing also activated the secret art of observing qi, and indeed, he detected the aura of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei and stared at them for a moment. It was obvious that their strength had indeed improved.

"Can you really understand and improve through fighting?"

After watching, Wang Jing could only marvel at Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's talent in martial arts. The combat awareness of these two people was simply terrifying, and they could actually make further progress.

Such talent is simply terrifying. No wonder he has made such a great name in history and will be remembered forever.

"Yunchang, Yide, how do you feel?"

After the battle, Wang Jing sheathed his sword and went up to pull Guan Yu and Zhang Fei up from the ground.

The two of them were a little unsteady on their feet, but their expressions were more vigorous than before: "Hahaha, I feel better than ever before. Thank you so much this time."

"We are all family, why should we thank you?"

Obviously, Wang Jing's courtesy once again touched Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

Of course Liu Bei treated them very well, but Wang Jing's identity was different. He was in a high position but did not put on airs. Now he personally learned from them and helped them break through themselves. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei had never felt this kind of kindness and loyalty from anyone else before.

So they naturally felt grateful to Wang Jing and regarded him as their life-long confidant.

Wang Jing saw the joy and gratitude in their hearts and took the opportunity to say, "It seems that you have gained a lot from this competition. Maybe you can try more in the future and maybe you can continue to improve."

Guan Yu hesitated for a moment: "Would it be too much of a bother?"

"Why do you say that, Yunchang? You and I both serve the court. Isn't it natural for us to help each other? In fact, it's not just you and Yide. In the future, I will regularly summon all the generals to conduct similar battles to help them tap their potential."

After confirming that this method was effective, Wang Jing naturally wanted to promote it to other generals to help them improve their personal abilities.

When Guan Yu heard what Wang Jing said, he stopped objecting.

Zhang Fei suddenly thought of Liu Bei: "Oh no, I almost forgot that my brother is still at home. We must go back and check on him."

The two rested for a while, recovered their strength, and then stood up to say goodbye.

Wang Jing did not stop them. Instead, he personally escorted Guan Yu and Zhang Fei out the door and arranged a carriage to take them back. Before leaving, he put on a sincere face and said, "Yun Chang, Yi De, please give my regards to Xuan De when you return. I will visit him again when I have time in the future."

"Okay, I'm sure my brother will be very happy when he finds out."

A simple smile appeared on Zhang Fei's big, dark, round face.

However, he would probably never know that his elder brother Liu Bei did not want to see Wang Jing at all.

In Liang County, Wei Yan brought with him the transfer order from Luoyang and led two thousand infantry to relieve the guard.

After Xu Rong finished reading Wang Jing's order, he showed a hesitant look on his face. He couldn't help but said worriedly, "My lord, you want me to go to Liaodong to persuade Sheng Ji? Alas, that guy, I haven't seen him for so many years, but he is still so worrying."

When the news came that Gongsun Du had declared himself king, Xu Rong didn't seem surprised at all.

After all, Liaodong has been a remote place with high mountains and far-away emperors since ancient times, so it is normal for some chaos to occur.

However, after Xu Rong came into contact with Wang Jing, he knew very well that his current lord was definitely a wise and capable overlord. He did not want his good friend Gongsun Du to anger Wang Jing by doing something extraordinary and thus bring about his own death.

Therefore, Wang Jing asked him to go to Liaodong in person, and Xu Rong did not refuse.

The reason why Xu Rong hesitated was mainly because the garrison commander who came to replace him in guarding Liang County was too young.

Wei Yanchang looked a bit old, seemingly twenty-five years old, but what was even more outrageous was that his actual age was only seventeen. Xu Rong couldn't help but wonder, did he have the ability to lead troops to guard a line of defense alone?

But military orders are as firm as a mountain. No matter how much Xu Rong doubts, he can only choose to execute them. But before leaving, he wants to test Wei Yan to see if he is really capable: "Yuan Shu in Nanyang has a great general Chen Lan under his command. He leads 20,000 troops to garrison Luyang. If he leads his troops to attack, do you have any plan to repel the enemy?"

"Huh? Repel the enemy?"

Wei Yan showed an incredible expression: "Chen Lan is just an incompetent man. If he dares to attack, I will destroy him easily. Why should I plan to repel the enemy?"

His tone was calm, yet revealed extraordinary confidence and arrogance.

These words made Xu Rong's eyelids twitch, and he didn't know how to judge for a moment.

I just feel that young people nowadays are becoming more and more ignorant of the immensity of the world.

Or am I just too old to keep up with the times?
Xu Rong sighed slightly in his heart, thinking that he was also arrogant like the young man in front of him. In the end, he had nothing to say, so he could only remind Wei Yan: "I hope your ability is worthy of your confidence. Remember that the defense of Liang County cannot be lost, and you must not be careless."

"General Xu, please rest assured that Yan knows the seriousness of the situation."

Wei Yan was obviously very confident in his abilities. No matter who came to attack, he was confident that he could defend Liang County impregnable.

Even in Wei Yan's view, there might be a chance to launch a surprise attack and capture Nanyang, but he didn't know why Wang Jing disagreed with this suggestion.

After handing over the defense, Xu Rong led a hundred cavalrymen and headed straight for Luoyang.

The news that Xu Rong had left and that Wei Yan had taken over the defense of Liang County soon reached Luyang and Chen Lan.

Luyang, county government office.

Chen Lan, who was drinking and having fun with his men in the back hall, stopped drinking and bragging when he heard the news. He immediately stood up, assembled his troops, and prepared to attack, planning to take advantage of the enemy's change of commander to gain some military merit and achievements.

Therefore, Chen Lan hurriedly summoned his men to the meeting hall and said bluntly: "I want to march into Liang County. As long as we take this place, our army can threaten Luoyang at any time."

"Captain, no!"

Many people directly opposed after hearing this. After all, peace is rare, and if a war were to start rashly, they and others would probably be in trouble.

After all, in the previous battle outside Liang County, the Sun-Yuan coalition was defeated so badly that at this moment Yuan Shu could no longer find a brave general like Sun Jian to take up the banner.

Now Yuan Shu has Liu Biao of Jingzhou eyeing him covetously in the south and Cao Cao ready to make a move in the east. He can be said to be surviving in the cracks. If Wang Jing's northern army does not take the initiative to attack, we should be thankful.

Why bother to provoke Wang Jing and seek death?
Isn’t it good to be alive?
However, Chen Lan was eager to make achievements, so he would not listen to his subordinates' objections. Instead, he argued: "Two days ago, General Xu Rong under Marquis Qi was transferred from Liang County and his whereabouts are unknown. The new general is just a boy, only seventeen years old. If we don't take Liang County now, when will we be able to take it? Don't tell me that you are afraid of a little kid who hasn't even grown a hair yet!"

After Chen Lan's provocation, many people immediately changed their tune: "If that's the case, maybe we can give it a try."

When they heard that Xu Rong was not there and that the main commander who was replaced was a 17-year-old young man, Chen Lan's subordinates, who were originally very cowardly, suddenly felt that they were capable again.

"So, can we fight this battle?"

"Hit the motherfucker!"

If they couldn't defeat a fierce Xiliang general like Xu Rong, how could they not defeat a little brat?
Then, under the instigation of Chen Lan, except for two thousand soldiers who stayed behind in the base camp, the rest of the army set out and marched towards Liang County in a mighty manner, with murderous intent all the way.

The arrogant Chen Lan did not take the sixteen-year-old Wei Yan seriously at all, so he did not even bother to hide his whereabouts, and just walked in a long snake formation on the official road.

It was as if the person guarding Liang County was a lamb that he could slaughter at will.

Liang County, East Gate.

On the city wall, Wei Yan soon learned the news of Chen Lan's dispatch of troops from a carrier pigeon sent back by the spy he had sent out.

But Wei Yan was not afraid at all. Instead, he grinned and was very happy: "Chen Lan is really an incorrigible idiot. He couldn't even tell that I was the one who deliberately released the news that Xu Rong was transferred."

Wei Yan deliberately leaked the news, his purpose was naturally to lure Chen Lan out and then kill her.

After all, it is too risky to send troops on a long expedition and attack the enemy's city. The best solution is to wait for the enemy to come to you. "Captain, how should we fight this battle?"

The few men left behind by Xu Rong could only obey Wei Yan's orders at this time.

Wei Yan thought for a moment, took out a map, and gave an order with a firm look: "I will personally lead 2,000 infantry out of the city and set up an ambush here. If the ambush is successful, I will order people to light a beacon as a signal. As long as you see the signal, you will immediately go out of the city to pursue. If the ambush fails, I will find a way to retreat back to the city. No matter what, Liang County cannot be lost."

Wei Yan's strategy was indeed foolproof. Even if the ambush failed, the defenders could rely on the city walls and wait for support from the rear, preventing the opponent from gaining any advantage. Therefore, no one objected after hearing Wei Yan's layout.

Although Wei Yan is arrogant, he is not a brainless and reckless man.

The task assigned to him by Wang Jing was to defend Liang County, because no matter what Wei Yan did, he had to do his best to ensure that Liang County would not be lost.

Of course we should be proactive in making contributions, but we must never risk the loss of Liang County.

After making the decision, Wei Yan led 2,000 infantrymen he had personally trained out of the city and ambushed in the woods on both sides of the road that Chen Lan had to pass.

The dense forestry blocks people's view.

The main force led by Chen Lan soon appeared in front of Wei Yan. With more than 18,000 people, they were as powerful as an endless river flowing before their eyes.

As they got closer to Liang County, Chen Lan's interest grew. The corners of his mouth cracked as he laughed wantonly, "Hahaha, I wonder what kind of reward the lord will give me after I capture Liang County?"

The battle hasn't even begun yet, but Chen Lan has already begun fantasizing about being highly valued by Yuan Shu in the future and reaching the peak of his life.

However, a sudden rain of arrows shattered his beautiful dream.

"Enemy attack!"

"There's an ambush!"

Arrows kept flying from both sides of the mountain road, creating blood flowers in the surging crowd. The sudden attack plunged Chen Lan's troops into extreme chaos.

"Why is there an enemy ambush here?"

Chen Lan never expected that the young general, whom he had never taken seriously, would be so bold as to go out of the city and fight in the field with a weak force. Therefore, he was caught off guard in a hurry.

In the narrow mountain path, Chen Lan looked around, but his troops were in complete chaos.

He wanted to form a defensive formation, but the terrain was unfavorable. Even with the advantage in military strength, he could not do anything. Instead, he was hit by a hail of arrows from the ambushing troops.

"Who dares to launch a sneak attack?"

Chen Lan was riding on her horse, and she was so angry that she started cursing on the spot.

As a result, a response actually came from deep in the woods: "Of course it's you, Grandpa Wei!"

Wei Yan, wearing a black water crocodile dragon armor and holding a tiger-tooth sword forged from meteorite iron, suddenly appeared in front of Chen Lan.

Standing behind Wei Yan were five hundred elite soldiers from Danyang. They were holding swords, shields, halberds, crossbows and other weapons. They had firm eyes and walked in perfect harmony without saying a word, demonstrating excellent military qualities, which was completely different from most ordinary soldiers of this era.

There is no doubt that these elite soldiers of Danyang have been transformed into a peerless sword by Wang Jing through discipline and training.

Wang Jing gave this peerless sword to Wei Yan, asking him to break the enemy's formation, kill the general and seize the flag.

Chen Lan had no idea what a terrifying army he was about to face. He was just so stubborn that he was angered by Wei Yan's proactive attack. He then shouted arrogantly, "You little brat, you dare to leave the city and die. I will grant your wish!"

"How dare you, a mere wretch, make such a boast? You are courting death!"

Wei Yan held his sword at an angle, and before starting the battle, he tried to provoke the enemy with words.

Chen Lan was fooled. He had a high opinion of himself and always thought that he was one of the best generals in Yuan Shu's camp. But now Wei Yan regarded him as a "trash". He was furious and said, "You are so outspoken. Come and die!"

Chen Lan rode his horse out of the crowd and rushed towards Wei Yan regardless of the steep mountain road.

"Protect the Captain!"

Seeing the commander being so impulsive and irritable, the soldiers around Chen Lan were overwhelmed and could only rush out as well.

But this charge immediately caused them to become disconnected from the main force.

The mountain road was rugged, steep and rugged. The warhorse under Chen Lan had not even taken a few steps when it ran out of energy and slowed down.

What will happen to a cavalry general once he loses the mobility advantage brought by his horse's charge and is surrounded and killed by a large number of heavy infantry?
Only death!

Wei Yan laughed grimly: "Well done!"

Wei Yan gathered all his strength and swung the tiger-tooth sword in his hand forward, cutting out a fierce sword energy. As he slashed out with the sword, five hundred elite soldiers from Danyang also began to charge and killed the enemy without hesitation.

"Come at me!"

Wei Yan was not riding a horse and was wearing heavy armor, but he took advantage of the steep mountain road to speed up as if he were walking on flat ground. He was agile and did not run slowly at all. In fact, when he started running, the inertia generated by the huge kinetic energy of going down the mountain was involuntarily pushing him forward fiercely.

"Kill!"

Chen Lan couldn't move forward halfway, but Wei Yan was like a tiger coming down the mountain, rushing forward aggressively: "You rat, prepare to die!"

The tiger-tooth broadsword fell like cutting through waves. Although Wei Yan was young, his martial arts talent was beyond imagination. Ever since Wang Jing taught him the "Butchering Knife Sutra", his strength has improved by leaps and bounds. Now he is even stronger than a general like Chen Lan who is over 30 years old and in his prime, and there is also a big gap in their conditions.

Chen Lan couldn't even block Wei Yan's sword!

With just one strike, the long sword in Chen Lan's hand was knocked away.

With the second strike, Wei Yan used his sword technique to penetrate the gap between the two and chopped Chen Lan off his horse on the spot. The armor on his body was directly cut through, revealing a blurry patch of flesh and blood on his chest.

With the third blow, Chen Lan was beheaded without any chance of resistance.

After killing the enemy general, Wei Yan immediately ordered people to light a beacon signal to let the Xiliang cavalry waiting for the opportunity in the city attack.

"The captain is dead!"

"Run away!"

After Chen Lan was killed in the battle, his subordinates immediately became very confused. Moreover, because they were marching in a long snake formation, they were not prepared for battle at all. Now the entire army was cut off by Wei Yan, and they were unable to organize an effective counterattack.

As the defenders of Liang County left the city and attacked from both inside and outside together with the ambush troops, Chen Lan's troops were defeated on the spot.

Wei Yan chopped off Chen Lan's head and held it in his hand. He then mounted his warhorse and charged down the mountain path, shouting angrily, "Chen Lan, surrender! Those who surrender will be spared!"

The authentic Nanyang accent made many soldiers who were planning to fight to the end stop.

Wei Yan himself was from southern Henan, so he easily relied on this identity to persuade Chen Lan's troops to surrender.

"Captain, in this battle our army killed over a thousand enemies, captured countless, and only suffered a few dozen casualties. This can be regarded as a great victory!"

The personal soldiers around Wei Yan who fought with him were all happy and excited.

They really didn't expect that they could achieve such a great achievement just after arriving in Liang County!

Wei Yan also had a smug look on his face: "Hahaha, it's just a small victory. As long as you all obey my orders in the future, you will have no worries about not being able to achieve great things and have your wife and children be honored."

"Wan Sheng! Wan Sheng!"

The personal soldiers gathered around Wei Yan, their eyes full of anticipation.

Although Wei Yan was arrogant, spoke arrogantly, and liked to brag about his abilities to his colleagues, he treated his soldiers very well. Not only did he never withhold military pay, but he was also very generous in distributing spoils of war.

Therefore, he immediately won the support of his soldiers after taking over the two thousand infantry given to him by Wang Jing. This time, when they went out of the city to fight, although they knew the risks were huge, no one retreated before the battle, but everyone fought bravely.

After half a day of fierce fighting, Wei Yan had only 2,000 men when he left the city, but when he returned, he had 13,000 more men.

The ability of the troops to gain more and more strength as the battle went on stunned Cui Yong and Wu Xi who were fighting alongside Wei Yan.

(End of this chapter)