If Wang Jing's army continued to stay in Xuzhou, they would certainly face counterattacks from countless aristocratic families. The Shenwu Army needed to guard Yanzhou, and the only troops Wang Jing could mobilize now were the Qingzhou soldiers. Unfortunately, the Qingzhou soldiers had been fighting continuously and their morale was exhausted, so they were simply unable to face this situation.

Chen Deng also saw through this, so he was not in a hurry to attack. Instead, he ordered various forces to take the opportunity to recruit troops, train soldiers, and then make a concerted effort to encircle and suppress Xia Pi and catch Wang Jing in a trap.

If I don't leave now, I'm afraid I won't be able to leave.

Even if Wang Jing is extremely brave and can lead a small number of elite troops to break out of the siege, I am afraid that few of the 10,000 Qingzhou soldiers will be able to return alive and all of them will be killed in Xuzhou.

Wang Jing naturally did not want to do such a losing deal, so he naturally accepted Xun You's suggestion: "Okay, let's do as Gongda says."

Seeing that Wang Jing listened to the advice, Xun You and Guo Jia both breathed a sigh of relief.

They were afraid that Wang Jing's successive victories would cause him to become arrogant, and then he would forget the original strategy and stay in Xuzhou.

If that happens, the 10,000 well-trained Qingzhou soldiers might be defeated here.

The order to withdraw was issued and the entire army began to prepare seriously.

Many times, retreat is more complicated and more difficult than attack, because without rules and arrangements, the retreat may turn into a rout, and the rout may directly turn into a defeat.

"By the way, who do you think is the person who gave Tao Qian advice?"

Talking about this, Wang Jing also became interested.

He knew quite a few famous people in Xuzhou, such as Jian Yong who gave money and his sister as gifts, but Wang Jing only had a general idea of ​​them because he had played the Three Kingdoms game. Once it came to a specific person, he was basically completely in the dark.

The Xun family had a wide network of contacts, so Xun You had heard about the situation in Xuzhou. After thinking for a moment, he replied, "In my opinion, the person in Xuzhou who has such insight must be Chen Yuanlong."

"Chen Deng Chen Yuanlong!?"

Wang Jing was a little surprised, but then he was relieved. As expected, a talented person is really an amazing person. His intelligence and vision should not be underestimated.

If you dare to play tricks in front of these historical strategists by relying on the fact that you are a time traveler, you will probably end up being played to death without even knowing how.

"My Lord, do you know Chen Yuanlong?"

"I've only heard of it a little, but I don't think I know it."

After hearing what Wang Jing said, Xun You did not doubt anything, but took the opportunity to talk about the general situation in Xuzhou.

Although the fortunes of the Yanhan Dynasty were declining and the imperial court had lost its former glory, the various separatist forces still abided by the order and system established by the dynasty.

One of the most important rules is that the place where a local official serves must not be the state or county where he was born.

The imperial court established this system mainly to curb the expansion of local forces. After all, the system of recommendation prevailed in this era, and officials were often from aristocratic families. Once they were appointed to a post in their hometown, it was easy for them to form complicated relationships.

However, the system is dead, while people are alive. No matter how strict the system is, as long as you are determined, you can always find loopholes.

By the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the drawbacks of this system gradually became apparent.

After the central power of the imperial court weakened, various separatist forces began to gain greater power.

However, since the officials were unfamiliar with the place where they were working, they could only rely on local powerful people.

Over time, the power of the superiors was often undermined by their subordinates, and power became more dispersed. In order to change this trend, the various separatist forces mostly selected their fellow townsmen as their subordinates.

This was Tao Qian's idea in Xuzhou. Because he was from Danyang, his subordinates were roughly divided into two major factions: Chen Deng and Cao Bao.

Now that Tao Qian is still alive, it is natural that Cao Bao and others have the upper hand.

Cao Bao was from Danyang County, and he and Tao Qian were from the same hometown, which is why he was able to succeed. Of course, Tao Qian also relied on his hometown relationship to keep the power of Xuzhou firmly in his hands, and thus maintained the stability of Xuzhou City.

However, after he was over 60, Tao Qian gradually felt the impending crisis.

His son did not have the talent to be a general, and Cao Bao and others were not outstanding heroes. Once Tao Qian died of old age, the foundation he had worked so hard to build would be blown away by the wind and rain, and even the lives of his descendants would be in danger.

Tao Qian knew this very well. After his death, Xuzhou City would most likely be controlled by Chen Deng and others.

This was definitely not what Tao Qian wanted to see, which was why he deliberately sent Xiao Jian to fight Wang Jing to tackle this tough problem, and then sent Cao Bao to suppress the bandits, obviously treating Chang Xi as a soft persimmon.

Of course, compared with Wang Jing, Chang Xi, who seems fierce and cunning, is really a soft persimmon.

But whether he can pinch it or not depends entirely on Cao Bao's own ability.

From this we can see that although Xuzhou seems calm at the moment, there are actually undercurrents beneath the surface. The two forces are confronting each other, and neither has the ability to swallow up the other.

Although Chen Deng and his group were gaining power, Cao Bao's group held military power after all. If they were suppressed by force, it would inevitably lead to internal strife. Therefore, although the two forces continued to compete secretly, they could still greet each other with a smile on the surface, temporarily maintaining the stability of Xuzhou.

One of the goals of Wang Jing's invasion of Xuzhou this time was to break the balance of power between the two factions.

He first threw out bait to lure Xiao Jian into the trap and strengthen the power of Chen Deng's faction.

Chen Deng was also waiting, waiting for Cao Bao's defeat. Then they would use this as an excuse to seize part of the military power, take the opportunity to force Tao Qian to make concessions, and expand the influence of the aristocratic families and powerful families in the Xuzhou military system.

A war, but a conspiracy between three parties.

As for who will be the final winner, it depends on who has better calculations and skills.

Wang Jing kept thinking and analyzing the situation in his mind, and then he remembered one more thing and ordered his attendants: "Go, ask Zhang Kai to come see me."

"As ordered!"

A personal soldier ran out immediately after receiving the order.

Soon, Zhang Kai was brought before Wang Jing. With a rough face, he grinned and laughed heartily: "General, I heard you want to see me?"

"sit down."

"Thank you, General."

There are wine and food on the table.

Zhang Kai was not polite at all. He drank wine and ate meat with big gulps.

Wang Jing did not think he was rude, but asked calmly, "Have you gotten used to being in the army recently?"

"Hey, I have wine and meat every day, how comfortable it is!"

Zhang Kai raised his thumb as he spoke: "The general is indeed a man who can accomplish great things. He is very generous and treats his subordinates so well. No wonder every soldier in the army is so devoted to him."

Then he gulped down a few bowls of wine, drank till he was happy, wiped the corner of his mouth, and looked at Wang Jing: "General, you specially sent someone to call me here, what do you want me to do?"

On the seemingly honest face, a pair of eyes were rolling around.

Obviously, Zhang Kai was not as honest as he appeared.

But Wang Jing didn't care. He just smiled and said, "I plan to withdraw my troops."

"What!?"

Zhang Kai was shocked and showed an expression of disbelief: "Why are you withdrawing your troops when everything is fine?"

The surprise on his face at this moment was not fake at all.

Zhang Kai really found it difficult to understand why Wang Jing suddenly decided to withdraw his troops. In his opinion, they had finally conquered Xia Pi and Pengcheng, so could he really just give up on them?
Wang Jing was calm and collected. He picked up the wine glass, took two sips, and said calmly, "If I don't leave, how are you going to explain to Yuan Shu?"

With a clang, Zhang Kai's hand trembled and the wine bowl fell on the coffee table. The wine spilled everywhere and even splashed all over him.

But Zhang Kai did not bother to wipe the wet collar, but looked nervous and stiff: "General, don't make such a joke, I have no connection with the rear general."

However, Wang Jing had no expression on his face, and his eyes were frighteningly cold.

Zhang Kai wanted to explain, but Wang Jing interrupted him: "At first, I was just suspicious, so I secretly ordered you to come and go freely. However, instead of leaving, you deliberately stole money to buy wine, hoping to attract my attention in this way."

Each word was like a sharp arrow, piercing Zhang Kai's heart, making him tremble all over and feel very uneasy.

But in order to save his life, Zhang Kai suppressed his panic and continued to make excuses: "Sir, I was really addicted to alcohol at that time."

Wang Jing sneered, "Do you think I'm stupid? You are a cavalry captain in the military, and you are in a rich place like Xuzhou. Who would believe you if you said you had no money to buy wine? If you act too much, you will reveal your flaws. And you deliberately caused a dispute later, and you even made it near my army's tent. There are too many coincidences, it must be intentional."

At this moment, Zhang Kai looked depressed, and sweat poured down his body, as if all his secrets were exposed in front of Wang Jing. These little tricks of his could only fool fools.

It's a pity that he was facing a monster like Wang Jing, whose IQ was over 100 and who knew part of the history in advance.

The secret had been revealed, and Zhang Kai was determined to make it happen: "I can't hide it from the general's discerning eyes, but I am very curious, why did the general insist that I am the general's man? Maybe I was sent by Tao Qian?"

"What a stupid question."

Wang Jing shook his head and sighed: "Among the forces surrounding Xuzhou, Liu Chong is busy cleaning up his own mess, and Kong Rong is trapped in Beihai City. So who is the one who desires Xuzhou the most? Isn't the answer obvious? Only Yuan Shu is the one who cares most about Xuzhou."

"Everyone says that Marquis Qi is both wise and brave, and his reputation is well-deserved. Zhang Kai, the successor of the hidden school of military strategists, admires the general very much."

Having said that, Zhang Kai no longer pretended. He sighed and looked at Wang Jing: "So what are you going to do with me, General? Han Long and Wang Zheng fell into your hands, but there has been no news of their deaths. I guess they have joined the secret guards, right?"

Although he pretended to be calm, Wang Jing could see that there was still some fear of death in Zhang Kai's eyes.

Even ants try to survive, let alone a living person. Therefore, Zhang Kai deliberately mentioned Han Long and Wang Zheng in order to highlight his value and hope to be valued by Wang Jing.

As for Zhang Kai, Wang Jing felt that he was of some use, so he did not intend to kill him: "If I wanted to kill you, I would have asked someone to do it a long time ago, and would not have waited until now."

Zhang Kai breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this.

It would be great if you don’t have to die.

However, Zhang Kai also knew that Wang Jing let him go not because he was handsome, so Zhang Kai said: "Whatever the general orders, I will do it."

Wang Jing knew that this seemingly rough and sturdy man in front of him was actually a thoughtful person, so he nodded with satisfaction and said to Zhang Kai: "Just do whatever Yuan Shu asks you to do, but remember to inform me during the process."

"This……"

Zhang Kai did not want to refuse, but he was embarrassed and said: "If I have news, how can I tell the general?"

"Don't worry, I will send someone to contact you secretly."

Wang Jing stared at Zhang Kai and said, "Nowadays, it is a world of great contention. For individuals, choice is more important than hard work. You are a smart person and you should know when to advance and when to retreat."

Zhang Kai had no choice but to bow his head.

In fact, he was really optimistic about Yuan Shu before, so he accepted the mission and cooperated with the Yuan family of Runan as a representative of the Hidden Military Sect. Later, he served as a secret agent for Yuan Shu, infiltrating Xuzhou, working hard to grasp the military power and wait for the opportunity to help Yuan Shu seize Xuzhou at the critical moment.

But Yuan Shu is having a really miserable time now. It can be said that he had a good hand of cards, but he played it badly.

It was said that the Yuan family had three officials in four generations and had a strong foundation. However, when they were dealing with Dong Zhuo, they began to secretly split internally, and the power of the Yuan family was divided into two.

That would be fine, if Er Yuan was strong enough, he could be considered a towering tree worth relying on.

However, Yuan Shu was a piece of mud and there was no way to help him. After a few years, he even lost the territory of Nanyang County. He squandered all the savings of the Yuan family. Now he returned to Runan in disgrace, and his life became increasingly difficult.

Therefore, Zhang Kai, a secret agent planted in Xuzhou, naturally had his own little thoughts.

Who is the most popular person in the world nowadays?

Of course it’s Wang Jing!

So when Wang Jing led the Qingzhou soldiers to attack, everyone was panicked, except Zhang Kai, who was secretly delighted. He even deliberately caused trouble to attract Wang Jing's attention and wanted to join him.

However, his skills were not good enough and Wang Jing still saw through his identity. Now he can only continue to be a hidden chess piece.

After leaving Wang Jingjun's tent, Zhang Kai looked up at the sky, feeling extremely upset: "What the hell is going on!"

He was in a very bad mood. Although he was born into a military family and learned the ways of assassins, and lived in the sun, who would like to hide in secret?

Zhang Kai used to be a traitor for Yuan Shu, working undercover in Xuzhou. Now he is a traitor for Wang Jing, working undercover for Yuan Shu. It was agreed that he would be a traitor for three years, but another three years passed after three years. When will he stop being a traitor?
Obviously, he just wanted to stand out, but how did he become a shady double agent?

However, when you are under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. Zhang Kai finally chose to accept Wang Jing's conditions. After all, after the matter was done, he could still follow Wang Jing, the new boss with a bright future.

Tancheng, the residence of the governor.

"My Lord, something's wrong. Urgent report from Dongguan!"

"What on earth happened!?"

Tao Qian, who had gathered his subordinates to discuss policies, was shocked when he heard this.

It’s no wonder that he was so nervous, because the fact that what was sent back was “urgent news” rather than “good news” was enough to explain the problem.

Tao Qian's eyes went dark, but he forced himself to remain calm. He looked fiercely at the soldier who had returned to report the news: "Tell me, what happened?"

The guards were terrified: "Sir, Yangdu has been defeated!"

"what!"

Tao Qian couldn't believe his ears, so he sent out elite troops from Danyang, led by Cao Bao.

With three thousand main forces, plus the local militia of Yangdu itself, the total strength was at least tens of thousands of troops, and the opponent was just a group of bandits. How could they be defeated?
But the ironclad facts were right before his eyes, and he had no choice but to believe them.

Xia Pi was lost in the south and Yangdu was defeated in the north. The bad news coming from the south and the north one after another made Tao Qian, who was already in poor health, even worse. He lost his balance and fell on his seat.

"Lord!"

"Envoy Tao!"

The people present at the meeting were immediately in a panic: "Go get a doctor!"

All the famous doctors in the city were invited, and after a fierce rescue effort, they finally succeeded in bringing Tao Qian back from the brink of death.

Although the noble families in Xuzhou all have their own plans and conflicts of interest with Tao Qian, they do not want anything to happen to Tao Qian at the moment, which would make the situation in Xuzhou even more turbulent.

Many people breathed a sigh of relief when they heard that Tao Qian had been rescued and was not seriously injured and just needed rest.

Chen Deng returned home, found his father and told him about this.

Chen Gui stroked his beard, turned around and asked, "Yuanlong, what do you think?"

Chen Deng thought for a moment and replied, "Tao Gongzu cannot take charge. This is a good opportunity for us to expand our power. It's time to send troops."

If you want to expand your power, you need fame and prestige, both of which can be obtained through a military victory.

Chen Deng had already made a plan, and now was the right time to act. However, before the father and son could discuss more details, they heard a servant come to report: "Master, a great victory in Xia Pi!"

"A great victory?"

When Chen Deng and his son Chen Gui heard the words "Great Victory at Xia Pi", their eyes almost popped out.

I haven't even started yet, so how can there be a great victory in Xia Pi?

Chen Gui sighed to the sky: "Alas, fate does not give us anything. No matter how well we plan, someone may get there first."

Chen Deng felt a little pain in his teeth: "Who could it be? He was able to take action before us and repel Wang Jing. Is there such a powerful general in Xuzhou?"

Chen Deng then sent people out to gather information, and the result left him dumbfounded.

Seeing his son's strange expression, Chen Gui was curious: "Yuanlong, what's wrong with you?"

Chen Deng sighed: "Father, the person who captured Xia Pi City was Xiao Jian."

They were all big families in Xuzhou, and they had a lot of contact and communication on a daily basis. Therefore, after hearing these words, Chen Gui showed the same weird expression as Chen Deng: "Xiao Jian? Does he have such ability?"

Xiao Jian of Donghai was the Prime Minister of Langya and governed Ju County. He was good at defending the city, and it would be a stretch to say that he was an average person. There was no way he could snatch Xia Pi City from Wang Jing.

If something goes wrong, it must be a monster!
Chen Deng and Chen Gui, father and son, looked at each other and both guessed that there might be something else going on.

Chen Deng frowned and pondered. He pondered carefully in his mind and soon deduced part of the story: "It seems that Marquis Qi deliberately retreated. Before this, Xiao Jian did not move his troops and deliberately watched Cao Hong die in battle. I'm afraid there is collusion between them."

Chen Gui sighed: "If I want to learn more information, I have to go to Xia Pi City." (End of this chapter)