Chapter 337 Conspiracy!

As soon as He Jingyun finished speaking, Ye Dong hurriedly walked into Ye Mingsheng's tent and reported:

"Sir, there is an urgent military situation!"

"Speak!" Ye Mingsheng said without hesitation.

"We just received news that after learning of our army's great victory, Jiang Chong led his troops to attack Baihu Mountain. They have now captured all the outer hills of Baihu Mountain and are now attacking the main peak of Baihu Mountain!" Ye Dong introduced in a deep voice:

Upon hearing the news, Ye Mingsheng frowned. Although he had planned for Jiang Chong to attack Baihu Mountain in order to deal the greatest blow to Zhensan Mountain, it was obvious that Jiang Chong's speed was much faster than he imagined...

"How did Jiang Chong do it?" Ye Mingsheng asked with some confusion. If Huo San's information was correct, there should be at least 5,000 people in Baihu Mountain now. Although the number of people is not large, they will not be defeated at the touch of a button!

"Jiang Chong led his men to attack from several mountain trails, bypassing many checkpoints on Baihu Mountain. Moreover, after Baihu Mountain sent out 20,000 people, the garrison was very weak, so the guards on the mountain were caught off guard by him and had to retreat to the main peak," Ye Dong explained.

Ye Mingsheng secretly sighed in his heart, it is true that man proposes, God disposes. Jiang Chong is indeed a man with some tricks!
"Sir, the remnants of the enemy army of more than 10,000 people are now basically gathered in the Shenmenling area. I think our army should send troops to Shenmenling to annihilate this group of remnants, and then go straight to Baihu Mountain. We must not let Jiang Chong and his group capture Baihu Mountain before our troops!" He Jingyun, who was standing aside and heard the news, immediately suggested to Ye Mingsheng with a serious expression:

Ye Mingsheng did not express his opinion on He Jingyun's suggestion, but continued to ask Ye Dong:

"What are the enemy's current movements?"

Ye Dong replied:
"After the battle last night, the enemy suffered heavy casualties. Lu Zhan'ao is gathering the defeated troops in the Shenmenling area. One thing worth noting is that our scouts did not find any trace of Sun Dahai's troops in Shenmenling. According to some prisoners, Sun Dahai left Lu Zhan'ao behind and led his troops to retreat last night..."

Ye Mingsheng nodded thoughtfully after hearing this. If what Ye Dong said was true, it seemed that Sun Dahai and his friends and Lu Zhan'ao had already parted ways.

"General, if you divide your forces with Sun Dahai, Lu Zhan'ao only has 7,000 to 8,000 men at Shenmenling. This is a good opportunity for us to divide and annihilate him!" He Jingyun advised:
Ye Mingsheng shook his head and said:

"No, our army has fought two battles in a row, Qilipu and Sumugou. Although both were great victories, we also suffered more than a thousand casualties and consumed a lot of ammunition. Moreover, we have to recruit some bandits to expand the army. Therefore, we should take a break to digest these spoils before rejoining the battle."

Although he felt that what Ye Mingsheng said made sense, the situation did not wait for anyone, so He Jingyun still advised:
"Sir, this opportunity cannot be missed. Although our army is a little tired, the remaining bandits in Shenmenling are already frightened. As long as our army approaches, they will surely scatter like birds and beasts!"

Seeing that He Jingyun still insisted on his own opinion, Ye Mingsheng waved his hand and said confidently;

"General He, don't worry! This time, Ye will reap the benefits!"

"If our army had marched to Shenmenling, by the time we had successfully defeated the remnants of Lu Zhan'ao, Jiang Chong might have already captured Baihu Mountain!"

"So this time I plan to let Lu Zhan'ao go and let him go back to help Baihu Mountain!"

Hearing Ye Mingsheng say this, Ye Dong and He Jingyun were both surprised. They never thought that Ye Mingsheng would actually do this...
Although he was very surprised, He Jingyun thought about it briefly and understood Ye Mingsheng's plan and said:
"Sir, are you interested in Jiang Chong's two thousand cavalrymen?"

Seeing that He Jingyun had reacted, Ye Mingsheng did not hide anything and nodded with a smile:
"Yes, if our army wants to gain a foothold in Liaoyang, the more cavalry the better!"

He Jingyun nodded in agreement, and then asked with some doubt:
“Although Lu Zhan’ao was badly defeated by us in this battle, judging from his past experience, he is no ordinary person. Your Excellency’s plan…”

Although He Jingyun did not finish his words, Ye Mingsheng understood what he meant and said:
"A lion will use all its strength to fight a rabbit. I will not underestimate any opponent!"

"I used an open strategy this time. Even if Lu Zhan'ao guessed it, what would happen?"

"Does he have any other choice now besides following the path I set for him?"

After thinking carefully about Ye Mingsheng's words, He Jingyun bowed to Ye Mingsheng and said:

"Your Excellency is able to plan and win a victory thousands of miles away. I admire you!"

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Shenmenling

The bandits who were still immersed in the joy of victory at this time yesterday were now dejected, sitting on the ground with their heads hung. From time to time, screams of the wounded could be heard in the camp, and a miserable atmosphere filled the whole camp...
Sitting on a big rock, Lu Zhan'ao, who was also covered in wounds and had a bandage on his arm, asked his men:
"How many people have we gathered now?"

"Second boss, everyone has been dispersed by the Fengzhou Army. There are less than 5,000 brothers who have returned to Shenmenling. And Han Song was seen running towards Baihu Mountain last night!" The subordinate said helplessly with his head down:

Hearing this news, Lu Zhan'ao was so distressed that he closed his eyes in pain and hammered the ground hard, feeling infinite regret in his heart. He, Lu, had always been cautious, so why did he let his guard down last night?

And how did this damn Fengzhou army get into Posuo Mansion?
The situation that was supposed to be a perfect victory had fallen to this point because of him. It was truly shameful. He, Lu Zhan'ao, was ashamed of the trust that Zhen Sanshan had placed in him!
Although he felt ashamed and blamed himself, Lu Zhan'ao knew that now was not the time to blame himself. The Fengzhou Army would definitely not stop their sneak attack on them. They would definitely make another move, so he had to regroup and gather the defeated troops to deal with the next plan of the Fengzhou Army. Although he was badly defeated by the Fengzhou Army in this battle, he had not completely lost yet, and he still had the strength to fight!
"Have you contacted Sun Dahai and the others?" As if he had thought of something, Lu Zhan'ao continued to ask his men:

Although he was very angry that Sun Dahai and his men had escaped without saying hello and left him to cover them after the attack last night, and he wanted to kill Sun Dahai with a knife, but for the sake of the overall situation, Lu Zhan'ao had to hide his resentment deep in his heart. He now needed Sun Dahai and his men's help to deal with the aggressive Fengzhou army...

In response to Lu Zhan'ao's question, his subordinate replied bitterly:
"Second in command, Sun Dahai and his men have now reached Wukeshutun. They ran very fast yesterday and have gathered 7,000 men. In addition, Li Mang and Feng Erlengzi were both beheaded by the Fengzhou army last night. Their men are now under the control of Sun Dahai."

"When our people arrived at Wukeshutun, Sun Dahai kicked them out without even seeing them!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Zhan'ao could no longer suppress his anger and cursed:

"Sun Dahai, you are a dog who is always causing trouble but can't do anything good. The Fengzhou army is right in front of you. Does he want to die?"

"I will chop off your head sooner or later..."

After scolding for a whole cup of tea, Lu Zhan'ao finally felt tired. At this moment, a sudden noise was heard in the camp. Just as Lu Zhan'ao frowned and was about to shout, he saw Han Song with disheveled hair walking towards him anxiously.

Looking at Han Song like this, Lu Zhan'ao's eyes showed a hint of disdain. As a person who relied on his ability to get to the top, he was also very disgusted with people like Han Song who had no ability and relied on nepotism to get to the top.

Besides being incompetent and relying on nepotism to get to the top, Han Song has no self-awareness and wants to get involved in everything. As a result, he fails to do anything well. He is also cowardly, ambitious, and extremely greedy. In short, in Lu Zhan'ao's eyes, the name Han Song is synonymous with the word "waste"!
It was only for the sake of Zhen Sanshan's face that Lu Zhan'ao tolerated Han Song until now. Otherwise, with his personality, he would have arranged for someone to secretly kill Han Song long ago, so that this guy wouldn't be a hindrance around him...
"Han Song, didn't you run back to Baihu Mountain? Why are you running back again?" When Han Song came to him, Lu Zhan'ao asked without waiting for him to speak:
Han Song was extremely anxious, and he didn't notice the disdain in Lu Zhan'ao's eyes at all. He said in a panic as if his eyebrows were on fire:
"Second Master, that bastard Jiang Chong has attacked White Tiger Mountain, and Third Master asked you to return to help!"

When Han Song said this, Lu Zhan'ao was shocked. Shouldn't Jiang Chong stay in Yanjiang County, living in fear every day, worrying about gains and losses, and waiting to be hunted down?
How dare he come forward and attack Baihu Mountain?

Although he still didn't quite believe it, seeing Han Song's anxious expression, Lu Zhan'ao's heart slowly sank. He took a deep breath and asked Han Song very seriously:

"What on earth is going on? Han Song, tell me in detail!"

"At the hour of Mao in the morning, Jiang Chong led his men through a small path around Huju Rock and rushed to Sanhu Peak. The brothers on the mountain were caught off guard and were badly defeated by him. Now all the hilltops outside have been lost. The Third Master and the remaining men are now desperately defending the main peak!"

"On my way back, I met someone who was sent by the Third Master to ask for help. Second Master, let's hurry back to Baihu Mountain now. If we're too late, Baihu Mountain will be doomed..."

As soon as Han Song finished speaking, a look of despair suddenly appeared on Lu Zhan'ao's face. They had just been defeated by the Fengzhou army, and Jiang Chong launched a surprise attack on Baihu Mountain. Even a fool could see that something was wrong!

In all likelihood, Jiang Chong and the Fengzhou Army joined forces, or Jiang Chong simply defected to the Fengzhou Army. With the support of the Fengzhou Army, Jiang Chong dared to attack Baihu Mountain.

Logically speaking, when Baihu Mountain was attacked and Zhen Sanshan asked for help, Lu Zhan'ao should have brought people back to provide assistance!

But the question is, can we go back now?

Ye Mingsheng's cavalry were watching them covetously. Shenmenling was the only high ground within a radius of fifty miles that was easy to defend and difficult to attack. If they gave up Shenmenling and encountered the well-armed cavalry of Fengzhou on the plain, these defeated soldiers would undoubtedly be courting death.

Even if we take a step back and assume that they can really retreat from Shenmenling to Baihu Mountain, that would be like inviting a wolf into the house. Although they have stopped Jiang Chong, they have led the Fengzhou Army, this hungry wolf, to Baihu Mountain. By then, everyone will still be doomed together!
But if we don’t retreat now, Baihu Mountain will be breached soon, and we will die in the end as we will be attacked from both sides!
This is the difference between dying early and dying late!
Realizing this, Lu Zhan'ao could not help but curse bitterly:
"Ye Mingsheng, you are so vicious!"

Although they were all going to die in the end, Lu Zhan'ao was still prepared to delay for a while, and immediately ordered to withdraw to Baihu Mountain to support Zhensan Mountain. At this time, his men came to report again:

"Second Commander, the Fengzhou Army has withdrawn from Sumugou and retreated to Qilipu!"

After hearing the news, Lu Zhan'ao began to think that he had heard it wrong. After repeatedly confirming the news from his subordinates, he was very confused and couldn't figure out what the Fengzhou Army was trying to do...

Shouldn't the Fengzhou army beat the fallen dogs and kill them all at this time?

Why did we take a step back?

Could it be that Ye Mingsheng, the legendary Fengzhou general with the eyes of an eagle and the fear of a wolf, knew that he had killed too many people and felt ashamed, so he became kind-hearted?
Although he didn't know what Ye Mingsheng wanted to do, this was indeed very good news for Lu Zhan'ao, who was in a critical moment of life and death. Lu Zhan'ao didn't have time to think about it, so he asked his men to continue to gather the defeated soldiers in Shenmenling and take care of the wounded, while he took others to rush to Baihu Mountain for support.

On the way back to Baihu Mountain, Lu Zhan'ao kept wondering why Ye Mingsheng retreated after winning a great victory?
After thinking for an hour, he gradually understood. If he guessed correctly, Ye Mingsheng's move was not aimed at their Baihu Mountain, but at Jiang Chong...
It seems that the relationship between Ye Mingsheng and Jiang Chong is not as good as I imagined!

Ye Mingsheng let himself and others go back because he wanted them to fight with Jiang Chong, so that he could reap the benefits from behind!

He was certain that Jiang Chong had a deep grudge against this side and that there was absolutely no possibility of reconciliation, so he treated Baihu Mountain and Jiang Chong as chess pieces in his hands, toying with and controlling them at will!

This Ye guy is so damn good at calculating!
What made Lu Zhan'ao feel most frustrated and angry was that he had clearly guessed Ye Mingsheng's plan, but he had to go back and fight with Jiang Chong, and then wait for Ye Mingsheng to catch them all in one fell swoop!
(End of this chapter)