Chapter 599 Conspiracy Strikes
"What? The Fengwu Army surrounded Yecheng?"

In the Yingcheng General's Mansion, Gao Dingshan, who was drinking tea, heard the messenger's report and immediately stood up and shouted in disbelief:
Looking at the furious Gao Dingshan, the general trembled and said:
"Young Master, the news is absolutely true! The Fengwu Army's offensive is fierce and Yecheng is in danger. The old commander orders you to lead the army back to Yujing as soon as possible..."

"The old commander also asked me to tell you, young master, that the power behind the Eagle City bandits may not be the remnants of the Yan army, but most likely the Fengwu army. They will most likely stop you from leading your troops back. The old commander hopes that you, young master, will remember not to fight too long and fall into the enemy's trap!"

Gao Dingshan was stunned at first when he heard this. Yesterday, news came from outside the city that Feng Sanxi led all the bandits, totaling more than 13,000 people, to gather at Sanchaling, the main road leading to Yujing, and set up camp there to build trenches, barricades and other fortifications. "

"Although Gao Dingshan didn't know why these people suddenly gave up their guerrilla strategy and started to fight him head-on, he was still very happy and eager to catch these rats in one fell swoop."

But now it seems that this group of people had planned it all along, and wanted to block me from returning to Yujing for support at Sanchaling, which is the only way!
Thinking of this, Gao Dingshan's face was filled with regret. He pulled out the sword on the table and waved it angrily:
"Ye Mingsheng, you despicable villain, I will not let you go! I will tear you into pieces!"

After a while of talking, Gao Dingshan sat back in his chair and asked the messenger weakly:

"How long can Yecheng hold out?"

"I don't know! The Fengwu Army has deployed nearly 100,000 troops in this offensive, including their two ace main divisions and hundreds of red cannons, which have cut off almost all connections between Yecheng and the outside world. Now we only know that the situation in Yecheng is very bad and our army has suffered heavy casualties!"

After receiving this news, Gao Dingshan closed his eyes in pain, and then instructed the messenger:
"Go back and tell Father that I will definitely rush back to Yujing as soon as possible! Father, please hold on!"

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Luo'an, the Prime Minister's Residence

In the study, Shangguan Hongyuan was looking deeply at the map on the wall. No one knew what this powerful Prime Minister of the Great Zhou was thinking. After a cup of tea, footsteps were heard outside the door. The appearance of the footsteps also interrupted Shangguan Hongyuan's thoughts. Shangguan Hongyuan heard who the footsteps were, and without waiting for the other party to knock on the door, he gave a deep voice:
"Enter!"

At Shangguan Hongyuan's order, his only son Shangguan Changgong walked into the house and reported:

"Father, Chen Jingyu is here!"

Shangguan Hongyuan frowned slightly and asked:

"What is he doing here so late?"

Shangguan Changgong replied:
"Chen Jingyu didn't say anything, but I think he must have something important to report to you, father!"

Shangguan Hongyuan hesitated for a moment, nodded and said:
"Let him in!"

"Yes!"

After a cup of tea, the dusty Chen Jingyu appeared in front of Shangguan Hongyuan. Under Shangguan Hongyuan's gaze, Chen Jingyu said without any delay:

“Master Prime Minister, Ye Mingsheng has attacked Ji Yu…”

Shangguan Hongyuan was silent for a while after hearing this, and then he sighed slowly:
"This wolf cub has such a big appetite at such a young age. It has been less than half a year since he captured Zhuo County, and he dared to attack the Central Plains. Isn't he afraid of being stuffed to death?"

After saying this, Shangguan Hongyuan looked at Chen Jingyu and said:
"Do you think Gao Zongchang can escape this disaster?"

Chen Jingyu thought for a moment and said:

"It's very difficult! The Fengwu Army has always coveted Jiyu and has started planning for it a long time ago. In this battle, Ye Mingsheng wants to swallow up Jiyu and decide the outcome quickly! Gao Zongchang is in a state of panic due to peasant uprisings in various places. Yujing is now facing internal and external troubles and it is difficult to resist the Fengwu Army!"

Looking at Chen Jingyu, Shangguan Hongyuan said calmly:

"Jingyu, you should know that this is not what I want to hear!"

As Shangguan Hongyuan finished speaking, Chen Jingyu felt the pressure coming. After hesitating for a moment, he said:
"I think we can drive the tiger to devour the wolf and let Xu Zhaojie and the Fengwu Army fight to the death! In this way, even if the Fengwu Army takes over Hebei and Henan, it will be difficult for them to advance westward in a short period of time and interfere with our army's actions!"

Shangguan Hongyuan pondered for a while and said:
"Didn't you tell me last time that Xu Zhaojie and Feng Keqin were fighting each other in Huainan? Does he still have the energy to fight against Ye Mingsheng?"

Chen Jingyu said without hesitation:
“A fierce battle broke out between Xu Zhaojie and Feng Keqin around Kangyin. Originally, Xu Zhaojie had the upper hand in the battle, but Ye Mingsheng was playing tricks behind Xu Zhaojie’s back, supporting the bandit rebels to harass Xu Zhaojie’s supply lines, forcing Xu Zhaojie to delay launching a general attack…”

"Although Feng Keqin still occupies Kangyin City, he has been defeated in battles and has been timid recently by Xu Zhaojie. It seems that he is scared by Xu Zhaojie. Both sides are exhausted and don't want to fight anymore. If we can mediate, it is very likely that both sides will stop fighting! In this way, Xu Zhaojie will have the energy to confront Ye Mingsheng!"

"Xu Zhaojie is a smart man. He must understand that if Ye Mingsheng were to occupy Jiyu, then given their irreconcilable hatred, Ye Mingsheng would definitely not let him go. At that time, he would be attacked from both sides and would be defeated. The only way out would be defeat and death. So he would definitely send troops to stop Ye Mingsheng!"

Shangguan Hongyuan nodded and said:

"This plan sounds good, Jingyu, you can give it a try!"

After getting Shangguan Hongyuan's approval, Chen Jingyu breathed a sigh of relief and said:

"Understood, sir. I will make arrangements as soon as possible!"

After finishing talking about this matter, Shangguan Hongyuan changed the subject and asked:

"How are you progressing with the An family?" Chen Jingyu hesitated for a moment, but could only tell the truth:

"Things are currently progressing steadily. The Coordination Office is investigating very strictly. If we move too quickly, we will most likely be discovered by these people!"

Shangguan Hongyuan frowned slightly when he heard this, obviously very dissatisfied, but seeing Chen Jingyu's bitter expression, he could only nod and ordered:

"Push forward as quickly as possible! Don't dawdle too long! This battle between us and the Fengwu Army won't take long!"

"Yes!"

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Hebei and Henan, Yecheng Front
Hundreds of red cannons roared in succession, firing one shell after another towards the city in front of them. Under the cover of this firepower, countless Fengwu Army soldiers held ladders and shields, pushed battering rams, and charged towards Yecheng amid shouts of killing.

In a very hidden watchtower in the Fengwu Army camp, Yuan Song, the commander-in-chief of the attack, was holding up a telescope to observe the siege. After a cup of tea, a thin figure climbed up the watchtower and said with some concern:

"This Wang Shouye is unknown but he is a really good general. He has guarded Yecheng very well. If this continues, it will take our army at least five days to capture it!"

After listening to Guo Zhiping's judgment, Yuan Song, with a serious expression, put down the telescope and nodded slightly. It was obvious that he also agreed with Guo Zhiping's judgment.

Five days ago, the Fengwu Army officially launched the attack. Under the impact of cavalry and artillery fire, it took only two days to clear all the castles outside Yecheng. However, just when everyone thought that Yecheng was about to be captured in one go, Yecheng defender Wang Shouye made the Fengwu Army hit a snag!

"Commander-in-chief, you are the most experienced in fighting tough battles in my Fengwu Army. Do you have any good ideas?" Guo Zhiping hesitated for a moment and looked at Yuan Song and asked:
In this reorganization of the Fengwu Army, he and Yuan Song were supposed to be promoted to commanders, and their division-level units would be expanded into armies. However, because Cheng Ran’s incident violated Ye Mingsheng’s taboo, he was ordered to suspend his post and reflect at home. Naturally, the original position of the commander of the Third Army was lost...

Therefore, only Yuan Song and Lin Huaiwu, who built the Fengwu Army with the help of the Battle of Jinzhong, became commanders in this reorganization of the Fengwu Army. Among the three main divisions of the Fengwu Army, only Guo Zhiping did not become the commander. This naturally made Guo Zhiping very bitter, and he regretted more and more that he had advised Cheng Ran to ask Ye Cui for mercy.

This time the Fengwu Army went south to the Central Plains. To be on the safe side, Ye Mingsheng eventually re-employed Guo Zhiping and gave him one last chance. However, he did not reinstate him immediately, but let him temporarily serve as the general of the Third Division.

The meaning is very clear. If you fight well in the battle southward, you will not only be able to resume your post, but also be able to make further progress. However, if you do not perform well, you will most likely be completely benched, and it is hard to say whether you will be used again in the future.

Guo Zhiping, who understood Ye Mingsheng's intention, also felt the pressure and urgency. He did not dare to be careless or negligent. He personally led the cavalry unit of the Third Division. In two days, he led the Fengwu Army cavalry and advanced more than a hundred miles, destroyed seven castles of the Henan Army, and fought all the way to the city of Yecheng.

Feeling Guo Zhiping's anxious tone, Yuan Song also knew that Guo Zhiping, who was serving his sentence, was eager to make meritorious service, so he patted him on the shoulder and said:

“Brother Guo, we can’t rush into attacking a city, especially a strong city like Yecheng with abundant food. Under Wang Shouye’s command, Yecheng has not revealed any major loopholes. The best way for our army is to suppress it with artillery fire, wearing it down little by little. If we attack rashly, there will be heavy casualties…”

"Although the progress of the siege is not as fast as expected, I am still confident that I can achieve the combat objectives set by the General Staff and capture Yecheng within ten days of the start of the war!"

Hearing Yuan Song say this, Guo Zhiping was still a little anxious, but he could only nod. Yuan Song picked up the telescope and looked for a while, then asked Guo Zhiping beside him:

"Any news from Sanchaling?"

Guo Zhiping thought for a moment and replied:
"The Coordination Office said that Gao Dingshan is attacking Sanchaling day and night in order to open up the road back to Yujing as soon as possible. Tong Wen and others suffered heavy casualties in the battle at Sanchaling, so they sent people to ask us for help and asked if we could give them some support. I just sent a battalion of cavalry to Sanchaling to threaten Gao Dingshan from the side and reduce some of their pressure!"

After Guo Zhiping finished speaking, Yuan Song was silent for a while. Then, with a gleam in his eyes, he asked Guo Zhiping:
"General Guo, how many people do you have under your command now?"

Facing Yuan Song's question, Guo Zhiping said without hesitation:
"We lost about 2,000 men when we attacked the village before, and we just sent out another battalion of 3,000 men. Now I have less than 20,000 men under my command!"

After getting the answer, Yuan Song spoke again:
“If I remember correctly, the intelligence from the Coordination Office said that Gao Dingshan initially had 50,000 men under his command. He was defeated by Tong Wen in Luoxiajian and lost 10,000 men. He should only have 40,000 men under his command now…”

Guo Zhiping shook his head and said:
"He lost a lot of soldiers and horses in the previous suppression of bandits around Daya Mountain and the attack on Sanchaling in the past few days. He now has only 35,000 soldiers at most, and their morale is very low after a long battle without any results. If it weren't for the fact that the bandits under Tong Wen were too weak, they would have no problem defending Sanchaling!"

After he finished speaking, Guo Zhiping was stunned for a moment, then he asked Yuan Song tentatively with some surprise:

"Commander Yuan, you're not planning on asking me to defeat Gao Dingshan, are you?"

Under Guo Zhiping's gaze, Yuan Song did not deny and said with a faint smile:
"General Guo, what do you think about this?"

Guo Zhiping frowned slightly and said:

"The idea is feasible! Yecheng is about 500 miles away from Sanchaling. If my cavalry travels day and night, they can get there in about five days. As long as Sanchaling is still in Tong Wen's hands by then, we can definitely win this battle and even kill Gao Dingshan!"

“But if my cavalry leaves, there will be no one to plunder your formation. If reinforcements from the Henan Army arrive, your First Army will be tied down, and you may not be able to complete your combat objectives! Moreover, this deviates from the General Staff’s combat plan. If the higher-ups find out, they may…”

Yuan Song smiled and said:
"The main forces of the Henan Army are now in Sanchaling and Yecheng. Unless Gao Zongchang personally leads the troops guarding Yujing to rush to our rescue, those militia groups will not be a match for our First Army!"

Although Yuan Song spoke very confidently, Guo Zhiping still had some concerns and said:

"Commander Yuan, this is a matter of great importance. If we change our mind now, all our subsequent plans will have to change. In my opinion, should we ask the Marshal for instructions..."

(End of this chapter)