Chapter 233 Eyeing Neighbors (1/2)
Chapter 233 – Eyeing Neighbors
December 20th.
Ji Commandery City.
Liu Yan and Zou Jing listened to their scout reports from the surviving spies in Julu. The situation in Julu was not very favorable to them.
After Jia Xu returned to the city, he began cracking down the suspicious individuals in the town, eliminating spies from various factions. All domestic management and all departments had been overhauled, and Sima Fang had been very active, arresting criminals and spies alike.
The leak of information in Julu was being patched, and the internal system had been repaired.
Their military development was also troublesome as they had been informed about the dealing between Jinyang and Julu about warhorses.
And the most worrying part was the result of the recent war in Jinyang territory. The result of the battle was in their hands.
”Is it confirm?” Liu Yan asked.
The spy shook his head, ”No, my lord. None of us can confirm about the emperor's death. Everything we knew was from the gossip of their soldiers.”
”The status of their army? How is their current strength after the war?”
”Rough estimation, Jinyang has 10,000 garrison soldiers, 10,000 prisoners, 50,000 cavalries under the monster Lu Bu. The total soldiers in Jinyang numbered 70,000. Julu has 60,000 combined forces of infantries and cavalries. There are more in Ye, Shangdang, and their latest occupied city Zhongshan.”
Zou Jing and Liu Yan paled listening to the military status report. They only had 50,000 elites housing in their city. Going up against a powerhouse rebel was impossible for them now.
”Lord, are we still going to attack the rebels?” Zou Jing asked as he could not keep his legs still. They were shaking in nervousness.
”Any spy report from Zhongshan? How did they take the city?”
”The Zhen family surrendered to Zhang Bao, my lord.”
Liu Yan smashed the wooden table in front of him, ”FOOking coward! They are the servants of the Han. How the hell can they surrender!?”
”It's not that they didn't want to fight, my lord. They settled the result of the battle with a duel and gambled their fate with their representative warrior. The Zhen family sent their best mercenary into the duel, but he was killed by the rebel's representative.”
”What's the name of the warrior from the rebel?”
”Bo Cai, my lord.”
Zou Jing squinted his eyes and clenched his fists. His legs had stopped shaking listening to the name of this person.
After the Battle of Anping, Zou Jing had investigated and reevaluated of his performance and Tong's ability in the battle. The name ”Bo Cai” appeared in the list of Tong's lieutenants, and he was in charge of the small cavalry unit that destroyed his trebuchet crews.
At first, he thought that this person was just a nobody who seized the opportunity by chance. Hearing this name again, aroused his interest.
”How was the duel? Do you have a detail?” Zou Jing asked.
”He … He killed the opponent in ten moves, sir.”
Liu Yan sucked in cold breath while Zou Jing was pondering.
'If I remember correctly, he was not a good commander. He charged right into my spear wall formation in the last battle. Even if his martial art is good, he isn't my match in terms of army commanding.'
Zuo Jing smiled and spoke, ”My lord, this Bo Cai is not a good general, and Zhang Bao is just a peasant who happens to be there to command troops. I believe we can exploit the rebel's weakness.”
Liu Yan was delighted, ”How?”
”Although the rebel army has many troops in various cities, they won't be able to reinforce each other once we begin assaulting a city. Since Zhongshan is closest to us, we can seize it from the rebel and snatch it from the Zhen family.”
Liu Yan frowned, ”Won't Julu send reinforcement?”
”Julu won't be able to support Zhongshan, my lord. I'm sure that the emperor's edict and the news about the emperor's death should have reached their ears already. They will likely attack Julu to claim a credit. Since Yuan Shao is known for his ambition and greed, he will want to acquire as many achievements possible in this conflict to get more promotion from the Court. Once the war with the rebel is over, they will want to expand their territory to other cities before the new emperor ascends the throne.”
Liu Yan nodded, ”Indeed, if Julu is attacked by Yuan Shao, he won't be able to send reinforcement. But that doesn't solve everything. Do you think we can defeat this Zhang Bao and Bo Cai?”
”My lord do not need to worry. With their commoner background, they won't have enough knowledge or skills to match us on a proper battlefield.”
Liu Yan paused to think. After a while, he ordered, ”Send our fast horse to Yuan Shao. Write a letter to propose a joint attack and have him attack Julu. We shall attack Zhongshan at spring!”
…
…
Nanpi City, Yuan Shao's territory.
Similar to Liu Yan, Yuan Shao intelligence agency suffered from the counter-intelligence of Jia Xu and Sima Fang. However, they also secured the vital info about Liu Ping's death and the result of the battle in Jinyang territory.