Chapter 369 A sudden attack, the enemy is at the gate!

Chapter 369 A sudden attack, the enemy is at the gate!

"If we win this battle, you will be the biggest contributor!" After a long silence, Gao Yao slowly turned his head, stared at Zhang Liang, and said this with emotion. Throughout the whole process, he had been adopting the strategy of retreating to advance, cleverly planning and luring the imperial army step by step into the carefully laid trap.

Facing Gao Yao's praise, Zhang Liang looked humble and responded quickly: "My lord, you are too kind. The successful implementation of this strategy is by no means dependent on my efforts alone. The more critical factor lies in you, my lord!" His words were sincere, without any intention of taking credit for himself. Instead, he took the opportunity to push the credit to Gao Yao.

Hearing this, Gao Yao couldn't help but smile slightly, and said in a teasing tone: "What, sir, are you being overly modest again?"

However, Zhang Liang shook his head gently and explained seriously: "My lord, everything I said is true, and I am not being modest. The reason why this plan was successful is that my lord highly recognizes and trusts this plan. Considering that the world is so big, not everyone has such courage and generosity to decisively give up a county as bait for the plan! This is of vital importance, and it is the most important thing."

After a pause, Zhang Liang continued to analyze: "Furthermore, the strong strength of the army itself is also an indispensable condition. If the gap between our southern border army and the imperial court's army is too large, or if we cannot achieve the expected strategic goals in the fierce battlefield, then even if we have the best strategy, we will still face many difficulties in achieving the final victory, and it may even lead to a situation of total defeat."

"Therefore, it is inappropriate for my lord to attribute all the credit to me! I dare not take credit for myself, after all, this credit is not all made by me alone. Moreover, the strategy of risking one's life and then surviving is not suitable for everyone."

Zhang Liang said sincerely, and what he said was indeed from the bottom of his heart. Although Zhang Liang's wisdom and strategy were brilliant, the key was whether Gao Yao could use these strategies correctly and whether he would hesitate when implementing them. In addition, whether he could achieve the expected results during the battle and whether he could successfully lure the imperial army into the trap, there were many variables and uncertainties.

"Then, are there other unexpected possibilities in this battle?" Gao Yao frowned. Out of his usual cautious attitude, he couldn't help but ask another question.

Zhang Liang thought for a moment and replied, "Theoretically, the probability of an unexpected situation should be small. Next, the wisest choice for the imperial army is probably to withdraw from Xiangjun decisively, and adopt a strategy of shrinking the defense line and strengthening defense, and quietly wait for the arrival of follow-up reinforcements. Since they have suffered heavy blows in terms of food and grass twice in a row, coupled with the previous experience of many fierce battles and personnel losses caused by food shortages, if the imperial army wants to gather strength again and launch an offensive against our southern border again, it will take at least more than a month, or even longer."

“To take a step back, even if the imperial army is really determined to launch an all-out attack at this moment, the pressure on our lord will certainly be greatly reduced. It may even be possible to free up his hands to first wipe out the imperial troops except those in Nanhai County. But…” Zhang Liang stopped abruptly when he said this, and then showed a helpless bitter smile.

"Sir, why don't you continue?" Seeing Zhang Liang like this, Gao Yao couldn't help but feel confused and asked hurriedly.

Zhang Liang sighed and explained slowly, "My lord, there is indeed another possibility, but the probability of this happening is very small. Right now, you only have 3,000 elite soldiers by your side. If the enemy sends a surprise attack force to attack you, it may be a good move for them to break the current dilemma. However, it is extremely difficult to implement this plan successfully. This surprise force not only needs to cleverly avoid the close surveillance of our army, but also needs to accurately control your every move. Any mistake in the two will lead to the failure of the entire plan!"

After hearing Zhang Liang's words, Gao Yao suddenly felt a sudden tug in his heart, as if being tightly grasped by an invisible hand. These two things are indeed difficult, but the degree of difficulty depends on the target. If facing the elusive Yi Xiaochuan, Gao Yao really can't guarantee that the other party knows nothing about it. After all, this person has been planning for a long time, and the length of time he has been planning is comparable to the years Gao Yao has been working hard in the southern border. What makes Gao Yao even more uneasy is that he still can't be sure whether Yi Xiaochuan's spies are still lurking around him.

At this moment, a rapid and sharp shout suddenly came: "Report-Report... My Lord, My Lord! The imperial army suddenly appeared five miles outside the city. There are many people, no less than ten thousand people. They are now rushing towards our county town. Please make a quick decision!"

This sudden report was like a bolt from the blue, hitting Gao Yao straight in the face, instantly shocking him like a wooden chicken. Not only Gao Yao, but even Zhang Liang beside him was shocked, his mouth opened wide enough to fit an egg. Just now he had vowed that there was no need to worry about this, but before he finished speaking, reality gave him a loud slap in the face, which was so crisp and loud, and it was the perfect confirmation of what he said.

"What? Notify all units immediately. There must not be any delay. They must step up defense immediately! At the same time, give orders for everyone to get into combat positions as quickly as possible!" Gao Yao was shocked and thought to himself that something was wrong. However, after hesitating for only a moment, he quickly made a decision and gave the order loudly.

At this moment, Gao Yao had no time to think about strategies such as breaking out, because in essence, in such a critical situation, it was almost impossible to successfully break out. Not to mention whether the enemy had only launched this wave of attacks or had a large number of reinforcements in the future, the enemy must have a large number of elite cavalry units just because they could attack at their doorstep without anyone noticing. Choosing to break out under such circumstances was tantamount to walking into a trap and seeking death.

"Yes!" The messenger responsible for delivering the military order knew the situation was urgent and did not dare to delay for even a second. After receiving the order, he left in a hurry like a gust of wind and rushed to various departments to convey Gao Yao's instructions.

Gao Yao immediately ordered his attendants to put on his armor. He decided to go to the front to supervise the battle in person to boost morale and stabilize the army. At this time, Zhang Liang, who had been standing aside, couldn't help but open his mouth as if he wanted to say something. However, when the words came to his lips, he felt it was difficult to speak. For a moment, he didn't know how to start.

Gao Yao noticed Zhang Liang's hesitant look, he waved his hand slightly, signaling Zhang Liang not to say more: "Sir, there is no need to blame yourself, it's not that you didn't anticipate this, it's that Meng Yi has been harboring resentment towards me for a long time, I'm afraid he has already planted a lot of spies in the southern border, which led to the current situation. Sir, please stay in the mansion for the time being, I will send someone to report the battle situation to you." After saying that, Gao Yao turned around and strode towards the battlefield.

At this time, Gao Yao had already started to have some vague speculations in his heart. These guesses were always as vague as flowers in the fog until he stepped onto the top of the city wall, when they were finally verified beyond a doubt.

Looking far away, the imposing imperial army outside the city was already in full battle formation, neatly arranged in battle formation, each soldier holding a weapon, exuding a chilling killing intent, and their overall posture seemed to be fully prepared to launch a strong attack at any time and anywhere. What was particularly eye-catching was that in front of this huge imperial army, the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan stood there!

After witnessing this scene, Gao Yao's various speculations instantly became reality. As expected, it was the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan! Although Gao Yao was always cautious in his actions, he was inevitably trapped in the dilemma of being surrounded again.

At the same time, the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan, who was at the forefront of the army, naturally also keenly noticed Gao Yao climbing up the city wall. At first, he had planned to take a quick decision and launch a surprise attack with lightning speed, attempting to disrupt the enemy's deployment with an unexpected offensive. However, the reaction speed of the Southern Border Army was beyond imagination. From the moment they first noticed the whereabouts of Yi Xiaochuan's troops, they quickly reported the situation to Gao Yao and completed a series of preparations for defending the city in a very short time. All these actions were completed in one go, and they were ready before the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan led his troops to the city.

This was the reason why the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan did not rashly launch a direct attack. At this moment, when Gao Yao and the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan's eyes met, an invisible shock wave seemed to burst out from the intersection of their eyes, and everyone could clearly feel the strong sense of oppression constantly emerging from the depths of their eyes.

The mysterious Yi Xiaochuan rode a strong warhorse and stood majestically at the foot of the city. He shouted loudly without hesitation: "Gao Yao! You are isolated and helpless at this moment, but I have to admit that you are really smart, even extremely smart. I believe there must be a master behind you to guide and assist you, right?"

Facing the blatant ridicule from the mysterious Yi Xiaochuan, Gao Yao did not show any weakness and immediately retorted: "Humph! It doesn't matter if it is true or not. At this point, what good will it do to talk about it? Will it change the current situation?"