Jinyang City.

Zhang Chao secretly sent troops with a large army to Yanmen County in January. This news was not concealed for long, and on the seventh day after the incident, it was known to the spies of the Montenegrin army, and in the cave between the mountains, Zhang Yan held a military meeting.

Zhang Yan put his armor on the first seat, and after inspecting the generals under him, he said: "Brothers, Zhang Chao rushed to Yanmen County with the main force, and it can be seen that his purpose this time must be to recover the entire Bingzhou. And once he becomes a true state minister, then we will become his next target, and then a big war will be inevitable. Instead of waiting for him to come to us, it is better to take advantage of his main force and we will storm Jinyang City. As long as we can capture his lair, the state will be in chaos, and we will be safe then. ”

Zhang Yan didn't want to be an enemy of Zhang Chao, and she was indeed a little afraid of the other party's strength. Especially after knowing afterwards that the First Army was Zhang Chao's army, and it was a chess piece that he had arranged here two or three years in advance, he admired and feared it even more.

Such an enemy is not easy to defeat, and it would be best if we could not fight. It's just that Zhang Chao's ambition has really threatened him. First took Xihe County, and then captured Hedong. Now it is even more necessary to use troops to Yanmen County, which has never been possible to be done by the state pastors, but now it is indeed to be realized one by one.

That is to say, once Zhang Chao owns the entire state, I am afraid that the next thing to deal with is himself, if this is the case, then the war is inevitable. Even so, he had to strike first.

Zhang Yan advocated the use of troops against Zhang Chao, and this proposal was quickly approved by the generals below. This time, even the contact with the First Legion, which had a good relationship, made Zhou Cang agree.

The camps are different, and the things they consider are also different. Zhou Cang is a member of the Montenegrin Army after all, and the starting point of his work is to consider the Montenegrin Army first.

It's just that although Zhou Cang agreed, Zhang Yan considered the relationship between him and the First Army, and did not allow him to fight this time, and even his friend Pei Yuanshao was affected by him and was arranged to be a guard at home.

Zhang Yan ordered Yu Poison and Bai to be one part and attack Jinyang City from the south; He attacked Jinyang City from the east; Guan Hai's troops blocked Zhang Chao's reinforcements from the direction of Huguan in Zhongshan County; Bian Xibu blocked Zhang Chao's reinforcements from the direction of Hedong and Xihe counties; Zhou Cang and Pei Yuanshao stayed at home to guard; Other generals can take the opportunity to loot the official warehouses in the counties of the prefecture.

This year, Bingzhou has had a bumper harvest, and I heard that the granaries of all counties and counties are full, and if they can be grabbed for their own use, then the Montenegrin army's food for the next year will not be a problem.

Zhang Yan's arrangement was agreed to by most people. After the meeting was dismissed, they were busy. And it didn't take long for the members of Tianyan who were planted within the Black Mountain Army to spread the news to Jinyang City.

Jinyang City Lord's Mansion.

It is second only to the existence of the Patriarch's Mansion, and it is here that decisions are made on matters related to the annexation of the prefecture. And now, it is Jia Xu and Lu Su who are guarding here.

After receiving the information from the members of Tianyan, the two gathered several generals who stayed at home, including Tai Shici, Zhang Liao, Gao Shun, and Song Xian.

A member of Tianyan entered the Montenegrin army four years ago, and because of his performance, he became a personal soldier by Zhang Yan's side, and the news passed by him was not only true, but also very detailed, so that Jia Xu and Lu Su could formulate the most appropriate countermeasures according to the situation.

"The Lord is wise, the Tianyan Organization has indeed played a powerful role." Looking at these specific and true information, Jia Xu and Lu Su both had the same feeling in their hearts.

The so-called knowing oneself and knowing one's opponent is invincible. Being able to predict the opponent's situation in advance is equivalent to a thirty percent chance of winning, and the two senior military advisors are full of confidence in this battle. The four generals were summoned, which was to arrange their respective tasks.

"Generals. This time, the lord led the army to recover Yanmen and fight against the arrogance of the Xiongnu, which really raised the eyebrows of our Chinese nation. What is hateful is that the Montenegrin army actually chose this time to attack us, which proves that they have no national concept in their hearts, even if this is the case, then we will give them a head-on blow, let them know that we are powerful, do you have confidence? Looking at the four generals of Tai Shi Ci, Lu Su asked earnestly.

The four generals are naturally gearing up, and their eyes are shining.

This time, Zhang Chao went to Yanmen with the main force and did leave them behind, which made the four of them feel unhappy. Also for generals, they also want to make a contribution.

For this matter, Zhang Chao invited four people to a banquet the night before leaving, and a heart-to-heart conversation made the four of them know their hard work.

At that time, Zhang Chao said, "There are great reasons why a battle can achieve the final victory. There is a proper strategic arrangement, there are officers and men who work hard for their lives, there is timely logistics supply, there are correct sources of intelligence, and there is also unity and stability in the rear. And what the four have to do is to protect the stability of the rear. Although I can be hidden in the early stage, after a long time, it will inevitably be known to all parties, and at that time, I don't know if anyone will come to attack our idea. Knowing that after the main force leaves, Jinyang City will become the target of the election attack, and at that time, it will depend on the four generals to show their might. In a word, I have handed over my home to you, and I hope that the generals will not live up to my trust. ”

The word trust made the four of Tai Shici feel the weight of the burden on their bodies, and at the same time, the idea of not being able to follow the army to make contributions was relieved a lot.

Now, everything is as Zhang Chao expected, the Black Mountain Army is really the first to jump out, so when will the four of them still have the reason to fight without their lives.

"The two military advisors, please rest assured, this time when the Danshan army comes, they will not be allowed to take advantage of it in the slightest." Tai Shi Ci made a statement on behalf of the four generals.

"Okay, that's it, everything depends on the generals, now ask Brother Wen He to announce the battle plan." After Lu Su nodded to Tai Shici and the others, he handed everything over to Jia Xu.

"Now it's up to me to announce the battle plan. General Taishi..."

After getting the movement of the Montenegrin army in time, Lu Su and Jia Xu jointly sent a notice to the counties under their jurisdiction on behalf of the state pastor, that is, all counties should strictly guard the city to prevent the attack of the Montenegrin army.

As soon as this decree was issued, the gates of some counties began to be related, and the B-class and C-class armies began to assemble, and the situation in the entire annexed state suddenly became serious.

At the same time, Zhang Yan's army also came out of the mountains, aiming directly at Jinyang City and the counties of Bingzhou.

Jinyang City, four gates are also closed. The people in the city were also informed, that is, not to go out at will, but fortunately, it was the cold winter at this time, and there was nothing to do in the farm, but it would not delay any serious business.

This is also the result of the discussion between Jia Xu and Lu Su. In order to ensure the absolute safety of Jinyang City, it is the most appropriate move to close the city gate at this time, this is the capital of the state, it is the foundation of Zhang Chao, and it is absolutely impossible to lose.

When Zhang Yan led the army to a place ten miles east of Jinyang City, the scouts in front reported the situation ahead.

As soon as he heard that the gate of Jinyang City was closed, General Zhenggu, who was traveling with Zhang Yan, laughed, "General, it seems that they are scared." Do you just think that closing the gates will prevent our army from entering? What a joke. ”

"Yes, Zhang Chao's main force is not there, and Jinyang City is no different from the empty city. I was worried that they would run away when they got the news, and they would take their money and food with them. Now it seems to be a lot more reassuring. Zhang Yan also laughed after hearing the information.

As far as Zhang Yan is concerned, without Jinyang City, where Zhang Chao's main force is located, it is something that is at his fingertips. What he was worried about was that he was afraid that the other party would escape, and he was indeed the least afraid of the other party defending the city.

According to the intelligence, Zhang Chao marched into Yanmen County this time, with more than 20,000 infantry and nearly 20,000 cavalry, which is almost draining the troops of Jinyang City.

Zhang Yan, who knew that the four gates of Jinyang City were closed, was overjoyed, so he agreed to Zhenggu's request and allowed him to attack Dongcheng first with 40,000 foot soldiers, and then he took 40,000 soldiers to the palace.

On this trip, in order to be able to take Jinyang City at one time, Zhang Yan can be said to have invested enough. He alone brought 80,000 troops all the way, Yu Poison and Bai Huan brought 50,000 troops all the way, a total of 130,000 troops to attack Jinyang City, no matter how you look at it, it is a sure victory.

In fact, at this time, there were only 10,000 infantry in Jinyang City, 1,000 heavy cavalry and 1,000 light cavalry of Zhang's army, plus 500 soldiers in the trapping camp. Even if you add some city defense soldiers whose combat strength is only Class B, the number of people is only about 15,000.

With 15,000 against 130,000, no matter how you look at it, it is a difficult game to win. But Jia Xu and Lu Su, who were guarding the city, did still have the confidence to defend the city, what was the reason?

Among them, there is naturally the reason for the lack of combat strength of the Black Mountain Army, and there is also the reason why the walls of Jinyang City are tall and there is a wide moat around it.

As early as last year, when Jia Xu took Zhao Yun to join Li Ru and Lü Bu to attack Hedong in Xihe County, Zhang Chao began to build a moat in the city.

Originally, according to Zhang Chao's request, Jinyang City expanded the city more than doubled, and the city wall was not twice as high as the original, but he still had to use limited manpower to build a moat. Questions have been raised about this matter.

It's just that for those who were skeptical, Zhang Chao did not answer, but insisted on continuing to build, and even attracted river water from a distance to completely fill the moat.

It wasn't until the day when all the moats were built, and everyone looked forward above the city gates, that they knew the importance of this move. With this wide moat, the entire Jinyang City has at least fifty percent more defense capabilities, which is also where Jia Xu and Lu Su's confidence in rejecting the enemy lies.