Chapter 1140 – Defeating Xu Pei, The First Kill Among the Lords (Part 10)
Xie Ze looked at Xu Pei’s darkened expression and stepped forward to offer his help.
“Lord, considering the time, they haven’t gone far. Should I lead some men to pursue them?”
Xu Pei swallowed the frustration in his throat, maintaining a calm exterior while internally berating Yang Si countless times.
“Of course we must pursue! If we catch up, show no mercy!”
Thinking back to the declaration he saw earlier in the day, Xu Pei’s heart ached even more.
At this moment, he couldn’t target Jiang Pengji or Qi Guanrang; it was permissible to use Yang Si and others to repay some of the debts first.
Hu County was essentially his home ground. How could he let a few outsiders rampage on his territory without losing face?
Xie Ze said, “I will take command.”
Just as he was about to leave, the accompanying Han Yu interjected, “Xie Commandant, wait a moment. You are not familiar with the terrain here—let me accompany you.”
Although Hu County was generally flat, the mountains near Shanweng City were quite complex and rugged, making for an excellent ambush spot.
Xie Ze was unfamiliar with the terrain around Shanweng City, and if he rashly pursued, he risked being outsmarted by that scoundrel Yang Si to the point of boiling with rage.
Han Yu’s suggestion filled Xie Ze with gratitude, giving him a cheerful look.
“Thank you, Military Adviser.”
With Xie Ze and Han Yu leading the pursuit, the rest of Xu Pei’s officials dared not act recklessly in fear of incurring their leader’s wrath. The crowd fell silent as Xu Pei gazed at the enemy camp, where the bonfire blazed fiercely, his frustration only intensifying.
“Burn it down! It’s in the way!”
Xu Pei ordered the camp to be set ablaze. Watching the flames rise, he felt a bit of his pent-up anger dissipate.
Little did he know, the fire shot up into the sky like an orange sun rising above the horizon.
In the distance—
Qin Gong, using his exceptional eyesight, vaguely saw red light rising from the direction of the original camp and further admired Yang Si.
“Military Adviser, look—the enemy’s camp is indeed on fire. Xu Pei has truly lost his temper.”
Qin Gong reminded Yang Si, who responded with a lively reaction.
“Hahaha—if it weren’t for this reaction, Xu Pei wouldn’t be Xu Pei!”
To the enemy, Yang Si’s reaction seemed extremely irritating; to his teammates, however, it was “adorably lively and humorous.”
Qin Gong imagined Xu Pei jumping up and down in anger, feeling incredibly pleased, with the corners of his mouth slightly raising.
Cheng Yuan, noticing how cheerful the two were, poured a bucket of cold water on their excitement.
“According to what the Military Adviser said, Xu Pei is quite petty; having burned the camp out of anger, he will definitely send troops to chase after us.”
Cheng Yuan frowned, worry written all over his face. They had left under the cover of night and couldn’t even light torches for fear of revealing their presence.
Although the soldiers were strong and robust, the rugged mountain paths and lack of light greatly hindered their speed.
Xu Pei’s pursuing troops would surely have no such concerns and would catch up to them faster.
In just two or three hours, they would certainly be caught.
Yang Si replied, “Of course Xu Pei will send pursuers. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t be the petty Xu Pei we know.”
Since the mask of civility had been torn off, Yang Si took every opportunity to belittle Xu Pei.
Cheng Yuan half-closed his eyelids and coolly asked, “Since the Military Adviser anticipated this, he must have a counter-strategy?”
Yang Si replied, “We pretend to be weak; to appear weak is to be strong.”
The strategists under Jiang Pengji had very different personalities.
Without considering Wei Ci and Feng Jin, Yang Si was among the more agreeable, often cracking a joke or two.
“My apologies for being dull; I fail to grasp the Military Adviser’s meaning.”
Translated, Cheng Yuan’s words meant—
Speak plainly, stop trying to be clever.
Yang Si rode leisurely, gripping the reins as if his body were made of jelly, bobbing along with the horse’s movements.
“Although I don’t know who is leading the pursuit, that person definitely doesn’t understand the terrain around Shanweng City as well as our Commander Qin does,” Yang Si stated confidently. “Now that the sky is dark, we don’t have any blockades ahead, but they must guard against us setting up an ambush—”
Cheng Yuan immediately understood.
“The Military Adviser’s intention is to create a false front to buy time?”
Yang Si replied, “Not only that; it can also help us gauge who the pursuers are.”
Qin Gong listened attentively, unable to resist asking a question.
“Gauge who the pursuers are? Is that even possible?”
The night was thick, visibility low, and without torches to illuminate the path, the scouts wouldn’t discern who the enemy leaders were.
“Exactly,” Yang Si said. “After testing a few times, we will half-know who they are. If it’s an ordinary person, our false front will work wonders, and we can set up an ambush too. But if we’re up against someone like Han Yu, we’ll only buy ourselves some time, let alone set up an ambush.”
In other words, they could judge the enemy leader’s tenacity based on their reaction speed.
Yang Si sighed, “I’ve dealt with Wenbin for years; we know each other quite well. If he comes after us, it’s bound to be a tough battle.”
Qin Gong replied, “The Military Adviser certainly won’t lose to him.”
Yang Si grinned and said, “Naturally; Han Wenbin is still too chivalrous. He could never defeat me.”
Qin Gong and Cheng Yuan exchanged an odd silence.
Did Yang Si just imply that he was even less scrupulous than Han Yu?
Qin Gong was very familiar with the terrain around Shanweng City, having trained troops in those areas before.
To prevent the enemy from blocking them first, Qin Gong carefully chose a route suitable for ambush but not one that allowed for shortcuts.
This night was destined to be thrilling.
“Indeed, this is Yang Jingrong’s handiwork; he plays the game of feints quite well.”
With the light from their torches, Han Yu strained to see the surrounding terrain. They found themselves in a depression—a narrow entrance leading into a spacious interior, perfect for an ambush. Han Yu dared not gamble with his men’s lives; he could only send someone to scout for the truth, and the scouts reported signs of an ambush nearby.
If the scouts hadn’t found anything, Han Yu would have been worried, but upon hearing that they had found shadows of ambushers, he felt reassured.
“Hanshu, could those shadows in the depression be—”
“Ambushers?” Before Xie Ze could finish, Han Yu confidently replied, “There’s likely none.”
If it were someone else, that depression would indeed be a good place for an ambush, but Yang Si was different; he loved to go against the grain.
In places where others might assume an ambush couldn’t exist, he delighted in pulling tricks to catch people off guard.
Furrowing his brow, Xie Ze ordered the army to pause and regroup while sending people into the depression to test the waters.
As Han Yu suspected, the shadows spotted by the scouts were merely a diversion set by Yang Si.
While there were signs of an ambush on both sides of the depression, in reality, there were no ambushers—just piles of stones and dead branches scattered about. Under the cover of night, it was hard to distinguish whether those shadows were people or something else, and the shadows flickered, effectively deceiving the scouts.
Han Yu furrowed his brow, speaking in a low tone, “Continue the chase. If we haven’t caught them by dawn, the army can prepare to return.”
Xie Ze hesitated, “If that’s the case, what about our Lord—”
Han Yu replied, “No problem; I will explain everything to the Lord.”
The night was dark; Yang Si’s side dared not light a fire, their marching speed substantially slowed.
Once dawn broke and visibility improved, wouldn’t they be able to speed ahead?
At that point, catching up would be nearly impossible.
