Chapter 422

Chapter 422

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Final Volume: The Rise and Fall of Royal Power, Unification of the World, Chapter 422: The Arrow of Siege

The private soldiers of the noble families around Ye City, under such an encirclement attack, didn’t even have the courage to resist. They were either killed or fled under the threat of the enemy’s flying arrows. By the time the troops led by Qiao Yan arrived within a few hundred steps of Ye City, there was no longer any force blocking their path between her and the city.

The only remaining barriers were the city walls of Ye City and the armored soldiers within.

In the face of the enemy’s overwhelming banners, it seemed like a joke that could be overturned at any moment!

The army marched straight towards Ye City, and even the most foolish could guess the outcome of the forces in Qingzhou and northern Ji Province.

Moreover, Qiao Yan had no intention of hiding her intentions from the people of Ye City.

The signal flags carried by the scouts reached the city walls, shouting out signals that echoed with the captured soldiers from Ji Province in the distance, confirming that this was not just a ploy to make the remnants of the Han Dynasty in Ye City surrender!

The sight of Yuan Tan, Yuan Xi, and Yuan Shang being brought to the front of the formation further trampled Yuan Shao’s already diminished dignity into the mud.

But for the defending soldiers, they probably wouldn’t focus much on these captured Yuan clan princes.

They couldn’t help but look at the golden banner at the forefront. Even if they couldn’t see clearly what was beneath the canopy, they could guess that it must be the location of the Da Yong Emperor!

The tiger and wolf army centered around her, with every step closer to Ye City, the thunderous sounds of armor and warhorses made hearts tremble with fear.

When the army finally stopped, the silence did little to calm their nerves.

Because the siege engines, watchtowers, and the thunderbolt machines that had shown their power in the River North County battles slowly appeared in the enemy’s ranks. Heavy crossbows were pushed to the front from the River North direction, assembled and positioned, followed by the arrival of war chariots.

Even though they were still some distance away, the deliberate pace was enough to make one’s grip on their weapon falter.

Such a massive army!

When the number of troops is hard to estimate, even if Qiao Yan didn’t falsely claim to have “hundreds of thousands of soldiers,” the defenders in Ye City felt it must be an encirclement of at least a hundred thousand.

If there were still places around Ye City that could support them, the despair of being trapped in an isolated city wouldn’t be so severe, but there were none.

Not a single one!

“Why is it so fast?” Liu Bian paced back and forth in the hall.

Anyone could hear the tremble in His Majesty’s voice when he spoke.

He comforted himself, thinking that with Ju Shou, Gao Gan, Shen Pei, Yuan Tan, and Yuan Xi each stationed in different areas, they could at least hold out for another month.

None of these forces would act rashly like the unreliable Yuan Shang, who acted without understanding the disparity in strength between the enemy and themselves!

But so what?

Even the rational ones couldn’t stop the enemy’s advance in the face of absolute power.

Those who are good at seeking profit and avoiding harm, and preserving themselves, are not just the merchants of Zhongshan in Ji Province, but also the other defenders in Ji Province.

In the current situation, those cities without Yuan Shao’s direct troops stationed would be willing to sacrifice their lives for the Han court in Ye City, but they are few and far between.

With Qiao Yan’s forces gradually converging, presenting such a sweeping momentum, it’s even less likely for them to hold their ground or rise in rebellion.

Even without personally leading troops, Liu Bian could easily make such a judgment.

But knowing is one thing; accepting the current situation is entirely another!

Yuan Shao, having just suffered a near-total defeat at the walls of Ye City, faced Liu Bian’s sharp questioning, “Grand General, didn’t you say that with the troops we gathered from various places, we could at least delay the battle for more than half a month, until the people of Ji Province harvest their crops, and then expand the army, surely there would be new recruits!”

“Wasn’t it also the Grand General who said that with the noble families of Hebei sharing our hatred, they would surely do their utmost to stop Qiao Yan’s troops from reaching Ye City, giving us a chance to fortify the city and prepare for a counterattack!”

“But now?”

Now the enemy’s advance made Liu Bian feel that he should never have believed in the visions Yuan Shao presented, because he simply didn’t have the capability to be called a Grand General!

Yuan Shao’s face was as dark as a gathering storm.

Liu Bian, immersed in fear, didn’t notice the resentment in Yuan Shao’s gaze towards him.

In Yuan Shao’s view, Liu Bian was the epitome of someone who talks without understanding the hardship.

They had cooperated for seven years, yet Liu Bian still seemed like the same person who was terrified when Dong Zhuo entered Luoyang.

No, to be precise, he still carried the typical He family traits of being fierce in appearance but weak in reality, indecisive, and the absurdity inherited from Emperor Ling of Han!

What right did he have to criticize Yuan Shao now?

But they were still tied together on the same rope. Rather than letting his hatred for Liu Bian take over, it was better to continue using him as the last symbol of the Han Dynasty’s survival!

This was their last chance.

“Your Majesty,” Yuan Shao’s two words made Liu Bian shiver, but when he looked at Yuan Shao’s face, he felt that the other was just trying to calm him down as steadily as possible, “Please proceed with the original plan.”

Qiao Yan’s army pressed on with a speed and scale far beyond their imagination, making it clear that in such a shaking of mountains and rivers, they could no longer defeat Qiao Yan through ordinary means. The only possible way to change the tide of defeat now was through unconventional methods.

As Yuan Shao and Liu Bian had discussed, the Da Yong court had not been established for long, and the royal family’s composition was too simple. To this day, the only one who could command respect and sit on the throne with confidence was Qiao Yan alone.

If she died, the encirclement of Ye City might still have a chance to be resolved.

Even if her subordinates sought to avenge their ruler, in the ensuing chaos, Yuan Shao was confident he could escape with the help of his subordinates and find an opportunity to make a comeback!

Yuan Shao believed that Liu Bian, though…








Despite his timidity, in this moment that determines his life or death, he would not make a wrong choice.

Sure enough, like a drowning man clutching at straws, he struggled to give an answer, “Do as the Grand General says.”

Compared to the despair on Yuan Shao’s side, Qiao Yan’s gaze towards Ye City was much calmer and composed.

She had thought that when the battle, which could be called the final battle of the conquest of Ji Province, arrived, she would be thrilled by the impending unification of the world.

That would mean that the Da Yong she had founded would completely end the division of the two dynasties and become a unified empire.

But strangely, what excited her most at this moment was not the fact that the Han Dynasty would finally exist as a fallen dynasty, nor that Yuan Shao, who had been a thorn in her side for years, was finally coming to an end, but the performance of her subordinates before the siege of Ye City.

In the north, Lü Bu, Lu Lingju, Zhao Yun, Qu Yi, and others captured Zhongshan and Changshan, and after capturing Shen Pei and Yuan Xi, they advanced to Zhao County north of Wei County, conquering several cities along the way, with the planning of Xi Zhicai, Sima Yi, and Xun You.

In the east, Zhang Liao, Tai Shici, Gan Ning, Ma Chao, and Xu Huang broke through the forces of Ju Shou and Yuan Tan, cutting off two strong wings under Yuan Shao’s command. Guo Jia had already left this route to join Qiao Yan, while Jia Xu remained stationed in Qingzhou.

In the south, it was her, Cao Cao, Cao Ang, Wei Yan, and others.

When passing through Luoyang, she once again felt the enthusiasm of the Luoyang people and saw the long-awaited rise of her Guanzhong soldiers on the way from Henei to Wei County.

This high-spirited fighting spirit would not disappear with the fall of Yuan Shao’s power and the Ye City court, but would continue to exert its profound influence in stabilizing the internal situation and expanding externally.

Yuan Shao would never be a target that required their full strength.

“Record today’s events truthfully, so that future generations can see that this is only the first step in the true rise of our Da Yong court,” Qiao Yan said, standing on her horse, looking at the Han flag on the distant city wall.

Ren Hong, hearing her words, did not reply but nodded solemnly, expressing her attitude.

The battle recorded by the Grand Historian today would undoubtedly become historical evidence of the war for unification passed down to future generations.

She would, of course, record the glory of every Da Yong citizen in the book, so that future generations could see that this platform of shining stars was held in the hands of their Majesty.

No matter how brightly the stars shone, they would never overshadow her brilliance.

This was the person who created the future for them!

In the waves of cheers around, Ye City, still tightly defended, seemed like a small boat in the storm, ready to capsize at any moment.

Years ago, when Ren Hong fled the chaos in Luoyang and embarked on the road to Bingzhou, she never thought she would see such a scene today.

But when this “impossibility” became a fact in Qiao Yan’s hands, what she wanted was for more people to witness such a scene! For more people to be here today like her.

This cause, which might take five or ten years to advance, was indeed, as Qiao Yan said, becoming a reality today, not an end because of the fall of Ye City!

Just as Ren Hong thought this, she suddenly saw a fast horse galloping towards the central army. The front lines made way for the urgent report, allowing it to reach the vicinity smoothly.

Then, he quickly dismounted, walked a few steps to her, and reported, “Your Majesty, someone from Ye City wishes to see you!”

“See me?” Qiao Yan withdrew her gaze from the messenger and looked towards the distant Ye City wall, asking, “What, is Yuan Benchu pitying his son as a hostage now, wanting to offer himself in exchange, or is Yang Wenxian coming to the battlefield to see his son and plead for the continuation of the Han Dynasty? Or is it that the King of Hongnong, knowing his heavy sins, intends to seek peace before the battle?”

The messenger replied, “None of these, it’s the Ye City garrison bringing Chen Kongzhang to seek Your Majesty.”

“Seek me for what?”

“They say the King of Hongnong does not know that the replacement of Han and Yong is legitimate, especially misled by sycophants, and with a denunciation manifesto previously, he had no choice but to oppose Your Majesty. Today, at the end of Ye City, they beg Your Majesty to first allow them to deliver the traitor before discussing the surrender of the city.”

Qiao Yan was almost amused by the opponent’s prepared speech.

Liu Bian was innocent, only because someone slandered him, persuading him to continue as the Son of Heaven of the Han Dynasty, and someone wrote such a denunciation manifesto, making it a declaration to resist the invasion of Da Yong.

Now, with Qiao Yan’s troops at the city gates, he saw the difference in strength and realized he was not fit to be the Son of Heaven, eager to seek a way out from Qiao Yan.

Having him come out to surrender was impossible, but throwing out Chen Lin, the penman, as a gift of apology to Qiao Yan, was still acceptable.

“I quite admire Chen Lin’s literary talent. In another occasion, I should even treat him with courtesy and untie him,” Qiao Yan sneered.

Guo Jia asked, “So what is Your Majesty’s thought now?”

“Not much sincerity in begging for mercy, but a basketful of jokes.”

Qiao Yan replied, “Since Yuan Benchu’s penman has arrived, let Zhongxuan receive him. The defeated should learn from the victor at this time.”

And the next moment, she pointed her long spear towards the city gate and shouted, “The King of Hongnong, as the descendant of the late Han Emperor, does not think of following his father’s will to fulfill his filial duty, but instead established another court in Ye, without the talent to protect the land and the people, only exploiting the people’s wealth. Today, our Da Yong is here to quell the rebellion, with the people’s hearts in sight, we shall only advance, not retreat! Break this city, then discuss his crimes in detail!”

The killing intent in her eyes reached its peak at this moment.

The signal for the advance instantly turned into the drumbeats for the entire army to march.

On the Ye City wall, Yuan Shao was waiting for the assassins escorting Chen Lin, hoping to take advantage of Qiao Yan’s unchanged “courtesy to the wise” over the years, or to assassinate her when she came arrogantly, but instead saw heavy crossbow arrows shot from the bed crossbows rushing towards the city wall, as a response to their “surrender”!

If the swift counterattack and the orderly ranks of the enemy already brought a wave of despair to Yuan Shao, then this bombardment was the hammer that shattered his last bit of dignity!

It was not just the heavy crossbows that killed Pang De in the past.

Among the heavy arrows flying through the air, there was also a spark that could not be ignored, indicating the unusual nature of several of them.

When they reached the Ye City wall, it was precisely the moment when the fuse of the explosives burned to the end.

Flames and thunder instantly resounded above Ye City!