"ah……"
The spear was long but the sword was short. Faced with Gao Lan's fierce offensive, Zhang Tai was panicked and could only grit his teeth and fight. As he roared wildly, the sword in his hand danced wildly in circles.
"Dang, clang...puff, pfft!"
Zhang Tai's sword skills are indeed not bad, and he does have the power to prevent water from being thrown into his dance. It's a pity that his strength is much inferior to Gao Lan. After receiving more than ten shots in a row, his wrists are already sore. He was so paralyzed that his speed of wielding the knife inevitably slowed down, and he was no longer able to stop Gao Lan's continuous offensive. However, after hearing two muffled sounds, Zhang Tai's chest and lower abdomen were stabbed by Gao Lan's big iron gun. Opposite him, his body was even more shaken by Gao Lan's divine power, and he flew backwards, spilling blood all the way into the group of guards behind him.
"Anyone who stands in my way will die!"
Gao Lan was already killing madly. After knocking Zhang Tai away, he didn't stop at all. He rushed into the surging defenders with a few strides. His spears were opened and closed, and his moves were extremely fierce. Everywhere they passed, people were on their backs, and there was no enemy. Unfortunately, the defenders and soldiers were just ordinary people. How could they withstand the killing spree of a peerless brave general like Gao Lan? I don’t know who took the lead first, huh? Ladi then all fled away.
With the defeat of Zhang Tai and the collapse of his personal guards, the defenders on the city were completely in disarray and had no fighting spirit at all. Even if there were a few brave men who fought desperately, they could not withstand the mass killings of the Youzhou army. Soon, as Lu Tao led the follow-up troops to arrive, the fall of Xi'an City became a foregone conclusion. By the time of midnight, the small Xi'an City had completely fallen into the control of the Youzhou Army. There were more than 10,000 soldiers and civilians in the city. No one escaped, either died on the spot or became a prisoner of war...
"Report, Your Excellency, the former general Gongsun Ming has sent an urgent letter, please allow Your Excellency to take a look."
In the city guard house of Pingyuan City, 20,000 soldiers and horses have just been transferred from Chengjun. Yuan Tan, whose strength has returned to his old outlook, is discussing with Yuan Xi and several close friends how to play the next move. There are heated discussions. Suddenly, a captain on duty came in hurriedly from outside, holding a letter in his hand. He saluted Yuan Tan and then said something.
"call……"
When he heard that there was a letter from Gongsun Ming, Yuan Tan did not dare to be careless. He reached out and took the letter, tore open the seal in a few times, took out a piece of letter paper full of words from it, and just scanned it. At one glance, his face couldn't help but become strange.
"Brother, what are you..."
Seeing Yuan Tan's face changing from red to white, Yuan Xi's curiosity couldn't help but arouse, and he quickly asked some questions from the side.
"Second brother, take care of it yourself."
Yuan Tan did not explain in words, but casually handed over the letter.
"Good fellow, I destroyed 25,000 enemies in one battle, killed more than 5,000 under Qin Qi in formation, and captured 13,000 alive. This ability of commanding an army is truly enviable."
After Yuan Xi quickly read through the letter, he couldn't help but sigh.
"Um……"
Although Yuan Tan has always been conceited, in the face of Gongsun Ming's achievements in more than a year, he had to accept the defeat. However, he was unwilling to say anything self-deprecating, so he just said it in a dull voice.
"Brother, since Qin Qi is destroyed, Beihai is within easy reach. Since that fellow is willing to give up this territory as promised, why don't we take it?"
Although Yuan Xi has never participated in the battle for the right to inherit the heir, he is still aware of the conflict between Yuan Tan and Gongsun Ming. Now that he sees Yuan Tan acting like this, he can't say good things about Gongsun Ming anymore. Then the topic turned to the ownership of Beihai County.
"I'm afraid that this beast has ulterior motives. If we divide our forces to capture it, if something changes, we may not be able to deal with it calmly."
Beihai County was Yuan Tan's territory, so he was naturally reluctant to give it up, but he couldn't help but worry that there was an ambush in the gift from Gongsun Ming, so it was normal to hesitate.
"The eldest brother is very worried. There is no one in Beihai right now. If we don't take it early, there may be ambitions to seek independence. How about the younger brother leading five thousand soldiers and horses? If Gongsun Ming is really willing to get 13,000 The more than a thousand captured Beihai soldiers were handed over, and the younger brother took advantage of the situation to take Beihai. If they refused, the younger brother retreated first. In this way, we might be safe."
Yuan Xi actually didn't quite believe that Gongsun Ming really planned to take Qingzhou as a betrothal gift, but he was reluctant to give up Beihai County, which he could easily win. After a little hesitation, he cautiously proposed a compromise plan.
"That's fine. My second brother must be careful when he goes here. If something goes wrong, he should protect himself first."
After Yuan Tan weighed it for a while, he was finally reluctant to abandon a piece of land like Beihai County. There was nothing else to do. The land and population were still a small matter. The key was that Beihai had two major salt fields of the Jizhou series. If it was lost like this, Jizhou would His annual income is afraid that it will plummet a lot, and this is obviously not the result that Yuan Tan wants to see.
"Brother, don't worry, I understand the importance of this."
Hearing Yuan Tan's instructions, Yuan Xi couldn't help but feel warm in his heart, but he didn't say much. After respectfully responding, he went to mobilize his troops without mentioning...
"My lord, the North Sea is empty. The last general can take it with his troops and horses. Why should it be returned to the Yuan family?"
Lu Kuang, who returned victorious, was immediately devastated when he heard that Gongsun Ming was planning to give up the territory of Beihai County. Although he did not dare to say that Gongsun Ming was fatuous, his words clearly revealed that meaning. In fact, it was not just him. , Zhao Yun and others were also very puzzled by Gongsun Ming's decision, but it was just because of human feelings that they could not speak out to get to the bottom of it.
"Oh, Yin Ming (Lü Kuang's nickname) asked well. With the current strength of our army, not to mention Beihai County, we can capture the entire Qingzhou. However, can we defend it?"
Facing the doubtful gazes of the generals, Gongsun Ming immediately became happy. He did not give the first answer, but asked a question with a smile.
"this……"
Lu Kuang wanted to say that he could, but after thinking about it carefully, he felt that it was difficult. There was nothing else. Even though Qingzhou was connected to Bohai County, it was too far away from Youzhou. In addition, there was Yanzhou, which Cao Cao belonged to, nearby. With Yuan Shao's Jizhou, being attacked on both sides, it is bound to be garrisoned with heavy troops in order to ensure safety. However, this will inevitably lead to the empty troops in Youzhou and Bohai. The result of fortification everywhere is that there is no place everywhere. Beware, once there is a slight mistake, the consequences will be unimaginable. Of course, this is the truth, but how can Lu Kuang be willing to give up the fat on his lips like this?
"If you occupy it but can't hold it, why insist on it? It doesn't matter if you let Yuan Tan take care of it for a few years. When the time comes to turn around, you can take whatever you want. What's the problem?"
Gongsun Ming has always attached great importance to reality and has a very broad vision. How can he care about a city or a place or temporary gains and losses? All he wants is the final result. As for temporary concessions, no matter how big it is, he will never give up. In my heart...
