Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

At that moment, Liu Yan, who according to intelligence from various lords was gravely ill and barely able to manage affairs, stood atop the mountain cliff, his face ruddy and his voice full of vigor, showing no sign of having suffered a 'sudden windstroke'.

Staring at Liu Biao below, whose face was filled with shock, Liu Yan felt an urge to burst into hearty laughter and shout:

"Finally, you've fallen for my plan!"

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!!!"

Liu Biao, his face filled with panic, stood up from his reclining chair and shouted towards Liu Yan on the mountain cliff.

"Liu Junlang, why are you here? How could you possibly be here? You shouldn't be here at all!"

Liu Yan didn't rush to reply. He casually waved his hand, and behind him, signal flags fluttered.

"Rumble!!!"

In front of and behind Liu Biao's army, earth-shattering sounds suddenly erupted, causing a stir among the Jingzhou army, which stretched for nearly ten miles.

Even without anyone telling him what had happened, Liu Biao's face turned pale as he surveyed his surroundings.

Only then did Liu Biao realize that his current position was precisely within a narrow valley with extremely constricted entrances at both ends, with only a slender ancient plank road running through it.

At this point, Liu Biao had been leading his troops into Yizhou for half a month. They had marched for nearly three hundred miles on the narrow plank road, and all the passes and cities they had passed had proactively surrendered to Liu Biao, offering almost no resistance.

Furthermore, a constant stream of surrender letters from officials and generals of the Ba Commandery had been pouring into Liu Biao's hands like snowflakes.

This favorable situation had gradually lulled Liu Biao into a state of carelessness over the past half-month, and he had been single-mindedly pushing for a faster pace, hoping to reach Jiangzhou City, the seat of Ba Commandery, as soon as possible.

This had led to the nearly one hundred thousand Jingzhou troops unknowingly advancing along the plank road like a winding serpent, until they reached this point…

The two loud sounds were like two whips, brutally lashing at Liu Biao, completely shattering the dream of hegemony in his heart.

Most likely, the road ahead and behind the valley was already blocked by huge rocks…

At this moment, the hundred thousand Jingzhou troops were less like a giant snake and more like eels burrowing into a hole, with no ability to fight back.

The next moment, large numbers of Yizhou soldiers appeared on the mountain cliffs, drawing their bows and aiming at the Jingzhou soldiers below, as if countless shadows were enveloping the hundred thousand Jingzhou troops.

At this moment, Liu Yan looked down at Liu Biao below, as if he were looking at a turtle in a jar or a bird in a cage. He placed his hands behind his back and said:

"Brother Jingsheng, I have been waiting here for you, waiting for you to lead the Jingzhou army into the trap that I have been preparing for nearly a year."

"So, the news of your serious illness… was fake?"

Liu Biao's eyes widened, and his tone still revealed a strong sense of disbelief, as if he wanted to find some flaw to prove that he was just trapped in a dream.

"Hahahaha…"

Liu Yan could no longer restrain himself and burst into laughter, proudly replying:

"All warfare is based on deception. You can't blame me for this!"

"Furthermore, to make this matter seem credible, I didn't hesitate to kill my favorite concubine, bear the infamous reputation of 'sudden windstroke,' and even feud with Zhang Lu, the governor of Hanzhong Commandery, to make it appear that Yizhou was beset by internal and external troubles."

Upon hearing this, Liu Biao, who had been standing up, seemed to have all the strength suddenly drained from his body. He slumped back into the bamboo reclining chair, his eyes becoming somewhat dull.

If Liu Yan had been feigning illness from the beginning, then Yizhou, which had made Liu Biao so covetous, was undoubtedly a complete trap.

"No, impossible!"

Bloodshot veins appeared in Liu Biao's eyes as he stared at Liu Yan above and shouted, "You are not Liu Yan! Don't even think about deceiving me with such tricks!"

"Liu Yan's only son, Liu Zhang, is still in my hands, and eighty to ninety percent of the fifty thousand Yizhou troops have also been annihilated by me in Jingzhou."

"If it were bait, how could it be like this? How dare you deceive me with this bluffing trick?"

Faced with Liu Biao's questioning, Liu Yan not only didn't show the slightest anxiety but instead seemed to be admiring a perfect work of art.

After a full few breaths, when Liu Biao's somewhat ferocious expression had stiffened, Liu Yan slowly replied:

"What does a great man have to worry about without a wife or son? In the past, when Emperor Gaozu encountered the defeat at Pengcheng, the Chu army pursued him closely. To prioritize the overall situation, Emperor Gaozu did not hesitate to kick Emperor Xiaohui off the carriage multiple times. Now, to achieve great things, how can I hesitate because of the life of one son?"

These words, upon reaching Liu Biao's ears, made him feel cold all over.

Even though Liu Biao was also a heartless and ungrateful person, he had never entertained such ruthless thoughts.

"Even tigers don't eat their cubs, Liu Junlang. You are too cruel. Aren't you afraid of leaving a lasting infamy in the history books and being constantly唾骂 by future generations?" Liu Biao cursed loudly.

In response, the smile that appeared beneath Liu Yan's beard, which fully displayed the demeanor of a famous scholar, showed complete indifference.

The criticisms that Emperor Gaozu faced from later generations were mostly about the siege of Baideng, not the multiple times he kicked his嫡子 Liu Ying off the carriage.

Immediately, Liu Yan stroked his beard and said with a smile:

"Furthermore, Brother Jingsheng is probably misunderstanding something. Zhang'er is my son, that's true, but he's not my only son, just my third son."

"The three sons who were once held hostage in Luoyang by the traitor Dong Zhuo have long been secretly brought back to the lands of Sichuan by me. Even if Zhang'er is killed, there is still my eldest son, Liu Fan, to inherit my ambition."

"As for the fifty thousand Yizhou troops, most of them are just young and able-bodied men who were temporarily recruited. Even if there are losses, it won't have any impact on Yizhou's military strength."

After hearing this, Liu Biao's face showed a look of confusion.

Liu Yan had secretly brought back his other sons who were hostages in Luoyang long ago?

And the fifty thousand Yizhou troops who were badly defeated were mostly young and able-bodied men who were temporarily recruited?

For a moment, the expression on Liu Biao's face revealed despair.

In this way, after Liu Yan appeared here, most of the various confusions that arose in Liu Biao's mind were almost resolved.

Liu Yan had long been psychologically prepared to abandon Liu Zhang, and Liu Yan, who had brought back his other three sons, was not afraid of having no descendants at all.

The meaning and value of an only son and a third son are undoubtedly completely different.

Moreover, precisely because those fifty thousand Yizhou troops were not elite at all, those fifty thousand Yizhou troops dared not launch a frontal attack on Zigui from beginning to end, but instead constantly carried out harassment and ambushes.

This was not because the Yizhou army had been planning to hold back Liu Biao from the beginning, but because those temporarily recruited young and able-bodied men would almost instantly expose their weaknesses once they formed ranks to face the enemy.

On the contrary, during nighttime ambushes and harassment, with the cover of darkness, there was no formation to speak of in the fighting between the two sides, thereby concealing their true strength.

And looking down at Liu Biao below, whose appearance was as if six of his seven souls had left his body, Liu Yan's voice once again echoed in the valley.

"Of course, Brother Jingsheng is not without merit. This old man was still struggling with how to sell you a huge flaw, so that Brother Jingsheng could believe that the main force of the Yizhou army had been completely wiped out, and then let you enter Ba Commandery with peace of mind."