However, in addition to these two tasks, Liang Zhongning ended up with the task of quarreling.

Qiao Yan led the skilled shooters under his command to conduct training.

Her previous observations of the arrow landing points around the fortress proved useful at this moment.

The overall tactical quality of the Yellow Turbans had already destined them to be unable to observe the battlefield like regular troops and to rely on instinctual actions based on experience.

But fortunately, these people could be regarded as Liang Zhongning’s confidants, and they knew that she had temporarily gained command authority, so they would follow the orders.

Moreover, the instructions Qiao Yan gave them were simple: to flank from the rear of the fortress and shoot arrows through the gaps in the watchtower.

This was not difficult to do.

The only difference was that these arrows were somewhat special, made with sulfur as an additional component to create fire arrows.

In fact, in ancient battles, using arrows carrying fire for attacks was not yet popularized by the end of the Han Dynasty, and records of fire arrow victories appeared in the “Records of Wei”.

At that time, the defenders led by Hao Zhao at Chencang used fire arrows to shoot back at the cloud ladders, repelling Zhuge Liang’s attack.

Are fire arrows difficult to make? Perhaps not.

What is difficult is to maintain the fuel on the arrows, to ensure that the fire does not go out during a large-scale barrage, and to have enough supplies for a large number of fire arrows.

For example, wrapping cloth soaked in pine oil around the arrowheads was one way to make fire arrows.

However, pine oil was not something that could be obtained easily at the moment.

But now that she was among the Yellow Turbans, there was another way to replace it.

In the tricks played by the Taiping Dao missionaries, sulfur was undoubtedly a frequent guest.

It’s really hard to say what Liang Zhongning was thinking when Qiao Yan asked about this item, but his desire to obtain the food stored in the Tian’s Family stronghold prevailed.

In the end, he chose to take out a packet of cinnabar and sulfur from his bag and handed it to Qiao Yan.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t much sulfur, at least not enough to ignite the entire stronghold.

Moreover, the compact layout commonly found inside strongholds would inevitably make the stronghold’s owner consider the possibility of the fire spreading elsewhere.

However, when Liang Zhongning asked about it, Qiao Yan asked him a seemingly unrelated question: “What kind of image does Lord Liang think he has in the hearts of the Tian clan?”

Liang Zhongning instinctively wanted to say “barbarian,” but he felt that something was off about saying that, so he just replied, “…as invaders of Puyang?”

How could he insult himself like that!

He has always considered himself a man of culture, especially compared to Bu Ji and others.

But facing the clear gaze of this insightful child, he couldn’t help but feel that the answer he had swallowed had actually been said out loud.

“Lord Liang actually already knows the answer.” Qiao Yan replied as she applied the sulfur to the arrowhead to test its burning effect. “So, Lord Liang, you just need to deepen that impression for the other party.

Only a reckless commander would think that this level of fire attack could be effective, and even think that they could break through the stronghold by using the tactic of making a lot of noise in one place while attacking another. Do you agree?”

“…Yes.”

He actually thought that if he had brought more sulfur, the fire attack might really work.

It’s…isn’t it?

Feeling thoroughly confused, Liang Zhongning finally decided to simply follow orders.

In doing so, he temporarily put aside his previous thought—’if what Yan Qiao said doesn’t suit his intentions, he will never act according to his instructions.’

He might not be good at other things, but he was sure he could do a better job at finding someone to scold, as Qiao Yan suggested.

That’s why some people followed Qiao Yan’s instructions to dig pits, some familiarized themselves with the process of igniting and shooting rockets, while the rest followed him to the outside of the Tian’s Family stronghold.

Having suffered a defeat earlier didn’t make this Yellow Turban Leader Zhongning feel embarrassed to face the enemy.

Instead, it made him feel even more shameless.

Having some soldiers follow him and stand outside the stronghold’s range also gave him a sense of security.

He pointed his finger at the guy who had gestured provocatively to him earlier and began a string of rustic insults.

Inside the watchtower of the stronghold, Tian Yan, the eldest son of the Tian family, wanted to jump up as soon as he heard the insult, but he was pressed down by his uncle beside him.

In Tian Yan’s eyes, Liang Zhongning still bore the scars from the arrows in the arrow wounds from the previous escape, and his shabby armor, worn to distinguish himself from the common soldiers during the Yellow Turban uprising, was made up of half the spoils looted from Puyang City.

Yet, the arrogance in his words made it seem as if he had already won.

This man was also somewhat literate, and he managed to turn his string of taunts into a rhyming rhythm.

Tian Yan was truly exasperated by it all.

“You commoner!” he couldn’t help but shout.

How could he not realize that he shouldn’t be led by the nose by the other party’s filthy words?

But in the past, in this Puyang territory, the Tian family’s powerful figures had always been given some face.

Who had ever dared to curse at him like this, especially taking advantage of the distance between the two sides to be so bold!

“How could such a commoner capture Puyang City! If he truly had the guts, why didn’t he come before the stronghold? I would have had my elite soldiers twist his head off!” he exclaimed.

After saying this, he felt a little relieved, but when he turned to see his uncle, he didn’t seem as angry as he was.

Instead, he showed a thoughtful expression.

Before he could ask, his uncle dragged him to another watchtower and looked towards another moving figure.

Before long, Tian Yan saw that his uncle’s thoughtful expression was replaced by a faint look of joy.

Perplexed, he asked, “Uncle?”

“I’m afraid our chance to defeat the enemy has arrived. This man’s words and actions are absurd, but he wouldn’t think he could win by fighting after losing to the elite soldiers.

He might want to provoke a verbal battle during the day and launch a sneak attack at night.” This brother of the Tian family’s head, who had always been the strategist inside the stronghold, was no exception at this moment.

In his sight, the faint figure of the Yellow Turban bandit gave him a glimpse of some moving or shifting action.

This immediately raised his alertness, but after a few breaths, it turned into a smile of victory.

He rolled up his sleeves, glanced again in the direction where Liang Zhongning was cursing, made a decision, and said to Tian Yan:

“Zibo, I have something for you to do.”

Outside the Tian’s Wupao stronghold, Liang Zhongning continued to curse until dusk, when the sun had set, before withdrawing.

Not to mention whether he had cursed until he was hoarse, even the listeners were somewhat unable to bear it.

Fortunately, after sunset, the night gradually fell, and the almost ear-piercing noise during the day was completely gone.

Only the sound of the wind in the spring night passed through the corridors, making a sobbing sound, which finally gave people some breathing room.

But perhaps it could not be considered a respite.

Since the news of Puyang being breached had been urgently delivered, the main gate of the Tian’s Family stronghold had been closed, and the strong men inside the stronghold took turns patrolling at night to guard against thieves and attacks on the stronghold.

Now with the Yellow Turban bandits outside the stronghold, they could launch an attack at any time, so these young men didn’t even bother changing shifts.

They hadn’t been idle before sunset either.

In the northern fortress, there were many water sources, and this place was no exception.

Even before the outer wall of the Tian family fortress was completed, three wells had been dug inside the fortress.

Tian Yan didn’t know why his second uncle had arranged this, but he followed his instructions.

Taking advantage of the moment when Liang Zhongning was busy provoking outside,

Tian Yan led people to draw water from the well.

They filled every water tank placed every ten steps along the outer wall of the fortress with water.

Then, a group of people was specially assigned to guard the rear of the fortress with him.

According to his second uncle, the Yellow Turban bandits might have some cunning tactics, and they might launch some unexpected attacks.

However, it didn’t matter much. As long as they held the fortress, relying on this “stronghold” that was unassailable by a force five times their size, they could consider themselves unbeatable.

According to his second uncle’s instructions, all Tian Yan needed to do was to quickly deal with any disturbances on this side if there were any external attacks.

Apart from that, everything else was irrelevant to him.

This was not a difficult task.

Although the hundred men under his command were somewhat tired, they were still formidable fighters.

The bows/crossbows mounted on the watchtower had a longer range than those on the opposite side, so—

Even if this cunning bandit leader thought his daytime provocations could numb them and attempted a sneak attack at night, Tian Yan had been holding back his anger for a long time, and now it was the perfect opportunity for a decisive blow.

But what was sent out first was not his long-restrained fury, but the sudden appearance of lights from the sky on the other side!

Controlling the bows/crossbows aimed at the people outside the watchtower, they just saw figures appearing outside the fortress, then clusters of firelights lit up on the flat ground outside the fortress, and they directly drew a burning arc in the night sky, crossing over the high walls of the fortress and crashing in.

These people had received instructions early on and calmly launched their shots without any panic.

However, they noticed that the Yellow Turban bandits who shot the rockets showed no intention of firing a second round after the initial volley.

Instead, they quickly retreated.

The crossbow bolts shot from the high ground only managed to pierce the foot of the slowest runner.

The next moment, the second row of arrow was already flying over from the other side.

The opponent’s movement back and forth seemed quite organized.

“Don’t panic! Return fire!” Tian Yan quickly shouted.

The rockets flew into the fortress, mostly hitting the rammed earth walls inside, causing little impact.

However, it inevitably led some ignorant people in the stronghold to believe that these were the mystical tricks used by the Yellow Turban bandits from the Dao of Heavenly Masters.

In their panic, they let out a few screams loud enough for those outside the fortress to hear.

Some lucky rockets landed on the wooden barriers and curtains, immediately igniting flames.

In the darkness, the blue flames streaked through the air, carrying a smell of sulfur burning.

Fortunately, the smell passed quickly, and the blue flames disappeared rapidly under the bright yellow flames burning the wood.

Almost at the same time, there was a commotion coming from the direction of the main gate of the fortress.

Tian Yan couldn’t help but admire his second uncle’s judgment.

If his second uncle hadn’t told him earlier to focus solely on this side no matter what sounds he heard, his naturally impulsive nature might have led to confusion and chaos.

But now all he had to do was wave his hand, directing one team to continue shooting at the fortress’s exterior while another team dealt with fetching water and putting out fires.

“What a strategy of creating chaos!” Tian Yan sneered. “But that’s all it is.”

He thought about his numerous instances of patience towards Liang Zhongning’s insults during the day, and now he felt even more relieved that the other party’s cunning schemes couldn’t succeed, instead falling under the control of his second uncle.

It was truly gratifying.

As for those rockets, they only managed to launch three rounds before being driven back by their crossbows.

As for the resulting fire, at most, it was just warming them up.

Although the flickering flames from the fortress could be seen from outside, it wasn’t a significant setback.

As he continued his routine defense work, he imagined his second uncle’s side must be going even more smoothly.

Liang Zhongning might only enjoy his victory until tonight!

---

Just as Tian Yan had anticipated, when the fire broke out in the rear, there was no trace of surprise on Uncle Tian’s face.

The arrival of the rockets did slightly exceed his expectations, but causing chaos with water, fire, wind, or lightning was the only way for the opponent to break the situation.

Having been a Yellow Turban preacher in his early years, he had some understanding of their abilities.

Using them for siege warfare was not too surprising.

He remained steady.

The words he had spoken to Tian Yan earlier about being invincible were not mere empty words; they were his genuine belief.

Amidst the momentary chaos caused by the fire in the fortress, he kept his gaze fixed on the dim night ahead, without any sign of distraction.

Being from a powerful family required more than just brute strength; it also needed some brains when dealing with other powerful families in Puyang.

Years of experience had honed his cunning nature.

However, even he wouldn’t have expected that among the supposedly rough and unrefined troops, there would be a “strategist,” and one who was no less shrewd than him.

All he saw was—

Just as the fire broke out in the fortress, Liang Zhongning truly arrived to attack this spot, just as he had anticipated!

As the Yellow Turban bandits approached in the night, even before they reached the fortress walls, the first row was already struck down by the arrows commanded under his orders.

This commotion of people falling to the ground undoubtedly shattered the enemy’s plan of stealthy infiltration.

However, obviously, with neither side able to fully discern the status of the other, the Yellow Turban bandits couldn’t determine how many people had gone to deal with the fire and chaos inside the fortress, and how many were still guarding this spot.

They could only continue advancing amidst the warning signals from the fortress.

Uncle Tian’s expression was solemn as he gazed with an almost frozen stare at the most conspicuous figure among the bandits, Liang Zhongning, who was wearing mismatched armor.

Then, he revealed a look of almost certain victory.

He asked aloud, “Soldier Dian, dare I ask, if I manage to knock down half of the bandits, do you have the confidence to capture this man when the Yellow Turbans retreat?”

Before nightfall, Dian Wei had already been brought by Uncle Tian to this watchtower.

This burly and formidable man grinned as he looked towards the fortress, “If it weren’t for this lad having a good horse last time, I would have finished him off long ago. This time, I’ll definitely break the legs of his escape mount first.”

“Very well, then prepare for battle, Soldier!”

Uncle Tian knew deeply that simply repelling Liang Zhongning wouldn’t achieve a lasting effect.

If the Yellow Turbans from other areas of Yanzhou gathered here in large numbers, even with the fortress, it wouldn’t be of much use.

It was better to seize the opportunity to kill Liang Zhongning and ensure the peace of the Tian family.

While others might not believe in the idea of breaking the horse’s legs, coming from Dian Wei’s mouth, it surely held credibility!

As soon as the words “prepare for battle” were spoken, the second volley of crossbow bolts was released, bringing down another group of people.

This was the natural advantage akin to defending a city!

As chaos began to unfold among the approaching Yellow Turban bandits, Uncle Tian’s gaze never left Liang Zhongning.

The principle of “capture the leader first” applied even in the relatively undisciplined Yellow Turban army.

So he naturally didn’t notice that among the people lying on the ground, there were indeed some who were dead from being struck by crossbow bolts.

If it weren’t for that, there wouldn’t have been the sound of arrows piercing flesh. But the vast majority—

Clearly, they were lying down directly within the range of the crossbow bolts, forty paces from the fortress.

There were even a few who pulled out the arrows that had landed nearby and stuck them into their own bodies, making it appear as if they were groaning in agony.

[…] The system’s “vision” was much better than Qiao Yan’s.

Naturally, it observed these people’s exaggerated performances clearly.

After a moment of stiffness, it asked, [Why do you think that the surprise attack with fire wouldn’t be effective, and instead, a feigned death on the front line followed by luring the enemy with fleeing soldiers?]

“I didn’t say that,” Qiao Yan replied.

“If, as I suspect, the fire attack is ineffective, then the plan will proceed as planned. But if I overestimated the Tian family, it’s also possible.”

Qiao Yan’s gaze turned towards the direction where Liang Zhongning was.

In a short period of time, he had already launched an attack, suffered losses, and then, due to the exposure of the ambush plan, had to retreat hastily.

Seeing that he didn’t take the wrong path in the dark night but retreated towards the direction where the traps had been dug by his men during the day, and that a group of people from the fortress were vigorously chasing after him, Qiao Yan couldn’t help but smile.

“If I overestimated the opponent and they were already in chaos when the rockets struck, then it’s time to act out the play for real.”

“Now it’s just a matter of going through a couple more steps. Let’s see if the pursuers fall into the trap.”

The system remained silent for a long time.

Just as Qiao Yan was wondering if she should explain a few more things to it, she suddenly heard it erupt with a much louder voice in her mind than before—

[Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go! We need to see this ancient evil! I now realize, you have the potential to become a top strategist!]

[Oh my goodness, I might actually complete my mission too!]