Zhang Jiao glanced around his surroundings, and seeing his own soldiers…

The soldiers or followers around him, casting fervent gazes, stood up.

In these past few days, he felt more tired than usual, increasingly aware of the fatigue approaching the call of fate.

But the will to overthrow the rule of the Han Dynasty supported him, preventing him from collapsing.

He spoke in a calm tone, “You have all heard from the news that the Han army has opened a breach in the city wall, giving us a chance to break out. We do have a choice to flee from there, regrouping our Taiping brothers and choosing another city to defend, which would give us a chance to defend again. However, think about it…”

“The Han army could use my brothers as hostages. They must have broken through Xiaquyang. Whether the breach they made is a way out or a dead end is now unknown. It might be better to fight it out inside the city with them!”

They had no other way out!

The time to gather the soldiers for a counterattack was too short, and Zhang Jiao’s speech also inevitably became a bit hurried.

If it weren’t for his strong mental quality, he would probably be worried about Zhang Bao’s current situation and be in chaos because of the unexpected breach made by the Han army.

His composed demeanor undoubtedly made the Yellow Turbans in Guangzong City feel as if they had found their leader.

As soon as Zhang Jiao’s voice fell, there were echoing responses all around, “We will fight to the death for our great wise teacher!”

The declaration of “fight to the death without regret” echoed almost throughout Guangzong City.

Even Lu Zhi, who had experienced several pacification campaigns, couldn’t help but feel that comparing the rebellions in places like Jiujiang to the Yellow Turbans in Guangzong City was an insult to those who had fought and died there.

Lu Zhi was not unfamiliar with religious causes, but it was only now that he directly witnessed a force willing to fight to the death for their religious beliefs.

Even though they had lost the protection of two city walls, they were certainly not a force that would easily surrender.

Was it really possible that they had been incited to this extent just because of Zhang Jiao’s preaching and those catchy slogans?

Most likely not.

Lu Zhi was not just a competent general but also a scholar.

He was naturally not ignorant of the chaos of the late Han Dynasty.

However, in the conflict between maintaining the rule of the dynasty and respecting the rebellion of these people, he had to firmly choose the former.

Because the disorder and brutality in the rebellion had already caused greater calamity, which was something he could not tolerate.

That being said, when he saw the soldiers who had truly been influenced by Zhang Jiao’s Taiping Dao teachings, with those in front falling and those behind immediately surging forward, there was a kind of fierceness.

Even Lu Zhi couldn’t help but feel a sense of admiration for these people who faced death with such determination.

“Don’t hesitate, Zigan!”

Huangfu Song shot an arrow from afar, knocking down the Yellow Turban soldiers who had somehow climbed to the top of the wall.

These soldiers had intended to attack Lu Zhi from above, staging a capture-the-thief-first drama, but unfortunately, Huangfu Song’s action was faster.

For no reason, Huangfu Song thought of Qiao Yan’s advice when he shot this arrow.

It was indeed a necessary admonition.

In the experience he had received from his father and uncle about siege warfare, it had never been mentioned that the defenders in a city, when there was no danger to defend and there were other retreat options, would still stubbornly hold their ground as if they were forging themselves into a barrier in front of their great wise teacher.

The casualties in front did not even reveal fear of death among those in the rear; instead, they continued to fight in an explosive, or rather suicidal, manner.

However, their opponents had accumulated more experience from their daily combat, leading to a fierce resistance that resembled moths flying into the fire.

It wasn’t until Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi finally saw Zhang Jiao…

On the street in front of both sides, the cruel and fierce battle made the scene almost entirely bloody, but Zhang Jiao stood there in his humble clothes and grass shoes, looking like an immortal in the mundane world.

However, whether it was the two generals or the soldiers under their command, they could never regard him as a rural doctor idly wandering in the wild.

The massive uprising of the Yellow Turbans, which swept through several provinces and ignited the flames of war, was the result of this man’s many years of lurking.

Even though the losses of the Yellow Turbans now were obviously much greater than those of the Han army, and even though after this duel from noon to dusk, it had come to the point where only one last blow could end this battle, it did not change one fact.

Those Yellow Turbans who survived up to this point still showed full support for Zhang Jiao.

Huangfu Song couldn’t help but think of another sentence from Qiao Yan, which was indeed not wrong.

He had no doubt that even if he stepped forward with a knife now and decisively ended Zhang Jiao’s life, this person would still be the spiritual belief of the remaining Yellow Turban remnants for a long time.

Huangfu Song couldn’t help but feel some regret that he hadn’t read all the books and documents of the Yellow Turbans.

Otherwise, maybe he could have remembered at this moment whether there was any record of what happens to people after they die.

But at this moment, perhaps capturing him alive was indeed a more appropriate choice than killing him.

Fortunately,

Zhang Jiao’s personal martial prowess… was inevitably unable to avoid the result of being captured.

He did not have the ability to work miracles.

And with Zhang Jiao’s capture, along with Lu Zhi’s soldiers who remained outside the city and were gradually occupying the city walls, the battle in Guangzong City finally reached its final conclusion as they were surrounded and entered the city from three sides.

While listening to his subordinates report on the aftermath of the battle, Huangfu Song couldn’t help but worry about whether Qiao Yan’s previous idea of defeating the faith of Zhang Jiao was feasible.

It was at this moment that he saw Cao Cao, with a strange helmet on his head and his arms wrapped in bandages, walking in looking disheveled.

Lu Zhi couldn’t help but laugh at his appearance, which somewhat relieved the somber mood caused by the sacrifices of the Yellow Turbans.

“If General Lu laughs at me like this, I’ll feel a bit unkind.” Cao Cao wiped the blood from his face and said.

Although he could also be said to have decent martial prowess, he couldn’t really be considered a fierce general.

Fortunately, he still had the ability to protect himself, so he wouldn’t become a hindrance in this battle.

Of course, he didn’t think there was a problem with risking his life on the edge of life and death.

If he missed this battle in Guangzong, it would be a regret for him, Cao Cao.

This lack of regret was also reflected in his words.

0He said Lu Zhi was unkind, but the tone of his words was quite teasing.

He then continued, “It’s fortunate that my niece didn’t come here. While she usually speaks sensibly, suggesting that we could use Zhang Bao as a shield this time is quite unreliable.”

“Why couldn’t Zhang Bao shield you from disaster?” Huangfu Song raised an eyebrow and asked.

Cao Cao replied, “It’s not that. The Yellow Turbans in Guangzong City still recognize Zhang Bao, but as for me… I’m a bit broader-minded than Zhang Bao.”

Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song glanced at each other, seeing the uncontrollable amusement in each other’s eyes.

With this slight distraction, coupled with the capture of Guangzong, and the presence of Quzhou, they simply put aside the issue of how to deal with Zhang Jiao for the time being.

After resting for a night, they left the wounded in Guangzong and left Cao Cao in charge of guarding the defeated enemy soldiers, before setting off towards Quzhou.

With Lu Zhi leading the way, they smoothly arrived at the camp not far outside Quzhou city during the night.

The stars and moon hung high in the sky.

The camp seemed quiet, but the patrols around it showed no signs of slackness.

Before they could approach…

They were already discovered by the patrolling sentries and were intercepted.

However, upon realizing that it was Lu Zhi who had arrived, which was under his command, the soldiers were delighted and quickly sent someone to report to Qiao Yan.

They then led Lu Zhi, Huangfu Song, and the others towards the camp.

By the time they reached the camp gate, Qiao Yan had already arrived after receiving the news.

Seeing these two dusty generals, who were also the ones she had promoted, Qiao Yan bowed to them, “Thanks to the appreciation of General Lu and General Huangfu, Yan has not failed your trust.”

Her sincere gratitude was evident in her words.

Huangfu Song, upon hearing this, thought of the Battle of Xiaquyang before.

At that time, she had said “congratulations, General” after the battle, indicating that the credit was not hers.

But this time, she said “I have not failed your trust” very openly, indicating that she did not shy away from her own merits.

Huangfu Song’s strategic vision was so high.

After exchanging views with Lu Zhi about the situation in Quzhou on the way, she realized that leaving Qiao Yan in that position was not just for a defensive role.

At this moment, he could see that the camp was still orderly in the night, showing no signs of having engaged in a major battle with Quzhou.

What was particularly eye-catching in the camp was the large flag with the character “Qiao” standing next to Lu Zhi’s command flag.

Even more conspicuous among the people who came to greet them was a newly-shaven lieutenant.

Although Huangfu Song couldn’t fully understand all of Qiao Yan’s arrangements, he could guess about seven or eight points of it.

He had recommended Qiao Yan to Lu Zhi with some adventurous thoughts, and now he couldn’t help but feel fortunate that he hadn’t suppressed that idea due to any constraints.

How could he know if she could do better if he didn’t put her in a high position?

She had indeed lived up to his and Lu Zigan’s expectations.

As long as Zhang Liang was firmly nailed down here, she had already exceeded the mission’s requirements.

There was no need to actually defeat the generals and officers in the city to prove her abilities.

Huangfu Song did not feel that Qiao Yan’s talent for psychological warfare, her precocious calculations far beyond her age, was something to be wary of.

On the contrary, he felt that his judgment of her as a “talent for assisting the ruler” in his letter was spot-on.

This proved his ability to judge people’s talents.

Seeing Qiao Yan welcoming him and Lu Zhi into the camp and ordering Dian Wei to remove the fake Qiao character flag, he immediately gestured for Dian Wei not to do so.

“Let it stand. Your ability alone is worth a thousand troops. Why shouldn’t it be considered a force?” Huangfu Song glanced at the flag and couldn’t help but find it amusing. “After we capture Quzhou, it will be another great achievement for you!”

So, on the morning of the second day, Zhang Liang in Quzhou City thought he would see a situation where both sides were more engaged in their own battles.

However, what he actually saw was troops completely surrounding Quzhou City under three flags.

If there had only been one more flag with the characters “Huangfu,” it would have been fine.

But as fate would have it, when he stepped onto the city wall to oversee the battle, he saw a prisoner cart being pushed out from the other side.

The person in the cart was Zhang Jiao.