Zhang Liang’s knife fell to the ground with a clang.

He had been trying hard to restrain his emotional fluctuations, but the fact that Quzhou City was surrounded by the Han army could still be said to be within his acceptance.

At most, he had made some inappropriate inferences about the three-way relationship with Lu Zhi’s side.

However, the current situation exceeded his expectations.

He had never seen Huangfu Song, the Left-Right Commandant of the Han army, who was in charge of pacifying the chaos this time, but he at least recognized the command flag and could tell that the reinforcements were not fake from their momentum and numbers.

Eight or nine out of ten, they were Huangfu Song and his men!

He also saw Lu Zhi’s figure among the troops below the city.

From the calm expression on the other party’s face, it was completely different from what he had speculated two days ago, that he was in a disadvantaged position in the military power balance and was forced to not show himself.

And most importantly, Zhang Jiao was here!

After decades of brotherhood, Zhang Liang could not possibly mistake Zhang Jiao for anyone else.

Especially since his elder brother had unique ideas and even created the Taiping Tao sect, he was distinctly different from ordinary people.

Even though he was in a prisoner cart at the moment, his demeanor still appeared unruffled, enough for Zhang Liang to confirm his identity even from the distance between the city wall and below.

But whether Zhang Jiao appeared disheveled or not, and whether he would become unsettled after learning that a great and wise teacher had been captured in Quzhou City, were not necessarily related.

The one who rallied them in the countryside, Zhang Jiao, has fallen into the hands of the Han army.

It’s clear that heaven does not favor our Taiping Dao. Where is the “the blue sky is dead, the yellow sky will soon rise”?

“General, we…”

Zhang Liang was just about to listen to the voice of his men next to him when he immediately roared angrily, interrupting his words, “What’s the rush! We still have Quzhou City to defend.”

There was not much confidence in Zhang Liang’s words.

True, they still had Quzhou City, but did the Han army not have a way to attack the city?

The siege weapons that Lu Zhi had vigorously constructed before had been hidden in his camp all along, steadily advancing and occupying the surrounding small bases.

If it weren’t for Qiao Yan’s creating a false impression that misled Zhang Liang, he would have long thought of a way to either restrict Lu Zhi’s actions or try to destroy these finished products.

And if the number of Han troops had just been at a level where there was not yet sufficient chance of success in attacking the city, now with the assistance of another group of troops, it could be said to be enough.

……

“Lu Zhi and General Huangfu’s troops were greatly damaged in the Battle of Guangzong, but their momentum is even stronger than before.”

“Few.” Qiao Yan looked around and said to Cheng Li.

Perhaps because the Han army’s siege was ultimately more advantageous than the defense of Guangzong, apart from the unavoidable long-range casualties during the process of breaking into Guangzong’s gates, the overall personnel losses, compared to the achievement of taking Guangzong, were not considered high.

More importantly, after witnessing the almost unknown casualties of the Yellow Turban Army in Guangzong, the victorious Han army had a bit more vigor.

So when the Han army formed up and came, although the siege weapons were still being gradually dragged out of the camp and had not yet been placed in front of the formation, just relying on their momentum was enough to make Zhang Liang feel fear.

“Each side gains and loses, this is the way to victory.” Cheng Li replied.

In Cheng Li’s view, compared to the Han army’s momentum, the decline in the Yellow Turban’s momentum on the opposite side was obviously much more pronounced.

Even if Zhang Liang was still in Quzhou City, the fact that the city’s backbone had been removed could not be changed.

Moreover, the Han army now had the capital to besiege them, even if they could still hold Quzhou for now and had a strong city as a barrier, the most fundamental problem was–

The food in the city was limited.

Even if we set aside the issue of food, the reason why the Han army did not dare to attack the city with all their might before was because the Yellow Turbans in Guangzong could also send troops at any time, forming a flanking posture behind the Han army.

But now that they have lost this support army, they can only watch as the Han army is unshackled in its actions, and even rely on means of reinforcement to continue to replenish their troops.

This is simply a question of whether to die early or late.

And the arrival of Huangfu Song also officially announced that their reinforcements were still several routes short.

The provinces of Yanzhou and Yuzhou are bound to have been pacified!

Even if the Han army did not shout or cheer under the city, their advantage was already fully displayed at this moment.

Zhang Liang had previously thought that after leaving his brother’s support, he could barely be worthy of the title of general.

However, when he faced the current situation, he could only say to himself: he really couldn’t do it!

The Han army did not directly attack the city when it was clear they were advancing, nor did they choose to attack the city when he was in a state of mental weakness.

Instead, after a show of force, they slowly retreated into their rear camp.

Zhang Liang didn’t even know how he had stumbled back to the resting place in the city.

And after only half a day of rest, he learned of a terrible news: the Han army had launched an attack.

The intensity of the attack was not great, but–

“Messages written on cloth like this were received on all sides of the city walls.”

Zhang Liang’s subordinate handed him the item with a grimace. “We only managed to collect some of them, but whether there are still people privately holding onto them is really hard to say.”

When Zhang Liang looked at the words on the cloth, he couldn’t help but gasp.

The general idea written on it was that Zhang Jiao had been captured, Zhang Bao had died in Guangzong, and the court only wanted to pursue the ringleaders.

Considering that they had all been deceived by the Zhang brothers, they could turn a blind eye.

As long as they could capture Zhang Liang, not only could the city be spared from the Han army’s attack, but the one who killed Zhang Liang could also be ennobled.

Ennobled?

Who wouldn’t want to be ennobled?

Zhang Liang squeezed the cloth, feeling uneasy.

It must be known that what prompted them and their brothers to start this uprising was not only because they were truly unable to bear the Han’s land mergers and the oppression by the powerful, but also because a part of them wanted the glory of becoming officials.

But now that his brother Zhang Jiao had been captured and the Yellow Turbans had suffered defeat in front of the imperial army, that glory had become an especially elusive thing.

Instead, seeking a reward by capturing his head had become an attainable way of promotion.

He looked at his subordinates, who clearly were only worried for him, yet he forcibly saw the covetousness for his head in their eyes.

No… he couldn’t think like that.

Zhang Liang shuddered involuntarily.

Once a person showed signs of wanting too much, many things would become uncontrollable.

He hastily ordered his subordinates to secretly investigate whether there were still cloth messages like this in circulation, and whether there were any strange gatherings.

If so, they were to report it to him immediately.

Then he closed the door, using the bookshelf in the room to block the main entrance.

However, he still felt that, compared to the Han army outside the city, the city was not safe at all.

“I don’t quite understand. Will sending this message into the city really make someone deliver Zhang Liang’s head?” Dian Wei asked curiously.

“It sounds so strange coming from you.” Qiao Yan muttered, because she was still holding chess pieces in her hand, dealing with Cheng Li’s cunning chess moves.

She simply pointed to Lu Yuan, indicating that she should explain this question to Dian Wei.

Lu Yuan replied, “Guardian Dian, you’re asking the wrong question. This message is not for the defenders in the city, but for Zhang Liang to see.

The young lady and the two generals came up with this idea not to have the defenders in the city capture Zhang Liang’s head, but to have Zhang Liang himself come out of the city and surrender.”

“Ah? But what’s clearly written on the cloth…” Dian Wei scratched his head, feeling tired of talking to these clever people.

It was clearly written on the cloth, but they said it wasn’t like that.

“Guardian Dian, did you forget something?” Lu Yuan replied. “Among the common people, how many have the opportunity to learn to read?”

Most commoners are illiterate!

And there is no imperial examination system now!

Dian Wei could receive guidance from Qiao Yan, but others did not have this opportunity.

In this situation, the likelihood of making the person who sees the message believe and choose this path is slim.

The greater possibility is that Zhang Liang himself would become confused after seeing this message.

Lu Yuan’s response was a particularly cruel truth in today’s era.

But if she didn’t say it, Dian Wei wouldn’t have realized the existence of such a blind spot in his thinking.

After thinking about it, he asked again, “So Zhang Liang is as foolish as me?”

Qiao Yan couldn’t help but laugh at his frankness and said, “Of course he’s not foolish, but when it comes to his life and safety, and Zhang Jiao has already fallen into our hands, he has to act foolish.”

Indeed, as Qiao Yan said, Zhang Liang had fallen into this kind of vicious circle of thinking.

For a moment, he didn’t notice that in an era with low literacy rates at the end of the Han Dynasty, there were not many people who could receive this message.

But it’s like being overly cautious; it’s not to mention that he has had a long-standing idea, that is–

Among his followers, how many are following him out of respect for his brother, and how many are supporting him personally?

With Zhang Jiao already captured, Zhang Liang couldn’t ask this question.

So, the more he thought about it, the more he dug himself into a dead end.

Even when devout Taiping Dao followers suggested to him that instead of surrendering, they should try a desperate night attack to try to rescue their great teacher and leader, he even felt that these people were trying to take his life, trying to lure him into a trap.

This won’t work, it won’t work like this!

He searched through his memory for the outcomes of leaders who had led uprisings in the past, but he couldn’t find a good one.

However, he also realized that these people all resisted to the end and did not choose to surrender directly.

So, what would happen if he surrendered the city?

Zhang Liang, more than most people in the Taiping Dao, was close to the process of establishing this religion, so he naturally understood Zhang Jiao’s pragmatism when building some structures.

In this overly clear cognition, he did not completely believe in the argument that “the rise of the Yellow Sky is in accordance with the will of heaven.”

This Fu Shui could not save his life in such a desperate situation.

Now that the authority of the Han court had reached this point, if one of the leaders of the uprising surrendered, it would still be a good name to go out with!

Anyway, staying in the city would be a dead end when the city was breached.

Surrendering would give him a chance to survive.

So why not take this opportunity?

As Zhang Liang thought about this, he looked outside again and saw one of his subordinates carrying something out.

In his state of panic, he didn’t think much about it, but he felt that allowing the other party to come and go as they pleased in his territory might lead them to target him.

Since he had decided to surrender, he had to do it before someone put a knife to his neck!

Under this mindset, even before Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi returned to this place for the third day, he opened the gates of Quzhou City under the cover of night and ran to the Han army’s camp outside.

He was then caught by Zhang Fei, who was patrolling outside.

If Zhang Liang hadn’t appeared frequently on the walls of Quzhou City, Zhang Fei wouldn’t have been face blind.

He might have thought that Zhang Liang was a spy sneaking into the camp and would have thrust his spear through him.

When Zhang Fei brought Zhang Liang bound to Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song, he had a surreal feeling as if he were dreaming. “How did this person come to surrender on his own?”

Liu Bei could only explain to him, “Because the Yellow Turbans are now at a dead end, and the arrows shot into the city have become the final push that triggers the landslide.”

As he said this, he subconsciously glanced at Qiao Yan.

If her previous misleading of Zhang Liang had seemed somewhat accidental, after the idea of sending messages with flying arrows was proposed, Liu Bei could confirm that this seemed to be Qiao Yan’s most adept method of manipulating people’s minds.

Usually, those who play such mind games must have had a certain life experience, but strangely, when Qiao Yan used it, Liu Bei didn’t feel that it was unreasonable.

In this world, there are many types of geniuses, and it’s always better to have one more type like this than to have one who can manipulate all kinds of plots, which is more acceptable.

Just as he was thinking this, he noticed that Qiao Yan seemed to have noticed his gaze and looked back at him, but before he could

In Qiao Yan’s gaze, there was no sign of displeasure from being scrutinized by him. Instead, she smiled at him.

But before he could delve into this expression, Zhang Liang straightforwardly surrendered, along with his plea to save his life, dragging his attention back.

Zhang Liang and Zhang Jiao were quite different.

Zhang Jiao, who had been imprisoned in a prisoner wagon since being captured in Guangzong City, exuded the aura of a martyr from head to toe.

But Zhang Liang’s words could only be described as—

He was an ordinary person who wanted to survive.

“Although I have experienced the coercion of the Yellow Turban leaders and the refugees, when it really came to the pacification of the Guangzong and Quyang battles, I felt a bit conflicted.”