Who put the yellow robe on me?

Chapter 169: Surround but Not Kill

Xianyu Linyuan quickly adjusted his breathing, his eyes swept across the surrounding battlefield with coldness, and a mixture of anger and helplessness mixed in his heart.

"Retreat! Divide our troops immediately and break out of the ambush circle!" Xianyu Linyuan roared, trying to save the crisis.

General Mammon's face turned pale. He looked at the Daliang light cavalry attacking from all directions and instantly realized that they had fallen into an ambush.

He gritted his teeth and shouted at his soldiers to fight back, but the rain of arrows and the enemy's attack were so fierce that the morale of the Tiger Guards was crushed, and they found it difficult to organize an effective counterattack for a while.

Xianyu Linyuan's heart was beating wildly. He ordered his soldiers to retreat while swinging his sword to kill the approaching enemy. He knew that every step at this moment was a matter of life and death, but he would never sit still and wait for death.

The smell of blood on the battlefield became stronger and stronger, dust mixed with sweat stained every soldier's face, everything in front of them became chaotic, and the Hu Ben army, who were ambushed, were gradually being forced into a desperate situation by the enemy's cavalry.

He and General Mammon had fought side by side for many years, but they had never been in such a mess. In the past, they each led an army of 100,000 to attack Daliang, with high morale and vowed to capture Liangzhou City, but now they had fallen to this point.

The two armies combined numbered less than 30,000 men, and the once elite and powerful armies were now less than 20% of their strength. Blood, sacrifice, and sweat had turned to dust on this battlefield, vanishing without a trace on the wind. All that remained were the soldiers' weary eyes and heavy breathing.

Xianyu Linyuan's hands gripped the reins tightly, his knuckles white from the strain. His gaze was stern, his heart swirling with a myriad of complex emotions—anger, helplessness, regret, but mostly resentment.

He is the pillar of the Western Regions and the sharpest sword in the hands of the King of the Western Regions. But now, this sword has become blunt and is even retreating step by step in the hands of the enemy.

"Brother Xianyu, what should we do now?" General Mammon looked up at Xianyu Linyuan with a low voice, but he could not hide his inner anxiety.

The two fought bloody battles all the way, and although they suffered heavy losses, fortunately, with years of combat experience and tacit cooperation, they finally retreated to a relatively safe hill, but they knew in their hearts that the enemy would never give up.

Xianyu Linyuan slowly withdrew his gaze and looked into the distance: "Wait! There is no good solution now!"

General Mammon was speechless after hearing this. The power they held was no longer enough to compete with the main force of Daliang in Liangzhou City.

Just as they were thinking about their next move, dust rose in the distance and the soldiers in the camp began to riot.

"General, the Daliang army is gathering again!" The deputy general rushed over, his tone filled with barely concealed panic. "Zhong Wenbin's troops are approaching us. Scouts in the rear report that Zhong Xiaodan and Zhou Liangwei's troops have already joined forces. They far outnumber us!"

"What?!" General Mammon's expression changed drastically, and a trace of panic flashed in his eyes. "Zhong Wenbin and Zhong Xiaodan have already met up, so we..." His tone was full of despair, because he knew that this meant that their situation had fallen into an absolute disadvantage.

Xianyu Linyuan took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. He knew that the current situation was extremely critical.

Xianyu Linyuan was right to worry!

Zhong Wenbin had an army of 60,000, plus the 50,000 troops of Zhong Xiaodan and Zhou Liangwei, a total of more than 100,000 people.

The Western Region Army only has less than 30,000 remnants left. If a head-on confrontation occurs, the Western Region Army will undoubtedly lose!

Xianyu Linyuan stared at the distant sky, his heart aching. The once-mighty Tiger Guards were now about to become victims of someone else's sword.

"Are we going to die here?" Xianyu Linyuan asked himself in a low voice, with deep resentment and anger in his tone.

……

At the central camp of Daliang, a burst of hurried horse hoof sounds came from afar. In the dust rising in the distance, a man and a horse were galloping towards the central camp of Daliang.

I saw that the Sixteenth Prince's personal bodyguard Dianzhang had already rushed into the central military camp of Daliang.

He quickly dismounted and walked hurriedly towards the tent where Zhong Wenbin was. After hearing this, Zhong Wenbin immediately ordered his men to let the canon in.

Zhong Wenbin stood in the military tent, his eyes stern and his expression calm. He was a seasoned general, well-informed and familiar with every subtle change on the battlefield.

He knew that Xianyu Linyuan was now in a desperate situation, and this was the best time for him to completely annihilate the Huben Army.

As soon as Dianzhang entered the military tent, he clasped his hands and bowed to Zhong Wenbin, saying hurriedly, "Greetings, General!"

Zhong Wenbin raised his head, his eyes cold: "What's the matter?"

Zhong Wenbin knew that Dianzhang's arrival at this time must have brought the latest instructions from the Sixteenth Prince.

Dianzhang took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan has ordered you to surround Xianyu Linyuan's Tiger Guards but not kill them!"

As soon as these words were spoken, all the generals in the central army tent were in an uproar.

Surround them but not kill them? Everyone's face showed shock and confusion.

Right now, Xianyu Linyuan's army is already a defeated force, and it is the best opportunity to annihilate them in one fell swoop. Why did the Sixteenth Prince order to surround them instead of killing them?

Zhong Wenbin frowned slightly, looking somewhat puzzled, but he quickly suppressed his inner turmoil. He knew that the Sixteenth Prince Jiang Chen's strategy was unfathomable, and he would never give such an order casually.

Mi Chunhong couldn't help but ask, "General, why did His Highness issue such an order? If we don't completely wipe out the Tiger Guards now, wouldn't that be like letting a tiger go back to the mountains?"

"Yes, General, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!" Another general echoed.

Zhong Wenbin raised his hand, signaling for silence. He pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "The Sixteenth Prince's order has its reasons."

He turned to look at Dianzhang, his tone firm: "Go report to His Highness and tell him that I, Zhong Wenbin, will act according to your orders."

Dianzhang nodded, turned around and left immediately, riding his horse towards Liangzhou City.

Zhong Wenbin watched Dianzhang go away, but his heart was still full of doubts.

Encircling but not killing is obviously not to let the tiger go back to the mountain. There must be a deeper strategy behind this.

He turned to look at the generals in the tent and said in a deep voice, "Pass on my order. The entire army should prepare for a siege, but no attack without authorization is allowed."

Although the deputy generals still had doubts in their hearts, General Zhong Wenbin was the number one figure in the Daliang military, and no one dared to question the order of the Sixteenth Prince, and they all bowed and accepted the order.

Xianyu Linyuan looked at the Daliang military camp from a distant hill, feeling a little uneasy.

He knew that he was in a desperate situation. If Zhong Wenbin launched an all-out attack, they would be powerless to recover.

However, as time passed, the Daliang army showed no movement.