Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator.

Chapter 16: Luring the Enemy - A Duet

"Quick, quick, save Commander Qu!"

Urged on by Deng Mao, the five thousand Yellow Turban bandits who had arrived on the forced march quickly rushed down the Juma River and headed straight for the riverbank on the opposite side.

This scene rekindled hope in Cheng Yuanzhi, who had been somewhat despairing. The long-handled broadsword in his hand was swung like a windmill, impenetrable to water.

Even though Zhang Fei seemed to be going crazy, attacking Cheng Yuanzhi along with the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun, the crowd of people and horses hindered each other, making it difficult to launch an effective attack on Cheng Yuanzhi.

Seeing that the closest Yellow Turban bandits in the Juma River were about to come ashore, Zhang Fei roared with a look of anger and helplessness on his face, and then said.

"I'll spare your life for now, you rebellious son, and come back to take it myself another day!"

"Withdraw, withdraw, withdraw!"

Immediately, Zhang Fei led the remaining fifty or so riders, taking some of the wounded, and quickly headed towards the dense forest.

Cheng Yuanzhi wanted to stop them, but when he reacted, he found that he was almost exhausted, and he almost couldn't even hold the long-handled broadsword in his hand.

However, after experiencing this one-against-many battle, Cheng Yuanzhi's heart unconsciously rose with pride, feeling that the heroes of the world were nothing more than this.

"Senior Brother, are you alright?"

Deng Mao rode forward and looked at Cheng Yuanzhi's blood-soaked appearance, asking with concern.

Even though Deng Mao had no affection for the tyrannical Cheng Yuanzhi, he also knew that Cheng Yuanzhi, as the commander, could not be lost.

Otherwise, once Cheng Yuanzhi, as the commander, died, the Yellow Turban bandits, a group mainly based on "belief" for cohesion, might quickly collapse.

"Hmph, a few mere bandits, what can they do to me?"

Cheng Yuanzhi shook his somewhat weak arm, his expression full of disdain.

"If you hadn't been a little late, scaring away Zhang Fei, I would have killed Zhang Fei here."

Deng Mao didn't retort. Just as he was about to persuade Cheng Yuanzhi to join the main force first, Cheng Yuanzhi, who had gradually recovered, raised the long-handled broadsword in his hand and ordered.

"Under the Yellow Heaven, following the orders of the Great Virtuous Teacher, change the sky and the earth, recreate a world of Great Harmony, all followers, follow me and kill!"

"Wait, wait..."

Deng Mao quickly grabbed Cheng Yuanzhi, his tone urgent as he advised, "Senior Brother, the art of war says: do not enter a forest, do not pursue a desperate foe."

"Shut up!"

Cheng Yuanzhi shouted angrily.

"That bandit Zhang Fei humiliated me so much, I won't be human if I don't kill him! Besides, I, Lao Tzu, also know: warfare has no constant, water has no set shape. Do you mean you'll never enter a dense forest when commanding troops? Don't think that just because I haven't read military books, I don't know how to fight. When I led the brothers to kill officials and slaughter clerks, you were still babbling."

Deng Mao's face became extremely ugly, but he still endured his anger and advised, "Commander Qu, I'm worried that there are still ambushes in the dense forest!"

"Ambush?"

Cheng Yuanzhi looked at Deng Mao with an idiotic gaze, and said.

"If Zhang Fei still had any valiant strength under his command, he would have swarmed me just now. Why would he have fought fiercely with me to this point, and finally returned without success, forced to retreat?"

As soon as these words came out, Deng Mao couldn't help but be a little dumbfounded, feeling that what Cheng Yuanzhi said was not without reason.

If Deng Mao were Zhang Fei, then since he had already lured the enemy's main general into the ambush encirclement, how could he not come out in full force, determined to kill the enemy general here.

Once Cheng Yuanzhi, as the commander, died, it would inevitably cause chaos in this Yellow Turban army, and perhaps most of the Yellow Turbans would choose to flee in all directions.

The crisis in Zhuo County would be immediately resolved.

"Alright, Deng Mao, stop talking nonsense. If you're afraid, you can stay here and wait for the rest of the Yellow Turban troops."

Cheng Yuanzhi said impatiently, and immediately led the five thousand Yellow Turban bandits into the dense forest, leaving only Deng Mao and ten Yellow Turban warriors under his command to serve as personal guards.

......

What Deng Mao didn't know was that on a reverse slope on the east side of the riverbank, Liu Bei looked into the distance as Cheng Yuanzhi led a mighty army of five thousand Yellow Turban bandits into the dense forest, and couldn't help but show a worried expression, muttering.

"I thought that my third brother's bravery, even if not invincible, should be extremely valiant. I didn't expect that Cheng Yuanzhi would also be so powerful, even with my third brother leading fifty riders to besiege him, he still stood undefeated."

"In this case, my second brother leads no more than a thousand men, can he really stop Cheng Yuanzhi and five thousand Yellow Turban bandits?"

Responding to Liu Bei was Li Ji's hearty laughter.

The worried Liu Bei asked in confusion, "Zikun, why are you laughing?"

Li Ji held up his palm and flipped it back and forth, signaling, "Brother Xuande has too little confidence in Yide's bravery. In Ji's opinion, the number of fierce generals in the world who can match Yide can be counted on no more than ten fingers."

"Then could it be that Heaven is not helping me? There are only ten fingers in the world, and we happen to meet one," Liu Bei sighed and said.

Li Ji shook his head helplessly, understanding that the inexperienced Liu Bei lacked confidence in his heart, so he no longer played riddles and said bluntly.

"Brother Xuande, aren't you curious as to why the Yellow Turban warriors led by Cheng Yuanzhi were actually no match for the hundred riders led by Yide?"

Liu Bei was stunned, suddenly discovering this point that he had inadvertently overlooked.

If Cheng Yuanzhi's bravery could match Zhang Fei, then with the strength of the Yellow Turban warriors, how could they all be lost to the hundred riders that were only temporarily formed?

"Zikun, do you mean... Yide feigned defeat?"

"That's right."

Li Ji nodded with a smile, and said.

"Why? If Cheng Yuanzhi were killed on the spot, the Yellow Turban army would surely be in chaos," Liu Bei asked.

"And then?"

Li Ji asked back, immediately causing Liu Bei to fall into deep thought.

Now, the Yellow Turban army, plus the Yellow Turban masses composed of the captured civilians, still totals more than 60,000.

Even if Cheng Yuanzhi died and the Yellow Turban army was in great chaos, it would definitely be a behemoth that the two thousand soldiers under Liu Bei's command could not swallow.

At that time, perhaps most of the entire Yellow Turban army would split up and disintegrate, and what might replace it would be these Yellow Turban bandits scattered throughout Zhuo County, looting and causing extremely serious damage to the entire Zhuo County.

"Therefore, it's not that Yide couldn't kill Cheng Yuanzhi, but that Ji strictly ordered Yide in the brocade sack to feign defeat during the ambush on the riverbank no matter what. The Yellow Turban warriors can be killed, but Cheng Yuanzhi must not be killed."

"Only punishing the chief bandit will only prolong the chaos in Zhuo County; only by killing most of the Yellow Turban bandits here is the correct solution."

Li Ji said slowly, his gaze towards the distant dense forest gradually turning cold, as if he had already seen a rising flame.

And taking advantage of that flame, Liu Bei and Li Ji took off in this chaotic world on the rolling heat wave.

"Without a feigned defeat under absolute advantage, how could Cheng Yuanzhi completely believe that there were definitely no ambushes in the dense forest, and how could the entire Yellow Turban army be completely separated from each other, and then be divided and broken."

Under Zhang Fei's anger, Cheng Yuanzhi undoubtedly fell for the first lure-the-enemy plan, but Deng Mao always remained calm, so he tried his best to lead the Yellow Turban army's main force to support him on a forced march.

However, neither Cheng Yuanzhi, Deng Mao, nor the rest of the Yellow Turban bandits would have ever imagined that the real ambush was in the dense forest.

One ring after another, completely controlling Cheng Yuanzhi and Deng Mao's psychology in the palm of his hand.

Ordinary people will initially be wary of the lure-the-enemy plan, but in the case of clearly having an absolute opportunity for the first time but helplessly retreating, there is undoubtedly no defense against the second time.

Cheng Yuanzhi undoubtedly fell for the first lure-the-enemy plan under Zhang Fei's instigation, but Deng Mao had always maintained his composure, so he tried his best to lead the Yellow Turban army's main force to support him on a forced march.

However, neither Cheng Yuanzhi, Deng Mao, nor the rest of the Yellow Turban bandits would have ever imagined that the real ambush was in the dense forest.

One ring after another, completely controlling Cheng Yuanzhi and Deng Mao's psychology in the palm of his hand.

"Zikun, you are truly a divine man."

Liu Bei's eyes became brighter and brighter, and his whole person seemed to be radiant for a while. He was filled with unprecedented confidence in his future with Li Ji.

With Li Ji's assistance, why worry about great ambitions being buried in the mountains and fields?

"Brother Xuande, don't praise me anymore. My little trick can only be used to play with the Yellow Turbans. If the opponent has a resourceful military advisor under his command, it shouldn't be difficult to see through it."

Li Ji shook his head helplessly, sighing.

Liu Bei patted Li Ji on the shoulder and said seriously.

"Zikun, you should also have more confidence in yourself. In Bei's view, Zikun's plan is definitely not inferior to anyone else in the world."

"Furthermore, even if Cheng Yuanzhi has a military advisor under his command who sees through Zikun's plan, so what? Zikun's plan has already calculated the human heart to the extreme. Even if that military advisor has more doubts in his heart, Cheng Yuanzhi will definitely not believe this counterintuitive plan."

Looking at Liu Bei's serious expression, Li Ji couldn't help but feel a sense of being recognized.

Although there was a "strategy simulator" to back up the deduction, this strategy was originally Li Ji's general idea based on local conditions.

Li Ji suggested with a smile.

"Hahaha, Brother Xuande's praise is a little early. The enemy has already entered our pocket. Why not wait until we have captured the Yellow Turbans in one fell swoop and praise Ji at the celebration banquet."

"Zikun is right!"

Liu Bei suppressed the excitement in his heart and nodded in agreement.

As Cheng Yuanzhi led the Yellow Turban bandits deeper and deeper into the dense forest, the noisy sound made by the five thousand-man march could be clearly heard even by Li Ji and Liu Bei, who were on the reverse slope of the mountain col at the edge of the dense forest.

In the next moment, Liu Bei, who was looking into the distance, saw that the edge of the dense forest on the other side began to rise with sparks of fire, and he quickly had the flag bearer issue instructions to the soldiers at the edge of the dense forest.

Immediately, with the help of flammable materials, mainly kerosene, a wall of fire visibly and rapidly rose along the edges of the dense forest on both sides.

However, due to the abundant moisture in the dense forest and the absence of strong winds, the fire could not easily spread towards the center of the forest; otherwise, this fire alone could have buried these five thousand Yellow Turban bandits here.

Similarly, due to the abundant moisture, the thick smoke produced by the fire far surpassed usual levels, with massive amounts of thick smoke rising into the sky and rapidly spreading across the entire dense forest.

Subsequently, Liu Bei left ten of the strongest soldiers to Li Ji as personal guards, while he personally led the remaining soldiers towards the entrance from the riverbank into the dense forest, completely cutting off the Yellow Turban army's advance and retreat.

This unusual sight of billowing smoke instantly caused Deng Mao, who was waiting at the riverbank, to drastically change his expression, realizing that Cheng Yuanzhi had likely fallen into a trap.

However, Deng Mao now only had ten Yellow Turban Warriors under his command, and even if he wanted to enter the dense forest to assist Cheng Yuanzhi, he lacked the strength to do so.

"Quick, urge the Yellow Turban troops behind to arrive as soon as possible, otherwise the commander is in danger!"

With an extremely unsightly expression, Deng Mao quickly sent five Yellow Turban Warriors to urge the main force still behind to hurry.

What slightly reassured Deng Mao was that, in a short time, the Yellow Turban troops, driven by the Yellow Turban overseers to march urgently, were about to reach the Juma River.

Immediately, Deng Mao, anxious and burning with impatience, did not hesitate at all, constantly urging these Yellow Turban troops, mainly composed of the old, weak, women, and children, to forcibly cross the Juma River, preparing to enter the dense forest to provide rescue.

Li Ji, who had been watching this scene from the distant reverse slope, couldn't help but reveal a hint of a smile on his face, muttering to himself.

"The overall situation is set."

And by the time the Yellow Turban troops finished crossing the river, and Deng Mao quickly organized his forces to prepare to enter the dense forest for rescue, the one thousand soldiers led by Liu Bei had already set up a defensive formation at the narrow entrance from the riverbank to the dense forest.

"Damn it, there really is an ambush!"

Looking at the one thousand soldiers led by Liu Bei, Deng Mao's heart completely sank, completely unable to understand where these soldiers came from to set up such an ambush, when the entire Zhuo County was filled with Taiping Dao spies.

'Could it be... that Cao Liu Bei, the Supervisor of Bandits leading two thousand men?'

Deng Mao couldn't help but recall the intelligence he had received from spies not long ago, but also felt that this guess was extremely ridiculous.

A mere two thousand men, an insignificant number, how could they set up such an ambush?

However, even though Deng Mao understood that he had completely fallen into a trap, in order to assist Cheng Yuanzhi, he could only continuously and frantically order the Yellow Turban troops to charge at the defensive line constructed by Liu Bei.

However, these Yellow Turban troops, mostly composed of the old, weak, women, and children, were inherently weak in combat, and didn't even have many proper weapons.

Usually, if they followed behind the real Yellow Turban bandits or Yellow Turban Warriors to charge into battle, they could still play a small role.

At this moment, after experiencing such an urgent march and being forced to cross the freezing Juma River, even without fighting, most of the old, weak, women, and children had already lost their combat effectiveness.

Even if Deng Mao constantly tried to organize his forces to break through, at that riverbank entrance that could only accommodate ten people entering at the same time at most, the Yellow Turban troops couldn't exert any numerical advantage at all, and were instead firmly blocked by the one thousand soldiers led by Liu Bei outside the riverbank entrance.

And unlike the battle situation on the riverbank, the dense forest at this moment was already filled with billowing smoke, not only making the five thousand Yellow Turban bandits who had ventured deep into the forest unable to distinguish east, west, north, and south, but also coughing incessantly.

Even as the smoke continued to increase, the visibility in the dense forest gradually reached the point where one could barely see beyond ten steps.

And Cheng Yuanzhi also deserved to be a brave man, understanding that he had definitely entered deep into an ambush, and vaguely seeing firelight through the smoke on both sides.

Cheng Yuanzhi understood that he had to escape this dense forest as soon as possible, otherwise he might be buried in the sea of fire.

Therefore, Cheng Yuanzhi constantly shouted loudly, using his voice and actions to guide the direction of his Yellow Turban troops, and then led them to bury their heads and rush forward, intending to forcibly break through the encirclement.

Until, Cheng Yuanzhi, holding a long-handled broadsword, suddenly saw a figure through the smoke ahead, stroking a long beard, holding a Green Dragon Crescent Blade upside down, with phoenix eyes slightly narrowed, a face like a heavy date, resembling a divine being.