Chapter 56

The five days passed quickly. It was now early May, the beginning of the hottest weather.

Liu Yao was sitting under the shade of a tree, playing chess with Tian Feng. The two seemed completely oblivious to their surroundings, and not a single drop of sweat had appeared on their bodies.

At this moment, Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun suddenly walked over. The hot-tempered Zhu Jun wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked urgently, "Your Highness, how much longer do we have to wait? The supplies in the city will only last for another half a month. If we wait any longer, we might run out of food before we defeat the Yellow Turbans."

Liu Yao continued playing chess with Tian Feng without even turning his head and asked, "General Huangfu, General Zhu. Do you think it's hot enough?"

Huangfu Song was taken aback, completely not expecting Liu Yao to ask such an unrelated question, but he still replied, "Your Highness, it is indeed very hot." Looking at Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun, who were drenched in sweat, if it weren't for the need to guard against the Yellow Turbans' surprise attacks, they would have already taken off their heavy fish-scale armor and just worn simple clothes.

Liu Yao, still not turning his head, said meaningfully, "If it's hot, then that's right. Why don't you two sit down and calm down? You won't feel the heat then."

What was this? Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun were completely dumbfounded, not knowing what to say. The two could only stand silently on the side, watching Liu Yao and Tian Feng play chess.

But how could the two, who were burning with anxiety, calm down? After just a few minutes, Zhu Jun couldn't hold it in any longer, but before he could speak, Tian Feng laughed and said, "General, linked horses, my lord, your general is in danger now."

Seeing the game was lost, Liu Yao put down the chess piece and said, looking up at the sky and shielding his eyes from the glaring sun, "Yes, I lost. My general is captured. But the other general should be close, right, Yuanhao?"

"Hehe, my lord, you have a good insight. It's indeed about time," Tian Feng said with a smile.

Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun were completely baffled by the two's strange conversation, not understanding what they were talking about. They didn't know what to say.

At this moment, Shi A ran in, excitedly saying, "My lord, my lord, the Yellow Turbans are on the move."

"Ha ha ha, finally moving? It seems this general is about to be captured," Liu Yao laughed, removing the "general" piece from the board. He then looked at Huangfu Song and the others, "When the time comes, are the two generals willing to go with me to the city wall to observe?"

Although Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun still didn't fully understand, they knew what Liu Yao meant. The opportunity to eliminate the Yellow Turbans had arrived. They said excitedly, "We dare not refuse."

The group went to the city wall, where Zhang Fei, Zhang Yun, and the others were already waiting. Seeing Liu Yao, they hurriedly bowed.

Liu Yao waved his hand, walked to the edge of the wall, and saw that the Yellow Turbans, unable to bear the heat, were moving their camp into the forest.

"Hmph, these Yellow Turbans are truly courting death, moving their camp into the forest. They don't know that setting up camp in the forest is a major taboo in military strategy. I wonder what Bo Cai was thinking," Zhu Jun said, unable to resist mocking the Yellow Turbans.

"Forest? Fire?" At this moment, Huangfu Song seemed to recall something, looking delighted, "I see, Your Highness, what a brilliant plan. If this is the case, no matter how many Yellow Turbans there are, we won't be worried!"

And Zhu Jun wasn't a fool; his years of military service had given him a keen sense. He looked at Liu Yao and Tian Feng with admiration and said, "No wonder Your Highness had us wait. You wanted to use the heat to force the Yellow Turbans into the forest and then attack with fire. This way, the Yellow Turbans can be easily defeated."

"Hehe, exactly, a fire attack. Now the time has come. It's a good opportunity for us to counterattack," Liu Yao said confidently.

Huangfu Song, hearing this, bowed respectfully to Liu Yao and said, "Since the plan is your idea, please give the orders, Your Highness."

"This..." Liu Yao hesitated, as it felt like he was taking command from the others.

"Exactly, Your Highness, please give the orders," Zhu Jun also bowed and said.

Liu Yao didn't hesitate further, nodded, and said solemnly, "Since that's the case, Huangfu Song, listen to my orders."

"I am here."

"Order you to take your troops tonight at the third watch, carrying oil and other flammable materials, to secretly infiltrate the Yellow Turbans' camp and set it on fire. Once the fire starts, do not retreat; immediately kill the Yellow Turban soldiers."

"I obey the order," Huangfu Song said excitedly. Liu Yao had given him the task of the vanguard, making him the most likely to kill Bo Cai, and thus the one to receive the greatest credit.

Liu Yao didn't pay attention to Huangfu Song's excitement and said to Zhu Jun, "Zhu Jun, listen to my orders."

"I am here."

"Order you to take your troops tonight after the third watch to the other side of the Yellow Turbans' camp. Use the fire as a signal. Once the fire starts, directly attack the Yellow Turbans' camp and fight hard."

"I obey the order," Zhu Jun said, also excited, as his task was similar to Huangfu Song's.

Liu Yao then looked at Zhang Fei and the others and said, "If Bo Cai has a chance to escape, he has two places to go: one is Pengtuo's base in Runan, and the other is to go to Guangzong to join Zhang Jue."

Liu Yao then looked at Huang Zhong and Gao Shun and said, "Gao Shun, Huang Zhong, listen to my orders."

"We are here," they both bowed and said.

"The road to Runan is mostly mountainous, unsuitable for cavalry. I order you two to take your 5,000 Xianyang troops and ambush on the necessary route to Runan. If Bo Cai escapes this way, do not let him get away."

"We obey the order."

Finally, only Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun were left. Liu Yao said, "Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, listen to my orders."

"We are here," they both bowed and said.

"Order you two to take your 5,000 Chongfeng troops and ambush on the road to Guangzong. If you find Bo Cai, do not let him escape."

"We obey the order," they said, their excitement evident.

Huang Zhong, hearing this, said worriedly, "My lord, you have dispatched all my troops. If other Yellow Turbans come to attack, what should we do?"

"No problem," Liu Yao waved his hand and said, "As for defending the city, I have 1,000 of my personal guards, plus 2,000 troops from General Huangfu. That should be enough."

Huang Zhong, hearing this, said no more. Liu Yao's personal guards were as powerful as the Xianyang troops. With this force and 2,000 government troops, even if 20,000 Yellow Turbans came, they wouldn't be able to touch Changshe City.

"Remember, this time, only the leaders are to be punished. If the Yellow Turbans surrender, spare their lives. After all, they were originally citizens of the Han Dynasty, and their rebellion was out of necessity," Liu Yao reminded them, glancing at Zhu Jun, remembering that historically he had killed many Yellow Turban soldiers. Liu Yao couldn't agree, as these were the most important population for the future Youzhou.

"We obey the order," everyone said together. Although Zhu Jun didn't fully understand, he still followed Liu Yao's orders without objection.

After giving the orders, everyone went to prepare their troops for the battle that night.

As for Liu Yao, he stood there, gazing at the distant Yellow Turban camp, lost in thought.