"Your Highness, this subordinate believes the enemy is merely bluffing. As long as we station our troops outside the south gate and pose as if we are attacking, they will surely flee upon hearing the news."
Upon hearing Bazahan's words, Qona laughed heartily, "Indeed, that makes sense. Let it be as you say. Issue my orders! All units shall set up camp outside the south gate of Wannian City."
Qona's decision to camp outside the south gate was precisely what Xiao Jingyun had feared.
This placed immense pressure on Du Bai's defense.
As Xiao Jingyun had stated, if the enemy army were to sortie and attack the south gate, his Four Spirits Eight Trigrams formation could not guarantee ensnaring all forty thousand of their troops.
In the blink of an eye, it was the third watch. The Da Cang Kingdom's military camp was silent. Du Bai had fallen into a deep sleep. Just as he felt a sense of relief, having waited for days for the Da Tu Kingdom's army to arrive, he suddenly heard shouts. Someone rushed in with news, "Reporting to General, the enemy is attempting a surprise raid!"
Du Bai's expression darkened. "This is merely a probe by the enemy. Do not panic. It is a perfect opportunity to show them the might of my Four Spirits Eight Trigrams formation."
He then instructed the guards beside him, "Blow the horns, change the formation."
Soon, a low horn blast echoed.
Zhu Meng, leading his soldiers, was charging forward when he suddenly saw the troops ahead retreating like a receding tide, unexpectedly clearing a path for him.
This, however, caught Zhu Meng off guard.
As he hesitated, he suddenly heard Zhang Liao shout from beside him, "General, this is bad! They are surrounding us! Retreat quickly!"
But by then, it was too late to leave. An arrow rain descended upon them.
Zhu Meng never imagined that Du Bai would dare to fire arrows within his own camp, not fearing friendly fire.
However, he was unaware that Du Bai had long since drilled his troops in such matters. His soldiers knew precisely when and where to fire.
Zhu Meng fought valiantly, brandishing his long spear, deflecting the oncoming arrows, and also shielding his strategist Zhang Liao.
The two, in a sorry state, charged outwards amidst the soldiers.
From a distant lookout tower, the soldier responsible for observation would blow the horn according to the direction they were charging. The Da Cang Kingdom's troops would then know where to intercept.
After much effort, Zhu Meng found himself unable to break through. Meanwhile, Prince Qona, observing from the rear, was inwardly shocked. Zhu Meng's raid with twenty thousand men was merely a test, but he never expected his probing force to be on the verge of annihilation.
Regardless, Zhu Meng understood the Da Cang Kingdom well, and he was still useful to Qona.
Therefore, Qona immediately ordered his men to charge forward and rescue Zhu Meng.
The entire affair took over an hour. Seeing the enemy forces growing in number, Du Bai decided to withdraw. A long horn blast sounded.
Like an impenetrable wall, the Da Cang Kingdom's soldiers quickly retreated to both sides, clearing a path for Zhu Meng. Seeing this, Zhu Meng did not hesitate and spurred his horse to flee.
When he returned to his camp in a disheveled state and took stock of his troops, he found that out of the twenty thousand he had taken, only a little over ten thousand had returned. Nearly ten thousand had been lost that night.
A great humiliation! A profound humiliation!
Yet, humiliation was inescapable. Zhu Meng dejectedly went to see Prince Qona.
Upon seeing Qona, Zhu Meng bowed, "Your Highness, it is Zhu Meng's incompetence that led to tonight's crushing defeat. I beg Your Highness for punishment."
Qona waved his hand, "It is nothing, it is nothing. Victory and defeat are common in warfare. Rest for a few days, and do not worry too much about other matters for now."
Zhu Meng bowed gratefully and withdrew.
After he left, Bazahan, standing nearby, chuckled, "Your Highness, seeing his dejected state, he will likely not recover for some time. This is the perfect opportunity to strip him of his command."
Qona nodded and looked at Bazahan, "What good plan do you have?"
"Your Highness, Zhu Meng suffered a great defeat, and his soldiers suffered heavy losses. You could transfer troops from other camps to replenish his ranks, bringing them up to fifty thousand."
"This way, he will have ten thousand of our Da Tu Kingdom's soldiers under his command."
Qona nodded, "This is a good plan, but out of fifty thousand, only ten thousand are ours. That is still too few."
Bazahan chuckled, "Your Highness, next, you can issue a verbal decree stating that our Da Tu Kingdom's soldiers are not familiar with the customs of your Da Cang Kingdom, and ask Zhu Meng to send people to each camp to explain them and teach them the Da Cang Kingdom's language."
"This way, at least another twenty thousand men can be dispersed. You can then replenish his forces, and more than half of his subordinates will be our Da Tu Kingdom's soldiers."
Upon hearing Bazahan's stratagem, Qona nodded in approval.
"This plan is excellent. Leave it to you to handle. There is no need to wait a couple of days; proceed now."
Bazahan nodded and left the tent to find Zhu Meng.
Seeing Bazahan arrive, Zhu Meng suddenly had a premonition of ill omen. But as a defeated general, he had no choice but to greet him with forced composure.
"General Bazahan, please take a seat. I am too ashamed to face anyone after this defeat."
Bazahan smiled and waved his hand, "General Zhu, you exaggerate. Victory and defeat are common in warfare. You lost this time; you will win next time."
Zhang Liao, standing beside Zhu Meng, observed Bazahan's insincere smile and felt a hint of unease. However, he still smiled and offered a cup of tea, "It is late, and I apologize for troubling you, General..."
Bazahan did not stand on ceremony, picking up the tea and gulping it down, "It is getting late, so let's make this brief. His Highness the Prince mentioned that our Da Tu Kingdom's forces are few and far between, and communication is poor."
"Therefore, we now wish for you to send people to each camp to teach the soldiers to speak our local Da Cang Kingdom's language."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Liao instantly understood. This was an attempt to break up their forces.
Since arriving in the Da Tu Kingdom, Zhu Meng had maintained firm control over the command of these fifty thousand men.
Thus, Prince Qona had no choice but to rely on him, and outwardly, he had to show him great respect.
But now, by dispersing his troops, it meant discarding Zhu Meng.
Zhu Meng also understood this. But who could he blame? He had lost the battle. He had nothing to say.
"General, please rest assured. Tell me how many men you need, and I will send them out tomorrow."
Seeing Zhu Meng's compliance, Bazahan felt quite smug. "General Zhu, do not worry. His Highness the Prince said that for every man you send out, he will replace them. We will replenish these fifty thousand troops for you."
Zhu Meng could only cup his fists in thanks.
"Please convey my gratitude to His Highness the Prince."
"Ah, we are all one family, there is no need for such politeness. Well then, General Zhu, get some rest. I will take my leave."
Bazahan got up and left. Zhu Meng slammed his fist on the table.
"This is too much! They are trying to devour my troops!"