Hanzhou, Qianqing Palace.

Liu Wulie sat on the ground alone, his brows knitted tightly together, full of worry. The candlelight cast a deep shadow on his tired face, as if to magnify his worries infinitely.

Although the Northern Barbarians had already sent troops to support the camp, and the supporting troops were on the way, his worries were not relieved much. He looked at the intelligence that had just been sent from Pengcheng in his hand, and was silent for a long time, puzzled.

"What exactly is Lin Zhongyun up to?" Liu Wulie whispered to himself, his voice full of confusion and anxiety.

Originally, he thought the situation was critical and Pengcheng would soon be attacked fiercely by the rebels. For this reason, he immediately made adequate responses and sent out most of the troops in Handu.

However, he never expected that the rebels would just surround him without attacking. What was the reason behind this? Weren't they afraid that they would be surrounded by the Northern Barbarians?
Judging from Lin Zhongyun's previous actions, Lin Zhongyun is a person who does not play by the rules and will not show weakness easily. There must be a deep conspiracy behind this.

However, he was puzzled by the unusual behavior of the rebels and felt increasingly uneasy. The uneasiness in his heart prompted him to walk down the hall and pace back and forth, trying to clear his mind.

For a moment, there were bursts of hurried footsteps coming from the cold hall, which made people feel confused.

"What on earth is Lin Zhongyun planning?" He kept asking himself, frowning even more. Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind, and he stopped abruptly, his eyes sharpening.

"Is he trying to delay time and attract our attention in this way?" Liu Wulie muttered to himself, and he had a vague answer in his mind. He knew that Lin Zhongyun had always been cunning and this time, the siege without attacking was probably to cover up his real goal.

"No, there must be no accidents at Tongzhou Reservoir!"

Thinking of this, Liu Wulie became even more anxious. He knew that the most important thing now was the Tongzhou Reservoir. Once the reservoir was lost, his last trump card would be completely lost, and the lifeline of the entire Daqian would be cut off, and he would have no chance of turning things around.

He must make a decision as soon as possible to ensure the safety of the reservoir.

"Immediately send orders to the Tongzhou Reservoir and Miyun Reservoir. If any accident occurs in Pengcheng, open the gates and release the water immediately!" Liu Wulie took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, and said to his confidants around him.

"Lin Zhongyun, no matter what your plan is, I will not let you succeed."

The confidant immediately took the order and left, while Liu Wulie continued to stand in the palace, gazing firmly into the distance.

The night grew darker, and the candlelight in the Qianqing Palace was still flickering. He prayed silently in his heart, the future of Daqian would all depend on this battle.

……

At this moment, Tongzhou Reservoir.

In order to save Chagan Wuli's life, the middle-aged Confucian scholar led a large army to the outside of Tongzhou Reservoir in secret.

The sky was just beginning to brighten and it was pitch black, with only a faint glow of fire inside the Tongzhou Reservoir.

The whole city was silent, as if everyone was fast asleep in their tents.

There were indeed guards on the city wall, but they were scattered and sleepy. They leaned against the city wall, closed their eyes and dozed off from time to time. It was obvious that they were not on guard at all.

Even though the rebel army was at the gates of the city, as the Tongzhou Reservoir, there was not a trace of tension at all.

This is not only because there are a large number of officers and soldiers stationed in Tongzhou City, but also because no one thinks that the rebel army's war will spread here before they capture the Handi capital.

But they ignored the Northern Barbarians. The rebel army’s war would certainly not happen, but what about the Northern Barbarians?

With the help of the faint light, a large group of Northern Barbarian cavalry quietly approached a position less than 500 meters away from their city.

Looking at the useless defense in front of him, the middle-aged Confucian scholar in the lead couldn't help but get secretly excited.

He originally thought that it would take them a lot of effort to capture the Tongzhou Reservoir, but now it seems that as long as they rush over and capture the city wall, they will soon be able to take complete control of the Tongzhou Reservoir.

As the only think tank among the Northern Barbarians and the drafter of the plan to flood the three armies, he knew better than anyone the importance of the Tongzhou Reservoir to the entire occupation.

As long as they can capture the Tongzhou Reservoir, the Northern Barbarians will have no worries and can focus on dealing with the aggressive rebel army, and the original plan can proceed smoothly.

In that case, the day when the Northern Barbarians will take control of the world is just around the corner.

Thinking of this, his heart was filled with excitement and anticipation, but he was not overwhelmed by the joy of victory.

"Pass the order down, tell everyone to stay where they are and not to act rashly." The middle-aged scholar whispered to his trusted followers, his eyes flashing with calmness and determination.

The confidant immediately took the order and left, while the middle-aged scholar continued to observe the movements in the city. Although the defenses were lax, he knew that any negligence could lead to the failure of the plan. He had to ensure that everything was foolproof in order to successfully capture the Tongzhou Reservoir.

A moment later, the confidant returned and reported: "Sir, everyone has been ordered to stay where they are and be ready for action at any time."

The middle-aged Confucian scholar nodded and signaled his confidants to continue monitoring the movements in the city.

"Order everyone to surround the Tongzhou Reservoir and ensure that no information can be leaked out."

He knew that the most important thing now was to ensure that no information could be leaked out. Any disturbance might alert the defenders in the city and cause the plan to fail.

Since they have decided to take action against the Tongzhou Reservoir, they have also decided to break off relations with Daqian. However, due to various circumstances, it is not a good time to do so.

Therefore, we must not let any information here leak out, otherwise we will miss the opportunity to fight.

Soon, under his orders, the Northern Barbarians crawled around outside the city, guarding every exit to ensure that no one could escape from under their noses.

The middle-aged Confucian scholar stood on a high place, looking calmly at everything in front of him. He understood that now was the most critical moment and there must not be any negligence.

Although the officers and soldiers on the city wall were now bleary-eyed and completely defenseless.

But he did not plan to start the attack now. The time when people are most sleepy in a day is not in the early morning or late at night, but when it is about to dawn.

At that time, even a person with a strong will would reach his limit and feel dizzy and sleepy.

This is the best time for them to attack.

As time passed, the sky gradually brightened and the fire in the Tongzhou Reservoir gradually went out.

Most of the defenders in the city were also immersed in sleep. Although the people who came to patrol had been replaced by a new shift, the people who took over the shift were yawning and fell drowsy again after a while, and had no idea that danger was approaching.

The middle-aged Confucian scholar saw all this and knew that the opportunity had come.

"It's now!"

He shouted, looking at the people around him who had survived the whole night, and said in a low voice: "Everyone crawl forward, and after you reach the tower, everyone will launch an attack."

At this time, the well-trained Northern Barbarian soldiers immediately entered combat status, with the weapons in their hands flashing coldly.

They were seen crawling slowly among the weeds, trying not to make any noise, and quietly approaching the city. Finally, they arrived at the foot of the city wall.

Since the Tongzhou Reservoir has a small water storage capacity and is not well-known in Hanzhou, no one pays much attention to it. This has led to the already low city walls falling into disrepair.

The Northern Barbarians skillfully threw the padlocks onto the city wall, with the claws firmly embedded in the cracks in the rocks, and then they climbed up nimbly one by one.

The defenders on the tower were still drowsy, and had no idea that the wall beneath their feet had become a passage for the enemy. The northern barbarians climbed up the wall silently, their movements were swift and neat.

They are the elite on the battlefield, strictly trained and adept at stealth and close combat.

People only know that they are invincible on horseback, but ignore their strong physique and the fact that they are not afraid even in a hand-to-hand combat.

Soon, the first batch of Northern Barbarian soldiers climbed onto the city wall.

They quietly circled behind the patrolling officers and soldiers, their daggers flashing in the dark. However, the defenders on the city wall were still asleep and completely unaware of the danger.

In this way, they easily took complete control of the city wall.

The middle-aged Confucian scholar stood at the foot of the city, his eyes flashing with calmness and determination.

He knew that this was only the first step. There were only a few officers and soldiers on the city wall. The officers and soldiers stationed in the city were the key to the success of this plan.

Thinking of this, he whispered an order: "Keep moving forward, lower the gate, and don't let anyone in the city escape."

Following his orders, the Northern Barbarians acted quickly.

Some people continued to lurk into the city, while others easily dealt with several defenders under the city and slowly lowered the city gate.

In the early morning, accompanied by a light mist, the heavy city gate was slowly pushed open, making a creaking sound, which was so harsh in the silent city.

Many people were awakened from their sleep by the piercing sound, but by the time they reacted, it was too late. The sound of the Northern Barbarian army charging began to echo in their ears.

"kill!"

The middle-aged Confucian scholar stood outside the city, walked into the city through the open gate, and shouted coldly and ruthlessly.

Following his roar, everyone stopped hiding and rushed into the city, waving their scimitars.

"Kill!"

"Kill all these Dagan people!"

The Northern Barbarian soldiers rushed into the city quickly and ferociously like a tiger descending from the mountain, leaving blood splattered wherever they passed.

The defenders in the city were caught off guard by the sudden attack and woke up from their sleep, and hurriedly took up their weapons to resist. However, their resistance seemed so weak that facing the fierce attack of the northern barbarians, many people were killed before they could stand firm.

The streets and alleys were filled with chaotic battles, with flashes of swords and shadows of sabers intertwined, and screams and roars rising one after another.

The defenders fought hard, but they seemed powerless in the face of the fierce attack of the Northern Barbarians, who surged in like a tide and quickly occupied one block after another.

The middle-aged scholar stood on a high place, calmly directing the battle. His eyes were as sharp as an eagle's: "Divide into small teams, clear them out one by one, and make sure no one escapes."

The northern barbarians quickly divided into several teams and headed to different corners of the city. They were as swift as cheetahs, quickly and accurately eliminating every enemy.

Before the defenders in the city could react, they were completely controlled by the Northern Barbarians.

Gradually, the Tongzhou Reservoir was soon under their control.

Since the Tongzhou Reservoir is not large, it is impossible to have too many troops stationed here. What's more, Daqian is short of troops now. If a large number of troops are mobilized to the Tongzhou Reservoir, they will easily be discovered.

As a result, they took over the Tongzhou Reservoir with almost no resistance.

The morning mist gradually dissipated, and the sun shone through the clouds onto the Tongzhou Reservoir, illuminating a bloody battlefield. The Northern Barbarians stood in the city, their weapons flashing coldly, their eyes filled with the joy of victory and expectations for the future.

They knew that the success of this operation would pave the way for the Northern Barbarians' strategic plan, and they would become a key force in this battle.

"Gather all the defenders and make sure no one can escape." The middle-aged scholar gave another order, "From now on, no one is allowed to leave the city without my order."

The Northern Barbarian soldiers acted quickly. They gathered all the defenders in the city together and surrounded them on the city wall.

Looking at the Daqian officers and soldiers all over the city, the middle-aged Confucian scholar nodded with satisfaction, his face stern and full of majesty.

Now that he had taken control of the Tongzhou Reservoir, the situation was under their initial control. Next, he only needed to pass the news back to the Khan, and then choose a good time to open the gates and release the water.

Moreover, he felt that the sooner the plan to open the sluice gates to prevent flooding was implemented, the better, otherwise there would definitely be many unexpected events.

"Send someone back immediately to report to the Khan that the Tongzhou Reservoir has been completely controlled by us. Please open the gates and release the water when the opportunity arises." Thinking of this, he no longer hesitated and said to his confidants around him with a firm tone.

"Yes, sir!" The confidant immediately took the order and left.

"The day when the northern barbarians will take control of the world is just around the corner." The middle-aged Confucian scholar walked up to the city wall and looked at the vast lake of Tongzhou Reservoir with a firm and persistent gaze.

He knew that this battle would be extremely difficult, but he believed that this would be the Northern Barbarians' last chance and they must not give up easily.

……

Travel a hundred miles at night.

At the same time, Li Zhongwu had already led 60,000 Wudang Flying Army soldiers to gallop through the night, and they were not far from Miyun City.

"General, Miyun City is less than thirty miles away from us."

A confidant pointed to the towering mountain not far away and said, "That is Miyun Mountain, and Miyun City got its name from it.

However, the closer we get to Miyun City, the more Northern Barbarian spies there are nearby. With so many of us, even if we hide well, we are at risk of being exposed."

Li Zhongwu nodded with a serious expression but did not answer immediately.

In fact, this was exactly what he was worried about.

Although they had been careful enough along the way, the density of Northern Barbarian scouts increased as they got closer to Miyun City. In this case, there was a risk of being discovered even if the actions were covert.

He must find a way to get close to Miyun City... (End of this chapter)