Yandang City.

The next day, early morning.

It was just daybreak, and a faint ray of morning light broke through the clouds and shone through the distant horizon.

The cool morning breeze blew the flags on the city wall, making a rustling sound, as if foreshadowing that something unusual was about to happen.

At this time, the Northern Barbarian soldiers on duty on the city wall suddenly realized that the previously densely packed and mighty rebel camp was now deserted.

Compared with the huge momentum before, the current military strength is three-quarters less.

Inside the camp, the tents that were originally neatly arranged now looked messy. Many tents had been dismantled, leaving only empty frames.

There were some items scattered on the ground that had not been taken away, broken pottery jars, scattered clothes, and even some unburned fires. The smoke was rising, as if telling about the hustle and bustle of last night.

What is even more conspicuous are the empty tents. The places where soldiers should have been stationed are now completely silent, as if all the soldiers had disappeared overnight.

The ground was covered with traces of dragged baggage, as if swept away by the passing autumn wind.

"The rebels escaped?" The man on duty stared at the rebel camp in front of him with wide eyes. He rubbed his eyes in disbelief and found that he was not seeing things.

At this time, he could also hear the cries of the rebels withdrawing.

In an instant, there was a commotion on the city wall and the scene was extremely chaotic.

Everyone looked at each other and saw surprise in each other's eyes. They thought that a bloody battle would greet them the next day.

But what about now?

Not only did the rebels not attack, they also retreated?!
They had dealt with the rebels more than once before, so they naturally knew that the rebels would not surrender voluntarily. However, it was too strange for them to mobilize three-quarters of their troops overnight.

But it was precisely because of this that they suddenly felt a chill on their backs.

"This is impossible, how could they all withdraw overnight?" A Northern Barbarian soldier muttered to himself, his eyes full of disbelief.

"They must have planned this. This is by no means accidental." Another Northern Barbarian soldier whispered, his eyes flashing with vigilance and uneasiness.

"Yes, who knows, those cunning Han people might be waiting for us to take the bait somewhere." Another Northern Barbarian soldier replied, with a tremor in his voice.

……

Anyone can see that there is definitely a conspiracy behind the rebels' actions, but now they know nothing and can do nothing.

Compared with the vigorous killing, this depressing and silent waiting is the most tormenting.

Soon, the news reached Chagan Uli's ears.

"Report! The rebel camp is empty, it seems they have retreated!" A Northern Barbarian soldier rushed into the tent and said to Chagan Uli.

"What? The rebels retreated?"

Upon hearing this news, Chagan Wuli exclaimed in surprise, his heart filled with doubts and uneasiness. He knew that Lin Zhongyun was not someone who would easily retreat, and there must be something fishy going on.

But even so, he still couldn't figure out what Lin Zhongyun's purpose was.

"How many people did they evacuate?" He thought for a moment and then asked.

"Your Excellency, about three quarters."

The Northern Barbarian soldier thought for a moment and said respectfully, "Although the tents in the camp are still there, there are far fewer people than before."

"Damn it, what on earth does that damn Lin Zhongyun want to do?"

Chagan Uli's face was ferocious and he kept roaring in his mind, but he knew that he must not get angry in front of his subordinates. The consequences of his reputation plummeting were minor, but the morale of the army that he had worked so hard to rally would be disrupted.

So, he took a deep breath and spoke slowly, but his tone was full of hatred no matter how hard he tried to hide it: "The rebels withdrew, why didn't you report it last night?"

This frightened the Northern Barbarian soldier who reported the news. He immediately knelt on his knees and begged, "Great Khan, we really don't know. Since the rebels are stationed far away, we can only barely see the fire in the camp in the dark."

"We thought that the bonfire in the rebel camp was still burning, so there must be people there. But we didn't expect to find that everyone inside had run away so early in the morning."

Chagan Wuli's face was terribly gloomy, as if he would explode at any time. He stared fiercely at the kneeling Northern Barbarian soldier, his heart burning with anger, but reason told him that now was not the time to lose his temper. He had to calm down and find out Lin Zhongyun's true intention.

After all, even he did not expect that the rebels would withdraw suddenly. It was dark at night, and they were able to conceal their whereabouts. Unless spies were sent to keep an eye on them, it would be difficult to detect them for a while.

"Get up, this is not your fault." Chagan Wuli said coldly, waving his hand to signal the northern barbarian soldier to retreat. He knew that blaming his subordinates would not solve the problem, but would make the army more unstable.

"Pass the order down, strengthen vigilance, and closely monitor the movements of the rebels." Chagan Wuli's voice was low and powerful, and his eyes flashed with calmness and determination.

He knew that Lin Zhongyun's retreat was by no means accidental, but had far-reaching strategic considerations. He had to respond calmly and not be confused by superficial phenomena.

Chagan Uli walked out of the big tent and looked at the empty rebel camp in the distance, his heart full of doubts and uneasiness.

He knew that this war was not only a showdown of strength, but also a contest of wisdom and strategy. And Lin Zhongyun, the cunning opponent, had already begun his layout.

"Lin Zhongyun, what on earth are you planning?" Chagan Uli muttered to himself, with a cold light flashing in his eyes.

What is behind them now is nothing but their last home. Once they lose this place, it will mean that the Northern Barbarians will suffer a devastating disaster.

The more the situation was like this, the more he should not be impulsive or take it lightly. He always kept the middle-aged Confucian scholar's advice in mind.

"Pass the order down, all generals come to discuss the matter immediately." Chagan Uli's voice was low and powerful, as if injecting a calm strength into the generals.

Soon, all the generals came and gathered in the big tent. Chagan Wuli informed everyone of the retreat of the rebel army, and the generals were surprised and uneasy.

"Lin Zhongyun is definitely not someone who would retreat easily. There must be something fishy going on here." Chagan Wuli said calmly, his eyes gleaming with determination. "We must find out his true intentions before we can make the right decision."

He put his hands behind his back, his eyes were deep, and after looking around, he said in a cold voice: "From now on, all departments must be extremely careful and must not drag the chain at this time."

All the generals nodded with solemn expressions. They knew that Chagan Wuli's calmness and determination were the key to their victory in this war.

"Immediately strengthen contact with the other four cities and report any situation immediately." Chagan Uli continued, with unquestionable majesty in his tone.

"Yes, Khan!" All the generals responded in unison, and then left the tent one after another and began to act according to Chagan Wuli's instructions. Chagan Wuli stood in the center of the tent, his eyes calm and deep. He knew that he had to find out Lin Zhongyun's true intentions as soon as possible in order to make the right decision.

"Pass the order and send out scouts immediately to track the rebels along the traces on the sand." Chagan Wuli said in a deep voice, "Make sure to find out their movements and purpose."

Soon, several experienced scouts were gathered together. They were all agile and sharp-eyed, and were good at tracking the enemy.

"Your mission is to track the movements of the rebels and make sure you find out their true purpose," Chagan Wuli said calmly. "Remember, once you discover something, report it immediately and don't act rashly."

"Yes, Khan!" the scouts responded in unison, then quickly left the tent and followed the traces of the rebels along the sand.

Chagan Uli watched the scouts leave, but his heart was full of doubts and uneasiness.

"Lin Zhongyun, what on earth are you planning?" he murmured to himself, with a cold light flashing in his eyes.

……

At the same time, Lin Zhongyun outside the city also ordered people to monitor every move in Yandang City at all times.

As the scouts sent by Chagan Uli left the city, the news was quickly delivered to Lin Zhongyun.

"Your Highness, should we intercept these scouts?" Yuan Jingxin whispered on the side, with anxiety flashing in his eyes.

Lin Zhongyun shook his head, his eyes deep and firm. "No, intercepting them will only alert Chagan Wuli.

This battle must first attack the heart. Only by letting them know our plan can we make them cautious and start to panic, thus exposing more problems."

"But, Your Highness, isn't it too risky to do this?" Yuan Jingxin hesitated for a moment, still worriedly saying:

"What if Chagan Uli finds out our strength and leads his army to attack us at this time? What should we do?"

Lin Zhongyun smiled at Yuan Jingxin's worries. He looked at Yandang City in the distance and said thoughtfully, "If he did that, he wouldn't be Chagan Wuli. If he was really that decisive, I wouldn't take such a big risk."

After saying that, he looked up at the sky. The sun was rising and hanging high in the sky.

They set out in the middle of the night yesterday. Even if they were in a hurry and didn't rest along the way, the earliest they could reach the other cities would be tomorrow, so there was still time.

He knew that time was their ally, and every minute and every second pushed his plan forward.

But for the Northern Barbarians today, time is a torment to them and their biggest enemy.

During this day, they could only spend their time in endless panic and suspicion, which was enough to consume some of their energy and affect their combat effectiveness.

It can be said that the real war has already started yesterday.

But until now and even until tomorrow morning, it is just a war without the smoke of gunpowder, and it is just paving the way for tomorrow's big war.

During this period of time, the more relaxed they appeared, the greater the pressure on the Northern Barbarians would be, and the deeper the doubts in Chagan Wuli's heart would be.

When a person's doubts become strong enough, they are enough to affect his or her thinking and even decision-making.

Only then will it be their best time to attack.

The so-called war is never about the two sides fighting on the battlefield, but more about the struggle between them in secret.

However, from beginning to end, Lin Zhongyun was in control of everything and led the development of the plan.

After the experience at the Miyun Reservoir in Hanzhou, he became more and more aware of the importance of the initiative. Therefore, the first thing he did when he arrived in the northern border was to play by his own rules and regain the initiative.

Recalling his rise from Cangzhou, then Yuzhou, Yangzhou, and finally Hanzhou, this northern border would be his last battle.

The hardships he had experienced had completely transformed him from a young boy into a powerful leader who could rule the world.

And soon, he will leave behind the identity of a hero and become a king.

He knew that day was not far away.

This is probably the growth of a person. From knowing nothing at first, he now gradually understands people's hearts and knows what is the best strategy to control his subordinates and what is the best strategy.

"When will our secret weapon arrive?" He suppressed his emotions and turned to look at Yuan Jingxin.

"It will take some time, tomorrow night at the latest." Yuan Jingxin replied with a hint of caution in his tone.

Lin Zhongyun nodded, a calm light flashing in his eyes. "Very good, make sure everything goes well. We must deal a fatal blow to Chagan Uli at the most critical moment."

……

Soon, the middle-aged Confucian scholar and Hu Yanhuan in Juxu City were also affected by this news.

"Military Advisor, why did this bandit Lin withdraw his troops overnight?" Hu Yanhuan said with a frown, feeling very confused.

At this moment, he had lost his previous impatience. When encountering something, he would not think about how to deal with it, but would ask why.

The middle-aged scholar looked at Hu Yanhuan in front of him and felt relieved. This young man who was once impulsive and reckless has now learned to analyze calmly and think carefully, and has become a true general.

He nodded secretly, Hu Yanhuan was indeed a talented person with great potential.

"Lin Zhongyun's withdrawal was not a true retreat, but an active deployment of troops."

The middle-aged scholar said slowly, his eyes gleaming with wisdom, "He stationed himself in front of Yandang City in a high-profile manner, precisely because he wanted our every move to be seen by the Northern Barbarians. Only in this way can the atmosphere created be more depressing."

"Do you mean that he deliberately let us know?" Hu Yanhuan thought for a moment, and understood but not completely.

He could see that Lin Zhongyun had a purpose in stationing in front of Yandang City, but he never figured out why Lin Zhongyun did this.

"exactly!"

The middle-aged scholar smiled slightly and continued, "Only by making it known to everyone can he achieve his goal and create an atmosphere of being surrounded by enemies.

The essence of this scheme is to confuse the real with the fake, so as to make our cities unable to take care of themselves."

"But there is a fatal danger in doing so..." the middle-aged scholar said slowly, with a fierce look in his eyes. (End of this chapter)