Chapter 378: Empty City Strategy

An hour later.

The Sky Screen lit up again.

A line of words slowly appeared.

And accompanied by a loud sound that echoed throughout the Three Kingdoms plane.

【Top Ten Famous Scenes of the Three Kingdoms - Scene 2: Empty City Strategy】

【Courage through the ages, one person repelling an army of one hundred thousand.】

The moment the text and sound came out, everyone below felt it was incredible.

"One person repelling an army of one hundred thousand?"

"What strategy? Empty city?"

"The city is empty? Then how do you fight?"

The Cao Wei camp had the biggest reaction.

Zhang He stood in the front row, his brow twisted into a knot, turning to look at Guo Huai beside him; Guo Huai was also looking at him.

The two exchanged glances, neither speaking, but their expressions wrote the same meaning—impossible.

Xu Chu's voice was rough: "An army of one hundred thousand arrives at the city gate, and the city is empty?"

"Then why not just open the gate and go in? Why retreat?"

A young lieutenant beside him replied: "General Xu is right, unless there is an ambush in the city."

Zhang Liao stood slightly further away, not opening his mouth, his hand on his sword hilt, his gaze falling on that line of words on the Sky Screen, reading it back and forth twice.

The Shu Han side was quieter.

Jiang Wei stood behind Zhuge Liang, looking down at the Prime Minister's back—

No expression, the feather fan in his hand waving slightly, the speed a little slower than usual.

Wei Yan asked directly: "Prime Minister, which battle is this? Why haven't I heard of it?"

Zhuge Liang didn't turn his head: "Xicheng."

Wei Yan opened his mouth: "Xicheng? Isn't that..."

He didn't finish, because the images on the Sky Screen had started to move, and everyone's attention was drawn to it.

The first shot looked down from high altitude.

In the distance was a dense army, cavalry in front, infantry behind, flags covering the sky and sun.

The dust raised by the hooves was like a layer of gray mist.

A huge "Wei" character was embroidered on the flag.

Beside it was a flag of "Sima", fluttering in the wind.

The camera zoomed in,

Sima Yi rode on his horse, fully armored, his face solemn, his gaze looking forward.

Behind him followed his two sons—

Sima Shi and Sima Zhao, one on the left and one on the right, both with tight faces.

Pushing forward,

The image showed a city.

The city wasn't large, the walls weren't high, and the city gate was open.

No drawbridge, no deer antlers, no obstacles; the city gate was empty, not even a soldier on guard.

There were a few people dressed as commoners at the city gate, holding brooms and sweeping the floor.

They swept very slowly, as if they hadn't seen the army of one hundred thousand in the distance at all.

The camera cut into the city.

There was no one on the street, the shop doors were removed, but there was no one inside either.

A few civil officials stood at the street corner, holding tablets, sweat layering on their faces, their sleeves half-soaked.

A civil official's mouth moved, his voice very low: "What... what exactly is the Prime Minister thinking?"

An older one beside him didn't answer, his lips pressed into a line.

On the high platform in the center of the city, Zhuge Liang was changing clothes.

He took off his court dress, changed into a plain white single garment, tied a blue cloth belt around his waist, wore no crown on his head, and only used a wooden hairpin to bundle his hair.

A small boy beside him held a zither, his hands shaking, the zither surface trembling.

Zhuge Liang tied his belt, turned to look at the boy: "Hold the zither steady."

The boy swallowed, holding the zither body tightly with both hands, the shaking lessening.

Zhuge Liang walked toward the city tower.

He didn't walk fast, his steps weren't large, but every step was steady.

The civil officials behind him followed a few steps, one couldn't help but open his mouth: "Prime Minister, this... what if..."

Zhuge Liang didn't stop: "What if what?"

"What if Sima Yi doesn't..."

Zhuge Liang didn't let him finish, his voice not loud: "He will."

The image of the city tower was released.

Zhuge Liang sat down in the center of the city tower.

The boy placed the zither on the desk in front of him and lit a furnace of incense.

The smoke rose, slowly dispersing in the afternoon sun.

Zhuge Liang placed both hands on the strings, his fingertips touching the first string, not plucking, just placing them there.

Outside the city gate, the sound of hooves approached.

The vanguard of the Wei army had reached shooting range, the scout's horse running back and forth twice outside the city gate, the dust raised by the hooves flying onto the feet of the sweeping commoners.

The brooms of those few commoners stopped for a moment, then continued sweeping.

The scout rode back to the main army, pulling the reins in front of Sima Yi's horse, panting: "Commander! The city gate is wide open! There are only a few commoners sweeping at the gate, no one on the wall, no flags, no weapons!"

Sima Yi didn't speak.

He squinted at the city, at the plain white figure on the tower, at the wisp of smoke rising.

The smoke didn't disperse, the wind wasn't strong, the smoke was straight.

Sima Shi said in a low voice: "Father, suspicious."

Sima Zhao also added: "This is too abnormal, there must be a trick."

Sima Yi still didn't speak.

He looked for a long time, so long that the generals around him began to exchange glances.

Then he opened his mouth, his voice not loud, but the few people beside him heard it: "Kongming has been cautious all his life and has never taken risks."

As soon as he finished this sentence, the sound of the zither on the tower rang out.

From such a distance, it couldn't be heard clearly, but the Sky Screen amplified the sound—

The zither sound was neither hurried nor slow, the tune peaceful.

It didn't sound like a zither for facing an enemy, but like a zither played casually in the courtyard on an afternoon with nothing to do.

In front of the Wei army, the cavalry in the front row loosened and tightened their hands on the reins.

They couldn't see the situation in the city, only that open gate and those few people sweeping.

Someone looked at the face of the comrade beside them, finding the other was also looking at them.

The infantry in the back row couldn't see anything, only hearing that the cavalry in front hadn't moved, so they didn't move either.

The entire army stopped in place, like a taut string.

On the tower, Zhuge Liang's zither sound didn't stop.

He played very slowly, every note falling clearly, the interval between them neither long nor short.

He had no sweat on his face, his fingers didn't shake, his waist and back were straight.

The smoke in the incense burner was still rising, the wind still hadn't come.

The brooms of those few commoners at the gate finally stopped.

They retreated a few steps.

Retreating into the shadow of the city gate, holding the brooms, their knuckles white.

Sima Yi's brow furrowed tighter.

He gripped the reins in his hand, loosened them, then gripped them again.

Everyone around him looked at him, waiting for him to speak.

"Retreat."

After saying this word, he turned his horse around.

Sima Shi opened his mouth but didn't make a sound.

Sima Zhao looked at the city, then at his father's back, and also turned his horse around.

The command flag waved.

The cavalry in the front row moved first, the infantry in the back following.

The army of one hundred thousand was like a giant snake pulled by its tail, slowly turning around and retreating along the way they came.

The sound of hooves grew further away, the dust slowly falling back to the ground.

The brooms in the hands of those few commoners at the gate dropped to the ground, making a 'pop' sound.

One person's legs went soft, and he sat down.

Another leaned against the wall of the gate, panting.

The zither sound on the tower didn't stop.

Zhuge Liang played the last note, lifted his hands from the strings, and placed them on his knees.