Chapter 786: Strategic Layouts

"My lord, the Guandong coalition has arrived in nineteen divisions this time. Their momentum is vast, and their strength cannot be underestimated."

"However, this subordinate guesses that they should take Sishui Pass as their primary target, and then feign an attack on Hulao."

"Therefore... this subordinate suggests that we should dispatch men in advance to set an ambush at Sishui Pass and intercept them, seizing the initiative."

Dong Zhuo had always been satisfied with Li Ru's schemes. Without much hesitation, he said: "Although the Guandong coalition is numerous, in my eyes, they are all trash. Among them, there are only a few troublesome figures: Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, and Sun Jian. Furthermore, there is that Su Li. I have heard he is quite valiant, having broken the Huang Jin and beheaded Zhang Jiao and the others!"

Dong Zhuo first evaluated the invading warlords before nodding at Li Ru. "Wenyou's suggestion is excellent. We should indeed set an ambush at Sishui Pass to catch these "093" rats, who only know how to huddle together for warmth, off guard!"

After speaking, Dong Zhuo's eyes flickered, and he continued: "Wenyou, do you have any methods for the ambush to teach me?"

Li Ru immediately replied tactfully: "What this subordinate excels in are merely some plots and tricks... If we speak of the art of war, no one can surpass you, my lord. With your talent, you will surely dampen the spirit of the Guandong coalition!"

Li Ru was not only skilled in strategy and highly intelligent, but he also understood the way of a minister.

He could offer advice, but he would not overstep his bounds. The meal was already served to Dong Zhuo's lips; the final bite must be taken by Dong Zhuo himself, never to be usurped.

"Haha, Wenyou's talent far surpasses mine; you are being too modest!!!"

Praised by Li Ru, Dong Zhuo laughed immediately. After pondering for a moment, he waved his hand: "Very well! I shall arrange the troops and formations myself, and let these Guandong rats see the prowess of Dong!"

"All generals, hear my command!"

As the words fell!

On the left and right, fully armed, tall, and fierce generals stepped out: "This subordinate is here!"

Dong Zhuo, having risen from the Xiliang borderlands to the height of controlling Luoyang and balancing the world, possessed formidable military capability himself. He issued orders directly to his subordinates.

"Hua Xiong, hear my command. I appoint you as Vanguard Commander. Guo Si and Li Jue shall be your deputy generals. Lead two hundred thousand Xiliang Iron Cavalry and infantry to set an ambush at the Sishui Pass bottleneck. Keep a constant watch on the small paths nearby to prevent the enemy from launching a surprise attack."

"Understood!"

As the words fell.

A fierce man with one shoulder exposed, a burly physique, and a face full of murderous intent, along with two other equally burly generals, accepted the order.

Dong Zhuo thought for a moment, feeling that an ambush alone was not secure enough.

Thus, his gaze fell upon another Xiliang fierce general. "Zhang Ji, hear my command. I order you to lead another three hundred thousand archers to Sishui Pass to rendezvous with the garrison commander Li Su and hold the dangerous terrain."

"Understood!"

Dong Zhuo's military talent was outstanding. Although there were two reinforcements—one overt and one covert—he still felt it was not enough. After Hua Xiong and the others left, he went to his most trusted general, Xu Rong, and quietly gave him a special token: "Xu Rong, you are to mobilize that unit as well!"

"Better safe than sorry!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Rong's gaze tightened. He naturally knew what this token represented; it represented their strongest combat force in Xiliang. That Dong Zhuo could entrust this token to him showed immense trust.

Mindful of his master's grace, Xu Rong bowed solemnly: "This subordinate accepts the order and will mobilize the Black Armor Flying Bear Army with the greatest speed!"

After arranging all of this, Dong Zhuo suddenly let out a loud shout, his murderous intent soaring: "These rats actually dare to form an alliance and lead an army to invade me! Someone, go and investigate all information on them within three generations immediately!"

"As long as they have relatives in Luoyang, watch how I, on behalf of the Son of Heaven, execute their three generations of kin!"

Dong Zhuo now controlled Luoyang and the Son of Heaven.

As the saying goes, hold the Son of Heaven to command the warlords.

Dong Zhuo was in exactly this situation.

As long as they were within Luoyang, he could kill whoever he wanted, and do it in the name of the Son of Heaven!

It was perfectly justified!

So, as long as there were close relatives of the warlords in Luoyang, he would stage a scene of killing the chicken to scare the monkey!

He would make the warlords pay a bloody price.

Meanwhile.

While Dong Zhuo was arranging his troops, the players who had joined Dong Zhuo's faction also followed Hua Xiong and the others to Sishui Pass, joining this plot mission.

Both factions had set their stances.

The next day, early morning.

Sun Jian had already gathered the Jiangdong soldiers, preparing to lead them out to march, take the small path, and launch a surprise attack on Sishui Pass... 0

As the pioneer of the Wu Kingdom, the Jiangdong Tiger Sun Jian possessed formidable strength.

Coming to the alliance this time, besides the two hundred thousand Jiangdong soldiers he brought, his subordinates were also like a cloud of fierce generals.

There were Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang, and Zu Mao.

According to the strength classification of this world, these four had all reached the tier of top-level generals.

Sun Jian, wearing bronze armor and holding the divine weapon Ancient Ingot Blade, was a top-tier peak general who had already stepped half a foot into the Peerless Realm.

With fierce generals like clouds and strong troops like rain, plus his own formidable strength, Sun Jian had not tasted defeat since he took office as the Administrator of Changsha.

Precisely because of this, Sun Jian was now very arrogant, thinking that the likes of Dong Zhuo were merely mediocre.

Early in the morning, he led his troops and the players who had joined his faction to launch a fierce attack toward Sishui Pass.

According to Sun Jian's calculations, half a day, plus half a night, was enough for him to lead his troops along the small path to reach the foot of Sishui Pass.

Then, taking advantage of the night before dawn, while the enemy had not yet reacted, he would launch a surprise attack on Sishui Pass and win the first merit.

With Su Li transporting the food and fodder, this method of surprise attack was indeed the fastest and best strategy.

Otherwise, attacking a pass head-on, even if successful, would result in devastating losses.

However...

The idea was beautiful, but reality was cruel.

Sun Jian thought Dong Zhuo and the others were merely mediocre, not knowing that Dong Zhuo's strategist, Li Ru,

had already anticipated his anticipation.

When he led his troops to prepare for the surprise attack, the troops of Hua Xiong and the others had already used the unique teleportation array of Luoyang to arrive at the various bottlenecks of Sishui Pass to set an ambush.

And then...

It is not hard to imagine what kind of things would happen...

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