Chapter 252: He Is a Spy

Jiang Jiang Mingyu glanced around four times, confirmed no one was eavesdropping, then lowered his voice and said, "I have seen through Tian Jiu; he is a spy sent by Fei Hou, ordered to infiltrate our army!"

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi was so shocked her mouth hung wide open.

"What? Tian Jiu is a spy? How do you know?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu smiled coldly. "I suspected it long ago; his actions today have confirmed my guess."

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi pressed on: "But Tian Jiu has always acted very loyal and even earned merit; on what basis do you conclude he is a spy?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu explained: "Think about it; why does he always stay by my side, following me wherever I go?"

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi thought for a moment and said, "Didn't he say he respects you and is willing to learn from you?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu shook his head. "That was merely his excuse; in truth, he wants to monitor every single one of my moves and report to Fei Hou at any time."

Jiang Jiang Mingyu smiled coldly again and briefly recalled the events. "Remember the assassin in Zhu Hong Tower that day? Think it over carefully, and everything will become clear." As he spoke, his voice softened.

"That day, Tian Jiu treated us to a meal; from the Inspector's residence to Zhu Hong Tower, it took less than a quarter of an hour."

"Think about it; in such a short time, how did the assassin know our whereabouts?"

"There is only one reasonable explanation: Tian Jiu secretly told those killers where we were going."

"The killers were bought by Fei Hou; does this not prove that Tian Jiu and Fei Hou have always remained secretly connected?"

"Moreover, that man in black was already lying in ambush on the corridor's roof beams before we even arrived at Dingxuan Tower."

"If no one had tipped him off, how would he have known exactly where we were dining?"

"Only the three of us went that day; you could not have betrayed me; so who else could it be?" Zhang Zhang Jiaqi, having no time to be angry over trivial matters, asked in a low voice.

"But didn't Tian Jiu that day help me fight desperately to block that servant boy? How do you explain that?" Jiang Jiang Mingyu shook his head. "That was merely because you had returned; he knew your power and also knew the assassination had failed, so he merely put on a show."

After carefully recalling the events of that day, Zhang Zhang Jiaqi had to admit he made sense.

"Indeed so." As he spoke, a flash of killing intent passed through Jiang Jiang Mingyu's eyes. How Zhang Zhang Jiaqi and Jiang Jiang Mingyu argued between themselves was their own business, but if Tian Jiu wanted Jiang Jiang Mingyu's life, he was asking for death. Immediately, Zhang Zhang Jiaqi asked again.

"Since you already know Tian Jiu has treacherous intentions, why not kill him directly, but instead raise a tiger to harm yourself?" Jiang Jiang Mingyu chuckled softly, signaling her not to rush.

"To send Tian Jiu to my side, Fei Hou went so far as to stage a grand performance outside Guangshui City; do you think he merely wanted to kill me?"

"In my view, the appearance of the killers was merely a coincidence; Tian Jiu's main objective is the hundred thousand troops under my command."

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi exclaimed in shock: "A hundred thousand troops? What does he want to do?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu said, "He wants to use the prestige of our army to open a road to Jingcheng, then at a critical moment betray our army to Fei Hou in exchange for his own fame and fortune."

"Think about it; without the support of our army, could Tian Jiu have captured Lin'an? Could he have forced Hu Song to retreat?"

"He has been waiting for an opportunity, an opportunity to achieve instant fame. And that opportunity is Zigu."

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi listened with a racing heart: "Zigu?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu nodded. "Exactly; Zigu is Fei Hou's stronghold and also the most prosperous commandery in Jingzhou. If we can capture Zigu, we will control half of Jingzhou."

"And Tian Jiu intends to, after we capture Zigu, while we are utterly exhausted, suddenly launch an attack and trap us within Zigu City."

"Then he can join forces with Fei Hou to wipe us out completely. At that time, he can claim he saved Fei Hou and that he pacified Jingzhou."

"Fei Hou, in order to protect his position and power, will not hesitate to reward Tian Jiu with countless gold, silver, and treasures, and promise him official titles."

"Tian Jiu will thus become a hero under heaven, while we become the corpses beneath his feet."

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi listened, trembling with rage: "Tian Jiu is truly a despicable and shameless villain!"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu said calmly, "Such is the human heart. The human heart is hard to fathom; the human heart is treacherous."

"But they all forgot one thing: I am not someone to be bullied."

As he spoke, a flash of determination passed through his eyes.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu spoke slowly, his tone icy, his gaze sharp as a blade:

"From the day in Jindian when he forced Tian Jiu to lead the army into battle, Fei Hou has been setting a trap. He used the eunuch Xie Xie Chengxi to further provoke Tian Jiu, forcing him to rebel. All of this was to achieve his ultimate goal."

"Tian Jiu captured Guangshui and Lin'an, making our army overjoyed. This is exactly the result Fei Hou wanted; he wanted our army to become arrogant and penetrate deep into enemy territory."

"However, after Wen Zhi, over a hundred thousand troops have already been lying in ambush in Zigu. Once our army steps into Zigu, it will inevitably be destroyed, with no path to survival."

"From Guangshui to Lin'an, and then to Wen Zhi, all are baits set by Fei Hou. He used these cities to lure our army, then wipe us out completely."

"This is Fei Hou's scheme to annihilate our army; he has been plotting this for a long time, and his methods are extremely cruel. The slaughter in this scheme is a hundred times more dangerous than a battle between two armies. Our army must be on guard and not fall into the trap."

After hearing this, Zhang Zhang Jiaqi felt a chill run down her spine, finally realizing how deep Fei Hou's scheme was and how fierce the struggle between the two armies was, far beyond imagination.

"I saw through their conspiracy long ago. That is why I deliberately followed Tian Jiu. I want them to think I have fallen into their trap."

"In fact, I have already arranged everything. As soon as we reach the outskirts of Zigu City, I will immediately order the entire army to stop advancing."

"Then I will publicly expose Tian Jiu's true face, letting everyone know he is a spy."

"At that time, I will personally execute Tian Jiu to set the record straight. Then I will lead the army back to Guangshui City to reorganize the troops."

"When our army is strong and our horses robust, we will set out again toward Jingcheng. By then, Fei Hou will be powerless to stop us."

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi fell into deep thought after hearing this; after a while, she raised another question:

"How can you be certain Fei Hou's trap is definitely set in Zigu? Doesn't he have other choices? Besides, Fei Hou's forces are already nearly exhausted; where could he gather a hundred thousand troops to fight us?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu flicked the lamp flame on the table and explained slowly:

"Fei Hou has only six commanderies in Jingzhou under his control; he has already released three commanderies as bait; this is his limit. If we capture Zigu, Jingzhou will be left with only Zigu, Hanshou, and Taojiang, three commanderies. If we press on with one blow and capture the final three commanderies, Fei Hou will be completely finished. Therefore, he must set a final life-or-death battle in Zigu."

"As for the hundred thousand troops, it is not baseless. Hu Song still has at least fifty-six thousand men under his command, and Zigu has about the same. If Fei Hou mobilizes all his personnel and draws some troops from the south, gathering a hundred thousand is not impossible. Because in Fei Hou's eyes, our threat far exceeds that of other righteous armies."

After listening, Zhang Zhang Jiaqi frowned deeply; after a long while, she continued to ask: "Brother Jiang, since Fei Hou is luring us into a trap and you already know, why do you still follow Tian Jiu step by step forward?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu looked at the candle flame before him.

"Because my hatred for Fei Hou is as deep as the sea; capturing Jingcheng is inevitable."

After hearing this, Zhang Zhang Jiaqi's face changed; she said worriedly, "But now we have entered Fei Hou's encirclement with no preparation at all; isn't this suicide? I really cannot understand; what strategy do you have to defeat the enemy?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu shifted his gaze from the candle flame to her and smiled mysteriously: "Who said I have no preparation? That day, after capturing the assassin in Guangshui, I secretly sent messages to Zhu Ge Yu and Tu Tu Kesiluo, ordering them to lead their armies from the east and west respectively to rendezvous. At this moment, they are already approaching Jingzhou, waiting to join forces with us."

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi was greatly shocked: "How is that possible? Didn't we just receive news yesterday of their victories capturing Taizhou and Guizhou? This morning, on the march, Tian Jiu was even present."

Jiang Jiang Mingyu smiled: "Those were false messages we arranged together, deliberately let Tian Jiu hear. This way, he will think Zhu Ge Yu and Tu Tu Kesiluo are far away fighting in the southeast, with no time to come north to help. When our armies join forces to seize Zigu, Tian Jiu will be greatly surprised."

"Not only that, I secretly ordered Cao Lun to recruit twenty thousand troops in Lin'an as our reinforcements. In all these arrangements, I obeyed Tian Jiu in everything, making him mistakenly believe I was a brainless fool."

"Now it seems my stratagem has worked — Tian Jiu was completely taken in by me. Even you believed it for a time, didn't you, Zhang Jiaqi?" Jiang Jiang Mingyu asked with a smile.

Zhang Zhang Jiaqi was stunned; she was utterly shocked by Jiang Jiang Mingyu's meticulous arrangements. She had always thought him resourceful, yet she never imagined he had secretly made so many thorough preparations in the background, keeping them deeply hidden.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu had not only mobilized the eastern and western reinforcements in advance, but also hidden twenty thousand reserves in Lin'an, lulling the enemy into lowering their guard. This far-sighted and perceptive layout made Zhang Zhang Jiaqi see him in a wholly new light.

Only now did she truly see Jiang Jiang Mingyu's wisdom and decisiveness. He was not only outwardly gentle and courteous, but inwardly possessed unfathomable depth and matchless stratagems.