Chapter 166

Both were Gu Yi's little brothers.

Hearing the news that their big brother had come to reinforce them, their spirits were lifted.

However,

before their joy could subside,

Xu Rong suddenly spoke:

"Although those small Liangzhou warlords have withdrawn,"

"logically speaking, Han Sui is not the kind of person who would give up so easily."

"Moreover, besides those small Liangzhou warlords, he still has the Qiang and Di tribes helping him."

"I fear that that scoundrel Han Sui will take the opportunity to use a counter-strategy, lure our army out of the city, and then annihilate us."

Analyzed by Xu Rong like this,

Zhao Yun and Zhang He also gradually calmed down.

Although they were still young, neither of them was the reckless type.

Especially after the baptism of this war,

both of them knew deeply

that while military merit is important, one must have their life to take it.

If one were to lose their life for a little military merit, that would be putting the cart before the horse.

However, just because they understood this principle didn't mean everyone did.

Just as Zhao Yun and Zhang He were preparing to bid farewell to Xu Rong,

they saw Ma Teng stumbling over.

Seeing Ma Teng visit late at night, Xu Rong and the others were shocked.

Before Xu Rong and the others arrived here,

Ma Teng, Ma Chao, and others had all suffered injuries of varying degrees.

But after Xu Rong arrived with troops,

the main force for defense became Xu Rong's army.

Ma Teng and the others thus gained time to rest, and their injuries eased somewhat.

It's just that Ma Teng's injuries were relatively severe,

so Xu Rong hadn't let him go to the front lines, keeping him in the city to recover.

At this moment, with Ma Teng dragging his sick body to visit late at night, Xu Rong and the others naturally felt very surprised.

However, Xu Rong's reaction speed was relatively fast.

He spoke:

"General Shoucheng, you should be resting well since you are injured; we are guarding the defensive line, so no major mistakes will happen for now."

However,

before Xu Rong's words had finished,

Ma Teng said with grief and indignation:

"General Xu, my son Ma Chao, ignoring all obstruction, was tricked out of the city by that scoundrel Yan Xing!"

"At this moment, he must have fallen into Han Sui's ambush!"

"Bang!"

Hearing this,

Xu Rong, Zhao Yun, and Zhang He's eyes widened instantly, and they looked at each other in dismay.

They had just been talking about the possibility of Han Sui using a counter-strategy to set an ambush.

And as a result, that scoundrel Ma Chao had already ignored obstruction and chased out of the city?

"General Shoucheng, why would Ma Chao suddenly chase out of the city?"

"Could it be that he was provoked?"

Xu Rong was still calm.

He knew that although Ma Chao's personality was extremely reckless,

there were not many garrison troops in Fufeng City right now.

No matter how reckless Ma Chao was, he should have considered the actual situation and not charged out of the city for no reason.

You must know

that the numbers of Han Sui and the Guanxi Coalition were several times that of the Fufeng garrison!

Charging out of the city rashly, isn't this seeking one's own death?

It would have been fine if Xu Rong hadn't asked this.

Once he asked,

Ma Teng was so embarrassed he wished he could find a hole to crawl into on the spot!

However, he still had to answer, and he said with embarrassment:

"My son Ma Chao once had a one-on-one duel with Han Sui's son-in-law Yan Xing three years ago."

"At that time, my son Ma Chao was arrogant, thinking his martial arts were the best in the world."

"Relying on his decent martial arts, he challenged all the generals of Han Sui's army one by one."

"Seeing that no one could beat him, he insisted on challenging Han Sui himself."

"Han Sui, with his old arms and legs, how could he compare to this young man?"

"So, Han Sui sent Yan Xing, who wasn't his son-in-law at the time, to fight."

"As a result, this Yan Xing really had some skills."

"He first broke my son's weapon, and then pinned him to the ground and beat him."

"It made my son extremely embarrassed."

"Afterward, my son kept this matter in his heart, practicing martial arts hard, wanting to wash away the humiliation Yan Xing left him."

(PS: This matter is not fictional; there are very clear historical records in many places. Ma Chao, around sixteen or seventeen, had a one-on-one duel with Yan Xing, and the result was Ma Chao being rubbed on the ground by Yan Xing.)

Hearing this, Xu Rong felt embarrassed for Ma Chao!

Three years ago, because of his age, Ma Chao's martial arts had not yet reached their peak.

Encountering Yan Xing in his prime, it was normal that he couldn't win.

But the key to the problem is

that Ma Chao is very proud!

Three years ago, Han Sui and Ma Teng were both rebels.

At that time, the two had a relationship so good they could wear the same pair of pants.

In front of Han Sui's army and Ma Teng's army, Ma Chao being rubbed on the ground by Yan Xing was a very embarrassing matter.

Therefore, calling Yan Xing "Ma Chao's nightmare in his youth" is not an exaggeration at all.

Ma Teng covered his aching chest, eased up a bit, and continued:

"Half an hour ago, my son Ma Chao was responsible for guarding the West City Tower."

"But he suddenly encountered Yan Xing bringing over a hundred people to provoke him under the city tower."

"That Yan Xing cursed my son for being a coward without guts!"

"Subsequently, Yan Xing said he would withdraw his troops in front of my son today and asked if my son had the guts to chase him."

"My son couldn't take it, and also led over a hundred personal guards and charged out."

"I received the news and rushed over immediately."

"But at this moment, my son has already been gone for a while."

As Ma Teng's words fell,

Xu Rong, Zhao Yun, and Zhang He couldn't help but feel speechless at Ma Chao's recklessness.

This damn thing perfectly interpreted what a "pig teammate" is!

To be honest, Ma Chao's martial arts are indeed very good.

But this personality is truly the most reckless of the reckless.

Seriously,

Xu Rong didn't really want to care about Ma Chao's life or death right now.

Knowing it might be Han Sui's strategy, he still chose to charge out of the city.