Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

The setting sun was like blood, coating the fortresses of the Jin army camp with a layer of dark red. Zhang Han reined in his horse and stood in front of the camp gate, a sneer seeping out from under his bronze mask.

The thirty black-armored guards behind him raised torches at the same time, and the flickering flames illuminated the mottled bloodstains on the Jin army's flag.

"The great general of Qin is here!" The loud shout of the commander of the personal guard startled the crows on the camp wall and flew away.

The sound of twisting iron chains pierced the dusk. The moment the gate slowly opened, Zhang Han squeezed the horse's belly hard, and the warhorse neighed and knocked away two Jin soldiers holding spears who were blocking his way.

The crisp sound of horses' hooves crushing blue bricks exploded on the camp road. Thirty war horses swept across the training ground like a black whirlwind, scaring the archers who were practicing and making them get out of the way.

The hand of Hu Yuan, the deputy general of the Jin army, pressing on the hilt of the sword in front of the central military tent was shaking slightly.

When he saw clearly the bronze military token hanging around Zhang Han's waist, his pupils suddenly contracted - that was the token of General Xian Zhen that he never left.

"Generals of the Jin army, listen up!" Zhang Han waved his scarlet cloak and stepped into the tent. He slammed the military token heavily on the edge of the sand table, shaking the wooden stakes of the Chu army's camp so much that they were about to fall.

Under the dim oil lamp, the bronze mask glowed faintly: "At midnight tonight, 70,000 Jin troops will set out immediately to attack the Chu-Zhou coalition forces five miles away!"

The dead silence in the tent was broken by a sneer.

Wang Meng, the cavalry commander with scars all over his face, slammed the table and stood up: "The Qin army is qualified to command the Jin army? Why should we trust you?"

The curved sword at his waist was three inches out of its sheath, and its cold light reflected the confused faces of the generals around him.

Zhang Han suddenly drew his sword like lightning, the tip of the sword brushed past Wang Meng's ear, cut off a strand of hair and nailed it into the pillar behind him.

Only then did everyone see clearly the word "Xian" engraved on the sword - it was the sword of Jin army general Xian Zhen.

"Just because of this." Zhang Han lifted the mask, revealing a hideous scar across his brow on his left cheek.

The generals looked at the sword in his hand with different expressions.

Wang Meng's face was gloomy, and he asked in a cold voice: "Why do you have the sword of my general?"

A cold expression appeared on Zhang Han's ferocious face: "Tonight, General Xian Zhen is watching the battle with Your Majesty in Julu City."

"I hope you won't disappoint General Xian Zhen!"

After he finished speaking, he drew his finger across the red flag representing the Jin army on the sand table, and sawdust flew everywhere he touched it. He said in a deep voice:

"The Chu army's baggage camp is here, and the Zhou army's crossbow array is here. The northeast wind is blowing tonight, which is a good opportunity to launch a fire attack."

Hu Yuan suddenly took a half step forward, and the scales on his armor made a crackling sound: "I am willing to be the vanguard!"

This sentence was like cold water poured into hot oil, and the tent exploded instantly.

The old general Li Chong, with white hair and beard, pointed to the sand table tremblingly: "The Chu-Zhou camp is more than ten miles long, with strong soldiers and horses. How is our army of 70,000 strong attack different from sending ourselves to die?"

"Qin wants the Jin army to be cannon fodder!" The young lieutenant Zhao Yan opened his clothes, revealing three arrow wounds on his chest:

"A few days ago, my three thousand brothers were forced by the Qin army to charge the front line, just to rescue their cavalry trapped in the Chu Zhou camp!"

His roar aroused a chorus of echoes, and more than a dozen generals drew their swords at the same time and shouted angrily.

"Isn't the Qin army known as the strongest in the world? Why don't your soldiers charge forward on their own?"

"That's right. You asked us to charge because you wanted us to consume the Chu-Zhou coalition forces for you first."

"Humph, the Qin State is indeed ambitious and is plotting against even its own allies."

"If you want to attack by force, then go on your own and don't bring our troops with you!"

"The general is not here now, and you only brought the general's sword and military token. How can we believe your words?"

The generals were filled with indignation and anger.

Zhang Han suddenly burst into laughter.

Amid the laughter, the creaking sound of taut bowstrings could be heard outside the tent. Thirty poison-tipped crossbow arrows pierced through the cowhide tent and nailed in front of the generals' feet like cold stars.

"Those who disobey the order will be punished as in this case!"

The sword flashed, and the bronze sand table broke into two halves.

Hu Yuan's sword was almost at the same time placed on the neck of veteran Li Chong, and the blood line drawn by the blade was particularly glaring in the dead silence.

"Generals!"

Hu Yuan said gloomily, "The general's sword and military token are here. We cannot disobey the military order."

"Since all the generals are unwilling to lead the army, from now on you will all stay in the camp, and I will personally command this battle."

"Come here, keep all the generals under guard here. No one is allowed to enter or leave without my order."

"Also, take off their weapons!"

At a command, a group of soldiers rushed in, holding weapons and taking control of all the generals.

Although everyone was unwilling, they had to hand over their weapons under pressure.

At this point, Hu Yuan completely controlled the Jin army!

In the middle of the night, the sound of the clappers at midnight was blown into pieces by the night wind.

The heavy-armored infantry of the Jin army lined up in the night. The friction sound of the armor was like the spitting out of thousands of poisonous snakes. Hu Yuan sat astride the neighing warhorse, looking at the Chu-Zhou coalition camp vaguely rising and falling in the darkness ahead.

There should have been patrol torches of the Chu army there, but at this moment it was as dark as ink.

"Shoot!" Hu Yuan swung his sword.

Three thousand powerful bows trembled at the same time, and the arrows soaked in kerosene drew scarlet arcs.

Suddenly, a meteor shower began to fall from the night sky, and the fortresses of the Chu army camp turned into fire dragons in the explosion. The neighing of startled horses penetrated the flames, but the expected screams were not heard.

Hu Yuan's heart suddenly tightened, but the arrow had been shot and there was no turning back.

The war drums exploded, and 50,000 heavily armored infantrymen flooded over the hills like a black tide.

The trap camp that was in the front suddenly collapsed in large numbers - the Chu army actually dug a trench about ten feet wide three feet in front of the camp!

Amid screams, the follow-up troops continued their charge, stepping on the corpses of their comrades, but when they climbed over the fence, their feet were pierced by caltrops that suddenly flew up.

"Cavalry! Push forward!" Hu Yuan's roar changed tone.

Three thousand armored cavalry began to accelerate, the sound of horse hooves shook the earth. These heavy cavalry wearing horse armor were the real killing move, enough to crush any remaining defense.

But when the vanguard of a hundred cavalrymen rushed into the camp gate, Hu Yuan saw clearly in the firelight the fluttering flags of the Chu army - they were all rags tied to empty tents!

With a loud "bang", the ground suddenly collapsed.

The cavalrymen in the front fell into the deep pit with their horses, and the riders at the back who were unable to stop in time fell one after another.

The bamboo spikes standing at the bottom of the pit instantly pierced dozens of war horses, and blood splattered on the trembling grass leaves at the edge of the pit.

Hu Yuan suddenly smelled the scent of sulfur in the wind. He looked up stiffly and saw countless torches lit up on both sides of the camp.

The silent figures of the Chu army's crossbowmen emerged in the firelight, and the black flag of the Zhou army fluttered on the right.

On the observation tower outside the Chu army camp, Chu Ning was wiping his sword. The sword reflected his thin face and the flames rising into the sky in the distance.

Zhao Yu rode up to report: "Your Highness, the Jin army has been completely trapped."

Chu Ning flicked the sword lightly, and the sound like a dragon's roar resounded through the heavens and the earth.

He looked towards the faintly visible stars in the northeast, and a cold smile appeared on the corner of his lips: "Tell General Feng that we can close the net now."

Xianzhen was invited to Julu City and never returned. He got the news from the Jinyiwei.

He also knew that Zhang Han had brought his men to the Jin army to take over the camp.

Therefore, he concluded that there would be a battle tonight and made arrangements in advance.