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

It is a hot July, and the scorching sun is scorching the Central Plains.

Outside the Tang army camp, yellow earth was flying and flags were fluttering.

Chu Ning reined in his horse and stood on a small hill, with the vanguard troops behind him ready for battle.

He narrowed his eyes, and his sharp gaze penetrated the layers of dust, taking in the layout of the Tang army camp.

"This battle must avenge Brother King Zhao!" Chu Ning whispered to himself, his slender fingers unconsciously stroking the horsewhip.

Suddenly, he frowned - dust suddenly rose at the camp gate, and a group of cavalry were marching out in formation.

"Your Majesty!" Chen An beside him suddenly tightened the reins, and the warhorse stamped its hooves restlessly.

This battle-hardened general had beads of sweat on his forehead and lowered his voice to a very low level: "The Tang army is coming, and judging by the banners, it's the Imperial Guard! Should we avoid their sharp edge?"

He hesitated for a moment: "Retreat to the center first?"

Chu Ning stood motionless, the golden sunlight shining on his black armor, outlining a cold and hard outline.

He slowly raised his right hand, signaling Chen An to be quiet.

In the distance, a dazzling golden light pierced through the dust and fog in the Tang army - it was Li Shiming's golden armor.

"Avoid its edge? Me?" Chu Ning's voice was as cold as ice, but there was a hint of sarcasm at the corner of his mouth.

He whipped his whip violently and pointed it at the approaching Tang army: "Look carefully, this Tang army has only a thousand people. If Li Shiming really wants to attack..."

He turned to look at Chen An, a cold glint in his eyes: "You're only bringing this small number of people?"

Chen An's Adam's apple rolled and the veins on his hand holding the knife handle bulged.

As the vanguard commander, he was well aware of the danger at the moment - if their 20,000 vanguard troops were entangled, the 100,000 troops in the Tang camp would rush out in full force.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but remonstrate again: "Your Majesty, I am worried..."

"Pass the order."

Chu Ning interrupted him, his voice unquestionable: "Archers will ambush on both sides, and heavy armored soldiers will line up in front. Remember—"

He suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Without my order, no one is allowed to move."

Chen An opened his mouth, but finally just clasped his fists and said, "I obey your command!"

He turned his horse and shouted sternly for the messenger to wave his flag. In an instant, the Chu army's formation shifted like flowing water, and the cold arrows gleamed in the sunlight.

The hot wind blew sand and gravel onto Chu Ning's face, but he seemed unaware.

He stared at the golden light that was getting closer and closer, with a huge rage boiling in his chest.

The image of the ambush a few days ago resurfaced—his brother was carried back to the tent, covered in blood, and the military doctor tremblingly explained that the arrow was laced with scorpion poison...

"Your Majesty, they are three hundred steps away." Chen An's voice brought him back to reality.

Chu Ning took a deep breath and suddenly sneered, "Li Shiming, you're such a jerk! You're colluding with aliens and yet you dare to show up so brazenly."

Amidst the flying dust, the Tang army stopped a hundred steps away.

The leading golden-armored knight took off his helmet, revealing Li Shiming's angular face.

In stark contrast to Chu Ning's gloomy expression, he was actually laughing out loud.

"The Emperor Chu's expression reminds me of an eggplant hit by frost!"

Li Shiming's voice, resounding like a bell, echoed across the wilderness: "Where is Chu Ning, the man who used to destroy ships and sails in the blink of an eye?"

He looked around exaggeratedly: "Could it be that he was frightened by the scorpion tribe's poisonous arrows?"

Laughter broke out in the Tang army, and some even deliberately banged their shields to make a fuss.

The Chu army suddenly became agitated. Several young soldiers' faces turned red with anger, and their war horses pawed the ground restlessly.

"Calm down!" Chen An shouted, but saw Chu Ning slowly raise his hand.

In the suffocating silence, Chu Ning's voice was like a poisoned dagger: "Li Shiming, the dispute between you and me is the internal affairs of the Central Plains, but now you are inviting a wolf into the house!"

He suddenly raised his voice: "Aren't you afraid that a hundred years from now, history books will call you a coward who sold out his country for personal gain?"

The scorching sun was suddenly obscured by dark clouds, and the wind suddenly grew stronger in the wilderness.

The smile on Li Shiming's face gradually froze. He slowly drew out his sword, pointing the tip of the sword directly at Chu Ning:

"The victor is king and the loser is a bandit! Who do you think writes the history books?"

The sword's tip shone coldly in the darkness. "When I conquer Yingdu, someone will write this day off as you, Chu Ning, resorting to excessive military spending and courting your own destruction!"

"Good! Very good!" Chu Ning suddenly laughed towards the sky, but there was a bone-chilling chill in his laughter.

He suddenly stopped laughing, his eyes filled with murderous intent: "Since you have fallen into depravity, then we will see the outcome on the battlefield!"

He suddenly lowered his voice, each word coming out as if squeezed from between his teeth: "Use your head to pay for the arrow shot by my brother!"

Li Shiming's expression changed slightly, but he immediately sneered, "Just your vanguard army?"

He deliberately turned around to glance at the Tang army camp: "My 100,000-man army is in the camp. It's not too late for you to retreat now."

"Really?" Chu Ning suddenly spurred his horse forward a few steps, startling Chen An so much that he hurried to catch up.

Under the astonished gazes of the two armies, Chu Ning unexpectedly came alone to the open space in front of the battle, his silver armor gleaming dimly under the dark clouds:

"Since you have the advantage in numbers..." He suddenly drew his sword from its sheath and pointed it at the sky: "Why not fight to the death now?"

This angry shout was like a thunderclap, and the war drums in the Chu army immediately roared.

The general beside Li Shiming said urgently, "Your Majesty! Their vanguard force is only 20,000. I am willing to lead the cavalry to charge!"

"Shut up!"

Li Shiming suddenly interrupted. He stared at Chu Ning's seemingly desperate posture, then looked at the strict formation of the Chu army in the distance, cold sweat oozing from his forehead - too abnormal.

Given Chu Ning's cunning military tactics, how could he be so reckless?

"Pass on my order." Li Shiming suddenly turned his horse around and said, "All troops, return to camp! No one may go into battle without my order!"

"Your Majesty!" Several generals shouted anxiously, "This opportunity cannot be missed!"

Li Shiming turned a deaf ear, and the golden armor was still dazzling in the fading sunlight.

He took one last look at the motionless Chu Ning, and suddenly felt a pang of anxiety - behind that seemingly impulsive provocation, there seemed to be a deeper calculation.

The dark clouds completely blocked out the scorching sun, and sand and rocks flew across the wilderness.

Chu Ning watched the golden figure gradually recede and slowly sheathed his sword. A barely perceptible sneer played on his lips.

"Sure enough, I dare not move!"

"Your Majesty is very wise."

Chen An breathed a sigh of relief, but then asked doubtfully, "But I don't understand. If the Tang army really launches a large-scale attack, how will our army respond?"

"Look over there." Chu Ning suddenly pointed to the west side of Tangying.

Chen An squinted his eyes and could vaguely see dust flying - that was the dust raised by the main force of the Chu army during the movement!

"I see!"

Chen An suddenly realized: "Your Majesty is deliberately showing weakness in order to lure the main force of the Tang army out of the camp, and then engage them in a decisive battle!"

"Unfortunately, Li Shiming is more cautious than I thought."

Chu Ning stroked the horse's mane gently, a serious expression on his face: "Let's return to the camp first. When all the main forces have gathered, we will fight a decisive battle with the Tang army!"

In fact, the smoke and dust were just a decoy. He wanted to make Li Shiming suspicious and not dare to send troops to fight immediately.

Only in this way will his soldiers have time to rest!

After all, they had traveled for several days to get here and had consumed a lot of physical energy.

Now, we just have to wait for the main force to join us!