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

The quarrel in the tent seemed to fade away gradually, and Liu Xiu's eyes became sharper and colder.

Suddenly, he raised his hand!

All the quarrels stopped abruptly, and all the generals' eyes were focused on him.

Liu Xiu slowly glanced at the crowd. His voice had returned to calm, but it was even more frightening than his previous roar, carrying an unquestionable determination:

"Alright, there's no need to argue anymore. I know what to do."

He sneered, his eyes seeming to penetrate the military tent and look towards the distant Chang'an: "Returning now? This is exactly what Chu Ning wants!"

"Joining forces will only give him a chance to catch his breath, and he might even join forces with any reinforcements that might be there. By then, our army will be attacked from both sides, and the situation will be out of control!"

"This will only lead to the Chu army's iron hooves crushing the mountains and rivers of the Han Dynasty. This is absolutely not the outcome I want to see!"

His voice suddenly rose, filled with a desperate determination: "So, I have decided! I will first decide the outcome with Chu Ning!"

"Hongdu City must be conquered, and Chu Ning must die! This is a national war that concerns the fate of our nation. We must not abandon it halfway due to civil unrest!"

Then, he changed the subject, filled with murderous intent: "As for that vicious woman Dugu Jia and that traitor Liu Xiang... humph, let them be proud in Chang'an for a while!"

"When I deal with Chu Ning and return to the court in triumph with Chu Ning's head, I want to see who still dares to recognize this mother and son!"

"I want to let them know what will happen if they steal the throne!"

"Now……"

Liu Xiu's gaze became sharp as a knife again, sweeping across the generals: "I want you to forget about Chang'an and go all out to help me capture Hongdu!"

"Anyone who dares to talk about retreat again and disturbs our army's morale will be killed immediately!"

"I will obey your orders!"

The generals were shocked by Liu Xiu's decisiveness and momentum, and they all bowed their heads to accept the order. Although they were still worried about Chang An's affairs, the emperor's will was clear at this moment, and no one dared to question it anymore.

Liu Xiu's eyes fell on the silk book on the ground again. He clenched his fists tightly, and his knuckles turned white from the force.

He knew that he had made an extremely risky decision.

But he had no choice. In troubled times, only the strong can survive.

He must first use his absolute strength to crush the most dangerous enemy before he can turn around and deal with the traitors within.

"Dugu Jia, Liu Xiang...just wait for me!" He whispered to himself, his voice as cold as ice that had been frozen for ten thousand years.

However, neither Liu Xiu nor the Han generals outside the tent noticed it. Just as they were shocked by Chang An's sudden change and were making decisions...

The gate of Hongdu City was quietly opening. A group of Chu cavalry, which had been well-rested for a long time, led by Zhao Yu, was like a cheetah pouncing in the dark night, with its sharp fangs bared, aiming directly at the Han army camp!

The night was as dark as ink, but outside the city of Hongdu, flames shot up into the sky, illuminating the battlefield littered with corpses.

Although the Han army's continuous offensive slowed down slightly due to the night, it was still like a surging tide, hitting the scarred city walls with wave after wave.

The Chu army on the city wall relied on the remaining fortifications and bows and crossbows to put up a tired but stubborn resistance. Both sides were engaged in brutal consumption in this death zone.

Sudden--

The main city gate of Hongdu, which was wrapped in thick iron sheets and had endured countless impacts, suddenly opened with a teeth-grinding creaking sound, beyond everyone's expectation!

Before the Han army under the city could react, a Chu general took the lead and rushed out like an arrow!

He was wearing silver armor and holding a spear. He was none other than Zhao Yu, the fierce general of the Chu army!

Behind him, iron hooves roared like thunder, and thousands of elite cavalrymen of the Chu army, who had been gathering their strength for a long time, roared and rushed out of the city gate like a torrent bursting through a dam!

"kill!!!"

The deafening shouts of killing instantly drowned out all the noise on the battlefield!

The timing and location of the appearance of this new force were extremely tricky, as the Han army at the foot of the city was exhausted from a long battle and its attention was completely attracted by the defenders on the city wall!

The charging Chu cavalry did not engage in much entanglement with the Han infantry attacking the city. With Zhao Yu as the spearhead, they formed a sharp assault formation and relied on the powerful impact of their horses to slam into the Han army's siege formation!

The Han army's siege troops were mostly infantry, and their formation was somewhat loose due to the siege. Faced with this sudden torrent of heavily armored cavalry, it was difficult for them to organize an effective resistance.

In an instant, people and horses fell to the ground, blood and flesh flew everywhere, and a huge hole was torn in the Han army's line!

At the same time, the Chu army on the city wall seemed to have received orders long ago. All the archers fired with all their strength, and arrows poured down like rain. However, they were not shot at the charging cavalry, but accurately covered the two wings of the Han army that were trying to close in and intercept Zhao Yu!

The dense rain of arrows effectively blocked the Han army's flank support, cleared the obstacles for Zhao Yu's cavalry charge, and opened up a path paved with blood!

Zhao Yu took the lead, stabbing left and right with his spear, and no one could stop him wherever he went.

He ignored the scattered Han infantry and his target was very clear - he was pointing directly at the Han army's central camp in the distance, where the lights were the densest and the flags were the brightest!

The iron hooves trampled the earth, like the drumbeat of the god of death, quickly penetrating the outer lines of the Han army and rushing towards the core area!

In the central army tent, Liu Xiu had just suppressed his rage over Chang An's sudden change, and forced his attention back to the battle situation at hand, discussing the next offensive with his generals.

The atmosphere in the tent was still solemn.

At this moment, the originally regular sounds of fighting outside the tent suddenly changed, mixed with unprecedented chaos, exclamations and the roar of horses' hooves getting closer and closer!

A scout rushed into the tent, his face pale and his voice distorted with extreme fear:

"Your Majesty! This is bad! The enemy...the enemy general, Zhao Yu, is personally leading a large cavalry force out of the city. They've...they've broken through our front lines and are heading straight for our main camp!"

"what?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Xiu was stunned for a moment, then flew into a rage. The pent-up anger from Chang An's incident was instantly ignited.

"What a jerk, Chu Ning! Instead of thinking about how to escape, he actually dared to attack and even charged directly at my central army?! He's so arrogant, he's courting his own death!"

He laughed in anger: "Humph! I was just worried that your tortoise shell was too hard to chew. Since you took the initiative to send the person out, don't blame me for accepting it!"

"This is a perfect opportunity to wipe out your cavalry and cut off your arm! General Wang Yan!"

"I'm here!" Veteran Wang Yan immediately stepped out.

"I command you to immediately lead all your cavalry to meet Zhao Yu! You must annihilate this daring Chu cavalry outside the camp!"

Liu Xiu's voice was filled with murderous intent.

"I obey your command!" Wang Yan clasped his fists and accepted the order, then turned around and was about to go out of the tent to inspect the troops.

However, at this moment, hurried footsteps were heard outside the tent again.