Your Majesty, please spare Diao Chan; your yang energy is too strong.

“This location?” Mi Zhu frowned. “This place is flat and open. If we set up an ambush here, it will not only fail to hinder the enemy, but will also be like lambs to the slaughter.”

Zhou Heng retorted, "Who said I was going to stop him?"

Mi Zhu: "So, what does my lord mean...?"

Zhou Heng sneered: "Naturally, we'll find a way to devour him."

Mi Zhu's expression changed drastically: "What? With just those people under Liao Hua's command? How is that possible?"

Zhou Heng shook his head: "It's impossible to annihilate Lü Bu completely. Even if we had ten times that number of men, let alone so few, we still couldn't capture them all."

"So, what does the lord mean?"

"While it's impossible to devour all of Lü Bu, I'm still somewhat interested in taking some of his warhorses."

Mi Zhu felt a little dizzy. He felt like he couldn't keep up with Zhou Heng's ideas, which were just too crazy.

These were bandits with only a small number of men under their command, and they couldn't even gather enough weapons.

They actually wanted to defeat Lu Bu's renowned Bingzhou cavalry.

They also want someone else's warhorse.

Are you sure you're not dreaming?

"Xuzhou is flat and indefensible. We are at Jinfeng Mountain. To put it nicely, it is a mountain. To put it bluntly, it is just a slightly higher earthen slope. If Lü Bu were to charge up the mountain, it would be nothing short of a massacre."

"We had no choice."

"The only option is to block the path the other side must take."

"But with our current strength, stopping Lü Bu is simply a pipe dream."

"Without strong reinforcements, defeat is inevitable."

"Therefore, the only solution is to divert the trouble eastward and take advantage of the situation."

Perhaps sensing Mi Zhu's doubts, Zhou Heng offered an explanation.

"Taking advantage of the situation?"

"good."

“Look here,” Zhou Heng said, pointing to a place name on the map.

"This is a fortress between Guangling and Xiaopei."

“That’s right. Guangling has already been taken by Yuan Shu. In the second year of Xingping, he was defeated by Cao Cao in Yanzhou and by Liu Biao in Jingzhou. If he wants to expand, the only way is through Xuzhou. That’s why he’s been so determined to attack Xuzhou. Now Yuan Shu’s army is blocked by Liu Bei outside Xiaopei. If I’m not mistaken, we’ll station our troops here.”

Zhou Heng nodded.

“So, my lord, you want to lure Lü Bu to this place, but Lü Bu is not stupid. Moreover, Ji Ling, a general under Yuan Shu, recently contacted Lü Bu, wanting to attack Liu Bei from both sides. If we try to divert trouble to the east, how could the other side not recognize it and fall into the trap?” Mi Zhu shook his head.

"Hehe, Zizhong, that may be true, but some schemes are so effective that even if you know you're falling into one, you have no choice but to fall into them. That's what we call an open scheme."

"Furthermore, you should try not to think of Yuan Shu and Lü Bu as too clever."

Zhou Heng smiled slightly.

He took a letter directly from his pocket and handed it to Mi Zhu.

"This is... a letter written in Yuan Shu's own handwriting?"

Mi Zhu exclaimed in surprise.

"That's right. Do you think Yuan Shu has a grudge against Liu Bei and wants to destroy him?"

"No, Liu Bei is nothing to him."

"What he really cares about is Xuzhou. Liu Bei is not important. What matters is who occupies Xuzhou."

"And this is precisely the letter that Yuan Shu sent earlier."

Under normal circumstances, Yuan Shu would not have fallen for the trap.

He needed to win over either Liu Bei or Lü Bu.

Only in this way can we possibly break through Xuzhou.

If both are offended, Liu Bei and Lü Bu could unite.

Then he would feel uncomfortable.

Yuan Shu couldn't possibly be that stupid.

But now that there is a third-party force in Xuzhou, things are completely different.

Because Yuan Shu could cooperate with third-party forces.

Upon learning of Zhou Heng's rise to power, he immediately sent spies, with the purpose of addressing this very issue.

He was determined to win Xuzhou.

Because he could no longer suppress his ambition to become emperor.

I've had the Imperial Seal of the State in my hands for so many years.

He couldn't wait any longer.

Of course, Yuan Shu wasn't really that stupid.

Although Jianghuai is a good location, it is an excellent choice in terms of economy, population, resources, and geographical location.

However, it also has a natural disadvantage.

That is among the various feudal lords.

If he were to declare himself emperor, it would surely cause a stir throughout the land, and many warlords would besiege him.

He had many capable men under his command, so he naturally anticipated that.

At that time, he will face more pressure than anyone else.

They attacked him en masse.

This is why he has been so eager to resolve the Xuzhou issue.

The reason why they send large armies to invade the border at the drop of a hat.

Because the Xuzhou issue was resolved.

This is equivalent to simultaneously eliminating two major threats, Liu Bei and Lü Bu.

Yuan Shu was essentially born with an invincible position.

After all, there are many feudal lords in the world.

But the only forces bordering him were his own sworn brothers Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, Liu Bei, Lü Bu, and Sun Ce.

Sun Ce is still under his command, and he hasn't even considered the other party's involvement.

Secondly, Yuan Shao is his brother, so he probably wouldn't take advantage of his misfortune at this time.

Therefore, after declaring himself emperor, he would have to face the three forces of Lü Bu, Liu Bei, and Cao Cao.

As for the others, such as Ma Teng, Liu Zhang, and Zhang Lu...

He didn't take it seriously at all.

Because the other party was still some states and counties away from him.

The world is now in chaos, with warlords fighting each other.

It's not something you can just decide to do.

What if the other side uses the pretext of using the road to ambush them and wipe them out?

Therefore, even if he were to declare himself emperor, only four forces could threaten him.

But as long as Xuzhou is resolved...

Sun Ce is one of our own.

With only Cao Cao left, what kind of trouble could he possibly stir up?

This is why he chose to contact Zhou Heng at this time.

Because he saw an opportunity.

In addition, there were the Chen family of Xiapi and others whom they had already won over.

The chances are already 80%.

Zhou Heng had already anticipated that Lü Bu would not let the matter rest.

An attack is only a matter of time.

His own strength was far inferior to Lü Bu's, and he had no chance of resisting him.

Therefore, the only solution is to rely on Yuan Shu's power.

This is also why Zhou Heng did not immediately refuse Yuan Shu's request.

Now is the opportunity.

If you put Lu Bu, this duck, into Yuan Shu's mouth, why wouldn't he eat it?

At this point, Zhou Heng paused, then said no more and directly called Liao Hua in.

"Liao Hua, I order you to take ten thousand men and set up an ambush here."

"In this battle, defeat is the only option; victory is not permitted."

Zhou Heng gave the instructions.

"Yes."

Liao Hua accepted the order and left.

"Chen Chong, you take five thousand men and follow closely behind. Make sure Lü Bu knows that our main force is there."

Zhou Heng then looked at another general.

He was also a general in the Yellow Turban Army. He used to roam the mountains and forests, but was later subdued by Zhou Heng.

"Yes."

"Everyone else, come with me, take all the old, weak, women and children with you... Let's make this a complete performance. I want to tell Lü Bu that we are fleeing without a fight. If he pursues us, he will be walking into my trap."