"Indeed."
Guo Tu shook his head, "Although Sun Wentai is brave, his troops have been on a long expedition for over a year and are already exhausted, yet they have come to contend for Yanzhou without rest."
"While Inspector Liu of Yanzhou's ability may not match his, he is the Inspector of Yanzhou appointed by the imperial court, making his claim legitimate and allowing him to gain more support from the local populace."
"With the two of them contending for Yanzhou, it will likely be difficult to determine a victor in a short time."
"Lord, you can seize this opportunity to swiftly attack Pingyuan. Once Pingyuan falls, you will be able to consolidate the power of five commanderies. When the two of them are exhausted from prolonged battle, you can become the triumphant fisherman."
"If Lord can seize this opportunity to take Yanzhou..."
Guo Tu smiled slightly, "Then Jizhou will also be within your grasp!"
Yuan Shao suddenly stood up, his eyes wide, his breathing rapid.
Don't say it, don't say it.
If Guo Tu's words could be realized, he would instantly control eight commanderies of Yanzhou, as well as half of Qingzhou.
By then, among all the warlords under Heaven, who could be stronger than him?
Of course, the prerequisite for all of this was that he had to take Pingyuan in the shortest possible time, then quickly integrate the resources of Qingzhou, and dispatch troops to Yanzhou.
"According to Gongze, should our army immediately attack Pingyuan now?"
Yuan Shao looked at Guo Tu.
"Indeed."
Guo Tu nodded with a smile.
"But..."
Yuan Shao said with difficulty, "Our army has been attacking for a long time without success, and the soldiers are already exhausted. The situation with Han Fu's side is probably similar."
"Can we really order the soldiers to attack fiercely again at this time?"
"Lord, do not worry."
Guo Tu said with a smile, "The news of Zhang Xin's death has already spread throughout Qingzhou. The Pingyuan defenders are leaderless, and the only reason they are still holding on is... they do not submit to Lord."
"Lord can order Eldest Young Master to temporarily halt the offensive for a few days and employ a strategy of psychological warfare, promising the Pingyuan defenders to treat Zhang Xin's family well and to treat them well."
"This way, the morale of the defenders will surely waver."
"Lord can seize this opportunity to personally lead the Nangpi elite to swiftly attack Pingyuan, and it will surely fall in one go!"
When Yuan Shao returned to Nangpi, he naturally brought a contingent of personal guards with him.
This personal guard camp had been resting in Nangpi for a long time and was now perfectly suited for use.
"Good! Then it shall be as Gongze says!"
Yuan Shao made up his mind and said to Guo Tu with a smile, "If Pingyuan can be conquered this time, Gongze will have the greatest merit."
"Thank you, Lord!" Guo Tu was overjoyed.
Without the interference of strategists, Yuan Shao was very decisive. He immediately sent someone to convey his order to Yuan Tan, telling him to temporarily halt the offensive and employ a strategy of psychological warfare.
At the same time, he himself began to prepare his personal guards, ready to strike at any time.
Yuan Shao's order reached Pingyuan, and Yuan Tan was overjoyed.
It just so happened that he didn't want to fight anymore either.
There was no other way; Pingyuan City was simply too tough to crack.
If they attacked, the soldiers had been attacking for a long time without success, and their morale had already plummeted. Continuing the attack would only increase casualties.
If they didn't attack, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to account for it to his old man.
Yuan Shao's order could be said to have come very timely.
Yuan Tan immediately ordered the army to stop the attack and rest for a few days. At the same time, he sent people to shout at the foot of Pingyuan City.
"Brothers of Pingyuan, don't shoot arrows!"
Yuan Army soldiers shouted at the foot of the city, "Lord Yuan asked me to bring you a message..."
Gao Shun stood on the city wall, listening to the Yuan Army's shouts below, and immediately gave an order.
"Shoot arrows, shoot arrows!"
Arrows rained down from the city wall, scattering the Yuan Army, who fled with their heads in their hands.
The Yuan Army ran out of the arrow's range and started shouting again.
Although the sound was much softer, some of it could still be heard.
Gao Shun saw a hint of wavering on the faces of the soldiers around him and said to Taishi Ci beside him, "Ziyi, you watch over the city for a moment; I'll be right back."
"Yes."
Taishi Ci nodded.
Gao Shun looked back at the reinforcements, quickly walked down the city wall, and arrived at the State Prefecture's rear compound.
At this time, the rear compound could be said to be shrouded in gloom.
Zhang Xin's wives all had red eyes, holding their respective children, with expressions of grief.
Dong Bai huddled in a corner, treang Ning's bow.
"Uncle Niujiao."
Zhang Ning looked at Zhang Niujiao, "I want to ask you for a favor."