The sunset gradually sets and night falls. Yecheng, which was baptized by the war, finally regained its calm. There was no fighting or blood. It was just that the confrontation between the gates of the two cities in the city did not sound for a long time.

At night, both sides lit bonfires, taking advantage of the fire to be careful to each other, and no one was willing to relax their vigilance at this critical moment.

Gong Qi came to an open space inside the city gate early. It seemed that this was the Shang army's usual martial arts field, and they should be practicing soldiers here. Looking at the style of the martial arts field, you can tell that the leader is a person who can lead the troops.

He brought Zhang Yizhi and the two of them came here in advance to wait for Yang Kuang to accept the negotiations. None of the personal guards followed him, not because he trusted Yang Kuang, but because he believed that Yang Kuang would not do anything out of order. Even if he did it, he was sure to escape unstoppable.

"This is the first time I have entered Yecheng. I don't know how many times I have been blocked by this big city in the north, but I didn't expect to come in this way." Gong Qi looked around and sighed.

Zhang Yizhi didn't have the same feeling as the other party, and he was thinking about how to deal with Yang Kuang. If nothing unexpected happened, the next thing was his and Yang Kuang's intrigue. Gong Qi would not play any role in this regard.

Gong Qi saw Zhang Yiyi thinking alone, and did not want to disturb him. He was still watching Yecheng within his sight. He knew best that as long as he had 50,000 troops after taking down the city, he would be 90% sure to destroy the country. Yecheng was the only obstacle in front of him, and this obstacle was the person he least wanted to deal with.

It seems that the same family members are crippling each other and it has become commonplace. It has not been long since the last Northern War. Gong Qi can always feel Yang Kuang's hostility. He has been like this since childhood, and now they are their own leaders and have different positions.

Gong Qi came from the Northern Tang generals, and he never thought about trampling on the world day and night; Yang Kuangsheng was born in the imperial palace, and the Shang Dynasty was a mark he could never get rid of and must be protected. The conflict between the two was no longer limited to their personality, but more about their position and pattern.

As he thought about it, it became darker again. Two riders appeared opposite him. Gong Qi looked at Zhang Yizhi in confusion, but he didn't expect Yang Kuang to take someone else, and he felt a little afraid and alert.

Although Zhang Yizhi was exactly what he thought, he had to show a calm expression. Negotiation is negotiation and must not be seen by the enemy before achieving his goal.

The two cavalry approached them, and there were no armored soldiers and guards following them, and four people were gathered together. Yang Kuang welcomed him, and Dugu Mo was the only one who followed him.

"I'm lucky to meet you, this is the old general Dugu." Gong Qi didn't care about Yang Kuang at the first time, but greeted Dugu Mo first.

"General Gong is polite." Dugu Mo said little, "He's not here for Gong Qi today.

Yang Kuang looked at the situation and smiled and said, "It seems that we have to meet according to the rules every time we fight. If we don't meet, we may not be able to fight anything."

Zhang Yizhi was going to deal with Yang Kuang, and immediately took over the conversation and said, "Yes, you think it's strange, third brother, but if you two didn't show your magical powers, you might not have to cause such trouble."

The implication is that Yang Kuang is too stubborn, so why not surrender or withdraw from Yecheng and end this war with a decisive outcome as soon as possible.

But Yang Kuang ignored him and answered Dugu Mo: "It seems that this little brother is the mysterious military advisor of the Northern Tang Dynasty. As expected, all the young people in the Northern Tang Dynasty are very powerful."

Zhang Yizhi was surprised, but he was not panicked and responded politely: "What the old general said? You are a veteran who has been fighting with Gu Jinsong for many years, and you are not comparable to those of us young people."

The two began the conversation unexpectedly. Yang Kuang wanted this progress. He had known that only Zhang Yizhi could deal with him in the Tang army. I guess the other party was also very clear about his shortcomings. So Yang Kuang brought Dugu Mo to deal with Zhang Yizhi. Dugu Mo himself asked for his life, and he didn't care about what would happen now. In short, one thing is good, that is, Zhang Yizhi didn't understand Dugu Mo, at least not like he did.

So Yang Kuang said to Gong Qi: "Brother, we met on the battlefield before we last parted. I wonder if the eldest brother can take a step to talk to you."

This was a request to support Gong Qi. Gong Qi did not rush to answer, but just looked at Zhang Yizhi. The latter turned his eyes and said, "Third Brother, forget it, you and I are in front of the two armies now, what else are you talking about? Isn't it a waste of time?"

Dugu Mo said again: "This is a bad word. Even if my general is in front of the two armies, he is not constrained by his fellow disciples. Could it be that General Gong is a person who is not in love?"

Zhang Yizhi frowned, thinking that this old man was very difficult to deal with, and he aimed at Yang Kuang everywhere, but every time he threw a sharp blade, he would be stopped by Dugu Mo halfway, and Yang Kuang ignored him. It seemed that he was determined to be on guard against him.

The degree of psychological warfare began to increase. It was an invisible war. Zhang Yizhi was not a stubborn person. Although he could easily see through Yang Kuang, if the other party avoided the fight, he would have no choice. Instead of wasting time, it would be better to try whether he could break through Dugu Mo's defense line and so he gave a compromise look at Gong Qi.

Gong Qi, who was familiar with him, breathed a sigh of relief. He was also afraid that he would make a mistake. Since Zhang Yizhi said it was okay, he was too lazy to take it into consideration and reached out to Yang Kuang to choose somewhere to talk.

It's ridiculous to say that Yecheng is the base camp of the Shang army, but at this moment it looks a bit like Gong Qi's belongings, and he can invite others to go anywhere at will.

They came aside and gave Dugu Mo and Zhang Yizhi time to negotiate. After all, this was not a negotiation between the two coaches, but a mutual test of each other under their respective commanders. Such a situation was only depressing.

Yang Kuang is not such a boring person. His current predicament makes him feel stressed, but he has not lost his composure. He spoke as usual: "Senior Brother, I'll say something unrealistic, have you ever thought you would lose?"

"No." A plain answer showed how confident Gong Qi was. On the battlefield, he was the strong man. For the word "loss", he could only be used in front of evenly matched opponents.

"Your elder brother doesn't remember that you said that last time?" Yang Kuang was a little sarcastic, but the other party was indifferent. Seeing this, Yang Kuang added: "If you are against Gu Jinsong, do you think you can win?"

Gong Qi only became interested when talking about that person and replied seriously: "Although it is very slim, at least there is less than 10% chance of winning."

Yang Kuang could see that Gong Qi knew he was not as good as Gu Jinsong, so he said, "So you want to use the destruction of the country to prove your strength?"

"As the commander, one should have the ambition to destroy the country."

"This is true. If it were me, I would have started a war at the most appropriate time. War is indeed cruel, but Aunt Zhu said that war is never avoidable. There will be fighting where there are people, and everyone has different positions."

Gong Qi smiled and said, "Yang Kuang, I am different from you. You can do whatever you want for your own purposes, and I will not destroy my ambitions because of my own selfishness. You are still as usual, maybe born in an imperial family, so you have to do this."

"You are, the pressure on the general Huzi is quite high. You have to be suspicious of your Majesty all day long. Are you tired?" Yang Kuang retaliated bluntly.

Gong Qi frowned and stared at him, but the two of them laughed out loud.

They are all people who want to take their lives. It is rare to be able to chat and laugh, which is also a very contrasting picture.

"Senior Brother, do you still remember what Aunt Zhu said about you before?"

"I don't remember it, I'm just telling you all, and I don't care." Gong Qi said meaninglessly: "Anyway, no matter what, I still remember my evaluation of you."

Yang Kuang smiled bitterly and said, "Aunt Zhu said, you have the appearance of an emperor, but you really don't have the intention of an emperor."

"So that's it." This was the first time Gong Qi heard Aunt Zhu's comments on him. No wonder Zhang Yizhi asked him if he wanted to be the emperor. As expected, he didn't say it casually. He asked patiently: "Do you know the reason?"

"Because you have the temperament of a leader, you are the most perfect king." Yang Kuang did not say nonsense, "You can touch the heart of the fourth junior brother, or lead the soldiers to sacrifice their lives for you, and make the people cheer for you."

"But I haven't thought about all this."

"It is because of this that you are the real leader." Yang Kuang admitted the other party's charm in front of Gong Qi for the first time. It is precisely because of the other party's charm that he wanted to surpass him. "You never thought that you could attract others according to your own ideas. In Aunt Zhu's opinion, this is the aura of a king."

Gong Qi listened to all this in a daze and murmured: "Is the king's aura..."

Although Yang Kuang was not very willing to admit it, at the most dangerous moment, he decided to have a good relationship with the senior brother and continued: "Yi Zhi is a talented man of Wang Zuo. If you didn't choose to learn military tactics back then, you would probably be the one who ended this troubled time."

"Don't give me a thumbs up." Gong Qi said lightly: "I don't care what you said or Aunt Zhu said. My only goal is war and victory."

"Those who came out of the door are really different."

"Aren't you also a family background in the imperial family?"

Yang Kuang smiled self-deprecatingly, acknowledged this fact, and said, "Have you ever thought that if you destroy Shang Kingdom, can you block Nanxia's army?"

"Of course I thought about it." Gong Qi really thought about it, "Nanxia has the most famous generals and the strongest military strength, but I didn't say that I would occupy all the territory of your Shang Kingdom. Just take half of it. Let Nanxia work on his own and give the Tang Dynasty time to rest."

"That's not what you think, are you?" Yang Kuang questioned.

Gong Qi paused and said, "It's true that I can't hide it from you. After all, once my troops are at the Luoyang City, Gu Jinsong will definitely not be able to sit still. With his strategic vision, he will definitely return to rescue quickly. In this way, Nanxia will also make some moves. Attacking you Shangguo on both sides is the best opportunity to establish diplomatic relations with Nanxia."

Yang Kuang narrowed his eyes and said, "These are all taught by Yizhi."

"Hahaha, it turns out that I can't hide anything from you." Gong Qi was really convinced by Zhang Yizhi and Yang Kuang, "Yang Kuang, surrender, I can let you go."

The sudden topic made the atmosphere colder, and Yang Kuang's expression began to become unkind, and he said, "Are you... pitying me?"

Gong Qi remained silent, Yang Kuang also restrained his emotions and said, "You also know that we have different positions. As the eldest son of Shang Kingdom, how can I let you successfully come to Luoyang? You have your ambitions and I have my family and country. We all know that we cannot take a step back from each other."

"So you are going to fight to the death?"

"If this is the only way." Yang Kuang's sharp eyes proved that he was not joking. Gong Qi understood that although this junior brother always likes to be a lie, he is also a person with a firm will as much as he is.

"Okay, I knew you would refuse." Gong Qi was bored, "But say hello to you in advance, I am sure to win Shangguo. This time no one can stop me. Those who stand in front of me must die."

The tiger is declaring its strength, and Yang Kuang has no choice but to do anything about it.

....................................

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On the other side, Zhang Yizhi was about to start his temptation: "Old General Dugu, I don't know what you are planning..."

"Don't imagine that our army will surrender." Dugu Mo trally cut off his voice, "Either continue fighting or get out."

Zhang Yizhi looked at the other party unexpectedly, but he didn't expect that the disadvantaged party was even tougher than him. As expected, this old general should not be underestimated. If he was at a disadvantage in his momentum, it would be meaningless to test it. So he said, "The current situation, even if you general can't see it, you should see it. Yecheng has tried his best in this battle, but it has ended in tragic casualties. As long as my general is willing, it will take over Yecheng within three days."

Dugu Mo responded calmly in the face of these open threats: "Then come on, our army will swear to resist to the death and defend Yecheng to the death."

"Ha, is the old general joking about me? Both of your city gates and towers have fallen, and the east and west gates are even more difficult to protect themselves. Just by you, how long can you last? I just said that it will be the longest time to take down Yecheng within three days. If you step up the offensive, you won't have to do it for a day..."

"Then come on." Dugu Mo interrupted again without hesitation, which made Zhang Yizhi very embarrassed. The latter was eager to get back his voice and spoke again: "Okay, so Ming..."

"Just tonight." It was the third time, Dugu Mo interrupted Zhang Yizhi for the third time, clearly showing an uncompromising attitude. Zhang Yizhi looked at the old man in shock, not sure what was supporting the old man in such a desperate effort. Could it be Yang Kuang's plan again?

This possibility is not ruled out. Zhang Yizhi's trip is a test. Unexpectedly, he could not directly test, so he had to indirectly test Shang Jun from Dugu Mo. However, Dugu Mo only gave him a cold face and a ruthless answer, which made him unable to start.

Dugu Mo is worthy of being a veteran. His acting is so realistic. In fact, he knows the situation best and is most worried about Gong Qi's attack. However, in order to make Gong Qi believe that they have to defend themselves, they must erase all emotions to act.

Just imagine, if the other party knew that this was a dead end, he might seize this opportunity to kill the last force in the northern border of Da Shang.

"The old general is serious?" Zhang Yizhi did not give up.

"Take it seriously." Dugu Mo replied without thinking. He forced himself to calm down. Even if the cracked wound had blurred his vision and the unstable behind him made him feel restless, he had to pretend to be fearless.

Zhang Yizhi couldn't tell the truth about the other party, but he felt that it was 70% true, which was also in his opinion. In this way, he had to reconsider Dugu Mo was a veteran who had followed Gu Jinsong. Yang Kuang was not only a talented person, including Nie Chenxi, who was training troops, and Wild Fire. These were only known to them, so what he was most afraid of was that Yang Kuang had other trump cards.

In fact, who could guess that Yang Kuang had used up all his trump cards. Now he is just a slap in onion. Dugu Mo is facing the most difficult Zhang Yizhi for him, and it is also a last resort.

You should know that for so long, Zhang Yizhi knew him even more than he expected, but from the last battle, it was possible to judge that Zhang Yizhi had made all the countermeasures to deal with Yang Kuang starting from Tang Ting.

Zhang Yizhi stared at Dugu Mo and laughed for a long time. Dugu Mo knew that it was intentional, but he pretended to be puzzled and angry and asked: "What do you mean?! If you want to fight, just hit me, don't be silly!"

"The old general misunderstood. I came to negotiate sincerely." Zhang Yizhi thought to himself that the old man was still a little stubborn. He didn't believe it all, but he believed it too.

So out of insurance, he finally asked, "When will we make an appointment tonight?"

Dugu Mo's heart skipped a beat, and he almost lost his voice when asked by this sentence. However, in just a moment, he calmed down and began to hide his moment of wavering with a thoughtful attitude, saying, "Why don't you ask the general yourself, I can't make the decision."

The two looked at each other for a long time, and the secret contest ended with Dugu Mo's old aura. Zhang Yizhi let go of his original thoughts and his temptation ended here. But from the surface, there was no mistake, and when you look deeper, you can even feel some truth.

Experience and aura achieved this victory of intrigue. Dugu Mo perfectly deceived Zhang Yizhi with his sophisticated thinking and stable aura.

This first battle seems to come to an end.
Chapter completed!