Bingzhou, Yanmen Commandery.
Dong Zhuo's 100,000-strong army had dwindled to only 70,000. Many of these were Western Qiang cavalry and Xiliang soldiers. Facing the combined attack of the Wuhuan and Xianbei, it was only thanks to him that Yanmen Commandery was spared; otherwise, it would have fallen long ago.
The rebel Zhang Chun had been maneuvering in the Bingzhou and Youzhou regions, killing indiscriminately and destroying villages in his path—a completely inhumane act.
Dong Zhuo had repeatedly sent requests for reinforcements to the court, urging them to send a large army to eliminate the rebellious Zhang Chun.
A rebellious traitor, if not eliminated promptly, would severely damage the prestige of the Han Dynasty.
However, these requests were suppressed. Bingzhou already had Dong Zhuo's 100,000-strong army, and Governor Ding Yuan himself had 70,000 troops; further reinforcements were unnecessary.
The only possible reinforcements could come from the Liangzhou region.
Lu Ming was still pacifying Liangzhou and had no intention or desire to send reinforcements.
Firstly, he had slept with his aunt, and secondly, he genuinely couldn't spare the time.
Lu Ming had no intention of supporting Bingzhou; he wanted to prolong the war, ideally until Emperor Ling died, leading to a chaotic period of warring states.
This way, he could seize the opportunity to attack and conquer Yizhou.
After pacifying the Nanzhong, there was still the beautiful Zhu Rong from the foreign tribe waiting for him to conquer!
Dong Zhuo wiped away sweat; his beard covered his entire face, making him look ferocious. "That old scoundrel Ding Yuan! If it weren't for his weak troops, Zhang Chun would have been dead long ago! How hateful!"
A strategist stood up and bowed deeply to him. "My lord," he said, "I believe we should set up a trap, invite Ding Yuan to a banquet, prepare executioners, and take his head! Now that Ding Yuan's adopted son, Lü Bu, has a deep bond with you, if we capture Ding Yuan, you can adopt him as your own. This way, we can subdue the Bingzhou troops, and the entire Bingzhou will be yours. Lu Ming is also recovering Liangzhou; with our combined strength, even the imperial court can't do anything to us. We can advance to the throne, or retreat to be granted land and titles!"
Li Ru was also a ruthless strategist, his schemes vicious and leaving no room for retreat.
Simply because survival in this harsh land required extraordinary courage, determination, and perseverance.
By now, the Eastern Han Dynasty was dominated by powerful clans, controlling all avenues of advancement. While it wasn't that those from humble backgrounds had no chance, their prospects were slim, unless they became lackeys of these powerful families.
The local customs were fierce and untamed; they were indifferent to life and death, and would fight anyone who dared to defy them.
It was natural for Dong Zhuo and Ding Yuan to be at odds; one was a powerful outsider, the other a local tyrant.
Ding Yuan refused to be subservient, while Dong Zhuo coveted control of Bing Province.
Since neither could subdue the other, only a life-or-death struggle could end their feud.
Li Ru's words stirred something in Dong Zhuo; with age, his ambition grew.
He commanded tens of thousands of skilled soldiers, and his nephew, a governor of Bing Province, had already surpassed him in rank.
His rise through the ranks was meteoric, driven entirely by his marriage to a princess, without any gradual or incremental advancement.
He was an elder, and used to be Lu Ming's superior. Now, being far behind, he was bound to feel some resentment.
At this moment, Dong Zhuo's actions, besides being necessary for the occasion, were also driven by personal feelings.
He wanted to become the governor!
The governor of Bing Province wasn't bad either; although it was desolate, the women were quite good!
"Wenyou, Ding Yuan and I don't get along. Do you think he'll attend a banquet I invite him to?"
The other party wasn't stupid. Ding Yuan was a veteran general. He had rendered meritorious service in resisting foreign invasions. If it weren't for Lü Bu, he wouldn't have been killed so inexplicably.
"Why not give it a try? If this plan fails, I have another one!" Li Ru was loyal enough to advise Dong Zhuo, not only because of his son-in-law, but also because he came from a humble background—in short, he was educated, but not from the same circle or system, so he wouldn't be valued.
He could only secure a place for himself and utilize his talents by siding with someone like Dong Zhuo.
Dong Zhuo gave him an opportunity, and naturally, he was willing to go to great lengths for him!
Sure enough, after Dong Zhuo sent an invitation, Ding Yuan immediately threw it into the fire and burned it. As a veteran general, he knew all too well what this scoundrel Dong Zhuo was thinking. A trap?
"Heh, a trap? I'm not Emperor Gaozu of Han, and you're not Xiang Yu, you're just a barbarian from Xiliang!" After burning the invitation, Ding Yuan also severely humiliated the messenger.
In the following days, Ding Yuan rallied his troops, preparing for war, seemingly ready to fight Dong Zhuo at any moment.
He was wary of a falling out with Dong Zhuo. Although an army wasn't a private army, given the decline of the Han Dynasty, it had little control or authority.
A powerful army operating on the frontier was something even the Han Dynasty couldn't control.
A prime example is Zhang Yan, the Yellow Turban rebels who entrenched themselves in the Taihang Mountains. The imperial court was powerless to suppress them; the deep mountains and forests hindered transportation and troop deployment.
Fortunately, they simply granted him an official position, thus resolving the issue once and for all.
Was Zhang Yan truly powerful?
Perhaps he was formidable in the mountainous and forested environment.
But in open field battles against government troops, it was simply a path to death.
The prestige of the Han Dynasty was tarnished. Even those who still longed for the Han Dynasty harbored their own ambitions and lacked true reverence.
Once people lose their reverence for imperial power, many inappropriate thoughts begin to arise.
On the other side, Dong Zhuo, upon learning that his invitation had been burned, flew into a rage and immediately ordered his soldiers to engage Ding Yuan in battle. "You old scoundrel, how dare you deceive me!"
"My lord! My lord! There is another plan. Going to war now is disadvantageous to us. The Xianbei and Wuhuan are eyeing us covetously from the outside, and the Xiongnu are also plundering us. Our position is not yet secure, and we haven't received the message from Governor Lu for reinforcements. We simply don't have the time to fight," Li Ru hurriedly advised. If we lay low now, perhaps we'll have a chance after the emperor's death.
Even in times of power transition, chaos is most likely to erupt.
Dong Zhuo's anger was only momentary; he was well aware of his army's insufficient supplies.
A prolonged war was simply beyond his logistical capacity.
The local people's livelihood had already been ruined by his army's plundering. Ding Yuan had only provided him with short-term rations, barely enough to keep him from starving. A prolonged war was impossible; otherwise, he would have had a full opportunity to defeat the Xianbei cavalry and take them down in one fell swoop!