The Crown Prince of Han followed Sun Bin''s instructions and withdrew to Country of Han territory and set up camp dozens of miles away from the national capital to form a handhold with the Han army in the national capital.


    Pang Juan led a few generals to the camp of the Crown Prince of Country of Han to check the reality, the gate of the Crown Prince''s camp was closed. Pangcong said to Pang Juan, “Uncle, Sun Bin has been keeping the camp gates closed for days without going to battle, is he trying to stall us?”


    Pang Juan was silent for a while and slowly said, “Sun Bin doesn''t seem to be in the camp.”


    Pangcong was puzzled and asked, “Where does Uncle know this from?”


    “Sun Bin fights in a false sense, if he''s afraid of us, he''ll put on a show of not being afraid and won''t close the camp gate tightly without coming out; if he wants to stall us, he''ll put on a showdown and won''t close the camp gate tightly without coming out ......” Pang Juan suddenly thought of something and Suddenly realized, said: “Yes, he must have gone to Chenggao ...... Pangcong, I''ll lead the army to rush to Chenggao with light clothes, so that Sun Bin will be caught off guard. You stay here with 10,000 men to hold the Prince of Han.”


    After Sun Bin captured Chenggao, he knew that Pang Juan would not let up, he first blocked the news of the recapture of Chenggao, then ordered his generals to leave a small number of troops behind and take most of the soldiers outside of the city to collect food and get ready to hold Chenggao for a long period of time.


    Sun Bin was uneasy about the Prince and asked Zhong Li Chun to ride a fast horse to the direction of the national capital to keep an eye on Pang Juan''s army.


    Zhong Li Chun soon returned and she said to Sun Bin: “Sir, there is bad news ...... Pang Juan''s advance army is only 30 miles away from Chenggao.”


    Sun Bin, even though he''s a great strategist, was a bit overwhelmed, he was surprised and said, “How did they come so fast!”


    Zhong Li Chun said, “It seems that the Crown Prince failed to restrain Pang Juan.”


    Sun Bin was very regretful and sighed longingly, “It''s true that one careless move is a total loss ......”


    Zhong Li Chun comforted Sun Bin and said, “Sir, ghosts and gods still have moments of miscalculation, not to mention people ...... It''s better to quickly think of a plan to deal with Pang Juan.”


    “There really isn''t much of a plan ...... There aren''t many soldiers in the city, and most of them are soldiers with injuries and illnesses ......”


    “Then quickly call back the army that is collecting grain.”


    “It''s too late.” Sun Bin shook his head.


    “Then abandon Chenggao and let''s gather the army that collected the grain outside the city.”


    “A mere 5,000 soldiers, and then without the city, can''t fight Pang Juan''s tens of thousands of troops head on.”


    “We won''t confront Pang Juan, we''ll go back to the capital to join the Crown Prince''s army and retake Chenggao.”


    Sun Bin said, “If Chenggao is lost again, the Great King won''t give us another chance to recapture it.”


    “Then ...... what do you say, stay in Chenggao and wait to be captured with your hands tied?”


    Sun Bin is silent, a skillful woman can''t cook without rice, nowadays Sun Bin can''t fight and can''t fight, can''t go and can''t go, he really feels a bit at the end of his rope.


    Zhong Li Chun looked at Sun Bin who didn''t say a word and urged: “Mr., you speak, there''s really no way, we''ll go.”


    Zhong Li Chun urged Sun Bin to calm down, he asked, “I forgot to ask you, is Wei''s advance army lightly loaded or heavily loaded?”


    Zhong Li Chun replied, “Lightly loaded.”


    Sun Bin immediately perked up and said, “I have an idea.”


    “What idea?” Zhong Li Chun asked.


    Sun Bin calmly said, “Open the gate, have all the soldiers hide and let the Wei army in.”


    Zhong Li Chun got anxious and said, “Open the gate, what kind of plan is that? What''s the difference between that and tying your hands and waiting to be captured?”


    Sun Bin said, “Not necessarily, this might be the best plan to retreat the enemy.”


    Sun Bin ordered General Feng to quickly go outside the city and ordered the army outside the city to stop collecting food and stand by in hiding, then he recruited the generals inside the city and told them about his ploy, then calmly explained, “Opening the city to meet the enemy is not something I imagined out of thin air, three hundred years ago, Duke Zi Yuan of Chu led a large army to attack Zheng''s capital, the people of Zheng had no choice but to open up the gates of the city, and in return, they swindled and retreated from the Chu army, and now I have no choice but to do the same. Pang Juan''s advance army lightly loaded straight to Chenggao, the intention is to catch us by surprise, if we use this plan will make him doubt, do not dare to attack easily, we then let the army outside the city to collect food pretend to ambush, in the ambush to reveal the cracks, so that the suspicion of suspicion on suspicion, Pang Juan is a suspicious person, he will retreat dozens of miles. At that time, the army outside the city will immediately enter the city and prepare to defend it.”


    A general asked, “War Master, if Pang Juan and the others see through your scheme, we''ll be in danger!”


    Sun Bin laughed: “I''ve always used my army to be realistic in my falsehoods, Pang Juan has suffered losses time and time again, and this time, even though we''re not realistic in our falsehoods, they''ll still think that there''s reality in our falsehoods.”


    The generals thought Sun Bin did have a point and stopped doubting Sun Bin''s plan.


    In less than an hour, Wei''s advance army had arrived outside Chenggao city. General Fei, who was leading the army, was puzzled to see the gates of Chenggao were wide open and pedestrians were moving around as if there was no defense at all. The general accompanying him said, “General Fei, since the enemy is not on guard, let''s make a surprise attack.”


    General Fei mused, “Marshal said that Sun Bin has always fought in a false sense. And now that the city gates are wide open, I think they must be pretending to be defenseless to lure me into attacking and then figure it out.”


    General Fei ordered his detail to immediately blend into the city and find out the details, while sending people to check around the city to see if there are any ambushes. He then ordered the army to prepare for the attack.


    The accompanying general was puzzled and asked, “General Fei, didn''t you say that Sun Bin is deceitful, why are you still attacking the city?”


    General Fei smiled and said, “I''ll give him a false and real one too.”


    General Fei''s army started to make preparations to attack the city, this move alarmed the Country of Han generals who thought the Wei army had seen through Sun Bin''s ploy.


    Zhong Li Chun said to Sun Bin, “Sir, it''s not too late to close the city gates.”


    The generals chimed in, “Yes, yes, yes, if we don''t close the gates, Pang Juan''s army will be in trouble if they suddenly attack.”


    Sun Bin pondered for a moment and said, “They''re testing us.”


    A general said, “Warlord, it''s better to be careful.”


    Sun Bin said with a straight face, “I never do anything I''m not sure of. You tell everyone to follow the plan and those who disobey will be beheaded.”


    The generals were skeptical but still followed Sun Bin''s orders.


    People say Sun Bin has the ability to win a hundred battles, but he''s also a mortal in the flesh, a human being has a human weakness - vulnerability, only Sun Bin is good at hiding human weaknesses. When the generals left his quarters and he was surrounded only by Zhong Li Chun, he let out a long breath and sat heavily on the mat cushion.


    “Sir, aren''t you very sure of yourself?” Zhong Li Chun asked Sun Bin.


    “No.” Sun Bin replied honestly.


    “Then why did you open the city gates?”


    “There''s already no way back.”


    “Then what should Pang Juan''s army do if they see Mr. Mister''s ploy?”


    “It will have to be recognized .......”


    Zhong Li Chun was anxious and said, “Sir, I''ll take you away quietly now!”


    Sun Bin was adamant, saying, “No, an army commander can''t abandon his army even if he dies! If you abandon your army you''re no longer qualified to be an army commander! I''m a soldier, since I can''t fight in the battlefield, if I abandon my army, what else can I do in this world? I might as well die!”


    Zhong Li Chun was not without sadness and only shouted out “Mr. ......” before being unable to speak.


    Sun Bin suddenly felt a weakness and helplessness he''d never felt before, and softly said, “Miss Zhong Li, you go alone first.”


    “I''m not leaving.” Zhong Li Chun said flatly.


    “You go!” Sun Bin said in a commanding tone.


    Zhong Li Chun had tears in her eyes and said, “I''m not leaving, since I''m following Mr. I''m going to stay with Mr. I''ll live and die together.”


    Maybe everyone can only realize the preciousness of love when they are about to finish the whole course of their life; maybe everyone can only tell the last secret of their heart when they come to the end of their life. At this time Sun Bin finally opened his heart that had been closed for a long time and gently said to Zhong Li Chun, “Miss Zhong Li, I have hurt you before, don''t hold a grudge against me, I shouldn''t have rebuffed you when I was in Qi ......”


    Zhong Li Chun pretended to be indifferent, “That is already in the past, let''s not mention it anymore, okay.”


    “I can''t let go of it in my heart ......”


    “I know you''re doing it for my pride.”


    Sun Bin shook his head and said, “No, it''s not ...... actually I''ve had you in my heart for a long time, at the time I was handicapped and Pang Juan was endlessly chasing me, I didn''t want you to live a life of upheaval with me, so that''s why I had to push you back.”


    Zhong Li Chun tried her best to control her emotions but tears still flowed out of her eyes, she jumped head first into Sun Bin''s arms and sobbed, “Mr. Sun, I ...... I''ve long been looking forward to you ...... saying you like me! ......”


    Sun Bin stroked her shoulder and said to himself, “I hope we can get through the crisis this time ......”


    Zhong Li Chun opened her tearful eyes and looked at Sun Bin who was deeply in love. The two lovers then hugged each other tightly, waiting for the end to come or for a miracle to happen.


    General Fei''s soldiers prepared everything to attack the city. General Fei stood on his chariot, looking ahead, as he waited for news from the spy.


    The detailer finally came back on a fast horse, and General Fei couldn''t wait to ask, “How was it?”


    The detailer responded, “As expected by the General, Sun Bin had prepared for this, I blended into the city gates and saw the hidden Han army.”


    “How many are there?”


    “It looks like quite a few, and there are Han army figures and flags everywhere in the courtyards on both sides of the street.”


    General Fei''s men said, “General, it looks like we only have to wait for Marshal''s army.”


    General Fei did not take a stand, he still had to wait for news from outside Chenggao City.


    A general rode in on horseback, he was the general who had just been ordered by General Fei to send his detail around Chenggao to check for ambushes.


    That general gasped and came to General Fei and said, “General Fei, on both sides of us, we found Sun Bin''s ambush troops ......”


    The generals present were shocked.


    Someone asked, “How many are there?”


    The general said, “The detail said there are many, the woods and grass are full of them ...... and they are moving towards us ......”


    General Fei smiled coldly, “Fortunately, I have an extra eye.”


    He ordered his army to retreat thirty miles.


    Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.General Fei''s withdrawal won Sun Bin precious time, Sun Bin ordered the army outside the city to quickly return to the city, bring back as much food as they can from the levy, and what they can''t bring back must be hidden so Pang Juan can''t get it. At the same time, Sun Bin ordered to recruit the young and strong people in the city and integrate them into the army, gather the grain and grass from the people''s houses and distribute them uniformly.


    By the time General Fei, who was thirty miles away, realized he had fallen for Sun Bin''s scheme, Pang Juan''s army had already arrived. General Fei pleaded with Pang Juan, “Marshal, I am incompetent, please punish Marshal.”


    Pang Juan graciously said, “It''s not your fault, only Sun Bin''s too cunning.”


    Pang Juan spared General Fei, who was so grateful that he asked for orders to lead his army to attack Chenggao.


    Pang Juan''s eyes flashed a cold light and said, “I don''t intend to attack Chenggao, I want to besiege Chenggao and capture Sun Bin alive without bloodshed.”


    Pang Juan ordered a spy with a scar on his face to find a way to get into Chenggao before Wei''s army surrounded the city to find out how much food Sun Bin was storing and instructed him not to come back and report if he didn''t find out clearly.


    The Crown Prince of Country of Han learned that Chenggao was trapped and planned to lead his army to reinforce Chenggao. The King of Han sent an urgent letter ordering the Crown Prince to lead his army back to the capital immediately.


    The Crown Prince conceitedly said to the general sent by the King of Han, “Tell your father that the general is outside the country and the king''s order can be ignored.”


    The general advised, “Great general, your words are a capital offense.”


    The Crown Prince was very unconvinced and said, “The military advisor also said this kind of thing and Father King didn''t execute him.”


    “Sun Bin is a foreigner, the Great King is trying to utilize him, you are different, you are the Crown Prince and must listen to the Great King.”


    “If Chenggao is lost because of this, who is responsible?”


    “The Great King is responsible.”


    “Father has said such a thing?”


    “The Great King''s letter has this meaning.”


    The Crown Prince of Han had nothing to say but to return to the capital of his country.


    Sun Bin was looking forward to seeing the Prince of Han''s reinforcements, and since all the food in Chenggao City was not enough to be used for thirty days, Sun Bin had to send Zhong Li Chun back to the state capital to find Dr. Shen. He said to Zhong Li Chun: “Tonight, take my letter with you and immediately go back to the capital to find Dr. Shen and ask him to assist the Crown Prince to lead the army to break the siege of Chenggao. The letter contains a plan to retreat from the enemy, so please ask Dr. Shen to try to persuade the Crown Prince to act according to the plan. Be careful on the way, Chenggao''s safety is in your hands ......”


    Zhong Li Chun reassures Sun Bin that she''s infallible when it comes to this kind of thing.


    The King of Han summoned the court officials to discuss the siege of Chenggao, Dafu Zuo said smartly, “Wei''s army is strong and Pang Juan is good at trickery, from the beginning I was against fighting with them, and now Sun Bin is trapped in Chenggao, I think this is just the beginning of Pang Juan''s trickery, and there''s a bigger conspiracy in store for him.”


    King Han asked, “What plot?”


    Dafu Zuo said, “Sun Bin is guarding Chenggao with less than 5,000 people, Pang Juan''s 100,000 people could have easily attacked Chenggao, but he didn''t ......” Dafu Zuo glanced at the crowd and continued, “The microconsultant thought that he was using Chenggao as a bait, lure the king''s army to Chenggao, destroy it in one fell swoop, and then wielded his division to the south to take the national capital ...... ”


    King Han nodded and said, “Pang Juan''s intentions are very sinister ......”


    Shen Dafu Zuo advanced, “Your Majesty, what Dafu Zuo said is baseless. The reason why Pang Juan surrounded but didn''t attack is because he''s afraid of Sun Bin, and secondly, he''s afraid of the Great King. The city of Chenggao is strong, easy to defend and difficult to attack, plus Sun Bin uses his army like a god, Pang Juan is worried that once he fails to attack the city, the Wei army will lose its vitality, and if the Great King''s army is approaching Chenggao at this time, Pang Juan will surely be defeated. Therefore, the Great King should immediately send troops to relieve the siege of Chenggao, which is the best policy.”


    Han King pondered: “What you said also has reason ......” He faced Sima Dafu and said: “Sima Dafu, tell us your opinion.”


    Sima Daifu said: “Pang Juan siege Chenggao, the king should send troops to rescue, but Pang Juan siege Chenggao, is not difficult for the king, but for Sun Bin, the king might as well sit back and watch the tigers, if Pang Juan can not conquer Chenggao, to wait for him to be exhausted, and then send troops to Chenggao, you can be sure of victory; if Pang Juan siege Chenggao, the king will push the boat into the water and push the hostility against the state of Wei''s responsibility to Sun Bin, Pang Juan! The siege of Chenggao was originally for personal grudges, and he can also step down from this and make peace with the Great King ......”


    “This plan is not desirable,” Shen Daifu interrupted Sima Daifu, ”Chenggao is the Great King''s Chenggao, Sun Bin is the Great King''s strategist, how can the Great King ignore Chenggao''s danger and sit back and watch the tigers fight?”


    Sima Dafu snorted coldly, “Pang Juan has 100,000 people, Sun Bin didn''t earn any advantage by attacking from the east, who''s sure to defeat Pang Juan?”


    “Me!” A loud voice came from the entrance of the king''s palace.


    Everyone turned sideways to see the dusty Crown Prince standing at the palace entrance.


    The Crown Prince came forward and bowed to the King of Han before saying to him, “Father, Pang Juan is not scary, if not for the fact that my father summoned my son back to the capital in a hurry, my son would have already killed his way back to Chenggao and competed with Pang Juan. Please ask my father to give orders, my son immediately led the army to kill Chenggao.”


    The King of Han said, “Don''t be hasty, Crown Prince, wait for me to weigh the pros and cons with the Dafus before making a decision.”


    The Crown Prince said, “The military advisor always says that the army is precious and quick. And you guys are discussing and discussing, and you miss the opportunity of war, who will be responsible for it?”


    King Han was very unhappy and scolded lightly, “How dare you! They are all my strategists, I invited them to discuss the siege of Chenggao.”


    “Father, my son can swear to my ancestors in the clan temple that I will defeat Pang Juan outside Chenggao! Please, Father, send troops.”


    “Last time it was also you who swore an oath, and Chenggao was not lost in your hands?”


    “But earlier, it was my son who used a plan to restrain Pang Juan, and the Military Counselor took advantage of this to recapture Chenggao, so my son has already made up for his mistakes.”


    “You guys fell for Pang Juan''s trick and are still in the dark ...... Pang Juan was using Chenggao as bait to lure Sun Bin onto the hook.” King Han sneered.


    “Father, Pang Juan isn''t that smart, Father was probably scared by Pang Juan ......”


    “Nonsense! No one in the world can scare me!” The King of Han became infuriated and snapped.


    Seeing this, the crown prince had no choice but to curb his sharpness.


    After the Dafus left, King Han said to the Crown Prince kneeling in front of him with a serious look on his face, “As the Crown Prince of Country of Han, you are so contemptuous of my strategists, what will they think of you?” After a moment''s pause, King Han calmed down his emotions and then said in a serious tone, “As my father told you, and in today''s world where the weak is strong and the strong is strong, a king must rely on a group of wise ministers and strategists who are loyal to you if he wants his country to be undefeated, and to offend them is to damage your own country.”


    “Father, my son knows he is wrong.” The crown prince whispered.


    “Get up.” The crown prince got up and sat next to King Han. King Han asked, “What do you think about Chenggao being trapped?”


    The Crown Prince said with a straight face, “Father, as a great general, if I can''t even protect a city, what will the generals and soldiers think of me? If the enemy invades and you don''t dare to meet the enemy, where will my son''s prestige begin?”


    “You can''t just think of your own prestige, you should also consider the safety of the country.”


    “But Father, if we give up Chenggao and abandon Sun Bin, will Pang Juan just let it go? Not necessarily, he will think that we, Country of Han, are weak and can be bullied, thus gaining an inch.”


    King Han sighed long and said, “In fact, I don''t intend to give up Chenggao, nor do I intend to abandon Sun Bin, the reason why I let the Dafus talk about it is to borrow their brains and weigh the pros and cons ...... This is just like a merchant doing business, if you don''t do the math right, you''ll lose money. The difference is that merchants lose money this time, and can earn it back next time, but if you lose money, there is no next time.”


    “Father, how do you know that my son will lose money?”


    “The general strategist of the world''s great powers, except for Sun Bin, there is no one who has defeated Pang Juan, and now Sun Bin is trapped in Chenggao ...... for father can not help but worry about you.”


    The Prince was very unconvinced and said, “Father, without Sun Bin, my son can defeat Pang Juan just the same.”


    King Han said in a serious tone, “Crown Prince, I appreciate your courage, but you can''t defeat the enemy with only courage, you must rely on wisdom to defeat the enemy.”


    “In that case, father does not intend to send out troops to relieve the siege of Chenggao?”


    “No, troops should be sent out, but not recklessly.”


    “Then what father king means is ......”


    “You lead the army to set up camp thirty miles away from Pang Juan and see what happens. If Pang Juan captures Chenggao, you will hold your troops still and my father will find a way to ask Pang Juan for the city; if Pang Juan fails to capture the city after a long time, you can take advantage of his fatigue and try to retreat from the enemy by working with Sun Bin inside and outside.”


    “Doing this, it''s too sorry for Sun Bin right ......” the crown prince hesitated.


    The King of Han laughed: “In the battle of nations, there are only national interests, not mixed with personal feelings ...... Do you know who said this? It is your mother ...... A woman can still have such an opinion, we men, especially those who are in charge of the country, are we still inferior to a woman?”


    The crown prince thought for a moment and said, “Father, my son understands......”


    The Crown Prince understood, but all the Country of Han people, including Dr. Shin, didn''t understand why the Country of Han''s reinforcements were holding their ground thirty miles away from Chenggao. Chenggao''s generals asked Sun Bin, and Sun Bin didn''t know the reason either.


    The “Empty City Strategy” is the 32nd of the 36 Strategies, the meaning of this strategy is: when you can''t defend a city, you deliberately expose its emptiness, so that the enemy will not move forward or withdraw their troops for fear of being ambushed. Sun Bin used this plan to solve Chenggao''s momentary danger but a bigger danger is coming. To know how Sun Bin got out of Pang Juan''s siege, please read next time: “Use Double Agents to Spread Disinformation”.