My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

If we delve deeper, Zhang He was one of those who betrayed Wei and surrendered to Han.

However, he was neither a key minister under Cao Pi nor someone Cao Pi considered a confidant.

His betrayal of the Wei Kingdom was actually due to unavoidable circumstances.

He was forced to surrender to the Han Dynasty out of desperation and in order to survive.

Xu Zhi, however, was different.

Therefore, when faced with Zhang He's questioning, Xu Zhi was filled with shame, his expression was flustered, and his words became stammering.

"The Emperor... although he has treated me well and bestowed upon me many favors, but... but..."

At this moment, he had no idea how to defend himself, and could only open his mouth in vain, unable to utter a complete sentence.

Zhang He's eyes were full of disdain, feeling that there was no point in continuing to interrogate him.

In his view, Xu Zhi's current predicament was nothing more than his fear of death.

Zhang He stared intently at Xu Zhi, his long sword trembling slightly from the force he exerted, pondering whether or not to kill Xu Zhi now.

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Xu Zhi's life or death was in Zhang He's hands.

After a long while, Zhang He finally slowly lowered his hand that was tightly gripping his battle sword.

After letting out a long sigh, Zhang He issued the order:

"Men, seize this thief and hand him over to the Grand Marshal for punishment."

He chose to let Xu Zhi go.

Zhang He did not choose to kill Xu Zhi directly because he had weighed the pros and cons.

On the one hand, he didn't really have any deep-seated hatred for Xu Zhi, so there was no need to kill him and gain a reputation for being ruthless.

On the other hand, Xu Zhi holds a fairly high position in the current Wei army, and his influence is even greater than that of some members of the imperial clan.

If we can capture him alive, the merit gained will undoubtedly be much greater than that of beheading him.

After careful consideration, Zhang He finally decided to capture Xu Zhi alive.

Upon hearing that Zhang He had not killed him, Xu Zhi breathed a sigh of relief, as if he had lost all his strength and collapsed to the ground.

His face was filled with gratitude, and he kept saying:

"Thank you, Brother Zhang! Thank you, Brother Zhang!"

"I will never forget Brother Zhang's kindness in sparing my life."

At this moment, Xu Zhi was filled with the relief of surviving a disaster, and he was truly grateful to Zhang He.

Seeing this, Zhang He simply ordered his soldiers to take Xu Zhi away.

Then, he looked back and saw that the more than four thousand soldiers from Longyou had already been beaten and were crying and howling in a sorry state.

Looking up again, on the city tower of Ji County, the flag symbolizing the Han Dynasty was fluttering in the wind.

At the same time, tens of thousands of Han soldiers surged toward this side like a tidal wave.

Looking at the scene before him, Zhang He couldn't help but feel a surge of pride. A confident smile spread across his face as he muttered to himself.

"Capturing Xu Zhi alive, the greatest credit for taking Ji County should surely belong to me, Zhang He..."

……

As dusk fell, the deafening sounds of battle gradually subsided.

This fierce siege ended with Ji County changing hands and the Wei army being annihilated.

Han flags were raised high above all four city gates of Ji County, fluttering gently in the evening breeze.

The Han generals inside and outside the city had already begun their work, and the cleanup of the battlefield was proceeding in an orderly manner.

Just then, Zhang Fei and Xiao He rode their horses slowly into the city that had just changed hands. The two entered the main hall.

Before long, the generals arrived one after another to report the results of the battle.

"Reporting to General of the Flying Cavalry, I intercepted the fleeing Wei army at the West Gate and, after a fierce battle, successfully killed the enemy general Yin Feng!"

"Reporting to the Grand Marshal, I was the first to breach Ji County. The enemy was unable to withstand our fierce attack and ultimately captured three thousand enemy soldiers."

"Reporting to the Grand Marshal..."

Then another general reported, and the hall became lively and bustling.

Zhang Fei and Xiao He listened to their generals' requests for credit, and both showed satisfied smiles on their faces.

The battle was very successful; not only did they capture Ji County, but the Wei army was also almost completely annihilated.

In addition to the enemy troops previously annihilated, almost none of the Wei troops left by Cao Pi to cover the rear survived.

This means that Cao Pi's main force in Longyou had been completely annihilated, and he only managed to escape to Liangbei with a little over 20,000 men.

With the limited troops Cao Pi has left, he no longer poses any threat to the Han army.

"General of the Cavalry, Grand Marshal!"

Just then, Zhang He rushed into the main hall, cupped his hands in greeting, and said:
"I was ordered by you two to guard the southern siege camp. When the enemy leader Xu Zhi broke out, our army fought bravely and killed him all."

"Not only that, I also captured the enemy leader Xu Zhi alive. Xu Zhi said he was willing to surrender to our Han Dynasty, so I brought him back to await your judgment!"

Hearing Zhang He report his merits in this way, Zhang Fei was both surprised and amazed.

Unexpectedly, Zhang He was able to capture Xu Zhi alive. With this, the Wei army was truly wiped out!
But at the same time, he found it very strange that Zhang He claimed that Xu Zhi wanted to surrender to the Han.

"You captured Xu Zhi alive, and you have made the greatest contribution!"

Zhang Fei's eyes were full of admiration, but then he changed the subject:
"But Xu Zhi is Cao Pi's confidant and holds a high position in the Wei army. Is he really willing to surrender to our Han Dynasty?"

Everyone present looked on incredulously upon hearing Zhang Fei's words.

As is widely known, Xu Zhi was a general whom Cao Pi promoted when he was managing Liangzhou.

Despite his limited experience, he was promoted to the position of General of Chariots and Cavalry of Wei at a young age.

Looking at the world, it is extremely rare for someone of this age to assume such a high position.

Such a person, who was deeply appreciated by Cao Pi, would actually choose to betray Cao Pi and surrender to the Han Dynasty at the critical moment of life and death?
Many people remained skeptical.

Seeing this, Zhang He cupped his hands and said:

"This thief has been brought outside the palace. General of the Cavalry may question him personally."

Immediately, Zhang He waved his hand and ordered Xu Zhi to be brought into the palace.

A moment later, a military officer was escorted into the hall.

Everyone's gaze instantly turned to Xu Zhi, as if they wanted to see right through him.

Xu Zhi felt everyone's gaze and couldn't help but raise his head, his body stiffening, his eyes filled with tension and unease.

He swallowed hard, trying to calm himself, then slowly knelt down, his voice trembling slightly as he said:
"The guilty general Xu Zhi pays his respects to the General of Chariots and Cavalry, Grand Marshal..."

His kneeling was seen by everyone as a signal of surrender.

A murmur of discussion immediately filled the hall. Everyone was astonished, never expecting that Xu Zhi would actually choose to surrender.

Zhang Fei looked at Xu Zhi, who was kneeling and begging for surrender, with disbelief in his eyes. He couldn't understand why this man, who was once regarded as a confidant by Cao Pi, would choose to surrender so easily.

Only Xiao He had a slight upturn at the corners of his mouth, revealing a cold smile.

In his view, although Xu Zhi seemed to be the person Cao Pi relied on and trusted the most, it did not mean that he was willing to die for Cao Pi.

Faced with life and death, people's choices often take unexpected turns.

What's so strange about him kneeling and surrendering today? (End of Chapter)