Yeah, Riboku is getting some unnecessary flak in this thread.
Firstly, there was no reason for Riboku to suspect Qi (or any other state for that matter) of anything regarding sending aid to Qin.
Before the meeting between Ei Sei and Ouken, it was noted by Mouten and the Kanyou bureaucrats that every single state, including Qi, was scheming to keep Qin’s power in check.
When the Qi King Ouken met Ei Sei, he deliberately did so in a manner that eliminated any possibilities of court spies from the other states from potentially knowing what was happening.
Ouken brought no Qi officials with him and kept the number of Qin officials attending the meeting down to a bare minimum of Saitaku, an old trusted friend who set the meeting up in the first place and at the advice of Saitaku, Shoubunkun, who Saitaku knows is one of Sei’s most loyal and trusted vassals.
Ouken even kept the meeting as short as possible in order to not give Riboku a hint that something highly important was taking place.
As for what Riboku would think was the reason that Ouken would seek a meeting with Sei, Riboku could have easily believed that Ouken went to Kanyou that he himself did. That is, to simply meet Ei Sei in person in order to see what kind of individual he is.
Even Saitaku, a man who has known Ouken for years if not decades,
still described Ouken as a difficult individual to “read”.
Also, the idea that Riboku should have immediately suspected that Qi would send aid to Qin because Qin paid them money one time to
not kill them is quite illogical.
During the Coalition Arc, Qin paid Qi to go from a hostile stance to a neutral stance. There is a large leap from being neutral to actively sending aid.
Besides, as I pointed out before, it was noted that Qi (before the meeting of Kings) was initially taking active steps to curb Qin’s power. Shouheikan even suspected that Ouken could create another Coalition Army to destroy Qin.
He was correct. Lol.
All of this combined would have painted a picture that Qi (or any other state) would never directly assist Qin in any way.
Secondly, let us address how Riboku surrounded Gyou.
I) There is no particular reason Riboku needs to station his troops as close to the city as possible. Since he expected that the supplies were going to come from the Qin homeland then blocking off the Ousen Army by land to prevent them from raiding nearby settlements or escaping altogether and using the Yellow River to trap them would be sufficient in those circumstances.
II) The armies stationed to the West and North West of Gyou are close enough that if necessary, Riboku can send troops between the Western/North Western Gyou front and Ryouyou/Retsubi and vice versa depending on what scenario unfolds (e.g. Ousen Army attempts to break out, Yotanwa Army attempts to break out, Retsubi is attacked etc. etc.)
III) Riboku’s strategies revolve around keeping his own army’s casualties down to a minimum, hence why he keeps them supporting each other. If he isolates them then there will be an increased chance of casualties.
IV) Honestly, I do not think that it matters whether the forces surrounding Gyou also covered the South or if they were just outside Gyou.
Whatever forces were hypothetically covering the area South or immediately South of Gyou would be pincered between the Ousen Army and whatever Qi troops were deployed to protect the supply convoy (it would be utterly illogical if the convoy was completely unprotected). The Ousen Army would then protect the convey.
Once the Qin troops see that food is coming then they will fight with everything they have.
Even in this chapter, folk like Bihei were still able to get to their feet quickly in a response to a potential threat.
Besides, the heavy hitters in Riboku’s forces were stationed around Retsubi. What noteworthy individuals are there in the area around Gyou? Just Kaine? Lol.
Lastly, Riboku would have likely figured out Ousen’s final ploy if given the opportunity to focus on the situation alone but hey, the Zhao King loves being an active hindrance. Lol.
