Xiangyang City was quickly put on alert, causing the people to panic and not know what was going on.
Compared with the Northern Army's continuous fighting, this time, the people only felt that the palace was very nervous.
"What's the reason for this?"
"I heard that the British King's army is coming to attack Xiangyang!"
"Alas, the whole city is now under lockdown, and we ordinary people can't go anywhere!"
"You still want to escape. I'm lucky that I didn't catch you and defend the city!"
…
The people were talking a lot, but there was nothing they could do.
Now, the entire city of Xiangyang is sealed off and not a single fly can fly out. Moreover, the palace was issuing a notice to recruit troops. In the notice, the British King Gui Yunzheng was smeared, hoping to stimulate the people of Xiangyang to share the same hatred with the enemy.
This move has achieved some results. The 100,000 Xiangyang garrison soon expanded to 130,000.
Zhang Daguo is a man who is good at using troops. In order to provide multiple layers of insurance, he even sent 50,000 troops and built two fortresses outside Xiangyang City to block the British king's army. As for the navy, they were also on full alert to prevent the King of England's navy from flowing down the river and attacking Xiangyang by land and water.
Defense, it should be said, is done well. However, no one knows what the effect will be.
At present, in terms of total military strength, Xiangyang still has a huge advantage. The King of England's army started with 40,000 troops, but after fighting all the way, it had expanded to more than 80,000. Among them, there were not only tens of thousands of newly surrendered sergeants, but also some common people along the road. These common people all saw that the British king's army treated the people well and had no offense with the people. They were actually teachers of benevolence and righteousness, so they enthusiastically signed up to join.
With the support of public opinion, the march of the British King's army will naturally be much faster. Although they did not greet each other on the road, the common people were not too panicked when they heard that the British king's troops had arrived.
Zhang Da's defense outside the city had just been set up, but Xu Lang and Ma Rubao's front troops were already two miles away.
"Report, general, the Xiangyang defenders have extended their defense range outside the city. According to investigation, about 40,000 to 50,000 people have formed a camp to block the path of our army!"
As soon as the account was raised, Xu Lang's scouts sent an urgent report.
"It seems that yesterday's battle scared them. If I had known this, I should have chased them straight to Xiangyang City yesterday!"
When Ma Rubao heard this, he felt a little regretful.
"Haha, General Ma, you are a veteran on the battlefield. You should know that my front army is mainly light cavalry and is especially good at field combat. He has put up a posture and deployed outside the city. Isn't that what I wanted?"
Xu Lang smiled softly. After fighting a few battles, his way of thinking about the problem was completely different.
When he said this, Ma Rubao's eyes lit up.
"That's right! How can the defense they hastily formed be of any use! Give me two thousand Qingqi and they will be smashed to pieces!"
"Yes, that's right. But don't be impatient for now. Wait for the soldiers to take a rest, wait for the brothers in Xiangyang City to send news, wait for our navy to approach Xiangyang, and let's launch an attack together. Hum, when the time comes, just wait You are showing off your power!"
Before Xu Lang came, he had learned Gui Yunzheng's secret plan. Their 30,000 forwards arrived at Gucheng, took a short rest, and then marched to Xiangyang. Coincidentally, they encountered reinforcements from Xiangyang halfway. Neither army had time to set up camp, so they surrendered.
Naturally, Xu Lang's troops, who were strong in field battles, dispersed the 20,000 reinforcements in a few battles, and then ruthlessly harvested them one by one.
In the end, Xu Lang's side gained the victory of killing more than 10,000 enemies and capturing more than 8,000 people at the cost of losing more than 2,000 men. The military strength has been replenished again.
This time, in order to appease the surrendering troops, Gui Yunzheng specially sent Wang Liang to assist Xu Lang. After all, as a somewhat famous veteran, Wang Liang's words are more convincing.
This move has immediate and miraculous effects. Under Wang Liang's brainwashing, the surrendering soldiers surrendered in fear of death at first, but then they understood how wise the King of England was and how famous the King's army was, and gradually they felt that they had really abandoned the dark side and surrendered to the bright side.
