The Qin army camp outside Shouchun City.
The Qin soldiers were using vehicles to transport the parts of the cannon that they had produced in the past few days. They wanted to transport them more than 200 steps outside the city wall for assembly.
In the military camp, there are also siege equipment such as ladders and carts that have been built long ago and are being pushed towards the city by Qin soldiers.
It had been three days since Zhao Tuo led the Qin army to Shouchun. During these three days, he did not launch an attack on Shouchun City rashly.
As the capital of Chu State, Shouchun has been continuously built and reinforced by the Chu people for more than ten years. The city walls are high and thick, making it very difficult to break through.
In addition, there are tens of thousands of guards in the city and tens of thousands of Chu residents. At this moment when the country is in danger of subjugation, they will definitely fight to the death.
Zhao Tuo only had more than 20,000 men under his command, so the chances of the ants attacking the city in a hurry were not great.
Therefore, he led his army to block the main escape route of the King of Chu, and at the same time asked the craftsmen and soldiers in the camp to cut down trees and build siege equipment such as ladders, building carts, and giant cannons.
During this period, Zhao Tuo also received the latest news from the Qin army in Huaibei.
The Southern Route Army led by General Yang Duanhe has captured Huyi and is heading towards Xiacai. It will take up to ten days to cross the Huai River from Xiacai and arrive outside Shouchun City.
Wang Jian, who captured Huaiyang, is also leading his army slowly south. Soon, hundreds of thousands of Qin troops will gather outside the capital of Chu. Under such circumstances, there is no fear that the city will not be broken.
At the same time, the fleets gathered by the Qin army in Honggou also began to move south along the river. With smooth water transportation, they could reach the vicinity of Xiacai in a few days at most to provide food and fodder supplies for Zhao Tuo's Qin army.
Friendly troops are arriving and food is being transported, so we really have no worries.
"I spent three days building giant cannons, ladders and other items, just waiting for today's trial attack on Shouchun."
Zhao Tuo stepped onto the chariot and looked at Shouchun, the capital of Chu, from a distance.
Behind him, the elite soldiers who had rested for three days all held their heads high and their faces full of fighting spirit.
"Zhechu, what have you been doing these past three days?"
…
"Bugu has been fasting and bathing for three days, please ask the gods to have mercy on you."
The King of Chu was in high spirits with his cud in his hands, his face full of joy and expectation.
He had fasted and bathed in the palace for three days according to the instructions of the great witch. His body was sprinkled with spices, and his whole body exuded a strange smell.
He will wear special sacrificial attire and walk to the city wall, where he will offer sacrifices to the great god and pray devoutly, praying that the god can send down his power and wipe out the Qin army outside the city in one fell swoop.
The gate of heaven is wide open, and I ride on the mysterious clouds.
Let the wind come and go as a pioneer, and let the drizzle spread the dust.
…
On the top of the city, a group of wizards wearing sacrificial robes and faces painted with strange colors were dancing.
There was a symphony of bells, drums, and chimes, and the wizards chanted ancient and mysterious sacrificial songs.
Under the guidance of the great witch.
The King of Chu, with a solemn expression on his back, walked toward the city head.
Behind him followed a group of wizards wearing feathers and chanting words.
The attendants of these gods also carried in their hands the sacrifices prepared to be offered to the gods.
The so-called sacrifice refers to pure and complete livestock.
This is what the "Book of Rites of Zhou" says: "In all sacrifices, sacrifices are shared."
"Bu Gu worships the great commander of the god of heaven. Today, our country of Chu is in danger of overthrow..."
The king of Chu was holding his cud in his hand at the top of the city, muttering words, and praying to the great commander of the sky.
In Shouchun City, the Chu people who had long received the king's order walked out of their houses one by one, knelt on the ground, and headed towards the city to offer sacrifices, chanting the words of sacrifice taught by the great witch sect in the past two days. .
You are flying back and forth, and the mulberry trees are flying across the sky.
There are always people coming to Kyushu, how can they live forever?
Flying high and safe, taking advantage of the clear air to control Yin and Yang.
…
"What are the Chu people in the city doing?"
Four hundred steps away from Shouchun City, the Qin army was already in battle formation.
The generals of the Qin army looked at Shouchun City in the distance where the loud sound of sacrifices was heard, and they couldn't help but look at each other in shock.
Black Buttocks was even more confused, picking at his buttocks and shouting: "Nai Gong knows some Chu people's words, but why can't he understand what these Chu people are saying? He is gibbering, and the voice is so loud, is he cursing? Are we waiting?
Hearing this, Zhao Tuo also frowned and turned to look at the few Chu people waiting beside him.
Lu Wan smiled awkwardly.
Fengpei was originally the land of the Song Dynasty. Later, the State of Qi destroyed the Song Dynasty and returned to the State of Qi. When the Five Kingdoms conquered Qi, Chu occupied the abundant land under the pretext of aiding Qi.
Therefore, it had only been about sixty years since Fengfei belonged to the Chu State. Lu Wan was neither an old Chu native nor a commoner, so naturally he could not understand what those people in the city were saying.
Only Zhong Lizhen and Cai Wu's expressions changed slightly.
At this time, the song in the city happened to sing: "I and you are speeding together, leading the emperor to the nine pits. The spiritual clothes are quilt, the jade pendant is Lu Li. One yin and one yang, no one knows what I am doing."
Cai Wu looked sad and hesitated to speak.
Zhongli Mei also frowned, and after a slight hesitation, he still said: "This is a poem to worship Da Siming. People in Chu worship ghosts and gods, and use wizards to communicate with the gods and pray. Da Siming is the god of life and death in Chu. , Judging from the future, this bearer is probably asking the God of Heaven to come and send down his divine power to destroy our army."
Zhao Tuo blinked, and when he reacted, he laughed.
"Our King of Chu...is really different."
The enemy's army came to the city. Instead of strictly guarding the city and preparing for the city's defense, they instead prayed to the gods to show their power and destroy the enemy army. This kind of operation is really surprising.
However, Zhao Tuo thought about it carefully and found that this behavior was actually in line with the background of the times. Not to mention the ancient Warring States Period, even a thousand years later, there was no shortage of such things.
If he remembers correctly, in the year of Jingkang in later generations, the Jin army came to Bianliang City.
Faced with the danger of national subjugation, the two Song emperors invited the "Taoist master" Guo Jing.
The master did what he did on the spot and created a "Liujia Magic Weapon".
This magical weapon is said to be protected by magical talismans and is invulnerable.
The divine soldiers came out of the city to fight against the Jin army.
Then, there was the Jingkang Incident and the two emperors went hunting in the north.
In Zhao Tuo's view, the Chu king's deeds in this city were similar to those of the two Song emperors in later generations.
Fu Chu is also a wonderful person.
Zhao Tuo smiled and shook his head. When he turned his head, he found that several honest generals around him and many people in the Qin army behind had worried faces.
"General... do you think this King of Chu really invited the gods to kill us?"
Black Butt, who had always been extremely bold, now spoke with a worried look on his face.
Not only Black Buttocks, except for Shejian who remained expressionless, Xiqigu, Zhang He, Bai Rong, Lu Wan, Zhongli Mei, Cai Wu and other Chu people also had worried expressions on their faces.
Zhao Tuo suddenly realized.
He comes from a later generation, so naturally he is not afraid of the kind of pretentiousness that Ling Chu does.
However, Zhao Tuo's officers and soldiers were all locals. They had lived in a superstitious society since childhood, so they could not easily abandon the influence of the theory of gods and ghosts.
The so-called major affairs of the country lie in sacrifice and military affairs.
In this era, not only was the worship of ghosts and gods strong in Chu, but even the Qin State in the West believed in ghosts and gods from top to bottom.
The Qin State not only had official sacrifices to gods and gods of mountains and rivers, but also a series of miscellaneous sacrifices among the people such as Chen Bao, Nu Te, and Hu Hou.
It can be said that the theory of ghosts and gods has already penetrated the hearts of most people in this era.
It is impossible for Zhao Tuo to say something like "the theory of ghosts and gods is not credible" at this time, because it is completely inconsistent with the background of the times and is completely ineffective.
He raised his brows and opened his mouth to scold: "What are you afraid of? We are following the will of the king and the order of God to conquer Jingchu. We have the protection of our God of Qin. An Neng is afraid of his God of Chu!"
"Could it be that the god of Chu State can also kill the people of Qin State?"
"If this is the case, then how can we, the gods worshiped by the Qin State, have nothing to do with it!"
Zhao Tuo roared, waking everyone up.
Yes, we are the army of the Qin State, and our life and death are governed by the gods of the Qin State.
Your state of Chu has gods, but our state of Qin has no gods?
"Book" says: Only the emperor's God can show his sincerity to the people, if he has perseverance.
"Poetry" also says: The emperor is a God, and he is so distinguished that he monitors all directions and asks for nothing from the people.
The Qin State inherited the worship of gods from the Shang and Zhou Dynasties.
The kings of Qin in the past dynasties would worship the four gods of yellow, red, green and white.
The people of Qin have four gods on their backs, so why should they fear the God of Chu!
The Qin soldiers were all worried, and many of them chanted the names of their Qin gods, seeking refuge.
Seeing that the military morale was renewed, Zhao Tuo no longer hesitated.
The best way to completely eliminate soldiers' fear of ghosts and gods is to crush them.
It doesn’t matter what great commander or young commander the King of Chu summons.
Even if Donghuang Taiyi comes.
You have to take a shot from me first!
"The giant cannon is debugged and ready to launch!"
…
At this time, the sacrificial ceremony on top of the city had reached its final stage.
"Riding on a dragon, riding high, soaring to the sky. The osmanthus branches are hanging there, and the Qiang is more and more thinking about people. What can I do if I am worried about people? I hope that if I have no losses now. I have a duty to protect people's lives. What can I do about separation and union?" "
When the awkward and mysterious sound of sacrifice reaches the end.
The King of Chu looked excited as he lowered his crotch, looked up at the sky, and prayed loudly to the gods in the clouds who seemed to have really arrived.
"Please ask the commander to send down his divine power to kill the Qin army outside the city and all the traitors who betrayed the Chu Kingdom!"
"Please give me orders to take the life of Qin general Zhao Tuo!"
Just when the King of Chu was holding the cud, his voice was high, and his eyes were filled with hope that the gods would take action.
Outside Shouchun City, the Qin army's cannons had also been aimed at the city head and their angles had been adjusted.
Zhao Tuo stood on the chariot and looked at the bizarre scene on top of the city in the distance.
He drew his sword, pointed it, and shouted: "Fire!"
For information on gods in this chapter, please refer to "Research on Qin Sacrifice".
Regarding "God", it is the oldest divine name since the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. From the Zhou Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty, it was worshiped by emperors of all dynasties for thousands of years. The Temple of Heaven in the imperial capital was where the monarchs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties worshiped God, and enshrined the throne of God Haotian.
It is quite disappointing that such an ancient local god is now crowned as a foreign god.
(End of chapter)
