The Chu army deputy general shook his head.
The other generals also sighed, and one said: "The river has been drained, and it won't be long before the Qin army attacks the city."
Hearing this, Hanzhou turned his eyes and asked, "Has the Wu army not sent troops north to garrison Linzhang yet?"
"The imperial court should still be negotiating with the State of Wu." Someone returned.
"Linzhang cannot be occupied by the Qin army, otherwise the situation in Xiangyang will not be optimistic. Your Majesty should understand this..."
Linzhang, located southeast of Xiangyang, is also a large city. If troops are stationed there, the defense line can be expanded and closely combined with Xiangyang.
The Qin army is currently unable to besiege Xiangyang on all sides, and can only attack the northwest line.
Hanzhou's letter requesting the establishment of a defense line in Linzhang has long been sent back, and the Chu royal court has indeed been negotiating with Wu on this matter.
A few days later, the Qin army began large-scale earth filling works.
Don't worry about the vastness of the city river, which seems impossible to complete, but with hundreds of thousands of troops, the manpower is terrible. Even one person and one spade, that's how much soil it takes.
The hard soil by the river was definitely not enough, so Xiao Yuan immediately ordered a group of soldiers to go to the nearby hillside, load soil into sacks, and transport it to the front line in trucks.
The fortifications here are in full swing, and the Chu army is also holding urgent discussions on this.
In the hall, a partial general said: "The Qin army has many troops and huge manpower. If this continues, the Ximen River will soon be filled up. By then, we will lose all the defensive advantages of the moat."
Another person said: "But if we open the city and set up a crossbow array by the river, with the current distance, our army will not be able to shoot arrows at all, but will be within the Qin army's arrow array."
Han Zhou frowned: "Then wait until the Qin army's fortifications are halfway through and reach the arrow shooting distance, and then stop their actions."
There is nothing that can be done about it. The two sides are now separated by a river about 40 feet wide. You can't reach the other side, but the other side can reach you. If you go out now, it will be no different than dying in vain.
As time went by, the fortifications advanced day by day, and the filling range finally approached the middle section of the river.
At this time, the filling area was about a hundred steps away from the other side. Hanzhou immediately ordered to open the west gate of the city, and a large number of crossbowmen ran out to set up a crossbow formation and shoot arrows at the place where the construction was started, in order to hinder Progress of fortifications.
But the Qin Army’s arrow array was unparalleled in the world. Not only were the soldiers running fast, but the sound of armor scraping was heard all over the place. The crossbow beds had already been pushed to the front line, aiming at the city gate at a cross-right angle. .
There was a squeaking sound, and the tall city gate slowly opened. A large number of Chu army crossbowmen just poured out. Before they reached the river bank, Xiao Yuan waved his right hand.
Make the flag wave.
A Qin general took out his sword from its scabbard and pointed forward: "Fire the arrow——"
At the command, the bowstrings were taut, and countless sharp arrows shot out, like a long black curtain, densely packed, sweeping over!
Plop, plop!
There is nowhere to stand here. The Chu army's crossbowmen who just poured out have been shot over a large area before they can reach the shooting distance.
At the same time, the soldiers swung their swords fiercely, cutting off the thick ropes. The tight crossbow bed rebounded instantly, and with a buzzing sound, several thick crossbow arrows flew away from the string and plunged into the crowd of Chu soldiers.
The huge impact force was devastating, and it penetrated directly through a row of soldiers. It continued unabated and hit the city wall with a bang.
This is too lethal!
There were screams everywhere, and the Qin army fought with long-range shooting, and there was no way to fight back.
Watching this scene on the top of the city, the deputy general of the Chu army said anxiously: "This, this, this, Han Shuai, Qin Nu is the best in the world, and I can't reach it with my arrows. If this continues, the soldiers will suffer heavy casualties..."
"Then what can we do! Are you just watching the Qin army's fortifications complete!" Hanzhou was also furious.
The obstructive action did not stop. After being ravaged by the arrow array, the Chu army's crossbowmen continued to pour out from the city gate.
Inside the city gate, there were also Chu generals who kept shouting and commanding: "Quick! Quick! Follow us!"
Groups of Chu army crossbowmen gritted their teeth, and the sound of armor scraping and rapid running was heard everywhere.
The opponent wanted to engage in a long-range contest, but Xiao Yuan wanted nothing more. He waved the flag again, and the infantry quickly stepped forward, slamming their heavy vertical shields onto the ground, forming a row, like a steel mirror.
After the shields were raised, several rows of crossbowmen were loading their bows and preparing for the second round of arrow formation.
Near the crossbow bed, the sound of clicking sounded continuously, and several soldiers were working together to pull the mechanical device to reload the thick crossbow arrows.
On the opposite side of the river, after the Chu army dropped a pile of corpses, some crossbowmen reached the shooting distance, then drew out their arrows, bent their bows and fired randomly.
But on the Qin Army's side, every round was a volley of uniform movements, and every round was filled with dense black dots, coming towards them!
If this continues, the Chu army will not know how many more people will be killed or injured.
The trebuchets one after another were also pushed out and began to fill the oil jars, projecting arcs and striking Xiangyang City indiscriminately.
Amidst the bursts of explosions, from time to time, firemen let out shrill screams and fell into the city defense.
The deputy general of the Chu army also hurriedly protected Hanzhou: "Han Shuai, this place is dangerous, you'd better go down first..."
Under the extremely sharp long-range attack, it didn't take long at all. There were piles of corpses outside the city gate, blood flowed into rivers, and eagle feathers were stuck all over the ground. The Chu army was already suppressed and did not dare to show its head.
In today's terms, it is to suppress the opponent with absolutely superior firepower and continue to cover the fortifications.
Under this situation, small-scale battles occurred every day. Although the Chu army suffered heavy casualties, it relatively delayed the progress of the fortifications.
But the Qin Army had no intention of giving up, so it was not until more than two months later that the filling work was completely completed.
At this point, the large area outside the west gate of Xiangyang is like flat ground. At a glance, it looks more like the plain outside the pass.
Even if water is released upstream now, the moat will not be able to flood here, because this fortification is extremely huge, so that a large army can attack together.
On this day, the Qin army once again approached the city. They were no longer facing each other across the river. The vanguard was stepping on newly filled flat land.
Looking from the top of the city, there are several neat square formations below, with a horizontal and vertical line, covering the sky and the ground, and everything that comes into view is black armor and red tassels.
Black flags were fluttering, halberds stood in rows, and a murderous atmosphere filled the whole place.
The Chu army's deputy general swallowed subconsciously and murmured: "The Qin army... is about to attack Xiangyang..."
As soon as he finished speaking, on the tall chariot outside the city, Xiao Yuan was dressed in royal robes and had his sword unsheathed:
"Start the war——"
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The exciting war drums sounded, and all the generals drew their swords.
The war horses neighed.
The earth is shaking.
The sound of the neat marching troops was deafening.
"attack--"
The black square formation gradually pressed forward.
The siege of Xiangyang officially began.
