Outside Shouchun City.
Although there are enemies on all sides, the only ones that can really attack the city are the north and the east.
To the west of Shouchun City is the Lijiang River, and no troops have arrived here. Therefore, Yuan Shu can deploy troops on the city, and there is a steady stream of spare troops in the city that can be replenished at any time.
A few months later, all the strong men he had forcibly recruited had been exhausted by Cao's army countless times. The people in Shouchun City hated them to the core, but the remaining people were either old people, women and children. Toddlers.
There was no way to resist.
There are people everywhere in the streets and alleys of the city. They all rely on the streets and beg for food. They only have one meal of solid food every day. Their life depends on Yuan Jun. However, when the war is not going well, Yuan Jun is mostly irritable and will be angry at the slightest word of dissatisfaction. Killing people in the street.
Military discipline can no longer be restrained, causing people's resentment to be hidden in their hearts. Women and children are bullied, but they dare not cry.
But recently, Cao Cao sent out reports to investigate the city's defenses, and it seemed that many sergeants were missing from the city.
So Cao Cao, Guo Jia, and Xun You went to check it out in person. Sure enough, they saw that there were still many flags, but the number of soldiers stationed on the city had decreased a lot. They could see these changes, but they couldn't guess what happened.
"Why is this so?"
"Could it be that Yuan Shu's troops are no longer enough?"
When getting off the platform, Cao Cao murmured to himself, thinking deeply about this situation.
Xun You beside him hesitated to speak, looking a little strange. He was planning to speak first, but seeing Guo Jia beside him, he smiled and stepped back, letting him speak first.
Guo Jia approached Cao Cao and said: "Yuan Shu has enough troops and horses. He has more than 200,000 men stationed in the high city. He used strong men to block the city first. I don't think he will withdraw the city defense at this time..."
"My guess is that dividing the troops into simple camps and defending them in batches can allow some of the troops to rest and make our army more exhausted."
Xun You was on the side ready to speak again, but after thinking about it, he stood back and walked with a smile and bowed his head.
Cao Cao caught this scene, turned slightly and asked: "What do you think of Gongda?"
"Haha." People who are benevolent and virtuous do not live up to their reputation."
"Therefore, given the situation of the war and the withdrawal of many troops, I believe that the city is already empty and the morale of the army is unpredicted. Yuan Shu is already discouraged and has moved all the money, food, baggage, and rich products to his own palace. On the palace wall Build its high walls for protection.”
"The sergeants are resisting foreign enemies outside, and there is a wall of troops in the inner city. I suggest that we send out troops to attack immediately without stopping. We attack the north and east within a few days. As for the south, as long as the war is chaotic and the manpower cannot support it, perhaps Lord Bochang We can build a wooden bridge to cross the moat and the river."
The moat in the south is several feet wide, and boats can pass through it. People used to live along the river, which allowed them to survive and survive.
Later, after the war broke out, all the houses were destroyed, and all the food stored in the family was robbed and moved to Shouchun City.
Although the city in the south is blocked by ground barriers, if Zhang Han wants to cross the river, he only needs to hold on for a stick of incense for half an hour, and he may be able to pass.
"Fengxiao, what do you think?"
Guo Jia was thinking about it, but when he heard Cao Cao's urging, he immediately said: "I was thinking wrong just now. Naturally, I don't understand Yuan's habits as well as Gongda. It should be as he said."
"The sacrifice of wine is ridiculous. The Art of War says that you can be surrounded by ten. Now we are short of troops and it seems difficult to capture, but we can still surround Shouzhang? This is very reasonable."
"Why can this be so?"
"Probably because the enemy's army was weak and our elite troops were strong, the Shouchun defenders did not dare to attack. Therefore, from the beginning, they just planned to hold on and defend to death, but they did not know that if they defend for a long time, they will lose."
"It can be seen that Sikong Dayi came with elite troops and marched secretly for hundreds of miles in winter. After going through hardships, the achievements he achieved have shocked the soldiers and civilians of Jiujiang."
"Yuan Shu, don't dare to fight against Sikong."
"I believe that we should rest for a few days, feed the soldiers, and reward them to cheer them up. They can reward the Shouchun rebels with gold and silver from the palace. If we continue to work hard, we can take advantage of this opportunity to open the Shouchun city gate."
"My Excellency, I second the proposal." After Guo Jia thought about it, he handed it over doubtfully.
He felt that Xun You saw it more clearly. It was close to autumn when Yuan Shu was here, when his hope was at his slimmest and his troops were tired.
The soldiers who attacked the fortress were naturally tired, but those who defended the city were also anxious and uneasy. Thinking of this, Guo Jia chuckled and said: "Oh, if Yuan Shu is really like the late emperor, Dong Thief, and Gongsun Zan, he took wealth for himself and built the West Garden and Meiwu. , Yi Jing gathered around to protect him, completely treating other people's lives as nothing, then... the day the city was destroyed, that was when Yuan Shu's troops collapsed."
"Well said," Cao Cao walked on the battlefield of the military camp with his hands behind his back. On his left and right, there were flags flying and guards coming and going.
After thinking for ten steps, Cao Cao squeezed his hand behind his back and breathed a long sigh of relief and said: "Give Bochang and Xuande an order. After three days, Shouchun will be conquered. There is no need to hold back any more."
"The autumn harvest is when people in Shouchun are most panicked. If it is delayed until winter, they will definitely regain their military morale."
"In this case, there is no need to give Yuan Shu this opportunity. Xu Du is probably waiting for this news, no... the whole world is waiting for this news."
…
On the third day, Cao Cao launched another general attack on the eve of dawn. When it was dark, the defenders on the city could vaguely see crowds of people.
When they got close, they lit up torches and shouted to kill. The dead soldiers at the head of the queue carried the ladder and escorted them to the door.
There was only a moment of silence before dawn, and then arrows rained down like a rain of arrows. They raised their hands and shot. The soldiers on the city ran around calling to wake up their sleeping comrades.
The war turned intense in an instant.
At the same time, the east gate attacked fiercely. A general with extremely dark skin and a thunderous roar held a snake spear and shouted orders.
Countless soldiers walked in front of him, protecting him and going straight to the city gate. Under the rain of arrows, they used shields in front of them. When they were within a hundred steps, they began to charge in formation, staring at the rain of arrows and the Implement and push the battering ram through.
"Let's go!! Break the city!!"
Zhang Fei shouted at the top of his lungs, and Chen Dao led countless dead soldiers to rush out like crazy, with overwhelming momentum, heading straight to the city.
The shouts of killing blocked all the orders of the defenders on the city. This army was like a pack of wolves and tigers, fearless and hot-blooded, rushing like rolling thunder.
Guan Yu and Liu Bei were both in the rearguard formation, constantly sending more elite troops. They were also knowledgeable soldiers and knew that in such a battle, no one party could be lazy and miss the opportunity.
"Brother, I'm going to help my third brother!"
"Yun Chang, be careful. We have attacked the east gate dozens of times, with heavy casualties. Now that all the elites are here, we cannot take it lightly."
"Know!"
Guan Yu rode away on horseback, first going around the city to disrupt the direction of the bows and arrows of the soldiers on the city, so that Zhang Fei and others could attack them.
At the same time, the school swordsmen he led all abandoned their long soldiers and held large shields. They led the horses from both sides to the inside at the same time. They could hold up the shields to resist arrows and even roll down stones.
For a time, the fighting was so fierce that the defenders at the city gate were exhausted.
How could they, who had already lost half of their people in the past few days, withstand this more fierce attack than usual?
"Tonight, I'm afraid something big will happen," Liu Bei was watching from a distance, his eyes flashing, and he murmured to himself as he stood tall on the horse's back.
…
South of Shouchun.
In the quiet night, they also traveled at night. Zhang Xiu and Zhang Han each led their troops across the river and stationed camps outside the south gate.
Previous investigations revealed that there were approximately 5,000 men in the camp guarding the river crossings, bridges and boats.
The river is not deep, about a man tall, but war horses are not allowed to pass. The armor worn by the soldiers is also very heavy. If they enter the river, their robes will add even more weight, making it difficult to move.
Therefore, this place was a difficult situation in front of them. Fires were everywhere in Shouchun City, and as the sky was getting brighter, the defenders on the other side were also on guard.
Zhang Hanke saw sentinels coming and going in and out of the camp from a distance, they must be sending messages.
"I don't know how the battle ahead will be, but we must make some achievements and mobilize the soldiers and horses from the camp by the river before we can cross the river."
In advance, Cao Ang and Zhang Han received Cao Cao's flying cavalry order two days ago and knew that the time had come to attack the outer city of Shouchun today.
He immediately cut down the nearby bamboo forest and made rafts. He also distributed individual swords to the elite Suwei and organized the cavalry under Zhang Liao and Gao Shun.
Tonight, we will take advantage of the chaos and use the bamboo raft as a carrier to cross the river briskly, so that we can send these swordsmen across first.
But now, they have been waiting until dawn, and under the dark vision, no one in this camp has made any move.
"Your Majesty, the armament of this camp is not very sophisticated, and there shouldn't be many defenders in Nancheng," Yang Xiu had stayed in the Shouchun North Camp before and had read a lot of military reports.
In my memory, there were not many defenders at the south gate, and the military camp guarding the ferry was not elite. They were soldiers and horses who had retreated from the city and were stationed at the ferry outside the city.
It is used to attract people, and the bridge is built at night to guard against intruders.
"If the north and east can mobilize the South Gate garrison, we can take advantage of it. If we still can't, we can only stay here and guard Huainan."
"Well, go and give the order to hide the bamboo raft. It's almost dawn. Don't wait for the opportunity."
"Wei," after receiving the order, Yang Xiu immediately turned around to deliver the order. After a while, the bamboo raft fell to the ground and was hidden behind the woods.
The birds in the forest here have been driven away early, and there are no hidden dangers.
Zhang Han waited at the ferry for about four or five hours and felt disappointed. Just when he thought that the attack was not going well, cavalry suddenly entered the camp.
At this moment, the entire camp on the other side of the river seemed to be moving. Zhang Han immediately called Gao Shun and Dian Wei to prepare.
When the people in the camp visually inspected the number of three thousand, Zhang Han knew that the time had come.
"Get out of the raft and cross the river immediately!"
He immediately made a decision. The black-robed armor lost its horse and was still very fast. Four people were dragged out of the forest on a raft and rushed to the river bank.
Groups of people began to cross the river. When the sentries on the other side of the river noticed and started to fire arrows to block them, Zhang Han stood on a raft and ordered to raise the round shield.
For a moment, all the black-robed soldiers raised their shields to resist, but the rain of arrows could not hurt them at all.
It took about half a stick of incense to get stuck, just as the opponent's spearmen and cavalry were gathering.
There were only a few hundred cavalry and one or two thousand spearmen. Zhang Han took the lead and rushed directly to the shore. He took the lead in charging into the crowd with a long spear, followed by everyone in black robes, including Gao Shun and Dian Wei.
Without horses, the halberd troops led by Dian Wei were particularly outstanding. Even Ji Boxiao charged forward with a halberd.
After approaching the cavalry, he threw the halberd vigorously, which was much harder than the arrows. In the first round of throwing, rows of bright silver and snow-white luster passed by, disturbing the cavalry in the front row.
After killing more than a dozen people and dismounting, the formation was in chaos. Zhang Han immediately charged into the enemy's formation and strode forward.
The enemy troops in front of them could not stop them. When Gao Shun and others followed up, soldiers went to capture the sentry points at the suspension bridge and the long bridge.
After breaking through the enemy's position at a narrow point and lowering the two suspension bridges, the cavalry charged across the bridge and then crossed the river and rolled away.
Half an hour later, Zhang Han stationed in the south and waited for the large forces to assemble. Zhang Xiu and Cao Ang led the troops and horses from behind and passed slowly. It would take at least half an hour to fully cross the river. At the same time, they had to be careful that there were still enemies nearby. Army raid.
"Your Majesty," while waiting, Jia Xu came to Zhang Han first, his expression as usual: "At this time, since Yuan Shu has transferred the soldiers and horses of the south camp, it means that there is a barrier in the city. I don't know whether it is the east gate or the north gate. Door."
"The defenders at the south gate are weak, so we should not delay any longer. If we attack the city now, we can crush the enemy's morale!"
The implication of these words is to continue to attack slowly for fear that the enemy troops will gather in the south and want to break out.
Zhang Han thought for a while and sighed: "My soldiers and horses are not suitable for attacking the fortress. Let Zhang Youwei lead the army first. I will welcome Zixiu here and will arrive soon!"
"Okay, Your Majesty is righteous!" Jia Xu bowed his hands. At this time, he was still willing to give up the credit of being the first to the young general. Although the Junhou seemed petty on the surface, it was only on the surface.
In fact, he is never vague in the face of great righteousness, has an open mind, and does not interfere with important matters based on his personal likes and dislikes.
True temperament.
Not long after, Zhang Xiu's soldiers and horses took the lead and quickly rushed to Nancheng to attack. However, the siege equipment was still slowly coming from behind, so they could only attack it with manpower first.
"Once the heavy troops from the south gate arrive, the defender's mind will definitely be unstable. Maybe he can still take it without us arriving," Zhang Han said in a deep voice.
Jia Xu nodded repeatedly: "That's the reason. If we delay a little now, the defenders at the south gate may be transferred to the north and east to garrison, thus adding more military strength to those two sides."
"However, if the south gate is also attacked, it will not only be as simple as the soldiers in the city being exhausted, but also that the soldiers will be distracted and have no intention of resisting."
…
Shouchun.
Since early in the morning, the loud shouts of killing have not stopped, and the soldiers in the city always feel that the enemy is attacking the city everywhere.
During the previous battle, they were clearly outnumbered by the defenders in the city, but now hundreds of thousands of people were shouting for movement.
The east gate was broken, the north gate was climbed first, and there were actually defenders at the south gate. You must know that the south gate is separated by a river, but they were all crossed by the river bank and killed here.
Ji Ling, who was guarding the city, was on the north gate tower to resist Cao's troops who were constantly climbing up the city. While taking a break, he received news from his personal guards.
His heart tightened, he gasped for air, his face with scars turned slightly, and he asked in a trembling voice: "Who is leading the army?"
"Zhang Xiu is Zhang Ji's old unit. There may be 30,000 troops here. The defenders at the south gate are weak and will be lost soon."
"Alas!!" Ji Ling sighed and looked up at the sky. He didn't know how to hold on. During the battle, the situation was so critical that the soldiers were like tight strings that could break at any time.
At this time, Duke Yuan actually took away most of his elite men to defend the imperial city.
He also took money from the inner city and built a high wall for defense. This approach was equivalent to abandoning the soldiers and soldiers guarding the outer city, as well as the thousands of people waiting in the streets for the war to end.
The hundreds of thousands of lives outside seemed to be nothing to him.
Could such a person be His Majesty the Emperor who descended from heaven to earth to act on behalf of heaven?
They did not know whether the Han Dynasty would perish, but the next emperor must not be such a person, let alone such a person.
"We can't hold it anymore," Ji Ling threw the big knife in his hand. It was too heavy and he couldn't lift it.
The morale of the Beicheng army fell to the bottom for a while, and it was difficult to hold on to the East Gate after that.
There are still tens of thousands of soldiers in the outer city, but they are unwilling to climb the tower to fight again.
In Shouchun, the city was besieged for more than five months. Cao's army was surrounded on all sides, although the number of soldiers, horses and armaments on both sides were almost the same.
However, they still surrendered on one side of the city and were attacked by the enemy on both sides. Cao's army entered the city and saw a scene that made people unable to rob.
Although it is said that corpses litter the fields outside the city and the water does not flow, inside the city it is plagued by mosquitoes and the roads do not bury bones.
Many people in the streets were already rotten, crying loudly, and wailing everywhere.
After Zhang Xiu broke through the city, he did not rush in to make a name for himself. Instead, he waited for Zhang Han at the door.
The two of them led the crowd into the city together, and naturally saw this scene. They were speechless for a long time.
"I'm afraid, the whole city is in this situation."
"Although Wancheng treated the people like slaves back then, it would never be like this." Zhang Xiu was a good martial artist. He had been fighting for many years and was used to life and death.
But at this time, it was still shocking.
(End of chapter)
