Xiazhou.
"General, we are still fifty miles away from the capital!"
"There doesn't seem to be any ambush along the way."
A general said to Fan Hanzhong.
"It's interesting. Along the way, Xiazhou didn't even have any troops ambushed. It seems that they have completely withdrawn to defend the capital."
"That's quite clever."
Fan Hanzhong nodded and said.
For Cao Kang's people, if they really left some scattered troops in Xiazhou to block Fan Hanzhong, not only would they not be able to stop Fan Hanzhong and the others, but these troops would not be able to be saved.
Therefore, the best way is to simply abandon the outermost defense and use all our strength to defend the capital.
"Pass my order. It's getting late today. We'll be stationed on the spot to rest. We'll launch a general attack on the capital early tomorrow morning."
Fan Hanzhong said to everyone.
"General, judging from the number of people currently mobilized here in the capital, there are almost more than 200,000 people."
"If so many people concentrate on defending the city, I'm afraid it won't be easy for us to fight."
A general said to Fan Hanzhong.
"Yes, and along the way, in order to have the greatest impact, our marching speed was deliberately suppressed. I am afraid that so far, sufficient defense materials have been prepared in the city. This will be a tough battle."
"And for the capital, there is no other way but to attack by force!"
"Since ancient times, the most powerful way is to capture the capital in a dignified manner, but every time, it will basically be a sea of blood and a mountain of corpses."
“There are so many of us, and we don’t know how many will be left.”
Fan Hanzhong said very sadly.
"But didn't Zhangzhou Mu specially send many strange weapons from Heyang County?"
"And there are a lot of catapults."
"How can it be different from what we had before?"
"With these things, we don't have to be afraid of them at all."
A general said to Fan Hanzhong.
"What difference can it make?"
"Isn't it just those weird things thrown up?"
"When fighting, you still have to rely on real swords and guns. Normally, he can just use it by himself. Now that he is using it here, we can't take it so seriously!"
Fan Hanzhong said to the man.
There was a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone.
"But, General, I heard that Wu Dayong and his men used this kind of thing to repel Ma Yaohan's hundreds of thousands of troops, and that Zhao Sunlong and his men also used this kind of thing to forcibly defeat the enemy in Jeju. From north to south, no city can stop us."
The general hesitated for a moment and said to Fan Hanzhong.
"Is it?"
"Is this thing so powerful?"
"Then take it with you first and wait until it doesn't work before you use it!"
"I'm telling you, in wars, people should be the most important thing. Otherwise, in future wars, people won't need any command and will just fight with these messy things. What do we, the generals, need to do?"
"I have told you more than once that fighting a war depends on the bravery of the soldiers. You cannot always rely on crooked ways and opportunism."
"This is a rare opportunity to attack the city. You guys should watch carefully. In the future, you will have to rely on yourselves."
Fan Hanzhong said to his men.
Whether he likes it or not, this is his last expedition.
What he needs to do more now is to leave something behind for the soldiers behind him.
After coming out of Fan Hanzhong's military tent, several generals looked at each other.
"Do you feel that the general may be left behind this time?"
"Yes, although the general is powerful, he can't accept some new things. No matter what, this time we attack the capital, we can give the general a good look."
"But let's take it easy and don't scare the general. There are still a lot of things sent by Zhang Zhoumu this time."
"It's better to use it at critical times as much as possible, and don't use it as soon as it comes up. Let the city be prepared when the time comes."
"That makes sense, so let's do it!"
"..."
at the same time.
Inside the capital.
Cao Kang's men were also watching Fan Hanzhong's situation closely.
Although Cao Kang's men did not have direct contact with Fan Hanzhong along the way, Cao Kang had been paying attention to Fan Hanzhong's movements.
"Your Majesty, Fan Hanzhong and the others have set up camp fifty miles away from the capital. It is estimated that they will launch a general attack on our capital early tomorrow morning."
Cao De said to Cao Kang.
"Early tomorrow morning?"
"Oh...how are they so fast!"
"In this way, tonight before the city is besieged, we will immediately send out troops to the surrounding areas to recruit as many people as we can find."
"Until now, there has been no news from Yang Kang or Che Wuyang's men."
"If I had known this, it would be better not to send them out at that time."
Cao Kang said helplessly.
"Who says it isn't?"
"But there is no need for you to worry, Your Majesty. This time, we can say that after thorough preparations, the food and grass in the city will be enough for all of us for three months."
"In terms of defense, with more supplies than last time, there will definitely be no problem."
"Considering the current situation, even if Fan Hanzhong comes to attack the city, they won't be able to get close to the city wall in less than a month."
"When Fan Hanzhong and his troops are defeated a month later, it might be our chance. Not only can we repel Fan Hanzhong's troops, we can even lead our troops to fight back."
"Hezhou is already empty now. Once there is a problem with Fan Hanzhong's troops, it will be a disaster for the entire Hezhou!"
Cao De comforted Cao Kang.
"Yeah! Of course I understand this."
"This time, you will personally command the defense and be sure to keep Fan Hanzhong's men out!"
"But I can't always tell. I always feel that this matter is not very safe, as if something important has been missed."
Cao Kang frowned and said to Cao De.
"important things?"
"Can't we? We have been quite thorough in our defense this time. There shouldn't be anything we haven't considered, right?"
Cao De also frowned and thought for a while, but didn't think of anything.
"Um?"
"By the way, where is Zhang Bao?"
"Why has there been no news about Zhang Bao in recent times?"
"Now that the troops from Hezhou have begun a general attack on our Xiazhou, why is there no news about Zhang Bao, the mastermind behind it?"
Cao Kang suddenly thought of something.
