But it was said that Liu Yi led 30,000 troops and 20,000 civilians to besiege Duchang for almost a month.
Although the city of Qamdo was not big, with only a few thousand troops inside, it would take a lot of casualties to capture the city.
It is undoubtedly a bad idea to let the soldiers attack the city under the rain of arrows. What a real master emphasizes is to conquer the enemy without fighting!
I have long heard that Kong Rong was an incompetent state minister and was beaten by tens of thousands of Yellow Turban troops at the beginning and cowered in the city without daring to come out. Now Liu Yi leads 30,000 elite troops!
Moreover, once Beihai is conquered, sooner or later it will be our own territory, so why fight to the death of both sides?
Therefore, Liu Yi did not completely besiege Duchang City. Instead, he surrounded the city on three sides, leaving one side aside, and adopted quite satisfactory tactics.
Let Kong Rong see a glimmer of hope. It would be best if he could abandon the city and flee, or simply open the city and surrender.
At the same time, he asked civilians and soldiers to build earthen platforms and dig trenches in the east of the city, and put pressure on Kong Rong in a posture of attacking the city.
Liu Yi was also a cautious person and sent out scouts to conduct reconnaissance within fifty miles around Duchang City in case reinforcements came to aid Kong Rong or grain, grass and baggage were brought into the city.
On this day, Liu Yi rode around the military camp as usual, and then returned to his Chinese army tent and sat by the charcoal fire to warm himself.
The soldiers brought steaming food and wine on wooden trays, and Liu Yi was about to enjoy it when he heard a rush of footsteps and a scout with sweat on his forehead stumbled in.
Liu Yi knew that something must have happened, but he still pretended to be unfazed by the collapse of the mountain and said, "Why are you so panicked!"
Seeing that the coach was so calm, the scout was a little ashamed of his panic. He swallowed and said:
"General... General! Found thirty miles south of the city... found a large group of soldiers walking towards Qamdo!
There are probably more than a thousand cavalry and three to four thousand infantry, with sophisticated weapons and neat military appearance. I wonder where the reinforcements came from!
The villain and others wanted to investigate more carefully, but the enemy's traces were exposed and the enemy sent a cavalry to chase us.
Those cavalrymen were really good at firing volleys. Of the ten of us who went out, only... I was the only one who managed to escape. The rest were shot to death! "
Liu Yi still had an unfazed expression: "There are only four to five thousand people! Do you know how much baggage they brought?"
The scout said with a face of shame: "This... General, forgive me. I only wanted to come back and report the situation to the general, so... I was unable to find out how much baggage they had behind..."
Liu Yi was not angry, he just nodded and said: "It's okay! You've worked hard too, go down and have a good rest! I'll reward you with a leg of lamb and a jar of good wine!"
The scout went down with tears of gratitude.
Liu Yi tore off a chicken leg, took a bite of it and said, "Send the order, let the whole army have a good rest tonight!
Send out more scouts and be sure to find out all the situations of this unit before reporting back!
If this army wants to force its way into Qamdo City tomorrow, stop them outside the city if they can. If you can't stop them, don't fight them. As long as they don't bring any luggage, don't worry about them!
If there is any baggage or food behind them, they must intercept it and not allow a single grain or blade of grass to be transported into the city! "
At the same time, Taishi Ci took a bite of the dry meat, chewed it hard in his mouth and said:
"Get ready to break out into the city tomorrow morning! I will lead the cavalry in the lead, Ji Ling, you will lead the infantry in the rear.
If Liu Yi resists desperately, there is no need to confront him head-on. I will use roundabout ways to consume them.
I have sent someone to send a message to Kong Beihai in the city, and he will wait for the right time to send someone out of the city to respond.
You don't have to take the initiative, just watch the opportunity and attack from behind with the people in the city, and you will be able to defeat the enemy! "
"Take the prize and obey!"
Although Ji Ling was much older than Tai Shi Ci, he had experienced Tai Shi Ci's power and did not dare to raise the slightest objection.
Early the next morning, Liu Yi mobilized 3,000 troops from the east and north, forming a three-sided attack and setting up a pocket formation outside the south gate of the city.
Liu Yi, who is familiar with military art, naturally knows the tactics of encircling a point and attacking for reinforcements.
If he could eat these five thousand men and horses in one go, it would even scare Kong Rong in the city.
Maybe Kong Rong saw that the reinforcements were defeated and felt that there was no hope for him to hold on any longer, so he surrendered to Kaicheng!
Finally, a group of cavalry slowly approached amid the billowing smoke from the south.
"Get ready to meet the enemy!" Liu Yi couldn't help but swallowed when he looked at the dark cavalry hundreds of steps away.
It's not that he is scared, but that Liu Yi is really jealous of these fat and strong horses!
Liu Yi has also followed Gongsundu for many years. There is no shortage of horses in Liaodong. Whether it is fighting nomadic peoples such as Wuhuan, Xianbei or Fuyu, they naturally rely on cavalry to fight against them.
But after arriving in Laizhou, because Liaodong was separated by a vast ocean, all soldiers and supplies had to be transported to Donglai by sea ship.
Fortunately, the soldiers said, transporting the horses was too troublesome.
Moreover, attacking and defending the city did not require much cavalry, so Gongsun Du only gave him a thousand horses.
This made Liu Yi, who was used to commanding cavalry, very uncomfortable.
If I could catch all the cavalry on the opposite side today and snatch their horses, wouldn't I be able to have more cavalry?
Two arrows apart, the two sides stood still. Liu Yi urged his horse forward and shouted loudly:
"I am Liu Yi, the governor of Yingzhou under the banner of the Marquis of Liaodong! Where did the team on the other side come from? Are they here to save Kong Rong!
If you are wise, dismount your horse and surrender quickly. The Marquis of Liaodong is a wise master who loves talents and scholars. If you surrender sincerely, you will be of great use!
Otherwise, today will be your anniversary next year! "
Before the expedition, Lu Bu had specifically warned him not to deliberately report that it was Lu Bu who had sent troops to help, for fear of scaring Liu Yi away.
Taishi Ci didn't waste any time, he just bent his bow and arrow, and shot Liu Yi with a single arrow.
It's just that the distance is too far. Although Taishi Ci is unparalleled in archery, the arrow was already at the end of its power when it reached Liu Yi, and was deflected by Liu Yi with his spear.
Even so, Liu Yi was shocked: He could shoot so accurately from such a long distance. The general opposite was so good at archery!
Therefore, he did not dare to show off anymore and retreated to his own formation, preparing to command and face the enemy.
Taishi Ci gave an order, and thousands of cavalry followed Taishi Ci and rushed toward Liu Yi's camp.
Liu Yi couldn't help being furious: Whose general is this! How could you be so rude? He didn't even say hello when he went into battle!
However, seeing the menacing appearance of Taishi Ci's troops, he did not dare to neglect them, and hurriedly asked the soldiers to raise their weapons and prepare for the attack. The crossbowmen in the back row also cocked their crossbows and fired arrows at random as soon as the opponent came into range.
Unexpectedly, before entering the shooting range, Taishi Ci turned his horse's head, led the cavalry to make a ninety-degree turn, and then fired a row of volleys, and the arrows flew over like locusts!
Horse archers charge? What tactic is this?
Liu Yi, who has been fighting against the nomadic peoples in the wilderness of the Northeast for a long time, is also a little confused.
Although there was a shield protecting the front, arrows falling from the sky hit the soldiers in the back row, and screams were heard.
The crossbowmen were all looking at Liu Yi: To shoot or not to shoot?
Liu Yi gritted his teeth and waved his hand: "Fire the arrow!"
