Please call me Your Majesty!

Chapter 78: Walking away, Xiang Tengjian, lying dead for more than a hundred miles!

This battle.

Hard to beat.

Chu Shizhao can see detailed numerical data.

Back then, he was able to lead two thousand black-armored cavalry to defeat Wang Shouyi's 100,000 armored soldiers.

The first is that the numerical panel of Xuanjiaqi is high enough.

That was the ace cavalry in Li Shimin's hands, and even the ace division of the entire early Tang Dynasty.

The second is that Wang Shouyi's army traveled a long distance and crossed natural barriers to forcefully resist.

The third is that cavalry has an absolute advantage over infantry. They can run or retreat when they want, let alone this kind of elite cavalry. As long as the first round of charge breaks the enemy's courage and causes a collapse in morale, it will be easy to persuade the enemy to retreat.

In fact, the effect Chu Shizhao achieved that time was to persuade Wang Shouyi to retreat.

We did not completely annihilate the enemy's troops.

Seeing that the situation was not right, Wang Shouyi did not continue to fight.

The difficulties Chu Shizhao faced this time were too obvious. Jingzhou's surrender had only been a few months, and Chu Shizhao had no time to operate the city, let alone train any soldiers.

Those guarding Jingzhou were all veterans with a large number of new recruits.

Once a major defeat occurs, the entire line will be defeated. What Chu Shizhao said about the rapid decline is not an empty statement at all. As long as the Poyang gap is opened, it will almost be a situation where Wang Shouyi will defeat them all.

Therefore, Chu Shizhao needed not only to defend himself but also external assistance. However, after looking around, he found that the only person who could possibly provide help was Yang Fang, a person he had met once in the past.

The Han generals began with Han Xin and ended with Jiang Wei.

Chu Shizhao didn't know whether Yang Fang could be as tough as his ancestor, but among all the options, the only one who might be chosen was Yang Fang from Nanyang. He was closest to the battlefield and most likely to provide help to Chu Shizhao.

Therefore, he trusted the people he employed, and did not employ those he doubted. Chu Shizhao directly asked Wen Yu to find Yang Fang. He did not ask Yang Fang to work for him directly, but at least wanted to see if Wen Yu could convince Yang Fang to help him.

The Nanyang Incident gave Chu Shizhao a glimmer of hope for victory.

Do everything you can, should, or at least the right things. Then it all depends on whether God will bless you.

This is the fate of the Great Zhou.

If you can't hold on, it means you're doomed.

[In February of the third year of Kaiyang, Yang Fang took advantage of Wang Shouyi's lack of troops and advanced all the way. However, the situation in Poyang was extremely bad. In order to show his combat power and to break down the psychological defenses of the defenders, Wang Shouyi dispatched troops to surround Poyang with more than ten layers, set up more than a hundred military camps, and military flags were everywhere. The sound of gongs and drums could be heard dozens of miles away.]

[Wang Shouyi ordered his men to dig tunnels, use battering rams and covered cars to attack the city, and gathered all the siege equipment that could be used, such as crossbows, to fire wildly into the city, with arrows pouring down like rain.]

[The soldiers and civilians in the city were almost unable to go out, and even when going out to fetch water, they had to hold the door above their heads to prevent being hit by arrows.]

[In just seven days, corpses piled up all over the city and outside the city, but Chu Shizhao still did not give up hope. When the number of soldiers defending the city was reduced from 20,000 to only 5,000, he still gritted his teeth and persisted.]

[On the night of February 12, the third year of Kaiyang, some dark fires of unknown origin appeared outside the city of Poyang, followed by a torrential rain and thunder, which made it impossible for Wang Shouyi's army to continue fighting in such bad weather.]

[On February 13, the third year of Kaiyang, troops from other parts of Jingzhou arrived in Poyang one after another to support Chu Shizhao's battle.]

[Chu Shizhao gritted his teeth and led his few remaining soldiers out of the city to welcome these small troops rushing to his aid. In order to further boost morale and shake Wang Shouyi's military resolve, he announced to the public that Yang Fang's troops were coming soon and now was the time to attack from both inside and outside.]

【Under Chu Shizhao's calm and composed attitude, which was almost like "I will win", the morale of the defenders in Poyang and the reinforcements from Jingzhou immediately rose. They were more determined to defend the city and were ready to go out of the city to annihilate the enemy at any time, thinking that victory was imminent.】

【On the other hand, Wang Shouyi's besieged troops were all depressed and their morale was low after seeing Chu Shizhao's heroic performance.】

[On February 15, the third year of Kaiyang, Dong Fei offered advice, saying that if the rebels continued to waste time here, they would just be wasting their strength. It would be better for them to reorganize themselves, retreat to their own territory, and capture Nanjing first.]

【Wang Shouyi suffered repeated setbacks. He was unable to capture Poyang despite having an absolute advantage in military strength. He also had to take a one-day break due to extremely bad weather, which gave the enemy enough time to delay. Faced with Dong Fei, a counselor who kept saying discouraging words, Wang Shouyi imprisoned him and never saw him again.】

[On February 16, the third year of Kaiyang, Dong Fei's brother Dong Feng was furious when he heard about this. They had given advice and judged the situation for the rebels, but they were arrested just because of a disagreement. This was a betrayal. ] [Dong Feng had heard of Chu Shizhao's name for a long time, and realized that the two armies were in a stalemate and it was extremely difficult to determine the winner.]

[In the midst of agony, Dong Feng gritted his teeth and decided to take a risk. ]

[On February 17th of the third year of Kaiyang, Dong Feng surrendered to Chu Shizhao and pointed out the location of the granary of Wang Shouyi's rebel army.]

[Many people were concerned that this was a plot by Wang Shouyi, who wanted to trick Chu Shizhao into taking a risky move and catch him in a trap.]

[Chu Shizhao also found it difficult to make the right decision. He thought Wang Shouyi's attack would soon fail and he would retreat. However, Wang Shouyi did not retreat. Instead, he kept wasting time here, which made Chu Shizhao unpredictable.]

[I don't know where Dong Feng came from, and Chu Shizhao has no friendship with him, so how can he trust his words without being on guard against the doubts that may exist?]

[Under Dong Feng's constant persuasion, Chu Shizhao kept walking back and forth in the tent, and finally showed his sword and said: "A hero is one who has great ambitions in his heart, good plans in his mind, and the ability to contain the universe and swallow up the world."]

[“We can indeed defend this place, but if we can keep all these people here, then we can secure the south.”]

[Chu Shizhao looked at the other party with his handsome features, as if he was still considering whether the other party's words and actions were credible.]

[Dong Feng had come here because he was angry, but under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he also realized how hasty and reckless his actions were, and he didn't know how to win Chu Shizhao's trust.]

[Just as he was about to speak, Chu Shizhao burst into laughter and said, "Gentlemen, our great cause has been accomplished!"]

[“In the past, there were only countless people from Jingzhou who secretly joined the righteous army, but now, there are righteous people who have joined our Shizhao.”]

[“Doesn’t this mean that the bandits have been defeated?”]

[“I have won ten victories, while the bandits have lost ten. Now that Lord Dong has surrendered, the outcome is decided!”]

[On February 21, the third year of Kaiyang, Chu Shizhao selected a death squad of 3,000 men and planned to lead them to attack the core of Wang Shouyi's army from the west of the city.]

[Taking advantage of the chaotic battle, Chu Shizhao ordered another general under his command named Lan Shu to attack Wang Shouyi's granary according to the location provided by Dong Feng.]

[When leaving the city that night, they happened to encounter strong winds and heavy thunderstorms. The temporary military shed in Wang Shouyi's camp was blown away by the strong wind. Heavy rain poured down, the water surged, and there were thunder and lightning. This not only covered up the news that Chu Shizhao had sent people out of the city, but also made Wang Shouyi unable to sleep, so he had to go back and forth to appease the troops.]

[Late at night, Wang Shouyi's camp was attacked by a death squad. Chu Shizhao personally led the death squad to attack the camp, buying time for Lan Shu to launch a surprise attack on the granary and attracting the enemy's attention.]

[Wang Shouyi's generals Zhang Du and Chang He went to fight against Chu Shizhao, but Chu Shizhao's attack was too fierce and decisive. They were no match for Chu Shizhao's troops. Zhang Du was killed on the spot by Chu Shizhao, which caused the morale of Wang Shouyi's army to drop.]

【Wang Shouyi's rebel army was originally composed of poor civilians who did not engage in warfare. They fought mostly in favorable battles along the way. In some places, the government troops almost retreated without a fight. When they were outnumbered, they dared to fight. However, they encountered such bad weather one after another, and failed to capture Poyang. Now they encountered Chu Shizhao's surprise attack that almost cut off their own retreat, and their morale collapsed even more severely.】

[Afterwards, Lan Shu ordered his men to push all the food of Wang Shouyi's army into the water. After cutting off the enemy's granary, he made a judgment on the battlefield and chose to act on his own initiative. He did not return to the city and decided to go back to support Chu Shizhao and kill him with a surprise attack.]

【The sudden appearance of Lan Shu from behind made Wang Shouyi's troops think that they were the troops of 'Nanyang Yang Fang', which immediately caused the morale of the rebels to drop further. 】

[After Chu Shizhao and Lan Shu attacked from both inside and outside, the side with fewer troops actually fought like the side with more people. The courageless rebels abandoned the battle and fled.]

[The fleeing rebels pushed each other, and the strong wind and heavy rain became more and more intense, making it impossible for Wang Shouyi and his guards to stand, and the horses accompanying the team trembled with fear. ]

[More than 10,000 rebel soldiers fell into the water and drowned. The water was filled with corpses. Wang Shouyi almost had to step on the corpses of the rebels blocking the river before he found a chance to cross the river and escape.]

[In the Zhou Shu Zhuan, the historian described this shocking scene as: "People were trampling on each other, and corpses were lying for more than a hundred miles."]

[On February 22, the third year of Kaiyang, Chu Shizhao defeated Wang Shouyi's rebel army, almost annihilating Wang Shouyi's troops. Only Wang Shouyi, a few of his elite cavalry guards, and some capable generals found the right opportunity and were able to escape.]

[Chu Shizhao thus seized a large amount of supplies and siege equipment left behind by Wang Shouyi's troops.]

【Wang Shouyi's disastrous defeat in the Battle of Poyang shocked almost everyone in the army.】

[And this is the most famous chapter in Zhou Shu - "The Battle of Poyang".]

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(End of this chapter)