The Three Kingdoms: Zhaolie, the strategist, and the rise of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 103 Chen Deng is horrified, Li Yi is in the midst of a storm, You Nongchaoer (Please subscribe!)
Unlike Yuan Shao in Hebei who was deeply involved in the dispute over succession, Yuan Shu did not have this worry.

He has only one son and one daughter, and Yuan Yao is his only son.

There is not much record of this person in historical materials.

But the brother took advantage of his sister's status and the identity of Sun Quan's brother-in-law to get the position of doctor in the State of Wu.

Although Yuan Yao was the only son, it did not mean that he could successfully inherit Yuan Shu's family business.

No one can predict what will happen in the future.

So Yuan Yao took the initiative to lead the troops to defend Zhongli.

This is a laborious but pleasing task.

As long as we can keep Zhongli safe, it will be a great achievement.

If Liu Bei sent a large army to attack, he would only need to report the military situation to Shouchun in a timely manner.

It's a credit that I got for free.

Yuan Shu certainly saw this point, and of course he would leave this God-given achievement to his son.

"Okay, Yao'er, you will lead 3,000 soldiers to station in Zhongli."

"We only need to be on guard against Guan Yu's attack. If Liu Bei sends a large army to attack, we don't need to be afraid."

"You can use my beacon tower strategy to report to Shouchun in time."

"I will personally lead the army to help!"

Yuan Shu still loved his son very much and gave him many instructions before he left.

"Hey! No way."

The chief clerk Yan Xiang came out and said:
"The eldest son has never experienced war, so it is not appropriate for him to be entrusted with such a big responsibility."

"Moreover, Guan Yu is a brave general in the world, and he can defeat ten thousand enemies. We should not underestimate him."

"I believe that General Ji has been on the battlefield for a long time and is well versed in military tactics. He is qualified to take on this important task."

Yan Xiang recommended Ji Ling to fight.

But when he said this, Yuan Yao's face had changed drastically, and Yuan Shu's face also looked unhappy.

"Why does Master Yan underestimate me?"

Yuan Yao shouted angrily, "I have learned military tactics from my father since I was young, and I am well versed in the art of war."

"Why do you think I am young and cannot defeat Guan Yu?"

"If I can't defeat Guan Yu's army, I swear I won't come back to see my father!"

"Please calm down, young master."

Chief Secretary Yang Hong also stepped forward to persuade Yuan Shu to think twice.

"General, Sun Tzu said: War is a matter of great importance to a state, a matter of life and death, a road to survival and destruction, and one that must be carefully considered."

"The eldest son has no experience in military campaigns. This is his first time to use troops, so he must defend the important town of Zhongli."

"This is really not the way to use troops."

Although Yang Hong's voice was not loud, his arguments were convincing.

Every sentence directly points out that Yuan Shu made a mistake in using his troops this time.

How shameless is Yuan Shu?

How could he tolerate his subordinates accusing him in public like this?

"Master Yang, are you saying that I don't know how to fight?"

Although Yuan Shu only said it lightly, it was deafening.

The silence speaks.

Yang Hong seemed to be able to hear Yuan Shu talking.

Xiao Yang, I know you understand military affairs.

But do you know that you are looking at the map, and I am deciding the future.

What you are rejecting now is not my plan, but your own future.

I am issuing an order today, but you are on duty tomorrow.

I am the one who doesn't know how to command troops, but you are the one who should learn.

Do you want to rethink whether there is any problem with the way I employ people?
Yang Hong was horrified by Yuan Shu's gaze and immediately confirmed one thing.

Is there anyone in this world who understands the art of war better than General Hou?

He immediately bowed and apologized to Yuan Shu:

"Please forgive me, General Hou. I just said something wrong."

"The eldest son has been learning military tactics from the rear general since he was young. How can a little boy like Guan Yu be able to match him?"

That's right.

I just had an opinion, but I don't agree with it.

For the sake of his own future, Yang Hong had no choice but to swallow his anger and agree with Yuan Shu's strategic ideas.

“…Hahaha, okay.”

Yuan Shu slapped his thigh and said, "In that case, this matter is settled."

"Yao'er, you must immediately lead your troops to Zhongli to prevent Guan Yu's attack."

Yuan Yao took the order and left, and Yuan Shu was completely relieved.

"Where are the dancers, where are the actors?"

"The battle on the front line will be settled tomorrow."

"Keep playing music, keep dancing!"

In the Shouchun Palace, there was singing and dancing.

……

In Guangling, Li Yi and others were not idle at all.

Liu Bei first ordered Tian Yu to lead troops to station troops in Gaoyou County and Ping'an County to guard against Yuan Shu's roundabout attack.

On the one hand, strengthen the city defense of Guangling.

A large number of antler fences and horse trap pits were set up.

At the same time, athletes were sent to the mountains and forests to cut down trees and carry stones.

Firstly, it broadens the field of vision and prevents enemy ambushes.

Secondly, it was used to replenish the fuel in the city, as well as tools for defending the city such as rolling logs and falling rocks.

Thirty miles away from Guangling, the armies of Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui had already made sufficient preparations.

Yuan Shu's family was indeed wealthy, and in order to ensure the success of the battle in Guangling, he provided sufficient funds to the front line.

Relying on Yuan Shu's wealth and power, Yuan's army has built a large number of siege towers, battering rams and ladders these days.

These are all siege weapons that can double the siege efficiency.

Who among ordinary people would dare to invest so many siege tools at once?

But Yuan Shu not only dared, he also wanted to push it all at once.

In his opinion, as long as Guangling was taken, all the extra money would be earned back.

Yes, the way to make money is to make the people suffer.

This is what Yuan Shu did in Huainan, and he didn't mind doing the same in Guangling.

Three days later,
Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui held a grand feast for the entire army, and then the entire army set out and attacked Guangling City directly.

The armor rate of this Yuan army is very high, and Yuan Shu really took out all his tricks.

The first thing Yuan Jun introduced was the well screen.

Pushing it step by step towards the city wall of Guangling, threatening the defensive fortifications on the top of the city.

The reason why the well gate is so powerful is that it is tall in shape and is usually taller than the city wall.

Moreover, the number of layers of the well can create a local military advantage.

Soldiers can jump directly into the city wall from the well, breaking the attacker's disadvantage.

Zhang Xun adopted the traditional strategy of surrounding three sides and leaving one behind.

That is, only three sides of the city were surrounded, leaving one side for the defenders to escape.

In this way, the soldiers defending the city would not choose to fight to the death when they see a chance to escape.

This type of siege method is usually used when the enemy's strength is similar and the attacker is forced to decide the outcome quickly.

"Don't panic, archers, get ready, shoot at Yuan Jun's wells first!"

As the prefect of Guangling, Chen Deng personally climbed up to the top of the wall and commanded his soldiers to defend.

Although the well siege is powerful, its disadvantage is that it advances slowly.

All the defenders had to do was to destroy the siege towers before they were pushed over.

There are usually two ways,
One method is to shoot the siege soldiers on the siege tower directly with bows and arrows on the top of the wall.

One is to leave the city directly and destroy it by force.

Chen Deng chose to have both.

He first ordered Jiang Qin to lead the archers to cover the area with firepower and suppress the soldiers who were pushing the carts over.

At the same time, he sent Zhao Yun with a hundred brave cavalrymen to go out of the city to harass the enemy's attack.

In addition to Zhao Yun, Xu Sheng led another thousand Danyang mountain infantry to cover Zhao Yun's escape.

"No retreat allowed, anyone who retreats will be killed!"

Faced with the intensive firepower of the Guangling defenders, Qiao Rui was at the front line, desperately urging the soldiers to move forward.

Guangling was much more difficult to deal with than he had imagined.

The defenders here are not only full of fighting spirit, but also have all the necessary equipment to defend the city. It is obvious that they have made all the necessary preparations.

Not only can they use firepower to suppress Yuan's attack, but they can also take the initiative to send troops out of the city to harass our front line.

"Oh? Yuan's army deployed the ladders?"

Li Yi held a telescope in his hand and observed the situation on the battlefield.

Chen Deng, who was busy giving orders on the side, heard Li Yi's call and looked up.

The battlefield was crowded, chaotic and noisy.

Chen Deng captured the battle scene continuously. After a while, he noticed that the rear of Yuan's army had started to roll out the ladders. "...Huh, Ziyu is really observant."

Chen Deng couldn't help but admire Li Yi and said, "The situation on the battlefield changes rapidly. As people in the game, we are bound to make mistakes."

"Zi Yu is in the midst of the raging waves, and he is still riding the waves. I really admire him."

Li Yi had no time to pay attention to Chen Deng and continued to observe the battlefield situation with a telescope.

One, two, three...

Yuan Jun launched twenty ladders in a row, which was indeed a big move.

The biggest feature of the ladder is that it cannot be pushed down.
Once they get close to the top of the wall, soldiers will keep climbing up in an endless stream.

Therefore, when facing a ladder, it is usually necessary to destroy it in advance.

Li Yi suggested:
"Why not send another troop of heavily armored infantry out of the city, charge into the enemy formation, and destroy these ladders."

"What does Yuanlong think?"

The so-called heavy infantry must naturally be equipped with the most sophisticated armor.

He wore a full-body wind helmet, with only his face exposed.

Wearing long-sleeved armor with shoulder pads, commonly known as iron armor.

Then the outer layer is covered with a layer of shoulder armor.

With equipment of this level, it is extremely rare to form a large-scale team, let alone a few teams scattered around.

Because the maintenance cost is too high.

Generally, they are taken out from the armory temporarily when they are needed.

They have to be recycled after use, otherwise the cost of losing just one set will be extremely high.

“Who can take on this important task?”

Chen Deng opened his mouth and asked loudly.

Heavy armored infantry are usually used to perform this kind of special mission, because you will only be given heavy armor if it is dangerous enough.

But high defense comes at the cost of low mobility.

Once the mission is completed, if you fail to withdraw immediately, you may never be able to withdraw.

Zhou Tai volunteered:
"The general will go where he wishes!"

Chen Deng readily agreed and ordered Zhou Tai to lead the heavy armored infantry out of the city to attack Yuan's ladder unit.

"General, another troop has emerged from the city!"

The scouts quickly reported the military situation on the front line to Zhang Xun.

Zhang Xun was in charge of commanding the ladders to advance. Seeing Zhou Tai leading the heavily armored soldiers, he hurriedly said:
"Not good! He must be coming for my ladder!"

"Quick, attack quickly and intercept and stop it!"

At the command, Yuan's army shouted loudly and rushed towards Zhou Tai's army with murderous intent.

As soon as the two sides came into contact, bursts of wailing were heard.

The weapons clashed hand to hand, blood gushed out like a fountain, and limbs flew everywhere.

Zhou Tai cheered up and fought bravely.

When the battle was at its fiercest, even the wind helmet was blown away by the enemy.

He revealed a bloody face, which frightened all Yuan's troops and made them shout, "Here comes the ghost!"

Zhou Tai became even more powerful, and with a loud roar, he forced Yuan's army to retreat step by step.

"Well, good kill!"

"Youping is extremely courageous and brave, he is truly a tiger general."

Li Yi, who was standing on the wall, could see the battle situation on Zhou Tai's side clearly.

Compared to last year, when I first saw the fighting on the battlefield, I seemed young and immature.

Now seeing the fighting on the battlefield again, Li Yi's heart is no longer disturbed.

Because he was already accustomed to it.

quickly,

Zhou Tai led his troops to the vicinity of the ladders.

The soldiers who were originally pushing the ladders had to abandon the ladders and draw their swords to fight the enemy when they suddenly attacked them.

At this moment, Zhao Yun's 100 cavalrymen took advantage of the situation and attacked.

The advantage of squad cavalry lies in its strong mobility.

Zhao Yun led a hundred cavalrymen and charged left and right as if he was in an empty space.

The clothes and armor were flat, and blood gushed out like a fountain.

Constantly harassing Yuan's advance.

After a while, Zhao Yun's cavalry team went around behind Yuan's army.

Yuan's army was desperately trying to resist Zhou Tai's infantry when they suddenly heard the sound of horse hooves like thunder behind them.

When I looked back, I saw the silver spear and the white horse were already approaching.

"Wow!!!"

The leader of the Yuan army was shot dead by Zhao Yun.

The mixed Hu cavalry led by Zhao Yun included many Wuhuan and Xianbei people.

They were all accustomed to using sabers, making "woohoo" sounds, and cooperating with Zhou Tai's infantry to reap the heads of Yuan's army to their heart's content.

"I think we have successfully suppressed Yuan's offensive. Why not take this opportunity to break out of the city?"

"Give Yuan Jun a head-on blow!"

"So that they will not dare to underestimate our Guangling defenders, and will be even more cautious when they attack again."

Seeing that the battle on the front line was going smoothly, Li Yi once again advised Chen Deng to take the initiative.

"Okay, let's use Ziyu's words."

Chen Deng immediately ordered the soldiers guarding the city to go out of the city to fight against Yuan’s army.

Suddenly, there were bursts of drum beats and shouts like thunder.

Like mountains collapsing and the sky falling apart.

The defenders of Guangling rushed towards Yuan’s army like a flood breaking through a dam.

Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui were both shocked when they saw this.

I had to fight in a hurry.

The flames spread, making the sky look blood red.

The strong wind came and went straight in.

The crisp sound of weapons colliding, the exciting neighing of war horses, and the dull sound of blood and flesh splattering.

Fly to the mountains, rivers and land, fly to the vast sky.

The two sides fought fiercely until the evening. Yuan's army was exhausted and suffered many injuries, so they were forced to withdraw.

There is no doubt that the Xuzhou army won a great victory.

"My Lord, Military Advisor, I have fulfilled my mission and have completely destroyed Yuan Shu's ladder troops."

Zhou Tai was covered in blood and his face could no longer be seen clearly.

It was hard to believe how he could continue fighting against Yuan’s army despite so many injuries.

What a will of steel!

"Zhuangzai, bring me some wine!"

Seeing this scene, Li Yi felt heroic in his heart and immediately ordered someone to bring a pot of wine.

He handed it to Zhou Tai with both hands.

The military advisor toasts you with both hands in front of all the soldiers.

It's an honor.

Zhou Tai understood and took it with both hands.

"Thank you, Military Advisor! Thank you, Lord!"

After he finished speaking, he drank it all.

Li Yi sighed to himself that he could empathize with the romance of the ancient generals.

This is it, with wounds all over the body, he still drinks bitterly, with bloodstains and remaining wine all over his battle clothes.

Li Yi ordered people to clean up the battlefield, and then rewarded the soldiers who had participated in the battle one by one.

Chen Deng was responsible for counting the casualties and captured spoils after the battle.

After these spoils are counted, they must first be deposited into the treasury.

It doesn't mean that they will be completely confiscated, but it is for the convenience of inventory.

In the end, the money for rewarding people based on their merits was taken directly from the treasury.

According to military regulations, any soldier who participates in defending the city will be rewarded with 500 yuan.

The number of soldiers going out of the city to fight would be doubled.

If one kills the enemy or is seriously injured, the reward will be doubled.

As for the deceased, the highest pension will be given to their families.

In addition to the rewards for the soldiers who participated in the war, the county officials and prefecture officials in Guangling City, that is, all civil servants of Guangling, will also be rewarded.

They all need to be rewarded with money.

Finally, of course, the three armies will be rewarded.

He took out the wine and meat from the treasury and gave a grand feast to the soldiers of the three armies.

This last item is sometimes even more important than the previous ones.

Because the soldiers were fighting for their lives on the front line, enduring hunger and starvation, they were looking forward to this bite.

Li Yi handed the proposed reward plan to Liu Bei, who readily agreed.

Afterwards, the announcement was made to the entire army, and all the soldiers were delighted and their morale was greatly boosted.

……

(End of this chapter)