Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

As the waning moon sank in the west, seven short and three long horn calls suddenly sounded in the Chu army camp.

The Jin army sentry who was dozing on the battlement was suddenly awakened, only to see sparks of fire outside the moat at the north gate.

There were three thousand light cavalrymen galloping back and forth with resin torches in their hands, and the sound of horse hooves formed an impenetrable net in the wilderness.

"The third team goes up the wall, and the first team retreats to the soldier cave to eat!" Cui Haoying's voice echoed in the city wall.

The defenders immediately began to move like precise gears. Archers changed positions sideways along the horse path. Rolling logs and rocks were accurately delivered to each section of the city wall via ziplines. Doctors took the opportunity to transfer the seriously wounded to the cellar.

The whole process took no more than half an incense stick of time. When the first wave of arrows from the Chu army arrived, the soldier who took over the defense had just swallowed the last bite of the rice ball with ginseng slices in it.

Zhao Yu sneered and waved the command flag, and twenty improved nest vehicles appeared from the darkness.

These centipede-shaped siege engines had four poison-arrow men hidden in each carriage, and the wet cowhide covering the roof could resist ordinary rockets.

But just when the nest car approached within a hundred steps of the city wall, the defenders suddenly brought out thirty strangely shaped copper instruments - this was the lost "chain gun", which could fire nine poisoned caltrops each time it was loaded.

“Fire!” As Cui Haoying pointed his sword downward, the sound of endless mechanisms burst out from the top of the city wall.

The moment the caltrops penetrated the fender of the nest car, they suddenly broke into eight pieces, and the rotating sharp blades created a cloud of blood mist in the car.

Before the Chu army retreated, sticky fish oil was poured into the secret compartment of the city wall, and several rockets were fired, burning the remaining nest vehicles into winding fire dragons.

At three quarters past the hour of Yin, there was a sudden sound of an earthquake coming from the direction of the South Gate.

Fifty blindfolded rhinos wearing iron armor charged forward. These giant beasts had axes tied to their horns and copper tubes on their backs spewing poisonous smoke.

The defenders calmly lowered the bronze mirror array, and the stored sunlight at noon was focused by the mirrors, actually burning several lines of fire in the rhinoceros array.

The frightened beasts turned around and rushed into the main camp of the Chu army, smashing the battering rams on standby in the rear into pieces.

"Change to the fourth team! The second team goes to the medicine pool to heal their wounds!" Cui Haoying struck the gong.

The exhausted defenders immediately split into two groups. The soles of the boots of the newly-arrived soldiers were nailed with anti-slip iron plates, and the blood ice on the bricks was stepped on to create tiny cracks.

When several seriously wounded soldiers were carried away, they passed the unused arrows to the brothers who took over the defense.

Zhao Yu saw it clearly from the battle stage outside the city, and suddenly grabbed five command arrows and threw them into the brazier.

This is the signal to activate the Death Squad!

Three hundred strong men who had taken the Crazy Powder rushed out shirtless, their bodies covered with mud to prevent fire, holding two-meter-long fine steel Mo Dao.

These berserkers actually used their swords as ladders and stepped on their companions' shoulders to leap onto the top of the city walls. The strong winds created by the dancing swords crushed all the rain of arrows.

“Raise the net!” The copper bell on Cui Haoying’s sword tassel suddenly exploded.

Three hundred golden meshes suddenly popped up on the battlements of the city wall, covered with fine cow-hair needles soaked in anesthetic.

The more the mad killer struggled, the deeper the poison needle penetrated, and in just three breaths he collapsed like mud.

The defenders took the opportunity to push out the grooved inclined boards and slide these heavily armored warriors into the boiling oil pan. The Chu army emblems on their back armor twisted and deformed in the hot oil, forming a strange spell.

When the morning sun dyed the battle flags on the city walls red, the Chu army had already launched seven night attacks.

Cui Haoying looked at the retreating enemy with a gloomy expression.

Fortunately, the captain of the imperial concubine's family anticipated the tactics of the Chu army, otherwise he would have suffered losses in this battle!

"Tell the cook to add more meat to the porridge."

Cui Haoying wiped the blood off the sword and whispered to Ji Yingjie who came hurriedly:

"Your Majesty, the enemy is testing our rotation interval. The next attack will be at..."

Before he finished speaking, a rumble like thunder suddenly came from the northeast corner.

Twenty chariots, pushed by the Chu army, were heading towards the city wall!

"Damn it, they're attacking again!"

Cui Haoying's face turned pale: "Don't you think about taking a break?"

Ji Yingjie's face was gloomy. He stared at the Chu army attacking again outside the city and snorted coldly:

"Since they are seeking their own death, let them do it!"

"The Prince Consort has already made arrangements. There are still more than a dozen troops waiting to be relieved in the city. General Cui, don't worry!"

After saying that, Ji Yingjie waved his right hand, and the defenders in the city who were waiting for orders immediately rushed to the city wall.

The fierce battle has begun again!

However, this time Ji Yingjie did not command or watch the battle on the city wall, but immediately returned to the palace.

The palace lanterns at the hour of Xu cast a swaying shadow on Ji Yingjie's face, and the tip of his blood-soaked pen hung above the secret folder and did not fall for a long time.

"Your Majesty, if this letter is urgent and sent by carrier pigeon, it will reach the Tang capital in three days."

The eunuch in charge of the seal held the gilded copper tube in his hand, seeming to be hesitant to speak, his eyes sweeping over the words "The food supply route of the Chu army has been cut off" which were not yet dry on the letter.

The bronze lamp tree in the corner of the hall suddenly burst into sparks, reflecting the faint dark patterns on the back of the letter paper - this is special paper mixed with mermaid cream, which will only become visible when exposed to heat.

At this time, the Taifu broke into the Xuanzheng Hall.

The old man's skinny fingers pressed on the letter box, and the tortoise shell that had slipped from his sleeve showed cracks in the candlelight:

"Your Majesty, the Chu army's movements are very suspicious!"

"They obviously don't need to attack the city so fiercely. They can just lay siege. Why are they so eager to attack the city?"

"I'm afraid there's something fishy going on here!"

Ji Yingjie suddenly chuckled and said calmly: "I have thought about this matter and even sent someone to investigate!"

The Taifu was moved and asked quickly, "I wonder if Your Majesty has found out anything?"

Ji Yingjie nodded and smiled: "The Chu army doesn't have much food, and Chu Ning has ordered the Chu army in Maple Leaf City to deliver food!"

"However, the Han army over there has blocked two teams of the Chu army, and they can't transport food here!"

"Although the Qin territory is very close to this place, the Qin people have already traced the Chu army, so they have not handed over the grain."

"This is also the reason why the Chu army is short of food!"

When these words came out, the Grand Tutor raised his eyebrows and asked half-doubtfully: "Is this news reliable?"

Ji Yingjie was about to answer, but Yang Xingye, with a look of excitement on his face, rushed into the hall wearing blood-stained armor and said loudly:

"Your Majesty, the prisoners we just captured have confessed that the Chu army only has enough food for seven days!"

Ji Yingjie's eyes lit up at these words. He stood up suddenly and rushed to Yang Xingye to ask, "Is this true?"

The Grand Tutor also tried to stare at Yang Xingye at this moment, not wanting to miss any words.

Yang Xingye was so excited that he said, "There are three people alive, and their confessions are consistent!"

"The Han army intercepted their food supply in Maple Leaf City. Although Qin had seized some food, the recent heavy rains caused the Cangjiang River to flow rapidly, so the food could not be transported over."

"Although the Chu army brought marching food, the amount of food consumed by 60,000 people every day is very alarming, so their food is only enough for seven days!"

After listening to Yang Xingye's explanation, Ji Yingjie burst into laughter: "Hahahaha, no wonder the Chu army was so eager to attack the city, it turns out they don't have enough food!"

"In this case, once the Tang army's reinforcements arrive, we can cooperate with the Tang army from inside and outside to defeat the Chu army in one fell swoop!"

"Chun Ning, just wait, I will chop off your head with my own hands!"

"Come here, deliver this letter to the Emperor of Tang immediately!"

Everything is ready, just waiting for the Tang army to come to support!