Chapter 346 Siege


Chapter 346 Siege

The consecutive days of victory have long diluted the depression in Su Renting.

With the help of the geographical situation, they managed to block the Taishan bandits with local soldiers. But even so, many pavilion soldiers still have lingering fears about the Taishan bandits.

These people were indeed the giant bandits that shocked Heshuo and defeated the Northern and Southern armies in a row. They fought really fiercely.

They still remember the thief general they met.

Because the road was wet, this man rushed to the front with his bare feet, took an iron spear, jumped several fences, and killed several people. Then, when the Su soldiers were about to surround this man, they were attacked by him again, and a military officer was attacked. After beheading him, Shi Shiran went back.

From beginning to end, this person seemed to be in a deserted place. Although it sounded discouraging, all the warriors present felt ashamed.

But what if the Taishan thieves and warriors are more powerful? If not, we have to retreat.

At this time, on the flooded water, from the bandit's camp to the south bank, there were rafts, all of which were retreating Taishan bandits.

They won this battle!

……

Looking at the vast blue waves ahead, Su You on the wall of Suren Pavilion sighed:

"This battle has not been easy. If it hadn't been for the rising tide, we might not be able to stop such a tiger and wolf force."

Although he said this, Su You's face was still wrinkled.

The confidant next to him, also his clan brother Su Yu, asked:

"Brother, you are worried that the bandits will come again after they get familiar with the water conditions. But don't you know what you can do to resist them then?"

Su You looked sad and nodded:

"Yes, in terms of strength, we and the Taishan Army are no different than Yunni. And Jushu behind us also intends to take advantage of our blunt thieves, so he refuses to send reinforcements no matter what. If we continue to fight like this, I, Su Clan Must die. Moreover, I still have a doubt, the thieves marched northward with great fanfare, and they retreated just because of a defeat? "

But the clan brother Su Yu had a different view. He smiled and said:

"Brother, you think too highly of the thieves. No matter how strong they are, they are still made of flesh and blood. They still need to eat millet and will get sick. For those of you who were earlier, I led my tribe to harass the thieves on their food roads. It was already early in their camp. The supply was cut off. Then you look at the fortress built on the opposite side. Although it is built on high ground to avoid the spring water, so many people, horses and hedgehogs are gathered in this small place, and the disease will inevitably spread over time. "

So Su Yu said firmly:

"Don't worry, brother, there are so many clever ideas, it's just like that for everyone else."

What Su Yu said still made some sense, so Su You nodded and suppressed the uneasiness in his heart.

Seeing that his brother was at peace, Su Yu continued:

"Also, as for my brother's worry about the Taishan bandits coming back next time, it's nothing more than fighting, moving, and surrendering."

Su You motioned for Su Yu to continue.

Su Yu was confident and said:

"War means taking advantage of the fact that the enemy's morale is low and they are still withdrawing. I can directly cover up and kill them from behind. As long as they continue to harass the opponent along the way, the opponent will not attack enough and their morale is low, so they will inevitably be defeated. When the time comes, the rebel army will break here. With nearly 10,000 elite troops in sight, why don’t the county guards who are looking at them go up and kill the Taishan bandits? So, this is the best strategy.”

Su You thought for a while and shook his head:

"This strategy is too risky. I have 200 soldiers under my command, and my tribe's soldiers can pull out a thousand people. However, the tribe's soldiers are all good at fighting, and their combat power will not help. And no matter how bad the thieves are, they can gather a thousand people." A hundred elite soldiers can destroy us with just one hand. This strategy is not feasible, it is too dangerous.”

Su You was still very sober. He knew that the reason why his side could withstand the Taishan Army was because after the waterway flooded, there was only a narrow walkway leading to Su Ren Pavilion, so the thieves' numerical advantage could not be shown.

But as this clan brother said, how can they fight with such a small number of people on the vast plains?

However, he also understood what this clan brother meant, which was to use the familiarity of the terrain to constantly harass people along the road without engaging in direct confrontation. But Su You has selfish motives, so why would he use his soldiers to benefit others?

So Su You asked what walking and surrender meant.

After rejecting the first option, Su Yu actually lost interest, but since his brother asked, he would simply talk about it.

"This walk is very simple. It is to avoid the Taihang bandits heading north. They are going to Xiangguo and have no enmity with us. Since we can't defeat them, it's better to avoid them. I see the towering Taihang Mountain to the west is an excellent refuge. It’s better to move all the family members to the Taihang Mountains, and we can have a paradise in troubled times.”

After Su Yu finished speaking, Su You smiled bitterly:

"Good brother, do you know how difficult it is in the Taihang Mountains? If so many of our clansmen move to the mountains, at least half of them will starve to death. How can there be any happy land? There are countless Shanliao, local bandits, yellow turban rebels and Han people in the Taihang Mountains. The army is defeated. These people will eat people."

Su Yu was also annoyed, neither this nor that would work, he simply shrugged:

"Then let's just surrender. It's the easiest."

Su You scolded:

"Nonsense, those Taishan thieves all divide the land. Do you think the inheritance passed down by our ancestors has been ruined like this?"

But Su Yu asked directly:

"Then let me ask, what if this land is divided? In the end, it should be given to my Su clan. Now the land is in the hands of the main line, and those remote branches have long been serfs of the main line. What's wrong with dividing the land? The meat rots in the pot."

Su You had never thought about this before, so he was confused by Su Yu's question.

Neither he nor Su Yu were from the main line. In fact, the head of the main line family was not in his hometown and had already gone to Kyoto to socialize. So when it comes to dividing the land, it's not that he and Su Yu suffer the most, but the main family suffers the biggest loss.

But with the long-term inertia and the recent defeat of the Taishan Army, how could we suddenly switch to surrender?

Therefore, in the end, Su You was speechless and just watched the Taishan bandits retreat southward, neither pursuing, leaving, nor surrendering.

……

At this time, the Taishan Army was in the camp on the north bank of the Fan River. Guan Yu and three of his staff were climbing up to look north at the Su Ren Pavilion opposite.

After a long while, seeing that Su Renting was completely motionless, Guan Yu turned to Shen Shang and said:

"Shen Jun, it seems that your strategy is not working. We have not mobilized the bandits in this pavilion."

Shen Shang, who was dressed in black and wore a black gauze, first bowed to Guan Yu to apologize, and then said:

"It doesn't matter. Originally this strategy was successful, but if it doesn't work, those teams crossing the river can also protect the grain road behind them and prevent the enemy from attacking again."

Guan Yu didn't blame Shen Shang for what he meant, so he nodded as he was told.

Then, Guan Yu asked Xun You, who was standing beside him:

"Where have Li Hu's troops moved to now?"

Xun You replied without hesitation:

"The news that was sent back to the camp yesterday is that General Li has led the Feilong and Feihu cavalry units to the north of Xiangguo and has begun to block the traffic between Xiangguo and the north."

Guan Yu nodded, stroked his beard and said:

"It seems we have to step up our efforts here too."

Afterwards, Guan Yu asked the last person, Feng Fang, in a stiff tone:

"Are you sure the spring water will fall this evening?"

Feng Fang wiped his wet forehead, gritted his teeth and said firmly:

"Guan Shuai, no problem."

Guan Yu nodded, said no more, and went down to the watchtower.

Everything, just wait until the dust settles tonight.

Over there, as soon as Guan Yu left, Feng Fang was discouraged, grabbed Xun You's sleeve and begged:

"Mr.

Xun You smiled and went down without saying anything.

As for Shen Shang, he has long since disappeared, leaving only Feng Fang alone worrying about gains and losses.

In fact, Guan Yu never criticized Feng Fang at all. After all, who can say accurately about this mountain and river? But Feng Fang took over everything, saying that he had a deep understanding of the water conditions in this place and that the water would recede within three days.

There was no joke in the army, and coupled with being trapped in this narrow camp for many days, the morale of the army was already impetuous. Now this person talks so much, but when the time comes, he can't do anything. If he can't say it, he will use his head.

But this was just Guan Yu's idea, and his face remained calm.

...It soon became night.

Here someone is having trouble sleeping at night, and there is constant snoring over there.

At this time, in the big tent, all the generals of the Northern Expeditionary Army were wearing helmets and armor.

Guan Yu was also fully dressed and sat on the horse at the head, the atmosphere was extremely solemn.

An official lifted the curtain and rushed over quickly, reporting:

"The water level has not dropped."

Feng Fang trembled beside him and did not dare to look at Guan Yu.

Guan Yu closed his eyes to rest and calmly said:

"Report in an hour."

"Here!"

After saying that, the guard retreated.

Several brave generals under Guan Yu, such as Dian Wei, Ma Bao, etc., looked at each other, but they did not speak, so they had to continue waiting.

Time passed minute by minute, and an hour later, the guardsmen came again with their tents raised.

As soon as he came, he said:

"Commander, the water level has receded by half."

As soon as these words came out, everyone in the tent was in high spirits, especially Feng Fang, who had been trembling with fear. He stood up and looked like he had a good chance of winning.

Everyone looked at Guan Yu, waiting for the commander's order.

Among the generals present, some had a bright mind and thought to themselves, the water has receded by half, why are the guards coming? Why? Just because the commander-in-chief gave the order to report it after an hour.

Saying that an hour is an hour is like a mountain of military orders.

Guan Yu looked around the generals and ordered:

"Tear down the camp, spread it on the ground, and use all the grass in the general."

Afterwards, Guan Yu looked at Dian Wei, who was holding down his left hand, and said with a smile:

"Awei, it's feasible for you to take the lead in the charge this time."

Dian Wei felt happy, then stood up without hesitation and said:

"Here."

After that, all the generals received their orders and dispersed.

Guan Yu, who was left behind, glanced at Feng Fang on the side and praised:

"You're fine."

After that, the account was paid.

At this moment, Feng Fang glanced at Xun You and said to himself:

"Mr. Xun, are Feng's predictions accurate?"

Xun You bowed slightly and praised seriously:

"Feng Jun, even if there are no plans left, it's not as good as this."

……

On the 23rd, the Taishan Army who was trapped in the camp took advantage of the retreat of the Wanchui River and launched an attack on Su Renting overnight.

Dian Wei of the right army led 400 soldiers, went around to the Su Ren Pavilion, and took the lead to ascend first. At the same time, Dian Wei's Sima Chen Guang led 400 men to attack the wall in the south.

The soldiers in the Su Ren Pavilion were caught off guard and attacked from behind and in front. They were unable to hold on and retreated one after another. Su You, who was resting, put on his robe and came out of the tent. Seeing the situation, he knew what to do. He led hundreds of remaining soldiers out of the east gate and went straight to the Su clan barracks outside the east of the city.

Li Damu, who was outside the city, had been waiting with the three battalions of Tao Yong, Ma Bao and Li Jing. When he saw a group of thieves standing out, he immediately chased and killed them. Su's troops were defeated and the army collapsed. They were chased for several miles by Li Damu and other generals.

In this battle, except for Su You who escaped by chance, Su Yu surrendered with most of his tribesmen, and the rest were killed by Li Damu's troops, more than 200 of them. There are hundreds of flags, swords and cards.

Su Renting is broken!

At dawn on the 24th, Guan Yu's Northern Expeditionary Army marched again after the night battle. With five troops in front and five behind, they quickly approached the water to the north.

At this time, the Han general Li Ding had set up an ambush at Shuijin Crossing.

Dian Weishuai's vanguard Gao Ya was leading his vanguard battalion along the riverside road when he encountered Li Ding leading eight hundred of Li's tribe to ambush him.

The Li family was able to become a local tycoon with arbitrary rural tunes because of this tribe's soldiers who were trained in Han-style battle formations. Therefore, its combat power is not inferior to that of Gao Ya. As soon as they came out, they swarmed forward with great ferocity.

But after all, Li's soldiers were short of armor, and the armor rate of the Gaoya Division was almost full except for the archers. Therefore, after the initial chaos, the Gaoya Ministry pushed Li's ambush back.

After a moment of melee, Li Ding was defeated and lost more than a hundred corpses and fled back to Jindu in a hurry. Just as he was about to cross the river and burn the Jinqiao, he encountered another warrior under Dian Wei's command, Chen Guangbu, who was coming.

It turned out that Chen Guang, who was not far away from the melee at the Gaoya Department, did not directly lead his troops to rescue. Instead, he led his troops around to the south bank of the water, intending to seize Xiajin Bridge first.

But unfortunately, he was one step slower than Li Ding and allowed this man to escape to the north bank. But in the end, Jinqiao was still preserved.

Over there, the Gaoya tribe cleaned up the battlefield, captured several clan flags, and sealed the ribbons, and quickly rushed to the north bank. Then the two armies crossed the river one after another.

Here, Gao Ya and Chen Guang were about to continue chasing Li Ding's remaining soldiers, but they encountered thousands of elite soldiers from Xiangguo City, a red-headed army.

This army has the Jushu tribe as its backbone and Zhao Bei as its fangs. Its combat effectiveness is astonishing. The Gao Ya Division and Chen Guang Division had been fighting fiercely for too long, and it was a bit difficult to stop this Division.

Therefore, we could only retreat to the north bank of the water, intending to rely on Jinqiao to hold on. But the Redhead Army did not catch up. They rushed back to Xiangguo City after picking up Li Ying's remaining troops.

Later, on the afternoon of February 24, Guan Yu finally arrived at the north bank of the water with his follow-up army.

After joining Gao Ya and Chen Guang's troops, the army continued to move north and camped outside Xiangguo City, and then surrounded it heavily.

In this way, from February 15th, Guan Yu set out from Yecheng with an army of ten thousand people, to February 24th, a total of nine days. Successively waded through the four walls of the bed water, the fan water, the water, the fallen tantai, Guangnian, Suren Pavilion and the water bridge. They marched for 200 miles, defeated more than 3,000 Han troops and local tribesmen, and captured and killed 1,200 people.

It can be said that the anti-Thai forces in the northern part of Zhao State have been wiped out, and now as long as the Xiangguo City in front of them is captured, the strategy has been initially achieved.

But after looking at the small town of Xiangguo in front of him, Guan Yu fell silent.

Just because the small town in front of me is made of bricks and stones.

You must know that in all the cities in the world, except for the two capitals, which have walls built with bricks and stones, there is no other city that is not built with rammed earth. Even in the south, because of frequent heavy rains, earthen cities are prone to collapse, and there are even no city walls.

But here, Guan Yu actually saw a brick and stone fortress, so he was not surprised.

(End of chapter)

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