Why is Zhending City so difficult to attack?
In addition to Tian Kai and Sun Jin's civil and military coordination and their courage to suppress violently, the most important first point is that Zhending City itself is easy to defend but difficult to attack.
In the late years of Xinmang, Zhending City was the lair of the Northland hero Zhending King, and it was second to none in terms of management. It is divided into three main fortresses: the Zhending Palace, the inner city, and the outer city. Every area is covered with waxy water and steamed earth. Even after two hundred years, the main structure is still impregnable.
In particular, the outermost outer wall of Zhending is ten miles in circumference, three feet high, and four feet thick. It is truly a powerful city in the North. It was precisely because of the presence of this majestic city that Tian Kai was willing to go south and give it a try.
At this time, ten days had passed since the siege of the city, and Taishan's army still found nothing under the city.
The continuous stone bullets only destroyed most of some oars on the city wall, and also broke several corners, but they were still repaired by the city.
Seeing the situation of the war, Zhang Chong ordered the siege of Zhending City instead of attacking it, thus consuming the food in the city.
Some fortresses are unbreakable, not just because you have a stone-shooting vehicle. Even if you have artillery, there will be bastions standing in your way. In fact, most sieges rely on siege. Usually, it is very normal for a fortress to be besieged for half a year.
On the contrary, it is an abnormal state to rely on advanced soldiers and equipment to conquer the city in ten days like Zhang Chong.
Therefore, after Zhang Chong saw that the war was not progressing smoothly, he decisively chose to besiege the city.
However, Zhang Chong did not sit down and defend the city. Instead, he cleared the fences, antlers and other roadblocks set up by Zhending's army in the open area outside the city.
But Zhang Chong's real strategy is all about building a giant nest car. Now there are two, and when six are built later, Zhending City will no longer be able to defend it.
Zhang Chong himself calculated that relying on the current troop deployment capability of the Chao Chariot, a Chao Chariot can carry fifty soldiers. But now there are thousands of people deployed on one side of the city. If you want to stand firm on the city, you need at least 300 people.
In other words, only six giant nest carts can arrive at the top of the city at the same time, allowing 300 soldiers to jump on the top of the city immediately. Only in this way can they gain a firm foothold on the top of the city, and subsequent reinforcements can continuously support from the nest carts. Go to the city so that the city can be broken.
Therefore, Zhang Chong is now urging the craftsman camp to make every effort to build the nest car.
Here, under Zhending City, the Taishan Army is fighting steadily. Over there, in Xiaquyang City, the marshal's headquarters of the rear army is also holding a military meeting. The theme is to discuss the next stage of the war.
At this time, Marshal Dong Fan of the rear army was sitting in the hall, and the people standing on both sides were all military generals.
At this time, Tian Feng, the military aide, was explaining the current situation to the generals.
Tian Feng was defeated after the Battle of Handan, which was regarded as a semi-voluntary surrender, so he was considered to be one of the first officials from Hebei to be activated.
During this Northern Expedition, he was assigned to the shogunate of the rear marshal as the military counselor.
Tian Feng said with a serious expression:
"Now that we have been attacking for about 20 days, we have captured the city south of the Hutuo River. It can be said that our army now has the entire Julu County. In this battle, our rear army marshal's department has wiped out eight places in the north of the county. We have captured and killed more than 20,000 people, and most of them have been handed over to the rear. In addition, our army suffered a total of 500 casualties in this battle. In addition, the former military academy commander was transferred to the Zhending battlefield. Now our army is in order. There are four captain divisions with an actual strength of 7,500 soldiers.”
Tian Feng briefly talked about the results of the previous battles, and the generals below did not show much surprise.
This is not to say that the result of suffering five hundred casualties, capturing six cities, and killing 20,000 prisoners was not amazing or brilliant. But the result of this battle is really not a war to these people.
From the time they set out from Julu City on June 10th to the end of June, they were basically marching with arms. All the enemies they encountered were local tycoons and rural folk. Even hundreds of people couldn't muster a pair of armor, so how could they stop them.
So all the people who were destroyed along the way were this kind of stuff. How could we satisfy the proud officials of the rear army marshal?
But they also knew that this was a good thing. In the Battle of Handan, they wiped out all the main forces of the Han army in Zhongshan and Julu. How could they be as comfortable as they are now?
But even if comfort comes, soldiers still have to pursue honor, so they want greater results. This is also the main purpose of this military meeting.
Over there, after Tian Feng talked about the results of the previous battle, he started to talk about the current situation:
"Now, the base camp has besieged Zhending City for ten days. The king's original suggestion was to block Hutuo Ferry to the north and cut off Jingxing Pass to the west, and then order our troops to establish a defense line in the Xiaquyang area. Then the base camp will attack Zhending City with all its strength. But now the situation has changed.”
After saying that, Tian Feng pointed at Jixian County on the map screen behind him and continued:
"The base camp of our army's Northern Expedition is directed towards Youji, and the Lu Zhi Puppet Tribe entrenched here is our army's biggest enemy in this battle. After their defeat last year, they returned north in a hurry, and then settled in Ji It is said that the city has regained its strength and cannot be underestimated. Recently, a report from the north came, saying that Lu Zhi's puppet commander sent 30,000 troops from the east and moved his troops to the Changshan Pass area. "
This news was obviously something that the generals had never heard before, and they all whispered among themselves to discuss the subsequent impact of this matter. Everyone is confused. Now that our army has reached the Hutuo River, it can go north to Zhongshan Kingdom at any time and directly threaten Jixian. Could it be that Lu Zhi had already gone to save Zhending regardless of the safety of Ji County?
Obviously, all generals have their own opinions and cannot agree on one.
In fact, Dong Fang was also wondering about this, so he called the generals to discuss the matter together.
Not long after, a general came out, it was Lü Kuang, the captain of the Zuo Military Academy of the rear army marshal's department. He said carelessly:
"Commander Dong, what do you have in mind? Now that Yan soldiers are marching eastward, Jicheng is empty. It is the time for our army to make great achievements. Our army should immediately cross the Hutuo River and take advantage of the situation to capture Jicheng and cut off the other people's retreat."
Because Lu Kuang had made an outstanding contribution in defending Handan in the Battle of Handan, he was promoted to the rank of Zuojun Lieutenant in the Marshal's Department of the Rear Army after the war. It was a time when he was in high spirits, so he suggested to Dong Fang to go north across the river and go straight to Jicheng without thinking.
Lu Kuang joined the army in Dongping State, and he was also an old leader in the army. He was even a few months later than Dong Fan, and he was born in a better time than Dong Fan. After all, Dong Fang was born in the army, while Lu Kuang was a knight-errant who joined the army. They were different.
In addition, Lu Kuang fought bravely and made many meritorious deeds. He was a general in the rear army marshal's department, so when he impassionedly asked for a fight, several hot-blooded generals also got excited and asked for a fight one after another.
Compared with the past, Dong Fang was much more mature at this time. He touched his well-groomed beard and replied lightly:
"I'm afraid this matter cannot be simplified. Who is Lu Zhi? He is the only pillar of the Han Dynasty in northern Xinjiang. Our army has been dealing with him for so long. Is he an ordinary person? So he rashly headed east to Changshan Guan, there may be a conspiracy that we don’t know about.”
Originally, Dong Fang's words were just a cliche. He wanted the generals to discuss the pros and cons of going north.
But who knew that Lu Kuang’s younger brother Lu Xiang would take over the topic and say:
"No matter what the conspiracy is, we have 10,000 elite soldiers and 1,000 cavalry. Plus 10,000 new vassal troops, that's more than 20,000 soldiers. In addition, there are 20,000 elite soldiers and cavalry in the base camp. Three thousand, our army is twice as many as the Yan army. How can we be afraid of him? As long as our army reaches Yanji City, will Lu Zhi be able to come back even if he has the ability to fly? "
Lu Xiang was as young and energetic as his brother. When he refuted Dong Fan, he did not respect Dong Fan as the head coach. He yelled and spat, showing no doubt.
How does this make Dong Fang feel comfortable? He was believed to be the master of the sinister bird, otherwise he would not have beaten Li Qian in prison so badly, and then fled away to avoid trouble.
Although Zhang Chong has tempered her a lot now and has a more stable temperament, to put it bluntly, Dong Fang is not a good mother-in-law.
But the Lu brothers are important generals in the army, and their opinions are also very important. So Dong Fan gave the Lu brothers face and explained coldly:
"The base camp is now firmly entrenched and cannot move north in a short time. And the so-called new auxiliary army is a bunch of rabble, which will only lower our army's combat capability. So if we only rely on our ten thousand troops, we can directly cross the river and attack north. Jicheng, the risk is still very high.”
But Dong Kan’s explanation could not convince Lu Xiang, or in other words, Lu Xiang was not willing to listen at all, and he still looked high-spirited:
"The king's military skills have already reached the realm of transcendence and sainthood. Does Dong Shuai still doubt the king? What's more, just one of our troops is enough to defeat Yan. How many soldiers can Lu Zhi have to take away three soldiers? Ten thousand, the rest are just chickens and dogs. Our army will win with one blow."
After Lu Xiang said this, the whole audience gasped. They never expected that this person would dare to set a trap for Dong Fang and accuse him of being disrespectful to the king.
At this time, Dong Fan already had some murderous intent in his eyes, and he said calmly:
"Our army has been fighting for days and needs rest. In addition, the crossing to the north is too important, and we need to report to the base camp before making a decision."
Lu Xiang didn't see that Dong Fan had murderous intentions, and still sarcastically said:
"Dong Shuai, the last general has been patrolling the camp for days. I have never seen the officials below showing signs of fatigue. On the contrary, I saw that everyone was happy to fight, invited to fight, and showed high morale. Why is what Dong Shuai said different from what the last general saw? Huh? Hasn’t it been that Dong Shuai hasn’t gone to the camps below to take a look?”
At this time, Dong Fang had a stern look on his face, slapped the case hard, and then angrily shouted:
"Lu Xiang, are you kissing me?"
At this time, Dong Fang had already made up his mind to use Lu Xiang as a chicken to calm the morale of the army. He did not expect that for the sake of the overall situation, he would tolerate the Lu brothers again and again, and in the end, they would become so arrogant. At this moment, Dong Fang felt that his authority had been threatened.
Dong Fan's feeling is not surprising. Although he is a commander of the rear army marshal, the general army has ten thousand elites. But in terms of age, he is only around thirty, and most of the generals below are older than him.
In addition, this was also the first time that Dong Fang led a large-scale army of ten thousand people on an expedition. Although he is also one of the marshals of the Fifth Army, he actually has the least specific military experience.
Not to mention that Guan Yu presided over the first Northern Expedition, nor to mention that Zhang Dan had a great victory over Jize, nor to mention that Yu Jin had a great victory over Handan, let’s just say that Ding Sheng, the most unruly man, also had a great victory in the Western Expedition, in Qi. The main force of the Han soldiers in Henan, Shuihe, faced each other with gongs and drums, and they had touched each other.
But what does his Dong visit have? Except for his previous responsibilities in the Heji area, most of the other time he spent most of his time accompanying Zhang Chong, acting as a general in the conflict. Not to mention, later Dong Fang was directly deprived of his power because he made a big mistake when presiding over He Ji.
So under such circumstances, how much prestige can Dong Fang have in an army that values military merit and seniority the most?
What even made Dong Fang uneasy was that all the rear army was used to defend the interior lines and rarely participated in exterior operations. Therefore, in this Northern Expedition, he set out from Julu and was responsible for presiding over the entire route. Was it because the enemy forces in this area were weak, so he arranged this.
But Dong Fang was a proud man and would never tolerate such provocations to his authority.
Moreover, the identities of the Lu brothers made his vigilance rise to a high point.
In the current sequence of the Hou Army Marshal Department, the former Military Academy Lieutenant Department was transferred to the Zhending battlefield in the west. Now they are Lu Kuang of the Left Military Academy Lieutenant Department, Zhang Nan of the Central Military Academy Lieutenant Department, Zhang Kai of the Right Military Academy Lieutenant Department, and Hou Military Academy Lieutenant Department. Zhang Tai of Weibu. As well as the two assault cavalry accompanying the army, namely Ma Baotian's German Army and Li Bi's Tianwu Army.
Here, Zhang Nan is an old brother of Yuancong, who is on good terms with Dong Fang. Zhang Kai was his old subordinate in the Heji area and one of his own, while Zhang Tai was a powerful general from the Qingzhou Yellow Turbans and had always followed them. As for Ma Bao, who was his original cavalry commander, Li Bi also got along well with him, but the Lu brothers who were transferred from foreign armies had always been unruly.
Therefore, Dong Fang was already determined to use these two people to scare the monkeys. He suppressed his anger and seduced:
"As a general, we will fight unless there is danger. Our army rushes northward. Once it is defeated, it will be a big defeat. No one can afford this responsibility."
After hearing such mature but obviously shrinking remarks, Lu Xiang fell into the trap. Not only did he not restrain himself, he also taught him a lesson:
"I didn't expect Commander Dong to be a mother-in-law. I'm afraid of danger when fighting. It's better to transfer to the garrison. If all military affairs have to be decided by the base camp, what do you do as a commander? Why does the king want to divide the troops? Isn't it just hope? How can a commander like you seize the opportunity? The opportunity is fleeting, and you won’t even be able to catch up when the base camp responds!”
As soon as these words came out, even Lu Kuang on Lu Xiang's side was dumbfounded and hurriedly pulled Lu Xiang.
Lu Xiang also knew that he had made a mistake, and his face turned pale, but because of his strong energy, he still held on.
After Lu Xiang said this, Dong Fang exploded. He pointed his halberd at Lu Xiang and cursed angrily:
"What a arrogant and rebellious person. How dare he bark in the army, despise the superiors, and disturb the morale of the army. Someone comes, drag Lu Xiang down and behead him."
As soon as Dong Fan gave the order, the generals below were shocked. They didn't expect that Dong Fan was going to kill the general immediately! One after another came up to plead for mercy.
Lu Xiang's brother Lu Kuang knelt down and begged Dong Fan for mercy, asking Dong Fan to let him go this time because his brother had shed blood when he was king.
When things came to a close, Lu Xiang also panicked, but he still said:
"I'm just stating the military strategy. When has our Taishan Army ever been punished for my words? Now, I am the deputy captain of the First Division. How can you kill me unless there is an order from the king?"
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Unexpectedly, Dong Fan smiled ferociously, pointed at the Jiedu hanging on the back, and cursed at Lu Xiang:
"This is the rule given by the king. In wartime, two thousand stones can be cut!"
At this time, Lu Xiang was dumbfounded and did not dare to say anything more.
The system of the Jie Jie Yue began in the Shang and Zhou dynasties. In this Dynasty, every general who went on an expedition would be given this item, which was also called the Jie Jie Yue. In this Northern Expedition, Zhang Chong, in order to strengthen the authority of all commanders, granted them the power of false yue.
Therefore, Dong Fan could really kill Lu Xiang without order, and Zhang Chong would not be blamed at all, because it was Lu Xiang who was defying Dong Fan's authority, and Dong Fan's authority was granted by superiors, so in fact Lu Xiang is also contemptuous.
Therefore, based on what Lu Xiang just said, if placed in front of the Han army, he would be dead.
Lu Kuang was more savvy than his younger brother. He already felt that his younger brother's life depended on Dong Fan's thoughts, and he was worried that Lu Xiang would commit another crime again.
So, Lu Kuang jumped up and kicked Lu Xiang in the knee socket, kicking him to the ground, and then he also knelt down and begged for mercy:
"Commander, if you see my two brothers risking their lives to fight for each other, please spare his life."
Lu Xiang was kicked down by his brother and knew not to commit violence, so he could only kneel down and kowtow.
Over there, Ma Wu and Li Bi also came to plead for mercy, especially Zhang Nan who also said that it was unjustifiable to kill the general in front of the battle, not to mention that Lu Xiang also had the courage to fight.
At this time, other civil and military officials also reacted and begged for mercy.
Not to mention the Lu brothers' straightforward personalities and bravery, which made them very popular in the army. Nowadays, most of the old brothers in the army who were in the Taishan period basically have this character, so the Lu brothers are quite popular in the army.
At this meeting, Dong Fang really wanted to kill Lu Xiang. These people couldn't bear it, so they all begged for mercy.
As for the above, Dong Fang actually did not insist on killing Lu Xiang.
Because killing generals before battle can indeed improve military discipline and establish his authority as a commander-in-chief. But the Lu brothers are not people with bad reputations in the military. Using Lu Xiang to sacrifice the flag at this time may be counterproductive in the end.
So Dong Fan weighed it again in his mind. Seeing that the Lu brothers had given in, he stopped insisting and said coldly:
"I don't care what meritorious deeds you have performed in the past. I only pay attention to the execution of orders and prohibitions. Whoever dares to mess with my order, I will behead him. Today is a military meeting, I will not behead you. But if you do it next time, I will behead you. I wish. ?”
What else could Lu Xiang say next? He could only say that he was willing.
From here we can see Dong Fang's cunning and cunning.
He laid a hook for Lu Xiang here. In fact, if Lu Xiang made any disobedient behavior later, Dong Fang could directly kill him. At that time, others would find ways to intercede, because it was Lu Xiang who agreed to it.
And once you grasp this point, you, Lu Xiang, are assigned to lure the enemy, go to the rear, and in short, the most dangerous jobs are assigned to you. How dare you, Lu Xiang, disagree?
So, after what happened, Dong Fang finally removed the thorn in the side of the Lu brothers.
Sure enough, different coaches have different styles. Like Zhang Dan, he might not take it seriously, but like Guan Yu, he might kill him with one blow. If Ding Sheng were like this, he might have kicked Lu Xiang off the field and then forgotten about it.
From this point of view, Dong Fang and Dong Zhao are indeed brothers.
Finally, Dong Fang ended the military discussion and just asked the general to send the report to the base camp, waiting for the base camp to make a decision.
But little did he know that this move really missed the winner for the first time in this battle.