My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 628 Surprise Attack on Luocheng
Just as Cao Cao was discussing how to win Liu Zhang's support, withdraw from Chengdu, and consolidate Luocheng, Quan Cong had already successfully crossed the Longquan Mountains, secretly crossed the Tuo River south of Jintang County (later known as Jintang County), and then headed north along the Tuo River, quietly arriving at the outskirts of Luocheng.

Because of the plains, Quan Cong dared not get too close. He stopped in a woodland ten miles outside Luocheng and sealed off the surrounding villages.

After nightfall, Quan Cong fed his men until they were full, then set off with his family's elite troops as the vanguard, his own elite troops as the central army, and powerful local strongmen and wandering knights bringing up the rear, taking advantage of the darkness to rush towards Luocheng.

While the plains presented challenges—good visibility and a wider field of vision deterred Quan Cong from approaching Luocheng—they also had advantages. Even without torches, night marches could be conducted by moonlight, eliminating the risk of getting lost.

By 11:45 AM, Quan Cong's vanguard had already reached the walls of Luocheng.

Quan Cong lay prone in the grass, gazing at the dark outline of Luocheng before him. Scattered torches flickered in the night wind atop the city walls, and the figures of the guards occasionally flashed by, but most appeared lazy and negligent.

The personal guard appeared silently beside Quan Cong and whispered, "General, the scouts report that there are only about a hundred guards at the south gate, and most of the rest are asleep. The patrols on the city wall are every half hour, and three-quarters of an hour has passed now. In another quarter of an hour, the guards will come to patrol."

Quan Cong narrowed his eyes and said coldly, "Order the entire army to remain silent for fifteen minutes. After the patrol passes, proceed according to plan!"

"Here!"

After the order was given, all three hundred men of the vanguard followed Quan Cong and lay prone behind the grass. Their hiding place was a full mile away from the moat.

This is something we can't help. In the plains, the area around the city has been stripped bare of trees, and even the grass has been cut down, all for fear of being ambushed.

This was because the garrison was too lazy, and with the arrival of spring and the rampant growth of vegetation, there wouldn't have been enough grass to hide in for even a short distance of a mile, let alone lie down.

Soon, a quarter of an hour passed. Although it was springtime and the temperature was rising, there weren't many flying insects, so Quan Cong and the others weren't bothered.

Quan Cong was quite annoyed that the garrison patrol was late. However, upon further reflection, he realized that the garrison's laxity was actually a good thing.

Another quarter of an hour passed, and finally a group of garrison soldiers appeared from the distant city wall carrying torches. After passing several enemy watchtowers, they waved their torches a few times and then gradually moved away.

"Do it!"

Quan Cong gave a soft shout, then was the first to stand up and run towards the moat. Immediately afterward, hundreds of figures followed him, chasing after him without hesitation.

As he approached the moat, Quan Cong quickly removed his heavy clothes, then wrapped them up in an oil paper bag. He then placed the bag, along with another oil paper bag on his back, on his head and walked into the moat with slow but firm movements.

The moat of Luocheng is wide but not deep. The water is drawn from the Shuluo River, a tributary of the Tuojiang River. The water volume is not large, so the average depth of the moat is only a little over five feet. Tall adult men can even walk across the bottom of the moat.

Quan Cong, a robust man standing at six feet tall, carried the oil paper package on his head and, step by step, gently pushed aside the water to reach the other side.

Although it was already April, the river water was still quite cold. After getting ashore, Quan Cong quickly took off his soaking wet clothes, opened the oil paper package, put on the clothes inside, and then began to put on the armor from the second oil paper package.

A quarter of an hour later, all three hundred of Quan Cong's elite troops crossed the moat, hid under the city wall, changed into dry clothes and shoes, and put on their armor.

"Hook and rope!"

At Quan Cong's command, dozens of grappling hooks were thrown toward the city wall. A small number of them hit their mark and snagged the parapet, while most of the rest slid off the wall and were then thrown back up.

"on!"

Quan Cong gave a low shout and took the lead in pulling on the grappling hook to climb upwards.

The moat of Luocheng was not deep, but the city wall was not low. Although it could not be compared with the exaggerated height of Chengdu's seven zhang and one chi, it was still more than two zhang high, equivalent to six or seven meters in later times, and was very sturdy.

As more and more grappling hooks caught on the city walls, armored warriors followed Quan Cong as they scaled the ramparts. However, they did not act immediately, but instead quietly expanded to both sides, observing the city interior, especially the activity at the city gates.

Quan Cong chose a landing point about sixty meters from the city gate. This distance, coupled with the strong winds at night, meant that even if he made a sound, it wouldn't easily reach the city gate.

About two quarters of an hour later, all three hundred armored soldiers had climbed the city wall, and the main force that was to come to their aid was lying in wait outside the city gate. As soon as the city gate could be opened and the drawbridge lowered, they could rush into the city to support them.

At this point, there were only a little over fifteen minutes left before the patrol arrived.

Quan Cong divided his troops into two groups. One hundred men went along the city wall toward the city gate. Their main task was to break into the city gate workshop, which contained not only winches but also a mechanism room to control the drawbridge and the city gate's jacks. If necessary, there were also oil channels to burn down the siege hammers and other equipment in the city gate's opening.

If this area is not controlled, the drawbridge cannot be lowered, and even if the city gates are opened, support cannot be obtained quickly.

Therefore, Quan Cong assigned his most trusted cousin, Quan Lian, to the task, carefully selecting one hundred of his bravest soldiers for him. Quan Cong himself led the remaining two hundred men down the city wall through the front passage and then launched a surprise attack on the city gate.

Soon, the two men arrived at their designated locations with their soldiers.

When Quan Cong saw a torch suddenly light up on the city wall and wave it three times towards the city, he immediately drew his sword and shouted in a low voice to the armored soldiers behind him: "Gentlemen, today is the day to make a name for yourselves. If we take Luocheng, we will be the heroes of this battle, and the Left General and the court will not treat us unfairly. If we fail to take the city gate, we will be trapped inside with no way out."

His trusted soldiers behind him all responded, "We will fight to the death with our general! Today is the day to achieve great deeds!"

"Great!"

Quan Cong laughed and took the lead, walking towards the city gate: "Gentlemen, come with me!"

Two hundred armored soldiers immediately followed.

At this time, the city gate was dimly lit, and most of the soldiers had already found a warm place to sleep, leaving only a few soldiers still on guard duty with their heads bowed.

Suddenly, a series of hurried footsteps sounded, startling a half-asleep guard. He looked up in the direction of the sound and saw a group of figures moving about, which greatly surprised him.

"Who is coming?"

The guard suddenly shouted, but because the people coming from inside the city, he hadn't been wary at all. However, the figures moved silently and quickly towards the city gate, immediately alerting the guard.

"Who goes there? This is a restricted area at the city gate! Stop right there!" The guards shouted, and the other guards at the city gate were also awakened, looking at this side with puzzled expressions.

But before he could finish, a barrage of crossbow bolts rained down, engulfing the guard and the other guards who were walking towards them.

This volley of more than ten crossbow bolts represented more than half of the crossbows used by Quan Cong's troops in Dengcheng. Moreover, the crossbow bolts were difficult to reload, so there would be no long-range fire support for at least the next minute or two.

However, the effect of this barrage of crossbow bolts was quite good, directly shooting down seven or eight guards in front, and those who were not dead were rendered unable to fight.

The armored soldiers followed Quan Cong and ran quickly, roaring as they charged toward the defenders deeper into the city gate.

In an instant, swords flashed and blood splattered on the scene. The defending troops were caught off guard and were relatively scattered, making it impossible for them to resist Quan Cong's offensive. They immediately retreated in defeat.

However, the garrison patrols in the distance were also alerted and were surging toward the city gate from all directions, leaving Quan Cong and his men little time.

Fortunately, the number of troops guarding the city was very small, and their quality was even more worrying.

Half an hour later, Quan Cong had cleared the guards from the gate and opened the city gate.

Almost simultaneously, the city gate drawbridge, driven by a winch, began to slowly lower.

Quan Cong's troops, who were far away, had already noticed the unusual activity at the city gate and were rushing towards the moat with all their might, waiting for the drawbridge to be lowered so they could enter the city to provide support.

Patrols of the city's garrison had arrived from all directions and immediately launched a counterattack towards the city gate.

There were two hundred armored soldiers at the city gate. Although they were half the number of the patrol team, they were all wearing iron armor, which was far beyond the reach of the patrol team.

After Quan Cong's main force entered the city, the Hanzhong County troops collapsed first, and Cao's soldiers fought hard but were no match for them, eventually escaping through the west gate.

In this battle, Quan Cong killed or captured over a hundred Cao soldiers and over four hundred soldiers from Hanzhong Commandery, totaling only about five hundred men. His own casualties were minimal, with only over forty killed and over a hundred wounded. However, he successfully achieved his campaign objectives, capturing Luocheng in a night raid and securing the city's weapons, armor, and supplies.

After capturing Luocheng, Quan Cong quickly stabilized the city's inhabitants, inventoried the treasury, hired able-bodied men to reinforce the city's defenses, and simultaneously rode south to report the victory and request reinforcements.

The Allied forces still have 70,000 to 80,000 men. Luocheng is also a large city. The All-China Federation of Trade Unions headquarters alone has more than 3,000 men and 800 able-bodied men. They cannot defend such a large city.

Upon receiving the news of the victory, Liu Feng was overjoyed and immediately ordered Lü Meng and Sun Ce to set off.

Because Luocheng already had a large stockpile of military equipment and provisions, and because Lü Meng and Sun Ce needed to take a detour, they didn't carry much military supplies, only five days' worth of dry rations each, and traveled day and night to Luocheng. By the time Chengdu received news of Luocheng's fall, Lü Meng and Sun Ce's troops had already crossed the Tuo River and were only a day's journey from Luocheng.

**
After meeting Liu Zhang, Cao Ang first dismissed his attendants and then informed him of the military secrets regarding the fall of Jiange and Tianxiong.

Liu Zhang nearly fainted from fright; he never dreamed that Cao Ang would bring such terrible news.

"General, are you perhaps toying with me?"

Liu Zhang looked at Cao Ang with disbelief and pleading eyes, as if begging him to tell him that it was just a bad joke.

Cao Ang shook his head: "My lord, how could I dare to deceive you about such important military matters? Right now, our supply lines are cut off, and the war is going badly. We should think of a plan to retreat and protect ourselves."

Liu Zhang felt dizzy again, supporting himself on the table with one hand and pressing his temple with the other, as if his brain had stopped thinking.

After a long while, Liu Zhang seemed to have heard what Cao Ang had said. He raised his head again, his eyes filled with hope, and looked at Cao Ang: "Zixiu, did you already have a plan for retreat and protection?"

Cao Ang immediately replied, "I have indeed come up with some ideas, but I don't know if Your Excellency will adopt them."

Liu Zhang was overjoyed and hurriedly asked, "Zixiu, please speak freely. If what you say is true, I will certainly take it into consideration."

Cao Ang knew the crucial moment had arrived. He quietly took a deep breath and then slowly explained the plan he had discussed with Sima Yi and others. As he spoke, he paid attention to Liu Zhang's reaction and adjusted his wording accordingly.

As Cao Ang had feared, Liu Zhang's face darkened considerably upon hearing that he was to leave Chengdu. Nearly ten years had passed since Liu Zhang ascended the throne, yet he had never left Chengdu before.

Not to mention that Chengdu is the capital of Yizhou, the largest city in Shu, and controls the largest plain in Shu, the Chengdu Plain, and has two-thirds of Yizhou's output and taxes.

Giving up this place is tantamount to giving up Shu and Yizhou.

Even if he retreated to Guanghan County and held out along the Luocheng and Fucheng line until the imperial court reopened the Jinniu Road, what would that have to do with Liu Zhang?
By then, who would still recognize him as the Governor of Yizhou?
Even if Liu Feng didn't acknowledge it, would Cao Cao and Cao Ang continue to support him as before?
Liu Zhang would absolutely not agree to leave Chengdu unless absolutely necessary.

But is it really time to leave?

Liu Zhang was somewhat stout, with a round face and squinty eyes, but he did not give off an ugly impression; on the contrary, he had a prosperous air about him.

At this moment, Liu Zhang's slightly small eyes slowly moved, his heart filled with hesitation.

Seeing Liu Zhang's hesitation, Cao Ang suddenly changed his expression and shouted, "My lord, can't you see the current situation clearly?!"

When Cao Ang offered him food and drink, Liu Zhang's expression changed drastically. However, after a moment's hesitation, he suddenly softened, revealing his weak and submissive nature.

"The situation has deteriorated to this point, and Zhang is completely at a loss. Please forgive me, Zixiu, and feel free to speak your mind."

Cao Ang felt a secret sense of relief, then replied seriously, "Given the current situation, preserving territory inevitably means losing manpower. While preserving manpower may temporarily mean losing territory, it doesn't necessarily mean we can't make a comeback. Chengdu is already a dead end and cannot be held for long. We should retreat to Luocheng, Mianzhu, and Fucheng. This will allow us to shorten our supply lines, concentrate our forces, and gain many advantages. At the same time, we can also threaten the Left Guard Army along the Fu River, preventing them from responding to our eastward advance."

“My father has been supporting the Han Dynasty and serving the Emperor for seven or eight years now. He will certainly not tolerate the Left General’s bullying of the court and the governor, nor will he stand idly by while the Left General’s invasion and plundering of the prefectures. In less than half a year, the General will surely send troops out of Hanzhong to relieve our predicament.”

(End of this chapter)