Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 86 We must capture another city before dark!
Zhang Fei captured the city wall and led his troops into the city.

The armors of the soldiers were stained with blood, and they killed the Yuan army defending the city so hard that they cried for their parents and fled in all directions before they could hold on for a moment.

When the Qingzhou soldiers were heard shouting, they would be spared as long as they laid down their weapons.

The guards dropped their spears and hid in houses or in the streets.

Some people even wanted to open the city gate and run out of the city. After finally working together to open it, they were faced with a volley of arrows. They were so scared that they screamed and ran back, leaving their comrades who were shot by arrows to wail in pain on the ground.

Now that the city has been breached, it is not even possible to protect ourselves.

We are not related, so why should I care about other people?

The Xiandeng Battalion followed the Tiejia Battalion and also rushed into the city. For a moment, screams, sounds of surrender, and the clash of weapons filled the sky.

A clever guard stopped dozens of people and ran to the county government office, hoping to collect the reward by borrowing the heads of the county magistrate and the county magistrate.

They came to nothing and only captured a few runners and maids. After interrogation, they learned that the county magistrate and the county magistrate had changed their clothes and wrapped up their money and fled to who knows where when the Qingzhou army attacked.

The soldier cursed angrily, "You rat!" Thinking of the county lieutenant who died in battle on the city wall, he became furious and killed all the servants and maids in the county government office. Then he set fire to the county government office and fled.

When Liu Bei entered the city and saw that the fire was still burning, he sent soldiers to the treasury to guard the books, registers, and food supplies to prevent anyone from destroying them.

When he heard the shouting and killing gradually subsided, he ordered his auxiliary soldiers to carry water to put out the fire and use chariots to block the city gates.

The soldiers formed small formations of several people and went house to house to search for the defeated soldiers hiding in the houses. Those who surrendered were tied up with ropes, and those who resisted stubbornly were shot with bows and crossbows and beheaded, and their heads were thrown into the courtyard as a warning to others.

As soon as the fire in Fanyang was slightly extinguished, Guo Jia immediately found Liu Bei and suggested: "Your Excellency, the morale of your troops is high, and there are still barracks that have not been put into battle. You can lead the army to attack Neihuang directly. Yuan Shao will definitely be caught off guard."

"If we can capture it in one fell swoop, the battle will be half won."

Xun You pondered for a moment and said, "We can give it a try. We can just cut down the weapons on the spot."

Liu Bei said with a smile: "That's what I was thinking. I wanted to wait until the fire was put out before going there. In this case, I will temporarily entrust the affairs of the city to Fengxiao and Yide, and Gongda, Ziyi and I will lead the troops there."

He sent a military officer to call Zhang Fei and gave him careful instructions.

He also transferred Guan Hai's troops from the Xiandeng Camp, led the Shengshe Camp and the Hengqiang Camp, mobilized all the horses and livestock, and found guides who were familiar with the local area to lead the army out again.

On the way, Liu Bei asked the guide for details. The old man said cautiously: "Sir, although Neihuang County is close to Fanyang, it is surrounded by water on three sides. There are rivers on the north and south, and a lake on the west. It is easy to defend but difficult to attack."

The old man told the truth. He was also afraid that if Liu Bei failed to capture the city, he would take his anger out on him, so he did not express his resentment clearly.

That's really hard to explain.

But he didn't know that the more easy to defend and difficult to attack the terrain was, the more Liu Bei would have to take it while he had fewer people. He put his knife against Yuan Shao's waist, making him feel uneasy.

"Don't worry, old man!" Liu Bei saw the worry in the other's eyes and waved his hand to explain: "I heard that you have lived in Wei County for decades and served as an official in many places, so I sent someone to invite you. When you arrive in Neihuang County, I will definitely give you gold and silk as a gift."

"Don't you believe in Liu Bei's reputation, old man?"

The old man thought that Liu Xuande's reputation for kindness was not only known in Qingzhou, but also in nearby states and counties. His reputation was undoubtedly better than that of others.

Only then did I quietly let go of my worry and breathed a sigh of relief.

Liu Bei's reputation was spread everywhere he went.

From Qingzhou to Yanzhou, and now it is spreading to Jizhou.

Although Liu Bei did not have as much prestige as Yuan Shao among the literati, in the minds of the middle and lower classes, his fame was no less than that of Yuan Shao, a nobleman for generations.

The old man thought about the boy in his family who often hung out in the streets and loved making friends, so this time it was all thanks to him.

Upon hearing that Liu Shijun was looking for a guide familiar with the area around Neihuang County, he immediately approached the military officer and said that his father had been a county official in many places, and no one was more familiar with the terrain than him over the decades. He then took the stunned military officer to his home, and unexpectedly learned that the notice in the officer's hand was written by Lord Xuande himself.

He couldn't help but get even more excited. He was ready to fight and endured all the way. Finally, he couldn't help but whispered, "Can you give me this copy of the document?"

The officer finally came to his senses and said, "As long as what you said is true and your father agrees to go, it's okay to give you this document."

Then he whispered in the other person's ear: "To be honest, my family also has a few copies of the envoy's documents. If it weren't for the fact that you are also a ranger, I wouldn't give them to you..."

The man's eyes trembled. Could it be that you are also a country knight?

The military officer patted his shoulder and grinned, "Yes, I am Xu Ju from Le'an. I have followed you in battles for several years and was also a knight-errant in my early years."

"If you want to join the Envoy's army, you can come find me after this battle if I am still alive."

In this way, the old man was sold to Liu Shijun by his own son without knowing it.

After his pleading, I could only sigh with tenderness in my heart.

It was his mother's fault for taking a concubine and giving birth to their only son.

The old man came to his senses and continued talking with Liu Shijun, telling him everything he was familiar with.

Xun You also nodded slightly after hearing this.

Having this person as a guide really makes things twice as easy as possible. He can even tell the temperament of the nearby county magistrate clearly.

Liu Bei, who didn't know the truth, thought to himself, "Xu Ju did a good job this time. He found such a good guide. I thought he could only solve problems with brute force, even though he could read. I didn't expect him to be so thoughtful."

The soldiers ate while they were on the road to replenish their energy, while Taishi Ci led the scouts with his personal guards to scout along the way, and immediately shot and killed any scouts of Yuan army they found.

Liu Bei led his army in a rapid advance and finally arrived at the city two hours before sunset.

He immediately ordered people to build ladders and a pontoon bridge to cross the river.

Guan Hai and the returning Taishi Ci asked to lead the troops first, and Liu Bei nodded in agreement.

Although the guards of Neihuang had been instructed to be cautious of Liu Bei's surprise attack.

But when the enemy really arrived at the gates, I still felt a little chilly.

The sound of hurried horse hooves could be heard outside the city. Liu Bei used horses to carry armor and weapons to transport his soldiers and auxiliary soldiers to the outside of Neihuang County, carrying only six days' worth of dry food.

The soldiers all understood that they had to try their best to capture the county town. If they failed to take it first, the general had said that he would lead the troops to climb the city and fight in person.

I will not stop until Yuan’s army is defeated before dusk today!

The soldiers all had red faces and necks, ready to go, waiting for the sound of war drums to rush into the city.

"Boom, boom, boom..." The sound of drums filled with murderous aura rang out.

The Sound She Battalion once again set up large shields, drew bows and shot at the defenders on the city walls, buying time for the auxiliary soldiers behind them to build pontoon bridges and ladders.

"Is that Liu Bei's Qingzhou army under the city? How did they get here? Why didn't anyone report from the direction of Fanyang?" When the Neihuang County Lieutenant heard the news from the soldiers, he quickly climbed up the city wall and looked down.

He was nearly hit by a flying arrow, which grazed his earlobe.

"Swoosh! Whoosh!" Arrows kept breaking through the air and flying towards the top of the city. No guard dared to stand up and fight back under the rain of arrows.

　I don't know how much more I can do today...

　　
　
(End of this chapter)