My younger brother Zhuge Liang

Chapter 395: The Rotten Boat Still Has Three Jin of Nails

As Guan Yu forced Chang Xi to surrender, he divided his troops and pacified the counties of Taishan County.

A few days passed in a flash, and the wheel of history quietly entered September of the eighth year of Jian'an.

Let’s turn our attention back to Pengcheng County, the seat of Pengcheng County, 200 miles south of the Taishan County battlefield.

On the second day after Chang Xi surrendered, a detachment of Guan Yu's troops went up the Si River from Xia Pi and arrived at Pengcheng County. They then detoured to the north of the county seat, cutting off the route for the remnants of Zhang He's troops in the north to return for reinforcements.

The commander of this detachment was none other than Chen Dao, who had previously ambushed and defeated Zhu Ling. He had only four or five thousand troops under his command.

A day later, another detachment sent by Guan Yu also arrived, also with several thousand men, led by Zhou Tai. They were ordered to detour to the south of Pengcheng, and pay special attention to cutting off the Sishui waterway to prevent Cao Ren's troops in the south from returning to Pengcheng.

Cao Ren, who was stationed in Fuli and Zhuyi, had already woken up by this time and realized that Pengcheng was one of the main attack directions of Liu Bei's army. Unfortunately, his navy was too weak, and even if he wanted to let Zhang He's troops return to Pengcheng, those people could not go back.

On their way back, Lu Zhao and Feng Kai had just sent out their vanguards to tentatively cross the Sishui River when they were intercepted by Zhou Tai halfway across the river. They could not reach Hebei at all and could only return in defeat, leaving behind more than a thousand casualties. It was not that Zhou Tai did not want to play the long game, but that the enemy was also quite alert and would not release the eagle until they saw the rabbit. In short, both sides had exhausted all their tactics and neither could do better, so the situation could only end like this.

At this point in the battle, anyone with a discerning eye could see that Pengcheng County was completely hopeless and its fall was only a matter of time.

Two days after Zhou Tai arrived, the last group of Liu Bei's troops that participated in the siege of Pengcheng finally arrived. There were about 8,000 soldiers and horses on this group, led by Zhuge Jin himself.

However, Zhuge Jin was a civil servant after all, and even though he held the title of general, he would not be directly responsible for daily military affairs, so these tasks were temporarily handed over to Gao Shun.

Gao Shun and Zhou Tai were both generals who participated in the defense of Langya last year and made great contributions. This year, they were both transferred to the troops to counterattack Pengcheng County. Gao Shun had previously been promoted to a general for his meritorious service, and he felt very honored to be able to help Zhuge Jin.

After Zhuge Jin and Gao Shun arrived, the total strength of Liu Bei's army in Pengcheng battlefield exceeded 15,000. This number was more than three times that of Cao's army defending Pengcheng. Pengcheng originally had tens of thousands of regular troops, but Zhang He was squeezed out by Zhuge Jin and went to reinforce Chang Xi, so there were only more than 4,000 regular troops left.

After Zhang He was defeated by Zhang Liao, more than half of his troops were killed. Although he recovered two or three thousand remaining soldiers, many of them were wounded and could not return to Pengcheng. He could only retreat to Pei County to the west.

Zhuge Jin was well aware of this situation, so he was not too worried about taking Pengcheng.

The next day after arriving in Pengcheng in person, Zhuge Jin summoned Gao Shun, Chen Dao, and Zhou Tai early in the morning to hold a military meeting to sort out the enemy situation and discuss tactics.

Zhuge Jin asked Chen Dao directly, "Shuzhi, you are the first to arrive, so you should know the enemy situation best. Do the Cao army in the city still have the will to hold on? Did Guo Jia escape in advance? He won't be so stupid as to stay in Pengcheng and wait for us to surround him, right?"

Chen Dao's face was slightly embarrassed, so he had to tell the truth: "Before our army arrived, a small group of Cao's troops did withdraw first, but we don't know who led them. What we can confirm is that there are still generals in the city who are determined to hold on to the city and stabilize the people's hearts."

Zhuge Jin stroked his mustache and did not dare to expect too much: "What a pity, since some people have left, Guo Jia should be among them. Otherwise, if we can kill Guo Jia in the city, it would be worth it for our army to attack and break the city at all costs.

Now that Guo Jia has escaped, there is no need to waste lives. Let's bluff and test the defenders to see if they are determined. If they are determined, we will destroy the trenches step by step, build watchtowers with earth, and then use wells and Ge Gongche to slowly break into the city.

"Zhongda, I heard that you were famous for your ability to attack strongholds when you led the Xianzhen Camp. You have also defended Pengcheng for many years, so you should be familiar with the terrain. I will leave it to you to supervise the battle this time."

Zhuge Jin's last half sentence was addressed to Gao Shun, who immediately stood up and bowed in response.

"Don't worry, my lords. I will definitely capture the city as soon as possible."

……

The troops prepared for another day. The next morning, they prepared several battering rams and a large number of ladders. More than 10,000 troops lined up in the north of Pengcheng, ready for an attack.

Pengcheng is also a strategic location at the throat of Xuzhou. It was the place where Xiang Yu built his capital when he was known as the King of Western Chu. It has very good geographical conditions.

This is the confluence of the Huoshui River and the Sishui River. The Huoshui River flows from the west and flows into the Sishui River, which flows from north to south. The city of Pengcheng was built on the northwest side of the T-shaped intersection of the two rivers, so the city was adjacent to the Sishui River on the east and the Huoshui River on the south, and troops could not be deployed on both sides. Only the northwest two sides were open areas where an assault could be launched.

Zhuge Jin deliberately attacked only the north side and left the west side open. This was also based on the righteous military strategy of "surrounding three sides and leaving one side open". He wanted to undermine the morale of the defenders and make them break out and escape to the west when they felt they could not hold on.

Of course, if the defenders of Pengcheng really dared to break out of the city to the west, Zhuge Jin would definitely not let them leave smoothly.

He had Zhou Tai lead several thousand men to set up an ambush thirty miles west of the city, and also had naval warships patrolling quietly on the water, hiding in the reed marshes during the day to paralyze the defenders. If the defenders dared to break out, they would still be ambushed by Zhou Tai's ambushes.

After making all the arrangements, Gao Shun followed Zhuge Jin's instructions, wearing a set of fine steel armor, and personally rode his horse to more than a hundred steps below the city, shouting to intimidate the defenders on the city wall and trying to persuade them to surrender. Gao Shun dared to do this because he was confident in the armor on his body. His breastplate was made of cast steel forged by a waterwheel forging hammer, and his helmet and curved shoulder guards were also forged by a water hammer and formed in one piece.

The rest of the limbs and details are covered with traditional fish scale steel armor. Even if the Pengcheng Cao army sniped with a powerful crossbow, they would not be afraid of it at a distance of one or two hundred steps, just don't encounter that kind of bed crossbow.

Besides, Gao Shun's voice was not loud enough, so he had to bring a group of swearers with him. The swearers' equipment was not that good, so everyone carried a large iron shield as a cover.

As soon as Gao Shun came up, he revealed his identity: "Listen, soldiers of Pengcheng! Some of you are veterans who stayed behind when Marquis Wen was in Xuzhou, and some of you have more experience, perhaps you have joined the army when the General of Chariots and Cavalry led Xuzhou.

You must all be very aware of my ability to attack the enemy! Now the Cao thief is bullying the emperor, blocking the king's way, and usurping the emperor's authority. I led tens of thousands of elite troops under the command of the General of Chariots and Cavalry to come here. Zhang He has also been defeated by General Guan and fled, and Chang Xi surrendered upon seeing the wind.

If I attack with all my strength, I will destroy the city together! Those of you who are willing to join the light should immediately lay down your weapons and welcome the royal army! Guo Jia was a coward and had already abandoned the city and fled, but was ambushed by our army! You have lost your lives in vain, delaying time for Guo Jia and Cao! "

Gao Shun was actually not sure whether Guo Jia had escaped or not, but after the meeting yesterday, Zhuge Jin taught him to first shake the enemy's morale by pretending that Guo Jia had already escaped.

Zhuge Jin believed that even if Guo Jia ran away, he would not make it public, and the soldiers below would definitely not know about it. If the attacking party announced this bad news, it would further shake the morale of the defenders and be beneficial to the attack.

If Guo Jia had not run away, he would have to go to the city in public to talk to Gao Shun and inspect the city defenses in order to dispel rumors and stabilize people's hearts.

In that case, Zhuge Jin would not be at a loss. If he had known that Guo Jia was still alive, it would have been worth it even if a few thousand more people were killed or injured, and he would have rushed to attack and kill Guo Jia.

When the defenders on the city wall heard that Guo Jia had been killed, there was indeed some commotion. Gao Shun carefully observed the enemy's reaction and immediately planned to organize an attack while the enemy's morale was unstable.

"Let the long shield soldiers go forward to fill the trench and build trench bridges immediately, and let the flying ladders quickly cross the river and climb the city first! The crossbowmen follow the long shield soldiers forward, find cover and shoot arrows at the top of the city!"

At Gao Shun's command, thousands of Liu Bei's soldiers launched the first wave of offensive.

Because the preparation time was relatively short and the moat had not been filled yet, large ladder trucks could not be used and battering rams were also difficult to deploy.

A simple flying ladder can be used with the help of a trench bridge vehicle temporarily built on the moat. However, a cloud ladder is too heavy and the trench bridge vehicle will be crushed directly without being able to bear it.

However, just as Gao Shun organized this rapid offensive, a senior general soon appeared on the city wall and personally suppressed the turbulent Cao army and stabilized the people's hearts.

"Don't panic! Defend the city well! Anyone who spreads rumors will be killed! Guo Jijiu is in the city, and he advises me on military affairs every day. However, he is just a civilian and is not feeling well. Does he have to go to the city to supervise the battle in person?"

The general of Cao's army actually killed several grassroots squad leaders and team leaders who were causing chaos on the front line. They were all negative examples who had made particularly unreasonable noises. He quickly calmed the morale of the defenders.

When the Cao army soldiers saw that it was General Zhu Ling, they all knew that he was of noble status and had long service. Zhu Ling was still holding on, and the enemy's rumor that Guo Jia had escaped was indeed a bit unreasonable.

As a result, the morale of Cao's army was temporarily stabilized.

Gao Shun's offensive seemed to be going smoothly at first. Taking advantage of the chaos in Cao's army, he successfully built several disposable wooden trench bridges - in fact, they were large wooden rafts formed by nailing the trunks of many large trees side by side. They were longer than the width of the moat and were carried to the river by dozens of soldiers and directly lowered to the other side.

Then, taking advantage of the initial chaos of Cao's army, nearly a hundred flying ladders were rushed across the moat and set up at the base of the city wall. The warriors in heavy armor immediately tried to climb up first.

Unfortunately, Zhu Ling's appearance quickly brought Cao's army back to their senses from the panic. Taking advantage of the terrain, Cao's soldiers threw logs and rocks down in an orderly manner and resisted frantically. Gao Shun's first warriors, although protected by iron armor, were unable to resist being hit by the rocks.

After all, time is too short and heavy siege weapons cannot be used in the battle today. They can only rely on flying ladders to attack the fortified city. Even with a famous siege general like Gao Shun in command, it is still impossible to go against the laws of nature.

Gao Shun saw that the situation was hopeless, so he left behind nearly a hundred bodies and quickly called off the troops. As for the flying ladders and trench bridge vehicles, they were no longer needed and were abandoned where they were. Reducing casualties was the most important thing at this time, and those wooden tools could be built by chopping trees when they came back. There were also hundreds of people who were slightly injured in the fight just now, and they all struggled to escape on their own.

The tentative attack was unsuccessful, so Gao Shun returned and sincerely apologized to Zhuge Jin.

Zhuge Jin did not blame him: "Since it was a test, it is normal to fail temporarily. How can we blame Zhongda for this? At least we have found out that Guo Jia did abandon the city and escape.

But Zhu Ling, the variable, was very loyal to Cao. How dare he stay in a city that would be breached sooner or later, delaying time for Cao? I didn't expect him to be so fearless. If Zhu Ling hadn't been here today, maybe Pengcheng could have been breached quickly.

But it doesn't matter. One less Cao thief is dead. Zhu Ling can use his life in Pengcheng."

(End of this chapter)