Tiger Guards

Chapter 240 Advance Payment
It took five days to complete the earthen hill east of Huguan City.

The skilled archers in Zhao Ji's army took turns climbing the mountain and shooting at the defenders of Huguan.

Zhao Ji would climb the hill every day and shoot a pot of arrows at the defenders in the city.

He only shot one pot of arrows every day, and each time he was alone standing on the arrow tower on the earthen hill to carry out precise sniping.

At this time, the defenders in the city no longer dared to shoot at him. They all hid behind the door panels and did not dare to move on the city walls.

Many people have paid the price with their lives and health. Ordinary shields have limited protection area, and it is difficult to cover the whole body with a shield, so they will still be shot by Zhao Ji.

Therefore, when Zhao Ji climbed the hill for the third time, he could not find an opportunity to shoot.

There was no one to be seen on the entire eastern wall of Huguan.

Wooden sheds were built on the city walls to block arrows. Even if people moved back and forth, they held up the doors for fear of being shot by Zhao Ji.

But Zhao Ji had not yet used up half of his arrows, so he could only continue to observe the city and look for a suitable target.

There is no room for mercy at this time. The faster the resistance of the defenders in the city is suppressed, the less damage will be suffered by both sides.

Seeing that Zhao Ji was reluctant to leave, Gao Gan couldn't help but ask again from inside the tower: "If we gather all the powerful crossbows in the city and fire them together, can we kill this thief?"

"It is very difficult. The Marquis of Zhao is not only a skilled archer, but he can also catch arrows with his bare hands. The morale of the people in the city is low, and they are unable to fight any further."

A military officer squatted on the ground obediently, looked up and said: "When the enemy's siege equipment is completed...we will be in danger."

Gao Gan was not convinced and observed Zhao Ji through the gap in the window. He also knew that if the Jin army attacked the city, Zhao Ji would be standing on the earthen hill, and the defenders would be in a very passive position.

Fighting with the siege troops would definitely attract Zhao Ji on the hill or other elite archers to shoot them.

If we resist passively, with such a small space as the city wall, and if we retreat even a little and refuse to put in any effort, we will soon be driven out of the city by the enemy.

The loss of one city wall was equivalent to the fall of the entire city given the Jin army's strong manpower.

Gao Gan was helpless and could only glare at Zhao Ji through the gap, wishing he could stare him to death.

At noon, Zhao Ji felt hungry, so he walked down from the arrow tower and said to the officers and archers waiting nearby, "I will go back to the camp to eat, and you can play with the defenders."

"Here!"

Hu Qian mixed in with the military officers and bowed deeply to Zhao Ji.

Zhao Ji handed the bow to the guard, and the archers who were resting in various places began to rush to take their positions, drawing their bows and starting to shoot arrows.

The defenders did not dare to fight back at first. Only after the brave defenders in various places fought back did the others start to follow suit and shoot.

They were afraid that Zhao Ji had not left, so they hid among the archers in Tushan and took the opportunity to shoot them.

The top of the earth mountain is built with a mixture of earth and wood.

People can stand on the top of the mountain, and there is a higher arrow tower; at the same time, logs were buried when the top of the mountain was constructed, and two low spaces were built.

This mixed construction method saves a lot of earthwork transportation.

Therefore, the entire earthen hill extended from north to south, was more than a hundred steps long, and had four firing lines.

Elite archers are responsible for sniping on the arrow tower, while strong archers use their strong bows to carry out covering attacks on the flat ground on the top of the mountain.

In the two-story space beneath their feet, crossbowmen crouched and fired from the firing holes.

Because the space is low, these powerful crossbows are strung by lying on the ground and pedaling with the feet.

Zhao Ji led a dozen knights back to the northern camp, where siege equipment had already been assembled, mainly various ladders.

On the surface of the nearby Zhangshui River, logs bundled up and thrown into the river from upstream were seen from time to time.

These logs are tied together into rafts, with the front and rear rafts connected together. There are skilled raft guides standing at the front of the raft to support the water and guide the raft.

When a string of rafts arrived, small boats near the camp would intercept them and drag them to the east bank, where they would become raw materials for building engineering equipment.

Pilaf has been cooked in the camp.

After a simple wash, Zhao Ji had his meal with the military officials who were waiting for him.

It is said to be the main camp here, but in fact it is where the Tiger Infantry is stationed.

Each cavalry unit was stationed in a dispersed manner to facilitate the horses' foraging and reduce logistical pressure.

Everyone sat around during the meal. Zhao Ji held a gilded copper plate in one hand and a wooden spoon in the other, eating pilaf with big mouthfuls.

The copper plate was decorated with silver-gilt patterns. He quickly changed to the second plate and then picked up an old cucumber and took a bite.

It was crisp and refreshing. Zhao Ji grabbed a cucumber and dipped it in some vinegar. Then he said, "The siege will take place within the next two days. If nothing else happens, gather all the knights tomorrow. The knights will hold the fortress, the archers will climb the earthen hill, and the tiger infantry will attack the city."

Wei Xing looked up when he heard this: "Aren't you waiting for Xu Gongming?" Xu Huang had already cleared the three western counties and was moving here. He was escorting too much baggage and supplies, so he had to relocate the tribes of the three counties as well, and use these people as menial servants.

"The battle is urgent. How can we delay the opportunity because of one person?"

Zhao Ji took another bite of the cucumber and said, "Yuan Shao's envoys are currently negotiating with the court officials. He didn't want to anger me during this time, so he didn't send troops to harass me. They talk their talk, and we fight ours. We sent troops to Shangdang only to safely escort the emperor back to Luodu."

"Shangdang is not my target, the treacherous officials and high-ranking officials are."

Putting down the cucumber, Zhao Ji looked around and said, "Although I really want Shangdang, Yuan Shao will never let me manage it directly. The world is vast, and I don't want to fight Yuan Shao year after year over Shangdang. The situation in the world is changing rapidly, and it would be a waste of manpower and energy to tie up a small corner of Shangdang."

Those who understood nodded, and those who didn't understand looked like they were thinking.

Chang Mao raised a spoon and asked, "Minister, should we relocate the people of Shangdang?"

"I will not forcibly relocate them. It is their freedom to relocate wherever they want, and I respect their choice."

Zhao Ji didn't smile: "After all, the grain in Taiyuan is limited."

Since the troops were sent to Shangdang, especially after they devoured the Li family, a big family in Tongdi, the entire army was freed from supplies from Taiyuan and began to rely on Shangdang for food.

Even though Shangdang had savings, it was not enough to sustain them until the winter.

With the loss of manpower acceptable, the original goal has been achieved...slowing down the food consumption in Taiyuan and Hedong.

Seeing that no one asked any more questions, Zhao Ji started eating his second plate of pilaf.

The lives of the high-ranking officials were not important to him, nor was Shangdang. What was important was the food here.

Even the dismantling of the clan thieves in Shangdang was useful in the long run.

From the beginning to the end, Zhao Ji had no intention of taking the initiative to confront Yuan Shao head-on.

If Yuan Shao wanted a decisive battle, he would bring the emperor to the front of the battle to see if Yuan Shao and the people of Hebei still dared to fight.

This does not mean that the Shangdang issue will be resolved through political means. Political means alone can indeed force Yuan Shao to make concessions when he is trapped in internal and external difficulties.

But he did not need the things that Yuan Shao had given up. It was the court that lacked them.

Therefore, simply using political means to resolve the Shangdang issue will only enhance the prestige and power of the ministers.

Therefore, before political means can succeed, senior officials must be dealt with by force.

Show your teeth, otherwise who knows what these nobles will think after they gain the upper hand.

The capture of Huguan City was a show of force for the ministers, Yuan Shao, and the internal military officers.

It is necessary to demonstrate one's absolute military superiority, otherwise some weak-willed people will be bewitched and pulled away by the ministers and officials, or leave some handle behind.

This kind of thing is difficult to avoid, and what we can do is to reduce the number of people who are infected.

Of course, before breaking up, he killed a noble to liven up the atmosphere.

Otherwise, if this group of ministers returned to Luodu in one piece, who knows what absurd ideas they would come up with.

It is a good deal to exchange the life of a minister for a year-long shelf life of the relationship between oneself and the court.

Otherwise, this winter, the court might have issued a decree to "punish the traitorous minister Zhao Jiwen."

I really don't have the mood to engage in a back-and-forth fight with the court. This is not a child's game.

All in all, he had only killed the ministers in advance and taken their lives in advance.

Otherwise, if a conflict breaks out, two or three ministers will die, and even more soldiers and civilians will be implicated, not to mention the war supplies wasted.

Zhao Ji ate calmly, with no extra expression on his face, only respect for the food.

Han Shu, who was familiar with him, turned his head and looked at Wei Xing. When their eyes met, they both felt Zhao Ji's murderous intent.

A mere high-ranking official is not worth Zhao Ji's contemplation.

The surrounding military officers were also used to it. As long as killing could solve the problem, they didn't mind following Zhao Ji to kill people.

Anyway, they feel very happy with their life since they enlisted as Tiger Guards.

Not only did he live a good life, but his family and even unrelated people all lived a relatively stable life under Zhao Ji's governance.

The harm posed by the Huns was also brought under control, and except for the dead, everyone else was living a good life.

Such a life is worth defending, so Chang Mao looked hesitant. He really wanted to persuade Zhao Ji to divide his troops and garrison Shangdang.

Although Chang Mao was from Hedong, his home was deep in the mountains, a place that could be said to be a lawless place. It was not wrong to say that Chang Mao was from Shangdang.

(End of this chapter)