My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

Chu Camp.

The air inside the royal tent was filled with the aroma of wine.

Liu Bei was drinking with his generals, celebrating their successful crossing of the Yi River.

Just then, Lu Xun's report of victory arrived.

"Everything is just as you predicted, Bowen. As expected, Cao Cao used light cavalry from Youyan to raid my supplies, but he was defeated by my Beiwei cavalry at Yongnu Ferry."

"Four thousand enemy cavalry were completely annihilated by Tan Zhi, and enemy generals Gao Lan and Xiahou Chong were all killed by Tan Zhi!"

"This battle was a resounding victory!"

Liu Bei laughed and showed the victory report in his hand to his ministers.

The already excited atmosphere in the tent became even more intense.

"With four thousand enemy cavalry and Gao Lan, Tanzhi fought a brilliant battle. He truly is a tiger father and a dog son."

Xiao He clicked his tongue in praise, attributing all the credit to his brother-in-law.

Liu Bei nodded repeatedly, naturally praising his nephew highly.

"With this great victory in the Battle of Yongnu, our expeditionary force will be unstoppable in Youzhou and will surely turn Cao Cao's rear into chaos."

"Bowen, what do you think Cao Cao will do next?"

Liu Bei suppressed his joy and looked at Xiao He.

Xiao He toyed with his wine glass and sneered:

"For Cao Cao, the best course of action right now is to make a decisive move, abandon Youzhou, and lead his troops to Bingzhou."

"However, Cao Cao has invested heavily in the defenses of Yijing and suffered heavy losses in his troops. I predict that he will be reluctant to give up Youzhou."

"Then, for Cao Cao, the only chance now is to personally lead his army to defeat my expeditionary force with lightning speed and stabilize the rear of Youzhou."

“My expeditionary force has more than 10,000 infantry and cavalry. If Cao Cao wants to destroy us quickly, he will have to withdraw at least 40,000 troops. In that case, the troops left to guard the Yijing fortress will only be about 30,000.”

Say it.

Xiao He downed the wine in his cup in one gulp, his eyes flashing with murderous intent once more.
"Therefore, I believe that we should wait for Cao Cao to withdraw his troops northward, and then immediately mobilize our entire army to take advantage of the situation and break through the defenses of Yijing."

"That scoundrel Cao is unwilling to give up either of these things, so let's make him lose both and have nothing left!"

Xiao He not only deduced how Cao Cao would break the deadlock, but also gave Liu Bei his next move.

Liu Bei agreed wholeheartedly and said happily:

"Very well, let's proceed according to Bowen's plan."

Liu Bei immediately issued an edict, dispatching scouts extensively north of the Yijing fortifications to closely monitor the movements of the Wei army.

Two days later, the scouts began to send back messages one after another:

Nearly 40,000 Wei troops withdrew from the Yijing fortifications under cover of night and headed north, their whereabouts unknown.

Soon, the Wei ministers who were secretly communicating with the Chu state from inside the fortified walls also sent back reliable intelligence:
Cao Cao personally led 40,000 troops back to Youzhou, intending to swiftly wipe out Lu Xun's expeditionary force.

Within the Yijing fortress, only over 30,000 Wei troops remain, jointly commanded by Zhang He, Sima Yi, Xiahou Wei, and others.

Cao Cao's move was exactly what Xiao He had anticipated.

Liu Bei acted decisively, ordering his entire army of 300,000 to launch a rapid attack on the fortifications of Yijing.

Upon receiving the order, the gates of the ten-mile-long camp were opened wide.

Countless Chu soldiers poured out of the camp and rushed towards the fortifications.

Facing the main city of Yijing, Liu Bei concentrated an attacking force of nearly 150,000 men.

This troop deployment is probably the largest single-direction troop deployment in the history of siege warfare.

Liu Bei's intentions were also quite clear:
Taking advantage of Yijing's vulnerability, we should seize the opportunity and break through this legendary impregnable fortress.

noon.

The well-fed Chu soldiers, brimming with high morale, lined up in a dense, imposing formation in front of the main city of Yijing.

Hundreds of divine thunder cannons, like colossal beasts, were continuously pushed to the front lines.

More than three hundred divine thunder cannons were aimed at the main city of Yijing!
This scale also represents the largest single-direction deployment of the Divine Thunder Cannon since its inception.

"Your Majesty, my Divine Thunder Cannon has been calibrated. Please give the order!"

Hao Zhao rode up and asked Liu Bei for permission to take command.

Liu Bei gazed at the enemy city from afar, his eyes filled with murderous intent, and he cracked his whip:
"By my order, bombard the main city of Yijing immediately."

"I will use the Divine Thunder Cannon to raze Yijing to the ground!"

Hao Zhao received the order and left.

In a short while, the war drums sounded, and the command flags waved like the wind.

As Hao Zhao's longsword struck down, more than three hundred divine thunder cannons were activated almost simultaneously.

"Uuuuuu——"

The deafening sound of wind being cut suddenly intensified.

More than three hundred giant stones rose into the air, like a shower of falling stars, and poured towards the main city of Yijing.

at this time.

Zhang He, Sima Yi, and the soldiers along the city walls had all retreated to the back of the city.

Although they had not witnessed the spectacular sight of the stone rain soaring into the air, the sound of it tearing through the air like the roar of a herd of beasts sent chills down their spines and made their hair stand on end.

Even though Zhang He was used to life-and-death situations, he couldn't help but close his eyes at this moment, his nerves taut and on the verge of snapping.

The next instant, a shower of meteorites fell to the ground. The sky collapsed, the earth caved in!
The entire main city of Yijing seemed to have been punched hard by a colossal beast, causing the earth to shake violently.

The city gate tower was breached, the battlements were smashed, and the watchtowers, arrow towers... all the fortifications on the surface were destroyed as if they were made of paper.

Stone chips, wood chips, and soil dust rose into the air, instantly forming a cloud of dust that enveloped the main city of Yijing.

The Chu soldiers watching the battle all gaped, speechless with astonishment.

They were naturally aware of the power of the Divine Thunder Cannon.

Many of them have witnessed it firsthand.

But the simultaneous bombardment of three hundred divine thunder cannons in one direction was a terrifying, world-destroying power that they had never witnessed before in their lives.

After the initial shock came ecstasy.

Hundreds of thousands of Chu soldiers brandished their weapons and roared wildly.

After a round of bombardment, Yijing's main city was riddled with holes.

This is just the beginning.

After the volley, the next thing to happen was random, indiscriminate firing.

Vast boulders rained down relentlessly towards the enemy city...

The deafening roar of the sky collapsing and the earth splitting open was incessant.

The bombardment lasted for a full hour.

The Chu army fired all the collected stone projectiles in one go, totaling nearly ten thousand, truly emptying the magazine.

at last.

The last stone projectile was fired, the booming sound subsided, and the world finally returned to peace.

As the dust settled, the main city of Yijing became clear again.

The main city wall, which stretches for dozens of meters, has had its surface buildings razed to the ground, leaving only a pile of ruins.

The city wall was riddled with potholes, and there were countless cracks and collapses...

The entire city wall appeared to be riddled with holes, and could be easily collapsed with a light kick.

Surprisingly, this city wall, which looked like a candle flickering in the wind, still stood firm and did not collapse.

"Your Majesty, it seems that Cao Cao has indeed spared no expense on this Yijing Wall."

A hint of sarcasm flashed across Xiao He's brows as he sneered.

Liu Bei also gave a cold laugh, but he was not surprised.

What I see before me is all within my expectations.

The bombardment by the Divine Thunder Cannons only destroyed their surface defenses and severely damaged the morale of the Wei army, paving the way for the next step of the siege.

The real highlight is the subsequent all-out attack by the army.

With a flick of his whip, Liu Bei roared:
"By my command, launch a full-scale attack and raze Yijing to the ground!"

The royal flag waved, and the war drums thundered.

The 150,000 main attacking soldiers were all in high spirits and ready to fight.

"Siege!"

"attack!"

"All troops attack!"

Generals Huang Zhong, Gan Ning, Guan Xing, and others brandished their weapons and issued the order to attack.

One after another, the military formations roared into action, and the Chu army surged towards the main city of Yijing like a tidal wave.

At this moment, the more than 20,000 Wei soldiers in the main city were still huddled behind the walls, immersed in the terror of the earth-shattering explosion they had just witnessed.

Zhang He brushed the dust off his face, jumped up first, and shouted:
"All troops, listen to my command! Immediately scale the ramparts and defend Yijing to the death!"

The officers then snapped out of their shock and shouted at the trembling Wei soldiers to get up, driving them up against the wall.

With morale low and the Wei army demoralized, they reluctantly went up to the city walls.

Meanwhile, the Chu army's tide of troops had already swept up to the wall.

Countless sandbags were thrown out, and the moat was filled in the blink of an eye, allowing the Chu army to advance unimpeded to the foot of the city wall.

Hundreds of siege ladders were erected, massive battlements were slowly pushed to the foot of the city wall, battering rams crashed into the city gates, and arrows rained down on the city walls…

The siege begins.

Although the Chu soldiers were in high spirits, they were actually prepared for a bloody battle.

To their surprise, the Wei army's resistance was unexpectedly weak and easily defeated.

With their rear caught in turmoil, the King of Wei absent, and the terrifying bombardment of the Divine Thunder Cannons, the Wei army's fighting spirit seemed to have collapsed under the heavy blows.

The siege had barely begun when many Wei soldiers lost their will to resist and collapsed without a fight.

Sections of the city wall were breached, and hundreds of Chu soldiers bravely scaled the walls, slaughtering like tigers among sheep…

In less than a quarter of an hour, the seemingly impregnable fortress of Yijing was reduced to a sieve.

Even Zhang He, a highly respected general from outside the imperial family, couldn't suppress the rout despite shouting until his voice was hoarse.

Looking at the crumbling defensive line, Sima Yi sighed deeply and helplessly advised:
"The tide has turned; Yijing cannot be held. If we continue fighting, we will all die here."

"General Zhang, let's abandon the city and retreat north to preserve the king's strength." (End of Chapter)