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

Xu Huang clenched his fists, his face filled with determination.

The muscles in his face were tense, seemingly revealing his inner struggle.

Jia Xu, standing to the side, shook his head slightly, his eyes revealing a deep sense of helplessness.

He knew Xu Huang was right, but he was powerless to change the established situation.

After careful consideration, Cao Cao was ultimately swayed by Sima Yi's highly persuasive arguments.

The flame of adventure within him ignited, and he decided to gamble the fate of the Wei Kingdom on the Puban defense line.

After all, once the emperor has made his decision, it is an inviolable decree. What else can they do but obey?
"Since Your Majesty is determined to defend the Puban line to the death, I will fight to the death for Your Majesty!"

Xu Huang had no choice but to steel his resolve, and his resolute voice echoed through the air.

His eyes gleamed with fearlessness, as if he had already disregarded life and death.

Having said that, he turned around angrily, with an air of no return, and charged down the city gate with a large axe in hand.

Cao Cao arrived at the battlements with a solemn expression, his eyes sharp and intense.

He slowly drew his sword, its sharp blade gleaming coldly in the sunlight, just like his unwavering resolve at that moment.

Taking a deep breath, Cao Cao shouted sternly:
"Soldiers of the Great Wei, the time has come for you to serve your country! Hold the line to the death and do not retreat a single step!"

The sound, like a tiger's roar, reverberated above the city walls, shaking the hearts of every Wei soldier.

"For killing a Han soldier, I will reward you with a thousand coins—"

Cao Cao promised a generous reward.

As soon as this statement came out, everyone in the audience was shocked.

One thousand coins per person!
This is undoubtedly an unprecedented and enormous reward.

For soldiers of humble origins, it was an irresistible temptation.

Cao Cao spared no expense, offering such a generous reward.

This battle concerns the survival of the Wei Kingdom. If they lose, the Wei Kingdom will be gone. Instead of leaving the money and wealth stored in the treasury to Liu Bei, it would be better to use it to reward the soldiers and inspire their fighting spirit!

The Wei soldiers, who were initially panicked and demoralized, gradually regained their spirits under the encouragement of this generous reward.

They grabbed their swords and spears and surged towards the city walls like a tidal wave, ready to fight to the death.

Seeing that the morale of his troops had been restored, Cao Cao secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and his tense nerves relaxed a little.

He looked up at the Yellow River.

In their field of vision, countless Han soldiers had already climbed onto the west bank like ants.

Brightly colored Chinese character flags fluttered in the cold wind, flying dazzlingly outside the ten-mile-long river defense wall, as if announcing to the Wei army that death was imminent.

Cao Cao gritted his teeth, forcing a smug look onto his face, but inwardly he scorned him:
“Liu Shan is nothing but a dog and pig, what ability could he possibly have? Xiao He, I know this must be your scheme.”

"This change in the weather, the freezing of the Yellow River, must have been something you predicted, right?"

"so what!"

"I'll stand right here and see how you break through the Puban Barrier that I've painstakingly built!"

His voice was low, but it was filled with gritted teeth, anger and resentment, as if he wanted to vent all the anger in his heart.

On the west bank, 250,000 Han soldiers had already landed.

Dressed in full armor and wielding sharp weapons, they began to form ranks before the river defenses.

Its imposing presence sent chills down the spines of the Wei soldiers.

A moment later, Liu Shan, accompanied by Xiao He, crossed the river on the ice and reached the west bank.

Liu Shan, riding a tall horse, held a whip in his hand, his gaze fixed on Puban Pass, a look of confusion on his face.

He looked back at Xiao He and asked:

"Grand Marshal, Cao Cao didn't abandon the pass and flee? Has he gone mad?" Liu Shan's eyes clearly showed a hint of confusion and doubt.

Xiao He's face showed a mocking expression, and he gave a cold laugh, his smile full of disdain for Cao Cao.

"Abandoning the pass and fleeing is tantamount to announcing the demise of the Wei Kingdom; it's just a matter of sooner or later."

"This traitor Cao is unwilling to accept defeat and is determined to take a gamble, hoping that we cannot break through the river defense barrier he has painstakingly built."

"He's betting that this temperature drop is an accident, and that the Yellow River will unblock in a few days when the temperature rises, at which point we'll have to retreat to the east bank."

Xiao He's unhurried words revealed Cao Cao's true intentions perfectly.

Liu Shan suddenly understood. He nodded slightly, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes, and then asked again:

"So Cao Cao is making a last-ditch effort. In your opinion, Grand Marshal, how should we proceed with our military campaign?"

He just stared at Xiao He, waiting for Xiao He to show him the right path.

A cold glint flashed in Xiao He's eyes, his gaze as sharp and icy as a star in a cold night.

He pointed his whip at the fortress and said sternly:
"How else can we use our troops? The siege weapons we've built aren't just for show, and my 200,000-strong army isn't just sitting around doing nothing."

"Your Highness, give the order! Attack immediately and raze Puban Pass to the ground!"

Xiao He's voice was as loud as thunder, full of heroic ambition, igniting the passion in Liu Shan's heart.

Liu Shan's blood was instantly ignited, and a surge of heroic killing intent rose up.

He pointed his whip at the city gate and let out a loud shout:
"By my order, 200,000 troops shall immediately attack, flatten the Puban defense line, and capture Cao Cao alive!"

Liu Shan's confident shout echoed across the battlefield, declaring his determination to the entire army.

Upon receiving the order, the morale of the soldiers, who had been preparing for a long time, surged like a rainbow.

Their eyes gleamed with excitement and anticipation, as if they had already seen the dawn of victory.

Within half an hour, nearly five hundred Divine Thunder Cannons crossed the ice and moved from the east bank to the west bank.

These divine thunder cannons were siege weapons built by the Han army on the east bank in advance, solely for today's use.

The appearance of the Divine Thunder Cannon immediately put unprecedented pressure on the Wei army in the defensive line.

At a single command, ten thousand cannons fired simultaneously.

The scene was extremely spectacular.

Huge rocks filled the sky, swirling with a vast expanse of flying snow, like falling stars, hurtling towards Puban Pass and the riverside fortifications.

A huge, ear-piercing sound seemed to tear the heavens and earth apart.

"Boom boom boom!"

The sky collapsed, the earth shook, and the mountains shook.

In an instant, the ten-mile-long Puban defense line was engulfed by a blizzard of dust and snow.

The dusty scene resembled the end of the world.

Amidst the snow and mist, screams rose and fell, like the wails of vengeful ghosts. Wei soldiers fell one after another under the fierce artillery fire, their blood staining the snow red.

Their bodies were smashed to pieces by the impact of the boulders, a gruesome sight too painful to behold.

At this moment, Puban Pass is like a living hell!

The Han soldiers lined up in front of the defensive line, their faces beaming with excitement as they watched the Wei army being ravaged by their own divine thunder cannons.

"So this is the legendary Divine Thunder Cannon, truly a divine weapon for siege warfare."

"Such a divine artifact is truly not something that should exist in this world. How did the Grand Marshal manage to create it?"

Liu Shan was amazed by the power of the Divine Thunder Cannon, and glanced back at Xiao He with a deep curiosity in his eyes. (End of Chapter)