My older brother is Gao Huan.

Chapter 562 The Soldiers' Suffering

The 20th day of the fifth month in the third year of the Tianping era.

The heavy rain that had lasted for several days finally stopped last night, giving way to a sunny day.

This is not good news.

The scorching sun baked the earth, and the ground, which had been soaked by the heavy rain, felt as if everyone was in a steamer.

Although Gao Yu provided the soldiers with a stable path to advancement, there were indeed a number of beneficiaries.

Those brave warriors who survived the battles in the north and south have already earned ten ranks of merit and received the honorary title of the third rank, which is the position of Upper Protector General.

But very few people survived, because most died at the seventh or eighth stage.

While hard work may enable upward social mobility, it cannot change a cruel reality.

Serving in the military has always been a tough job.

“You damned Erzhu Rong, why did he have to choose this time to launch an attack? It’s making us suffer too.”

"Yeah, is this heat going to kill me?"

"Watch your words, keep your voice down..."

Such harsh weather also caused the soldiers to complain. Summer is not a suitable season for military operations. The hot climate makes people drowsy and unable to muster their energy. The hot and humid environment can also easily induce diseases and plagues.

If there were other options, Gao Yu would not have wanted to send troops out during the harsh winter and sweltering summer.

Wouldn't it be better to spar when the autumn air is crisp and clear?

But Erzhu Rong deliberately prevented him from having his way.

After the imperial edict was delivered to the front lines of Yewang, Dou Tai ordered Quan Jun to lead a large army north along the Dan River to besiege Gaodu.

After Quan Jun led his army to the outskirts of Gaodu, he immediately set up camp and ordered the felling of trees to build all kinds of siege weapons. In short, he had the scouts sent by the city's defenders to send back messages, so that they would know that the army was about to attack the city and constantly put psychological pressure on the defenders of Gaodu.

Last year, when the jungler lost his position, Gao Du and Jianxing seemed unaffected, but in reality, the impact was significant.

The garrison in Yewang City, commanded by Chilie Yanqing, included some troops drawn from Gaodu and Jianxing. After Yewang fell, the garrison was completely wiped out, and Erzhu Rong never replenished the troops in Gaodu and Jianxing.

It's not that they didn't want to, nor that they were unaware of the importance of these two cities.

However, Erzhu Rong's forces were already stretched thin.

Defenses need to be deployed in Hedong, troops need to be dispatched from Jinyang, and the Xingyang line also needs to confront Hou Jing's army.

Not to mention Hanoi County, which is under the most pressure, has a large number of Gao Yu's troops. In order to prevent Gao Yu from crossing the Yellow River, he must stockpile a large number of troops on the banks of the Yellow River and defend Beizhong City to the death.

In terms of troops, Gao Yu still had spare capacity, and could even forcibly conscript men from the Rouran and Turkic tribes on the grasslands to fill the manpower gap.

Erzhu Rong, however, did not receive such favorable treatment.

Therefore, Quan Jun knew that the number of troops guarding Gaodu City was not large.

After touring the military camp, he could hear the soldiers' complaints, but he didn't pay much attention to them.

It's only natural to complain a little when the weather is really uncooperative.

Back in the tent, a hurried footstep soon sounded. Dongfang Lao lifted the curtain and entered the tent, bowing respectfully and saying, "General, we have captured a prisoner and seized a letter from him."

Dongfang was appreciated by Gao Yu when he fought Hou Yuan in Yingzhou, and was subsequently taken in by his side. Later, he even captured Hou Yuan alive in a battle and made great contributions. He is the living tenth-rank military officer.

Quan Jun took the letter from his hand and read it. It was a letter from the garrison commander of Gaodu City to the garrison commander of Jianxing City. Seeing that Quan Jun's army was about to attack the city, he wrote the letter in advance to ask the garrison commander of Jianxing City to send troops to help him.

If Gaodu is lost, Jianxing will also be unable to hold out, since Shangdang County in Bingzhou does not have enough troops to come south to help them.

Do you think this letter is credible?

"This humble general finds it believable..."

Old Master Dongfang offered his opinion: "The garrison in Gaodu City numbers less than four thousand; how can they possibly hold out?"

Quan Jun nodded, "If that's the case... I will transfer all my cavalry to you, and you..."

Quan Jun pointed to an excellent ambush point on the map between Jianxing and Gaodu. Gao Yu's generals, especially Quan Jun, who idolized Gao Yu, liked to cosplay some of Gao Yu's habits. However, they didn't have Gao Yang's courage to have ghost masks made for them.

However, they often imitate Gao Yu in certain behaviors.

such as……

He personally went to the site to survey the terrain. The maps in Quan Jun's camp were all made by people who had personally surveyed the terrain. Therefore, a quick glance at the map was enough to clearly see where the best ambush points were.

After giving his instructions to Elder Dongfang, he completed the arrangements.

Quan Jun immediately gave the order.

"Pass on my order: provide wine and meat to reward the troops, and we will attack the city the day after tomorrow!!"

When the order to attack the city was announced throughout the army, the soldiers were still somewhat confused.

To know……

Many siege weapons were still under construction. No matter how hard the craftsmen worked, it was impossible to finish them in such a short time.

What does Kwon Joon mean by this?

Two days later!
The army besieged Gaodu, employing the standard "surrounding three sides and leaving one open" strategy. Large armies were positioned on three sides, ready to attack, while the north side of Gaodu was left undefended.

After the large army pressed in.

Quan Jun then passed on his latest military order: "Pass on my order to increase our morale and intimidate the enemy in the city, but... do not launch a desperate attack on the city, just make a show of it."

After the military order was passed down, the soldiers finally understood.

Quan Jun never even considered attacking the city.

His real target was the reinforcements sent by Jianxing.

With banners waving and war drums beating, the besieging army was in high spirits, putting immense psychological pressure on the defenders of Gaodu on the city walls.

Can……

After a while.

The garrison commander of Gaodu seemed to have noticed something amiss; the army outside the city didn't seem to have any real intention of attacking.
"Is it just to lull us into a false sense of security? No, that doesn't seem right..."

As the art of war says, "Strike while the iron is hot, but the momentum will wane on the second attempt and be exhausted on the third."

Such a grand and imposing siege is at its most powerful right from the start. If it's just for show at this point, the morale and fighting spirit of the troops will be useless later on.

What exactly are they up to?

This drama continued for two days, to the point that even the garrison of Gaodu couldn't help but relax their guard.

Until the third day.

Quan Jun ordered a large number of elite cavalry to ride to the foot of the city wall and continuously hurled arrows at the top of the wall, each arrow carrying a letter.

When the letter was delivered to the garrison commander of Gaodu City, he opened it and read it.

The commander's expression changed drastically.

He rushed to the edge of the city wall and looked closely. A small group of troops was charging towards the city wall, and the soldiers on the wall were all nocking their bows and preparing to shoot.

However, the cavalry outside the city maintained a relatively safe distance, then threw a large number of armors on the ground, and finally threw a military flag on top of these armors!

The garrison commander glanced at it from afar and was completely stunned.

How could he not see that the style of these armors was the same as that used by his comrades?

Quan Jun stated this directly in his letter.

The Jianxing reinforcements, on which he had placed high hopes, were completely wiped out yesterday!
Quan Jun directly advised him to open the city gates and surrender the city. Quan Jun was willing to personally write a letter to Gao Yu to recommend him for merit!
If they dare to put up a stubborn resistance.

On the day the city fell, not a single soldier remained in Gaodu!
(End of this chapter)