Distant Mountain Battle Song

Chapter 263 Family Affection Exists, But Not Much
The cold of midwinter was only temporary, but for Cao Kun it was a long and terrifying ordeal.

Cao Cao's 80,000-strong army has been besieging Lingzhou City for a month. The city walls are covered with mountains of corpses and bear the marks of war, yet there is no sign of them breaching the city. The banner with the character "He" (congratulations) still flutters in the wind atop the city walls, as if mocking Cao Cao.

Old Man Cao returned to Qiuhe City early on. Although he was not yet the emperor, he already had some of the demeanor of an emperor. In the future, he would not easily leave his old stronghold of Qiuhe City. As for leading troops into battle, he handed it over to his two capable sons, Cao Laosan and Cao Laojiu.

As for the famous Cao Laoda, he can now only serve as a grain transport officer, supporting his two younger brothers in attacking the city.

This was the third time Cao Kun had transported grain.

He handed over the provisions to his two younger brothers' lieutenants, wanting to see them, but they told him that the two young masters were currently planning an attack on the city and had no time to see their elder brother.

Lingzhou City was fortified with high walls and deep moats, and had abundant food supplies. In addition, the He clan had lived there for a long time, and everyone knew that once the city fell, they would die without a burial place. Therefore, no matter how Cao Laosan and Cao Laojiu threatened or tempted them, the people in the city remained determined to defend the city.

Moreover, even now, He Tian has only lost ordinary city guards; his true elite Tiger Legion has not yet appeared on the battlefield in large numbers.

Cao Kun was very worried that if the city could not be captured after a long siege, he might suffer a backlash from He Tian.

The two generals' younger brothers were unwilling to see him because they were worried that he would give them bad advice, which would eventually lead to the fall of Lingzhou City.

The weather was cold, and Cao Kun sat alone in his military tent, carefully calculating the gains and losses of the two armies with counting rods.

Using numbers to calculate gains and losses was a method he learned from Yun Ce, and also a skill he understood after thoroughly studying "The Art of War". This skill requires the numbers to be accurate and precise. Once all the situations were converted into numbers, Cao Kun came to a conclusion - the Cao family would definitely lose this battle.

The army has been besieging the fortified city for a month. Every day, Cao's troops come to challenge them, but He Tian in the city ignores them. Whenever Cao attacks the city, they use ample defensive equipment to kill the enemy, so He Tian does not suffer much damage.

On the surface, it seemed that the Cao family had the advantage, but in fact, it was He Tian who had the advantage. In his confusion, Cao Kun pushed the prepared counting rods under the table. The damage ratio had reached four to six, with the Cao family in six. It was really hard to know what Cao Laosan and Cao Laojiu were so proud of.

Cao Ling lifted the curtain of the military tent and came in carrying a food tray. There wasn't much good food on the tray, just a big bowl of noodles. Judging from the topping, it should be a kind of noodle dish.

Cao Kun composed himself and ate the noodles. In an instant, a large bowl of noodles was gone, and a warm current arose spontaneously, dispelling much of the chill.

Cao Ling collected the counting rods that had fallen to the ground and put them in the bamboo tube. Seeing that Cao Kun had finished eating, he prepared to take the bowl out.

"Tell me, if the Third Young Master and the Ninth Young Master are defeated, what should I do?"

When Cao Ling saw Cao Kun ask the question, he thought for a moment and said, "We will definitely do everything we can to rescue him."

Cao Kun laughed and said, "Can't I just stand by and do nothing?"

Cao Ling said, "Logically, it is possible, but those who died were all sons of the Cao family, and these sons would be used by the young master in the future. I believe that we must save them."

"Aren't you afraid that once the third and ninth brothers rise to power, you, the eldest brother's right-hand man, will die without a burial place?"

Cao Ling chuckled and said, "With their skills?"

Cao Kun smiled, stood up, patted Cao Ling on the shoulder, and walked straight towards Cao Laosan's military tent. This time, regardless of whether Cao Laosan was willing to see him or not, he had to say what he needed to say.

Fortunately, Cao Kun had a good reputation in the army. Even when he came to Cao Zheng's place, someone tried to stop him, but Cao Zheng whipped him away.

Cao Kun entered the military tent and looked at Cao Zheng, saying, "The military camp is too close to Lingzhou City, and the tents are too densely packed. Although being close makes it easier to attack, it also makes it easier for the enemy to launch a surprise attack."

Especially since the Lingzhou folk performances are beyond our control, doing this is too dangerous.

Cao Zheng was only six days younger than Cao Kun. Although they were brothers, their appearances were very different. Cao Kun had a square face, which men found dignified, but women found ugly.

Cao Zheng was different. He had feminine features, and even when he sat there casually, he gave off a dashing and debonair vibe, especially his peach blossom eyes, which Cao Kun had always wanted to gouge out himself.

Only Cao Zheng would fan himself in the dead of winter. After listening to Cao Kun's lecture, he covered half of his face with the fan and laughed, "Brother is right."

Seeing that Cao Zheng was not listening, Cao Kun swallowed and continued, "I know that doing this makes you very uncomfortable, and I don't expect you to think that I mean well. I only ask that you be careful for the sake of these Cao family members around you. If we can't take the city right away, we'll take it slowly."

"Besieging Lingzhou City is actually quite good. Even if Lingzhou City has a lot of grain stored up, it will eventually run out. Our grain supplies are much more plentiful. We can starve He Tian to death."

Cao Zheng chuckled and said, "Brother is right."

Cao Kun stood up and came to Cao Zheng, saying, "Third brother, retreat fifteen li and set up camp again."

Cao Zheng nodded and said, "I will obey my elder brother's orders."

Cao Kun sighed, feeling he had nothing to say, and walked out of the military tent. Before he had gone far, he heard Cao Zheng roar from inside the tent: "Form ranks! Attack the city!"

Turning to head towards Cao Ying's tent, he saw the camp in disarray, indicating the army was also making its move. Heavy drumbeats echoed from the camp, each one more urgent than the last, sending chills down his spine.

Cao Kun quickly returned to his logistics camp and said to Cao Ling, "Unload the grain, load the wagons with sand and gravel, tie thirteen horses to each wagon, and have a mute driver."

Cao Ling quickly made the arrangements, and Cao Kun then sat back down in the chair he had gotten from Yun Ce, poured himself a cup of hot tea, held it in his hands, and sipped it slowly.

Half an hour later, the fierce siege began again. Looking at the scene of arrows flying, stones being thrown, and fireballs flying everywhere, Cao Kun sighed and felt a chill run down his spine, so he wrapped his cloak even tighter.

Zheng Tianshou lifted the curtain and walked in, looking at Cao Kun and saying, "Why bother arguing with a fool?"

Cao Kun shook his head and said, "The most dangerous thing is the sudden inspiration of a fool. While the losses are still under control, I must remove these two idiots from their positions of command. Otherwise, who knows what kind of disaster will be brought to the Cao family."

Zheng Tianshou frowned and said, "There are other ways."

Cao Kun shook his head and said, "Use a radioactive source? Yun Ce would laugh himself to death."

Zheng Tianshou said, "We have other methods."

Cao Kun continued to shake his head, saying, "Uncle Ya is dead. I don't trust anyone else."

Zheng Tianshou then asked, "How did you know He Tian would make his move tonight?"

Cao Kun shook his head and said, "I don't know. I only know that if I were He Tian, ​​I would definitely launch a surprise attack in the next few days. If not tonight, then it would definitely be tomorrow or the day after. I would definitely launch a surprise attack within ten days."

Zheng Tianshou shook his head and said, "There's no reason to guard against thieves every day."

Cao Kun said, "I must guard against it. Once those two idiots are defeated, Cao's 80,000-strong army may very well be wiped out under the walls of Lingzhou City."

Zheng Tianshou sighed and said, "Since you have made up your mind, young master, this old servant will lead five hundred cavalry to support you."

Cao Kun asked incredulously, "The deputy commander only has five hundred cavalry?"

Zheng Tianshou chuckled and said, "When the patriarch left, he said that young people should be given the opportunity to train. From then on, this old servant can only mobilize the five hundred cavalrymen of my own unit."

Cao Kun gritted his teeth and said, "Since that's the case, Uncle, you will cover for me. I will personally lead my three thousand cavalrymen, hide behind the carriage, and take a big bite out of He Tian to avenge He Yu."

Yun Ce saw his black eagle hiding on the gate. When the chestnut horse came in from outside, he suddenly jumped down and kicked the chestnut horse hard on the head with his two thick claws. He then flew into the sky. The chestnut horse, dizzy from being kicked by the black eagle, couldn't wait to recover and stumbled around before running out to chase after the black eagle.

Eji lay on a soft couch, clutching her belly, covering her face with her sleeve and letting the warm sunlight shine on her. Anji stood guard beside her, kicking the puppies away if they got too close.

The head of the household once said that pregnant women should stay away from furry pets.

Zhang Min was lying on the other side, watching her husband clean a room with alcohol. After he finished, he took out a fire to heat it. Although the room was brightly lit, the wood inside showed no signs of burning.

Snow-white sheets and thick quilts were drying on the rope. These items had been boiled in water before being exposed to the sun.

"Tell me, who should go into that room first?"

Eji covered her face and said resolutely, "It must be me."

Zhang Min frowned and said, "You wouldn't abandon the child and give birth to him prematurely just to compete for the status of the eldest son or daughter, would you?"

Eji laughed and said, "I'm not that shameless. Even if you give birth first and I give birth later, my child will still be the legitimate son."

Zhang Min laughed and said, "The eldest son is the most powerful. The eldest son is nothing special. Look at Cao Kun, he is the eldest son, and he is living a very carefree life now."

"Xiaoyao. You'll see what he's like in a few years."

Yun Ce took off his gloves, tossed them on the low table, picked up his teapot, and took a delicious sip.

"What do you mean?" Zhang Min reached out her hand, and Yun Ce helped her up.

"Liang Kun is currently in Cao Kun's army. Last night, he sent a message by bird saying that Cao Kun is planning to rip off his two younger brothers. He delivered the grain overnight and has already run to a high place where no one will notice him, ready to watch a big show."

Eji, clutching her stomach, was helped to sit up by Yun Ce. Seeing that neither of them understood his words, she continued to explain: "Cao Kun has escorted the grain to Lingzhou City and is not leaving. This has greatly alarmed his two younger brothers, who have been besieging Lingzhou City for more than a month without any progress. Now, they are attacking the city at all costs."

Even a scholar like Liang Kun thought he would be taken advantage of by He Tian and, fearing death in the chaos of battle, fled overnight. Guess what Cao Kun would do then?

(End of this chapter)