Wei School's Three Good Students

Chapter 151 The troops are approaching the city
Zhao Cheng had just returned to Shazhou by imperial decree and met with Pu E at the general's mansion. Pu E got straight to the point: "Gu Shou Pass has been attacked."

Zhao Cheng paused for a moment: "It's still a little faster than I expected." He thought Wu Fei would have to wait another six months, but he had only been gone for two months when the army was already at the city gates.

Pu'e looked indignant: "We came back a bit too early." Her indignation was probably directed at the group of people surrounding King Hao.

Zhao Cheng shook his head: "We came back a bit late. That place was a dead zone to begin with."

Pu'e was furious. She was certain that once King Hao recalled Zhao Cheng, Gu Shou Pass would collapse, so she launched a purge of the treacherous officials surrounding King Hao.

Zhao Cheng: "Grand Tutor, there's no need to worry. Gu Shou Pass can hold that person off for a considerable time; our army has already made adjustments."

Pu'e paused slightly, looking at Zhao Cheng. She was now certain that Zhao Cheng's loyalty had dropped to 57%. —Pu'e realized something, but couldn't say it now. She sighed, resignedly acquiescing.

In the past six months, Zhao Cheng has transferred the artisans and key personnel of his faction from Yan. These transferred personnel were evacuated to Shazhou due to their "failure in the struggle," while the remaining forces in Yan were all brought from another world by the Hao clan.

Over the years, Zhao Cheng has been accumulating a large amount of wealth, such as expensive items like whale oil candles and coral, in the Yan region. On the one hand, this is to entice merchants from Bo County to take risks, and on the other hand, it is to attract some of the upper echelons of Hao Kingdom to flock to the Yan region in their struggle for power and profit, rushing here to "die for food." This is a huge trap.

Pu'e could foresee that after the Yan region was captured by the Wu family army, Hao Ting would have no choice but to rely on Zhao Cheng's faction.

Pu'e could only pretend not to know for now. As for King Hao, she had prepared for the worst. As long as the nation could hold out for another twenty years, allowing the new generation of dragon descendants to grow up, that would be fine.

Pu'e began to inquire about the possible situation after Gu Shou Pass was breached.

After thinking for a while, Zhao Cheng said to Pu E, "He is a great Legalist, skilled in allocating resources for farming and warfare, and stockpiling grain. If I stubbornly defend Yan, he can recuperate for two years and then launch a spring campaign and autumn defense against me."

This so-called "spring battle and autumn defense" strategy is actually about weakening the enemy by exploiting their own resources. Spring is the time when livestock and warhorses should be fattening up on abundant, tender grass, but this is interrupted by war, preventing them from gaining weight. The side with stronger resources can replenish their livestock with grain. Similarly, transportation works in the same way. If the transport route is too long, once cattle and horses lose weight to a certain point, they must be replenished with grain. However, if fodder depots are established along the route, the fattened cattle and horses can be rotated at these depots, saving grain for replenishment.

Zhao Cheng's words revealed his fear of Wu Fei; if the battle dragged on, Wu Fei would accumulate more and more cards. Ultimately, Zhao Cheng resorted to a forced exchange of cards.

…The sandstorm howled as it rushed into the pass…

On January 28th of the Tianyou calendar, Wu Hengyu, weary from his journey, arrived steadily at the foot of the pass with three thousand elite troops and ten thousand laborers. After setting up camp, he immediately joined Wu Fei from the western camp to admire the magnificent mountain pass.

Facing this formidable pass, Wu Fei sighed in front of Wu Hengyu. The pass was built against the mountain, with an extremely solid foundation, making it impossible to dig tunnels. Unless more than ten large giant soldiers or more than twenty siege cannons were gathered to suppress the crossbowmen and archers on the city walls, only an elite force could take it down.

Wu Hengyu glanced at Wu Fei: "It seems you've really run out of tricks."

Wu Fei shrugged: "That's why I invited you here."

Xuan Chong had practiced this kind of swarm attack. In the test, the vanguard needed to have the skills of 21st-century firefighters, and all of them were daredevils who were offered a large reward. After scaling the city wall, they also needed to have the energy to unleash their full power.

Furthermore, a command and control system is needed between the vanguard and the artillery to ensure that the artillery can suppress the city walls and that any opportunities for attack can be seized by the vanguard. Wu Fei estimated that to take down Gushou Pass, at least a hundred vanguard soldiers would be needed. The Dongshi Army currently only has 150 men who meet the requirements for a vanguard; too many casualties would cause irreversible damage to the army's organization.

As for Wu Hengyu, he himself is a powerful vanguard, and most of his subordinates are also like him, making him the most suitable person to fight this kind of battle.

Wu Hengyu narrowed his eyes and saw a group of people a few hundred paces away. He asked Wu Fei, "Those aren't ordinary people, are they?"

Wu Fei: "No, of course not."

Wu Hengyu: "You dare to come here with just fifty people?"

Wu Fei was taken aback. He counted the people around him. Including his own six personal attendants and Wu Hengyu's twelve personal attendants, there were only twenty people in total.

Wu Fei turned to Wu Hengyu and said, "They really dare to do that."

Wu Hengyu spurred his horse forward to meet them, followed by his twelve riders, who confronted the enemy cavalry that had broken out from Gushou Pass. Wu Fei, standing on high ground, surveyed the surroundings before following closely behind with his five accompanying riders. (One was sent back to report.)
As the knights charged, Wu Hengyu's black horse did not display its divine beast form, only using the Starry Sky Spear to knock three of them away during the crossfire.

Wu Fei followed behind, drawing his bow and firing three arrows in quick succession. Within twenty paces, the armor-piercing arrows penetrated the enemy's armor. He then shook his hand and continued to draw his bow and fire in unison.

Fifty riders could not defeat twenty riders. The cavalry of Gushou Pass suffered a crushing defeat and returned with more than ten corpses behind them.

...Brothers united...

Inside the gate, soldiers helped Huang Tao back into the inner hall, and then his entourage shouted, "Medical officer, come in!" The other wounded entourage members did not receive such treatment and were placed outside the hall on stretchers.

Huang Tao was hit by three arrows. For him, although the fierce general who led the charge was invincible, the archer following behind was the worst. That guy's arrows were incredibly accurate, and the arrowheads were poisoned.

Note: Wu Xiaoque's arrow has a dent, and the dent was smeared with sugar-coated asbestos powder. The sugar coating melts into the flesh, while the asbestos powder penetrates the skin and can cause sores. This is an act of war criminality.

The doctors in Guanzhong removed the arrowheads one by one. However, the large, red swelling on Huang Tao's back showed no signs of abating; it was clear that in a few days it would develop into a chronic arrow wound that would require rapid removal of flesh, rest, and even bone-scraping treatment. Guan Yu's arrow wound, requiring bone-scraping treatment, would have actually been treated promptly, without needing Hua Tuo; but as the commander-in-chief, rest was impossible during decision-making.

In a world where healing techniques exist, this poison isn't the kind like Golden Juice; it's a wisp of malevolent energy from the mountains and rivers. If Huang Tao were to return to the Ninghe region to recuperate, he could recover from his injuries. However, currently, he's in a critical situation, and the increasingly severe malevolent energy from the mountains and rivers is slowing down his recovery.

After listening to the doctor's advice, Huang Tao looked coldly at the city below and said, "These treacherous dogs are truly vicious."

…The garrison commander on the western plateau is watching Wu Hengyu's troops through binoculars…

With Gu Shouguan's courage to venture out of the city suppressed, Wu Fei calmly returned to the western plateau war zone and began to systematically capture Liugangtai. Meanwhile, the Longma troops patrolled the outer perimeter, while groups of "kite men" took to the skies.

Thirty counterweight catapults, located four hundred paces away from the platform, had been tested and ready. Fifty-kilogram specially made projectiles were already mounted on the levers. The advance troops were the vanguard battalion under Wu Feidong's army, and they were highly disciplined in obeying orders.

The feasibility of combined infantry and artillery tactics has been verified in practice. Therefore, we must now completely capture this place to deter Gushou Pass.

As the vanguard of the Dongshi Army, armed with grappling hooks, approached the Liugangtai ramparts at a distance of no more than fifty paces, they received a signal from the aerial kite-wielders. Suddenly, they raised their shields, and from behind the ramparts, the Hao Army unleashed a hail of arrows. At the same time, the Wu Family Army's catapult units cut their ropes, and the neat rows of catapults collectively raised their levers like arms, emitting a creaking sound.

All the projectiles, bound together with bamboo strips, drew parallel arcs in the sky.

The catapults were lined up in a row, similar to the rows of cannons in 20th-century military propaganda posters, because this saved time in calculating firing parameters.

This is a characteristic of outdated artillery tactics in the 21st century; because in the 21st century, top-tier artillery has a calculation system for every cannon. Third-rate artillery would line up their cannons in a row. This would be wiped out by enemy counter-fire.

But Wu Fei's arrangement of the artillery in this way is advanced, because it signifies that their projectile weapons have the concept of adjusting "firing parameters"; the volley of projectiles can cover and suppress the enemy. The Hao army archers, who were firing from behind the ramparts, saw the dark rain of stones overhead and it was too late to dodge.

Just as the Dongshi Army's vanguard regiment, consisting of a dozen or so men, huddled together like turtle shells and struggled to approach the fortress, a whistling sound came from behind them with each round of kite-flying signal. All the vanguard soldiers had heard this whistling sound during the exercise; it was the sound of their own catapults throwing things from behind. Everyone instinctively stopped, even risking to open gaps in their shields, watching the trajectory of the incoming stones, and confirming that they were flying over their heads.

The captains within each shield formation shouted: "Shields closed, prepare to charge! Sound the bugle (signaling friendly forces on the left and right to charge and engage in close combat), wave the flag clockwise, and march straight forward (clockwise waving indicates an advance and warns artillery not to fire indiscriminately, counter-clockwise indicates a flanking maneuver)!"

The infantry of the Dongshi Army, with their combined infantry and artillery, were terrified as their own boulders rained down on the enemy positions ahead. Meanwhile, the Hao Army defending these fortifications suffered a horrific ordeal.

Originally, Hao Jun's hundred or so men planned to take advantage of the high ground, using crossbows to keep the attackers from raising their heads. At the same time, the molten gold in the large pots beside them was hot, and the mortars were ready, preparing to fight one against a hundred. But unfortunately, they encountered a siege that emphasized "technology".

Another wave of inexperienced Hao soldiers rushed up the city wall. Hearing their commander shout, "The bandits are coming!", they scrambled to get out. But halfway up, they saw huge stones raining down from above and tried to turn back. However, their quick-thinking teammates had already taken the steps, and someone pushed them, causing them to roll down the steps and become a blockage. They couldn't be pushed down at all, and a group of people on the platform were left to receive the baptism of stones.

With a loud bang, the thrown projectile exploded at a height of thirty feet above the ground, breaking the bamboo hoops and scattering stones the size of human heads and weighing over ten kilograms each. These stones fell along their trajectory and swept down the city wall like brooms.

These stones, falling from the sky, are more powerful than spiked clubs; even someone wearing heavy armor would be struck without making a sound.

Inside the fortifications, some narrow passages designed to prevent enemy advanceers from flooding in turned into their own graveyards due to the artillery's superior accuracy and the dense concentration of Hao's troops. This wave resulted in heavy casualties, especially in the siege equipment area, where corpses littered the ground.

Within thirty breaths, three rows of catapults, ten in each row, completed the suppression.

Amidst the barrage of fire, the vanguard of the East City Army watched with trembling legs as the billowing smoke and dust obliterated the scene ahead. —This scene is comparable to a wall collapsing on a street, with smoke and dust spreading fifty meters beyond the ruins.

Just after the artillery fire ended, the legs of the attacking troops on Yao Army's side were trembling.

Meanwhile, in the advance team preparing to charge towards the city wall, a squad leader had witnessed this grand scene during an exercise.

He immediately banged the charge gong and shouted, "We've run out of cannons! Charge! Charge! Those with grappling hooks, if you still have the energy, get moving! Don't dawdle! There's no one on the other side of the wall, don't wait for them to react!"

These squad leaders were the "vanguard" that Wu Fei had mentioned two years ago, who could significantly reduce siege casualties even if only one hundred men were trained. Now they are playing a crucial role.

Seventy percent of the heads lost to catapults were attributed to the vanguard squad; while thirty percent of the squad's credit went to the captain.

…After the rain of stones, no one looked up again…

Fifty steps, in a dozen or so breaths, is covered. The grappling hook rope is thrown onto these walls that are only a dozen and a half feet high. With the grappling hook thrown up and the rope providing a leverage point, it only takes four breaths to jump up.

Therefore, while Hao Jun was still panicking in the thick dust and smoke covered by the catapults, the vanguard of more than thirty men rushed up with lightning speed.

Furthermore, guided by the signals from the kite-like figures in the air, Yao Jun occupied the high ground of Liugangtai, and casually picked up stones scattered on the city wall and smashed them down on the approaching Hao army, causing them to suffer severe head injuries and bleeding.

During the half-hour of fighting, the swordsmen and shieldmen of the East Market Army also caught up and continuously climbed onto the high platform.

The general defending the high platform was a subordinate general promoted by Zhao Cheng. He looked at the retreating soldiers with his sword drawn, and suddenly remembered that there was a piece of advice in the box left by Zhao Cheng that he hadn't read yet. Although he thought it was useless, the dying man was still curious. As he opened the box, he saw Zhao Cheng's advice: "Surrender to Wu Fei, do not return to the north." He smiled bitterly and threw away his weapon.

And so, the surrender flag was raised atop the city wall, and Liugangtai was captured. For the Wu family, this was a good omen.

Over the past year, under Wu Fei's constant nagging and indoctrination, the soldiers had subconsciously estimated the basic cost of this ant-like siege to be: at least a hundred people would die.

But the result was that only seventeen people died, and thirty unlucky guys and idiots were injured.

Some unlucky ones were shot in the legs and arms through gaps in the shields by enemy arrows while getting close to the city walls.

The fool nervously swung out his grappling hook, but failed to grab it properly. As a result, he fell and broke his leg halfway up the mountain.

The capture of this high ground fortress on the west side of Gushou Pass gave all the soldiers a sense of accomplishment. Everything was due to Wu Fei's proper command. The rewards and risks of this siege were well worth it.

It should be noted that while the plateau was being bombarded, Wu Hengyu's troops were also simultaneously bombarding it with artillery and catapults, which prevented the Dragon Horse Knights of the Gu Shou Pass garrison from coming to reinforce the plateau.

If Gu Shouguan had dispatched a fresh force of aerial knights to join the fight when the plateau was in its most critical moment, the plateau wouldn't have been captured so quickly.

After securing the plateau, Wu Fei sent a message to Wu Hengyu, telling him to rest for a while, as things were settled. Then, Wu Fei met with the surrendered garrison of his plateau troops.

…The dust is still flying…

Inside the tent, facing the bound guard who turned his head and looked at him arrogantly, Wu Fei thought to himself: "He's quite arrogant."

However, according to the surrender procedure, anyone who doesn't start swearing upon entering is acceptable to surrender. — This is an unspoken rule between those surrendering and those accepting surrender.

Wu Fei forced out the formulaic smile found in job postings: "Come on, untie General Bai."

Wu Fei personally seated the surrendered general, just because he was a Yao Ren (a figure in Chinese mythology), he deserved this special treatment, which was meant to create discord between Zhao Cheng and the Hao Kingdom. (However, Wu Fei was unaware that Bai Xu was ordered to surrender by Zhao Cheng, and his own reaction was part of Zhao Cheng's calculations.)
(End of this chapter)