Three Kingdoms: At the beginning, Lu Bu was mistaken for his father-in-law

Chapter 332 Chapter 331 The only way to break the city

In later generations, the moat of Chang'an was the Jing River, but in this era, the moat of Chang'an was the water flow diverted from Hancheng Lake.

The city defense is solid, more than five feet high and three feet wide. Not to mention that the rammed earth layer of the walls is covered with blue bricks. The three-foot-wide horse walk alone can accommodate thousands of soldiers.

Standing on the horse trail, Lu Bu felt the strong wind in Guanzhong. He was in a strange mood when he revisited his old place.

"Ziwen, how do you feel about coming back this time?" Lu Bu looked into the distance.

"It's so emotional."

Zhang Xiu took a deep breath and said cheerfully: "Since Marquis Wen killed the national traitor Dong Zhuo here, Chang'an has entered a period of chaos for nearly ten years. First, Li Jue and Guo Si, later Guanzhong Shibu, and even the Xiongnu They have all set foot in this important place in Gyeonggi Province.

I still remember that after Marquis Wen left, the area was devastated by Li Jue and Guo Si. The army had no food to levy, so my uncle had no choice but to take me to Nanyang to plunder. "

As he said that, he sighed again, "I didn't expect that I lost my life there. Later, Cao Cao came and invaded. After the defeat, I followed Marquis Wen. It's been so many years in the blink of an eye."

Lu Bu put his hands on the walls of Chang'an City and chuckled, "Yes, I am really emotional. I had to abandon the city and flee after being forced by these two men, Li Jue and Guo Si. There were also Jia Wen and this old man. Things, but now that I think about it, if it hadn’t been for the trouble they caused, I wouldn’t have met Yunwen, and there wouldn’t be Shengguo today.”

Lu Bu and Zhang Xiu are of course different. Zhang Xiu was a general when he left Chang'an, and he was still a general when he came back.

But when Lu Bu left, he was a defeated army, and when he came back, he was already the number one prince in the world. It is not an exaggeration to say that the world is in the palm of his hand.

He remembered many things and many people.

I remembered that Cao Cao who was assassinating Dong was being chased by him, I remembered the bright sunshine when I first saw Diao Chan, and I remembered the powerful flying general at Hulao Pass who shocked the [-]th princes.
At the same time, I also thought of Uncle Zhang Zhi who made a vow to "stay rich and honor each other and never forget each other" when he was drunk at the celebration banquet after the triumph;

I think of Hao Meng, Hou Cheng, and Wei Xu.

He also thought of Cao Xing, Song Xian and Cheng Lian. He didn't know whether it was the past emotions or the fact that they sacrificed their lives to save Yan Liang and Wen Chou. Lu Bu no longer blamed them.

When memories come flooding back, people often feel the surge of loneliness.

Calling Zhang Xiulai somewhat means that an old friend is around to make up for regrets.

He turned around, took off the wine bag from Zhang Xiu's waist and took a sip. Then he poured the wine in the wine bag down the city gate and said loudly: "I, Lu Fengxian, am back!"

This cry echoed in the sky, venting the excitement in Lu Bu's heart.

He once thought that when he came back again, he would arrogantly slap people in the face who looked down on his origin, and tell them that 30 years in Hedong and 30 years in Hexi.

Who would have thought that when I really came back here, the green mountains would remain the same, but the beauty would change.

The old friends who were kind and hostile in the past are all gone.

Lu Bu suddenly understood that maybe, there are some things that you should do immediately when you want to do them, and there are some people that you should go to see immediately when you want to see them.
Because after you have everything ready, everything will be meaningless.

"Marquis Wen, I heard that you rejected Ma Chao's request to lead troops to regain Liangdi?" After a while, Zhang Xiu asked tentatively after seeing that Lu Bu's mood had calmed down.

"What?" Lu Bu didn't answer, but asked instead.

"Nothing, it's just that Marquis Lanling said that Ma Chao's prestige among the Qiang people is very high, so asking him to go to the meeting will get twice the result with half the effort. In addition, he had a grudge against Han Sui, and Han Sui fled back to the Qiang tribe in Xiliang at this time, so let him Wouldn’t it be appropriate for him to go?”

Lin Mo did say when he was leaving that he could use Ma Chao's prestige in Xiliang to regain the counties. After all, this land is inhabited by a mixture of Hu and Han people, including Qiang people, Di people, and Xiongnu people. Take action, Ma Chao is here, you can save some effort.

"He's not qualified for anything prestigious or not, so just leave him alone."

Lu Bu turned to look at him and said with a smile, "Aren't you from Xiliang yourself? Why, you can't do anything?"

"Of course not."

Zhang Xiu shrugged, saying there was no pressure, then took a step forward and asked softly: "Don't Marquis Wen trust the Ma family?"

"Maybe he has some prestige in Liangdi, but under my command, he is not qualified. It's that simple." Lu Buyun said calmly.

In his eyes, there is no such thing as a tough or tough folk custom. Aren't the Huns very tough? How could they not beat them to the ground and call them daddy?

Zhang Xiu has been with him for so many years. He has fought many fierce battles and suffered many injuries. It's time to let him do something that only his own people can do.

"How many troops and horses are Marquis Wen prepared to allow me?" Zhang Xiu asked, cupping his hands.

Lu Bu's fingers played rhythmically on the city wall, mentally calculating the newly counted soldiers and horses.

In the battle with the ten tribes of Guanzhong, Lin Mo led an army of 2, but lost nearly 4. After defeating the ten tribes of Guanzhong, he had to surrender more than [-] soldiers.

Now there are fifteen thousand cavalry alone, and the total number of swordsmen, spearmen, crossbowmen, and shield soldiers is no less than 11.

It sounds like the number of cavalry is not too many, but other princes combined may not have this number.

Moreover, Lu Bu can expand it at any time as long as he is willing. After all, he is the only one who has the channels to purchase war horses.

The problem is, it is not difficult to buy, but it is difficult to cultivate talents.

Don't look at the fact that the family is a big business now, and Lin Mo's various inventions bring huge profits every year, but the expenses are also staggering.

Not to mention the various natural and man-made disasters that occur every year when governing Xiazhou County, the cost of raising the army alone will take away [-]% of the tax revenue of the North. After all, the army needs salary, and armor, weapons and ordnance need to be maintained and built. .

Moreover, the current Lulin front is too long, and supplies will be lost, which is also a staggering expense.

Taking all these aspects into account, Lu Bu was not able to purchase large quantities of war horses lavishly.

What's more, if he follows his son-in-law's general policy, as long as the Central Plains is captured, the role of cavalry will become smaller and smaller in subsequent battles. They will either be mountain battles or water battles, so this number is actually the upper limit. .

"I'll give you five thousand cavalry and twenty-five thousand infantry, a total of 3 people. Is that enough?"

"That's enough!" Zhang Xiu was very confident.

With 3 men and well-equipped troops, it would not be an exaggeration to say that they could crush Han Sui, who was at the end of his rope, and recover those sporadic forces.

While the two were discussing some details, two men wearing Confucian robes came over.

One person has a white beard and sideburns, wears a Confucian crown, and has an upright appearance; the other person is short, dark, and ugly.

"Marquis Wen." The two of them bowed their hands.

"How's it going?" Lu Bu then turned around and no longer turned his back to anyone.

"I report to Marquis Wen that the registers of all counties and counties in Sizhou have been approved, and the population loss is relatively serious. Last year, Cao Cao moved some people from the Central Plains area, but they were all in the three counties of Guandong.

As for other counties, there haven't been many wars in the past few years, and Brother Yuanchang has managed them very well. In time, it is expected that the grandeur of the Guanzhong Granary will be restored. "

After Pang Tong finished his report, Lu Bu nodded appreciatively, "Yuan Chang, thanks to your help, I was able to clean up the mess in such a short time. However, most of the remaining forces of the ten tribes in Guanzhong have turned into bandits, plus Hedong There are still Baibo thieves in the area, and it will take some time to completely eliminate them."

Hearing this, Lu Bu frowned and looked at Zhang Xiu, who quickly added: "Wei Yue has already taken his men."

Lu Bu nodded with satisfaction.

If we want to manage a prefecture and county so that the houses are not closed at night and the sea and rivers are clear, it is obviously not something that can be achieved in a short time.

But the bandits who are too powerful must be wiped out. The small hilltop with hundreds of people cannot be taken care of, but the village with thousands of people cannot be left alone.

"By the way, Ziwen will lead his troops to Liangdi soon, and Yuan Chang will have to worry about food and grass."

Lu Bu still respected Zhong Yao, who was the governor of Jingzhao Yin.

What is respected is not his position as governor, or even his ability to govern, but the influence behind him.

Zhong Yao was born in Yingchuan. There were three most influential families in Yingchuan, the Xun family, the Chen family and the Zhong family. Zhong Yao was the current head of the Zhong family.

Even when Cao Cao was at the height of his power, he needed to be wary of this old guy, otherwise why would a place like Chang'an send him here.

Lu Bu's next step was to take over the Central Plains. Even after conquering such a large territory, his identity as a border refugee never left him.

Those lofty scholars were always happy to scold him behind his back for his humble background.

Therefore, he needs a great scholar like Zhong Yao to stabilize his position.

"Marquis Wen's words are serious. This is what I should do." Zhong Yao had the same attitude as always, neither humble nor overbearing.Lu Bu was a little helpless about this. He had shown this kindness several times. You can't say he was wrong, but it always made people uncomfortable.

In fact, after defeating the ten tribes in Guanzhong, Zhong Yao did not flee Chang'an and return to Yingchuan. Lu Bu was very happy at the time, but later found out that this guy was completely reluctant to leave the place he governed.

If that's the case, then help him manage this place more properly.

After all, none of the princes in this era can do without the support and support of this group of aristocratic families.

At least, for the time being.

"Marquis Wen, now the Marquis of Lanling is entangled with Sun Ce in Lujiang. The defenses of Xiaoguan and Peicheng are relatively weak. If Cao Cao suddenly takes action, I'm afraid the situation will be bad. The matter here can be left to General Wei Yue to handle. It's time for Marquis Wen to take the lead. The army returned to Yecheng.

After Marquis Lanling sends Jiangdong away, he can join forces with Marquis Wen and capture the Central Plains in one fell swoop. " Pang Tong suggested.

Lu Bu nodded and sighed, Sizhou was really a mess. He praised Zhong Yao on his lips, but he didn't think so in his heart.

If we really manage this place like the Northern Kingdom, I don’t know how long it will take.

But he couldn't leave immediately, he still needed to stay for a while.

After all, Wei Yue is a military commander, and his weight is not enough to completely suppress this chaotic land. He still needs to be stable for a while.

"Then let's make it next month."

After saying that, Lu Bu suddenly remembered something and took out a piece of silk cloth from his arms and handed it to Zhang Xiu, "Yunwen said that after going to Xiliang, he wanted to find a kind of fire cloth that would never burn. There was no picture, just some instructions. , you try to find it for him."

"I know." Zhang Xiu put it away carefully.

In the end, the only question that needed to be considered was, if Zhang Xiu went to Xiliang and Wei Yue stayed in Chang'an, who would be stationed at Tongguan.

It is the throat of Guanzhong and blocks the westward advance of the Central Plains. It can be said to be the most important place in the entire Sizhou.

Of course Ma Chao has this ability, but Lu Bu always feels that it is not appropriate to hand this position to someone who has just surrendered.

It doesn't matter whether he rebels or not. What matters is that once he rebels, he will be too passive.

Even Zhang Yan didn't get this kind of treatment, let alone Ma Chao.

After much thought, only Man Chong could take on this important task.

This time, Hao Zhao performed very well and was even more eye-catching than Yan Liangwen Chou. Even Lu Bu knew the news, so he thought of another person, Guo Huai, who came with him.

Of course, guarding the border is also very important, but at the moment when we are employing people, we should still replace him.

Zhang Yan is following him now, but after all, he had previously promised to choose the place he wanted, and he also chose to follow the army. It would not be appropriate to leave the frontier again.

Jiang Yiqu.
Zhang Nanjiao
Choose among them.

Shucheng has become a hell on earth, with thousands of people dying every day from both sides.

Ten siege engines lined up in two rows, hurling jars of kerosene and stones at the north gate wall. Smoke billowed from the two-foot-wide horse path, and even the wall was blackened by the burning kerosene.

The unlucky Jiang Dongjun was hit and immediately became a man on fire. He let out a piercing scream in the flames and finally turned into charcoal.

The soldiers next to him were terrified, but they had no other choice but to pray that they would not be hit, and they could not even dodge.

Because everyone's position has their own responsibilities, under the cover of the kerosene jars, thousands of Lu troops were approaching, pushing floor carts, calamus carts, and carrying ladders.

They would also fight back, greeting them with rain of arrows, rolling stones, and Su Mu. Lu Jun was also killed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Even though there are thunderbolt chariots for bombing, tower chariots for shooting, and trammel chariots for protection, the casualties of the siege party will definitely be greater.

Everyone hopes to be the first to ascend, and one day be able to mount a gun and mount a horse to fight in the midst of thousands of troops. For this belief and for the reward of seducing people, Lu Jun is very life-threatening.

Perhaps it was as a punishment for his own impulsiveness that defeated Tai Shici, or perhaps he felt that the lord should be by his side when the soldiers were fighting to the death. No matter how fierce the thunderbolt chariot hit him, or how dense the rain of arrows on the building chariot was, Sun Ce always waited for him. On the bridleway.

From time to time, he would help drag away injured sergeants.

This is certainly very morale-boosting.

As the siege party, Lin Mo couldn't take the lead, but like Sun Ce, he stayed by the side of the supervising soldiers from the beginning of the battle until he retreated at dusk.

Such a battle and such casualties are actually a huge test for the coach's psychology. Watching his own people fall one by one, Lin Mo is certainly very distressed.

But this is the battlefield. No matter how many tricks you have, in the end you will return to the most primitive way of fighting. This is inevitable.

For seven days in a row, there was no interval. They went out to fight at dawn and withdrew at dusk. Corpses piled up like mountains and rivers of blood flowed under the gates of Shucheng.

Even Yan Liang, who was in charge of attacking the city, was heartbroken and rushed forward with his shield several times.

However, faced with the dense rain of arrows, the hard-to-prevent rolling rocks and trees, and the sudden appearance of kerosene raining down on his head, he would have died countless times if it weren't for his superb martial arts skills.

I really can't beat it.

It was not until the eighth day that Lin Mo ordered the army to rest for two days. After the rest, they would still continue to attack the city.

Seven days, more than 4000 people were killed or injured in seven days. Anyone who saw this style of fighting would feel distressed.

Of course, Chen Gong once again advised a temporary truce. Even militants like Yan Liang asked whether they would consider besieging the city for a while to weaken the opponent's morale before fighting.

Lin Mo didn't want to talk to him at first, but he would lose patience if he was asked too many questions, "Why don't you tell me how to break the city?"

Now they were speechless.

Facing the more than 2 Jiangdong troops who were defending, it was impossible to lure them out with ordinary tactics. This group of people had already tied their fate to Shucheng.

And it is impossible for him to really leave a group of people here to besiege the city and then withdraw. Of course, the cost will be high. The problem is that if Cao Cao goes out to attack Xuzhou with all his troops, he will definitely be short of troops and there will be no one to besiege the city.

What should we do when there is a confrontation with Cao Jun?
As long as there is a second way to go, Lin Mo will not choose this exchange method.

Some people die now so that fewer people die in the future, and also to completely uproot Jiangdong.

The only thing Lin Mo can do is to increase the bounty and pension.

"Everyone, please believe me. This is the only way to break the city in the shortest possible time." After Lin Mo finished speaking, everyone nodded and strengthened their hearts. They continued to prepare for those who needed to be prepared, and comforted those who needed to be comforted.

Sun Ce in the city actually had the same big head, and the casualties among those defending the city were not so serious, but under the greetings of the thunder carriage and the building carriage, they still lost nearly two thousand soldiers.

This is already considered a small number. After all, half of Jiangdong's army are naval forces, and they are not good at defending the city.

"Is the time almost here?" Sun Ce asked eagerly.

"My lord, it's not possible yet. It's far from the time to shake the morale of the army. What's more, now that the city is closed and Duke Qiao is suddenly asked to communicate, Lin Mo will be suspicious." Zhou Yu, who was sitting next to Sun Ce, could now walk around, but The injury did not heal.

"Then how long do I have to wait? Judging from Lin Mo's attitude, he has given up his tricks and is ready to fight to the death." Sun Ce desperately wanted to use the chess pieces in his hand.

"Isn't this what we expected?" Zhou Yu asked.

Sun Ce glanced at him and said nothing.

indeed so.

The battle has only entered the first stage. According to the custom of siege warfare, the fight will definitely end until both sides are exhausted.

"Lord, please believe me. It's not yet time, and I don't even want to use Duke Qiao unless it's a last resort. Holding tight is the best option right now, and any plan will reveal its flaws.

Moreover, the crazier Lin Mo's attack proved to be the more urgent he was, and he knew clearly that Cao Cao was about to take action. "

Zhou Yu sighed: "Just wait a little longer, time will benefit me and not Lin Mo."

"Cao Cao."

Sun Ce closed his eyes helplessly and raised his head, "How long will it take for you to arrive?"

(End of this chapter)