Chapter 472
Corpses in Chapter 472
Ji Yuan's army lost tens of thousands of elite troops in one battle, but by collecting trash on the spot and reassembling the undamaged armor, he created a formidable army on the spot.
That cavalry unit also pursued Wei Wusheng, dismantling his army into pieces, forcing them to retreat to various places.
However, since they were on enemy territory, going too deep into enemy territory could lead to ambushes, so they only pursued the enemy briefly, trying to deplete their manpower as much as possible.
Although Wei Wusheng lost, the three southern counties were still in his hands, so instead of continuing the pursuit, Ji Yuan decided to take Shuofeng City first.
"Your Majesty... the grain supplies are in Shuofeng City, distributed in about twenty granaries, and should amount to about fifty shi of grain."
A Yu army marquis knelt on the ground, trembling as he reported to Ji Yuan.
At this moment, the generals beside Ji Yuan all showed signs of excitement and joy.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! If we capture this city, we can resupply on the spot and fight for another year without worrying about running out of food!" a general congratulated Ji Yuan.
Ji Yuan, clad in armor, walked up to the man without hesitation and slowly drew his sword.
"Your Majesty! Everything I said is true! I dare not lie about anything!" The man hurriedly kowtowed, fearing that the other party would kill him with a sword.
What he said was indeed true.
Because the officers who have been arrested so far all give the same account.
There was indeed a lot of grain in Shuofeng City, and it was not destroyed or transported away during the defeat.
This is where we prepare to continue defending the city.
However, Ji Yuan didn't quite believe it.
A sword was placed against the other's neck, and Ji Yuan coldly commanded, "Raise your head."
"..." This Marquis Qu swallowed hard, looking at the other party with the slightest disrespect.
"Wei Wusheng, has he really entered Shuofeng City?"
It's possible that he could lead another city defense battle, since he has experience holding out until heavy snowfall. But this time is different. Ji Yuan won't be like before. Where will Wei Wusheng get the courage to win again?
and also.
If Ji Yuan knew he was in the city, he could simply lock down the city, bypass Shuo Feng, and take over the rest of the city first.
After all, Song Shi'an had already gone north and tactically swapped locations with him.
Wuwei cannot be easily lost, but the situation is different for the three southern counties.
Of all the cities in Nanshuo County, only Shuofeng has some strategic value, and that's only because its city defenses have been upgraded. But now, the camps and fortified villages along the riverbank have been captured one after another, and the difficulty of defending the two sides is completely different.
Even if Song Shi'an thoroughly ravaged the rural areas outside the city of Beishuo County and took them all over, he still couldn't crack that tough nut.
Even though Han Yuan wasn't a famous general, he still held off the Qi army until the city's supplies ran out before the city fell and everyone perished.
Wuwei now has Ji Yuan's elite troops.
No matter how you look at it, Wei Wusheng's way of fighting doesn't fit Song Shi'an's usual style...
“Your Majesty.” However, this Marquis Qu said with great certainty, “I saw Qin…Wei Wusheng enter the city, and then he was separated from his men and captured by your royal army. I dare not lie in the slightest.”
"Did you see Wei Wusheng?" Ji Yuan asked again.
“…I saw the king’s carriage,” he said, trembling.
"Wei Wusheng is not in the city."
Ji Yuan sheathed his sword, turned around and sat down at his desk, waving his hand.
Chen Xing understood, so he ordered someone to take Qu Hou away.
"Your Majesty! I am willing to be your inside man—"
Before he could finish speaking, he was dragged out of the tent and beheaded.
Then, Chen Xing said to Ji Yuan, "Your Majesty, if Wei Wusheng is not in the city, he can completely control the remaining troops with his charisma. If we attack other cities, it will probably be a losing proposition."
“Your Majesty,” Mi Heng said, offering a different opinion, “we have already defeated Wei Wusheng, so what’s wrong with winning again? Why should we care where this brat is?”
“General Mi, you’re right.” Ji Yuan smiled, then asked in return, “But if Wei Wu were in the city, wouldn’t it have been easier for him to defeat the others?”
"It's definitely easier..."
"Don't you understand yet? My opponent is Song Shi'an!"
Ji Yuan was never afraid of Wei Wusheng.
What he cared about was whether he could quickly conquer Nanshuo County with as few injuries as possible.
These past few days, he has fought so many tough battles. Although the other side suffered even greater losses, it has also taken a toll on his morale.
Da Yu did suffer a defeat, and Wei Wusheng's morale was also greatly dampened, but he was still the soul of Bei Liang.
With him around, the Liangzhou army, the Imperial Guard, and the former Langya rebels were able to unite closely together. A single flag was enough to rally the defeated soldiers.
So, Ji Yuan still has to fight battle after battle, using lives to pay off the losses.
But how many people from Qi could there be as many as those from Dayu?
"If Wei Wusheng is in Shuofeng, then we will besiege the city without attacking, and deal with the rest of the leaderless scattered troops first. If Wei Wusheng is not in Shuofeng, then we will take Shuofeng first, and try our best to force him to surrender and take all the grain stored up in the granaries," Chen Xing concluded.
What he said was the most rational approach.
This was also Ji Yuan's strategy.
"But they all say Wei Wusheng is in Shuofeng City..." someone said, "Could it be that even in such a moment of defeat, he could still pull off a feint?"
This is where the problem lies.
Ji Yuan closed his eyes and entered a meditative state, without speaking.
After a long while, a general entered the tent, clenched his fists, and said, "Your Majesty, the people have been brought."
Upon hearing this, Ji Yuan opened his eyes and stood up.
"Let's attack the city first."
.........
"Where are they taking us? Are they going to put us in charge of logistics for the siege?"
"Then why bring women and children along? They won't be of any use."
"What...what does this Emperor Ji want to do to us?"
"We've already surrendered, so there shouldn't be any further punishment, right?"
After Ji Yuan crossed the river, he began to sweep through Nanshuo County. Then, he gathered more than 20,000 people within a radius of fifty or sixty miles, including many elderly people, women and children who could not be able to work.
Then, on a sunny day, they were herded like sheep to the open space in front of the North Gate of Shuofeng.
Just as everyone was confused, the soldiers who had formed a large circle behind them all raised their shields, forming a semi-circular city wall.
After the soldiers had formed ranks, they simultaneously took out their shields, pounded the ground with force, and roared as they advanced.
The people didn't know what this meant, but they were all terrified and involuntarily retreated towards the city gate...
However, going any further would put them within the range of the defending troops, so the civilians at the front remained motionless. Those on the outer perimeter, unable to squeeze in, gradually approached the shield-bearers.
"Sir, the city is just over there!"
One of them hurriedly ran towards Ji Yuan's army, waving his hand vigorously.
However, the next moment, an arrow suddenly flew through the sky, coming from Ji Yuan's army.
Immediately afterwards, countless arrows flew out.
The people looked up in bewilderment.
After someone was shot through by an arrow and screamed in agony, the civilians, like ducks being herded, all surged toward the Shuofeng City Gate...
However, Shuofeng City has a moat.
After several years of troop deployment, the area has become deeper and wider.
The people at the front fell into the moat like cement being poured into a well. The moat was filled with sharp spikes, and they died tragically inside, like skewered hawthorns. They couldn't even cry out before their bodies, like sandbags, were pressed down and compacted.
This scene filled the defenders on the city wall with indignation.
The people of Dayu were shamelessly and cruelly used by Ji Yuan to fill the pit!
Women and children alike perished in the chasm. In no time, the chasm was filled by the stampede. Then, all they could do was shout towards the city gate.
"Open the door!"
"Help!"
"Your Highness, King Qin! Save us!"
The people surged into the city gates like a tidal wave, begging their comrades to spare their lives.
But the Qi army was right behind them. As soon as the city gates opened and the people poured in, they would be able to enter the city.
With tears welling in his eyes, Prefect Qin Kuo could only wave his hand forcefully and shout, "Release!"
Arrows rained down on the people from the city walls.
The population is like a timer, declining rapidly every second.
Ahead came a rain of arrows from the Great Yu, and behind came a rain of arrows from the Ji Yuan.
These people have no way to survive.
In less than fifteen minutes, all 20,000 people were wiped out.
Throughout the area north of the Shuofeng City gate, corpses were piled up.
The effect was not particularly good; it was merely that the moat failed.
However, for the Qi army, this greatly saved them trouble, reducing the losses of the first wave of the siege to zero.
This time, it was much more successful than before.
Why didn't Ji Yuan use such a good method before?
Because Ji Yuan's previous goal was to conquer the Great Yu.
Now things are different; what he wants to conquer is this entire land.
What he wants to rule is not the thirty or forty million people in this world.
Rather, it refers to the vast land of Kyushu.
It doesn't matter if there are no hunters on this land.
It was Song Shi'an who forced him to do it.
Because of you warmongering little Grand Secretaries, I have become so cruel.
I don't want it to be like this.
"Your Majesty, this is truly magnificent." Chen Xing walked over to Ji Yuan, who was sitting on the hillside, and sat down beside him, saying with some emotion.
"Very good." Ji Yuan's lips curled into a smile as he said, "Such a miserable state is worthy of my respect for Song Shi'an."
"Your Majesty, I have already carried out your orders," Chen Xing said. "The army has been divided into twenty-four battalions, surrounding the city in layers, with each battalion and tent spaced far apart to avoid gatherings as much as possible. The entire army must not drink unboiled water, and anyone with a fever must be isolated immediately. The artemisia we prepared earlier has also been distributed. Now, we just need to wait for the plague to break out."
Ji Yuan completely followed Song Shi'an's path.
Now is the hottest time of summer, and mosquitoes are everywhere.
In addition, after so many days of fighting, hundreds of thousands of corpses have been shed. These 20,000 civilians died directly at the city gate, and as they rotted, they attracted even more mosquitoes.
Most importantly, Shuofeng City is small but densely populated. If an epidemic breaks out, even with timely prevention, its combat effectiveness will be significantly affected.
“Song Shi’an is a genius, but he should know that I couldn’t possibly be unaware of the methods he used to defend the city,” Ji Yuan said solemnly. “For the past two years, I have been rehearsing the attack on Shuofeng every day, so he should be able to guess what he was thinking.”
Yes, Song Shi'an defended the city, but his opponent was still Ji Yuan.
However, one cannot step into the same river at the same time.
Ji Yuan will also grow.
“We are currently using tens of thousands of people to dig the earth,” Chen Xing added. “Within ten days, we should be able to dig several tunnels leading into the city.”
"Speed up the process, don't delay for a moment," Ji Yuan said.
That's right, he also wants to dig tunnels.
However, the plan was not to attack the city by digging tunnels.
The tunnels were narrow and extremely difficult to pass through; even if they were dug through, it would be very difficult to break into the city.
So what they need to do is...
"All the poisonous water that can be produced in the entire Northern Liang is here with us," Chen Xing said, gazing at the city. "When the time comes, we'll pour it all in, and they'll only have water from the sky to drink."
“Twenty days,” Ji Yuan said. “Within twenty days, I will make them surrender.”
“If Wei Wusheng weren’t here, and they still haven’t surrendered at this point, then they would truly be determined,” Chen Xing said. “But even if they don’t surrender, we can still break through the city.”
They had actually reviewed the city defense countless times.
Finally, a conclusion was reached.
It's not a problem with the method.
It's because of people.
It's because Song Shi'an was there.
Now, without Song Shi'an, and even without Wei Wusheng, this city, which was already indefensible, certainly cannot be defended.
"Use chariots to tear them to pieces right in front of them," Ji Yuan ordered.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
This pair of ruler and ministers became completely corrupted, taking these inhumane actions to increasingly extreme levels.
The goal is to break down their psychological defenses.
Thoroughly instill fear in them.
Kneel before the Qi army!
Just as those chariots were crushing everything in front of the defenders, the city gates were suddenly opened.
In an instant, hundreds of heavy cavalry charged out.
At the same time, there were also many elite infantrymen.
Almost instantly, the catapults inside the city sprang into action.
"Your Majesty, they have launched a counterattack!" Chen Xing exclaimed in astonishment.
Ji Yuan hadn't expected them to be so principled.
However, there wasn't much of a stir.
Their unexpected counterattack may cause some damage, but the outcome will be the same.
Ji Yuan will definitely win.
Just then, a cavalryman rushed over to report: "Your Majesty, Wei Wusheng has appeared!"
"..."
Ji Yuan was taken aback, then immediately mounted his horse. Even Chen Xing couldn't stop him and could only watch helplessly as he rode to the battlefield, leaving the Imperial Guard cavalry to follow and protect him.
impossible.
If Wei Wusheng were in the city while Song Shi'an was away, he would be courting death.
Is this another tactic to stall me?
Ji Yuan didn't believe that Wei Wusheng really wanted to gamble his life on him.
Until he rode his warhorse into the army formation and saw, hundreds of paces away, atop the city wall, a tall and handsome man clad in golden scale armor.
The distance wasn't too far or too close, but Ji Yuan recognized him at a glance—it was Wei Wusheng…
He recognized that face! (End of Chapter)