Chapter 788
Chen 94: He's treating me like Cao Cao!
Chen Jie came down from the high platform and watched the soldiers board the ship one after another. At this moment, he saw a thin figure coming through the wind and snow.
That's right, it was none other than Su Yunjin.
Su Yunjin walked extremely fast, leaving Yin Hongmei and Cuiju behind her unable to keep up. In her hand was a black and red cloak, inside which was a 582-character embroidery of the "Buddha's Discourse on Marici," which she had spent half a year embroidering.
This sutra specifically describes the power of Marici, stating that "she always travels in front of the sun, the sun cannot see her, but she can see the sun," meaning that she can become invisible, and her enemies cannot see her.
Su Yunjin spent half a year embroidering this cloak, hoping that on the battlefield, the enemy would not be able to see her husband, thus ensuring his safety.
Although this was impossible, Chen Jiu Si was like a searchlight to the soldiers on the battlefield.
But Chen Jie had already sensed Su Yunjin's feelings.
Su Yunjin's eyes were red as she looked at Chen Jie and said, "Husband, we're waiting for you to come back. Li'er and I are both waiting for you to come back."
Chen Jie looked at Su Yunjin and said, "Don't worry, I will definitely come back, and I will bring victory with me."
"When I return, you will be the most honored woman in the world, you will be the Empress."
Su Yunjin said, "I will not become empress. You must come back safely. I will wait for you here. If you do not come back, it means the enemy has come. I will kill myself here."
"Yun Jin".
As Chen explained, Su Yunjin said, "Husband, don't say anymore. I have entrusted everything to Ya Ya. If you are defeated, Ya Ya will immediately lead the army south to Nanyang, take our child, and establish a nation there."
"Don't worry about anything, I can always be with you!"
Upon hearing this, Chen Jie looked at Su Yunjin and said, "Alright."
Su Yunjin said, "Husband, let me help you put on your cloak."
it is good.
Chen Jie sat on the coffee table, and Su Yunjin draped the cloak over his shoulders. Chen Jie stood up and said, "I will definitely come back to pick you up when I have good news of my victory!"
After saying that, Chen Jie stood up and strode towards the warship without looking back, nor daring to look back.
In the battle against Zhu Chongba, Chen Jie could only say that he would do his best and that victory was certain. Nobody believed that. Their strengths were evenly matched, and who would win or lose depended on fate, performance on the day, and their willpower.
The army set off, and a major battle was imminent.
Thirty li north of Kanglang Mountain in Poyang Lake.
The army marched for two days and unfortunately encountered a dense fog. Normally, there shouldn't be such a dense fog in winter, but today the weather was abnormal. The fog was as thick as rice porridge that had been cooked all night, sticky and murky, with visibility of less than fifty feet.
Chen Jieli stood on the top bridge of the "Desheng" ship, his palm pressed against the cold iron railing.
This giant ship is 33 zhang long and more than 5 zhang wide. It was built by the Huangzhou Shipyard in one year, using up century-old giant trees from three regions of Hubei and Hunan.
The hull was brushed seven times with a mixture of tung oil and iron sand, making it impenetrable to arrows; the bow was covered with three feet of wrought iron, and the ram was like a dragon's tooth; there were sixty crossbow windows on both sides, with a new type of cannon placed behind each window, making it arguably the most powerful warship of its time.
"My lord, the vanguard has engaged Zhu Chongba's scouts." Zhang Dingbian, the commander-in-chief of the entire army, reported in a low voice, the armor blades making a soft rustling sound in the fog.
Chen Jie did not use a telescope because the fog was too thick, and all he could see through the telescope was a white blur, which directly weakened the power of his new telescope. Otherwise, he should have spotted the other party before Zhu Chongba.
Without his binoculars, Chen Jie could only listen intently. From the depths of the fog, he could faintly hear the whistling of arrows piercing the air, the crisp sound of metal clashing, and short screams. These were the "feeling for a knife in the fog" maneuvers of the two sides' outposts, using small boats to probe each other's strengths and weaknesses in waters with extremely poor visibility.
"Where is Zhu Chongba located?" Chen Jiu Si asked, frowning.
"About ten li to the southeast," Zhang Dingbian pointed into the depths of the fog. "The scouting ship used a water-measuring hammer to find that the water depth there is more than three zhang. It is advisable for large ships to deploy, with Zhu Chongba's fleet in a 'wild goose formation,' with the two flanks advancing and the central force slightly behind."
Chen Jie's brows furrowed slightly. The Wild Goose Formation was a formation that combined offense and defense. Its two flanks spread out like the wings of a goose, ready to encircle and surround at any time; the central army sat firmly like the body of a goose, able to advance or retreat at will. Zhu Chongba was clearly testing them.
"Order: The Azure Dragon Army and the Buddhist Army shall cooperate with the Central Army to form the 'Three Talents Encirclement Formation'."
He turned around and pointed to the map on the bulkhead. “The Azure Dragon Army will advance three miles and form a ‘long snake’ formation to shoot at the enemy ships’ sails. The Buddhist Army will split into left and right wings and hide in the fog, waiting to attack from the flanks when the enemy comes to attack. I will personally lead the central army and form an ‘iron chain connecting the ships’ formation, waiting for Zhu Chongba to come and ram them.”
“My lord, although the iron chains connecting the boats can stop the enemy from charging, what if the enemy uses fire to attack…” Zhang Dingbian hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“There’s no wind today.” Chen Jie looked at the wind-measuring flag at the top of the mast, the apricot-yellow flag hanging softly. “Zhu Chongba’s fire ships can’t burn them all. Even if they do—” He patted the iron-clad hull of the ship, “These 1,200 ships of mine are all plastered with mud and covered with wet cowhide.”
"He, Zhu Chongba, really wants to treat me like Cao Mengde of the Three Kingdoms period and burn the Red Cliffs. I won't allow it. Let's see what kind of fire he can set my warships on fire."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Dingbian nodded slightly and said, "As you command."
As the command flags were raised, the Han fleet began to change formation in the thick fog.
Although the whole picture is not visible, one can hear the huge sound of winches turning, chains clashing, and oars hitting the water, like a giant beast slowly turning around in the fog.
Ten miles to the southeast, the "Dingyuan" warship.
Zhu Chongba was standing at the highest point of the ship's tower at this moment.
This multi-story ship is 25 zhang long and 4 zhang wide. It was built by the Jinling Shipyard over two years. It was originally Zhang Shicheng's ship. It was only half-finished when it was acquired by Zhu Chongba.
The hull was made of century-old ironwood from Fujian, the bow was covered with three inches of wrought iron, and there were forty-eight crossbow holes on both sides. It was equipped with red-coated cannons and powerful bows and crossbows. It was Zhu Chongba's best warship, although it was still somewhat inferior to Chen Jiusi's Desheng.
At this moment, Zhu Chongba was also listening to the mist with his eyes closed. He was wearing a worn red battle robe with chainmail underneath. He stood at the bow of the ship with his eyes closed, as if he were sipping tea.
"To the left front, three miles ahead, there's the sound of oars; there are at least thirty large ships," he suddenly said.
Xu Da, standing behind him, nodded: "This should be Chen Jiu Si's vanguard, the Azure Dragon Army led by Jin Yan Zi. Their oars are in perfect unison, a well-trained elite force."
"Five li to the right rear, there is the sound of iron chains," Zhu Chongba added.
"The ships are linked together with iron chains." Xu Da's expression was grave. "Chen Jie has linked large ships together with iron chains to form a water fortress for defense. This formation is sturdy, but cumbersome. If we use fire to attack, we can emulate the Battle of Red Cliffs..."
“There is no wind today.” Zhu Chongba opened his eyes and looked into the depths of the fog. “The fire ships can’t go there, and even if they did, it would be difficult to get close—we’ve seen his ships before. They’re covered in mud and have been covered with leather, so ordinary rockets can’t penetrate them.”
He walked to the map and pointed to the area between Kanglang Mountain and the Han army formation: "Chen Jiu Si is on the defensive, waiting for us to attack. Well, we'll attack him and show him what we can do—but we have to attack cleverly and cunningly, not recklessly!"
"What does 'taking a higher position' mean?"
"Liao Yongzhong," Zhu Chongba called out.
"Your subordinate is here!" Naval Vice Admiral Liao Yongzhong stepped forward.
“You will lead fifty ‘mother and daughter ships’ forward five li and pretend to attack their left flank. Remember, it is ‘pretend’—get close to one li and then retreat, luring their left flank to pursue.”
"Order!"
"Deng Yu".
"Your subordinate is here!"
"You will lead thirty 'Eagle Ships' to flank from the right and fire specifically at the joints where his ships are chained together. Don't aim to destroy them, just harass them, make them think we're going to cut their chains." "Yes, sir!"
Zhu Chongba finally looked at Yu Tonghai: "You lead your main force of one hundred warships, slowly advance, stop when you are three miles away from the enemy, beat the drums and shout, but do not advance an inch."
The three generals exchanged glances, all understanding the meaning—this was a combination of "three feints and one real," intended to confuse Chen Jiu Si's judgment.
Time passed by, and soon it was early morning, when the fog thinned a little.
Liao Yongzhong's fifty mother-and-child ships emerged from the fog like ghosts. These ships were an innovation of Zhu Chongba's navy: large ships carried small ships, with the large ships named "Mother" and the small ships named "Child".
The mother ship is wide and stable, and can carry fifty soldiers, while the daughter ship is narrow and fast, and can carry ten suicide soldiers.
At this moment, fifty mother ships suddenly dispersed one mile from the left flank of the Han army, releasing two hundred smaller ships, which, like bees leaving their hive, rushed straight at the enemy ships!
The left wing of the Han army was Chen Jie's Buddhist army corps, commanded by Ding Pulang, who had a very fiery temper.
Seeing Zhu Chongba's army's small boats approaching, he hurriedly ordered the arrows to be fired.
Arrows rained down, but the small boat, covered in wet cowhide and skimming the water's surface, was hit by very few arrows.
In the blink of an eye, two hundred smaller boats had rushed within fifty zhang of the Han army ships!
"Put down the racket!" Ding Pulang frowned and waved his hand.
The Han army's large ships lowered their iron-clad rams, which slammed down like giant hands. However, the smaller boats were too small and agile, weaving through the gaps in the rams. More than a dozen smaller boats successfully attached themselves to the Han army ships, and the suicide soldiers on board threw out grappling hooks, attempting to board the ships!
"Board them! Stop them!" Ding Pulang drew his sword, his face grim.
Just then, Liao Yongzhong's mother ship suddenly sounded the retreat, and the smaller ships that had been close to the enemy ships immediately retreated without lingering for battle.
The suicide soldiers didn't even board the ships; they simply threw the oil canisters they carried onto the enemy decks, lit them, and then retreated. Seven or eight ships on the left flank of the Han army immediately caught fire, but the fires were well-prepared and not fatal, though the thick smoke was choking and unbearable.
"Damn it, these bastards, chase them!" Ding Pulang's temper flared, his eyes reddened, and he ordered a pursuit.
"General, you mustn't!" the lieutenant urged. "The enemy came and went in such a hurry; it might be a trap!"
"He's bluffing, but I'm not!" Ding Pulang roared. "A few dozen small boats dare to provoke us and disturb our peace. If this happens a few more times, won't it shake our morale?"
Ding Pulang was enraged and personally led thirty fast ships in pursuit.
But after chasing for only two miles, a deafening drumbeat suddenly came from the fog ahead—Yu Tonghai’s hundred warships appeared, forming a horizontal line to block their way! And from the fog on the left and right, Deng Yu’s eagle ships also emerged, specifically targeting the rudders of the pursuing ships.
Ding Pulang then realized he had fallen into a trap and hurriedly ordered a retreat. He personally covered the rear, but still managed to send five ships and more than three hundred people.
Afterwards, he was severely scolded by Chen Jiu Si.
At the same time, Deng Yu, a right-wing figure, encountered a real tough nut to crack.
He led thirty eagle-ships to outflank the Han army's central force and saw the "water city"—more than a hundred warships connected by iron chains as thick as a child's arm, with wooden planks laid between them, allowing soldiers to move about as easily as walking on flat ground. At each of the four corners of the ship formation stood an arrow tower, with crossbowmen on top, ready for battle.
"Shoot the iron chain!" Deng Yu ordered.
The hawk-ships closed to within two hundred paces, and the crossbowmen on board fired specially made "armor-piercing spikes" at the iron chains. These arrows had their tips tempered and shaped into triangular pyramids, specifically designed to pierce iron armor. However, the Han army's iron chains were covered with tanned cowhide and soaked in tung oil, making them exceptionally tough. When the armor-piercing spikes struck, they only left a white dot and could not penetrate any further.
The Han soldiers on the arrow towers began to retaliate. Their crossbows were "bed crossbows" fixed to the towers, with arrows five feet long and as thick as a thumb. A single arrow could pierce through a three-inch wooden board. One giant arrow struck the port side of Deng Yu's flagship, piercing through two layers of planks and pinning a helmsman to the rudder.
"Retreat!" Deng Yu ordered urgently.
The hawk ships retreated, but suddenly twenty "sea eel" ships rushed out from the Han army's water fortress. These ships had iron-clad rams at the bow and paddle wheels on both sides, making them extremely fast. Deng Yu fought and retreated, losing three more hawk ships before barely managing to escape.
Thus ended the first probing by both sides, both suffering losses.
Zhu Chongba's army lost eight small boats and suffered 500 casualties; the Han army lost five fast ships and suffered 300 casualties, with several others catching fire and emitting smoke.
Although Zhu Chongba's army appeared to have suffered a slight loss, Zhu Chongba achieved his objective—he ascertained the strengths and weaknesses of the Han army: Ding Pulang on the left flank had advanced too aggressively and could be used as a breakthrough point; the central army's iron-chained boats were sturdy and not suitable for a direct assault; the right flank…
"Zhang Dingbian is on the right wing." Zhu Chongba pondered after hearing the battle report. "This man is steady in his military tactics and not easy to deal with."
Xu Da nodded: "However, Chen Jiu's iron chains linking the boat together, while temporarily ensuring safety, have also bound his own hands and feet. If one day the wind rises..."
Zhu Chongba looked up at the top of the mast, where the bright yellow dragon flag was still flying.
"Waiting for the wind," he said slowly. "Waiting for a southeast wind."
At 9:00 AM, the fog finally dissipated.
Poyang Lake has revealed its true appearance.
To the west, a "water city" formed by 1,200 warships of the Han army stood majestically, like a black mountain floating on the water.
To the east, Zhu Chongba's army, with its 1,200 ships arranged in a "wild goose formation," resembled a giant bird spreading its wings, eyeing them menacingly.
The two armies stood ten miles apart, locked in a silent standoff.
Chen Jieli stood at the bow of the "Desheng" ship, looking at the large "Zhu" flag in the distance.
He knew that Zhu Chongba was under that banner, watching him.
"My lord, shall we attack again?" Zhang Dingbian asked for instructions.
Chen Jie shook his head: "Zhu Chongba was testing us today, and so was I. Now I know—his ships are small but agile; his soldiers are few but elite. If we charge in head-on, we won't gain the upper hand."
"That……"
“Wait.” Chen Jie turned and went back to the cabin. “Wait until Zhu Chongba can’t hold back anymore, wait until he attacks. When he’s tired and exhausted from attacking, I will send my entire army to crush him in one fell swoop.”
"He may have a thousand schemes, but I will crush them all!"
He paused, then added:
"Have the craftsmen work through the night to make 'fire-launching poles,' and add three more to each ship. Also, mobilize three thousand archers to train in fire-launching techniques—Zhu Chongba's ships mostly have wooden sails, which are most vulnerable to fire."
"As ordered!"
Ten miles away, Zhu Chongba was also issuing orders:
"Order all armies that, regardless of merit or demerit, those who die in battle will be generously compensated, and those who are wounded will be richly rewarded. Also, have the craftsmen modify the mother ship and the daughter ship—add protective plates to the mother ship and stock up on more oil on the daughter ship. Next time, I will burn ten of their large ships."
"Order!"
Poyang Lake returned to calm, with only the broken wood, tattered flags, and the occasional corpse floating on the surface bearing witness to the brief but fierce battle that had just taken place.
At this moment, Chen Jiu Si, under the Han character flag, looked across the river at Zhu Chong Ba, under the Wu character flag. The two narrowed their eyes at each other. Soon, soon, the battle would be decided! (End of this chapter)