"Rush over! Rush over!" Liu Pi shouted. As long as they rushed over to the city walls and set up the ladder, the small Guangzhou would be nothing to worry about.
However, the idea was good, but reality was cruel. If they rushed over, with a scale of five thousand people climbing up the city walls, the mere two thousand defenders of Guangzhou would definitely be exhausted. There was also no way to defend Guangzhou, so it could be said that Guangzhou City would be breached.
However, did you really think that Hao Shao dug the moat for fun? The two ends were not connected so that the attacking soldiers could walk on the flat ground in the middle. No one was a fool. How could they walk on the moat instead of the main road? If they were not careful, it would be difficult to climb back up. That was why everyone chose to walk on the flat ground in the middle.
Five thousand people was not a lot but it was also not a small number. However, if they were to walk on the flat ground in the middle, it would be unbearable. Even if the Yuzhou Army maintained a neat formation when they entered, they would still be shot by arrows. Who would want to be shot to death? The people at the front wanted to retreat while the people at the back heard Liu Pi's words and wanted to rush forward. The two sides offset each other, causing chaos on the flat ground. Not to mention rushing over, even walking a few steps was difficult.
With the front and back squeezed together, they became Hao Shao's target. Moreover, it was a fixed target. If he missed once or twice, then he would miss three or four times. With so many people squeezed together, if he still missed, then he would either be blind or on purpose. In a short time, there were countless screams.
"Milord, let General Liu Pi withdraw!" Pang Tong could not bear to watch any longer. These five thousand men were like turtles in a jar. That piece of flat ground was like a cage. They could not enter or squeeze out. They could only stand there and be shot. They were still hoping to charge out, but by the time they did, there would not be many of them left.
"Beat the gong. Withdraw!" Liu Bei's expression was also not good. Five thousand people did not even touch a hair of the enemy. Instead, they were stuck on the flat ground because of their own people.
"Sigh!" Liu Pi fiercely shouted, "Beat the gong to withdraw!"
The order to withdraw was much better than the order to rush over. After all, the people at the front did not want to stay in the front anymore. As for the people at the back, they also did not want to rush forward after hearing the order to withdraw. It was rare for them to be united. The speed at which they retreated was quite fast.
"Stop!" Hao Shao waved his hand to signal his subordinates to stop shooting. They ran quite fast. Originally, if Liu Pi continued to let his subordinates charge, then Hao Shao would have pulled out the remaining one thousand men to shoot together. With such a fixed target, he would definitely be able to hit a bunch of ten points. Five thousand men would be swallowed by Hao Shao. However, Liu Pi withdrew his troops. Hao Shaocheng also had a limited number of arrows so he ordered his troops to stop shooting.
"What do you think? Are you still afraid? " There were corpses all over Guangzhou City, but there were no injuries in the city. Hao Shao would not let go of this opportunity. He wanted to use them to boost the morale of the city.
"Not afraid, not afraid!" Of course, they weren't afraid. In the beginning, they were afraid because there were too many enemies below the city. However, after being threatened by Hao Shao, their escape route was completely blocked. If they didn't kill the enemy, then the enemy would come and kill them. Whether they surrendered or fled, there was no way out. Instead of dying in such a cowardly manner, it was better to fight. Now that they had won the first wave of attack under Hao Shao's leadership, their confidence and morale had risen. There were more than a thousand corpses below the city, and the enemy only had 20,000 people. What was there to be afraid of?
It was not a thousand corpses but more than 2,300 people. Liu Bei's face was cold. Originally, he would not be so angry because he was a veteran on the battlefield. He was not able to see through Hao Shao's plan. Hao Shao only dug out two ends of the moat and left the middle open to attract the army. Usually, Liu Bei would not blame Liu Bei and would even appease him. However, this time, there was not only Liu Bei's army but also Zhang Xiu. Five thousand people attacked a city that was defended by two thousand people and lost 2,300 people. Many of them were injured. It could be said that the number of casualties had reached three thousand people. Not even a ladder was able to reach the walls of Guangzhou. This was not only a blow to the morale of the army but also to Zhang Xiu.
Liu Bei was measuring the heart of a gentleman with the yardstick of a villain. Zhang Xiu did not see Liu Bei's actions as a joke. Instead, he thought about it. In front of him, Liu Bei easily took Gushi and Anfeng. This made Zhang Xiu very surprised. However, Liu Bei's men were able to take down two cities in a short period of time. This made Zhang Xiu very surprised. On the other hand, Zhang Xiu also looked at Hao Shao's method of defending the city. This was because Wancheng City did not have any danger to defend. Because of the terrain, there was no moat. Hao Shao's method of defending the city reminded Zhang Xiu that if he dug trenches around Wancheng City and left a flat area in the middle, he would not be able to use bows like Hao Shao. Instead, he would directly charge with his cavalry. Let alone two thousand casualties, even five thousand people would be killed.
"Milord, I!" Liu Pi was also a bit dejected. Originally, he had agreed to take Guangzhou with one charge. Who would have thought that he would be taught a lesson by the enemy before he could even touch the city walls. Previously, he had laughed at the enemy's archers for placing the wrong moat. Now, it seems that he was the one who had become a joke.
"Continue to attack!" Liu Bei waved his hand to stop Liu Pi from speaking. Hao Shao's words made Liu Bei very unhappy. Now, he had injured so many of his soldiers. How could Liu Bei endure this?
"I!" Liu Pi wanted to say something but was stopped by Pang Tong.
"General Liu Pi, listen to Milord and continue to attack!" Sometimes, Liu Bei was a very good person. Perhaps he was just putting on an act. However, even if his generals were defeated, he would only appease them. Although he was unhappy, he would still put on a show. Now, he did not even put on a show for Liu Pi. This meant that Liu Bei was really angry. If Liu Pi continued to speak, it would only make Liu Bei even angrier. Thus, Pang Tong quickly stopped him.
"Yes!" Liu Pi could only nod his head and walk out of the tent. He could not help but sigh. He originally wanted to say more because he wanted to get some advice from Liu Bei or the others. He had already suffered a loss at Hao Shao's hands. Now, he could not send troops to attack Guangzhou. Should he go through the moat? Or should he go through the flat ground? Even if he captured Guangzhou, his Yuzhou Army's losses would be reduced by more than half.
However, now that Liu Bei was angry, Liu Pi could only think of a way himself. If there was no other way, then he would attack! Liu Pi clenched his teeth as he thought.
"General Liu Pi, please wait!" Just as Liu Pi was about to leave the Central Army, Pang Tong called out to him.
"Military Advisor!" Liu Pi cupped his fist towards Pang Tong. Pang Tong could be considered as Liu Bei's second in command. Even Liu Bei's second brother, Guan Yu and third brother, Zhang Fei, listened to Pang Tong. Thus, Liu Pi did not dare to be disrespectful to Pang Tong.
"General Liu Pi, where are you going?" Pang Tong walked out and asked with a smile.
"Military Advisor, Pi is returning to the camp to reorganize the army and attack Guangzhou once again!" Liu Pi was puzzled. Pang Tong, why are you asking the obvious? Are you wasting my time?
Pang Tong looked at Liu Pi's expression and knew that Liu Pi had complaints. "Then does the general have a way to capture Guangzhou?" Pang Tong asked again. This time, Liu Pi was speechless.
"This, this is still not possible!" Liu Pi's mouth was filled with bitterness. At worst, he would send the entire army to the moat and attack the city. He would risk countless casualties to capture Guangzhou.
"I have something to say. I do not know if the general is willing to listen!" Pang Tong smiled and said to Liu Pi. The current Liu Pi was no longer as high-spirited as before.
"Military Advisor, are you serious?" Liu Bei's eyes lit up. Pang Tong was Liu Bei's second in command. All of Liu Bei's strategies were formulated by Pang Tong. The Lvbu's Army, Zhang Xiu and the attack on Yangzhou were all planned by Pang Tong. It could be said that Pang Tong was the brain of the entire Liu Bei's Army. Liu Bei was only the one who gave orders. Now that Pang Tong wanted to help him, how could Liu Pi refuse?
"General Liu Pi, this Pang has three strategies. I do not know which one General Liu Pi is willing to use." The ancient strategists didn't give you the top, middle, and bottom strategies just for the sake of acting. Instead, the top, middle, and bottom strategies were all for the same purpose, but the process was different. They were just giving you a suggestion, and the decision was in your hands.
"Please teach me!" Liu Pi cupped his fist towards Pang Tong. He almost knelt down and called Pang Tong mister. Previously, he called Pang Tong a military advisor as it was a title. Now, he called Pang Tong mister as it was a form of respect.
"This strategy is General Liu Pi. Gather the army and surround Guangzhou from all sides. Launch a group attack without fear of casualties. Only victory! General Liu Pi has twenty thousand troops. Even with the casualties just now, you can still take out fifteen thousand troops. In this small Guangzhou, there are less than two thousand people. Under a fierce attack, the city will be broken! " Pang Tong's strategy was to mindlessly attack the city. The number of people was ten times more than the enemy. At worst, they could just use the number of people. No matter how strong your soldiers were, how strong your city was, how well built your moat was, can you fight one against ten? Impossible! Since you can't, then you can only wait for the city to be broken!
"What is the military advisor's strategy?" Liu Bei did not even think and rejected the strategy. If he had to attack then he would have already done so. He would not need to frown. If he had to attack Guangzhou then there would be countless casualties. Not to mention how big Yangzhou was, there were still Hefei, Lujiang, Shouchun, and Chengde to fight. If so many people died in Guangzhou, how would he be able to raise his head in front of Liu Bei's Army? Even Liu Bei would disdain him.
"Haha, this is the best strategy!" Pang Tong naturally knew that Liu Bei would not choose the worst strategy. However, the worst strategy was the one that saved the most time. Although the casualties were heavy, Liu Bei would not be angry. Instead, he would praise Liu Pi. This was because Liu Pi was very obedient. He only cared about his lord's face and did not care about his own benefits. Losing his military power was not a bad thing but he could also gain Liu Bei's appreciation. After all, Liu Bei's 20,000 troops were almost half of Liu Bei's Army. How could a lord not be worried? Moreover, it was not good for Liu Bei to place his trusted aides in Liu Pi's Army. After all, Liu Pi had given Runan to Liu Bei. As a result, Liu Bei was both suspicious and not suspicious of Liu Pi. He wanted to take away Liu Pi's military power but was also afraid of disappointing Liu Pi's heart. It was very contradictory. If Liu Pi could understand the situation in Guangzhou and give up his military power to gain Liu Bei's trust and appreciation, then he would be able to go further in Liu Bei's Army.
However, since Liu Pi did not think of this and did not want to give up his military power, Pang Tong could not be blamed for not reminding him. Sometimes, the logic was simple but it could not be broken. "Then we will use the medium plan!" “
"The medium plan is to fill up the moat! Do it according to the general idea of sieging a city! " Pang Tong did not care if you deliberately made the moat like this or not. I will fill it up for you. I will send troops to block the moat and turn it into flat land. This way, Guangzhou will have no place to defend and can only wait to be captured. This is called using the same method to deal with ten thousand changes.
"What is the Military Advisor's best plan?" Liu Pi frowned. This medium plan was indeed a good plan. Once the moat was filled up, the area outside the walls of Guangzhou would become wider. His troops would be able to spread out. However, this plan was too time-consuming. The moat outside Guangzhou was not shallow. It used the water from the Huai River. If they were to send people to fill up the moat, it would take several days. This was under the condition that the defenders on the walls would not disturb them. If they were to shoot arrows from the walls, it would take even longer. Liu Bei wanted Liu Pi to capture Guangzhou as soon as possible.
"The best plan is to use the chariots!" Pang Tong looked at the small city in front of him. "Although Hao Shao made the moat like this, it also left a flaw for him!" The moat was divided by the flat land in the middle. This was to make use of the people's mentality to avoid harm. It was to make everyone flock to the flat land in the middle. In order to attract the enemy, the flat land was very spacious. Just now, five thousand people could fit in it. Pang Tong looked at it and saw that it could fit five chariots side by side.
Since the flat ground can allow people to walk, naturally, other things can also walk on it. And because of the flat ground, the siege vehicles can borrow strength from the ground. It can be said that once siege vehicles attack Guangzhou, Guangzhou will suffer. Because there is no drawbridge, the city gate cannot withstand the impact of the siege vehicles. You can see how big the city gate of Wancheng city can't withstand the impact of the siege vehicles! Once the city gates were knocked open, then Guangzhou would be destroyed.
"Best plan. I will choose the best plan!" Liu Pi's eyes lit up. It was impossible for him to choose the worst plan. This was because this was a matter of military power. Although the best plan was good, it was too slow. How long would it take to fill the moat? This best plan was to use the chariots!
Liu Pi could already see the scene of his chariot speeding up and crashing into the city gate. Once the city gate is broken, all he needs to do is to send his personal guards to follow closely behind and control the city gate. Then Guangzhou will be safe.
"Mister's kindness cannot be expressed with words. Once this matter is over, I will definitely pay you a visit! This matter is urgent. I will go first! "Liu Pi cupped his fist and said to Pang Tong.
"Go. Go!" Pang Tong did not blame Liu Pi and said to him. Pang Tong did not help Liu Pi without preconditions. Like Zhuge Liang in Jingzhou, Pang Tong also needed a subordinate. Although Liu Bei trusted him and gave him half of the military power, the commanders were still his second and third brothers. Zhang Fei was fine but Liu Bei had to think carefully about whether to do it or not and how to do it. It was not that Zhuge Liang wanted to do this but some people were too smart. For example, Ma Su and Li Yan. They also knew that sometimes a game of chess could be lost because of one or two chess pieces. Therefore, Pang Tong did not need chess pieces with thoughts but people who did not have any thoughts. Liu Pi was the person Pang Tong needed.
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