If you ask why Liu Bei wanted to kill Liu Pi, other than Liu Pi offending Zhang Xiu, there were other reasons. One of them was that a mountain cannot accommodate two tigers. Although Liu Pi had welcomed Liu Bei to Yuzhou, Liu Pi's influence in Yuzhou was still very big. Many Yellow Turban Bandits were encouraging Liu Pi to make a comeback and take back Yuzhou. Even if Liu Pi did not want to, his subordinates could force him to do so. Just like when Liu Biao and Zhang Yun offered Jingzhou, Cao Cao knew that it was impossible for Liu Biao's youngest son to rebel. However, as a precaution, he still made Liu Cong the Provincial Governor of Qingzhou and disappeared. Liu Bei was even more vicious. He treated Liu Biao's eldest son, Liu Qi. He relied on Liu Qi's reputation to gain Jingzhou's support and made Liu Qi the Provincial Governor of Jingzhou. However, Liu Qi died the next year.
The second reason Liu Bei wanted to kill Liu Pi was the issue of military power. If Liu Pi had handed over his military power after welcoming Liu Bei to Yuzhou, then nothing would have happened. Liu Bei could even give Liu Pi a clerical position. However, Liu Pi was greedy for power and was unwilling to hand over his military power. If Liu Pi did not hand over his military power, then it was fine as long as he was obedient. However, this time, Liu Pi secretly mobilized his army and touched Liu Bei's bottom line. If Liu Pi could hide it from Liu Bei and ambush the Xiliang Cavalry, then he could also ambush Liu Bei. It must be known that when Liu Bei ambushed the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry, he did not have many soldiers and horses. If Liu Pi had any evil thoughts, then Liu Bei would have been finished.
How could Liu Bei let such a disobedient subordinate live? This time, Liu Pi happened to hit the nail on the head and gave Liu Bei an excuse to kill Liu Pi. Ambushing an ally to steal merit and shooting at an ally was a reason that no one would say much about. This was because on the battlefield, people were most afraid of killing their fellow soldiers for merit. It was something that a general could not tolerate.
Liu Bei also considered the possibility of Liu Pi's subordinates rebelling. This Liao Hua was one of Liu Bei's methods. He did not arrange for a new general in Liu Bei's army to command the Yuzhou Army. Instead, he directly promoted Liao Hua from the Yuzhou Army.
Liu Bei had seen Liao Hua's commander. He dared to use five thousand men to ambush two thousand heavy cavalry and almost exterminate them. This showed that this person was a good general. Moreover, looking at Liao Hua's gratitude, Liu Bei knew that Liao Hua would not betray him. This kind of promotion from a general of five thousand men to a general in the army was something that Liu Bei was deeply grateful for.
After a night of talking, Zhang Xiu and Liu Bei once again became good friends. Pang Tong also decided on a plan to beat Xu Shu at his own game. Xu Shu's plan was to make Zhang Xiu's Army and Liu Bei's Army turn against each other. It would be best if they fought. Even if they did not, the two armies would still go their separate ways. Zhang Xiu and Liu Bei created this illusion and let Zhang Xiu's Army act as if they were retreating. Finally, they would launch a surprise attack on Shouchun and take down the city gates.
This plan almost succeeded. Fortunately, Xu Shu still had Zhao Yun's two hundred White Horses. Relying on these two hundred White Horses, they were able to discover the surprise attack of the Xiliang Cavalry. Relying on these two hundred White Horses, they were able to slow down the Xiliang Cavalry. This allowed Shouchun to close the city gates and lower the drawbridge. However, the industrial zone could not be saved. Xu Shu could only endure the pain and burn the entire industrial zone to ashes.
"Military Advisor, I will let the White Horses come up the city walls to help defend the city!" Zhao Yun saw that Xu Shu was having a hard time fighting. After all, Xu Shu's garrison troops were the second line troops while Liu Bei's siege troops were the first line troops. Moreover, Xu Shu only had ten thousand men while the enemy below the mountain had tens of thousands of men. If it were not for the city walls of Shouchun, they would have already been finished.
"No need, General Zilong. You and your White Horses go down and rest. I need to use you in a more useful place!" Xu Shu would not let the cavalry defend the city. It had not reached that point yet. Therefore, it was temporarily impossible to use the heavy cavalry. With the heavy cavalry, Xu Shu could still do other things. "Oh right, General Zilong. You go down and let the people help me boil the golden water! It may be used later! "
"Yes, this general understands!" Zhao Yun nodded and went down the city wall. The Golden Water wasn't made from gold, instead, it was made from rice, arsenic, and some poisonous fog. The most important part of this thing was to use it on the arrowhead. This kind of arrowhead was simply a simplified version of a biological weapon. As long as it hit a person, if it wasn't treated properly, then the person would die. This was because there were a lot of bacteria on the rice. Once it entered the human body, it could cause an infection. Xu Shu didn't want to use this at first, but he had no other choice but to do so.
"Take down Shouchun and the Lvbu's Army in Yangzhou will be finished!" Liu Bei looked at the important city and thought. As long as he took down Shouchun, he would be able to control Yu and Yang. After that, he would be able to join forces with Jiangdong's Sun Ce and Wancheng's Zhang Xiu to destroy Lü Bu. Then, there would be no one in the Central Plains who could stop Liu Bei. He just had to wait for the outcome of the battle between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao. No matter who won, Liu Bei would be able to dominate the Central Plains and enter Xuzhou, Yanzhou and Qingzhou. At that time, he would be able to dominate the Central Plains and enter Xuzhou, Yanzhou and Qingzhou.
"Soldiers, raise your spirits and pick up your weapons. Do you see in front of you? That is Shouchun. That is the place where Yuan Shu's second son dreamt of becoming an emperor. As long as we take down Shouchun, we will win. Milord will definitely reward us according to our merits. At that time, we will be promoted, rich, and married. You must know that there are millions of people in Shouchun! There are hundreds of thousands of women in Shouchun. Each person can have two or three women! " This was the first time Liao Hua had encouraged his subordinates since he became the commander. They were originally from the Yellow Turban Army. Liao Hua was already very polite when he said this. At the very least, he would marry the women. Previously, when the Yellow Turban Army broke into the city, they would directly burn, kill, rob, and abuse the women. How could they marry them? However, Liu Bei had a good reputation. This time, he came here to uphold justice for the people. If he burned, killed, and robbed, then his reputation would be ruined.
"Take down Shouchun and get promoted!" Liao Hua shouted and led his subordinates to attack the city walls.
"Soldiers, we only have Shouchun City. If Shouchun City falls, we will have nothing left. Think of your parents in the city, think of your children and wives in the city. Once the city falls, we will be left with nothing. You can imagine what kind of treatment they will receive. It will definitely be a broken family. Don't have any illusions about the troops below the city. Let me tell you, they are from Yuzhou. You should know what Yuzhou was like before. It was a group of Yellow Turban Bandits. They just changed their heads. Don't you know how cruel they are? " Xu Shu naturally used the Yellow Turban Army as an excuse. If he wanted to raise the morale of the new garrison troops, he had to let them know the importance of defending their land.
"I will die to protect my family!" Xu Shu shouted. The garrison troops on the city walls also began to cheer up. They drew their bows, pulled their bows, and carried the fallen stones and logs. They were also busy in full swing.
"Release the arrows, release the arrows!" Under Xu Shu's command, the garrisons started to shoot arrows at the enemy below. There was a moat outside of Shouchun. This moat was not the same as the one outside of Guangzhou. This moat was more than ten meters wide and seven to eight meters deep. Moreover, it was flowing water and there was a drawbridge above the moat. If the moat was not filled up, it would be impossible to attack Shouchun. Therefore, Liu Bei's Army used the first wave to fill up the moat. Every Yuzhou Army soldier was carrying one or two bags filled with soil. They threw the bags of soil into the moat to fill it up. In order to quickly fill up the moat, they placed their weapons to the side and laboriously carried them. Originally, they did not run very fast. Moreover, the sandbags were also very heavy. This caused them to slow down even more. If they ran too slow, they would become targets. After a few rounds, the moat was only filled up by 10%. Liao Hua's Yuzhou Yellow Turban Army had already lost thousands of men. If this continued, the moat would be filled up and his Yuzhou Yellow Turban Army would be gone. This was not what Liao Hua wanted. He had just become the commander of the Yuzhou Yellow Turban Army, so he could not just become a commander without an army.
Therefore, Liao Hua stood pitifully in front of Liu Bei. Liu Bei also knew that the losses of the Yuzhou Army were too great. He waved his hand and ordered Zhang Fei's Qingzhou Army to replace Liao Hua's Yuzhou Army. However, whether it was the Qingzhou Army or the Yuzhou Yellow Turban Army, both suffered the same fate.
Shouchun was built very well by Yuan Shu's daydreaming. The walls were convex. The advantage of this was that most of the arrows could cover the moat. Liu Mang also added some things, such as an archery platform. This allowed the arrows to cover a wider area. Therefore, when the Qingzhou Army went to the battlefield, they were shot back. Liu Mang also added some things, such as an archery platform. This allowed the arrows to cover a wider area. Therefore, when the Qingzhou Army went to the battlefield, they were shot back.
Zhang Fei was really angry because he couldn't cross the moat. It was difficult to attack Shouchun. He could only watch as his men were shot to death by archers. Liu Bei also thought of using archers to fight back. However, the enemy was on high ground while he was on the ground. Even if his arrows flew up the city walls, how much strength could they have? On the other hand, the enemy's arrows were shot under the acceleration of gravity, and a lot of people would die.
If this continued, even if he filled up the moat, he would lose an army to the Yuzhou Yellow Turban Army and the Qingzhou Yellow Turban Army. Moreover, if he attacked the city walls, the casualties would be even greater. After attacking Shouchun, Liu Bei would become a general without an army.
Zhang Xiu saw that Liu Bei was in a difficult position and smiled at Liu Bei. He took over the responsibility and said, "Lord Xuande, let me do it!"
"General Zhang Xiu? How are your men going to fill up the moat? " Zhang Xiu's men were all heavy cavalry. Once they dismounted, their heavy armor weighed nearly a hundred pounds. It was impossible for them to run. Moreover, they had sandbags. It would be difficult for them to walk back and forth. How were they going to fill up the moat?
"Don't worry! Lord Xuande, Xiu naturally has a good plan! " Zhang Xiu smiled at Liu Bei. He had taken Liu Bei's money for so long. It was time for him to do something. Moreover, if Liu Bei could not take down Shouchun, Zhang Xiu would also be unlucky. Once the Lü Bu Army had a breather, they would have to pay a greater price. If he helped Liu Bei take down Shouchun as soon as possible, Shouchun was the headquarters of Liu Mang's Army. It was said that Lü Bu had transported most of Lujiang's resources to Shouchun. If they could take down Shouchun, they would have to pay a greater price.
"Hu Che Er, come and perform for Lord Xuande!" Zhang Xiu shouted at his deputy general and trusted aide, Hu Che Er.
"Yes! Milord! Brothers, it is time for you to show off. Come come come. Show our allies that we are not freeloaders! "Hu Che Er shouted loudly. He did not care about the feelings of others. Previously, Liu Bei's Army had always complained that Zhang Xiu's army was freeloading. They only took the rations and money and did not do any work. Look, we were the ones who besieged the city. We were the ones who took the city and transported the provisions. We were also the ones who defended against the enemy's counterattack. What did Liu Bei's Army do? They only cared about guns. How could they balance themselves?
"Qiang barbarians!" Zhang Fei cursed. Fortunately, his voice was not loud enough for Hu Che Er to hear. Otherwise, the two of them would have a fight.
"Boom, boom, boom!" Zhang Xiu's Xiliang Cavalry finally began to move. Hu Che Er led a total of ten thousand Xiliang Cavalry out of the main camp on their warhorses.
"Hm? General Zhang Xiu, what are you doing? " Liu Bei was a little puzzled. This was because the Xiliang Cavalry did not dismount from their horses. Instead, they placed a sandbag on their horses.
"Lord Xuande, just watch. Xiu will not lie to Lord Xuande!" Zhang Xiu was a little proud of himself. This was the specialty of the Xiliang Cavalry. Don't think that heavy cavalry couldn't attack a city. It was because heavy cavalry needed to be trained for a long time. However, it was different in Xiliang. There were many ethnic minorities and Han Chinese as well. Basically, there were many people outside the Great Wall who didn't know how to ride and shoot. Therefore, most of the troops were cavalry and there were very few infantrymen. Naturally, the Xiliang Cavalry had their own way of attacking a city. They also had their own way to deal with a moat.
"Boom, boom, boom!" After everyone had a sandbag, Hu Che Er waved his hammers. The entire Xiliang Cavalry began to move. This huge steel beast began to display its terrifying might. The rumbling of the cavalry made Xu Shu, who was standing on top of the city wall, feel the vibrations.
Xu Shu frowned. What's going on? Ten thousand cavalrymen charged towards the city walls. What's going on? Do they not want to live anymore? Do they want to use the cavalry to ram the city wall? Or do they want to rely on the cavalry to cross the moat? The moat was more than ten meters long. What kind of horses could carry it? Xu Shu felt a sense of unease in his heart. "Or are they really going to jump into the river?"
How could Hu Che Er's Xiliang Cavalry commit suicide by jumping into the moat? They were still thinking of opening the gates of Shouchun so that they could loot until they were full! How could they commit suicide so easily?
The vanguard of the Xiliang Cavalry was only three hundred steps away from the moat! Two hundred steps, one hundred steps, fifty steps, thirty steps. The cavalry's speed was very fast. The distance of thirty steps was covered in a blink of an eye. The heavy cavalry was about to enter the moat.
In the middle of the Central Army, Hu Che Er shouted, "Flank, change formation, turn around!" The Xiliang Cavalry acted as though they were a part of their bodies. Just as the Xiliang Cavalry was about to enter the moat, they suddenly changed their direction. Under the lead of the vanguard, the entire Xiliang Cavalry charged towards the riverbank and turned around along the riverbank. The moment they turned around, sandbags were thrown into the moat one after another. Ten thousand Xiliang Cavalry were ten thousand sandbags. In just a short while, they had filled up quite a bit of the moat.
"Shoot the arrows, shoot the arrows!" Xu Shu was anxious. If this continues, the moat of Shouchun would be filled several times. Xu Shu wanted to use arrows to drive the Xiliang Cavalry away, but it was not that easy.
"Haha!" Hu Che Er looked at Xu Shu and smiled disdainfully. The Xiliang Cavalry were heavy armored cavalry, they weren't afraid of arrows at all. Although the arrows were dense, they didn't cause much damage to the heavy armored cavalry. Only a few unlucky ones fell from their horses after being shot. The cavalry behind them didn't stop, so the Xiliang Cavalry that fell from their horses were crushed to death by their horses.
"Lord Xuande, what do you think of my Xiliang Cavalry?" Zhang Xiu looked at Liu Bei proudly. He also looked at the generals under Liu Bei's command. If the moat was filled, he would be too lazy to listen to these generals say that the Xiliang Cavalry was a freeloader.
"Haha, General Yang Wu, this is a good idea, a good idea!" Liu Bei was overjoyed. Zhang Xiu's method was very useful. A large group of heavy cavalry would charge over and then turn back. All they needed to do was to throw the sandbags from their warhorses. After a while, the moat would not be a problem. In just a short while, the contribution of the Qingzhou Army and the Yuzhou Army would be comparable to the contribution of the Qingzhou Army and Yuzhou Army.
If Liu Bei sent his Qingzhou and Yuzhou Armies to fill the moat, then it would be a waste of lives.
"At most, ten more rounds and the Shouchun moat will be filled!" Zhang Xiu said with confidence. When his uncle, Li Jue, Guo Si, and the others attacked Chang 'an, they used this method to fill the moat that was said to be tens of meters deep in half a day. After that, Zhang Xiu was able to make Liu Biao sign an alliance with him instead of directly ordering him to do so. There were many waterways in Jingzhou, so naturally, the city walls were not too high. Once the moat was filled, there would be no more dangerous places.
"This can't go on!" Xu Shu looked at the moat in front of him. If this continues, how will Shouchun be able to defend itself? The moat is Shouchun's natural barrier. When Cao Cao attacked Yuan Shu's Shouchun, he relied on the four dams. The four dams have not been repaired. Therefore, it is impossible to flood Shouchun. And this moat is the biggest obstacle to stop the siege of Shouchun.
Now, once the moat was filled, Xu Shu would have to face Liu Bei's elite army. How could he rely on the 10,000 garrison soldiers in the city? How could he not defend it?
"Men, push those things out for me!" Xu Shu clenched his teeth and shouted loudly.
"Military counselor? Do we have to use that thing now? But now! " Deng Yi was very confused. How long had it been? This was only the first day of Liu Bei's siege. Did they need to use that thing? Wasn't that a trump card when the city walls were about to collapse?
"If we don't use it now, then when? Are we going to wait for the moat to be filled and Shouchun to be broken?" Xu Shu did not want to use that thing. After all, it had a limited number of arrows. If he used it at a high intensity, it would be destroyed quickly. However, he had to use it now.
"Okay, I understand!" Deng Yi went down directly, and with his help, the wooden objects were pulled up the city wall.
On one side of Shouchun's city walls, twelve of them were lined up side by side.
"What's that?" With such a big movement on the city walls, it was impossible for Liu Bei's army not to notice it. They were all looking at it strangely.
"Ballistae?" Zhang Xiu came from Xiliang and naturally knew about ballistae.
"Ballistae?" Liu Bei was stunned. "Is this the legendary ballistae in Liu Mang's army? “
"Yes, this is the ballistae!" Pang Tong narrowed his eyes. He was the first person in Liu Bei's army to suffer from the ballistae. The famous Huainan dish was still vivid in his mind.
"So what if it's a ballistae? Do you think that I will be afraid if you take it out? " Zhang Xiu came from Xiliang and naturally knew that the ballistae's deterrence was stronger than its actual killing power. However, it could only shoot a wave of arrows. It could scare the other races, but it was useless against Zhang Xiu.
"Charge, charge, fill the moat!" Hu Che Er also had the same idea.
The Xiliang Cavalry was getting closer and closer. Standing on the city walls, Xu Shu could see the expression of the leader through his binoculars.
"Load!" Xu Shu also raised his hand.
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