Runan, Yuzhou
"Big brother! Big brother! Big brother! Big brother!" Guan Yu rushed into Liu Bei's room with a red face. Liu Bei was also making babies. Of course, his speed was about the same as Cao Cao's. However, Cao Cao already had a descendant, while Liu Bei didn't even have half a descendant, not even a daughter.
"Second brother, why are you so flustered?" Liu Bei put on his clothes and asked Guan Yu.
"Big brother! Cao Cao doesn't want our city anymore!" Guan Yu anxiously said to Liu Bei.
"He doesn't want our city anymore?" Liu Bei was stunned for a moment. "This is a good thing!" Since when did Cao Cao and Cao Aman have the heart of a Bodhisattva and selflessly offer their help to Liu Bei? Was it because of Fu Wan, Fu Guozhang, or the Han Emperor?
"Sigh! Your Majesty, I don't know how to repay you!" Liu Bei sighed.
"Oh, big brother, it's not His Majesty either. Cao Cao withdrew his troops from our city!" Guan Yu reminded him.
"Oh! He withdrew his troops!"
"He went back to Yan Province!"
"What!" Liu Bei finally lost his calm. "What did you say?" Liu Bei grabbed Guan Yu's shoulder and asked loudly.
"Big brother, Cao Cao withdrew his troops from our city and went back to Yan Province!" Guan Yu repeated.
"It's over!" Liu Bei almost couldn't support himself and fell to the ground.
"Big brother! Big brother!" Guan Yu hurriedly supported Liu Bei.
"Milord, Cao Cao's messenger wants to see you!"
"Quick! Let him in!" Liu Bei panted and said to Guan Yu.
"Yes!" Soon, Liu Bei received Cao Cao's messenger in the meeting hall.
"Governor Liu, I'm here to resign!" Cao Cao's messenger said to Liu Bei as soon as he arrived.
"No, no. Didn't Prime Minister Cao ask you to lead your troops to help me, Liu Bei, defend Yu Province? I've already given you three cities. How can you do this? If you think it's not enough, we can give you more! " Liu Bei was like a drowning man grasping at the last straw. However, this last straw didn't seem to be reliable. Liu was naturally scared.
"Sigh, sigh, Governor Liu, this isn't a problem with the city. We really can't help him!" The emissary was also in a difficult position. If this continues, Liu Bei would come crying and making a fuss. It was simply unbearable.
"Then what's the reason?"
"There are many reasons!" The messenger didn't want to reveal too much.
However, when he saw Liu Bei's expression, he could only say, "The Yangzhou Army had already issued a warning to my Lord. My Lord was forced to withdraw his troops."
"Yangzhou's Liu Mang? Can he threaten Cao Cao? Aren't you supposed to be accompanying our army? "Guan Yu questioned from the side. He was already selling dog meat under false pretenses. Why would he be afraid of threats?
"It's not like that. It's the Yangzhou Army! Sigh! "The messenger explained to Liu Bei how the Yangzhou Army pretended to be Liu Bei's troops and entered Yan Province under Liu Bei's banner. He also wrote a letter to Cao Cao to make Cao Cao retreat.
"Shameless! Shameless! Liu Mang, Liu Mang, you are simply heartless!" Liu Bei cried and shouted loudly.
This made Cao Cao's messenger blush with shame. "General Guan, take care of your lord. I'm busy here. I won't disturb you!" The messenger wiped the sweat on his forehead and was about to leave.
Guan Yu didn't stop him and let him leave.
"Big brother, big brother!" Guan Yu pinched Liu Mang's philtrum and hand until he finally woke up. At this time, Sun Qian and others also came.
"Where is the Yangzhou Army?" Liu Bei just woke up and asked Sun Qian and Guan Yu.
"This, this!" Sun Qian stuttered and didn't dare to speak frankly. "My lord, you should rest well."
"Rest well? Rest well at this time! "Liu Bei looked at Guan Yu with a sad face." Second brother, you tell me. Don't lie to big brother! "
"I, I. I! " Guan Yu was called out by his big brother. He had no choice but to show a helpless look to Military Advisor Sun Qian. Guan Yu was not a liar. "Big brother, the Yangzhou Army has already surrounded us. They are about to reach the city." Guan Yu said. Nan Dun and Xiang City were lost and Cao Cao also withdrew his troops. Therefore, Yu Province's army was basically taking over cities along the way and sending troops along the way. Some counties were even abandoned. Therefore, the speed of their advance was very fast.
"It's me!" Hearing this, Liu Bei's vision turned black and he fainted.
…
"Hahahahaha, Zijing is a genius, Zijing is a genius!" This was the first time Lü Bu said this sentence. Zhang Liao and the others also looked at Lu Su. This was because this was a deadlock. If Cao Cao's army did not withdraw, then the Yangzhou Army could not advance. If they could not advance, then they could not destroy Liu Bei and occupy Yuzhou. If this continued, then the Yangzhou Army could not afford to delay.
But Lu Su's plan made Cao Cao withdraw his troops. This deadlock was suddenly broken. As long as Runan was captured, then Yuzhou would be easily obtained.
"Capture Runan, pacify Yuzhou, Zijing will record the merit!" Lü Bu said to Lu Su.
"Lord Wen Hou is overpraising me!" Lu Su was still the same. In fact, he was very happy these past few days. This was because in the Lvbu's Army, his talent was truly displayed. On the other side, Zhang Liao was still letting him win. It could be said that now that he had captured Yuzhou, he felt a sense of accomplishment that he had never felt before.
"This Liu Bei of Runan must be panicking!" Chengyu said coldly. Chengyu was an old man in the Lvbu's Army. When Liu Bei took Cao Cao to attack Xu Province, each of the Xu Province soldiers had a deep impression of Liu Bei.
So now that they could attack Liu Bei, this big eared thief was rubbing his hands.
"Of course, Cao Cao did not care about him. Now that more than half of Yuzhou is in our hands, he only has Runan left to struggle at death's door!"
"Capture Runan, I want to eat Liu Bei's head with wine!" Lü Bu said coldly. This big eared Liu Bei had schemed against him, Lü Bu, not lightly. In Xu Province, he first feigned civility, and then he joined forces with Cao Cao to kill him, Lü Bu.
After Lü Bu arrived at Yangzhou, this Liu Bei was still haunting him. He even joined forces with Sun Ce and Zhang Xiu to attack Yangzhou.
So Lü Bu hated Liu Bei to the bone. Now that he had captured Runan, Liu Bei's time of death had come.
"Pass down my order, all troops start cooking, and build ballistae. I want to capture Runan City within three days!" Under Lü Bu's order, tens of thousands of troops began to move. Those who were cutting wood, those who were cooking. Runan City, however, was desolate. With such a large army pressuring the border, no one could relax.
In the city, Liu Bei was ready to fight to the death. Even if he was killed by Lü Bu, he still wanted to take a bite out of Lü Bu's flesh. The main reason was that the envoys sent by Liu Bei had all been killed by Lü Bu. Liu Bei had no way to surrender, so he could only go all out.
"Ballistae, ballistae, the enemy's ballistae!" Soon, Lü Bu's army finished building the ballistae. One by one, the ballistae stood erect, and a huge boulder was ready to be used.
"Ready! Fire! " The messenger gave the order, and huge rocks were thrown into the sky. When they landed in the city, they became fiery rocks from hell, and could take people's lives.
"Boom, boom, boom!" In the city, whether it was the common people or the soldiers, as long as they were hit by the boulder, they would be injured. It had almost become a synonym for the devil.
"That's it, that's it!" On top of Runan's city wall, Liu Bei's army was badly battered. Each and every one of them was terrified of the ballistae outside. Only a young man was staring at the ballistae with a fiery gaze.
He had never thought that the catapult could actually shoot so far.
"Milord, Milord, the catapults of the Lvbu's army are too powerful. We have already suffered heavy casualties on top of the city wall!" A lieutenant reported to Liu Bei.
"Heavy casualties? Even if there is only one person left, you still have to go up there! " Liu Bei roared loudly. This was Liu Bei's last chance. Lü Bu had learned to be smart and knew that Liu Bei would run. Therefore, Lü Bu scattered the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry and the Xiliang Cavalry around the four continents and sent them to wander around the city. This was to tell Liu Bei, try running, and it would definitely make you happy.
Without a way out, Liu Bei could only risk his life.
"Yes!" After receiving Liu Bei's recovery, the lieutenant could only grit his teeth and climb up the city wall. Very quickly, the wounded were carried down one by one. Those who were hit by the boulder basically had no way to survive. They died rather miserably. Some were hit by the boulder and died instantly. Fortunately, some had half of their body crushed by the boulder. With the other half remaining, they would not die in a short period of time. This was the most unbearable. The soldiers who heard the miserable screams were terrified. Those lieutenants could only hold back their tears and send their comrades off.
"Milord, Milord, don't we also have a catapult? Use our catapult!" Suddenly, someone suggested. Liu Bei just remembered that they also had a catapult. They had used it in Shouchun.
"Yes, yes, yes. Take out our catapult. Where is the horse?" Liu Bei suddenly remembered a person. Wasn't this the inventor of the catapult? Back in Shouchun, it was this person's catapult that allowed Liu Bei's army to suppress the defenders of Shouchun and almost capture the city.
However, it was already too late for Liu Bei to look for him now. This was because after arriving in Runan, Liu Bei had already forgotten about this inventor. This was because, among the ancient people, these lacquersmiths were basically low-class people. Liu Bei naturally forgot about him after a glance. Now that he wanted to look for him, it was already too late.
"Forget it, use our catapult first!" Liu Bei waved his hand. His soldiers still remembered how to make a catapult. If there was not enough wood in the city, then they would tear down the houses. They would take down all the wooden stakes and other things on the houses. It did not matter if there were no stones. They would also take down the walls of the inner city that were not needed. Anyway, if the outer city could not withstand it, then the inner city would also be useless. In such a desperate time, Liu Bei actually made more than a dozen catapults.
As a result, the pressure on Liu Bei was reduced a lot.
"Boom, boom, boom!" Under the city, the Yangzhou army's ballistae once again threw the boulders. The lieutenant repeated the order. Suddenly, his eyes were in a trance. Eh, why is this boulder getting closer and closer? He thought that it was a group of ballistae. Just as he was about to scold, he suddenly lost his mind. His whole body was smashed down by the boulder and turned into a pile of meat paste and blood.
"The enemy's catapult, the enemy's catapult!" Suddenly, someone reacted. These boulders were thrown from the top of the city wall. Such a sudden attack caused the Yangzhou army to lose a lot of men.
"Milord, Milord, I did not expect this Liu Bei to have a catapult. It seems that his power is not small!" Zhang Liao on the side shouted to Lü Bu.
"En?" Lü Bu narrowed his eyes. He did not expect this Liu Bei to have such a powerful weapon. In this way, Liu Bei was in a passive state. If this continued, he would be able to counterattack and become a catapult.
However, even if Liu Bei had the power to counterattack, so what? "Pass down my order, build me 20 more ballistae!" Lü Bu on the side shouted to his men. Liu Bei was now fighting like a cornered beast. How much wood and boulders were there in the city for him to squander? But Lü Bu was different. Lü Bu had a lot of resources outside the city, so he could withstand the consumption. Let's see who would be the first to give up.
"Yes!" Soon, someone went down to start the construction.
On the city wall of Runan, Liu Bei saw the power of his catapult and could not help but laugh. As long as he could suppress Lü Bu's ballistae, then he might have a chance to turn the tables. It was just a matter of consumption. Liu Bei was not a gangster. If he lost, at most, he would lose until the end. However, if Lü Bu lost this battle, or if he lost too miserably, then Liu Bei's Yangzhou army would also end up in a dead end.
Lu Bu's newly added 20 catapults also entered the battlefield. Boulders were flying from both sides. Soon, Lu Bu's army discovered a very serious problem. That is, they are seriously running out of boulders. Since they have more catapults, naturally, the density of their projectiles has also increased. The boulders that were thrown from the city walls fell to the ground and were quickly smashed into smithereens.
At the beginning, when they used the ballistae, they did not feel that the boulders were insufficient. However, after a long time, they naturally became less and less. If they wanted to move the boulders, they would have to move them several li away, or even dozens of li away. Time waits for no one.
Boulders were difficult to move, so this became a big problem. Without the ballistae to open the way, then attacking the city would require the accumulation of human lives.
Just as Lü Bu was frowning and thinking about using human lives to fill the moat, a messenger came.
Suddenly, a messenger came to report, "Reporting to my lord, a spy has been found outside the camp!"
"Spy?" Lü Bu frowned. Who would be a spy at this time? Cao Cao? Liu Bei? What's the point?
"Bring him up!" Lü Bu thought for a moment. It was already late, so there was no need to attack the city. Naturally, he ordered the messenger to bring the spy up.
"Let me go, let me go!" The person who was called a spy was struggling with all his might.
"Let him go!" Lü Bu saw the person and waved his hand to let him go. He was just a young scholar who did not even have the strength to truss a chicken. How could he hurt Lü Bu?
"Who sent you as a spy? Why did you come to our camp?" Lü Bu asked the young scholar.
"I came from Runan City!" The young scholar was straightforward. When he saw Lü Bu, he was not timid and spoke bluntly.
"Runan City?" Lü Bu frowned. Runan City, wasn't that Liu Bei's subordinate? "Why did you come here? Did Liu Bei come to make you beg for mercy? If that's the case, someone come, drag him out and behead him. " Lü Bu was merciless. He had already killed three of Liu Bei's messengers. If he killed this Lü Bu, he would be the fourth.
"I have nothing to do with Liu Bei. I have nothing to do with Liu Bei!" When the young man heard that he was going to be dragged out and beheaded, he immediately panicked and shouted loudly.
"Wait!" Lü Bu stopped his men from dragging the young man out and said to the young man "You are not representing Liu Bei?"
"Of course, I am representing myself. I want to surrender to your Yangzhou army." The young man patted his body and said.
"Surrender? Ha ha ha ha ha! " Lü Bu's men on the side laughed. It turned out that this was a person who sold out his master for glory. He saw that his former master Liu Bei was about to die, so he wanted to surrender.
"Tell me, what ability do you have?" Lü Bu's mouth showed a disdainful expression. "Is it strength? Or is it intelligence? "
"I have none!" The young man was straightforward. He directly said that he did not have any of these.
"None? If you don't have any then why did you come here to surrender? Could it be that you want to make a living? "Lü Bu's disdain deepened.
"Yes, I don't have outstanding martial prowess, nor do I have superb intelligence. However, I can increase the range of your catapults. I can make your catapults hit the catapults on the city walls so hard that they can't fight back." The young man said to Lu Bu.
"Oh?" Lü Bu was interested. "You can make ballistae?"
"That thing is called a ballista? No wonder, no wonder! It really is like a cannon. "The young man muttered to himself.
"Our lord is asking you a question!" The guard on the side was dissatisfied and scolded the young man.
"Of course, of course. The thing on Liu Bei's city walls was designed by me." The young man was a little proud, but he immediately became depressed. "Unfortunately, it cannot be compared to your ballistae." The young man said with a little envy.
"Good, I will give you a chance. If you can make our ballistae destroy Liu Bei's catapults on the city walls, then I will give you a chance to pledge your loyalty." Lü Bu said to the young man.
"I do not want to pledge my loyalty to you. I want to find the person who made the ballistae." The young man did not give Lü Bu any face.
"Brat, do you know who our general is?"
"No matter, no matter." Lü Bu waved his hand. How could Lü Bu not know who designed the ballistae? Naturally, it was his precious son-in-law. What was the difference between pledging loyalty to his son-in-law and pledging loyalty to him? Weren't they both doing things for Yangzhou?
"It is getting late. Arrange a tent for this little brother and let him sleep. Tomorrow morning, let him show his ability." Lü Bu said to his subordinates.
"There is no need!" The young man waved his hand and said, "I can't wait to see those ballistae. General, can you let me take a look? I guarantee that tomorrow, I will let you destroy those catapults on Runan city walls. "The young man was very confident.
"Good!" Lü Bu nodded. His time was precious. If he had more time to destroy Runan, then he would have more time to develop. "Someone come and send this little brother to the ballistae!"
"Yes!" The bodyguard quickly took the young man to the direction of the ballistae.
"Milord? Are you not afraid that he is a spy sent by Cao Cao? If he learned our ballistae, then I am afraid …. " Someone on the side questioned. If he was sent by Cao Cao or other warlords, then it would not be good. If he learned the ballistae's technology, then in the future, he would not have any advantage in battle.
"Haha, if we can destroy Runan earlier, then this is nothing. Besides, as long as he is here, then how much does this technology matter?" Lü Bu could be considered to have been brainwashed by Liu Mang. In Lü Bu's view, things were dead while people were alive. If this young man could really learn the ballistae's technology, then it would mean that he understood mechanisms. Locking up such a person would be better than the ballistae. Currently, Yangzhou was lacking talents in the study of mechanisms. Liu Ye alone was not enough to handle the industrial zone.
"These are the ballistae!" Lü Bu's bodyguards took the young man to the ballistae's location. The ballistae's surroundings were very quiet. There were only a few soldiers guarding it.
"These are the ballistae?" The young man looked at the things in front of him. He could not help but be excited. The thing that he yearned for day and night was about to arrive.
"This, this?" The young man looked at the gear like things on the ballistae. "Runnin, this kind of runnin! No wonder, no wonder. "The young man looked and nodded.
"It is indeed too wonderful for words. Why didn't I think of it? Using these things to runnin, wouldn't it increase its power? " The young man muttered to himself. "However, these places still have shortcomings. For example, it is too slow to climb the boulder and cannot fire continuously. Therefore, its power is reduced." The young man touched the ballistae and said.
"Che, as if you are very powerful. This is made by His Highness the King Of Shu. It is very powerful."
"His Highness the King Of Shu?" The young man hesitated but immediately shook his head. "No matter how powerful it is, it cannot fire continuously!" The young man replied.
"Fire continuously? Haha, you did not see our ballistae! Our ballistae can fire continuously. "The bodyguard argued.
"Ballistae?" The young man thought for a while. He had seen the ballistae before. That thing could fire continuously, but its power was only 300 steps. If it exceeded 700 steps, it could not even penetrate a large shield. What use was it? The ballistae had already been tested on Shouchun's walls.
"That was in the past. Now, the range of His Highness Prince of Shu's ballistae …" The bodyguard was about to speak when he was interrupted by the person beside him. He spoke too much. He was Lu Bu's bodyguard so he could hear a lot of secrets. If he spoke too much, it could be fatal.
"Quickly tell me the range of your ballistae." The young man did not let go.
"I cannot tell you this. You will know when you reach Yangzhou." The ballistae's range was only known by the navy and a few generals in the army. This time, the Yangzhou Army had also brought ballistae, but they had not shown it.
"It's fine if you don't want to tell me. Sooner or later, I will know." The young man nodded his head. Looking at the ballista in front of him, he was a bit fascinated. He was fond of mechanical engineering and wanted to thoroughly study some mechanical engineering. Therefore, when he touched the ballista, it was as if he was touching his own family. However, the young man was a bit puzzled. Why did Lu Bu place his ballista here? Was he not afraid of a sneak attack from Runan city? There was no barricade outside the camp. If it was attacked by the cavalry, it would be destroyed.
The young man was puzzled. Suddenly, there was a loud sound of fighting.
"Kill, kill, kill! Kill these Yangzhou dogs. " The ground was shaking. This was the charge of the heavy cavalry. When the heavy cavalry galloped, their power was very terrifying. The heavy cavalry in the city was Liu Bei's Xiliang Cavalry. To be able to launch a sneak attack at such a close distance, it must be because they were leaning on the grass and their hooves were wrapped in cloth.
"Quick, quick, take these ballistas away. Take them away." The young man's love for ballistas had reached a certain level. He shouted from the other side.
But these guards didn't move at all.
"Why are you still in a daze? The enemy is coming. Your ballistae will be destroyed." The young man was anxious. You have to at least save one. Otherwise, how can I study it?
"What's the hurry? Naturally, there are specialized people to deal with night attacks. "The guards were very indifferent.
"Huh?" The young man turned his head in confusion. The torches in the battle lit up. He saw many footsteps appear on the originally barren grassland.
"Rush over. Kill them and destroy their catapults."
"Infantry?" The young man did not understand. How can infantry be used to deal with heavy cavalry? Won't they be scattered by the enemy?
However, after a while, he did not think that way anymore. Because from those miserable cries, he found out that the miserable cries did not come from the infantry of Lu Bu's army, but from the heavy cavalry that launched the surprise attack.
"Did you set up tripping ropes in front?" The young man asked.
"Why do we need to go through so much trouble to deal with them?" The guards said disdainfully. "You will know when you hear this sound!"
"Sound?" The young man frowned. "Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!" The sound echoed in his ears.
"Change the magazine, change the magazine, fire, fire, fire."
As the torches grew brighter, the young man could see the ballistae he had seen before shooting out huge arrows. These huge arrows pierced through the enemies along with their mounts, pinning them to the ground.
The enemy would die if they charged, and they would also die if they tried to escape. The young man saw a Xiliang Cavalry 500 steps away nailed to the ground by a huge arrow.
"This, this, this!"
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
