" This..." Zhao Yan pulled over a military officer standing behind him, and said in a low voice, "Go and invite Uncle Yan to come over quickly, do not delay!"
"Obey orders!" The military officer took the order and ran. Shortly after, Yin Fang rushed up to the city gate.
"Greetings to Zhao Gong and Niujin General. Does Zhao Gong have any business to seek from me?" Yin Fang asked calmly.
Before Zhao Yan could speak, Niujin, who was even more impatient, said directly, "Shuping, why would there be ballista in Wu's army camp? You came from Sun Quan's forces, do you know about this matter?"
Yin Fang smiled bitterly and gestured back, "General, I have only been living in Wu for a few months. How could I possibly know about such matters? To know the overall direction of Sun Quan and the detailed information of Eastern Wu officials and generals is already very difficult."
Niujin licked his lips: "Then it's strange. So far, only Great Wei has used ballista. The last time I heard the words 'ballista' in a battle, it was when Zhang Xunqi attacked Zhuge Liang in Qinzhou three years ago."
"Zhuge Liang?" Yin Fan furrowed his brow and asked, "Are you saying, General, that the Imperial Army used ballista when attacking Shu in the second year of Taihe? Is there a possibility that the Shu army obtained a model of the ballista from Great Wei?"
"How should I know that?" Niujin was about to explain, but Zhao Yan intercepted and spoke:
"I know the details of this matter. The documents in the Grand Secretariat clearly state that Zhang Hei's attack on Zhuge Liang at the Red Gorge Valley should not have resulted in Shu receiving ballista from Great Wei."
Yin Fan shook his head, "Although Shu and Wu are allies, Wu has never used them. And the last time anyone saw Great Wei's ballista in use in an offensive was Zhuge Liang of Shu."
"This man's reputation for wisdom and cunning is well known in Wu Prefecture. Perhaps Zhuge Liang copied the function of Great Wei's ballista and created it himself in Shu, and then gave the method of manufacture to Sun Quan?"
Zhao Yan shook his head slightly and said, "According to old man's opinion, it is not impossible that Shuping says. In the past few days, I haven't heard that Wu has used ballista. Yuliu Style is stationed in Fancheng, which may make things more difficult."
In Xiangyang City, the three men—Zhao Yan, Niujin, and Yin Fan—across the Han River, through a few words and sentences, they had deduced the situation to be almost nine out of ten accurate.
Yes, it is indeed. The method of manufacturing ballista was newly developed by Zhuge Liang and presented as a gift by envoy Jiang Wan to Sun Quan. Although there had been no significant progress in the previous days' attack on Fancheng, Luo Zhi resisted with all his might, and it was only thanks to Yi's reminder that Sun Quan remembered this matter.
"Great danger on the city wall! General, do not go up there!" Inside Fancheng, the military officer Sun Kè grabbed Luo Zhi, who was heading up the steps towards the city wall. He shouted loudly: "The Wu forces are launching stones simultaneously. The top of the city wall is under heavy attack right now, never let your guard down. The lives of all the troops in the city depend on you!"
Although this person also has the surname Sun, he has no connection with the Sun family of Fuchun. There are also people with the surname Sun in the Wei state, such as Sun Zhi, the current Governor of Yanzhou, and Sun Li, a general of the central army.
Luo Zhi turned coldly to Sun Kè: "If I, even as a general, dare not personally go up to the city wall, how can the soldiers dare to defend? My life is mine, and their lives are also lives. Let go, don't say anything more!"
Sun Kè watched his general's fierce expression and had no choice but to let go of his hand, and then said: "Should we set fire to the beacon again today? In the past few days, there was a fire every day at the eleventh hour, but there was no rescue force arriving as expected."
"Keep setting it!" Luo Zhi said menacingly, "Shen Dan the child is at Xinye, and it's been over a dozen days. Even if he has to crawl, he should have arrived by now, but he hasn't come to save us yet. Let's see how long he can drag it out!"
Just as Luo Zhi was in a state of great discontent, standing on the city wall and rallying morale, avoiding the opportunity for Wu forces to breach the wall, at the distance of fifteen miles to the north, in the city of Dunting, Xu Zhu finally received the arrival of Wen Dai's army from Jingxiacun.
The 10,000 men of Wen Dai's army are all external troops of Great Wei. Their combat power is much stronger than that of the state and county troops in Shen Dan's hand. This is the reinforcements Xu Zhu has been waiting for in Dunting County. It is also an army that can change the battlefield situation in Fancheng.
As he continued to gather information, the overall situation of the battlefield gradually became clear in Xu Zhu's eyes:
From the mountain both sides of the Yangtze River, upstream from Yangyang, to the Fish Island on the return curve of Yangyang, over 100 miles of waterways are under control of Wu forces. In addition, Wu forces have also built fortresses at Yuyou Pass to wait for the enemy's exhaustion. The Wu forces outside Fancheng are still attacking the city fiercely.
In the third year of the Huangchu era, Great Wei's several tens of thousands of troops, led by Cao Zhen, Xiahou Shang, and Xu Huang, attacked Jiangling. Zhu Ran could still hold out for half a year in the city with his five thousand men. Although Fancheng is smaller and more damaged, and there are more Wu forces outside the city, holding out for twenty days should not be a problem.
That's right, Xu Zhu secretly gave Luo Zhi a deadline of twenty days. If Luo Zhi, with his 5,000 troops, cannot hold out for even twenty days, then he deserves to die.
This deadline is calculated by Xu Zhu after considering the time needed for the envoy to return, and it is the estimated time when Zhaode's troops from Xuchang will arrive. The 10,000 external troops of Wen Dai can allow Xu Zhu's strategic plan in his mind to be implemented several days earlier.
"General Wen, please accept my condolences. The late General was a loyal and important minister of the state. I am sure the court will provide solace and a posthumous title to honor his life and death." Xu Zhu bowed respectfully upon first meeting Wen Dai outside the city of Dencing.
Wen Dai knew that Xu Zhu's salute was not to him, but to the newly deceased General of the Later Wei, Wen Chengye of Wenchou. As the eldest son of Wen Chengye, Wen Dai immediately bowed and prostrated himself.
"Xu Gong, you are too courteous to inquire. General Xiahou Shang is in full charge of military affairs in Jiangxia. I have sent my subordinate with 10,000 external troops to this place."
"Please rise quickly, I have already received news from the envoy, and there is no need for us to repeat it. I will help you rise." Xu Zhu supported Wen Dai who was kneeling on the ground and immediately asked: "Your 10,000 troops can withstand battle? If we don't rest, let's go and help rescue Fancheng together!"
After Wen Dai got up, he took out the military insignia that governed the 10,000 external troops from his chest, similar to the way he handed it to Xiahou Rujie last time. He respectfully extended both hands and presented it to Xu Zhu:
"Whether to fight or to defend, my subordinate will follow the instructions of General Xu as ordered!"
"Xu Zhu didn't hesitate for a moment. He reached out and took the military insignia, holding it in his hand. He then said directly, 'Since that is the case, in another half an hour, the entire army will march towards Fancheng! General Wen, I will be on the left wing of the army with 4,000 of my soldiers.' "
"Following General Xu's orders!" Wen Dai bowed respectfully.
"General Shen," Xu Zhu turned to look at Shen Dan standing beside him, "you will lead 6,000 soldiers to form the right wing of the army. The remaining 2,000 soldiers in your command will defend Dencing as a retreat route for the army. I will personally lead 6,000 external troops as the central force."
"Following orders!" Shen Dan bowed slightly and said nothing more. With only 8,000 troops, it could be said to be adequate to wait for idle days. Now that an additional 10,000 reinforcements have arrived, if we do not advance further, it would indeed be too much.
Xu Zhu looked at the expressions of the two men and said, "Today, I will lead the army to the outskirts of Fancheng and do not wish to engage in an active battle with the Wu forces. If the Wu forces attack, we will defend on level ground. If they do not attack, we will return to Dencing in the evening. Do you understand?"
"General Wen, I'm a bit confused," he said.
"Xu Zhu, if we do not attack the city, how will we rescue the garrison within? Will that not discourage the defenders within the city?"
Xu Zhu cast a slight glance at Wen Dai: "The Wuwei Camp led by General Qian Zhenxi can arrive in Dencing in two days. In fact, in my eyes, the troops you two are leading are not very likely to have a great chance of defeating the Wu forces. We need General Qian Zhenxi's troops to face the enemy head-on."
"General Qian Zhenxi is coming?" Wen Dai exclaimed, his expression becoming more relaxed and more at ease: "If the Wuwei Camp arrives in Fancheng, our major worries will be solved!"
...
At noon, the Wu army's infantry division led by Bu Zhao, encircling Fancheng on the west side, received intelligence from their scouts. They immediately wrote a brief dispatch and sent someone to deliver it swiftly to Sun Quan's camp on Fish Island.
The pier on the west side of Fancheng is only about ten miles from Fish Island. The gabbard, flowing with the current, travels at an extremely fast speed. In about half an hour, Wu King Sun Quan himself knew of the arrival of the Wei forces in the camp.
"I've been waiting here for a month and finally see a Wei army coming to aid." Sun Quan handed the military report in his hand to Quan Cong: "Zihuang take a look. What do you think?"
General Quan Cong, who was in charge of the defense at Yuyou Pass, left a thousand soldiers on each side of the river after completing the construction of temporary forts. He took the remaining 8,000 soldiers back to the Wu army's camp on Fish Island and did not participate in the sieges led by Bu Zhao and Pan Jun.
Sun Quan's current military strategy, taken as a whole, is still relatively conservative. Before launching an attack in Wuhan, Sun Quan also explained his plans to his officials.
If everything goes smoothly, Sun Quan hopes to control both Yangling and Fancheng. If Wei troops arrive in time and Fancheng cannot be captured, then using the advantages of water forces to cut off the Han River, taking advantage of the defensive system on Fish Island and Yuyou Pass, they can leisurely besiege Yangling, which is also an acceptable result.
If Fancheng cannot be taken, then the Wu and Wei armies will inevitably be drawn into a long-term deadlock in combat, which is equivalent to Sun Quan having attracted the military strength of the Wei state.
The Prime Minister Zhuge Liang, who commands the army in Beiping, can also leisurely launch a campaign to attack the western regions of Wei territory from Yizhou.
Wu and Han, though two separate countries, are one.
This matter is clear to Zhuge Liang, and it is also clear to Sun Quan.
"Report to the Supreme Emperor, the Wei forces are coming from the northwest. Many of the troops under the command of Right General are encircled in the siege, and the camp leaders are dispersed. It would be better for me to lead my troops in boats to assist Right General in dealing with the Wei forces."
"Zihuang's words are reasonable." Sun Quan nodded and replied, "Regardless of whether Wei troops want to withdraw or enter Fancheng, I will not let Wei troops have their way. Zihuang, go quickly. If there is any news, please report it to the camp at any time."
"Understood!" Quan Cong rose and bowed. (Chapter ends)
