Chapter Seventeen: Taking Chang County

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  "The troops' minds are made up, tomorrow is the best time for the siege! A shocking and intense battle, but it's a must!"

  Having seen that their side had already suppressed the local atmosphere, Zhang Xu couldn't help but sigh repeatedly.

  The fluctuations of the cloud and air are actually the fluctuations of the overall situation, as well as the hearts of men. Now, among the 3,500 soldiers on our side, they have been trained for a long time, at least more than half a year. Although they haven't truly experienced war, they have faith in their hearts. After following Zhang Xuan for a long time, they naturally follow Zhang Xuan's will as if it were a sacred decree, without any doubt. It was Zhang Xuan who brought hope to everyone and saved the entire town of Qinglin, allowing them to live a peaceful life with their families.

  So now in their view, they are the people who have come to save Chang County. On this military expedition route, the countless refugees and the scenes of starving corpses all over the fields make them even more convinced of their choice and the correctness of Zhang Xu.

  In their hearts, they are naturally filled with a sacred mission, which is the army that has always had an unshakeable faith. Now that they have set up camp, morale has reached its peak, and they are naturally full of confidence.

  On the other hand, in Chang County, people's minds were fluctuating. The county magistrate ordered the county lieutenant to forcibly recruit young and strong men to guard the city, which had already made people anxious. The soldiers guarding the city had not been trained for a long time and were few in number, so they naturally feared the military might of the great army. From this perspective, the great army suppressed Chang County, and the reaction on the cloud was that the cloud representing the Red Tiger Army pressed down on the cloud of Chang County!

  At this time, the county lieutenant led his men to continuously capture strong young men. According to the county order, all boys over 15 years old had to be captured to guard the city. However, the wealthy families, those cowardly and fearful soldiers, did not dare to offend them. This is a symbol of losing people's hearts.

  "Master, the young and strong have arrived!"

  The county lieutenant said with great satisfaction, rejoicing in his accomplishment, but he didn't know that many people in the city hated him so much they wanted to tear his flesh apart. After all, the Yellow Turbans had been rampaging and refugees were rising up everywhere. Even Chang County, which was once prosperous, now only had about 2,000 households left. It could be said that on average, every household had one able-bodied man taken away as a conscript - an extremely frightening number.

  After all, under the unstable situation of people's hearts, such a large-scale recruitment of strong men is undoubtedly a dead end. It is worth knowing that Qinglin Town has a strict faith system and training mechanism, which is enough to make up for the 4,000-strong army, which is already quite unimaginable. Chang County, on the other hand, dares to recruit one person from each household, although according to the proportion, it is not as good as Qinglin Town, but the status of both sides is different by an unknown amount!

  To know Qinglin Town, joining the army is a symbol of honor. Under Zhang Xu's long-term propaganda, being a soldier means protecting one's home and guarding Master Xian Shi. This has been deeply ingrained in people's minds for a long time, but it is fundamentally different from the warlords of this era, which is the biggest difference.

  While Chang County's conscripts were no different from slaves, one was a proud and glorious soldier, the other was a forcibly recruited conscript, the difference between them was too great to imagine!

  At this time, although Guan Hai and Wu Qing did not understand the changes in the clouds, after receiving the news from Chang County, they were repeatedly sighing with emotion.

  "Master Xianshi, this Chang County is taking the path to self-destruction. If it weren't for us needing to train our army through siege warfare, I'm afraid Chang County would have surrendered on its own accord!"

  He couldn't help but sigh and say...

  "Yes, this Chang County Magistrate is indeed detestable. Yet, who knows how many families have been torn apart, with wives and children scattered everywhere? It's truly detestable beyond measure!"

  Wu Qing had been a vagrant and deeply understood the hatred of the government, his face involuntarily revealing a hateful expression. In his heart, he admired Zhang Xu even more, compared to other places, Qinglin Town was really like heaven. Over the past six months or so, the lives of those over 1,300 vagrants who surrendered to Zhang Xu had undergone earth-shaking changes, Wu Qing had seen it all with his own eyes, and thus he was directly loyal to Zhang Xu, acknowledging him in his heart.

  "The people are suffering, and it is up to us to rescue them. However, our current abilities are limited, and we cannot save the entire world. We can only take it one step at a time. I wonder if you two generals would be willing to help me completely control Chang County?"

  Zhang Xu let out a faint sigh, his face filled with sorrow and sympathy.

  "I am willing to die for Master Xianshi!"

  Guan Hai and Wu Qing did not hesitate, both of them immediately knelt down on the ground, strongly enduring the discomfort of their armor, and kowtowed.

  "Great, with two generals assisting, it is bound to achieve the great unification of Chang County and live a better life than Qinglin Town!"

  Zhang Xu's spirit was lifted, and he nodded slightly.

  "Hello!"

  Two men simultaneously clenched their fists, with a resolute expression on their faces!

  …………

  On the second day, the army rose early and had breakfast. After a brief ceremony, the entire army set out to attack Chang County. Three thousand five hundred troops, except for the Second Battalion, which was left behind as a personal guard to protect Zhang Xuanxian's safety, marched forward like wolves and tigers, with long spears, knives, and shields at the front, holding cloud ladders, advancing towards the city in a majestic manner. And on their bodies, there was a faint glow, this is the effect of Zhang Xuan's talisman!

  This talisman is condensed from the power of incense and fire faith, with Zhang Xu's magical power as a catalyst, it can play a protective role. With everyone wearing armor, it can be said that these soldiers look like they are really golden armored heavenly soldiers!

  "Your Excellency, this... this army is so frightening!"

  Looking at the three thousand soldiers rushing over, the county lieutenant of Chang County had a look of fear on his face. Although he was also a cultivator who had refined his blood, he was an unorthodox martial general in the initial stage of refining his essence and transforming it into energy, but he had no experience in battle at all. He had never seen such a large scene before, and the three thousand troops of Qinglin Town were so neat and tidy that they gave people a sense of overwhelming impact, which directly scared him out of his wits.

  "Shut...shut up!"

  The county magistrate of Chang County was also mustering up his own spirit at this time, and he was obviously terrified to the extreme. He had seen the great armies of Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan, but he had never seen such a majestic military formation before. At this point, he was already frightened to the extreme!

  Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

  The army marched in unison, following the beat of the war drums, towards the city gate. It was as if they were trampling on everyone's heart, causing each person to tremble with fear. The young and strong defenders had already turned pale, unable to even hold onto the rusty old weapons given to them. As for the two hundred defending soldiers, they weren't much better off either. In the face of such a powerful army in Qinglin Town, they didn't have any confidence in resisting at all!

  Charge!

  The military flag waved, and with a scornful glance at the city head, the frightened garrison was pale-faced. Gan Hui immediately gave orders, and under the protection of the shield soldiers, the archers shot towards the city head. Then the archers quickly made way, and the long spear soldiers charged forward with a loud shout!

  "Kill him!"

  Under the fierce shouting, the defenders' faces turned pale and their bodies went limp. At this time, the army had already set up cloud ladders, and the five-meter-high city wall was unable to block the impact of these long spear soldiers. The cloud ladders were quickly erected one after another, and the killing shouts came closer and closer. It wasn't until then that the county magistrate hastily ordered: "Quickly, counterattack, push down the cloud ladders!"

  However, his orders were passed down, but they had little effect. Although the city head of Chang County was densely packed, under the suppression of the archers, these defenders with little military training could not stop them, so it did not take long for the spearmen to be the first to rush up to the city head, and all those who held weapons in their hands were given priority!

  "Those who kneel and beg for mercy will be spared!"

  The military order arrived, but at this time, more than 100 defenders had already died on the city wall, while the army did not suffer any casualties. Chang County fell in one battle!