Siege 006

  The sky was clear, not a cloud in sight, and the heat rose with the sun. Dust swirled up in waves with the footsteps of the Han soldiers, like a yellow fog, like a long, drawn-out smoke screen. The hotter it got, the more the July sun hung in the sky like a fire, fiercely burning the earth. Sweat dripped from every brother's forehead, each drop as big as a soybean falling to the ground.

  The ground was scorching hot, and if you didn't quickly lift your feet, they would feel a burning sensation. The flying dust grew thicker, sticking to people's sweaty faces, making it hard to breathe and forcing them to open their mouths to gasp for air.

  Gao Fei looked up at the sun hanging in the sky, the dazzling sunlight made him cover his eyes with his hand, and he couldn't open them. He felt the sweat on his back dripping down as he stood still, not to mention the soldiers walking on land behind him.

  This damn weather is just as annoying as this damn war. It's only five miles, but because the Han soldiers have to push those siege engines with all their might, it takes them so long to cover that short distance. The infantry and cavalry are interspersed, and the slow pace of the infantry is also holding back the speed of the cavalry. Those horses are sweating profusely, walking on the road with their four hooves, occasionally letting out a few whinnies, as if complaining about the infantry blocking their way forward.

  Gao Fei looked around, the army marched in a steady pace, advancing at a slow speed like a turtle, surrounding Guangzong City on three sides, east, south and west, leaving only one gap in the north.

  "Surround three, leave one! This is the cleverness of Lu Zhi. In Guangzong City, there were tens of thousands of bandits, who were tightly surrounded by his strategy of deep trenches and high walls for nearly a month. Tens of thousands of people, tens of thousands of mouths, the food looted from all sides by the Yellow Turbans had been eaten clean, in order to prevent these starving bandits from fighting to the death, Lu Zhi left them a way out, while also leaving himself a way out."

  Before long, a smooth green passage was opened in the middle team, and Lu Zhi led his 500 heavy armored cavalry to come from that road, probably because he couldn't wait any longer.

  "See the great man!" Gao Fei, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and others saw Lu Zhi arrive, all respectfully bowed and said.

  "No need for courtesy!" Lu Zhi dismounted his horse, wiped the sweat from his forehead, glanced at the Yellow Turbans on the city wall, and said slowly, "Although there are tens of thousands of Yellow Turbans in the city, most of them are old, weak, women, and children. Only two or three thousand can actually fight. As soon as the city gate is broken, Subao, you will lead your one thousand cavalry to rush to the north gate, killing anyone who resists along the way."

  "Yes, sir!" Gao Fei replied.

  "Moreover, the bandit leader Zhang Jue is also in the city. Pass down the order that whoever captures the bandit leader, whether dead or alive, will be rewarded with 500 catties of gold!" Lu Zhi stretched out his five fingers, firmly believing that with a heavy reward, there must be brave men who would come forward. With Zhang Jue's death, the honor and rewards it would bring him were far beyond 500 catties of gold.

  "Sir, in this way, under the heavy reward, there must be brave men, and all soldiers will fight to the death. Guangzong City will be broken today!" Gao Fei said.

  Lu Zhi's face broke into a smile as he gazed at the Guangzong City nearby, his heart filled with joy. He said softly, "I've been waiting for today for a long time!"

  "Sir, all the siege troops have assembled, waiting for your order!" A military officer rode up to Lu Zhi's side, dismounted and bowed his hands.

  "Pass down the order, start attacking the city!"

  "Hello!"

  The order was given, and Gao Fei led his thousand cavalrymen to mount their horses one after another, clearing the road and letting the siege troops behind push forward with tall catapults, ladders, heavy siege carts, and light cloud ladders. A thousand infantrymen holding shields rushed to the front, followed closely by two hundred infantrymen carrying cloud ladders, and the team of 1,200 people quickly passed by, with hundreds of people pushing the tall and heavy ladders and siege carts step by step towards Guangzong City.

  The tower had a height similar to that of the city wall, with archers on top, used to cover the troops climbing the city wall during the siege, and could be counted as a kind of mobile arrow tower. Under the joint push of the Han army's strength, the tower and the assault vehicle began to approach the city wall step by step, while behind them were catapults fixed on land.

  One thousand shield-bearing infantrymen rushed to the city wall under the hail of Yellow Turban arrows, blocking all incoming projectiles. The Yellow Turbans suddenly changed tactics, shooting arrows at the advancing infantry while other defenders on the wall dropped large boulders that crushed many Han soldiers with shields near the wall.

  The cloud ladder was pushed up, and then it was immediately pushed down by the bandit soldiers, or crushed with stones. After Lu Zhi's order, a steady stream of infantrymen began to rush out from the front of the Han army formation, shouting and whistling, expressing their fearlessness in their hearts. The watchtower was also pushed down within the range of the archers' shooting, and the archers on the watchtower began to counterattack the bandit soldiers inside the city, greatly reducing the pressure on the attacking troops, but still many Han soldiers were killed by the bandits while trying to climb up the city wall.

  When the battering ram was pushed to the gate, those soldiers who rushed to the city wall first and were not killed used their shields to cover the soldiers operating the battering ram.

  "Boom! Boom! Boom!"

  The battering ram struck the city gate with great force, and soldiers were constantly being shot or crushed to death in front of it. As soon as one fell, another soldier rushed forward to take his place, using their bodies to try and break through the gate.

  After a fierce battle, perhaps because the Yellow Turbans had not eaten their fill, the arrows shot by those archers became increasingly weak. Or perhaps it was because they were suppressed by the powerful arrow formation of the Han army on the watchtower. In short, the Yellow Turbans on the city wall retreated from the city tower and turned to the city interior.

  Gaofei watched intently, it was the first time he had ever witnessed the cruelty of an ancient siege warfare so realistically. In just a short half hour, more than a thousand soldiers in front of him at the East Gate had been killed, and countless others were injured.

  "Rumble!"

  The city gate was suddenly broken, the siege engine quickly retreated to the back, opening up a road for the troops behind. The soldiers who climbed the city wall with cloud ladders also stood on the city wall one by one, and began to surge into the city.

  "General, the south gate and west gate have been breached! Zhang Jiao has already begun to flee from the north gate!" A cavalryman on a swift horse came flying in, reporting the situation on the battlefield to Lu Zhi.

  "Fly high! Quickly turn the troops towards the North Gate. If you encounter Zhang Jiao, whether he's dead or alive, don't let him escape!" Lu Zhi hastily turned his head and loudly shouted to Gao Fei who was standing by with a stern expression.

  Gao Fei shouted "Go!" and yelled loudly at the cavalry behind him: "Follow me!"

  A thousand cavalrymen rushed to the North Gate, galloping swiftly on their horses. Before long, they arrived at the North Gate, where they saw some elderly and weak people wrapped in yellow scarves mixed among some bandits armed with weapons, fleeing northward.

  "Sir, the ones who are causing chaos in the world are the Yellow Turban bandits. Those common people have been deceived by Zhang Jue and are innocent, please sir do not order their execution!" Liu Bei hastily called out upon seeing this scene.

  Gao Fei nodded and said, "Yes, I have my own measure. The whole army listens to the order, all soldiers are not allowed to kill innocent people indiscriminately, only kill those bandits who hold weapons, and the rest of the civilians are not allowed to be violated!"

  "Agreed!"

  "Yun Chang, Yi De, you two each lead 200 men to rush forward along the official road, block those bewildered Yellow Turban commoners, and tell them that those who surrender will be fed and clothed, while those who resist will be killed!" Gao Fei saw the long dragon of people heading north along the official road and hastily shouted.

  "We will obey your orders!" Guan Yu and Zhang Fei replied in unison.

  "Brother Guan De, I ask you and Lu Xiang each lead two hundred men to ambush on both sides of the road." Gao Fei said.

  Liu Bei and Lu Xun said in unison: "Yes, sir!"

  After the order was given, a thousand cavalry quickly divided into five small teams to kill the enemy separately. Gao Fei led two hundred cavalry to rush to a place not far from the city gate, and immediately hundreds of thieves with swords blocked the way.

  Gao Fei wielded the Dragon Spear, riding at the forefront with two hundred well-equipped and well-trained cavalrymen, like a wolf pack or a flock of sheep. With just one charge, they scattered the hundreds of bandits.

  "Never mind those shrimp soldiers and crabs, hurry up and rush with me to the city gate."

  At this moment, a group of iron-clad thieves rushed out from the city. Under the escort of these iron-clad soldiers, a middle-aged man with disheveled hair and a yellow silk band around his head, wearing a black and yellow Taoist robe, rode a thin horse out of the city. His face was filled with terror as he constantly looked back over his shoulder.

  "General! This is the leader of the thieves, Zhang Jiao!" a cavalryman beside Gao Feng shouted loudly.

  Gao Fei's expression changed drastically, and he shouted loudly: "It has come easily without any effort, follow me to charge forward and behead the enemy general!"

  At the sound of the order, the cavalry unit flying high rushed over quickly.

  In the midst of the Ironclad Troops, Zhang Jiao's face was filled with terror. Suddenly seeing a small group of cavalry rushing over, he loudly shouted: "Guan Hai! Block them!"

  By Zhang Jiao's side, a burly yellow-faced man about 1.8 meters tall nodded and led the iron-clad infantry to immediately form a small phalanx formation, shouting: "Release arrows!"

  Dozens of bandits holding bows and arrows used all their strength to shoot out arrows.

  "Whoosh! Whoosh!"

  Gao Fei met the arrow shooting face to face, and hastily bowed his head on the horseback, while loudly shouting: "Don't be afraid, charge forward, the bandits are already at a dead end!"

  The sound had just fallen when I heard a dozen mournful cries behind me, and more than a dozen cavalrymen fell from their horses and crashed to the ground with a loud thud.

  "Damn it!" Gao Fei readjusted his stance, gripping the Dragon Traveler Gun tightly in his hand, and glared at the group of iron-armored soldiers less than a hundred meters away, cursing them with hatred.

  "Great virtuous teacher! Please hurry and leave, I'll block them here!" Guan Yu shouted loudly as he saw the cavalry led by Cao Pi approaching.

  "Take care!" Zhang Jiao left only a few words, and with a loud shout, he led the dozens of light cavalry around him to quickly bypass the Yellow Turbans in front of them and flee northwest.

  Gao Fei saw Zhang Jiao running away, and in front of him were iron-armored soldiers blocking the way. He shook his spirit, used his spear to brush aside the incoming arrows, gritted his teeth, and instantly charged into the group of iron-armored soldiers. Utilizing the horse's rapid collision force, he directly collided with over a dozen bandits holding long spears who were blocking his path. At the same time, he jumped off the horseback, and all that could be heard was the pitiful neighing of the horse and the sound of several bandits' bones shattering. He landed on the ground.

  His body was still rolling on the ground, and with a glance at the corner of his eye, he saw Guan Hai holding a large knife and leading a group of iron-clad soldiers to surround him. He hurriedly used his palm to push himself up from the ground, and just as the bandits were about to stab him with their knives and spears, he sprang up. His hand held the dragon gun and swept it horizontally, immediately beheading several bandits, whose blood gushed out of their throats, and they fell to the ground dead without even having time to cry out, leaving an empty space for him to land on.

  Bang!

  Just as Gao Fei was about to land, he heard a loud voice next to his ear, and a big knife slammed into the ground. The person holding the knife had thick eyebrows and big eyes, with a sturdy body, and it was none other than Guan Hai, the Yellow Turban bandit!

  "What a close call!" Gao Fei silently exclaimed in his heart, and before he could even catch his breath, he felt a gust of wind behind him, his hair standing on end. He hastily bent down, and just heard the sound of "Dangdang", his own helmet being knocked off, falling onto the corpse of the Yellow Turban bandit.

  He suddenly flipped his body, with both hands holding the dragon gun and both legs kicking out backwards, kicking away the yellow turban thief who was holding a long sword behind him. At the same time, he forcefully twisted his body, and his feet quickly trampled on the chests of the soldiers surrounding him, with a momentum that swept through thousands of troops. When he turned his body in a circle, those thieves all fell to the ground.

  "Get out of the way!" Guan Hai bellowed, leaping up and swinging a large knife down through the air.

  Gao Fei hastily used the Dragon Traveler spear to block the large knife. With a loud "clang", he felt his palms go slightly numb, and the large knife that was being held up seemed like a thousand pounds under the force of the blow, making him feel somewhat strained.

  Guan Hai fell to the ground, and the knife suddenly leveled off, attempting to cut off Gao Fei's flying head, and shouted: "Last time I didn't kill you, this time you definitely can't escape!"

  Gao Fei hastily raised his gun to block, while his body retreated several steps in a row, and he was quite surprised by Guan Hai's strength. He turned the gun head, pierced through a thief soldier who came from behind, and stared at Guan Hai with cold eyes, asking loudly: "Brave hero, please leave your name!"

  "I am Laozi!"

  "Ha! He once fought Guan Yu on horseback for dozens of rounds, and is indeed a fierce and powerful young general. I should recruit him to my side." Gao Fei thought to himself in admiration.

  Bang!

  Just at this moment, more than 100 cavalrymen rushed over and knocked down all the bandits surrounding Gao Fei. The cavalry quickly dismounted and gathered together, using their long spears to open up a bloody path, immediately turning around Gao Fei's passive situation.

  Gao Fei's face lit up with great joy, and after killing three bandits in a row, he turned his head to find that Guan Hai was nowhere to be seen. He searched around but saw Guan Hai riding this fast horse with several attendants heading northwest.

  "Surrender and you will not be killed!" The Han army soldiers shouted loudly, their thick voices like waves of thunder. The bandits lost their leader and could no longer withstand the Han army's offensive, immediately becoming fearful and throwing down their weapons, kneeling to beg for mercy.

  "You stay here, I'll take fifty men to chase and kill Zhang Jiao!" Gao Feng shouted loudly. He turned his head to see a chaotic scene on the official road, where the common people with yellow scarves on their heads were hastily removing them and throwing them to the ground, letting others trample on them, and retreating to both sides of the road, seemingly already under control.

  As they spoke, Gao Shun and fifty cavalrymen mounted their horses and headed northwest, not caring about the remaining Yellow Turban rebels in the city. After all, Zhang Jue's head would be his stepping stone for advancement.

  Starting from tomorrow, the update time will be adjusted to 1:00 AM and 1:00 PM every day.