Ye Shikai pinned his hopes on Mi Wen. His orders might not be effective, but Mi Wen was the ruler. If she gave the command, those "old veterans" wouldn’t dare to feign compliance. Back when he was a general in the Qin Army, he encountered similar situations. However, whether it was Han Hao from He Nei County or Ma Yao from East County, they always "t his requests" and "took great care" of him. Ye Shikai’s needs were always t to their best ability. No matter how envious or resentful his fellow generals were, they didn’t dare sche behind his back.
"Report to the General, the military equipnt has arrived at the camp." At this mont, an officer galloped over. Ye Shikai turned to look at him; he was covered in dust and dirt, looking as if he had just crawled out of a mud pit.
"Why are you in such a sorry state?"
"Reporting to the General, I... I led my n overnight to deliver the equipnt to the camp. We encountered a muddy patch... dirtied our clothes. The situation was urgent, and I didn’t have ti to change before reporting. Please forgive , General."
"You’ve worked hard. You’ve done well. With the army conquering Wan City, you’ll have made a great contribution." Ye Shikai nodded appreciatively. Even a village chief understands the importance of unity, while those with significant military power are scheming in the shadows. It’s truly pathetic.
"Thank you, General. Thank you, General."
"Shangguan, let’s return. Tomorrow morning, this place will beco a battlefield."
"Alright."
Ye Shikai barely slept all night. This wouldn’t tire a cultivator, but the current situation left him very anxious. He studied the map repeatedly for a long ti. Now, the lives of tens of thousands were in his hands. Wan City was a formidable fortress. Although Zheng Lang only had twenty thousand new recruits, relying on the city defenses, they could still resist. In contrast, Ye Shikai had only thirty thousand n. Though they were seasoned and battle-hardened, breaking through in one fell swoop was still very difficult.
"Old Ye, perhaps we could recall the troops of Generals Zhang Lan and Wang Lian to assist in the battle. If a fifty-thousand-strong army besieges the city, Wan City will fall within three days."
"No, if the Qin Army’s reinforcents take advantage of our siege to suddenly attack our rear, and then Zheng Lang opens the city for a counterattack, our forces will face enemies on two sides and be dood to defeat without any chance of withdrawing safely. We could even face total annihilation." Ye Shikai directly refused. The risk of siege warfare is getting "encircled" oneself; those generals have been slow to move their troops, so I’ve had no choice but to detach forces to guard the passage and prevent a Qin Army raid.
"Then what should we do?"
"Feint three gates, then concentrate forces to attack the East gate."
"The East gate? Why choose the East gate? Its defenses are the strongest, and the gate is very sturdy. Besides, our main forces are at the South gate. I’m afraid we won’t be able to take the East gate."
"Precisely because of this. Zheng Lang also knows we’ve amassed forces at the South gate, so he will reinforce the South gate’s defenses. We must surprise them and strike the East gate. As long as we can breach one gate, Wan City will be ours."
"Alright then, I’ll inform Man Cang to secretly lead the Iron Armor Army to the East gate tomorrow. The Iron Armor Army is our elite, and besieging and capturing cities is their specialty." Shangguan Jian was about to leave when Ye Shikai stopped him.
"Wait a mont."
"Old Ye, is there sothing else?"
"Tomorrow, let Man Cang remain at the South gate for the feint attack." Ye Shikai hesitated for two seconds before saying lightly.
"Why? No one is more suitable for besieging the city than the Iron Armor Army." Shangguan Jian was quite shocked. He hadn’t expected Ye Shikai to make such an arrangent.
"Precisely because of this." Ye Shikai coughed lightly and explained, "Zheng Lang knows us well. He knows Man Cang is my trusted aide, and the Iron Armor Army is my ace. This troop, clad in heavy armor, handles high walls and deep moats with ease and is a siege weapon. No matter which gate I place the Iron Armor Army, he will assu it to be our main attack direction, and he will believe it without doubt, which will mislead him."
"I see." Shangguan Jian nodded lightly and glanced at the heavily burdened Ye Shikai.
"Old Ye, is this the only reason?"
"Yes, of course."
..................
The next day.
"Are you ready?"
"Report to the General, the North gate is ready."
"The East gate is ready."
"The West gate is ready."
"The South gate is ready." Man Cang, following Ye Shikai’s orders, stayed with the Iron Armor Army at the South gate. Perhaps due to his conversation with Ye Shikai that day, as the decisive battle approached, he wasn’t excited but rather sowhat dejected. He already knew that this siege’s "main role" wasn’t his to play.
"Alright then, all armies, obey the order, comnce battle." Ye Shikai slowly drew his sword, pointed it towards the city, and shouted loudly.
"Kill."
"Kill."
From the four sides of the gates, tens of thousands surged forward, presenting a grand scene. This was Ye Shikai’s first ti commanding an army to besiege a city, and he couldn’t afford any carelessness.
"Quick, release the catapults!"
Boom.
A dozen catapults launched huge stones simultaneously, smashing heavily against the city walls. The crashing stones produced a deafening collision sound that was enough to make one’s heart tremble just by hearing it.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
anwhile, Qin archers on the walls shot arrows downward. Many brothers fell along the way. As a commander, Ye Shikai felt deep sorrow, but there was no choice; this was the price of siege warfare.
Zheng Lang was standing on the South gate tower, and Ye Shikai could even see him with the naked eye. If not for concerns about revealing his identity, he would have liked to use Inner Strength to fly directly and kill him.
"Quick, release arrows." Zheng Lang paced back and forth on the wall, supervising the battle. Most of the defenders were strong n conscripted temporarily without training. Once the fighting started, if not for the wall, they would likely have fled in fear. Seeing the giant stones from the catapults directly crushing people to pulp, they shrank back in fear, bodies trembling.
"Quick, stand up and face the enemy." Zheng Lang grabbed a soldier trying to flee backwards and cleaved him with his sword.
"Those who retreat without orders and show cowardice will be killed without rcy."
"Yes."
"Yes."
"Quick, aim at the enemy below, release arrows."
The Qin forces, from the top of the walls, using powerful bows and unwavering fortifications inflicted considerable casualties on the rebels. Arrows rained down; for every batch of soldiers who advanced, half would fall.
"General, while our brothers fight bloodily, in my capacity as commander of the Iron Armor Army, I request to fight." Finally, Man Cang could no longer endure it. He and thousands of the Iron Armor Army defended at the South gate, which was just a feint. They were still held back as a reserve force, effectively watching from the rear.
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