Honglou: This bastard is too persuasive.

Chapter 737 Capture
Jia Changsheng nodded and said, "Okay! The 500 people you choose must all be loyal, reliable, skilled in martial arts, and good at stealth. Before setting off, have them change into civilian clothes, carry a small amount of light weapons, and not attract attention. I will also arrange for a guide who is familiar with the terrain of Linjiang City to accompany you and help you enter the city smoothly."

After receiving the order, Ma Dai quickly selected 500 elite soldiers from the army. These soldiers had all experienced countless battle tests and were loyal to Jia Changsheng. Ma Dai said to them: "Brothers, this mission is related to the great cause of the lord. We must go deep into the enemy's territory, open the city gates, and welcome the army. This journey will surely be full of dangers, but I believe in your abilities. We must act quietly and must not reveal our whereabouts."

The soldiers responded in unison: "We are willing to obey the general's orders and will not refuse even if it means death!"

Everything was ready. Ma Dai led 500 elite soldiers and set out under the guidance of a guide at night. They followed the mountain trails, avoided the patrol routes of Sun Quan's army, and approached Linjiang City carefully. After several days of arduous journey, they finally arrived outside Linjiang City on a dark and windy night.

The gates of Linjiang City were closed, and the soldiers patrolling the city walls were walking back and forth. Ma Dai observed the city defense situation and found that every once in a while, the patrol soldiers on the city walls would have a short break to change shifts. After discussing with the guide, he decided to take this opportunity to act.

When the time for the change of guard approached, Ma Dai led the soldiers to quietly approach the city gate. The guide indicated to everyone that there was a secret tunnel not far ahead that led to the city. This tunnel was dug by a citizen in the city in the early years to escape the war, but it was later abandoned and few people knew about it. Under the guidance of the guide, everyone followed the tunnel and sneaked into the city quietly.

After entering the city, Ma Dai and his companions hid in an abandoned house. Ma Dai whispered to everyone, "Brothers, we have successfully entered the city. Next, we need to wait for the right opportunity to seize the city gate. Everyone stay alert and don't make any noise."

Time passed by minute by minute, and finally it was time for the next shift change. Ma Dai waved his hand and led the soldiers to move quickly. They shuttled through the streets of the city like ghosts and moved towards the city gate. When they approached the city gate, they found that the soldiers guarding the city were handing over their tasks and did not notice anything unusual.

Ma Dai saw the right opportunity and shouted, "Kill!" Five hundred elite soldiers rushed towards the city gate guards like a tiger. The guards were unprepared and immediately fell into chaos. Ma Dai was a skilled martial artist. He wielded his long sword and killed several people in an instant. Under his leadership, the soldiers fought bravely. After a fierce battle, they successfully annihilated the city gate guards.

Ma Dai did not have time to rest and immediately ordered his soldiers to open the city gate. Outside the city, a vanguard troop that Jia Changsheng had arranged in advance saw the city gate open and immediately rushed into the city like a tide. When the other defenders in the city learned that the city gate was broken, they hurried to support. But at this time, Jia Changsheng's vanguard troops had already established a foothold in the city and engaged in fierce street fighting with the enemy troops.

As the follow-up troops continued to enter the city, Jia Changsheng also rode into Linjiang City. Seeing that Ma Dai and others had successfully completed the mission, he was overjoyed and said, "Ma Dai, well done! You have made a great contribution this time. Pass the order down, seize the opportunity to pursue the victory, and make sure to quickly eliminate the enemy troops in the city and appease the people."

Under Jia Changsheng's command, the soldiers acted quickly. After a battle, all the Sun Quan defenders in the city were wiped out. Jia Changsheng successfully captured Linjiang City, and he immediately arranged for soldiers to reinforce the city defense to prevent Sun Quan from sending troops to counterattack. At the same time, he posted notices to appease the people in the city, indicating that his army came for the people and would not harm the innocent. Seeing that Jia Changsheng's army was disciplined, the people gradually calmed down.

Jia Changsheng stood on the tower of Linjiang City, looking at the scene in the city. He knew that the capture of this border city was just an important beginning of this war. He would use this as a base to continue to advance the battle plan and stride towards the goal of defeating Sun Quan. How would Sun Quan respond after learning the news of the fall of Linjiang City? A more intense game was about to begin.

After Jia Changsheng successfully captured Linjiang City, order gradually returned to the city. At this time, the general in charge of counting the results of the battle came to report to Jia Changsheng about the gains.

The general walked quickly into the temporary tent, knelt on one knee, and said excitedly: "My lord, we have gained a lot from taking Linjiang City this time. There are mountains of food and grass in the city, enough for our army to use for several months. There are also a large number of sophisticated weapons and equipment in the armory, which can equip many soldiers. In addition, we have also captured nearly 2,000 soldiers under Sun Quan."

Upon hearing this, Jia Changsheng showed a happy expression and said, "Very good. Food and weapons are the foundation of marching and fighting. These gains provide a strong guarantee for our subsequent battles. As for the two thousand prisoners..." Jia Changsheng fell into deep thought. After a moment, he said with a firm look, "Pass my order to gather all the prisoners. I want to give them a lecture in person."

Soon, two thousand captives were brought to the parade ground in Linjiang City. They looked depressed, some with their heads down, some with fear on their faces, not knowing what fate awaited them. Jia Changsheng, wearing armor, walked majestically onto the high platform, scanning the captives below.

Jia Changsheng said loudly: "Everyone! Now that you are prisoners of our army, you must be worried and don't know what your fate will be. But I, Jia Changsheng, have always been based on benevolence and righteousness. Today, I will give you a chance."

When the captives heard this, they all raised their heads with a glimmer of hope in their eyes.

Jia Changsheng continued, "I will not kill you, not because I am soft-hearted, but because you are all innocent people who were coerced by Sun Quan to become enemies of our army. Now, I will give you two choices. First, if you are willing to surrender to me, I, Jia Changsheng, will treat you equally and incorporate you into my army. You will be treated the same as my soldiers in Jingzhou, and we will fight for peace in the world together. Second, if you are unwilling to surrender, I will not make things difficult for you. I will arrange for you to do something so that you can earn a chance to survive through your own labor."

The captives in the audience whispered to each other. After a while, some soldiers stood up and expressed their willingness to surrender. Jia Changsheng looked at the surrendered soldiers and said, "Okay! From today on, you will be a member of my Jingzhou Army. I hope you can be loyal and serve my army." He ordered the generals around him to take these surrendered soldiers aside to register and incorporate them into the team.

Then, Jia Changsheng looked at the remaining captives and said, "Brothers who are unwilling to surrender, I will not treat you unfairly. I plan to arrange for you to mine and build roads. Nowadays, wars are frequent, and these resources and roads are urgently needed for both weapon forging and marching. You go to mine, which can provide raw materials for our army to forge weapons; you go to build roads, which can make our army march more smoothly and facilitate the people's travel. Through your own labor, you can not only exchange for food and shelter, but also make a contribution to this world. Are you willing?"

After hearing what Jia Changsheng said, most of the captives felt that this was indeed a way out, and they expressed their willingness to follow the arrangement. Only a few captives still looked hesitant. Seeing this, Jia Changsheng said, "I know you may still have doubts in your hearts, but I, Jia Changsheng, keep my word. As long as you work peacefully, I will not make things difficult for you. If anyone performs well during the work, I will also give rewards."

In the end, all the captives made their choices. Jia Changsheng arranged for the generals to take the captives who were willing to mine to the mines outside the city, and to assign the captives who were willing to build roads to the various sections that needed road construction. At the same time, he also arranged some reliable soldiers to supervise and ensure that the captives' work was carried out in an orderly manner and that their basic living needs were guaranteed.

Jia Changsheng instructed the captives who were mining: "When you are in the mine, you must obey orders and mine seriously. I will arrange for craftsmen to teach you how to mine ore efficiently. As long as you work hard, I will not treat you unfairly." He also said to the captives who were building roads: "Building roads is a major event that benefits the people. You must do it with your heart. I will send people to check the progress and quality regularly. If you do a good job, you will be rewarded." After arranging the prisoners, Jia Changsheng said to his men: "Pay close attention to the situation of these prisoners and do not slack off. At the same time, let the people in the city know our arrangements for the prisoners, let them know that our army is a benevolent and righteous army, and this move is not only for the war, but also for the welfare of the people here."

Jia Changsheng knew that properly handling these prisoners would not only bring practical benefits to his army and local construction, but also establish his image of benevolence and justice among the people and the enemy, laying a good foundation for future wars and rule. As these prisoners were put into mining and road construction, Linjiang City gradually became a stable base for him in the war against Sun Quan under Jia Changsheng's governance, providing strong support for further military operations.

When Sun Quan learned that Linjiang City had fallen, he was furious. He threw the teacup in his hand to the ground, splashing the tea everywhere, and shouted, "Jia Changsheng, how dare you be so bold!" He immediately summoned Zhou Yu, Lu Su, Lu Meng and other trusted ministers to discuss countermeasures in the palace of Jianye.

Everyone rushed over, and the atmosphere in the hall was so oppressive that it made people breathless. Sun Quan looked gloomy, pacing back and forth in the hall, and asked loudly: "Linjiang City is a strategic location, why was it so easily taken away by Jia Changsheng? Tell me, what should we do now?"

Zhou Yu hurried forward, knelt on one knee, and said, "My lord, calm down. Jia Changsheng's surprise attack on Linjiang City did catch us off guard. But the most urgent task now is to discuss how to recapture Linjiang City and repel Jia Changsheng's four armies."

Sun Quan glared at everyone and said, "Tell me! Tell me what you have planned!"

Lu Su stepped forward, cupped his hands and said, "My Lord, Jia Changsheng is coming with great force this time, and has already occupied the stronghold of Linjiang City. In my opinion, we can proceed from two aspects. On the one hand, send people to sneak into Linjiang City and contact the forces in the city that are still loyal to us, as internal support, and when our army attacks the city, we will cooperate with the inside and outside to recapture Linjiang City. On the other hand, strengthen the defense of other lines to prevent Jia Changsheng's other troops from taking the opportunity to break through."

Sun Quan snorted coldly and said, "Send someone to sneak in? How easy is that! Jia Changsheng must have strengthened the defenses of Linjiang City. If we are not careful, we will never come back. Is there any other way?"

Lu Meng clasped his fists and said, "My lord, I think we can take the initiative to attack. Select 50,000 elite troops and march directly to Linjiang City. With the absolute advantage in military strength, we can forcefully attack the city. Although Jia Changsheng has captured Linjiang City, his foothold is not stable yet. We will take this opportunity to defeat him."

Sun Quan frowned and said, "With 50,000 troops...if we withdraw too many troops to attack Linjiang City, the defense of other lines will inevitably be weakened. What if Jia Changsheng's other armies take the opportunity to attack?"

At this time, Lu Xun stood up and said, "My lord, what General Meng said about taking the initiative to attack is feasible, but we can use a combination of real and fake tactics to confuse Jia Changsheng. On the surface, we will only send 50,000 troops to attack Linjiang City, but in fact, we will secretly ambush elite troops in other defense lines. If Jia Changsheng dispatches other armies to reinforce Linjiang City, our ambushers can take the opportunity to attack, cut off his retreat, and annihilate him in one fell swoop."

After hearing this, Sun Quan nodded slightly, seeming to be somewhat tempted by this strategy.

However, Zhou Yu said, "My lord, this plan is brilliant, but it is also risky. If Jia Changsheng sees through our plan and does not easily mobilize other troops, our ambush will be useless. Moreover, if 50,000 troops attack Linjiang City and fail to capture it for a long time, their morale will be frustrated."

Sun Quan said irritably, "What should we do? Should we just let Jia Changsheng do whatever he wants on the land of Dongwu?"

At this time, a counselor stepped forward and said cautiously: "My lord, why don't you lead the army in person? Your presence on the battlefield will surely greatly boost the morale of our army. The soldiers will surely fight bravely and defeat Jia Changsheng in one fell swoop."

Sun Quan's face changed and he refused decisively: "No! As the ruler of Wu, if I leave Jianye easily, what should I do if something unexpected happens in the rear? Besides, leading an army in person is no joke. I cannot risk the foundation of Wu."

Seeing Sun Quan's firm attitude, everyone no longer mentioned the idea of ​​leading the army in person.

Sun Quan pondered for a long time and said, "Just follow what Lü Meng said and send 50,000 troops to attack Linjiang City. Zhou Yu, as the commander-in-chief, you will be in full command of this siege. You must be careful and do not underestimate the enemy. I will give you 50,000 elite troops, and you must recapture Linjiang City and repel Jia Changsheng in the shortest possible time."

Zhou Yu accepted the order and said, "My lord, rest assured. I will fulfill my mission. This time, I will make Jia Changsheng pay for his recklessness."

Sun Quan added: "Lu Su, you are responsible for coordinating resources from all parties to ensure that the front line has sufficient supplies of food, fodder, weapons and other materials. Lu Meng and Lu Xun, you assist Zhou Yu in making all preparations for the siege, and at the same time pay close attention to the movements of Jia Changsheng's other armies, and do not slack off in the slightest."

Everyone responded in unison: "We will obey the Lord's orders!"

Sun Quan looked at everyone and said solemnly: "This battle is related to the survival of Dongwu. You must go all out. If we cannot repel Jia Changsheng and recapture Linjiang City, we will not be able to face the people and ancestors of Dongwu."

(End of this chapter)