I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 898: Crying and Shaking the Sky
"Run, run! If you don't run now, it will be too late!"

People in Shouchun City were in panic.

There were many well-informed people in the streets and alleys, carrying their elderly and children and their valuables and fleeing in a hurry.

"Hey, fellow, what's going on? What's going on?"

An old farmer who had just come to the city from the countryside grabbed a young man who was fleeing and asked with a puzzled look on his face.

The young man shook off his hand and said anxiously, "Old man, haven't you heard? The devil Su Yao has already breached the water fort and is coming to Shouchun soon! I heard that his soldiers kill everyone they see, even those who surrender. If you don't run away, I'm afraid your whole family will die here!"

The old farmer was horrified when he heard this, and the pole in his hand fell to the ground with a "clack". "What should I do? My whole family is in the city!"

Thanks to Yuan Shu's tireless anti-Su propaganda, Su Yao's image among the people of Shouchun is now quite terrifying.

Since Su Yao's previous achievements could not be denied, Yuan Shu included many rumors about how cruel he was in his propaganda.

For example, it is said that Su Yao loves to capture cities and kill people. Even if you kneel down to surrender, he will slaughter you like ants. He will use human heads to build a Jingguan, and every time he conquers a place, there will be a river of blood.

There were also rumors that Su Yao ate human flesh raw and loved beautiful women, and even children were not spared. The cries of innocent civilians being tortured and humiliated were often heard in the army.

In short, under Yuan Shu's deliberate exaggeration, Su Yao has become an image of a very capable and bloodthirsty demon in the hearts of the people in Huainan.

His original intention was naturally to use these rumors to make the people fear Su Yao, so that they would stand on his side wholeheartedly and consolidate his rule in Shouchun.

However, now that he had suffered a great defeat on the front line and Shouchun was in danger, the people were in an uproar and fled in panic, which put great pressure on his city defenses.

Shouchun City defender Qiao Rui had to crack down on this and ordered the city gates to be blocked.

At this moment, the people were crying and wailing, the atmosphere of fear in the city intensified, and even a certain degree of bloody conflict broke out.

For a time, the city was filled with wailing and crying.

The atmosphere in the county magistrate's mansion was also solemn.

"Captain Qiao, this won't do!"

The county magistrate looked at Qiao Rui worriedly:
"The people are blocking the city gates and causing trouble. Dozens of people have been killed or injured. If this continues, we will be in chaos before the Su rebels attack the city!"

Qiao Rui slammed the table and stood up: "Stubborn people! They are all stubborn people! Pass the order down, anyone who dares to attack the city gate again will be killed without mercy!"

"No!"

A counselor urgently advised:
"Before leaving, the general said that Shouchun is our base. Now that we are facing a powerful enemy, if we provoke a civil uprising, Shouchun will be in danger under the pressure from both inside and outside!"

Qiao Rui clenched his fists and said, "How could I not know what you said? But if we let the people out of the city, Su Yao will take the opportunity to sneak in as a spy, and what will we do if we cooperate with the inside and outside? Moreover, if the people flee, the labor force in the city will be greatly reduced, and building city defenses and transporting supplies will become a problem."

"Or, let's open the city and surrender."

An aide suggested cautiously, his voice as quiet as a mosquito's hum:
"The imperial army has gathered in Xiacai, and the general is still being held in the six counties. Our army has little chance of winning, so we should surrender as soon as possible."

"You dare to say that again?!" Qiao Rui's eyes widened, glaring angrily, and he suddenly drew the sword from his waist, pointing the blade directly at the aide's throat:

"I, Qiao Rui, have been deeply indebted to the general. How could I ever betray my master for fame and fortune? If anyone else talks about surrendering, don't blame me for being merciless with my sword!"

The aide was so frightened that his face turned pale. He fell to his knees with a thud, trembling all over, not daring to breathe. The atmosphere in the entire county governor's mansion was so depressing that it was hard to breathe.

At this moment, a messenger suddenly stumbled in:
"Report - Governor Liang was defeated! The water fort is already a sea of ​​fire. It is reported that the Su bandit army is speeding up to cross the river and may reach the city soon!" "What?!"

"Why so fast?!"

Everyone in the hall was struck by lightning. Qiao Rui grabbed the messenger by the collar:

"Where are the Liang Gang people? Where are our warships? How many people have escaped back?"

Facing Qiao Rui's barrage of questions, the messenger had a sad face:
"The Liang commander was stabbed by the thief Su and 800 warships were destroyed and burned. Now there are less than 300 people who have escaped."

"Trash! They're all trash!"

In a rage, Qiao Rui kicked over the table. He turned to the county magistrate and roared:

"Quick! Send people to the six counties to ask for help immediately! Ask the rear general to return as soon as possible!"

The county magistrate said with a bitter face and despair: "The six counties are nearly 300 miles away from here. Even if we set out now, we can't reach them until tomorrow at the earliest. And since Su the thief has already seized the water fort, he will probably go downstream..."

Before he finished speaking, another scout came in a panic and reported:
"It's bad! A large number of warships appeared on the river outside the city, and the flag they are flying is... a big flag with the word Su on it!"

"So fast?!"

Qiao Rui's face turned pale, and he staggered back a few steps. He took a deep breath and gritted his teeth and said:

"Declare martial law throughout the city! All able-bodied men on the city walls! All bows, crossbows, rolling logs, and rocks in place!"

"Send someone to the treasury to move out all the kerosene!"

"I just don't believe that Su Yao can fly up to the city wall!"

Outside Shouchun City, Su Yao’s warships were approaching rapidly like a black tide.

The sails rustled and the big flag with the word "Su" danced wildly in the wind, giving people a sense of oppression when viewed from afar.

Su Yao stood at the bow of the flagship, looking coldly at Shouchun City in the distance.

This ancient capital of the Chu State has high city walls and wide moats, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. No wonder Yuan Shu chose it as his stronghold.

Now, the navy led by Taishi Ci and Guan Yu has covered the landing of most of the soldiers near the water fort and is rushing over by land, and will arrive around evening.

The navy on the Huai River was another group of soldiers led by Su Yao and Huangfu Song. They took warships and went around Shouchun City by water, and then completed a complete blockade of it.

Huangfu Song said: "It will take more than one day to conquer Shouchun. In my opinion, the general should go up the Shuo River and first go to the six counties to provide assistance. We can just besiege the city here."

Su Yao shook his head upon hearing this: "General Huangfu is wrong. Although Yuan Benchu ​​is trapped in six counties, Shouchun is Yuan Shu's stronghold. As long as we take this place, Yuan Shu's army will be like a rootless duckweed, and will collapse without a fight."

He turned and pointed to the top of Shouchun City: "Besides, who said that conquering Shouchun is not a one-day job?"

Huangfu Song looked in the direction Su Yao pointed and saw the defenders on the city wall running around in panic, with flags askew, and it was obvious that the army was in disarray. He thought thoughtfully, "Does the general have a good plan to break the city?"

Su Yao raised his lips slightly: "Order the whole army to camp three miles outside the city, take a good rest, and march out tonight, follow me to break the city!"

Then, that night, with a loud bang at the city gate, Shouchun City was broken.

(End of this chapter)