Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 647 Inviting Handan City to Watch Fireworks

This salvo was different from the previous attack on a small camp of a few thousand people. Although it was far less effective than a volley of ten thousand cannons, it's important to remember that the opposing side was still in the tactical stage of massed charges and clustered rest.

The artillery fired in three rounds. When the first round went off, the enemy was completely unprepared. When bursts of fireworks, like blooming peonies, exploded on the position, they had little reaction other than being bewildered.

But when the severed limbs and broken pieces fell like raindrops, they realized something was wrong and began to flee.

But where could they hide? They just needed to be out of sight of the impact points, because they were huddled in a depression, which was the perfect spot for artillery fire.

When Xu Jin's barrage began to unleash its power, the expensive shells both ignited a beacon for a new era and tolled the death knell for an old one.

Overnight, people went from being the most expensive combat units to worthless minced meat in a meat grinder, and the bloody and mangled scene was more terrifying than a slaughterhouse.

Not long after witnessing the unbelievable scene before him, Li Mi, standing on the distant city wall, felt a tremor beneath his feet, as if the earth were turning over.

They couldn't explain it, but it reminded people of the meteorite that Emperor Guangwu of the Tang Dynasty summoned.

Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu was an emperor, but wasn't Emperor Jingtai Tian Jing also an emperor? No wonder they were able to become emperors. Is being an emperor really that great? You can even have meteorites falling from the sky to help you in a battle, right?
The series of bombardments stunned the entire besieging force. The countless casualties were secondary; those were just children, and to be bombarded with meteorites right off the bat must have caused them immense psychological trauma.

Anyway, I don't know what happened on the other branches, but the northern siege force was completely wiped out by this wave of bombs. Maybe only one or two out of ten were killed. Most of them were scared out of their wits and fled like madmen.

The entire battle line was wiped out in this round of attacks. The commander of that side could not be found in the chaos. It is unknown whether he fled in the chaos or turned into mud in the meteor shower.

After the initial attack, the remaining forces besieging the Wei army were initially unaware of what was happening. They could only hear rumbling thunder. When they turned their cannons to attack the Wei forces, they discovered that these camps were mostly outside the optimal range of attack, and were somewhat out of range.

But letting them go back is a good thing. It can serve as a sufficient deterrent to them. After all, they haven't witnessed the New Army's group combat capabilities yet. Today is a good opportunity to open their eyes. In a few days, we'll show them what it means for the New Army's cooks to be elite soldiers from ragtag units.

At this moment, Li Mi trembled as he put down the telescope. He sat on the city wall against the cold wind and looked at the Northern Army camp that had been reduced to ashes. His mind was completely blank.

He could already imagine how his elite elite battalion had vanished without a trace. Under such firepower, let alone the valiant battalion, even heavenly soldiers and generals would be helpless.

Of course, as an excellent general, Li Mi's first thought after his brief moment of distraction was to devise a countermeasure. If he were to lead his troops against the Wei army, what methods would he use to counter their tactics?

After thinking for a long time, the only answer was night raids. A large number of troops would be dispersed into small groups to continuously harass the enemy at night, using man-to-man exchanges to continuously deplete the enemy's manpower, prolong the battle, and try to buy space with time. There was almost no other way to deal with such an army.

However, the problem is also obvious. If such a plan is to be implemented, every batch of soldiers sent out must have the belief of being ready to die and the tenacity of the Yellow Turban Army. But this is really impossible. Very few soldiers today can do that. In fact, if the plan breaks down a few times in the early stages but does not produce much results, then the entire night raid plan is destined to fail.

Because morale can collapse, and soldiers can mutini. Without sufficient conviction and perseverance, soldiers will dare to charge into battle. Whether it's coercion or enticement, once people calm down, they will weigh whether it's worth it. Only a unified belief among all soldiers can build an army of steel.

I can’t fight him, I really can’t fight him.

Li Mi stood up and paced back and forth on the city wall. Finally, he slapped his thigh and said, "Someone, quickly send a messenger to see His Majesty and tell him that Li Mi is waiting for His Majesty's order to go out of the city and capture the thief."

The adjutant beside him glanced at Li Mi with surprise, but Li Mi frowned and said, "Go!"

Soon, a petition that Li Mi had prepared in advance was delivered to Emperor Jingtai's desk. At this moment, Emperor Jingtai was preparing to have dinner. Being in the army is different from being in the palace. Here, there is no such thing as "I am not hungry and do not want to eat". If you do not want to eat, then you really don't have to eat. The supply wagons have been withdrawn. If you are so hungry in the middle of the night that you call your father, you can only eat your toes.

"Li Mi".

Emperor Jingtai glanced at the letter requesting battle, then pushed it in front of Shan Xiongxin: "General, take a look, is this appropriate?"

"Li Mi is a clever man. What does Your Majesty think?"

"Who cares? Let's eat first, or there won't be any food left."

The two went to the mess hall in front of the battle line and got their food just like the soldiers. They then sat on the ground next to the mess hall, showing no airs of emperors whatsoever.

The soldiers, who were not far away, had long since gone from fear to awe. After all, no emperor in the world had ever been allowed to eat from the same pot as ordinary soldiers for such a long time.

Emperor Jingtai had clearly grown accustomed to this method. People are incredibly adaptable; he went from merely putting on an act to now squatting there at mealtimes, a routine he himself had come to accept.

"General Shan, what do you think...? Shouldn't we fire that city-destroying cannon? That annoying cannon is always hovering under my nose; it's really irritating." "It's all up to Your Majesty."

"Hmm... it's not the right time yet. Didn't they say that tens of thousands of cavalry are on their way? When the time comes, I will show them the might of China. Let them know what it means for the Central Plains to be reduced to ruins. That's my business. Barbarians want to get a share? They should take a piss and look at themselves in the mirror."

"As Your Majesty commands."

"Stop with the formalities, we're discussing this with you."

"This humble general believes that Your Majesty's idea is correct. Once those tens of thousands of cavalry arrive, we will give them a great victory and drive them all out of the Central Plains."

"Okay, that's the decision."

Emperor Jingtai then took out Li Mi's ridiculous letter again, waved it in his hand, and said to Shan Xiongxin, "What should we do with this guy?"

“Your Majesty, I am a rough man… In the past, such matters were decided by Commander Xia, but now that Your Majesty is here, it is Your Majesty’s decision to make them.”

"Um……"

Emperor Jingtai squinted, picked up his bowl, stood up, strolled over to the dining car and ordered another serving of rice. After returning, he squatted down again: "If it were my old self, I certainly wouldn't have kept such a two-faced person. But now, I have to think about it carefully. He was still observing before the cannon fire today. To be honest, I look down on such people."

"But our cannons were fired at him as a show, Your Majesty."

Emperor Jingtai nodded: "Never mind all that, let's settle things in Handan first. That way, Handan and Luoyang will be able to look at each other from afar, and the Central Plains will be completely recovered. After that, it will be up to the Li Tang family."

However, Emperor Jingtai said this, but he knew in his heart that his side was ultimately not many people, and the fighting strength of Li Tang was not comparable to these rabble. Therefore, it was wishful thinking to take advantage of the situation to attack and take over Li Tang. Their only task at present was to drive these rabble out of the Central Plains.

While they were discussing how to take over Handan, the generals of the allied forces sat together looking dejected. Some were deep in thought, some were pacing back and forth in front of the hall, and others were sighing.

Only Liu Heita, who was in charge of logistics and supplies, came up carrying a bucket of boiled beans. Upon seeing their appearance, Liu Heita immediately beamed with joy.

"Oh dear, what's wrong, everyone? I heard you suffered a defeat?"

Look at what they're saying! They didn't just suffer a defeat; they suffered a truly devastating one. In just one day, they lost one-fifth of their troops, and one entire army was wiped out. In this state, they don't even know which direction to go to catch deserters.

On the contrary, Liu Heita, who was in charge of the logistics team, strolled around leisurely and unharmed. Everyone present knew that he went to the supply team to deliberately avoid battle.

Some people are starting to dislike this guy. Not only is he not going to fight, but he's also making sarcastic remarks.

Then someone spoke up: "Hey, Hey Heizi, do you have some inside information? Do you know that the Wei army is so brave and even has sorcery?"

Liu Heita grabbed him by the back of the neck, lifted him up, and slammed him onto the table, the kitchen knife in his hand pressed directly against his neck: "Hei Zi, how dare you call me that?"

"Shenyong... Shenyong, I was wrong, I was wrong, okay? Brother Shenyong!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Heita finally released his grip, and the generals around him dared not move in the face of his gesture.

At this moment, Liu Heita clapped his hands and placed the kitchen knife on the table: "I can say that I am a comrade-in-arms with you all. I would like to remind you once again that tomorrow's battle formation is just for show, and then we will retreat thirty miles."

"Wouldn't that mean giving up Handan City?"

"Let it go." Liu Heita crossed his arms. "If you don't want to follow in Shen An's footsteps, then let it go. When those barbarian cavalry arrive, let them test Tian Wei's temper."

The atmosphere suddenly turned cold, and someone whispered, "Brother Shenyong, isn't this just giving all the credit to those barbarians?"

"Credit?"

Liu Heita ruffled the guy's hair and said with a smile, "Only those who are alive can claim the credit."
-
I might have to finish this chapter on Saturday. I've been quite busy these past few days. My father was just discharged from the hospital, and his court hearing is in two weeks. I have to run around getting documents, which is a real hassle.

(End of this chapter)