Three Kingdoms: Jiangdong is no longer a rat

Chapter 137 Trash and Idiots

After the brief trial siege, the generals began to express their opinions one after another.

"The defenders' crossbows are excellent, and they have ample arrows, but the soldiers' archery skills don't keep up with the equipment. Their arrows lack accuracy and power, clearly a sign of lack of training."

"The defenders' ability to respond to crises is insufficient. Many soldiers lack combat common sense, their fighting spirit is weak, and their morale is low. Faced with our soldiers climbing the city walls, they often appear helpless, even timid. However, among the defenders, there are a small number of soldiers with strong combat capabilities. They must be the elite troops left behind by Zhu Zhi."

"The command of the defenders is rather disorganized, with each unit often fighting independently. This must be due to a lack of capable commanders, or the commanders' lack of command experience."

"The city walls are extremely high and thick, the fortifications are complete, and there are sufficient defensive equipment such as rolling logs, stones, and kerosene, which poses great difficulties for our army in attacking the city."

"The defenders' numerical superiority masked their shortcomings."

"Our army is short of soldiers and siege equipment, so it is difficult to capture Qiantang."

The generals spoke one after another. Although their opinions were not exactly the same, most of them hit the nail on the head and were quite pertinent.

Fan Yan said worriedly, "Young Master, Chen Gan, Xu Shou, and the others won't arrive in Qiantang until this afternoon. It will be difficult for our army to capture such a fortified city before reinforcements arrive. If we were given another day, we would surely be able to capture Qiantang. But I'm afraid Wang Lang's army won't give us this opportunity. If they join the battle, our army will be attacked from both sides and be in danger of collapse."

Si Qing worried that Yan Yi might be too obsessed with conquering Qiantang and put himself in danger, so she couldn't help but remind him, "Our army is actually facing four enemy armies right now: the Qiantang defenders, Wu Jing, Wang Lang, and Han You. If we're not careful, the situation could collapse and get out of control."

The generals nodded in agreement with Fan Yan and Si Qing's words. Fan Yan was straightforward and Si Qing was loyal, and they were the only two who dared to speak so frankly in front of Yan Yi.

Although our army seems strong at the moment, it is actually surrounded by crises and is in a dilemma.

Yan Yi placed his hand on the hilt of the sword, pondering silently, his gaze slowly turning to Xu Sheng standing beside him.

Xu Sheng's success quickly elevated his military status and prestige. Despite his youth, no one dared to look down on him. The prevailing trend favored ambitious young men, judging heroes by their ability, not their age. Xu Sheng was the rising star of Yan Yi's army, drawing much attention.

He had already given it some thought before he spoke slowly, "Although the enemy is powerful, they each have their own positions and interests, making it difficult for them to coordinate and cooperate. We might be able to exploit this and gain an advantage."

Yan Yi nodded slightly, with a hint of approval in his eyes. What he appreciated most was Xu Sheng's calmness and quick wit in the face of adversity.

Xu Sheng paused briefly before continuing, "Of the four enemy armies, Wu Jing and Wang Lang are the strongest. Wu Jing's troops are sharp, but they're blocked by Guzhang, so we can ignore them for now. Wang Lang's troops are numerous, but they're scattered across various cities, so assembling them will take time, and time is what our army lacks most. In my humble opinion, we should seize the opportunity while Wang Lang's army hasn't fully assembled and, relying on favorable terrain, intercept his vanguard fifteen miles outside Qiantang, preventing him from approaching. Then, before Wang Lang's main force arrives, we can find an opportunity to capture Qiantang."

After he finished speaking, he quickly added: "If our army cannot capture Qiantang in the short term, we should retreat decisively and not put ourselves in danger."

Yan Yi had already sensed that Guzhang was unlikely to effectively block Wu Jing's army, but he naturally wouldn't point it out now, lest he shake the army's morale. Looking at Xu Sheng, he asked, "Wen Xiang, what is the time limit for conquering Qiantang?"

Xu Sheng thought for a moment, then said solemnly, "Three days at the latest. If our army cannot capture Qiantang within three days, we must retreat immediately!" Yan Yi pondered for a moment, then gave the order, "Send the message! Have Chen Gan and Xu Shou's troops accelerate their march. Upon reaching Qiantang, Chen Gan's troops will immediately rendezvous with us in Nancheng. When the Yuncheng reinforcements arrive at Meiqingbao, they will remain for half a day to monitor Han You's army's movements, just in case. Our army will immediately disband its formation and march towards Yongxing to intercept Zhou Xin's troops!"

Seeing that he had made up his mind, the generals immediately clasped their fists in agreement and went to prepare.

After a while, the entire army slowly withdrew from the battlefield and marched towards Yongxing in a scattered formation. The scene was in chaos and there was no order at all.

Yan Yi's disorganized formation was a repeat of his old tactics, trying to lure the Qiantang defenders out of the city for a field battle.

Although he only had 2,500 soldiers around him at this time, 2,000 of them were elite soldiers. If the defenders went out of the city to pursue him, they would probably have to go out in a straight line and go back in a straight line.

Zhu Zhi saw through Yan Yi's tricks and cursed the traitor in his heart. He wanted to warn the Qiantang defenders, but he couldn't speak and had no place to vent his anxiety.

Zhong Jin stood on the gate tower of Qiantang South Gate, holding a sword, and watched the enemy retreat. Although he didn't know why the enemy suddenly headed south, he felt relieved.

Yan Yi was so arrogant because he had defeated Zhu Zhi, and the pressure on him was too great.

Zhao Kang, the captain of the Left Army, looked at Zhong Jin with a hint of urgency in his tone, "Mr. Zhong, I saw that the enemy's strength was limited when they attacked the city. Now they are hastily retreating, their formation is scattered, and they are heading south again. Perhaps Wang Lang has sent troops! We can take advantage of this moment of confusion and attack them from the city!"

Zhao Kang is the good-for-nothing in Zhong Jin's mind. He is the legitimate son of the Zhao family. He relied on his sister's pillow talk and Zhu Zhi's reliance on the Zhao family to sneak into the army and get the position of captain.

Like Zhong Jin, he was also afraid of Yan Yi. But while Zhong Jin was cowering in fear, he was unable to bear the immense psychological pressure, constantly yearning to lift the siege of Qiantang as soon as possible. Adding to his lack of military experience, it's no surprise that he harbored such naive ideas.

If it were someone else's suggestion, Zhong Jin might have considered it, but Zhao Kang's suggestion was met with a cold laugh: "What if the battle outside the city goes against us?"

Zhao Kang stared at Zhong Jin in bewilderment, his eyes asking, "Are you stupid?" He spoke with a matter-of-fact tone, "If the situation isn't favorable, our army will retreat back to the city."

Zhong Jin cursed him inwardly, calling him a piece of crap. Considering the other party's power, he said patiently, "Yan Yi is treacherous and cunning. Zou Ta's previous experience is still a lesson before us. Our army must not act rashly, lest we repeat Zou Ta's mistakes."

As Yan Yi's reputation grew, more and more people studied his combat methods and were no longer as easily fooled as Qian Tong and Zou Ta.

Just as Zhong Jin and Zhao Kang were secretly criticizing each other and calling each other trash and idiots, Yan Yi's army slowly left Qiantang City at an unusually slow pace.

Zhu Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.

Yan Yi remained calm, unfazed by the fact that the enemy had not been tricked. Only after the entire army was out of sight of the Qiantang defenders did he order them to regroup and march quickly towards Yongxing.

(End of this chapter)