The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 268 Disturbing Siege Weapons

The city of Chang'an during the Han and Wei dynasties was located north of the Wei River.

On this day, over a hundred supply wagons arrived at the Wei Bridge, accompanied by a large number of soldiers as guards.

These vehicles were not carrying regular grain; they were carrying military equipment.

Instead, they were valuable items such as gold, silver, silk, clothing, and curtains.

It looks like it was meant to be given as a reward.

Xiahou Mao led his troops out of the city to meet them early on.

Once the entire caravan had crossed the river and they saw Guo Huai bringing up the rear, they could no longer contain themselves and rode directly onto the bridge.
"Boji, I've been waiting for you to come!"

"If you don't come soon, I'm afraid I'll lose my life here!"

Guo Huai's expression changed upon hearing this:
"Are Generals Wang and Zheng planning a rebellion?"

Xiahou Mao shook his head and said:

"Why should I be afraid of those two petty thieves?"

"It's Cao Zidan!"

"He's going to use me as bait again to lure Liu Bei into attacking the city!"

Ugh, it's this again.

Guo Huai had stayed in Guanzhong for quite some time, so he was naturally aware of the "grudges" between the two.

He then offered words of comfort:
"The emperor is currently observing the war situation within the pass from Hongnong, and none of the generals dare to disobey orders."

"You have already surpassed others by holding onto this fortified city, so why complain?"

Xiahou Mao shook his head and said:

"That's the problem!"

"If it is truly fortified enough, why doesn't the emperor himself cross the river to attack Liu Bei?"

"And Sima Zhongda and Zhang Junyi (Zhang He), why are they both hiding far away in other cities, leaving only Cao Zidan and me in Chang'an?"

"This shows that Chang'an City is still not strong enough!"

Guo Huai was speechless.

I wasn't convinced by Xiahou Mao's fallacious reasoning.

Instead, they felt that explaining anything further would be a waste of their time.

Seeing that Guo Huai remained silent, Xiahou Mao immediately became anxious:

"Does Boji think I'm trying to intimidate you?"

"To tell you the truth, I've been observing the enemy camp every day from the highest tower in the south of the city. I know exactly when Liu Bei changes clothes, when he eats, and when he comes out to pretend to patrol the camp. I dare say no one in this city knows the Shu bandits' plans better than me!"

"Even when Zheng Gan secretly sent someone to contact Liu Bei at night, it was all because I deliberately let it happen!"

"Otherwise, with his limited abilities, he probably wouldn't even be able to get past the city moat!"

Guo Huai nodded and gave a perfunctory "Thank you for your hard work."

Xiahou Mao's face flushed red instantly, and he grabbed the other man's reins, saying...
"Come with me and you'll see!"

Without thinking twice, he grabbed the other horse and ran alongside it.

Entering the city through the "Hengmen" in the northwest corner of Chang'an, I walked along Huayang Street, turned onto Xiyin Street, then onto Zhangtai Street, and finally headed south to Anmen, the southernmost gate.

After climbing the city wall, Xiahou Mao pointed to the large Han army camp directly south of Anmen without saying a word.

Or, to put it another way, "factory".

Guo Huai's face finally showed a strange expression.

After a long pause, he turned around and asked in confusion, "Those are... catapults?"

Xiahou Mao: "Although it's not the usual catapult, its appearance clearly indicates that it's designed for throwing stones to smash walls."

"Otherwise, why would those Shu traitors be busy with all that nonsense?"

Upon hearing this, Guo Huai subconsciously turned around to look again.

Just then, I saw that earthen platform that used to be the ruins of a palace.
A large number of Han soldiers are installing and adjusting wooden arms and securing ropes.

Some people also covered the "stone-throwing cart" with cowhide, which was probably used for fire prevention.

What puzzled him most was that some people fixed a very heavy-looking wooden box to the shorter side of the wooden arm.

A similar scene is now appearing on a large scale on that huge earthen platform in the southern suburbs of Chang'an.

A rough count.

Seventy or eighty of these strangely shaped stone-throwing carts have already been erected.

And the number continues to increase. Although Guo Huai couldn't explain the ins and outs of this "stone-throwing cart."

But seeing the enemy mobilizing so many troops to build siege equipment...

I still instinctively felt a sense of unease.

He swallowed hard and asked Xiahou Mao:

"I've heard that you've been keeping several concubines behind Princess Qinghe's back?"

This abrupt and seemingly unrelated question left Xiahou Mao completely bewildered.

It took him a while to realize what was happening, and he said angrily:
"Having several concubines won't stop me from serving the court loyally!"

He stomped his feet a few more times:
"This isn't your first time in Chang'an. Don't you know how sturdy the city walls are now, and whether they're better than they were under the late emperor?"

Guo Huai thought to himself, "How can one be certain of the strength of a city's defenses by looking at just one wall?"
Just by looking at the wall, you can't tell whether the soil is compacted firmly enough, whether enough wooden piles have been added inside to strengthen the structure, or whether the drainage ditch is designed properly... These are not things you can figure out just by glancing at it when you pass by.

Only seasoned veterans with extensive experience in building and defending cities can conduct a thorough investigation to uncover the truth.

But then again.

In Chang'an, there is no shortage of experienced veterans and seasoned craftsmen.

Xiahou Mao's power in this area was not so great that he could control everything... otherwise, why would he always be bullied by Cao Zhen?

So at least in terms of city defense, the other side must have done its best.

Having calmed down somewhat, he pointed to Cao Zhen's camp in the west of the city and said:

"With the General of the Western Garrison encamped outside the city, he will be able to learn of the Shu bandits' intentions more quickly. Do you have a plan to deal with this?"

Upon hearing Cao Zhen's name, Xiahou Mao stiffened slightly and said in a muffled voice:
"He said if I was really afraid I couldn't hold the city, I should block the city gate with heavy objects."

Block the door...

Guo Huai narrowed his eyes.

Generally speaking, the defending side will not trap themselves inside the city unless they are completely cornered.

Of course, nothing is absolute.

Cao Zhen's words were actually meant to urge Xiahou Mao to hold on no matter what.

They held out until the moment of victory arrived.

As is well known, city gates are the weakest point and the easiest place to breach a city.

As is well known, Chang'an was a large city with many gates.

After the Han army's "stone-throwing carts" were built, nine out of ten of them were used to launch attacks towards the city gates.

Thinking of this, Guo Huai couldn't help but take another look at the Han army's artillery-making camp.

The northernmost row of "stone-throwing carts" was less than 600 steps away from Anmen, the southernmost gate of Chang'an.

If it weren't for the numerous corner walls, wooden walls, and a moat separating the two sides, it would be easy to see the difference.

In fact, we've already entered the range where normal combat is possible.

"Ordinary catapults can only launch stones two hundred to two hundred and fifty paces."

"The Shu bandits built this one exceptionally tall, so we'll add a hundred paces to their tall stature."

"In other words, if we move the catapult two or three hundred paces north, we can smash this gate..."

Having calculated this far, Guo Huai said decisively:

"We must not allow the Shu bandits to get close to the moat!"

"The General of the West's cavalry is outside the city. If necessary, we should go and burn these cannons at all costs!"

“That’s Zidan’s plan,” Xiahou Mao replied.

"But the enemy's artillery formation is not yet complete, and we are willing to buy time, so there is no need to rush into an attack."

"Moreover, the enemy clearly values ​​protecting this position, setting up a strong encirclement and heavy troop cover. If we don't lure them away first, it will be difficult to get close."

"Zidan meant that when Liu Bei first arrived, the Shu bandits were in high spirits and their defenses would be very tight."

"Why not wait a little longer and launch a surprise attack after his siege of the city is thwarted?"

Guo Huai thought about it and agreed that this was indeed more reasonable.

After all, it was Liu Bei and the Han army who were eager to win at the moment.

We're just trying to delay things as long as possible.

We should wait in comfort and wait for the enemy to tire themselves out.

But if that's the case, wouldn't there really be nothing else to do besides reinforcing the city gates?
(End of this chapter)