Chapter 173: Can’t you just defend the city?
Shicheng County.

A section of the north city wall collapsed, which looked as ridiculous as a missing front tooth.

The Shicheng County Magistrate knelt on the ground trembling, holding the letter of surrender in both hands.

This county magistrate was originally from a prominent family in Liyang County. When Zu Lang invaded Jiujiang County last time, he fled to Danyang County for refuge. By chance, he was appreciated by Zhou Xin and became the county magistrate of Shicheng County.

He had witnessed Zu Lang's brutality, and of course he knew better the capabilities of Jinmao's army. He had been opposed to the war since the beginning.

During the battle, he insisted on staying indoors.

Fortunately, this was the reason why he escaped the disaster.

The two county lieutenants wanted to repay Zhou Xin for his promotion, and they had become a puddle of meat on the city wall.

Jin Mao took the bamboo slips and glanced at them casually. He didn't expect that they were so carefully crafted.

Obviously, the county magistrate had wanted to surrender a long time ago. After the surrender letter was ready, he even had time to revise it.

Jin Mao casually handed the surrender letter to Bai Shi and asked, "Tell the soldiers in the city to lay down their weapons and take off their armor and prepare to surrender."

The county magistrate was overjoyed and agreed immediately. He used his hands and feet to quickly return to the city.

Night falls.

There were still more than 3,200 soldiers left in Shicheng County. That is to say, excluding the 300 members of the suicide squad, the catapults actually killed more than 400 people.

But the morale of these soldiers had been crushed, and the fact that the camp was not blown up was thanks to their military qualities.

The elite soldiers of Danyang County have been exposed to the military since childhood, and there is often a high degree of coordination in the armed fights between villagers.

This is also the reason why they become elite soldiers.

However, Jin Mao did not intend to keep these 3,000 people, and ordered: "Give each person a piece of Hu cake so that they have the strength to run back to Danyang County."

The prisoners are not important. They have no weapons anyway, so it’s fine to send them back to Danyang County.

Firstly, it would shake the morale of the Danyang soldiers, and secondly, it would give Zhou Xin more than 3,000 mouths to feed, increasing his burden.

The third point is what Jin Mao wants to do most. He wants to see what effect it will have if Zhou Xin can gather nearly ten thousand elite Danyang soldiers to defend the city.

Of course, if Zhou Xin is incompetent, it would be a good opportunity to save some energy and recapture Danyang County.

If Zhou Xin is really capable, Jin Mao can use this whetstone to sharpen the knife in his hand.

After all, troubled times are coming.

Future opponents will be terrifyingly strong.

The next day.

The Danyang captives were confusedly released, confusedly driven to Danyang County, and finally confusedly stopped outside the city gate by Zhou Xin.

Danyang County, above the north gate.

Zhou Xin looked solemnly at the Jin Mao army behind the defeated soldiers.

He was very clear about this situation.

Once these defeated soldiers are allowed into the city, it will deal a huge blow to morale. If they are not allowed into the city, it will affect future governance.

The most important thing right now is to get through this difficult time.

Zhou Xin immediately decided not to let anyone into the city, but to send courageous generals out of the city with weapons and food to settle these defeated soldiers.

No matter what the outcome, these soldiers have become cannon fodder, and Zhou Xin just wants to maximize their last bit of value.

the other side.

Jinmao was shocked by Zhou Xin's decisiveness and ruthlessness. He gave up on more than 3,000 lives without hesitation.

"Compassion does not command troops!"

"Zhou Xin is not simple."

Xun You agreed and said, "It's really not simple. Zhou Xin would rather sacrifice a beloved general than let our plan succeed. He is quite a great general!"

"Oh?" Jin Mao asked curiously, "Isn't this man quite capable? He even calmed down the defeated soldiers."

Xun You sighed and said, "I won't survive this night."

Jin Mao didn't believe it.

But at midnight, there was chaos and commotion outside the camp.

In the darkness, Jin Mao thought there was a camp roar, so he quickly got up and hid in a corner.

After listening carefully, he realized that the enemy was not his own. He stood up and walked to the camp gate and asked, "What happened?"

Bai Shi reported: "My Lord, there was a camp whistle outside Danyang County. The sound came from there."

Jin Mao pretended to be calm and said, "Order all troops to guard the camp and not let any deserters in. Also, be prepared to prevent night attacks."

"Yes." Bai Shi took the order and passed it on.

Jin Mao then returned to the tent and prepared to rest.

Although it is impossible for Zhou Xin to take advantage of this opportunity to launch a night attack, it is better to be prepared.

Unexpectedly, just as Jinmao was falling asleep, shouts and screams suddenly arose.

This time I heard it clearly, it was indeed Zhou Xin who attacked at night!
"Fuck, I haven't even hit you yet, and you dare to hit me?"

Jin Mao stood up again angrily, his adrenaline rushing. He knew he had no chance of sleeping tonight.

At this time, Bai Shi came back with a messenger to report: "Lord God, the invaders have been stopped."

This shows that the invaders were few in number, and they retreated after fighting and finding no chance.

"Ah!"

Jin Mao was furious. Just a few people dared to attack the camp at night. Want to leave? It's not that easy.

"Send the order!"

"Send out 700 cavalrymen to pursue and kill them. All the first and second battalions should leave the camps and kill everyone they see. No prisoners should be taken!"

"The fourth and fifth battalions will stay behind, and the navy will block the river and completely surround Danyang County."

Bai Shi shouted: "Yes!"

Then, he ran out and shouted, "One team of personal guards will guard the camp, and the rest of you will follow me to attack!"

"The first and second battalions will be mobilized to surround Danyang County from the north and south respectively."

"My lord has ordered that no one should be left alive. All enemies will be beheaded!"

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

The first and second battalions, which had been well prepared, held up torches and were like two fire dragons, biting the darkness fiercely.

Seven hundred royal guards holding torches rushed out quickly, like the breath of a fire dragon, lighting up the darkness.

...

Zhou Xin sent his trusted generals to appease the defeated soldiers, not to send them to die, but to intensify the conflict and allow the defeated soldiers to play their final value.

And took advantage of this unrest to launch a night attack.

But I never expected that Jinmao would be so cautious and set up a secret sentry five miles away.

After his whereabouts were discovered, Zhou Xin still wanted to use the military skills of his elite soldiers to launch a forced attack.

However, they encountered the main force of the enemy one mile away from Jinmao Camp.

As soon as the two groups met, they fought fiercely.

Seeing that the enemy began to reinforce its troops and a steady stream of new recruits emerged from the camp, Zhou Xin knew that it would be too late if he didn't leave now.

However, the ferocity of the main force of the Jinmao Army was beyond his imagination, and he was unable to break free for a while.

Relying on his own bravery, Zhou Xin forced two counterattacks but failed to repel the enemy.

They had no choice but to leave behind a small number of elite soldiers to fight for survival.

"My Lord, are you going to abandon us?"

Hearing the shouts from his subordinates, Zhou Xin hardened his heart and pretended not to hear them, and disappeared into the darkness with the remaining hundred or so men.

There were 400 people when they came, but nearly 300 of them were killed in a night attack. Zhou Xin realized that he had underestimated the enemy.

Following the fire on the top of the city wall, Zhou Xin returned in the dark.

suddenly!

The sound of horse hooves rumbled behind me.

Zhou Xin turned his head and was horrified to find that three long dragons of fire quickly rushed out of the Jinmao camp.

Especially the one in the middle is the brightest and fastest.

Looking at its direction of movement, it coincides with the direction of its return to the city.

"not good!"

Zhou Xin made a prompt decision: "Go west!" To the west is the Yangtze River.

However, we arrived at the bank of the Yangtze River.

Zhou Xin discovered in despair that there was also a long flaming dragon lying on the surface of the river. The moment they discovered each other, they were also locked onto by the other side.

"Buzz!"

As soon as they met, they started firing at each other without any reason.

Zhou Xin and his men fled in a hurry, and when they gathered again, they found that a dozen people were missing.

He was just planning to go south and blend in with the defeated soldiers, taking advantage of the chaos to escape.

"Ahhh!"

A burst of screams was heard, and Zhou Xin was shocked and angry to find that the Jinmao army was slaughtering indiscriminately, whether they were kneeling on the ground to surrender or running for their lives, they were all killed and no one was left alive.

With pursuers on three sides, Zhou Xin had only one way to survive: find a chance to sneak into Shicheng.

Shicheng County is just west of Danyang County, and the Yangtze River is beyond it. It took Zhou Xin and his men two hours to get here.

At this time, the sky was dim and the human eye could only recognize objects at close range.

Zhou Xin observed the training of the Jinmao Army, and saw dozens of people marching in formation in an orderly manner.

Unexpectedly, he managed to sneak through and entered Shicheng County.

They did encounter two waves of Jinmao troops in the middle, but the other side was busy chasing and killing and ignored Zhou Xin and others.

Coincidentally, the Jinmao Army's dispersed operations usually consist of a team of a hundred people.

When it was neither bright nor dark, the dozens of Zhou Xin's men looked like a hundred people. In addition, they were far away and their marching was orderly. The two teams were in a hurry and did not distinguish them carefully, which gave Zhou Xin an opportunity.

After entering Shicheng County, Zhou Xin found a powerful man who was friendly with him, dealt with him briefly for a day, and then set out for Danyang County overnight.

Jin Mao's army had just experienced a night of pursuit and had been resting and recovering day and night, which gave Zhou Xin another opportunity to sneak back to Danyang County.

This failure taught Zhou Xin a profound lesson, so that he restrained his condescending attitude and became more approachable.

Danyang County, which was originally in a state of unrest, unexpectedly became stable.

June 18th.

Jinmao launched an offensive against Danyang County, still using the same tactics as Shicheng.

Zhou Xin was once again caught in a tough battle. The enemy was not outside, but inside.

The people's hearts, which had finally calmed down, began to go wild.

Originally Zhou Xin relied on five hundred elite soldiers to stabilize the situation, but now there are only eighty-seven left out of the five hundred, and all of them are injured. This makes the other newly promoted generals even more panicked.

More and more people are making offers to surrender.

Zhou Xin was completely furious: "Surrender?"

"Have you seen the brothers from Shicheng County?"

"They surrendered! What happened?"

"You were killed by Jin Mao like an animal!"

Immediately, the Danyang County Magistrate pointed out bluntly: "That was not your decision, was it?"

"If you hadn't sent people to incite, would the brothers in Shicheng County have died so tragically?"

"Yes! That's it!" everyone echoed.

Zhou Xin was so heartbroken that he couldn't breathe. His trusted and beloved general finally died outside the city and didn't come back alive.

And he still has to engage in a war of words with these idiots.

"Boom boom boom!"

At this time, three huge rocks as big as two human heads fell into the city, knocking down a row of houses not far from the county government office.

Zhou Xin was in no mood to argue anymore, so he went outside the county government office and estimated the distance. He then discovered that the range of Jin Mao's catapult had increased by about a hundred meters.

"wrong!"

Zhou Xin suddenly realized the seriousness of the problem, mounted his horse, and headed straight for the city wall.

Zhou Xin didn't react until he saw the catapult move forward two hundred meters.

"Jin Mao! You are going too far!"

The catapult was only a hundred meters away from the city wall, no wonder it could hit the ground so deep.

Similarly, this kind of contempt also aroused Zhou Xin's bloodiness.

"Who is willing to go out of the city with me and destroy these three machines that are harming people!"

Seeing that no soldier dared to answer, Zhou Xin sneered: "Damn Danyang elite soldiers! They are just cowards!"

As soon as these words came out, the crowd was furious.

"Huaiji man! Who said your grandfather doesn't dare? The only danger is death!"

Suddenly, a few young men jumped out despite the obstruction of their elders and wanted to go and die with Zhou Xin.

In the end, fifteen people were gathered, most of whom were these young and inexperienced elders.

Zhou Xin originally wanted to bring along his remaining confidants and barely put together a team of a hundred men, but his actions last night deeply hurt these people's hearts, and no one was willing to follow him.

"Don't think you can escape danger after the city is captured!"

Zhou Xin said alarmistly: "I'm telling you! Jin Mao never leaves his enemies alive and won't stop until all three clans are wiped out!"

"You were my close followers. Do you really think you can escape?"

Helplessly, eighty-seven followers dragged their wounded bodies and followed Zhou Xin to launch the final charge.

"crunch-"

The west gate of Danyang County was wide open. Zhou Xin took the lead and launched a desperate charge: "Kill——"

Dian Wei and his personal guards had been waiting for a long time, holding up the short spears in their hands, waiting for Zhou Xin to come and die.

There were more than a dozen short spears on the ground. These were specially made for Dian Wei by Jin Mao when he was in Qu'a County.

"A volley of archers!"

Before Zhou Xin could rush to Dian Wei, the suicide squad was hit by a volley of arrows just like the ones in Shicheng County.

"Raise your shield!"

Zhou Xin raised his left hand and held the wooden shield above his head, trying to resist.

"Herod!"

The horse under his crotch was not so lucky and was shot to death by a hail of arrows.

"Hah!" Zhou Xin rolled on the ground. As soon as he stood up, he was hit head-on by a short spear. He subconsciously raised his wooden shield.

With a "puff" sound, the arm and the wooden shield were pierced together by the short spear, and the tip of the spear was exposed from the back.

Zhou Xin had blood in his mouth and wanted to stand up, but the severe pain in his left hand stopped him.

"ah!"

Zhou Xin was unwilling to kneel, and with his last breath, he stood up straight.

"Puff——" The blood could no longer be stopped from gushing out of his mouth.

Zhou Xin fell straight down and died on the spot.

What happened next was the same as in Shicheng County, and Danyang County collapsed without a fight.

When Jin Mao arrived at the front and saw Zhou Xin's appearance, he couldn't help but sigh: "He is truly a warrior with both wisdom and courage."

"What a pity, I can't use it!"

Back then, when Jin Mao first became the governor of Yangzhou, he sent letters to all counties and prefectures, asking them to surrender.

As expected, it was rejected.

Therefore, Jin Mao immediately issued a manifesto in the name of the late emperor, labeling these people as traitors and vowing to attack them.

Zhou Xin and others united together and declared Jin Mao a traitor in the name of the young emperor.

Thus, the two sides started fighting.

After dealing with Zhou Xin, only Wang Lang and Sheng Xian were left in the entire Yangzhou.

Lu Kang of Lujiang County remained neutral, while Gu Yong and Ling Cao guarded Yuzhang County, making it the county least affected by the disaster.

Jin Mao ordered his men to revise the situation here and submit it to the report.

At the same time, he began to clean up the mess and prepare to cross the Yangtze River to Lujiang County.

Although Lu Kang was neutral, the nobles and powerful families under Lujiang County were not so obedient.

Now that Jin Mao holds power, if he doesn't clean up Lujiang County, how can Lujiang County still be named Jin in the future?
(End of this chapter)