Chapter 251 Xu Rong lost?

Otani Pass.

Unlike the Jin army who were laughing and cheering, Xu Rong had no intention of taking advantage of the opportunity to attack the camp.

It was not because the Jin army had too many scouts, but because Dong Zhuo had already decided to move the capital, so there was no need to keep so many garrisons at Dagu Pass.

Cavalry generals such as Lu Bu, Li Jue, and Guo Si have already returned to Luoyang with most of the cavalry.

Xu Rong’s next task is to guard Dagu Pass and prevent Jinmao from breaking through.

To this end, Dong Zhuo will gradually withdraw infantry from Xu Rong in the next month until only 20,000 people are left to garrison.

This is the limit of the wartime military force that Dong Zhuo will be able to support in the future. If there are more, they will collapse without a fight.

Because Dong Zhuo's army had run out of food and grass, this action was called moving the capital, but in fact it was to allow the soldiers to rob food.

Luoyang is prosperous. Not only do the living people have money and food, but even the dead buried underground are richer than you can imagine!

If not now, when?

In this way, the general Xu Rong guarding the pass would face tremendous pressure. Seventy thousand men could only fight a draw, and twenty thousand men would not dare to fight head-on.

Xu Rong felt no pressure at all and instilled a concept into his soldiers every day.

"There's nothing to be afraid of with the Yangzhou Army!"

"They are both shoulders supporting their heads. One blow of the knife will kill them all!"

"In the last battle, the elite troops of Yangzhou were all lost. There will definitely be no accidents in this defense!"

And so on.

The morale of Dong Zhuo's army was high. It was obvious that Xu Rong was well versed in training soldiers.

The first day of February.

The first batch of recruits arrived at Guangcheng Pass, and Cheng Pu ordered his deputy general to lead four battalions and some recruits to support the front line.

The army under Jin Mao's command returned to 20,000, plus Sun Jian's 10,000, a total of 30,000.

The second day of February.

Gong Lei brought good news.

"Daguguan is withdrawing troops!"

It was still the same luxurious central military tent where Jin Mao excitedly gave a speech.

On the left is Sun Jian, followed by Zhu Zhi, Han Dang, Zu Mao, etc., all of whom are Sun Jian's subordinates.

On the right is Zhang Fei, followed by Dong Xi, Wu Ning and other generals in the army.

Ling Cao woke up from his serious injuries, but unfortunately his left arm was permanently disabled and he might not be able to fight on the battlefield again.

For this reason, Dong Xian was demoted to be a general again. Although Dian Wei wanted to be sent out, Jin Mao was really worried about the safety of those around him and refused to send him out no matter what.

"Everyone! This is a godsend!"

"If we don't take Dagu Pass now, when will we take it?"

"Where is Huang Zhong?"

"The general is here!"

Huang Zhong didn't expect that he would be the first one to be called, so he hurriedly stepped out of the line and bowed.

"I order you to immediately prepare the Royal Guards Crossbow Battalion and set out at three quarters past noon. Fire wooden arrows during the day and iron arrows at night."

"The flag is the order!"

Huang Zhong immediately understood Jin Mao's intention and clasped his fists and said, "Yes!"

He stood up and went downstairs to make arrangements without looking back.

"Dian Wei, Dong Xi."

"The general is here!"

Dong Xian was the first to answer. Dian Wei, who was guarding outside the tent, thought he had heard it wrong. He popped his head into the tent with a puzzled look on his face: "My lord, you called me?"

"Come in and answer the question quickly."

Jinmao has always had a special favor for Dian Wei, which can only be compared with Bai Shi in the past.

"Oh, here we come."

Dian Wei happily stepped into the tent, came to Dong Xi's side, knelt on one knee, clasped his fists and said, "I am here!"

Jin Mao was amused and said, "I'll order you two to prepare the catapult camp. I'm going to blast him!"

Ten catapults were also sent to Guangcheng Pass along with the new recruits. These things were too heavy and very inconvenient to transport by land. In addition to escorting the necessary food and fodder, only this much could be sent to the front line out of the ten thousand new recruits.

Dian Wei thought he would have another good opportunity to kill the enemy, but he didn't expect this to be the case. He said gloomily, "Yes."

Now only Dian Wei dares to speak to Jin Mao without causing any resentment.

"hehe."

Jin Mao pretended to be angry and said, "Dian Hongxing, are you dissatisfied?"

Dian Wei then waved his hands repeatedly and said, "Nothing! Not at all!"

"Why don't you go down and prepare?"

Looking at Dian Wei who was pissing and shitting himself, Zhang Fei was the only one who could laugh out loud.

Jin Mao ignored him and turned to look at Sun Jian and said, "I'll have to trouble you with the matter of attacking the city and breaking through the pass, brother. You are an expert in this area."

Han Dang was the first one to feel unhappy, and was about to lose his temper when he was stopped by Sun Jian.

"What my junior brother said is true."

Sun Jian smiled and said, "Who else but me can do this?"

Jin Mao couldn't tell whether Sun Jian's smile was fake or real, so he smiled and said, "Please prepare more, Senior Brother."

Sun Jian bowed to Jin Mao and said, "I'll go down and prepare now."

After saying this, Sun Jian led his generals down.

The left side was empty in an instant.

At this time, seeing that Sun Jian had arranged all the tasks but he had nothing to do, Zhang Fei could no longer hold back and became anxious.

"My Lord, what shall I do?"

Zhang Fei held his left hand and gestured with his right hand: "You have to assign me a job, right?"

Jin Mao looked at Zhang Fei's left hand speechlessly and said, "Can you still go to the battlefield like this?"

"Be careful not to end up like Ling Cao, your left hand will be crippled for the rest of your life."

Zhang Fei looked down and immediately waved his left arm with a grin, saying, "This little injury is nothing."

"I can still fight!"

Seeing Zhang Fei's persistence, Jin Mao called out, "Zhang Fei!"

"The general is here!"

Seeing Zhang Fei's excitement, Jin Mao pointed out another person and asked, "Where is Guan Yu?"

"The general is here!"

Seeing Guan Yu standing in the same row with him, Zhang Fei glanced at him with disdain.

"I order the two of you to lead the troops of the second battalion and the fourth battalion to protect the construction and security of the catapults."

Since the catapult is very heavy and cannot be moved at will after installation, it must be protected by special people if it is to play an important role.

Zhang Fei was just making fun of Dian Wei, but he didn't expect that it would be his turn so soon.

"My Lord, can I change my errand?"

"This is a military order!" Jin Mao said seriously, "How can we allow this to happen?"

Zhang Fei then whispered awkwardly: "Just go, it's no big deal."

"What did you say?"

"My lord, I will prepare it now!"

the other side.

As soon as Sun Jian left the patrol area of ​​the central army tent, Han Dang behind him could not help but complain: "My lord, why do you have to endure this?"

"Dong Zhuo's army is nothing special. Even with only our 10,000 people, we can still break through Dagu Pass!"

Sun Jian did not argue, but comforted him: "I know you are upset, and we are about to attack Luoyang, so be patient."

"Once we enter Luoyang and welcome back the emperor, I will support you in whatever you want to do!"

Han Dang then gave up.

...

Otani Pass.

These days, the main cavalry force has withdrawn, leaving only the wounded, old and weak remaining in Dagu Pass.

Xu Rong knew that these would all become abandoned pawns, but he had no intention of neglecting them and treated them all equally.

It must be said that Xu Rong had a good way of managing the army. Everyone in Dagu Pass, whether legitimate or illegitimate, was convinced by him. As another batch of 20,000 elite infantrymen were transferred back to Luoyang, Xu Rong knew that the day of his retreat was not far away.

There are now 5,000 cavalry and more than 15,000 infantry left in Dagu Pass.

Nominally there are still 20,000 troops.

In fact, most of them were wounded and old and weak, and Xu Rong had only 5,000 direct subordinates who could be considered usable soldiers.

"Report!"

"General, the enemy has been spotted two miles east of the hill."

The hill is the small hill directly opposite Dagu Pass.

The nearby terrain map immediately appeared in Xu Rong's mind, and the place where he discovered the enemy was not far from where Sun Jian fought the battle.

"Not good!" Xu Rong immediately realized that the problem was very serious.

Recently, the Prime Minister had given Xu Rong too many instructions. The trivial matters troubled his mind, and there was no one to share the burden, so he ignored the fact that Jin Mao would make a comeback.

Obviously, Xu Rong realized that the enemy force on the east side of the mountain was not simple and might have been entrenched there for a long time. Even the recent events in Dagu Pass had been known to Jin Mao.

"Dagu Pass cannot be defended!"

Xu Rong immediately realized the seriousness of the matter.

If Dong Zhuo had not drawn out his elite troops, Jin Mao's plan to attack would have been nothing short of a pipe dream, but he could not be stopped by just 20,000 old and weak men.

What's more, Xu Rong is not blind and would not be unable to see the arrival of reinforcements from the opposite side.

But if he abandoned Dagu Pass directly, Xu Rong would not be able to explain to Dong Zhuo.

Behind Dagu Pass is a flat road leading directly to Luoyang. By then, the whole country will be in a state of collapse and no one will be able to survive. If Dong Zhuo is defeated, how can Xu Rong be any better off?

Time waits for no one. Xu Rong quickly came to the desk, picked up the carving knife and started to carve words on the bamboo slips.

"Somebody come!"

"Make sure to hand this letter to the Prime Minister!"

After the messenger left, Xu Rong called the messenger again.

"Pass my general's order!"

"Order all the troops near Dagu Pass to join me. If anyone does not come or disobeys my orders, I will report to the Prime Minister and have them executed without mercy!"

"Here!"

Xu Rong still felt uneasy, so he closed his eyes and thought about the most likely way to stop Jinmao's progress.

"Have it!"

Immediately, Xu Rong called his deputy general, made all the arrangements, and then stood up and went outside the tent.

"Drum roll!"

"Prepare for war!"

As the drumbeats from the central army tent began to spread, the ancient horn sounds resounded through the sky at Dagu Pass.

All the remaining troops of Dong Zhuo knew that the next major battle was coming, so those who could still move picked up their weapons and went to one garrison point after another.

There were also many people who pretended to be seriously injured and unconscious, hiding in the wounded camp, hoping to avoid attention.

Xu Rong saw all of this, but unusually he did not make an example of someone or boost morale. Instead, he climbed to the top of a small hill in front of Dagu Pass and observed the enemy around him.

At first glance, Xu Rong saw that Sun Jian's troops were divided into two groups, about 5,000 people each, blocking the two small paths at the exit of Dagu Pass.

At the second glance, he saw the huge catapult under construction. It was hard not to pay attention to the tall figure.

Then, Xu Rong looked to the east in the direction pointed by the scout, and indeed saw a group of elite soldiers surging.

In the early spring sunshine, the light reflected by the dark armor constantly stimulated Xu Rong's eyes.

"It seems that they have concluded that our army is not well prepared."

Xu Rong pondered: "But we can't tell how many people are still guarding the pass, so we don't attack directly, but set up a formation to consume them?"

Even if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he could guess that if there were catapults in the front, there would be crossbowmen on the east.

Xu Rong carefully studied Jinmao's several siege operations and found that he was very fond of fighting a war of attrition. He would not send out his entire army unless the enemy's morale or number of troops was depleted to a certain extent.

Moreover, the last battle made Xu Rong witness the power of Jinmao's troops, which made him more determined in his plan.

Soon, Xu Rong stopped paying attention to the movements of Jin Mao's army and Sun Jian's army, and started to give chicken soup to this group of old, weak and disabled soldiers.

After everyone's morale was aroused, Xu Rong planted his flag on the top of the hill, showing an attitude of living and dying together with Dagu Pass.

Suddenly, the morale inside and outside Dagu Pass was greatly boosted.

Wei time (2pm).

everything's ready.

Jin Mao set up the command platform on one of the three arrow towers that were hastily built in the past few days.

The view here is very good, and you can see the overall operation of the whole venue.

"Send the order!"

"Wait for the Catapult Battalion to begin attacking, and the Crossbow Battalion to enter the attack sequence one by one."

"Don't skimp on the baggage, shoot it hard for me!"

The order spread quickly.

The catapult camp in front started preparing when they heard the drum sound, but it was a little more troublesome on Huang Zhong's side, and they needed people to run to a special location to inform with flag signals.

Soon, the first wave of boulders was loaded.

Zhang Fei saw Dian Wei having a lot of fun and wanted to go forward, but the wound on his hand had not healed yet and he could not exert any strength.

Guan Yu, who had nothing to do, played one of the machines.

Dong Xi wanted to act as the commander, but Zhang Fei snatched the command flag from him and waved it happily.

"Follow my orders."

"Get ready, let go!"

Hu Hu Hu.

Accompanied by the huge swinging wind force, Zhang Fei watched excitedly as ten huge rocks were thrown towards the hill in front of him in a parabola.

After a few seconds, there was the sound of "cracking" of huge rocks breaking.

And those sentry tower camps built on the hills were shattered into pieces like tofu.

"Come again! Come again!"

Zhang Fei had never thought that siege could be played like this, and he waved his command flag randomly.

Seeing this, Dong Xi quickly grabbed it.

Suddenly, Zhang Fei's eyes widened with anger.

"Zhang Yide! Do you want the lord to know that you have been absent from duty?"

Dong Xian's words made Zhang Fei dare not act recklessly, and he returned to the escort unit in a huff.

Guan Yu doesn't care about that. Now that he is not valued, he feels a bit like he has given up on himself.

Dong Xian didn't care about so many things. Allowing Zhang Fei to play once was already a great favor. After all, if the lord knew about it, everyone would be held responsible.

"Get ready, let go!"

As the second batch of boulders rose into the air, a dark cloud suddenly flew over from the east.

No, it was just a cloud of arrows!
It was Huang Zhong who finally reached the designated position and began to cover the hill with a powerful crossbow.

Half an hour later.

The huge rocks bombarded the ground five times, and the powerful crossbows swept the ground three times.

Jin Mao saw that the time was right and immediately gave the order: "Begin the siege!"

"Order Sun Jian's troops to attack Dagu Pass head-on!"

"Zhang Fei, Guan Yu, and Dong Xi lead the main force to capture the hill!"

"Dian Wei led the personal guards and the new recruits to guard the catapult camp."

"Huang Zhong's strong crossbow troops move to Dagu Pass to provide firepower support to Sun Jian."

As the orders were given one after another, the people on the ground began to move.

Looking down from above.

Sun Jian's troops were like two pieces of colorful silk, rolling towards Dagu Pass.

The main force led by Zhang Fei and others was like a black sword, piercing the sky and rushing all the way to the top of the hill.

The troops under Huang Zhong and Gong Lei began to disperse like a swarm of hornets, hiding in the mountains and forests, no longer exposed to the sunlight.

Jin Mao, who was standing on the arrow tower, frowned when he saw Xu Rongshuai's flag retreat down the mountain very decisively.

It always feels a bit too simple.

(End of this chapter)