"Prime Minister, I see that you have built seven or eight hundred trebuchets in the army. You can get all the rocks in the Longxi area. Why don't you use trebuchets? Maybe the small upper city can be conquered long ago."

In the main camp of the Chinese army, they sealed the boat and asked Zhuge Liang.

Zhuge Liang sighed: "Guo Huai is really a talented man, very good at defending the city, and the moat is strategically located. Our army's trebuchets cannot stand on the ground, and they are too far away. The stones thrown fall on the top of the city, which is the end of a powerful crossbow. On the contrary,

It has become their weapon to defend the city. If I attack the city with a trebuchet, I am afraid that our army will not be able to capture it, but will be killed and injured by the stones they throw. Therefore, in order to prevent this, I would rather

No trebuchet needed.”

"So that's what it is. It's such a pity."

Feng Zhou said regretfully.

In fact, although Feng Zhou personally used the strategy of luring the enemy to defeat thousands of Wei soldiers, it also shocked their psychological defense. After this battle, the Wei army retreated to the city and never dared to leave the city to fight again.

Guo Huai retracted his fist, which caused disadvantage in attacking the city.

After all, Zhuge Liang's army only numbered more than 20,000, while the Wei army led by Guo Huai had 25,000.

As the saying goes, surround an enemy ten times, attack it five times, and divide it if doubled. Now that the enemy has a numerical advantage and a geographical advantage, Zhuge Liang can contain Guo Huai's westward route with an army of 20,000, which is already remarkable.

"Your Majesty, don't worry. Now our army has blocked the westward advance of the Wei army. With the strength of Ma Chao, Wei Yan, Gao Xiang and others, we can completely eliminate all the resistance forces in the five counties of Longxi in the next few days. By then, all the five counties in Longxi will be defeated."

It belongs to the big man." Zhuge Liang consoled him.

"The Prime Minister's words are reasonable, but I still want to use the strength at hand to conquer it as soon as possible. Otherwise, when Cao Zhen's army comes up, our army may be attacked from both sides. If Guo Huai 'flowers in the middle,' it will be a bit troublesome.

"Feng Zhou said.

In fact, judging from Zhuge Liang's plan, it is very safe. From the current point of view, the hundreds of thousands of people in the five counties of Longyou are all Han people. As long as Guo Huai and Cao Zhen are blocked for a period of time, Ma Chao, Wei Yan, and Gao Xiang can

When the three armies return, they can defeat them in one fell swoop. At that time, the entire Guanzhong will be under the prying eyes of the Han army, and Wei Emperor Cao Pi will have no fighting power in his hands. Once the Han army advances eastward, he and his troops will leave Jigu.

Zhao Yun and his troops joined forces, so Cao Pi could only abandon the city and flee, return east to Luoyang, and guard Hangu Pass.

Seeing Feng Zhou's expression, Zhuge Liang asked, "I wonder if your majesty has any clever plan to break the city?"

Feng Zhou smiled and said: "I am eager to destroy the city, so I came up with some new weapons."

"New weapons?"

Feng Zhou nodded and said: "Yes, when I was at the street pavilion, I looked at Zhang Dajun from a distance and thought, if there is something that can catch fire after being thrown out, once it is thrown into the enemy's army in large numbers, the enemy will definitely be defeated, so along the way

I thought hard to no avail, but when I saw the trebuchet, I suddenly became enlightened."

"I would like to hear the details." Zhuge Liang asked quickly.

"From burning the new wilderness to burning Red Cliff, how to set the enemy on fire is the most critical. Fortunately, I have thought of a way. After thinking about it for the past few days, I have achieved results."

"This is hollow pottery with a fire starter inside. It is light and can be hit far." Feng Zhou took a fist-sized pot from the side and brought it to Zhuge Liang: "This kind of pottery is thrown by a trebuchet.

After it falls on the city, it will break into pieces and the enemy can no longer use it, and the tinder inside can spontaneously ignite. Ma joins the army, come over and open the mouth of the jar, take out the contents and take a look."

Zhuge Liang was very surprised, and Ma Su hurried over. After saluting, he carefully picked up the hollow clay pot and opened the seal carefully.

As soon as he opened the seal and took out a ball of floc, a faint white smoke came out, and then it became an open flame. While the floc was ignited, it also illuminated Ma Su's eyes.

A pungent smell immediately filled the tent, and Ma Su suddenly choked and coughed repeatedly.

"Your Majesty...cough...cough...cough..." Ma Su coughed and covered his mouth, nose and eyes desperately, but he couldn't stop the snot and tears from flying.

"The self-ignition content of this hollow pottery equipment is only 10% of its own, so it only choked Ma Youchang. If it was filled with enough, the entire tent would be filled with smoke, and everyone would be hit."

Zhuge Liang frowned for a while and hurriedly arranged for someone to open the tent door, but his face showed an expression of joy and said with a smile: "Your Majesty is wise, but this is a trail after all. If your Majesty indulges in this..."

Although he was admonishing, he was smiling and was obviously in a happy mood.

Feng Zhou smiled and said: "What the Prime Minister said is right, I will keep it in mind. However, this matter was not created by me. It was the craftsman Pu Yuan who was ordered by the late emperor to make the Eight Swords of the Han Dynasty. When I was young, I secretly went to see it.

I have seen Pu Yuan's technique of making fire, so I drew inferences from one instance and thought of this. Prime Minister, please rest assured, my heart is as solid as stone, my ambition is for the world, and I will never forget it."

When Zhuge Liang saw what Feng Zhou said, he stood up and bowed: "Your Majesty has great ambitions. Liang occasionally offends you. Fortunately, your Majesty is broad-minded. I feel inexplicable."

After some talk between the emperor and his ministers, the two sat down again, and Zhuge Liang asked: "With the gift from your majesty, I already know the wisdom of going to the city, but I don't know what else your majesty can teach me?"

Feng Zhou waved his hand: "The Prime Minister is here to command, and all the ministers have been on the battlefield for a long time. Why should I be worried? Now I just need to lie down peacefully and wait for the Prime Minister to break through."

Zhuge Liang smiled and was very pleased with Feng Zhou's knowledge.

Since the Northern Expedition, Zhuge Liang has done everything himself, and has put the art of war from his mind into practice in actual combat. As an emperor, Feng Zhou rarely disturbed him, except for the street pavilion and the recent battle to ambush the enemy.

He has never appeared among the entire army, which shows that he has indeed entrusted Zhuge Liang with the important tasks of the entire army and has no intention of overstepping his authority.

After all, he is the king of a country. If he really wants to command the battle, as a minister, can Zhuge Liang oppose him on such a major military matter?

But Zhuge Liang could certainly feel the people's letting go of power and such deep trust, and he couldn't help feeling that a scholar would die for his confidant.

Of course, as the commander-in-chief, Zhuge Liang also has his own arrogance. If the emperor is responsible for everything, then what is the use of having him as prime minister?

He turned his gaze to the civil servants and generals who had been making wooden statues under the tent, and said: "Your Majesty blocked the street pavilion and used your body as bait to find out the situation. Next, we will fight to the death to serve you.

It’s time to capture the upper city!”

All the civil and military ministers agreed in unison, and everyone was excited.

Zhuge Liang quickly arranged military affairs and ordered to build mounds of earth under the upper city. This was a routine operation for sieges, and there was nothing unusual about it. Guo Huai didn't take it too seriously and just sent crossbowmen to block and harass the Han army as a routine.

With giant shields and siege carts as cover, although the Wei army's shooting at the top of the city caused some casualties, it did not have much effect. They could only watch the mounds of soil grow up one by one.

Guo Huai, who went up to the city, did not think that the Shu Han army could launch hundreds of trebuchets at the same time. Because the terrain was limited, so many trebuchets could be deployed on a limited position. The trebuchets at the back were too far away from the city wall and might exceed the range.

, there is no way to hit the city wall.

Otherwise, it is located in Longshan, and it would be easy to remove stones. If trebuchets could be used to attack the city, Zhuge Liang would have used them long ago.

But the facts were beyond his knowledge. Since the trebuchet was invented in the Battle of Guandu, countless wise men have improved it, and Zhuge Liang is the leader among them.

The trebuchet made using his drawings can hit hundreds of steps. Even if the stone is thrown on the city head, it will be useless. But with the hollow pottery, this problem can be easily solved.

Soon hundreds of trebuchets were installed, and the tall trebuchets were densely arranged in rows and rows. The scene was absolutely thrilling and unforgettable for anyone present.

So when Zhuge Liang gave the order to attack the city, stones and clay pots poured down on the city head like hail. After the pottery pots were broken, fire suddenly broke out, which completely stunned the defenders of the upper city and defeated Guo Guo.

Huai's confidence.

On that day, Guo Huai committed suicide with his sword, and the other civil and military officials tied their hands and went out of the city to surrender.

The upper city fell into the hands of Ji Han.

When Cao Zhen, who was marching in a hurry, received the news, he screamed and almost fell off his horse.
Chapter completed!