With the addition of 50,000 county soldiers, Liu Bei's army increased from 30,000 to more than 80,000, greatly increasing its strength.
Then in Anping County, Liu Bei defeated Zhang Yan's 100,000-strong army in a battle. Zhang Yan had to flee to Changshan Kingdom again, and was finally surrounded by Liu Bei in Yuanshi County.
It was just that the weather had turned cold when Liu Bei went on the expedition. After a month of fighting, it began to snow in the entire northern land. Even though Liu Bei's army prepared a lot of woolen coats and woolen cloth, many soldiers still fell ill.
"Brother, it's snowing now, and the army is no longer able to fight!" Guan Yu persuaded.
In this era, there was no way to attack the city in winter. Once it froze, the city walls were stronger than rocks! Not to mention that the ancient army did not have cold-proof materials. The low temperature alone was enough to freeze the soldiers to death, so the ancient army was basically cold-proof in winter.
This situation will not change until the popularization of cotton, but it also avoids marching and fighting in winter. So Guan Yu wants to persuade Liu Bei to fight again next year! If he continues to fight, he will only waste the lives of his soldiers!
But Liu Bei said: "Although what the second brother said is reasonable, the Han Dynasty is in a precarious situation at this time. If the war in Jizhou cannot be put down in time, the people of the Han Dynasty will suffer more!"
Zhang Fei, who was beside Liu Bei, said with a helpless expression: "It's freezing cold, and the walls are as smooth as mirrors. How can we attack the city? Brother, the weather is not something that human power can resist. We'd better withdraw our troops and wait for the warmth of spring next year."
Come on, let’s defeat this bandit Zhang Yan in one battle!”
Even Jian Yong persuaded him: "Xuande, you have achieved great success by defeating Zhang Yan. Now that the time and place are not in my favor, if we continue the fight, I am afraid that it will be superfluous and waste the lives of the soldiers!"
Liu Bei said: "How could I not know that now is not the time to continue fighting. If we withdraw now, we will lose the chance to completely defeat Zhang Yan. If we wait until next year to fight again, spring plowing will be delayed. Now the price of food in Jizhou has risen.
When the price reached 500 yuan per stone, many people were already starving to death.
"If we fight again next year, even Jizhou, which is a granary, will suffer from famine, and how many people will die! It is impossible for the court to help the people in Jizhou under the current situation. We came to Jizhou to fight to save the people, not to starve them all to death.
! No matter how difficult it is to attack the city now, we must find a way to completely defeat Zhang Yan and quell the war in Jizhou!"
The handsome young man who followed Liu Bei admired: "General Liu really loves the people like his own son. If the governor Wang had done the same, Zhang Yan wouldn't have become what he is now!"
Liu Bei looked at the young man and said, "Why should Zilong be so polite? Just call me Xuande. All my friends around me call me that!"
Liu Bei met Zhao Yun this time many years earlier than in history. When Liu Bei attacked Zhang Yan, Zhao Yun led a rebel army to defect to Liu Bei. After the two got along, Zhao Yun found that Liu Bei was generous and kind to the people, and he was his ideal lord.
, and Liu Bei discovered that Zhao Yun was not only highly skilled in martial arts, but also modest and prudent. He liked him very much and often took him with him, which even aroused Zhang Fei's jealousy.
His brother actually fell in love with a pretty boy, so he planned to teach Zhao Yun a lesson, but he didn't expect that he was careless and was taught a lesson by Zhao Yun. However, because of this, the two did not know each other before, and their relationship quickly improved, and Zhao Yun
He also quickly became one of the core members of Liu Bei's small group.
Zhao Yun thought for a while and said: "I'll call you General Xuande Brother!"
"Brother Xuande, actually trying to break through Yuanshi City is not as troublesome as everyone thinks!"
Zhang Fei was surprised and said: "Zilong, an honest man like you is starting to tell lies. Attacking a city has always been a difficult problem throughout the ages, let alone attacking a city in winter. Even if Sun Wu is resurrected, he will be helpless in the face of the current situation."
!”
You can also quickly conquer the city in winter, then the person in front of you is not Zhao Zilong, but the soldier sage Sun Wu!
Zhao Yun smiled and said: "Yide, you have not been in Jizhou in the past few years and do not understand the situation in Jizhou. The Yellow Turban bandits in Jizhou have been so infested in recent years that neither the Wubao nor the city wall can resist the Yellow Turbans' attack. It is because of the Yellow Turban thieves.
There are siege weapons like crowbars, which can break down any city wall.
Therefore, it is difficult for any fort or city to withstand the siege of the Yellow Turban thieves. The Yellow Turban Army obtained the fort, supplies and weapons from the county arsenal, so it has repeatedly grown to its current size. And now we can also use this method, even if the weather is cold
, but now it has just snowed, and the city wall has not been completely frozen, so we still have a chance to break through Yuanshi City!"
"Crowbar!" Liu Bei said hesitantly. Over the years in Youzhou, he had also heard that the Yellow Turban Army used crowbars to break into a large number of forts, but he had never seen it, so naturally he was a little skeptical!
Zhao Yun asked his subordinates to bring some crowbars to show to Liu Bei, and said: "Put the flat end into the city wall hard, and when you pry it hard, the bricks on the wall will fall off! The Yellow Turban Army is already outnumbered.
Everyone, with such a sharp weapon, an ordinary fort can be breached in one day with a crowbar, and it is difficult for an ordinary county to withstand it for more than three days!"
Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei fumbled around with the crowbar for a long time, and they somewhat understood how to use the crowbar.
Liu Bei sighed: "What a fantastic idea. The city wall that has been used for thousands of years can't withstand such a few iron rods!"
Zhang Fei suddenly said: "Brother, don't you remember? This crowbar seems to have been made by Thunder God! Thunder God is really harmful to people. If it weren't for him, Jizhou wouldn't have been in chaos for so many years!"
Guan Yu sensed Xu Wei and quickly stopped him: "Third brother, it is the corrupt officials who caused the chaos in Jizhou. They forced the people to rebel. What happened to Guan Lei Gong!"
After hearing this, Jian Yong sighed: "The crowbar was made by Lei Gong, and the waterwheel, woolen cloth, and briquettes in Mayi were also made by Lei Gong. He is so proficient in all kinds of crafts, can this Lei Gong be a descendant of the Mohist family?"
Liu Bei stopped him and said: "Now is not the time to lament these things!"
Then he asked: "How many such crowbars does Zilong have in his hand?"
Zhao Yundao: "There are probably hundreds of them! It's enough to break Yuanshi City!"
Liu Bei said: "Zilong, you bring your men and use this crowbar to cut through the city wall. Yun Chang and Yide, you two, bring a large army to support Zilong and attract the attention of Zhang Yan and the others. Don't let Zhang Yan and the others affect it."
Regarding Zilong’s actions, we will strive to break the city in three days. If we cannot break the city in three days, we will withdraw to Anping Country!"
Although Liu Bei is an idealist, he will bow his head when faced with reality. If he cannot break Yuanshi City in three days, he will not waste the lives of his soldiers in vain.