In the sky above Chen County, arrows crisscrossed the sky, and from time to time there would be a shower of meteorites.
The drum beat loudly, Sima Jie gave an order, and the flag commander waved the flag quickly. Thousands of Qin soldiers dispersed in formation and attacked the city wall of Chen County one after another.
On the other side of the wall of Chen County, Long Qie drew his bow, looked at the direction, and strung together two menacing Qin soldiers with a calm expression.
This is the fifth day that the Qin army attacked Chen County.
Different from the first tentative attack, the Qin army's offensive became stronger day by day, and they reached the city wall of Chen County several times.
I don’t know whether Long Qie was really good at guarding, or whether Sima Jie deliberately let things slip.
Two hundred thousand Qin troops attacked Chen County, where 50,000 rebels were stationed, but failed to capture it.
In the Qin army's camp, Bailice looked at the Qin soldiers who were struggling forward, frowned slightly and said to Sima Jie: "Brother Sima, you said that your Majesty exaggerated the strength of the rebels, and now you are delaying the counter-insurgency, so that your Majesty will think that there is peace.
It’s not easy to rebel, I understand.”
"But you only arrange for 10,000 troops to attack the city each time, and you do this for five consecutive days. If you keep delaying it like this, I'm afraid it's a bit unjustifiable."
Sima Jie smiled slightly and said disapprovingly: "Brother Baili, don't worry, wait for at least three days, I will attack the city with all my strength. These few days are not without results, at least they have consumed a lot of the strength of the rebels in the city, so there is no need to worry about others questioning it.
.”
Bailice said in a deep voice: "Brother Sima, are you sure that we can break the city in three days?"
Sima Jie said confidently: "Of course I am sure. If only ten thousand troops attack the city, they can attack the city wall. If eighty thousand troops come out together and attack the city from all sides, they can definitely break the city in one day."
Bailice was not as optimistic as Sima Jie and said bluntly: "What if the other party is hiding his strength these days?"
Sima Jie laughed loudly and said: "Brother Baili is too worried. Seeing the power of our army, the rebels are too late to try their best. How can they hide their strength?"
"Besides, with a mere 50,000-strong army, no matter how hard he hides his strength, how can he hide it? Will he still be able to summon an army of hundreds of thousands?"
Bailice felt very uncomfortable after hearing this, but he couldn't think of anything to say to refute Sima Jie.
"Brother Sima, it's better to be cautious," Bailice said in the end, turned around and left.
Sima Jie raised his head and looked at the position of the sun, estimated it, and then ordered: "Come, call the gold to withdraw the troops, let the brothers retreat back to the camp to rest, and order the next captain to lead the army to attack in half an hour."
city."
The soldier in charge of beating the drum immediately stopped after receiving the order. Another group of people picked up the sticks and struck the gong hanging in the air. The sound of "Dang~" rang out quickly.
The captain who was responsible for commanding the siege from the front line immediately ordered the shield soldiers to come forward to cover the evacuation of his colleagues.
The Qin soldiers who were crawling on the ladder jumped off the ladder and quickly ran back to their own military formation.
In just a few dozen breaths, more than 9,000 Qin troops retreated like a tide.
…
On the ninth day, Sima Jie put on a set of bright silver armor, held a coiling dragon gun, and stood among a group of Qin soldiers wearing black armor, looking particularly dazzling.
Bailice, who was traveling with him, was wearing the traditional black iron armor of the Qin State.
The two stood at the front of the array, like a black and white evil spirit.
Behind the two men, a hundred thousand troops were waiting.
This time, it was Bailice who gave the order. He raised his hand, lowered it heavily, and said in a deep voice: "When the wind comes, shoot the arrow."
The 100,000 troops behind them shouted in unison: "Feng Feng Feng."
First, three thousand shield soldiers rushed out holding shields more than two meters high. They stopped a stone's throw away from the Chen County city wall and formed a shield wall to block the front of the army.
Then hundreds of bow carts were rolled out, and each bow cart was hung with a hundred specially made arrows. The arrow points were pointed upward at a sixty-degree angle, shining with a cold light in the sun.
The noose was tightened and then loosened, and tens of thousands of arrows were thrown out, carrying a huge impact and landing on the wall of Chen County.
The sound of countless sharp weapons piercing flesh and blood resounded, and the five thousand rebels guarding the city walls of Chen County were directly hit hard, and not a single one of them was left alive.
Even though Long Qie reminded his soldiers to avoid carefully when he saw the bow chariot at the first sight, he still could not change the result.
The arrows shot by the bow cart have such strong penetrating power that the one-inch-thick iron armor is like paper in front of it.
Even the rebel soldiers who were hiding behind the parapet and trying to rely on the parapet to protect themselves were not spared.
The sharp arrows passed directly through the parapet and nailed them to the city wall.
Long Qie broke the sharp arrow in his hand and said calmly to Cao Shen beside him: "The Qin army is serious about it. Chen County will not be able to defend it."
Cao Shen chuckled and said: "The general's ability to hold out for nine days under the attack of 200,000 Qin troops with fifty thousand new troops is extraordinary. There is a huge gap in strength between the two sides. It is indeed a wise move for the general to withdraw his troops to preserve his strength."
Before Long Qie said anything about withdrawing his troops, Cao Shen took the initiative to bring it up to save Long Qie from embarrassment.
Seeing Cao Shen being so considerate, Long Qie just smiled and said nothing. He knew better than anyone how he came to "hold on" for nine days.
While the two were talking, 20,000 Qin troops rushed towards the city wall with the sound of drums.
Another 20,000 troops stood on one side, ready to support at any time.
Long Qie sighed and said to the flag commander beside him: "Pass on this general's order and order five thousand troops to guard the city with me. The rest will follow Mr. Cao and evacuate from the east gate before they are bitten by the Qin army."
.”
Then Long Qie bowed his hand to Cao Shen, asked someone to give him a general's seal, and said: "Please sir, lead the troops first and act according to the plan. The general will catch up as soon as possible."
Long Qie and Cao Shen had already discussed the evacuation strategy, so Cao Shen didn't say much, took the general's seal, took some of the people who survived the arrow rain, went down the city wall, and led the troops.
The 40,000 troops in Chen County City were immediately divided into two groups, one group of 5,000, and climbed onto the city wall. They would fight until the last moment.
A group of thirty-five thousand people, led by Cao Shen, rushed to the east gate of Chen County, opened the gate, and fled eastward crazily while the Qin army outside the city was not paying attention.
After hearing the news from the scouts that the rebels had escaped, Bailice immediately said to Sima Jie: "Brother Sima, something bad has happened. The rebels are going to escape. If the rebels really escape, I'm afraid you and I won't be able to communicate."
"My younger brother plans to lead an army of 20,000 people to pursue around the city. How about I leave it to you here?"
Hearing this, Sima Jie quickly advised: "Brother Baili, wait a minute. This matter was originally proposed by my younger brother. If the rebels escape, I will be fully responsible. I want to lead the army to chase, but I hope Brother Baili can do it."
Bailice thought for a moment and said, "Well, Brother Sima, please make sure to come back with a great victory."
Sima Jie turned around and shouted loudly to the army: "Here come two captains, lead the army, and follow me around the city to pursue."
One-third of the 60,000-strong army was quickly separated. Under the leadership of Sima Jie and under the guidance of the scouts, they pursued eastward.
Watching Sima Jie leave, Bailice stared at the Chen County city wall, pointed at the two captains, and ordered: "You two, lead people to break through the north and south gates respectively, and cooperate with me to attack the rebels at the west gate. The speed must be
quick."
"No," the two captains responded, leading their troops to attack the north and south gates.
There were only five thousand rebels left in the city, and they were all concentrated at the west gate. The two captains entered the city from the north and south gates with little effort.
Seeing the Qin army getting closer and closer, and the number of his men gradually decreasing, Long Qie glanced at Bailice, tore open a talisman, and disappeared.