Shen Bing was more than ten days old when he heard the information about the Chu army.
By then fifty craftsmen from the engineering barracks had been selected.
Only then did Shen Bing believe that human potential is unlimited. Before that, who would have thought that craftsmen could also learn to ride horses. However, in just one month, more than a hundred people learned how to ride horses.
And because the Black Armored Army only had fifty people, the more than a hundred people spontaneously held several equestrian competitions before finally settling on fifty people.
Fatzitun is one of them. He happened to be hanging his tail and got over forty in the competition.
However, he also lost a lot of fat this month.
Shen Bing did not need to worry about these matters. Without much thought, he ordered Hui to be the commander of the village and lead the craftsmen.
The reason why Hui Lai was asked to manage it was because he had previously served as Zuo Gongshi and managed more than a hundred people, and now it was more than enough to manage fifty people.
But it doesn't seem that easy.
Because although the number of these craftsmen is small, they are present in all divisions, and there are even blade masters and craftsmen among them.
The reason why Shen Bing did not let Qiu become an engineer was because Qiu was more like a craftsman than an engineer.
He was more interested in sword-making craftsmanship and methods. If it weren't for the fact that meritorious service and promotion could bring a better life to his family, he wouldn't consider anything else at all.
This is one of the reasons why I don't want to follow Shen Bing.
His ideal is that after he reaches the rank of official and has his own fiefdom and town, he can concentrate on sword making.
Of course I didn't know that, but the Shen Bing he was following could be said to be the "Master of Swordsmithing".
This is something.
As soon as Shen Bing settled these craftsmen, his personal guards came to report:
"Captain, the general ordered you to go to his commander's tent!"
Shen Bing's heart trembled.
There is a reason why Shen Bing has been rushing to make armor. He thinks that the Chu army will not give the Qin army so much time, especially the black armor army.
This is actually not difficult to guess.
War is sometimes about fighting for the initiative.
At this time, the Chu army was very passive, and not just passive. If they continued to wait like this, the Chu army would only die:
Daliang, an important city in the upper reaches, was occupied by the Qin army. The whole army was in panic. One day, when the Qin army was ready, they would move down the river to attack the city and plunder the territory...
If the Chu army continues like this, they can only sit back and wait for death.
Of course the Chu army would not be reconciled.
Therefore, the Chu army had only one option: to preemptively disrupt the Qin army's strategy and rhythm.
Shen Bing's guess was correct. When he arrived at Yang Duan and the commander's tent, he saw that other generals were already in place.
More than ten famous captains were waiting on both sides. Several generals were sitting around the case with Yang Duanhe to discuss, and there were several bookkeepers responsible for recording.
Seeing Shen Bing come in, Yang Duanhe waved to Shen Bing to come forward.
"You came just in time." Yang Duanhe said: "The Chu army sent troops from Caozhou, and they used the navy army."
Shen Bing understood as soon as he heard that, if the Chu army used naval forces, then the Qin army should also use naval forces to fight.
Yang Duanhe continued:
"The Chu army's goal is to capture the city!"
"At this time, the flood has not receded, and the area around Qiancheng is covered with vast ocean. Only a few small forts and high ground can still stand, but I don't know what the Chu army used it for!"
It's still winter at this time.
In order to flood the Chu army, the ice on the upper reaches of the Yellow River melted, but the ice on the lower reaches of the Jinkou has not yet melted...
Ying Zhengben also imagined that he would melt the ice sealing Jinkou and release the flood to reduce the disaster.
Unfortunately, Jinkou is the territory of Yan State.
Although the State of Yan had been beaten by the Qin army and was unable to fight back, the State of Qin, which had tense relations with the State of Chu at this time, certainly did not want to provoke the State of Yan again.
So we can only resign ourselves to it and wait for next spring.
As a result, the floods in Qiancheng area became increasingly serious, and all the people in Qiancheng had moved away, leaving only an empty city that was half flooded.
The small forts in the surrounding highlands are also uninhabited... Without food, it is a dead end.
Only a few soldiers of the Qin army took wooden platoons to garrison the small fort while paying attention to the water conditions.
Unexpectedly, the Chu army sent naval troops to capture this area.
Shen Bing only asked:
"How many troops does the Chu army have?"
Yang Duanhe replied:
"There are not many troops, more than a thousand sailors."
Li Yan interjected from the side:
"General, why do we need to discuss it here?"
"The Chu army only has more than a thousand sailors, but the black armored army has three thousand. Isn't this the right time to send troops for training?"
"If Colonel Shen doesn't want to fight, we can just let us take the raft to fetch them."
There was no concealment of his ridicule towards Shen Bing and the Black Armored Army in his words.
No wonder Li Yan is dissatisfied with Shen Bing.
Most of the generals in the tents around Li Yan were children of nobles. They had to study in schools first, and then were sent to serve in the army. It would take at least ten years to be promoted to captain.
And Shen Bing was promoted from a drill sergeant to a school lieutenant in less than half a year, so how could they be reconciled, especially when Shen Bing was a civilian...
At least in their eyes they were civilians, and uneducated civilians at that.
A large part of the reason why nobles despise common people is that common people are uneducated.
How did they know that Shen Bing had much more education than them...
Shen Bing ignored Li Yan. He looked at the map and then said to Yang Duanhe:
"General, I'm afraid this matter won't be that simple."
"The Chu army's capture of Qiancheng at this time was obviously not for looting but for garrisoning."
"If it's for garrison, there can't be only a thousand people."
Yang Duanhe said doubtfully:
"Garrison?"
"The walls of Qiancheng have been destroyed by floods, and there are only a few highlands and several small forts around where troops can be garrisoned. There is no food or water, so how can we garrison them? What's the point of garrisoning?"
Shen Bing replied:
"My subordinates think that the Chu army is not defending at this time, but after the flood recedes in the spring next year!"
As he spoke, Shen Bing pointed at the map and said:
"General, please look."
"As soon as the flood recedes, the canal near Qiancheng will appear again."
"At that time, the river canal and the small fort will become the outer defense line, and the main force of the Chu army will consolidate the defense in the city..."
Li Yan interrupted Shen Bing:
"Colonel Shen is afraid that he is worrying too much."
"If the flood recedes, Qiancheng will be under attack from Handan and Daliang in the Qin Dynasty."
"Then the Chu army will have three heads and six arms, and it will be even more difficult to defend Qiancheng."
Shen Bing asked back:
"Does Lieutenant General Li know what the situation will be like near Qiancheng if the flood recedes?"
Li Yan raised his head:
"What else could it be like?"
Yang Duanhe already realized the problem, so he said "oh", nodded and said:
"rational."
"The water in the river is turbid and unclear. After months of raging, the flooded areas near Qiancheng must be filled with silt."
"Even if our army wants to attack then, I'm afraid we won't be able to do so."
The silt is no joke, it's like the bottom of the Bianhe River that has been drained of water.
By then, the Qin army's infantry were attacking in the mud below, while the Chu army had built fortifications on high ground for defense. It would be a delusion for the Qin army to capture Qiancheng even if it had three heads and six arms.
Shen Bing continued:
"And after spring comes the rainy season."
"The mud may not dry up for several months, but the Chu army can use the river to travel freely..."