The reason was not that the Chu army was weak in combat, nor that the Chu generals were stupid, but that the general was killed by Wang Ben immediately and the entire army was left without a command.
On the other hand, also at this late night, there were only about 800 Chu soldiers guarding the city gate. The rest were so sleepy in the barracks that they knew nothing about what happened at the city gate.
As a result, the Qin army easily broke through the city gate and rushed to the military camp to surround the rest of the Chu army.
Shen Bing did not give the Chu army any chance to resist. He gave the order and the Black Armored Army fired rockets into the camp in batches.
Amidst the screams, the military camp burst into flames.
During this period, Chu soldiers kept trying to rush out of the camp gate, but the camp gate had been locked with iron chains by the black-armored troops.
Shen Bing cannot be blamed for being cruel, but he knew from Wang Ben that these Chu troops were elite.
If they were just like other Chu troops, Shen Bing might be able to spare their lives.
But they are elites... so only death can reassure Shen Bing.
The heart-rending screams in the military camp continued until dawn the next day, shocking all the people in Ruyin City.
Ruyin is different from the Chu city that the Qin army occupied before.
The previous Chu city was abandoned by Xiang Yan on his own initiative, and the people in the city were all old, weak, sick and disabled.
This is not the case with Ruyin. It is a city that Xiang Yan intends to defend to the death.
Therefore, Xiang Yan not only did not evacuate the people, but also because he withdrew a large number of people from the west of Ru River and the Ru River defense line required labor to build fortifications, there were many young men.
This is also another method of defense for Xiang Yan. These young men can be used for transportation, building fortifications or building city walls in peacetime. If there is insufficient troops during war, they can be armed.
For this purpose, Yan also stored a large amount of food and equipment in Ruyin.
So much so that Shen Bing took people to the warehouse and took a look. Everyone was stunned. There were mountains of food, various armors, swords, and bows and crossbows. Especially the bundles of arrows, which were piled high. More than ten warehouses.
Chen Duan couldn't help but click his tongue when he saw this:
"Does the Chu army plan to stay here for how many years?"
Chen Duan only thought this was a joke, but he didn't know that he was actually telling the truth.
Xiang Yan originally planned to stay here for a few years.
Didn't the battle of Jimo last for several years? It's not surprising that Xiang Yan had long-term plans in Ruyin.
What's more, Ruyin is not a city, but it is used as a stronghold to support a line of defense against the Ru River, which requires far more food, grass, equipment and weapons than a city.
So supplies from Shouchun, as well as from the nobles of Chu State, were transported from all directions and were all stored in the two cities of Ruyin and Chengfu.
Xiang Yan even required these two cities to have certain capabilities in making arrows and weapons:
There are iron mines, iron furnaces, and blacksmiths in the city, and you can make various arrow clusters and weapons, especially arrows.
What is most needed to defend a city is arrows, and what consumes the most is arrows.
The city of Ruyin has a strong wall and thick walls. As long as the Chu army occupies a favorable position and shoots arrows from a high position... half of the battle will be won.
The Ru River defense line also requires a large number of arrows. As long as there are enough crossbowmen and trebuchets deployed on the river bank, the enemy will not be able to attack.
Wang Benze smiled bitterly and said:
"It's a pity that we wanted to bring more equipment and food along the way, but Ruyin has them piled up like a mountain and there is inexhaustible supply..."
Chen Duan smiled and said:
"It is Xiang Yan who deserves to be sighed more!"
"He never imagined that all the supplies he had prepared so hard would fall into our hands!"
The surrounding soldiers immediately burst into laughter.
Shen Bing didn't say much, he just said:
"Have people place firewood around the warehouse and guard it closely."
"If the city cannot be defended, these supplies cannot fall into the hands of the Chu army again."
The crowd roared in response.
Needless to say why this is, occupying Ruyin is only the first step.
Next, the strategic territory of Ruyin was occupied by the Qin army. How could the Chu army be willing to give up?
This is related to the life and death of Rushui's defense line and Shouchun, the capital of Chu State. If it is controlled by the Black Armored Army, can it be repaid?
Therefore, the Chu army will definitely hope to recapture Ruyin before the main force of the Qin army reaches Ruyin, at all costs.
This is also one of the reasons why Shen Bing was ruthless and did not allow the Chu soldiers in the city to survive.
The Black Armored Army will soon be besieged by the Chu Army. Wouldn't it be a disaster to keep those Chu soldiers in the city?
In fact, it was not just those Chu soldiers, but also tens of thousands of Chu people in the city.
There are approximately more than 100,000 of these people...this is after sending many laborers out to transport and build fortifications.
The Black Armored Army only has 3,000 people. If these more than 100,000 people rebel at the same time, even an unarmed charge can overwhelm the Black Armored Army.
However, the fundamental reason why the common people are common people and not an army is that they have no organization and no unity.
So it’s not like one hundred thousand versus three thousand.
What Shen Bing was worried about was that the more than 100,000 people would rebel internally when the Chu army attacked the city. At that time, no matter it was a major chaos or a small chaos, the three thousand people of the Black Armored Army would face internal and external difficulties.
After thinking for a while, Shen Bing opened the west gate and shouted to the people:
"The war between Qin and Chu has nothing to do with civilians. There may be a war in this city and it is not a place to stay for a long time. You can escape after leaving the city!"
What Shen Bing said is true. Everyone knows that Ruyin will become the key to the struggle between Qin and Chu. When the time comes, there will be arrows and stone bullets, and the city will definitely not be a safe place.
At this time, Shen Bing was willing to let them go again. How could they not be willing to do so? After packing up a little, they left the city in groups with food.
Even the old and the weak were taken away together, because Shen Bing said that if he despised the old and the weak and left them in the city, then the heads of several neighboring families would also be left behind.
The Chu people didn't dare to say anything. They helped the old and the young and quickly turned Ruyin into an empty city.
In this way, the Black Armored Army does not need to worry about threats from within.
The reason why Shen Bing opened the west gate instead of the east gate was also considered...
The people are actually the foundation of the army and the country. The army, wealth, etc. actually come from the people. Therefore, small countries with small land and few people basically have no say, and are destined to only be pawns in the competition between big powers.
How could Shen Bing not know this truth, so these tens of thousands of people could not be given to the Chu State in vain and then taken back to become the resistance and obstacle for the Qin army to unify the six countries.
Shen Bing opened the west gate, which meant that these Chu people could only go to the west side of Ru River.
The west side is where the Qin army attacked and the Chu army retreated. At this time, Yang Duanhe stepped up his attack on the front and could reach Ruyin in a few days.
These Chu people may be able to cross the Ru River and return to the east bank, but if the Chu army hears that Ruyin has been occupied by the Qin army, they will be in chaos.
Then, in order to avoid being surrounded, the Chu army would transport supplies and troops to the east bank of Ru River... At that time, the Chu army would not have time to transport the Chu people, especially when there were more than 100,000 Chu people.
Therefore, these Chu people will eventually become the people of Qin.