Chapter 50

Chapter 684: Defending Han Pass! (1)

----------------- 684/753 -----------------

Han Ho moved busily around the walls, encouraging the soldiers, as it was difficult for the elderly Nuo Shi to move. Occasionally, he would draw his bow and shoot arrows, stabbing and slashing the enemy soldiers who climbed up the walls.

"The enemy is gathering on the left! Crossbowmen, aim your bolts to the left!"

The power of the crossbows was so great that they could pierce through several armored enemy soldiers.

However, with so many enemies, sending a few to the afterlife wouldn't make much of a difference. In such a situation, concentrating firepower was necessary.

Han Ho was the commander of the crossbow unit. He had continuously researched ways to maximize the killing power of the crossbows and trained his troops accordingly.

Dozens of crossbows on the walls fired their bolts to the left in unison.

Due to the distance between each crossbow, they naturally formed a crossfire, causing the enemy soldiers climbing the ladders to fall like rain.

But their positions were quickly filled by other soldiers.

"Disgusting bastards!"

Han Ho was thoroughly frustrated by the endless number of enemy soldiers.

Apart from when the armies of the Six Kingdoms gathered to attack Hangu Pass, had there ever been such a large force assembled to break a single gate? As far as Han Ho knew, there never had been.

"Defend the gate! Gather in the center!"

Dan Wei was rallying the Xiliang soldiers. Han Ho couldn't help but shift his gaze to the gate.

'Ram! I can't even remember how many rams we burned during these four days.'

Han Ho recalled the sight of the ram covered in oil and set on fire. But that didn't happen this time.

'Meng Huayou has run out again!'

Han Ho saw that instead of Meng Huayou, bundles of straw were being poured onto the ram. He instinctively knew that the supply of Meng Huayou in Han Pass had run out.

But he wasn't too surprised. Meng Huayou was so precious that it couldn't be used in such large quantities.

Even if they received more supplies, it would only be enough for a few more uses. However, the Guanxi army seemed to be sending rams as if they were disposable.

* * *

He threw burning straw bundles excessively, turning the area in front of the gate into a sea of fire, burning one ram.

But something else was being poured from the walls.

"Th-th-those!"

Han Ho was shocked by the actions of the Dan Wei army. They were pouring rocks from the gate.

He ran over to find Dan Wei.

"Throw rocks down! Pour them all down!"

"General Dan! General Dan!"

"General Han, please wait a moment. I will send Xiliang soldiers to help soon."

"That's not the issue. Why are you wasting such precious rocks?"

Is there any weapon as efficient as rocks in a siege? All you have to do is drop them on the enemies climbing the ladders.

The problem was the supply of rocks. The best option was bricks, which a person could easily pick up and throw.

But Han Pass didn't have a village nearby, so they couldn't dismantle houses to get bricks. Dismantling the walls of Han Pass to get bricks was also out of the question.

The only option was to dig out large rocks and break them into smaller pieces.

Han Ho had to raise his voice because they were pouring all the rocks they had prepared for the siege.

"General Han, I understand why you're raising your voice, but this is just following the strategy given by the military advisor."

"Strategy? Where in the world is there a siege strategy that wastes rocks like this?"

"I don't know either. I'm just following the orders of the commander-in-chief."

Han Ho couldn't say anything more to the mention of the commander-in-chief's orders. But he couldn't hide his suspicion. He decided to watch for now.

'What can they gain by wasting rocks like this...?'

Han Ho didn't trust the military advisor's strategy. After all, he had seen the ghostly tactics of Jia Xu, a military advisor of Lü Bu's army, so the strategies of ordinary advisors seemed weak in comparison.

But Han Ho had to change his mind.

"Oh!"

* * *

Yan Xing, a general under Han Shu, was commanding the ram unit.

The rams just had to push forward to the gate and pound away. It was a task that could be done by anyone, regardless of their talent for military strategy or command.

They had suffered several setbacks due to Meng Huayou.

But it seemed that Han Pass had run out of Meng Huayou, and flaming arrows couldn't set the rams on fire because of the roof.

'Good! Things are going smoothly!'

Yan Xing felt that they would soon break down the gate of Han Pass.

"Come on! Pound away! I'll give you a great reward when we open the gate!"

While encouraging the soldiers to operate the rams, Yan Xing couldn't help but tilt his head at the enemy's incomprehensible actions.

'Are they giving up the fight?'

Huang Baochong also couldn't hide his confusion as he saw the rocks being poured from the walls.

"What are they doing? Advisor Si, could they be giving up the fight?"

But Si Yuan frowned.

"Lord, it seems they are using a despicable tactic."

"Is this a military strategy?"

"This is too despicable to be called a strategy..."

Huang Baochong soon understood why Si Yuan was so upset.

The rocks poured by Nuo Shi's army prevented the rams from reaching the gate. The rams relied on wheels, but the wheels were stuck in the rocks, making it impossible to move.

Seeing this, Huang Baochong clenched his fists and trembled.

'Nuo Shi... How much more despicable can you get? Please disappear from history with some dignity.'

Huang Baochong felt complicated.

The fight he wanted wasn't like this. He wished for a decisive battle where the winner and loser would be clear.

That's why, despite having the elite cavalry unit Jiang Yidan, he didn't bypass the mountainous area to attack Han Pass from behind.

'A clash must result in one side breaking.'

This was Huang Baochong's stance. It was a matter of respect for Nuo Shi, who had dominated the era alongside him.

However, Nuo Shi was taking unconventional actions to defend Han Pass.

No matter what Nuo Shi did to defend Han Pass, he couldn't blame him. After all, Nuo Shi was the commander-in-chief of Han Pass. To defend Han Pass, he could do anything, no matter how despicable.

But the current movement was disappointing because it was just a temporary measure.

They shouldn't waste straw and rocks like this due to supply issues. Even if they did, it wouldn't affect the outcome of the battle.

"Lord, we should retreat and reorganize the troops..."

Si Yuan judged that they needed to retreat and reorganize the troops. But Huang Baochong hesitated. He felt it was a waste to retreat when they were making progress in the attack on Han Pass.

* * *

Nuo Shi's strategy was fatal to a general like Yan Xing, who lacked experience in sieges. Without such experience, he didn't know what to do. After panicking, he finally regained his composure and ordered the soldiers.

"Pick up the rocks! Clear a path for the rams!"

The soldiers hurriedly cleared the rocks from the ground with their hands. Some screamed in pain as their hands were crushed by the wheels, and others fell to the arrows shot from the walls.

"Wooden shields, gather in the center!"

Yan Xing extinguished the immediate fire with the ingenuity of Cheng Gongying.

Because the Han Pass archers were concentrating their fire on the center, he gathered the wooden shields (large wooden shields attached to carts) in the center.

Huang Baochong, who was watching the scene, didn't hesitate to praise.

"At least Han Shu has a capable general. Who is that?"

"Yes, Commander. It seems to be a general named Cheng Gongying."

"Cheng Gongying, who can match Yan Xing in bravery and Fang De of Ma Chao's army in strategy?"

"That's right."

Huang Baochong became interested.

"Brave and wise, he has the potential to achieve great things."

"He is said to be as brave as Yan Xing and as strategic as Fang De of Ma Chao's army."

"A man who can respond like this is worthy of leading tens of thousands of troops."

It's not unreasonable for Huang Baochong to praise him so highly.

While there are many people in the thirteen provinces of the empire, talented individuals are always in short supply. Especially in times of chaos, a general who possesses both bravery and strategy would be highly valued anywhere.

Although Cheng Gongying serves under Han Shu, since Han Shu is one of Huang Baochong's people, Cheng Gongying can also be considered one of Huang Baochong's people.

How can one gain the empire without using talented individuals in the right place?

"He is a worthy general for my son."

Si Yuan thought that Cheng Gongying could be a candidate for the chief general of Huang Baochong's eldest son, Huang Baojianshou. But Huang Baochong shook his head.

"The eldest is not ruthless enough. He can rise to high office in times of peace, but he is not the right person to pacify the chaos."

"Once you pacify the chaos, you can pass the throne to him."

"Will hunting dogs still be needed when the chaos is pacified?"

Si Yuan silently clasped his hands.

"Advisor Si, withdraw the troops. We've been attacking for four days straight, so the troops need at least a day's rest."

"That's a reasonable suggestion."

Soon, the sound of the retreat horn echoed. As the Guanxi army retreated, the Han Pass army could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

* * *

Jin Gong and Wei were racking their brains to find a way to repel the Guanxi army.

"Advisor Gong, now that we've used the rock-falling tactic, we have no other options."

Wei subtly criticized Jin Gong.

But Jin Gong remained silent. He had no more tricks up his sleeve after using his last resort prematurely.

"Advisor, don't they say that well water will refill even if you scoop it out?"

"It doesn't refill quickly. Advisor Wei, now that we have no hidden tricks, it might be better to fight to the death."

"If we have to fight to the death, what are we military strategists here for? We need a strategy. We need a strategy to turn this disadvantage around."

"You know very well that a strategy won't come just because you rush it. Since the enemy has retreated, we have at least half a day."

Wei shook his head.

"Will a strategy to counter a large army come in half a day?"

"To be honest, I'm not confident. But I'll try my best."

"Hmm~!"

Jin Gong made a promise, albeit a weak one, and Wei sighed deeply, revealing his frustration.

Wei wasn't being territorial. He was just frustrated that he couldn't find a way to resolve the situation with his own strength.

Jin Gong also felt a deep sense of powerlessness.

Their opponent was Huang Baochong. Most of the strategies they had set up against the Guanxi army had already been seen through or had little effect.

Even the rock-falling tactic, which he had considered his last resort, seemed to have been a waste of time.

'I need to find a way, a way... '

Jin Gong walked aimlessly, reviewing various tactics and the battles so far.

Even as he passed by the wounded soldiers groaning in pain, he didn't spare them a glance. But his gaze stopped at the pigpen.

There, a commotion was happening as they were slaughtering pigs.

It seemed that the commander-in-chief, Nuo Shi, knowing they couldn't hold out for long, was slaughtering pigs to feed the soldiers.

But what was strange was that while other pigs in the same pen were being caught and slaughtered, one pair was trying to mate in a corner.

'Creatures are creatures. What's the point of mating when your life is on the line?'

But Jin Gong couldn't look away.

He wasn't so mentally unstable that he found interest in watching animals mate. But he couldn't take his eyes off the scene because a military tactic came to mind.

'Yes, that method is worth a try.'