Qin Official

After learning that his son Xiang Rong had feigned attacks several times to lure the enemy, and that although the Qin army sent out warnings with force and drums, they huddled behind the barriers and could not come out in time, Xiang Yan just sighed and told Zhaohua in the tent something strange. related things.

"There is a turtle chamber in Shouchun, in which the carapace of a divine turtle is enshrined. It is said that he was born in the era of Huangdi and Shennong and lived for three thousand years. All the turtles in Jianghuai are his descendants. It is a pity that during the reign of King Song and Yuan He was killed, but the tortoise shell remained immortal for a hundred years. After the Chu State destroyed the Song Dynasty, it was wrapped in fine brocade and silk and hid in the temple."

"Zihua leads the city in Jiangdong, so he must have seen a lot of turtles, right?"

"I see you often."

Zhaohua responded: "My elders from the east of the Yangtze River often see tortoises swimming on lotus leaves when they are thousands of years old. Where they are born, there are no tigers or wolves in the beasts, and no poisonous stings in the grass. People by the river often raise big tortoises with food and drink until they grow up." One foot in size, and then presented to Bu Yin, and on auspicious days, the turtle's plastron will be picked out and used for divination."

Xiang Yan said: "Of course, when the king dispatches his troops, he must first drill a tortoise in the temple to divine good or bad luck. This time is no exception. However, this time the tortoise shell was burnt three times in a row. In order to appease everyone's hearts, the old man had no choice but to I learned from the old Dou Lian, who used divination to resolve doubts and not to doubt anything. He knocked over the tortoise shell to reassure the soldiers. However, he did not even dare to say a word about the results of the tortoise divination to the soldiers."

He smiled helplessly, and the divination was not good, which cast another layer of gloom in the hearts of the King of Chu and the ministers.

"It's just that the turtle was against me during the divination, but when I came to the front line, I bumped into a hard turtle shell again."

The turtle shell mentioned by Xiang Yan refers to the barrier built by Wang Jian on the front line with hundreds of thousands of people. No matter how the Chu army challenged him, he just cowered and refused to fight. From the looks of it, he was determined to stay here. It’s winter.

"Wang Jian is this old turtle."

Xiang Yan couldn't help but cursed. He didn't know what his opponent was thinking. The Chu army's only advantage was the psychological self-confidence they gained after defeating the Qin army last year. Will fade over time.

This is not the first time Wang Jian has used this tactic. A few years ago, Wang Jian led the Qin army to attack Zhao. Zhao general Li Mu was like a god with his troops, so he failed to achieve success. So Wang Jian and his soldiers retreated for half a year, stalemate with Li Mu, and finally surrendered. There was suspicion within the Zhao State and they used a alienation plan to kill Li Mu. Only then did the Qin army, which had been holding back its anger for half a year, conquer Handan in one fell swoop.

Now, he used this trick to deal with the Chu State again. Xiang Yan asked himself whether he would end up like Li Mu. But the trouble was that the tortoise's carapace was extremely hard and invulnerable. It also had a sharp mouth. If you were not careful, It will chew off a piece of meat.

If he had known this, he would have launched an offensive even if his army had not yet fully assembled, making it impossible for the Qin army to build barriers with peace of mind.

"There are actually many ways to kill turtles."

Zhaohua said: "If you can't break its carapace head-on, why not try cutting in through the gap between the back carapace and the plastron?"

Xiang Yan thought thoughtfully: "Could it be that Zihua's strategy is to eliminate his food supply?"

"good!"

Zhaohua pointed to several roads on the map that were discovered by Chu army scouts at the risk of death:

"The large armies are in a stalemate, with the baggage and food as the first priority. The Qin army has hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians, and consumes 30,000 shi of food a day!"

"Its food has three routes, Rushui, Yingshui, and Honggou, all of which are waterways. This is why its food transportation is more convenient and faster than our army. Food comes from Yangdi, Xinzheng, Xiangcheng, and Dangjun in Qin Yingchuan County. The warehouses were transported downstream one after another, docked at Shangcai and Ruyang, and then transported by carriages, horses and human-powered chariots to the front line barrier camps..."

"We can't do anything about the Qin army's rear grain and waterway grain ships, but if Shangzhu State can advance with a large army as a decisive battle, send chariots and cavalry around the rear, and destroy its dock grain warehouses at Shangcai and Ruyang, then In less than half a month, the Qin army will be in chaos! Our army will take advantage of the momentum to attack. Although we cannot say that we can completely defeat the Qin army, we can at least destroy its barriers and force those behind to retreat!"

Xiang Yan and Zhaohua decided to attack the baggage first. However, in early November, when Zhaohua and others led the Chu army with tens of thousands of chariots, they realized that their thinking was too simple.

They made a long circle and approached the other side of Shangcai Pier from the south bank of Ru River, which was not protected by barriers. They were shocked to find that the pier was also tightly protected by barriers and turrets. From a distance, they saw the Chu army coming to the other side. Thousands of people were there. The Qin army marched out from the military camp one after another and were ready!

What surprised the people of Chu even more was that in addition to the tight defense of the dock where the grain ships docked, barriers were also built on both sides of the road from the dock to the granary in the city, and from the granary to the barricade military camp more than ten miles away.

This kind of road protected by a barrier is called a "corridor". After completing the construction of the barrier turret in front, Zhang Han and other army officers and soldiers retreated with the civilians to make emergency repairs, in order to ensure the safety of the grain road.

"I never thought that Wang Jian would attach so much importance to the food industry and not leave any loopholes..."

Zhaohua looked at the river and sighed, and Xiang Yan's evaluation of Wang Jian flashed in his mind: Old turtle.

…

Seeing the Chu army slowly retreating again, Dongmen Leopard lowered his halberd hand in frustration and said in disappointment: "These Chu troops are really courageless, why did they withdraw again?"

When they were guarding the front line barrier, they also encountered several attacks from the Chu army, but they only challenged the Qin army and retreated on their own when the Qin army did not come out.

Ten days ago, the Nanjun Corps received a new mission. Li You was ordered to return to Shangcai and be responsible for guarding the docks, granaries and grain roads. As the Qin army's barrier camp advanced, this area was already in the rear. Dongmen Leopard thought that he would never see half of the Chu army again, but unexpectedly, a seemingly elite Chu army's cavalry came from the other side today!

Not waiting for him to be happy! The Chu army left again? How can you not be angry?

Heifu said: "If you come here, you will be attacked halfway across the river. Even if you are lucky enough to gain a foothold, the pier has been built like a fortress, and the turrets are made of three-piece earth ramming. How to break it? If you attack rashly, you may destroy the whole army. The Chu army would not dare to bet on being destroyed."

Another leader of five hundred, Li Xian, also came over and said: "Commander, our army is not attacking, and the Chu army is cautious. When will this battle really start?"

"We've been fighting for a long time."

Heifu said: "The battle between the two generals is in full swing!"

Unlike his subordinates who were a little anxious, Hei Fu could see this kind of confrontation with hundreds of thousands of people, and among the more than a thousand of his men, they couldn't even be considered a black pawn. The veterans of both sides just refused to cross the river, and the small soldiers had any solution?

After saying this, Heifu ordered: "Let the Yu cavalry lead the cavalry and patrol along the river. Beware of the Chu army who has not retreated and crossed the water at night!"

Although Heifu was extremely cautious, the Chu army did not dare to take risks.

In the next half month, although the weather got colder day by day, there was still an endless stream of grain ships on the Ru River, and grain trucks also traveled safely in the corridor, transporting 20,000 shi of grain every day to supply the Confederate Army's 150,000 soldiers. Civilian husband. The excess is stored in the Shangcai granary, because in more than a month, when heavy snow falls, the Ru River may be partially frozen, making it difficult to sail.

In December, there was heavy rain and snow, outdoor activities basically disappeared, and the Chu army also stopped meaningless harassment.

Unknowingly, the Qin army and the Chu army faced each other on the front line for more than two months. During this period of time, the soldiers of the Qin army lived a good life. They were protected by barriers and were not afraid of the Chu army's rash attack. They also had sufficient food and winter clothes and bedding to protect them from the severe cold. They were able to wash themselves every few days and clean themselves to avoid the spread of diseases.

The only problem is that I am so busy that I have a lot of time to spend every day except for duty and training.

Others were fine. Dongmen Bao, Ji Ying and other restless ones were already restless. They complained to Hei Fu: "I just feel that this is not a war, but just idleness. If I leave it at home, I am afraid that I will be sentenced to prison." Sin!"

Heifu had no choice but to let everyone find something to do.

It was cold outside in December, so everyone could only throw pots in the tent or compete with each other. Whoever lost would take off a coat and go for a run outside. For a time, the Qin Army's barracks was filled with the atmosphere of philosophy.

In January, the ice melts and the snow melts, everything revives, the sun shines, and everyone goes out for activities. However, there are too few entertainment games these days. They are just practicing archery or playing stone throwing...

The so-called stone throwing distance, in Heifu's opinion, is a stone throwing and standing long jump competition. It was interesting in the first few days, but after a few days, everyone got tired of it.

After the daily training that day, Dongmen Bao and others were basking in the sun boredly. Suddenly, something hit them hard on the back of their heads!

"Who did it?"

Dongmen Leopard thought someone was teasing him, so he turned around cursing and found Hei Fu watching from a distance with a smile.

"It turns out to be the leader..."

Dongmen Leopard's anger subsided immediately, and when he looked at the thing rolling on the ground, it was a spherical thing.

"Isn't this Ju!"

Seeing Piju, Dongmen Bao, Ji Ying and others showed no interest. These days, Cuju is mostly an individual game, similar to later ball-bobbing or shuttlecock kicking. I heard that the people of Qi are very fond of it. There are often performers on the streets of Linzi. The most powerful ones can kick for an hour continuously. They have technical moves such as foot kicks, knee tops, flying legs together, stopping on one foot, leaping back hooks, etc. However, this kind of sport is not very popular in Qin State. Perhaps Qin people are clumsy and do not like such tricks that require too much skill.

"This is no ordinary Cuju."

Heifu stepped on Naju firmly under his feet, looked at his lazy men, and smiled: "Aren't you complaining about having nothing to do all day? I will teach you a new way of playing today!"

…

"It's been a cold spring these days, but the old general is here to patrol the camp. It's really hard work!"

At the camp of the "Southern Army" of the Qin State, Meng Wu, the Southern Army's assistant general who was nearly fifty years old, came up to him with a smile. He wanted to help Wang Jian, who had a gray beard and a big fur coat, and got out of the car. However, he was stopped by the old general who was as hard and cold as iron. Hou Zhan held his hand.

"General Meng, have I reached this point of age?"

Wang Jian was smiling. He was not as old and feeble as he was while recuperating in Pinyang a year ago. Instead, he was full of energy. He looked at Meng Wu in front of him, who was tall and taller than himself. After exchanging a few words, he went hand in hand with him. Go to the military camp.

The military officers along the way bowed to Wang Jian one after another. Unlike the affectionate reception Wang Jian received when he inspected the Northern Army and the Chinese Army, there was no trace of old feelings in the respectful and solemn expressions of this group of people.

Indeed, Meng Wu's men were different from Wang Jian's old men such as Qiang Fu and Yang Duanhe. The Meng family formed its own system, and together with the Wang family, they were the two most famous generals in the Qin State.

Although the Wang family had to wait until Wang Jian and his son destroyed several kingdoms in succession for the Wang family to reach its peak, as early as the time of his uncle Wang Lu (hé), he had already been highly used by King Qin Zhao, and he and Lian Po were in a stalemate in Changping without distinction.

But in Wang Lu's later years, the limelight was completely overshadowed by another person, that is Meng Ao from Qi State.

Since the death of Wu'an Jun Bai Qi, Meng Ao has been the most relied-upon general of King Qin Zhao and King Qin Zhuangxiang. He defeated Han, Zhao and Wei, established Sanchuan County, captured 20 cities of Wei, and established Dong County. When King Qin Zheng succeeded to the throne, Meng Ao was already ranked above Wang Ji and Duke He, and he was the number one general in Qin.

After his death, his son Meng Wu inherited his father's title. Because Meng Wu had old injuries, the Meng family gradually became inferior to the Wang family.

However, Qin Wangzheng has always cultivated the Meng clan as a force to check and balance Wang Jian and his son. He especially admired Meng Wu's son Meng Tian and made him his assistant general in the last battle against Chu. It's a pity that Li Xin and Meng Tian failed. Faced with the humiliation of losing their troops and losing their territory, Meng Wu had no choice but to stand up despite his injuries and clean up the mess for his son.

With an army of 100,000 men, he faced off with the Chu army in Shangcai and Yangcheng for a year, but did not allow the Chu people to continue to expand their victory. He waited until Wang Jian led the army.

Therefore, the relationship between Wang and Meng is subtle. Meng Wu is both a junior and a subordinate, but he is also a competitor. It is the king of Qin who arranged for him to be on the front line to check and balance Wang Jian's back-up...

However, both of them had been immersed in the battlefield officialdom for decades, and they seemed to be close old friends, with endless laughter and laughter along the way.

When Wang Jian visited the camp this time, as usual, he still asked the cook to give the soldiers extra meals, let them eat a bite of meat, improve their diet, and went deep into the barracks to comfort and chat, and ate with the soldiers in person.

Although the military officials treated him respectfully and lukewarmly, the soldiers admired the old general extremely. Every time Wang Jian entered a camp, there would be huge cheers.

Moreover, wherever he went, Wang Jian would ask the local generals and captains a question.

"Is it a drama in the army?"

Meng Wu was stunned for a moment, and then responded: "Recently, it is common for soldiers to play games in the camp, mostly for throwing rocks at a distance, but..."

Wang Jian raised his head: "But what?"

"But I heard that the Nanjun soldiers who were ordered to garrison Shangcai Granary are quite different. Each battalion likes to play a new game called football!"