Three Kingdoms

Most people spend the New Year watching Nuo dances, burning firecrackers, putting up peach charms, having a reunion dinner, wearing new clothes, etc. But this year's New Year is very different for Pang Hong.

He didn't expect that his father would take him to Tongguan to see the dead...

To be more precise, it was to watch the war.

During the war, there was no concept of having to rest during the New Year. Cao's army was still outside Tongguan, and from time to time some people would try to attack, constantly putting pressure on the Tongguan defenders and provoking them.

However, both Ma Yue and Zhu Ling could sense the fatigue of Cao Jun's soldiers from their daily actions, but Pang Hong and others did not know this.

That's right, Pang Hong led a group of teenagers on a sightseeing tour.

In order to ensure the safety of the youth visiting group, Pang Tong did not make any special moves in advance when he brought people here this time. He just said hello to Ma Yue and Zhu Ling, and then brought the young visiting group.

A certain person was wearing a green suit and blended in very inconspicuously among them.

The young people's attention was all on the battlefield, and no one paid special attention to the people around them.

"Could this be the Chu-He-Han realm?" 』

Someone in the youth group said.

Pang Hong looked back and found that it was Li Yuan's son.

Li Yuan can be considered one of the natives of Guanzhong who followed Fei Qian back then. Because he was not very capable, after risking his life to fight for a future, he did not continue the war, but changed to Chang'an Lingyi. Chang, in total, is probably a small county magistrate, but it is directly under the jurisdiction of Chang'an, so it will naturally be better than ordinary county magistrates.

This is also a common choice for many gentry children.

Not all gentry children may be Gao Yanei type second generation ancestors. In many cases, some of the irrational behaviors of gentry children are mostly for the growth of themselves or their own families. From the perspective of the overall God, these behaviors are of course very stupid. , but for the children of the gentry at that time, most of their choices were based on careful consideration. Just like Li Yuan immediately sent his children to the school after learning that there was such a young visiting group led by Pang Hong. In this group...

And asked the children to stay with Pang Hong.

So Li Yuan's children asked stupid questions, but people are not stupid.

The moment Pang Hong turned around, Li Yuan's son immediately lowered his head and admitted his mistake.

In the entire youth group, Pang Hong's status is undoubtedly the highest on the surface, so...

This is a subconscious behavior that has nothing to do with productivity, but is only related to authority. This is the case even in the great courts of later generations. A naughty child may not care what an adult says, but will obey another child who is obviously stronger.

This seems to be a biological instinct.

Pang Hong imitated his father as much as possible, with a sullen face and nodded, "Say it again!" We are here to observe. We are not allowed to make loud noises or leave without permission. Anyone who disobeys the order will be punished by military law! 』

Li Yuan's son and others all responded in unison.

Their location is at the edge of a forest at the back of Linzhi Plateau. Because it is covered by tree trunks, branches and shrubs, nothing unusual can be seen from Niutou Plateau on the opposite side, just like people inside blinds. You can see some scenery outside, but it is difficult for people in the distance to see what is behind the blinds.

Cao's army occupied almost the entire Niutou Plain.

Some of Cao's army's laborers also mined trees on Niutou Plateau...

A child timidly said to Pang Hong, "Excuse me, why didn't Cao Jun come around?" 』

Pang Hong glanced at Pang Yi, who was standing not far away.

Pang Tong seemed not to hear.

Pang Hong pondered for a moment, then turned around and said, "It's necessary, but it's impossible." 』

"not understand. ” the child said clearly.

Pang Hong glanced at Pang Tong again and suddenly felt something.

The way his father looked at him sometimes was probably similar to the way he looked at the child now.

After pondering for a moment, Pang Hong said: "The detour will do more harm than good." The distance between the two plateaus is tens of feet, and the ravine spans hundreds of miles. Even if you can really circumvent it, you will be defeated without fighting without water or food. 』

The larger the army, the more it needs to ensure water sources. Cao Cao and Fei Qian's troops are concentrated near Tongguan, not because Tongguan is really impossible to bypass, but only by taking the Tongguan route can the army's soldiers be guaranteed. Supplement required drinking water. If there is no water source during the detour, it is almost equivalent to seeking death.

In addition, during the cold weapon war, supplies, weapons, etc. all needed to be transported, so transportation was very important. If you took a detour through some rugged mountain roads, it would be difficult to get supplies. The sky is even harder.

It should be noted that there is a difference between detouring and plundering. If it is just plundering, you can indeed detour. It only requires a small team of people, just like how most nomadic peoples plundered the Chinese farming people. , but looting can only cause a certain amount of harassment at best, and is far from occupying territory. At the same time, the most fearful thing about taking a detour and plundering is being surrounded by the opponent, which is almost devastating.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the main problem was not the tactics of bypassing and looting, nor how strong the Qing army was, but the corruption of the Ming Dynasty's military system and politics, the mutual distrust between local warlords and the court, and many other issues. factors leading to the results.

Someone asked the first question, and other children also asked some questions one after another.

Some of the questions were simple, and some were a little more complicated. Pang Hong explained them all in general, and he immediately received a lot of admiring looks. He couldn't help but feel a little carried away, and then Pang Tong glanced at the knife sideways and made a puff sound. Falling to the ground again...

"Why……"

Pang Hong slightly sighed sadly and cast his gaze into the distance.

Cao's army's barracks stretched out, and their flags covered the sky and the sun.

Cao Jun's camp looked very strong.

A deep trench with a grain path was dug around the camp, which was filled with sharp wood. The excavated soil was used to build an earth wall behind the trench. Under the earth wall, deer antlers and horses were laid out, as well as strings of caltrops. There is a sentry tower at regular intervals, with soldiers stationed on it day and night.

There are portals on all sides of the camp, and a wooden watchtower is also built on both sides of the camp gate. The watchtower and the gate are both made of tree trunks, with yellow mud smeared on them. A trench is also dug at the door, and a wooden board is built on it for passage, which is removed at night. To prevent sneak attacks.

At this time, the camp gate of Cao Jun's camp was opened wide, and a group of about a thousand people came out. There were also some sporadic scouts and rangers around, and they headed straight to the lower city of Tongguan amidst the sound of war drums.

Cao Jun's soldiers and horses slowly spread out, about five or six rows in front and back, with a roughly straight line, and pressed towards the lower city of Tongguan.

Behind the array, there were laborers pushing some siege equipment forward slowly.

On the wall of the lower city of Tongguan, the hussars were standing ready, shouting loudly and adjusting their ranks. Behind Tongguan Lower City, there are also cattle and horse vehicles transporting some arrows, crossbows, rolling stones and wood that need to be supplemented to the front line...

Is this war?

…

…

Nowadays, Cao Jun's attack seems to be a routine task. Because people stay in one place for a long time, they will inevitably become inert. In order to maintain the vitality of the army, they must take turns to let these soldiers see some blood. Therefore, the offensive formation under Tongguan City is uncertain. Of course, there may be some The smell that paralyzes the defenders.

Zhu Ling, who was in the lower city of Tongguan, glanced sideways at Linzhi Plateau. Although his sight was blocked by the plateau, he knew that someone was watching over there.

Zhu Ling didn't quite understand why Pang Tong would bring out such a young tourist group. Could it be that the flesh and blood mill in Tongguan was not a beautiful scenery?

And if you really want to watch war scenes, why not watch a ball from such a distance?

Come to the lower city of Tongguan and see with your own eyes the loess soaked in blood on this slope, the broken limbs, and the human tissues hanging on the discarded ordnance. Only then can your internal organs and intestines be considered a battlefield!

No matter what happens, why don't you go wander around the barracks a few times?

What can you see on Linzhi Plateau?

However, Zhu Ling can understand to some extent, after all, they are all teenagers.

Not to mention young people, even adults may not face the brutality of the battlefield.

But Zhu Ling didn't understand why Pang Tong brought these young men here?

Zhu Ling couldn't understand it, but it didn't stop him from arranging defense arrangements in an orderly manner. For him, some of the political content at the upper level was too far away, and his main battlefield was still in the area in front of him.

Cao Jun's siege equipment began to protrude forward from the two wings of the array, and the most numerous ones were still chariots and large wooden shields. This stuff is easy to make and has many uses.

There are also ladders, but not many, more like embellishments.

Although it seemed like a routine daily offense, Zhu Ling still did not relax. Cao Jun needs to attack to maintain a relatively strong morale, and the defender also needs to use such confrontations to maintain his own fighting spirit. Then Zhu Ling quickly discovered that there seemed to be some unusual movement at the corner of Tongguan City.

Um?

Are you going to use that thing today?

Where Zhu Ling looked, on the corner platform of Tongguan City, craftsmen and grenadiers were making final adjustments to the bronze cannon before firing.

Because the artillery does not have a retraction mechanism, all the recoil force of the launch needs to be borne by the gun base and the gun pad below the gun base.

In addition to the inspection of the artillery itself, a series of approval calculations are also required for the direction of the artillery, the angle of the muzzle, etc. Otherwise, once the cannon is fired, the shells will fly to nowhere, and the opportunity for the youth group to observe will be lost. significance.

Before Zhu Ling could think of anything, he heard a bang, and a cannonball flashed through the air and hit the slope, splashing a cloud of smoke and dust.

"What is this for?" ! ” Zhu Ling was stunned.

Cao's army hasn't attacked yet, so what's the point of firing artillery so early?

With the sound of the cannon, Cao's army roared, and the entire array began to shake. As he was looking at the calamus carts and large wooden shields being pushed ahead, a few of them fell to the ground at the sight of them. Apparently, the laborers pushing the carts were frightened. broken……

Zhu Ling looked at it and seemed to have some understanding in his heart.

Today is the youth group's observation, and it's the New Year. It's really inappropriate to see corpses flying everywhere, bloody and bloody.

As a war drum roared in Tongguan City, the artillery at the corner made a deafening sound again, and thick gray smoke rose into the sky. The cannonball drew a black line in the air, hit the loess surface of the slope, hit countless pieces of soil and gravel, and immediately rushed into the river.

Cao's army in the distance once again let out uncontrollable shouts of panic, and the Hussars, who had been using fire energy for a long time, also had some slight fluctuations.

Even though the God of War is still a little immature at the moment, the ferocious face revealed cannot be underestimated.

Then came the third bombardment.

The rising smoke of gunpowder fills the air, and the orange-red color exposed at the muzzle is like the bloody mouth of a demon.

The innocent Ban Dao withstood the third artillery shell, but the soldiers of Cao's army not far away realized the same conclusion. In front of the artillery, personal bravery was not worth mentioning, and the siege equipment was vulnerable.

After three rounds, the artillery went silent.

The smoke gradually dissipated.

Cao Jun's original overall formation was so twisted that it looked like legs that could barely hold back their urine.

The frightened laborers running away on both sides were like liquid leaking out of fear...

"It looks like I can't fight anymore!" That’s fine, that’s fine! ” Zhu Ling took a sip of phlegm, then laughed twice, “Send the order, the sentry will be doubled tonight!” 』

Above Tongguan, the smoke is like a pillar.

Under Tongguan, Cao Jun retreated in embarrassment...

…

…

"Master, do you understand today?" 』

Just as Zhu Ling expected, Cao Jun quickly lost his fighting spirit after seeing the roar of artillery for the first time. He didn't even pretend to be brave and simply retreated.

The one-day trip to Tongguan by the youth tour group was a successful conclusion without any surprises.

Others just light firecrackers during the New Year, but they watch big fireworks and firecrackers during the New Year. Naturally, the feeling is completely different.

On the way back, these young people were chirping and excited. They couldn't help but whisper to each other, comment on what they saw and heard today, and use this to show their courage and wisdom.

No one noticed that there was one person who remained silent from beginning to end.

Everyone thought that the core of the youth tour group this time was Pang Hong, but in fact it was not. It was Fei Zhen who was wearing simple clothes and silently mingling among the queue.

After returning to Chang'an Hussar General's Mansion, and after simply washing up, Pang Tong asked Fei Zhen what he had gained today.

Young people like to play, and Feizhen is no exception.

"artillery! Feizhen said, "Father said that artillery will change everything in war!" A powerful offensive and defensive weapon, nothing more than a thunderbolt! 』

Pang Tong rolled his eyelids, "That's it?" 』

Feizhen chuckled, "Of course not." Why are artillery so powerful? The four people are strong, so the country is strong. Only when the country is strong can the weapons be strong. If you have no scholars, you will not know what you want; if you have no farmers, you will not know where to save; if you have no workers, you will not know what to use; Artillery is a thing that affects all the people. Only when the top and bottom are aware of it can it be beneficial. 』

Pang Tong nodded, "Is there anything else?" 』

"There are still people. 』

Feizhen nodded and said, "This time around Tongguan, all of them are the children of officials and nobles in Chang'an Pass. Firstly, we can see their reputation, and secondly, it can also stabilize people's hearts..."

Pang Tong showed a smile.

If nothing big happens, these children of officials and nobles in Guanzhong will become Feizhen's future talent pool. It is very important to have an impression first, so when Pang Tong revealed the intention of this young people's tour group, even though the preparation time was very short, almost all the officials and nobles sent their children to Pang Tong's mansion on time, and even specially Tell them again and again to make these children obedient.

Tongguan is a battlefield, but Pang Tong is not stupid and will not directly take his children to fight for their lives on the battlefield, so basically there is a risk, but the risk is not very big. Most officials and nobles with brains know this. What does a group formation mean...

Originally, it might also mean that so and so is from Jingxiang, and so and so is from Longyou, or that so and so was in the Northland before, but now they all belong to the same team. Of course, it is just this youth league, which does not have any decisive effect, but it is the beginning of integration. With more similar activities in the future, whether active or passive, the original factions in Guanzhong will also be divided. As these teenagers grow up, they slowly disappear and merge into one.

In addition, as Feizhen said, although Cao Jun is not allowed to enter Tongguan, will the three assistants in Guanzhong not be affected at all?

Obviously it's impossible, but issuing an announcement or something seems a bit feeble. Let the children of the officials and nobles in Guanzhong go around Tongguan, and the news they bring back can make these officials and nobles in Guanzhong put their hearts back.

After three rounds of artillery, Cao's army collapsed.

There is no bloody scene to scare these young people who have not yet fully matured their minds, but it will increase the confidence of these young people to fight against Cao Jun. Although these young people may not have the right to make decisions now, the seeds they have planted will definitely be possible in the future. One or two gorgeous flowers bloom...

"These are good. Pang Tong affirmed, "So, do you have any other ideas?" 』

"Any other ideas? ” Feizhen repeated subconsciously, “Is there anything else I have overlooked? 』

Pang Tong nodded, "In addition to what Young Master just said, there are at least three more points. However, as long as Young Master comes up with two more points, I will give you a good review on your plan today... How about it?" 』

"The strength of Cao's army?" Feizhen said tentatively, "The morale of Cao's army has obviously declined, but he still insists on it... Or maybe he doesn't know that his Hedong strategy has been defeated, or maybe he has other support?" No, this is actually the same question, that is, what are Cao Jun still waiting for..."

Pang Tong smiled and said, "Yes." This is the point. What about the other two points? 』

Fei Zhen felt that her head was a little big.

Is there anything else he's missing?

Tongguan, battlefield, soldiers, flags, transport convoys in the inner city of Tongguan, and Cao Jun’s camp on the Niutou Plateau opposite, as well as the Cao Jun soldiers working in panic and fleeing, and the destroyed and abandoned equipment soldiers scattered in the Tongguan Slope Road First……

"ah! ha! ” Feizhen clapped her hands, “I thought of it! supply! It’s consumption and supply, right? ! The war supplies are consumed every day! This is also a question that handsome people must consider! How much is consumed, where will the supplies come from! Cao's army's supply line is longer than ours, so they are more likely to have problems, right? Is it Wei Wenchang? 』

Pang Tong laughed, then stood up, "In today's discussion, Young Master is the winner... But there is one more thing, I hope Young Master can also think of it..."

What else is there?

Feizhen looked at Pang Tong's smile, grinded her teeth, then held her head and thought hard...