Ji Han Grand Commander

Chapter 149. Battle of Fancheng (XIV)
Three days passed in a blink of an eye. The Wei army made several sporadic attempts, but as Fancheng was a famous fortified city, when the gap between the two sides was not that great, it did not require the defenders to have outstanding skills. As long as the intelligence level was at the normal level, there would basically not be much pressure.

Because Fancheng is surrounded by water on two sides, the army cannot actually deploy its forces. In addition, the city walls are high and thick, so it is not easy to take it down by force.

"Niu Jin, how is the tunnel digging going?"

Cao Ren looked at Niu Jin standing aside. The Wei army had suffered more than a thousand casualties in the past few days, but the defense of Fancheng had not weakened in the slightest, so Cao Ren could only pin his hopes on some external forces.

"General, the brothers are already digging hard. We may still be some distance from the bottom of Fancheng's walls. It will take at least another seven or eight days."

Niu Jin reported truthfully, and Cao Ren nodded. After all, digging a tunnel must be done in secret, and the defenders must not be discovered. They also have to deal with the excavated soil and rocks, so it is normal to be slow.

"Let the troops slow down their attack frequency and attack once every two to three days."

Cao Ren ordered the Wei army to slow down for a while, but the necessary pressure still had to be put on them. The Han army could not be allowed to discover their plan, so the attack had to be launched.

"Gong Heng, what's the situation?"

Feng Xi asked Huang Quan who was covered in mud.

"Grand Commander, it's almost done. All that's left is to pour in the kerosene and the black oil you brought. The ignition devices in various places have been installed, except for the one in the governor's mansion."

Huang Quan wiped the muddy spots off his face.

"Thank you for your hard work, Gong Heng. Let the soldiers begin."

Huang Quan did not waste any time and called on a dozen soldiers to bring in a candlestick made of stone, which looked quite heavy and elegant. Under Huang Quan's order, two identical stone candlesticks were placed in two symmetrical positions in the hall of the prefectural government, just covering the two holes.

Then two extremely long, thin at the top and thick at the bottom, ignition cords were stuffed into the holes connecting the two candlesticks to the ground. It seemed that someone had been waiting below and had processed the lower end.

The soldiers above held a can of melted wax and disguised the two fuses as candles that had been burning for a while but still had a lot of wax left, and fixed the fuses on top.

After all the preparations were done, horse-drawn carriages kept coming in and out of the prefectural government's mansion. The carriages were loaded with barrels of wood, and no one knew what was inside.

"Grand Admiral, we expect the work to be completed tonight. All that remains is to fill in the traces. It will be completely finished by noon tomorrow at the latest."

Feng Xi looked at everyone busying themselves, nodded, and then strode out of the prefectural government, and began to patrol the city and the city walls to calm the troops.

Thanks to the Han army's firm control of the Han River and Tangbai River, although Fancheng was surrounded by the Wei army, it was not actually cut off from the outside world. The Han army's navy could regularly deliver supplies to the Han army in the city and transfer the wounded, so the morale of the Han army in the city was very stable.

After all, there was food and drink, so when the Wei army attacked the city, they only had to pour boiling water down and throw rocks and logs. It was much easier than fighting in the field, and the Han soldiers were able to rest for several days in disguise.

Now both sides have their own little calculations, and neither expects to defeat the enemy head-on.

Cao Ren wanted to take Fancheng and then escape, as Jingzhou would definitely not be his turn. Feng Xi was also unwilling to keep wasting time with Cao Ren in Fancheng.

What a joke. Jingzhou has just been recovered and everything needs to be dealt with. I also have to sort out Jingzhou's internal affairs. How can I have the time to stay in Fancheng with that old man Cao Ren?
If it drags on for a year or so, giving Dongwu time to catch its breath, then it would be a real loss. But Feng Xi was unwilling to retreat like this, so he decided to give Cao Ren a big blow before leaving. If successful, he would severely defeat Cao Ren and make him dare not attack Jingxiang again for a few years.

Even if they failed, it didn't matter. At most, they would maintain the situation when Guan Yu was in Jingzhou, with each ruling separately across the river. It might even be a little better - at least Guan Yu did not have Xiangyang before the Northern Expedition.

With the mentality that success is gain, Feng Xi did not feel too much pressure, but made arrangements step by step. At the same time, he asked the navy temporarily under the command of Xiang Chong to slowly transfer some soldiers according to his wishes.

On the second day, the Wei army did not launch an attack, but took a short break as Cao Ren had said. After all, they had been attacking every day in the past few days, even if it was only half a day, the soldiers were still eager to have a break.

"Boom-boom-boom"

Suddenly, bursts of drum sounded from Fancheng, attracting the attention of the Wei army again. Cao Ren was quite alert because Feng Xi had done the same thing a few days ago. He could only remain unchanged in the face of change, not knowing what tricks Feng Xi was playing.

The drumbeats died down after half an hour, and the Wei army finally breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that it was the Han army gathering in the city or doing something, and it should not have much to do with them.

"Dong dong dong..."

As a result, after an hour or so, the drums sounded again, making the Wei army tense, fearing that the Han army would launch a surprise attack. However, apart from the sound of drums, there was no other reaction in Fancheng, and even the expressions of the soldiers on the city wall did not change.

"General, what tricks is this Shu general playing?"

Cao Zhen frowned and looked at the high and thick-walled Fancheng in the distance. The tall walls completely concealed all the information in the city, and it was impossible to guess it with the naked eye.

"I don't know either. But the Shu army's commander-in-chief, Feng Xi, is a cunning man. He might be up to something bad. Let's not act rashly for now and wait and see what tricks the Han army has to play."

Cao Ren was also unsure of what Feng Xi was going to do. Apart from the occasional drumbeats in Fancheng, there was no other movement, which made Cao Ren's heart tense. After all, the old man felt that a normal person would not do such a thing for no reason.

The sound of drums in the city finally stopped after a while, and then returned to silence as if nothing had happened.

The Wei army just thought that the Han army was adding some background music for them, and they cooked when they should, and took a rest when they should.

After dinner, the drums sounded again, which annoyed the Wei army. Whether they wanted to fight or not, beating the drums every day was disturbing the people, right? They would have spent more energy running around Fancheng instead of beating the drums.

But old man Cao Ren did not dare to bring it with him, so the soldiers had to be on high alert, for fear of falling into Feng Xi's trap.

The sky gradually darkened, the orange-red sunset slowly slid below the horizon, and the visibility became worse and worse.

At this moment, the drumbeats stopped again, and torches were lit on the top of Fancheng City, illuminating the swaying figures of the Han soldiers above.

After a while, the familiar drum sounded again. The Wei army was completely numb. Let them beat the drums if they want. I can probably fall asleep listening to the drum sound tonight.

(End of this chapter)