I practiced magic in the Three Kingdoms

"If we can capture Xinye in one fell swoop, then we will have an outpost base for the subsequent attack on Fancheng. Even if we fail to capture it, we can clear the obstacles in advance and wait for the subsequent siege troops to arrive. We can use the strategy of besieging the point and attacking the reinforcements to lure the Xiangyang defenders out of the city for a field battle, and continuously eliminate the manpower of Liu Biao's army. Then, with the prestige of a great victory, we can force our troops to attack Xiangyang.

Wang Jing nodded repeatedly after hearing this: "Feng Xiao is right. In order to cope with the subsequent changes in the situation, our army must also prepare in advance and advance to Yuzhou to support the retreating Cao army."

Wang Jing was not superstitious about history, nor did he think that eliminating Cao Cao in advance would solve the problem once and for all.

In fact, Jingzhou is now managed by Liu Biao like an iron barrel, with the help of aristocratic families inside and the support of Han royal relatives outside. To Wang Jing, Liu Biao is a much greater threat than Cao Cao.

As for Cao Cao, Wang Jing had already arranged his future clearly. As the saying goes, making the best use of everything and making the best use of people's talents, it was just right for him to do some things that Wang Jing was not very convenient to do.

After all, reform is like this. Cao Cao only needs to take the lead and use tough measures to clear out all the stubborn conservative forces, while Wang Jing needs to consider many things. He needs to balance the forces of all parties, develop productivity, support declining academic schools such as Mohism and Taoism, and ensure that the people can live and work in peace.

In February of the third year of Chuping, Xu County, Yuzhou.

Cao Cao, who had been holding back for a whole winter, finally couldn't wait any longer when he saw the frost and snow melting and the flowers blooming in spring. He decided to send troops to start the battle to conquer Jingzhou in the south.

Cao Cao first put on a good show with Yuan Shu, pretending to send troops to attack Nanyang in the name of attacking Yuan Shu on the orders of Yuan Shao.

As a result, an army of 10,000 set out from Xuchang, headed westward, and marched towards Wancheng in a mighty manner.

This move attracted the attention of princes all over the world, and all the heroes were looking forward to it, waiting for a big show to be staged.

In particular, several forces close to Cao Cao, including King of Chen Liu Chong, Tao Qian of Xuzhou, Kong Rong of Runan, and Liu Biao of Jingzhou, were all waiting for Cao Cao and Yuan Shu to fight each other, consume the strength of both sides, and then let them reap the benefits.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the vanguard of Cao Cao's army passed Bowang, it immediately made a feint and quickly turned south, passing Jiyang and Yuyang along the Yu River, and headed straight for Xinye at lightning speed.

When Cao Cao's army was at the gates of the city, Zhang Yun, a general under Liu Biao stationed in Xinye, finally realized that he and others might have been deceived by the double act between Yuan Shu and Cao Cao!

Cao Cao showed no martial ethics and launched a surprise attack on his old comrade Liu Biao, catching the forces of Jingzhou off guard.

Outside Xinye City, the sound of killing was deafening. Cao Cao's army was lined up facing the city gate, and the black battle flags were fluttering in the wind.

Amid the sound of war drums, the army was determined and their morale soared to the sky.

"We will attack Xinye and plunder for three days without stopping!"

"Wan Sheng! Wan Sheng!"

Seeing his soldiers so excited, Cao Cao felt relieved.

Right now the army is short of money and food, and can only gain morale by allowing soldiers to plunder, although Cao Cao also knows that doing so will damage the population of Xinye and lose the support of the people locally.

But the fact that Cao Cao could be called a treacherous hero in troubled times is enough to show that deep down in his heart, morality would never become a burden that bound his hands and feet.

"Do you know who are the defenders in the city?"

Cao Cao glanced in the direction of Xinye's city gate and asked.

Standing next to him was his trusted adviser Wang Bi: "My Lord, I heard that Zhang Yun, the garrison commander of Xinye, is Liu Biao's nephew. Apart from that, I have not heard of any other outstanding qualities about him."

Cao Cao did not look down on Zhang Yun just because he relied on nepotism to rise to power.

Throughout history, both in China and abroad, family power based on blood ties has been the mainstream of human society. Even in later generations, many large companies are family businesses, not to mention the current feudal society where the aristocracy is high and mighty.

Even Cao Cao, who advocated the promotion of talents on the basis of merit, had most of his trusted subordinates who were relatives of the Cao family, such as Cao Hong and Cao Ren, as well as generals such as Xiahou Yuan and Xiahou Dun.

If you really count it, all of them got to their positions through nepotism.

After all, at the beginning of a business, if you want to achieve success, the first thing you need is team cohesion. What bond in the world can bring people closer together than blood ties?
Even Wang Jing, when he started out, used Wang Ling very much. Now, he has entrusted the rear of the base to Wang Ling instead of anyone else.

Although Cao Cao did not look down on Zhang Yun, he did not think too highly of him either.

In the art of war, attacking the heart is better than attacking the city; psychological warfare is better than physical warfare.

Xinye was the gateway to Jingzhou. Cao Cao wanted to march south to attack Liu Biao, so he naturally hoped to win the battle, preferably without fighting. Therefore, he personally went out to persuade the enemy to surrender, with the Yitian Sword hanging from his waist, facing the city gate and using his mind to transmit his voice, he said: "Listen, people in Xinye, surrender now and you can live! When the war starts, no one will be left alive!"

"Cao Mengde, stop talking big to deceive me!"

Zhang Yun stood on the top of the city wall and shouted, "Cao, you thief, why did you come to attack Xinye instead of attacking Wancheng? Are you bullying me because I have no one in Jingzhou?"

On the top of Xinye City, the soldiers of Jingzhou were filled with righteous indignation and glared at Cao Cao.

Jingxiang is located in the south and therefore was not affected much by wars. Even during the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Jingzhou's society was relatively stable due to its high agricultural output and developed commercial trade, and there was not much chaos.

Liu Biao's way of taking control of Jingzhou was relatively gentle. He simply set up the Hongmen Banquet and used a strategy to kill some arrogant clan leaders. It did not have much impact on the local aristocratic families and powerful families, or even on the ordinary people of Jingzhou.

Therefore, the fact that Cao Cao spread the war to Jingzhou naturally made the local people in Xinye extremely angry. They shared the same hatred with Zhang Yun, the newly arrived county magistrate, and fought against the "Cao thief" together.

Cao Cao was furious when Zhang Yun insulted him in public as "Cao thief". He shouted, "Attack the city! After the city is captured, I will kill Zhang Yun and his entire family!"

dong dong dong~
War drums beat, spears and swords were raised, and the prelude to war slowly began amidst the deafening shouts of killing.

Xinye had not experienced a major war for a long time, and its military preparedness had long been relaxed.

In order to boost morale and boost the army's morale, Zhang Yun had to keep encouraging his soldiers: "Why should we be afraid of Cao Cao? We are defending the city, and we have Xiangfan behind us. We only need to hold out for a few days, and reinforcements will surely arrive! By then, under the attack from both inside and outside, Cao's army will surely be defeated!"

The soldiers defending the city nodded their heads upon hearing this, and it was obvious that they agreed with Zhang Yun's words. Xinye and Xiangyang were only separated by a river. As long as the signal smoke was lit, Liu Biao would immediately gather a large army to stop Cao Cao.

With a strong city inside and powerful reinforcements outside, the Xinye City defenders who were originally at a loss immediately calmed down and began to defend in an orderly manner according to Zhang Yun's orders.

Xiahou Dun, wearing the armor of the Cold Night and wielding the sword of the Cold Moon, personally led thousands of Yuzhou warriors in a fierce attack for half a day. Hundreds of people were killed or wounded, but they failed to even reach the top of the city.

Xiahou Dun had no choice but to withdraw his troops and return to the camp to rest. He also went to Cao Cao to explain the situation, "My lord, the walls of Xinye are protected by magic arrays and crossbow arrays, and the soldiers and civilians are united and it is difficult to shake them. If we continue to attack, even if we can take down Xinye City, we will suffer heavy casualties."

Xinye County has a long history. As early as the late Neolithic period, Chinese ancestors worked and reproduced here.

During the Western Zhou Dynasty, this place belonged to the State of Deng. During the Spring and Autumn Period, it belonged to the State of Chu. During the Warring States Period, it once belonged to the State of Han. After going through three dynasties and spanning more than 1,500 years, the city defense facilities were already very advanced, especially the city defense formation that relied on the power of thought. As long as the military and civilian morale in the city remained stable, it would be extremely difficult to break into the city.

Unless one does what Wang Jing did, using huge stone cannons to blast open the city walls, severely damaging the morale of the defenders in the city, and then letting the army swarm in and destroy the city defense formation.

Although the battle was lost, Cao Cao was calm and composed, without any sign of impatience. He did not blame Xiahou Dun, but smiled and comforted him: "Don't worry, Yuan Rang. I am familiar with military books and strategies. How could I not know the harm of attacking a strong city?"

But after pacifying Xiahou Dun, Cao Cao was still not at peace.

I had intended to take advantage of Xinye's unpreparedness during this forced march to launch a surprise attack on the city, but for some reason Zhang Yun seemed to have been prepared. He not only placed many secret sentries outside the city to monitor the roads, but also closed the north and west gates, causing my sneak attack plan to fail.

How hateful!

If we can capture Xinye in one go, the gate to Jingzhou will be open to us!
Xiahou Dun frowned and thought, very puzzled: "If we don't attack by force, how can our army take Xinye?"

"You'll know in two days."

Cao Cao did not answer directly, but kept the question in suspense for a while.

Xiahou Dun did not ask any more questions, and continued to lead his troops to attack several gates of Xinye every day, trying to find the weak points. However, the defenders in the city were determined to protect their hometown, and no matter how bravely Cao Cao's soldiers attacked, they were finally repelled by the defenders.

Zhang Yun’s military flag still stands tall above the city.

Until some strange craftsmen came to the outside of Xinye City, pushing some strange machines to assemble them.

"General Fenwu, this is a catapult we made based on the lever principle of the giant stone cannon. There are a total of ten in the first batch. Please take a look."

Several elderly craftsmen stood respectfully in front of Cao Cao, waiting for his inspection.

Because Confucianism despised craftsmen, although these old craftsmen had superb skills and were quite wealthy, their social status was generally low. They were often ordered around by dignitaries and used like cattle and horses. Therefore, they had long been accustomed to a humble life and could not even stand up straight when standing in front of Cao Cao.

However, when Xiahou Dun heard the words "giant stone cannon", he was shocked and asked in surprise, "Are these the siege weapons, the giant stone cannons, that broke through Chenliu City in half a day?"

In front of Cao Cao and Xiahou Dun were ten strange-looking wooden carts, with their parts still disassembled, so it was impossible to tell what they really looked like.

However, the three words "stone cannon" are still very intimidating.

After all, Wang Jing's amazing performance with the giant stone cannon is still deeply remembered by Xiahou Dun and other generals in Cao Cao's army. It was because of the giant stone cannon that their plan to capture Yanzhou failed.

But such a terrifying national weapon actually appeared in his own camp. How could Xiahou Dun not be excited?
"My Lord, why does our army have such a powerful weapon?!"

Xiahou Dun was puzzled by this.

Cao Cao explained, "Wang Yuanxu gave me the Mohist Classic as a gift. Although he had bad intentions, I did benefit a lot from it. I made this giant stone cannon based on the lever principle recorded in the book. I asked the craftsmen to crack it and imitate it. Now I finally see the real thing."

Although he offended the Confucianists badly by promoting Mohism, Cao Cao feels it is worth it now that he sees the results.

Zhang Yun was in a very good mood as he had repelled the enemy's attacks for two consecutive days. He even felt more energetic when he was having sex with his new concubine last night.

Early in the morning, Zhang Yun and his young and beautiful concubine did two "morning exercises". Then he got up refreshed, put on the golden-scale fish armor, hung the Tangxi sword on his waist, and climbed up the city wall in a heroic and high-spirited manner. He scanned the enemy camp with his fierce eyes and did his routine patrol work.

It would have been better if he hadn't looked at it. Once he looked at it, Zhang Yun was stunned.

Zhang Yun was stunned for a long time before he pointed at the ten strange-looking machines outside the city and asked his attendants, "What are these?"

Everyone shook their heads: "It looks a bit like a trebuchet, but a trebuchet can't hit that far, right?"

In ancient times, the channels for obtaining information were very closed and narrow, and the spread of a lot of information often required a lot of time.

It’s like Wang Jing used a giant stone cannon to capture Chenliu. Many people know about this, but many people have never seen what the giant stone cannon looks like, so naturally they have no impression of it.

So much so that Cao Cao had already placed a copycat version of the giant stone cannon outside Xinye City, but none of Zhang Yun and the defending soldiers recognized what it was.

Zhang Yun had read some military books. In his impression, siege weapons such as catapults were very weak, but they were still somewhat useful in attacking rammed earth cities or forts.

But the wall of Xinye was built with bluestone weighing 500 kilograms, and the narrow joints were glued together with glutinous rice mortar. Even if a master of the sixth realm of martial arts used all his strength, he could withstand it for a long time.

Use a trebuchet to smash it?

It will take a long time to break it open!
What's more, the catapult was located two hundred steps away. How could its power be so far away?

Zhang Yun couldn't help laughing when he saw this. "Has Cao Cao gone mad after such a long siege? He placed the catapult so far away, is he trying to make us die of laughter so that he can take Xinye?"

Suddenly there was a burst of laughter at the city gate. It was obvious that Zhang Yun and others were laughing at Cao Cao for overestimating his own abilities.

But soon they stopped laughing.

The first test stone bullet flew over two hundred steps, directly over the watchtower on the top of the city wall, and landed in the houses behind them.

Rumble~
The stone bullet rolled dozens of times after hitting the ground, directly smashing down four or five houses and causing serious housing collapse.

Amid the smoke and dust, the screams of innocent people quickly broke the calm atmosphere and awakened Zhang Yun and others from their beautiful fantasies.

"How can a trebuchet hit so far?"

"This is impossible!"

"This is impossible!"

Not only Zhang Yun went crazy, but even the other generals around Zhang Yun went crazy. In their life experiences, they had never seen such powerful siege equipment.

Not to mention having seen it, I’ve never even heard of it!

Someone, however, remembered the battle in Chenliu and said in horror, "No, there really are catapults in the world that can fire this far."

Everyone also recalled a rumor they heard more than half a year ago. At the time, they thought it was all hearsay and simply regarded the existence of the stone cannon as a joke. Deep down in their hearts, they refused to believe it.

Most people are actually short-sighted. They tend to only believe in their own experience and what they have seen with their own eyes. As for things that are beyond their own cognition, they subconsciously deny their existence until they are slapped in the face by reality.

At this moment, Zhang Yun and others were in the same situation. They were hit by Cao Cao's stone bullets and their faces were crooked.

Zhang Yun still refused to believe the cruel facts before his eyes, muttering to himself: "Isn't the giant stone cannon owned by Marquis Qi? How did such a national treasure fall into the hands of Cao Cao? Did Wang Jing secretly join forces with Cao Cao? This is impossible!"

"County Magistrate, the enemy has such a powerful weapon, Xinye is in danger!"

"It's over, it's over. With such amazing power even from 200 steps away, how are we going to defend the city wall?"

Zhang Yun and others all started cursing, but after cursing for a while, they didn't know who to curse at.

As they cursed, the catapults outside the city continued to swing their "arms" vigorously, smashing down on them with stone bullets weighing seventy or eighty kilograms.

Boom~Boom~Boom~
The rumbling sound was so loud that it shook the world and dust rose up all over the battlefield.

From time to time, stone bullets would hit the city walls directly, frightening the defenders on the walls. After all, Xinye was just a small city, and its defensive facilities were no match for big cities like Fancheng and Xiangyang.
The outer layer of stone slabs were soon smashed into pieces, revealing the relatively soft rammed earth inside. Then, under the continuous bombardment of stone bullets, the damage became more serious and the situation became precarious.

"County Magistrate, I'm afraid the city wall won't hold out for much longer. How should we respond?"

Everyone looked at Zhang Yun eagerly.

But how could Zhang Yun crack it?
Facing everyone's expectant gazes, he opened his mouth, but in the end, no words came out.

Boom~Boom~Boom~
Cao Cao outside the city was in a very happy mood at the moment. Standing on a high slope, he leisurely admired the spectacular scene of the catapult bombarding the Xinye city wall.

Some of the stone bullets hit the city walls, making earth-shaking rumbling noises, while others flew into the city, smashing down houses, killing pedestrians, and making crackling sounds of breaking wood, causing unrest and low morale among the people in the city.

Although the number of direct deaths caused by stone bullets was not large, the death from being crushed to death by stone bullets was too horrific, just like a living person being crushed to death by a stone mill. The bloody and tragic scene was simply unbearable to watch. Those with weak wills would surely be terrified when seeing it.

The continuous stone bombardment severely shook the determination of the soldiers and civilians in the city to hold on.

Obviously, the use of the catapults crushed the defenders' will with overwhelming force. (End of this chapter)