The Three Kingdoms Voyage

Chapter 333
Hearing the sound of drums at the top of the city, the archers under the city shrunk their necks subconsciously and tried to hide their bodies under the giant shield. They were the most shabby troops in the Sasanian army. The armor is not complete. If you are shot by the opponent's arrow, the possibility of injury is very high.

However, these archers obviously underestimated the lethality of the Han Chinese crossbow array. The arrow rain pouring from the city was not only denser than their estimation, but also had a range far beyond their imagination. This made those who thought it was safer The archers were dealt a severe blow.

The sound of "咻咻" can be heard endlessly, and the screams of the Sasanian archers echoed with the howling of the arrows. Almost none of the archers within 120 steps were spared, and nearly half of the archers beyond 120 steps were attacked sharply, and the losses were very heavy. , the Sasanian archers without effective armor fell under the impact of the dense arrow array of about ten breaths, and only some people at the back survived. They stared dumbfounded at the dense arrow branches like lush thatch in front of them The messy corpses were shrouded in great fear, and they forgot to even run away. They were silent for a while, and who could react the most, let out a sharp scream, threw away the bow and arrow in their hands, turned around and ran away .

The morale of the Sasanians plummeted.

Ardashir made a gloomy face, waved his hand, and the guards swarmed forward, swung the sharp saber in their hands, and slashed at the rushing archers. The frightened archers didn't even think about it. In this situation, before they had time to react, they were beheaded by the pro-guards in front of the battle.

In the face of greater death, the Sasanian soldiers were as silent as a stone. Although they were not as immersive as the archers, most of them had been fighting for many years. No matter how fierce it is, more experienced people can even estimate the coverage of the opponent's arrow array from the number of escaped archers, and all of this makes them terrified.

The Sassanids were not good at attacking cities, but the enemies in the past, whether it was the Parthians, the Guishan people, or the Romans, did not have a clear advantage in ordnance, but now, they felt the strength of their opponents, and these arrow arrays Compared to that day, the warrior who killed Alpha and the other three had no deterrent effect.

Ardasil was expressionless, and ordered to attack again. Another group of archers stepped forward in a neat line, but this time, they were obviously a little more tragic and nervous.

The two sides attacked each other again with arrow arrays. This time the Sasanians were prepared and did not dare to get too close to the city wall. They set the distance beyond a hundred steps, and the casualties were much smaller, but the problem also appeared. If they did not enter the hundred steps, They pose no threat to the city at all.After entering a hundred steps, their casualties increased sharply. Even with the addition of a giant shield, the archers could only hide behind the giant shield in embarrassment, and their attack power was greatly affected.

Ardashir had a headache. At this moment, the guards of the other three gates also encountered the same problem, and they sent people over to inquire. However, within half a day, the Sasanian archers had lost more than [-]%, and when they arrived So far they haven't found an effective way to deal with it. If they continue recklessly, the Sassanians may lose all their archers, and they will have no way to restrain the counterattack when they attack the city.

Ardasil pondered for a moment, and decisively issued an order to withdraw the troops. The battle that had been prepared for more than ten days ended hastily, and a large number of siege equipment had no time to be used.Without the cover of archers, it would be quite hasty to let the soldiers go forward to attack the city. Ardashir may not have heard the famous saying that "the general should not be frustrated and fight", but he is very clear about this truth.

Seeing the Sasanians retreating slowly and hearing the excited shouts of the Axumians above the city, although Sun Shao was smiling, there was no smile in his eyes.Although Ardashir lost a lot of archers, he didn't hurt his bones. He retreated now, not because he was defeated, but because he wanted to find a better way to attack the city. Such a person is difficult to deal with. .

"Your Majesty Shengming, the Sassanians have been beaten away." Warrag smiled excitedly.

"Hey, he ran fast, otherwise his teeth would have to be knocked out." Sun Shao put on a frivolous smile and laughed.

"Your Majesty is right." Valag rubbed his hands, looking very happy: "My Majesty, today's great victory, shouldn't we be rewarded to boost our morale?"

"Well, reward them with some wine and meat, but not too much. We haven't caught Ardashir and Shapur yet, so we have to keep some."

Varag nodded again and again, and happily went out to make arrangements.Yu An frowned, walked up to Sun Shao and said, "Your Majesty, Valag seems to be overly enthusiastic, so we must guard against it."

Sun Shao glanced at him, and nodded with a half-smile: "Shiping, are you still used to military life?"

Yu An was a little surprised, and then said a little excitedly: "Although the army is a bit tough, it can train people. Now I know why the generals from the Zefeng camp are always so arrogant."

"Hahaha..." Sun Shao couldn't help laughing, "It's only through hard work that you can be a master. You are knowledgeable, and you can pass the devil training in the Destroying Front Camp. With standard civil and military skills, you must be a pillar of talent in the future , I think the Zhongxiang Guild is proud of you."

"Thank you, King, for your compliment." Yu An said with a trembling voice, a little excited.

"Since you are worried about Varag, then pay more attention." Sun Shao paused, and then said: "Actually, this is the same as learning. Discovery always starts with doubts, but doubts are not equal to conclusions. In the absence of conclusive evidence Until there is more evidence, we cannot draw conclusions from our guts."

Yu An was taken aback for a moment, savoring it intentionally, and his eyes glowed with joy: "What the king said is very true, thank you for your advice."

"However, if you enter the village quietly, don't shoot. If Valage finds out that someone is investigating him, it is not good for people's peace of mind. Now is an extraordinary period, so don't make unnecessary misunderstandings." Sun Shao waved his hand with a smile , turned around and left.Yu An didn't understand for a moment that there was no such thing as a gun in the Han Dynasty, and there was no such thing as shooting a gun. However, he still understood what Sun Shao meant, and turned around knowingly and left.

Upon hearing the news of the failure of the siege, Shapur rushed back to the camp with his bodyguards. As soon as he entered the camp, Ardashir was standing in front of a large map and meditating. When he heard footsteps, he just turned his head. He gestured for him to sit down.Shapur tucked the whip into his belt, poured himself a glass of water, gulped it down, wiped his mouth, and said, "Could it be that the father intends to withdraw the troops?"

Ardasil froze for a moment, turned around and looked at him, thinking for a moment: "What do you think?"

Shapur was also not humble, and said bluntly: "The Romans are busy with the civil war. Although the Senate has assembled a large army again, although those Romans are physically strong, they are no longer brave warriors who can endure hardships and stand hard work. Their strong bodies are nothing more than It's just the capital to show off each other in the bathroom. Their spirits have long been washed away by the water in the bathroom. Moreover, the people in the Senate are still dirtier than the water in the bathroom. They value their rights more. Alexander Already dead, the Severus family has lost their bloodline, how long can Momia, no matter how capable she is, last? They are no match for Maximus at all. If my guess is right, Maximus must He is marching forward, and he should have reached Asia Minor by now, maybe he has already passed Byzantium. Regardless of whether he can finally enter the city of Rome, Rome is unlikely to cause us any trouble within three years, without the response of the Romans, the Kushan people Don't dare to act rashly, this is a good opportunity for us to annihilate the Yue people in one fell swoop, how can we leave now?"

"Beating the Yue people is more important than attacking Rome and Guishuang?" Ardashir asked calmly: "I thought it would only be a matter of time before one hundred thousand troops besieged the city, but the two setbacks made me I think we may be thinking too simply."

"Why?" Shapur asked puzzled.

"The first question, why can Sun Shao leave?" Ardashir raised a finger and frowned slightly, as if he couldn't figure it out: "Although our iron cavalry is fast, but after all, it is so far away, he is still If there is enough time to leave Axum, as long as he leaves Axum and reaches the sea, even if we have millions of cavalry, we can only look at the sea and sigh. But why doesn’t he leave?”

Shapur hesitated to speak. So far, he has not told Ardashir about the secret of Valag, just as Ardashir did not know that Maximus's sudden betrayal was due to There is an agreement between them.Armenia's big victory established his succession status, and Axum's victory will further strengthen this status, not to mention that he doesn't know whether Valag can still keep his promise, in case he tells Ardashir, But Varag has already willingly voted for Sun Shao, so he will be passive.

"Second question, where did the Yue people's reinforcements go? Did they really dare not go ashore because they were afraid of us, and watched Axum be besieged by us?"

Ardasil twirled his fingers lightly, without looking at Shapur, as if he was lost in thought.

"Maybe, they know that we will not be able to conquer the city for a while?" Shapur said tentatively.

"Impossible." Ardasil shook his head without thinking: "The one who was besieged in the city was the King of Yue, and none of his subjects dared not come to rescue me because of this reason. If I was trapped in Taixifeng, you might Don't you come to support if you are strong?"

Shapur shook his head quickly, he didn't dare to have such a plan, he didn't even dare to think about it, only the monarch used his subjects as bait, and which subject would dare to use the monarch as bait.But thinking about it this way, the current situation is indeed a bit weird.

What tricks are the Yue people playing?Shapur was also a little puzzled, suddenly he was not so confident in his analysis.

"It's not enough to retreat so quickly, but I think these things are very puzzling." Ardasil sighed, rubbing the sore brows: "Alpha died in the first battle, and nearly lost in the second battle. Half archer, I have been fighting for many years, and I have never encountered such a big loss. I did not expect that the small city of Axum has become a hard bone that I cannot chew. Alas, I have long heard that the Han people are good at defending the city, but I did not expect them To have such ability in defending the city, I still underestimated them."

"Father, attacking but not defending is not the way to win after all." Shapur patiently persuaded: "The Greeks besieged Troy for ten years, and finally succeeded. Is Axum stronger than Troy? I think they have already prepared However, we are not prepared enough, and it is inevitable that some soldiers will be injured, but as the father said, King Sun Shao of Yue is trapped in the city. Although we cannot attack for the time being, he dare not come out. Don't the people of Yue come to ask him for help? As long as we defeat these reinforcements, sooner or later Sun Shao will not be able to escape."

"Hey, have you ever thought that we are thousands of miles away from the country, and the food and grass are a big problem? Among other things, most of this place is desert, and the climate is quite different from Taixifeng, and the water and grass are not as lush as ours. This is a big problem. What I am worried about is that if the Yue State wants to transfer troops from the country, we may not be able to support them before their reinforcements arrive."

Shapur smiled lightly: "It's simple. We don't need to transport food thousands of miles from Taixifeng. We just need to plunder nearby. Axum and Egypt are fine. Even if we dig the ground three feet, we need to collect the food needed by the army. If the king Don't worry about others, I am willing to take on this task to ensure that my father has no worries."

Ardasil sighed: "This is the only way. However, you don't need to do this kind of thing yourself, just find someone. You should guard the seaside carefully, and don't let those Yue people take advantage of the loopholes. "

Shapur nodded. Seeing that Ardasil was still worried, he persuaded: "Father, don't worry. Although the Yue people are strong with bows and crossbows, they dare not go out of the city. As long as we build more giant shields and move forward steadily, there is still a chance." Broken city."

Ardasil nodded yes.He quickly recruited several generals and asked them to take people to collect food and grass in nearby areas. Of course, the vicinity of Axum was unavoidable, and even the northern provinces of Egypt suffered greatly.With food and grass, Ardashir settled down and made a large number of giant shields, preparing to attack the city again.

At this moment, Shapur received a secret envoy from Warag and told them about Sun Shao's worries.

When Shapur heard it, he became a little confused: "Aren't you afraid that we will attack the city, or that we will not attack the city?"

The secret envoy nodded again and again: "This is what King Axum heard from Yue King Sun Shao. He said that the Yue people are experts in city defense, while the Sasanians are a nation on horseback. They are not their opponents in terms of city defense at all. , even the Sasanian’s siege weapon, the trebuchet, is ineffective, and the archers are far behind. Your siege just gives them a chance to massacre your soldiers and dampen your spirit.”

Shapur's face became ugly: "Can't the trebuchet hurt them?"

The emissary nodded affirmatively: "This is what I saw with my own eyes. They hang a lot of things called wooden curtains on important places. Whether your grass balls or mud clods are good, they don't have much strength when they hit them. They gathered up and prepared to fight back. I heard them say, what is it called Roke or Gang."

"What softness overcomes rigidity?" Shapur pondered for a while: "Using softness to overcome rigidity?"

"That's right, that's the word." The secret envoy said with admiration, "The prince is still knowledgeable, and even knows such a difficult language as Chinese."

Shapur smiled reservedly, and asked the emissary to tell the appearance of the wooden mantle. He also felt a little unbelievable that such a thing could restrain a powerful trebuchet?What is it really to use softness to overcome rigidity?Shapur found it too difficult to understand. He has always been convinced that the fast beats the slow, and the strong bullies the weak. It is difficult to accept the theory that softness overcomes strength.

"What can your king do?" Shapur returned to the topic calmly.

"My king is waiting for an opportunity, but Yue people don't trust him. It's not the time yet. I hope the prince will give him some more time." The secret envoy put away his smile and said cautiously: "My king said that once there is a chance, He must lead the prince into the city and capture Yue King Sun Shao alive, but... hope the prince can keep his promise."

"Don't worry, I told him to give Egypt to him, and he will definitely give it to him." Shapur stroked the animal head on the handle of the knife, and said lightly: "However, there is a premise, if he can't lead us into the city in time He doesn't want Egypt. He is safe and secure in the city, but we consume a lot of food every day, so we won't last long."

The emissary did not dare to neglect, and hurriedly promised to contact Shapur as soon as possible, and finally discussed some details before leaving in a hurry.Shapur sat still in the tent, looking at the sketch of the wooden mantle drawn by the emissary just now and meditating. After thinking for a while, he suddenly picked up a porcelain cup on the table and threw it towards the tent vigorously. The porcelain cup hit the tent. On the ground, it was bounced, fell to the ground, and split in two with a "snap".Shapur walked over and picked up the porcelain cup and looked at it carefully, his eyes flickering thoughtfully.

Shapur quickly told Ardashir the news of the contact from the city, and by the way, told Ardashir about the discovery of the wooden mantle. Ardashir was a little surprised after watching Shapur's demonstration. Truth is very interesting.However, compared to the wooden mantle, he is still more interested in the existence of Valag.

"Can he be trusted?"

"It should be credible." Shapur said confidently: "The Romans gave Axum as a gift to Yue, and now Axum has to surround Sun Shao like a dog every day. How could he be willing? What's more, he is still greedy for the land of Egypt." He glanced at Ardashir, and Ardashir's face was calm, as if he had no objection to giving Egypt to Valrag, so he felt relieved.

"So, we do have a chance." Ardashir nodded slowly: "Contact him again and let him open the city gate as soon as possible to lead us in. Before that, I will attack the city twice more. Let Sun Shao be happy. Once a person is proud, it is easier to get carried away and relax his vigilance."

"Father is wise." Shapur bowed and said, "I will send someone to contact him immediately."

"Yeah." Ardasil waved his hand: "Have you heard from Maximus? Where is he now?"

"The news half a month ago said that he had attacked Byzantium last month, and Gordian's army was about to arrive at Byzantium, and they might have a big battle there. According to time estimates, they should have already handed in their hands now. Bar."

"Gordian, although he is a little older, he is also a man who can fight. I don't know if Maximus, a barbarian, is his opponent."

Shapur smiled disapprovingly: "Even if Gordian wins, so what? He relies on the Germans, Gauls, and Goths as the main force. He defeated the barbarian Maximus. He has to face more barbarians. I really don’t know what the Romans think. They actually use mercenaries as the main force, and a rich man handed over his house to robbers, but he is greedy for comfort and fat as a pig. What happened in the end? It may be safe for a long time, and sooner or later one day will be slaughtered."

Ardasil smiled sympathetically.

……

In Byzantium, a silver-haired Gordian stood on the city wall, looking at the east worriedly. His son Gordian Jr. stood behind him with an aggrieved expression on his face.They have just received news from Rome that the new emperor Quintus has issued the latest order for them to fight Maximus in Byzantium, and must block the army led by Maximus to the east of the Bosphorus .He felt that this order was very unreliable. With his current strength, how could he be the opponent of Maximus?He has 2 troops in his hand, but among the [-] troops, more than [-] barbarian mercenaries are really capable of fighting. If it is against other people, these mercenaries may still be useful although their military discipline is scattered. And Maximus, who had to be dealt with now, was a barbarian himself. If these barbarians defected on the battlefield, the [-] Romans who had put together in a hurry would be in danger.

"Father, this is probably that woman's idea again?" Little Gordian couldn't hold back.

"So what?" Gordian shook his head helplessly: "She persuaded the Yue people to help, and the people in the Senate believed her. What can we do?"

"The people in the Senate are really confused. Alexander is useless enough, but he still wants to make Alexander's posthumous son emperor. For the sake of this child who doesn't know if he can support him, Quintus, that idiot, is actually the emperor. In the end, isn’t Momia controlling the power? The Yue people help? Are the Yue people helping us in Rome, or Momia alone?”

"Stop talking." Gordian waved his hand, interrupting his son's complaints.He was also dissatisfied with this matter, but there was nothing he could do. Momia begged for the rescue of the Yue people, and now most of the people in the Senate were Momia's supporters, so he couldn't help it even if he had an opinion.What's more, what he is most worried about now is how to deal with Maximus' army. If it is a head-on battle, I am afraid that he has little chance of winning, and Rome's last hope may be buried here.

"General, there is an envoy from Yue Kingdom asking to see you." A hurried voice interrupted Gordian's train of thought.

"An envoy from the Yue Kingdom? Their reinforcements are here?" Gordian was surprised and delighted, and quickly raised his eyes to look, only to see a middle-aged man in a Yue people's shirt standing in the distance, watching with a smile on his face. he.

"Father, it's the envoy from the Yue Kingdom named Jiang Gan."

Gordian didn't dare to be negligent, and hurriedly stepped forward to greet Jiang Gan. Seeing the worry in Gordian's eyes, Jiang Gan smiled and comforted him: "Don't worry, my lord, my king has sent the most capable general in our Yue Kingdom." With [-] elites, we will surely defeat the traitor Maximus this time."

(End of this chapter)