In response to the order to eliminate stragglers, the Youzhou Cavalry carried out the order very resolutely and acted very quickly. When the infantry began to set up camps in the north and west of Linzi, a large number of Youzhou Cavalry were organized into battalions. Nets were launched everywhere outside the city, and the initial progress was extremely smooth. There was no one around. Probably because Cao Jun implemented a strong wall to clear the country, there were few people outside the city, and there were few hiding places for the defeated soldiers. As long as you are discovered by the Youzhou Cavalry, there is no place to escape. In addition, you have just been defeated and have no intention of resisting. They are often surrounded by the Youzhou Cavalry and become prisoners of war. It is a pity that this Waiting for everything to go smoothly was only the first day. As night came, a large number of stragglers either fled to Niushan or returned to Linzi City at night. The Youzhou Cavalry swept down for three days in a row, and the Communists could only More than 8,000 prisoners of war were captured, most of whom were captured on the first day.
After successive defeats, nearly half of the main force of Cao's army has been lost, and most of its combat effectiveness and even its will to fight have been wiped out. Even so, Cao's army still occupies the two important locations of Linzi City and Niushan. If Cao's army is given enough time, , there is still a possibility of recovery, and the Youzhou Army has difficulty in supplying due to the long transportation line. If the war drags on for a long time, I am afraid that it will eventually be forced to withdraw. In this way, the buffer zone plan drawn up by Gongsun Ming There was bound to be the possibility of suffering a heavy setback. In order to avoid this disaster, after repeated discussions with Xu Shu, Gongsun Ming decided to move his troops to Niushan first to remove the nail in the army and then try to plot Linzi City.
Niushan, judging from the mountain itself, is very ordinary. It is less than two hundred meters high. Although the vegetation is lush, it is far from steep and precipitous. However, it is quite famous. No one else, such as Guan Zhong, Qi Henggong, Qi Jinggong and many other people in the Spring and Autumn Period. The emperors, generals and ministers of the period were all buried on this mountain. Of course, the reason why Cao Jun chose this mountain as a garrison for the army outside the city was not because there were many tombs on the mountain, but because the mountain was among the ten most important places around Linzi City. The commanding heights within a mile range provided a commanding position, making it easier to coordinate with all parties. Unfortunately, this advantage was completely lost due to Xiahou Shang's blind actions, which led to the destruction of the main force. The current Niushan Dazhai, together with the defeated troops who had escaped, was Inside, there are only more than 9,000 troops. They can barely defend themselves, but they have no ability to take the initiative to attack.
"Does the head of state have any clever ideas for the battle against the mountain?"
Although the enemy in Niushan has no power to attack, it is not easy to capture it. Even though Gongsun has been exploring the terrain of Niushan for several days tomorrow morning and has a general attack strategy in mind. However, he never acted rashly, but held final discussions with Xu Shu in the Chinese army's tent on how to take the mountain.
"My lord must have made a decision in his mind. How about you and I each write a word on the palm of our hand and see if we agree?"
Xu Shu did not give the first answer, but stretched out his hand to stroke the long beard on his chest and suggested something with a smile.
"Okay, since the head of state is so elegant, why shouldn't I disobey him? Come and bring me a pen and inkstone."
When he heard the words of a famous person like Xu Shu, Gongsun Ming couldn't help but smile. He couldn't ignore his intention. He smiled and waved hello. Several of his followers immediately agreed and wrote diligently. The inkstone is presented.
"My lord, please take a look."
"Let's drive together."
Gongsun Ming and Xu Shu both took up their pens and wrote a word in cursive in their palms. Then they clenched their fists, came together, and showed the font on their palms almost at the same time. The word "fire" was also written on them. As soon as they saw this, , the two couldn't help but look at each other and laugh...
"Woo, woo, woo..."
On August 25th, at the time of the hour, the sun had just risen. A burst of horn sounds suddenly sounded in the Youzhou Army camp. Soon, two doors burst open, and a large number of soldiers pushed three soldiers. Ten large trebuchets and ten crossbow carts came out of the camp and headed towards Niu Mountain.
"Report, general, the bandits have left the camp in large numbers!"
The momentum of the Youzhou Army's dispatch was so great that it was impossible for the sentries in the Niushan Army Stronghold not to be alerted. When the emergency horn sounded suddenly, a military commander on duty rushed to the Chinese army's tent to report the enemy's situation. The change was reported to Zhang Xi, the general who was temporarily in charge of the Niushan camp.
"Quick, order all ministries to assemble urgently and prepare for war!"
Zhang Xi, a native of Nanyang, was one of Cao Cao's confidants as early as when Cao Cao was appointed captain of the Dian Army in the capital. Later, when Cao Cao raised troops in Chenliu, Zhang Xi abandoned his official position and joined him thousands of miles away. He was very popular with Cao Cao, but because of his mediocre martial arts, although he was promoted to General Pi early, he was never promoted again. He always used troops conservatively. After Xiahou Shang was defeated and died, he took charge of Niushan. Because they were afraid of the strength of the Youzhou Army, they did not dare to go down the mountain to attack the Youzhou Army even though they gathered many defeated troops. Instead, they tried their best to consolidate the Niushan Dazhai. Over the past few days, the Niushan Camp was built to be impregnable, at least In his own opinion, this was the case, so when he heard that the Youzhou Army was coming to attack the mountain, he never panicked at all. When he gave the order, there was even a hint of eagerness in his tone.
Although there are big things like trebuchets and ballistae in the army, the formation speed of the Youzhou army is not slow. At this moment, 20,000 infantry troops have already set up an attack formation at the foot of Niu Mountain. , and there were 10,000 cavalry troops divided into left and right wings, wandering around Niushanxi on guard.
"Report, Lord, my troops are ready. Please let me know clearly."
After the army was ready, Zhang He, who was in charge of the attack on the mountain, did not dare to delay at all. He rushed to the central army on horseback and made a grand report.
"Then let's get started."
What should be deployed had been deployed long before the war. At this time, Gongsun Ming would not waste his time on mobilizing before the war. He just casually waved his hand and issued the order to attack the mountain.
"I will obey your orders!"
Attacking the mountain was originally a hard job, but after some careful planning, the hard work was no longer bitter, but actually very sweet. How could Zhang He not smile and accept the credit that was almost free of charge? After that, he rode his horse back to the front line without saying much. He only waved his hand and announced the start of the battle to attack the mountain.
"Bang, bang, bang..."
Following Zhang He's order, Thirty West trebuchets started roaring almost simultaneously. In an instant, sixty-eight large bulging black leather water bladders were ejected, roaring towards the mountainside halfway up the mountain. Cao Jun's stronghold smashed over, and as soon as it hit the ground or hit the stronghold wall, it quickly shattered, and large amounts of liquid immediately splashed out...
