pappabearbooks Chapter 127 Fire Attack
Chapter 127 Fire Attack
At the foot of Langya City, five trebuchets of Lü Bu's army were pushed to the front of the battle line, aiming at a slightly weak spot in the northwest section of the city wall.
"put!"
The boulder flew out with a whoosh and crashed heavily onto the city wall.
The rammed earth wall shook violently, large sections of the plaster peeled off, revealing the rammed earth layer underneath, and cracks visibly spread out.
On the city wall, Zhao Yun swayed slightly before regaining his footing.
His gaze locked onto the reloaded catapults, and he decisively gave the order:
"Target: Enemy trebuchet formation. Prepare: ballistae and rockets ready. Trebuchet units, switch to stone-firing. Fire!"
The defenders on the city wall acted swiftly.
Dozens of ceramic jars were thrown by the trebuchet, arcing through the air as they landed around the five trebuchet vehicles.
The earthenware pot shattered, and black oil splattered all over the vehicle, the ground, and the nearby soldiers.
Immediately afterwards, rockets fired from the ballista and slingshots wrapped in tarpaulins fell.
boom!
Flames instantly erupted, engulfing the five trebuchets and dozens of soldiers around them.
The screams abruptly ceased, leaving only the crackling of burning wood and human flesh, the acrid smell wafting on the wind.
Sun Ce, watching from the rear, felt his eyes twitch and gritted his teeth before ordering a retreat.
He realized that without enough trebuchets to create suppression, a direct assault would only be suicide.
Several days later, at Wei Xu's camp.
Thirty newly arrived replica trebuchets were handed over to Sun Ce's camp.
"Lord Wen ordered the craftsmen to work day and night to produce them, but these are all we have for now. We must use them sparingly, as the stone projectiles are limited."
Wei continued to give instructions.
Sun Ce stroked the cold wooden frame of the carriage and nodded:
"Thirty planes are enough. I will use them to smash the walls of Langya City to the ground!"
The following day, thirty trebuchets were arrayed again below the city, their power far exceeding that of the previous formation.
Sun Ce pointed his sword forward: "Target: the city wall, unleash a barrage! Fire!"
Stone projectiles rained down on the city wall like meteors, and the damaged section in the northwest was hit hard again, with dust billowing everywhere.
On the city wall, Zhao Yun looked down at the dense array of chariots and gave a deep order:
"The enemy's wagon formation is concentrated; this is the perfect opportunity. Prepare oil jars to cover their positions. Use ballistae, rockets, and trebuchets with shrapnel for cover. Execute with full force!"
More densely packed oil jars were launched, and ballista rockets and ignited slingshots rained down.
Rumble—!
A sea of fire, several times more intense than before, erupted instantly, engulfing most of the Thunder Chariot Formation.
The wooden cart frames, the soldiers pushing the carts, and the piled-up materials were all set on fire.
Flames shot into the sky, billowing black smoke, and the scorching heat even made Sun Ce, who was far away from the battlefield, feel his noodles burning.
The mournful howls echoed through the sea of fire, then quickly died down.
The air was filled with a terrible stench of burning flesh and hair.
A deathly silence fell over both the city walls and the surrounding area.
The faint aroma of roasted meat wafted from below the city walls.
This caused many Qingzhou soldiers to turn pale and vomit behind the battlements.
Even Zang Ba turned his head away, his Adam's apple bobbing.
Zhao Yun's hand, resting on his sword, had bulging veins on the back, and his lips were tightly pressed together.
Sun Ce stood frozen at the rear of the formation, gazing at the fiery hell that had devoured countless soldiers' lives, his body trembling slightly.
After a moment, he realized:
"What are you all standing there for? Put out the fire! Get the trebuchet out!"
With that, he rushed inside without looking back.
Seeing this, the soldiers behind also joined the flames.
They dragged the still-unburning trebuchet and its companions backward.
……
Late at night, in Sun Ce's military tent.
His burns on his hands were simply bandaged, and his face looked terribly gloomy in the candlelight.
"Thirty vehicles, nearly ten were destroyed, and more than two thousand brothers were burned to death or injured..."
Sun Ce slammed his fist on the table.
"How am I going to explain this to Wei Xu? What will Marquis Wen think of me? Yuan Tan... Yuan Tan!" He gritted his teeth, "Could he really be my nemesis?!"
Cheng Pu silently handed him a damp cloth, and waited until he caught his breath before slowly speaking: "My lord, although this battle was fierce, it exposed a weakness."
"Flaws? Besides the ashes and charred corpses, what other flaws are there?" Sun Ce roared.
"It's a flaw in the deception." Cheng Pu's gaze was calm. "Does my lord still remember that the other day, our army attacked the city with five chariots, and the city walls counterattacked with a barrage of stones, leaving no room for escape?"
"nature!"
"Today, our army launched thirty vehicles simultaneously, making a greater impact. However, the counterattack from the city walls primarily relied on oil, supplemented by rockets and scattered stones. The actual number of boulders hurled seemed less concentrated than the day before. Why is that?"
Sun Ce was taken aback, his brows furrowing.
Cheng Pu continued:
"The day before yesterday, they used a large number of stones to create the illusion that there were many trebuchets and that their reserves were plentiful, intending to intimidate our army and prevent it from easily counterattacking with trebuchets. Today, our army has a large trebuchet formation, but they have switched to using this powerful but difficult-to-produce and limited-supply fire attack. Isn't that suspicious?"
In my humble opinion, the actual number of trebuchets on the city walls is probably far less than the number displayed the day before yesterday!
The stones rained down, perhaps because each cart was launching multiple stones simultaneously, or perhaps it was a combination of projectiles intended to confuse the enemy.
Today, we are forced to use fire precisely because its actual trebuchets are insufficient to suppress our thirty vehicles, forcing us to resort to this risky tactic! While this weapon is formidable, the collection of its oil, the firing of its pottery jars, and its transportation and storage are all extremely difficult tasks, making its use indefinite.
Sun Ce was stunned, and a glimmer of hope gradually appeared in his despairing eyes.
He quickly recalled that the rain of stones that blotted out the sky the day before seemed weak and ineffective compared to today's sea of fire.
Could it be that, as Cheng Pu said, there is a shortage of trebuchets in Langya City?
"You mean... Zhao Yun is bluffing? He might only have a few dozen trebuchets? Or even fewer?"
"Very likely."
Cheng Pu nodded.
"Otherwise, we could simply use trebuchets to wear them down; why resort to these firearms that are difficult to sustain?"
Sun Ce suddenly stood up and paced rapidly in the tent.
If what Cheng Pu said is true... Zhao Yun's defenses are not impenetrable!
"Even if he has fewer vehicles, his firepower is still formidable if he defends the city. We have lost most of our vehicles, making a direct assault difficult."
"My lord, why only think about exchanging fire?"
Cheng Pu said in a deep voice,
"The trebuchet is for launching stones in a curved trajectory, while the ballista is for firing in a straight line. We can go underground."
"underground?"
"Exactly, dig tunnels."
Cheng Pu stood before the sand table, his fingers tracing a winding path across its surface.
"Starting from a distance behind our lines, dig deep into the earth, following a winding path. The tunnel roof will be reinforced with thick timber and rammed earth to protect it from stone projectiles. In this way, the tunnel can reach directly to the moat, and even... cross the riverbed!"
Sun Ce's eyes suddenly lit up:
"Brilliant! The soldiers can approach through the tunnels, avoiding the traps and reaching the city walls directly! The remaining trebuchets can also be concealed near the tunnel exits, making it difficult for Zhao Yun's oil to cover them!"
"That's not all."
Cheng Pu added,
"I have the remaining trebuchets, which can be deployed in several locations to continuously bombard different sections of the city wall. This will prevent them from concentrating their counterattacks and keep them constantly on the move. At the same time, I request General Wei Xu to move upstream to block or divert the tributaries that flow into the moat."
With the water supply cut off, the moat gradually dries up. When that time comes, the city walls will be completely exposed, and our soldiers will be transported down the walls via tunnels, either scaling them or digging into their foundations. The initiative will be in our hands.
Sun Ce slammed his hand heavily on the table, bursting into laughter, all the pent-up frustration of the past few days vanished.
"Hahaha! What a brilliant strategy of cutting off the water supply through tunnels and attacking from both sides! Demou, you are truly my wise advisor! Quickly draft a detailed plan, and I will immediately request an audience with Wei Xu!"
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