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Hu Cai looked at the burning woods before him, then raised his gaze past the treetops towards the direction of the old Pingyang city. Although he couldn't see the silhouette of Pingyang city walls from here, Hu Cai seemed to feel he could already picture the chaotic state of the soldiers inside the old Pingyang city.
Recalling the several hundred soldiers who had just fled through the woods like rabbits, a thought grew increasingly strong in Hu Cai's mind—
That what's-his-name fellow is probably going to flee overnight!
Normally, even if setting an ambush in these woods, one would definitely wait for the enemy soldiers to arrive before launching a sudden attack. Only then could the effect of an ambush be achieved.
But those few hundred soldiers didn't seem at all like they were there to ambush. Instead, they seemed specifically tasked with burning this patch of woods to block my path to Pingyang…
Damn it!
A fierce grin spread across Hu Cai's face. He loved troops who fled for their lives!
There was that one fellow with some surname before?
Right, should have been surnamed Niu. He was just like that too, fleeing for his life at the first sign of danger. Back then, they had chased frantically after those cowards, and many of the weapons and armor his men now possessed were obtained at that time…
Never thought he'd encounter another one here, hahaha! Truly, the Yellow Heaven has eyes, blessing Hu Cai to make a great fortune!
Hu Cai checked the sky. They had set out quite early today, and it wasn't late yet. He hardened his resolve and ordered, "Detour around the woods! Pursue them!"
That treasure map thing might not be real, but the weapons and armor on these fleeing soldiers—that was the real deal, every single piece absolutely valuable without a doubt!
If they hurried over early, they might still catch up to these cowards. But if they waited until tomorrow, there probably wouldn't be anything left!
Hu Cai urged his soldiers onward, not paying too much attention to the fact that his demands had caused their formation to become somewhat scattered and distorted. Those originally on the left wing now became the vanguard, while the original right wing turned into the rear guard…
The entire formation was stretched very long.
But Hu Cai didn't care about this at all. As long as they didn't fall behind and could basically keep up, it was fine. Therefore, he didn't waste time reorganizing the troops. Instead, he pressed on closely behind Huang Cheng and the others, heading straight for the old Pingyang site.
They had started marching early in the morning. Only after the sun had passed its zenith did Hu Cai finally see the old site of Pingyang County town in the distance.
It seemed they had spotted Hu Cai's army. On the city walls, there was a flurry of panic. Some soldiers who had been on horseback outside the city actually scattered and abandoned the city, fleeing in all directions…
"Hahahaha!" Hu Cai laughed heartily upon seeing this, becoming even more certain this was an army led by a coward. Pointing with his horsewhip, he shouted loudly, "See that! Right there! They're all a bunch of spineless wimps! Take that place today, and everyone gets extra rations in the city! Extra flatbreads! Extra dried meat for all!"
"Ooh…" The White Wave troops cheered upon hearing this. They were somewhat tired from the long march, but hearing they would get extra rations if they took this broken city by evening instantly boosted their spirits a bit.
If they had to attack a fully intact city, these White Wave soldiers would have had some misgivings. But the one before them was clearly dilapidated. Although some repair marks could be seen on the walls, it was far from being truly intact, which naturally gave them more courage…
Hu Cai led his troops to line up below the city, beginning preparations for the assault. However, Hu Cai's entire formation was stretched too long at the moment. The younger, stronger ones with better stamina had kept up closely. Those with slightly poorer stamina were gradually catching up, but there were still nearly one-third of the men lagging behind…
Hu Cai frowned, then glanced again at Pingyang's ruined walls…
×××××××××××××××
While Hu Cai was looking at Pingyang County town, Fei Qian was also observing the White Wave troops below the city.
"Lord Fei, it looks like the fighting will start soon here. Perhaps you should…" Huang Cheng said from the side. To be honest, the previous encounter at Hangu Pass had truly scared Huang Cheng badly. If Fei Qian were a highly skilled martial artist, it would be one thing—at most, he'd accompany him into battle. But Fei Qian's martial skills were only half-baked, which really wasn't reassuring.
Fei Qian also knew that staying here, he'd probably only be a hindrance. So he didn't spout any grand, heroic rhetoric about the city standing as long as he stood. Instead, he said quietly, "Shuye, take extra care yourself. Also, conserve your strength in the beginning. The crucial part is still to come…"
Huang Cheng nodded, indicating he understood.
Under the efforts of Fei Qian's soldiers over the past few days, the walls of Pingyang County town had been somewhat restored overall. However, on the side facing Hu Cai, there was a very large collapsed breach that clearly couldn't be repaired in a short time. They had only hastily piled and tamped some yellow earth on the half-collapsed wall remnants to form a low rampart…
Fei Qian looked left and right, calculating. If he were the White Wave general leading the troops below, there should be only about one optimal choice…
If these White Wave troops hadn't rushed over today, it would have been somewhat troublesome for Fei Qian. If they hadn't come today, it would indicate the White Wave commander was of the steady, conservative type. Such commanders often kept some reserves at all times. Defeating them was possible, but achieving a major rout was more difficult.
Among the Three Kingdoms-era generals in his memory, this type of commander was also the most annoying. Just like Zhuge Liang encountering Sima Yi—no matter how many stratagems he had, it was the same, no solution.
Actually, this time Fei Qian himself was also taking a risk. It was just that his opponent was being relatively cooperative…
Seeing the troops below seemingly reorganizing their formation—not looking like they were setting up camp, but preparing to attack—Fei Qian gave the order to have rice balls delivered to the soldiers at the front lines.
Each soldier received a rice ball, slightly smaller than a fist, made from a mix of millet and wheat. Compared to pure millet rice, it was relatively more filling. Additionally, they got a small strip of salted dried meat, about the size of a little finger. Water was stored in bamboo tubes; they could fetch it themselves if they wanted a drink.
Many soldiers ate the rice balls first, then placed that tiny strip of dried meat in their mouths, slowly grinding it with their teeth, basically unwilling to finish it all at once…
Fei Qian made a final inspection, exchanged a few more words with Huang Cheng, and then descended the city wall.
Regarding Fei Qian's descent from the wall and withdrawal to the rear, the soldiers on the city walls saw it but had no objections. Fighting on the front lines was the soldiers' job. If the commander charged at the forefront, it would certainly boost morale—no mistake there—but a civil official charging at the front line? That was pure idiocy.
In their view, this was exactly how it should be. Otherwise, why recruit soldiers? You eat someone's food, you sell your life for them. It was that simple. In these times, as long as the commander didn't turn tail and flee at the first opportunity, he was already considered a decent commander. As long as the command banner didn't retreat backward, there was no problem.
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Hu Cai carefully observed the walls of the old Pingyang city.
Although there were also some small breaches on the side walls, they had been sealed with bricks and stones. If they launched a full-scale assault, they could certainly break through, but it would take too much effort. Moreover, there weren't many trees nearby. That decent patch of woods along the road had been set on fire by those bastards. Now, if they wanted to make scaling ladders or similar equipment, they really couldn't find the materials at the moment.
But the problem of lacking siege equipment was nothing in the face of this huge gap on the front!
This, plus that low earthen rampart, was less than the height of two men. Moreover, the collapsed earthwork conveniently formed a slope, so they should definitely be able to climb up.
If they could climb directly up, what need was there for damn equipment?
A few soldiers who had scouted around the city ran back, reporting that this was the largest breach; most of the others had been patched up…
Fine, it's decided then!
Hu Cai directly ordered the distribution of rice balls and preparation for battle.
Dry rations like rice balls were controlled by Hu Cai's personal guards. Upon hearing Hu Cai's order, they each untied the food bags they carried, pulled out rice balls that were at most the size of two fingers, and distributed them one by one to the White Wave soldiers at the front who were preparing for the first assault…
This type of rice ball had a name: head-count rice balls…