The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 147 Important Responsibility

The commander of the 22nd Division said to Li Ji, and Chen Bang, the chief of staff of the 7th Army, said, "General Gao Shun has greatly cultivated our 7th Army, and we must live up to this trust."

Li Ji nodded and said, "That's right. This time the enemy has over 100,000 troops, and they are a relatively experienced army, unlike the Yanzhou army which has many new recruits. So we must bring enough ammunition and supplies, even if we bring fewer soldiers, we must bring enough ammunition."

"When we attack the city, we should also find a way to control Yuan Shu's ammunition depot inside Pengcheng," Chen Bang said.

"Yes, that's very good." Li Ji nodded.

Now, all that's left is to wait for orders from Xiapi, Li Ji thought to himself. Gao Shun didn't make him wait long, and on the morning of the third day after the battle of Xiapi began, Li Ji received Gao Shun's orders.

Of course, at this point it was actually Xiahou Dun's order, but the official seal used was still Gao Shun's, since only in this way could the order take effect.

"Board the ship according to the plan! We will depart in one hour!" Li Ji gave the order and said to Chen Bang, who had come after hearing the news.

Chen Bang immediately sent a messenger to relay the order.

Li Ji said to Chen Bang, "Chief of Staff, after I head south, the defense of Rencheng will be in your hands."

Chen Bang said regretfully, "The Yanzhou army no longer has the strength to fight back, and we are at peace for the time being. I'm just staying here to retire."

"Haha, next time there's a mission like this, I'll let you lead the team!" Li Ji said generously to Chen Bin. Chen Bin smiled and said, "There won't be many missions like this in the future."

Indeed, if this battle were to wipe out Ji Ling's army, Yuan Shu would suffer a severe blow. In the empire, where would any warlord have the strength to contend with the autonomous region? If it weren't for the fact that my lord doesn't like to initiate major battles.

If they prioritize improving people's livelihoods, with the autonomous region's military strength, unifying the entire empire quickly, let alone unifying the entire region north of the river, would be absolutely no problem.

However, Chen Er always taught these generals that war was not the goal; their goal should be to give the people a better life, not to continue the war. Military unification was quick, but it did not bring about any administrative change.

Although Chen Er kept saying that they should rebuild on the ruins, he also demanded that they should only expand their territory when they had the strength to digest the wasteland. This would be more prudent and would minimize the losses to the people.

"Our lord's profound wisdom is beyond our comprehension." Li Ji didn't know why this thought popped into his mind; perhaps this was Chen Er's unique charm.

"Commander, the entire army is ready and can set sail at any time," said Wang Ming, the naval commander of Rencheng, to Li Ji. Li Ji replied, "Then let's set sail!"

Li Ji climbed the gangway onto the warship and said to Chen Bang on the shore, "Chief of Staff, I'm setting off!"

"Have a safe journey, Commander!" Chen Bang and the other 7th Army commanders on the shore wished Li Ji a successful campaign.

"Attack!"

Standing at the bow of the ship, Li Ji gave the order.

Meanwhile, inside Xiapi, Xiahou Dun was also thinking about whether Li Ji's troops should have set off by now. According to the schedule, Li Ji should have received his orders by now.

Then they set off. At the speed of the navy sailing downstream, they should arrive at the outskirts of Pengcheng in two days. Xiahou Dun only needs to hold Xiapi for three days to hold off Ji Ling's main force and avoid a decisive battle.

After cutting off their retreat and wearing Ji Ling down, Xiahou Dun still wanted to bring Ji Ling's main force of over 100,000 men into his fold to expand the autonomous region's reserve forces. Even if they couldn't continue to serve as soldiers, they could still be used as labor.

Yuan Shu's army outside Xiapi has not launched an attack for a day. Xiahou Dun is very satisfied with this situation. Xiahou Dun and his First Army Corps generals know exactly what Yuan Shu's army outside the city is doing. They are trying to figure out how to avoid defensive fire.

To withstand the volley fire from the defensive positions, Yuan Shu's army had no choice but to manufacture a large number of bulletproof plates. These sturdy plates would protect them from the volley fire, making them the only viable option.

As early as when the defense plan was being formulated, Xiahou Dun, Gao Shun and others had already come up with a way to break through the bulletproof shields. The First Army Corps, which had superior firepower, could use enough Type 1 General Cannons to directly bombard Yuan's bulletproof shields with solid shot.

Moreover, the First Legion has secretly equipped itself with a new type of artillery that can use exploding shells. However, exploding shells are difficult to manufacture, so Xiahou Dun cannot recklessly order their use.

"Are the exploding shells ready?" Xiahou Dun asked Chen Zhi, the artillery commander of the First Army Corps, as he walked up to the city wall. Chen Zhi turned around and replied to Xiahou Dun, "General Xiahou, there are only five hundred exploding shells in total. I have already had three hundred of them transported to the positions outside the city. The remaining two hundred are reserved on the city wall as reserves."

"Yes, this arrangement is more reasonable," Xiahou Dun nodded.

The enemy forces outside the city remained inactive, giving the First Army Corps ample time to prepare, transport ammunition, and replenish the soldiers lost at the front.

"Be prepared for battle at any time," Xiahou Dun said to Chen Zhi and the others, then leaned on his sword and walked down the city wall. Now, he was no longer in charge of the battle command; the remaining tactical issues were the responsibility of the front-line commanders.

Meanwhile, outside the city, Ji Ling was still enjoying the two beautiful girls his subordinates had sent him in his tent. He had left all the battle affairs to Yang Hong, and Ji Ling was thoroughly enjoying the fact that he could lie in the arms of beauties while receiving a mountain of credit. Who wouldn't want that? Ji Ling, for one, was thoroughly enjoying himself.

Ji Ling enjoyed this time, but Yang Hong was not so happy. He was determined to hold onto his territory.

"Sir, I've finished what you asked me to do. When shall we depart?"

A soldier walked up to Yang Hong and asked, and Yang Hong nodded and said to the officer who came to report over the wall, "It's already quite late today. Even if the attack goes smoothly, we won't be able to gain a foothold on the enemy's position and consolidate our victory. So we'll launch the attack early tomorrow morning. Let the brothers get some rest today."

"Yes, sir."

The guerrilla general bowed to Yang Hong and said that they did not want to attack today, but they had not received any orders from above. The frontline troops had drawn this guerrilla general to come and find out Yang Hong's intentions. Everyone knew that Ji Ling had been infatuated with a beauty these past two days, and no one dared to provoke Ji Ling.