Chapter 1027: The Holy Beast, Scarlet Phoenix
Chapter 1027: The Holy Beast, Scarlet Phoenix
Lu Hai Kong's massive army marched forth, with Meng Chao leading three hundred thousand troops straight towards Changshan Prefecture.
The eyes of the realm's marquises followed Lu Hai Kong's actions with great interest, all their attention focused on the battlefield in Changshan.
However, despite the attention on the Changshan battlefield, no one expected any surprises in this battle.
Joking aside, if even Dong Zhuo had been crushed, what chance did Baron Yuan have against Lu Hai Kong's army?
Even Yuan himself felt pessimistic about this war, filled with a sense of helplessness and humiliation, as if he was about to be trampled underfoot.
With everyone's gaze fixed on this battle, Meng Chao's thirty thousand troops launched an attack on Yuan's defenses in Changshan, but the outcome was unexpected.
Although Yuan's forces were initially at a disadvantage, the expected overwhelming defeat did not materialize. Instead, Yuan's army managed to hold off Meng Chao's assault.
This unexpected turn of events even caught Yuan off guard for a moment. Then, he suddenly remembered, "Damn, what am I afraid of? Our frontline commander is Yu Jin!"
He recalled that he had such a powerful weapon at his disposal.
Who was Yu Jin? He was one of the Five Virtuous Generals of Wei, renowned for his expertise in defensive warfare. With Yu Jin in command, Yuan felt a newfound confidence.
After all, Lu Hai Kong's elite forces were divided between Youzhou and Dingyang City. The thirty thousand troops attacking now were mostly new recruits, led by the relatively unknown Meng Chao. Not a single historical general was among them.
With such a lineup, Lu Hai Kong might not be able to breach Yuan's defenses in Changshan.
In that case, Yuan didn't need to rush.
Let Lu Hai Kong fight for a while, ten days or even half a month, and then they could negotiate.
With this in mind, Yuan set aside the draft of war reparations and sent reinforcements to Changshan, intending to play a few rounds with Lu Hai Kong.
If they could fight well and achieve a stunning victory in Changshan, their position in future negotiations with Lu Hai Kong would be much stronger.
At Yuan's command, the army of Jizhou began marching towards Changshan City.
Meanwhile, the marquises of the realm, witnessing this scene, were surprised that Lu Hai Kong had not overwhelmed his opponent. Yet, they also breathed a collective sigh of relief.
While crushing victories were common, a complete annihilation would be too extreme. They didn't want to see Lu Hai Kong's dominance repeated.
After all, if Lu Hai Kong simultaneously attacked and crushed three parties, his dominance in the Northern Central Continent would be absolute. Even if Dong Zhuo and the other two joined forces, they would only be able to barely survive under Lu Hai Kong's rule.
At this point, the marquises hoped that Yuan would put up a good fight, giving Lu Hai Kong a taste of defeat and humbling him.
This was not just about Lu Hai Kong's reputation; if they could defeat Lu Hai Kong, Dong Zhuo and the other two could hold their heads high. The Northern Central Continent would achieve a relative balance, far better than Lu Hai Kong's overwhelming dominance.
Even Dong Zhuo eagerly anticipated a strong performance from Yuan.
Amidst these expectations, Yu Jin, carrying the hopes of the masses, stepped onto the grand stage for the first time and began his performance.
Historically, Yu Jin was one of the Five Virtuous Generals, known for his exceptional defensive skills. Despite his lack of experience, his talent shone in this battle.
Leading ten thousand troops, Yu Jin firmly held Meng Chao's thirty thousand troops at bay outside the city walls. No matter how Meng Chao attacked, he couldn't breach the defense by even a hair.
Although Meng Chao was Lu Hai Kong's third-in-command, facing such an opponent, he felt like a dog trying to bite a porcupine, unable to find a way to break through.
Meng Chao himself felt frustrated in this battle. His Second Army's lineup was far inferior to the First Army's, and among his top-tier generals, only he and Meng Qu barely qualified. To make matters worse, Meng Qu had been transferred to Youzhou, leaving him without any of his best generals.
Even if it was just this, it would be fine, but Ni Ma had an even more serious problem. He claimed to have three hundred thousand troops under his command, but Ni Ma, twenty thousand of them were newly recruited soldiers, and these recruits had only been trained for a few months.
In this situation, Meng Chao was able to bring these three hundred thousand troops to the battlefield and suppress Yu Jin during the offensive. It was already an incredible feat, but at this moment, asking him to directly defeat Yu Jin was simply impossible!
However, Lu Hai Kong gave him an order—within five days, he wanted to see the Second Army's flag planted on Changshan's defensive line.
When he heard this command, Meng Chao felt like cursing.
Five days? With the current situation, even if he was given fifty days, he might not be able to achieve it.
Fortunately, Lu Hai Kong was also aware of his circumstances and promised to send reinforcements. Having support was a good thing, but Meng Chao felt like he was still in a tight spot. Five days was too short, and just waiting for the reinforcements to arrive would likely consume those five days.
Under these circumstances, Meng Chao felt immense pressure.
In contrast, Yu Jin's side became more relaxed as the battle progressed.
Although both were new to the battlefield, Yu Jin's strategic environment was at a disadvantage, but tactically, his side had a significant advantage over Meng Chao.
He didn't have Meng Chao's order to defeat the enemy within five days; he only had an order to defend against the enemy for ten days or even half a month if possible.
This was an easy task for Yu Jin. Although Meng Chao's offensive rhythm was getting better and better, Yu Jin's side was also improving. With the current situation, not only could he defend for ten days or half a month, but even if he were asked to defend for a year or more, he wouldn't feel it was a problem.
After receiving Yu Jin's reply, Baron Yuan was delighted. He was ready to use this battle to negotiate with Lu Hai Kong.
As Baron Yuan's dream blossomed, in Changshan Prefecture, Yu Jin's nightmare officially began.
In the 16th chapter of the 9th volume of the novel, Yu Jin had just finished inspecting the battlefield, taking a look at the city's defenses, and understanding Meng Chao's situation. After confirming everything, he was about to turn and descend from the city wall.
However, at that moment, a sudden cry of surprise rang out from the top of the wall.
"Everyone, look! What's that flying in the sky?"
Yu Jin was startled by the shout and turned to look. On the wall, there appeared a wooden bird, ten meters long, with a fiery red glow.
As Yu Jin saw the wooden bird, his heart skipped a beat, and a growing sense of unease spread within him.
"Quickly! Someone, shoot that thing down for me!"
Yu Jin rushed to the top of the wall in a few strides, and the wooden bird let out an angry roar.
The soldiers on the wall were stunned for a moment but quickly reacted. Although they didn't understand why Yu Jin suddenly wanted to destroy the wooden bird, they promptly followed his order.
In an instant, hundreds of crossbows aimed at the wooden bird simultaneously!
However, before they could even begin their attack, the fiery red bird, which was already eye-catching in the night sky, burst into an astonishing glow.
Then, a burst of fire soared into the sky!
"Not good!"
Yu Jin's face paled as the fire erupted. Without hesitation, he turned and leaped off the wall.
Just as Yu Jin jumped down, a raging inferno engulfed that section of the wall.
Immediately after, the mechanical beast, Scarlet Phoenix, began its rampage. After bombarding this section of the wall for over ten minutes, it ignored the flames and the collapsed sections of the wall and flew over to Meng Chao's camp, hovering above it.
Then, from the back of the Scarlet Phoenix, Zhang Liao's head emerged, and he shouted down to Meng Chao, "General Meng Chao, the reinforcements have arrived. It's your turn now."
After shouting, the Scarlet Phoenix carried Zhang Liao away, flying off again, leaving Meng Chao and the Second Army below, both stunned and speechless.
After a brief moment, Meng Chao snapped out of his daze and turned to launch an attack on the city still engulfed in flames.
The next day, when the news of Yu Jin's defeat and the complete destruction of the Changshan defense line reached Baron Yuan, he was utterly bewildered...
(End of Chapter)
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