According to Yan Liang's instructions, the soldiers repositioned the trebuchet and the crossbow.

"Put!"

Boom boom...

All the boulders and arrows were smashed at the tower on the left gate.

The strength of the attack is high, and the effect changes instantly.

The enemy soldiers stationed in that position, after being frantically bombarded, retreated. Some were stoned to death on the spot, and some fell from the tower. The soldiers who climbed up climbed smoothly and smoothly.

"Okay, just hit it like that!"

Yan Liang shouted excitedly.

"Rush up, rush up..."

Following that gap, more and more soldiers climbed the tower.

Seeing that the city was in sight, Yan Liang was also ready to rush and kill, but a soldier came to report: "General, general... The Lord has an order, withdraw the army immediately! ”

"What?! I'm about to break the city, how can I withdraw my troops? Yan Liang shouted in surprise.

"This is the Lord's order." The soldier said.

Yan Liang looked in the direction of the military formation, and Yuan Xi had ordered someone to blow the horn of Mingjin: "Woo woo woo..." The horn sounded, and the soldiers who were attacking the city on the front line all retreated.

"Ugh...."

Yan Liang was very annoyed.

Just like that, I saw the credit slipping away in vain.

He ran back to the military formation, clenched his fists and asked, "My lord, why are you withdrawing?" The end is about to break the city! ”

"Yes, General, how did you order the withdrawal of troops?" Ma Chao was also puzzled.

"General Yan, Meng Qi, what are you looking at the cauldron on the city tower for?" Yuan Xi pointed to the city tower in front of him.

The two looked at each other.

"It's boiling oil, right? Or maybe it's fire oil. Yan Liang said.

"Hmm." Yuan Xi nodded and said, "What you said is right. From the very beginning of the battle, Cao Xiu had people throw huge trees under the city without smashing stones. Why is that? I've been wondering, but now I know that he wanted to smash all the wood out of the city, and then pour it down with fire oil and ignite it. In this way, there will be a sea of fire outside the city. Our soldiers didn't even have time to retreat. Not only that, but our siege engines were all destroyed. ”

"If you hesitate for a moment, our army will suffer huge losses!"

"I see..." Yan Liang suddenly realized: "No wonder, Cao Xiu, this kid, is still holding back this bad." ”

Ma Chao arched his hand and said: "It's still General Yuan's eyes like a torch." If it weren't for General Yuan, our army would have suffered.... ”

"Fighting against the enemy is important to know oneself and the enemy, but what is valuable is to be improvised. We will take measures according to the actual situation. Just like just now, General Yan asked all the crossbows and catapults to smash to the left gate, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy, and my siege soldiers also climbed up smoothly, and they were about to break the city. Tongguan is already in our pocket, but the more we get to this time, the more careful we must be. Even if the enemy has already evacuated the tower, you can't be careless, he is likely to give you a fatal blow and turn defeat into victory. Yuan Xi had already regarded Ma Chao as his general, and said frankly.

"My lord is very right." Yan Liang said with some fear: "Fortunately, we have withdrawn." ”

Ma Chao also nodded secretly, feeling that he had learned a lot.

In the past, he led his troops to fight, and they all rushed forward in one go, although their morale was high and they were invincible. But when he thinks about it, the enemies he faces are all warlords and aliens from Xiliang, and those people don't have any brains, and they fight for strength. If he fights with Yuan Xi, like this cunning, Ma Chao is really not sure, and he may fall into a trap at any time.

Therefore, he decided to follow Yuan Xi well, and he will definitely use it in the future.

After the besieging soldiers withdrew, Yan Liang stepped forward and shouted: "Cao Xiu, you want to use fire oil to ignite the wood outside and burn my army, my lord has already seen through it, how can you hold the city with such a small skill of carving insects?" ”

"Let you surrender quickly, and the lord will spare you from dying, otherwise you will attack the city, and the chickens and dogs will not be left..."

"Yuan Xi is worthy of his name." Cao Xiu stood on the city tower and said to himself secretly: "With him in Tongguan, it is really difficult to hold it." ”

"Don't worry, general, don't we have plenty of oil. What are you afraid of what he will do? Cao Xiu's vanguard general Yan Zhi said.

"General Yan, do you know that Yuan Xi attacked Bingzhou, and sent people to destroy Yuan Shang's fire oil depot early. The fire oil in my Tongguan must be protected. There can be no surprises. ”

"Don't worry, the general will send people to guard day and night." Yan Zhi replied.

Yan Liang shouted under the city for a long time.

Cao Xiu ignored him.

You can only return to the battle first.

After Yuan Xi thought about it carefully, he said: "Cao Xiu has made sufficient preparations, and if we attack again, we will get twice the result with half the effort, and it will be very easy to be ambushed." It is better to withdraw to the main camp first, and then attack again in the next day. ”

"Lord, didn't you say you wanted a quick victory?" Yan Liang hurriedly said: "Let the last general take the brothers and rush to kill again, right?" ”

"No."

Yuan Xi said: "The giant trees under the city are all ready-made, Cao Xiu only needs to pour the oil and ignite it, and there will be a sky-high fire." Do you want my army to be burned in flames? ”

..........

Yan Liang and Ma Chao were unwilling, but they had to admit that what Yuan Xi said was very reasonable. Now the situation is not in favor of the besieging side, and continuing to fight will only increase unnecessary casualties.

Under Yuan Xi's orders, the army withdrew from Tongguan.

They camped fifteen miles away.

Cao Xiu knew that Yuan Xi would come to Tongguan again within a few days, so he quickly sent someone to Wuguan to report, hoping that Cao Cao could send reinforcements. And in his own capacity, he sent a letter to Hongnong County, hoping to transfer the local army of Hongnong County. Assist in the defense of the city.

Wuguan.

Cao Cao was planning to rebel against Han Sui, but he didn't expect to receive an urgent report from Cao Xiu.

"Tongguan is in danger, and we have to save it. Generals, who is willing to lead an army to meet Yuan Xi and Ma Chao and relieve the siege of Tongguan? After Cao Cao finished reading the battle report, he looked at the generals in the account.

"The last will go." Cao Ren was the first to stand up.

As a general under Cao Cao, it is a shame to lose the city and land, and he wants to go to Tongguan to regain face.

"Okay, Cao Ren, I'll give you 50,000 elite soldiers..."

"Prime Minister." Guo Jia interrupted Cao Cao's words: "Yuan Xi is waiting for the prime minister to come to the aid now." Ma Teng and Han Sui's Xiliang army is still outside Chang'an City, and we have no iron cavalry, how can we beat them quickly? I'm afraid that before I reach Tongguan, I will be intercepted by them. ”

"This..."

Cao Cao thought about it carefully and felt that it was not impossible.

"Feng Xiao's words are reasonable." Cao Cao pressed his hand and motioned for Cao Ren to sit down: "Yuan Xi suddenly attacked Tongguan, but let Ma Teng and Han Sui garrison Chang'an. He must have been waiting for my reinforcements. ”

"yes..."

"What does Bonghyo suggest?"

Guo Jia arched his hand and said: "For today's plan, only by plotting against Han Sui, or by making a plan, destroying the Xiliang army in Chang'an, and recovering Chang'an, can we rush to the aid of Tongguan." In fact, Yuan Xi's plan is nothing more than that, he doesn't just want to capture Tongguan and Hongnong, or even want to defeat Hangu Pass and Luoyang, force us to come to the rescue, and then ambush in the middle of the road. Such clumsy methods can be seen through by ordinary generals. ”