After Liu Bei's demise, Zhuang Shaoyou took over Youzhou and merged the seven counties west of Youzhou Shanhaiguan into one and named it Beiping County. Hechang Li, Liaodong, Lelang, Daifang, Xuansu are one, named Liaodong County, Taishou Gongsun Gong. The infantry under the command of Gongsun Zan and Gongsun Du was transferred to the local garrison army.

Zhuang Shaoyou and Gongsun Xu went to Shanhaiguan to persuade Zhao Yun to surrender.

15,000 Youzhou cavalry of Gongsun Zhan's old department, 15,000 Liaodong cavalry of Gongsun Du's old department, and 15,000 Liaodong cavalry of Gongsun Du's old department, were incorporated into the Taishi Ci Cavalry Regiment, and the total strength of the cavalry regiment reached 70,000! Gongsun Xu, Gongsun Kang, and Zhao Yun served as deputy commanders of the cavalry corps, with the rank of major general.

After briefly arranging the affairs of Youzhou and Liaodong, Zhuang Shaoyou immediately led the army south, preparing to kill Yuan Shao.

Before leaving, Zhuang Shaoyou said to the newly appointed Taishou Tianyu: "Build a city that can accommodate more than one million people in Jixian County, the old capital of Yan Kingdom, and the Ministry of Administration and Military Affairs will contact you, and you must cooperate with them." ”

Rao is Tian Yu is smart, but he still hasn't turned a corner for a long time, and when Zhuang Shaoyou has gone away, Tian Yu understands that the general is going to make the capital here!

Tian Yu slapped his forehead, if this is the case, then the Beiping County Shou is equivalent to Jing Zhaoyin of the former Han Dynasty and Henan Yin of the Later Han Dynasty, which is a high-ranking official!

This is a major opportunity as well as a major challenge, and everything depends on whether or not the tasks assigned by the general can be fulfilled well.

Twenty-seven-year-old Tian Yu immediately went to Zhang Luo in a hurry.

At the beginning of April, Zhuang Shaoyou led an army of 120,000 to Nanpi, Zhuang Shaoyou did not attack the city, but persuaded Zhang He, the defender of Nanpi, to surrender, but unfortunately Zhang He refused.

The generals under him were filled with righteous indignation and scolded Zhang He for not knowing how to lift, Zhuang Shaoyou smiled: "If there are no people in this world who don't know how to lift, wouldn't it be boring?" Let's go, go to Yecheng! ”

Zhang He gritted his teeth and watched the Zhuang Shaoyou army below retreat, but he didn't dare to go out of the city to pursue. Because Zhang He knew that once he went out of the city to pursue, he would immediately be torn to pieces by Zhuang Shaoyou's 70,000 iron horsemen!

At the beginning of April, Zhuang Shaoyou's army arrived in Yecheng, and at this time, Le Jin was still unhurriedly strengthening the defense outside Yecheng.

The drums gathered to discuss the matter, and everyone began to discuss how to take Yecheng, but there was no good way for a long time, so they could only attack. Zhuang Shaoyou couldn't help but sigh, the art of war is really right: go up to the army to attack and plan, and attack the city!

Yecheng is a big city, the population in the city is 300,000, the scale is larger than Puyang, the city wall is five miles long from east to west, five miles wide from north to south, square and square. The city wall of Yecheng is three feet high, and it has been strengthened by Yuan Shao over the years, and the defense of the city wall is not weak. Moreover, Yuan Shao learned from Zhuang Shaoyou, and dug Yecheng into a moat, the river is four zhang wide and one zhang three feet deep, which can just drown one person. The moat of Yecheng is connected to the Zhangshui in the north, which leads the Zhangshui into the moat and then flows away from the south of the city.

In the city, Yuan Shao's army was 10,000, Lu Bu's army was 20,000, and Zhang Yan's army was 10,000, with a total strength of 10,000 and 50,000 cavalry, and the combat power should not be underestimated.

Although Zhuang Shaoyou has twice as many people as Yuan Shao, if it is a strong attack, there will be a lot of casualties, this deal is not cost-effective, Zhuang Shaoyou is not willing to use his life to pile up.

Zhuang Shaoyou immediately ordered to cut off the connection between Zhangshui and the moat, and the water level of the moat began to drop slowly, but soon stopped, Zhuang Shaoyou sighed in his heart: Sure enough! At the beginning, the Puyang moat was also designed in this way, one in and one out to ensure water quality, so that the moat would not become stagnant water, but if the source was cut off, the moat would not dry up, otherwise the moat would not become a chicken rib?

Under his command, two infantry regiments and one cavalry regiment, with a total of 170,000 horses, surrounded Yecheng from all directions, built horses and dug pits, and were very busy.

Three days later, Zhuang Shaoyou commanded the army to launch a tentative attack, but when the tactical strike force had just arrived at 700 paces and had no time to shoot, the city suddenly flew with rocks, and the ballista battalion was attacked.

In the end, it was estimated that there were many catapults in the city, at least ten of them, and the range was very long, reaching a thousand steps! Although the catapult is extremely accurate, and even the Mo family's catapult is not very reliable, after all, there are many of them, and they are difficult to guard against, and the lethality is still amazing.

Without the support of ballistas, if you want to fill the moat and attack the city, you will have to pay a huge price.

Yuan Shao in the city saw that Zhuang Shaoyou had nowhere to speak, and he was in a good mood, and he inspected the city every day, and then went back to the house to drink and have fun with Lu Bu and Zhang Yan, so he was not happy.

Just when Zhuang Shaoyou was worried, the scout sent news that there was an abnormal movement in the Nanpi garrison! Zhuang Shaoyou smiled, and immediately gave Tai Shici an order: "Send 20,000 iron horsemen to meet General Zhang He!" ”

Since Zhuang Shaoyou withdrew his troops from Nanpi and continued to go south, Zhang He knew that Zhuang Shaoyou was eighty percent of his idea to fight Yecheng, Zhang He was anxious, if Yecheng fell, what was the point of Nanpi guarding well? At that moment, 20,000 elites went out of the city overnight, day and night, and ran towards Yecheng.

I thought I was cautious enough and kept my whereabouts well secret, but the news was leaked.

Maybe it's a historical coincidence. On April 13, Tai Shi Ci led 20,000 iron cavalry to meet Zhang He at the Guangzong Boundary Bridge, and the two armies Tai Shi Ci failed to attack the boundary bridge, while Zhang He was desperately defending.

The boundary bridge was originally a wooden bridge, but because it is located in the main traffic road, the army comes and goes frequently, so it was rebuilt into a stone bridge, even if Zhang He wants to burn it, he can't do it, and Zhang He can only guard the boundary bridge, dare not move, once there is no boundary bridge and Qinghe block, the 20,000 infantry under his command can not stop 20,000 iron cavalry anyway.

And Tai Shici was determined to destroy Zhang He, so he refused to retreat, so the two armies began to look at each other across the bridge, and they had nothing to do to play and shoot.

For several days, Zhuang Shaoyou was at a loss for Yecheng, and ordered to transfer craftsmen from the Mo family to start making giant catapults, fifteen miles north of Taihang Mountain, so the soldiers went up the mountain to cut down trees, and the trees that came down were floated down the Zhangshui, and then intercepted in the north of Yecheng, and then used to make catapults. At the request of Zhuang Shaoyou, the range of the catapult was designed to be 1,200 steps.

Boundary Bridge, Tai Shi Ci failed to attack the boundary bridge, so he divided 10,000 troops down the river and went downstream to find a bridge to cross the river!

Zhang He soon learned of Tai Shici's movements, and immediately ordered the forcible destruction of the boundary bridge, and then led the army to retreat east overnight. Tai Shi Ci sent people to repair the boundary bridge, and then successfully crossed the river to start the pursuit, while Zhang He retreated at full speed, running fifty miles, and could hide in Qinghe City, Tai Shi Ci could only look at the city and sigh.

On April 20, the catapult was made, a total of forty vehicles, all of which were gathered by Zhuang Shaoyou to the north of Yecheng, first a gravel bombardment, although the casualties were not much, but the deterrent effect was excellent, and the defenders in the city began to be unstable.

After Yuan Shao consulted with Lü Bu and Zhang Yan, he sent soldiers and horses out of the city that night to harass them, and Lü Bu and Zhang Yan each led 10,000 iron cavalry to harass Zhuang Shao's guerrilla army.

For three days in a row, it was like this, Zhuang Shaoyou's army was in a state of misery, although he did not suffer much loss, but the soldiers were physically and mentally exhausted.

Zhuang Shaoyou immediately decided to shrink the encirclement, abandon the south and east sides of the city, and deploy all the 150,000 troops in the west and north of the city, and strengthen the defense, take turns to be on guard, and not give Yuan Shao a chance to take advantage of it. As a result, Yuan Shao never dared to go out of the city to harass after suffering two losses.

The reason why Zhuang Shaoyou dared to do this was because he was fearless, he was not afraid of you running away at all, without the turtle shell of Yecheng, Yuan Shao would have been divided by Zhuang Shaoyou.

On April 24, it began to rain, not heavy, but not light.

The rain stopped after a long day, and by dusk, the water level in Zhangshui had risen significantly. Zhuang Shaoyou stood on the bank of the Zhangshui River, meditating.

Suddenly, a strong wind blew, Zhuang Shaoyou couldn't help but shiver, and the wind also blew waves on the river, but it quickly dissipated.

Zhuang Shaoyou suddenly thought of something, and immediately got on his horse and ran upstream along the river, and the guard battalion behind him hurriedly got on his horse and chased after him.

After running out for more than ten miles, I came to the foot of Taihang Mountain, and saw that the terrain here was somewhat low-lying, and after the Zhangshui came down from Taihang Mountain, a small lake in the city was piled up here, and then overflowed a small strand and flowed downstream.

Zhuang Shaoyou was overjoyed when he saw this, and immediately returned to the camp on horseback and convened the generals to discuss the matter.

That night, Zhuang Shaoyou's battalion sent a group of 20,000 men, all infantry, along the Zhangshui.

Yuan Shao also received the scout's report, but he didn't know what Zhuang Shaoyou planned to do.

For three days, Zhuang Shaoyou's army still didn't move, so Yuan Shao put his mind at ease and continued to drink and have fun.

On the first day of the fifth month, Zhuang Shaoyou's army began to strengthen the embankment between Zhangshui and the moat, and at the same time sent 10,000 soldiers to the south of the city to block the passage out of the moat.

Yuan Shao changed color when he heard the news, and finally knew what Zhuang Shaoyou was going to do! So he immediately dispatched troops and sent Lu Bu, Yan Liang, Chou, and Zhang Yan to lead 50,000 iron cavalry from the south gate, and made up his mind that Zhuang Shaoyou's plan must not be allowed to succeed.

Zhuang Shaoyou led the army to wait here for a long time, 40,000 iron cavalry, 20,000 infantry, escorting 10,000 construction men and horses, it is really an incomparable luxury!

After a volley, thousands of casualties were inflicted on Yuan Shaojun's iron cavalry, and the lethality of the tactical strike force became stronger and stronger, and the soldiers became more and more proficient and cooperated more tacitly.

After the long range, the infantry's mission was over, and Tai Shici's cavalry immediately split into two ways, fought out from both flanks, and launched a counter-charge.

The two teams of steel torrents collided violently.

Soon after the melee began, Zhao Yun led 15,000 Youzhou iron cavalry from the west of the city to kill the generals, and Gongsun Kang in the north of the city also began to move.

Yuan Shao in the city saw that the situation was not good, and immediately Mingjin withdrew his troops!

Tai Shi Ci led the army to pursue at the end of the rank, and the stone bed crossbow in the city was immediately launched to cover, and Tai Shi Ci had no choice but to retreat and avoid.

Yuan Shao's 50,000 iron cavalry only went back to the early 40,000s, and Tai Shi Ci's losses were less than 2,000, and before this, Yuan Shao's cavalry had been killed and wounded by the tactical troops, and less than 5,000 were killed by Tai Shi Ci's iron cavalry. And Tai Shici has long been prepared, well-trained, and well-equipped, which shows the elite of the Bingzhou Iron Cavalry.

Yuan Shao's cavalry retreated into the city, and 10,000 soldiers immediately stepped forward to start construction again.

On the tower of the south gate of Yecheng, Yuan Shao gritted his teeth with hatred, but there was nothing he could do! A fist slammed into the city wall, and a wisp of blood slowly flowed down the city wall.

"Someone! Go and invite Mr. Gong and Mr. out! ”

Guo Tu on the side saw this, and his face suddenly became very ugly.

Frustrated, the word Gong and, is in the Yecheng prison at the moment.