Chapter 71: Turtle-like tactics
"boom!"
When twenty small boats loaded with flammable materials collided with the Chu army's warship, the bottom of the tall and sturdy ship immediately caught fire, and the fire continued to spread!
The surviving Wu army soldiers on the boat immediately jumped into the water and slipped away as quickly as fish.
The Chu soldiers on the warships were shocked by the bravery and fearlessness shown by the Wu army, and there was panic on the deck.
At this moment, a large number of Wu army warships suddenly appeared behind the Chu army's warships, squeezing them tightly in the gradually narrowing triangular waters.
"General, we've fallen into a trap!"
Mi Ji, the deputy general of the Chu army on the side, shouted with grief and anger.
Things have come to this point, and Shen Yinshu can do nothing!
Qingji is too cunning and good at cheating!
Shen Yinshu had never encountered such a difficult enemy.
No wonder Qingji was able to defeat the arrogant Helu!
"Retreat! Fight!"
“Break through!”
Shen Yinshu acted decisively and issued the order to retreat.
At this time, the Chu army's navy was already trapped and surrounded by the Wu army's warships. If they didn't break out, it was possible that the whole army would be wiped out!
"Shoot!"
“Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!”
Round after round of rockets were fired, killing a large number of Chu soldiers and causing considerable damage to their warships.
"Help!"
"help me!"
A Chu soldier was burned into a "fire man". He screamed like a headless fly, ran around, and finally fell into the water, turning into a charred corpse.
In desperation, the Chu army's warships could only ram into the Wu army's large wing ships and tower ships, trying to carve out a bloody path.
Qingji’s strategic goal was very simple, which was to destroy the Chu army’s warships at all costs and cut off their way back!
Look, whenever the warships of the Chu army rushed up, the warships of the Wu army would always crash into them without fear, and die together!
This brutal naval battle lasted from morning till night and ended with the Chu army's defeat.
In this battle, the Wu army beheaded countless people, but also destroyed more than a thousand warships of the Chu army, large and small!
A great victory!
Qingji's strategic goal has been achieved.
At least the defeated Chu army could only retreat to the Dajiangkou area, set up camp and rest.
Now, the Chu army's navy has been almost completely destroyed, most of its warships have been damaged, and their way back home is blocked by the Wu army's warships patrolling on the Yangtze River. What can they do?
…
The Chu army camp and the central army tent.
Shen Yinshu was convening a group of dusty generals to discuss matters.
He looked at the dejected generals standing on both sides and couldn't help but sigh in his heart, but his face still maintained a calm expression.
"My dear friends, this disastrous defeat is the worst we have ever suffered since the founding of the Chu Kingdom!"
Shen Yinshu took a deep breath and said, "Since the attack on Wu, our Chu army has lost more than 30,000 soldiers (including missing and captured), and countless wounded. Now, we have lost thousands of warships in one battle!"
"Everyone, I, Shen Yinshu, have committed a grave sin. I am ashamed of the king, the State of Chu, and the ancestors of the Great Chu!"
"But the war is not over yet. Our army is trapped at the mouth of the river. On the river, the Wu fleet is rampant. Our army has no ships to return to Chu, and we cannot fight on the water. What can we do?"
Hearing this, all the generals lowered their heads and dared not speak.
Mi Ji stood up and said with a look of self-blame on his face: "General, the great defeat in the naval battle yesterday was all my fault. Please punish me, General!"
"Right Sima, now is not the time to hold someone accountable."
Shen Yinshu shook his head and said, "I am also responsible for the great defeat in this naval battle. No one would have thought that the Wu people would be so cunning and scheming!"
"I would like to ask you two to come up with a plan. Can our army fight again? And how should we fight?"
Upon hearing this, a general immediately stepped forward and said, "General, although our Chu army has suffered several defeats and let Wu Manzi seize the initiative, judging from the current situation, our army has 50,000 soldiers and can still fight."
"The Wu army has no more than 20,000 or 30,000 men at most. Although they have the advantage of fleets, what would our Chu army have to fear if we fought on land?"
"Yes! General, since we only have a few warships left and cannot go up the river to Wudu, why don't we attack the cities and strongholds along the way and attack Wudu directly?"
Attack the city?
Shen Yinshu was helpless.
If things were really that simple, he wouldn't be as distressed as he is now!
"My dear, to be honest, the army has run out of food and fodder. It can only supply 50,000 troops for ten days at most."
"Now the Wu army has blocked the Yangtze River with its fleet, and the food and grass in the country cannot be transported here. If the Wu army also fortifies the city walls and clears the fields, and defends the cities along the river, what can we do?"
"this……"
Faced with this situation, all the Chu army generals could not help but laugh.
The problem of insufficient food, fodder and supplies is indeed very tricky!
With 50,000 troops, the amount of food and drink they need every day is an astronomical number.
A few days ago, the Chu people could still rely on large ships to transport food and fodder to the front line in a steady stream.
But now, the Chu army has lost control of the river, and if they want to obtain food and fodder, they can only use local materials.
But can the people of Wu agree to this?
Obviously not!
That is exactly the case.
While sending the navy to control the river surface, Qingji also divided his troops to garrison in the three riverside cities of Zhenzi, Tong and Li, built fortifications and strengthened the city defenses.
All the common people outside the city brought their families into the city to seek refuge. Even livestock such as chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, cattle and sheep were taken away, to ensure that not a single grain of food was left for the Chu army!
It is true that the Chu army has twice as many troops as the Wu army, but without the control of the river and lacking food and supplies, it can’t make a difference!
Therefore, the Chu army is now in a dilemma.
In desperation, Shen Yinshu had no choice but to bypass the sturdy city of Zhenzi and instead attack the cities of Tong and Li in an attempt to survive.
…
While the armies of Wu and Chu were fighting, Sun Wu's troops, far away in Wuyuan area, were also under a massive attack from the Yue army.
After Helü surrendered to the Kingdom of Yue, Yunchang personally led an army of more than 10,000 people, plus several thousand soldiers under Helü's command, about 20,000 troops, and attempted to march north to attack the capital of Wu.
Since his own troops were far fewer than the enemy's, Sun Wu did not choose to engage in a head-on confrontation with the Yue army.
After receiving the order and rushing to Wuyuan area, Sun Wu turned into a construction maniac, recruiting soldiers and building fortifications together with the nearby people.
Whenever he was in a dangerous place, Sun Wu would build a camp to resist the Yue army.
There were more than ten camps of different sizes, with garrisons of 500 to more than 300 soldiers. They could block the Vietnamese army for a while with the advantage of one man blocking the pass and ten thousand men unable to pass.
Yun Chang was so annoyed by Sun Wu's turtle-like tactics!
He wanted to lead his troops to bypass it, but the road was blocked and far away, so the cost outweighed the gain.
The capture of one camp after another not only took a lot of time and effort for the Vietnamese army, but they also paid a heavy price!
This made Yunchang feel very painful.
