Chapter 577

Chapter 577

“Brother! This is bad!” Guan Yu rushed into Liu Bei’s room at Yuzhou, Runan. At this time, Liu Bei was having sex. His speed was just as fast as Cao Cao. However, in comparison to Cao Cao, Liu Bei did it more out of necessity as he still did not have a son and his two daughters were already gone.

“Second Brother. Why are you so flustered?” Liu Bei asked as he wore his clothes.

“Brother! Cao Cao doesn’t want our city anymore!” Guan Yu said anxiously.

“They don’t want our city anymore? Isn’t that good news?” Since when did Cao Cao decide to become selfless and help him for free? Was it possible that the Han Emperor did something?

“Ah! How should I repay His Majesty for this?” Liu Bei sighed gratefully.

“Brother! It is not His Majesty! Cao Cao have withdrawn his troops from our city!” Guan Yu explained.

“Oh. They have withdrawn.”

“They have gone back to Yanzhou!”

“What?” Liu Bei finally lost his cool. He grabbed Guan Yu’s shoulders and asked loudly. “What did you say?”

“Brother! Cao Cao have already withdrawn their troops and returned to Yanzhou!” Guan Yu repeated himself.

“We’re finished!” Liu Bei muttered and fell onto the ground.

“Brother!” Guan Yu supported his brother.

“Milord. There is an envoy from Cao Cao requesting an audience.” Someone reported.

“Quick! Invite him in!” Liu Bei quickly replied.

“Yes!” Very quickly, the envoy met with Liu Bei in the hall.

“Governor Liu. This time, I am here to resign from my post.” Cao Cao’s envoy immediately declared.

“No! Lord Envoy. Didn’t Prime Minister Cao have you bring soldiers here to help defend my Yuzhou? I have already given the Lord Envoy three cities. How can it be this way? If it is not enough, we can increase the offer!” Liu Bei was already grasping at straws but it would seem that this time there isn’t even enough straws for him to grasp. Naturally, he would be terrified.

The envoy sighed. “Governor Liu. This isn’t a matter of price. As much as we’d like to, we are simply unable to help you.” The envoy was also in a difficult position. He would not be able to take it if Liu Bei suddenly threw a tantrum.

“What is the reason?”

“That… There are a plenty of reasons.” The envoy refused to divulge the reason.

However, he eventually relented and told Liu Bei the reason when it seemed like Liu Bei refused to let him leave without knowing why. “Yangzhou have already gone to my Lord and delivered a warning. My Lord had no choice but to withdraw his troops.”

“That whelp Liu Mang? He can threaten Cao Cao? Isn’t your Lord posing as our army?” Guan Yu asked. Can people who cheat this way be afraid of threats?

“No, it is not like this.” The envoy then explained that the Yangzhou Army impersonated Liu Bei’s troops and entered Yanzhou. They also send a threat to Cao Cao telling him to withdraw his troops to protect his own border.

“Shameless! This Liu Mang is so shameless and heartless!” Liu Bei wailed loudly.

The messenger was also blushing with shame. “General Guan. Take care of your Lord. I am busy here so I will have to go.” The envoy wiped the sweat from his head and took his leave. Guan Yu also did not stop him from leaving.

“Brother!” Guan Yu said as he tried to wake his brother up from his stupor. By the time Liu Bei managed to regain himself, Sun Qian and the others had arrived.

“Where is Yangzhou’s Army now?” Liu Bei asked Sun Qian and Guan Yu.

“That is…” Sun Qian stuttered and then replied. “Milord. It is better to relax and recuperate first.”

“Recuprate? How am I supposed to do that? Second Brother! Tell me the truth! Do not lie to your brother!”

“I…” Hearing this, Guan Yu had no other choice. He gave Sun Qian a helpless expression and then told the truth. “Brother. We are already surrounded by Yangzhou. We are at a critical juncture. We have also already lost Nandun, Xiangcheng and the others. Cao Coa have already withdrew so Yangzhou is just taking cities along the way. They even ignored a few counties which is why their marching speed is so fast.

Liu Bei immediately fainted after hearing this news.

****

“Hahaha! Zijing is a great talent!” Lu Bu laughed happily. Zhang Liao and the others also now think higher of Lu Su. They were initially facing a deadlock because of Cao Cao and their army could not delay long. Yet with a single stratagem, Lu Su forced Cao Cao to withdraw and the deadlock was broken. Now all they needed to do was attack Runan.

“Capture Runan and pacify Yuzhou! Zijing will be the biggest contributor for this!” Lu Bu said to Lu Su.

“I don’t deserve so much praise.” Lu Su still remained humble but he was actually very happy. This is because at Lu Bu’s Army, he was able to put his talent to good use. It was also Zhang Liao that allowed him to do so. It can be said that this kind of accomplishment is something that had never happened before.

“Liu Bei must be panicking right now!” The veteran, Cheng Yu said coldly. As he had been with Lu Bu for a long time, he already had a deep impression of Liu Bei. That was also why he was very eager to fight Liu Bei.

“Of course. Cao Cao has abandoned him and most of Yuzhou already belonged to us. All he has left is Runan.”

“After taking Runan, I want Liu Bei’s head!” Lu Bu said coldly. Liu Bei had schemed against Lu Bu by feigning civility and then allying with Cao Cao to kill him.

Liu Bei continued to hound him even after he arrived at Yangzhou by allying with Sun Ce and Zhang Xiu to attack Yangzhou. That was why Lu Bu hated Liu Bei to the bone. Capturing Runan would be the time Liu Bei dies.

“Pass down my orders. Have the troops make food and build the catapults. I want to capture Runan within three days!” Lu Bu gave the order and the army moved with each of them doing their assigned jobs.

Meanwhile, Liu Bei was preparing himself for a life and death struggle. He was determined to bite off Lu Bu’s flesh even if had to die in the process. It was the only thing he could do since all of the envoys he sent to Lu Bu was killed on the spot. Surrendering was impossible.

“Stone throwing machines!1” Liu Bei’s soldiers shouted as Lu Bu’s catapults were quickly made and armed.

“Fire!” The order was given and rocks rained all over the city. Many lives were claimed regardless of whether they were civilians or soldiers.

“This is it!” One youngster at Runan muttered as he watched the chaos and damage caused by the catapults. Never had he thought that catapults could shoot so far.

“Milord! Lu Bu’s stone throwing machines are too powerful! We are suffering heavy casualties on the city walls!” An officer reported to Liu Bei.

“Severe casualties? Continue to hold until the last men!” Liu Bei roared loudly. This was his last stand. Lu Bu was now smart enough to know that Liu Bei would run away so he had scattered the Wolf Cavalry and the Xiliang Cavalry around the city. No matter where Liu Bei runs to, he would get caught. Without an escape route, Liu Bei could only fight.

“Understood!” The officer gritted his teeth and went back to the city walls after hearing Liu Bei’s reply. The injured were quickly carried down from the walls. These people were all pretty much dead. The ones that died instantly were lucky. The unlucky ones only had half their bodies crushed as they cling to life. Their screams struck fear in the hearts of their fellow soldiers. The officers could only contain his tears as he send these people on their way.

“Milord. Don’t we also have stone throwing machines? Let us use it!” One person suggested. Then Liu Bei remembered. That’s right, we have catapults too!

“Yes! Yes! Take out all our stone throwing machines! What about that man?” Liu Bei remembered the guy making the catapults. It was this person that made the catapults when they attacked Shouchun and almost succeeded. However, it was too late as Liu Bei had forgotten this inventor once he arrived at Runan. This is because craftsmen were of a lower class in that era so Liu Bei had overlooked him. It was too late to look for him now.

“No matter! Deploy our stone throwing machines first!” Liu Bei waved his hand. His troops still remembered how to make catapults. If there were not enough wood or rocks then they can tear down buildings or the inner castle wall that they no longer need. After all, they could no longer hold the outer walls so what was the point of the inner walls? Liu Bei had his men take out over a dozen catapults in this desperate moment. This way the pressure placed on Liu Bei had lessened a lot.

One Yangzhou’s officer in charge of repeating the orders to for the catapult to shoot became absent-minded from the repetition. He did not realize that one of those rocks in the sky was falling towards him. He only had enough time to utter out a curse before he was flattened.

“The enemy is using catapults!” People started to react at that moment. They had suffered considerable amount of losses from the surprise attack.

“Milord. We never expected Liu Bei to have catapults as well.” Zhang Liao said to Lu Bu.

“Hm?” Lu Bu’s eyes narrowed. He too, did not expect Liu Bei to have such weapons since Liu Bei had been passively beaten up. It would seem that Liu Bei was now able to counterattack.

Even then, Lu Bu felt that nothing would change. “Pass down my orders. Have the men build another twenty more catapults!” Liu Bei was a trapped animal. He does not have unlimited supplies of wood and rocks to use. On the other hand, Lu Bu has access to the resources outside the city. Who do you think would run out of resources first?

Meanwhile, Liu Bei watched his catapult’s might from the walls and laughed. If he could suppress Lu Bu’s catapults, there may be a chance to turn the tide. If Liu Bei were to lose, he would only lose his belongings. On the other hand, if Lu Bu were to lose, Yangzhou would be on the road to ruin.

It is only when Lu Bu brought out another twenty catapults when he noticed a huge problem. He did not have enough rocks. They were unable to tell whether they had enough rocks when making the catapults but the remaining amount of rocks quickly dropped since he has more catapults. They were also unable to stock up on more rocks at this as transportation would take too long.

This eventually turned into a bigger problem. Without catapults, they had to use human lives to fight. Just as Lu Bu was frowning as he thought of filling the moat with lives, he received news that there was a spy at the barracks.

“A spy?” Lu Bu frowned. Whose spy was it? Liu Bei? Cao Cao? Was it meaningful to have a spy placed now?

“Bring him here.” Lu Bu thought for a moment and then ordered. The sky was turning dark so it was almost time to stop attacking anyway.

“Let me go!” The spy struggled as he was brought in.

“Let him go.” Lu Bu ordered when he saw that this person was just a young scholar. He was definitely too weak to harm Lu Bu.

“Who sent you here? Why did you come to my camp?”

“I came from Runan!” The youngster spoke bluntly.

“From Runan?” Lu Bu furrowed his brows. If he came from Runan then he must be one of Liu Bei’s men. “Why are you here? Did Liu Bei ask you to come here so that he can beg for forgiveness? If that is the case… Men! Drag him out and execute him!” Lu Bu was ruthless. He had already killed three of Liu Bei’s envoy. This would be the fourth one.

“I am not related to Liu Bei! I am not related to Liu Bei!”

“Wait!” Lu Bu stopped his subordinate from dragging the man away. “You are not sent by Liu Bei?”

“Of course, I represent myself! I want to surrender to Yangzhou!” The man said as he pat his body.

“Surrender? Hahaha!” A few of Lu Bu’s subordinates laughed, believing that this guy was someone who was abandoning Liu Bei after seeing that Liu Bei is doomed.

“Speak. Tell me what skills you have.” Lu Bu said with disdain. “Are you strong? Or maybe you are smarter than others?”

“Neither!” The young man replied bluntly.

“Neither? You don’t have either skills and you come here to surrender? Are you thinking of freeloading?” Lu Bu’s disdain grew stronger.

“Yes. I am not strong or intelligent. But I can make your stone throwing machines shoot further! I can make your stone throwing machines powerful enough that the enemy cannot retaliate.” The young man said.

“Oh? You know how to make catapults?” Lu Bu showed some interest.

“Those are called catapults? No wonder! They are really like cannons23.” The young man murmured to himself.

Our Lord is asking you a question!” One of the guards was unhappy with the young man’s attitude and scolded him.

“Of course! Of course! I am the one that designed Liu Bei’s stone throwing machine!” The young man said proudly before becoming disappointed. “Unfortunately, it is not as good as your catapults.” He said in admiration.

“Fine. I will give you a chance. If you can make our catapults destroy Liu Bei’s stone throwing machine, I will give you a chance to swear loyalty.” Lu Bu said to the young man.

“I don’t want to vow my loyalty to you. I want to find the one that designed the catapult!” The young man did not give face to Lu Bu at all.

“Hey! Do you know who our General is?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Lu Bu waved his hand. This is because Lu Bu knew that the one that invented the catapult was his son-in-law. Vowing loyalty to Liu Mang was the same a vowing loyalty to him. At the end of the day, they would work for Yangzhou.

“It is getting dark. Arrange a place for this man to sleep. Have him show his abilities tomorrow.” Lu Bu said to his subordinates.

“No need.” The young man waved his hand. “I am already itching to go and see the catapults. General. Would you allow me to go and take a look? I promise that you will be able to destroy all of the stone throwing machines at Runan tomorrow!” The man said confidently.

“Alright.” Lu Bu nodded. If Runan falls faster, there would be more time to develop. “Men. Escort this person to the catapults.”

“Understood.” Lu Bu’s subordinates replied and took the young man to the catapults.

“Milord. Are you not afraid that he might be Cao Cao’s spy? What if they learn from out catapults?” One person asked. He was afraid that some other Lord would learn how to make their catapults and they would their advantage.

“Haha. It is worth it as long as there is a chance to capture Runan quicker. Besides, how much can they even learn?” Lu Bu was already brainwashed by Liu Mang. He also knew that Yangzhou needed more talented people in the industrial zone since Liu Ye was busy. If this young man could learn from their catapults, it would mean that this person is actually talented.

Meanwhile, the soldiers brought the young man to the catapults. It was at a quiet location being watched over by a few soldiers.

“These are the catapults.”

“These are the catapults?” The young man looked at the construct with interest and excitement.

“This is… I see, I see.” The young man muttered to himself and nodded.

“It is truly too wonderful for words. How did I not think of this? Does this mechanism here strengthen its power? But there is a disadvantage. Loading rocks is slower and it cannot fire rapidly. So its overall power is not as good.” The young man muttered and stroked the catapult.

“Tch. It seems like you are skilled. However, the one who made this, His Highness the King of Shu, is even more skilled!”

“His Highness the King of Shu?” The young man hesitated for a moment and then agreed. “Not good enough. It cannot fire rapidly.”

“Rapid fire? Haha. You haven’t seen our ballista! Our ballista can shoot rapidly!”

“Ballista?” The young man felt like he had seen the ballista before. It can shoot rapidly but its maximum range was three hundred paces. Anything further than that can and the arrow can be blocked by large shields. What was the point of it then? The catapult have already destroyed the ballista before at Shouchun.

“That was last time. Now the range is…” The soldier was about to gossip when he was stopped by another soldier. They were Lu Bu’s guards so they could hear a lot of confidential information. However, if they were to talk too much, their lives were forfeit.

“Tell me. What’s the range?” The young man held onto the soldier, refusing the let go.

“I cannot tell you. You will find out when you arrive at Yangzhou.” Only the Navy and a few generals knew the actual range. However, the improved ballista had not yet debuted on the battlefield.

“Fine then. I will find out sooner or later.” The young man nodded as he looked at the catapult with fascination. He loves mechanics so he caressed the construct as though it is his wife. However, the young man had some doubts. Was Lu Bu really just leaving his catapult here? Is he not afraid that the enemy form Runan would attack it at night? There were no barricades or anything outside so if the enemy cavalry attacks, the catapult would quickly be destroyed.

At that moment, the enemy suddenly attacked.

“Kill! Kill! Kill these Yangzhou dogs!” Yuzhou’s heavy cavalry suddenly attacked with terrifying speed. They were Liu Bei’s Xiliang Cavalry. Night raids were their specialty. By placing cloths on the hooves of the horses, they were able to approach more quietly.

“Quick! Take the catapults away!” The young man shouted. That was how much he adored the catapults. However, the soldiers did not move.

“Why are you all still standing there for? The enemy is almost here! They are going to destroy your catapults!” The young man was anxious. At the very least, save one catapult. Otherwise, he won’t have any catapults to study.

“Why are you so anxious? Naturally, we will have our own specialists that deals with night raids.” Lu Bu’s guards calmly.

“Hm?” The young man looked back with doubt and saw light where the fighting was. Many troops appeared from the overgrown meadow.

“Charge through! Kill them! Destroy their stone throwing machine!”

“Infantry?” The young man could not understand. How useful will they be against heavy cavalry? They would just be crushed by the enemy’s charge.

However, that thought only lasted for a moment as he started to hear the mournful cries of the Xiliang Cavalry.

“Did you all install traps to trip the horses?” The young man asked.

“Why would we need to go through all that trouble?” The guard replied. “You will understand by listening to the sound.”

“Sound?” The young man furrowed his brows and then heard the sound of arrows flying.

“Reload! Fire!”

The light was very bright and the young man could see the Xiliang Cavalry being pierced by the large arrows of the ballista.

The enemy would die regardless of whether they charged forward or retreated.

“This is…”

________

1. I used stone throwing machines here because there is a difference in the word used but both essentially mean catapults.
2. Both use the word 炮
3. As if cannons existed in that era -_-