sovbooks Chapter 134 This commander will share weal and woe with his soldiers.
Chapter 134 This commander will share weal and woe with his soldiers.
As dawn broke, the smoke from the campsite had not yet dissipated.
Sun Ce stood before Wei Xu, his armor stained with cigarette ash. He spoke in a flat voice, reciting numbers:
"More than 3,300 dead. More than 5,200 wounded, mostly from burns and trampling. About 3,100 missing, probably escaped in the chaos. Food supplies are only enough for three days. Less than 40% of the weapons are in good condition."
Wei Xu's face turned ashen. The surviving generals around him all hung their heads.
"It would take two days to travel from here to Xiaoguan, even at a fast pace. Even if we arrived, with our current morale and physical strength..." Sun Ce didn't finish his sentence.
Wei Xu looked at the mess before him. Blackened tents, dead horses, groaning wounded soldiers, and soldiers squatting on the ground with vacant eyes.
"Bo Fu," Wei Xu looked at Sun Ce, his voice hoarse, "is there any way?"
Sun Ce remained silent. He knew what Wei Xu was waiting for. Some things couldn't be said. To say them would bring eternal infamy.
But if he doesn't tell, everyone will die here, including himself.
He looked up, his gaze sweeping over the bewildered faces around him, before finally returning to Wei Xu.
"To survive, one must cut off the tail."
Sun Ce spoke, his voice not loud.
"First, reducing food rations to 70% can last for four days. Second,"
He paused for a moment,
"Those who are seriously wounded and unable to walk, stay behind. The rations saved can last for a few more days. Third, although this place has been ravaged by war, there are still villages. Send people... to collect grain."
Everyone understood what he meant by "requisitioning grain."
"In this way, the provisions will last at least six days. We have four days to attack Xiaoguan."
The tent was deathly silent. Only the faint cries of wounded soldiers could be heard in the distance.
After Sun Ce finished speaking, he looked at no one again.
With these words, his reputation in the military was effectively ruined.
Wei Xu... He always felt that this person had deliberately forced him to say these words.
When did this good-for-nothing develop such cunning?
As Wei Xu listened, a look of relief slowly spread across his face.
He rubbed his hands together, sighed, and looked very heavy-hearted and helpless.
"Alas... what Bo Fu said, though... though it is inhumane, is the only way to survive right now. It's all for everyone's sake."
He looked at the generals.
What do you all think?
No one said a word.
Wei Xu waited for a while, then nodded, as if he had made a difficult decision:
"In that case...we shall follow Bofu's plan. Rations shall be reduced immediately. The seriously wounded...shall be concentrated on the low slope to the east. General Bofu shall be in charge of the grain requisition team. It is imperative...it is imperative to make the people understand the difficulties our army faces."
He patted Sun Ce on the shoulder, the force quite strong:
"Bo Fu, you've been through a lot. Such an important task can only be accomplished by you."
Sun Ce lowered his eyes and clasped his hands in a fist salute:
"It's my duty."
Wei Xu turned around and walked towards his tent.
That was awesome!
Sun Ce, a warlord, was tricked by his own scheme.
It's great that Sun Ce came up with this idea.
The phrases "losing soldiers," "abandoning the wounded," and "seizing grain" were all coined by Sun Bofu.
I was simply "following the good advice".
Upon returning, if Marquis Wen were to punish someone, the first to be punished would naturally be Sun Ce, who had devised this treacherous plan.
At most, he would be blamed for "misjudging personnel" and "being forced by circumstances."
He entered the tent, his face now grave, and gave instructions to his personal guards:
"Go, reduce my rations as well. I, the commander, will share the hardships with my soldiers."
……
Lü Bu's army abandoned their wounded soldiers and continued eastward.
Before they had gone ten miles, the striker fell into a trap again.
This time it was even more intense, with bamboo skewers, traps, and tripwires appearing one after another.
Sun Ce's "daredevil scout team" suffered heavy casualties, with one or two people falling down for every hundred steps they advanced.
The marching speed dropped sharply again.
Sun Ce rode up to the front of the group and carefully observed the area where the latest trap had been triggered.
The soil was freshly turned over, and the arrangement was slightly different from the previous few days, but more ingenious and dense.
He turned his horse around and found Wei Xu pacing anxiously in the center of the army.
"General, the number and density of traps far exceed those of the past few days, and the method of setting them up has changed."
Sun Ce's voice was very steady.
"This humble general deduces that the enemy force is not limited to the initial cavalry unit. They have likely deployed reinforcements and prepared more and more complex obstacles ahead. If we continue to use the previous method to scout ahead, we will be wiped out before we can get out."
How did things get so bad again?!
I don't want to be buried with these peasants.
Wei Xu's expression changed:
"Then... what should we do?"
Sun Ce glanced at him. Although he disliked the other man, he knew that now was not the time for infighting.
"The enemy uses traps to tire and hinder our forces, intending to make it impossible for our army to advance an inch, before finally defeating us with their elite troops."
Sun Ce's gaze swept over the terrified officers and generals around him, finally settling on Wei Xu's face.
"If that's the case, why not give them a taste of their own medicine?"
Wei Xu hurriedly asked:
What plan should we devise?
Two points.
Sun Ce said,
"First, there will surely be pursuing troops behind our army. Zhao Yun and Gan Ning will not sit idly by and watch us escape to Xiaoguan. We can set up simple traps and tripwires along the way of the rear guard, or deploy feints in dangerous places. We do not seek to kill the enemy, but only to slow down their pursuit and buy time for our army."
"Secondly, we will not launch a direct attack to break through the traps set by the enemy ahead. We will send out more scouts and deploy more cavalry to carefully investigate and mark the trap areas. The main army can simply bypass them. We will leave those traps intact for our 'friendly forces' to use later."
As Wei Xu listened, his dim eyes gradually brightened:
"Go around it? Leave the trap for the pursuers?"
"Exactly."
A cold smile curled at the corner of Sun Ce's lips.
"Since they enjoy setting traps, let them taste the same flavor. Our troops can travel lightly and bypass them, which will actually increase our speed. If the pursuers arrive, they will either fall into their own traps or be forced to slowly clear the danger. In either case, we can slow down their advance."
"Brilliant! Bo Fu's plan is brilliant!"
Wei Xu clapped his hands, the gloom that had lingered on his face for days vanishing instantly.
"Let's proceed with this plan! The entire army, speed up and bypass the trap area!"
After the order was given, the previously lifeless team seemed to regain some vitality.
Wei Xu remounted his horse, straightening his back a bit, as if he had regained his sense of being the head coach.
He looked at Sun Ce with a complex expression, a mixture of dependence and a hint of apprehension.
In any case, we have to rely on him for now.
But once back in Xiapi, the opportunistic kicking was still necessary.
Otherwise, if I went to my brother-in-law's place, although it wouldn't be a capital offense, it would definitely strip my father of his official position.
How can this be allowed?
Without my official position, how can I still act like a bully?
How can they bully men and oppress women now?
With so many pretty girls in Xuzhou, they must be quite lonely without my patronage.
Therefore, for a happy life in the future
Those who need to shift the blame will still have to shift the blame.
The defeat at Langya can be blamed on Song Xian; after all, that guy is either surrendering or dead now.
That means they can smear him however they want.
As for our current predicament, wasn't it all Sun Bofu's idea along the way?
Everyone can see it!
Lao Tzu was very good at recognizing and employing people!