sovbooks Chapter 1413: Civil Dog's Glorious Moment
Chapter 1413: Civil Dog's Glorious Moment
Chapter 1413: Civil Dog's Glorious Moment
In his early years, when Tian Yu, the captain of the Wuhuan Guard, was still in Youzhou, he and Wang Xiong, the governor of Youzhou, were at odds with each other.
Tian Yu advocated a tough approach towards the Hu people, while Wang Xiong advocated a soft approach towards them.
In the end, Cao Rui chose Wang Xiong, not just because of their identities and backgrounds:
Tian Yu was just a surrendered general, and he was of humble origins, and he once followed Liu Bei.
But Wang Xiong was different. He was promoted by Cao Pi himself and came from a prominent family in Shandong.
More importantly, Cao Rui's choice of Wang Xiong could not only alleviate the pressure on the Youzhou border, but also draw more manpower and material resources to the west to resist Ji Han.
Even as relations with the Hu people eased, they could obtain war horses through trade with the grasslands.
But everything has its pros and cons.
Years of peace at the Youzhou frontier, coupled with frequent trade with the Hu people, not only led to the relaxation of Youzhou's military preparedness, but even the outposts and other frontier defenses were gradually abandoned.
"Baoqiushui is actually a pack road connecting Youzhou and the outside of the Great Wall. Youzhou's caravans often take this road to transport salt and iron to the market outside the Great Wall."
"After Tian Yu left Youzhou, some tribes outside the Great Wall also drove their livestock along this road to Youzhou to sell them."
"But Yishi is mostly in autumn. Now it's summer and the river is high, so there are few people passing by."
The old witch pointed at Bao Qiushui and explained to General Zhendong:
"Sir, don't think that we can only ride side by side here now. When the water level decreases in autumn and the bottom of the water is exposed, this place can even accommodate a large group of cavalry."
"When I was young, Wuhuan was still quite powerful, and they often took this route south to plunder Han territory."
Having said that, he looked at the general carefully.
General Zhendong had a calm expression, his eyes fixed on the road beside the Baoqiu River where only two people could ride side by side, and he said slowly:
"It's enough to ride away side by side, but only if you can't be seen."
The old witch said quickly:
"The livestock on the grassland are now fattening up, so no tribe will come here at this time."
After hearing what the old witch said, General Zhendong did not say anything, but his eyes looked towards the south.
"When do the caravans from Youzhou usually leave the border?"
"My Lord, most of the Han caravans that go out of the border are trading livestock, furs, and other things with the tribes on the grasslands, and this is generally in the autumn."
Then there is no problem.
He asked someone to call Pei Xiu up and said:
"From now on, you must not only write down the sections of the road we have walked, but also draw the shapes of the mountains and terrain. Do you understand?"
Pei Xiu nodded:
"Show understands."
As a disciple of Feng Guiwang, you may not know other things, but you must know mathematics and cartography.
Rumor has it that this was the first knowledge that Feng taught since he came out of seclusion, and it was the opening knowledge.
Pei Xiu himself was extremely talented, and he also had a strong interest in map-making, so he was like a fish in water when he became Feng Guiwang's disciple.
In recent years, he has participated in many map-making activities in the Han army.
After a few more years of experience, he would enter the court and formally participate in the mapping of the Han Dynasty.
Maps are confidential to the imperial court. The more sophisticated the map, the higher its level of secrecy.
Not to mention military maps, if an ordinary person dares to keep them privately, it would at least be a sign of treason.
Pei Xiu now doesn't need to worry about his future at all.
The only question is how far it can go.
Being able to follow General Zhendong into battle and make meritorious contributions will undoubtedly add a strong mark to his resume.
-
Although the water level of Baoqiu River increased rapidly in summer and the road along the water was only wide enough for two horses to ride side by side, it was a smooth road for the Han soldiers who had just passed through the swamp and the poisonous valley.
If we didn't have to worry about being discovered, we wouldn't even have to send out scouts. We could just follow Baoqiu Shui all the way south.
Seven days later, General Zhendong led 7,000 elite soldiers and quietly arrived at a large bay. This was not only the closest to the ancient mouth of Yuyang, but also the last large bay where the army could hide.
Less than twenty miles to the south is the ancient Yuyang Pass.
As soon as the army appeared at the mouth of the bay, it would be immediately discovered by the guards of Yuyang Ancient Pass.
The ancient Yuyang Pass was built on the west bank of the Baoqiu River. The terrain in front of the pass was narrow and could accommodate at most a thousand people to attack the city.
The eastern bank of the Baoqiu River cuts through the mountains and is impassable.
There is a mountain on each side of the pass.
If the city gate is an iron lock, then the two mountains in the east and west are two iron gates.
The three together form the extremely solid key to Youzhou.
As long as there are three to five thousand defenders in the city, and another one to two thousand soldiers stationed in the east and west mountains, even if there are hundreds of thousands of troops, it will be difficult to advance an inch.
Of course, Guancheng is not without weaknesses.
That is to wait until the water level of Baoqiu drops in autumn, exposing enough riverbed. If the defenders of Guancheng fail to block the riverbed in time, they will use the advantage of cavalry and pass quickly on the riverbed despite heavy casualties.
Then they would turn around and attack from both sides. As long as Youzhou failed to rescue in time, they would be able to capture the pass.
But this weakness is meaningless to General Zhendong.
Because she couldn't wait until then.
And she couldn't afford such casualties.
Putting down the telescope, General Zhendong looked at Pei Xiu who was also holding a telescope in his hand and asked:
"how?
Pei Xiu estimated in his mind and shook his head, "It's hard to say, I need to go back and test it again."
After gesturing for a while, he said, "Even if it works, the enemy army might be able to move to the mountain in the west to hide..."
"Don't worry about the mountains, just take care of the pass."
General Zhendong stared at Pei Xiu and said slowly:
"I urgently summoned you to come here with the army to solve problems, not for you to raise questions."
"No matter what method you use, you must accomplish this for me. Otherwise, you should know the consequences."
Not sure if it was because the weather was too hot, or because General Zhendong was putting too much pressure on him, Pei Xiu subconsciously wiped his sweat:
“Students understand.”
Then he raised the telescope again and observed carefully.
General Zhendong did not disturb him, but just looked towards the mountain on the other side of the city wall.
In order to pass this pass smoothly, in addition to taking the city pass, you also need to at least take the mountain on the west bank that is adjacent to the pass.
As for the mountain on the east coast, it is not that important.
Separated by the Baoqiu River, if the Guancheng and the mountain on the west bank were gone, the military value of the mountain on the east bank would be greatly reduced.
There is a threat, but it's not a big threat.
After Pei Xiu finished his observation, several people quietly retreated down the mountain. Along the way, General Zhendong did not disturb Pei Xiu's thoughts until he returned to the water bay where the army was stationed. Then he asked:
"Any ideas?"
Pei Xiu hesitated for a moment and replied:
"It's not impossible. The outer city at the pass is about ten feet above the water surface. As long as the water level of the Baoqiu River can be raised ten feet, it will indeed reach the city wall."
His eyes fell on the rushing Baoqiu River in front of him, and he said thoughtfully:
"I have calculated the amount of water in Baoqiu these days. If we want to raise the water level by one zhang, we only need to store water for two days, and it will not exceed three days at most."
"But there is a problem, and that is to find a water storage area with a radius of at least one mile. Of course, this is the minimum requirement. It would be best if it could reach one and a half miles or even two miles."
General Zhendong pointed to the bay where the army was and asked:
"How's this place? Looks big enough."
Pei Xiu shook his head:
“It’s big enough, but it’s not in the right location.”
He pointed to the bend in the water downstream and said, "The outlet is too large to build a dam, and the temporary dam is not strong. If it lasts too long, there is a risk of it breaking."
"If we build a dam there, this side at the foot of the mountain won't be high enough, so we need to raise it higher."
As he spoke, he shook his head, "The workload is too large, and we don't have enough manpower. If we really start construction here, it will be easily discovered by thieves. This is not right, not right!"
General Zhendong frowned. She chose to camp here for two reasons: firstly, for concealment, and secondly, for the convenience of attacking the pass by water.
This place is not far from the pass. If we can really store water successfully, it will be easy to catch the thieves off guard.
Unexpectedly, Pei Xiu rejected it outright.
"This is already the most suitable place. If this place is not suitable, do you have any other choice?"
Pei Xiu took out an oilcloth bag from his arms and opened it carefully. Inside was the map he had drawn over the past few days.
It was covered with densely drawn symbols that only he could understand.
"General, please look here. Did we just pass by there yesterday?" Pei Xiu pointed to a place on the map. Perhaps fearing that General Zhendong would not understand, he circled it with a pen:
"Here, right next to the Baoqiu River, there is a pool of water. It is a low-lying area with extremely dangerous terrain."
(The Black Dragon Pond in later generations)
"General, do you still remember that pool of water?"
General Zhendong thought for a moment, and a dangerous place came to mind. He nodded and said, "I remember it."
"Yes!" Pei Xiu said with a little excitement, "That place is big enough, and the Baoqiu water outlet is extremely narrow."
"We just need to divert the Baoqiu water into this pond, block the outlet, and then open the dam to release the water after it is full."
"It's much more convenient to store water in the deep pool than here. It saves a lot of manpower, at least much more than here."
"The downside is that this place is about forty miles from the border, which is a bit far."
General Zhendong slapped the map and said decisively:
"Forty miles is not too far, just right! Then we can store water here."
He looked at Pei Xiu and asked, "How much manpower is needed?"
"Well," Pei Xiu scratched his head with a pen, "when the students passed by there, they just took a rough look. As for how much manpower is needed and how high the dam should be, we have to go there and measure it to know."
"Let's go immediately!"
General Zhendong did not wait a moment and urged.
He asked Zhao Guang to stay behind while he personally led the team back to look for the pool of water that Pei Xiu mentioned.
It's a distance of about twenty miles, and if you travel light, it only takes a little over an hour.
Last time, he was so busy leading his troops that he passed by in a hurry and didn't have time to take a closer look.
Now returning to the lake to observe, General Zhendong's first thought was:
This is really a good place to set an ambush!
The pool of water is embedded deep in the folds of the main range of Yanshan Mountain, shaped like a gap bitten by the fangs of a giant beast.
The two rock peaks face each other from east to west, and the rock walls are covered with vertical gullies, like trenches plowed by gods with their fingernails.
The Baoqiu River is strangled by the mountains here, and the river channel, which was originally 30 meters wide, suddenly shrinks to 5 meters.
The river roared like thunder as it squeezed through the pass. The rising water mist lingered for years, condensing into blue-black moss on the rock walls, which looked like old scales shed by a giant dragon from a distance.
There is a layer of strange dark green floating on the surface of the lake all year round. When the sun shines directly at noon, the water surface will be covered with golden and green ripples, just like the opening and closing of a dragon's eyes.
A thousand-year-old cypress grows obliquely in the cracks of the rocks, its trunk twisted like a spasming finger, but its crown tilts all the way to the south - this is the "flag tree" unique to Yanshan Mountain, which has been destroyed by the north wind from outside the Great Wall for many years.
The shallows were piled with animal bones washed down from upstream, soaked into a grayish white color.
Whenever Pei Xiu mentioned General Zhendong, he would think of this place, precisely because the terrain here was so unique.
Even though it was just a quick pass, it left an impression on her.
"Look, General!"
Pei Xiu looked around and suddenly pointed to a certain place.
Following Pei Xiu's instructions, we saw that the terrain on the north side of Tankou was somewhat out of tune with the surrounding area, as if it was man-made.
When they got closer, they asked the soldiers to clear the weeds, and the true appearance of the half-rammed earth dam was revealed.
"General, it turns out that our ancestors have built a dam here before!"
Standing in front of the collapsed dam, Pei Xiu touched the rammed earth which was still solid. While he was excited, he couldn't help but wonder:
"Yes, yes, someone did build a dam here, but it was destroyed for some reason. But it doesn't look like it was destroyed by water..."
General Zhendong was also surprised to see the remains of the weir dam. She looked at the destroyed area and understood:
“This is destroyed by people.”
Pei Xiu was shocked:
"Since ancient times, water control has been a great merit. We have only heard of building water conservancy projects, but never of destroying them. Who is so bold?"
"How do I know?" General Zhendong said impatiently, "If they can build a dam here, it must be the work of Youzhou. If you really want to know, go and check it out after you conquer Youzhou."
However, in order not to dampen Pei Xiu's enthusiasm, she still explained one more sentence:
"You said that water control is a great merit. Youzhou built this dam, so it would not be destroyed for no reason. The most likely reason is that the Hu people came south to plunder and thought the dam was in the way, so they destroyed it."
This is a good place to set up an ambush. If we can make good use of the dam, thousands of people can defeat tens of thousands of people.
Therefore, it is not an exaggeration to say that the Hu people destroyed the dam.
(According to later research, this was built by Zhang Kan, the governor of Yuyang in the Later Han Dynasty, when he was cultivating the land. It was later destroyed by the Xianbei who went south to plunder.)
Seeing that General Zhendong was a little impatient, Pei Xiu remembered the purpose of his trip and dared not say anything more.
After walking around and observing for a while, I returned to the remaining part of the weir:
"Since our ancestors have built a dam here, why should we bother with it? We can also use this half of the dam, which can save us a lot of trouble."
After saying that, he took out the tools on the spot and started measuring the dam. There were also students from the academy in the army who could lend a hand to Pei Xiu.
After the measurement is completed, there is another round of intense calculations.
By the time the results came out, it was already night.
"General, with this half of the weir, it would have taken three days to build the dam, but now it only takes two days."
Pei Xiu held a piece of paper in his hand and handed it to General Zhendong. "With the addition of water storage, it will only take five days at most."
It's just a temporary dam, so there's no need to consider too many things.
All you need to do is simply calculate the amount of work.
General Zhendong glanced at the paper and saw that it was full of numbers and some formulas that were obviously unique to Master Alang.
She didn't reach out to take it, but just asked:
"How many people are needed?"
"It takes about a thousand people to build the dam. If there are more, there won't be enough space. In addition to cutting wood, making baskets and packing sand and gravel, another two thousand people will be needed."
"Three thousand in total?"
"Correct."
"Six thousand people, divided into two groups, take turns. I want you to build this dam as quickly as possible."
As for the remaining one thousand people, they were to spread out and monitor possible enemy situations.
Anyway, this place is nearly a day's journey from the checkpoint, so there is no need to worry too much about being discovered by thieves at the checkpoint.
"Remember, the more water you store, the better!"
“Students understand.”
It’s just a mountain pass of only five meters, six thousand people are more than enough.
In addition, there are officers and generals from the academy to help.
Let Pei Xiu be full of confidence.
He is very familiar with civil engineering work.
Not only him, but many students from the college are also familiar with it.
Sir, you are right. Civil engineering knowledge is very useful whether in governing the people or in the military!