The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 116 Rest and Reorganization

"Brother Niu Fu, rest assured, we will only abandon one section of the city wall, and I have already decided on that section—the one you are in charge of," Li Jue said to Niu Fu. "There are two reasons. First, Brother Niu Fu, your army is already small and cannot afford to suffer further losses. Moreover, if your exhausted troops fall, it will not arouse too much suspicion from Gongsun Zan. Second, your soldiers also need to withdraw and rest, which will also serve as a reserve force for the counterattack."

"I agree with Brother Li's suggestion." With a formidable enemy at hand, Guo Si and the other two had put aside their past conflicts. They were all important figures under Ding Yuan and had never had any major conflicts before, except that they all wanted to be the leader. But now, facing the overwhelming force of Gongsun Zan's army, it didn't matter who was in charge. What mattered was to repel Gongsun Zan's attack as quickly as possible.

“In that case, I will listen to my two elder brothers,” Niu Fu said. Niu Fu had a clear understanding of his own abilities, and Li Jue’s plan was quite advantageous to him, so he couldn’t find any reason to oppose it.

"Good!" Guo Si shouted, "Then let the three of us brothers work together to defeat Gongsun Zan!"

The higher-ups make the plans, and the people below carry them out. Before abandoning the city walls, Niu Fu still has to hold on for one more day, otherwise it will seem too fake.

Niu Fu returned to the southern city he was in charge of and divided his more than 10,000 men into three groups to take turns guarding the city in order to maintain the physical strength of his soldiers. At the same time, Guo Si and the other man also began to withdraw some troops to prepare in the city, focusing on the fortifications in the southern city area.

Human potential is limitless; it just depends on whether you are forced to unleash it. The potential of the Xiliang soldiers in Tianshui City has truly been unleashed. Since they are no match for the Chang'an army at long range, the Xiliang soldiers in Tianshui City have maximized the power of street fighting, coming up with all sorts of bizarre and wonderful tactics.

Some soldiers even dug up street corners to create traps. These traps, paved with stone bricks, were indistinguishable from the surrounding streets from a distance, but underneath were sharp spikes. Once someone fell in, it was practically certain death. The Xiliang army, however, was far less merciful. They perfected their traps, using spikes and blades that had been soaked in excrement or were rusted.

Being stabbed by such a weapon would have a very high chance of infection under current medical conditions. Even though the alcohol disinfection method used by Chen Er back then has been spread, the chance of infection for wounded soldiers is still very high. This is because not every army is like Chen Er's, which also needs to equip its troops with as many medical officers as possible, even if they are only good at bandaging.

Moreover, Chen Er would definitely prepare a large amount of medical supplies before going to war, such as herbs, a large amount of wound medicine, and wine! This wine was not for drinking, but for disinfecting the wounds of the wounded soldiers.

The various feudal lords also recognized the advantages of alcohol disinfection in saving wounded soldiers, and they would have their baggage train carry strong liquor before going to war. However, some soldiers in the feudal lords' armies were not disciplined, and the liquor they carried was often stolen and drunk. When it came time to treat the wounded after the war, they suddenly found that they were doomed and there was no liquor left.

Of course, compared to the previous rate of 60% to 70% of wounded soldiers being lost, the survival rate of wounded soldiers in all forces of the empire after the war has now reached more than 50%, which is a very objective figure. This means that a large number of wounded soldiers will be able to return to the army, which is a valuable asset to the army.

Of course, the wounded soldiers of the autonomous region's army have the highest recovery rate, which has reached over 70%.

The battle for Tianshui City had been going on for two hours. During this time, Gongsun Zan had only been intermittently bombarding the city walls, using his superior musketeers to wear down the defenders inside. For over two hours, Gongsun Zan had not launched a formal attack.

Gongsun Zan always remembered a famous saying by Chen Er that circulated in the autonomous region: "If something can be solved with bullets, never let soldiers pay with their lives." As someone who had risen through the ranks from a low-ranking officer, Gongsun Zan strongly agreed with Chen Er's words. Therefore, Gongsun Zan was not in a hurry. He first used firepower to crush the enemy's will to resist in the city and make them realize the difference between the two sides. Gongsun Zan implemented an iron-fisted policy, but this did not mean that he would kill all the soldiers. He only wanted to kill the high-ranking officers. The soldiers at the grassroots level were just trying to make a living. As long as the government guidelines could give them good enough treatment, they would be his own people after the war.

"Brother, when shall we launch a formal attack?" Gongsun Pu asked Gongsun Zan.

Gongsun Zan said to Gongsun Pu, "We will launch a probing attack at 2 PM this afternoon, and the formal attack will be tomorrow."

"Brother, why is that?" Gongsun Pu asked, puzzled.

Gongsun Zan shook his head and asked Gongsun Pu, "Do you know what sentence I admire most about the King of Wei?"

"Please enlighten me, elder brother," Gongsun Pu said to Gongsun Zan.

"If something can be solved with bullets, don't risk your brothers' lives." Gongsun Zan said with a flushed face, "Everyone knows that King Wei is a brilliant military leader who wins every battle, but not everyone knows how much he cares for his soldiers, or even cherishes them. This is something I really need to learn."

"I understand," Gongsun Pu said, cupping his hands in greeting.

Gongsun Zan spoke very loudly, and all the soldiers around him heard him. Gongsun Zan didn't even need to look to know that the soldiers' eyes were full of excitement. After all, not all superiors care about their subordinates so much, let alone the lowest-ranking soldiers like them.

Most generals in the empire treated their soldiers as expendable resources, replenishing them only when needed. Gongsun Zan's words had already taken root in the hearts of those soldiers who were initially indifferent to him. Gongsun Zan believed that as long as he continued to work hard and subtly influence these soldiers, his army would surely become a battle-hardened force, just like Chen Er's army.

Gongsun Pu went to various units to convey Gongsun Zan's orders. At the same time, he also adjusted the probing attack after lunch. After all, Gongsun Pu had previously prepared to launch a formal attack directly. Now, he needed to adjust the structure of the attack appropriately and not deploy too many cold weapon attack troops, since they would not actually reach the city walls anyway.