The next morning, Zhao Chen began to plan for the surprise attack in the evening. He had Xu Rong continue to patrol Ying County, and he also allocated the Shadow Assassins to monitor the entire city to prevent anyone from sneaking out of the city and leaking information to the enemy. He also blocked the news around the city to reduce the possibility of himself being exposed and buy time for the surprise attack at night.
Not only that, Zhao Chen and Xu Rong discussed the issue of how to deal with the Zhao captives. Xu Rong wanted to kill them all to prevent future trouble, but Zhao Chen did not agree with this method because most of the Zhao soldiers were local residents of Ying County. If they were all killed, it would arouse the anger of the people and not be beneficial to our defense. There might even be people who risked leaving the city and working together from the inside and outside. Our army has just pacified the hearts of the people and our foundation is not stable. It's best not to act rashly at this time.
"In addition, these soldiers can be used to help us repair the city walls, prepare city defense equipment, and even be used as cannon fodder. In the end, Zhao Chen convinced Xu Rong to use them all as cannon fodder for defense and laborers for the construction of the city wall. He also set up a reward and punishment mechanism. If one person escaped, the entire team would be punished. As long as they completed their fixed work, they could return home and reunite with their families every day. Of course, these were all registered names and secretly monitored by people.
After Zhao Chen had arranged everything, he got Gao Shun to collect the uniforms of the Zhao army and familiarize them with their conversations, official positions, and the slogan of the handover. He also selected some obedient Zhao soldiers with children from the captured Zhao army to lead the raid. He took their relatives as hostages to prevent them from rebelling halfway. In order to successfully blow up the city, the enemy would not be suspicious and the plan would be carried out more smoothly.
After everything was prepared, the entire army finished their dinner in Ying County, packed up all their provisions and baggage, and prepared to set off. Xu Rong sent Zhao Chen and Gao Shun off at the city gate. "My lord, please be careful. This general will definitely defend Ying County.”Zhao Chen nodded and patted him on the shoulder. He got on the horse and shouted,""All troops, move out!" The army began to move slowly. "Take care." Gao Shun and Xu Rong cupped their fists at each other to bid farewell.
The cavalry took the lead and split into two groups. The gap between each horse was roughly the same. The knights were fully armed and wore armor. At their waists were swords and crossbows. With the spear in his hand, there was no other sound other than the sound of horses running. The tapping sounds were endless. Behind the cavalrymen was the Breaking Ranks. They were all wearing heavy armor, holding standard swords and shields, with crossbows at their waists and three short spears on their backs. As they advanced, their expressions were solemn. Other than the sound of panting, the friction of armor, and the sound of footsteps, they were extremely quiet. They could be said to be extremely elite.
Xu Rong stood at the city gate and watched as Zhao Chen and the others led the army away. Only then did he give the order to close the city gate. He slowly walked up the city wall. Under the afterglow of the sun, he looked at the army that gradually disappeared into the horizon in the distance.
Xu Rong secretly made up his mind to help his lord defend this city no matter what. He came back to his senses and ordered Vice General Wang Fei beside him,"Order the entire army to step up their patrols in the next few days. Kill all the troublemakers without mercy. Eliminate the scouts and monitor the area twenty miles outside the city. Report any suspicious situations immediately.
By the way, tell the captives to build the city walls and collect the equipment quickly. We have to finish these preparations before they react.”Wang Fei nodded and brought a few personal guards down the city wall to arrange these tasks.
Zhao Chen and his group spent more than two hours before they arrived at Lu County City. The sky was almost dark. Other than a few pedestrians, there were only five or six soldiers guarding the city gate. There were less than a hundred people patrolling the city wall. In the city, one could see smoke rising from the chimneys of every household. It was obvious that they were preparing dinner. Zhao Chen led his troops to a remote place to rest and recover their strength, preparing to start the night attack.
Zhao Chen asked Gao Shun to stand on a hill with dense trees and secretly observe the terrain and defensive forces of Lu County. "From here, we can see that there aren't many guards in Lu County, and their combat strength is average. They aren't vigilant at all. The city walls were not as tall as Ying County, so they should be easy to attack.”Gao Shun said to Zhao Chen after observing carefully.
"Hmm, you're right. However, I don't know if there are any other garrisons in the city. I don't know where their barracks are and what the layout of the city is like.”
Zhao Chen pondered for a moment before saying slowly. He also asked people to ask the captives of the Zhao army who came with the army to see if they knew about the layout of Lu County. A deputy general hurried forward to ask. He was playing with his waist to prevent the enemy's sentry post from observing him.
Ten minutes later, the deputy general came to report."General, we don't know anything about the Zhao captives. We only know that the camp of Lu County is not far from the city gate, and there are only about 1,000 people.”
"My lord, we know their approximate location, but it's still not very detailed. Should we send someone to scout?”Gao Shun suggested to Zhao Chen.
"Yes, send the Shadow Guards. They are more concealed and better at this.”Zhao Chen sent a voice transmission to Gao Shun. On the surface, he only nodded, but he was secretly instructing Gao Shun to go ahead and arrange the queue.
Because there were other generals here, he didn't want to cause any more trouble. The Shadow Assassins were his secret troops, and they could only play their unique role if they were always in the dark. If they were to say it out loud, others would find out, which would be detrimental to their actions. Therefore, he had to do it this way and let his confidant Gao Shun personally arrange it.
"We'll take action after the results of the investigation are out. Gao Shun, go and make the arrangements. You must get this done before the sky turns completely dark.”Zhao Chen instructed Gao Shun. Gao Shun nodded solemnly and immediately went to gather the shadow guards to gather information. To avoid delaying the opportunity.
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