Chapter 101: The Strategy of Tired Troops
In the dark night, the clouds in the sky were thick and low, as if foreshadowing that a great war was about to break out.

A Cangzhou army under the Yaohua Pass city wall quietly approached the city wall under the cover of night.

This commando team is composed of hundreds of soldiers who are well-equipped and agile. They are considered the elite of the Cangzhou army temporarily formed.

Suddenly, a horn sounded through the night sky, and the army launched a fierce attack in an instant.

They quickly built simple ladders, used spears and swords to hack at the city walls, and shot the soldiers defending the city with bows and crossbows.

All of a sudden, the soldiers guarding the city wall were awakened and hurriedly took up their weapons to fight.

However, the Cangzhou army did not give the defending troops a chance to breathe.

They launched round after round of attack, constantly harassing the soldiers defending the city walls.

Some soldiers pretended to retreat to lure the soldiers guarding the city to attack; some soldiers laid traps and tripwires around the city walls, making it difficult for the soldiers guarding Yaohua Pass to defend themselves.

The generals defending the city hurriedly organized their soldiers to launch a counterattack, trying to drive away the Cangzhou army.

They fired dense arrows, threw fireballs and stones in an attempt to repel the enemy's attack.

However, in this dark night, the Cangzhou army kept changing its tactics, making the soldiers defending the city exhausted.

During so many days and nights of harassment, the Cangzhou army, under the command of Li Jing, took full advantage of the effect of fatigue on the soldiers defending the city.

The soldiers defending the city had been fighting for many days in a row and were exhausted and unable to maintain an efficient fighting state.

However, the soldiers of the Cangzhou army, taking advantage of their numbers, took turns to attack the city in multiple batches.

Therefore, at this time they are full of energy, high morale, and able to respond quickly and deal with various situations flexibly.

As time went by, the Cangzhou army's harassment became more and more frequent, and the soldiers guarding Yaohua Pass began to show some confusion and panic.

They didn't know when the enemy would attack again, nor did they know whether they could survive this endless harassment.

Fatigue and fear grew in the soldiers' hearts, weakening their morale and fighting power.

Even in this chaos, some scattered soldiers guarding the city began to flee the city walls, trying to escape this endless harassment.

They didn't care about the safety of their companions and only thought about saving their own lives.

This panic spread quickly among the soldiers, spreading like a plague.

Under such circumstances, the generals defending the city had to take measures to stabilize the morale of the troops.

He stood on the city wall and shouted loudly, calling on the soldiers to remain calm and firm in their faith.

Under his encouragement, some soldiers regained their spirits, took up arms and continued to fight.

However, the Cangzhou army's harassment of Yaohua Pass did not stop there.

The Cangzhou army seemed endless, constantly sending out new troops to attack the defenders on the city walls.

Their attacks became more and more frequent, making the soldiers defending the city feel overwhelmed.

The soldiers' fatigue had reached its limit, and some had begun to collapse and could no longer hold on.

"Almost. Almost."

On a hillside far away from the city wall, Li Jing and his deputy general stood quietly on the hillside, looking at the Yaohua Pass where the shouts and screams were deafening, with a gleam in their eyes.

And at this time inside Yaohua Pass.

Under the baptism of morning light, the defending troops on the city wall looked exhausted.

The general guarding Yaohua Pass climbed up the city wall alone and stared into the distance. Not far away, the Cangzhou army was busy deploying. He knew that after more than ten days of high-intensity siege, this battle would be more difficult than ever before.

After a night of harassment, the faces of the Qizhou soldiers on the Yaohua Pass city wall were filled with fatigue and haggardness, and their eyes revealed a deep sense of powerlessness.

Some soldiers leaned against the city wall, rested with their eyes closed, their bodies trembling slightly; some soldiers sat with their heads down, holding their heads in their hands, obviously suffering from headaches and fatigue.

The general guarding Yaohua Pass stood at a corner of the city wall, gazing into the distance with a firm gaze.

His face was pale and wrinkles were deeply carved on his forehead, showing his fatigue and anxiety.

He held the sword tightly in his scarred hands, and the tip of the sword was trembling slightly, as if telling of his inner pain and helplessness.

"General, we must find a way to rest."

A deputy general walked up to the general defending the city and whispered, "The soldiers are exhausted. They need to rest and replenish their strength."

The general defending the city was silent for a moment, then nodded: "I know, but we don't have any extra time."

"The enemy is watching our weaknesses, and once we let our guard down, they will launch a deadly attack."

The deputy general was silent, he understood the general's concerns.

At this critical moment, any negligence may lead to irreversible consequences.

However, continuous fighting and harassment have exhausted the soldiers physically and mentally. If this continues, the army's morale and combat effectiveness will be seriously weakened.

The general defending the city took a deep breath and said firmly: "We can't let our guard down, but we can't let the soldiers get too tired either."

"You arrange some rotation duty systems to allow some soldiers to rest and maintain their combat effectiveness."

The deputy general nodded: "Okay, I'll arrange it right away."

However, even with a short rest, the soldiers still couldn't get rid of the fatigue.

Their bodies and minds have been stretched to their limits, and it is difficult for them to maintain an efficient fighting state.

Due to fatigue and lack of concentration, some soldiers neglected their combat readiness while on duty.

They even failed to check and replenish arrows or slings in a timely manner; they did not carefully maintain and repair weapons and equipment; some soldiers even fell asleep at their posts, completely ignoring the enemy's threat.

Moreover, due to long-term and tiring fighting, the army's discipline began to relax.

The soldiers no longer strictly abided by orders and regulations, but fought on their own, and some even left their posts without permission and avoided fighting.

Some soldiers became irritable, anxious and depressed. They often quarreled and clashed with each other and were no longer as united and united as before.

"call!"

"My lord, if there is no support, I and Yaohua Pass will not be able to hold on any longer."

The general guarding Yaohua Pass looked heavily at the various things on the city wall, took a deep breath, and sighed in his heart.

However, the support troops from Qizhou had not arrived yet, so he could only cheer up and start preparing for the next attack from the Cangzhou army.

Under the general's arrangement, the defending army began to carry out intensive and orderly defense preparations.

A rotation system was implemented, with some soldiers getting rest while others stayed on the city walls.

The fortifications of the city walls were reinforced and improved, and the number of arrow towers and catapults increased, improving the defensive capabilities.

At the same time, some soldiers who were good at archery and throwing were placed at key positions on the city wall, ready to deal with the enemy's attack.

　Three chapters today!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)