Chapter 344 The Second Battlefield
Compared with land warfare, naval warfare places too much emphasis on equipment, especially warships.
The reason why Chunyu Qiong was beaten without any chance to fight back, apart from the big gap in naval strength, the most fundamental reason was the gap in warships.
Your warships cannot catch up with others, they are not as tall as others, nor as strong as others. The bows and crossbows on your warships are not as numerous as others, nor can they shoot as far as others.
Whether in long-range combat or close-range confrontation, you will be at a great disadvantage.
But Tian Ze is extremely rich.
Each warship was carefully built. Even a small ship like Zouke had its functions fully considered. Not only was it fast and agile, it even had a retractable baffle to guard against enemy shooting.
As for the large warships, it goes without saying that they are almost armed to the limit.
There were numerous mechanisms on the warships designed to prevent the enemy from climbing, digging into the ships, or ramming them, making it impossible for Chunyu Qiong's navy to start their attack.
Although this fire burned very quickly and cleanly, it also made Chunyu Qiong and Sun Ce extremely distressed.
You know, any one of these warships is several times stronger than the same type of warships under their command, and their value is dozens of times higher.
Not to mention anything else, the wood used is of the highest quality and has undergone multiple processing, making it not only light and strong but also fireproof.
Ordinary rockets posed no threat at all, and only the massive fire attack launched by Sun Ce could completely ignite it.
They are all treasures!
What a pity.
They all understood that if they relied on themselves, they would probably not be able to build these warships in their lifetime, let alone afford them.
The navy under their command was also desperately trying to save the warships that had not been completely burned. They would save as many as they could. Even if the damage was serious, the wood could be dismantled to make excellent materials.
In the previous battles, they were really "afraid of poverty". They only felt that the warships under Han Dang's command were good even if they only had one oar left, which was lighter than their oars.
While Sun Ce's army and Chunyu Qiong were scrambling to rescue the spoils, Yuan Shao was leading his army in a hurry to cross the river.
Don't miss out.
Although Han Dang was defeated, he was not dead. He still had at least 10,000 naval forces under his command.
Previously, the army was not sent to the battlefield simply because the Wen River was relatively narrow and could not be deployed.
If he did not take this opportunity to cross the river as soon as possible, he would be in trouble once Han Dang recovered and continued to lead the navy to blockade the Wenshui River.
After part of the army successfully crossed the Wenshui River, they immediately formed a defensive formation and began to build a pontoon bridge.
Previously, all the bridges over the Wen River had been demolished by Zhao Yun in advance. Otherwise, Yuan Shao’s army would not have been so passive.
When the pontoon bridge was built, countless Yuan Shao troops crossed the Wenshui River, set up camp, and began to build a stone bridge using materials that had been prepared.
It was to avoid the difficulty of the large army crossing the river, and also to fight against Han Dang's navy.
Yuan Shao was very clear from the beginning to the end about his advantage: he had a large number of soldiers.
So all his actions revolve around this advantage.
He is not afraid of chaos or mixed fights, but is afraid of being pulled and crushed.
So he deployed large troops on both sides of the river, setting up camps for dozens of miles and connecting them to each other.
Zhao Yun and Han Dang, who had regrouped, both frowned upon hearing the news.
"Dispersing the troops like this is a taboo in military strategy. What exactly does Yuan Benchu want to do?"
Hearing Zhao Yun's question, Xun You sighed softly: "Yuan Benchu has more soldiers. He wants to use his power to overwhelm us and wear us out."
"Generally speaking, dividing the troops like this is a taboo in military strategy, but it is different for Yuan Benchu." "Yuan Benchu's army is strong, and even if he divides the troops, the number of troops is enough to fight. Moreover, his talent makes the soldiers under his command fearless and high-spirited."
"If we send out troops to attack either of them, we may win, but it will be difficult to destroy them. We will be easily entangled by them. Once their reinforcements take the opportunity to surround us, we will be in danger."
Soldiers have no constant momentum, and water has no constant shape.
Especially in this world where there are unreasonable things like talent, many tactics that seem to be full of flaws are difficult to crack.
Just as Tian Ze almost never worried about surprise attacks on his logistics and food transportation, Yuan Shao almost never worried about the defeat of his soldiers, and Cao Cao almost never worried about his risky moves being counterattacked.
Of course, the effect of talent is only relative and is also subject to various constraints.
As long as Zhao Yun kills fast enough and his troops are sharp enough, Yuan Shao's soldiers will still flee.
But unfortunately, Zhao Yun is not Guan Yu.
Both of them are famous generals in the world, but their fighting styles are very different.
Zhao Yun led his troops to kill the enemy like a delicate scalpel, swift and flexible, invincible, and able to break down any obstacles.
When Guan Yu led his troops to kill the enemy, it was more like the crescent-shaped sword in his hand, which was powerful and overwhelming. Although it was easy to intercept, it was difficult to block.
Both of them have their own strengths, and Guan Yu's killing efficiency when leading troops is much higher than Zhao Yun's.
It is almost a natural nemesis for him to face Yuan Shao.
This is also one of the reasons why Tian Ze always kept Guan Yu in Jizhou.
As long as Guan Yu was still there, Yuan Shao would not dare to take risks easily.
Otherwise, no matter how many soldiers he has under his command, once they become defeated, they will be unable to fight back.
Zhao Yun knew his own strengths and weaknesses, and after listening to Xun You's explanation, he also understood Yuan Shao's intention.
"Yuan Benchu really has good intentions." Zhao Yun shook his head slightly.
"But we don't need to worry too much. Yunchang has already sent troops to Jinan. I believe Yuan Benchu will receive the news soon and will most likely choose to return and defend." Xun You said.
Zhao Yun was located in the middle west of Pingyuan County, which was the border between Qingzhou and Yanzhou, and was the closest to Mount Tai in a straight line, making it the best place to transport grain.
However, Guan Yu launched an attack from the east of Zhao Yun, with the clear purpose of forcing Yuan Shao to return for support.
Before this, the key to this battle lay in Zhao Yun.
But on the one hand, Zang Ba's big commotion in Yanzhou area distracted Cao Cao, and on the other hand, Zhao Yun cleverly used the geographical advantage and with the help of Han Dang's navy, he effectively blocked Yuan Shao's attack.
This allowed Zhao Yun, who was originally under tremendous pressure, to complete half of the task almost unscathed.
At this time, the main forces of Yuan Shao and Cao Cao had been mobilized, and Sun Ce and Liu Bei had also sent troops. Tian Ze's original goal had been achieved, so he naturally would not let Zhao Yun carry the task alone.
Guan Yu sent troops to Jinan in order to open up a second battlefield and draw Yuan Shao over.
You know, Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Ce, the four great princes, almost sent out all their best generals and famous strategists in this battle.
When they are combined, it's more than just a simple addition of combat power. When their various talents are matched and combined, the power that can be unleashed is enough to make even Tian Ze tremble with fear.
Especially Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, their talents are not only incredible, but also mutually reinforcing and counteracting. Without their concerted efforts, Tian Ze has no guarantee of victory as he does not have sufficient troops now.
It is better to defeat them one by one.
(End of this chapter)
