Chapter 567: Seizing Bao City

Among the several generals, Liu Yang, the military advisor, was a native of Hanzhong. He was extremely familiar with the mountains and roads there. He stood up and said, “General Li, there are two routes to Nanzheng City. One is along the Han River—traveling westward along the Han River, passing through Xingdao County and Chenggu County, before finally reaching Nanzheng. This is actually the main road, but both Xingdao County and Chenggu County are located in strategic positions with strong city walls, making it difficult to capture them.”

Liu Yang walked over to the sand table and pointed to another narrow mountain path with a wooden stick. “The other route is a minor path, called Luobao Road. Ten miles south of Huayang County, there’s a path leading to Baogu Road in the west. Although this path is narrow, it lacks any formidable fortresses. One just needs to be cautious of enemy ambushes. After reaching Baogu Road, turning south will bring you to Baocheng County. This is essentially the outer gateway to Nanzheng. The city is well-fortified, nestled between mountains and rivers in a strategically advantageous location. Once Bao City is taken, Nanzheng City will be within reach. Both routes lead to Nanzheng, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. General, you may choose one.”

Li Siyeh was concerned about time, so he asked, “Then which route is faster?”
“It’s roughly the same. But taking the Han River route requires passing through two cities. If both have troops stationed there, it will take longer. On the other hand, if we take the Luobao Road, we only need to attack Bao City. However, capturing Bao City is extremely difficult, and casualties are inevitable.”

After pondering for a moment, Li Siyeh resolutely said, “Then let’s take the Luobao Road. Even if Bao City is hard to take, is it any harder than Lianyun Fort? Pass my orders—the army shall set out at midnight!”

…

At the second watch, the Anxi Army got ready quickly, packing up their tents and removing the camp fences. By the third watch, 50,000 soldiers and 10,000 camels set off southward, with General Zhao Chongjie leading 10,000 cavalry at the front to clear the way.

Luobao Road split off ten miles south of Huayang County. It was actually a path parallel to the Han River, only about thirty miles away, but separated by a large mountain. The path followed the northern slope of this mountain westward. Though narrow, it was wide enough for warhorses and camels. It was about 150 miles to Baocheng County. On the Anxi Grasslands, such a distance could be covered in an hour, but due to the rugged roads in Hanzhong, the journey took a whole day and night.

To avoid being ambushed by the Hanzhong forces, the highly alert Anxi army sent twenty scouting teams to patrol ahead. However, this time their march encountered no troubles and proceeded smoothly. This was due to the limited strength of the Hanzhong forces, forcing Li Huan to concentrate his troops. As the Anxi army advanced through the rugged mountains, it was already late September, and Hanzhong had entered deep autumn. The trees were adorned in a variety of colors, and the air was chilly in the early mornings and evenings. Yet during the day, under the sunlight, it was warm and pleasant, with clear skies and very comfortable weather.

Favorable weather allowed the Anxi army to march swiftly. By the next evening, they reached a valley about ten li north of Baocheng County. The babbling Baoshui River flowed through the valley, with open mountains on both sides, making it difficult for the enemy to set up an ambush there.

Li Siyeh ordered them to camp in the valley. As night fell, the cold autumn wind howled through the valley. After quickly eating their dry rations, the Tang soldiers went to sleep to rest. Li Siyeh stood on a prominent rock, gazing southward. In the darkness, a faint outline of Baocheng County could be seen. What was called a county town was actually a fortress built within a large canyon, blocking the road southward. The fortress was not very high, and from Li Siyeh’s vantage point, it seemed almost level with the canyon on this side.

At that moment, several soldiers brought a local man forward and reported to Li Siyeh, “General, this man is a woodcutter who is very familiar with the situation in the county town. We can question him for details.”

Li Siyeh glanced at the man, who appeared to be in his early thirties, strong-built, and agile in his steps. Perhaps due to years of working outdoors, his skin was very dark. Even at night, one could tell his face had a healthy glow. For some reason, Li Siyeh’s first impression of him was not that of a woodcutter but rather a soldier.

“What’s your name?”

The woodcutter stepped forward and bowed. “General, my name is Qiu Silang. I’m a local.”

“Hmm! Tell me about the situation in the city. How many troops are stationed there?”

“General, there are about two thousand troops, along with over a thousand households of residents.”

“How high and thick are the city walls? What material are they made of?”

Like reciting from memory, the woodcutter replied without hesitation, “The walls are about seven zhang high and three zhang thick, all built with huge stones. It’s impregnable.”

Li Siyeh stared at the woodcutter for a while before ordering his attendants, “Give him ten silver coins and let him go!”

“Thank you, General, for your generosity!”

The woodcutter bowed deeply to Li Siye before following the soldiers away. At that moment, Liu Yang, the military advisor standing nearby, stepped forward and said, “General Li, I think this man is suspicious!”
Li Siye frowned and asked, “Explain. What’s unusual about him?”
“Mainly, he seems too calm. He didn’t kneel even when seeing the general. And when talking about the city walls, he spoke without hesitation, as if he had prepared in advance. How could an ordinary person speak so smoothly? I think he’s up to no good.”
In fact, Li Siye also had doubts. It wasn’t so much his composed manner, but rather his demeanor, which clearly resembled that of a soldier. Additionally, his slightly bowed gait was a result of years of riding. Li Siye nodded and ordered his personal guards, “Send some scouts to keep an eye on him. If anything suspicious happens, arrest him immediately!”
After the guards left, Li Siye turned to gaze at Baocheng County again. The moonlight was bright, but a layer of silver mist seemed to rise in the night, enveloping the city walls. Three full days had passed already. He had seven days left, and including the time to return, he actually had only four days for battle. He must capture Baocheng County before dark tomorrow. Although he knew Li Qingan’s ten-day deadline wasn’t entirely serious, it still stirred Li Siye’s competitive spirit. He also believed that failing to take Nanzheng within three days would be a great shame for him.
…
For ordinary armies, supplies must be sent ahead before troops move, but for the Anxi Army, it was the scouts who went first. While the main force of the Anxi Army was stationed in the river valley, a ten-man scout team sneaked near Baocheng County. The leader of the scouts was a captain surnamed Zheng, who was extremely experienced. He wasn’t in a hurry to approach the city. Instead, he first observed the terrain from a few miles away. Baocheng County was nestled between two mountains, actually in the valley of the Baoshui River, with steep cliffs on both sides. The narrow valley was about six or seven miles wide and over ten miles long. It was the only route from Baogu Road to Nanzheng. If they didn’t take this valley, they would have to detour hundreds of miles west or return to Huayang County to take the Han River route again.

It was precisely because of the strategic location of this place that Baocheng was built as a fortress to control the Baogu Road. The Anxi army’s scout team did not approach the city but climbed up the steep cliffs beside it. The rock walls rose straight upward, sheer and towering, about a hundred zhang high. For ordinary soldiers, climbing up from there was almost impossible, but for the scouts, it was routine. Agile as monkeys, they used vines on the cliffs and ropes they carried to climb swiftly upward, gradually approaching the top of the city.

“Captain, there’s a cave up there!” one scout whispered.

Captain Zheng looked up and indeed saw a dark cave about two zhang above, flat and wide, about seven feet high but two or three zhang wide. He nodded and climbed toward the cave. Covered by vines, it appeared gloomy and damp. Captain Zheng wasn’t in a hurry to enter—if there were venomous snakes inside and they bit soldiers, the screams would reveal their position.

Standing on a protruding rock, he grabbed a long vine with one hand and used his sword to cut through the vines covering the cave with the other. Then he turned around and asked a soldier to help him light a smoke bomb—a type of incendiary invented by the Anxi Armory. The outer shell was a bamboo tube that, when lit, released thick smoke. It also contained various ingredients such as chili peppers, poison, and realgar. Captain Zheng used a realgar smoke bomb, typically used to drive away venomous snakes. He threw the bomb into the cave, and soon thick smoke filled it, with an extremely pungent smell. With hissing sounds, more than a dozen snakes living in the cave fled and climbed down the cliffs using the vines.

He threw in three more smoke bombs, filling the entire cave with smoke and driving away all the poisonous insects and snakes. After waiting a while until the smoke gradually dissipated, Captain Zheng leaped into the cave, followed by his soldiers one after another.

The cave was damp and dark but still spacious enough to accommodate them all ten. With a foothold, it became much easier to observe the city. Captain Zheng crouched at the cave entrance and peered down. From their vantage point, the entire Baocheng was clearly visible.

Under the moonlight, Baocheng appeared rectangular, six li wide and over ten li long. Even if two high walls were built to block the two entrances of the gorge, most of the buildings inside were made of stone. There were few residents, only groups of soldiers patrolling the city. The city walls were very high and thick, but the gates were small, allowing only three people to walk side by side. A high drawbridge was raised, but none of these were the scouts’ main concerns. Their task was to find the city’s weaknesses.

“A river!” a scout whispered.
Colonel Zheng saw clearly that the Baoshui River came from the north, flowing through the city. There was a channel on the far west side of the city walls, through which the river water flowed into the city. But the channel was likely very small and completely submerged by the water.
Colonel Zheng quickly drew a sketch and marked the channel heavily. With his years of experience as a scout, he knew this channel was the defense weakness of Baocheng County. After pondering for a moment, he decided it would be best to find a way to dive down and take a look.
…
Inside the main camp, cries of pain from those being tortured filled the air. The woodcutter had been captured again. The scout who had been following him found that he had led a horse out of the forest and immediately arrested him. It was indeed a warhorse, with military uniforms in its saddle bag.
Li Siyeh sat on his command seat with a dark expression. How dare they come to him and deceive him? They must be extremely bold.
After a while, a personal soldier entered the tent and reported, “General, he’s confessed!”
“Bring him in!”
The soldier left, and soon several burly soldiers from the Anxi Army dragged the severely injured woodcutter in. The woodcutter had fainted and could no longer answer Li Siyeh’s questions. An interrogator then said, “Reporting to the general, this man’s name is Qiu Yong. He is a scout colonel under Li Huan. He followed us from Huayang County. He isn’t very familiar with the situation in Baocheng County, but he knows a lot about Nan Zheng.”
“What’s the situation in Nan Zheng?”
“Reporting to the general, Li Huan thought we would come via the Han River route, so he deployed 5,000 troops each in Xingdao County and Gucheng County. But since we didn’t take that route, he will withdraw those 10,000 troops to Nan Zheng. The problem is that this scout colonel only sent a pigeon message to Nan Zheng two hours ago, informing Li Huan that we didn’t take the Han River route. So it will take some time to withdraw the troops from Xingdao County and Gucheng County. According to this scout, it will take at least until tomorrow afternoon.”
Li Siyeh paced back and forth in the tent with his hands behind his back. It would take until tomorrow afternoon to return to Nan Zheng. Could there be an opportunity hidden in this? A bold plan popped into his mind—war is all about deception!
At that moment, the scouts sent to explore the city returned. Colonel Zheng immediately went to see Li Siyeh. Li Siyeh waved his hand, ordering the half-dead scout to be taken away for treatment. He wanted to continue questioning him about information about Nan Zheng. Then he returned to his seat and asked Colonel Zheng, “Any findings?”

What Li Siyeh referred to as a breakthrough was the method to take the city. Colonel Zheng bowed and said, “Reporting to the general, the city walls are indeed very high and thick, with a moat in front of them, making it difficult to set up ladders. However, the Bao River flows through the city, and there is a passage beneath the walls.”
“A passage?” Li Siyeh’s eyes lit up. He immediately asked, “Has it been explored?”
“Yes. A soldier skilled in swimming dived into the river. The passage is semi-circular, six feet underwater, with the highest point of the waterway five feet above the riverbed. But it’s covered with thick iron bars, so no one can pass through.”
“A waterway, iron bars…”
Li Siyeh lowered his head in thought, his fingers gently tapping the table. At that moment, Liu Yang, the military advisor, stepped forward and suggested, “General Li, the waterway five miles ahead is quite narrow; we can cut off the flow of the Bao River.”
Suddenly, Li Siyeh slapped his forehead—he had an idea!
……
There were three thousand troops stationed in Baocheng County, along with large amounts of food, arrows, and logs. With three thousand soldiers and those sturdy city walls, they could withstand an attack by tens of thousands of troops. This was also the most difficult first step in attacking Nan Zheng—Baocheng County acted like a solid armor, protecting Nan Zheng tightly.
The commander of Baocheng County was surnamed Yang, named Yang Wei, and was a lieutenant general. He had a distant relative relationship with Yang Guozhong. During the Yang family’s peak, he didn’t benefit much, but when the Yang family was punished, he wasn’t implicated either.
General Yang Wei was extremely cautious. Put nicely, it was prudence; put harshly, it was cowardice. But Li Huan valued his caution and assigned him to defend Baocheng County. Li Huan believed that the main force of the Anxi Army would come via the Han River, but they would also send a small force westward to capture Baocheng. So as long as the cautious General Yang Wei remained inactive, Baocheng County would be safe.
But General Yang Wei never expected that the main force of the Anxi Army would actually take the route through Baocheng County and arrive at the city gates. Panicked and anxious, he ordered all three thousand soldiers to defend the city and sent others to Nan Zheng for help. All night long, Yang Wei couldn’t sleep. He kept checking the warehouses for food, arrows, and other supplies. Only when he saw these supplies piled up in abundance could he calm down.
At the fourth watch, he suddenly received news that something was amiss with the Bao River. Yang Wei felt his legs go weak, as if Baocheng had already fallen. He went to inspect the situation, stepping carefully.

The battlements were packed with soldiers, and thousands of torches illuminated them as if it were day. All the defenders were on the walls, but most of them were hiding beneath the walls to sleep, with only a few hundred patrolling back and forth to keep an eye on the surroundings. Nothing unusual was visible in the distance, but something was wrong with the river water.

After flowing through the city walls, the Bao River formed a pond about three mu in size inside the city before continuing southward, passing through Baocheng County, and finally flowing into the Han River. At that moment, hundreds of people gathered around the pond inside the city, each holding a torch, whispering to one another.

“The general is coming!” someone shouted softly. Everyone stepped aside as Yang Wei approached quickly, escorted by a dozen soldiers.

“What’s happened? What’s wrong with the river?” Yang Wei’s voice trembled with tension.

An officer stepped forward and reported, “General Yang, we feel that the river water has suddenly decreased, and the water level in this pond is keeping dropping.”

“Ah!” Yang Wei exclaimed in shock and rushed forward to check. The water level indeed had dropped by five feet, and the waterway below the city walls was about to be exposed.

“What… what’s going on?”

His subordinates didn’t think much of this timid and incompetent commander. The officer who had spoken earlier sneered inwardly before saying, “Isn’t it easy to explain? The Anxi Army has blocked the river upstream, that’s why the water level here has dropped so much.”

“Is that so? But why would they block the river?” Yang Wei wasn’t stupid. He suddenly realized and cried out, “Could it be they’re trying to drain the moat to attack the city!”

Everyone nodded. That must be it. The moat was connected to the Bao River, and if the river dried up, the moat would naturally dry as well. This was a major weakness of Baocheng County. It was just unexpected that the Anxi Army would discover it so quickly. A sense of dread spread among everyone—they feared Baocheng County would be hard to defend.

Just then, distant thunderous drumbeats could be heard. Someone on the battlements shouted, “General Yang, the main force of the Anxi Army is coming!”

Yang Wei felt as if he had stepped into empty air and fallen into an abyss. The Anxi Army had finally arrived. He couldn’t worry about the blocked river anymore. He turned and rushed onto the battlements, shouting frantically, “Everyone, get up! Get up now! We’re going to war!”

The soldiers awoke abruptly from their dreams, grabbed their weapons, and stood up. Rubbing their sleepy eyes, they looked north and saw, in the darkness, an endless army marching toward Baocheng County. The vast expanse of troops was terrifying. Under the fierce commands of their commander Yang Wei, the soldiers on the city walls drew their bows, nocked arrows, and prepared to roll boulders.

The Anxi army grew closer, entering the trumpet-shaped valley and stopping about three li away from the city. Li Siye led the way, staring coldly at the magnificent castle with a scornful smile on his lips. No matter how strong a castle was, if it had weaknesses, it was no different from rotten tofu and debris. Today, he would take Baocheng County without using a single soldier.

His gaze drifted to the Baoshui River. Its upstream had been blocked by them, though not completely dried up—only the water level had dropped significantly, turning it into a shallow stream. Now, half of the waterway beneath the city walls was exposed, forming a dark crescent shape, with the iron bars inside faintly visible.

Li Siye waved his hand, giving the order to act. Dozens of soldiers carried a wooden plank into the river. The river, which had been several feet deep, was now only up to their waists. They placed the plank in the water, on which four dark, pumpkin-like objects lay. The plank began to drift slowly toward the city walls, guided by a soldier who was an excellent swimmer.

It was just a small detail. The soldiers on the city walls were tense, watching the movements of the Anxi army, and none noticed anything unusual in the river. Even if someone had, they would have thought it was just a piece of wood and paid no attention. No one could imagine what it meant.

The Anxi army kept changing formations—sometimes cavalry advanced, sometimes archers stepped forward—to distract the soldiers on the walls. A few shamans danced in the moonlight, shouting at the moon. No one could understand what they were saying. Only Li Siye’s eyes were fixed on the plank. It quietly drifted into the crescent-shaped waterway, which was several zhang deep. The plank was blocked by the iron bars.

A spark flashed in the waterway, as if something was burning. The water spirit that had ignited the fuse dived into the water, swimming frantically back. It had to swim a hundred steps away in less than half a column of incense time, or it would die.

Li Siye and all the Anxi soldiers around him held their breath. The cavalry at the front turned and rushed north. It seemed the Anxi soldiers understood what was happening. Many of them lay on the ground, covering their ears. Only a few shamans continued to dance wildly, drawing the stares of thousands of soldiers on the walls.

At that moment, a bright red light burst from within the water channel, followed by an earth-shattering explosion. Waves surged high into the air as if mountains were collapsing, the city walls shook violently, and screams of fear erupted from the top of the walls. The screams were covered by black smoke, from which came sounds of collapse, cries of pain, and wails, one after another…
When the smoke cleared, the soldiers of Anxi slowly stood up. The city walls before them had completely changed. On the northwest side, above the water channel, a section of the wall three hundred zhang long had collapsed. Huge rocks tumbled to the ground, along with the bodies of countless soldiers, leaving a large gap wide enough to span dozens of zhang in the middle of the river channel.
Baocheng County’s natural defenses vanished in an instant. Li Siye suddenly roared in fury, “Charge into Baocheng County! Don’t let a single person escape!”
With shouts of battle echoing through the air, tens of thousands of Anxi soldiers rushed toward Baocheng County like a raging tide.