Chapter 84 Section 5 River Battle

In the eyes of almost everyone, the Guanzhong army commanded by Lai She is the natural main force in the battle to destroy Shu. Starting from Guanzhong, taking Tianshui, entering Hanzhong, and then attacking Shu, the road is smooth and convenient.As for the Jingzhou army commanded by Cen Peng, it mainly played a diversionary role, posing a posture of going up the Yangtze River and attacking the Shu Kingdom, attracting Gongsun Shu to divide his troops to defend. In the previous history, there has never been a precedent for taking the Yangtze River waterway to conquer Shu. The reason is very simple, no one dared to do it.Not to mention that the natural danger of the Yangtze River is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Even if Gongsun Shu did not let go of a single soldier along the entire Yangtze River defense line, attacking Shu from the Yangtze River is still full of risks. To cross the treacherous Three Gorges, transporting supplies is a problem. The army is thousands of miles deep, there is no reinforcements behind, and the enemy is defending in front of the danger. Once the landing fails, the foothold cannot be established. The end can only be driven down the Yangtze River and fed fish and turtles. .

However, Cen Peng did not believe in evil, and took the lead in attacking from the waterway, which opened the prelude to the battle to destroy Shu. In the spring of the eleventh year of Jianwu (AD 35), Cen Peng led the generals Liu Long, the general who punished the captives, general Zang Gong, the general of Fuwei, and general Liu Xin, the general of Xiaoqi. He led 5,000 cavalry, 50,000 infantry and thousands of warships. Ships, set out on the front lines of Jingmen and Huya. Jingmen and Huya Mountains face each other across the river and control the gate of the Three Gorges. They are garrisoned by Yijiang Wang Tianrong, Da Situ Renman, Nanjun Taishou Cheng Fan and others.Tian Rong and others laid down solid fortifications, established fortresses in Jingmen and Huya Mountains, stationed a large army, and erected a huge pontoon bridge across the Yangtze River to connect Jingmen and Huya Mountains into one. They built military towers, but this was not enough, and they planted more giant wooden pillars in the river to cut off the waterway. The pillars were equipped with anti-handle hooks. No, so you can only let the defenders slaughter you, shoot with arrows if you want to shoot with arrows, and hit with stones if you want to hit with stones.

When the Han army arrived at Jingmen and Huya, they all looked afraid in the face of such a fortified defensive situation.Cen Peng ordered the army to recruit brave men to attack the pontoon bridge, and reward those who climbed first.General Lu Qi went forward, and Cen Peng was overjoyed. He allocated more than 20 ships to Lu Qi, and ordered him to make a vanguard assault. The naval warships built by Cen Peng are divided into two types: one is straight into the building, and the other is protruding.Straight into the building ship, as the name suggests, there are buildings on the ship, divided into several floors, relatively large in size, similar to a large warship, suitable for transporting troops and food and frontal battles.Protruding and exposed, it is also called 艨艟 in later generations. The shape of the boat is narrow and long, and the volume is small. The oars are exposed outside. People are in the boat and the speed is extremely fast. It is similar to an offensive speedboat. The whole boat is covered with raw cowhide, which can effectively defend against attacks. , and there are crossbow windows and spear holes, which have certain offensive capabilities and are usually used for surprise attacks.

Zhuge Liang's borrowing of Dongfeng is probably a novelist's romance, which is not enough to rely on.Cen Peng didn't need to borrow the east wind, but waited for the east wind. He chose to launch the general offensive on this day because he hoped that the east wind would blow on this day. Lu Qi and others launched their boats into the water, followed the fierce east wind, went upstream against the current, and quickly rushed towards the pontoon bridge.The defenders laughed and saw that they were dying, and they didn't even bother to shoot their arrows.Before Lu Qi and others rushed to the pontoon, the boat hit the pillar and was firmly hooked by the reverse hook, unable to advance or retreat.Only then did the defenders bend their bows and set up arrows, shooting profusely like rain.

Lu Qi and others fought desperately, retaliated with bows and crossbows, lit torches at the same time, and continuously threw them on the pontoon bridge.The pontoon bridge caught fire, and the fire was driven by the wind. The pontoon bridge was quickly broken in two, and the tower collapsed. The bridge was completely destroyed, Lu Qi and others removed the pillars, and Cen Peng's army took advantage of the momentum to advance, fighting against Gongsunshu's navy on the Yangtze River. The main warship of Gongsun Shushui Division is the Fangzai, which is made of wood and bamboo.Of course, Gongsun Shu also built a ten-story Chilou Palalan boat. Just hearing the name is enough to scare people, but there is only one, which is mainly used for appearance and township.

The Shu army has always regarded Jingmen and Huya as the Maginot line of defense, thinking that they are foolproof, but now that the Han army easily breaks through and kills them in front of them, the morale of the army is suddenly in turmoil. The river is surging, the setting sun is setting, and Cen Peng's army is advancing with the wind, like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, with no direction forward.The soldiers of Shu were defeated, borrowing a famous saying of robbery by Baitiao Zhangshun in Zhonglangli, they either ate bandao noodles or wontons. Thousands of people drowned and countless died in battle.

The ten-story Chilou Paran boat turned around and fled, but the speed was too slow, and it was surrounded by a group of rogues.The Han army boarded the ship and fought, beheading the governor of the Shu army, Cheng Fan, the governor of Nanjun.Yijiang Wang Tianrong escaped by chance and surrendered to Jiangzhou (now Chongqing City). After this battle, the navy that Gongsun Shu had painstakingly managed for many years was wiped out.For the Han army, the water surface of the Yangtze River has been unimpeded since then, and they are allowed to run rampant.Even so, the expedition was difficult and slow due to enormous terrain obstacles.All the way up the river, Cen Peng strictly ordered the army not to plunder. The people were overjoyed and rushed to open the door to surrender.In June, when Cen Peng arrived at Jiangguan, the gateway of Bashu (now Fengjie County, Chongqing), the land of Bashu opened before his eyes, and he pressed it.