At that time, Xiang Yu and Liu Ji were facing off in Xingyang. Most of the grain and fodder that the Chu army had to transport from Lu had to pass through the lake and marshland of Dayeze. Grain and fodder transported from Pengcheng to Xingyang also had to pass through Liang.
Instead of engaging the Chu army in direct combat, Peng Yue used his familiarity with the terrain, such as the Daye Marsh in Liang, to launch surprise attacks on the Chu army's supply convoys, causing Xiang Yu's troops to run out of food and supplies.
How could the Chu army, with its soldiers starving, possibly capture the heavily fortified city of Xingyang?
Prior to this, Xiang Yu's attack on Xingyang had also cut off Liu Ji's supply lines. When Liu Ji's attempts to make peace failed, he turned to Peng Yue and Han Xin.
If Xiang Yu could cut off Xingyang's supply lines, why couldn't they cut off Xiang Yu's supply lines as well?
Peng Yue could disrupt the Chu army's supply of grain to Xiang Yu, while Han Xin could take the opportunity to penetrate deep into Chu territory and cut off the Chu army's supply source.
This is the advantage of having more men and soldiers. No matter how powerful Xiang Yu was, he couldn't be in two places at once. The generals left behind by the Chu army were really no match for Peng Yue and Han Xin.
Even so, Xingyang became precarious, because the Chu army had more than one supply route. Although they were not full, they were still able to get enough to eat for Liu Ji.
Moreover, Xiang Yu frequently sent men to intercept the grain that Xiao He was sending to Liu Ji. Although there was plenty of grain in Xingyang, it certainly wouldn't last long.
If it weren't for Xiang Bo, the traitor who tipped off Liu Ji, Xingyang would probably have fallen long ago.
In this situation, Chen Ping offered a plan to sow discord between Xiang Yu and Fan Zeng. To be honest, Liu Ji was just grasping at straws in desperation, not caring whether it would work or not, since he wouldn't lose anything anyway.
Just then, Xiang Yu learned of the emergency in the rear. Among the Chu army, only Fan Zeng, besides Xiang Yu, could still keep the situation under control.
So Fan Zeng took the opportunity of being 'abandoned' by Xiang Yu to return to Pengcheng, firstly to deal with Peng Yue, this troublemaker, and secondly to defend against the approaching Han Xin's army. However, things didn't go as planned, and Fan Zeng died of a carbuncle before he even reached Pengcheng.
Without Fan Zeng in command, the rear could not withstand the Qi army's attack. Pengcheng fell, the Chu army suffered heavy losses, and they were completely unable to deal with Peng Yue.
After the Chu army suffered a major defeat, Peng Yue decisively launched an attack and seized the opportunity to occupy Dongjun and Dangjun. In other words, the land where Liu Ji had initially appointed Peng Yue as the King of Liang was actually mostly fought by Peng Yue himself. It was truly a huge empty promise.
Of course, the large tracts of land that Liu Ji promised to Han Xin still had to be fought for by Han Xin himself, but the combination of Han Xin, Li Zuoche and Guan Ying was really not much of a challenge against the Chu army without Xiang Yu.
In comparison, Peng Yue, who relied on guerrilla warfare and was ranked alongside Han Xin as one of the three great generals of the early Han Dynasty, seems to be lacking in some aspects, or rather, his reputation is somewhat exaggerated.
However, the presence of water doesn't mean Peng Yue is easy to defeat; in fact, under certain circumstances, Peng Yue is extremely difficult to kill.
Therefore, we need to use some strategies to deal with Peng Yue.
This strategy involved Xiang Yu leading his main cavalry force to Pengcheng and Boyang, both to intimidate the State of Qi and to complete his strategic deployment against Pengyue.
Xiang Yu launched a surprise attack on the Liang Kingdom from north to south, and his primary strategic target was the sparsely populated Daye Marsh.
...
Suiyang City was originally the seat of Dang Commandery and is now the capital of the Liang Kingdom.
Peng Yue's long-held goal has finally come true; he has become the King of Liang, the ruler of the Liang Kingdom!
No longer is he a despised and scorned bandit, no longer does he have to live in a damp wooden house in Onozawa.
He now has his own city and palace, as well as many concubines and treasures. His army has also expanded from 20,000 to over 200,000.
However, he forgot his roots and became arrogant.
Peng Yue did not choose to surrender immediately, but sent someone to negotiate with Xiang Yu. Although Xiang Yu's cavalry was powerful, they were not to be feared if they held a strong city.
"Xiang Yu is going too far! Does he think I'm made of clay?! Send down the order: defend every city to the death! If Xiang Yu wants to drag this out, then let him drag it out!" Peng Yue said fiercely.
"Yes!" General Liang Bin and General Hu Zhe responded in unison.
In fact, Peng Yue had already begun to devise ways to deal with Xiang Yu's counterattack after learning of Liu Ji's death.
The first priority is to win over allies. Qi is the biggest backer, and Zhao in Hebei is the second biggest backer. Everyone has attacked Chu, so no one can stay out of it.
However, Xiang Yu exchanged four commanderies for a single head, effectively removing the State of Qi from the list. It was uncertain whether Han Xin, who agreed to a truce between Qi and Chu, would actually send troops to help Peng Yue.
As for the State of Zhao, although it is only separated from the State of Liang by a river, when that river is the Yellow River, it is questionable whether this reinforcement can come to its aid.
Furthermore, since it was Xiang Yu who was attacking Liang, it was highly unlikely that Zhao would send troops to aid Liang without Qi's intervention.
Of course, Peng Yue did not place all his hopes on foreign aid. The Liang Kingdom itself was also actively preparing for war, strengthening its city defenses, and stockpiling grain. He believed that as long as he could hold out long enough, the Qi, Zhao and other states and forces would surely be able to unite against Chu again.
After all, given Xiang Yu's strength and the strength of the State of Chu, no single state could stand against them. They had to unite to protect themselves, otherwise they would be defeated one by one by Xiang Yu.
But there is a prerequisite: the members who unite against Chu must have a certain strength. What use are allies who are crushed by Xiang Yu in one fell swoop?
We need to hold out long enough for neighboring countries' reinforcements to arrive at the battlefield, right? Otherwise, how can they provide aid?
Peng Yue was still quite confident in the defense. There were many large cities in Liang Kingdom, such as Puyang, Dingtao, Changyi, and Suiyang, all of which had been tested by major battles.
Take Dingtao for example. When the rebellion against Qin began, Xiang Yu led his troops to attack Dingtao but failed to capture it. Later, Xiang Liang led his troops to attack it, but failed to capture it either. Instead, he was ambushed and killed by Zhang Han.
For example, Changyi was attacked by Liu Ji and others three times in a row but they failed to capture it. If Xiang Yu had taken it, he could have taken it.
Puyang and Suiyang were no less formidable than Dingtao and Changyi, and were even more fortified.
Especially Suiyang, which is now the capital of Liang. Peng Yue has put a lot of effort into its defense, and conservatively speaking, it should be able to hold out for a year or two without any problem.
The fortified city of Suiyang, the 100,000 elite troops, and the mountains of grain, arrows, and other military equipment in the warehouses were the source of Peng Yue's confidence.
Peng Yue sat in the palace and smiled coldly, "Bring it on, I want to see how you conquer the capital of my Liang Kingdom!"
South of the Great Plains, the main camp of the Chu army.
"King Xiang, according to our scouts, Peng Yue has withdrawn his forces and abandoned all the small cities. He has stationed at least 100,000 elite troops in the capital, Suiyang, and more than 20,000 troops in each of the major cities, such as Puyang, Changyi, and Dingtao. It seems that he does not intend to fight to the death. Which city should we attack first?" Shen Tu Jia asked.
Clang!
Xiang Yu drew his sword and swung it at the map; the point of the sword was none other than Suiyang, the capital of the Liang Kingdom!
"Take this city within seven days!"
Chapter 108 As You Wish
What does it mean to take Suiyang within seven days?
The march from Boyang to Suiyang alone would take about five days, meaning the Chu army only had two days to actually attack the city, which was almost equivalent to Xiang Yu breaching the city in just one day.
Although Shen Tu Jia thought Xiang Yu was very strong, he didn't believe Xiang Yu could be so strong in siege warfare. If it were a battle in the open field, it was very possible to defeat Peng Yue's army in two days, but in siege warfare...
In the past, it would have been considered a bit arrogant for Xiang Yu to make such a boastful statement.
But things are different now. First, Xiang Yu has Hao Jiu's system to boost his power, and second, after incorporating most of Lü Ze's army, the strength of the Chu army is no longer what it used to be.
Not only did the cavalry recover to 30,000, but the elite infantry also increased several times compared to the time at Gaixia.
It is true that Xiang Yu led 30,000 cavalrymen to threaten Han Xin all the way to Pengcheng and Boyang, but his real intention was to deal with Peng Yue. So while the cavalrymen went to Boyang, 100,000 infantrymen led by Xiang Sheng also gathered in Shouchun and then marched towards Chengfu, about 150 li south of Suiyang.
This Chengfu, the same Chengfu that Liu Jia, a capable general under Liu Ji, slaughtered, is now a ruin.
When the Chu army marched on Chengfu, Xiang Yu entrusted the task entirely to Xiang Sheng and did not make it public, so Shen Tu Jia was unaware of it.
However, it was impossible for the Chu army to carry out such a large-scale military mobilization and pre-battle preparations completely in secret, so this matter also needed a pretext to deceive people.
Most of the Chu army, including Shen Tu Jia, believed that this move was to prevent Lü Ze from going back on his word and staying in Chu, and to drive the Han army into Guanzhong.
But in reality, they had two plans. If Lü Ze obediently returned to Guanzhong, this army would become Peng Yue's nightmare, just like the 30,000 cavalrymen Xiang Yu led north.
Another foreshadowing element is that whether Xiang Yu and Lü Ze reached a truce agreement, or Xiang Yu exchanged Liu Ji's head for the four commanderies with Han Xin, it all represents Xiang Yu's desire to end the war.
Moreover, Xiang Yu didn't even bother to fight Wu Rui, who was the weakest among them, which further proves this point.
So much so that Peng Yue still believed, until the moment he received Xiang Yu's letter, that Xiang Yu had come to negotiate peace, to end the war, not to destroy the country.
Of course, Xiang Yu also gave Peng Yue a chance to stop the fighting, which was to say that those who obeyed him would prosper and those who opposed him would perish.
But Peng Yue is no longer the same Peng Yue. He is, after all, the Prince of Liang. He has to save face, you know?
Hao Jiu and Xiang Yu also anticipated that Peng Yue would care about his reputation, and that even if Xiang Yu politely asked him to leave Chu and hand over the two commanderies of Dong and Dang, Peng Yue would not agree.
Han Xin could retreat to Qi, and Lü Ze could retreat to Guanzhong, but Peng Yue could only retreat to Dayeze. How could he possibly agree to that!
Peng Yue was the one who suffered the worst fate among those who followed Liu Ji in rebelling against Chu. He was cooked and chopped into mincemeat by Liu Ji and sent to various feudal lords. The largest portion was given to Ying Bu!
In fact, Peng Yue did not rebel. If he had, he wouldn't have been captured by Liu Ji so easily. Liu Ji killed him simply because he was afraid of his abilities.
As for Peng Yue's refusal to let Liu Ji send troops to help Liu Ji quell the rebellion, Liu Ji was angry, but it was completely understandable. He encountered similar situations in the court every day, and too many people would try to push things away or delay as long as possible.
Are we really going to force people to go to war when they're old and in poor health?
Moreover, although Peng Yue did not go in person, he sent a considerable number of troops to assist in the battle, which was quite good.
Liu Ji did not accuse Peng Yue of treason because of this incident, but he was already dissatisfied with Peng Yue's excuses and held a grudge in his heart.
Thus, a scene frequently appearing in this historical record played out once again. One of Peng Yue's subordinates, who had offended Peng Yue and was facing certain death, went to Liu Ji to accuse Peng Yue and his general Hu Zhe of plotting a rebellion.
As a result, Liu Ji sent men to arrest Peng Yue, and after a trial, the presiding judge convicted Peng Yue of treason.
The truth is that after Peng Yue feigned illness and refused to quell the rebellion, offending Liu Ji, his subordinate Hu Zhe suggested that Peng Yue plot a rebellion, but Peng Yue rejected the suggestion. Peng Yue was truly wronged in this matter.
As a subject, one should naturally share the emperor's burdens. The presiding judge understood Liu Ji's thoughts, and with witnesses and physical evidence, conviction was inevitable.
While saying he trusted Peng Yue and generously pardoned him from the death penalty, Liu Ji pretended to have no choice but to exile Peng Yue to Shu.
However, perhaps because Liu Ji acted so well, Peng Yue mistakenly believed that he still had a chance to be pardoned by the kind elder, so he actually went to Empress Lü to plead for Liu Ji.
Empress Lü readily agreed, and then said to Liu Ji, "Peng Yue is a brave and capable man. Your Majesty has already offended him by exiling him to Shu, and there may be future troubles. It would be better to kill him directly."
Liu Ji and Empress Lü were truly birds of a feather; they decided to kill Peng Yue right then and there, and they didn't want to kill him for nothing, so they thought of ways to make use of him.
Thus, Peng Yue met a tragic end. Not only was he made into meat soup, but his entire clan was also exterminated as a way to intimidate other feudal lords.
Of course, if Liu Ji's move wasn't a deliberate attempt to provoke war, then it was an utterly brainless act that directly scared the law-abiding Ying Bu into rebellion.
Although Ying Bu was defeated, he also managed to hit Liu Ji with an arrow, and Liu Ji eventually died from an infection caused by the arrow wound.
It must be admitted that Liu Ji really did a terrible job of bringing about his own downfall.
Although Xiang Yu was not afraid of Peng Yue, he was about to go to one of the six split planes to carry out a mission. During his absence, Peng Yue was definitely the biggest threat to the Chu Kingdom.
Han Xin had internal problems to solve in Qi, and Han was even worse off without its King. Neither of them would have any designs on Chu in the short term.
Only Peng Yue, even if Xiang Yu doesn't attack him, is very likely to try to form alliances against Chu, because he is the only one who still occupies Chu territory and is feeling insecure.
Moreover, Peng Yue came from a bandit background, so he would definitely have some bandit-like qualities when he did things. Having such an enemy entrenched in the State of Chu was really unsettling.
That makes things simple; just wipe them out.
Xiang Yu, along with Xiang Zhuang, Ji Bu, and Zhongli Mei, led 30,000 cavalry and 10,000 infantry to capture all the small towns that Peng Yue had abandoned.
Wherever the Chu army went, the people lined the streets to welcome them, because Peng Yue had looted all the abandoned cities in order to stockpile grain and fodder, without caring about the lives of the people.
Many people were planning to flee to the State of Chu, but the Chu army attacked directly, and Liang was about to return to the State of Chu, so the people no longer needed to move.
A few days later, Xiang Yu finally arrived outside Suiyang City with his main force of 30,000 cavalry.