by CarrieVS » Sat Jun 30, 2018 10:51 pm
Boazi cannot quite look at Liu Bei. Being ordered by Governor Ding to resume their old position - if they win this battle - is not the same as being forgiven.
The Governor and the other high officers are waiting for an answer. He glances at his friends, and Wenchang and Dewang - although this is his idea! - are looking to him also. Well that is not so unfair, it is - was - will be - maybe - his job and not theirs.
Baozi swallows, or more precisely gulps. But he manages to find his tongue. "I think we must use this idea to counter the enemy's magic, if we are to stand a chance. And if we are going to, the very first thing we should do, even if we are still planning precisely how to make use of it, is order someone to begin collecting, um the necessary, um, substances. There is not much time and we will need as much as we can get."
Wenchang immediately volunteers to oversee this endeavour, saying that "I agree with whatever plan Baozi comes up with, I can be more use elsewhere."
That of course is the easy part. "I think we are in quite a bad position, after the storm. We cannot beat them by defending our lines - we would have to spend too many lives to make up for the weaknesses in the fortifications, and it would come down to numbers.
"We cannot use defences or soldiers we don't have, so we must make the best use of what we do. We are much stronger than them in cavalry." Baozi glances at General Lu, and then looks away again. "Horsemen are not so effective behind walls, so we should attack. As fast and as hard as we can, using the catapults we have left to stop them from destroying our charge with magic." That will not be particularly pleasant for those riding beneath a rain of night soil and cattle entrails, but nor would being exposed to the full power of the rebel leaders' sorcery.
"If the cavalry can strike at the serpent's head, and take out the leaders of the rebellion, we may win the day. If they do not, we will surely be broken. But unless we can hope for the situation to change soon, that will only mean a quicker death than if we don't make the attempt."
A Combustible Lemon wrote:Death is an archaic concept for simpleminded commonfolk, not Victorian scientist whales.