by Cpt._Funkotron » Fri Jan 12, 2018 3:27 am
Junyou bows his head humbly.
"The town of Bei Yei sits on the other end of a major crossing, and has strong walls and more than two thousand local inhabitants. Yet, it surrendered itself to the rebels without so much as a squeek. The rebels are not an occupying force, on the contrary, they are among friends and family. They have guards posted along the perimeter of course, as would any local garrison, but within they do nothing but lie comfortably in wait for this army. It sits on an important road as I'm sure you know, dozens of traders and travelers pass through it every day without incident, and army followers of all kinds have swelled the streets, peddlers, tinkerers, vendors, whores; the point being, it would not be any challenge at all for a crack squad including myself to gain entry and plain concealment. Dressed as merchants, the yellow turbans would not think twice of one wagon full of linen at dawn, and a few barrels of lard at noon. Under cover of darkness, we would soak the linen into the oil and lard, and creep from house to house sticking the bundles to the sides of the timber-framed houses. And then, just before dawn, we would send our fastest sprinters from one end of the town to the other with torches, lighting each bundle as they pass. The fire will build and burn from all corners of the town at once, the poor devils will need every pair of hands at every well to put them all out. A small fact that I'm sure your own cook could tell you, is that water will not extinguish burning grease easily, but only spread it. That is when we would strike. My crack squad would gain the posterns, and throw open the gates from the inside. If all I have said before now has been done, Bei Yei will be doomed. The rebels will be unarmed, groggy, panicked, and unarmored if they will be clothed at all, and besides will be completely disoriented. My gentlemen, fully armed, rested, and prepared, waiting only a few dozen yards outside the walls, would rush in, splinter off into small teams, and kill every man they find not wearing a green sash. The rebels will not know what they should be afraid of until they've already been stuck through the gizzards."
He smirks briefly, and continues. "The key to this plan''s success or failure is that the rebels do not strengthen their security, which is exactly what will happen if they have reason to believe that you plan to attack them soon. I also have great respect for Captain Wei's prowess and character, General, but I would need autonomy in this endeavor, and Wei outranks me. It would be improper for I a mere Lieutenant to give orders to Captain, and as I understand him, the good captain has no taste for engaging in subterfuge of this order such that he could execute it himself."