First courtesy, then force.

The ceremony is complete.

Soldiers, of course, are also indispensable.

Even a lion must exert its full strength to hunt a rabbit.

Li Xin understood this principle.

Therefore, while conveying the order from Prince Xin's residence, Li Xin also sent a message to Dongning City.

He ordered the Divine Machine Battalion to bring a portion of the Thunderclap Bombs to Dingli County to regroup.

Since the bandit leader Zhao has taken the lead and contacted all the bandit strongholds, big and small, in the vicinity to unite their forces, we must treat this matter with caution.

Li Xin also wanted to finish the bandit suppression operation in one fell swoop and return to Dongning City as soon as possible.

After all, the bandits from the northern grasslands were still eyeing Dongning City covetously.

...

Dingli County Town.

Old county magistrate's office.

Mr. Zhao shook the letter in his hand and said calmly, "Is that brat Prince Xin trying to sow discord between us?"

If we listen to the tricks of that brat Prince Xin and each of us goes about our own business, then we will be defeated one by one by that brat Prince Xin.

Such a scheme to break us up is laughable!

Do you want to surrender?

As he spoke, Boss Zhao, with a smile on his face, swept his gaze across the faces of the bandit leaders in front of him.

The leaders exchanged glances but remained silent.

After a moment, one of the leaders spoke up: "Don't worry, Boss Zhao. How could we be so easily fooled by such a counter-espionage tactic?"

Don't worry!

This time, in defending Dingli County, we will all obey Commander Zhao's orders!

"Yes! We will all follow your orders, Commander Zhao!"

The other leaders echoed this sentiment.

"I hope everyone can work together!"

Mr. Zhao nodded calmly and said.

He immediately began to arrange the defenses of Dingli County.

Dingli County is situated in a mountain valley, with mountains on both sides and a small river flowing through the middle, making it a place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Its geographical location is extremely advantageous, which is a benefit.

However, it is also a disadvantage for the government.

Due to the narrow terrain, lack of farmland, and natural and man-made disasters, the people suffered greatly, resulting in a large number of refugees and rampant banditry.

Finally, Dingli County was captured by bandits.

Before Prince Xin took up his post in Dongning, the remaining troops in Dongning Province were no longer able to recapture Dingli County.

As a result, Dingli County has been in the hands of General Manager Zhao for one or two years now!

In the past year or two, Mr. Zhao has managed to make Dingli County quite impressive.

Although the city wall was still made of rammed earth, it was not very high.

However, many wooden watchtowers were built on the mountains on both sides of Dingli County to serve as the outer defense of the county.

It was precisely through these robust defenses that General Zhao was able to continuously annex other strongholds and expand his power.

After General Zhao made his arrangements, the nearby watchtowers were also filled with troops, closely monitoring the movements of Prince Xin's army.

The formidable defenses were a source of confidence for General Manager Zhao!

However, the arrival of Prince Xin's army still caused General Zhao some fear.

After learning the total number of soldiers in the Prince's Guard, General Zhao finally calmed down.

"Only four or five hundred people?"

General Zhao laughed heartily, “Gentlemen, the government troops only have four or five hundred men, yet they want to take over our Dingli County? Are they dreaming?”

We brothers are of one mind, and there are nearly two thousand of us!

This time, let those government troops see that we're not to be trifled with!

"right!"

The surrounding leaders echoed this sentiment.

After the arrival of the Prince's Guard, the entire Dingli County and the surrounding watchtowers strengthened their defenses.

However, in Li Xin's view, all of this was in vain.

After setting up camp in a valley, Li Xin ordered He Chaojun to lead the Shence Battalion soldiers to conduct reconnaissance in the forests on both sides.

Meanwhile, Li Xin was also studying how to attack Dingli County based on the reports from his scouts.

Since the expansion of the Prince's Guard, they have experienced both siege warfare and mountain warfare, but this is the first time they have encountered a siege.

Therefore, Li Xin was also somewhat cautious.

"Your Highness,"

Zhang Cheng placed a large stone on the ground and said, "This is Dingli County. There are about ten watchtowers next to it."

Some watchtowers are strategically located, situated on high ground, protecting the flanks of Dingli County.

If we rashly attack Dingli County, our flanks will likely be attacked by the watchtowers.

Therefore, I suggest that we first remove the watchtowers surrounding Dingli County.

After clearing all the watchtowers, then proceed with the attack on the city.

By then, the entire county of Dingli will be surrounded by us, and our goal of achieving victory in one decisive battle will be achieved!

"That's exactly what I wanted!"

Li Xin nodded slightly and said, "In that case, let's give them a taste of their own medicine first!"

Zhang Cheng, Wei Dahai, let's show those bandits how powerful we are!

"Let's give those bandits a warning!"

"yes!"

Zhang Cheng and Wei Dahai quickly responded.

Immediately, the two led a portion of their troops into the forests on either side.

Before long, Zhang Cheng's troops had reached the outer perimeter of a watchtower.

Looking at a watchtower a hundred or two paces away, Zhang Cheng waved his hand, signaling the soldiers to stop advancing.

Although Chief Zhao was a bandit, he did build a decent watchtower.

All the trees in the surrounding area were also cut down.

If they wanted to launch a surprise attack, they would inevitably be exposed to the range of the archers in the watchtower.

Taking the watchtower will be quite difficult!

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!