"Shao Mou, I am willing to serve you like a dog!"
After a moment of silence, Shao Bowen suddenly spoke.
"Hahahaha, sir, your hands are not made for carrying, nor your shoulders for shouldering. What talk of serving like a dog? As long as you offer me your counsel, that will suffice!"
Han Mo said as he reached for the small wine pot on the carriage's low table and handed it to Shao Bowen.
"Hahahaha, my lord speaks truly. I was being overly sentimental!"
After hearing Han Mo's words, Shao Bowen also laughed heartily and took the wine pot from Han Mo.
After taking a large swig of wine, he laughed again and handed the wine pot back to Han Mo.
"Now, the problem arises: thirty thousand rebel troops are rushing towards Mingzhou. How do you think we should achieve victory, sir?"
Han Mo asked after taking back the wine pot and taking a sip.
"If it comes to defending the city, are you confident, my lord?"
In fact, Han Mo did not usually like drinking strong spirits. After all, at this time, the strongest liquor was only around thirty-odd percent alcohol.
Moreover, even after repeatedly distilling it, the liquor still remained incredibly turbid.
After all, without distillation, it was too difficult for the liquor to be as clear as water.
Therefore, he generally kept fruit wines in his carriage.
And to cater to Han Mo's taste, these wines were brewed using fresh fruits.
After just a sip, Shao Bowen immediately fell in love with the taste.
While savoring the sweet aftertaste of the fruit wine in his mouth, he narrowed his eyes and casually asked.
"Currently, the armory has less than thirty percent of its weaponry. And more than half of that consists of cumbersome siege weapons. Those usable for defense are less than ten percent..."
As Han Mo spoke, a wry smile flickered across his face.
The Song army was indeed skilled at defending cities, but that was when they had ample defensive weaponry. At this moment, the total number of arrows available was less than 100,000.
Although Wang Bing had five thousand men, combined with the five thousand able-bodied youths who could be mobilized from Mingzhou city, that made a total of ten thousand men.
With each pair of men getting only one pot of arrows, Han Mo was beginning to feel uncertain whether Mingzhou city could be defended.
"The city walls of Mingzhou were last extensively repaired fifteen years ago. The rebel army is coming from Taizhou, so they will arrive in at most seven days. With only seven days, even if all the laborers in the city are mobilized, the repairs cannot be completed!"
After careful consideration, Han Mo continued.
"That means defending might not guarantee victory..."
Shao Bowen said, picking up the wine pot on the table again and taking a large gulp.
"If we only defend, our chances of victory are less than thirty percent..."
Neither Shao Bowen nor Han Mo doubted the rebel army's ability to attack cities. After all, although these rebels could be considered a rabble,
their successful capture of Taizhou city spoke volumes.
Taizhou was originally a vital military stronghold, with countless armaments stored in its arsenal.
Judging by the condition of the Mingzhou arsenal, it was highly likely that most of the cumbersome siege weapons had fallen into the hands of the rebels.
Although these weapons were all outdated, the southeast region was abundant in skilled craftsmen. With the existing ones as prototypes, they could likely repair them with little effort.
With these in place, if they merely defended, holding Mingzhou city would truly be as difficult as ascending to heaven.
"Since we cannot defend, and retreating is something my lord is unwilling to do, why not put ourselves in a desperate situation to find a way to survive?"
After draining the wine from the pot, Shao Bowen suddenly spoke.
"What do you mean by putting ourselves in a desperate situation to find a way to survive?"
Hearing him say this, Han Mo immediately sat up straighter.
"My lord has five thousand fresh troops. If these men are ambushed behind the enemy lines, and strike from the rear while the enemy is attacking the city, with the soldiers inside the city attacking from the front, a pincer attack would surely lead to a decisive victory and completely rout the rebel army!"
After hearing Shao Bowen's words, Han Mo fell into a long silence.
"If I were to ambush them outside the city, then who would be responsible for defending the city?"
"Aren't there five thousand able-bodied youths within the city, as well as the original garrison troops?"
Shao Bowen licked his lips and said again.
"They have not trained for warfare for a long time. Can they shoulder such a heavy responsibility?"
It had to be said that Shao Bowen's idea was indeed too crazy and too risky.
The imperial guards in the entire southeast were likely already rotten. Relying on these men to defend the city, even Han Mo, in his wildest moments, felt a pang of doubt.
"That depends on my lord's capabilities. If my lord can find a way to forge these men into a cohesive force within seven days, then naturally, they can achieve a decisive victory and defeat the rebel army!"
"I say, sir, you are truly speaking without bearing the consequences!"
Han Mo's eyes were about to roll out of his head. Was this even humanly possible?
Expecting these old and undisciplined soldiers to become battle-hardened warriors in just a few days, let alone Han Mo, even a renowned general of ancient times would likely find it impossible.
"How is that speaking without bearing the consequences? My lord, look closely, I am sitting down!"
Shao Bowen said, tapping the empty wine pot on the table a few times.
Seeing his rather bold demeanor, Han Mo glared at him impatiently before reaching into a hidden compartment of the carriage and pulling out another pot of wine.
"Actually, this matter is not as difficult as you think. As long as my lord can make a firm decision, make the benefits clear, establish rewards and punishments, and offer substantial incentives, and given that it is a defensive battle, holding out for two or three days should be feasible!"
After taking a contented sip of wine, Shao Bowen said with satisfaction.
"What you say is true, but the risks involved are quite substantial..."
"Hahahaha, is there anything in this world that is absolutely certain? If there were, it would likely be a trap set by the enemy!"
"One last thing: for five thousand troops to silently leave the city is no easy feat. Who knows if there are rebel spies within the city?"
"Has my lord forgotten? This is Mingzhou!"
As Shao Bowen spoke, Han Mo was stunned for a moment, but then he immediately realized.
That's right, how could he have forgotten this.
This was Mingzhou city. While it might be difficult to hide five thousand men outside Mingzhou city, once they were beyond its walls, there was the vast expanse of the ocean!
On the boundless ocean, was it difficult to hide five thousand men?