Xu Jie was still a step too late. Looking at the tightly closed gates of Celestial Water Town and the unfamiliar military banner raised on the city wall, he couldn't help but frown deeply.
As the art of war says, with ten, surround him; with five, attack him; if double, divide him; if equal, engage him; if fewer, elude him; if outmatched, avoid him.
As an old general, Xu Jie naturally understood this principle. Currently, he had just over five thousand men under his command. With this amount, if it were a battle on the plains, he was confident he wouldn't lose to any force under ten thousand, but for a siege, this number was far from enough, especially without knowing how many were in the opposing force.
Historically, there have been very few successful forced sieges when a city has a certain garrison defending it.
