Eighth year of Chongzhen

Chapter 103
On the top of Shouzhou City, the folks are cleaning the battlefield.The bandits attacked the city for the second time and left nearly a hundred corpses. Under the guidance of the officers and soldiers, Min Zhuang endured the stench, cleaned up the arrows all over the ground, and searched for silver and some jewelry from the corpses of the bandits. Then the corpse was thrown from the city, and the blood and dirt were washed away with a large bucket of clean water.

The rogue's rocket did not ignite the watered hayloft.The prepared pikemen were useless, and the one-sided massacre ended hastily in about a quarter of an hour.

The atmosphere in the Arrow Tower was lively, Liu Zhiyuan and other Shouzhou officials were happily discussing the World War I just now.When the bandits attacked the city, they saw the entire battle process from the lookout holes on the side of the watchtower.

Liu Zhiyuan exclaimed: "I didn't expect the firecracker to be so sharp! No matter how fierce the thief is, he is like paper in front of the blunderbuss! This officer saw with his own eyes a tall and strong thief holding a long knife was blown away by a blunderbuss! The thief The head was crushed by the blunderbuss, its appearance is too horrible to look at!"

Wang Wei said with a smile: "General Huang, according to what I have heard, the officers and soldiers of the imperial court don't seem to like to use guns. They all say that they are easy to explode, slow to reload, and have a short range, which is far worse than bows and arrows. I just saw it. Compared with the strong bow, the firecracker seems to be more powerful and more terrifying. What is the reason for this?"

Huang Degong sat comfortably on the top chair, and replied with a smile: "My lord Wang doesn't know something. The quality of firearms in this dynasty is much different than that of Taizu and Taizong. In terms of power, the firearm is bigger. Official Most of the bows used by army archers have the strength of seven or eight fights. Seventy steps can kill unarmored thieves, sixty steps can break cotton armor, forty steps can break chain armor, and thirty steps can break heavy armor. "

Liu Zhiyuan and others have always sneered at military affairs, thinking that military generals are rude and rude people, and literati who read sage books are the pillars of governing the country.Now that the soldiers have come to the city, I have a little understanding of the military affairs, and I also listen to these general knowledge in the army with great interest, just to be able to boast to the outside world that I have both civil and military skills.

Huang Degong took a sip of tea, and seeing several civil servants listening to his explanation attentively, he couldn't help but feel very proud: These big turbans have always looked down on us warriors, and only in troubled times did they know that pens can't kill criminals, only spears and knives can kill thieves. The sky is bright!

He imitated the style of a civil official, coughed and continued: "Ordinary firecrackers are slightly worse than bows and arrows, but well-made firecrackers are no worse than strong bows! What Master Wang just said about firecrackers The disadvantages are actually caused by the poor quality of the blunderbuss made by the imperial court over the years. But the blunderbuss used by our department today are excellent firecrackers carefully crafted by the emperor who selected proficient people, and the old blunderbuss are far inferior to them!"

Xu You answered, "I wonder how many new guns General Huang has equipped?"

Liu Zhiyuan interrupted his interruption in dissatisfaction, and said, "How is the new gun better than the old one?"

Huang Degong continued: "Not only is the new blunderbuss well-made, but the gunpowder has also been improved. The distance and armor penetration have been greatly improved! The new blunderbuss can break through chain armor in fifty steps, and can break through heavy armor in forty steps! It can shoot as far as seventy steps away. !"

Liu Zhiyuan wondered: "Since that's the case, why did General Huang's troops only have a few hundred guns? If thousands of people are holding this gun, why would the bandits be afraid!"

Huang Degong praised: "My lord has the eyes! The firecrackers are powerful, but the reloading is too slow, the accuracy is worse than that of bows and arrows, and they cannot be used in rainy, snowy and windy weather. I heard that the Military Weapons Supervisor has created a new type of firecrackers that do not need to be ignited with matchsticks to save reloading. Time is not afraid of rainy winds. If this is the case, all the officers and soldiers will be equipped with this thing, and the bandits will be wiped out just around the corner!"

Just when everyone was discussing, Huang Degong's personal soldiers came to report, and the messenger sent to contact Chen Qiyu returned.

The messenger stood up after entering the door to salute everyone, and reported loudly: "My lords, generals! The governor, Mr. Chen, has led his troops to ten miles outside the east gate of the city! After seeing Mr. Chen, the little one reported the situation of the enemy and us in detail. Mr. Chen Praise all the adults for their meritorious service in defending the city, and said that they will go to the court to ask for credit for the adults!"

Liu Zhiyuan and the others were overjoyed, they were able to get the promise from the governor to personally submit a performance to ask for merit, and in the future, they will add a comment on promotion and reuse when they are examined by the Ministry of Officials.

The messenger continued: "Master Chen ordered the general to rush to Mr. Chen after dark. I have important orders. Mr. Chen will no longer lead troops into the city!"

In Gao Yingxiang's big tent, Liu Wenxiu was explaining the siege to Gao Yingxiang and others in detail.

Hearing Liu Wenxiu say that the volunteers are evacuating the city to make room for the intruders, Gao Yingxiang was very surprised.

He opened his mouth and asked, "Boy, how many troops did you lose in the two attacks today?"

Liu Wenxiu reported back: "Reporting to King Chuang, nearly 600 people were lost in the dedicated camp, and they were unable to attack again and again, and their morale was greatly reduced. I'm afraid, boy, that the loss will be too heavy. My adoptive father will come back and scold me, so I don't dare to send people to attack the city again. And I was afraid of delaying the important event of King Chuang, so I decided to evacuate the donated troops and wait for my adoptive father to return to the camp!"

Guo Tianxing doubted: "You donate a camp of tens of thousands of horses, how can you retreat after losing hundreds of people? According to the old rules, the one who breaks the city first can grab half an hour alone, and all the big families around Shouzhou hide in the city. How many good things do you have to grab half an hour alone? Can you give such good things to others?"

Another big boss said in a daze: "You kid is not telling the truth! When you attacked the city, I sent people to watch the formation, and there was constant gunshots on the top of the city! Could it be that you saw something wrong?"

Gao Yingxiang also looked suspiciously at Liu Wenxiu who was standing in the tent.These sons of Zhang Xianzhong are not good at dealing with it, and it is not Xianying's usual style to do things that are cheap and not profitable.

Liu Wenxiu said with a bitter face: "The officers and soldiers on the top of the city have at least a hundred firecrackers. I am sending back the old battalion. These 600 people are all the elite of my dedicated battalion. I didn't expect to break here! The foster father came back I still don’t know how to punish me!”

Gao Yingxiang smiled and said: "Huang Hu praised his adopted sons all day long, saying that they are all dragons and phoenixes among men, and today they have shown their true colors! Since you know that the army's firearms are powerful, why don't you let the new soldiers go to the city first? ? No matter how powerful the firecracker is, he will be piled up with human lives! If he piles up a thousand people, can his firecracker still be able to fight?"

Guo Tianxing also said: "I heard that more than ten ladders were set up in the camp. How many people can go up this few ladders at a time? A hundred firecrackers! If you erect a hundred ladders, he will be able to save a hundred firecrackers." What's the matter?"

The leaders in the tent spoke out ridicule one after another, Liu Wenxiu was so ashamed that her head almost fell into her crotch.

Gao Yingxiang smiled and said: "Boy, these brothers have given you advice just now. I, Gao Yingxiang, are righteous, and I allow you to dedicate the camp and fight again, and I will definitely break Shouzhou! How about it!?"

Liu Wenxiu replied with tears in her eyes: "King Chuang, you big bosses, I am really terrified! After killing so many old soldiers, my adoptive father will probably chop off my head when he comes back! I am determined not to fight in Shouzhou!" It's over! When King Chuang is defeated, I will dedicate my camp and follow behind to drink some soup!"

The leaders who broke into the camp in the tent couldn't stop laughing, that Huang Hu was usually very arrogant, today his adopted son lost all his face, he was like a dragon and a phoenix among people, crying like a child!
Gao Yingxiang waved his hand and said: "It's done, you go, clean up the corpses in the city!"

Liu Wenxiu wiped away her tears, saluted and turned around to leave the big tent. The sarcasm and ridicule from behind didn't affect him in the slightest.He sneered in his heart and said: Don't look at these thieves laughing happily, sometimes they cry!
Gao Yingxiang watched Liu Wenxiu get on his horse and leave from the open tent door, and praised: "Huang Hu, these adopted sons are not easy. Eating fatty meat has made their bones gritty, knowing that this piece of meat is not good, and then even the meat The bones are gone, he is a ruthless character!"

Hun Baiwan said: "King Chuang, this boy is not telling the truth! There must be reinforcements in the city! There are more than a hundred guns in the city!"

Guo Tianxing said: "I'm afraid there are quite a few officers and soldiers! There may be thousands of people!"

Coaxing Tianxing to interject: "King Chuang, shall we fight or not in Shouzhou? With officers and troops guarding the city, it may be difficult to fight!"

Gao Yingxiang laughed loudly and said, "You wonder why I have been in Shouzhou for several days without breaking the city? I am just waiting for reinforcements from the imperial court!"

Hearing these words, all the leaders looked at him suspiciously, and some thought to themselves: Is King Chuang crazy?There is an army cavalry behind here, wait for other officials to come, and there are still good fruits to eat?
Gao Xiaoxi, who remained silent all this time, asked, "King Chuang, there are officers and soldiers falling behind us. If there are more officers and soldiers in this city, we will become mice in the plywood!"

Gao Yingxiang stood up, waved his hands, and said proudly: "The official cavalry behind is only in the early [-]s, and I have more than [-] elite riders! It's no problem to deal with those donkeys who know how to run! I'm sure that there will be reinforcements in the city There are thousands of troops at most, and they are not elite soldiers! If King Lu Yan had strong soldiers, he would have left the city to fight me hard!"

Guo Tianxing continued: "What King Chuang said is true! Except for King Lu Yan, I am really not afraid of anyone in the camp!"

Gao Yingxiang put his hands behind his back and continued: "If I'm not mistaken, the officers and soldiers in the city must have come from Fengyang! Last year, the Huanghu harmed Emperor Zhu's ancestral grave, and Emperor Zhu would definitely send troops to Fengyang. I'm afraid we will go again Hit me once! When we come to Shouzhou for a few days, the officials in the city will definitely send someone to the nearest Fengyang for help! Fengyang will not be saved! Shouzhou has a city wall, but Fengyang has nothing to do! This Shouzhou belongs to Fengyang The gate, we come from the south, Fengyang officials will think that we will attack them after defeating Shouzhou, so it is better to send troops to defend, anyway, Shouzhou has a city wall!"

Gang Shiwanyi patted his thigh and shouted: "Here! If we defeat the officers and soldiers in the city, it will save trouble for the old horse to take Fengyang after beating Chuzhou!"

In fact, Gao Yingxiang knew it by himself. He never thought that the army would come to Shouzhou!

If we had attacked the city with all our strength earlier, Shouzhou would have been broken!He is too slack, too careless!

He didn't want to fight Fengyang at all, let alone relieve the pressure on Ma Shizhong in Chuzhou. He just wanted to break through Shouzhou to replenish money and food, and then fight back to Henan.

Unexpectedly, in just a few days, reinforcements came from Shouzhou!When did the officers and soldiers move so quickly?What a fucking evil door!
The impassionedness just now was just because he didn't want to show timidity in front of his subordinates.

It's all that damned yellow tiger!
Judging by the time, the officers and soldiers should have arrived not long ago.If Zhang Xianzhong attacked immediately after receiving the order, Shouzhou would have been destroyed long ago, and it would be useless for the officers and troops to come!
Now there is interception in front and pursuit in the back, which has violated the taboo of military strategists.

If Abandon Shouzhou does not fight and goes directly to the west, it will take time and effort for nearly 20 people to act. If the officers and soldiers in the city take advantage of the situation to attack, as long as the battlefield is disrupted, their own team may be defeated!The team of nearly 20 people is actually mostly refugees, who are cannon fodder tricked by Gao Yingxiang to kill them.It doesn't matter if they die so much, what they are afraid of is that they will attack their own cavalry, which is where their capital lies. If the official cavalry behind them take the opportunity to attack and kill them, the consequences will be disastrous.

Breaking through Shouzhou is now the only way out. This was originally planned. Who knew that the delay for a few days would turn into such an embarrassing situation!
Thinking of this, Gao Yingxiang decisively ordered that Guo Tianxing and Hun [-] lead their troops to move to the east gate of the camp, and after preparations were made, they would attack at the same time as the south gate, and take Shouzhou as soon as possible at any cost.Gao Yingxiang also sent people to offer camp in the northwest of the city, and ordered them to attack from the west wall.As for whether to offer the camp to attack or not, Gao Yingxiang didn't care about him. As long as the dedicated camp made a siege gesture, it would attract the attention of the city defenders and disperse their deployment of troops, that would be enough.

(End of this chapter)