Daqin arrests alchemists, what does it matter to me as a qi refiner?

The adjutant beside Han Mingzhi asked in a low voice: "Marshal, do you want to send troops to pursue?"

"No! The terrain on the north bank of the Ji River is steep. If we attack rashly, we will be easily ambushed by the enemy. Our most important task now is to defend the county. We must not take any risks!"

"What should we do? Just let the enemy go!"

"Go find a few fishing boats and load them with supplies for crossing the river. We can talk about it after daybreak."

Han Mingzhi still underestimated his enemy. Yang Ling had no intention of crossing the river to fight Han Mingzhi. He chose to withdraw only to support Liu Qingyuan's troops to withdraw from the Jishui River. After all, this unit was the elite they had worked hard to build and they could not afford to lose it.

Yang Ling's main force had successfully crossed the Jishui River, and Han Mingzhi had no choice but to stay in the county town. On the north bank of the Jishui River, Han Mingzhi's troops were still resisting, but the situation became a stalemate.

Yang Ling led the remaining troops to continue advancing toward the northwest, gathering defeated militia soldiers along the way and replenishing the casualties from the battle.

Yang Ling led his troops to besiege the county town on the south bank of the Ji River for several days.

Yang Ling did not use a violent attack to capture the county town as originally planned. He was worried that his troops would encounter an accident in the city, which would give Han Mingzhi an opportunity to take advantage of it, so he adopted a siege strategy.

On the west bank of the Jishui River, in the government office of Jizhou, Yang Ling summoned his staff to discuss matters.

"How are the departments doing?"

"Master Situ, unless the enemy troops come in full force to support us, the city of Jeju will surely fall into your hands!"

"Okay! Tonight we will force Han Mingzhi to retreat from the south bank of the Ji River and seize Jeju."

Jeju is less than a thousand miles away from Jiyang. If Han Mingzhi can control Jeju, he will completely lose the opportunity to cross the Jishui River to the south, and Yang Ling will have less trouble.

"Master Situ, I request reinforcements to the garrison on the south bank of the Ji River to prevent Han Mingzhi from dispatching troops from Jeju County."

"Although the enemy forces on the south bank of the Ji River are quite powerful, they are not to be feared and do not require reinforcements. Arrange people to keep an eye on the north bank of the Ji River. If there are any abnormal situations, tell me in time!"

Yang Ling did not think that Han Mingzhi would abandon the defense of the north bank of the Jishui River. According to Yang Ling's understanding of Han Mingzhi, Han Mingzhi would never easily abandon the defense line on the north bank of the Jishui River. Yang Ling even suspected that Han Mingzhi would use the power of Jeju to rescue him.

The food reserves in Jeju City are quite sufficient, and Yang Ling doesn't believe that Han Mingzhi is willing to transport the food to the north bank of the Ji River.

Yang Ling was not afraid of Han Mingzhi's tricks, as he believed that Han Mingzhi would not have the guts to risk his life. The east bank of the Jishui River outside Jeju City was a large plain with very flat terrain. Yang Ling's army had enough terrain advantages to not worry about not being able to capture Jeju City.

The night outside Jeju City was exceptionally quiet, with moonlight filling the barren wilderness, and occasionally a few vultures foraging could be seen. The Jeju government office was brightly lit, and Yang Ling and his staff discussed the details of capturing Jeju.

Liu Qingyuan took out a few sketches and introduced them to Yang Ling: "Jizhou is located on the west bank of the Ji River, and to the east is Jizhou Port. Our scouts have found that many soldiers under Han Mingzhi are gathered outside Jizhou Port. Their number is about 2,000, including more than 2,000 cavalry."

"I remember Han Mingzhi has 6,000 to 7,000 soldiers, right?"

Liu Qingyuan shook his head and said, "There are only 3,000 defenders in Jeju County, plus the militiamen and farmers near the Ji River, a total of no more than 4,000 people. Han Mingzhi's main force is on the south bank, and there are only so many defenders in Jeju County. Jeju's defense is very weak. Our troops stationed here can attract Han Mingzhi's attention and prevent his main force from moving from the west bank of the Ji River."

"When will Han Mingzhi's troops be transferred back from the south bank?"

Liu Qingyuan said: "The battle on the east bank of the Ji River is basically over. More than half of the enemy's troops have been lost. Han Mingzhi should soon transfer troops back to defend the east bank of the Ji River. Their troops just landed on the south bank of the Ji River and must have lacked rest."

"What about the west bank of the Ji River?"

"On the west bank of the Ji River are Yang Ling's troops and Liu Qingyuan's troops. Han Mingzhi dared not rashly advance from the west bank of the Ji River."

"Okay! In that case, let's seize Jeju tonight." Yang Ling said, looking at Li Zongren, "Marshal, I want to lead my troops to attack Jeju tonight."

Li Zongren smiled and said, "Are you sure?"

"The battle on the east bank of the Jishui River has just begun. Han Mingzhi's troops should not have recovered yet, and there are a large number of garrisons outside Jeju City. Even if Han Mingzhi on the east bank of the Jishui River wants to rescue Jeju, he may be powerless. Jeju City is Han Mingzhi's last line of defense. He certainly dare not mobilize too many people, because after the mobilization of troops, Jeju will be in an empty state. As long as Jeju's troops are involved, we will suddenly attack the city and will surely be able to capture Jeju City!"

Jeju is located on the west bank of the Jishui River, surrounded by mountains. The wall of Jeju City is nine feet high and about five feet wide. It was built in 200 BC by Shi Tao, a famous craftsman in the Tang Dynasty. It used to be the gate tower of Jeju City. The top of the city wall is covered with spikes and antlers. There are traps and fences such as chevaux de frise, rolling stones and pounding wood on the top of the city wall. There is also a -step long moat under the city wall, which is filled with sand to prevent the city wall from collapsing.

Because the moat was relatively deep and its slope was extremely gentle, the enemies on the city wall could hardly hit the defenders below the city by throwing logs, javelins and other weapons down; at the same time, because there was thick sand accumulated in the moat, the soldiers under the city wall were blocked from stepping and were easily injured. Therefore, there were few cavalry or battering rams to break through the shield of the moat during the siege.

The existence of the moat ensures the safety of the defenders on the city wall, but if the defenders on the city wall want to attack the enemy troops under the wall, they must climb around the city.

This provided Yang Ling with an excellent opportunity to launch a sudden attack on the city. Only by attacking the city suddenly could Yang Ling's troops take advantage of their long-range firepower to suppress the enemy.

Yang Ling ordered the messenger beside him to ask Xu Shichang to come and see him.

After a while, Yang Ling led Xu Shichang to the moat south of Jeju City. The moat was in an arc shape, about two meters in diameter, and the sand inside was half a foot thick. The guard camp cavalry could jump in smoothly, and then climb the wooden bridge on the moat to attack Han Mingzhi's troops in the moat. Xu Shichang pointed to the moat in front of him and asked, "Sima, are you going to use this to attack the city?"

Yang Ling replied: "That's right! I decided to break through the moat today."

Xu Shichang was surprised and said, "So simple and crude?"

"It's that simple!" Yang Ling said confidently, "I now require all officers and staff to change into night clothes. Later, you will follow me to sneak across the river and attack the enemy's position."

"But Han Mingzhi still has 6,000 to 7,000 people on the east coast. How can we approach them quietly?"

"Have you heard of the Flying Tiger Claw?"

"Of course I know. The Flying Tiger Claw is the most magical tool of our Han Empire. We can use a rope to tie a tree trunk or vine, throw the flying claw to the city wall dozens of feet high, and then grab the hanging basket on the city wall and climb over the wall to attack the enemy's camp."

Yang Ling said: "This flying claw is the famous Qinling Flying Tiger Claw, but it can not only be used as a tool for climbing the city, but also as a weapon for us to attack Han Mingzhi's position!"

"Sima wants to use the Flying Tiger Claw to climb the city wall?" Xu Shichang said in surprise, his eyes wide open. "This is no joke."

Yang Ling said calmly, "Our opponents this time are actually only the defenders in Jeju County. The troops in Jeju County are very weak. We only need to send a small group of elite troops to easily occupy Jeju. There is no need for us to fight with the defenders of Jeju. If Han Mingzhi was really capable, he would have transferred the Han family army in Jeju County to the east coast to reinforce his base. The defenders in Jeju City would only have 800 people at most. In this case, we only need to use the Flying Tiger Claw to climb onto Jeju City to gain the upper hand. As long as we take Jeju City, we will win!"

"I have heard of the power of the Flying Tiger Claw. It is said that the Flying Tiger Claw can climb up to a second-story building. However, the Flying Tiger Claw is equipped with an iron hook, which can easily hook you off."

"Don't worry. Han Mingzhi's men never thought they would be attacked at night. As soon as they see a dark figure emerging from the city wall, they will think we are Han Mingzhi's sentinels and immediately shoot arrows to drive us away without any warning. Our target is not Jeju City, but Han Mingzhi outside Jeju City."

Yang Ling's plan had a high chance of success, because Han Mingzhi did not expect them to attack the city at night. Although there were a large number of defenders outside Jeju City, they were exhausted. In addition, Han Mingzhi's attention was focused on the north bank. He did not expect Yang Ling's army to attack Jeju City, and he did not know that there were not many soldiers in Jeju City and the city could fall at any time.

Han Mingzhi of Jeju was not stupid. He also knew that there were less than 10,000 people in Jeju City, and the rest were on the east coast. If Jeju City was lost, those Han family troops would definitely not be able to escape, so Jeju City must not be lost.

Han Mingzhi deployed a large number of troops in Jeju City, with a total of 4,000 garrisons in the city. The daily patrols by the inspection office and the soldiers of the garrison offices in various towns and villages totaled about 3,000. The garrisons in the city were divided into five groups, patrolling in turns, supporting each other, and on duty day and night, with different patrol areas every day.

The defenders on the east coast of Jeju would send scouts to the north of Jeju City every three hours to investigate the enemy situation. Han Mingzhi felt that there were two thousand defenders on the north of Jeju City, and Yang Ling could not send cavalry to attack the city because it was too risky. The defenders on the north of Jeju City could not send scouts to the east coast every four or five hours like the defenders on the east coast did.

There is a mountain road leading to the north of the city in the northeast corner of Jeju. This road is the only passage in the northeast corner of Jeju. There are many bushes and haystacks along the way. The patrolling personnel of the garrison like to choose to go up the mountain from this road, so this mountain road is the second main patrol route of the garrison.

This mountain road in the northeast corner of Jeju is a bit steep, but during the slack season, this mountain road is a good place for villagers to go up the mountain to pick wild vegetables, because the roadside is lined with lush shrubs and weeds, and they will not be hurt by thorns.

Yang Ling sent people to dig pits and set up obstacles in the northeast corner, preparing to lure the scouts of the Han army into the bushes and haystacks in the west, and then take the opportunity to attack Jeju City, so that they can easily seize the city gate and then fight their way out of Jeju City. Yang Ling's tactics were very simple, but the effect was soon reflected. The Han army in Jeju City had never thought that Jeju City would be attacked at night, and they were not prepared at all, because they did not believe that Yang Ling could sneak into the city during the day.

The Jeju defenders were not prepared for any unusual movements in the north of Jeju, so Yang Ling led 300 soldiers to sneak up to the city wall from the east, and then used ropes to build ladders. Yang Ling led the way in climbing to the top of the city wall, and he asked the soldiers to rest on the spot, and then led a few personal soldiers to climb up the city wall.

There were dozens of guards on the walls of Jeju City. They were frightened when they saw someone climbing at the foot of the wall, and they quickly drew their bows and arrows. Yang Ling hid behind the bushes and shouted, "Don't shoot arrows randomly, we are one of them. Open the door for me, or I will shoot you into sieves!"

"who?"

"Quickly shoot arrows, someone is trying to steal the city!"

"Drop your weapons and raise your hands!"

Several of Yang Ling's personal soldiers held bird feather bows and aimed at the soldiers on the city wall. Several arrows landed beside the soldiers, splashing a few sparks.

Yang Ling continued to climb up, and suddenly there was a loud "boom" from the wall, and then the wall shook violently. The Han soldiers on the wall panicked and jumped off the wall and fled. Yang Ling took the opportunity to rush up the wall, slashed several Han soldiers guarding the city with his sword, and then commanded several soldiers to quickly control the wall.

"Close the city gates!" Yang Ling shouted, "Anyone who dares to disobey military orders will be killed without mercy!"

When Jeju's defender Han Mingzhi learned that someone had attacked Jeju City at night, he immediately summoned Liu Renyuan who was stationed at the west gate of Jeju.

After Liu Renyuan led his troops to Jeju, he immediately organized people to build city walls and fortifications. Due to the time constraints, the construction work was not large, but relying on the advantages of the city wall, the defense strength of Jeju West Gate was many times higher than that of the East Gate in the northeast corner. The city wall of Jeju West Gate was more than two feet thick, and even Yang Ling's troops could not climb up the city wall directly from the top.

After Yang Ling waited until the city wall was stable, he led 300 of his men into the city from the east gate and went around inside the city.

Yang Ling led 300 infantrymen to search the streets, looking for the fish that Han Mingzhi had left behind. As a result, except for a few unlucky guys who were captured by Yang Ling, the rest of the Han family army escaped, which made Yang Ling sigh secretly. This battle was a bit pathetic!

However, this battle was obviously a big blow to Han Mingzhi, and Yang Ling estimated that he would not launch another attack in the short term. After all, Yang Ling's army had an absolute advantage in Jeju City. As long as Jeju was not broken, even if Han Mingzhi's troops wanted to launch an attack, they would first consider whether they could conquer Jeju, and then how to protect their own troops.

Of course, Yang Ling did not forget to confiscate Han Mingzhi's property. Han Mingzhi was a wealthy man, and he must have a large amount of money in his hands. It would be a waste not to kill such a fat sheep. The soldiers of the Han family army in Jeju were basically poor, and they could not be compared with Han Mingzhi at all. Han Mingzhi's reserve food, gold, silver, jewelry, silk, cloth, etc. were all piled up in the city lord's mansion, and the quantity was huge.

The lord's mansion of Jeju City is a brick house made of stone. The eaves are hung with copper bells. There are rockeries, ponds and wells in the yard. (End of this chapter)