Crazy at the end of the Ming Dynasty

Unlike Zhang Xianzhong's successive fiascos here, Gao Yingxiang's here is much smoother.Because most of the main forces of the Ming army in Henan were attracted by Zhang Xianzhong's troops, Gao Yingxiang gathered Laohuihui Ma Shouying and other peasant army troops here, forming a large group of more than 30 people.

As soon as such a large group was formed, Zuo Liangyu's and Li Xianfeng's troops did not dare to go forward to fight. Even the commander-in-chief Wang Shaoyu was huddled in Luoyang City, not daring to take a step forward.

But without the great enemy of the official army, Gao Yingxiang and other departments still have another big enemy, and that is food.Originally, the peasant army re-entered Henan because of the lack of food in Shaanxi, and wanted to come to Henan to eat.However, Henan has been in turmoil in recent years, and farming has been impossible. On the contrary, there are many refugees.So after Gao Yingxiang and other peasant troops entered Henan, those refugees came to vote one after another, which made the peasant army's food shortage even worse.

Moreover, because the towns, villages, and Zhuangzi scattered in the countryside in Henan were almost evacuated, and all the food was concentrated in the cities, the peasant army had to lay down a few cities if it wanted to solve the food problem.

But those cities are not so easy to fight.The cities on the Henan border have been reinforced and heightened due to frequent bandits and chaos. The mobilization of the strong men in the city, the establishment of a combat system, the equipment of the defense equipment, and the experience of the strong men in the city have also been improved. The price of hitting those cities is also very high.

But it was impossible not to fight, so under the command of Gao Yingxiang, the peasant army marched to a county in Henan Province.

The routine division of troops prevented the Ming army from coming to help; the routine digging of trenches and the building of earth walls prevented the people in the city from attacking and fleeing; the routine sending of people to persuade them to surrender.Gao Yingxiang's department, on the other hand, was making preparations for the siege calmly.

Although the peasant army hadn't attacked the city yet, there was already commotion on the top of the city, because the peasant army outside the city was overwhelming, and the number of them was terrible.

"Don't panic! Don't panic!" The county magistrate in command of the defense yelled, "The county has sent fast horses everywhere to ask for help. It will take at most ten days. All the officers and troops will come to help the city. Everyone, do your homework as soon as possible." Can!"

Hearing the magistrate's order, a general who was in charge of guarding the city, a head of the yamen servants, and the head of the largest household in the city restrained his subordinates to calm them down.

The county magistrate still has some confidence in keeping it for ten days.In spring and summer, regardless of the farming season, Nazhi County conscripted corvee to strengthen the city wall and raise the city wall to three and a half feet. Imagine that the height is equivalent to the height of a modern three- or four-story building, so it is difficult for the peasant army to climb. on the wall.Coupled with the fact that gunpowder, rolling logs, boiling oil and other defensive equipment have been prepared in the city, it is difficult for the peasant army to enter the county.

"Chuang Wang! It looks like this county is hard to eat?" Yidou Gu Huanglong said.Indeed, if it is an ant-attached siege.Those refugees are of no use, they need old battalion troops to climb up the city wall and fight hand to hand, so the casualties of capturing this county will definitely be heavy.

But Gao Yingxiang smiled, and confidently said to Yidou Gu Huanglong: "It's not that difficult. Let's go to the city at night!"

This time Gao Yingxiang returned to Shaanxi, during the exchange with the breakthrough general Li Zicheng.He learned a new method of attacking the city from Li Zicheng, so Gao Yingxiang planned to use this method in this county.

Yidou Valley Huanglong is somewhat unbelievable.Because the preparations for Gao Yingxiang are finished.Anyway, there is only half a day to attack the city.So Huang Long was a little curious at this time.He wanted to see how Gao Yingxiang did it.

Seeing that the persuasion to capitulate was fruitless, Gao Yingxiang first directed a group of refugees to fill in the moat.The [-] refugees were divided into ten teams, and they kept carrying the sacks filled with mud and rocks by the refugees in the rear, carrying them to the moat and throwing them down.There are many people and strength, so within an hour, the moat in front of the front wall was filled.

Yidou Valley Huanglong looked at the front of the formation.No ladders and other siege equipment were found, so he asked Gao Yingxiang in a puzzled way, "King Chuang! How do we go up the city wall?"

Gao Yingxiang laughed out loud, and he replied: "Today we won't climb the city wall, we will go through the city wall."

Yidou Valley Huanglong is even more confused.But he also knew that this was Gao Yingxiang's trick, so he stopped asking and watched Gao Yingxiang's performance with wide eyes.

The refugees who had filled the moat all withdrew, and dozens of teams came up later, with nearly 3 refugees.Some small leaders of Gao Yingxiang's department shouted and mobilized in front of each group of refugees.After the mobilization was over, the dozens of groups of refugees immediately divided into several groups and rushed towards the city wall.The soldiers and horses of Gao Yingxiang's old battalion were also dispatched, pressing behind these refugees to supervise the battle.

And the strong men guarding the city are also very experienced. The shooting of firecrackers, bows and arrows on the top of the city is also sparse, and the artillery erected is not even fired.They were unwilling to waste ammunition and arrows on the cannon fodder rushing ahead, so they prepared to inflict a lot of damage on the elite peasant army when the peasant army ants attacked the city, forcing the peasant army to give up this time because they could not bear the losses. Siege.

But unexpectedly, those refugees who were used as cannon fodder did not climb the city wall at all.Of course, without siege equipment such as ladders, it is impossible to climb the city walls.With hammers and shovels in their hands, those refugees knocked up the bricks on the edge of the city wall.

After a while, one of the city bricks was broken, and the refugees around swarmed up, picked up the fragments of the city bricks on the ground and ran back, while the refugees behind still stepped forward, picking up the gapped city bricks, trying to Make the notch bigger.

Before the refugees charged, the little leaders promised them that as long as they brought back a bag of broken bricks or mud on the city wall, these refugees could return to the camp and stop charging, and they could have a full meal at night.However, those who return empty-handed will be beheaded and killed by the old battalion soldiers who supervised the battle. Let the refugees choose what to do.

So under persecution, those refugees wanted to fight for their lives. Anyway, there were not many broken bricks or mud, and if they were lucky, they could get their lives back.

When the first batch of refugees returned smoothly, the soldiers who supervised the battle let them return to the camp to rest as promised, and several large openings were dug in the city wall, exposing the middle earthen wall.

At this time, the strong men on the top of the city understood the intention of the peasant army. They immediately fired all their strength towards the city wall regardless of the loss of ammunition and arrow branches.And the rolling logs and boiling oil were constantly poured down the city wall.

Although there were also archers from the Peasant Army behind them, the casualties of those refugees suddenly increased.A few timid refugees also quietly hid behind the crowd, but were immediately beheaded by the supervising team.Under pressure, the envious refugees rushed to the gaps in the city wall again. (to be continued..)