The horn sounded, and the Yong army who was feinting to attack began to retreat backwards. The Song army on the city wall breathed a sigh of relief.
Liu Zhong took the kettle handed by his guard and swallowed it in large gulps. Even though it was night, the sultry heat of midsummer still made him sweat profusely, and the gauze under his leather armor was already soaked.
The impatient soldier beside him had already taken off his leather armor, his shirtless body was fanning and panting in the morning breeze. xь.
It was already dawn, and Liu Zhong looked outside the city and vaguely saw that Yong's army did not return to camp, but gathered together. It seemed that Qingqi was at the front.
Liu Zhong's heart sank, and he walked to the battlement to get a closer look. He felt his feet shake violently, and his body rose into the air involuntarily.
The loud noise made his ears ring, and Liu Zhong fell heavily on the city wall. Huge earthquakes continued to come from beneath him. The soldiers at the top of the city staggered here and there, and there were gourds rolling everywhere.
It was as if his head had been hit by a heavy hammer. Liu Zhong coughed out a mouthful of blood. His ears were buzzing and he could not hear any sounds. Before he could get up, he was horrified to find that the battlements not far away were collapsing outwards. The man holding the wall was The soldiers supporting their bodies rolled down against the wall.
Several guards ran towards Liu Zhong with frightened expressions and helped him up from the ground. Liu Zhong felt as if his heart had been hit hard, his chest felt hot, and he couldn't help but spit out another mouthful of blood.
The bodyguard was saying something beside him, but Liu Zhong couldn't hear it clearly. He tried his best to move forward, but was held tightly by the bodyguard.
Just as Liu Zhong was about to shout angrily, he saw the wall in front of him continue to collapse and roll down. Liu Zhong looked around and saw that the battlement on the north side had collapsed by dozens of feet.
It was gunpowder. Liu Zhong remembered the rumor that Yang Anxuan had used gunpowder to break the barrier. Song Gong had ordered craftsmen to test it on the abandoned city wall. The power of the explosion of the gunpowder could collapse a piece of the city wall, but it was not as powerful as the rumors said. Everyone They all believed that the rumors were false. If the Yong army used gunpowder to blow up the city, they only needed to fill it with sandbags in time.
Liu Zhong couldn't believe what was happening in front of him. Is Yong's army's gunpowder so powerful? If it is so powerful, why haven't we seen it used by the Song Army?
Liu Zhong struggled to push away the personal guard who was holding him back, and staggered to the city wall. He saw that the city wall cracked, collapsed with five holes, and the rammed earth collapsed downwards into a gentle slope.
In the distance, Yong's army was rushing towards the collapse like a tide. Liu Zhong didn't have time to think too much and shouted loudly: "Hurry up and fill in the sand to block the gap."
The Song troops on the city were frightened. Under the orders of the generals, they picked up the wood and sandbags piled in the corner and prepared to repair the city wall.
At this time, Yong's army's catapults were already in place. The stones hit the already fragile and sparse city wall. The city wall, which was softened by the gunpowder, collapsed in an instant. Several gaps were connected together, revealing a width of six to seven feet. of sloping soil.
The officers and soldiers of the Yong Army rushed to the edge of the soil slope. They did not rush directly towards the soft soil slope, but placed the prepared paving boards on the soil slope. The planking is to nail wooden boards on the long ladder and lay them flat on the soft sand, which is enough to support people and horses.
Liu Zhong asked the archers to concentrate on the collapse, trying to prevent Yong's army from charging forward with a rain of arrows. The victory over the city was imminent. Yong Jun protected his body with a shield and rushed towards the city wall risking his own life.
A quarter of an hour later, the Yong army rushed to the top of the city and began to fight with the Song army defending the city to seize the city. Seeing that the time was ripe, Yang Anxuan urged his horse to lead his Qingqi towards Ji Nancheng.
The war horse stepped on the wooden board, making a crisp sound. Yang Anxuan rushed to the top of the city in an instant. With a sweep of his long spear, the two Song soldiers in front of him had their hands broken and their waists broken, and blood spurted out and fell to the ground.
When Liu Zhong saw the light cavalry of Yong's army pouring into the city, he knew that the situation was over, so he hurriedly opened the south gate with his remaining troops and fled to Jiangling City.
Three miles away from the south gate of Jinan City, Lu Gui had already led his army to wait in ambush. When he saw the Song army abandoning the city and escaping, he immediately rushed out to stop them. The Song army had no intention of fighting and fled. Liu Zhong could not organize a counterattack at all, so he could only lead the defeated troops to run here and there.
When Xiao Yuanzhi of Jiangling City received the news, he sent troops to respond. Of the eight thousand soldiers and horses of Ji Nancheng, only more than 2,000 people escaped.
Yang Anxuan rested in Jinan City for three days, ordered his soldiers to repair the collapsed city wall, and then led his army to continue southward and force Jiangling City.
Xiao Yuanzhi learned from Liu Zhong that the Yong army used gunpowder to blow up Ji'nan City. Since gunpowder could blow up Jinan City, it could also blow up Jiangling City.
Although I am afraid of Yang Anxuan's military power,
Xiao Yuanzhi still ordered Liu Zhong to lead five thousand soldiers and horses out of the city and set up camp outside the north gate to prevent Yong's army from directly attacking the city.
In Yidao City, Liu Yu was about to start the attack. He was shocked when he received the battle report of the loss of Ji Nancheng. He hurriedly entrusted the attack on Yidao City to Shen Linzi and returned to Jiangling City by boat with 5,000 soldiers and horses.
Sima Chuzhi received the report and boarded the east city to look outside. He saw that the Song army was boarding a ship on the east bank, and the number was about five thousand.
It must be that Jiangling City is in danger and the Song army has to return reinforcements. Sima Chuzhi smiles and cheers to the soldiers at the top of the city: "My lord is already attacking Jiangling City. The Song army can't stand it any longer. If we hold on for a few more days, these Song troops will The army is about to retreat."
After sending Liu Yu away, Shen Linzi and Liu Kangzu launched an attack on Yidaocheng from the east and south. Liu Cui led his navy to land on the north bank and launched a coordinated attack on the city to contain the Yong army.
The sound of fighting dispersed at dusk. Sima Chuzhi was patrolling down the city wall. On the ground outside the city, there were rams, carriages and trench bridges destroyed by giant crossbows and stones. The Song army was carrying back injured soldiers. , gathered the corpses, and the Yong army on the top of the city did not launch an attack.
Shen Linzi ordered his soldiers to dig ditches in advance to divert the water from the moat to the Yangtze River. After a day of fierce fighting, several parts of Yidao City's moat were filled in. In a few days, the Song army would be able to fill in the moat and launch an attack directly on the city.
Mu Qian followed Sima Chuzhi. Sima Chuzhi knew that he was highly skilled in martial arts and appointed Mu Qian as his deputy captain of the bodyguard. Meng Tong also followed Mu Qian and became his bodyguard.
Returning to his residence in the evening, Meng Tong came back from outside and whispered softly: "Liu Gong sent a letter, asking Brother Mu to kill Sima Chuzhi as soon as possible and find a way to create chaos and lure the army into the city."
Mu Qian was a little hesitant. Sima Chuzhi trusted him very much, which made him reluctant to take action. Mu Qian pondered for a moment and said: "Sima Chuzhi is always followed by a large number of guards. After entering the inner house, he will be protected by his clan members and will not find an opportunity to attack."
Meng Tong guessed what Mu Qian was thinking and said, "Mr. Liu has already told Duke Song about Brother Mu's assassination. Duke Song promised that as long as Brother Mu can assassinate Sima Chuzhi and capture Yidao City, he will give him a gift." The Duke of Dutinghou."
Mu Qian's eyes immediately shone. The opportunity to reach the sky and become Tinghou in one step was rare. At that time, Guan Yu was just the Tinghou of Han Dynasty.
During the day, he followed Sima Chuzhi on patrol at the top of the city, and saw the soldiers below the city braving arrows and throwing stones as they rushed forward desperately. To capture Yidao City would cost thousands of lives.
The lives of these people can only be exchanged for tens of dan of corn as pension. They themselves are on the run, and bloodshed is common. The opportunity to be knighted is an opportunity that many people cannot ask for. A sharp light flashed in Mu Qian's eyes. For the sake of his own family's future, he could not care less about Sima Chuzhi's kindness to him.
"If you want to assassinate Sima Chuzhi, you must not be impatient. You need to find a suitable opportunity." Mu Qian said with a gloomy face, "Otherwise, even if we kill Sima Chuzhi, you and I will not be able to escape and survive, and the army outside the city will not be able to attack."
The two discussed that it would be best to assassinate Sima Chuzhi while the Song army was climbing up the city, so that the defenders at the top of the city would be panicked and take the opportunity to seize the city. …
Jiangling was first built in the Qin Dynasty. Qin Shihuang built a city wall on the original Chuzhu Palace and called it Jiangling. In the later Han Dynasty, Liu Rong and Guan Yu of the Three Kingdoms expanded the construction. When Huan Wen was appointed governor of Jingzhou, a large-scale city wall was built to connect the new city built by Guan Yu with the old city of the Han Dynasty, forming a two-city structure inside and outside. The inner city was called the "Golden City".
Liu Yu led his troops back to Jiangling City. Without taking a rest, he led his troops out of the city and headed to the camp in the north of the city, where he met Liu Zhong.
When gunpowder exploded in Ji Nancheng, Liu Zhong was shocked to the core. Since there were no generals in Jiangling City, Xiao Yuanzhi could only let him hold on.
Liu Yu saw Liu Zhong's complexion turned yellow and his eyes sunken. After asking Ming Ji about the loss of Nancheng, he ordered people to send him back to the city to recuperate, and the camp was handed over to him.
After seeing off Liu Zhong, Liu Yu got up to patrol the camp. Seeing the arrival of Song Gong, the originally sluggish morale revived. Liu Yu sent someone to write a letter of challenge to Yang Anxuan, preparing to meet with him in front of the battle tomorrow.
At the end of the morning, the horns shook the sky and the drums sounded. The soldiers on both sides were two miles apart, their swords and guns dazzling in the sun. The soldiers on both sides stood like mountains, and the flags were fluttering fiercely in the wind.
The sound of drums and trumpets stopped, and the entire battlefield was silent. One or two short horse calls made it even quieter.
The sound of hooves sounded,
Yang Anxuan urged the star chasing horse to gallop towards the center of the battlefield. The Song army was in camp. Liu Yu also rode forward. Song Gong and Yong Gong reined in their horses and met each other more than ten steps away.
Yang Anxuan cupped his hands and said with a smile: "After a few years apart, Mr. Song is getting stronger and stronger. I am very happy and congratulated."
Liu Yu's sharp gaze swept across Yang Anxuan's face and said coldly: "Anxuan, you and I agreed to stop the army and live in peace for the people. Why did you ignore the agreement and violate the farming season by raising troops to attack?"
Yang Anxuan said loudly: "Liu Gong, one mountain cannot accommodate two tigers. You have risen from the suicide attack, and foolishness has also grown from the battle. In this case, the world will inevitably be determined by winning or losing, so there is no point in saying more."
Liu Yu held the horizontal sword in his hand and laughed and said: "An Xuan, in that case, there is no need to say more, let's fight for a few rounds first."
After saying that, Liu Yu rode his horse and struck at Yang Anxuan with his sword. Yang Anxuan sighed secretly, he was worthy of being a heroic figure who could swallow thousands of miles like a tiger. His beard and hair were all white, but his courage was still as strong as that of his prime.
The long sword in his hand sealed the machete that was coming at him, and the blade bent the body. Yang Anxuan pushed the machete away with force, and the sharp point stabbed Liu Yu's chest. If Liu Yu could be stabbed to death on the battlefield, he would lock it in advance. victory.
When Xie Hui and others in Liu Yu's camp saw their lord fighting Yang Anxuan, they were afraid that he might make a mistake, so they immediately beat drums and attacked across the board.
The Song army fought out of the camp, and the Yong army was naturally unwilling to be outdone. Pei Fangming took the lead and rushed out first. Behind him, the Yong army rushed forward like a tide.
The one-on-one fight turned into a melee between the two armies. The two armies fought until noon before withdrawing their troops and returning to their camps. The Yong army had more light cavalry and had the upper hand.
Both sides are playing steadily, testing each other's weaknesses, but both Yang Anxuan and Liu Yu know that this battle will be protracted, and both sides are trying to find opportunities to break the situation. xь.
The fighting outside Jiangling City was stalemate, and Yidao City was also fighting hard. The Song army filled up the moat outside Yidao City, city rush vehicles began to hit the city gates, and ladders were put up on the city walls.
At first, Song troops climbed up the ladder to the top of Yidao City. However, there were enough Yong troops in the city, and the Song troops who ascended the city were quickly killed or forced to jump off the city.
Sima Chuzhi always appeared in the most intense battles. He took the lead in attacking the Song troops who were ascending the city. He defeated the Song troops who were ascending the city again and again, winning the cheers of the soldiers who defended the city.
But he didn't know that the personal guard beside him who was killing the enemy with him was always thinking about giving him a knife and wanted to exchange his life for fame and fortune. The danger was approaching step by step.
