Chapter 86 Fierce Battle
Although the battle on the wall was much more intense than the previous two times, it seemed that there would be no crisis for a while, and the initiative was firmly controlled by oneself.
Forty or fifty ladders were put up. If you look at it from outside the pass and take a long walk along the wall, the momentum is really shocking. But if you look at it from a different angle and from the gate tower of the pass, the impression will be completely different: there are more than 2,000 regular officers and soldiers, and auxiliary troops. There are more than 4,000 soldiers, all crowded against the wall, which is more than enough to deal with these dozens of breakthrough points.
In siege warfare, the defenders have considerable advantages. First of all, the towering city walls and solid crenellations can bring a great sense of security to the defenders psychologically. This is especially significant for recruits - recruits may have a great impact on the blood and flesh flying in front of them in the field. Fear can't move forward. Having the support of the city wall will add a lot of courage. Secondly, in order to resist attacks from diagonally above, the attacking party must use shields to cover as much of their body as possible, while thick walls provide the best protection for all defenders, allowing them to attack with all their strength and move much more freely. . Third, the siege party must rely on elites as the backbone of the attack, while the defenders have it much easier. Even half-grown children and strong women can play a role that is almost the same as that of soldiers - not just lifting rocks and throwing them down. What...
Generally speaking, if the siege party launches an attack when its strength is five times that of the defenders, the probability of success will be greater. If it is three times more powerful than the defenders, it can also be a fight, and the victory or defeat is 50-50. In this case, the strength of the army will not account for it at all. You may even be younger when you come to hit the city wall, but what is hit is Hangu Pass, which is known as "one man can pass the pass and ten thousand men can't open it"? Haha, isn’t this looking for death? I'm afraid the thief's brain may have been filled with water. Or, we are desperate!
"ah!"
A shrill scream not far away interrupted Sun Fugui's thoughts, followed by exclamations and commotion, which startled him even more: What, a thief has already climbed up the wall?
Looking closely, it turned out that two auxiliary soldiers had bumped into each other. One was holding a pot of oil and was about to pour it down the city. The other had just thrown a stone and turned around to run back. They bumped into each other. The oil pan overturned, and it was completely buckled on the chest and abdomen of the person carrying the pot. The man fell to the ground, screaming and rolling like a butchered pig. He kicked over another asphalt pot, and the burning asphalt spread quickly on the ground soaked in boiling oil. As they stood, the surrounding soldiers and men looked at all this in horror, but not far away, there was a large number of cupping pots placed haphazardly!
Sun Fugui was suddenly shocked and broke into a cold sweat!
This distance is not far - I am less than two feet away from there; it is not close - the fire head is only four or five feet away from those cupping pots! If you run over to save him, you will definitely not be able to make it in time. It was too late, but it was too late. A figure flashed in mid-air. I saw Peizhong, the general manager of the palace, Ma Weiqian, volleying over the fire. The moment he landed, he slashed down with his sword. He accurately hit the guy who was still struggling and rolling even though half of his body was covered with boiling oil. On his neck, the miserable howl suddenly stopped. Mr. Guan Qian's trousers, which had stepped on the edge of the asphalt with one foot, also caught fire, but he didn't care at all. He dropped the knife and picked up the body of the deceased with both hands and dragged it violently, barely blocking the flow of fire!
In addition to the smell of asphalt, the smell of burnt barbecue also filled the air. The corpse whose clothes and pants were soaked in oil began to burn instantly - however, at the critical moment, the flow of fire was finally blocked by the corpse! As more asphalt flows over, the burning creek slowly spreads to both sides...
"Wow!" An auxiliary soldier carried half a bucket of water and poured it on Guan Pei's half-burned trousers to extinguish the flames. Guan Peizhong seemed to be completely unaware. He leaned over and picked up the sword and cursed: "Niang, thief, move all the cuppings away! Where is the sand and soil? Cover it with soil quickly to extinguish the fire. My mother-in-law, please hurry up." !”
Sun Fugui strode over, reached out and patted Guan Peizhong heavily on the shoulder and praised: "Good man, well done!"
Guan Peizhong nodded and was about to reply when he suddenly hissed and took a breath. Sun Fugui lowered his head and looked down, only to see that Guan Peizhong's calf was burnt, and light yellow liquid (of course Sun Fugui didn't know what lymphatic fluid was like) mixed with blood seeped out, and he hurriedly shouted: "Mr. Doctor!"
Scald medicine is a necessity for battlefield rescue. The doctor carrying a huge wooden medicine box hurried over, took a look at the wound, opened the medicine box, and then cast a hesitant look at Sun Fugui, looking a little hesitant and hesitant to speak. Stopped. Sun Fugui said angrily: "You bastard! The injury is not serious, why don't you apply medicine quickly!"
The doctor hesitated and said: "Go back to the two generals. The injury is not serious. However, if you want to be absolutely safe, I have to endure the pain..."
Guan Peizhong blinked and said blankly: "Sir, just treat me." At the same time, Sun Fugui asked: "How do you say this?"
The doctor was busy opening the medicine box and replied: "While I am applying the medicine, I will explain it to the two generals." As he spoke, he looked around, picked up a short wooden stick, and tore a strip. After wrapping the cloth a few times, he handed it to Guan Peizhong and said, "Master, bite it tight." Then, he stood up, pulled a burning stick from the fire and walked back.
"It is not difficult to treat injuries caused by water and fire. Grind Diyu into powder, mix it with sesame oil, and apply it externally." As he spoke, the doctor patted Guan Peizhong, pointed to his mouth to signal him to bite the stick tightly, and then moved the burning stick in his hand towards the wound.
"Uh, uh"... Guan Peizhong clenched the wooden stick, making a series of muffled sounds in his throat. He grabbed a few handfuls in the air in vain with his hands, then clenched his fist tightly and smashed it to the ground. Big beads of sweat broke out on the body - the skin had been burned to pieces, and now the wound was roasted with fire. You can imagine the severe pain!
"Don't move, don't move. This general, you still need to be patient for a while, it will be fine, it will be fine." The doctor carefully moved the flame, keeping it about half an inch from the wound, and slowly roasted it, "The burn is the worst. I'm afraid that due to wind poison and cold evil entering the body, the leg may become useless. The first few days are usually fine, and nothing can be seen on the surface. Later, it will rot from the inside out. By then, unless it is medicine, King Bodhisattva has reincarnated, and no one can do anything about it. Just now, the villain was wrapping up the wounds of a military commander near the cupping jar. Everyone saw the situation. If it weren't for you, the villain would have been blown away. This villain's life is about to end. I dare not not treat you with all the knowledge you have learned in my life..."
Finally, the flames left the wound. The doctor opened a drawer in the wooden box and took out a small porcelain jar with a lid. Inside was a dark, wet mud-like black paste that had been mixed long ago. The doctor opened another cloth bag, took a handful of powder and sprinkled it into the black paste, mixed it with dirty fingers, grabbed a handful and applied it carefully on Guan Peizhong's legs, wrapped it with a cloth strip, and tied it tight. "Fire is the best way to get rid of wind evil. I added some borneol to the burnet burn ointment to stop bleeding and promote muscle growth. How about it, General? Is your leg much better?"
Guan Peizhong felt a bit of coolness spreading from the injured area. Although there was still a slight pain, he felt much better. He nodded and replied, "Much better, thank you, sir."
The doctor hurriedly said: "I don't dare to take this. I will come back to the general in three days to change your medicine. I will resign."
Zhu Fugui reached into his arms and took out a piece of broken silver and threw it to the doctor: "Thank you for your hard work, sir."
The doctor bowed and thanked him: "Don't worry, Sir, the injury is no longer a problem. You can move around as you like, but don't use any force. Don't eat beef and mutton in the past few days. It's a hairy thing and is not good for healing. I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
Guan Peizhong reached out and took Zhu Fugui's extended hand, using his strength to stand up. Looking at the densely packed and busy garrison heads on the wall, the two said in unison: "There are too many people, but we can't use them..."
Sun Fugui said: "You can take half of the money and go down, take a rest first."
Guan Peizhong said hurriedly: "Sir, I'm not tired of my humble position. I just said it's not in the way."
Sun Fugui looked up at the sky, then turned around and smiled at Guan Peizhong: "The thieves have been unable to attack for a long time and are much more tired than us. I was thinking, wait... let's have a counterattack, how about it?"
Guan Peizhong was overjoyed when he heard this. He clasped his fists and shouted loudly: "I obey my orders!"
Outside the lower east gate of Xin'an City.
Guan Shengyun led the generals to watch the battle quietly. Gong Derun rode his horse closer to Guan Shengyun, frowned and said: "Commander, look, the men are a little tired."
Guan Shengyun said "Yeah" casually, still staring at the battlefield intently. There was too much smoke and dust to see clearly. Occasionally, the mountain wind blows, and the ladders erected on the wall can be seen clearly. At a rough look, five or six of them were poured with asphalt and burned, and most of them are still there. The battle is still going on according to the planned plan.
The most critical moment is approaching, whether we can achieve the set goal depends on this!
Guan Shengyun looked around at everyone. The generals straightened their bodies on their horses and looked back at their commander firmly. Guan Shengyun raised his hand high, paused for a moment, and waved it downward...
Tom, tom, tom!
War drums suddenly sounded behind the generals.
Along with the sound of drums, several tall flags were also erected: a two-foot-high handsome flag, next to it was a five-foot-high deputy general flag, and on the other side were two three-foot-high flags for senior generals.
The handsome flag slowly lowered and raised towards the city gate; lowered and raised; lowered and raised again. If so, three.
Tom tom tom tom… the drumbeats became intensive.
One hundred archers, protected by the same number of shield soldiers, headed for Hangu Pass. When they advanced seven or eight feet away from the city wall, they all huddled behind their shields and aimed and shot towards the city wall.
Guan Shengyun, Gong Derun, You Futian and Guan Yehuo also mobilized their war horses and moved forward slowly. Behind them was a small phalanx guard of 300 armored soldiers with swords and shields.
Behind them, there were several flags, surrounded by twenty horse guards, following the generals about two to three feet behind.
Hearing the sound of drums, the attack on the city suddenly intensified, and in several places, the thieves even stormed the wall. One of them happened to be near Kou Zhizhang. Lieutenant General Kou, who had been so arrogant just now, suddenly saw a bloody gourd-like head emerging from the wall three feet away. He bared his teeth and yelled "kill". He was so frightened that he hurriedly backed up until he bumped into another person. The defenders were struggling to thrust downward at the crenel.
Fortunately, one of the royal guards had a long sword and slashed down in the air. The thief hurriedly raised his hand to cover himself with the small buckler tied to his arm. He was staggered and was shaken off balance. He could not stand and was about to fall down the ladder. The knife in his hand was thrown towards Kou Zhizhang's face. The latter was so frightened that he forgot to block it. As soon as his head came to his senses, he squatted down on the ground and finally avoided it - well, the one he avoided was Lieutenant General Kou, but the unlucky guy who was hit by him did not avoid it. He just turned around. When he turned around to see who had hit him, a knife was embedded in his face, and he immediately fell down.
Kou Zhizhang couldn't see it through the wall. After throwing the knife, the thief grabbed the beam of the ladder with his bare hands in time. He was hanging in the air and kicking wildly, struggling to use his arm tied with a shield to help him. How could the fruit leader let go of this opportunity? He held the handle of the knife upside down with both hands and leaned half of his body out of the wall. Just as he was about to stab him hard, suddenly, a spear tip emerged from the back of his head - a ladder. Behind the knife-throwing thief stood a spearman with a five-foot-long stabbing spear. When he saw someone leaning forward, he stabbed him without thinking...
Kou Zhizhang, who had just stood up, felt a heat between his legs. He was so frightened by the close fighting scene that he peed his pants. Fortunately, it was not obvious because of the armor skirt outside, but his feet were wet a little. Looking up, he saw Sun Fugui and Qi Xiaoguang, who were like powerful yakshas, talking about something. He hurriedly stumbled towards them step by step.
Qi Xiaoguang originally thought that there were too many soldiers locked up, and it was just right for Sun Fugui to withdraw half of them, but he did not expect that Sun Fugui had the idea of counterattack. Hearing the sound of drums just now, and seeing the thieves coming for backup, although not much, those generals' flags still made Magistrate Qi feel a little nervous.
The same scene felt completely different in Sun Fugui's eyes, and he felt overjoyed! He rushed to the door to check, and saw that the car was still hitting the door in vain. He walked quickly to Qi Xiaoguang, smiled and said: "Master Qi, the thief is going to be defeated!"
Qi Xiaoguang's eyes lit up, he looked outside the wall, and suddenly said: "Is it possible that the thief is at the end of his battle?"
Sun Fugui pointed his finger at the flag and said: "My lord, you are right! After fighting for so long, the thief general can't sit still anymore and has come to supervise the battle himself. If we fight for a while longer, it's time to run for his life!"
Qi Xiaoguang was overjoyed: "It's all thanks to the might of General Sun! After this victory, I will definitely report to Prince Chitose that General Sun deserves the first credit in this battle! Of course, I will also report separately to the Holy Lord to ask for credit for the general!"
These words fell in the ears of Kou Zhizhang, who was approaching. He looked at the thieves dozens of feet away. After thinking for a moment, he understood what was going on - the thieves who dared to love were struggling to their death! A gust of wind blew by, and Lieutenant General Kou felt a coldness on his crotch. He couldn't help but shiver, and his mind became clearer: These guys were probably looking at his embarrassed look just now. From now on, I will definitely dislike myself even more! When the thieves are defeated and the great achievements are monopolized by this barbarian named Zhu, that will not happen! But... what should I do to gain a share of credit and show my face at the same time?
Just listen to Sun Fugui continue: "My lord, please see, the thieves have been attacking for a whole morning, and they have no physical strength anymore. The thieves will come up personally to supervise the battle. There are hundreds of archers." As he spoke, he grabbed Qi Xiaoguang's arm and pulled it hard to the side. , with a "swish" sound, a cold arrow passed behind Qi Xiaoguang's head, "Sir, be careful, move inside."
Qi Xiaoguang was also startled and took two steps toward the inner wall: "Thank you, General Sun. Where did you just say it?"
Sun Fugui continued: "These archers and those swordsmen and axemen are the last troops of the thief general. Wait a moment, and when the thief general presses them all up, I will lead the men who just went down to rest to launch a counterattack. This will All the thieves have lost their strength, hahaha, I guarantee that none of them can escape!"
Qi Xiaoguang thought for a while, shook his head and said: "General Sun, no. From my point of view, we should be more cautious. As long as we hold Hangu Pass, we are done! Our government has received the news, and the provincial capital and various prefectures have sent reinforcements. . As long as we ensure that Luofu and King Shou live a long life, it will be a great achievement. Tongguan is to the west and the Yellow River is to the north. We only need to firmly block the east road of the bandits. When the reinforcements arrive, the matter of searching the mountains and suppressing the bandits will be left to us. Give it to them, and let’s go back to Luofu to celebrate the victory!”
Sun Fugui was originally a guard of the palace. He had just gotten excited and wanted to launch a counterattack. At this moment, after being reminded by Qi Xiaoguang, he understood his responsibilities and clasped his fists and said: "My lord is right. I will obey your orders."
Kou Zhizhang, who was pretending to be nonchalant on the side, made a small calculation in his heart: It would be better for you to take all the credit in your own hands with a few words and not even look at me! Those guys who look down on others usually don't want to see me. Today, God has brought a fortune to my mouth. I must make a great contribution and let you guys who have no eyesight see me!
Knowledge points in this article: Burns and wind poisoning.
Ancient people did not understand bacteria, inflammation, and tetanus. There is no such thing as sterilization when dealing with wounds. Even the herbal medicines are just grabbed and paste with dirty hands. Wound infections are all attributed to wind poison, evil poison and the like. After countless attempts, I finally found that in addition to cleaning the wound with water, the probability of inflammation of the wound will be much less if it is roasted with fire. Of course, the injured will have to bear greater pain and even secondary injuries.
