"I've heard about Commander Zhao's name for a long time. I'm so lucky to see you today! Who tied Master Zhao like this? Why don't you untie him quickly!"
In the far northwest of Ningyuan, Kang should be doing the big account.
Kang Yingqian walked into the big tent and stepped forward to hold Zhao Shujiao's big hand, as if he were seeing his long-lost brother.
Zhao Shujiao's whole body was tied with ropes and he was shaking like a big rice dumpling. He looked at Kang Yingqian with a blank look on his face.
"I heard Xiong Jinglue mention Commander Zhao before, saying that you are the number one general in western Liaoning..."
Zhao Shujiao interrupted Kang Yingqian and asked coldly: "Where is Liu Zhao's grandson?"
"Ping Liaohou is busy with military affairs, so he sent me to visit Commander Zhao.
Zhao Shujiao was untied, and he stepped forward to beat Kang Jianjun, but was held down again by the guards.
"You and Liu Zhao are the same as each other. You made Kaiyuan bigger by taking refuge in Liu Thief. Today, I fall into your hands. I just want to die and don't have to pretend anymore! I am not Wang Huazhen, so I will not surrender!"
Kang Yingqian squinted his eyes and smiled:
"Commander Zhao doesn't know that the imperial court has negotiated peace with Kaiyuan. You are all abandoned by the imperial court. It doesn't matter to me whether you die or not. The price I offer to the imperial court is to kill you all. Among Liaoxi warriors, Zu Dashou was the first."
"Of course, Commander Zhao is benevolent and loves the people, and Marquis Pingliao specifically told him not to kill you."
"Where is Liu Zhaosun now?"
"Listening to the flute outside the city."
~~~~
The defenders poured water on the perimeter of the position, and the fortifications near the city wall were repaired.
The cold weather made Ningyuan's position even stronger.
On March 3, Kaiyuan's army continued to attack the city.
Deng Changxiong had people pour water on the earthen wall. After the earthen wall froze, it became extremely hard. The defenders at the top of the city continued to bombard it with red cannons. The shells hit the earthen wall, leaving only a few white spots.
The Ningyuan defenders also followed suit and kept pouring water on the city walls, which reduced the lethality of artillery fire on both sides.
Liu Zhaosun asked Senti to bring several surrendered Juehua Island defenders to Ningyuan City to shout, urging the defenders to surrender as soon as possible.
The generals in Liao Town were all horrified when they heard that Juehua Island had been lost.
Zu Dashou hurriedly led his servants to the top of the city. From a distance, he saw an officer in Kaiyuan uniform holding a loudspeaker and shouting to the top of the city.
Zu Dashou looked at the few surrendered Ming army generals standing under the city, turned to the gunner and said:
"Can you hit them?"
Luo Li took a serious look at the target.
"Commander, this red barbarian cannon is only slightly more accurate than the Franco machine cannon. It is not easy to hit the carriage, and it is not easy to hit people."
Zu Dashou waved his hand and said angrily: "When Liu Zhaosun shot Huang Taiji in Kaiyuan, wasn't he also using a red cannon?"
Luo Li was speechless, hesitated for a long time, and then said: "That's just the Kaiyuan Army's luck..."
Just as Zu Dashou was about to get angry, a cold voice came from behind him.
"The two armies are fighting. If you don't kill the envoy, since Liu Zhaosun has sent someone, let him first listen to what he has to say."
When Zu Dashou heard that it was Wang Zaijin who was speaking, he quickly turned around and explained:
"Master Jinglue, Thief Liu has many tricks and tricks, so we must be on guard against him. Besides, sending people here at this time is just to say some deceptive words. It is better to kill him directly to avoid disturbing the morale of the army."
Wang Zaijin stroked his beard and said with a smile:
"We are guarding western Liaoning for the emperor and protecting the people of western Liaoning. The morality of the world belongs to me. What should we fear if we are mere thieves?"
Zu Dashou wanted to speak, but was interrupted by Wang Zaijin with a wave of his hand.
"Let them continue."
"Brothers from Ningyuan, Juehua Island has been captured by our army. We have taken away all the food and grass that your commander had hoarded on the island, as well as tens of thousands of kilograms of gunpowder. You are now surrounded. The reinforcements from Shanhaiguan have just arrived. You are defeated by us and no one will come to save you. Marquis Ping Liao said that I have prepared two gifts for you now. What gifts are they? Paozi'er and steamed buns. Put down your swords, open the city gate, and eat white flour steamed buns together. Your city There’s not much food left, it’s only enough for three days. It won’t be good to starve to death by then. Think about it carefully, in half an hour, we will start firing~!”
Wang Zaijin said angrily:
"Kill them!"
Two Hongyi cannons were fired, and Senti quickly retreated.
The two shells passed by Dongguan Zai's scalp and hit the ground twenty steps ahead, splashing up a piece of yellow mud.
Luo Li helplessly watched the target go away. He boasted that he was skillful in cannon handling, but after reloading, the opponent was already out of the range of the red-coated cannon.
Zu Dashou's face was gloomy. He raised his head and looked towards the direction of the moat. On the opposite side, they were still digging tunnels perseveringly. Zu Dashou was not afraid of opening the original army cave to attack. In his understanding, this kind of siege strategy involved a huge amount of work and was time-consuming and laborious. , and there is basically no possibility of success. It is okay to deal with the small city in the pass, but it would be too ridiculous to use it to attack Ningyuan.
He called the head servant and ordered:
"Recruit warriors to lower the city, dig a trench thirty steps in front of the city wall, fill it with water, and let them dig it!"
The head servant asked cautiously:
"Commander, why didn't you dig yesterday? You have to wait until now. It's freezing cold, and the ground is frozen into ice lumps. I'm afraid it won't be possible to dig trenches."
Zu Dashou looked at the head servant and sneered:
"The trench was dug yesterday, so Thief Liu will not have wasted his efforts. Do it quickly, don't be timid. Thief Liu can dig, why can't you? If the trench cannot be dug within an hour, I will leave you to dig!"
The head servant was trembling with fear and hurriedly went down to prepare.
At this time, he heard several Liaoxi generals coming up from behind the barbican. Zu Dashou raised his head and saw He Kegang, a guard at Shanhaiguan, and said coldly:
"Why are you not guarding the south gate? Why are you coming to the west gate?"
He Kegang looked anxious, gave Zu Dashou a military salute, and said quickly:
"Commander Zu, the Kaiyuan Army has built an earthen wall outside the city. Why don't they use Hongyi cannon to attack it?"
Zu Dashou glanced at He Kegang impatiently and said disdainfully:
"Hahaha, Liu Zhaosun was lucky enough to win a few battles. He deceived Nurhachi and Huang Taiji, but he couldn't deceive me. Don't be frightened by him. Isn't there a lot of people? Let him consume manpower. Why beat him? Let him be beaten. He builds walls.”
A trace of pride flashed in Zu Dashou's eyes.
He Kegang said in confusion:
"What does Commander Zu mean by this? Don't you know that a military strategist's chance of victory depends on getting the right time, the right location, and the people's support? Now Liu Thief has the right time and people's support. If he is allowed to calmly build the city and occupy the right location, Ning Yuan will be in danger! Commander Zu I wonder about the battles of Yubi in the Eastern and Western Wei Dynasties? Gao Huan attacked Wei Xiaokuan. Gao Huan built mounds of earth outside Yubi City and attacked from a high position. In the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao attacked Cao Cao. Yuan Shaofang also built mounds of earth like mountains to surround Cao Cao's city. Shooting and attacking the camp..."
Zu Dashou put his hands on his hands and laughed:
"So in the end they all lost! Hahaha! Although I don't study much, I know the endings of Gao Huan and Yuan Shao."
After Zu Dashou finished speaking, he looked at He Kegang with disdain and patiently explained to him:
"You see clearly, Liu Thief is now ramming earth to build a city outside the city. Do you know that ramming earth into a wall is time-consuming and laborious. It can take as little as three or four months, as much as a year and a half, to completely surround the main city. I don't believe he can After being surrounded for so long, hundreds of thousands of people have no food or water? Where does the food and grass come from? Besides, in this ice and snow, where can they find clay, field mud, sand, rice milk, raw eggs, and straw. Without these things, This wall of his will collapse before it reaches two feet."
After all, Zu Dashou was born in Jianmen, Liaoxi. He had participated in the construction of the Liaoxi pier with his father since he was a child. He knew the structure and defense of the city well, so he knew from the very beginning that the earthen wall outside the city was impossible to build.
"Liu Zhaosun may have excelled in his battles, but when it came to attacking the city, he just lost his sight. Before in Guangning and Liaochen, it was the people in the city who helped him open the city gates. Now in Ningyuan, General Wang Jinglue With the city gate blocked, there is nothing he can do.”
When Zu Dashou said this, he pointed at the earthen wall that was still rising one mile away, looked at He Kegang and said:
"Lucky luck allowed him to win a few times, and then he got carried away. In the end, it was the villain who got his way."
