Late at night, outside Lingzhou City, there was a Mongolian army camp. The cold wind outside was biting. Except for a few charcoal fires, the cold enveloped the entire Mongolian army camp.
In the large tent of Wokuotai, Subotai, Chahan, Ashulu and other Mongolian generals sat in a circle. The generals were drinking wine with ugly faces, and the atmosphere was very depressing.
"Dahan's condition seems to be getting worse."
After a while, Subotai took a sip of strong wine and spoke out in a muffled voice, breaking the silence.
He could not drink alcohol or eat meat, and could only eat liquid food. The deterioration of Genghis Khan's condition was visible to the naked eye and surprising.
After all, Genghis Khan was already sixty-five years old, an old man in his sixties, and his health was in serious trouble due to a serious illness.
"It's not Lingzhou City that did it! If Lingzhou City can't be defeated, how can the Great Khan be willing to retreat?"
Ashulu sighed angrily.
The bloody battle in Lingzhou City was beyond his expectation and made him doubt whether attacking Lingzhou City was worth it.
According to the consistent fighting style of the Mongolian army, they would raid the surrounding cities and besiege them for a long time. They would never attack by force and fight to the death with the opponent. In similar battle situations in the past, the Mongolian army had long withdrawn.
Genghis Khan was so stubborn and insisted on taking Lingzhou City by force, which was extraordinary and may have a lot to do with his health.
"Not only Lingzhou City, I'm afraid the Great Khan will not withdraw his troops until Zhongxing Mansion surrenders."
As one of Genghis Khan's most trusted adopted sons, Chahan knew a lot about Genghis Khan's character.
"Zhongxing Mansion surrenders? Lingzhou City has not been captured, Zhongxing Mansion can't even think about it!"
Genghis Khan's adopted son suddenly said with a grimace.
"Torre, please advise the Great Khan. We can no longer attack Lingzhou City!"
After more than a month of siege, Lingzhou City was not captured, and more than 20,000 soldiers were lost. Hearing the wails of the wounded soldiers every day was annoying to death.
"Why, this is so scary!"
Torre glanced at Huli and smiled coldly.
"If we attack for a few more days, we will definitely capture it! If not, we will lure them out of the city. Lingzhou City must be captured!"
Since the siege, although the Mongolian army suffered heavy casualties, Lingzhou City also suffered a lot of losses. As long as he could break the city, he would definitely kill Tang Wuti and leave no one behind.
Of the more than 20,000 soldiers killed or wounded, more than half were surrendered. The losses of the Mongolian cavalry were actually not that shocking.
Torre looked at the silent crowd, rolled his eyes, and spoke loudly.
"The Lingzhou defenders rely on firearms. Without firearms, they can't deal with the rain of arrows from my Mongolian army. Have you noticed that the firearms on the Lingzhou city wall are not as powerful as before. If I guessed right, they don't have much ammunition. ”
Firearms rely on gunpowder to launch, and iron balls and iron pellets are used less once. Although the weapons of the Lingzhou garrison are sharp, the frequency and number of firings are far less than before.
Obviously, Xia Jun's ammunition was reduced sharply, and he had no choice but to use it sparingly.
"Even if Lingzhou City does not have artillery, the defenders of Lingzhou City are not easy to deal with. There are about 20,000 defenders in Lingzhou City. Even if the city is broken and there are street fighting, is it necessary to kill 20,000 to 30,000 troops before taking Lingzhou? City?"
Chahan shook his head, playing into everyone's hands.
In a siege battle, the attacker's casualties will definitely be far greater than those of the defenders. And even if the city is destroyed and the Xia army is locked in a fight, how much blood will the Mongolian army have to shed to completely wipe out Lingzhou City?
"Staying in the ice and snow all day, the number of sick soldiers in the army is increasing day by day. If we can't break Lingzhou City, we won't be able to get the medicinal materials in the city, and the soldiers will watch helplessly and die."
Suddenly he said harshly, and then started to curse angrily.
"These Tang Wuti thieves, why don't they surrender?"
As the adopted son of Genghis Khan, he made outstanding contributions in the southern and northern wars. He has never encountered the fierce battle in Lingzhou City.
Especially when he thought about Cao Youwan who wanted to challenge him in Lingzhou City, he wanted to destroy Lingzhou City immediately and skin that Cao Youwan alive.
It's a pity that until now, he doesn't know Cao Youwan's name.
"Chahan, why doesn't the Great Khan withdraw his troops?"
Torre couldn't help but asked about Chahan.
Even he himself couldn't figure out why Genghis Khan had to attack Lingzhou City.
If you can't defeat them, then besiege them. There is really no need to confront the Xixia people.
"The Great Khan said that if we can't take Lingzhou City today, it will be even harder in the future. The Tang Wu Ti people have powerful firearms, and the Great Khan sees it."
Chahan touched the beard on his face, frowning.
"In addition, the sick soldiers in the army must be treated, and they cannot die in vain. There are enough medicinal materials in Lingzhou City to treat the disease. Otherwise, you have to go to Fengxiang Mansion or Jingzhao Mansion in the Jin Kingdom. In addition to these I’m afraid I won’t be able to find all the medicinal materials in the place.”
Chahan's words made all the generals suddenly realize.
It seems that Genghis Khan did not just want to capture Lingzhou City to vent his anger, he had all-round considerations.
"Having said that, you have also seen that Lingzhou City is not easy to fight. If we persist for another month or two, the sweaty body will not be able to hold on."
Chahan couldn't help it and spoke out again.
He looked at Wo Kuotai who said nothing and tentatively said:
"Wo Kuotai, why don't you talk to the Great Khan. First, return to Yanzhou River. First, the Great Khan can repair his body and bones, and then he can find medicine and treat the wounded soldiers. Third, let the Lingzhou defenders think that our army It is to withdraw the troops and lure them to attack. The troops are ambushed on the road between Zhongxing Mansion and Lingzhou, waiting for them to attack, or to transport food and grass."
Yanzhouchuan is three hundred miles south of Lingzhou, on the border of Jinxia. Further south is Liupan Mountain, which is perfect for cultivating your body.
Chahan's words made Wokuotai nodded slightly.
Diseases in the military kill dozens or even hundreds of soldiers every day or lose their combat effectiveness. It has reached a point where treatment is inevitable.
"Okay, Torre and Chahan, let's go see the Great Khan together and listen to what he wants. It's time for the Great Khan's body to take good care of himself. If we fail to attack, the Tangwuti people will always run out of ammunition and food. when."
Chahan and Torre both nodded.
Things decided by the Great Khan in the past are generally difficult to change. Genghis Khan may not give up until Lingzhou and Zhongxing Prefecture are captured. But now Genghis Khan's condition is not optimistic, and he seems to be no longer so persistent.
"Wokuotai, why don't you go find Sui Sui first and let her persuade the Great Khan. It might be easier to impress the Great Khan if she talks."
Subotai's words made everyone nod.
Among the entire Mongol army, perhaps only this Khan's beloved concubine could persuade Genghis Khan.
Wo Kuotai looked at the people in the tent and said softly:
"Chahan, you go to Lingzhou City again and see if you can persuade them to surrender. By the way, ask them to give you some rhubarb, and we will exchange it for food."
Chahan was helpless and nodded.
The last time he went to Lingzhou City to persuade him to surrender, the defenders didn't even let him enter the city.
All the generals looked at each other in silence.
This is also a no-brainer, everyone gets what they need. As for whether the Xixia people could guess that there was an epidemic in the Mongolian army and whether they would fight even more stubbornly, they no longer cared about it.
You can't just watch the soldiers die of illness.
"As I said before, besiege but not attack, and lure the defenders to attack. Wait until the opponent has no food or water, and as a last resort, they will open the city and surrender."
Wo Kuotai's words left all the generals helpless and angry.
After all, siege is not their specialty, riding and shooting is their fundamental.
"Listen, what's the sound outside?"
Subotai suddenly perked up his ears and said suspiciously.
"You can't hear clearly. It's so noisy. Could it be a mutiny in the army?"
Ashulu's words made everyone nervous all of a sudden.
"Go out and have a look!"
Wokuotai stood up, and everyone followed him and left the tent together.
"It turns out to be the Xia soldiers from Lingzhou City. Today is their New Year's Eve and they are celebrating the New Year. I was shocked!"
After everyone listened for a moment, Ashulu shook his head and breathed a sigh of relief.
"These guys are singing without clothes again! Aren't they cold or tired?"
Subotai vented his anger.
"Tang Wuti's people are united as one, and it may not be easy to defeat Lingzhou City as soon as possible."
Chahan looked at the head of Lingzhou City and sighed.
"Let them have fun for a few days. I want to see if they are gods in the sky who don't eat or drink?"
Torre's words were cold and chilling, making people shudder.
Wokuotai glanced at Torre and said nothing. He turned his eyes towards Lingzhou City and frowned.
How can we break through such a tough Lingzhou City?
"Should we let Yelu Chucai do a divination to see if we can break the city?"
Tuo Lei didn't notice the expression on Wo Kuotai's face and suddenly spoke.
The Mongolian nobles were superstitious in astrology and divination, and would turn to fortune tellers for all matters. Now that they encountered a major problem that Lingzhou City could not overcome, they thought of divination again.
"Isn't that the Great Khan? Why did the Great Khan come out?"
Chahan suddenly spoke and screamed.
Everyone was shocked and looked in the direction of Genghis Khan's barracks.
Under the blazing fire, Genghis Khan, accompanied by Ye Sui and Qixue sergeants, stood on a huge chariot and looked towards the north.
Looking at the direction of Genghis Khan's gaze, it seemed that it was Lingzhou City.
"Sweat!"
Wokuotai and others rushed over and saluted Genghis Khan on the giant car together.
Needless to say, it was the singing of the Xia soldiers at the top of the city that alarmed Genghis Khan.
"You're sweating profusely, please rest. It's freezing cold and your body is in danger."
"Khan, take care of your body and bones!"
All the generals persuaded him.
"Abu, don't worry about Lingzhou City. It won't be long before they open the city and surrender. I will definitely chop off Li Deren's head and show victory to Abu!"
Torre anxiously swore an oath to Genghis Khan.
"The Tangwuti people will not surrender. They are real warriors. You can tell by listening to their songs."
Genghis Khan looked at Lingzhou City in the distance and shook his head slightly.
"Wokuotai, Tuo Lei, I'll give you half a month. If you still can't attack Lingzhou City in half a month, the army will have no choice but to go south."
After Genghis Khan finished speaking, he turned around and was about to go back to the tent. Suddenly his feet went soft and he almost fell, but the person beside him quickly held on to him.
"Let go! I can do it myself!"
Genghis Khan stubbornly pushed Ye Sui away. Sergeant Qie Xue at the tent door quickly opened the curtain, and Genghis Khan and Ye Sui entered the tiger skin tent one after the other.
Wo Kuotai, Yelu Chucai and others were secretly surprised when they saw it clearly.
He had to be helped to walk even a few steps, which is evident from Genghis Khan's frail health.
The only plan now is to continue to work hard and capture Lingzhou City quickly.
"...How can I say that I have no clothes? I share the same robe with you.
The king raised his army and repaired my spear. I share the same hatred with you..."
The sound of singing came from the wall of Lingzhou City, and the generals couldn't help but get angry and grab one of them.
These guys, started singing again. When they sing, their fighting spirit is high and they howl. Attacking the city at this time, what are the chances of winning?
