Zhang Nengqi has never seen a city with such ferocious firepower. It can be described as overwhelming. Before the rebels could prepare, dozens of bullets suddenly exploded in the surrounding area. Just a huge fireball exploded in an instant. It can swallow the lives of dozens of people nearby.
The rebels who participated in the war had no idea from top to bottom what kind of firearms the other side had that could destroy the earth. They easily wiped out more than 20 to 30% of the rebel soldiers in almost a cup of tea. Many of the survivors were also scarred. .
Not to mention that Zhang Nengqi led 3,000 auxiliary troops to attack the city. Even if the troops invested were doubled and replaced with elite soldiers who had followed his father's commander for many years, they would not be able to withstand such horrific firearms damage.
At a time when most of his soldiers were casualties, even though Zhang Nengqi was wearing thick armor, his left arm was still injured by the iron beads, which penetrated the armor and skin and penetrated into the flesh, causing him to feel heartbreaking pain and making big beads of sweat. It flowed down my face.
Seeing that the few people he had brought were almost dead and could not even retreat like a tide, Zhang Nengqi ordered a retreat. After running half a mile, he was still looking at the majestic Xiangyang City with great resentment.
"The thieves have retreated!"
"Our army is victorious!"
"Long live! Long live! Long live..."
Upon seeing this, the guard Yang Shien was immediately relieved and breathed a long sigh of relief. Originally, opening the city gate and "inviting the thief into the urn" was a dangerous strategy for the army.
Without the help of the mortar battalion under Ding Liang, the defenders in the south of the city would have had to fight to the death with these three to five thousand invading enemies before they could win.
But it was precisely because of this that the rebels gave up using rafts and boats to cross the moat, and made a desperate choice to attack Xiangyang City from the bridge.
As long as there is a brief congestion at the bridgehead, the many mortars in the city can deal a devastating thunder blow to the unsuspecting bandits.
Although the firelight that had not burned out and the moonlight above his head helped, the vision in the distance, especially a hundred steps away, was still not good, but Yang Shien could still see the bandit soldiers lying on the ground in various shapes.
The reason why this judgment can be so accurate is because the rebel army retreated in a hurry under the artillery fire of the official army and had no time to take away a large number of wounded. There were many "giant maggots" wriggling outside the moat.
These injured thieves have become abandoned sons. If they cannot crawl back to their own formation, when their masters come to attack the city for the second time, they will be bombarded alive by the firepower from the city head...
"Stop shooting! Don't waste arrow clusters and ammunition!"
Yang Shien felt that there was no need to waste ordnance and supplies on these wounded soldiers, so he ordered the defenders to take charge and just watch the show quietly.
If the bandits could send people to transport them away, Yang Shien would not add insult to injury. If they were left to fend for themselves, the defenders would have to sit back and watch.
Now that the battle was won, the defending soldiers were given orders to put things to rest. It would be a good thing to let this group of beasts suffer to death, otherwise the people in Xiangyang City, regardless of men, women, old and young, would suffer.
Nowadays, Xiangyang city soldiers are well-prepared, and the city is high and the pond is deep. Lieutenant General Yang Shien leads nearly 10,000 troops to defend it. It is really difficult to attack such an important town from outside the city.
Wang Chengzeng, the prefect of Xiangyang, received advice from Hong Shaobao and organized a regiment training consisting of a large number of young men, with a size of no less than 3,000, as a reserve team for critical moments.
When the people and merchants heard that the "Eight Kings" were going to lead 30,000 thieves to kill and plunder, they naturally responded actively to the government's call, donated money and food, and worked together. It can be said that they were united and shared the same hatred.
Now, Zhang Ni's plan of combining inside and outside was discovered by the army. Not only did they capture Wang Shangli, who was pretending to be Tang Tong's subordinate, and more than a thousand horsemen he led, but he also shot and killed hundreds of thieves who invaded the city.
Later, they thwarted a sneak attack by thousands of thieves, resulting in 70% to 80% casualties. After this battle, not only the morale of the defenders was stable, but their morale was also greatly boosted, which made both Yang Shien and Wang Chengzeng feel very pleased.
"Xie Rong! I have a merciless request! The ammunition packs fired by our battalion's mortars have been exhausted. I hope Xie Rong can replenish some ammunition, linen, planks and drinking water! It is best to use two mortars per shot. One hundred kilograms of gunpowder, otherwise once the bandits come back, our camp will be unable to do anything!"
In order to impress Hong Shaobao and Yang Guozhu, Ding Liang used his special skill just now to launch all the explosive packets carried by the entire artillery battalion.
Now that there are no artillery shells and there is no way to quickly replenish them, these mortars are just decorations, large iron barrels in the pure sense.
"Okay! Don't worry, Mr. Qian, I will definitely agree to everything! When someone comes, please immediately send 500 barrels of gunpowder, 100 bolts of linen, and 200 door panels to the artillery camp, and bring another 100 barrels of well water!"
The matter of gunpowder is easy to say. This battle was a great victory, and Ding Liang's artillery battalion was the number one contributor. Yang Shien saw the powerful power of mortars, so he would naturally put them in a priority position to replenish supplies.
Even if the big muskets at the top of the city are out of charge and unable to fire, Ding Liang's artillery battalion must continue to show its power. The power and rate of fire of his iron barrel cannon can withstand more than four or five large guns. pistol.
There is no time to obtain wooden boards now, so we will first make up the number with door panels donated by the people. As long as they are usable, they can be sawed to fit various parts.
All wells in the city are strictly guarded by soldiers and guarded around the clock, for fear that thieves sneaking into the city will poison the wells.
"I would like to thank Xie Rong for your support! I'm going to prepare now. I'm sure Zhang Ni won't stop here. There will be a fierce battle after dawn!"
After asking for so many things, the other party can probably guess the materials used in the medicine package, but Ding Liang can't say much. These are all top secrets. The artillery battalion soldiers are strictly prohibited from leaking such contents to the outside world. Anyone who violates the order will be punished on the spot. Dharma.
According to His Highness the Prince, the artillery battalion is a technical branch, and the treatment is naturally the best. The monthly salary of ordinary soldiers is the same as that of horse soldiers, which is three taels of silver per month, and there is no deduction now, including rice salary. Distributed in full.
This made the ordinary soldiers very grateful. The treatment was very different from before. This time they were defending the city and did not need to encounter a surprise attack by the enemy's horsemen. Therefore, they could calmly use the skills they learned in the capital.
"Yes! If you have anything to do, Mr. Qian, just ask. If I can do it, I will provide all the needs!"
Yang Shien also believed that Xiangyang City was like a fat sheep that had only lost thousands of people. The wolf-like Zhang Ni would probably come to try, and he would only be defeated if he could not break the city, so he had to make preparations in advance.
"Prefect, Ding Liang's troops have done a great job this time. The guns and cannons under his command have killed and wounded no less than a thousand thieves. I plan to ask Hong Shaobao and the court for credit after the war. I wonder what the prefect thinks?"
Yang Shien found Wang Chengzeng, the prefect, and explained to him the situation of the battle just now. The main reason was that Ding Liang's troops were guest soldiers, but they "turned against the guests" and became the number one elite guarding Xiangyang. Yang Shien did not covet military exploits, and recorded half of the battle results in the army. under the name of the department.
"This is very good. The enemy is facing us. The report will be as Xie Rong said. I will first take three thousand taels of silver as a reward for repelling the thieves, and then allocate them immediately. Then kill two, not four, pigs, and the city will be destroyed. The leading soldiers will enjoy half of it, and Ding Liang’s artillery battalion soldiers will get the other half!”
As a local official, Wang Chengzeng was not just a loser who only knew how to make money. If he didn't reward the army at this time, he would be waiting for Zhang Ni's thieves to break through the city and light a lantern in the sky.
With silver and pork, the physical strength and morale of the defenders can be guaranteed. It is of course extremely cost-effective to support Hong Shaobao's army to come back with a few pigs and several thousand taels of silver.
Worried about the defeat, Zhang Ni was furious and immediately ordered a large-scale attack on the city. Wang Chengzeng immediately sent people to arrange things properly, especially the reward for the army, which must be done immediately.
Of course, the stew in a big pot is not as delicious as the small stove in a restaurant, but for ordinary soldiers, it is a great pleasure to eat three taels of pork, especially the fat and oily kind.
The artillery camp received two pigs, but since there were only 500 people, the pork and bones given to the soldiers were about one pound, which was enough to satisfy their appetite.
"Get to work immediately after you've eaten and drank enough. Otherwise, when the traitors arrive and I haven't prepared the medicine bag yet, I will stuff you in one by one and drive them out of the city and beat the traitors to death!"
Ding Liang inspected the area and saw that everyone was eating meat with smiles on their faces. He was relieved, but he still reminded these lazy people not to go to bed after eating, otherwise they would be dumbfounded when Zhang Ni made a comeback.
A single leader could still defeat Zhang Ni, and he might be promoted to regiment leader after he returned. That would be able to lead a thousand men, so Ding Liang pinned his hopes for promotion on this battle.
"Don't worry, sir! The kids will get to work after eating, and I'll make sure they beat the thief and call us grandpa!"
"Ha ha ha ha……"
Ordinary soldiers were not under the pressure of facing a powerful enemy. During the meal, they all talked and laughed, and even made fun of Zhang Xianzhong. They squatted in the city and were not afraid of that guy at all.
So what if he is a mad dog and a wolf?
A dog jumping over the wall in a hurry?
Then you jump in and bite us?
Is it possible that the legs are short and not tall enough? ? ?
After studying, even some squad leaders now understand the easy-to-understand ballistic principles. They know that the ballistic trajectory of ordinary large guns is straight with a slight arc, while the ballistic trajectory of mortars is exactly the opposite.
Therefore, hiding behind the city wall is the safest. It is impossible to be reached by the opponent's big gun unless the city wall is blasted with a big hole.
In this way, the rebels couldn't hit them with big guns, but they could use mortars to make the rebels cry for their fathers and mothers, howling and screaming. What's so scary about this?
When the prefect sent meat to reward the army just now, he also gave each person one tael of silver as a reward for repelling the bandit army. Of course, everyone did not refuse it politely and directly accepted it.
After finishing the meal, the artillery battalion began to work quickly, trying to make more medicine packs before Zhang Gouzhi Er attacked Xiangyang City, so that no matter how many came, they would have to have another big meal.
Although there are not many munitions craftsmen in the artillery camp, there are many people who can work as blacksmiths, carpenters and even bricklayers, because in addition to the diagnosis and treatment of injuries and illnesses, they sometimes have to do things such as vehicle maintenance and slapping horse hooves themselves. Do.
Making a medical kit is very simple, as long as strict fireworks control is implemented around you and a few buckets of water are nearby for emergencies. The baffle for launching is also easy to make. The thickness of the door panel is just right. You can cut out the rough outline with a saw and it will be qualified with a little trimming.
If there is no problem with the supply of various materials, then the weapons and ammunition required by the artillery camp can be replenished by themselves, and they can play the trick of hunting cattle across the mountains. The enthusiasm of the soldiers is naturally very high, and they are worried that the Zhang Gou thieves outside the city will not dare to come over.
"Boom boom boom boom..."
Bursts of huge noises once again broke the newly silent night. Even if the bandit army outside the city broke up for a while, they did not intend to let the defenders and people of Xiangyang City sleep peacefully.
"Well, you won't have a good life!"
Seeing that the defenders were ignorant and that his strategy not only failed to work, but also resulted in the loss of a total of 4,000 soldiers, especially among them there were about 1,500 elite soldiers who had followed him in the war for many years, the Eight Kings suddenly became furious. .
After hearing the news that Wang Shangli and Liu Jinzhong fell into the trap one after another, and saw the fourth son who led the army to attack the city returning injured, Zhang Xianzhong did not feel comfortable scolding his adopted son in public, so he gave some kind words of comfort, and ordered the big gunman who accompanied the army to attack Yanghu. Find a good position on the mountain and bombard Xiangyang City.
First, let the defenders have trouble sleeping and eating. After they are tired, the 10,000-strong rebel army will attack Xiangyang at dawn and win in a battle. After that, they can slaughter all the stubborn people in the city and make them regret it.
It is said that Yanghu Mountain was named after Yang Hu, the general who guarded Xiangyang in the Jin Dynasty. It is the closest mountain to Xiangyang City, and the foot of the mountain is almost bordered by the moat to the south of the city.
If Xiangyang is attacked, this mountain must be captured, but the defenders did not ambush a single soldier on the mountain. Zhang Xianzhong couldn't help but be overjoyed. Therefore, even though a large number of soldiers were killed in the battle just now, he was very optimistic about capturing the city.
The gunners of the rebel army found their respective positions, set up the big guns captured from Tang Tong's headquarters, and after loading, began to bombard Xiangyang City.
The city wall and Min's House suddenly became the targets of the rebels' cannons. The earthen walls collapsed due to the cannonballs, debris flew and piles of rubble piled up. The casualties of soldiers and civilians increased sharply.
"Hit me hard! Kill those thieves!"
Yang Shien would not let Zhang Ni's gunners show off their power in front of his eyes. After adjusting their positions, the defenders aimed at the spot where there was some light on Yanghu Mountain and immediately launched a fierce counterattack.
Feeling that the firepower was not enough, he also transferred more than 20 firecrackers arranged in the other three directions, and all of them were involved in this large-scale gun battle. Since the thieves came to die, they were asked to try it. This one is good enough.
The Folang machine has a high rate of fire, but because most of the Folan machine are not airtight, the maximum range is only more than half a mile, which is far inferior to the Hongyi cannon.
However, the biggest weakness of the Pan-Hongyi cannon is its extremely low rate of fire. The longer the range of the Hongyi cannon, the longer the barrel, the greater the thickness, and the longer the cooling time. If the test fire is continued, it can only be fired once every quarter of an hour. .
If it fires three times in a quarter of an hour, after half an hour of continuous firing, the barrel will overheat, causing cracks in the barrel under high temperature and pressure, and the cannon will be almost scrapped. If it continues to fire blindly, it will happen at any time. Danger of explosion.
Therefore, no troops, not even the generals of the thief army, would let their gunslingers increase their rate of fire rashly unless absolutely necessary.
Thinking of the special mortar that combines power and speed of fire, Yang Shien was envious, and he was even more impressed by Ding Liang's troops.
Fortunately, for the sake of his eldest brother Yang Guozhu, he treated the officers and soldiers of the unit with courtesy and did not offend him in any obvious way. Now it is easier to talk.
But now the mortar battalion has finished its ammunition and is rushing to produce it. Even if Yang Shien is eager to kill the enemy, he can only use various types of large guns to resist first, and then find a way to retreat the enemy after this period of time.
It is impossible for the defenders to sleep, and the thieves outside the city are not allowed to sleep. Moreover, it was still a medium-sized artillery bombardment at the beginning, but due to the increase in casualties of the soldiers, after two quarters of an hour, it gradually evolved into a crazy life-and-death artillery battle.
This is mainly because the Eight Kings did not take into account one thing, that is, the defenders in the city are covered by city walls and houses, which can greatly reduce casualties.
As for our own artillery fire on the mountain, even though we have the advantage of the terrain, there is no shelter except trees. No matter how sparse the standing density is, a bullet fired by the army can still kill more than a hundred people.
Zhang Xianzhong, who had suffered a big loss, had just been hit by another shot. Fortunately, his body was not hurt. He became furious and vowed to raze Xiangyang City to the ground and let the gunmen hit him hard...
