The rebel soldiers who came to attack the mountain for the second time braved the scorching sun. Under the supervision of Zhang Nengqi, they launched an upward attack as a small team. They wanted to seize the mountain in front of them for the four generals, and they could not neglect their duty as a vanguard.
However, as a local snake in the northern part of Huguang, the Mou family army, composed of the men of the Mou family as the backbone, is not a free commodity. It has many years of experience in fighting against the bandits, which is far beyond the comparison of other official and military forces that collapse at the first touch.
According to Mou Wenshou's arrangement, the Fo Lang machine deployed on the top of the mountain opened fire first. When the rebels were close to a hundred steps, the squatting tiger cannon was fired, followed by a volley of gunfire.
After the violent storm, the three tigers of the Mou family - Mou Guodong, Mou Guoxian, and Mou Guoheng - led their infantry to kill from the top of the mountain, giving the rebels a head-on attack.
Facts have proved that Zhang Nengqi and his soldiers were indeed unable to withstand Mou Wenshou's "three-axe", and they did not expect that the official offensive would be so fierce.
The fourth general was prepared for a fierce battle, but after all, he was not the overlord of Western Chu who could kill thousands of people. His own martial arts alone was not enough to change the situation.
In particular, the cannonballs fired by the Fo Langji destroyed waist-thick trees, causing the rebel soldiers passing by to see this and couldn't help but feel fear in their hearts.
In addition, the opponent had been waiting here for a long time. He was full of physical strength, full of fighting spirit, and had capable generals to take the lead. He charged forward and directly killed the rebels, causing them to retreat continuously, and then began to cause a large-scale rout.
"Whoosh...poof~!"
It is very easy for a row of archers about ten steps behind the sword and shield soldiers to aim downwards. As long as the two sides are not fighting together, they can easily identify the target. Those thieves who leave their backs to them are the best targets. .
In addition, the wind was blowing favorably, which was conducive to their shooting. It also increased everyone's enthusiasm for killing the enemy to a certain extent. Arrows rained down like rain for a while, overwhelming the opponent. More than two hundred archers alone killed no less than two. There are twice as many thieves as this.
The rebels also have archers, but it is much more difficult to shoot upwards against the wind. Many official archers cunningly hid behind trees to observe first, looking for opportunities to fire cold arrows, almost making the rebel infantry defenseless.
Although there is not much difference in the clothes worn by the two sides, at most the difference can be seen in the scarves, but those who are climbing up with their heads raised are definitely thieves. This is an obvious sign. To identify ourselves and the enemy, just "look at the face". .
The sword and shield soldiers of the rebel army were protected by shields, but the spearmen and archers without armor protection would suffer a lot. In close combat, the officers and soldiers used arrows as suppressive weapons, putting the rebel soldiers at a complete disadvantage.
Although it was also an assault down the mountain, the archers of the official army would not participate in the hand-to-hand combat at all. Instead, they deliberately kept a certain distance from their own sword and shield soldiers, so that they would be in a safer position.
It can also inflict considerable damage to the thieves. If the thieves want to rush over and kill them, they will fall into the crossfire of their companions. No matter how powerful dozens of shield soldiers are, they cannot stop dozens of archers from attacking them. Rapid fire from an angle.
Behind them are the troops who are responsible for responding. Once the assault fails, they must contain the rebel army's attack on the mountain. Mou Wenshou has also made relatively complete preparations and will not just use these two thousand men to gamble.
The officers and soldiers used fire cannons to blast out an open area halfway up the mountain, resulting in very few trees. As a result, the rebel soldiers who came to attack the mountain had no shelter and were directly exposed to the sight of the officers and soldiers.
The way Zhang Nengqi arranged his soldiers to advance in formation also increased the number of casualties on his side. A dense formation was more advantageous during defense. However, when suppressed by enemy artillery fire during an attack, it would suffer far more than a loose formation.
The rebels, who wanted to fight for blood and shame, failed to guard against the fierce attack of the officers and soldiers. They barely resisted. After fighting for less than half a quarter of an hour, some people began to retreat, and then there was a large-scale retreat. It fell down a thousand miles.
"Fuck! Don't run away! Shoot the deserters to death!"
Zhang Nengqi, who was holding the battle at the rear, had a 200-strong supervising team deployed around him. He couldn't help being furious when he saw this. These idiots who were greedy for life and feared death were afraid of the officers and soldiers firing arrows. Aren't they afraid of the supervising team firing arrows?
No matter how fierce the offensive of the army is, you still have to bear it, otherwise what's the point of raising things like you that only eat but don't work?
The war supervisory team was composed of the personal soldiers or direct descendants of the four generals, so they were naturally able to execute orders and prohibitions. As long as Zhang Nengqi gave an order, they would execute it without hesitation and directly shot and killed nearly a hundred deserters.
When the remaining soldiers saw the four generals furious, they were really going to attack their own people, so they had no choice but to turn around and go back to fight with the officers and soldiers who rushed down.
However, the disunity of the people, the lack of fighting spirit, and the large number of casualties that had occurred before made the rebel counterattack seem like a bluff. It was crushed by the official army in an instant, and hundreds of people were lost.
"Bitch thief! Take your life!"
Mou Guodong stared at an enemy general not far from him, shouted loudly, ran over and planned to cut him in two, and then went back to ask for credit and reward from his elder brother.
"..."
He Tianyun turned his head and saw an army general rushing towards him. He was suddenly startled, his eyes widened, and he did not dare to challenge him, so he hurriedly ran down the mountain.
It's just that the brain and the body are not cooperating well, and the movement of running has already been made before the neck is turned around. As a result, by the time the eyes see an obstacle in front of them, the forehead has already hit it.
"Ouch~!"
He Tianyun crashed directly into a willow tree and screamed in pain. He was so focused on running away that his forehead was turned blue from the impact.
"Hahahaha! What a reckless man! Don't run away! Today is the day you, the thief, die!"
Mou Guodong burst out laughing when he saw this. With such a pig-like funny look, he still wanted to attack the mountain? What a big joke!
"A common man! How dare you mock your grandpa! You are seeking your own death, don't blame grandpa for being ruthless with my sword!"
When He Tianyun saw that the enemy general was approaching, he did not intend to run away. Instead, he held a long-handled sword and pointed and shouted at the enemy fiercely.
He was responsible for leading the attack from the front, and naturally he would not ride a horse like Zhang Nengqi. Otherwise, when the officers and soldiers saw him, they would be sure that he was a general, and they would probably be shot as a hedgehog.
Now that they have returned without success again, they can only follow the defeated troops down the mountain on foot, but before going down the mountain, they have to kill the reckless officer and general in front of them.
"Stop making noise! You reckless man! You only know how to use words? What skills do you have? Just use them! Otherwise you will be beheaded if you are not convinced!"
Mou Guodong had the courage to win, so he didn't pay attention to the scolding from the other side. On another day, he was determined to have a scolding with this guy first, and then go up to fight.
"Ah~! Look at the knife!"
The furious He Tianyun bared his teeth and rushed towards the target. As long as he could kill this officer and general, he would be able to atone for his sins in front of the four generals when he went back, and he would not be returning empty-handed.
"puff!"
Just when Mou Guodong was using all his strength to receive a heavy blow from the opponent, and then turn around and slash with his sword, he suddenly saw that the thief general's movements became slower.
Then he saw that his body was no longer moving forward, but was standing on the same spot, with an arrow suddenly stuck in his forehead. The wings of the arrow tail had touched the skin, and it seemed that it penetrated very deeply.
"Uncle, leave quickly!"
Mou Shilong, holding a birch bow, appeared behind him and shouted to him in a hurry. He had just shot the thief general to death with one arrow.
"...Alas~! Why is this?"
If someone else took the credit, Mou Guodong would have to scold him. Since he was his nephew, he could only sigh and ask questions instead. Guangxi
"Zhang Ni's army has arrived!"
Mou Shilong stretched out his hand and pointed at the top of the mountain opposite, and saw a large banner appearing on it. A vague character could be seen. If nothing else, it should be the character "Zhang", which meant that Zhang Xianzhong had arrived.
"...That's fine! Let Zhang Nigou live for a while first!"
Soldiers and horses kept rushing down from the mountain opposite, densely packed like a swarm of ants. They would arrive here in less than half a quarter of an hour. Mou Guodong found a step for himself and decided to withdraw his troops.
If they don't leave, they are afraid that Zhang Ni's army will be left near the foot of the mountain. They have to take advantage of the opportunity before the rebels arrive to safely evacuate the troops to the top of the mountain. It will take time to withdraw the troops.
"Come here! Carry it to the top of the mountain!"
After retreating, the loot still had to be taken away. Mou Shilong called four soldiers to take away the body of the thief general in front of him. If it was the person on the reward order, it would be worth the money.
Seeing that his side was unable to pursue, and worried about the counterattack of Zhang Ni's army, Mou Guodong went up the mountain first. Mou Shilong ordered the soldiers to bring all the wounded soldiers back to the top of the mountain to be resettled. Fighting.
"My child is incompetent! Please punish me, father!"
The attack on the mountain failed, so Zhang Nengqi could only meet the Eight Kings and plead guilty on his own. As a forward commander, it would be a dereliction of duty to fail to secure a path for the army to advance.
"My son, do you know who the enemy is in front of you?"
Zhang Xianzhong didn't want to get hung up on punishing his adopted son. The war was imminent, and he had to first find out the enemy's context. All other matters could be dealt with after the war.
"... When the child saw that his general's flag was marked with the character 'Mo', he thought... that it was Mou Wenshou!"
After questioning by his adoptive father, Zhang Nengqi finally remembered that the person who was causing trouble for him was actually an old opponent of the rebel army. They had competed with this old man in Fengyang in the early years.
"Mou Wenshou? Hmm~!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Xianzhong stroked his long beard and began to think deeply. According to the generals under Tang Tong's command, the Hong bandits deployed four generals on the southern front this time. In addition to Tang Tong, there are three other people: Jiang Mingwu, Yang Yufan, and Mou Wenshou.
This three-man unit has not been discovered by our side before. Now Mou Wenshou is standing in front of him, trying to block his way south. Maybe Jiang Mingwu and Yang Yufan are also ambushing nearby, just waiting for an opportunity.
Whether it was Mou Wenshou alone or all three of them were nearby? Zhang Xianzhong had not yet received the report of the expedition, so he could not help but become cautious in the use of troops.
But no matter what, we must leave here before the Hong bandit army comes back for reinforcements, otherwise Xian Mountain will be a trap for tens of thousands of rebel soldiers.
The men and horses sent out before were only used to support the fourth son Zhang Nengqi, not to continue to attack the mountain. The Eight Kings were still hesitating whether to pass through the place where Mou Wenshou's tribe was entrenched.
"This is……"
Just when Zhang Xianzhong was thinking about the way forward and retreat, the sound of rumbling artillery came from the northwest, which was roughly the location of Wanshan and Yanghu Mountain. According to the arrangements of the eight kings for each department, it should be the department of Wang Dingguo who was responsible for breaking up the rear.
Could it be that the army of Hong thieves has already arrived? How could it be so fast?
Based on this calculation, the marching speed of this infantry is not much slower than that of the cavalry!
Zhang Xianzhong did not believe that Hong Chengchou's army had arrived here, and suspected that the defenders in the city were attacking.
*************************************
Yang Yufan, who was at an angle with Mou Wenshou's troops and could communicate with him from a distance, heard the sound of artillery coming from the southeast and knew that Mou Wenshou's troops had already engaged the rebels.
He hoped to lead a team to kick the eight kings' butts as soon as possible, but when he marched in, he suddenly found that there was still an army of thieves in front of him, dragging behind him. It seemed to be Zhang Ni's broken team, with no less than two or three thousand troops.
If we don't fight, our own troops will not be able to get around it, and they will not be able to effectively support Mou Wenshou. Once the two armies engage in battle, Zhang Ni in front will know that the army is behind him, and he will inevitably jump over the wall in a panic.
After some consideration, Yang Yufan first sent people to get in touch with the Xiangyang defenders, and at the same time led his troops to directly attack the bandit troops, striving to defeat them quickly, so that he and Mou Wenshou could carry out a pincer attack on Zhang Ni's main force.
"God damn the dog army! Brothers, kill them and drive them away!"
When Wang Dingguo saw a large group of officers and soldiers appearing behind him, he decided to defend his position and no longer move closer to the Eight Kings. Only by repelling this group of officers and soldiers could the safety of the main force led by the Eight Kings be ensured.
The first attempt to cross the river failed, and the attack on Fancheng failed. Instead, they were shelled by the navy on the river bank, causing heavy casualties to the troops.
Later, Jibu and Wang Shangli failed to stop the army's cavalry from relieving the siege of Xiangyang City, and Wang Dingguo watched helplessly as more than a thousand of his brother's cavalry were gathered and annihilated on the shore by the army.
His subordinates were all infantry, and they were scattered from the foot of the mountain to the shore. When they suddenly encountered a sudden attack on the defense line by the army, it was difficult to assemble quickly.
Fortunately, this group of officers and soldiers were determined to break through and did not continue fighting with their own troops, allowing Wang Dingguo to retain more than 2,000 soldiers.
After the Eight Kings ordered him to lead his troops to retreat, Wang Dingguo, who had failed to perform on the battlefield before, had no choice but to obey the order. However, he did not expect to be attacked by the official army when he withdrew his troops.
Fighting on the shore, the rebels had no navy and would accept defeat after suffering defeat.
Nowadays, when fighting in the mountains, there is no excuse. It just depends on which side's soldiers are braver.
If the rebel army could gather and annihilate Tang Tong's troops in the mountains, they would naturally be able to defeat the invading enemy in front of them.
Wang Dingguo's troops are not large, but as long as he can make up his mind, his troops can also unleash considerable combat effectiveness.
The officers and soldiers were pursuing forward but did not find a suitable gun position, and the fire cover was very unsatisfactory.
We can only use the Tiger Crouching Cannon and the ultra-light Folang Machine weighing less than 100 kilograms to provide some support for the infantry within our capabilities.
Both sides rely more on gunmen, archers, sword and shield soldiers, and spearmen. Two are far and two are close. These four arms are fighting.
The rebels could occupy the hilltop position and set up firecrackers to suppress the onslaught of the official army.
But there is an embarrassing problem, that is, most of the franc machines were lost on the shore...
The range of firearms such as the Tiger Crouching Cannon is too close, and it is not as good as a small Fo Lang machine.
If the two sides exchanged fire, it would obviously be the rebels with very few guns who would suffer.
Wang Dingguo also gave up the idea of using firecrackers to attack the army, and decided to use more than 2,000 soldiers to block the attack of the army.
