The setting sun is like blood, the wind is howling, and Qiuci City still lies in front of the Han army, adding to the infinite desolation. War is always extremely destructive. Under several waves of attacks by the Han army, the cities that were impregnable half a month ago inevitably declined and were devastated and covered with scars.
There was even a section of the entire city wall that collapsed and was filled with bloody rubble, bricks, wood, and corpses. A Black Khanate military flag still stood tenaciously on top of the ruins, swaying in the wind, as if it was a Han army that was blocked in a mockery.
Even if they attacked by force, they did not disregard the sacrifice. The broken city wall was blasted by the Han army with a large amount of gunpowder. This was the most dangerous moment for Kucha City since the Han army attacked.
However, approaching the limit, the Black Khans still managed to hold on. Of course, the price of staying on the edge of collapse was still the same two words: human life.
In order to plug the gap that was blown up by the Han army, the Black Khans lost nearly 3,000 people. This was a direct battle loss. Their lives seemed extremely cheap. They could devote themselves endlessly to this flesh and blood mill without any distress. Their lives were Their nerves seemed to be iron-clad, and neither death nor pain could scare them.
In contrast, Liu Min and Yang Yanzhao still wanted to protect their soldiers more and did not want their men to make unnecessary sacrifices again, so they chose to stop fighting again.
The performance of retreat can often truly reflect the quality of an army. The Han army retreating from the city clearly showed this. Both the formation and movements were neat, commanding, covering, and dragging the wounded. Yes, everything is in order.
This is something that only the elite soldiers of the Han army who have been trained for a long time can have such quality on the battlefield, and cannot be compared with those auxiliary regiment training.
Both Liu Min and Yang Yanzhao have experienced cruel wars, and they both understand the cruel nature of war, and understand the principle of not being in charge of soldiers. However, at this moment, they cannot bear to let the best of the Han army compete with Hei Khan again. The consumption of those crazy people.
Even though they were so elite, the siege Han troops retreated from the city amidst the sound of gold, and they all let out a sigh of relief, giving people the illusion of fleeing, and their hurried footsteps showed a hint of signs.
The attacking Han troops retreated one after another, and the mobile siege equipment was also put back into the camp. They took a rest and healed their wounds. Of course, the siege of Kucha City was still maintained calmly.
However, as the commander-in-chief, Wei Wang Liu Min did not return to camp with the army. Instead, under the protection of a group of soldiers, he rode outside the city and looked at the stubborn city that had swallowed the lives of thousands of Han soldiers for a long time without saying a word.
The Black Khan army on the city also noticed the situation of this small group of people. However, the city gate had long been sealed, and the collapsed city wall was difficult to get out for a while. They could only threaten them by shooting arrows from the top of the city.
However, no matter how powerful the bow was, it was still out of range. The farthest shot was ten feet away from Liu Min. Even so, it shocked the guards around him. Perhaps ironically, the arrows the Black Khans fired back were the standard arrows of the Han army.
"Your Highness, the enemy city is in danger. It's better to return to the camp as soon as possible!" The guard captain was also from the Mobei Expeditionary Army and was very loyal. Seeing that Liu Min was not staying, he advised anxiously.
Liu Min turned a deaf ear, his resolute face remained motionless, and his red eyes stared intently at Kucha City. Of course, most of his eyes stayed on the mountains of corpses in front of the city.
From beginning to end, the Han army had killed about 4,000 people on Kucha City. Those far away from the city could still be accommodated, but most of the hateful Kucha people below the city did not even give them a chance to collect their corpses. Therefore, in the subsequent attacks, many Han soldiers trampled on the corpses of their comrades and attacked Kucha City.
Liu Min once again deeply understood this truth. Unlike those generals who need to use the bones of their soldiers to climb up, Liu Min needs more compassion and compassion in his heart.
When Liu Min was gradually feeling melancholy, there were some strange movements in Heihan City. In addition to the obvious movement of reinforcements and gaps being filled, the corpses of fallen soldiers of the Han army were hung by the Black Khans who had long been covered with blood. On the soaked city wall, from above, the provocative shouts of the Black Khans could still be faintly heard.
Seeing this scene, Liu Min couldn't hold back any longer, his face twitched a few times, his tiger eyes became murderous, and his eyes were full of violence.
"Go, call all the generals!" He tilted his head and ordered to the guards beside him.
The guard didn't dare to say anything, so he immediately obeyed the order and rode away.
Soon, Yang Yanzhao, Guo Yi, Wang Shenjun, Murong Jiye and other senior generals hurried over. When they saw the scene on the city, their expressions changed, and everyone's eyes were filled with anger.
"Look, open your eyes and take a good look!" Liu Min was unceremonious and vented his anger wantonly: "The Black Khans are wantonly insulting the bodies of our soldiers. This is provoking us. I don't want to Besides, if we can’t take Kucha City, how can we let those thousands of heroic souls rest in peace!”
After saying this, some generals suddenly asked for a fight. Whether they were driven away by anger or seeking performance, their attitudes were very determined. Some people even directly suggested that after the city was broken, they would massacre the city and make the Black Khan people pay the heaviest price.
However, Liu Min remained silent, but it could be seen from his cold expression that he really meant that.
As the deputy commander who directly commanded the siege battle, Yang Yanzhao was not in good shape if he could not take Kucha City, and the pressure he endured was also considerable.
I looked up at the sky and saw that the setting sun had been mostly obscured by clouds and had almost fallen below Kucha City. Reaching out to calm the agitated generals, Yang Yanzhao rushed to Liu Min and said, "Your Highness, since we have withdrawn our troops, we should go back to the camp to discuss the matter in the long run!"
Yang Yanzhao had to give face to him. Liu Min thought for a while, nodded slightly, and said coldly: "Go back to the camp! First, rectify and appease the soldiers. Tonight's military meeting, all officers above the military commander will attend!"
"yes!"
After saying that, Liu Min turned the horse's head and slapped it away. He whipped the horse extra hard and the horse was in pain. It also spread its hooves and headed towards the Han army's camp, raising a puff of smoke and dust.
The sky was covered with thick clouds, almost making people breathless. Under the night, the Han army camp was silent. The constraints of military discipline made people dare not move. In such a wartime environment, the whole camp acted with Curfew at the highest level.
The sound of the wind blowing the flag was very clear, probably because of the heavy casualties suffered by the Han soldiers. Even the neighing of the war horses sounded like whimpering, adding a bit of sadness.
Under the silent night, the only exception was the sick camp. This was set up separately to prevent those painful cries from affecting the morale of the soldiers. Soldiers on the battlefield can be driven crazy by blood and death, but after the madness, they calm down. After all, trauma can easily shake the will. After all, people are made of flesh and blood.
The huge casualties obviously exceeded the generals' expectations. The wounded barracks were temporarily expanded by two. The number of dead soldiers was increasing almost every moment. Moreover, this was a battle with an imbalanced casualty ratio.
As the commander-in-chief, Liu Min knew what he should do and didn't care about rest. After returning to the camp, he didn't care about rest. He personally visited the wounded camp and comforted the heroic soldiers until nightfall.
Fortunately, the logistics preparations are sufficient, especially various kinds of healing medicines. However, the limitation of the number of military doctors still causes many soldiers to die without timely treatment. Of course, whether some seriously injured people can survive depends on luck and broken arms. The short legs were all minor injuries, and in the process of Liu Min's comfort, the lives of soldiers kept coming to an end.
"Your Highness, the casualties among our brothers are too heavy!" In the sick camp under the slope, an injured military academy member couldn't help crying and complained to Liu Min.
The iron-clad man could shed blood on the battlefield without batting an eyelid, but when he thought about the deaths of his brothers in Kucha City, he almost burst into tears and couldn't stop. He tried his best to hold it back in order to worry about the impact.
Liu Min is a person of temperament, and his contradictory expressions and sincere feelings moved him quite a bit.
The name of the military academy is Chang Guzhen, a native of Shaanzhou in Guanzhong. He is the commander of the infantry battalion under the jurisdiction of Liangzhou and is only a mid-level officer.
Ten years ago, this man was still a penniless man, lying dormant and waiting to avenge his family. Ten years later, he had become a dignified battalion commander of the imperial court. The key factor was that he had a meager relationship with the prince.
Although at first Liu Yang only gave instructions because he appreciated that this person would not violate public laws for personal reasons, he could give Chang Guzhen a future, but at the implementation stage, he fully demonstrated the authority of the prince. Promotion, all the way to battalion command.
Of course, Chang Guzhen did not simply rely on his empty background. He was highly skilled in martial arts and had certain military talents. He worked hard and was extremely brave in combat. In the battle of Qiuci, he directly led his officers and soldiers to support them on the front line. One of the fighting officers.
Naturally, the casualties among the men and horses in his battalion were heavy. They participated in the two most determined attacks and suffered more than half of their casualties. Such a result would not break his heart.
Gently patting Chang Guzhen's uninjured shoulder, Liu Min's tired eyes were filled with determination, and he solemnly said: "The soldiers fought hard for the country and died deservedly! It is precisely because they have made so many sacrifices that Kucha We must win it just now and live up to our heroic spirit.
As for the casualties of the soldiers, the court's compensation will not be less than a copper plate! "
