At the end of the Sui Dynasty, I am the king

Chapter 18: In vain

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On the morning of June 16th, despite Li Mi's full opposition, Yang Xuangan, whose right ear was shot off with half a piece, insisted on launching a siege campaign. Pei Hongce and Chen Yingliang, the uncles and nephews who are guarding here, also ushered in the first test of the city defense battle with real swords and guns.

Yang Xuangan's rebel team also has many talents. His younger brothers Yang Xuanting, Yang Xuanzong, Yang Jishan and Yang Wanshuo are all rare fighters with outstanding martial arts skills. In the battle to put down the rebellion of Yang Liang, king of the Han Dynasty, he was both civil and military. He was a handsome talent himself, and he was assisted by Wang Zhongbo, the old general of Yang Su's Hu Benlang, who had rich experience in the battlefield. At the level of generals, the strength of Yang Xuangan's rebel army is actually far superior to that of a group of civil servants. The East Capital of the commanding army is above the defenders.

This is clearly reflected in the military appearance of the rebel army. Although it was a mob that was formed less than half a month ago, it was built in the hands of Yang Xuangan and other rebel leaders. The Sui Dynasty’s military system was organized. Every fifty soldiers were organized into a team, with a team leader; The regiment is an army, with a general commander. The flags and flags of each army are of different colors, which are clear and easy to identify the command. At the same time, the formation and lineup are also very neat. It is almost impossible to see that this is a temporary team that has been hastily assembled .

On the contrary, the well-equipped Dongdu garrison appeared to be a bit disorganized. Despite the protection of the city wall and the moat, the garrison soldiers on the city wall still seemed quite flustered. Soldier, it takes a long time to implement the orders in the army, and the preparations for the city defense are progressing slowly. Pei Hongce jumped up in a hurry, and assigned Fan Zigai to his military deputy, Hu Yalang, who scolded Xie Zichong bloody, and Xie Zichong was also anxious. He had to personally beat the soldiers and generals who violated the military law with his whip, so that he barely managed to complete the defense of the city wall before the end of the rebel formation.

Although he raised his troops out of anger, Yang Xuangan calmly accepted Li Mi's suggestion and arranged for two thousand troops to be divided into two teams to form a feint attack outside the neighboring Anxi Gate and Hui'an Gate to contain the gates. It forced the defenders of Dongdu not to concentrate their heavy troops on Shangchun Gate, and also prevented the defenders on these two gates from rescuing Shangchun Gate through the most convenient city road. In this regard, Fan Zigai's contingency strategy is to assemble a reserve team in Beishi, the eastern capital, led by Huben Lang Liu Changgong, ready to rescue Shangchun, Anxi and Hui'an at any time.

Originally, Chen Yingliang wanted to show his skills in this battle, and once proposed to Pei Hongce to lead an army as a firefighting team, ready to fill in the fire at any time, but this request was flatly rejected by Pei Hongce. Without a military position, Chen Yingliang had no choice but to stay with Pei Hongce and continue to serve as Pei Hongce's staff because Chen Yingliang was afraid that the soldiers would not accept it.

At this time, the preparations for the rebels' siege were completed, and Yang Xuangan immediately ordered to launch the siege. Amid the sound of war drums, the first batch of 2,000 rebel soldiers marched out of the city. The school was divided into two waves, the first wave was five The schools kept a distance from each other. The four schools on the left and right were carrying temporary trench vehicles and pontoons, and the school in the middle was carrying a few giant logs. There are too many, so a fixed stone bridge is built on the moat, which is convenient for the residents of the city to cross the river, and it is also convenient for the rebels to cross the river directly.

As the rebel team slowly approached, the atmosphere on the city wall became more and more tense, including the coach Pei Hongce and Xie Zichong, they were all so nervous that they could hear their own heartbeats. Chen Yingliang also felt a little nervous at the beginning, but as the rebel army gradually approached, Chen Yingliang calmed down completely, as if he was born accustomed to such scenes, and began to calmly think about the various variables that might arise, and suggested to Pei Hongce: : "Uncle, our soldiers are too nervous. We must prevent them from shooting arrows indiscriminately. This will not only waste feathers and arrows, but also affect the morale of the army. We should issue an order not to listen to the sound of the drum and not to shoot arrows."

Pei Hongce, who admired Chen Yingliang's nephew very much, nodded, and immediately sent messengers to run around to pass the order, and at the same time arranged drummers to prepare. Chen Yingliang also suggested: "To be on the safe side, uncle should wait for the rebel team to approach within 80 steps, and then give the order to let go." Arrows, if the first round of arrow rain can be effective, it will greatly boost the morale of our army."

"Okay." Pei Hongce nodded again, and then ordered in a low voice: "Nephew, follow uncle closely. If you have any good ideas, tell me right away."

Chen Yingliang agreed, and continued to observe the movements of the rebels. As a result, Pei Hongce was able to listen to his persuasion. When the rebels approached the city wall for about a hundred steps, even though Pei Hongce was so nervous that his forehead was sweating, he still gritted his teeth and did not give the order to beat him. drum. The rebel general who led the attacking army was also very experienced, and immediately ordered a full-speed charge, asking the rebel team to raise their rough shields to protect the front chest, and rush through the position covered by the defenders' arrow rain at the fastest distance.

Some archers of the defending army couldn't bear such a huge psychological pressure, so they couldn't help but shoot their arrows first, but the arrows they shot were not only way too far, but also limp and powerless, and fell to the ground after only fifty or sixty steps. Chen Yingliang He cursed secretly that Huangfu Wuyi trained good soldiers, but he didn't have time to deal with those archers who violated the order and shot arrows.

"Uncle, it's time to shoot arrows!" When the rebel vanguard rushed within eighty steps, Chen Yingliang immediately pulled Pei Hongce's sleeve, and Pei Hongce, who was sweating profusely from nervousness, came back to his senses and shouted: "Let's beat!" Drums! Shoot the arrows!"

Dong dong dong dong, the war drums were beating fast, and the tense defending archers shot their arrows unevenly. Although because of the tension, many feather arrows were still weak and lost their accuracy, but the number of feather arrows that could not stand up was large. Ah, dozens of feathered arrows were shot into the rebel ranks, killing and wounding a dozen rebel soldiers, and one of the feathered arrows miraculously hit a rebel The lieutenant's face made him scream and fall down with blood on his face, causing confusion among the two hundred soldiers behind him.

"Shoot well! Shoot the arrows! Shoot the arrows! Keep shooting the arrows!" The harvest far exceeded my expectations. Pei Hongce was overjoyed and even forgot to be nervous. The defender's archers also had a great boost of confidence. They quickly drew their bows and set up their arrows and threw them out. The strength and accuracy of the arrows shot had improved significantly.

"Huh?" At the same time, Yang Xuangan and Wang Bozhong, who were watching the battle from a distance, couldn't help being surprised. They didn't expect that the defeated Pei Hongce could be so calm, and he calmly made the first round of arrow rain. It will pay off.

After all, the morale of the rebel army was high, and even under the threat of arrow rain on the city, they still risked their lives and rushed to the edge of the moat, jumped into the river to build a pontoon bridge, and the rebel soldiers from the middle school rushed directly to the moat holding their shields. He Shiqiao, carrying a giant log, ready to hit the city gate. The defenders' archers tried their best to stop them with arrows, but the distance was far and the arrow skills were mediocre, so the effect was not great.

Chen Yingliang wasn't worried at all about the first wave of the five school rebels attacking the city. Given that the defenders had enough supplies to defend the city, they could break through the gate of Luoyang with just a few rotten logs. Then the defenders should all hang themselves Sorry, Chen Yingliang paid attention to the thousand rebels hiding in the distance. Not only did they have climbing ladders in their team, but they also had better equipment. They were probably the main soldiers in the rebel team. Chen Yingliang was very worried. If one of the main fighters of the rebel army can rush to the city wall, then with the weak melee ability and low morale of the defenders, it is likely to lead to unpredictable consequences.

The bow and arrow coverage is still going on, but the effect is still not great. The rebel soldiers quickly built a pontoon bridge against the rain of arrows, and built a bridge across the river with the only two trench cars on their backs. Occasionally, several rebel soldiers who were shot by arrows screamed Falling into the moat, but compared to the expensive feather arrows fired by the defenders' archers, the benefit ratio is still extremely low.

On the other hand, the side of the city gate has gained a lot. Chen Yingliang suggested the first day that the four yakshas arranged here played a huge role. The rebel soldiers caused a ramming log to fall to the ground, and at the same time, the sheep's head stones kept falling down also caused a lot of damage to the rebel soldiers. A dozen rebel soldiers quickly died in front of the door, which also led to the ramming of the city behind. Wood dare not approach the city gate.

Six of the eight pontoon bridges carried by the rebels were successfully built, and two trench cars also successfully built a more stable bridge across the river. General Yang Wanshuo, Hu Yalang, the younger brother of Yang Xuangan, who commanded the first wave of siege, made a decisive decision and immediately ordered the following The five schools launched a charge, and the defenders of Shangchunmen also ushered in the most dangerous test of anti-ant attachment in the battle of defending the city.

The ensuing battle was even more brutal. The high-morale rebel soldiers galloped forward carrying the flying ladders, rushing across the moat against the rain of arrows, and hurriedly built the flying ladders that hadn't even been scraped off the bark. Go up the wall, then howl and climb up the ladder. And at this point, Chen Yingliang's accumulated military knowledge and bad taste have completely lost their effect, and everything can only depend on the performance of the defenders under Pei Hongce and Xie Zichong's command.

To Chen Yingliang's relief, although the morale of the defenders was not high enough, the four-foot-eight-foot, or more than fourteen-meter-high city wall of the Eastern Capital was still a great help to the defenders, and it also created a huge blow to the rebel ants. Difficult, no matter how good the climbing skills are, it is impossible for the rebel soldiers to climb up to a height of 14 meters in the blink of an eye. During their upward climb, the defenders have Enough time to throw several sheep's head stones and lime bottles at them. The condescending distance at such a close distance naturally greatly increases the accuracy, but the rebel soldiers are difficult to avoid on the narrow flying ladder. Soon they were hit by sheep's head stones and injured, screamed and fell down the ladder, fell to death on the spot and were seriously injured. Although they rushed fiercely and their morale was high enough, it was basically useless.

At the same time, Xie Zichong, Pei Hongce's military deputy, also proved that he did not ascend to the high position of Huya Lang just by flattery and flattery. Several flying ladders were knocked over, and the rebel soldiers on the flying ladders turned back upside down with the ladders, and fell into the moat, fell to death and injured quite a few.

It was not without danger. At least one flying ladder was not knocked over, and the rebel soldiers on the ladder were not knocked down. The rebel soldiers who climbed on the ladder once climbed to a position flush with the city wall. Seeing this, Chen Yingliang was so anxious that he drew his knife and rushed upwards. Two spears were thrown out in time, and one spear directly pierced the eye of the first ascending rebel, killing him on the spot. He was not allowed to step up the city wall, and then the other defenders rushed up under the persecution of the general and the superintendent, and smashed down the remaining rebel soldiers on the ladder with stones and ash bottles. Only then did Chen Yingliang, who had no melee combat ability, heaved a sigh of relief.

Yang Xuangan's siege was obviously insufficiently prepared. There were only two trench cars that could cross the river, eight pontoon bridges, and only fifty or sixty ones that could climb the flying ladder. They are all pitifully small, these are destined to make Yang Xuangan's siege impossible, and the rebel soldiers who are attached to the siege are helpless in front of the defenders who occupy an absolute advantage. But there is nowhere to vent the anger. They can only put the rough flying ladder back on the city wall again and again in vain, charging upwards like moths to the flame, but what they get in return are stone gray bottles like raindrops and hailstones, and occasionally falling Huge trees and piercing boulders were smashed to death and injured countless times, with heavy casualties but no progress.

Seeing this scene, the defenders, who were so nervous that they couldn't even draw their bows before, gradually calmed down, and they were able to draw their bows and shoot arrows as calmly as in usual training, and the panic situation gradually improved. Relying on the command of the superiors, one can choose the strategy to fight against the enemy. In short, the level of actual combat is rising, and everything is developing in a stable and orderly direction.

On the contrary, the morale was once extremely high, and he firmly believed that he could easily rush to the city wall, and drove away the rebel soldiers who slaughtered the defenders like ducks, and the morale was dropping. For the first time, there was a phenomenon of fleeing backwards. The ramming team that Yang Xuangan had placed high hopes on before was even more miserable. The four thick ramming logs that were carried across the river basically failed to hit the city gate a few times, and were smashed continuously by the city wall. The falling stone was smashed to the ground by a big wooden Yaksha, and the rebel soldiers who carried the wood to hit the door suffered heavy casualties. In the end, none of the rebel soldiers dared to lift the wood to hit the front of the wood. harm.

Seeing this scene, he has completely calmed down. Pei Hongce laughed loudly, patted Chen Yingliang on the shoulder and said with a smile: "My nephew is really smart. It is expected that the rebel team will not have enough weapons to attack the city. I suggest that uncle Installing the Yaksha on the top of the city gate, it really has a miraculous effect!"

"Uncle, thank you." Chen Yingliang hurriedly said modestly, "Actually, the uncle who deserves the most credit for this point, if it wasn't for the uncle's trust in the nephew who has never been on the battlefield, he was able to change the position of the Yasha ring from the ruthless admonition, the nephew would be Even the best advice is useless."

"Haha, you still know how to talk! If you have any good ideas in the future, just tell uncle, as long as uncle thinks it makes sense, he will definitely adopt it! You boy, genius! Genius!"

Contrary to the pair of uncles and nephews who were in a panic, at the same time, in the rebel army, the rebel coach Yang Xuangan was already furious. If Li Mi and Wang Bozhong hadn't stopped him deadly, Yang Xuangan would have sent troops to join the attack. Li Mi desperately grabbed Yang Xuangan, who was eager for revenge, and said earnestly: "Duke Chu, we can no longer invest in troops. Our siege weapons are seriously insufficient. Sending more troops is useless, and it will only increase unnecessary casualties." !Under the current circumstances, we absolutely cannot afford a defeat where we lose more than a thousand people!"

"Then tell me, how can we break through this Luoyang City now?" Yang Xuangan asked roaringly.

"Duke Chu, it's hard for a clever woman to cook without rice!" Li Mi replied with a wry smile, "I still say the same thing, if Duke Chu wants to attack this Luoyang city, he should attack Jinyong City first and force Fan Zigai to send troops to rescue, old man If we send troops, we will have the opportunity to fight in the field. Without sending troops, Yongjin City is isolated and helpless, and the fortifications and defenders in the city are far less than Luoyang City. We have great confidence in taking Jinyong City. If we build heavy siege weapons, we can have a lot of confidence in attacking this city of Luoyang."

Although he understood that the tactic Li Mi said was the right way, Yang Xuangan still refused to be reconciled. He looked at the Shangchun Gate in the distance where the fierce battle was in full swing, and touched his right ear wrapped in cloth. Yang Xuangan still shouted and ordered: " Go and send an order to Yang Wanshuo, continue to attack the city, and the first person to climb the city will be rewarded with a thousand gold! As long as I have one soldier on the city wall, as long as one soldier climbs on the city wall, we have the hope of breaking the city today!"

Yang Xuangan's hope does exist. With the morale and fighting spirit of the rebel soldiers, as long as one soldier can charge up the city wall, there is a high degree of confidence that he will persist until the follow-up companions rush up the city wall in an endless stream, and then seize a piece of the city wall position and win the ants. With the hope of breaking the city.

But this is also a hope that is doomed to shatter. Under repeated impacts and tramples, the crude siege ladders of the rebel army began to be damaged one after another. One after another, they were broken and broken, and one after another, they could not be used again. , the ant attachment tools that the rebel soldiers can use are becoming less and less, and the casualties continue to expand. The defenders who occupy the geographical advantage are fighting more and more easily, and the more they fight, the more confident they are, and the sufficient defensive weapons are becoming more and more powerful. power.

Finally, when only a dozen or so of the sixty flying ladders that had been hurriedly built were left, and the corpses of rebel soldiers were also lying on the upper and lower gates, Yang Xuangan finally had no choice but to issue the Mingjin order and accepted his own decision after raising troops. The first defeat, and because of Yang Xuangan's reluctance to give up, he issued the Mingjin order more than half an hour late, and the rebel soldiers paid the casualty price of no less than two hundred lives, which increased the number of soldiers lost in this siege battle by nearly Doubled, in vain, ended the previous offensive, and morale and fighting spirit were all frustrated.