Although it was separated by a canal, the chilling aura seemed to be enough to overwhelm people. In the red area on the other side of the canal, the defenders nervously guarded the bridge, and the horses were piled up at the end of the bridge.
Both sides seemed to be waiting for something, and everyone knew that once the order came, it would be an unavoidable fight.
The air at night was full of savage smells, and the metal was cold, as if the nose could smell it. At the two ends of such a jumping beam, at least more than 2,000 soldiers had gathered, but at the moment there was no sound, no sound at all.
In contrast, the defenders in the red zone were even more nervous, and the city guards on the other side were still mobilizing. In the dark night, the sounds of soldiers running and horseshoes could be heard faintly in the distance. They rushed over here. On the opposite side of the canal, many buildings had already been occupied by the city guards. On the heights, in the dark night, the archers who were ready to fight were vaguely visible.
At this moment, the air seems to have frozen!
The moonlight fell hazy and sprinkled on the city. The moonlight on the water was as cold as the shields in the hands of the soldiers. It seemed that the only thing I could hear at the moment was the squeaking sound of the bowstring being stretched for too long. .
Finally, from the end of the bridge in the red area on the other side, a low shout came, and then the running defenders moved the horses on the bridge away, the wheels rolled, and the two carriages slowly came out.
The rolling of the wheels made a creaking sound, as if the axles that had not been oiled for a long time were about to rust to death. Along the way, the sound was like an old man's panting. The horses pulling the carts were full of mud and heavy hoofs.
In the atmosphere where the two sides were almost on the verge of breaking out, the two carriages slowly drove to the other side, only to be stopped by the city guards under the aim of at least twenty crossbow arrows around them.
Several city guards stepped forward to check nervously, and then heaved a sigh of relief.
"It's a water truck that delivers water." After a soldier checked the huge buckets in the carriage, he rolled over and jumped down, and looked at the officer: "Two hours ago, these two vehicles went in to deliver water, We have searched."
The leading officer hesitated.
Under the strict order above, the red zone has been surrounded for a few days, but because the last order has not been issued, the city guards have only carried out a blockade in the past few days, and vehicles for the delivery of food, vegetables and drinking water are still allowed every day. Entry and exit, but they have all undergone strict inspections. Even the firewood sent will be stabbed by soldiers with spears.
The soldiers on the carriage have opened each bucket, and it is empty, except for layers of rust left on the iron sheet on the bucket wall.
The officer hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "Let's go."
After all... the order for the final attack has not been given. Even many officers and soldiers of the City Guard are hesitating in their hearts—perhaps, at the last moment, His Majesty will change his mind.
Everyone knows that the red zone is the last bottom line! Once this bottom line is crossed, it is the final declaration of war and a break.
"Let go!"
The soldiers shouted nervously, and then the line of the city guards separated, and a passage was made in the thick shield wall, allowing the broken old carriage to pass slowly.
The leading officer watched the car pass by slowly, and suddenly felt a little inappropriate in his heart. He suddenly grabbed the subordinate beside him: "Bring over today's record!"
He quickly flipped through the records of the entry and exit on the bridge today: "How many times is this the first time this day?"
"Six times." The soldier under his command replied, "Three times were for food, one was for firewood and coal, and the other was for water. There were 33 vehicles in and out. The final vehicle numbers are the same, and the carriages have been inspected, and there is no entrainment or suspicious things."
The officer breathed a sigh of relief, he shook his head with a wry smile, it seemed that he was too nervous. This damn situation is making people almost crazy!
When will such a blockade end
※※※
Spahn turned the intersection with a group of cavalry and galloped towards the canal. The commander-in-chief of the City Guard Army had a gloomy expression on his face at the moment, and the heavy feeling in his heart almost overwhelmed him.
The chest is so tight... It seems that it is going to rain today
The placket inside his breastplate was soaked with sweat, and in his breastplate, there was also a handwritten order from Emperor Cantos!
At this moment, General Spahn suddenly had a sense of historical mission in his heart!
He knew very well that the order he carried out might be... No, not maybe, but soon! About to change the fate of this empire! !
"The one who tolls the death knell..." Spahn rode on his horse, suddenly having a sense of tragic absurdity: "A hundred years later, when future generations record history, will my name be left behind? I... Spahn, ring it with my own hands. To sound the death knell of this thousand-year-old empire?"
Thinking of this, the general's mood was a little low, but then he bit the tip of his tongue hard, kicked the horse's belly fiercely, and forced himself to cheer up.
After all... he's a soldier! He must carry out his orders!
Spahn's cavalry team turned the intersection, and the end of the street in front was the canal and bridge. On the other side, at intersection nine, they saw the two empty water trucks slowly approaching. The two sides met head-on at the intersection. After ten steps, the two water trucks turned around and walked slowly towards the other direction of the intersection.
Spahn subconsciously slowed down the speed of the horse's running. Probably the crunching sound of the rusty wheels broke his thoughts. The general naturally raised his head and glanced at the two water trucks.
The cavalry behind him stopped.
On the street, there was only the sound of the crunching wheels, and the horses pulling the cart, trampling on the bluestone paved street, making a heavy "da-da" sound.
Suddenly, Spahn felt a little envious of those two water trucks... Because at this time, they were lucky enough to leave the place where the fire was about to be ignited!
The sound of hooves coming from afar, combined with the sound of the heavy wheels, Spahn was a little dazed, and a faint strangeness flashed in his heart. He frowned, then shook his head, and then reined in his horse again. He walked slowly to the canal.
Spahn came to the canal, turned over and dismounted, and immediately summoned the officers here. After listening to the officer's report, Spahn nodded.
Everything seems to be okay.
There was no change in the red zone. The defenders inside were just closely guarding the canal coast, which was an expected situation.
(Perhaps, neither they nor I... did not expect His Majesty to be so mad.)
Spahn is very clear that although there are a thousand elite defenders in the red zone, and according to the information obtained in the past, the elite level of these thousand defenders far exceeds his own city guards, whether it is the opponent's weapons and armor. Equipment is the quality of individual soldiers.
However, after all, they are trapped in an area. In the Imperial City, their own city guards have an absolute superiority in strength.
If it is just to capture the red zone... then this task does not seem to be too difficult at all.
But standing on the bridge and looking at the "red zone" on the other side, why does the feeling of oppression and unease in my heart become stronger and stronger
Are you afraid? Afraid of the impending doomsday chaos of the impending collapse of the empire after the capture of the red zone
It doesn't seem like...
Hmph, no matter how many, let's capture this place first! Even if this empire is to perish in the end, the heads of those warlords and partisans in El Salvador must be cut off first! Even if the general is going to die, it is not in vain that the sword must be stained with the blood of those enemies!
Spahn slowly pulled out his sword and whispered, "Line up!"
Hearing this order, the officers under him were stunned for a moment, then stared at General Spahn with wide eyes: "Sir, could it be..."
Spahn looked at his subordinates complicatedly: "Execute the order... Queue!"
Seeing his subordinates executing the order silently, watching the soldiers in full armor around him, the spears like the forest, the shields like the wall, all emitting a cold light in the moonlight, Span's mouth was bitter: At this time, if How good is it to be able to leave
leave…
Si Pan took two steps, raised his long sword, and was about to say a few words of mobilization, when suddenly, the thought in his mind expanded infinitely, faintly, he just saw that scene on the way, and it fell into his heart, getting deeper and deeper!
In an instant, Spahn's expression changed suddenly! !
He had just come all the way, and his heart was full of weirdness and unease, but when he passed the last street intersection, the uneasiness suddenly increased several times. ! !
That... hooves! !
The sound of hooves pulling the waterwheel! ! !
In the darkness of the night, on the long street, mixed with the rolling wheels, the sound of hooves! !
In a split second, General Spahn realized where his unease came from!
The sound of hooves is definitely not what an ordinary horse pulling a cart should have! !
The powerful and short sound of hooves represents the majesty and full power of the horse! And the clack of the clack on the ground - only a thick shoe nailed to a horse's shoe can make such a sound! Moreover, Spahn is an experienced veteran after all, he knows it very well! Only a new shoe that has just been nailed, a shoe with a good texture, can make the sound so clear! !
The kind of horse that is used to pull the carriage, obviously there is no need to nail the kind of brand-new horseshoes!
Even in the cavalry unit, only before the large-scale war of the cavalry, the best shoes are nailed to the horses to maintain the mobility of the horses for long-distance marching!
After thinking about this section, Span suddenly changed color. He was already standing at the front of the queue, but suddenly he rushed over like crazy, grabbed his subordinates, and shouted: "The record of entry and exit! What about the entry and exit records!!"
The subordinate officers were a little stunned by Span's gaffe, and stammered the answer, and Span suddenly broke into a cold sweat!
"Bastard!! You idiots!"
Spahn shouted: "The cavalry mounts! Quick!! Salvador is running!!"
"General, general..." His subordinates were still in a daze, and Spahn had already whipped his whip in anger, shouting angrily: "What a fool! Those horses that pull the cart are all good warhorses! The best horseshoes are nailed! They have already I'm running away!!"
Before waiting for his subordinates to react, Spahn had already rushed to the side of the cavalry queue, mounted his horse and shouted: "The cavalry team follow me! Catch up with those transport carriages!! Quick!!"
But at this moment, suddenly, across the bridge, in the red zone, there was a loud horn sound!
In the dark night, the defenders on the other side launched several ballistas that were ready. The bolts had already been tied with greased leather. After raising the torches to set the bolts on fire, in a whistling sound, several The rockets shot towards the opposite bank!
The powerful penetrating crossbow arrow roared, and immediately shot a house next to the bridge in the opposite direction! With a bang, the top of a house collapsed on the spot, and the lime shards flew everywhere, caught in the exclamation of the archers hiding on the roof.
Several volleys of crossbow arrows immediately shattered the formation of the city guards at the end of the bridge, and more than a dozen soldiers were directly shot through by the strong crossbow arrows on the spot, and screams rang out.
In a fit of rage, Spahn was hugged by the side of his subordinate and rolled to the ground. Only then did he dodge a crossbow bolt on his head, but the officer who pushed him down had his head cut off by a flying crossbow bolt on the spot. Lost!
Spahn's face was covered in blood, and as soon as he turned over and jumped up, there was a scream of killing from the red zone on the other side!
A group of cavalry rushed out directly from the opposite side of the bridge, the horses hooves trampled on the bridge, the soldiers on the horse waved their long knives and shouted loudly, and a large number of infantrymen with red belts on their bodies rushed out!
"Meet the enemy! Meet the enemy!! The enemy has broken through!! Archers!! Block the bridge deck!!"
Spahn swung his sword and roared hard! His loud voice oscillated in the dark night, and he suddenly became the backbone of the soldiers of the city guards. The archers on both sides of the houses reacted from the sneak attack of the crossbow arrows just now, and the dense rain of arrows covered the bridge deck!
On the bridge in the dark night, the screams of cavalrymen turning over from arrows and falling from their horses and the screams of horses falling over could be heard from time to time.
But in the dense rain of arrows, many cavalrymen rushed out and rushed into the queue of the city guards. Spahn roared vigorously, his long sword had already ignited the light of vindictiveness, and in the roar, a sword slashed a cavalry man and horse in front of him, and the tiger roared in the blood rain: "Line up! Stop them!! Block them back!!"
After all, the city guards had an absolute advantage in numbers. The infantry lined up and blocked the bridge. Although the cavalry rushed over to the queue, they were only a few gaps forcibly opened, and soon more city guards The army was replenished, more and more cavalry fell off their horses and died under the chaos of the city guards' swords, not even the complete body was left behind!
The breakout infantrymen who rushed out from behind were intercepted by archers on the bridge and suffered heavy casualties. The number of people who rushed over the bridge was less than half. At this moment, the City Guards had completely stood their ground, and the officers sighed loudly. Under the shouts, the formation pressed forward step by step, and gradually it had already pressed the small half of the bridge!
Seeing that the situation was not good, more and more soldiers who broke through the siege ran back with a shout, while others threw their weapons and jumped into the ditch.
However, the battle here has already caused too much movement. The small boats arranged by the city guards have already rowed over the canal. On the river, the city guards in the boats waved their spears and jumped into the water to try to escape. The guys stabbed to death one by one, and a group of ready city guard soldiers took off their armor and bit their knives and jumped into the water.
Spahn had already rushed to the end of the team. He grabbed a lieutenant and shouted: "Here to you! Block the bridge and kill those bastards!"
He immediately turned on his warhorse and shouted: "The cavalry come with me! Damn it! El Salvador ran away!!"
※※※
General Spahn's judgment was not wrong, but it was a little late.
El Salvador is indeed no longer in the red zone at the moment.
In the past few days of the blockade, although the city guards have surrounded the red zone, the cunning El Salvador has already arranged a plan for himself to escape.
In the past few days, because the emperor has not given orders, the city guards have only surrounded the red zone without attacking, and transport vehicles are still allowed in and out every day, although the transport vehicles have been checked.
And the problem lies in these trucks.
Whether it is food, drinking water, or firewood or coal, there is no problem with the transport vehicles that go in and out, but the problem lies in the horses!
For every empty cart that came out, the horses were changed! In the red zone, the horses with the best long-distance running endurance were replaced, and they were all nailed with first-class horseshoes.
And every time you go in and come out, the driver who pulls the cart is replaced by the most elite warrior in the red zone!
Although the soldiers of the city guards strictly inspected the carriages, they did not pay attention to the horses pulling the carriages. Originally, these excellent war horses were deliberately painted with a lot of dirt marks - in order to confuse the public, these high-quality war horses, never trimmed their manes, looked sloppy and dirty. Even the driver pulling the cart is covered in smudges, and not many people will pay attention to these coolie mud legs.
For several days in a row, more than 30 vehicles per day, so quietly changing the day, at least more than 100 elite cavalry have been quietly replaced from the red zone!
At this moment, the one who stayed in the red zone was the old subordinate that El Salvador said he would follow for decades. His only task was to lead the remaining defenders in the red zone to make a desperate breakout, and try to make the biggest noise. to attract the attention of the city guards.
This strategy is almost a success!
When the battle was fierce at the canal, the last two water trucks quickly lost their carriages in the alley after they drove through the intersection!
The more than 100 riders who have quietly left the red zone for the past few days have already been hidden in more than 20 strongholds in the residential area near a block in the west of the city.
At this moment, when the fierce battle was going on in the canal, countless city guards heard the sound of the bugle, and they gathered in groups towards the red area. The boots of the cavalry were mixed with the sound of the hoofs of the cavalry.
Then, in a street in the west of the city, a hundred and ten cavalry gathered quietly. These cavalry all changed into the armor and standard equipment of the city guards. Go in the opposite direction... West Gate!
Among the ranks of this group of rebels, the one surrounded in the middle is El Salvador!
El Salvador had just arrived, hiding in the buckets of the last two cars. Those buckets are specially made, the height inside is shallower than the body of the bucket, and there is a hidden space at the bottom of the bucket. Although it is narrow, it can barely make a person curl up in the most tense posture.
El Salvador has been operating in the imperial capital for many years, and he has already started to arrange this strategy to escape at a critical moment many years ago. Those war horses that never cut their manes are prepared on weekdays. Even how to curl up in this special bucket with the most ingenious posture and save space, Salvador himself has deliberately practiced on weekdays!
More than 100 riders, crossing the streets and alleys, quickly headed towards the west gate! In the dark night, let the direction of the red zone behind him shout to kill the sky, but what is most gratifying to El Salvador is that ahead, the direction of the west city gate, is quiet as usual!
※※※
West Gate.
In the dark night, the torches on the city gate were as bright as day, and a black carriage pulled by four horses had slowly come under the city gate.
The window of the carriage was opened, and a clear and pleasant voice came out: "I want to see Lord Giuseppe." With that, a bright badge flashed quickly.
Soon, the officer guarding the west city gate ran out and stood beside the carriage. The officer named Giuseppe saw the badge and, by the light of the torch, saw the face in the carriage, and was shocked. Startled: "Little, miss..."
In the carriage, Daphne, who was wearing a cloak, smiled faintly and said in a low voice, "I want to send a friend out of town."
Although there was a strict order from the general of the city guard, Giuseppe, who was born in the Minas family, had no doubts, he took two steps back without hesitation, then turned around and shouted in a low voice: "Open the city gate!"
Although some of his subordinates raised questions, the officer just stared at him. Under his usual prestige, no one dared to question his orders.
Daphne in the carriage dismounted, and the coachman untied the two horses that were pulling the carriage.
Daphne glanced at the officer and said in a low voice, "I'm causing you trouble."
"It's my honor to work for Miss." Giuseppe nodded without hesitation.
Daphne immediately stood by the car window and said to the inside: "Be careful all the way... Go directly north, don't stop on the way... um... I... "
Half a poignant face appeared in the car window, and Adeline had tears in her eyes: "Daphne..."
"Come on..." Daphne sighed in a low voice.