There was wind in the air, and the thick smoke from the bombing site dissipated quickly, and soon only a thin layer of smoke and dust covered the area. Guo Shao was hundreds of steps behind, taking a general look. He saw that his personal soldiers kept coming back to report military information. He still didn't say much, but just nodded in response to the people who came to report.
Wang Pudao next to him said: The war will be a stalemate.
Guo Shao calmed down and looked back at the chaotic scene in the camp. He paid extra attention to the artillery formation and could not detect the panic atmosphere. Now most of the remaining artillery has been concentrated in the two siege points because most of them have been lost in the early stage.
There were still some problems with the Dragon Roar Cannon, which could not be tested in the experimental stage. During the test, because the caliber was large and the wall was thick, an iron ring was added to prevent the barrel from exploding, so the barrel was lengthened to increase the range; the direct problem was that the heat dissipation was not good and the service life was greatly reduced. In addition, the strength of the cast iron material at that time was not good. After multiple bombardments, the cast iron barrel cracked and was damaged. Before and after the Zhou army besieged the city, a total of more than 300 whistling cannons were successively mobilized. After more than ten days, there are now less than 100 left.
Most of the damaged cannons were caused by the cannon body breaking and deflation, and only a few of them exploded directly. There were many problems before, such as some stone shells were not strong enough and exploded in the cannon barrel.
The remaining dozens of artillery pieces were concentrated at the attack point; the continued bombardment before the attack was mainly to retest the range and find the data elevation angle and charge weight for hitting the city wall.
There was a gap in the collapsed city wall, with dense crowds of people crowded together in front. The crowds on both sides were moving in opposite directions, and were getting tighter and tighter in the middle. The place was also very narrow, so at this time, let alone both sides rushing forward, it would be difficult to clear the way even if they really wanted to.
There were fierce shouts, threats, and cries, as well as pleas for mercy and crying, but nothing worked. People were crammed there, unable to move forward or backward, and even turning around was difficult, let alone any fancy moves.
A Northern Han soldier had no weapons in his hands. He was squeezed in front of the Zhou army with empty hands, his eyes wide open and he was screaming. The Zhou soldiers held swords and shields, smashing the shields on his head and stabbing his armor with swords. The screams of despair and fear were so painful that people's ears hurt.
The Northern Han army died miserably, and they couldn't run away, and the front troops almost couldn't survive. The Northern Han army generals who placed the spearmen in the front obviously made a mistake. At this time, the two sides were so close and close that they were almost hugging each other. The long spears couldn't be used, which was equivalent to facing the Zhou army's close combat single swords and hook hammers unarmed; and the front troops of the Zhou army were heavy infantry wearing plate mail, with better armor protection, and obviously more able to withstand the situation than the enemy. No martial arts were useful, they could just stab and chop with weapons, and they could attack people, and at the same time they could only use their torsos to withstand the enemy's attacks.
The Zhou army on the slope gradually restored order, and a general shouted: "Throw down!"
The soldiers nearby at the back took their javelins and threw them upwards together, and it looked like reeds were flying in the air.
Below the ruins, Zhou's sharpshooters barely formed a line. One of the generals shouted: Get ready!
Groups of sharpshooters and archers drew their bows and arrows, each with a tense and solemn expression, and pulled the arrowheads diagonally upwards. At this time, they heard a loud bang from the bronze gong, and everyone released their arrows. At this time, people did not need to aim, as long as the direction and angle were roughly right.
A large number of black arrows flew densely into the air.
The archers ignored everything. Some of them had found their memories of countless volley training and gradually adjusted their breathing rhythm. This was indeed a battle on the front line, but people were not fighting with a strong force. They were just doing repetitive physical labor. They only needed to follow the generals' instructions to release the arrows according to their usual familiar steps. Maintaining physical endurance was the most important thing, because drawing a bow required a lot of strength, and every time an arrow was released, a lot of physical strength was consumed.
There were also enemy arrows flying over their heads, but the Zhou army soldiers' iron helmets had brims and leather ear guards, and their shoulders and chests were plate armor, which provided them with a high level of defense against the projectile arrows that fell mainly by weight. They were difficult to be shot and killed, and at most they were injured. Without much of a threat, there was no way to put pressure on them.
What worries people the most is the crossbows flying obliquely from the city walls. The arrows are as thick as arms, heavy and powerful, and can shoot two hundred steps away. Armor cannot block them at all. No matter if you are wearing armor or not, you will be killed by them at such a close distance. Once you are hit, you will either die or be injured.
Although the crossbow was as big as a bed, it was very troublesome to fire, requiring many people, and the arrows were sparse and slow, and one shot could only kill one person, but once there was a threat, it would cause great psychological pressure. It was like standing under a building, and occasionally rocks would fall from it, making the crowd feel dangerous, and panic would occur, even if the casualties were small. Fortunately, the Tiger Guards were elite, and they showed the organizational ability that only the army had in this matter. Under the screams and the threat of death, people were nervously pulling their bows and shooting arrows.
The Zhou army gained the upper hand in the front line and continued to advance, but the speed was very slow. There were corpses everywhere on the ground, and the blood soaked the soil. People stepped on the dirt hills and there was mud under their feet, just like trudging in the mud on a rainy day.
At this moment, someone suddenly felt a chill and looked up, only to see some Northern Han soldiers holding wooden barrels and pouring down wooden barrels filled with flaming oil on the edge of the nearly four-foot-high broken wall. The Northern Han soldiers were probably anxious at this time, and they desperately threw flaming oil, tung oil, and even the smell of sesame oil in the air into the gap.
The Zhou army officers and soldiers realized something at once, and the crowd began to panic. They forgot to fight, and for a moment they could not squeeze out. The crowd was noisy and the shouting suddenly became louder. Even the soldiers of the Northern Han army panicked. Both sides stopped fighting and there was panic and turmoil. Many people were squeezed to the ground and trampled on like corpses.
A young Zhou army soldier opened his eyes wide and looked at the broken wall with a somewhat empty look. Tears rolled down his face, staining it with blood as if blood and tears were flowing together.
At this time, there was no passion in front of us, only fear and despair. Someone was shouting: Mother, mother
Suddenly, a fire rolled down from above. Everyone watched the flames emitting black smoke, which drew a black smoke tail in the air. That moment seemed like a lifetime, and time seemed to have traveled through countless years.
Bomb all kinds of oil and catch fire
There was a huge fire and black smoke billowing from the ruins of the gap. The Northern Han army had poured too much oil down. Soldiers from both sides were screaming and struggling in the blood and fire. Human figures on fire were rolling down from above. The flames were like magma being burned by the burning people and splashed around. Ghosts were crying and howling above, it was a horrible sight.
Guo Shao and others looked at the fire and black smoke in the distance. His hands tightly grasped the hilt of the sword, and his finger bones turned white.
A general said hurriedly: I think the central army should quickly order the front army to retreat.
Wang Zhang, the commander of the Sixth Army, said to Guo Shao gritted his teeth at the front line. He remembered this general who had overcome the fatigue of the soldiers and successfully set up an ambush overnight during the Qin-Feng battle. He was a general who had experienced hundreds of battles and had a strong will. He could make decisive decisions under any military situation. Guo Shao trusted him. The duties of each army had been deployed. Only by letting Wang Zhang in the front give orders could it be timely.
Sure enough, the troops in the front immediately retreated and signaled with flags, and the messengers came back on horseback.
Wang Zhang sat on his horse, looking at the situation ahead, and said coldly: "First Commander, withdraw from the battlefield immediately and retreat to rest. Second Commander, advance to the 50-step flag."
The military commander immediately said: According to the arrangement of the central army, our troops will fire as soon as they retreat. The second commander will approach fifty steps.
Humph. Wang Zhang glared at him angrily and said nothing.
The troops in front of them retreated in a scattered manner as if they had been defeated. In fact, most of them did not directly engage the enemy, but after a hard battle, the retreat was inevitably disorderly. People were busy running around like refugees, carrying wounded soldiers on their backs.
Wang Zhang personally rode his horse to within fifty steps of the city wall, ignoring the arrows and cannonballs that flew from time to time, and rode in front of a new group of neatly-formed soldiers for a while. The commander came forward and said, "As soon as the cannonballs stop, arrange a squadron with short weapons on horseback to lead the way, and the rest of the infantry will follow."
The commander clasped his fists and said:
Wang Zhang looked around: "To serve the country and die on the battlefield is our destiny. If you are afraid of death, then join the army."
The soldiers stared with wide eyes at the flames ahead and the piles of corpses on the hill, waiting nervously.
Wang Zhang said: "We have already lost many of our brothers tragically. If we don't take revenge, we will not be men. We will charge into Jinyang and let those villains pay with their lives."
Everyone shouted angrily: Revenge, revenge!
After a while, a huge chorus of wailing horns was heard from the back, as if it was the prelude to some urgent melody.
After a while, a loud bang tore through the sky. The first row of red flags more than 400 steps away from the city fell forward. A moment later, a thunderous roar shook the earth. A row of dazzling flames shot up into the sky, raging in the air, and white smoke rose up. Round stones flew rapidly into the sky.
The cannon body rushed backwards violently. If it had not been compacted with earthbags and fixed with piles, the cannon would have almost jumped up due to the vibration.
As soon as the cannon fire passed, the flags in the second row also fell. A general shouted in a hoarse voice: Second Capital, fire!
The gong sounded clanging, and a row of artillery fire started to blast again at irregular intervals.
On the distant city walls, rocks and dirt were flying, dust was rising, and they were suffering from intensive artillery bombardment from the Zhou army in batches.