In early September, the weather was getting colder and colder, and Xu Jun’s artillery had not fired for several days.
The evening was like morning to Zhang Da and the others. There was a flurry of activity in the barracks. Everyone washed and dressed, and tried to change into clean linings if they had time to wash and dry them. There was a rule that if you wear a clean lining, it would be less likely to fester if you got hurt; but the soldiers had been stuck here for too long, and they had been on duty for too long, so they were exhausted, and many of them didn't wash their clothes anymore.
Everyone helped each other. Zhang Da put on a four-piece suit of board leather weighing 20 to 30 kilograms, picked up the musket, cleaned the iron pipe again, checked the complicated firearm accessories, and then took off the rapier and hung it on his belt. He had to do this job every day and was quite skilled.
Everyone went to the open space in the fort to check in, and then lined up to climb the wall.
The sound of orderly footsteps was mixed with the clanking of armor and the occasional explosion of muskets. Someone coughed occasionally, but no one spoke. The last rays of the setting sun sprinkled on the earth. Zhang Da looked up and saw a group of iron helmets shaking.
Sometimes, Zhang Da seemed to have turned into a wooden beam or a piece of rammed earth in the hole, because he had to stand in the same place every day.
As the sun set, the sound of gunfire from both sides never ceased. The Japanese trench below had come within a few dozen steps. They had built thick wooden boards in front and behind the trench, which provided good protection against the lead bullets from long-range muskets. Unfortunately, Xu's army had very little artillery ammunition left, so they had to keep the last reserve to deal with the more threatening ladders, otherwise a round of artillery salvos would blow those things into slag.
However, the thick planks could not completely protect the Japanese army, so there were few people in the trench during the day. The trench faced the corner wall on Zhang Da's side, but it was facing the other corner wall. The oblique shooting from the wall could completely threaten the enemy soldiers in the trench; even the bottom of the corner wall was completely facing the vertical direction of the trench, and all the enemy soldiers in the trench were exposed at that angle. The Japanese army had no choice. No matter how they built it, there was always a corner wall that could threaten them.
But things are different after nightfall.
The sky was clear during the day, but very dim at night, the moonlight was unclear at the beginning of the month, and there were clouds.
Bang! A rocket exploded in the air like a firework, and the night was flashing. The soldiers of Xu's army on the wall took advantage of the brighter light and stared at the ditch under the city with wide eyes.
There were no soldiers of the Xu army outside the fort, and there was no need to send out scouts, because the Japanese army had dug fortifications within a few dozen steps.
The flash quickly dimmed and disappeared into the darkness.
After a long period of silence and darkness, Xu Jun's flares were fired less and less frequently. He fired countless rockets every night, and his rockets were almost used up. In addition to the shortage of ammunition, there was also little fuel left.
During the long gaps, people could only remain alert and silent, listening with their ears and searching for clues in the darkness with their eyes.
Not long after, there was another explosion in the sky. Zhang Da looked at it with wide eyes. His heart suddenly tightened. The trench was full of hunched-over people, and there were only a few people standing outside the trench even on the wooden ladder. The sudden bright light startled the Japanese soldiers, and many of them looked up at the sky.
Bang, bang, bang! The muskets on the wall immediately rang out, and rows of flashes were dazzling.
Zhang Da also picked up his musket and stretched out to the parapet, took a general aim, and when he heard the gong, he fired a shot and quickly hid behind the parapet. Sure enough, there was a whizzing sound from the parapet, and arrows flew towards the bright light.
Yu Liang blew the whistle in the earth cave, Zhang Da turned around and left, and the other three soldiers came up with firearms.
Suddenly there was a scream, and the soldier who had just passed by in the darkness cried out in pain.
The sound of killing was deafening, and there were crazy shouts coming from the wall. Yu Liang shouted: "The fire oil tank is next to the wall. Throw it when you see a ladder."
But once the flaming oil is used up, you can only use stones or risk your life to lift the ladder.
The difficult night was finally over, and from time to time, wounded soldiers were carried down the city wall with painful groans. The soldiers dragged their tired bodies and breathed a sigh of relief at the pale east sky; the light of the morning sun seemed to be able to dispel the ghostly Japanese army.
Everyone was waiting for another group of soldiers to come up to take over.
However, Commander Zhang went to the top of the wall first. He looked at the ladder being built in the camp in the distance and said loudly with full energy: "We have joined the army to serve our country, and it is only natural that we will die on the battlefield. This fort is where I will be buried. At this critical moment of life and death, I hope you will work hard to kill the enemy and abide by the righteousness."
Commander Zhang shouted again: Long live Daxu!
But his shout was lonely on this earthen fort. The fortress full of tired soldiers seemed like an empty wilderness.
The breath of death inevitably enveloped the entire Iwami Castle. The ammunition and military supplies were running out, and the Japanese army was building ladders. Without artillery and heavy weapons, the ladders could easily reach the fortress. Liuhua Castle, which had lost its firepower, was more fragile than ordinary cities in the Central Plains. The walls of ordinary cities were at least higher. The last desperate attack might not last too long. Zhang Jiankui believed that Iwami Castle would not be able to hold out for another half a month.
After boosting morale, Zhang Jiankui returned to the command office. It was just dawn, and only Zan Jurun was in the signing room.
The two looked at each other. The situation was right in front of them, and they knew it all. There was no need to say anything more.
Zan Jurun said in a deep voice: To be honest, I kind of regret coming here. I am the Vice Minister of Six Ministries. If I didn’t want to come, the government wouldn’t have sent me.
Zhang Jiankui was a little surprised after hearing this. As a minister of the imperial court, he shouldn't have said such a thing. But now it was clear that there was no hope for life. It seemed that it didn't matter if he said it, he would die anyway.
Zhang Jiankui looked very bad, as he had not slept well for many days. He said casually: I thought Minister Zan was a man of great righteousness and was not afraid of death.
Zan Jurun shook his head and smiled bitterly: Commander Zhang, you know what the rich and powerful care about most is peace and tranquility. I did not expect this battle to turn out like this at first. This is the most miserable battle I have ever seen.
Zhang Jiankui suddenly whispered: Minister Zan, do you think you want to surrender
Zan Jurun said without hesitation: Rather than losing my chastity, I would rather die.
He added: "Starting today, we will start smashing some of the cannons. When the iron bullets are used up, the Japanese army will not be able to hold on for long. Commander Zhang must give the order to stuff the remaining gunpowder into the barrels to blow up all the cannons."
After hearing this, Zhang Jiankui clasped his fists and said: I will follow Minister Zan’s orders.
Zan Jurun responded by saying: "I am a civil official and cannot die on the battlefield with the generals. On the day the city is captured, I will commit suicide in the government office and leave."
Not only Xu Jun was suffering, Ono Yoshifuru also felt bad. He had already paid no less than ten times the casualties of Xu Jun and the siege had been time-consuming and unsuccessful.
But after fighting this far, the Battle of Iwami Castle is finally coming to an end. It's not a joyous victory, but it finally brings a little comfort.
The strategy we decided on is still effective, Ono Yoshifuru said tiredly.
Yang Gun nodded and said: So far, I haven’t thought of a better way.
Ono Yoshifuru looked at the towering ladder and said: Just one final blow is left.
Yang Gun said: I'm afraid not. After all these days, I think the military and civil affairs in Xu Junbao are quite organized, and there may be a small amount of artillery ammunition left. The fierce fire oil can also destroy the ladders close to the city wall, and water cannot extinguish the fierce fire oil.
Ono Yoshifuru nodded, but no matter what, Xu Jun’s artillery could not always have ammunition. Since the ladder was destroyed, they had to continue to build it.
Yang Gun said in a deep voice: The closer we get to the last few steps, the less anxious we should be and we should walk steadily.
At this time, a man hurried into the central army tent and bowed, saying: Ono-kun, I just received an urgent report. A large fleet of Xu army ships was discovered on Tsushima Island, at least more than a hundred ships.
Ah, Ono Haogu couldn't help but turn pale.
Yang Gun frowned and said: Where did the Xu people get so many sea vessels? Are they going to use the river navy to make up the numbers
Ono Yoshifuru quickly calmed down and said thoughtfully: It is possible that we bought ships from Goryeo. The Goryeo people’s ships are not well built, but it is still easy to reach Tsushima Island.
The visitor said: Heian-kyō has gathered thousands of warships from northern Kyushu and Shikoku to fight.
Ono Yoshifuru looked at the smoky and crumbling earthen fort with mixed emotions, then looked at the towering ladders in the camp, and said: There is still a chance. His face flushed. Maybe this is also an opportunity to besiege Iwami Castle and force more troops of Xu's army to fight a naval battle. Our country is surrounded by the sea and is good at naval battles. Our military strength is several times that of Xu's army, so we have a great chance of winning.
Yang Gun also felt that Ono Yoshifuru made sense. Although the Liao navy was worse, the Central Plains was not much better. The best at naval warfare should be the former Southern Tang. At that time, the Southern Tang sent ships to bypass the Central Plains and contact Youzhou by sea. Twice in a row, the ships were blown over by the wind and failed to reach Youzhou.
This incident at least proves that the Central Plains had no military power at sea, otherwise they could have intercepted the Nan Tang ships carrying flaming oil. When the Nan Tang was facing the threat of extinction, the ships they sent must have been carefully selected, but they were still blown over. This shows that the Nan Tang was only good at maneuvering on the Yangtze River, and was not very good at sea.
Yang Gun pondered for a moment and said: If the Japanese navy defeats Xu's army at sea, Ishijian Fort will no longer be able to hold on. If the land and sea battle is successful, Japan will have won the war, and Xu's army may not be able to cross the sea to invade Japan again for many years.
Ono Yoshifuru nodded and said: "Equal emphasis on land and sea, this is also the strategy I proposed to the Minister of Regent when I was in Heian-kyo."
Yang Gun said: If our navy really has a thousand warships, this battle will be very successful.
Of course there is. Ono Yoshifuru affirmed that although it was a small sailing ship, the navy was familiar with the sea routes near Japan and was quite flexible.
His tiredness was swept away, and strong emotions such as huge expectations and worries surged into his heart, but more of it was expectation, the expectation of a greater gain than the hard battle of Iwami Castle to make up for his torment.