The summer in the Mexican plateau is warm, even though it is windy and rainy, there is not a trace of cold.
The rainwater formed lines on his body. Shulot was just wearing a cloak and shorts. He stood by the river and watched thousands of small boats, like migrating birds, swaying out of the heavy rain.
Come.
The boatmen, shirtless and cheering, unloaded the food. Then the fleet first carried away the city-state sacrificial plates that the king valued most, followed by various luxury goods and tributes. Then, there were man-made trebuchets that were dismantled into various wooden parts.
, Shulot was checking the details of the waterproofing treatment by the river, and finally there were the three thousand Otomi people who were escorted by the warriors.
Whether it is sacred stones, tributes, weapons, or captives, they will all be transported up the Tampen River to the great lake capital.
The Tampen River is the lifeline of the army. With a distance of five to six hundred miles and relying on the convenient river, only 20,000 militiamen and boatmen are enough to maintain supplies for more than 100,000 people. The ratio of legions to logistics is eight to one.
And for the same distance, if we rely on the dirt roads on the plateau, without horse-drawn carriages or ox-carts, and can only carry it manually on our shoulders, the number of civilians required will quadruple, and the ratio of legions to logistics will be a difficult two to one.
And if the dirt road is replaced by a mountainous forest, the number of civilians to maintain logistics will be doubled, and the army and logistics will be terrible one to one.
As for the two to three hundred kilometers of tropical rain forest, there are no roads built with difficulty. With the technological level of any country in the world at this time, no matter how many civilians there are, the logistics line of a hundred thousand troops cannot be maintained. Because the civilians will be on the road.
Use up all the food transported.
"River transportation and sea transportation were the lifelines of ancient empires."
Shulot touched his chin and thought seriously.
"It's a pity...the alliance's army will soon leave this lifeline."
Hilotepec Hotoka City expressed its surrender to the greatest extent. The nobles of the city-state tried their best to plunder the city and transport supplies out of the city to meet all the requirements of the Mexica army.
However, the stubborn nobles and priests did not dedicate the city, and the warriors and militiamen were still stationed on the city wall. Because they had everything in the city, and they would never give up easily until they were exhausted.
King Tisok expressed satisfaction with Xilotepec's surrender and had no interest in spending another ten months besieging this barren and fortified city that had exhausted its wealth and lost its heritage.
The next target of the alliance army is the core of the loose alliance of the Western Otomi people, the mountain city Otopan! This is the legendary northern ancestral land of the Otomi people. As long as the city of Otomi is captured, Otomi will
People lost their political, cultural and military center and could only surrender completely to the empire.
The troops of the six legions were left in the camp on the west bank of the Tampen River. Two directly affiliated legions were responsible for maintaining the camp on the river. The food road would turn to land here, winding westward along the mountains and forests.
The remaining four city-state legions were monitoring the city-state of Xilotepec while protecting the food routes to the land.
Then, on the first day of September, the king led more than 20,000 direct warriors, 25,000 direct village warriors, 25,000 city-state warriors, and nearly 40,000 city-state militia for logistics and transportation...a total of fourteen
A legion of 110,000 troops, like a vast swarm of ants, marched towards Otopan, five hundred miles away.
Rolling mountains, dark forests, continuous wind and rain, deer and wolves scared away by the army, and deserted Otomi villages... This is the scenery along the way, repeated for hundreds of miles.
A few days later, Shulot passed by the battlefield where he first formed. Bertard was guarding him. The two stood on the commander's hill, looking at the vast forest under the drizzle. On the land moistened by blood, the green grass
It is already lush enough to cover all traces of the past, except for the memories in people's hearts.
The alliance's army is just a passerby.
Along the march, the commander-in-chief Totec set up four camps occupying high ground, and completely converted the 40,000 city-state militiamen into logistics, responsible for transporting and guarding food routes, and also saving food consumption.
Finally, after more than half a month of arduous trek, nearly 50,000 Mexica warriors, plus 25,000 direct village warriors, a total of nine legions, finally arrived at the city of Otopan.
Although the number of soldiers has been greatly reduced, the core combat effectiveness of the Mexican army is still there. Among the 50,000 Mexican warriors, there are nearly 3,000 Jaguar and Eagle regiments, and more than 10,000 fourth-level senior warriors, enough to defeat all enemies head-on.
King Tisoke is confident of victory. Even if all the Otomi city-states unite, mobilize completely, and recruit more than ten or two hundred thousand militiamen, he can still win in one battle!
The king longed for a hearty decisive battle, a glorious battle that could be engraved on the sacrificial plate. He was ready to carve a sacrificial plate as great as the Aztec sun stone for his accession to the throne!
On that sacrificial plate, the great deeds of fifteen ancestors will be engraved, and I am the sixteenth!
As for the name of the sacrificial plate, it is the "Stone of Tisoke"! This was used to establish the king's undisputed divine power and throne.
The king's confidence continued until the moment he saw the city of Otopan. At that moment, his smile froze.
"By God!"
Shulot walked out of the forest with difficulty, and the first thing he saw when he raised his head was the mountain city in the distance.
"Ah! This is Otopan City?!"
Hulot opened his eyes wide, looked at Avitt beside him, and smiled bitterly at the same time. He had long heard that Otopan was easy to defend and difficult to attack, but he did not expect the terrain to be like this. No wonder, even a hundred years later, Spain
People can only maintain a semi-autonomous form of rule here.
The bodies of the two were covered with fallen leaves and dust from the trek in the forest, and the guards beside them were helping them pack their bags. Behind them, there was an army of people who were also trekking hard.
The height of Otopan City should be between Japan's mountain castles and Pingshan Castle. Looking up, it is located on a platform in the mountains. The relative height of the platform is about forty to fifty meters.
The north side is the steepest, vaguely connected to the nearby mountains, with a stream vaguely flowing down. The slopes on the other three sides are slightly gentle, and there are simple roads left by people walking on them.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! The area of the entire city-state is estimated to be more than five square kilometers. The city wall is built against the mountain and is about four to five meters high, including the entire platform.
Lott vaguely saw figures moving on the city wall on the top of the mountain and flags waving. He must have found traces of the army.
"This city is difficult to attack. The terrain is difficult and there is no shortage of water. It is still the rainy season..."
"It's very difficult to fight. No wonder the Otomi people, although weak, have been able to take root in the chaos of the north for more than two hundred years."
The familiar conversation made the two of them look at each other speechless.
After a while, the commander-in-chief Totec came in a hurry. His face was serious. As soon as they met, he grabbed Xilote and asked sharply.
"Xulot, can your trebuchet hit the city on the mountain?"
Hearing this, Shulot shook his head sincerely.
"Commander Totec, the entire platform, from the edge to the bottom of the slope, is within the shooting range of the opponent's city wall. And the stones rolling down from the top of the mountain can completely destroy the trebuchet. Even if the long-range attack from the city head is not considered,
It is difficult to set up a trebuchet on such a sloping hillside. In the end, even if it is successfully set up by chance, it will have no power at all if it shoots upward at the city wall 20 to 30 meters high."
Hearing these answers, Totec frowned and spoke with dissatisfaction.
"Is there no other way? For example, using a wooden ladder, or as you mentioned last time, a car with sharp metal heads and wheels?"
Shulot and Avitt shook their heads at the same time and explained one by one.
"The elite warriors need to carry wooden ladders and climb up the mountain forty or fifty meters. They will be shot unilaterally by stones, wooden blocks, javelins, bows and arrows, stone bullets on the city wall for nearly two quarters of an hour. They will consume a lot of energy.
He has to endure the casualties and forcefully climb the city to fight. What's more, it's still the rainy season, which makes the climb even more difficult... If we attack by force, the samurai's casualties will be too heavy, which is impossible!"
When Avitt said this, his smile lost his face, leaving only solemnity and solemnity.
"Yes! Let's not talk about the difficulty of building a charging car. In this kind of terrain, it is difficult to push the charging car onto the platform. And the opponent's rolling rocks can completely destroy the charging car."
Shulot looked helpless and told the truth.
"Witness the Lord God! Is there really nothing we can do?"
Totec did not give up and finally asked.
What answered him was that the two of them shook their heads again.
"The Lord God witnesses! Siege the city!"
The mountain city of Otopan is a fortress built in the mountains. In fact, in this era, if we really want to attack, there are ways. Shulot lowered his head, thinking about the methods of siege in the old continent in this era.
First, use a large number of cannon fodder troops to consume the rolling stones and logs in the city. Next, use the large-caliber short-barreled stone cannons that appeared in Europe to bombard the city walls until they collapse, or use superior longbowmen to suppress the defenders at the top of the city.
Attack from a distance, then push the car to break through the city gate. Finally, rely on elite assault troops to break in from the gap or gate to engage in melee combat.
Either way, superior long-range suppression is required. Massive casualties among elite warriors are inevitable.
And now, with the technological level of the Mexican Alliance...
"Let's besiege the city!"
Soon, more than 70,000 Mexica troops camped on three sides of Otopan. The warriors blocked the easy roads and built simple fortresses. A large number of elite teams were sent out to patrol the precipitous north.
Totec tried various methods to provoke the defenders in the city. According to the final intelligence, after gathering some reinforcements from Guamare and Parmus, there are now more than 10,000 warriors, 30,000 militiamen, and two
There are 30,000 civilians and strong men. The food in the city can last for up to one year.
Maybe they were frightened by the last battle, or maybe they were determined to be like a turtle that retreated into its shell. No matter how tempting and provocative the Mexica warriors were, the Otomi people just stayed still and defended the mountain city of Otopan.
.
The long siege of the city began.
This chapter has been completed!