() That night, groups of strong women and old people patrolled the streets in Changli City from time to time. Changli City is small, so the number of patrols does not need to be too many to take good care of them.
It is also thanks to the fact that many people here are practicing martial arts, so when these strong women and old people come to patrol, everyone feels relieved.
The rest of the people were resting in the house to recuperate.
On the city wall, every few steps, there is a torch, and between several torches, there is a long pole with a torch tied to the head, which extends out of the city wall for a long distance, illuminating a place far outside the city.
Tonight is guard Shi Guozhu's night duty. He leads a group of soldiers to patrol along the city wall.
A strong enemy is outside and may attack the city at any time. It is related to the safety of himself and his family. The soldiers and civilians guarding the city wall are very dedicated, making Shi Guozhu nod secretly.
It doesn't take too long to inspect a circle of city walls. Shi Guozhu will take a short rest and then inspect again. He must ensure that the whole city is vigilant and prevent the prisoners from taking advantage of the opportunity.
Time passed unknowingly, and the night became darker and darker. Some Minzhuang, who had been nervous, gradually became sleepy and yawned.
If this situation continues, it is very likely that the rebels who attack the city at dawn will succeed.
Fortunately, Shi Guozhu discovered this situation. He was a veteran. After serving in the frontier army, he was transferred back to his hometown as a garrison in the county. Therefore, he let the sleepy Minzhuang chat with each other to relieve their fatigue. They could say anything, including dirty jokes and the like.
They didn't care. Those soldiers with good spirits focused on the outside of the city.
At Yin hour, the captives from Guanhou Temple quietly left the camp and divided their forces to surround Changli County.
The mobilization of five to six thousand soldiers, and it was the darkest time before dawn, would inevitably make some noise.
He was discovered by the soldiers who were watching outside the city and quickly reported to Shi Guozhu.
When Shi Guozhu heard reports of movement on all four walls, he knew it was not a coincidence and quickly ordered to be on guard.
After the order was given, there was silence on top of the city, all focused on the movement outside the city, but it was so dark that it was difficult to see the places in the distance.
Jirharang and Abatai had led the Tatars to sneak close to the Changli City. At this time, they were complaining secretly. Unexpectedly, there was a long pole stretched out from the top of the Changli City, and they sent the torch away from the city, lighting up a large area.
Area. Due to the large size, I did not bring enough shields, bows and arrows.
But now the arrow is on the line. If they return to the camp at this time, not to mention that the two of them cannot afford to lose face, and their subordinates will not know how to do it. They will not be laughed to death by other banners this time.
"Dong dong dong", a harsh drum beat sounded from the darkness and spread far away.
When the Jianlu outside the city heard the drums of the attack, they rushed out of the darkness, carried ladders, and rushed towards the city wall.
The sound of drums outside the city also gave a warning to the Ming army at the top of the city, and the warning bells immediately rang, echoing over the dark Changli City.
The soldiers of the Ming Dynasty who had been gathered together before had more combat experience than Minzhuang. At this time, they were loudly teaching their experience to their companions. Wait until they see it before fighting. Don't waste it.
Soon, Jianlu carrying the ladder appeared in the place illuminated by the fire, shouting and running towards the city wall. Following closely behind the ladder were a large number of Jianlu.
The archers on the city wall fired first, followed closely by muskets and earthen guns. A few cannons were of little use. They were too close to hit and too far to see clearly. If you shoot randomly, it will be a waste of gunpowder.
not allowed.
When Zuo Yingxuan heard the bell ringing, he quickly rushed to the city wall. When he met some panicked people on the way, he tried to comfort him. Therefore, after a delay, when he arrived at the city wall, the two sides were already fighting.
.
Zuo Yingxuan quickly climbed to the arrow tower, extinguished the torch, and observed the scene inside and outside the city wall in the dark.
Jianlu outside the city were pouring out of the darkness in a steady stream. Those who had rushed to the bottom of the city wall were all wearing several layers of armor.
Although there were many arrows shot down from the top of the city, there were almost no Jianlu who were shot to death on the spot. Most of them were still charging forward with arrows hanging on their bodies.
Only some unlucky warriors were shot through the gaps in their armor, fell to the ground, and were then dragged into the darkness by other warriors.
Instead, some muskets and earthen guns at the top of the city showed off their power. With every shot, some prisoners were injured and lost the ability to move. Occasionally, a few were killed on the spot.
However, the reloading speed of the muskets and earth guns was too slow. It was difficult to see clearly in the dark, and I was nervous, so the movements were more than three times slower than usual.
The strong men defending the city had already begun to move rolling logs and rocks to smash them down.
Some raised the rolling logs and rocks in their hands above their heads and smashed them down, while others moved them to the top of the city and pushed them down directly.
Jianlu who were hit hard often fell to the ground, and whether they were hit by the rolling wood or rocks pushed down, even if they were hit, it would probably be difficult for the Jianlu to lose their combat effectiveness, because some Jianlu had shields in their hands to protect them.
With.
Zuo Yingxuan ordered to the government officer at the stairway: "Have Minzhuang send up the rolling logs and stones from the city. Then send the order to smash the ladder to the ladder. Break Jianlu's ladder first."
The two Yamen servants immediately accepted the order and went to deliver the order separately.
After Zuo Yingxuan issued the order, he observed the situation on the battlefield again.
At this time, many ladders had reached the city wall, and Jianlu began to climb the city.
Jianlu, who was wearing thick armor, did not attack the city first, but held the ladder at the bottom, and Jianlu, who was following behind and wore light leather armor, climbed up the ladder.
The people who defended the city, whether they were soldiers or civilians, knew not to let the Jianlu climb up, so they concentrated their firepower on the ladder. The Jianlu wearing light armor often climbed halfway up and was either hit, shot, or dropped.
fell down.
Zuo Yingxuan looked at the section of the city wall in front of him that seemed fine, but now that all four corners of the city were under attack, he didn't know what was happening elsewhere, so he was a little worried.
So, he no longer stayed in the archery tower, and began to patrol along the city wall while loudly encouraging. The government servants following him loudly repeated the county's words, so that the county's words could reach everyone's ears amidst the shouts of killing.
"Don't panic, beat Jianlu hard."
"Behind you are your parents, wives and children, and they are all protected by you."
"If anyone dies fighting for Changli, the county will send his parents to his death, and his young children will be raised by this county."
"..."
The soldiers guarding the city who heard Zuo Yingxuan's words along the way felt strong and strong, as if they had taken a reassurance and knew that they had no way out, so they did not need to be restrained by military discipline and worked hard to kill the enemy.
Some particularly brave and strong soldiers picked up rocks and aimed them at the ladder. After a few hits, they destroyed the ladder and made it impossible for the captives to climb up the city.
At this time, the sky in the east had turned white, and the light began to break the monopoly of darkness.
Guard Shi Guozhu was also patrolling and met the county magistrate Zuo Yingxuan. He loudly reported the situation he saw. It was basically the same as the situation on Zuo Yingxuan's side, and they were all defended.
During the siege, the two of them didn't communicate much and went on their own patrols.
The captives below the city had begun to use bows and arrows to fight back on the city wall, but there were not many of them. After a few soldiers were shot and injured, people with long-range weapons came to find them.
The bows and arrows on the city wall and the muskets and earthen guns were better because of their quantity, while the soldiers shooting arrows below were better because of their precision. Therefore, both sides basically suffered casualties, and no one was able to suppress the other.
When there were casualties on the city wall, some people who had never seen blood were initially afraid, but then they remembered the words of the county magistrate and gritted their teeth and persisted. They could not retreat for the sake of others or their family.
It was already daybreak, and Jierharang and Abatai saw that due to lack of preparations, basically no one on their side could attack the city. The more than 70 ladders they brought with them were also almost damaged, and a large number of built captives supported them.
Being beaten passively on the city wall, I had no choice but to withdraw my troops with money.
When the soldiers on the city wall saw the Tatars retreating, they cheered vigorously, and those who had no strength either leaned on or sat on the city wall. One thing they had in common was the joy on their faces.
Ji'erhalang and Abatai were the last to retreat to the camp. When they were leaving, because it was already bright, they could see clearly that there were not many regular Ming troops on the city walls. They were all civilians dressed in civilian clothes.
The two of them couldn't help but feel secretly annoyed. If they hadn't been too careless, they should have been able to capture Changli in one fell swoop.
Next time you attack the city, you must be well prepared, take it seriously, and capture Changli.