The sound waves roared, and around the valley on the bank of the Yellow River, the roar of people lit up the entire night.
It was dusk in the past, but the sky had already darkened. The fire arrows coming back and forth were like fireflies flying in the night sky, illuminating the vision of people in the snow. On the west side of the foothills, there were a large number of soldiers holding shields.
Rushing through the snow, some of them carried ladders, and arrows fell on their shields, bodies, and the snow around them. In the woods behind them, the fire burned into a sea, and the archers who ignited the arrows fired a wave.
The poacher rushes out, shoots arrows, and then spins back into the snow forest where the bonfire is burning. At this time, you will see a large number of light spots like locusts falling on the summer village camp wall.
Covering blows fell one after another on the high points of the wooden camp wall. Too many fire arrows fell on the wood in this harsh winter, and some even burned.
There was no sound of elm cannons from the top of the Xia Village wall. During the Ever-Victorious Army's charge all over the mountains and plains, there was always a considerable distance between the soldiers. They held their shields and ran outside the wall, only at certain times.
A sudden fierce attack was launched at several points. Ladders were put up, and the crowd swarmed up. Inside Xia Village, the defenders poured boiling water with their hands, and there was a forest of spears piercing out from the camp wall, trying to climb in.
The elite of the victorious army were stabbed to death on the top of the wall. Dots of light rushed out of the woods in the distance. When they tried to fire a salvo at the top of the wall, the archers rushing over from inside the camp wall also fired their fire arrows at the opponent's group of archers.
Sometimes the victorious army shoots faster, sometimes it's the defenders of Xia Cun. When the fire falls on the wall and the ground inside and outside, the defenders who can't escape are holding their wounds and rolling on the ground screaming.
Then another wave of attacks came up.
The injured were still rolling on the ground, and the reinforcements were still far away. The soldiers behind the camp wall rushed out from the bunker and started fighting with the elite of the Ever Victorious Army who tried to storm in.
The general responsible for the defense of the second section on the west side of the camp wall is named Xu Lingming. He is short in stature and has a body as strong as a black iron tower. He has more than 500 men and is defending the 40-foot-wide camp wall. At this time, he is experiencing constant pressure.
The victorious army attacked in turn, and the originally abundant manpower was rapidly reduced. As far as the eye could see, the surroundings were bright and extinguishing fires. The running figures, the shouts of the messengers, the screams of the wounded, and the ground inside the camp were everywhere.
A few arrows were inserted into the soil. Some were still burning. Since Xia Cun is a valley, it is impossible to see the outside from the low places inside. At this time, he was standing on a high observation deck looking out.
On the slope outside the wall, the charging soldiers of the Ever Victorious Army were scattered, shouting, and running like a swarm of ants, and only occasionally launched attacks on a certain section of the camp wall.
Further away, countless fire spots in the woods were about to rush out, but they didn't know where they were going.
"They're going to charge, they're going to charge... Xu Er. Let your brothers prepare! Rocket, if I tell you to light it, light it. When I tell you to charge, all of them go up the wall!"
He suddenly shouted loudly from the watchtower. Below, Xu Er, who was leading the archery team, was his clan brother. He also shouted immediately. More than a hundred archers around him immediately picked up arrows wrapped in oilcloth and poured more glue on them.
Thick kerosene, he rushed to the bonfire and waited. Xu Lingming quickly rushed down the watchtower. He picked up his shield and long knife: "Xiao Zhuo! Brothers in the reserve team, follow me and charge!"
Waiting in the rear bunker were more than fifty of his most elite men. At his order, they picked up their shields and swords and rushed forward. As he ran, Xu Lingming was still paying attention to the colors in the sky.
However, halfway through the run, on the wooden wall in front, an observing soldier suddenly shouted something, and his voice was drowned in the tide of shouts to kill. The soldier turned around, shouting and waving his hands. Xu Lingming opened his eyes wide.
Looking at the sky, it was still black, but the hairs on the back of my head stood up.
"Take cover—beware—"
Xu Lingming squatted down, raised his shield, and shouted with all his strength. The soldiers behind him also quickly raised their shields. Then, arrows rained down in the darkness, and some people were shot to the ground. Near the wooden wall, some people were hiding.
Behind the bunker, some soldiers who had no time to dodge were shot over and fell to the ground.
During the previous period, the Evervictorious Army had been suppressing the Xia Cun defenders with rockets. On the one hand, burns would indeed cause huge harm to the soldiers. On the other hand, against the elm cannon that could block the advance of the Evervictorian Army soldiers two days ago,
As the top general of this army and one of the famous generals in the world, Guo Yaoshi did not show excessive awe of this emerging thing.
When he was in the north, he had also come into contact with the immature firearms of the Wu Dynasty. At this time, he came to Xiacun and immediately responded to the existence of elm cannons: he used a large number of rockets to focus fire on the elm cannons originally placed there.
The wooden cannon is high up on the camp wall.
I had originally blocked these positions, but with the arrows flying randomly, I didn't dare to open the window for firing the elm cannon. Once an arrow was actually shot into the muzzle, the consequences of the gunpowder being ignited would be disastrous.
In front of the camp wall, when the soldiers were dispersed as much as possible, the damage that the elm cannon could do was not large enough. Therefore, during this period, Xia Cun's side did not let the elm cannon fire for the time being, but sent people to try their best to fire the elm cannon.
Nearby gunpowder and shells were removed.
As the sky grew dark, bursts of fire arrows flew in, which basically caused the soldiers behind the wooden wall to form a conditioned reflex. Once the arrows flew in, they immediately made evasive movements. But at this moment, what fell was not
Rocket.
Xia Cun immediately suffered a big loss.
"Xu Er - light the fire - go up the wall - kill with me -"
Xu Lingming shook his head and shouted loudly. Next to him, several injured people were screaming, and one with an arrow in the thigh was crawling on the snow in front. Farther away, a Jurchen's ladder was set up on the camp wall.
The soldier who warned him earlier grabbed his long knife and turned around to kill the enemy. A resentful soldier rushed in and struck him with a knife, sending his arm flying out. The surrounding defenders stood up and fought on the wall.
Xu Lingming roared "Ah——" and rushed towards the wall.
In the bloody fight, a Victory Army soldier jumped into the wall, and slashed his long knife down with the leap. Xu Lingming raised his shield and swung it, and the shield smashed the steel knife. His iron tower-like figure and that
The burly Northeastern men collided with each other. The two of them crashed against the camp wall, their bodies entangled, and then they were violently smashed and bloody.
"Kill the enemy——"
In the shadows, the resentful soldier fell down, and Xu Lingming drew his sword and shouted wildly. In front, the soldiers of the Ever Victorious Army crossed the wall. From behind, Xu Lingming's elite men and the archers who lit the rockets also swarmed towards this side.
, everyone rushed to the top of the wall, setting off a bloody wave of fighting on the wooden wall, while the archers rushed to the top of the walls on both sides, and began to rain down arrows in the area where the victorious army usually concentrated.
Similar scenes are happening in different places on the camp wall. In front of the main entrance of the camp, several carts decorated with shields have been temporarily paralyzed due to the shooting of two bed crossbows and bows and arrows on the wall.
On the ground, heads and corpses were trampled in the snow. The large-scale harassment of the camp's defenses did not stop for a moment.
Although Zhang Linghui and Liu Shunren were temporarily out of Guo Yaoshi's control during the Battle of Chaobai River, now that the option of surrender has been wiped out, the commander-in-chief of the ever-victorious army resumed his control as soon as he arrived.
Under his control, Zhang Linghui and Liu Shunren had also cheered up and fully assisted the opponent in this attack.
Regarding the elm cannon and the more than 100 heavy cavalry that had made great achievements earlier, Guo Yaoshi was more keen and determined than Zhang and Liu. This was also because he had more available troops. At this time in Xia
Outside the village valley, the strength of the Ever Victorious Army has reached 36,000. They are all elite tribes who followed the south. However, in the entire Xia Village, the actual strength is only more than 18,000. More than 100
Heavy cavalry can expand its advantage in a small area, but on the battlefield of a resolute general attack, once the attack is launched, Yaoshi Guo will resolutely eat up the opponent. Even if he pays the price, as long as the opponent's trump card is taken away, the opponent's morale will inevitably plummet.
.
As for the firearms, in the past, the firearms of the Wu Dynasty were flashy and almost useless. Even if they have reached a usable level now, the things that have just appeared are powerful and powerful. In the skirmish line, they may not be able to kill a person at once. Compared with bows and arrows
, what's the difference? He let go of his courage and suppressed it with rockets. In a blink of an eye, he restrained the weakness of this new weapon.
"There are no empty warriors under such a great reputation..."
During the attack of the resentful army, the Xiacun Valley was also noisy. The soldiers on the periphery had already entered the battle, and the reserves were tense. On the high platform in the center, various messages were received, and they were planning and looking at the periphery.
With the fighting and the arrows coming and going in the sky, Ning Yi had to sigh at the power of Pharmacist Guo.
His ability to control the battlefield in real time is not very strong. In this valley, the ones who are really good at fighting and commanding are Qin Shaoqian and several previous generals from Wurui Camp. There are also prototypes of famous generals like Yue Pengju. As for Hongti, he came from Luliang Mountain
Han Jing, the leader of the team, in such a battle, is not as capable as those with a professional background in all aspects of control.
Soon after understanding this matter, he placed all the responsibility of command on Qin Shaoqian's shoulders and stopped making unnecessary remarks. As for the young general Yue Fei, he still lacked training and was still not as good as Qin Shaoqian in overall planning.
However, he seemed decisive and sharp in dealing with small and medium-sized situations. Ning Yi entrusted him with commanding elite troops to respond to the surrounding wars and make up for the gaps.
At this time, there was no big gap near the camp wall, but the pressure had gradually appeared. Especially the suppression of the elm cannon made Ning Yi understand that this new weapon with big thunder and small raindrops was not suitable for real combat.
After all, they couldn't be confused for too long - although Ning Yi didn't expect them to dominate the battle, he was still surprised by how fast and accurate Guo Yaoshi's response was.
The other party is so powerful, which means that what Xia Cun will face next is the most difficult future...
Of course, there is no room for retaliation in this matter.
In the chaotic battle situation, Yuwen Feidu and several other members of Zhuji who were highly skilled in martial arts were running in the battle formation. Although the young man's legs were limping, which affected his running somewhat, his cultivation was still there, and he had
He is keen enough that ordinary thrown arrows pose little threat to him. Although these elm cannons were transported from Luliang, the person who is best at operating the cannons is Yuwen Feidu's young mind among the bamboos at this time.
, is one of them. During the Luliang Mountain Grandmaster Battle, he even threatened Lin Echan with an elm cannon.
The young man ran past the camp wall in section B2. The fighting on the outer wall was still going on. He fired an arrow and then ran towards a nearby wall where elm cannons were placed. Most of these elm cannons were
With the protection of the outer wall and ceiling, the two Luliang elites in charge of gunnery did not dare to fire the cannons randomly, and were killing the enemy with arrows. They hid behind the camp wall and said hello to the young man who ran over.
Xu Lingming was fighting on the wall. As an officer leading 500 men, he wore an armor that was half iron and half leather. During the fierce fighting, he was also hit by a knife on his shoulder, which was bleeding. He was hitting it with his shield.
Looking at the spear tip of a Victory Army soldier who climbed up the ladder, he saw someone carrying the elm cannon to the ceiling high on the camp wall, and then there was a bang.
The firelight shined directly into the crowd gathered outside the camp wall and exploded with a loud bang. Sparks were flying, dark red blood splashed, and limbs were flying. It was shocking. After a while, another voice was heard from the other side. Several shots were fired.
Cannonballs fell into the crowd one after another, and amid the boiling sound of killing, the cannon operators moved the elm cannon down. After a while, they were covered by rockets again.
On the huge battlefield, there was a deafening sound of fighting. Thousands of people rushed to kill each other from all directions. The occasional sound of cannons, flames and snowflakes flying in the sky, and human blood boiling and flowing away. Looking from the night sky, only
I saw that the shape of the battlefield was constantly changing. Only inside the valley in the center of the battlefield, more than a thousand people who had been rescued gathered together, trembling with each burst of fighting and shouting. There were also a few people who clasped their hands and chanted. In the valley
In other places, most people were running to the front, or were ready to run to the front at any time. In the wounded barracks, screams and curses, crying and shouting were mixed together. There were also seriously injured people who finally died and were carried from the rear.
Come out and put it in the cleared snow...
*****************
The fighting in the night gradually stopped. The smell of blood and burnt smell filled the air. Mao Yishan sat down inside the camp wall. There was sticky blood on the camp wall, but it had basically begun to freeze. He didn't care about this.
, his body only felt severe fatigue and tearing pain. At first, he thought he had been stabbed on the back or somewhere, but then he realized that he had lost strength.
The extremely tense nerves began to relax, but the pain was still severe. He grabbed a small piece of snow from the corner of the camp wall that had not been stepped on or stained with blood. He subconsciously put it into his mouth, wanting to eat.
This night, he killed three people. Fortunately, he was not injured, but when he was concentrating, all the strength in his body seemed to be drained.
Near and far, brothers from the rear came over and quickly looked for someone to take care of the wounded. Mao Yishan felt that he should also help, but for a while he didn't have the energy to stand up. Not far from him, a middle-aged man
He was sitting next to a big rock, tearing off strips of clothing and bandaging the injuries on his legs. There were many corpses and blood around that area, and he didn't know if he was seriously injured, but the other party just gave him a leg injury.
I packed my bag and sat there to catch my breath.
The man glanced at Mao Yishan, then continued to sit and look around. After a while, he took out a steamed bun from his arms, broke it in half, and threw it to Mao Yishan.
"Thank you……"
Mao Yishan said something, and the other party waved the steamed bun in his hand, and then started to eat it.
After a while, someone came over, looking for the wounded, and stabbed the resentful soldier among the corpses with a knife and a half. Mao Yishan's Shangguan also passed by nearby: "Are you okay?" They asked one by one when they asked the middle-aged man.
, the middle-aged man shook his head: "It's okay."
The guard came up, and the nearby companions retreated, and Mao Yishan stood up with all his strength. The man tried to get up, but after all, he had his thighs and hands, and waved to Mao Yishan: "Brother, help me."
Mao Yishan went over and helped him up unsteadily. The man's body also swayed, and then he no longer needed Mao Yishan's support: "Are you new?" He glanced at Mao Yishan.
"I have been a soldier for six years. I killed someone for the first time yesterday..."
"No wonder...you are too panicked and exert too much force. It is difficult to fight for a long time..."
The middle-aged man staggered a few steps forward and used his hands to support things around him. Mao Yishan quickly followed and wanted to help him, but he refused.
"Brother...is a veteran of the battlefield, right..."
"I can't say I'm a veteran. I just participated in the Conquest of Fangla with Lord Tong. It wasn't as tragic as what I saw... but I finally saw blood." The middle-aged man sighed, "This... is very difficult."
During the period of fighting against the Jurchens, countless armies were defeated. Those gathered in Xia Village were also gathered in various formations. Most of them were dispersed, and some of them never even recovered their status as officers. This middle-aged man was quite handsome.
Now that he has experience, Mao Yishan said: "Brother, is it difficult? Do you think we can win? I... none of the Shangguan I followed before were as powerful as this time. When we fought with the Jurchens, we didn't see anyone.
, the army collapsed. I have never heard that we can fight like this with the ever-victorious army. I think, I don’t think we can win this time..."
"This is indeed the first time I've seen such a Shangguan. It's also the first time I've been beaten like this. Maybe I can win..." The middle-aged man glanced around and said this. After a moment, he turned around
He looked at the place that was previously a battlefield, "But this is just the beginning. Look over there..."
They were already at a slightly higher place. Mao Yishan looked back. Inside and outside the camp wall, corpses and blood stretched out. The arrows stuck in the ground were like autumn grass. Further away, among the snowy ridges at the foot of the mountain.
With the continuous flames, the figures of the Ever Victorious Army overlapped one another, and the huge military formation surrounded the entire valley. Mao Yishan took a breath. The smell of blood was still lingering in his nose.
Xia Cun is suppressed by the opponent's entire military formation in this valley. Apart from the Yellow River, there is no place to go. Anyone who looks out from here will feel a huge sense of oppression.
He glanced at this, and his eyes were almost attracted by the light of the surrounding military formation, but then, a team walked past, the voice of conversation rang in his ears, and the middle-aged man patted his shoulder and asked him to look again.
Behind, in the entire valley, there are also stretching military formations, bonfires, and people walking around. The smell of porridge and vegetables is already rising.
"This is... a confrontation between two armies. It's a real fight to the death. Brother, you are right. Before, we could only escape, but now we can fight." The middle-aged man walked forward, then stretched out his hand. Finally, Mao let Mao
Yishan came over to help him, "My surname is Qu, and my name is Qu Qing. I am celebrating Qing, how about you?"
"Mao Yishan."
"It's a good name, easy to remember." After walking through a section of flat land in front of them, the two of them walked up a small slope and stairs. As Qu Qing walked forward with all his strength, he whispered with some sigh, "Yes.
, who doesn’t want to win if he can win? Although... many people have to die to win... but victory is victory... Brother, you are right, I just said it wrong... Resentful Army, Jurchens, we
Soldiers...what else can you do if you don't win? If you don't win, you will be slaughtered like a pig...Now the capital is about to be destroyed, and the court is about to perish...We must win, we must win..."
His words seemed to be spoken to Mao Yishan, but they were more like talking to himself. Mao Yishan didn't understand them very well, but after climbing the stairs, the middle-aged man looked back at Chang Shengjun's
When he turned around and walked back to the military camp, Mao Yishan felt him pat his shoulder: "Brother Mao, kill more people..." Mao Yishan nodded, and then heard him add in a lighter tone:
"Alive..." Mao Yishan nodded again.
Of course his brothers all over the mountains and plains must live...he thought.
At this moment, the soldier who has been running away has not thought about how difficult these two words are. At this moment, he is not willing to think about the difficulty behind it. There are enemies all over the mountains and plains, and there are also companions all over the mountains and plains. All of them,
They are all fighting for the same thing.
After this day of fighting, Mao Yishan made one of the few good brothers in the army. In the Changsheng Army barracks outside the camp, Guo Pharmacist, who rushed over at a resolute speed, re-examined the troops of the Wu Dynasty in Xia Village.
Combat strength, this world-famous general was calm and calm. He arranged for the army to camp on the way to command the storm. At this time, in the terrible silence, he revised the attack plan for the Xia Cun camp.
After receiving the news about the firearms, he already understood that it was the Wu Dynasty troops in front of him who planned to breach the Yellow River. Because in the letter sent to Zong Wang, gunpowder was used in the plan to breach the Yellow River.
On the other side, in the command post where General Xia Cunfang gathered, everyone had already realized the power of Guo Yaoshi and the Chang Sheng Army, and realized the difficulty of this matter. The relaxed mood about the victory the day before yesterday was gone.
.Everyone is seriously revising and supplementing the defense plan.
On a higher platform, Ning Yi stood in the wind and snow, looking at the army camp in the distance and at the crowd in the valley below. Juan'er's figure was running among the crowd, directing the preparations for the distribution of food.
, he would also smile when he saw this. Not long after, someone came over from behind the guard, stood beside him, and gently held his hand.
That was Hongti. As a woman, she looked a little thin in the wind and snow. The two stood hand in hand, and they looked like a couple.
"What are you thinking about?" Hongti asked softly.
"I thought it would be difficult." Ning Yi smiled softly, lowered his gaze slightly, and then raised it again, "But when I really saw them coming, I was a little scared."
"...I'm afraid too." After a while, Hongti said softly.
Ning Yi turned to look at her plain face and smiled: "But it's useless to be afraid." Then he added, "I've been afraid many times, but I can only get through it..."
Hongti just smiled. Her fear of the battlefield was naturally not that of ordinary people. But it did not prevent her from having ordinary people's feelings: "I'm afraid it will be more difficult in the capital." After a while, she said, "If we hold on,
The capital is in ruins. Will you follow me back to Luliang?"
"You can consider it." Ning Yi looked towards the direction where Bianliang City might be, where the sky was full of wind, snow and darkness. "At least I have to bring these brothers back for you."
"Yes, and Miss Tan'er and the others..." Hongti smiled slightly, "Liheng, you promised me at the beginning that you would give me a peaceful and prosperous age. You went to Luliang Mountain and built a stronghold for me. Come and help.
That Prime Minister of Qin hopes to save Bianliang. I am your wife now. I know how many things you have done and how hard you have worked. In fact, you gave me everything I wanted. Now I want you to do it for me.
Think about it, if Bianliang is really broken, what will you do next? I... am your woman, no matter what you do, I will follow you for the rest of my life."
Ning Yi looked forward, raised his clasped hands, and his eyes became serious: "...I haven't thought about it so much, but if I really want to, there are two possibilities for Bianliang City to be destroyed. Either the emperor and all the ministers
Go to the south, defend the Yangtze River, and rule by dividing the river. Or in a few years, the Jurchens will push over again and the Wu Dynasty will fall. If it is the latter, I will consider taking Tan'er and all of them to Luliang Mountain... But no matter
In every possible way, the future life in Luliang Mountain will be more difficult. The current peaceful days may not even be possible."
He was silent for a moment: "No matter what, you can either hold on now, fight the Jurchens for a while, and think about it later. Or... you have to fight for the rest of your life." Then he waved his hand, "Actually, there is no need to think too much, you
Look, we can't escape, maybe like I said, there will be rivers of blood here."
He pointed to the camp of the Ever Victorious Army, Hongti nodded, and Ning Yi then said: "However, I do have some selfish motives."
"What selfishness?"
"Look below." Ning Yi gestured to the crowd below. A familiar figure walked through the crowd. He said softly, "I want to send Juan'er away."
In the crowd, Juan'er seemed to sense something and looked up. Hongti smiled. After a while, Ning Yi also smiled. He stretched out his hand, pulled Hongti over and hugged him in front of him. Feng Xue
During the moment, the two people's bodies cuddled tightly together. After a long time, Ning Yi closed his eyes, opened them, exhaled a breath of white air, and his eyes had returned to complete calmness and rationality.
It is human nature, everyone will be afraid, but at such a time, there is not much room for fear. For Ning Yi, even if Hong Ti does not come over, he will quickly recover his mentality, but naturally, there is
This warmth and absence are two different concepts.
The wind and snow continued, and the two armies that had just fought to the death faced off against each other under the night sky. In Bianliang City in the distance, the Jurchens had already withdrawn their troops. On the earth, the entire battle situation was as cold as frozen ice.
To the north, looking equally shaky, there is Taiyuan City, which is in an isolated city situation and has been deprived of any resources throughout the winter. The people in the city have long lost contact with the outside world. No one knows when this long war will end.
.
On the fourth day of December, the Ever Victorious Army launched a full-scale attack on the Xia Cun defenders. The desperate fight boiled and spread in the snow in the valley. Blood almost soaked everything inside and outside the camp walls. In such a battle of strength, almost anyone could
Conceptual tricks are difficult to establish, and the firing of the elm cannon can only be converted into the power of a few bows and arrows. The generals of both sides are playing back and forth at the highest level of the war, and the only thing that appears in front of them is this entire world.
The fierce scarlet in the room.
Arrows flew across the sky, shouts shook the earth, and countless people and countless swords and guns fought. Death and pain raged everywhere where the two sides fought, inside and outside the camp walls, in the fields, in the ditches, in the foothills, beside the woods, and on the boulders.
By the side, by the stream... In the afternoon, the wind and snow stopped. Along with the constant shouting and charging, blood dripped from every place of fighting... (To be continued.)