In the early morning of the next day, when the sky was bright, the navy soldiers could live and cook meals on the ships. After the meal, the soldiers on each ship gathered on the deck and used thick cables to hoist the disassembled artillery pieces and slowly hoist them.
Go to the sampan next to the warship.
The soldiers rowed the sampan and approached the shore until they were unable to move forward on the frozen edge. Then they lifted the cannon again and moved it to a sledge made of wooden boards. Then they used manpower or animal power to drag the sledge.
Heading towards Pingrang City.
There were thousands more soldiers carrying muskets and large shields leading the way.
Halfway through the journey, the heavy snow that had subsided all night began to fall again. Fortunately, the sledge was driving on the ice and the road was not blocked by the heavy snow. Moreover, the heavy snow in the sky also blocked the sight. Unless the Goguryeo scouts got close, it would be extremely difficult to find them.
Navy soldiers moving forward in the wind and snow.
It wasn't until they arrived twenty miles west of Pingrang City that they ran into a group of Goguryeo scouts. After several of them were shot dead with muskets, two of the riders escaped and rushed back to Pingrang City to report the news.
The advancing navy soldiers immediately formed a formation and slowly advanced towards Pingrang City, guarding against the Goguryeo cavalry that might come at any time.
Sure enough, ten miles from Pingrang City, a group of more than a thousand Goguryeo cavalry galloped out of the wind and snow. The horses were strong and the soldiers were fierce. They shouted in the wind and snow, and rolled up countless ice foam and broken snow.
, with a fierce and murderous aura, he ran into the navy soldiers head-on. After a little correction, he killed them without restraint.
The cavalry has an innate crushing advantage against the infantry. Even if they suffered too much from the "shaking thunder" when confronting the Tang army, the Goguryeo soldiers were not afraid. Countless confrontations with the Tang army made the Goguryeo cavalry figure out a pattern, that is,
Although the "Shocking Thunder" is powerful, it is obvious that the Tang army's equipment is limited. As long as the charge speed is fast enough, and after a wave of "Shocking Thunder" bombardment, it quickly rushes into the Tang army's array, the rest of the Tang army can be defeated.
You can't be so blind that you don't even care about your own life and launch an "indiscriminate" attack, right?
So the Goguryeo cavalry is thinking like this at this moment. The Tang army is indeed brave, but as long as the cavalry rushes into the formation against the infantry, is that not a wanton killing?
When the Goguryeo cavalry advanced to about 70 to 80 feet, a sound like exploding beans suddenly sounded in the Tang army's formation, and a thick cloud of gunpowder smoke rose up, mixing with the snowflakes in the sky, and even the biting north wind could not stop it.
Blow away.
Immediately afterwards, countless lead bullets shot through the air.
"Puff puff"
Although the distance is slightly far and the kinetic energy of lead bullets is insufficient, Goguryeo's iron smelting technology is backward. Except for the generals, there are basically no iron armors, and the cavalry does not even have many leather armors. The lead bullets are deformed by high pressure in the barrel, and draw out
A strange and irregular trajectory easily penetrated thin clothing, causing damage to Goguryeo soldiers and horses.
The lethality of lead bullets is very powerful. Once it hits a human body or a war horse, due to its irregular shape and lack of kinetic energy, it is difficult to cause penetrating injuries. The lead bullets remain in the body and rotate rapidly, destroying body structures wantonly, causing the soldier to...
The war horse lost its combat effectiveness instantly and was difficult to treat.
Thousands of soldiers held muskets. They just took a slight aim and pulled the trigger to fire. Then they took two steps back to load ammunition. The soldiers behind them took a step forward, raised their muskets and fired. Then they stepped back again, and the soldiers behind them stepped forward to shoot in turn.
"Three-stage attack" can fully make up for the shortcomings of the lack of range of muskets. If the accuracy of muskets is insufficient, the victory is completely based on quantity. Thousands of muskets fire in a salvo, and the lead bullets fly freely in the air to form a large net, and there is no need to aim at all.
When the Goguryeo people rushed closer, countless "earth-shaking thunder" were thrown into the formation, causing them to fall on their backs.
The ferocious Goguryeo cavalry across Liaodong is very powerful, but at this moment it is like running into a city wall made of steel. The horses neigh and the soldiers scream. The fierce charge is like a wave hitting a rock. Except for the blood splashing all over the sky, it is insurmountable.
Half a step into the thunder pool.
The power of firearms is so terrifying!
Su Dingfang, who was standing in the rear commanding the battle, looked at the scene in front of him with infinite emotion in his heart. The cavalry, which was known as the "King of War" in the past, finally met its nemesis this time. The lethality of firearms to the cavalry was too great, and
When the firearms are fired, sparks, smoke, and vibrations are emitted, and the horses are frightened, easily causing confusion in the formation, making it difficult to take advantage of the group charge, and can only be slaughtered.
What is particularly important is that cultivating a qualified or even excellent cavalry requires too many resources and takes too long. Why are the Han people often unable to fight against the Hu cavalry? It is precisely because the Hu people have grown up on horseback.
They have superb riding skills. But it is almost impossible for the Han people to train that level of riding skills in their teens. Even if there are talented people who are even better at riding, how many of them are there?
Firearms are easy to operate, and even women and children can go into battle temporarily with a little practice and still maintain a certain degree of combat effectiveness.
It is conceivable that with the development of firearms, their power will become more and more powerful, and the advantage of cavalry will be reduced step by step. Eventually, firearms will completely replace cavalry and become the master of the battlefield.
He was very lucky that such powerful weapons first appeared in the Tang Dynasty, and countless tigers of the Tang Dynasty could rely on them to run rampant across the world.
If firearms first appeared in foreign lands, when countless Hu barbarians armed with firearms and even drove warships equipped with artillery invaded the Tang Dynasty, what could the Tang Dynasty do to resist it?
Su Dingfang increasingly felt that Fang Jun was the best person in the world. If he hadn't invented gunpowder and developed muskets and artillery, the Hu people had successfully developed them first. When the murderous Hu barbarians entered the empire, they burned them and killed them.
Robbery, such miserable conditions are simply unimaginable...
Fang Jun's invention of gunpowder alone is enough to go down in history. His achievements are timeless and are admired and worshiped by descendants for generations to come!
…
This Goguryeo cavalry of more than a thousand people was quickly slaughtered. It was obvious that most of the troops were sent to pursue the Tang army retreating north. Pingrang City was short of troops, especially cavalry.
After killing more than a thousand cavalry, the army did not stop at all, leaving only a small team to clean the battlefield and continue to march towards Pingrang City.
By the time the navy dragged the artillery and arrived at the foot of Pingrang City, the sound of trumpets on the city top was heard, the city gates were creaking and closing, and the flags were erected on the top of the city, fluttering in the cold wind. Countless soldiers
They rushed to the top of the city, crowded, and prepared for defense.
There was a lack of troops in the city, and the navy's strength and combat power were uncertain. After another cavalry was sent out and all were wiped out, the defenders in Pingrang City adopted a conservative strategy - they could not get out.
In their view, hundreds of thousands of Tang troops were still unable to break through the city after being besieged for two months. How could a mere naval force break through the city wall? As long as they could not get out, when the cavalry chasing the Tang troops returned, the stragglers under the city would naturally not be able to break through.
Defeated in battle.
The Tang army successfully arrived at the city, and without even encountering any resistance, they quickly formed an array. Artillery was dragged up one by one. The engineers used shovels to level the ice-covered ground, placed the artillery, and then adjusted the elevation of the muzzle.
Everything was ready. Xi Jun, holding a small red flag in his hand, gave the order: "Let go!"
"Dong dong dong"
More than a hundred artillery pieces were ignited at the same time. The gunpowder burned and exploded in the barrel, releasing violent kinetic energy and violently ejecting the kerosene bombs. A stream of flames mixed with gunpowder smoke spurted out together with the shells, and then the soldiers on the side held the bristle brush plug.
Enter the gun barrel, quickly clean out the residue in the gun barrel, and load the gunpowder packets and kerosene bombs.
"put!"
"Dong dong dong"
Dozens of cannons roared under the Pingrang City. Each salvo erupted with a deafening sound, causing the heavy snow in the sky to be swept up, dancing wildly. Countless kerosene bombs were fired from the barrels and flew from the city wall.
Pass and fall into the city.
"Boom boom boom"
The kerosene bomb exploded as soon as it hit the ground, and the flammable substance soaked in kerosene inside was thrown around. No matter where it splashed, it would stick to it. Even a piece of snow would burn fiercely. The people who were defending the city did not understand yet.
Whatever happened, countless kerosene bombs fell from the sky, and the entire "Little Chang'an" instantly fell into a sea of flames.
The people of Goguryeo were poor and impoverished. Many of them could not afford to build brick and stone houses, so they could only build them with wood. They were most afraid of fire. At this moment, kerosene bombs fell from the sky, and houses, government offices, and shops burst into flames. The people and soldiers were horrified and tried to put out the fire.
But he found that the fire was like a tarsal maggot, burning brightly as long as it was touched by sparks, and could not be extinguished no matter what...
In just one cup of tea, half of Pingrang City was plunged into a sea of flames. The flames were raging into the sky, the smoke was billowing, and the soldiers and civilians in the city were crying and howling in horror.