The massive Song army surrounded the inner city of the Xixia palace. The Xixia soldiers on the city were trembling with fear.
Zhao Ji ordered the various departments of the Song army that arrived later to hand over their firearms and ammunition to Yue Fei's department at the forefront of the Song formation.
At this time, night fell, and the Song Army's positions outside the Xixia Imperial City were lit up with torches and bonfires one after another, illuminating the Song Army's position where Zhao Guan's family, who was conducting the expedition in person, was as bright as day.
The remaining thousands of Xixia soldiers and generals in the city did not light a fire at all because they were afraid that their own side would light torches and light fires, which would expose their targets.
In contrast, the Xixia Imperial City was completely dark, and the Xixia soldiers were trembling in the cold night wind of late autumn, feeling cold and afraid.
When they saw nightfall, they secretly rejoiced that the Song army below the city would not attack the city overnight. They should be able to escape tonight's disaster, right?
However, they thought wrong.
It seems that the Song army will not attack the city tonight, but the generals of the various departments received oral instructions from Zhao Guanjia:
"To prevent long nights and endless dreams, quickly break through the Xixia Imperial City, capture the false emperor Qian Shun, and bind Nan Xian to see me!"
The commander-in-chief of each ministry passed the oral instructions from Zhao Guanjia to the headquarters army. The Song army soldiers were immediately excited and prepared to attack the city with full spirit.
The reason why Zhao Ji asked the Song army to capture Yelu Nanxian alive to see him was not because he was greedy for the body of the thirty-year-old Xixia Queen who still had the charm. It was because he wanted to use this relaxed and pleasing intention to make the Song officers and soldiers here. In a tense siege where life and death are at stake, only when you can relax your mind and body can you exert your strongest combat effectiveness.
If the Xia Emperor Li Qianshun could be captured alive, and then his queen Yelu Nanxian could be captured alive, it would be a good blow to the morale of the Xixia faction that was fighting against the Song Dynasty, and it would also appease the Xixia wait-and-see faction.
It can even be used that Yelu Nanxian is both the Queen of Xixia and the princess of Liao, and may play some role in the future war to aid Liao and resist Jin.
Of course, Zhao Ji also analyzed the possibility that Li Qianshun, the more accomplished Western Xia emperor in history, would rather die than surrender due to his unwillingness to admit defeat and his obsession with becoming a wise emperor.
Regardless of the outcome, the most urgent thing before Zhao Ji is to command the Song army to break through the solid Xixia imperial city in front of him and rush into Li Qianshun's harem.
At this time, the Song army's preparations for the siege were all ready. The artillery and engineering teams from various ministries such as Zhao Ji's gift to Han Shizhong, Xiaozhong and Lue Xianggong had been dispatched by Zhao Guan's family to the forefront of Yue Fei's position.
…
"Fire!" Zhao Ji's roar echoed in the night sky on the battlefield. Dozens of messengers shouted out the emperor's orders, which was as deafening as thunder...
"According to the decree..."
"Boom boom boom..."
"Boom boom boom..."
The artillery of the Song Army began to roar. Dozens of cannons were fired at the same time. The shells were like angry fire dragons, piercing the sky. Most of the shells could accurately land near each battlement on the Xixia Imperial City, causing gravel to fly and dust to fly. , fires were everywhere, and gunpowder smoke was filling the air.
Round after round of fierce bombardments by the Song army cast a shadow of death over the entire imperial city.
Intense artillery shells fell on the Xixia Imperial City, and many Xixia soldiers and generals who were hiding behind bunkers such as battlements and corners could not escape the fatal blow of the Song army's artillery shells.
They suffered heavy casualties from the bombing, and howls and screams could be heard one after another. Bodies and mutilated limbs flew across the air in the explosion of shells, and blood stained the city walls, corridors, and parapets. The scene was horrific.
The Song army's bombardment was called "thunder from heaven" by the ignorant Xia army.
They personally felt that the "sky thunder" brought down by the Song army was so powerful and could have such huge lethality and destructive power! This frightened the Xixia soldiers and generals to death.
Their hearts were filled with fear and resentment, and they kept asking themselves: Not long ago, why didn't they join Wang Zhongxia in the rebellion and kill all the diehards who insisted on defending the city?
If I had made a different choice than now, maybe I wouldn't be in such a desperate situation, right?
However, the reality is cruel, and heaven has not given them a chance to do it again. They regret it now, and it cannot change their tragic fate of not being killed or injured by the Song army's artillery shells.
Some Xixia soldiers in the Imperial City of Xixia, who claimed to be loyal to their emperor and patriotic, and vowed to defend the city to the death, saw that the current war situation was extremely unfavorable to them. They were extremely angry, but there was nothing they could do.
The war situation has reached a desperate situation, and they are so angry that they are like imprisoned beasts, roaring and roaring, but they can't find any way to break through the predicament.
In this desperate atmosphere, some Xixia soldiers were timid and ran desperately to the city, trying to avoid the "lightning strikes" caused by the Song army...
There are still a small number of real Xixia warriors in the city. They have made up their minds to sacrifice their lives to serve the country and live and die with the city.
They were so angry that their eyes were splitting, and they gnashed their teeth and shouted: "We must defend the imperial city to the death to repay His Majesty the Xia Emperor for his kindness!"
They wanted to boost the morale of the defenders on the Xixia Imperial City by shooting the Song soldiers far below the city.
Therefore, they desperately fired arrows at the Song army's position in the distance, and even activated the heavy cyclone cannon in an attempt to use flying rocks to break the seemingly insurmountable distance.
But unfortunately, because the distance was too far, most of their arrows and flying stones landed in the open space in front of the Song Army's position under the city, and the sand particles splashed everywhere in vain, and the dust flew up, even the hair of the Song Army.
Haven't encountered any.
The "Sky Thunder" triggered by the Song Army could hit the Xia Army soldiers and generals like them on the city, but they could not hit the Song Army far below the city, which made their morale extremely low.
At this time, the morale of the Song army outside the city was at its peak. The soldiers of the Song army were highly morale-boosted, cheering and eager to try.
Zhao Ji saw the Xixia soldiers on the enemy city blowing up the artillery shells so that they did not dare to show their heads, and lost the ability to fight back.
The Song army looked at the garrison on the Xixia Imperial City, which suffered heavy casualties from cannon bombs. The Xixia soldiers on the city did not even dare to show their heads. The hearts of the Song soldiers were full of confidence that they would win.
Several educated officers in the Song army praised loudly:
"Today's official families, with their imperial chariots personally conducting campaigns and winning consecutive battles, really have the legacy of Emperor Taizu and Emperor Taizong!"
"In my opinion, today's officials are able to strategize, win thousands of miles, and win hundreds of battles. Not only are they not inferior to Emperor Taizu and Taizong, they are even better than their masters!"
"Of course! I, the current official of the Song Dynasty, personally conquered the Xia Dynasty, commanded a hundred thousand soldiers, and destroyed the Xixia enemy that has been strong for centuries, just like cooking a small delicacy!"
"..."
The soldiers of the Song Army were gearing up and were always ready. After hearing Zhao Guan's siege order, they attacked the Xixia Imperial City in one fell swoop.
At this moment, several gates of the Xixia Imperial City had been shattered by artillery fire; the only thing blocking the Song army from entering the city were the piles of huge piles of rocks behind the broken gates that the Xia army had piled in advance to block the enemy.
Many Song soldiers looked at the large pile of stones built behind the Xixia city gate to block the gate, and felt troubled...
However, Zhao Ji had an idea and ordered the engineering teams of the Song Army to carry ammunition bags under the cover of the Song Army's artillery fire and rush to the pile of stones blocking the road inside the main entrance of the imperial city ahead to concentrate explosives.
Carry out blasting.
After the Song Army's one hundred engineers arrived at the designated location, they began operations quickly and orderly. They carefully placed one hundred explosive packets in key parts of the boulder pile to ensure that the power of the explosion could be maximized.
As the last engineer evacuated to a safe distance, Zhao Ji gave an order, the fuse was lit, and sparks flew everywhere.
"Chi chi chi chi..."
"boom!"
"boom!"
"boom……"
Deafening loud noises, one after another, echoed in the main entrance of the Xixia Imperial City.
The large pile of rocks instantly collapsed under the shock wave of the explosion and turned into countless rubbles flying everywhere. At the same time, the large pile of rocks blocking the city gate was almost flattened by the huge shock wave.
Seeing this scene, the morale of the Song Army officers and soldiers was greatly boosted, and they gave out loud cheers.
Zhao Ji drew out the Emperor's sword, pointed at the gate of the Xixia Palace in front of him where the smoke had not yet cleared, and shouted:
"My brave men from the three armies of the Song Dynasty will follow me into the Xixia Palace!"