Chapter 486 The time to fight to the death for His Majesty has come!
The first day of the Lunar New Year in the second year of Xuanping.
On this day, when the sky lit up in Liuzhou City, Guangxi, the scene in the city looked the same as before. The streets were the same as before, but what was different from usual was that the people were hiding at home and did not dare to open the door at all.
The few domestic slaves sent out by wealthy gentry families to inquire about the news were also in a hurry, with worried looks on their faces.
The entire city of Liuzhou was in panic.
The puppet Tang rebels gathered outside the city and were actively preparing to attack the city. This was known to all the soldiers and civilians in the city.
Therefore, even though this day is the traditional Spring Festival, there is no festive atmosphere in Liuzhou City. Even the New Year's Eve dinner last night was just casual. This is true for ordinary people as well as the gentry and wealthy families.
There is absolutely no festive atmosphere for the Spring Festival in and around the city!
As for the civil and military officials in Liuzhou City, they couldn't even eat, because anyone who was not blind could see that this time the puppet Tang rebels were really coming, and the most important thing was that what they expected
The imperial reinforcements never came.
They also received the news before the arrival of the puppet Tang rebels. The 8,000 reinforcements led by the governor Wei Yan had been defeated at Anjia Wharf in Xiangzhou half a month ago. In the end, only more than 2,000 troops were left.
They fled along the river in embarrassment. Now the governor of Guangxi, Wei Yan, has rebuilt his camp in Wuxuan, claiming that he will use all means to prevent the puppet Tang rebels from advancing eastward along the river!
They didn't know whether Wei Yan could stop the eastward advance of the puppet Tang rebel army in Wuxuan, but they knew that they were about to be doomed.
Because Wei Yan was defeated miserably and then retreated to Wuxuan, and he could only defend passively and did not dare to launch a counterattack!
What does this mean? This means that the adults above have no hope of counterattacking Liuzhou in the short term. The war between the imperial army and the army, at least in the Guangdong and Guangxi areas, and the puppet Tang rebels will enter a long-lasting war.
status……
This means that the adults have given up on the capital city of Liuzhou and the more than 30,000 soldiers and civilians in the city.
Affected by this, the atmosphere in the city was not very good. Whether it was ordinary people, gentry or even soldiers in the army, they all maintained an extremely pessimistic attitude towards Liuzhou's defense war.
Even the most optimistic people don't think they can hold Liuzhou City, and they can only hold on for half a month or a month at most.
Although they have an army of ten thousand people in the city, many people know that the regular army in the city is only more than 6,000 people. The remaining 6,000 to 7,000 people are young men recruited from nearby areas before the puppet Tang thief army came, and those who came after the thief army besieged the city.
, the young men recruited from the city, their fighting ability is worrisome!
However, they had more or less found out the Puppet Tang Thief Army outside the city. The main force was the First Infantry Brigade of the Puppet Tang Thief Army, and this unit was the first-class elite unit of the Puppet Tang Thief Army. They once fought in Guizhou
Defeated as many as 50,000 to 60,000 Guizhou officers and soldiers.
Although the other puppet armies of the Tang Dynasty are weaker, they are all regular armies. For example, the garrison troops in the rebel army are all descended from the Ming army. No matter how bad these surrendered troops are, they are still stronger than Qingzhuang, and I heard that
It is said that once the surrendered troops of the official army arrived at the puppet Tang rebel army, they immediately became fierce and fearless of death, and their combat power increased a lot out of thin air!
These traitors were not seen working so hard when they were fighting for the Ming Dynasty. After they betrayed the Puppet Tang Dynasty, they became so fierce, a bunch of ungrateful guys!
The Puppet Tang thief army outside the city is so powerful, but our own troops are insufficient, and half of them are young and strong. Under the strong attack of the Puppet Tang thief army, it is good to be able to hold on for half a month.
But half a month, what's the use of a month? They had been surrounded by the puppet Tang rebel army for more than a month, but what's the use?
It was of no use at all. Reinforcements still hadn't arrived, and our side still couldn't hold on, and couldn't even break through.
With no hope of victory in sight, the pessimistic mood is spreading throughout the city!
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the soldiers and civilians in the city had not had breakfast yet. The rumble of cannons was heard outside the city, and the soldiers and civilians in the city were no longer curious about the cannons of the puppet Tang rebels.
The last time the puppet Tang rebels attacked Liuzhou City, they also fired artillery in this way. They had expected this. The only thing they had to worry about was not to be unlucky enough to be hit by the puppet army's artillery shells.
However, soon, the people in the city discovered that today's shelling was unusual, because the sound of the artillery was much denser, and the people also saw many officers and soldiers rushing towards the city wall, all of them looking nervous.
Through these circumstances, some smart people have realized that after waiting for so many days, the puppet Tang rebel army is finally going to launch an attack on Liuzhou!
Ever since, on the first day of the Lunar New Year, inside and outside Liuzhou City, the rumble of cannons replaced firecrackers, echoing in the sky above Liuzhou City, and it kept sounding, as if it would never stop.
In order to reduce casualties during the attack, and also because of a new batch of ammunition supplies, Hao Bainian ordered the artillery troops not to save ammunition and to fight hard!
The priority target is still the Ming army artillery placed on the top of Liuzhou City. Although these artillery are small-caliber bowl-mouth cannons with a range of less than 100 meters, if these artillery are not eliminated or suppressed, when the troops launch a charge,
, will still cause great casualties to the infantry of the Tang Army.
While bombarding, Hao Bainian did not forget to take other methods, such as blasting!
On the one hand, tunnels were dug secretly, while on the other hand, zigzag trenches were dug openly to approach the city wall.
At the same time, they did not hesitate to use a lot of manpower to build many mobile arrow tower vehicles, and then made many shield vehicles that could withstand the Ming army's bows and arrows, handguns, and bowl-mouth cannons, as well as extremely heavy wooden boards, leather, and thick cotton.
A huge shield made.
All this is to destroy and then conquer the wall of Liuzhou City!
In the battles of this era, the battle for the city wall represents victory or defeat. If the city wall is captured, then the Liuzhou City will be in the pocket of the Tang Dynasty King. If the city wall cannot be captured, then the Ming army in Liuzhou City will
can continue to resist.
This large-scale bombardment lasted for two days!
There is no way, who made the Ming army in Liuzhou City capture it like this, and they have been unable to get out. Even the artillery on the city head was temporarily removed. They are just bowl-mouthed cannons of a hundred kilograms or even less. They can be used at any time.
Move up or down the city.
Since the Ming army's artillery troops on the city had not been successfully eliminated, Hao Bainian had no choice but to change his strategy and use artillery, especially 800 kilogram heavy artillery, to focus on a certain section of the Ming army's city wall in an attempt to destroy the Ming army's city wall.
A section collapsed.
At the same time, the tunnel excavation was relatively smooth. Unfortunately, the Ming army in the city also had smart people. They soon discovered that the puppet Tang rebels were digging tunnels. They carried out targeted operations on the spot and sent dead soldiers to carry a lot of gunpowder.
Explosions were carried out.
Not only did they fail to dig the tunnel successfully, but a small number of the soldiers digging the tunnel were killed or injured.
Compared with the progress of tunnel tactics without loss, the advancement of open and honest trench digging is much smoother!
Because the purpose of this kind of trench is not to go directly to the city wall and then blast the city wall, its purpose is to allow the siege soldiers to safely reach the city wall.
This kind of zigzag trench also has good defensive capabilities. If the top is covered with wooden planks and soil, the Ming army's bows and arrows and even bowl-mouth cannons will be difficult to threaten the soldiers advancing in the trench.
Furthermore, every time the Tang Dynasty's royal division dug a trench, they would deploy corresponding troops. The Ming army's tactics of sending dead soldiers to destroy the trenches did not work at all, because these dead soldiers had no way to get close, and even if they did, they would not be able to get close.
No actual damage could be done to the trenches.
The trenches are not tunnels, and they will not collapse due to bombing. The trenches of later generations can even withstand heavy artillery bombardments of more than 150 mm. Although the trenches of the Tang Dynasty King's Division are a little worse, they are not just one or two.
Can be destroyed by gunpowder.
After the trench tactics went smoothly, Hao Bainian simply re-established the tunnel tactics, but this time he did not expect to dig the tunnels under the city wall, but used them as a trench support tactic to transport troops quickly and safely.
Frontline trenches.
Various tactics such as shelling, trenches, and tunnels were implemented, but the Ming army in the city was finally unable to stop the gradual advancement of the Tang Dynasty.
Seeing that his own trenches had been dug to less than thirty meters from the Ming army's city wall, Hao Bainian was extremely pleased.
Although civil engineering is time-consuming, it is very effective in reducing one's casualties. In this way, one's siege infantry do not have to run hundreds of meters under the firepower of the pseudo-Ming rebels and can pass through tunnels and trenches.
Arrive directly under the city wall, and then initiate the battle to climb the city.
As for the moat of Liuzhou City, it was originally quite troublesome, but Fang Dongquan came up with a strategy and directly dug a small canal, and then raided and blasted to dig out the moat connected to Liuzhou City one night. It took several days to finally
The water in the moat of Liuzhou City has been drained.
Now, there is nothing in Liuzhou City that can stop his army from attacking!
After the trenches and tunnels on the front line were prepared, and the various siege equipment produced by the troops were also prepared, on the seventh day of the Lunar New Year, Hao Bainian issued the order for the entire army to attack!
On that day, the Tang Dynasty King's Division invested more than 2,000 troops at once in its first attack, and the artillery of the Second Artillery Battalion fired intensively and rapidly, so much so that the barrels of the artillery were shot.
It was so red that it almost exploded.
Although this attack failed, resulting in more than 200 casualties to the 3rd garrison brigade participating in the attack, Hao Bainian did not take it seriously. Although there were many troops involved in this first attack, it was still strictly a test attack.
Just to verify whether the siege tactics are feasible.
But this time the trial attack allowed Hao Bainian to see the feasibility of tactics. At noon that day, Hao Bainian launched a real general attack!
This time, the main siege force was no longer a garrison force, but the troops of the 1st Infantry Brigade!
Before the war, Hao Bainian personally lectured the officers above the rank of the 1st Infantry Brigade, saying: It is a matter of eating the emperor's salary and being loyal to the emperor. Now, it is time for us to fight to the death for your loyalty to your majesty!
Today, let us use guns and blood to capture Liuzhou City and lay the foundation of the Tang Dynasty forever!