Three Kingdoms

  Chapter 1220 The net is too small to catch big fish

"what a pity…"

Standing in the darkness of the west gate, Xu Shu kept staring at Huchuquan who was wandering outside the city but couldn't squeeze in. Finally, he sighed slightly and said, "It's a pity that there is no Urn City in Linjin...why didn't this guy take the lead? Entering the city, hey..."

If there is an urn city, Xu Shu will definitely wait until Hu Chuquan also squeezes into the city gate with the soldiers before finally mobilizing it, but now it is only inside the east city gate, and the temporary array of rejecting horses is really not like a solid urn city Generally provide the best attack method and defense strength.

It's a pity, but Xu Shu can't take too many risks. After all, Linjin's net is still a bit small, so he can only catch a certain amount of fish and shrimp. If he is too greedy and the fish and shrimp really squeeze through the net, then The status of the two parties may be reversed immediately.

   "Beat the drum! The shooter steps forward! Free fire!"

  Xu Shu saw that the Huns were almost crowded, so he ordered an attack, and pointed to Huchuquan, who was more than a hundred steps outside the city, and said, "Strong crossbowman, shoot him!"

Although at such a distance, the strong crossbow does have the power to kill, but under the shadowy firelight in the dark night, the approximate position is known, but the specific figure may not be as clear as in the daytime. Xu Shu's supplementary order , It's just that the meaning of the lottery is greater than the actual meaning.

   What if you win the lottery, people should have some dreams, right?

  The war drum that had been silent for a long time, once again rumbled over Linjin City!

  The soldiers of the Southern Huns who were eager to enter the city were shocked. When they looked up, they saw arrows pouring down their faces, pouring down like hail!

The Southern Xiongnu cavalry gathered together were simply the best targets. The Zhengxi archers on the top of the city didn't even need to aim. , As for whether it is a man or a horse, or that guy, it is all up to God to arrange.

   "Throw hay! Torches!"

When the drums sounded, Tai Shici was leading an army to resist the Xiongnu soldiers. With a wave of his long halberd, he almost killed more than ten Hun soldiers who were trying to break through the defense line in front of him. On the inner and outer sides of the city, the soldiers began to throw hay torches at the Huns who were crowded together.

At this moment, the Xiongnu soldiers who were crowded together also understood to some extent that the so-called breaking the city was actually a trap, but the problem was that the Hun soldiers rushing into the city did not have much room to dodge. The ignited grass ball and dry wood burned, and many Xiongnu soldiers bumped their heads in the flames, and then accidentally ran into the sharp wooden frame of rejecting horses with their horses, and were stabbed by the sharp blades on the horses. Scratched, screaming and bleeding everywhere.

Many Hun soldiers realized that the danger was coming, and some people shouted at the beginning, ordering the soldiers to abandon their horses and climb the houses on both sides and the messy piles on the road, but when Tai Shici took off his bow and arrow, he shot and killed the After a few small leaders of the Huns who tried to command in the chaos, these Hun soldiers completely lost control...

"How fat is this?!" Hu Chuquan, who escaped from the crossbowman's shooting with great difficulty and escaped from the edge of the city, even lost his tone of voice, rushed to Zheng Gan and shouted loudly, He tightened the saber in his hand again and again, gritted his teeth, and stared at Zheng Gan with a lack of concealment on his face.

On the top of the city, a lot of torches have been lit, and then Hulala threw the firewood stained with kerosene under the city wall, and soon a sea of ​​flames ignited, burning the Huns crowded under the city wall. The soldiers screamed, and many jumped off the half-dry ditch in order to avoid the burning of the flames. Those who were unlucky hung directly on the stakes at the bottom of the ditch, and their arms stretched out in despair Shaking in the light and shadow of the flame, it was like ghosts trying to escape from purgatory.

"This! I don't know why!" Zheng Gan yelled in panic, seeing Hu Chuquan's unfriendly expression, he couldn't help shivering, and immediately shouted again, "It must be the trick of the general who conquered the west in the city! A certain person also sent people to lurk in Tongguan, and Yang Gong also sent people to lead the army. At that time, the troops will join together, and they will only be close to the remnant city of Jin. "

Hu Chuquan stared at Zheng Gan viciously, the saber in his hand tightened again and again, and shouted: "What do you mean? It's all gone here, what else can Tongguan do? What's more, how much has someone lost in the city in the past two days?" Erlang!"

"Youxian King, Youxian King, stay safe and don't be impatient!" Although it was midnight and the temperature was low, Zheng Gan was still sweating all over. "The signboard didn't work, and I couldn't help but feel my heart pounding. I stared at the flames at the gate, and suddenly I had an inspiration, and said repeatedly, "Youxian King! We have not lost, we have not lost! We have won! We have won! "

  Hu Chuquan was stunned for a moment, and said: "Win? What is winning? This kind of victory?"

Some smiles appeared on Zheng Gan's face, he pointed to the east gate of Linjin and said, "Look, King Youxian! Although this fire has damaged many troops, the east gate of Linjin City has been destroyed like this. The city gate! Although it is blocked by flames now, how long will it last! After all, when the firewood is exhausted, even the fire oil in the city may be exhausted immediately! Just wait a moment, when the flames are extinguished, the city Linjin City, where the door is open, is still ours! It’s just been delayed for a while, and the victory is still ours!”

   "This..." Hu Chuquan looked at Zheng Gan, then at the burning east gate of Linjin City, the saber that was raised in his hand slowly relaxed.

"Tomorrow...no, I will send people to gather some men now..." Seeing this, Zheng Gan hurriedly said, "There are also cattle, wine, and supplies, and they will be sent as well! Reward the whole army! When the flames are extinguished, they will It's time for the city of Jin to be broken!"

"Hmm..." Hu Chuquan turned his head to look at the burning flames at the east gate, and then looked around at his subordinates who fled back in embarrassment after all the hard work, and those near the gate who were either shot by bows or arrows. Either Erlang, who was buried in the disaster, pondered for a while, and finally took a look at Zheng Gan, then put the sword back into the scabbard, and said: "Forget it! Come, blow the trumpet, and withdraw the troops! Zheng Gong, you will come back with me first." camp!"

  Looking above the Jindong City Gate, the burning flames engulfed the surrounding air. Even on the city wall, it was difficult to breathe.

"Xu Shijun..." Chen Hao looked at the Xiongnu soldiers struggling in the flames at the gate, then turned his head to look at the situation inside the city, hesitated for a moment, and said, "I'm afraid this... the east gate is not safe. It's..."

  Xu Shu glanced at Chen Hao with a smile, and said, "If you have something to say, you might as well speak up."

"...Xu Shijun, although many Huns soldiers were burned and killed this time, the city gates were also destroyed in the fire. If..." Chen Hao paused, he said, "When the Huns attack, there will be no city gates here. And Yu Zhi..."

  Xu Shu raised his head and laughed, and said, "If the Huns are really like this, wouldn't it be better?"

   "Better?" Chen Hao was stunned for a moment, "How could it be better?"

  Xu Shu smiled without answering, nodded towards Chen Hao, and Shi Shiran walked first...

  Leave Chen Hao scratching his head, not quite understanding.

The flames soared into the sky, but as the Huns who rushed in were killed and wounded, the firewood was also burned. It was not long after the hustle and bustle of the night, and as the morning sun flooded the earth again, the people who originally built the equipment behind The people of Zheng's family worked hard to push the shield carts that had been built overnight for more than ten vehicles, and they were so numb that they walked slowly towards the city of Linjin.

  A fire at the East Gate at night killed many soldiers and horses of the Southern Huns, which also damaged the spirit of the Southern Huns. If it was normal, facing the already dilapidated city gate, the Southern Huns would definitely not be using any siege equipment. In vain, they slowed down their speed, and most of them just rushed forward to fight.

  But after such a night of chaos, the momentum of the Huns could not help but weaken a lot. Although the Xiongnu ate something whole at dawn, as for the beef and wine that Zheng Gan promised, of course it was not so fast, and some of them were still on the way. Therefore, the somewhat exhausted Huns drove all the tenants and craftsmen of the Zheng family who had been making equipment in the rear to serve as cannon fodder for the first wave.

   These tenant craftsmen of the Zheng family, like walking corpses, with haggard faces, dragged or pushed, struggling as if crawling towards the east gate of Linjin City.

Behind these tenant craftsmen, there are four to five hundred private soldiers brought by Zheng Gan, just following behind the shield cart, marching step by step, shouting loudly, as if to encourage these tenant craftsmen, and also like It's to cheer yourself up.

  Hu Chuquan took the troops of the Southern Huns and lined up at the back, and he didn't have much intention to step forward for the time being.

  Below the east gate of Jin City, through the faint black smoke, you can see the open city gate.

   "Blow the horn! Let these guys speed up!" Hu Chuquan ordered coldly. The shield scull chariot and Zheng Gan's soldiers were used to consume Linjin City's bows and arrows, even if they were all dead, Hu Chuquan would not be able to blink his eyes more. Hu Chuquan couldn't believe it, the number of bows and arrows in this city is endless!

   Sure enough, the shield and scull carts had already entered the range of bows and arrows at the top of the city, but there were only sporadic bows and arrows shot down on the city wall, as if the arrows had been exhausted like a storm last night.

  Zheng Gan was at Huchuquan's side, trembling slightly from nervousness, and now his feeling was completely different from last night. Last night, Zheng Gan still felt that he had the chance to win, as if the world could let him run freely, and his mood was very relaxed, but now, although Linjin City is indeed as he said before, the east gate is open, However, Zheng Gan felt his heart was beating and his blood was rushing to his head.

Hu Chuquan looked at Zheng Gan as if he was about to say a few words, when he heard shouts of contention suddenly erupted on the top of the nearby city, and then some figures appeared on the top of the city, as if they were serious. Seeing something, it dumped down towards the shield and scull cart that had arrived at the bottom of the city!

  Under the city wall, white mist of boiling water rose up, and at the same time, Zheng Gan's people, who were severely burned, screamed so shrill that their voices became extremely sharp!

As the boiling water poured down, the shield array in the city gate scattered, and a big man wielding a halberd flashed out, followed by twenty or thirty infantry wearing heavy armor, rushing forward without stopping. When he got out, he crashed directly into the shield and scull cart of Zheng Gan's soldiers!

The long halberd waved and shone coldly, smashing through the shield chariots in front of him in an instant, killing Zheng Gan's private soldiers behind the shield chariots and collapsing in all directions. All of a sudden, it was a mess, not only the tenant craftsmen who were lucky enough to be uninjured dropped their shield carts and turned around and ran away, even Zheng Gan's private soldiers who followed behind were in a mess, and subconsciously dropped their shield carts and fled back.

The big man with the long halberd chased after him for a while, then stopped, and then let out his breath. Under the struggle of the long halberd, he blocked a shield and scull cart in front of him. It fell into the ditch outside the city, causing another round of applause from above and below the city...

  Hu Chuquan's pupils suddenly shrank. He has been on the battlefield, so he naturally knows what such a powerful general means in the army.

   "Blow the horn! Let the supervising team come forward!" Hu Chuquan no longer looked at Zheng Gan, and directly ordered loudly, "No retreat! Anyone who retreats will be cut!"

A group of Xiongnu soldiers rushed forward, then raised their knives and chopped down the few Zheng Gan soldiers who escaped the fastest to the ground, chopped off their heads and held them up high, waving their sabers, and loudly shouted at them. Zheng Gan's soldiers regrouped and went into the attack again.

   Under the coercion of the Huns with swords and guns, these Zheng Gan private soldiers could only regroup, shouted, and launched an attack on the east gate of Linjin again.

This time, perhaps because it took some time to boil the water, when Zheng Gan's tenants and private soldiers rushed to the city gate together, they did not encounter boiling water again, but directly guarded the city gate. The Zhengxi soldiers bumped into each other and fought each other.

The city gate is actually not wide, at most it can accommodate two carriages walking side by side, so when Zheng Gan's soldiers rushed into the gate and encountered Zhengxi's dense formation, they could only hack on the shields in vain. However, the infantry led by Tai Shici could easily use long spears and sabers to harvest the lives of these chaotic Zheng Gan private soldiers in the gaps in the shields.

Hu Chuquan stared at the fighting east gate for a while, and saw Zheng Gan's soldiers fell down in the middle of the gate in a short while. Suddenly, he felt a little dazed, glared at Zheng Gan, and then ordered: "Come on!" People, order Youda Danghu to lead people to the north of the city, and Zuo Fubi Guduhou to lead people to the west of the city, and attack from all three directions!"

  Amidst the sound of the horn, the Xiongnu split up their forces and circled in the other direction of Linjin City...

  The morning wind swelled, and the sky gradually brightened up amidst a mist.

  Although Hu Chuquan hadn't read any serious books on the art of war, the experience formed between the battle formations also made him quickly realize Xu Shu's strategy to lure the enemy at the east gate.

Although there is no city gate in the east gate, the opening is not wide. If you blindly attack the east gate, even if you can use cavalry to break through the formation of the western infantry, but after this infantry battle, there must be generals who conquer the west He might have been entangled in the east gate for too long, and instead lost the initiative.

Therefore, it is better to attack on all three sides at the same time. Although it may not be possible to attack immediately, but at least it will involve some of the forces of the soldiers who conquered the west in Linjin City. Maybe there will be rain on any cloud, and there may be unexpected unexpected gains. .

Hu Chuquan's idea was very good, but he soon encountered practical problems. Although the soldiers sent to the north and west roared again and again, it seemed that the intensity was not great. After a while, they sent people back to report to Hu Chuquan , said they encountered the same problem.

  There are not enough siege equipment such as ladders, rams, and sculls. Now they are attacking against the top of the city, and they are used when they go to the city to pick up those that are not completely damaged.

Although this is the case, the speed is much slower after all, and the rhythm is not easy to control. Sometimes a ladder on the left is erected, but the one on the right does not keep up. It was impossible to form an effective joint force. Instead, it was easy for the soldiers who had been accustomed to the brutality of the previous two days to defeat each other.

After all, the rush car has relatively high requirements, and it will not be able to be built in a short while, so it is still possible to talk about the past if there is no mast and scull. If there is no one, you can use your own small shield. It is not a big problem. The most serious thing is the ladder. there is none left…

  Without the ladder, how can I climb the city?

Hu Chuquan glared, and subconsciously turned to Zheng Gan, and then saw Zheng Gan's mournful face, and then realized that Zheng's tenants and craftsmen, who were originally used to make engineering equipment such as ladders, had been taken by him this morning. At that time, all of them were buried under the East City Gate.

"Duke Zheng!" Of course Hu Chuquan would not admit that it was his mistake, but pointed directly at Zheng Gan's head, and said, "As I said earlier, we are in charge of attacking, and Mr. Zheng supplies food, grass and equipment. Come on, there is a shortage of equipment, isn't Mr. Zheng going to renege on his promise?"

  Zheng Gan said helplessly: "Don't dare, don't dare, it's just a matter of transporting food and grass to make equipment, it will take some time, please ask You Xianwang for a little grace, so I will arrange manpower..."

  Hu Chuquan was still angry, staring at Zheng Gan and was about to say something, suddenly a few cavalry came running from a distance.

   "Report to Youxian King!" The scout rushed to the front, with a look of joy on his face, and shouted loudly, "Tongguan has fallen, and General Yang is leading the army, and he will arrive soon!"

  (end of this chapter)