stubborn thief

Outside Gaotai City, it was pitch black at four o'clock, and the villages and houses outside the city were surrounded by ditches and camps.

The Dragon Boat Festival is approaching, and the night is no longer cold. The smoke from the cooking camps in the siege camp is integrated with the night. In the endless smoke, the charming taste of broth is everywhere.

In the abandoned village where the Chinese army was located, the curtains of several military tents beside the loess road were dimly lit by oil lamps, and all the solemn officers entered and exited the village quickly.

Cao Yao walked towards the courtyard wearing a cashmere armor, and asked the guard standing guard by the torch outside the courtyard, "Where is the commander?"

The guard saluted and said: "General Cao, the commander just fell asleep half an hour ago."

Cao Yao nodded: "It's time, go wash up the handsome man."

In the large tent where the officers were discussing matters, the brigade commander Yang Yao and the battalion officers from the front line all dressed up and arrived one after another. They took off their helmets and sat on both sides of the long table covered with maps. No one whispered to each other.

On that map, the battle positions of several battalions accurate to the thousand headquarters have been marked. Ji Tutaiji led [-] Chahars in the west of Gaotai City, Mo Yujing led [-] Heshuotes to drink horses on the north bank of the Heihe River, Wei The two thousand headquarters of Qianerying are located in the south of the city, and the one thousand headquarters is fortified fifteen miles southeast of Gaotai City.

The main attack direction of the Marshal's Army is the south of the city, and Hu Zhishen's Suzhou Battalion will be the first batch of siege troops.

The crystal hourglass on the table was dribs and drabs, and soon, as the guards sang "the commander is here!", the officer in the tent immediately got up holding his helmet, and then Liu Chengzong, who had red eyes but looked energetic, led Cao Yao Step into the account quickly, and when everyone just got up, they pressed their palms down and said, "Sit, have you eaten?"

All the generals nodded one after another. Although it was only the fourth watch, the whole army had already had breakfast, and today's breakfast was very good. All the fire chiefs of each team stayed up all night. Mix it with garlic sprouts and tofu, and make simmered noodles for the whole army.

Authentic, the technical director of this Lanzhou glutinous rice noodles is Yang Qi, a former Ming military officer who was born in Lanzhou, but it should have been made of pork meat instead of beef.

Yang Qi said that it would be a good luck, this scorpion noodle was called longevity noodle in Tang Dynasty.

As for the beef, it was sent by Lin Chengdong, a general of the Ming army. Before he led Cheying to break through, he ate all he could eat and took away all he could bring. The remaining 30 cows and 20 pigs were too much If you leave, they will be slaughtered on the spot.

Yang Yao, the brigade commander at the front of the long table, said with a smile: "Don't worry, commander, the whole army has eaten, and only the commander has not eaten."

"it is good."

Liu Chengzong laughed, the battle at Zhangye Oasis in the east was too chaotic, Zhang Tianlin's troops lost their organization, and officers at all levels could not find generals and generals in the oasis, but they all knew that the Generalissimo's Central Army was besieging the high platform, resulting in Officers at all levels sent information to the Chinese army.

He was buried in the sea of ​​pond newspapers all night, trying to see the general situation on the battlefield from the scattered field camp pond newspapers... Generally speaking, Zhang Tianlin's troops fought well, and the soldiers led by officers at all levels , all moving in and out quickly in the melee.

Few defected to the enemy, but many were wounded, deserted, and lost contact.

On the other hand, there are also a lot of new recruits, including soldiers who belong to the same battalion but under the command of other officers, soldiers who are attached to the Ming army, and soldiers who are directly captured.

There is even a Mr. Bai, nicknamed Yingshanhong, who used to be a soldier of the Monkey King. It was the first time he wrote a pond newspaper for the commander in chief, and he was so excited that he couldn't speak.

Yingshanhong said that she lost contact with the general manager directly under her, and was panicked. She happened to encounter more than [-] Ming soldiers in the field. The Ming army was also very panicked.

After reacting, Yingshanhong led the army back to the battle, and personally arrested an officer for himself, Wang Huaizhong, the general manager of Gansu Town.

When Yingshanhong wrote the Tang newspaper, the 440 Ming troops under Wang Huaizhong had already drawn their helmets and guns. In addition to Yingshanhong's headquarters, a total of [-] people occupied the ancient castle in the southeast of Ganzhou.

There are many similar Tang newspapers. Liu Chengzong judged that Li Hongsi's army lost its organization when it went east to Ganzhou, and its morale was obviously low during the process of losing ground and retreating eastward.

Obviously, in this battle to determine the ownership of Gansu, the victory has been favored by the Marshal's Mansion.

After conquering the high platform, Zhangye Oasis must have a smooth road.

In the tent of the Chinese army where the matter was discussed, the generals at all levels reported that the preparations before the siege were ready. Liu Chengzong reached out to take the imperial calendar from the long table, and tore off the next page to look at it.

The emperor's calendar that was torn off was stamped with the seal of the Qin Tianjian, and it was written that April 26, the seventh year of Chongzhen, should be buried for funerals and enshrined in the coffin.

"Pass my order to conquer the high platform!"

Accompanied by Liu Chengzong's order, the torn imperial calendar was thrown into the fire, turned into fly ash and rose up, and flew from the dome of the felt tent to the sky with the heat.

Under the night, the siege camp was lit with sparks, and military music sounded one after another. Teams of Suzhou camp sergeants held high torches and walked between the trenches and mounds of soil. A thousand catties of red barbarian guns were pushed into the predetermined cannons protected by earth and wood walls. At this point, carts of ammunition were piled up behind the earthworks, and chariots full of earth and rocks were pushed to the edge of the field.

On the south wall of Gaotai City, Yang Jiamo, the commander-in-chief of Gansu Town, stayed up all night like a cook in a camp outside the city.

Since yesterday morning, when the gentry of Ganzhou City went to the city to persuade them to surrender and brought the news that Ganzhou City had been captured by Liu Chengzong, Yang Jiamo hadn't closed his eyes again.

The movements of the army on the outskirts of the city could not be hidden from him. Liu Chengzong's various actions may not be so easy to understand in the eyes of the main generals of the marshal army, but Yang Jiamo in the city understands it very well.

For more than half a month, Yang Jiamo has not been idle in the city. He has almost demolished all the buildings in Gaotai City, leaving only two-story and three-story buildings as places for wounded soldiers to rest. Shidu was turned into a tool for defending the city, just for a desperate fight.

Because Yang Jiamo knows very well that Liu Chengzong builds siege weapons, collects food and supplies, pulls out the left and right strongholds, besieges the surrounding troops, fills the outer trenches, increases the number of attacking guns, and waits for the reinforcements to arrive... It is impossible for him to understand that every action is for kill him.

And now, apparently, the time has come.

At first it was a trumpet cannon outside the city, followed by suona sounds one after another, followed by the beating of thick-toned war drums. Under the night, within five miles of the distance between the two sides, there was the sound of rolling wheels in the dark, which made people feel dizzy. numb.

Yang Jiamo's defenders piled up dozens of campfires burning kerosene within two miles outside the city, but beyond the two trenches, it was pitch black and difficult to see.

But even if he couldn't see it, he could still hear it. It was the sound of thick and wide small wooden wheels belonging to siege equipment, rolling over fields in groups.

The trumpet guns and military music in Gaotai City were also blared together. The soldiers who were waiting for the battle woke up from their sleep and ran to the city wall in panic.

Liu Chengzong's siege mobilization is completely clear, Yang Jiamo can see clearly during the day, there is no garrison outside the north gate, but it is Heihe, and there are Mongolian cavalry wandering across the Heihe, dead end; The equipment is not there, not the main direction of attack.

For the remaining two gates, there were no enemy troops outside the east gate, and they were deliberately released to survive. After running out for more than a dozen miles, they became exhausted, and the enemy troops who were waiting to work would rush up and beat the dogs in the water. This is the basic operation.

The rest is the south gate, with eighteen field heavy artillery lined up in a row, and there are piles of siege chariots piled up like a cloud. There is no doubt that the main direction of attack is the south of the city.

But since he saw that Liu Chengzong planned to use artillery to open the way, Yang Jiamo couldn't let the soldiers climb the city wall at the first time, and the Gaotai City was too small, and the artillery shells falling over the city wall would also cause casualties to the unassembled soldiers. Gather under the horse path on the inner side of the city wall.

There are only more than 200 soldiers stationed in the city, but these soldiers are enough for Yang Jiamo.

As he opened his arms, the servant holding the three-eyed blunderbuss fired a trumpet behind him, and the soldiers stationed under the turret in the southeast of Gaotai City immediately received the order. The car started at the sound, and hundreds of rockets shot out one after another, illuminating the fields south of the city.

Under the short-lived illumination of the rocket tail flame, Lele vehicles loaded with earth and rocks were lined up in a long line in the field, driving towards the second ditch outside the city, and the first vehicle had already begun to be buried.

Behind those Lele cars, there is a huge machine that is slowly advancing, casting a large shadow behind.

At the same time as the hundreds of tigers galloping across the city spewed out a lot of gunpowder smoke, the besieged camp five miles away erupted with dazzling light, and a series of six jack-of-all-trades shot upwards at close to the maximum firing angle, throwing the screaming solid Cannonballs hit the city.

Several shells bombarded the surface of the city wall and the city respectively, smashing several green bricks, and two more pierced through the gunpowder smoke and flew into the city, but none of them seemed to hit the Hundred Tigers they wanted to hit.

Even so, Yang Jiamo, who was standing at the head of the city, frowned unconsciously due to the terrifying momentum, and muttered, "It was quite accurate."

Although none of the cannonballs hit the fire chariot, the artillery skills displayed by the marshal's artillery still made the defenders on the city feel miraculous-the two cannons fired shells from [-] steps away, even if they landed within a radius of five Step inside, not surprising.

But the salvo of the six cannons, if not counting the shells that crossed the city wall, could still fall within a radius of ten steps, the impact points of the shells were a bit too dense.

This kind of accuracy is frighteningly accurate to ordinary soldiers. What they see is nothing more than excitement. The artillerymen of the Ming army on the city can see the doorway. This is not only explained by artillery skills. Least important in salvo.

To put it bluntly, raising the muzzle a few inches is nothing more than a matter of a ruler, and the angle can be raised by placing stones.

Standardized gun carriages, standardized guns, standardized charges and standardized shells are the cornerstones to achieve this kind of shooting accuracy. Without these, no matter how advanced the gunnery is with six different guns, it will not be possible to shoot this kind of shooting. precise.

The standardization of the military industry is not a new thing. It has existed in all dynasties since the Qin Dynasty, but it is also in the last years of the dynasties. This matter is beyond reach.

Take Daming as an example, when Lord Wanli first came to the throne, the artillerymen of Ji Town set up two poles of different lengths, and fired live ammunition with Franco-style invincible generals.

The fight was entirely the artillery skills of the artillery, because as long as there was a problem with the artillery, Qi Shaobao would kill for the artillery.

But at this time, according to Ming's military investment, only Liaodong can have whatever guns it wants, and in Gansu, if the artillery reports that the guns have problems and cannot be fired accurately, the commander-in-chief Yang Jiamo can only pat his subordinates. Shoulder comfort: "It's good to have some use."

In fact, Yang Jiamo just said this half a month ago. The two Ganzhou battalions brought field equipment. They went to Gaotai City to find heavy artillery for the defense. Lost to the stupid thief.

Yang Jiamo looked at Lord Jiajing, Lord Longqing and Lord Wanli on the city wall. What else could he say besides the blessing of his ancestors?

The salvo of the six jack guns on the left wing was like a signal, but for a moment the right wing also flickered, the six jack guns roared one after another, and then the six front guns also joined the bombardment.

But in fact, the accuracy of the [-] heavy guns of the Marshal Army in front of the formation really has nothing to do with artillery skills. At this time and at this distance, they couldn't see the outline of the high platform city wall at all before dawn.

Liu Chengzong's artillery only knew where the artillery they were operating should be placed. They reserved artillery positions that had been tested for half a month after the siege of the city. Green bricks were used to make the rails for the artillery carriages. , the buttocks tilted up and the breech of the gun sank into the pit, and then the gun gauge was used to measure the correct angle, and it was enough to hit with eyes closed.

The rest is the error caused by the [-] steps away from the air and the lack of roundness of the shell.

The continuous roar of the three alternate cannons brought shock to the defenders, but the artillery on the marshal's position fired in an orderly manner.

Due to the fixed firing angle and gun position, it is much more cumbersome than the normal field shooting steps, so they only fire at half the speed of the drill, and fire five times a moment. The firing rate is very suitable for the elderly.

Even so, the eighteen jack cannons operated by the officers of the Huben Battalion still fired 720 cannons at the three targets at the head of the city throughout Yinshi.

When the first ray of sunlight shone on the top of Gaotai City, the brick-covered south city wall was broken everywhere, and the rammed earth layer was exposed in many places. Even the turret on the east side of the south wall was knocked down in half.

On the position where the smell of gunpowder smoke could not go away, Liu Chengzong counted the collapsed battlements with a telescope. There were 33 battlements. The rest of the battlements are knocked."

In the sound of the artillerymen's roar, the front-line messenger ran back to the Chinese army and reported: "Commander, the second trench has been filled, and you can march!"

Liu Chengzong didn't speak, just beckoned lightly, and the flags were waved behind him, and the chariots with thick wooden curtains parked outside the second ditch moved forward, and the huge shadows protected the barrel ladder cars and building cars behind them as they advanced to the city. Within the range of the upper Fran cannon.

At the same time, the General Cannon still under the protection of the battlements at the top of the city also opened fire, and solid iron bullets bombarded the wooden mantle at the front line, knocking the thick wooden mantle suspended by ropes back and forth.

The cannons of the two armies roared, and Hu Zhishen, the general of the Suzhou Battalion who hid behind the wooden chariot and commanded the battle, urged loudly: "Hurry up, hurry up! Push the wooden curtain to their faces!"

good evening!