The Song Dynasty has been deliberate for 16 years, only to know that it is the Water Margin

Chapter 356

In this siege, Fang's Seven Buddha Army returned without success, and the number of casualties reached as many as one or two thousand.

This is just an attack on Nancheng. If they attack from all sides, it is impossible to say how many soldiers will be lost.

Returning to the big tent of the Chinese army, Fang Qifo pondered for a while. This Jiangning city was heavily guarded, and it was calm and orderly when dealing with the siege. It was completely different from other cities that had been attacked before.

Although Jiangning City is tall and strong, what is more important is the commanding ability of the generals defending the city and the overall combat power of the defenders.

Fang Qifo remembered the strategy mentioned in the right envoy Li Fei's letter, and hurriedly summoned Luo Jinshui and Wu Song, and asked them to contact the city tonight to discuss and set a time for a sneak attack from inside and outside.

He was anxious. The armies of Sheng Gong and Tong Guan in Suzhou had been fighting fiercely. The longer the battle dragged on, the more unfavorable it would be. If the rebellion could not be swept away like the autumn wind and fallen leaves at the beginning, then the follow-up would very likely fall into a confrontational situation. , and even worse, this is contrary to the five-year Dingding Central Plains plan established at the beginning of the uprising.

Fang Qifo regretted it very much at this moment. If he knew that Fang La had gone east to fight Suzhou, then he would not have been able to go south to the east of Zhejiang at that time. Instead, he would have gone straight to the towns around the Yangtze River and captured Jiangning before the Zhao and Song courts sent troops to support them. , Zhenjiang and other places.

But it's too late to say anything now, so I have to make up for it as much as possible, and try my best to seize the cities on the south bank of the Yangtze River, and then kill Jiangbei in one go, so as to regain the initiative in the war.

At midnight, Fang Qifo brought Shi Bao and Bao Daoyi to Jiangning Xicheng.

There is also a camp stationed here, and Luo Jinshui, Wu Song, and Shi Qian are all living here with their subordinates, and they are ready to communicate with the city at this moment.

The contact method Luo Jinshui and Fang Qifo said was that every single day at noon or midnight, they can communicate with the city outside the west city. Of course, this contact cannot call or send letters, but it can send secret Semaphore hand gestures and torch signals.

These semaphore gestures and torch signals can only be understood by people on both sides, and no one else can guess. After all, although these gestures seem simple, there are thousands of meanings that can be expressed in the world, and they can be covered up anywhere.

At this time, the moon was dark and the wind was high. In order not to show his flaws, Fang Qifo specially ordered the besieging troops on the other sides to set off torches at the same time, so Luo Jinshui and the others came forward to make contact.

At this time, he could see clearly from behind, and saw that the torch was turning in circles and shaking up and down, and the time interval between each movement was different, so he couldn't help but be amazed in his heart.

There are eighteen gates in the outer city of Jiangning, and Li Fei, the right envoy, is guarding the Jiangdong Gate. This gate and the gate of the stone city above are both protruding from the city wall. The urn is huge and the tower is even more majestic.

At the moment above the Jiangdong Gate, after Luo Jinshui and others signaled the torches, they responded to several actions very secretly. If they hadn't known that the two sides were using torches to communicate, outsiders would not have been able to see what was going on.

About a quarter of an hour later, Luo Jinshui ran northward with a group of people, and after making some fake moves, he rode his horse back to the camp to report to Fang Qifo.

Fang Qifo asked: "Brothers, what does Li Youshi say?"

Luo Jinshui said: "Marshal, everything is ready for the right envoy, but we need a suitable opportunity to do it. I read the torch flag, and the right envoy means to set a specific date for the surprise attack at noon in two days' time!"

He was talking nonsense with his eyes open, except that it was true that he would send a message in two days, everything else was nonsense. The torch gesture just now was just to report the situation in Fang Qifo's army, without any other inquiries.

Fang Qifo didn't suspect him at the moment, nodded and said: "It really needs a suitable time. A sneak attack should not only be carried out when the enemy is most negligent, but also watch the weather and wind and rain. It is not easy to make a decision."

Luo Jinshui hastily nodded in agreement.

Fang Qifo thought for a while and said: "At noon two days later, will Li Youshi be at the top of the city?"

Luo Jinshui was stunned, he really didn't know about this, so he had no choice but to say: "Marshal, my subordinates didn't ask, and it's not good to use a torch to ask about this matter."

Fang Qifo smiled, and said to himself that he regarded the code words of the torch as omnipotent. After all, there are limited things to talk about with this torch gesture, and some complicated ones cannot be demonstrated.

He said: "Then let's talk about it in two days. The siege will continue in the next few days. Li Youshi said in the letter that it is best to attack the city after the siege is exhausted, which is very reasonable."

After all, he took people back to the central army tent in the south of the city, where Luo Jinshui and the others also rested.

The next day, Zhao Tama put up a list to reassure the people, after all, yesterday's bandit army attacked the city with a lot of momentum, even the ladders were hooked up.

The people in Jiangning City are alright, they are all poor and poor. Although the battles outside the city are scary, they still have to do the work that needs to be done. eat and drink.

But those gentry are different. They are all like ants on a hot pot. They are either busy digging cellars in the mansion to bury gold and silver, or they send people to buy adobe houses and coarse cloth at high prices, and they are going to pretend that once the city is destroyed Become ordinary people muddle through.

But no matter how hard they toss, every move is under the surveillance of Zhao Tun. If they can escape so easily, then the big families in Hangzhou, Yuezhou and other places who have not left will not be picked up by Fang Ladu and killed.

In the evening, Zhao Tang went to see Zhu Xiuniang again, this time he brought a lot of books and ordered them to put them in the house.

Zhu Xiuniang's face turned pale, obviously she already knew the news about the bandits attacking the city, seeing that Zhao Tun did not behave rudely in the past two days, she relaxed a little, but still said angrily: "When will the lord let the girls leave?"

Zhao Tong frowned and said, "Xiu Niang, you are so ignorant, you didn't see the bandit army attacking the city outside, why are you making a fuss to leave?"

Zhu Xiuniang said righteously: "It is precisely because of the urgent situation of the bandits that the lord must guard the city wholeheartedly, and there must be no slack in the slightest. The presence of the maids in the Fusi will only distract the lord, so the lord should let the girls go home as soon as possible! "

Zhao Tang smiled when he heard the words: "Xiu Niang said that she would distract me, it is true, but once Xiu Niang leaves, I will become worried instead, won't I?"

Zhu Xiuniang's cheeks were glowing when she heard the words. She knew that she had said something wrong and made the other party ambiguous, so she hurriedly made up for it: "My lord, what the girl means is that I am an eyesore here, so that my lord can't concentrate on military affairs."

"What's in the way?" Zhao Tuo looked at her and said with a smile: "It's better than flowers to explain words, like jade to produce fragrance. During this battle, with Xiuniang by my side, this king can relax a little, otherwise the battle will be suspended every day. Hanging around, this king is about to die of a headache."

Zhu Xiuniang's face turned even redder, and she was waiting to speak, but she heard Zhao Tun continue: "I have ordered someone to prepare a banquet. Wouldn't it be nice for Xiuniang to have a drink with me and discuss some knowledge?"

Zhu Xiuniang's expression changed slightly when she heard the words, and said nervously: "My lord, this is impossible!"

Zhao Tong wondered, "Why not?"

Zhu Xiuniang frowned, she was worried that Zhao Tama's drinking was immoral, but she couldn't say that alcohol can mess with sex, as if she was reminding the other party.

She said: "Folk girls are not good at drinking!"

Zhao Tong laughed and said, "Then don't drink, the king didn't force you to drink."

Zhu Xiuniang continued: "I, I'm not hungry..."

Zhao Tun frowned, and laughed: "Then just watch me eat and drink!"

After he said that, he sent the maid in the house to order wine and vegetables, and exchanged some fresh fruits by the way, and then he flipped through the book and sat there reading it with relish.

Zhu Xiuniang stood over there and peeked at him, only to see that Qin Wangfeng was like jade, with a free and easy expression, especially when he was studying, his concentrated expression was even more handsome.

She couldn't help but move in her heart, and said, "What kind of books does the prince read?"

Zhao Tong raised his eyes to look at her, and said with a smile: "Mr. Huo Sichou in Tokyo edited three points, more than one volume. If Xiu Niang likes it, she can take it and read it now."

Zhu Xiuniang shook her head: "I've heard of it, but I don't read about it!"

Zhao Tang didn't think it was disobedient when he heard the words, just continued to look at it, and after a while, the servant girl brought the fruit, and the East Kitchen brought the wine and vegetables, and the table was full of them, the aroma was tangy, Zhao Tang didn't need others to serve, It is to drink by yourself and eat to your heart's content.

Zhu Xiuniang looked at him eating and drinking so sweetly, as if there was no one else around, and couldn't help but feel angry. This king of Qin is hypocritical, he tricked her into being a governor and not allowing her to go home, and what he said to protect her was clearly a false excuse. Although she didn't have the real purpose I want to understand, but no matter what, it's getting late now, it's not appropriate for him to run to his house and sit, let alone drinking here, what kind of person does he think of her?
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, and even though she had always been calm and quiet, she couldn't help but want to chase people away, but at this moment, she heard Zhao Tang chanting: "The wine and meat of the rich family stinks, the road is frozen to death, prosperity and withering are close at hand." It's hard to express my melancholy, Xiu Niang, what do these words mean?"

Zhu Xiuniang was shocked when she heard the words. These two lines of poems by Du Gongbu can be regarded as forbidden things in the world. so it is.

She can't answer, it's not that she doesn't know how to answer, but it's that she can't answer. Although she was born in a high-ranking family and a noble family, it doesn't mean that she doesn't know the situation of the people in the city and the countryside outside. It's only because of fate, everything is predestined.

Seeing that she didn't answer, Zhao Tang knew what she was thinking by seeing her expression, stood up breathing heavily, walked over a few steps and approached and said: "If the bandit army invades the city, kills the wealthy families, and robs their money, Is it also predestined to steal their food and their wives and daughters?"

Zhu Xiuniang was so frightened by him that she backed away again and again, and she fell directly on the couch. Zhao Tang stretched out her finger to lift her delicate and fair chin, shook her head and said, "The wine and meat of the Zhumen stinks, and the road has frozen bones. In fact, there is another explanation. !"

After finishing speaking, Zhao Tang smiled, pulled back his finger, but touched her cheek lightly, then turned around and walked out of the room without looking back.

Zhu Xiuniang was sitting on the side of the couch, her heart was beating wildly. She didn't expect that she was pretending to be a hypocrite just now, pretending to be a dignified King of Qin, and she suddenly tore off her mask and started to move?
He actually touched his own house. In more than ten years, no man has ever touched his own house. Even if it was something she used, he was not allowed to pass through a man's hands, but he... actually touched his cheek.

Zhu Xiuniang was trembling with anger, and tears fell down, but crying, she didn't know why she remembered something again, what is the smell of rich wine and meat, the road is frozen to death, and there is another explanation?
Thinking about it, for some reason, she suddenly became afraid in her heart. She shivered and thought of some terrible things. Her originally dull face suddenly became panic-stricken. She stood up and wanted to go outside, but was caught by the maid. Hold it together with the mother-in-law...

In the early morning of the next day, Fang Qifo began to command the army to attack the city, but this time it was an all-out attack on Jiangning, launching from four directions together.

With the experience gained from the last siege, the soldiers first carried the planks on their backs, and then the shield carts in front of them cleared the way, carrying the logs to build a bridge over the moat.

Although the sound of flying cannons kept ringing from the top of the city, and stones fell like raindrops, there were not as many people who died on the bridge this time. A wooden bridge was erected on the moat, and the soldiers ran over and began to clear the first ditch. However, this is only the situation under the other three walls. As for the ditches under the south city, they have been exposed for a long time. At this time, the soldiers who attacked the south city had put logs on both ditches, and ran like crazy to the bottom of the city wall.

For the soldiers attacking the city, the position close to the city is the safest place, because here the flying artillery can't hit it, and the bow and arrow are extremely difficult to shoot. The only thing to guard against is the rolling wood and rocks.

As more and more soldiers rushed over, there were more and more dead bodies on the ground. Crossbow arrows had already been used on Jiangning South City. Crossbows are not easy to use. Although they are powerful, crossbows are not as powerful as bows and crossbows. The structure of the ballista is complicated, and it has a certain period of wear and tear. If it is used too many times, it will be destroyed. However, only the Tokyo Military Inspection can make crossbows.

Therefore, the crossbows in Jiangning City are worn out and less than one, and they are not like bows and guns. Even if the arsenal is used up, they can find a way to replenish it on the spot.

However, Jiang Ning itself had five heavy crossbows, and some crossbows of other sizes, and Zhao Tuo brought ten heavy crossbows from Tokyo, and no less than a hundred other light and heavy crossbows.

The bed crossbow is a general term. The light-weight ones include the god-arm bed crossbow, which is derived from the god-arm bow, and the middle-weight ones include the double-bow bed crossbow and the Dahe cicada crossbow.

As for the heavy crossbow, the most famous one is the eight-ox crossbow, which is equipped with three crossbows with two fronts and one reverse.

The arrows fired by heavy crossbows are also different. There are so-called "one shot and three swords arrows", which are shaped like large javelins, and the arrow feathers are three pieces of iron feathers, and there are so-called "stepping arrows", which can be shot after firing. Nailed on the city wall, it can be used by the attacking party to step on and climb up. This kind of crossbow is most useful for attacking low and small cities.

At this moment, every time the eight-ox crossbow on the head of Jiangning Nancheng is fired, no matter whether it hits the bridge or the shield car, it will blow up the wooden bridge shield car, even the soldiers hiding behind the shield car will not be spared. .

After a round of crossbow attacks, there was an extra layer of dead bodies under the southern city. Even the attacking momentum of the opponent's army was slowed down abruptly, and it was no longer so fierce and ferocious. Obviously, it was frightened by the power of the crossbow arrows. courage.

Zhao Tuo was standing at the top of the city with his hands behind his back at the moment, looking at the scene below, Wang Ting said from the side: "My lord, is it a waste to use the heavy crossbow now?"

Zhao Tuo smiled and said nothing, pointed to the commander-in-chief flag of the Seven Buddhas in the distance below the city, then pointed to another heavy crossbow next to the eight-ox crossbow, and made a gesture of firing.

Next to the Ba Niu crossbow is a giant bed crossbow, commonly known as the thousand-step crossbow, which can hit as far as three Song Dynasty miles away, about 800 meters in later generations, and its range can be described as unprecedented.

Wang Ting immediately said: "Take orders!" Then he began to direct the soldiers to fill the crossbow and twist the strings. A moment later, an iron spear-like arrow roared through the air and shot straight at Fang Qifo's banner...

(End of this chapter)