xymnovel Chapter 126 The Golden Battle
Chapter 126 The Golden Battle
Chapter 126 Golden Battle (First Update, Requesting Monthly Tickets)
Liu Yin then said, "Chop up my Flying Lightning and this kid's horse, cook them, and distribute them to the soldiers."
He pointed at Liu Shan.
Liu Shan and his personal guards were dumbfounded. Although... well, we did choose to die for our country, isn't it going too far to lure the envoy in and then kill him? Isn't that incredibly immoral?
In war, envoys are not to be killed; this has been a rule since ancient times.
"Go quickly!" Liu Yin noticed the hesitation among the crowd and shouted, his eyes wide. They were all about to die; what was the point of talking about rules? Anyway, I had no intention of associating with the Wei army. Of course, there was another possibility. The Wei army was impoverished, and they sent an envoy to persuade them to surrender. Then the envoy might also be killed by the other side.
But given the current situation with Zhong Hui's army approaching Hanzhong, it would be good enough if they could hold onto Huangjin City. He never even considered sending envoys to persuade the Wei army to surrender in the future.
The messenger group numbered over ten, and with spare horses, there were at least twenty horses, plus provisions. The meat and offal from those twenty horses would be enough for the soldiers to have a meal.
If these dozen or so people aren't killed, they might participate in the siege later. They're just a dozen or so enemies; it's better to kill them than not.
He had participated in countless wars throughout his life, possessing a wealth of combat experience. If the defense of the city dragged on until the very end, and the soldiers ran out of food, even resorting to eating leather and bowstrings, then this meal of horse meat was a must.
"Yes." Faced with Liu Yin's resolute gaze, Liu Shan and the others reacted quickly and bowed in agreement. Then, the two guards turned and rushed to the city gate.
Golden City is nestled in a valley, nestled against the mountains and beside the water.
The city was surrounded by mountains to the east and water to the west, with plains only to the north and south. Therefore, city gates were only opened on the north and south sides.
Liu Yin then built a secondary city at the south gate to strengthen its defenses.
There is a well in the city, enough to feed two thousand men.
It's the dry season now, and the river to the west is very shallow and has a very narrow channel.
Chen Sheng, the chief clerk under General Deng Fang of the Wei Kingdom, led two civil officials and more than a dozen cavalrymen to stop their horses south of the city and wait.
Chen Sheng was very optimistic about this attempt to persuade Liu Yin to surrender. He turned to the two clerks and said with a smile, "General Zhong's army, numbering 200,000, is now at the gates of Hanzhong. It's like Mount Tai crushing an egg; their momentum is unstoppable. Of all the sieges Jiang Wei set up in Hanzhong, only the Golden Siege remains. Liu Yin will surely be afraid and then open the city gates to surrender."
"The registrar is right," the two clerks thought so too, and the clerk on the left said with a smile.
Chen Sheng suddenly perked up, for the city gates had been opened. A robust soldier stepped forward and announced loudly to them, "The general has ordered that the messenger be allowed to enter the city to speak."
Chen Sheng said with delight, "If Liu Yin had no intention of surrendering the city, he wouldn't have let us in. Success!"
With his silver tongue, he captured the fortified stronghold of Golden Fortress. A great achievement indeed. He began to calculate what reward he would receive this time.
"Giddy up!!!" Chen Sheng simultaneously gripped the horse's flanks with both feet, spurring the warhorse towards the city. The others followed closely behind. Upon reaching the city gate, Chen Sheng dismounted and, together with his companions, led the horse into the city as a sign of respect.
Once they entered the city, the city gates were immediately closed. Chen Sheng was caught off guard and unaware of the seriousness of the situation. Opening the gates to welcome guests, and once they were inside, of course, closing them was the next step.
Only when he saw the archers on and below the city walls simultaneously drawing their bows and nocking arrows did he realize something was wrong. He cried out in terror and despair, "The two armies... Ah!"
Chen Sheng and more than ten others, along with their horses, fell into pools of blood, their eyes wide open in death. The soldiers stepped forward, cut off the heads of Chen Sheng and the others, hung them on the city gate, and then carried the bodies out of the city to be buried.
The skilled butcher dissected their warhorse, and cooked it together with the mounts of Liu Yin and his son.
three days later.
evening.
A valley near Golden City. This valley was originally one of the defensive strongholds of the Han army, but it was abandoned by Liu Yin.
Wei general Deng Fang led 10,000 elite troops to set up camp here.
Inside the central command tent.
The lamplight illuminated the main tent, where Deng Fang was eating, his mouth greasy with food. He was extremely tall and robust, with dark skin, a square face, thick eyebrows, large eyes, and a full beard, exuding the aura of a military general.
A bodyguard came in and reported the news.
"What did you say? That old scoundrel Liu Yin killed my chief clerk?" Deng Fang angrily pushed over the wine and dishes on the table, shattering the porcelain on the floor. He stood up and shouted, "Contact General Kuai and attack Golden City tomorrow!"
"Yes," the guard replied loudly, then turned and left.
"You old fool. It's the rule that envoys are not to be killed in war, and those who break the rules will not have a good end." Deng Fang was still furious and sat back down, panting.
Because Chen Sheng and the others had all been killed, he hadn't received any news and was wondering why they hadn't returned yet. Today, he sent scouts to check and only then did they see a dozen or so heads fluttering on the city gate.
"You old bastard! I'll make your head into a chamber pot to avenge my clerk!" Deng Fang said through gritted teeth, a fierce glint in his eyes. He drew his long sword and slammed it onto the table.
Nothing happened that night.
The next morning, before dawn, the valley was shrouded in a thin mist, which, combined with the green hills and clear waters, made it look like a fairyland.
The soldiers had already eaten breakfast.
Deng Fang dispatched a military officer to lead 3,000 men carrying ladders to attack Golden City along the mountain path.
Kuai Shuang responded to Deng Fang in the north.
Although they had an overwhelming numerical advantage, the complex terrain of the Golden City prevented them from fully deploying their forces. They couldn't launch a full-scale attack with 20,000 troops from the north and south, and could only employ piecemeal tactics.
Send small groups of troops to attack.
When Deng Fang's army arrived at the city.
It was already broad daylight.
Golden City, south of the city.
It has no city gate tower, but there are two arrow towers standing next to the city gate.
Two banners bearing the Chinese character "Han" were planted on the wooden arrow tower, resembling two giant dragons guarding the gate, moving with the wind and roaring.
Each arrow tower housed a squad of archers, with piles of arrows stacked high. The archers stared intently at the Wei army below, ready for battle.
Seventy-year-old Liu Yin, clad in heavy armor, his silver hair billowing in the wind, gazed at the Wei army arrayed outside the city, preparing to attack. He sneered and roared, "Brave warriors, treasure your arrows! We'll fire them when they reach the city walls!"
"Yes!" The soldiers, whose morale had been rallied, roared in unison.
"Knock knock knock!!!!"
"Waaaaah!!!"
"kill!!!!"
Once the Wei army was in formation, the sound of drums and horns rang out. More than a thousand Wei soldiers, carrying ladders, charged towards Golden City with shouts of battle in their wake.
"Fire!" Liu Yin's archers shouted, drawing back their bows and releasing arrows. At this point, aiming was no longer necessary; a rough shot would suffice.
The primary focus is on rate of fire.
The advantages of defending the city are extraordinary.
Arrows rained down.
"Aaaaaahhhhhh!!" Even seasoned veterans were equal under this rain of arrows. Many Wei soldiers were shot in vital areas or unprotected by armor, screaming as they fell to the ground, while others, despite their injuries, gritted their teeth and charged forward.
The Wei army did not retreat; instead, they ran even faster and soon arrived at the city walls carrying ladders.
Once the Wei archers reached the range of their arrows, they immediately set up several simple formations.
The burly shield bearers crouch or kneel in front, their arms supporting the heavy shields as if they were city walls, while archers hide behind the shields and shoot arrows at the city walls.
"Whoosh whoosh!!!!"
"Knock knock knock!!!"
The arrows fell evenly, heading straight for the Han army's city.
Liu Yin's personal guards stood in front of him, shields raised, their expressions tense. One of the guards said solemnly, "General, you cannot be harmed. Please go down from the city wall and rest."
"Hmm." Liu Yin didn't try to show off; after giving a simple "hmm," he led his personal guards down from the city walls, leaving the defense to the younger men.
Just as the fierce battle for gold was taking place, Jiang Wei led his troops to Yang'an Pass.