Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4900 Survival from Desperate Situations
Pouring water turns into ice, making the city wall more solid and more integrated. How to break it?
Niu Jinda did not understand those profound principles. For a brave general who had spent half his life fighting in battles, the easiest way to deal with a stubborn enemy was to increase his military strength. As the saying goes, two fists cannot beat four hands. No matter how brave the enemy is, victory will be within reach when his own military strength is at an absolute advantage.

Applying this to the currently frozen "Ice City" of Fanhe City, his idea is very simple, just increase the quantity.

The next morning, after a night's rest, the Zuo Wuwei Army once again crossed the frozen river and launched a fierce attack on Fanhe City.

The snow has become less severe, but the north wind is still strong and biting.

It was still the same strategy as before. The infantrymen held up large shields and rushed to the foot of the city, dug up the ice, pried up the bricks, and buried gunpowder. The difference was that the amount of gunpowder buried this time was more than five times that of yesterday. Several bricks were pried off, a hole was dug out in the rammed earth inside, and the gunpowder was buried in it.

Ignite, retreat.

Boom boom boom!
There were dull explosions at multiple explosion points, and gunpowder smoke rose into the sky and was blown away by the strong wind. The defenders standing on the city wall felt that their feet were shaking as if they were standing on water and their footing was unstable. When the gunpowder smoke cleared, they were horrified to find that two parts of the city wall had been blown up, with ice chips flying everywhere, bricks loose, and almost collapsed.

Zhai Liuniang went to the top of the city wall, climbed up the arrow crenel with both hands and looked down at the city. Seeing that the Zuo Wuwei had gathered again in the distance, she quickly shouted, "Throw half of the rolling logs and stones down!"

The defenders on the city wall were confused, but the Marshal's wife had long been respected and supported by everyone, and she carried out the order without hesitation. For a moment, rolling logs and stones from the top of the city wall were thrown down like rain, quickly burying the base of the city wall.

When the infantrymen of the Left Guard once again rushed to the foot of the city with large shields and gunpowder, they found it difficult to move forward. It was much more difficult to bury the gunpowder. They had to either clean up the mess under the city or climb up on rolling logs and rocks to get close to the city wall. But no matter which choice they made, they had to face arrows and rocks from the city while the workload increased sharply. Casualties increased greatly, and their efforts were ineffective.

The two sides of the city attacked and defended each other, and the tug of war went on back and forth. It took Zuo Wuwei a huge price to successfully blow up two gaps in the Fanhe city wall at noon.

Niu Jinda's face was grim. He looked up at the sun which was gradually setting in the west. He waved his hand, horns blew, drums rumbled, and his army rushed towards Fanhe City like a tide and began a frontal attack.

Ladders were erected on the city walls, and soldiers climbed up with swords in their mouths, braving the arrows and stones overhead. Catapults were loaded with kerosene bombs and fired non-stop. Kerosene bombs trailed black smoke and flew over the city walls where the battle was taking place and fell into the city. Fires and thick smoke billowed. The siege towers that had just arrived at the battlefield were pushed to a distance from the city walls because they were too slow, suppressing the enemy's test firing from top to bottom.

The battle instantly became intense.

The importance of the battle between the two sides naturally lies in the two collapsed places of the city wall. The soldiers of Zuo Wuwei continuously launched swift attacks to the sound of war drums and horns, rushing over like a tide. The defenders fought with their backs to the river and had no way to retreat. With the help of the advantage of terrain, they burst out with powerful combat effectiveness and repelled the charge of Zuo Wuwei again and again.

In just one hour, the two collapsed city walls were almost filled with the bodies of soldiers from both sides. The flowing blood instantly turned into ice, and the frozen bodies of the soldiers were piled up layer by layer to build a wall of flesh and blood.

The attack by Zuo Wuwei failed, so they called off the troops.

The howling north wind swept the snowflakes wildly, and the scene was devastated and corpses were scattered all over the ground.

In the government office of Fanhe City, the lights were as bright as day. A group of soldiers surrounded Zhai Liuniang and sat in the hall. The ecstasy of defeating the enemy army had gradually dissipated. Instead, there was panic of being trapped in a desperate situation and fear of facing a powerful enemy. A cold and solemn atmosphere filled the hall.

Although the enemy retreated, the walls of Fanhe City collapsed in two places after just the first day of frontal assault. The soldiers defending the city had to try their best to hold the gap, but how many days could they hold out?
Zhai Liuniang was dressed in military uniform. Her former exquisite makeup was long gone. Her face was covered with wrinkles and fatigue carved by the wind and snow, but her eyes were still bright.

After taking a sip of hot tea and putting down the cup, Zhai Liuniang looked around and said in a deep voice: "I know what you are thinking. You are all officers of the Tang Dynasty. The court is only targeting the commander. You just need to lay down your weapons and beg for surrender. How can Cheng Yaojin kill you all?"

The atmosphere in the hall was solemn and the generals said nothing.

Zhai Liuniang continued, "However, you have not seen the current situation clearly. Cheng Yaojin wants a spectacular victory. How can he be satisfied with just the head of the commander-in-chief? Although I don't know why Cheng Yaojin dared to attack Fanhe City in defiance of the world, I think the reason for him to mobilize his elite troops is nothing more than the word 'rebellion'!"

"boom!"

She slammed the table hard with her palm, raised her sword-like eyebrows, and said imposingly: "My An family has lived in Liangzhou for a long time and has made great contributions to the Tang Dynasty. The territory of the Tang Dynasty is soaked with the blood of the An family. On what basis does Cheng Yaojin accuse my An family of treason?! In the bright and clear world, should we just wag our tails and beg for mercy in front of him and be willing to suffer endless humiliation?"

There was some commotion among the generals in the hall.

If Cheng Yaojin attacked Fanhe City under the banner of "suppressing rebellion", then everyone present would be a "rebel". Cheng Yaojin would have to use the heads and blood of the Zuo Xiaowei to forge his glorious achievements so that he could return to Chang'an. He would never be satisfied with just "killing the main culprit".

There will definitely be a massacre.

The bravery in the hearts of the generals was aroused, and they were all filled with anger and rage.

"Cheng Yaojin is cruel and ruthless, and he is too much of a bully!"

"We are all officers of the Tang Dynasty. We are loyal to the Tang Dynasty. How could we have any intention of rebellion?"

"We must not sit back and wait for death, otherwise we will be branded as 'traitors' and be infamous forever!"

"Madam, please lead us to defend the city and never surrender!"

The atmosphere in the hall suddenly became heated, with curses heard everywhere.

Only then did Zhai Liuniang heave a sigh of relief...

Facing the fierce attack of Zuo Wuwei, the gap in combat power between the two sides was obvious, and the entire army had already become timid. There must have been many people who thought it would be better to surrender. After all, they were all part of the Tang Dynasty's military system, and as long as the An family was destroyed and An Yuanshou surrendered, everyone would naturally get out of the desperate situation.

So she had to boost morale and tie Zuo Xiaowei and the An family together, so that they could live together and die together.

Otherwise, Fanhe City will be captured without a fight in a few days.

"Don't worry, everyone. Although the Zuowu Guards are strong, we don't need to fight them in the field. We just need to hold the city and wait for the commander to bring reinforcements, and the siege will be lifted immediately."

The officers in the hall became more and more confident, slapping their chests and swearing: "Madam, rest assured, we will defend the city to the death and wait for the Marshal to return!"

Zhai Liuniang had a smile on her face, but her heart was very heavy.

Pei Xingjian is the Grand Protector of Anxi. Now he is stationed in Ganzhou to preside over the "Tufan Strategy". He only cares about whether Hexi is in chaos or not, and how can he care about the life and death of the An family? I hope that Fanhe City can be deadlocked for a long time. Once the Zuowu Guard fails to capture it for a long time and the whole Hexi is in danger of chaos, Pei Xingjian will impeach Cheng Yaojin to Chang'an, and Fang Jun will be able to stop it.

It still depends on whether Fanhe City can hold out under the fierce attack of Zuo Wuwei.

After all, she regretted that she failed to dissuade An Yuanshou in time when the Chang'an mutiny occurred. If An Yuanshou had not been dissatisfied with Liangzhou and dreamed of being transferred to Chang'an and entering the center of power by relying on his merits in following the emperor, how could there be the current trouble?

Given the foundation laid by the An family in governing Hexi for two hundred years and their achievements since entering the Tang Dynasty, it is no exaggeration to say that they "shall rise and fall with the country."

As a result, momentary greed has led to the disastrous consequences of today. The family business built up by more than a dozen generations with great effort has suffered a devastating disaster. If one is not careful, it will be destroyed and disappear in one day.

*****
Hexi has always been the deciding factor in Chinese civilization and the weather vane of the dynasty's prosperity. Any empire that could control the Hexi counties was a prosperous empire in history. If the Hexi land fell into the hands of the barbarians, the dynasty would inevitably become weak and lack vitality.

If Hexi is safe, Guanzhong will be safe, and the Central Plains will be safe.

When the mighty Han Dynasty, which had conquered the world, declined and collapsed, the next three or four hundred years were marked by frequent internal strife, foreign invasions, the sinking of the Central Plains, famous cities and towns were all burned down, celebrities and common people were brutally massacred, and the Han people shed tears as they crossed the river to the south.

"In the Qinchuan area, blood reached my wrists. Only in Liangzhou I leaned against the pillar and watched."

When the Central Plains was in turmoil and China was in distress, the Hexi Corridor, isolated in the west but stable and prosperous, became a refuge for the people of the Central Plains. Literati and nobles gathered here to multiply and continue the Han civilization.

Emperor Wen of the Western Wei Dynasty, Yuwen Tai, renamed Zhangye Ganzhou because of the sweet spring water. Together with Guzang City, this place became an important town in Hexi, with prosperous commerce and travel, flourishing culture and a large population.

……

Today, it snowed heavily and the roads were blocked. Ganzhou, which was once a prosperous city with endless merchants and travelers, seemed to have stagnated. The whole city was hidden in the wind and snow. Merchants and travelers disappeared and the market was closed. Only teams of soldiers were patrolling back and forth in the wind and snow to maintain public order.

Inside the government office, Pei Xingjian bent down and scooped a ladle of water from the water tank into the kettle, then turned around and placed the kettle on the burning stove. He rubbed his almost frozen hands, sat behind the desk, and glanced out the window.

Heavy snow fell all over the courtyard. The branches of several trees whimpered in the cold wind, and the cotton door curtains were shaking in the wind.

He let out a breath and picked up the brush to review the official documents.

The "Tibetan Strategy" was initiated by the Ministry of War and approved by the Grand Council. It invested a huge amount of manpower and material resources. It was extremely important for the geographical relationship between the Tang Dynasty and Tibet in the next few decades. However, since the trial, there have been many deviations, especially Lun Qinling's self-willed attack on Tibet, which led to the almost complete failure of the part of the "strategy" that instigated the Gar tribe and Luoshui City to fight and kill each other, which made Pei Xingjian worried.

It is obvious that Lun Qinling was unwilling to be controlled by the Tang Dynasty and become a "henchman", and Lu Dongzan was still unwilling to surrender even under the threat of the Tang Dynasty's army.

The situation in Tubo was very chaotic.

The kettle on the stove was humming. Pei Xingjian stood up and just picked up the kettle when the cotton door curtain was lifted from the outside and a gust of wind and snow rushed in.

Su Liangsi walked in from outside and said respectfully, "Your Excellency the Grand Protector, An Yuanshou wishes to see you."

There has been heavy snow recently, making it difficult to travel, so we haven’t set out for Dadouba Valley yet.

Pei Xingjian was stunned and subconsciously asked, "Who?"