Southern Ming Rebel Army

After Shang Shan pacified Ma Degong, he immediately commanded the Eight Banners soldiers to climb the city walls from various ladders. Seeing this, the Green Camp soldiers, who were already on the verge of collapse, shouted excitedly, and the momentum of the attackers reached its peak.

The defenders on the city wall showed worried expressions on their faces. Lin Shiqi knew that it was the most critical moment. The defenders on the city wall had been fighting for a long time. The soldiers on the city wall were no longer all the regular soldiers of Ningwu Town of Lin Shiqi when the war started. There were family servants, guards from the escort agency, and auxiliary soldiers. Although the personnel were complicated, their determination to resist the Qing army was unquestionable. They couldn't help but worry, but no one wavered and took a step back.

"Pour all the kerosene cans down and burn the ladders!" Lin Shiqi shouted loudly as he looked at the Eight Banners soldiers climbing on the city wall.

There was not much kerosene in stock on the city wall, and the few dozen remaining were thrown down in one go. In an instant, a blazing flame ignited under the city, the flames shot up into the sky, and the hot breath even surged to the top of the city wall. The Eight Banners soldiers who were climbing the ladders screamed and jumped off the city wall. Water and fire are merciless, and in this situation, no matter how brave you are, it is useless.

Shang Shan saw dozens of bannermen being burned to death by the raging fire, and his face turned grim with rage. Although it was tragic, the bannermen from other places were still quickly climbing up the city wall and fighting fiercely with the defenders on the city wall.

At this critical moment, reinforcements had arrived in the city. Although Meng Bizhi was still injured, he still led the remaining 1,500 heavily armored soldiers to the city wall to deploy defenses. When the defenders on the city saw the heavy infantry in helmets and armor, their fears were relieved.

The armored soldiers of both sides once again engaged in close combat on the top of the city wall. Meng Jun's heavy armored soldiers mostly used blunt weapons, which gave them some advantages over the banner soldiers. Moreover, the heavy armored soldiers had a numerical advantage on the city wall. The Eight Banner soldiers could only climb up the city wall as if they were licking oil. Even though the banner soldiers had more sophisticated battle formation skills, it was impossible for them to occupy the city wall in a short time.

At 3:30 pm, the two armies had been fighting on the top of the city for nearly an hour. Meng's soldiers suffered heavy losses, but Shangshan's Eight Banners soldiers were not in a good situation either. More than half of the 2,500 Zhenglan Banner soldiers had been killed. It was getting dark at this time. Shangshan was a little hesitant, not knowing whether to continue to invest the remaining banner soldiers. At this time, a shout from the messenger came from the rear, "The Marshal has ordered to light the fire and fight at night. We must break Suzhou City tonight!"

The Qing army was in formation, under the banner, Nikan could no longer remain calm, he pulled the reins of his horse, came to Bolo and said, "General, it seems that Shangshan's 2,000-plus bannermen alone cannot break the city."

Bolo nodded, and then said to the Mongolian general Su Rile behind him, "Su Zhangjing, you lead our 2,000 Mongolian warriors to climb the city."

Su Rile frowned and said, "General, the warriors of Changshengtian are only suitable for flying on war horses, and are not good at climbing fortified cities."

Bolo said calmly, but his tone was firm, "The warriors from Manchuria are also climbing the city walls."

Surile was speechless after hearing this, and could only lead his men to dismount and climb the city wall. These Mongolian Eight Banners rode horses all year round, and their lower bodies were obviously bow-legged. When Shang Shan saw Surile arrive, he gritted his teeth and said to Goshha beside him, "Follow me up the city wall."

Geshiha beside him hurriedly advised, "Your Majesty is of noble status, how can you climb the city like an ant?"

Shang Shan cursed angrily, "Emperor Taizu started the war with thirteen sets of armor and went through so many dangers. How can the small city of Suzhou stop the Eight Banners Army?" Then he ignored the obstruction of his personal guards, jumped out of the protection of the shield wall, and was about to climb up the nearest ladder. Behind him, Goshaha had no choice but to guard him closely.

On the battlefield, swords clashed, arrows rained down, cannons roared, and torches were lit up on the city walls and outside. Although it was dark, the sound of fighting shook the entire city of Suzhou. The sound of killing resounded in all directions, and the people in the city were terrified and no one dared to sleep.

Although the defenders were not as strong as the Eight Banners, no one retreated. Corpses piled up like mountains on the city walls, and blood seeped into the bricks, turning them black from being soaked in blood.

Shang Shan had already climbed onto the city wall, with Goshaha closely guarding him. They quickly occupied a small area on the top of the city wall. Seeing that the breakthrough was showing signs of expanding, Lin Shiqi rushed over with the guards around him.

At this time Meng Jun also arrived at the city with his personal guards. Seeing chaos on the top of the city and fierce fighting at various climbing points, Meng Jun saw Lin Shiqi in the dim light. Lin Shiqi was in danger and was struggling to hold on under the fierce attack of the Eight Banners.

Meng Jun ordered Gao Yisu, who was beside him, to bring his personal guards to support him, while he himself rushed to the city wall with more than ten guards. As soon as Gao Yi arrived, Lin Shiqi's pressure was immediately relieved. As soon as he relaxed, he was stabbed in the abdomen by Shangshan's Goshaha with a gun. Although his armor blocked most of the bullets, the bullet still penetrated the armor by two inches.

Gao Yi quickly stepped forward and kicked him away, then supported Lin Shiqi. Lin Shiqi was unable to stand, so several people quickly surrounded him.

As soon as Meng Jun arrived at the tower, he ordered the firearms to line up in five rows on the tower, aiming at Shang Shan's area, and shouted loudly, "Gao Yi, get down!"

Gao Yi and his men glanced back, and were so frightened that they broke out in a cold sweat. They quickly shouted, "Get down!" Before Shang Shan and his men could react, Meng Jun shouted, "Firegun team, aim and fire!"

"Bang... Bang... Bang" Five rows of musketeers fired a continuous round of bullets. Even though Goshaha beside Shangshan saw the opportunity quickly and rushed in front of Shangshan to block most of the bullets, three or four bullets still shot into Shangshan's body. Shangshan felt the strength in his body quickly draining away, and then his legs went soft and he fell to the ground. He opened his mouth to say something, and the light in his eyes quickly drained away.

The dense sound of musketry rang out on the top of the city, causing the fighting everywhere to suddenly pause. After a while, the sound of Shangshan's Goshaha crying was heard. Two lucky Goshaha saw Shangshan's death, and rushed towards Meng Jun crying and shouting as if to commit suicide, and were then surrounded and killed in the city.

The faces of the Eight Banners soldiers who climbed the city walls were filled with horror. The noble Manchu royal family member, Prince Shangshan, had died here. For a moment, the momentum was lost, and the advantage on the city walls was gradually taken over by the defenders.

Surile looked at the head hanging high on the top of the city wall in shock. That was the proud Shangshan. He didn't expect that he would lose his life here. Seeing that the Mongolian soldiers climbing the city wall were becoming less and less willing to fight, Surile hurriedly sent a messenger back to report to Bolo.

Bolo listened to the battle report in disbelief, then slowly said, "Sound the horn, retreat!"

The gongs and drums sounded, and the exhausted Qing army quickly retreated to the rear. The defenders on the city wall no longer had the strength to shoot at the fleeing soldiers. They leaned against the city wall one by one, and with some chaotic voices, they gradually gathered into one cry of "The Tartars have retreated, we won, hahahaha".

The morning glow in the east slowly shone towards the earth, and the early morning breeze passed over the grass outside Suzhou city, carrying a strong smell of blood in all directions.

Meng Jun stood on the top of the city wall, looking at the scene of corpses piled up below the city. His body stood like a pole, and the fiery red armor on his body looked majestic under the sunset glow.

Bolo stood in the Qing army formation, his face livid as he put down his telescope. He could see Meng Jun in the mirror. After a long while, Bolo uttered the two words "Return to the camp" through his teeth.