Southern Ming Rebel Army

On the seventeenth, the sky was high and the clouds were light, and the sun shone warmly on the earth. People did not feel scorching hot nor did they feel cold at all. It seemed to be a good day arranged by God for fighting.

In the afternoon, Meng Jun climbed up the high tower and overlooked the entire battlefield.

The soldiers drew lots to decide which battalion would attack first. Those who drew the last place were secretly happy, but those who drew the front place were all worried.

The passionate drum beats resounded through the sky like thunder, as if they were about to break through the sky, and at the same time, the deep and powerful sound of the horn resounded throughout the battlefield, making people excited. As the two sounds intertwined, the originally calm air instantly became tense and solemn, and an invisible pressure enveloped every soldier in it.

The loyal soldiers who were drawn to the first formation formed a scattered team and marched forward slowly. Leading the formation was Chen Lei, a descendant of Kong Youde's army. Chen Lei's face was as red as the bottom of a pot, and he remained silent.

The mission of Chen Lei's troops was to clear the obstacles between the siege equipment and the Hangzhou city walls, such as clearing the chevaux de frise, filling the traps, trenches, etc.

Chen Lei shouted, "The front row hold shields and push into the trench, and everyone behind them carry sandbags and throw them in."

Meng Jun gave an order from the high platform, and the messenger immediately rushed to Chen Lei's troops and shouted loudly, "First formation, attack!"

Chen Lei yelled "Go!"

Two thousand people marched forward towards Hangzhou City with great momentum and dense crowds of people. The archers from Changlin Town followed on the left side of the service army and provided covering fire.

"Fire!" As the flag officer on the artillery position roared fiercely, twenty-three black gun muzzles suddenly spewed out hot flames and thick smoke, followed by a thunderous sound that shook the earth, as if to tear the entire world apart.

The shrieking sound of "Swish...Swish...Swish" resounded through the sky, like a group of ferocious falcons streaking across the sky. These shells rushed towards the Hangzhou city wall at an astonishing speed, smashing into it with unparalleled impact force. In an instant, smoke and dust filled the air, and the entire city wall was shaken by the fierce shells. More than half of the shells in this round hit the city wall.

The Green Camp soldiers on the city wall were terrified. They were frightened out of their wits by the sudden bombardment and fell to the ground trembling. However, the Eight Banners soldiers who were supervising the battle roared angrily. They waved their swords and guns and shouted loudly, "Stand up! Those who are afraid of fighting will die!"

Under the threat of the flag soldiers, the soldiers of the camp barely mustered up their courage and trembled as they climbed up from the ground, but their eyes were still filled with fear and helplessness. They held their weapons, ready to face the next battle.

At this time, the pace of Chen Lei's troops was getting faster and faster, and their formation had become a little scattered. "Raise your shields and lower your heads," Chen Lei shouted.

Seeing that they were close to the range of the small cannons on the top of the city, the tiger squat cannons and the magic machine cannons on the city opened fire one after another. Although the lethality was not too great, it was not something that could be blocked by shields. Seeing their teammates being beaten into pieces in an instant, the siege soldiers were still scared and their faces turned pale.

"Go, go!" After finally rushing to the blind spot of the artillery, the archers on the city wall began to shoot towards the city. Chen Lei hid his head under the shield and shouted to the soldiers carrying sandbags behind him.

The shield blocked some of the arrows, but muffled groans were heard one after another from behind. Someone fell down, and was quickly replaced by someone else.

On the high platform at the back, Yang En whispered to Meng Jun, "Governor, the Qing troops in Hangzhou are not elite. Those Green Camp soldiers are all surrendered soldiers from the south. The only ones we can worry about are Zhuma La's 2,000 bannermen."

Meng Jun nodded and said slowly, "This is our first time to attack a fortified city. If we cannot conquer it in ten days, we will have to face the elite Eight Banners of Bolo. I hope that the heavens will have mercy on me and that destiny is in my hands."

Yang En said solemnly, "The governor will do what is right, and he will surely get what he wants."

Meng Jun did not respond, but looked at the battlefield. At this time, no less than four or five hundred people from Chen Lei's army fell in the trench. The fallen people were pushed into the trench by Chen Lei's men. At this time, the archers of Meng's army had also arrived at the foot of the city and shot arrows at the top of the city.

The artillery was still firing, and occasionally a shell would fly over the city wall and hit the city, causing a burst of screams, but most of the shells still hit the city wall.

Some surrendered soldiers could not bear the casualties. Dozens of them dropped their sandbags and tried to escape the battlefield. They knew that escaping to the rear was a dead end, so they ran diagonally to the north.

"How stupid!" Xiao Mingzuo sneered disdainfully, and then he swung his arm vigorously, and more than a hundred fully armed cavalrymen rushed out from behind him like a whirlwind. These cavalrymen rushed away like arrows from a bow, and soon they turned back, many of them holding several bloody heads in their hands.

Dozens of heads were mercilessly hung on the tall flagpoles, which was horrifying. A messenger soldier with a flag on his back held several flagpoles and ran back and forth in front of the army, shouting at the top of his voice, "Anyone who retreats without military orders will be killed!"

Hearing this roar, the soldiers of the Service Army all showed fear on their faces. After a while, Meng Jun noticed that the first formation was approaching its limit. If they continued to hold on, they might collapse completely. So he immediately gave the order, "The second formation, go into battle!"

As the flag waved, the second team marched forward. At this time, Chen Lei in the front finally breathed a sigh of relief, and he immediately ordered his troops to slowly retreat. By the time Chen Lei's troops safely retreated to the rear, they had lost more than 700 soldiers, with a casualty rate of nearly 40%. The withdrawing soldiers looked exhausted, covered in mud, like monkeys that had just crawled out of the mud.

Time passed by minute by minute, and the soldiers in front had completed three rounds of rotation. At the same time, the originally wide and deep trench under the east city had now been filled up, forming a flat road of 200 meters.

The siege equipment can already be put on the city wall. Today is just an appetizer. Tomorrow, it will be the real onslaught! By then, thousands of soldiers will rush to the city wall like a tide and conquer the fortress in front of them.

The air was filled with tension, as if foreshadowing an impending bloody storm.