Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

Under the cover of night, Leling City finally got rid of the hustle and bustle and heat of the day, but the June night was still hot and stuffy.

The torches on the city wall swayed in the breeze, stretching the figures of the Chu army defending the city and casting them on the mottled bricks.

Outside the city, the 60,000 Tang-Han coalition troops were like a sleeping dragon, quietly entrenched outside the four gates, waiting to wake up at the command.

Emperor Li Shiming of the Tang Dynasty, wearing Ming Guang armor, stood on a temporary command platform outside the east gate, staring at the distant city wall with sharp eyes.

"Your Majesty, the time has come." A messenger knelt on one knee, his voice low and firm.

Li Shiming nodded slightly and exchanged a glance with Li Ji behind him.

Li Ji took a breath and waved his hand, saying, "Send a signal!"

"Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-"

Three rockets streaked across the night sky, emitting a dazzling red light in the pitch-black night.

In an instant, the four tents opened at the same time, and the mighty coalition army poured out like a tide, with shouts of killing shaking the earth.

"Kill!"

"Capture Leling!"

The soldiers' shouts merged into a terrifying wave of sound, hitting the solid walls of Leling City.

The Han army was responsible for attacking the west gate and south gate, while the Tang army was responsible for attacking the east gate and north gate.

To ensure the success of the siege, both emperors personally took command.

"Archers get ready!" Li Shiming's voice penetrated the noise and spread throughout the East Gate battlefield.

Three hundred Tang army archers immediately formed up and drew their bowstrings.

At the command, a rain of arrows flew towards the city wall like locusts, suppressing the defenders' counterattack. At the same time, dozens of siege vehicles, pushed by the soldiers, made dull creaking sounds and slowly approached the city wall.

Outside the south gate, Liu Che narrowed his eyes and observed the defenses on the city wall.

"General Li Gan!" he called out loudly.

A burly general immediately stepped forward and clasped his fists: "I am here!"

"The defenders at the South Gate seem to be lax. Lead the vanguard to scale the city wall and open a breakthrough!"

"Yes, sir!" Li Gan drew his sword, turned around and shouted to the soldiers behind him, "Suicide squad, follow me!"

Five hundred elite Han soldiers immediately assembled, armed with shields and short swords, and with climbing ropes around their waists.

Under the leadership of Li Gan, the team rushed towards the city wall like an arrow.

On the city wall, Chu army general Zhao Yu watched the attack below the city with cold eyes.

He was wearing silver armor and had a resolute face. He looked at the coalition forces of the two countries rushing towards him without changing his expression.

"Shoot!" Zhao Yu gave the order, and arrows rained down from the city wall.

"Raise your shields!" Officers at all levels in the coalition forces shouted.

The "clang-dang" sound of arrows hitting shields was endless, but many soldiers were still shot and fell down with screams.

A ladder was pushed down by the defenders as soon as it was placed on the city wall. More than a dozen Tang soldiers on the ladder fell from a high altitude, making a creepy sound of bones breaking.

"The siege vehicle keeps moving forward! Don't stop!" Li Shiming's voice remained steady.

Outside the east gate, a huge siege vehicle, pushed by hundreds of soldiers, finally approached the city wall.

The battering ram on the roof began to hit the city gate rhythmically, and each hit caused the entire section of the city wall to vibrate slightly.

"Pour the oil!" Zhao Yu shouted sternly.

Scalding hot oil poured down from the gap in the city wall, pouring onto the siege vehicles and the surrounding soldiers.

Sharp screams suddenly resounded through the night sky, and dozens of Tang soldiers rolled on the ground, their skin red and blistered from being burned.

"Archers, aim at the gaps where the oil is pouring out!" Li Shiming immediately adjusted his tactics.

A new round of arrows was accurately shot at the gap in the city wall. Several Chu soldiers who were pouring the second pot of hot oil were hit by arrows and fell from the top of the city wall with screams.

At the South Gate battlefield, Li Gan had already led the death squad to the city wall.

They used ladders and climbing ropes to launch an attack at the same time. Arrows and stones kept falling from the city, and people fell every second.

"Follow me!" Li Gan bit his sword, grabbed the ladder with both hands, and climbed up nimbly.

An arrow grazed his cheek, leaving a trail of blood, but he didn't care.

The defenders on the city wall discovered this elite force and immediately concentrated their firepower.

"Smash them to death!" shouted a centurion of the Chu army.

Huge boulders were pushed down the city wall and hit the ladders.

The sound of the ladder breaking was accompanied by the screams of the soldiers, and more than a dozen people fell at the same time.

The ladder where Li Gan was was also hit and began to shake violently.

"General, be careful!" the soldiers below exclaimed.

At the critical moment, Li jumped onto another ladder and continued to climb up.

His arms were scratched by the wooden thorns and were bleeding, but his eyes were only fixed on the target at the top of the city wall.

"Shoot! Shoot!" Zhao Yu noticed the crisis at the South Gate and personally rushed to this section of the city wall to take command.

The rain of arrows became more intense, and the soldiers around Li Gan were repeatedly shot and fell.

When he was only one man's height away from the top of the city wall, an arrow hit his left shoulder.

The severe pain almost made him let go, but he gritted his teeth and persevered, using his last bit of strength to jump onto the city wall.

"The Han army is coming!" the Chu soldiers shouted in horror.

Li Gan drew his sword and rushed into the enemy camp like a tiger.

Although his left shoulder was injured, his swordsmanship was still sharp and he chopped down three Chu soldiers in a blink of an eye.

More and more Han soldiers climbed up the city wall, and the defense line of the South Gate began to waver.

"Hold on! Don't retreat!" Zhao Yu personally led people to reinforce and engaged in a fierce hand-to-hand combat with Li Gan's troops.

Amidst the flash of swords and shadows, blood splattered.

A Han soldier was pierced through the chest by a spear, but before he died, he hugged the enemy and fell off the city wall together.

Another Chu army archer had his arm cut off, but he still bit the arrow with his teeth and tried to shoot the enemy.

Outside the east gate, Li Shiming noticed the changes in the battle situation at the south gate.

"Order the East Gate to intensify the attack and reduce the pressure on the South Gate!" He gave the order decisively.

The Tang army's offensive suddenly intensified, forcing Zhao Yu to divide his troops to respond.

This created a gap in the defense of the South Gate, and more and more Han soldiers climbed onto the city wall.

"Your Majesty! The South Gate has been broken!" A messenger ran to Liu Che breathlessly to report.

Liu Che's eyes flashed with joy, "Great! General Li Gan has lived up to everyone's expectations!"

He turned to the deputy general beside him and said, "Immediately send a message to Li Gan. Have him lead the reserve troops and charge in through the south gate! Amplify the victory!"

"Yes!" The deputy general immediately rode his horse towards the rear camp.

Not long after, Li Gan came down from the city wall covered in blood, took the water bag handed to him by the messenger and took a few big gulps.

"Reserves, assemble!" he shouted hoarsely.

Five thousand elite Han troops were already ready for battle. They were wearing light armor, holding sharp blades, and their eyes were burning with fighting spirit.

"The South Gate has been broken, follow me into the city!" Li Gan jumped on his horse and raised his bloody sword high.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!" The soldiers' shouts were deafening.

This fresh force rushed towards the city gate like a torrent, and the allied soldiers along the way gave way.

The Chu army in the city was still resisting stubbornly, but the news of the fall of the South Gate had spread and the morale of the defenders began to waver.

On the city wall, Zhao Yu chopped down a Han soldier with a sword. Turning around, he saw the enemy troops pouring into the city like a tide, and his face became extremely ugly.

"Inform the guards at each gate to gradually retreat to the city square and organize street fighting!" He gritted his teeth and ordered.

"General, the west gate can no longer be defended!" A captain with a bloody face came running to report.

Zhao Yu sneered, "Your Majesty is indeed as foresighted as a god. Our army now has the upper hand on the other three battlefields, so they can only make a desperate attempt here!"

"Pass the order down, defend every street and hold them back!"

With the South Gate completely lost, the Allied forces poured into the city like a broken dam.

The reserve troops led by Li Gan rushed to the front and engaged in fierce street fighting with the Chu army.

Every street and every house became a focus of contention.

Liu Che also entered the city under the protection of his personal guards. He looked at the tragic battle scene before him and said to his adviser:

"Send a message to the Tang Emperor, asking him to quickly send reinforcements into the city through the east gate. We will attack from both sides and annihilate the Chu army in one fell swoop!"

In the east of the city, Li Shiming received the news and immediately ordered: "The entire army must press forward and control the entire city before dawn!"