The Jiannu had three methods of attacking cities.

They are climbing the city wall, chiseling the wall, and piling up earth.

Climbing the city wall was the most commonly used method. Under the cover of ladders, the soldiers came to the foot of the city and climbed up the city wall one after another along the ladders, risking their lives.

As for chiseling the wall, it was similar to Li Zicheng's siege method, both aimed at breaking down the wall and then attacking the city along the collapsed part.

Piling up earth is aimed at small cities and has two prerequisites.

First, there were no trees near the city, so it was impossible to use local materials to build siege equipment.

Second, the city walls are made of stones and it is impossible to drill through them.

The specific method of earth-piling siege is that each person holds a bag of earth, braves the artillery fire and arrows from the top of the city, and relies on human wave tactics to pile up earth hills. Or dig the earth on the spot and pile it up to the same height as the city wall, so that not only people can pass through, but also horses can climb up the earth slope and jump onto the city wall.

Because the losses were too severe, the Jiannu basically stopped using this method to attack the city after they acquired artillery.

Tudor rode on a warhorse, with buglers and artillerymen standing beside him.

The southeast wind blew by, and the flags fluttered, making rustling sounds.

He used his clairvoyance to look at the city wall of Xuanfu Town, and finally found Yan Yingyuan in the crowd.

A huge flag with the word "Yan" on it fluttered in the wind on the top of the city wall. In front of the flag stood a young man in his twenties. He had a thin face, was gentle and had the air of a scholar.

Duoduo put down his clairvoyance, turned to Haoge and said, "This man is Yan Yingyuan."

After taking the clairvoyance and looking at it for a while, Haoge sneered and said, "I didn't expect this man to be so young. How dare Chongzhen hand over Xuanfu Town to him?"

Duoduo rolled his eyes at Haoge and said, "Underestimating the enemy is a taboo in military strategy! Last night, Tulai and Aobai lost more than 60 lives in vain because of underestimating the enemy."

Hauge wanted to refute Duoduo, but for a moment he couldn't find any reason to refute.

Duoduo was named Prince of Yu at the age of only 22, partly because of his status as Huang Taiji's younger brother, but more because of his military achievements on the battlefield.

In fact, Duoduo was indeed very good at commanding troops.

He had made numerous military achievements throughout his life, and Emperor Qianlong called him "the most meritorious among the founding kings." The title of Prince Yu was hereditary, and he was one of the eight iron-hat princes in the early Qing Dynasty.

"Orders are sent. The soldiers in the east of the city will conduct a feint attack. The main force will attack the southern city wall of Xuanfu Town. After two quarters of an hour, the central army will sound the cannon and attack the city at the same time! The first one to reach the city will be granted a hereditary position and rewarded with a thousand taels of silver!"

The first to climb the city wall during a siege are the "first to climb the city wall". These people are not afraid of death and wear double or even triple layers of armor. They are also called "death soldiers" in the Eight Banners.

(There are four kinds of hereditary positions in the Qing Dynasty. The hereditary position here refers to the hereditary Guanzuoling. Those who are interested in the other three can check it out by themselves)

"Hey!" The messenger ran out quickly.

Two quarters of an hour later, Dodo, who received a reply from the herald, rode on his horse and shouted loudly: "Assault the city!"

Woo! Boom!

Bugles and cannons sounded one after another, and the army formation composed of Eight Banners soldiers slowly moved towards the city wall of Xuanfu Town.

The one rushing in the front was the Haoqiao team.

This giant floating bridge requires dozens of people to push. There is a huge wooden shield on each side of the trench bridge. The shield is wrapped with four or five layers of cowhide and a layer of quilt wrapped on the outside, dripping with water.

Hundreds of Eight Banner soldiers wearing double or even multiple layers of armor hid behind shields and pushed the trench bridge forward. These people carried bows and crossbows on their backs and swords on their waists.

Next to the trench bridge was a team of siege ladders, followed by hundreds of Eight Banners soldiers holding various weapons and protective gear.

While the trench bridge and ladders were moving, the third echelon was also dispatched.

They followed the ladders neither closely nor too dispersedly, and aimed at the city wall of Xuanfu Town in advance.

Under Yan Yingyuan's gaze, the fourth echelon, which was blocked by flags, finally moved.

Yan Yingyuan held a clairvoyant in his hand and stared at that place intently.

As the flags fluttered, the first things to appear were horse-drawn carriages and ox-drawn carts. They were covered with red cloth and were heavy with something unknown.

Because the weight of the objects on the cart varies, some carts can be pulled by only one ox, while some carts are so heavy that they require five or six oxen to pull them together.

Under the command of the Eight Banners soldiers, these vehicles were divided into two parts, one drove towards the east of the city, and the other drove towards the south of the city, following the ladders from a distance.

Lieutenant General Li of the Fifth Army Camp had just woken up. He walked over to Yan Yingyuan with a bowl of porridge and asked, "Governor Yan, are you guarding the south or east of the city?"

Chongzhen was worried that Yan Yingyuan could not defend the city alone, so he sent Lieutenant General Li from the Fifth Army Camp to take orders.

Yan Yingyuan did not answer immediately, but just thought from a distance: "Deputy General Li, take a look at the situation first."

Lieutenant General Li looked into the distance with his clairvoyance for a while and asked, "Governor Yan, what do you think is on those cars?"

"Cannons!" Yan Yingyuan thought without hesitation, "Did you see those carts that need five or six oxen to pull them? They must be red cannons."

"But..." Lieutenant General Li was confused. "If it was a cannon, why did the Jiannu use cloth to cover it? Isn't that unnecessary?"

Lieutenant General Li was speaking from his heart. The Jiannu's equipment came from the Ming Army, and all the types of Ming Army's equipment were in his head.

In addition to cannons, the only weapons that can be used to attack cities and kill enemies are catapults.

Trebuchets are heavy and tall, making them difficult to transport over long distances. In addition, using local materials would result in a shortage of materials.

More importantly, the trebuchet had a very short range and was a sitting duck in front of artillery fire.

Therefore, during the Chongzhen period, except for a few cities equipped with catapults for defense, most cities relied on artillery for defense.

Yan Yingyuan pointed at the moving carriages and ox carts and asked, "Lieutenant General Li, if we calculate one cannon per carriage, can you count how many cannons there are?"

Lieutenant General Li picked up the Clairvoyance and quickly counted: "At least more than a hundred."

"Those carts pulled by four oxen carry red-haired cannons. Can you count how many there are?" Yan Yingyuan said as he looked at the weapons configuration of the defenders on the city wall.

Lieutenant General Li counted them as quickly as possible, with a look of shock on his face: "At least... thirty."

Unlike Lieutenant General Li, who was shocked, Yan Yingyuan had a calm expression on his face. "In the 14th year of our dynasty, the Battle of Songshan was a crucial battle for both our army and the Jiannu. The Jiannu deployed 30 red cannons at one time."

Lieutenant General Li was moved and said hastily, "That is to say, by the fourteenth year of our dynasty, the Jiannu could only use thirty or forty red-haired cannons?"

"Yes, I think so." Yan Yingyuan nodded, and then he continued: "Although the Jiannu also manufacture red cannons, the number will not be too large. Moreover, if I were Dorgon, I would never bring so many red cannons into the pass. They are bulky and heavy, and have no mobility at all."

"The most important thing is..." Yan Yingyuan pointed at the ox carts in the distance: "Although both teams of ox carts are moving very slowly, the ox carts heading east are relatively relaxed, while the ox carts heading south seem to be struggling."

"I know!" Lieutenant General Li held up his clairvoyance with a fierce look in his eyes: "The Jiannu will mainly attack the South City this time!"

Yan Yingyuan nodded and said, "Then I'll have Deputy General Li guard the east wall, and I'll guard the south wall."

Without waiting for Lieutenant General Li's consent, Yan Yingyuan continued to order: "Ding Yi, bring your Rumi gunners and follow me! Zhang Feng, immediately transport half of the artillery in the east of the city to the south of the city."