Xijing City.
Yang Chaojun's appearance was faster and more sudden than Yin Ji and the others had anticipated.
The day before, only a few scattered cavalrymen appeared in the west of the city, and scouts reported that there was unidentified smoke and dust in the distance.
After discussing with Pei Lun, Fan Nan, Zhou Hong, Wang Tiezhu and others, Yin Ji strengthened his defenses, but he did not expect the attack to be so swift.
At dawn the next day, the morning mist had not yet dissipated.
A deep, drawn-out horn sounded suddenly from the west of Xijing City.
Immediately, the sound of thunderous hooves and footsteps grew louder as they approached, and the earth began to tremble!
"Enemy attack—! To the west! A large number of enemy troops!" The sentry's shrill cry from the city wall instantly shattered the tranquility of the early morning.
When Yinji rushed from the Prince of Jin's residence to the western city, he was met with a chilling sight:
In the morning mist, countless soldiers in black armor surged across the plains like a tide rising from the ground, heading straight for the city walls!
Banners fluttered, and the large banner with the character "Yang" stood out starkly in the fog.
The ranks were orderly, the swords and spears gleamed in the dim light, exuding a murderous aura, showing no sign of fatigue from a long march.
Clearly, Yang Chao had been gathering his strength all along, ready to press on with all his might!
"It's Yang Chao's army! He's really here!"
Zhou Hong gasped, "Judging from this force, there are probably no fewer than ten thousand! And they are all elite troops!"
"Quickly! Close the city gates! All garrison troops, ascend the city walls! Beat the drums! Beat the drums now!"
Yinji gave the order urgently, his heart pounding.
Apart from his 1,000-strong royal guard, the only fighting force in the city was the more than 6,000 soldiers who were reorganized or newly recruited after the recapture of Xijing. Although they had been trained, they seriously lacked combat experience.
The alarm bells rang continuously, and the drums beat thunderously.
The defenders rushed up the city wall in a panic, archers quickly took their positions, and rolling logs and stones were carried onto the battlements.
The people in the city were alarmed, and panic began to spread.
Yang Chaojun did not immediately launch a full-scale attack on the city, but stopped a short distance away and quickly deployed his troops.
The infantry were in the center, with swordsmen and shieldmen in front, spearmen behind, and archers bringing up the rear. The cavalry were positioned on both flanks.
Even more alarming was the fact that the army had deployed dozens of makeshift ladders and several battering rams covered in wet felt.
Yang Chao, clad in golden armor, rode his horse to the front of the battle line, his long spear pointing towards the city wall, his voice booming like a bell:
"Listen up, you on the city walls! I am Yang Chao! Xijing has always belonged to my Yang family. Yinji, if you know what's good for you, open the city gates and surrender, handing over the false emperor Yinzhao, and I can guarantee the safety of your Prince Jin's mansion! If you resist stubbornly, on the day the city falls, I will make sure that not a single chicken or dog is left in Xijing!"
The blatant threat caused a stir among the soldiers guarding the city walls.
Yinji suppressed his shock and anger, stepped forward, and said loudly:
"Yang Chao! The Grand Commander has been extremely kind to you, providing you with assistance and allowing you to return to Jiannan or go to Henan. Why did you suddenly attack my Xijing? Aren't you afraid that the Grand Commander will come to punish you?"
Upon hearing this, Yang Chao burst into wild laughter: "You little brat, stop with your clever words! Zhao Muyun can barely protect himself, how can he save you? I only ask you, are you going to open the city gates or not?"
“Xijing is the territory of the Great Yin Dynasty. How can we open the gates to thieves?” Yinji said resolutely.
"Fine! Then don't blame me for being ruthless!" Yang Chao's face darkened, and he pointed his long spear forward. "Attack the city!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The intense sound of war drums rang out.
A deafening battle cry erupted from Yang Chaojun's ranks. The front-line swordsmen and shieldmen raised their shields for protection, carried ladders, and began to charge towards the city wall!
The archers unleashed a volley of arrows, a black rain of arrows sweeping towards the city walls like locusts!
"Raise your shields! Archers, return fire!" the defending general shouted hoarsely.
The battle instantly intensified.
Arrows crisscrossed in the air, and people fell to the ground, constantly struck by arrows.
Yang Chao's soldiers were exceptionally brave. Braving a hail of arrows and rolling stones, they piled ladders heavily onto the city wall, holding sharp blades in their mouths as they struggled to climb upwards.
"Roll logs! Bombs! Smash them down!" Pei Lun personally directed the operation from the front lines.
Heavy logs and boulders crashed down the ladder, accompanied by screams of agony.
The boiling scalding liquid was poured down, scalding the attacking soldiers so badly that their skin was torn and their flesh was ripped open, causing them excruciating pain.
But Yang Chaojun's offensive continued unabated.
They seemed completely disregarding casualties; as those in front fell, those behind immediately took their place.
Even more valiant individuals, under the cover of their comrades, forcibly scaled the city walls and engaged in fierce hand-to-hand combat with the defenders.
The defenders of Xijing were mostly new recruits, and faced with such a frenzied and reckless attack, they began to panic.
Several sections of the crenellations were nearly lost, but thanks to the valiant efforts of Prince Yinji's guards and generals' personal soldiers, the enemy soldiers who had scaled the walls were either killed or pushed off the walls.
The battle lasted from dawn until noon. Yang Chaojun's offensive slowed down slightly, but he did not retreat. Instead, he launched repeated attacks to maintain pressure.
The walls of Xijing were already stained with blood; the defending troops had suffered heavy casualties, and exhaustion and fear were spreading.
"Your Highness, the enemy is fierce and their offensive is too fierce! If this continues, the city is in danger!" Pei Lun, his face covered in soot, said urgently, "Should we ask Wannian and Longmen Pass for reinforcements again?"
Yinji leaned against the blood-splattered battlements, gazing at the dark mass of enemy troops outside the city and his own weary soldiers, his heart heavy.
He believed that Zhao Muyun would take action after receiving the urgent report, but when would the reinforcements arrive?
Can Xijing hold out until that moment?
"Reinforcements...will come." He gritted his teeth and shouted to the generals and soldiers around him, "The Grand Commander has learned of the danger in Xijing and will surely come to its aid overnight! General Wu's army is also on its way!"
"Hold on! We must hold on! For Xijing, for the Great Yin!"
His voice echoed across the blood-soaked city walls, which boosted morale somewhat.
But everyone knows that the real test is yet to come.
Yang Chao clearly wouldn't give them a chance to catch their breath.
Sure enough, just after 1 p.m., Yang Chaojun, having replenished his strength and adjusted his deployment, launched an even more ferocious attack amidst the booming of several large drums!
This time, they even used catapults to hurle their few remaining thunderbolts near the city gate. Although the power was limited, the huge explosions and flashes of light had a tremendous psychological impact on the defenders!
The capital city of Xijing is truly at a critical juncture of life and death!
......
Just as the city walls of Xijing were ravaged by bloody battles and teetering on the brink of collapse, at the Wei River ferry crossing thirty miles east of the city...
On the wide Wei River, sails dotted the water, and a fleet of thousands of boats of all sizes was slowly approaching the shore.
Before the ship had even come to a complete stop, the fully armed soldiers eagerly jumped off the deck and quickly assembled in formation at the command of their officers.
On the shore, a large flag bearing the character "武" (wu, meaning martial arts) fluttered in the wind.
Commander Wu Shangzhi was intently watching the landing troops.
Following Zhao Muyun's orders, he led the main combat force, secretly boarded boats, sailed south along the Fen River, entered the Yellow River, and then sailed west along the Wei River to reinforce Xijing.
Although the journey downstream took quite a while, we finally arrived at this point!
"General! The Murong tribe's thousand cavalry have assembled!"
"The 1,000 cavalry of the Wuhuan tribe have assembled!"
"Two thousand Qiang and Rong cavalry have assembled!"
"Guo Luo's heavy cavalry, numbering one thousand, is currently unarmoring!"
"Xi Sheng's 1,000-strong Mo Dao Battalion is ready to march!"
"......"
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