Chapter 146: No Way to Fight
In the biting cold wind, the opposite city wall seemed to have added a layer of transparent wall, reflecting the cold light of the early morning sun in spots, as if countless mirrors were hung on the city wall.
Sumonai looked at Xiumuye, and Xiumuye also looked at Sumonai.
"Who came up with this idea?" they both asked each other at the same time.
If you think about it carefully, this is too immoral.
The slope below the city wall seemed to be there to help the Xirong people. As long as they rushed to the highest point along the slope, they could then climb up the city wall which was only a few feet high.
The problem was that the other side had poured a lot of water on the slope. After a night of this, it was covered with a thick layer of ice, smooth and flat. From the bottom to the top of the slope, it took at least a hundred steps, well within the range of a crossbow.
Everyone knows the consequences of walking on ice.
The key is that the ice surface is tilted.
"General, why don't we send two thousand-man teams to try first?" Xiu Muye suggested.
Twenty thousand troops are already at the gates of the city. It would be shameful if we stopped the siege just because of this trick of the other side.
"Is the anti-arrow vehicle still needed?"
No matter how helpless Sumonai was, he found that the arrow-proof chariot seemed to be useless.
"Yes, since I brought it all," Xiu Muye rubbed his nose, which was slightly red from the cold wind, "otherwise it would be a waste of preparation."
The Xirong army formed a battle line, with a row of ten arrow-proof vehicles, and behind each arrow-proof vehicle were two hundred Xirong soldiers.
To protect against crossbow fire and rockets, the anti-arrow cart was reinforced with iron sheets. To facilitate siege operations, two ladders were hung on it, making it much heavier and extremely difficult to push.
Shen Yuexi stood on the city wall, watching the ten anti-arrow vehicles slowly approaching from a distance. Next, it was time to test this oversized ice slide.
She said to Qiu Liming, "General Qiu, let's proceed according to the previous plan."
Qiu Liming said, "Don't worry, Madam. I understand everything. The battle is about to begin. It's very dangerous here. Madam, please take shelter in the general's tent on the top of the mountain."
Xiao Zhuo had instructed him to protect Shen Yuexi, for one thing. Another reason was that he believed the battlefield did not belong to women.
The two armies are about to engage in close combat, a life-or-death struggle. There will be a merciless slaughter. The mistress has been pale, tense, and haggard since morning. It's best to keep her at a distance.
Shen Yuexi also understood Qiu Liming's intentions. She didn't like war. But along the way, starting from the ruined temple, she had encountered many bloody scenes that she couldn't avoid. She had no choice but to adapt.
After all, following Xiao Zhuo, fighting is inevitable. If you want to help, you can't avoid these cruel things.
She descended the city wall, but she still felt a little uneasy. This was her plan, and if it didn't work, the consequences could be dire, with thousands of lives lost.
She couldn't actually bear the pressure of being responsible for the lives and deaths of thousands of people, so she just kept pretending in front of others.
Back at the mountaintop tent, Yang Cong arrived just in time. She had brought two horses, ready to take Shen Yuexi and flee to Baixiu Mountain if the city fell. Shen Yuexi had told her to observe the situation down below and report back if anything happened.
Shen Yuexi sat in the tent, pricked up her ears and listened to the sounds coming from the mountain below.
When she thought of the plan failing and the Xirong people crossing the city wall and killing people wantonly, she felt her blood pressure soar and her heart beat faster.
It's been so long, and with the speed those arrow-proof vehicles are moving, they must have arrived by now, so it's time for a fight. Why is there no sound from down the mountain?
After waiting for a while, there was still no movement at the foot of the mountain.
Shen Yuexi thought it was absurd. It was impossible that there had been no fighting for so long. As soon as she stood up, Yang Cong ran excitedly into the commander's tent and shouted:
"Madam, the enemy... uh, I can't explain it clearly. Come out and see."
When speaking, Yang Cong's eyes did not hide his admiration for her at all. In the past, Shen Yuexi only saw this kind of eyes when Yang Cong looked at Xiao Zhuo.
It looks like a good thing.
She hurriedly followed Yang Cong out of the tent and found a place where she could overlook the entire Langya Pass.
At the bottom of the ice slope of the city wall, ten anti-arrow vehicles were crowded there, and behind the vehicles were the Xirong soldiers as densely packed as ants. One of the anti-arrow vehicles in the middle had even overturned.
"The plan worked." Shen Yuexi muttered to herself.
Yang Cong pointed excitedly at the ground below and said, "They pushed for a long time but couldn't get the carts up. One cart had hundreds of people pushing it, but it flipped over not long after it got up. Madam, your method is amazing."
Shen Yuexi let out a long sigh, touched her chest and said, "Please stop praising me, I'm so nervous."
As she expected, the anti-arrow vehicle slipped on the ice and could not be pushed up the slope. She had not expected it to flip over if she pushed it up by force. She probably didn't consider this possibility because the anti-arrow vehicle was top-heavy.
Sumonai and Xiumuye, who were watching the fight, were so angry that their noses were crooked.
It's simply making a fool of oneself.
The Yan army on the other side did nothing but watch the excitement from the city wall. Their two thousand men pushed the carts until they were exhausted and could not push even one cart up.
"Push the car aside and order the thousand-man team to attack directly!" Su Monai's face turned red with anger and he waved his hand to give the order.
The sergeant passed the order to the captain at the bottom of the slope. The captain spat on the ground and cursed inwardly, "Let him attack on his own. Look at this ice. Is this what a human being would do?"
But he only dared to say this in his heart. He drew his sword and ordered the sergeant: "Don't push the cart, attack directly."
The Xirong army abandoned their arrow-proof chariots and began to climb up the ice. After taking a few cautious steps, they slipped and fell one after another on the ice, sliding back to the starting point, and the scene was in chaos.
The centurion was furious: "A bunch of trash, I'm here."
He took a step up on the ice and felt that he could not stand at all. He quickly thrust the sword in his hand downwards, with the tip of the sword stuck in the ice. He held the handle tightly and finally managed to steady himself.
But what should I do next? My left hand is a shield to protect me from arrows, but the shield can't penetrate the ice.
He hesitated again and again, intending to draw the sword in his right hand. While his body was still stable, he took another step forward and plunged the sword into the ice, repeating this process...
On second thought, forget it. When two armies engage in battle, both sides must keep an eye on the weapons in the hands of the opposing soldiers. They, on the other hand, are so cautious and watch their step. How can they fight this battle?
He drew his knife, went down to the ground, and ordered a sergeant to go back and report that the ice was too slippery and the soldiers could not go up at all.
A moment later, the sergeant came back after reporting and said to him, "The general said that you can just break the ice with your knives, idiot!"
The centurion glared and said, "Who are you calling an idiot?"
The sergeant shuddered with fear and waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "The general said so."
"Have you heard me?" the captain ordered the soldiers around him, "start chipping the ice!"
The Xirong soldiers, hearing this, dared not disobey. With gloomy faces, they lowered their heads and began chipping away at the ice with their knives. The ice had been frozen all night, and with plenty of water, it was nearly two feet thick. Chiseling it through with one hand was impossible. They had to use both hands to hold the knife and poke hard.
Before they had struck twice, a volley of crossbow arrows came flying from above, killing over a hundred men. The Western Rong army was thrown into chaos, and they stopped hammering and retreated behind their arrow-proof chariots.
The captain was at a loss and asked the soldiers to report. As soon as they tried to break the ice, they would be shot with arrows from above and it would be unbearable.
The sergeant had not returned yet when a nearby sergeant pointed upwards and said, "Captain, look up there, they're warming themselves by the fire."
The captain looked up and saw that it was indeed the Yan army on the city wall that had lit a fire and was warming itself there.
It's freezing cold, and my hands and feet are really numb after standing for a long time.
The captain looked around him again. Since the attack began, pushing carts and chipping ice had lasted for over half an hour, yet they hadn't even touched the edge of the enemy's clothing. Many men were so cold that their noses were running, and they huddled shivering behind the arrow-proof carts. It was a miserable sight.
Looking at the defending Yan army, many of them were roasting themselves by the fire and grinning at the people below.
Not only do they have to endure the cold, but they also have to be ridiculed by the other side.
This battle is impossible to fight.
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