Wang Jia asked anxiously, "How is it? Have the enemy been scattered?"
The adjutant reported, "No."
Wang Jia slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "If they gather again, fire arrows! Cripple them as quickly as possible!"
"Yes, sir," the adjutant agreed. But a vague unease lingered. Having served in the army for so many years, he knew that the enemy's mobilization capabilities and overall quality and upbringing were far beyond what a band of bandits should possess. Yet they were still using sheer numbers to build walls; they must have their own plans.
In the unlikely event that the city falls, given their overall capabilities, they could quickly devour the entire northern region!
Outside the city walls.
Arrows rained down from the sky, majestic and continuous.
Li Ningshan, having lost many soldiers, was now enraged. With bloodshot eyes, he roared, "Damn it, get your shields out and use them to block! Archers behind, shoot them from the city walls! I'll take this city down within half an incense stick's time!"
On the city wall.
Wang Jia, no longer content to remain seated, also came to the city wall, watching the people below. The number of people was decreasing, but the number of corpses gathered below was also sparse.
"Are they still breaching the city gates?" Wang Jia asked, frowning.
The adjutant gave a firm "hmm," and Li Ningshan continued his assault on the city gate.
"Scouts from all directions, come here and give me a rough estimate of how many people are still under the city wall," Wang Jia waved his hand.
Scouts from all directions gathered around and tallied up the numbers.
A representative was sent out, who reported the number expressionlessly: "Reporting, there are approximately nearly a thousand people!"
Upon hearing this, Wang Jia excitedly exclaimed, "Several thousand men attacked our city walls, and now only about a thousand remain. Most of them must have already fled. These bandits aren't very skilled fighters. Get rid of those carrying rolling stones and 'golden mortars,' and bring in archers and crossbowmen. Take them down from the top of the city walls!"
The adjutant frowned after hearing this.
The soldiers who had been throwing stones and pouring boiling oil on the city walls were now gone. They had practically abandoned all defense, relying solely on archers and crossbowmen; such a weak defense would have been easily breached.
"Protector Wang, if we continue like this, the city walls will be in great danger," the adjutant advised.
Wang Jia waved his hand and said coldly, "I have my own plan. This place is easy to defend and difficult to attack. If we concentrate our arrows to attack again, their morale will drop again. Before long, those who flee will be dead, and we can open the city gates and wipe out the rest of them!"
The bandits who gathered here this time were there to help him gain merit. Wang Jia would not let them go. He didn't just want to hold the position, but to annihilate the enemy and make a name for himself. Simply holding the position wouldn't get him transferred immediately.
“Wang, but I still feel…” The adjutant believed that removing the defenses here would be too dangerous.
But before he could finish speaking, Wang Jia interrupted him, asking, "Are you the Protector-General, or am I? If I say we can fight, then we can fight. Go and carry it out!"
The adjutant's lips moved, but he didn't utter a single word. He was just a deputy; when it really came down to it, he couldn't control Wang Jia, and he didn't even have the influence to shake Wang Jia's decisions.
"Sigh." The adjutant sighed and went to carry out the order.
Beneath the city wall.
"Did the person get around?" Li Ningshan asked coldly.
“All assembled!” a centurion replied.
At that moment, the scout ran over excitedly and said, "General! The enemy has abandoned the defensive positions and is deploying all their archers and crossbowmen!"
"Good!" Li Ningshan's face was flushed as he said directly, "This is truly a godsend! The defending army is indeed a novice. Let's not break through their city gates. Let's wait for their next volley of arrows, then launch a full-scale attack. Let's take this city wall immediately!"
"Yes, sir!" The centurions responded with the enthusiasm of someone who had been injected with adrenaline.
A dense rain of arrows fell from the sky, the sound of them piercing the air gradually rising.
Li Ningshan's soldiers all picked up their shields and fought back fiercely. No one attacked the city walls again, so the casualties were minimal.
On the city wall.
Wang Jia sneered, "They've already given up attacking the city gate, so they're trapped like turtles in a jar. Let's capture them. Keep shooting with arrows. I think their shields can withstand a few waves of attacks. Shoot them a few times, then open the city gate and wipe them all out."
The adjutant thought it wouldn't be so easy to resolve. The group's sudden decision not to attack the city gate, yet not to run away, suggested they had another plan. However, Wang Jia was already in a frenzy, and there was no point in saying anything more.
The arrow rain was preparing for a second wave.
The scout exclaimed excitedly, "Protector, they've actually taken a detour to the side of our city wall! What should we do? They're running, and it'll be difficult for our arrows to reach them."
The adjutant's brow twitched, and a guess suddenly came to mind.
"Protector, I suggest we immediately activate the defense plan for the side walls and withdraw all archers from the walls."
“That’s impossible!” Wang Jia refused outright.
"Their flank attack was just a bluff; they only have about a thousand men left. They're already struggling to break through our city gates, how are they going to get onto the walls? Shoot them with arrows! If they come three more times, they'll be reduced to a rout!" Wang Jia said, spittle flying everywhere.
The adjutant gritted his teeth and said, "No! Protector Wang, our city walls must be fortified. If they have reinforcements, even just a few thousand men would be enough to breach our defenses. Archers are defenseless!"
Wang Jia slammed his hand on the table and said coldly, "I am the Protector-General, and you are just an adjutant. Carry out my orders."
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