It turned out that on the north side of Yuancheng, which was about ten miles wide and sandwiched between two rivers from east to west, there were countless flags, soldiers, civilians, and fortifications that completely covered the area.
These people, these flags, these objects, and even this land, were all covered with a layer of golden red light under the rising winter sun.
It is seamless and yet sparkling, and it seems like a living giant.
It turns out that the real body of the mist that bared its fangs and claws last night was actually so magnificent? !
After feeling dizzy for a while, Gao Jingshan's eyes were instinctively attracted by the four-character banner facing the city gate, about two miles away. After staring at the four characters on the banner for a few breaths, he followed the direction of the flow of people behind the banner and noticed the defense line at the northernmost end, which was still under construction... This defense line, which at least had a solid fence and a trench, was obviously a little crooked, but it had already covered the narrow area east of the Yongji Canal, and more than half of the area several miles to the west had been covered, leaving only a gap of two or three miles, and this gap was being filled at an exceptionally fast speed.
The sun continued to rise in the east, shining on the two channels of the Yellow River, and the glow became even brighter. Gao Jingshan continued to look forward, and saw that between the big banner and the city gate, a part of the Song army was obviously ready for battle. Small groups of patrolling cavalry continued, and several heavy infantry squares were simply lined up in front of the city gate. And behind this army, to the west of the Yongji Canal, from a distance, it seemed that there were fresh reserve troops hiding behind the flags, plus the cavalry reported by Ximen before...
Without having time to think, Gao Jingshan continued to look to the east, and saw that to the north and east of the big banner, behind these troops, another part of the army and civilians were still transporting supplies in an endless stream... The Yongji Canal, which was only a few dozen steps wide, was paved with simple wood that served as floating bridges, almost covering the entire canal, making it look like flat ground. On the east side of the Yellow River, there were also dozens of floating bridges, and even small steamers traveling back and forth to transport construction materials.
As he continued to watch, Gao Jingshan saw something that made him feel like he was struck by lightning, but also completely enlightened - it was a Song army ship, a very large ship, and it was actually capsized on the land on the other side of the river!
However, just when he saw this, someone appeared and interrupted Gao Jingshan's trance and observation.
A rider galloped from north to south, approached the city, and shouted from afar: "I have something to say! Yue Fei, the Marshal of Hebei Province of the Great Song Dynasty, sent an envoy to inform Gao Jingshan, the commander-in-chief of the Jin Dynasty's Damingfu Military Division... The Yuan City is now surrounded on all sides, and there is no chance of survival. Why doesn't Commander Gao surrender early? If you surrender, you must follow the decree of the Great Song Emperor. Although you are a war criminal, your crime can be reduced to one level! Or you can be pardoned!"
Gao Jingshan finally came to his senses, turned his head and stared at the Jurchen Meng'an: "Shoot!"
After receiving the order, the Jurchen Meng'an did not order the archers to gather in a hurry, but directly picked up the hard bow at his feet, bent the bow and shot arrows... The arrow missed, and the Song army cavalry under the city reined in their horses, dropped a stake, and rode back to the battle line.
At this time, the Song army in the east of the city was still bombarding. After another dull thunder, countless Jin army officers on the north wall stared at Gao Jingshan.
Upon hearing this, Gao Jingshan tried to smile and raised a finger, but he seemed to be hesitant to speak, so he had to put it down, raise it again, and then stop again.
By the third time, Gao Jingshan knew that he could not put it down, otherwise the morale would be lost. However, his mind was already in a mess... After waiting for a while, the commander-in-chief of the Jin Dynasty's Damingfu Marching Division, a veteran of the founding of the Jin Dynasty, took the opportunity to point his finger to the north, raised his head and laughed.
However, the laughter did not last long at all, and gradually faded away, replaced by the sound of rapid breathing, and the finger that Gao Jingshan stretched out gradually began to tremble:
"Everyone, I originally wanted to laugh and say that this Yue Fei kid is putting himself in danger... But isn't that just deceiving yourself?!"
The generals were silent, and what responded to him was another round of artillery fire from the East City.
Gao Jingshan didn't care at all. When the sound of the cannonballs died down, he continued to point his finger at the big banner and shouted: "With three thousand soldiers and twenty small boats as bait, they openly repaired the plank road and secretly crossed Chencang. With painstaking preparations, they built a city overnight! What kind of determination is this?! What kind of courage is this?! Isn't it natural that we are played around by such people?! But Daming Prefecture is the gateway to Hebei. The country has entrusted us with such a vital place. Are we going to give up this city without saying a word or shooting an arrow just because they are so courageous?!"
"No..." The Jurchen Meng'an stationed in the north city tried to respond, but his voice was weak.
"Pass on my military order!" Gao Jingshan put away the finger and responded coldly with his hands behind his back. "What Gao Tongshi said is right. The most important thing today is the North City and the battle outside the North City. The scouts will go out from the west of the city and spread out to pass on the order. As many as can go, as long as there is one who can meet Ali and Shaohe, tell them the military situation here, tell them that today is the biggest opportunity to break the siege, and they must rush in with all their strength... rush through the unfinished gap in the northwest! Cross the Yongji Canal in advance, rush over there, rush over, and come to the west gate. We will attack from both inside and outside. As long as we can get through the connection between the reinforcements and the city, the Song army will lose its foothold and meaning!"
“Yes!”
The morale of the surrounding officers was slightly boosted.
"Secondly, we must go out from the west of the city and spread out to pass the message. Whoever can go should go to the riverside strongholds in the west of the Yellow River... Order the ships to be burned! All the ships in the riverside towns behind Xiaowusha must be burned one by one. Nothing should be left to the Song army!" Gao Jingshan continued to give orders.
But at this time, Gao Qingyi was a little puzzled: "General, why burn the ships? Let the ships go to the west bank and wait for the Fourth Prince's army..."
"You know nothing!" Gao Jingshan said. "If we sail once on land, there will be a second time. The Song army only needs to send ten more ships to the west to open up Xiaowusha, or simply send out land troops to seize Xiaowusha and lure the Song navy in from outside. With the strength of the Song navy, a mere section of the river will be a trap. After we rebuilt Xiaowusha and lost many battles, the few ships we saved with great effort will be used as food ships and obstacles by the Song army in vain!"
Gao Qingyi was so frightened that his face turned pale and he dared not speak any more.
"And, it's just as I expected." Gao Jingshan turned back and looked at the banner outside the city with his hands behind his back. "I'm afraid Yue Pengju's intention is not just to lock up the city and attack it..."
The surrounding soldiers became more and more dignified.
"Finally!" Gao Jingshan suddenly said, waving his sleeves. "Tear down the houses and buildings, tear them down now, and fire the cannons! Fire the cannons on all sides! Fight the cannons with the cannons! Send a messenger to tell little Yue Fei that as long as I, Gao Jingshan, am in this city, he will never be able to shake it!"
Seeing that Gao Jingshan responded effectively and with undiminished morale, the generals finally doubled their morale and were about to loudly express their approval… But just as they were about to speak, there was another whistling sound outside the east city wall, followed by another round of thunder, which drowned out the voices of everyone on the city wall.
Obviously, on the eastern river channel, the Song army launched another round of crossbow salvos, which hit the city wall... It's not over yet!
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