Chapter 256 Defending the City
The walls of Huainan City are suffering the most violent attack in history.
The siege vehicles of the Xilin Army were like ferocious beasts, constantly throwing huge rocks and smashing them against the city walls like thunder. The watchtowers on the city walls were the first to be hit by the rocks, and instantly the broken stones flew everywhere, bricks and stones flew everywhere, making a dull and terrifying sound.
At the same time, shouts and screams soared into the sky, making people's eardrums hurt, and the entire battlefield seemed like hell on earth.
General Xiao Ning was always good at attacking, but he didn't have much experience in defending the city. Fortunately, the walls of Huainan City were carefully built by the King of Huainan. It was originally built to prevent the raids of the Xilin border army. After several reinforcements, the city defense facilities became more and more solid. Even though the huge stones of the Xilin army continued to hit the city wall like raindrops, causing many damages to the city wall, the city gates were still closed, stubbornly resisting the invasion of foreign enemies.
On the city wall, the defenders of Huainan City fought back. Archers drew their bows and shot arrows, and the rockets with blazing tail flames shot like meteors at the Xilin Army trying to attack the city. At the same time, the soldiers also threw stones hard and hit the enemy climbing the city wall. The city defense guards and 3,000 light cavalry worked closely together to firmly guard the city gates and resist the waves of attacks from the Xilin Army again and again.
Su Qingwan, wearing armor, stood tall on the city wall. Holding a bow and arrow, she aimed at the soldiers attacking the city with a sharp gaze, and her arrows never missed their targets. Every time she pulled the bow, the bowstring made a sharp sound, and the arrows shot accurately at the enemy with fierce momentum. However, in the fierce battle, several Xilin soldiers were fearless and successfully climbed up the city wall.
But before they could gain a firm foothold, they were stabbed by spears on the wall or shot by arrows, and fell down screaming. The soldiers defending the city stood in a neat row on the edge of the wall, with spears in their hands like a forest, and if any enemy soldiers climbed up, they would be mercilessly knocked down.
As the battle continued, Su Qingwan's fingers were repeatedly hit by the bowstring, and blood had already flowed. But she didn't care at all, and had only one belief in her heart - to protect Huainan City. Under the city, the dark Xilin army climbed up and attacked the city like a surging tide amid the dense sound of war drums. They seemed tireless and persevered in attacking the city wall.
General Xiao Ning was covered in blood in this fierce battle. He looked at the endless stream of enemy troops under the city wall and felt uneasy. The city wall seemed to be unable to be defended. The Xilin army was large in number, with a total of 50,000 people, while the city defense guards and light cavalry added up to only 5,000 people. The city defense guards were mostly composed of ordinary people and had weak defensive capabilities; the light cavalry was better at attacking and seemed to be unable to defend the city.
General Xiao Ning was extremely anxious. He pulled Su Qingwan aside and urged anxiously, "Princess, please leave first! Evacuate to Zhongzhou as soon as possible. It will take at least three days for reinforcements from the southwest and Zhongzhou to arrive. We may not be able to hold on for that long. You can't take risks here!" Su Qingwan looked firm and resolute. She said in a deep voice, "As long as Huainan City is here, I will be here! If I leave, the morale of the army will surely be weakened and the city will be lost soon!"
General Xiao Ning was genuinely concerned about her safety and continued to advise her, "But if something unexpected happens to you, how can I explain this to the prince and the crown prince?"
Su Qingwan straightened her back and said firmly: "I don't need to explain to anyone! They want to make a quick decision and capture Huainan in a short time. Once Huainan is lost, Zhongzhou will be undefended. No matter what the cost, we must defend the city gate to the death!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Xilin army launched another fierce attack.
More enemy troops frantically climbed up the siege ladders, and the city wall was instantly plunged into a fierce battle. The soldiers were all blood-thirsty, and the shouts of killing and the sound of weapons colliding were intertwined and endless. Corpses piled up like mountains, and blood flowed down the city wall. Seeing this, Su Qingwan decisively gave up her longbow, drew the soft sword at her waist, and rushed into the battlefield without hesitation, fighting bravely with the army. Chenfeng, Luzhu and Qingyun followed her closely, always protecting her safety.
Su Qingwan turned to Chen Feng and said, "Chen Feng, go help General Xiao Ning, don't worry about me!"
Chen Feng looked at Lu Zhu and Qing Yun, thinking that the two maids were by the princess' side and that the princess herself had a certain ability to protect herself, so he nodded, then waved his weapon, cut a bloody path through the enemy army, and ran towards the direction of General Xiao Ning.
Under the tower, General Zhuge of the Xilin Army sat firmly on his horse. He looked at the soldiers who had already rushed to the top of the wall with a stern look in his eyes. He pointed his long sword directly at Huainan City and shouted loudly: "There are no strong soldiers in Huainan City. We must take the city within an hour! Kill!"
"Kill! Take Huainan!" The soldiers of the Xilin Army shouted in unison, their voices resounding through the heavens and earth. Another wave of enemy troops rushed towards the city wall like a surging tide.
The huge siege wood, pushed by the soldiers, kept hitting the city gate, making a dull and shocking sound. The city defenders gritted their teeth and used all their strength to hold the city gate, stubbornly resisting the enemy's attack.
Seeing this, Su Qingwan immediately ordered people to sprinkle the boiling kerosene on the enemy troops downstairs and quickly ignite it. The kerosene instantly burned up, forming a blazing sea of fire. The nearby war horses were frightened by the fire, neighing and retreating, making bursts of screams.
"They have run out of ammunition and food, and there is no one left in the city to fight! Soldiers, charge to avenge the Second Prince!" The Xilin Army's generals shouted loudly. "Revenge the Second Prince!"
"Revenge for the Second Prince!"
The enemy's shouts were loud and powerful. They were bewitched and attacked more and more frantically. Su Qingwan fought hard on the battlefield. Her hands were numb, but she held her swords tightly and kept killing the enemy. However, the enemy was like weeds, emerging one after another, and it seemed that no matter how hard she tried, she could never kill them all.
Everyone on the battlefield was exhausted, but they still resisted tenaciously. Soldiers kept falling in the battle and being slaughtered by the enemy. The entire city wall was illuminated red by the fire. Under the fierce attack of the enemy, the soldiers of Huainan City were forced to retreat continuously.
The soldier who was responsible for beating the drum to boost morale was unfortunately killed, and the war drum stopped instantly.
But the Xilin Army's attack drums continued to sound, boosting their morale. Su Qingwan was anxious when she saw this. She walked through the pile of corpses and struggled to pick up the drumstick. "Soldiers! Huainan is our home. If the home survives, we will survive. If the home is destroyed, we will die! I will live and die with Huainan!" Su Qingwan shouted at the top of her lungs, "Defend Huainan to the death. Without my order, you are not allowed to retreat even a single step!"
She knew that she couldn't retreat, because the people in the city were all helpless and were all from Huainan. If she retreated, these people would be in dire straits and their lives would be in danger.
Su Qingwan threw away her two swords and beat the drums with both hands, the sound of the drums shook the earth. The soldiers seemed to be re-energized by the exciting drums, and they rose up to resist, miraculously forcing back a wave of Xilin's attack. But then, another wave of enemy troops broke through the defense line on the city wall. Everyone was trapped in a sea of blood and corpses, exhausted from dealing with the enemy's crazy attack.
At this critical moment, suddenly, a roar and the sound of horses' hooves came from Huainan City. "Princess, we are coming!" Zhang San led the surrendered bandits, holding weapons, and rushed to the battlefield quickly. There were men, women, young and old in the team, in addition to Zhang San, there was also Zhang Huaining, and all the young people in the city who could fight, came!
"Why are you here?" Su Qingwan was surprised and happy. At this critical moment, it was really touching to have such support. There are many people who add icing on the cake, but it is extremely rare to send charcoal in the snow.
Zhang San responded loudly: "Princess, we are also the people of Huainan! We will defend Huainan to the death. Without the order of the princess, we are not allowed to retreat a single step!"
"Defend Huainan to the death!"
"Defend Huainan to the death!" The shouts of the crowd were like rolling thunder, one after another, resounding through the sky.
The mountain bandits were always good at close combat, and they liked this kind of close combat the most. They all chopped with swords, and were extremely brave. With their support, they quickly defeated the attacking Xilin Border Army.
"Where are they from?" General Zhuge shouted angrily when he saw so many people suddenly appearing on the city wall. "They are all civilians. Their fighting power is very weak. Don't be afraid! Attack the city again!"
"Yes!" The soldiers of Xilin Army received the order and prepared to launch an attack again. General Zhuge thought that these were just a group of civilians who came to defend the city voluntarily, and their fighting power would be vulnerable, so he did not take them seriously at all.
He thought to himself, he led an army of 50,000 to besiege the city, and there were less than 10,000 defenders in the city. How could they possibly withstand his attack!
Su Qingwan handed the drumstick to someone else to continue beating the drum, and Luzhu quickly handed the two swords back to her. Su Qingwan held the long sword and fought bravely with the soldiers again.
Her hand had been pierced by the bowstring, and blood was dripping from the wound, but she held the sword tightly, bloodshot. Her fingers were almost cramped because she had been holding the hilt for so long, but she never let go.
Although her hands were itchy and numb, she still nimbly shuttled through the crowd and killed the enemy. Her armor was stained with blood. In this tragic battle, they once again successfully repelled the attack of the Xilin Army.
General Zhuge had no choice but to order the army to stop and rest, planning to reorganize a more fierce attack. Su Qingwan's fingers were numb at this time, and Lu Zhu wanted to help her heal her wounds. Su Qingwan waved her hand, took the cloth strip beside her, and simply bandaged her palm.
She knew that she couldn't fall down at this moment and had to organize the next wave of defense. The attack of the Xilin Army was too sudden, and the city was not fully prepared.
Although the enemy had just been defeated, the next wave of attack would surely be even more fierce. Su Qingwan quickly gave orders to carry the wounded down for treatment and to arrange for personnel to repair the city walls. The city defense guards were better at these tasks.
Zhang Huaining and General Xiaoning gathered together to urgently discuss the defense plan. Soon, the city was mobilized, and some young people were assigned to guard the city gates, while others were responsible for preparing logistical supplies, such as armor, bows and arrows, kerosene and other supplies.
The people in the city responded to the call and took out all the supplies they could provide from their homes. The beacon tower had already been lit, and the blazing flames shot straight into the sky. Zhongzhou should have seen the signal. They had to hold the city for three days and wait for reinforcements to arrive.
General Zhuge originally threatened to capture Huainan City within an hour, but the second wave of siege he launched after resting lasted for two hours, and he was eventually defeated, with the Xilin Army suffering heavy losses.
The people in Huainan City also suffered heavy casualties, and faint cries could be heard coming from the city. After a long battle, everyone was sleepy and tired.
Luzhu took the initiative to assume the responsibility of a military doctor, running around the battlefield to treat the wounded. Qingyun also knew a little about medicine, so Su Qingwan sent her to help. Su Qingwan herself did not dare to slack off. She was wearing armor, standing firmly on the city wall, holding a long sword, and her body was covered with blood. A ray of white appeared on the horizon, and dawn was about to come.
After daybreak, the Xilin Army will surely launch a more violent attack. After the surprise attack fails, General Zhuge will definitely adjust the deployment and attack the city again. Moreover, the main force of the Xilin Border Army is likely to come to fight during the day.
Su Qingwan knew that a more tragic and bloody storm was about to come, but she was not afraid at all. She had only one firm belief in her heart: "As long as I am still alive, the enemy will never be able to enter Huainan City!"
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