Chapter 713: Aggressive
At the lakeside pier of Kaiyuan County, several large ships from Weishan County were docked there. The people on the ships were using the cranes on the masts to unload the delivered artillery. There were also people on the boats next to them who were constantly carrying down cast iron shells and gunpowder boxes. There were also many fixed gun mounts and field mobile artillery vehicles. There were also more than a hundred artillery instructors, two for each gun, responsible for training the guards here to form artillery camps.
The road from the pier to the military camp and the parade ground was under full martial law. Except for the soldiers who stayed behind to guard the camp and the city defense, all the others were lined up on both sides of the road. Many residents and craftsmen in the inner city, as well as the herdsmen who joined the outer city last year, all ran to the side of the road to watch, because this was the first time they had seen such a large army on a security mission, and they were inevitably curious about what was being transported.
The commander of Qianniu Guard, Chai Duoduo, the commander of Huben Guard, Xue Tu, the commander of Jinwu Guard in charge of intelligence, You Zhi, and the governor of Kaiyuan County, Ying Rui, all four big men of Kaiyuan County were standing on the dock, counting the military supplies shipped this time.
"Wow, such a big iron thing, but it looks like an iron barrel. Is this thing really a powerful weapon? I think it is suitable to leave it on the top of the city to hit people, but such a heavy thing, several people can't move it."
It was the first time that Xue Tu saw a cannon. He had heard before that this was a powerful weapon newly made by the leader, but he hadn't seen how powerful it was.
"Hahaha, Commander Tu is joking. With so much good iron, no, so much good steel, how could the leader be willing to let you use it to hit people? However, Commander Tu guessed half of it right. It is indeed used to hit people, but not with cannons, but with round cannonballs."
Ying Rui had followed Dali and Shu Da to Xingang County to see the power of this thing before. This time, he also personally escorted the cannons here, so he is the most familiar person with cannons in the entire Kaiyuan County.
"It is really used to hit people. What to use? Use this iron ball. Hmm, it's quite heavy. I'm afraid it weighs ten kilograms. How far can this thing be thrown?"
Xue Tu picked up a round iron ball from a car on the side and weighed it in his hand. He found that it was not small, but he was skeptical about the range of this thing. When the range of a bow and arrow can easily exceed 100 meters, how useful can a heavy weapon that can throw an iron ball 30 meters be? It is completely useless. But if you say that the range of this iron ball can be farther than a bow and arrow, he will not believe it anyway.
Ying Rui did not answer directly, but shook his head with a smile on his face, and then showed three fingers to Xue Tu.
"Three hundred meters?!" Xue Tu questioned in disbelief.
Ying Rui continued to shake his head.
"Did I say too much?" Xue Tu asked again tentatively.
"Too little, go a little further." Ying Rui reminded.
"Really? It's farther than 300 meters, and there's a three in it, so it's three miles?!"
Xue Tu was shocked by the number after he finished speaking, and then he immediately retorted, "Are you kidding me? Old Eagle, are you trying to fool me with this?"
Ying Rui still smiled and didn't refute, but just said lightly, "You can't believe it, you will know after trying it. This is really the most powerful weapon invented by the leader, nothing else. With this thing and a small number of soldiers, it can easily resist tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, and in an instant, the enemy can taste the power of heaven's punishment, and hundreds of soldiers can be turned into dust in a breath."
The people next to him were numbed by his words. If it was really that powerful, it would be extremely powerful, but they had never seen the scene of artillery firing with their own eyes, so it was difficult to refute.
After wasting half a day, with the joint efforts of the crew and the two guards, all the weapons were finally unloaded.
In fact, this time, not only these dozens of cannons were transported, but also a large number of armors and cold weapons, all of which were prepared for the herdsmen who joined the Han tribe. If these natural nomadic cavalry were organized according to the military system of the Han tribe, they would also be a considerable armed force, enough to allow the small Kaiyuan County to dominate the entire grassland.
After transporting these weapons to the training ground of the camp, several big men gathered together again. Before others could speak, You Zhi spoke first.
"How long will it take to train with this new weapon? Will it be put to use within a week?"
The two commanders and the county governor Ying Rui looked at each other at the same time. Ying Rui asked, "Why, is the war about to start?"
"Well, it will probably be soon. I have received accurate intelligence. Maodun's camp has already moved and is migrating to the spring pasture. He has also been in frequent contact with the top leaders of the Xin tribe since winter, and has obtained a lot of copper weapons, white salt and other scarce materials.
Maodun also used these materials to persuade the Snow Wolf tribe together with the Xin tribe, promising that if they defeated us, they would be given 30% of the spoils, and a piece of pasture for the Snow Wolf to settle down in the lakeside with lush grass and water.
The place where the Snow Wolf stayed was a plateau, and the environment was not good. They had long wanted to graze on the shore of the big lake, but they had always suffered from their small strength and insufficient resources and weapons. This time, with the support of the Xin tribe and Maodun, and the temptation of dividing the spoils and land, plus they already had a grudge with our Han tribe, they agreed directly."
After listening to You Zhi's intelligence, several people frowned and kept silent. It sounded like there were a lot of people, and it seemed that the scale of this battle was a bit large.
"Can you tell how many people the other side has?" Chai Duoduo was not afraid. Kaiyuan County now had 4,000 to 5,000 soldiers in just the two garrisons, and there were also new troops formed by the herdsmen who came to join them. The total number was no less than 20,000. Moreover, the Han tribe had the advantage of equipment and geographical advantages. After all, they were fighting on their own territory. So, as long as the number of the other side did not exceed 40,000, he would not be at all afraid.
"About 50,000 to 60,000 people." As soon as You Zhi said this, the faces of several people changed, and they were all shocked by this number.
Xue Tu was very hot-tempered and excited, so he asked immediately, "Where did they
get so many people?" "According to what I know, the Xin tribe has made a great contribution this time. They not only provided weapons and salt, but also imitated a lot of horse gear and armor. Yes, you don't have to be so surprised, it's bamboo armor.
"They may have imitated it according to the iron armor they stole from us. First, cut the bamboo into large pieces, drill holes and string them together with ropes. It's like the armor of the bamboo mats in our tribe. It should have no problem resisting ordinary bows and arrows.
"As for the troops, the Xin tribe helped Maodun to gather a lot of people with resources, and Maodun took the initiative to fight. In addition, it is said that the Xin tribe will send two to three thousand people this time.
These 50,000 to 60,000 people are actually a coalition force. If my guess is correct, they probably want to wipe out our Han tribe from the grassland in one go and completely eliminate the influence of the Han tribe on the grassland, so they are so aggressive." You Zhi explained again.
"This damn Xin tribe, next time I will definitely lead my troops to Zhudao to destroy them." Xue Tu slammed his palms and cursed with gritted teeth.
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No more today. Go and write a new book...
(End of this chapter)
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