Chapter 212: Battle of Chengdu 2
Zeng Ying wondered if this female chieftain named Miao Xiang had gone mad. How dare she defy the imperial court? What favors had Zhang Xianzhong bestowed upon her? Or was it simply because he had treated her too well in bed?
I'm sure she'll be terrified once her army arrives and sees them! She'll probably immediately send an envoy to her camp to sue for peace, and then she'll insist on sending more troops and a few more beauties to serve her brothers.
What a shame! In reality, this little woman gave Zeng Ying a loud slap in the face! Just as they were about to reach Chengdu, this female chieftain named Miao Xiang took advantage of the geographical advantage of her Miao village and blocked the way for Zeng Ying's army of more than 100,000.
This Miao village is nestled between two mountains. It's safe to say that anyone who wants to reach Chengdu must pass through their village. Even if they want to take a detour, it's a long, long way to go! Zeng Ying refused to accept this. He couldn't miss out on the Battle of Chengdu; it would be a great achievement. Perhaps he could even be awarded a title! This would benefit the descendants of Mengyin, so this Miao village had to be conquered.
In the main camp, Zeng Ying said to Li Zhanchun, "I'll give you 20,000 men. You must capture the Miao village and capture this woman named Miao Xiang alive by noon tomorrow!"
Li Zhanchun was about to agree when Wu Xiange, who was sitting nearby, came out and said, "Wait a minute, General! I know this Miao village is really hard to conquer! The imperial court has sent troops to suppress it before, and even Zhang the bandit has sent troops here. They were all badly defeated, simply because there are so many enemy towers here, and they're well-placed! They're also hard to destroy with cannons, so usually they let us go by negotiating peace or offering some benefits! How about sending another envoy and promising some benefits? What do you think, General?"
Zeng Ying, Li Zhanchun, and Yu Dahai were all furious when they heard this. Zeng Ying snorted coldly, "She's already killed my messenger, and she still wants me to send another? She's dreaming! Furthermore, the prince has ordered that this woman must be captured alive! Later, the prince will convene a meeting of the chieftains in Chengdu, and he will personally execute this ignorant chieftain at the meeting!"
Wu Xiange felt his words were in vain, so he could only retreat in frustration. He thought to himself, "You're going to suffer for not listening to the old man! If you want to die, I won't stop you!"
However, Zeng Ying did not underestimate the enemy and instead sent over 10,000 Tusi soldiers to attack the Miao village!
Boom, boom, boom! Three cannon shots blasted the gate of the Miao village into a sieve. The chieftain's soldiers shouted and rushed in. This was the first time they had seen such powerful artillery.
Zeng Ying looked at the terrified Wu Xiange and said, "How is it? Can we take over the Miao village quickly?"
Wu Xiange calmed down and replied, "General! The artillery is indeed powerful, but it can't penetrate the village. It can only destroy the outer fortifications. After all, the range of the artillery is limited and it can't hit fortifications that are too far away!"
The Tusi soldiers who attacked the Miao village were all able-bodied men from various tribes. They had been fighting other tribes in the mountains or in Sichuan for years, and were all qualified warriors. They needed almost no training!
Entering the Miao village, they found that the living quarters were empty. They searched for the enemy room by room. The entire village was almost deserted, so they continued to move forward.
When the ten thousand men reached the center of the village, a drum sounded. The Tusi army seemed to sense a sense of danger. One of their leaders said to the supervisor sent by Zeng Ying, "Sir, I see something is not right here. Why don't you withdraw first and discuss it later?"
"Why retreat?! Defend where you are and let the army get there as soon as possible! I think seeing so many of us scared those women away!" The military supervisor laughed heartily. But the other chieftains' soldiers couldn't laugh!
At that moment, a cannon shot rang out. Countless logs and rocks began to roll down from the hills on both sides, sending the Tusi troops fleeing in all directions. Some were directly hit, spitting blood and dying, while others had their heads smashed open. Some were trapped between the rolling logs, spitting blood and crying for help.
However, Zeng Ying's supervisors did not panic. Instead, they organized their troops to evade the enemy and then launched a counterattack, attacking the enemy towers and bunkers that were throwing down rolling logs and rocks.
The Miao village was flat in the middle, with numerous bunkers and watchtowers dotting the mountains on either side. The Miao warriors, hiding in the watchtowers, threw down rocks, logs, and fireballs. These fireballs were made of woven grass and coated with grease. Once lit and pushed down, they formed a wall of fire, making it impossible for the enemy to pass. The enemy had no choice but to attack the watchtowers and eliminate those in them before they could pass.
The military supervisors organized the archers to fight back, but the enemy tower was too high and few arrows could penetrate. The archers suffered heavy losses, most of them were either shot to death by the enemy in the tower or crushed to death by rocks and rolling logs.
Finally, the military supervisors had no choice but to lead the chieftain's army back. Zeng Ying called over a military supervisor and asked, "How did you lose the town?"
"General! The enemy towers on both sides are too high, and our archers can't reach them at all! Please use cannons to support us!" said the military supervisor.
"Damn! That's pretty powerful! I don't believe we can't take this Miao village! Lord Zeng, how about I send the fire camp soldiers to reinforce?" Li Zhanchun said to Zeng Ying.
"Go! Be careful!" Zeng Ying said.
"Yes, General!" Li Zhanchun said, and then he led more than a dozen cannons and hundreds of gunners back to the front line with the Tusi army. He pushed the cannons into the village, aimed at an enemy tower, and began firing.
This time they used solid balls instead of shrapnel, because solid balls were more effective than shrapnel in knocking down enemy buildings.
With a bang, a cannon shot out. Everyone's eyes watched the shell headed for the enemy building. Unfortunately, the imagined scene of the enemy building being hit by the bullet did not happen, but instead a solid bullet was bounced out.
This really made people feel like they were seeing a ghost. Li Zhanchun couldn't believe his eyes and ordered his men to fire another cannon, but the result was the same.
In fact, this is due to the material of the stone. The stone here is relatively hard, and ordinary solid bullets are simply unable to pose any threat.
During World War II, when the US military was helping China bomb a county town occupied by the Japanese, they discovered that ordinary bombs were incapable of collapsing the city walls. They devised a solution, ultimately resorting to welding a steel fork to the front of the bomb, which would penetrate the wall and explode.
The enemy tower in the Miao village was in this state, and no one could do anything about it. Zeng Ying had no choice but to use the human wave tactic again and sent 20,000 troops to attack the Miao village.
What a pity! Reality slapped them in the face again. Twenty thousand people suffered heavy losses and had to retreat and rest.
Zeng Ying asked Li Zhanchun and Yu Dahai, "What should we do? We can't stay here forever. We'll miss the opportunity to fight! Then neither you nor I can afford to be offended!"
At this time, Yu Dahai said, "Why don't we ask the prince for instructions? Since the prince can immediately know our situation from thousands of miles away, why not ask the prince for instructions and ask us how to fight?"
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