Chapter 87: Withdrawal
A memorial that shocked the court and the country was written overnight, and before daybreak, he sent people to climb out of the city using ropes, heading all the way to the capital.
The next morning, before daybreak, the enemy began their assault. The siege looked quite impressive, with drums and trumpets blaring everywhere, and a massive mass of troops swarming beneath Gongji County. If you have trypophobia, don't look down. It makes your scalp tingle!
Siege vehicles, ladders, and archers were ready. Suddenly, a trumpet sounded, and the enemy began to attack, starting with a rain of arrows. This made the defenders on the city unable to raise their heads.
After the rain of arrows, Zhao Xiaofei realized that the enemy was very close. This time the attack was much stronger than that of Haoge's troops. He had thought that since they were far away, he could still use catapults, but it seemed that he could only rely on bows and arrows.
However, Zhao Xiaofei and Zhou Shuai were not worried at all. They watched the enemy attack. The ladders had already been put up on the city wall. Zhao Xiaofei waved the flag in his hand, and sixteen large iron carts on the city wall, carrying sulfuric acid tanks, began to spray concentrated sulfuric acid downwards.
The sulfuric acid poured onto the enemy with a nasty, agonizing pain. Many were instantly reduced to skeletons, their intestines spilling out. Soldiers instinctively reached for the sulfuric acid, only to find their hands were reduced to mere skeletons (a reference to the scene in Saw). Those not directly hit were blinded, their faces scorched with burning pain, and unable to fight.
This wasn't the end of the matter. Wanshan commanded the catapults to hurl sulfuric acid bombs at the archers behind the infantry. These were earthenware jars filled with concentrated sulfuric acid, sealed shut, and fired like cannonballs. The bombs splashed into the archers' eyes, instantly rendering them unable to fire. Some of the sulfuric acid was even inhaled into the lungs of the enemy, causing them to cough uncontrollably.
Zhao Xiaofei's pursuits were all about the high-end. He spent 100,000 yuan on a drone that could spray pesticides. But he had it modified, changing the container and piping materials to stainless steel.
After filling the concentrated sulfuric acid, take off! Flying towards the real Eight Banners soldiers behind, his goal was not to hurt people, but to hurt the horses. Getting closer and closer to the Eight Banners soldiers, the drone came to the upwind side, and Zhao Xiaofei pressed the button. The nozzle began to spray concentrated sulfuric acid, and a layer of sulfuric acid mist immediately rose nearby. The Eight Banners soldiers were not stupid, and they immediately tore off a piece of cloth to cover their mouths and noses. But the horses couldn't be covered, and they couldn't cover themselves. The horses were immediately startled when they inhaled the sulfuric acid. They completely ignored the riders' instructions and started running around.
Seeing their commanders in the rear in disarray, the enemy retreated immediately. They ran as if there were a demon in Gongji County. By the time these enemies reached Abatai, many of them were coughing up blood and their lips had turned purple from inhaling large amounts of sulfuric acid. In the end, many died from coughing up blood. Some of the Eight Banner soldiers were injured by the sulfuric acid, but not many. The most common injuries were caused by horses being frightened by the sulfuric acid inhalation, and being thrown off and trampled to death, or having one foot caught in the stirrup and dragged to death by the horse. Overall, the number of casualties among the Eight Banner soldiers was relatively small, but the psychological trauma it left on them was indeed significant.
However, He Luohui and Yang Shan were not so lucky. He Luohui was thrown to the ground by his horse and was trampled to death by the horses behind him. Yang Shan inhaled too much concentrated sulfuric acid and vomited blood and died before he could reach Abatai.
Looking at the soldiers with purple lips and blood spitting out of their mouths, as well as those disfigured by sulfuric acid, Abatai was also frightened, but this time he could finally explain to the emperor. Look, these soldiers of mine have turned into ghosts in order to save your son.
However, Abatai did not use these excuses, because Huang Taiji died early. When the news came from Tongzhou, Abatai's appearance did not change, but his heart was full of joy. He silently said to himself, "Don't laugh! Don't laugh!"
This invasion and looting resulted in the death of Huang Taiji and the capture of Hauge. He became the supreme leader. The most important thing now was to prevent the Ming army from learning of their emperor's death and to organize an immediate withdrawal to Shengjing. Once he returned, no matter who he helped succeed him, he would be a key official.
Just as Abatai was preparing to take Huang Taiji's body back to Shengjing, Zhao Xiaofei and Hu Wen were organizing a team to clean up the battlefield and deal with the land destroyed by sulfuric acid. Due to the large number of bodies, Hu Wen directly organized the cremation. The fire burned for three days and three nights before it was completed. By then, Hauge had also woken up.
Hu Wen and Zhao Xiaofei sat in the lobby. Hu Wen had already ordered the coroner to sever Haoge's tendons. Haoge now knelt on the ground like a paralyzed dog. Zhao Xiaofei laughed heartily, imitating the villains on TV, and Hu Wen also laughed so hard that his teeth were exposed.
"Stop pretending to be dead! I know you understand Chinese! Tell me! Do you have any last words?" Zhao Xiaofei asked.
Haoge looked at Zhao Xiaofei with a sinister look and said, "Give me a quick death! Even if I turn into a ghost, I won't let you go!"
"I don't believe in ghosts! If you die, all your concubines and concubines will probably belong to Dorgon, right? Your children will have to call Dorgon dad when they see him! Hahahaha!" Zhao Xiaofei laughed proudly.
"You...you Han dogs only know how to use some conspiracies and tricks. If you have the guts, fight us, the Eight Banners of Manchuria, one-on-one! I guarantee that all of you Han dogs will be beaten to the ground and beg for mercy!" Hauge said.
"Hahaha! What's the point of saying this when you're about to die? Besides, your grandfather, Wild Boar Nurhaci, was no slouch when it came to plotting and scheming! Otherwise, how could he have conquered all those cities?" Zhao Xiaofei raised his foot and kicked at Haoge. He thought to himself, I've finally dealt with one of Huanzhu Gege's ancestors. He felt incredibly happy!
Haoge lay on the ground without saying a word. Zhao Xiaofei said, "Come here! Tie him up! Torture him!"
"Brother Zhao, why did you use torture?" Hu Wen asked.
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