Princess Liang (Part 2)
During the Ming Dynasty, Hunzhou fearlessly straddled the Xiliu Sea. Living by the water, their ancestors built two gates to defend the city from foreign invaders. The outer gate was sunken hundreds of feet below the surface. Before craftsmen developed mechanical gears, opening it required dozens of strong men standing on either side, pulling the gate with ropes. The inner gate was much simpler, half-surfaced. At the ebb and flow of the tide, traces of seawater corrosion could be seen on its lower half.
Since Hunzhou closed its doors to the outside world during the Ming Dynasty, the food and supplies in the city had to be obtained by robbing passers-by.
The capital lies to the north, while Daohai City, Zuodan Eighteen Continents, and other fertile lands lie to the south. The east-west waterway ultimately winds around the Western Ocean and the Southern Ocean. In short, traveling north and south within Bianyu territory inevitably leads to Minghunzhou. Therefore, despite the perils of this region, countless people continue to brave it.
After the King of Jingxi fled from Minghunzhou to Zuodan Eighteen Continents, Minghunzhou established a more cruel "life-buying money": half of the people were shot before entering the city, and after the ship entered the city, all the money and food on the ship were looted. If the number was not satisfactory, the survivors would be beheaded on the spot and thrown into the sea.
Over the past decade or so, the Bianyu court had been overwhelmed by its own problems. Various regions had risen up in rebellion, each with its own ulterior motives, and rallied around Ming Hunzhou. No one could shake hands and cooperate, so they allowed the bandits in Ming Hunzhou, who had been safe and sound for so many years, to slaughter wave after wave of those waiting in line to die. However, even if the fat sheep lay flat on their backs, the precarious situation and people's livelihood in Bianyu were not exaggerated. Even if they tossed and turned the people into oil, they would not be able to squeeze out abundant supplies.
Therefore, the majestic outer city gate was built entirely with black iron, and the part submerged in water was coated with thick anti-rust paint. In comparison, the inner city gate was too shabby.
Of course, it is not ruled out that the lord defending the city is confident that the outer city gate will never be broken.
After the group of warships led by Xi Zhongting broke into the city, there was an obvious commotion on the city wall.
This really doesn't seem like the defensive quality that a city with a bad reputation and built of bones should have.
Song Jingyan led her men aboard a small boat, which, like a tailing in the haze, weaved past the occasional civilian boat that had escaped death, quietly approaching the inner city gate. She listened to the commotion on the tower and gazed at the inner city gate, which was clearly less sturdy than the outer one. She had a premonition that behind the outer gate lay a group of frightened paper tigers.
However, for some reason, the commander-in-chief of the attacking force seemed to be infected by the laxity on the city wall. He stood on the front warship with his hands behind his back, waved his hand gently backwards, signaling the remaining warships to stay put, and then looked up at the city wall of the inner city gate.
The gap between the inner and outer city gates was neither wide nor narrow. Their warships were equipped with some incredible weapon capable of directly cleaving through the black iron sheets that could cut through iron like mud. At this point, blasting the inner city gate open would surely be a piece of cake. If they halted their attack now, any subsequent attack would undoubtedly be much less powerful.
Even a child who has run and fallen understands this principle, so Xi Zhongting couldn't possibly not understand it.
Song Jingyan pondered the romantic stories of General Xi that had spread throughout the capital, and signaled to the people around her to make the boat start spinning in place.
Xi Zhongting's gaze darted back and forth on the tower, but he couldn't see the person he was looking for. His guards wanted to lead the charge, but Xi Zhongting stopped them with a raised hand. A moment later, General Xi himself called out to the tower, "General Xi Zhongting, I obey the orders of His Majesty and request that the prefect of Hunzhou open the city gates to receive His Majesty's order. From now on, all matters concerning the people in the city will be handled by the court."
If the prefects from various places who had their heads hit by Xi Zhongting before were here, they would definitely be dumbfounded and throw a tantrum.
The Xi man was a man of discerning taste, merciless in his dealings with others, often sarcastic beforehand. He wondered what old debt Ming Hunzhou had that had led to this knock on the door, a request that could almost be called a request.
Unfortunately, the people on the city wall were either confident that Xi Zhongting could not defeat them, or they were just too stupid to negotiate with. As soon as Xi Zhongting finished speaking, a terrifying sound of heavy crossbows being activated came from invisible places on the inner and outer city walls. The gears made a full circle, obviously turning from the outside to the inside.
Xi Zhongting clenched his hands behind his back, his eagle-like eyes fixed on the city wall.
"Bang!"
Two heavy arrows whistled against the wind, mercilessly piercing the warship Xi Zhongting was on. The civilian ships trapped inside and outside the city walls were once again frightened and began to cause trouble to the warships in a panic. The warships behind were unsure whether to charge and were struggling to avoid the dizzy civilian ships.
As heavy arrows struck, Xi Zhongting pushed aside his guards. The moment he hit the water, the immense force of the exploding warship threatened to pierce his lungs, and the suffocating sensation instantly dragged him back to memory. The craftsmen who had lived in Ming Hunzhou had toiled for generations, and with some ingenuity, they had designed two gates, even diverting the water, isolating them from each other and preventing any intrusion from within.
The Xiliu Sea outside was piled up with hills of fresh corpses, but the clear shadows of fish could still be seen underwater in the inner river.
He entered the city from the muddy and dirty Xiliuhai Lake, feeling uncomfortable even to breathe. But at this moment, he felt like he was back in Ming Hunzhou more than ten years ago. The river was beautiful and the sea was clear. The two city gates were never closed. People were singing and collecting pearls in the sea. He and the prince came by boat and accidentally fell into the water. Then, someone held him up from the water. The girl had eyes as clear and innocent as a deer.
“Crash!”
Xi Zhongting was pulled onto the boat by two people, one on each side.
Song Jingyan bowed slightly and saluted, "Song Jingyan from the Liang Palace, following General Feiyun, to help the general break the city."
The cool breeze of dawn blew, and Xi Zhongting, soaked to the skin, shivered violently. Water droplets slid down his handsome face. He saw Song Jingyan's eyes, filled with a thousand schemes, and saw the dark and cold warships anchored on the inland river. This dawn was sunless, and a gray haze settled over his heart. The last shred of hope in him sank into the sea with the heavy arrow just now.
He nodded to Song Jingyan and said politely, "Thank you, Master Song."
When Song Jingyan and the others from Prince Liang's mansion emerged from Shangyang, they couldn't have anticipated the current situation, let alone built a warship that violated etiquette. She said she would help Xi Zhongting break the city, but in reality, she was sending Xi Zhongting back to the intact warship and then distributing the crew to steer the various civilian ships that had infiltrated the city, to prevent them from causing trouble for Xi Zhongting.
Their group of ships, which had no combat capability, retreated to the outer city gate.
Xi Zhongting boarded another largest warship. The warship dodged heavy arrows in the inland river and formed a formation back and forth. Then, a giant crossbow of a terrifying size appeared on the ship he was on. The arrow was wrapped in a layer of black iron sheet. It had a smooth shape and flashed with a cold edge. It looked indescribably sharp.
The sound of bows and crossbows turning on the city wall was heard again, two against two.
Song Jingyan immediately determined that the iron sheet on the bow and arrow was made of black iron. Then she looked at the inner city gate which had been corroded by sea water and looked like half a piece of thin paper.
Almost at the same time, arrows from the city walls and warships were shot out.
A loud bang was heard, and the echo reverberated on the sea for a long time. Everyone on the civilian ship squatted down and covered their ears. Even Song Jingyan couldn't help but tilt her head.
Xi Zhongting's warship was shattered again, even the crossbows were shattered, and a vast expanse of fireworks exploded across the inner river. At the same time, arrows fired from the warships embedded themselves firmly in the inner city gate, which immediately became covered with spider webs. The sound of "creaking" echoed crisply across the inner river.
Xi Zhongting did not waste time on memories when he entered the water again. The moment he entered the water, he boarded the boat with the help of the wreckage floating on the river. He waved his right hand without hesitation, and all the warships were like an open arm, as if they just gently embraced the inner city gate - the inner city gate shattered with a sound!
The people on the civilian ship stared at the scene in amazement. They could never have imagined that the Ming Hunzhou, which was so dreaded, could be opened so easily?
The guards on the city wall were making their last resistance. Countless arrows poured down, even the shadow under the outer city gate was affected. The civilian ships retreated again and again, and had already hit the heavy outer city gate. Song Jingyan looked at Shao Zheng, and Shao Zheng immediately understood and blew a long whistle in the direction of the tower ship.
On the ship, the plump little boy slept soundly under his brocade quilt, the blush on his face gradually fading. Meng Shizhuang stayed by his side, but refused to let the healer get close. Then, a whistle sounded, and he frightenedly drew his dagger, but because he fiddled with the scabbard upwards, he didn't draw it immediately.
He stared at the dagger in a daze.
Hengbo had received the signal and hurriedly picked up the bow and arrow placed in the side room.
This bow and arrow is neither too big nor too small, just right for young people to use. If you think about it carefully, I'm afraid that those who are not well-trained will find it difficult to use.
Hengbo walked to the window with the bow and arrow in her hand, and easily placed the bow on the window. Looking at the arrows falling like raindrops outside, she narrowed her eyes, put three arrows directly on the bowstring, and when she found the right moment, she pulled the bow neatly!
When the rain of arrows fell, the generals on the warships were the first to bear the brunt of the arrows. With such a dense density, unless they had an iron shield, even shadowless kicks would have shot them into hedgehogs. Fortunately, all the men were wearing armor neatly, and the warships were very fast, so they had rushed to the inner city gate early, so they were not seriously affected.
Only a few fish escaped the net and rushed straight to the vital points.
Xi Zhongting had been prepared for injury. An arrow flew straight toward his eyes, but before he could react, he used his knife to sever the arrow aimed at the neck of his personal guard. Before he could close his eyes, the arrow, barely an inch away from his eyelids, was cut in half by an arrow that broke through the "raindrop" from ten feet away.
He looked back and saw a small window on the magnificent ship. He couldn't see who shot the arrow, but it was definitely someone from Prince Liang's mansion.
The warship under Xi Zhongting's feet passed the most dangerous city gate. He finally had some time to take a look at Song Jingyan and others who were protecting the civilian ships in the back. He looked at Song Jingyan's casual clothes and remembered the official uniform she wore when she came to pay a visit to him in Daohai City. His heart became clear as a mirror.
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