Iron Powder and Spellcaster

The rivers in the Great Wilderness all belong to dendritic water systems, and the tributaries and main rivers intersect at acute angles.

The Hud people took advantage of the situation and built a city on the narrow highland where the two rivers met. The city is surrounded by water on three sides, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. Only the northwest side is solid land.

Although the two unnamed rivers are fast-flowing, they are not too wide and can be crossed by swimming or boating. The land around Bienli City was divided into three parts by two rivers.

Therefore, the Plato army that besieged the city was also divided into three. Two partial armies set up strongholds across the river in the south and northeast to prevent the Hittites in the city from escaping across the river.

Most of the main force crossed the river and set up camp northwest of Tucheng, building walls and trenches to block the land exit. At the same time, there are temporary bridges erected by engineers on the two rivers to connect the three places.

Plato's army had been besieging the city for nearly two months, and these arrangements had been completed long before the arrival of Jashka's army.

Although there was no direct attack on the city wall, the Platoans were not idle during this period.

Under the instruction of Major General Arpad, the engineers never stopped digging into the tunnels under the city wall. Most of the lumber brought back by the Jessica Brigade was used by the engineers to reinforce the tunnels.

However, the progress of the tunnel is classified and unknown to the officers of the Jashka Brigade.

As auxiliary soldiers, they only need to be responsible for digging trenches and guarding trenches.

No one knows the decision-making process above, but at least the generals are on the same page.

Two infantry brigades and a cavalry squadron of the Fifth Army separated from the main force and headed east. According to Brigadier General Sackler's order, they will return to the west bank of the Styx to re-erect the pontoon bridge.

Apart from this, the Plato army had no more divisions and attacked Bienli City with all its strength.

…

The Platuan attack began after noon, when the light was favorable.

Several Plato generals were all senior professional officers, and they knew the Hed's arrangements at a glance.

Tucheng "Bianli" has a long and narrow shape and is roughly divided into three parts: west, middle and east.

Among them, the main city has the highest terrain. On the east and west sides of the main city are the acropolis built by the Hud people.

Due to the cutting effect of the river, the terrain in the north and south of Tucheng is steep, and the river serves as a barrier. Attacking from these two directions will only lead to a bloody failure.

The terrain on the west and east sides is relatively gentle, but the East Acropolis is surrounded by water on three sides, making it equally difficult to attack.

Therefore, the west is the most vulnerable position on the border, and the Hud people will definitely place their main force in the Western Acropolis. The battle for the Western Wall will determine the success or failure of this battle.

The Hed people invited the battle with a majestic formation. They had no clever strategy to use and could only chew the bones.

When the sun rose to its highest point, Arpad sent someone to persuade them to surrender for the last time. The Hed simply refused, but was very graceful and did not attack the messenger.

War drums were rumbled, which was the signal for the Plattans to attack.

The desolate sound of horns came from far away, and the figures on the city wall flashed. Several city gates also opened with a bang, and the Huds began to enter the fortifications under the city wall.

Under the guidance of the officers, the Palatuan people behind the barrier roared in unison. The sound waves got louder and louder, and everyone's blood boiled when they heard the war cry.

War cries echoed across the wasteland, and the Palatine army marched into battle.

Winters leaned out of the trench used to resist the enemy's breakout from the city and watched as the heavily armored Platoon soldiers pushed dozens of carts and covered the musketeers as they slowly approached the city wall.

Alaric's Thousand Men once pushed carts to attack the Styx barracks. Now the Platoans used exactly the same tactics, which made Winters laugh.

Time was running out, and the Herds' long-range firepower was weak. The superiors believed that there was no need to dig trenches to advance, so Brigadier General Sackler ordered a direct attack on the city wall.

Winters's troops were not part of the siege sequence. Jessica's battalion was responsible for defending a section of the blockade, so Winters could build trenches according to his own ideas.

He was already familiar with this kind of thing in the archipelago.

He laid out the trenches at six-meter intervals and did not run through them laterally, thus saving man-hours.

Spreading the troops like salt could easily break them, so Winters widened each corner of the trench to accommodate two ten-man troops, which he called charge angles.

Beside Winters, the militiamen also poked their heads out of the ditch and watched nervously as the siege troops pressed towards the city wall.

There were several streams of white smoke rising from the highland city walls, and Winters felt nervous - Bello was not lying, the Huds really had artillery.

The shells flew toward the trench where Winters was sitting with thunderous thunder. The militiamen screamed and fell back in the trench.

Winters remained motionless, and the shell passed four or five meters above the trench with a "whoosh" sound, and flew to nowhere.

What was the point of shelling the trenches? The gunners on the city must have aimed at the carriage, but their shot was too crooked.

Winters couldn't help but shook his head. In his opinion, the Platuan people's siege ability was as poor as the Herd people's city defense ability. They were both third-rate.

A militiaman next to him got up from the ground and suddenly said: "Why are you shaking your head? Sir."

Winters looked at the militiaman who asked the question: "What is your name?"

A large number of new militiamen have been recruited under his command, causing him to still not recognize all the people.

"Ish, Ish from Ganshui Town." The militiamen were stared at by the blood wolf and were so nervous that they were at a loss.

The other militiamen in the charging corner also stiffened for a moment.

"I shake my head because attacking the city like this is sheer foolhardy." Winters tried to remember the faces and names of the militiamen in front of him.

He jumped back into the trench, patted the dirt on his hands and said, "Don't look at it, Bian Li can't win today. Pick up the shovel and keep digging!"

…

The carts approached the earthen wall, the musketeers suppressed the archers on the wall, and the sword and shield men jumped over the wooden railings, low walls, and ditches under the city to kill the Huds.

The days were short in winter, and the Palatine army fought hard all afternoon and could not even clear the fortifications under the city.

Seeing that the sky was getting dark, Brigadier General Sackler had no choice but to order his troops to return to camp.

After the sun went down, Andre and Mason gathered again in Winters' tent. This time, not only the two of them, but also other Second Lieutenant Veneta from the frontline camp also came to have dinner.

No less than ten people were squeezed into the small military tent. Everyone could not even stretch their legs and could only curl up in grievance.

But the atmosphere in the tent was very lively, and someone even brought wine.

This is the first time that so many people have gathered together for the Veneta lieutenants since they fled to the country of galloping horses. At the same time, fellow villagers and comrades-in-arms reunited after a long absence, and we could only hold each other's hands and cry on the spot.

The biting cold wind was howling outside the tent, but the people sitting around the iron stove didn't feel cold at all.

Bud wasn't here because he was on the first day of the night shift and was still counting stars in the trench.

"Are all the romantic guys good-for-nothing?" With only one of his own in the tent, Andre commented unscrupulously: "At this level, I can do as well as I can! You can only take people's lives to make ends meet."

"Actually, the barbarians have some rules for guarding. Triangular forts, multiple trenches, and cross-fire shooting above and below the city are a headache for everyone. Just because the artillery has not exploded in the afternoon, it is not an ordinary barbarian." Weitor from the artillery department swallowed a mouthful of distilled wine. Wine, pass the bottle to the right

On Whittle's right was Winters. Winters took the bottle, but didn't drink it, and then passed it to the right.

He sighed and said, "I have been digging trenches all afternoon, and I don't even know who I am fighting. Who is the guard in the city?"

"It seems to be called... Yasin." Weitor rubbed his temples and tried to remember: "The chief of the Red River tribe, the barbarians call him White Lion."

Andre suddenly became energetic: "White lion? Winters hunted a giant lion! The head is as big as a wheel! It weighs hundreds of kilograms!"

"Yeah?"

"It wasn't me, it was a hunter who killed him." Winters didn't want to talk about this topic at all.

Balian opened the curtain and brought in an iron pot filled with hot meatball soup.

The weather was cold and the food would get cold quickly. Balian placed the pot on the iron stove in the middle of the tent and continued cooking. Winters added some firewood to the stove.

The food stopped chatting, and everyone took out the meatballs first, and then cooked noodles with the soup in the pot. In the wilderness on the edge of this "civilized world", a few Veneta people actually tasted a taste of their hometown.

After a hearty meal, Second Lieutenant Sanu of the Cavalry Division licked his fingers and said, "I'm curious, where did the barbarians get the cannon? Do they know how to make cannons? And gunpowder? Cannonballs? Cannon crew?"

Andre picked his teeth and snorted coldly: "The Tanirians can get cannons, why can't the Herds? Old Marco said that the inscriptions on the heavy cannons on Red Sulfur Island have been filed away."

Mentioning the fallen Marcello, everyone was a little sad for a moment.

Winters recalled the way Marcello walked towards him at the celebration party with two bottles of wine under his arm, as if it was just yesterday.

Kona asked hesitantly: "You mean...maybe someone deliberately provided artillery and technology to the barbarians?"

"It's not possible, it's just that! The barbarians will defend the city. I said no one taught them. Do you believe it? It must be the trouble of the mud bumpkins from the United Provinces! Last year they punished us, this year they punished the Platos!"

"You can't be so arbitrary..." Kona was still struggling.

Andre stared and shouted: "Plato is surrounded by forces that can forge heavy artillery - the United Provinces, Veneta, and the Oathbreakers in the north. If it weren't for us, if we weren't the United Provinces, how could we still be there? Is it an oathbreaker? Stop thinking blindly! It's just the mudbump who is supporting the barbarian."

Lieutenant Mason looked a little embarrassed. Bud was not here, and he was the only Federal Provincial man in the tent.

Andre hurriedly added: "Senior, I'm not talking about you."

Mason was even more embarrassed, and his smile was bitter: "It's okay. Anyway, the United Provinces don't treat me as a United Provinces person, and Plato doesn't treat me as a Platoon. I'm not related to the two."

The atmosphere turned cold for a moment.

"In Plato, we are all strangers." Winters wanted to change the topic and brought the chat back to the military: "I think it is normal for the Plato people to be poor at attacking cities. They fought against the Heds. The cavalry has always been at the forefront, so where is the need to attack fortresses? The cavalry is too valued, and the infantry is suppressed. Isn’t Arpad one level higher than Szekeli?”

In the Palatine Army, Major General Arpad was born in the cavalry, while Szekler, who was born in the infantry department, was only a brigadier general. The coach, General János, was also a cavalry commander in the Sovereign War.

"I've said all the unpleasant things, so why don't I say it." Andre, who was sulking on the side, stubbornly tried to bring the topic back: "Everyone happens to be here, and I have something to discuss with everyone."

All eyes were on Andre.

Andre cleared his throat and said in a deep voice: "I think, no matter whether the Platoans can win or not, we must prepare early..."

…

…

The siege of the city failed to go smoothly on the first day. On the second day, Brigadier General Szekler became ruthless and began to advance towards the city wall from early in the morning. The tunnel troops also stepped up digging overnight.

The wall of the earthen city was not high, but the Palatine army lacked artillery - even if it had artillery, it was not effective against the low wall constructed of earth and wood. They could only use the carriages to cover the city and then dig out the wall and blast it.

The Hurds built two bastions on the western wall, dug multi-layer trenches outside the city, erected wooden railings and low walls, and placed shooters above and below the city - mainly archers, with a few muskets.

The main direction of the Palatine army was towards the two bastions. Without removing the two bastions first, there was no way to attack the city gate.

Miller, the sergeant of the Fifth Army's chief brigade, pushed the cart all the way uphill. When he finally reached the first parapet, he was sweating and panting.

Due to the terrain, the parapets under the city are higher than the other, so they will not block the shooting range from each other.

Arrows from above and below the city hit the carriages, making a series of muffled "Puff" sounds.

Miller's men held their shields high and tried to hide behind the carriage. Many Heds still use bone arrowheads and stone arrowheads, unable to deal with plate armor, but no one wants to gamble their luck.

What's more, the Sword and Shieldmen only have half-armor, and the Hurd Archers specialize in shooting at their legs.

The sound of arrows breaking through the air is occasionally mixed with the muffled sound of muskets. This is the sound that scares the sword and shield players the most.

They had reached ten steps in front of the wall, but everyone was cowering. Sergeant Miller gritted his teeth, roared and rushed towards the parapet with his shield on his head.

An arrow hit Miller in the chest. The arrowhead and wood chips flew away with a sharp crackling sound. Miller's body stagnated, but he continued to rush forward.

Seeing the sergeant taking the lead, other Plato soldiers gritted their teeth and followed. The musketeers mounted their barrels on the carriages and began shooting at the archers on the city.

After a fight, the Hurds were defeated, and Miller led his men to clear this small section of parapet.

Arrows were still raining on the city, and Miller was hit by an arrow in his right leg. His fellow soldiers dragged him back to the other side of the parapet.

The Platuan soldiers temporarily leaned against the Hittite breastworks to resist the Hittite bullets.

Next, they needed to fill in the trench, then attack the next parapet, then fill in the trench, and then attack the next parapet before they could finally touch the city wall.

While the Palatine soldiers were fighting fiercely with the Hedians below the city, Winters was still leading people to dig a Z-shaped trench extending toward the city wall.

In his eyes, the Plato soldiers were brave enough, but the generals were too impatient and underestimated the enemy, always wanting to defeat them in one fell swoop.

It should be noted that foaming will not delay shaving. There is an uphill road of more than 600 meters between the Palatine army's attack position and the city wall.

If you don't think of a way to shorten this distance, how can you launch an effective attack on the city wall?

Moreover, Plato's generals still did not realize the importance of sealing the enemy within the city walls.

As an officer who had observed Antonio's command of sieges at close range, Winters discovered that every time his elders attacked a city, the first thing they did was to find a way to lock the enemy in the city wall.

In the middle of the attack and defense of Tacheng, Veneta soldiers even slipped into the trenches in the middle of the night to recover artillery shells, but the Union Army was trapped behind the city wall and could only watch.

Once the defenders cannot get out of the city wall, the city will be close to falling.

But now the Palatine army is attacking Bianli City. According to Bader, who was on night duty last night, it was the Hedians who sneaked out of the city gate at night to collect arrows and repair the fortifications.

In this way, the siege will become a complete war of attrition of human lives. This is by no means a situation that the siege party wants to see.

So while the half-armored Plato sword-and-shielders were fighting with the Hedians under the city wall, Winters was leading the men to dig trenches.

Lieutenant Colonel Jessica did not issue such an order, but he did not stop it either.

The lieutenant colonel went to see Brigadier General Sackler, and soon more peasants and militiamen were transferred to Winters to dig trenches.

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