The Struggle of the Reborn Prince

Last year, the artillery was assigned to participate in the Northern Expedition. As the iron fist of the Song Dynasty's Forbidden Army, the Artillery Department made intense preparations under the emperor's order. In addition to expanding the artillery units directly under each army and brigade and replacing them with new artillery, the Artillery Department directly under the Privy Council

Jurisdiction

The three artillery brigades were increased to five, and the artillery command headquarters was established based on the Artillery Division. After the war, the first and second brigades were assigned to the Zhao Li Corps, and the third and fourth brigades were assigned to the Mawei Corps, which now remain in Jinzhou

Only the fifth artillery brigade was on the front line.

After the Song Army's siege of Jinzhou began, Zhao Xiao commanded the artillery of various ministries to cooperate with the infantry and cavalry to clear out peripheral strongholds. However, in order not to expose the real main attack direction, heavy firepower mainly used the artillery belonging to the generals and brigades. The fifth brigade was received to participate in the attack on Jinzhou.

After receiving the order, they immediately moved from the rear overnight to enter the position outside Jinzhou City.

The Fifth Artillery Brigade was established just last year under the emperor's order with students from the Jiangwutang Artillery School as the backbone. It is equipped with all new large-caliber artillery and is led by Qiao Shijun. The unit adopts the Fifth Five-Year Plan, with five combat units under the brigade.

artillery battalion and a

Directly-affiliated battalions and baggage detachments. Each artillery battalion is subordinate to five commanders and one directly-affiliated detachment. The strength of the troops varies according to the use of different types of artillery. Directly-affiliated battalions are under the jurisdiction of command, guard, communication and reconnaissance detachments, and the baggage detachment is mainly responsible for

Responsible for the supply of ammunition.

The first, second and third battalions are equipped with large-caliber muzzle-loading artillery. Each battalion is equipped with twenty cannons, which can fire thirty kilograms of solid bullets, blooming bullets and shotgun shells. The effective range is 800 steps, and the maximum firing range is 1,200 steps.

Infantry; the fourth and fifth battalions are equipped with large-caliber mortars, each battalion is equipped with fifteen guns, which can eject solid bombs, explosive bombs and incendiary bombs. The effective range is 600 steps, and the maximum shooting range is nearly 1,000 steps.

Because the cannons equipped by the 5th Artillery Brigade are so powerful that when fired, they explode like thunder for twenty miles, so they are called the "Thunder God". The reason why the 5th Artillery Brigade is left here is because they are a heavy artillery brigade and use artillery

The largest weighs more than three thousand kilograms. Therefore, it is very inconvenient to march and be carried by ships, and it is difficult to follow the cavalry in combat. But even so, they have been hidden in the ice and have not been put into actual combat. They are prepared to be used as strategic weapons at the most critical moment...

…

After receiving the order to conquer Jinzhou, Gao Chong immediately led a group of people to survey the battlefield, formulate and revise the battle plan. The former emperor's tent was only ten miles away from the battlefield. This was tantamount to directly supervising the battle, which not only gave him and the generals a huge advantage.

The pressure also made them understand the importance of this battle.

"Brother Xiao, Jinzhou City is high and deep, and I still need your help!" After walking around and returning to the handsome tent, Gao Chong smiled and gave Zhao Xiao a cup of tea.

"Why do you have to be so polite, my dear brother? We are all brothers!" Zhao Xiao thanked him politely. Although he was humble on his face, he was very grateful in his heart. The artillery has received great development and attention over the years, but he is in charge of the Artillery Department.

Most of what they do is organize training and study warfare.

It has been a long time since Gao Chong was able to go to the battlefield in person for his work such as military skills and the improvement of new artillery. And he knew very well that it was difficult for a soldier without military exploits to gain a foothold, so he still felt a little unhappy in his heart. Now that Gao Chong is so enthusiastic and values ​​himself,

Of course it's very comfortable.

"In that case, I won't say any more polite words. His Majesty only gave two days for this siege. We have also seen the defense of Jinzhou City. Although it does not have an inner city, there are many obstacles built in the outer city, and each

The power of the army's artillery is limited. If we attack forcefully, the casualties will be huge, and we may not have enough time. This requires a lot of support from brothers." Gao Chong still asked for advice with a smile on his face.

"Commander, don't worry too much. I have a detailed understanding of Jinzhou's city defense. Its main city has been repaired many times. Its defense equipment is the strongest and most complete, and it has a certain resistance. However, the outer trenches and sheep and horse walls outside the city

, the fortresses are all temporary construction. It is not a cause for concern.

, it is entirely possible to rely on artillery fire to clear out the city and open up the road for siege. However, the main city only needs some time, and heavy artillery can also be used to blast the gap. The problem is that the enemy can use the time of bombardment to mobilize reinforcements, which will bring great consequences to the subsequent siege troops.

Difficult." Zhao Xiao pondered for a moment and said.

"Brother Xiao, Your Majesty has also considered this. We plan to attack in three ways at the same time, with the west gate as the main target and a feint attack on the east gate and north gate, so that the enemy will not be able to tell the truth and dare not easily mobilize troops to reinforce the west gate." Gao Chong

He stated his plan.

"Although this can contain the enemy to a certain extent, it is not complete. Our main attack direction will definitely deploy heavy artillery in order to suppress the enemy and open up passages with the most violent artillery fire. When the Jurchens arrive, they will know where they are with just a look and a listen.

One side is the main attack, and the other side is bluffing." Zhao Xiaoyan said.

"Then what does Brother Yixiao mean? I know that heavy artillery is heavy, and it is very difficult to temporarily transfer gun positions. Besides, there is no time!" Gao Chong nodded, shook his head and said, he also understood this truth, but Yu

It's hard to have both.

"Does the commander-in-chief's plan mean that the artillery of each army and brigade will still be under the command of each ministry, and only the fifth artillery brigade will be used in the main attack direction?" Zhao Xiao thought for a while and asked.

"That's right!" Gao Chong replied.

"I suggest that the entire army's artillery be grouped into one place and unified dispatch and command. At the same time, in order to strengthen the firepower and reduce feint attacks in one direction, how about changing it to one main and one assist?" Zhao Xiao put forward his own idea.

"Oh, brother Xiao, please tell me in detail!" Gao Chong frowned and said, if we follow what Zhao Xiao said, we must make major changes to the battle plan. Before the war, the commander was indecisive, and improvising ideas was the most taboo.

Therefore, he wanted to hear Zhao Xiao's thoughts first.

"Commander, this is my plan. We can first launch an attack in the direction of Chaya Mountain. Now Jinzhou has been surrounded by us like an iron barrel. All the people around have fled, and there are rangers patrolling the outside. It is difficult to spread the news.

If we go out, the enemy reinforcements will naturally not know that we have moved.

Moreover, the two battlefields are dozens of miles apart. Unless they are both clairvoyant and have ears for the wind, they cannot hear the sound of our siege artillery. Therefore, launching an attack first will not affect the plan of reinforcements along the way."

Of course Zhao Xiao knew what Gao Chong was thinking, he explained.

"Well, this is indeed true, go on." Gao Chong nodded and said.

"We attacked the city in two groups in order to hide the truth and show the lie, and attack the east and attack the west. Then we only need to make the scene more realistic and let them believe that assisting and attacking together are the main attack..." Zhao Xiao led Gao Chong to the sand table and gave him

Explain your plan in detail.

"Okay, this plan is feasible. I will go to the camp to report to Your Majesty and change the original siege plan!" Gao Chong said happily. He had been convinced by Zhao Xiao's plan...

…………

Jinzhou City has a radius of five miles and is not very large. During the Liao Dynasty, with the rise of the textile industry here and the increase in merchants, the city became increasingly smaller. In order to facilitate transactions, a grass market was spontaneously formed outside the east gate. This is like

It is now a common market day in rural areas. On those days, people from all over the country will gather here to trade. As time went by, the grass market outside the east gate prospered. In order to collect taxes, the Jinzhou government built a wall here and sent special personnel.

manage.

The grass market then became the Guocheng of Jinzhou. The government simply moved the weaving households and merchants in the city here. Some of the merchants and large households donated money to strengthen the city walls in order to prevent theft and protect their own safety, making this a city outside the city.

. Later, when the Liao Kingdom fell, the Jin Army used the buildings here to rebuild

After the Northern Expedition of the Song Army, the Jin Army set fire to the surrounding houses in order to move people from outside the city into the city, cleared the shooting boundary, and dug holes on the outside.

Two thousand-man troops were stationed to defend the trench, forming part of the outer defense of Jinzhou City.

On the 10th of April, a few days after the Mawei Corps was blocked by the Jinshui Army in Heye, the Song Army, which had been besieged for many days, suddenly launched an attack. The Tiger Wing Army concentrated six artillery battalions directly under the military brigade, and the third battalion of the 5th Artillery Brigade was

With the support of the enemy, they opened fire on Guocheng. The shelling continued until the end, and Guocheng was

All the walls and trenches were destroyed. All the buildings were razed to the ground, and more than half of the defenders were damaged. Except for more than a hundred people who fled back to Jinzhou City, all the remaining ones were captured. The Song Army brigade then advanced to the city, followed by a large number of soldiers.

The siege engines did not continue to attack the city because it was already dark.

"Commander, the soldiers and civilians in the city are panic-stricken. We need to make plans early. My subordinates are worried that things will change if it is too late!" Wanyan Bingde said with a trembling voice. After he fled to Jinzhou, he learned that all the territory under the jurisdiction of Youshuai's Mansion was lost. Wanyan

The rest of the lieutenants died in battle. The loyalty of the servants was lost.

After their lives were lost in Yahe River, he was worried about being punished, so he stayed in Jinzhou and never returned. Fortunately, after Sa Lihe defected, the emperor did not convict him in order to appease people's hearts, but asked him to temporarily take over the post of Zuo Jianjun, so that he would

He became the second in command of Zuo Shuai's Mansion.

Today's Song army destroyed such a large area of ​​Guocheng in just one day. Two thousand-man troops were almost wiped out. Only one thousand-man commander escaped, and he was still half dead. He was hit by falling from the sky in the camp.

The shell that penetrated the roof stunned him, and he became a mute who could only nod and shake his head but could not speak.

Ba. Although the Song Army did not continue to attack the city, the soldiers and civilians in the city were frightened by the Song Army's artillery fire. They were worried that the artillery shells would fall on their heads tomorrow, so they gathered at the city gate and demanded that the city be opened and let them go.

They went out to escape, while the defenders in the trenches outside the city demanded entry into the city.

"Don't panic, supervisors. We only injured two thousand-man troops today. We still have a hundred thousand troops, which is just a drop in the bucket. The common people don't know the inside story, so they are inevitably a little scared. All they need is a little comfort and suppression." Wanyan

Liang said with a smile.

"Commander, please hurry up and bring peace to the people. Don't really cause trouble." Wanyan Bingde wiped the sweat from his face and said.

"The servants are scattered, you immediately lead the troops to the city gates to order the people to return home. Anyone who disobeys the order will be punished on the spot. Then block the city gates and prohibit everyone from entering or exiting. Any unauthorized intruders will be shot without mercy." Wan Yanliang ordered himself casually.

The guard and the army commander said.

"Commander, isn't this inappropriate?" Wanyan Bingde did not expect that his so-called slight comfort and suppression would be a mass killing, so he quickly advised.

"There are Song troops outside the city. When they leave the city, they surrender to the enemy. Those soldiers should have fought to the death to defend the territory, but they were too timid to avoid fighting. They should be executed according to military law. This is already lenient. This only makes them guilty and meritorious. They can naturally defeat the Song army.

Back to the city." Wan Yanliang said with a chuckle, waving his hand for Pu San Hu Tu to go forward and carry out his order.

"This..." Wanyan Bingde was speechless and unable to explain, and watched Pusanhutu take the order and leave. He knew that Pusanhutu was just a slave in the past, and Wanyan Zongqian looked at him pitifully.

He often gave alms to him and accepted him as a retainer, so he was grateful to their family. Now that he was promoted to the commander of Wan Yanliang's personal army, he would of course carry out his orders without compromise, and this trip would definitely cause a bloody storm.

"There is no need for the supervisor to worry. Your Majesty will not leave death alone. Moreover, someone from Liaoyang Prefecture told me the day before yesterday that the navy had successively defeated the Southern Dynasty navy from the north of Liaohe River, sinking and destroying dozens of their warships, and losing more than 10,000 troops.

, now blocking them in Heye,

It will take two more battles to achieve complete victory. Now the reinforcements sent by the Liaoyang Prefecture are on the way. When the time comes, we will be able to defeat the Song army by cooperating internally and externally, reverse the situation of the war, drive Zhao Er out of Liaodong, and regain Yanyun." Wan Yanliang.

Said enthusiastically.

"That's great!" Wanyan Bingde said with a smile on his face, but he couldn't help shaking his head secretly. This kid is so shameless. He wants to take away the throne from his cousin, and then asks him to send troops to rescue him. How fucking shameless.

When they were in the capital, they both belonged to the rear party. Their goal was to overthrow Wanyan Quan, but the new emperor in Wanyan Bingde's mind was not Wanyan Liang, but Wanyan Yong, who stayed in Liaoyang.

He was liked by the civil and military officials of the Jin Dynasty, and he was also a descendant of Taizu, so he was qualified to inherit the throne. Especially after he fled to Jinzhou, he felt more like this after seeing what he did.

After the Southern Dynasty invaded the North, the Central Government ordered all military prefectures to gather elite troops. They recruited ethnic soldiers, forged weapons, and prepared to fight against the enemy. According to the order of the imperial court, young men over twenty years old and under fifty years old were mobilized.

Ding drafted Er into the army to leave some young men to give birth at home. However, the area under the jurisdiction of this general's left commander's mansion will be over sixteen years old.

Meng'an Muke soldiers under the age of sixty and Bohai, Han, and Khitan men from prefectures and counties were all recruited, regardless of whether they were old men or single men in the family. Wan Yanliang's order was tantamount to declaring that all the people were soldiers. In this way. Left

The Commander-in-Chief's Mansion has 100,000 soldiers. Excluding those who surrendered to the Song Dynasty and those who were injured, there are 60,000 soldiers in Jinzhou City.

Wan Yanliang then issued a second order for military preparations. It required that all old weapons from the states and counties under the jurisdiction of Zuo Shuai's Mansion be gathered in the Commander's Mansion area, and craftsmen were sent to build weapons day and night. The materials and costs of all these weapons

They have to be looted from the people near Jinzhou. For example, to make bows and arrows, you must use vertebrae cattle.

The sinew leather, where did the sinew leather come from, could only come from the common people's cattle, so all the chickens, ducks, cattle, sheep and other animals of the people near Jinzhou became the prey of the soldiers. In other words, in order to defeat the Southern Dynasties, the people lost little.

What are the treasures? They destroyed the Song army and recovered Yanyun. There are gold and silver treasures, chickens, ducks, cattle and sheep.

The war has not yet begun. Wanyan Liang has already caused a stir in the Liaodong area and the public resentment is boiling. Later, he squeezed out the veteran Sa Lihe and framed him for rebelling against the Song Dynasty. In the end, the lie became true. All this seemed to Wanyan Bingde to be too abnormal.

It shows that he has a disloyal heart and has made plans to stand on his own. But now he is a man under the eaves and has to bow his head. He only hopes that the siege of Jinzhou will be lifted soon and he can escape...

Wanyan Bingde was a little disappointed with Wanyan Liang's actions. Listening to Wanyan Liang's confident boasts, he chatted absentmindedly, and listened to the bursts of crying coming from outside the house.

Suddenly Tutu started killing people. Suddenly someone

The soldiers reported that Xiao Yu, the governor of the capital, accompanied the left prime minister Xiao Zhonggong. They were both shocked when they heard that Xiao Zhonggong went to Yingzhou to discuss peace with the Southern Dynasty and did not return for more than a month. Everyone thought that he was detained by the Southern Dynasty, but now he suddenly came back.

, the two quickly stood up to greet him.

"Commander Zuo, why are the city gates closed and there are riots in the city and soldiers killing people indiscriminately?" Xiao Zhonggong asked anxiously as soon as he sat down.

Xiao Zhonggong had been fighting with Ma Kuo in Yingzhou for a month, but made no progress. A few days ago, the Southern Dynasty suddenly said that the Jin Kingdom was not sincere and would no longer continue negotiations, and sent him to Jinzhou. Only then did he know that the Song Army had already reached here.

, but when he entered the city, he encountered obstacles. The soldiers outside the city shouted to go back to the city. The soldiers above the city were at war with each other and asked him to

They returned to the formation, otherwise they would be executed on the spot. It took Xiao Zhonggong a long time to let the people in the city understand his identity, but the city gate had been sealed, and a big basket was lowered from the city to pull him up.

I was able to enter the city, but I didn't expect that the city was also in chaos. Soldiers were chasing and killing the people, and corpses were everywhere along the way.

"Sir, today the Song army's attack on the city was repulsed by us. However, some people were frightened and wanted to open the city gate and surrender to the enemy. I had no choice but to send troops to suppress it. In order to prevent the enemy from breaking through and to prevent unscrupulous people from offering sacrifices.

city, convenience

The city gate was blocked, but the Lord arrived at this time and saw the joke!" Wan Yanliang quickly explained that Xiao Zhonggong is the Minister Zuocheng, ranked in the third class, his position is higher than him, and he is a confidant of Wu Shu, he must not

Not showing respect.

"Oh, that's it. I just didn't expect that the enemy army would advance so fast and have already reached the gates of Jinzhou City!" Xiao Zhonggong said in a long voice. He had heard about the surrender of Xizhou City on the way and saw the chaotic situation just now.

, worried that old things will happen again, wouldn’t I be a big gift to my door?

"Sir, how is the peace negotiation with the Southern Dynasty going? Now that I have come back, there is a result?" Wanyan Liang ordered someone to bring tea and sat down with him and asked.

"Oh, it's hard to explain in words!" Xiao Zhonggong sighed, "I haven't seen Zhao Er for many days after I left. They were afraid that the Minister of Rites, Ma Kuo, would discuss it and put forward extremely harsh conditions, asking us to surrender to them.

To demarcate the Nashui and Huntong rivers, one million guan will be paid every year.

, how can we agree to these conditions? Of course, the truth is that we argued hard, but ended up unhappy. However, although Zhao Er was shameless, he still obeyed the rules and did not embarrass us. He ordered someone to send us back to the south. Tomorrow I will

Leave and return to Beijing to report to His Majesty and the Grand Master and ask them to make a decision."

"I'm afraid I won't be able to leave for the time being!" Wan Yanliang shook his head and said with a bitter smile... (To be continued)