It was a hot summer day and the sun was high in the sky. Gao Zhao was sitting in the courtyard, leaning on a deck chair with an umbrella cover on his head. His clothes were half-undressed and his chest muscles were half exposed, but he still felt unbearably hot.
Looking at the almost half-dissolved smoothie in his hand, Gao Zhao finally resisted his craving.
The imperial attendant repeatedly warned him that he was so angry that he could not eat anything that was hot or hot, let alone anything that was extremely cold.
Out of sight and out of mind, Gao Zhao simply took the lid of the cup and covered the smoothie, holding it in his arms to cool down.
He was so hot that he was sweating profusely, while Li Shixian and Yuan Geng were shivering with cold under the sun, and their teeth were chattering loudly.
Those who have never tried it can never imagine what it feels like to be exposed to the sun for a day and then hung in cold well water for a night.
The sting hurts to the bone, more painful than whipping...
In the afternoon when the heat was the hottest, I only spent a moment or two in the sun. The chill in my body gradually disappeared, and Li Shixian's shivering became smaller and smaller, and he was finally able to utter a single sentence.
"I heard that Taiwei was in poor health and fainted in the Yamen the day before yesterday. I wonder if he is feeling better?"
Just listening to his voice, Li Shixian seemed to care about Gao Zhao. But looking at his face, he was full of gloating about his misfortune, and his teeth were bared, white and bright.
Looking at Yuan Yi, who was still trembling on one side and seemed unable to even open his eyelids, Gao Zhao sighed sadly: "Li Shixian, as the saying goes, those who know the truth and practice it are heroes, why do you want to provoke me? It's better to Qinghe.
Even if the king doesn’t want to give in, at least he doesn’t have to ask for trouble..."
Unexpectedly, before he finished speaking, Yuan Yi seemed to be trying to undermine him, and said tremblingly: "It's not... it's not that I'm lonely... I don't want to smile, but... I'm cold... I can't open my mouth..."
Li Shixian was stunned for a moment, then raised his head and burst into laughter.
Gao Zhao's face sank, and his anger grew like crazy vines, filling his heart in the blink of an eye.
When his confidant saw that he was about to suffer, he shouted hurriedly: "Detain him!"
"Grandpa hasn't had enough exposure yet..."
He only yelled six or seven words, and another piece of rag was stuffed into Li Shixian's mouth. Yuan Yi giggled happily...
The two of them were imprisoned in the water prison again. Gao Zhao was still furious. He was like an old cow that had plowed more than ten acres of land, with semen coming out of his mouth and nose.
A group of confidants stood on the left and right, and they were all as silent as cicadas, for fear of being angered by Gao Zhao.
It wasn't until his mood calmed down that a close confidant came to his ear and whispered advice: "These two people must have guessed that the Taiwei was throwing a rat-proof weapon, so they were emboldened and went even further. But under torture, why can't you ask for anything? It's better to surrender.
If I give it to a lower official, I will definitely make those two thieves obey me..."
Gao Zhao looked at his cronies as if they were idiots.
Under torture, why can't he ask for anything? He has been an official for decades, so he doesn't even understand such a simple truth?
If torture could be used, it would have been used long ago. Why should Li Shi be treated like a guest and treated with courtesy for several months?
It's just because Gao Zhao still has a trace of fantasy left in him, and he wants to take it back and use it for his own purposes.
Even if they can't be subdued, it won't cost their lives. Whether it's because of him or Li Chengzhi, they used to plot against each other and use every means to harm each other, but now it's the same now.
For example, three beasts are now confronting each other: the imperial court is a sick tiger, and he and Li Chengzhi are two lone wolves.
Could it be that the two wolves started fighting before the tiger threat was eliminated?
The most important thing is emotion and reason. Both parties should abandon their past grudges and share the same hatred.
Taking another 10,000 steps back, if it comes time to confront Li Chengzhi on the battlefield, the living Li Shixian will definitely be worth 10,000 times more than the dead Li Shixian.
The same principle applies to keeping Yuanyi alive...
After thinking for a while, Gao Zhao secretly sighed: "Get pen and ink, I will write a letter in handwriting, and later send it to Fuming together with Li Chenghong and Li Chengxue, and hand it over to Zijian..."
The confidant was puzzled and asked in a low voice: "May I ask Taiwei, what does this mean?"
"Why else? Of course it's a big gift like giving it to Li Chengzhi..."
After pondering for a while, his confidants understood: the Taiwei wanted to show his sincerity to Li Chengzhi, or even to persuade Li Chengzhi to join forces...
After a pause, he asked cautiously: "What should Li Shixian do? Should he be released from the dungeon?"
Release the dungeon?
Would that be so cheap?
Gao Zhao replied coldly: "Let's take it for now and wait until he takes care of that broken mouth before we look at it!"
The confidant promised in a low voice and helped Gao Zhao into the government hall.
Fortunately, it was just a sudden attack of the heart that day. Although it was not a syncope, he was already old and exhausted. How could he have gone through such a torment?
The imperial attendant repeatedly warned that the Taiwei must rest quietly and not dare to work hard again.
And how can Gao Zhao calm down now?
He wrote two secret letters in a row and gave them to his confidants: "When I met Zijian, I reminded him: This battle should be fought sooner rather than later. If we can send troops one day earlier, we can seize the opportunity earlier... Never dare to neglect cowardice."
Fight..."
"Zi Hui Yu Jing Lue (Gao Meng), I don't seek merit, I only seek to have no faults, as long as I guard the side wall..."
Before he finished speaking, he heard a drum sound, like thunder.
Gao Zhao sighed secretly and stood up, holding on to several cases: "Xingluan is going to attack the city again?"
Seeing him trembling, his confidants quickly gave him a hand and said, "Let the lower officials go to watch the battle first. If the battle goes unfavorably, can we report it to the Taiwei in a hurry?"
Gao Zhao pondered for a moment and waved his hand: "That's all, help me up to the city?"
Since that day, Xing Luan's offensive has become stronger day by day. How can he rest assured if he doesn't take a look?
……
Xing Luan is a famous general, how could he send nearly a thousand soldiers to die every day just to delay time?
One is to observe the geographical advantages, and the other is to test the reality in the city.
After a few days of testing, he found that except for the Rockets, the rest of Jinming County's teams were all mid-range.
Although there are several crossbows in the city, they are all in dilapidated condition, and it is only a moment before a crossbow can be fired. There are many stones and rolling logs prepared, but if the officers and soldiers do not attack the city, these two items will be useless.
In addition, the food and grass in the city are still sufficient. This is because every time it is meal time, the rear troops come to the city to eat. They are all corn cakes and pickles, and they are supplied in sufficient quantities without restrictions, so the morale of the army is still stable.
Xing Luan is considering whether to surround the county and the city on all sides?
However, Xiazhou has already rebelled. Once the city is surrounded on all sides, if it cannot be attacked for a long time, it may be attacked from both sides.
Now we can only hope that Xi Kangsheng will make great achievements as soon as possible and contain Gao Meng in Lucheng (the border between Xiazhou and Bogulu, today's Yinchuan). Then Cui Yanbo will firmly stop the rebels in Si, Ding and other states from Lishi.
To the north of the town, we cannot let it go south to Jinming.
Only in this way could Xing Luan dare to completely besiege Jin Ming and be confident that he could break the city within one month.
Now I just take it for granted, and I don’t know how the war between Xi Kangsheng and Lu Cheng will turn out, so I can only wait and see.
Hearing the sound of a drum at the top of the city, Xing Luan came back to his senses and looked towards the top of the city.
Compared to just now, there were many more generals at the top of the city. A banner with the word "高" printed on it was slowly fluttering. I guess Gao Zhao was watching the battle at the top of the city.
I have been feeling aggrieved for the past few months, and it just so happens that Gao Zhao can see what I, Xing, am doing.
Xing Luan shouted in a deep voice: "Attack the city!"
The corner flag on Yun Tower was waved, a gong sounded in the camp, and nearly ten thousand soldiers marched in.
He was nearly sixty years old, and it was inevitable that his old eyes would be blurred. Gao Zhao could only see the officers and soldiers pressing down on the city like ants in dense numbers, but he couldn't see clearly.
Vaguely, he could still see that there were several times more soldiers than in the previous days, and there were many more heavy weapons.
Gao Zhao stretched out his hand and asked in a cold voice: "What is the enemy pushing forward?"
"It looks like a gun carriage!"
The confidant narrowed his eyes and took a look, "But for some reason, it is much smaller than the commonly used stone cannon. It is less than one foot tall, and it is only pulled by two horses, and is accompanied by seven or eight soldiers..."
Gun carriage?
Gao Zhao's heart skipped a beat and he shouted urgently: "Look at the cannon cart's throwing pole. Is there a big rock falling from the tail?"
The confidant took a look: "That's true!"
"Maybe you can see clearly, how many are there?"
The confidant replied respectfully: "With one car and ten soldiers, there should be at least five or six hundred aircraft!"
Gao Zhao's face suddenly changed: "Quick, order all the soldiers to go down to the city and hide under the urn city!"
All the confidants were a little confused, thinking that if all the guards came down to the city, would they dare to let the enemy do what they did?
Even if it's not possible, you should still set up a city crossbow, capable of destroying every building.
Gao Zhao lamented: "How could it be in time? If he had known that Xing Lian had this thing, he would have hollowed out the battlements and hid the crossbows in them... Give the order!"
When he arrived in Beizhen last year, he had heard about it. He heard that Li Chengzhi had created another weapon for attacking the city. Without the help of oxen and horses, just a dozen soldiers could use stone cannons to throw stone bullets weighing dozens of kilograms.
One or two hundred steps.
After leading his army back to Beijing, he went to see the Ministry of Works and admired Li Chengzhi for his knowledge of nature and his ingenuity. He only added a heavy stone after throwing the pole, which saved the effort of oxen, horses, and dozens of people, and marched and placed it.
More convenient.
He also planned to send the drawings to Xiazhou and Shuozhou so that Gao Meng and Gao Zhi could copy some, just in case.
But at that time, Gao Meng had just tasted the sweetness of rockets, and there were not even enough men to mine kerosene. How could he free up manpower to cut trees and build artillery carts?
After receiving the drawings, he shelved them and reminded Gao Zhi that if he really had enough manpower, it would be more serious to send some to Jinming to help him mine kerosene...
Gao Zhao didn't regret it, but he didn't expect that the artillery carts brought by Xing Luan would be so numerous and hidden so deeply that not a single one of them had been exposed a few days ago.
If I had been prepared, I wouldn't be so panicked now...
Annoyed in his heart, he was helped to the dark stack halfway up the wall. When he looked again, he saw that the artillery battalion of officers and soldiers had been stationed within more than a hundred steps, and stone cannons were being set up.
This distance is neither too far nor too close, and the stone cannon can be smashed onto the city wall, or the city head can be thrown red, but the defenders on the city will be helpless.
Even the archers (sharps) in the army can only shoot a hundred and fifty steps away, while ordinary archers can only shoot a hundred steps away at most. So even if you use rockets, it doesn't matter whether they can hurt people.
Even if you want to burn the gun carriage, you can't do anything.,
But it’s not impossible.
Gao Zhao was in a hurry and wised up: "Just let the front troops throw them. If the rear troops dare to cross the artillery camp and get within a hundred steps, they will order the archers to shoot rockets into the hidden stacks..."
The city wall of Jinming County is nearly two feet wide. Even if Xing Luanzu has five or six hundred artillery carts, it will definitely not collapse in a day or two. Therefore, if there is an accident, it must be suppressed with stone cannons first, and then push the carts and ladders.
Arriving at the city wall, the ants attacked the city.
Regardless of whether it is a building or a ladder, anything made of wood is not afraid of fire. So even if you can't kill a few people, you can at least force Xing Luan to retreat.
As long as it lasts two or three days, even if it means destroying the house and demolishing the beams, it can also rush out a few crossbows or artillery vehicles. At that time, whoever Xingluan dares to send troops to attack will throw out the oil sand that is flammable at the sight of fire.
, will definitely make him cry for father and mother.
Thinking about it in his mind, Gao Zhao couldn't help but feel a little powerless.
When it comes to temple calculations and planning, he is naturally not far behind others. But when it comes to battlefield confrontations and battles, he is far behind.
If it were Li Chengzhi, he would have definitely anticipated this and had complete countermeasures.
But what if we really face Li Chengzhi one day?
We can only take one step at a time...
……
Xingluan stands on the cloud tower, which is five feet high, so it can be seen very clearly.
Seeing the defenders on the city retreating like a tide, he was confused at first and then overjoyed.
The rebels clearly recognized the improved stone cannon and knew its advantages and disadvantages. But for some reason, they did not prepare any preventive measures?
As the saying goes, a wise man must make a mistake after thinking a lot. Gao Zhao, Gao Zhao, do you really regard that fire oil as the most precious treasure, thinking that it can lead to no harm?
He shouted repeatedly: "Quick, order the artillery camp to attack only one place. Today, even if you smash it hard, you have to smash a hole in the city wall..."
For a moment, a rain of stone bullets hit the city wall. Like an earth dragon, the city wall shook...
……
The hundreds of artillery carriages in Xingluan were all built by Xi Kangsheng before he sent troops from Luoyang. He left in a hurry, so he did not bring half of them to Guanzhong.
But what is surprising is that there are quite a few standing under the wall on the west side of Lu City, as many as hundreds?
Xi Kangsheng pinched his chin and looked at Li Shao curiously: "You are prepared for a rainy day, so you have such a good thing?"
"The handsome award is just a coincidence!"
Li Shao responded in a neither humble nor arrogant manner, "It's just that Uncle Yuan was so happy when he moved to Lingzhou (formerly Bogulu Town) that he rushed to make some. He didn't expect to be able to use them today!"
"It is indeed a sharp weapon, but it shows that Li Chengzhi's hard work has been saved!"
Watching the former soldiers test the artillery, the stone bullets weighing more than ten kilograms were thrown hundreds of steps. Yang Shu felt a little sad that the rabbit was dead and the fox was dead, and he sighed sadly:
"Thanks to him, if he had been replaced by Yang, he would have been persecuted repeatedly by those drunken men and women, and suffered all kinds of grievances. Even if they were burned to the ancestors, they would never let this thing be exposed to the world..."
Next to him were Yuan Yuan, the supervisor of the army, and Xi Kangsheng, the counselor of the Chinese army, and Yuan You, the eldest son who had inherited the title of King of Zhongshan from Yuanying. Wasn't Yang Shu pointing at the monk and scolding the bald donkey?
The two of them blushed, neither arguing nor arguing. They just looked at Xi Kangsheng eagerly.
Xi Kangsheng laughed and said: "Yang Yanrong, how can you be proud of bullying two younger generations? If you have the ability, it won't be too late to start a fight with their fathers after you return to Beijing!"
After a pause, Xi Kangsheng looked at Li Shao with a half-smile but not a smile: "Uncle Yuan, please give me the right words for my father. Is Li Chengzhi dead or alive?"
Li Shao's face turned dark: "Mr. Xi, have you asked me this a hundred times?"
“Even if you ask me a thousand times, I won’t think it’s too much!”
Xi Kangsheng pinched his beard and said, "Okay, in that case, you can help me solve my doubts: It is clear that Gao Zhao sent his confidants to Yuan Chen to summon him to cause trouble. But why did Yuan Chen not know about this until his death, but it was you?