Phi-Fic Chapter 387 A pincer attack, the Yunzhou army fights like cornered beasts (2)
Chapter 387 A pincer attack, the Yunzhou army fights like cornered beasts (2)
At the fourth watch of the night, the cuckoo cries.
As the night deepened, the usually peaceful city of Xiaguan became unusually noisy tonight.
"The city lord has ordered all shopkeepers to vacate their premises within the next three days!"
With the Yunzhou border troops invading, the refugees outside the city will likely suffer greatly from the war. The city lord's pavilion will compensate you for any business losses incurred these past few days. Therefore, we apologize for the inconvenience.
The teahouses, taverns, and inns closest to the West Gate were all opened by the City Lord's Pavilion's disciples.
Upon hearing that it was the city lord's order, the various shopkeepers immediately woke up their employees and moved their belongings to make room for the refugees outside the city.
Inside and outside the four gates, Baili Dongjun, Sikong Changfeng, and the other two led their men, going door to door to ask for people to open the doors.
Everything is proceeding in an orderly manner.
……
Outside the city, at the Yunzhou border army camp.
Inside the main tent, the deputy general of the border army sat in the main seat, with a commander of three thousand sitting at each of the three tables below him, and the quartermaster and chief clerk sitting at the three tables opposite him.
"Reporting to the general, my brothers and I sneaked into the city, entering through the west gate. After passing through a straight street, we could see a towering pavilion that seemed to reach into the clouds..."
"After passing the Tongtian Pavilion, there is a three-story wooden pavilion, and the top of that pavilion is the Snow Moon City Lord's Pavilion!"
"We used grappling hooks to scale the wall from a distance, and heard Baili Dongjun, Sikong Changfeng, Luohe, and other traitors talking in the pavilion..."
After listening to the report from the scouts who had returned from Xiaguan City, the deputy general had already devised a plan.
Snowmoon City is not very large; the city walls are only 16 feet high, and there are no defensive weapons or crossbows.
He had over six thousand elite border troops under his command. Although they lacked proper baggage and engineering equipment, they could take down such a small city in a day and night!
The lieutenant stroked his beard, nodded, and after a moment of contemplation, said:
"Good! Your scout battalion's reconnaissance this time was very effective! Chief Clerk Yang, give him credit for this, and all the scouts who went out to investigate should have been credited!"
The scout commander was overjoyed and kowtowed several times before leaving the tent.
The lieutenant rose, hung the city's defense map brought back by the scout centurion on a beam, and held up a mutton-fat lamp to examine it for a while before saying:
"Judging from this map, the West Gate is the main gate, so there must be some guards there..."
At this point, he turned to look at the first commander at the head of the table: "Fan Rui!"
The commander stood up, clasped his hands in greeting, and replied, "Your Excellency is here!"
"I hereby order you to immediately mobilize 800 veteran soldiers of the Jumping Army, each of whom will launch a surprise attack on the four gates of the east, west, south, and north. You will personally lead the team to take out the guards at the west gate!"
"After capturing the four city gates, immediately unleash whistling arrows!"
The commander surnamed Fan, with piercing eyes, said, "I obey!" He then immediately leaped out of the tent to dispatch his soldiers.
Then, the deputy general looked at the second-in-command and said, "Kan Zesheng!"
The commander immediately stood up, clasped his hands in greeting, and replied, "Your Excellency is here!"
"After Fan Rui has occupied the four city gates and fired flying fire arrows, you will lead 3,200 men of the Left and Right Guards straight to the West Gate. I want to see the banners of the Yunzhou border army raised on the city tower in half an hour!"
The commander surnamed Kan dared not delay: "I accept the order!" and quickly rushed out of the tent.
Seeing that the two comrades in front had already left the main tent, the commander at the end of the column looked at the deputy general with anticipation: "General... what are you planning to do with the troops?"
The lieutenant stroked his beard and smiled knowingly, saying, "No need to rush. Your troops suffered heavy losses in the Battle of Sanqipu and have not yet recovered. The remaining brothers can stay in the camp and wait for orders."
The commander's eyes immediately dimmed: "But... General, none of our old guard brothers are afraid of death. Last time we encountered the Ye family traitors, it was just bad luck. This time, why not let our brothers make a name for themselves in the conquest of this small Snow Moon City?"
The deputy general waved his hand, then pointed towards Yunzhou: "It's already past four in the morning, and Commander Lu's light cavalry should be arriving soon. Your battalion of soldiers are Commander Lu's most prized possessions; how could I dare to order you to attack the city on my own?"
"If there are any further losses, how can I, Zong, explain this to Commander Lu?"
Upon hearing this, the commander could only sigh softly and sit down to await orders.
The Yunzhou border army camp was bustling with activity. Fan Rui, the first commander to be deployed, changed into light armor, carried a sharkskin dagger, and covered his face with a black cloth. He addressed the eight hundred or so leaping soldiers:
"Brothers, my Jumping Army has always been a bunch of meat-eaters and blood-drinkers. I don't blame you for the defeat we suffered in Yunzhou last time. That old thief Baili's Breaking Wind Army is indeed something else!"
"But today is the day for our Jumping Army to wash away our shame. The only grandson of the old thief Baili lives in Snow Moon City ahead. Brothers, follow me to take the four city gates first, and then head straight for the City Lord's Pavilion to capture Baili Dongjun alive!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
The eight hundred Leaping Soldiers, their eyes burning with fervor, shouted and followed Fan Rui's footsteps toward Snow Moon City!
The approximately 3,200 guards had already been deployed. Unlike Fan Rui, Kan Zesheng was not eloquent; he simply said coldly:
"Yunzhou Guard Army, set off!"
……
Two quarters of an hour later, half a mile in front of the west gate of Xiaguan City.
The eight hundred soldiers of the Jumping Army were divided into four teams, each with more than two hundred men.
Fan Rui led a team of elite veterans, all of them masked and carrying short daggers in their mouths, and headed towards the west gate under the cover of night.
The remaining three teams, led by their respective centurions, headed toward the remaining east, south, and north gates.
At this moment, the two brothers Luo Baicheng and Luo Mingzhe, the nephews of Luo Fengzhong and Luo Nianse, were on duty at Ximen.
They kept watch all night, and it was almost dawn when they were most tired.
"Heh... Hi..."
Inside the city gate tower, Luo Baicheng leaned against a wooden table, holding a fine iron rod, and let out a long yawn.
"Cousin, it's almost dawn. When we change shifts later, should we go for fresh mushroom soup at Dongyuan or chicken and mushroom noodles at Nancheng?"
Luo Mingzhe grabbed a handful of roasted soybeans, tossing them up one by one and catching them in his mouth as he ate them with relish. Hearing his cousin's words, he pondered for a moment and said:
"You still dare to drink the fresh mushroom soup from Dongyuan? Didn't you get enough of that little brat from last time? They always undercook the soup when they cook it. If you want to drink it, go drink it yourself!"
Luo Baicheng, feeling rebuffed, muttered to himself, "Tch! What's wrong with looking at a nobody? I even saw the Fairy of Erhai Lake... She's even more beautiful than the Great City Lord's junior disciple..."
Luo Mingzhe ignored him and continued popping roasted soybeans into his mouth one after another. Just then, two very soft "clanging" sounds came from the city wall...
"Wow..."
Luo Mingzhe's ears twitched slightly, and he suddenly stood up, scattering a handful of cooked soybeans all over the floor.
"What's wrong?!" Startled, Luo Baicheng was wide awake and jumped up, clutching the iron rod!
"Something's up, there's movement on the city wall..." Luo Mingzhe grabbed a two-and-a-half-foot-long short sword with one hand and headed straight for the door.
"Oh!"
Luo Mingzhe had only taken half a step when the wooden door of the city gate was suddenly kicked open by something!
"Death!"
A burly man in black armor roared and thrust his extremely sharp dagger straight at Luo Mingzhe!
……