Chapter 287: Fierce Battle
Large groups of ragged common people were driven to the foot of Liaoxi City Gate.
Those who walked a bit slower would be shot dead by arrows from behind. They cried and shouted as they moved forward, their hands gripping the worn weapons trembling.
Even the coldest-hearted soldiers, seeing this scene, would feel their hearts soften uncontrollably and be unwilling to shoot arrows and kill. The first batch of common people, driven forward like cattle and sheep, soon crowded under the city gate.
Pei Qinghe shot the first arrow with an icy expression: “All those coming to attack the city are our enemies. Shoot arrows!”
Arrows fell like rain.
One by one, figures screamed and fell.
Pu Nu, supervising from the rear, had a grim gaze. In the previous days of standoff, both commanders had a tacit understanding. He needed to let the wounded soldiers rest and restore morale. Pei Qinghe similarly needed to let the wounded soldiers recover their vital energy and integrate the several armies. Both sides needed time.
Now, that weak Son of Heaven of the Jing Dynasty actually dared to send reinforcements. He could wait no longer and had to capture Liaoxi City in the shortest time.
Pei Qinghe’s cold-heartedness and ruthless methods exceeded his expectations. Driving common people to attack the city was useless. It was just a waste of time.
Pu Nu quickly changed tactics, ordering the common people to push the siege tools forward. Xiongnu brave soldiers followed closely behind. This way, the losses in the siege could be greatly reduced.
In addition, catapults were brought into use. Heavy stones were loaded onto the catapults, then launched out, smashing fiercely onto the city gate. Whoever was unlucky enough to be hit immediately became a pile of bloody flesh.
The defenders were prepared and counterattacked fiercely with their own catapults. In this first wave of fierce battle, the common people died the most.
On the battlefield, whoever shows mercy loses first. Pei Qinghe ignored the hellish scene before her and directed everyone to move wood to the city gate.
The number of stones was limited and would run out after a while. There was plenty of wood. When the Xiongnu barbarians approached to attack the city, all soldiers would vigorously propel the wood. The heavy wood rolled down rumbling, immediately causing chaos and knocking over a group of Xiongnu barbarians.
When the wood was used up, boiling water was poured down. Buckets of scalding hot water were poured down, scalding the Xiongnu barbarians into howling like ghosts and wolves.
This was the advantage of the defenders. From a high position with solid city walls as shields, the Xiongnu barbarians’ advantage in riding and shooting was maximally restricted. This all-out siege warfare did not succeed. Pei Qinghe led everyone in firmly defending Liaoxi City.
When night fell, the Xiongnu barbarians had no choice but to withdraw troops. The soldiers above and below the city gate cheered loudly together.
In this fierce battle, the Pei Family Army side had truly won.
“Long live the General!”
No one knew who shouted it first, but soon the cheers surged like tides.
Pei Qinghe smiled faintly, descended from the city gate, and led everyone to tend wounds, eat, and rest.
“General Pu Nu, let’s withdraw troops!”
This time, even Pu Nu’s confidant subordinates couldn’t help but plead: “We’ve been stuck here for half a month, and today we mobilized the entire army but still couldn’t breach Liaoxi City.”
“Our brave soldiers can’t keep dying in vain like this.”
“Let’s lead troops back to the grassland and go home. The brave soldiers have been out for months and already miss home.”
Pu Nu’s gaze was grim and angry: “You also think we lost this battle.”
The confidant subordinate sighed: “General Pu Nu, our Xiongnu brave soldiers excel at horse combat and riding and shooting. We shouldn’t have abandoned our horse combat advantage to attack the city. Before, the Liaoxi Army were cowards; as soon as we postured for a siege, they panicked and fled in disorder one after another.”
“Now, on the city gate is Pei Qinghe. She is hundreds or thousands of times more powerful than General Li. Ever since she entered Liaoxi City, there have been no deserters. Everyone is brave in battle.”
“We’ve been sieging for so many days and can’t break in at all. We can’t even reach the city gate. If we keep fighting like this, more and more Xiongnu brave soldiers will die. When we return to the grassland, how will we explain to the Khan?”
“Also, Luan Ti and the others have already left. The other tribal leaders also have the intent to withdraw. General, we really should withdraw troops!”
Pu Nu fell silent. After a long time, he finally spoke: “We can’t just leave like this. You’re right; we excel at horse combat. The Pei Family Army hides inside the city gate; if they don’t come out and just defend, we have no method.”
“Since that’s the case, we’ll make them come out of the city on their own.”
The confidant subordinate was startled and looked up; General Pu Nu’s ferocious grin face came into view: “Haven’t the Beiping Army’s two thousand cavalry arrived? We’ll swallow all two thousand cavalry. I want to see whether Pei Qinghe will sit idly by or lead troops out of the city.”
……
Pu Nu summoned the military generals to discuss and plan, promising everyone that after this battle, regardless of victory or defeat, they would withdraw troops back to the grassland.
The Xiongnu barbarians’ morale finally rallied somewhat. Moreover, horse combat was as natural to them as drinking water and eating. They had clashed with the Beiping Army many times before and didn’t take their former defeated foes seriously.
Pu Nu sent troops to continue the siege while drawing out four thousand elite cavalry, taking three days’ dry rations, and quietly setting out.
Meng Dalang, leading the cavalry to rescue, encountered the raiding Xiongnu cavalry a hundred li outside Liaoxi City.
This fierce battle, from start to finish, lasted only half a day.
The Xiongnu barbarians used their specialty cavalry charge, piercing back and forth, charging and killing nonstop.
The Beiping Army’s cavalry went from high fighting spirit and brave and valiant to being successively knocked off their horses and then killed, their corpses strewn across the field—a very tragic sight.
The Xiongnu barbarians also suffered heavy casualties. However, in this battle, the Xiongnu barbarians won.
Meng Dalang led the remnant defeated soldiers in fleeing all the way.
The Xiongnu barbarians pursued relentlessly, intent on completely annihilating the Beiping Army cavalry.
The battle report reached Liaoxi City.
Pei Qinghe frowned, her expression grave.
Opinions among the crowd varied. Pei Yun said solemnly: “We can barely muster a few hundred cavalry; sending them out would be no different from sending them to die. I don’t approve of sending troops.”
Yang Hu considered even more carefully: “The Beiping Army insisted on sending reinforcements; Meng Brothers and General Zhang fell out over sending troops. If we ignore them and let them be pursued and killed, once this spreads, it will harm General Pei’s reputation.”
Song Dalang and Lu Feng nodded subconsciously.
They were all reinforcements and felt this particularly keenly. From the perspective of morality, the Pei Family Army must send troops. Otherwise, who would be willing to send troops to help the Pei Family Army fight in the future?
Li Chi also quietly nodded.
Since Pei Qinghe had the ambition to subdue Youzhou, she had to show responsibility and bravery far surpassing ordinary military generals. This trap set by Pu Nu was an open scheme.
Pei Qinghe was well aware of this; she didn’t hesitate and quickly made her determination: “We must send troops to rescue the Beiping Army.”
“Bring the terrain map.”
An increasingly large and detailed terrain map was spread out. Pei Qinghe’s finger fell on the terrain map: “The Beiping Army is in this direction. Everyone, say how we should send troops to save them.”
