Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 514 Siege of Guangzhou
"Screw rustle..."

In late February, with the arrival of the Spring Equinox, the climate in Lingnan also undergoes significant changes.

"Damn it...why is it so hot?"

"I thought Jiangling was hot enough, but Lingnan is even hotter than Jiangling..."

On the official road from Qingyuan to the South China Sea, when more than 200,000 soldiers and civilians were converging on the South China Sea, it meant that Gao Pian had abandoned Qingyuan City and retreated to the South China Sea City.

The soldiers' chatter rang in Wang Shi's ears, but for older men like him and Chen Jingchong, the March weather in Lingnan seemed just right.

However, compared to them, younger generals such as Ma Yin, Lu Yanhong, and Han Jian were not as capable.

Their foreheads were soaked with sweat, and their backs were covered in sweat stains. Everyone was irritable because of the sweltering environment.

Fortunately, as they moved away from Qingyuan City and closer to the South China Sea, the fearsome leeches and poisonous insects disappeared one after another, and people gradually began to appear around them.

Lingnan had not experienced war for a long time. The last time a war broke out was when Huang Chao and Gao Pian fought for Guangzhou, but that war did not last long.

Therefore, for the people of Lingnan, this war between the North and the South was undoubtedly the most impactful event for them.

In order to supply the army with provisions, Gao Pian began to order his troops to forcibly buy and sell within the territory of Guangzhou. Many people's stored grain and unripe fruits and vegetables were forcibly taken away from the South China Sea.

Units such as Lu Ruyue, Gao Jie, and Wang Zhongren also operated in this way during their retreat, claiming that they would repay the people after they fought back.

But deep down they also knew that the idea of ​​fighting back was more of a pipe dream at this moment.

However, under their extortionate and forceful requisitioning, the people of Lingnan gradually lost their goodwill towards Gao Pian.

"Gao Pian's actions, while preventing our army from requisitioning supplies nearby, have also damaged his image among the people."

"The people are like water; water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. Now is the time for us to win the hearts and minds of the people."

As Wang Shi spoke from horseback, Chen Jingchong, Ma Yin, and the others all looked at him, only to see him continue:
"Order all officers and soldiers of the three armies to send people to inform the villages they encounter along the way that the imperial army is coming to quell the bandits. It is said that the bandits have scraped the ground three feet deep and the people have no food to eat. The imperial court is willing to recruit laborers at the military camp and provide them with three catties of grain per day. They can also borrow three dou of grain."

As Wang Shi finished speaking, Chen Jingchong frowned and said, "While your plan is good, my army is also facing a severe shortage of provisions. We need to source them from Hunan and even Jiangbei, but we suffer losses of 40-50% along the way. Now we're lending grain to over 200,000 people in Guangzhou, which is probably..."

"No problem, this battle won't last long."

Wang Shi raised his hand to appease him. Seeing that Chen Jingchong was no longer speaking, the generals did not raise any objections and went to carry out the arrangements as Wang Shi had instructed.

Wang Shi was not the only one who realized that popular support could be won over; Li Yangchun, who had just captured Xunzhou and was heading towards the South China Sea, was also aware of this.

However, compared to Wang Shi's adherence to the Tang Code in pacifying the people, Li Yangchun's view was undoubtedly more enlightened.

While ordering the lending of grain to the people, he also allowed people of low social status, such as musicians, beggars, and boat people, to serve as laborers, and lent grain to these people who had no food to eat.

For this reason, the Han army was extremely popular with the people wherever they went, while Gao Pian, who was once grateful to the people, was despised by the people of Guangzhou because of this action.

However, Gao Pian doesn't seem to care about how the people view him right now. What he needs to do now is plan outside Nanhai County, to plan a battle that could turn the tide of the war.

"The finest Kunlun slaves, sold cheaply to..."

"Flowers and fabrics are all on sale at low prices!"

"Jun, this meal money..."

"Damn it! I fought against the rebels for you all, and you dare to take my money! You really are a black-hearted inn!"

"Brothers, smash it for me..."

As the seat of Guangzhou, Nanhai was far from the Yu River and the Zhen River, backed by Baiyun Mountain and facing Guangzhou Bay.

Guangzhou has only been developing for a few hundred years, but as maritime trade gradually came to the forefront of history, it undoubtedly became a gathering place for Arab and Southeast Asian merchants, and gradually became wealthy.

Of the more than 200,000 people in the city, nearly 30% were foreign merchants from overseas. However, these foreign merchants are now constantly selling off the goods they brought due to the war, including the castrated Kunlun slaves at low prices.

The city's security deteriorated as more and more Southern Tang troops poured in, with dozens of incidents of soldiers refusing to pay for their meals and vandalizing shops occurring in the past few days.

Gao Pian simply turned a blind eye to these things, pretending not to see them.

However, as more and more foreign merchants were leaving, he still had to summon Kuang Shiqian to inquire about their situation.

"Those foreign merchants all want to leave the South China Sea, what do you think?"

Inside the Guangzhou government office, Gao Pian questioned Kuang Shiqian, who pondered for a moment before replying:
"The reason why the foreign merchants are so anxious to leave the South China Sea is simply because when Huang Chao invaded Guangzhou in the past, he killed thousands of wealthy foreign merchants on the grounds that they were greedy for profit. This has caused the foreign merchants to live in fear."

After Kuang Shiqian finished speaking, Gao Pian put away the military book in his hand and slowly said, "Do you think Huang Ze is wrong?"

Kuang Shiqian was taken aback for a moment, then quickly realized what Gao Pian meant.

In reality, Huang Chao was not so noble; he massacred barbarians simply for their money and silk.

Now that the Southern Tang is about to go to war with the Han army, without enough money and silk, it will certainly be impossible for the demoralized army to defeat the Han army.

Therefore, what His Highness meant was probably to find a way to get some money and supplies from the foreign merchants.

After thinking it through, Kuang Shiqian changed his tone and said seriously:
"In my opinion, although these foreign merchants have wealth, they do not have any sense of national duty."

“King Gao has protected them for many years, but now that King Gao has only encountered a slight setback, they want to leave without saying goodbye. They really should be taught a lesson.”

"Hmm..." Gao Pian responded, then tapped his fingers on the table and said, "In that case, I'll leave this matter to you."

"Yes!" Master Kuang nodded in agreement, then respectfully rose and left.

Shortly after he left, Gao Pian slowly got up and walked towards his study.

In the study, a sand table, seven feet long and seven feet wide, was placed in front of him. The entire sand table showed the situation within fifty miles of Nanhai City.

After Huang Chao captured Nanhai City, he began to fortify it. After Gao Pian occupied Lingnan, he spent a lot of effort to fortify it.

Today, the outer city of Nanhai City has a circumference of twelve li and a height of 33 feet. The city wall is built with rammed earth core and covered with blue bricks. The crenellations are like teeth. The inner city has a circumference of four li and is mainly occupied by government offices.

The northern city wall is backed by Baiyun Mountain, on which a stone fortress was built, forming a defensive triangle with the city.

To the east are hills, and to the west is a tributary of the Yu River, which is several tens of feet wide. Only a few miles of space between the tributary and Baiyun Mountain is available for a large army to set up camp. This place is occupied by the large army assembled by Gao Pian. If the Han army wants to attack Nanhai City, it must first break through the camp in the north.

As for the south side of the city, it was protected by a moat five zhang wide, which connected to the sea. The water gate was wide open, allowing foreign merchant ships to enter the city. Officials from the Maritime Trade Office stood at the dock to inspect the goods.

It can be said that Nanhai City is currently a city that can be attacked or defended at will.

However, this is contingent on having a place to retreat to; otherwise, this place would be a death trap unless Gao Pian was willing to flee overseas.

While Gao Pian was examining the sand table, hurried footsteps came from outside the study. Soon after, Gao Qin, Wang Zhongren, and Gao Jie appeared at the study door and bowed to Gao Pian inside.

"King Gao..."

"come in."

Gao Pian responded to the group, then glanced at them sideways.

As they entered the study, Gao Qin was the first to bow and say, "Father, Lord Lu has already led more than 24,000 troops to set up camp outside the city."

After recounting this, Gao Qin looked embarrassed and said, "However, Cai Xi of Annam refused your summons, saying that Annam is part of the Tang Dynasty's territory, and territory cannot be abandoned..."

Cai Xi's words did indeed make everyone somewhat embarrassed, after all, in order to fight against the Han army, they had directly abandoned parts of Lingxi and Qianzhong.

If Wang Jian and Cao Mao react quickly enough, they might be able to hold these places before You Shilong reacts.

However, if the response is insufficient, these places will likely be taken over by Yushilong.

Cai Xi's actions now are practically an insult, pointing fingers at them and accusing them of losing Tang Dynasty territory...

"Let him be."

Faced with Cai Xi's accusations, Gao Pian didn't know what to say in response. After all, while they were all vying for territory, only Cai Xi was protecting the people of Annam.

Thinking this, Gao Pian took a deep breath and asked, "How many troops do we have now?"

"Seventy-eight thousand six hundred and fifty-four people," Wang Zhongren answered without hesitation, adding as he went:

"The grain and fodder are enough to last for three and a half months, but the soldiers' pay has not yet been issued, totaling more than 1,547,000 strings of cash."

With over a million strings of cash in military pay at hand, Gao Pian could not afford to be careless.

If he had previously occupied the entire Jiangnan region, he could have easily raised this amount of military funds through taxes alone. However, now that they are confined to a corner of the South China Sea, they will have to resort to some tricks to obtain such a large sum of money.

Gao Pian sent Kuang Shiqian to deal with the foreign merchants in order to raise military funds and take advantage of the soldiers' high morale after receiving their pay to thwart Wang Shi's encirclement.

"I have already ordered Kuang Shiqian to handle this matter. You only need to follow his military orders, and the military pay will naturally be issued in a few days."

"Yes!" The three nodded in agreement, while Gao Pian continued to inquire, "Any traces of the troops of Wang Shi, Li Yangchun, Cao Mao, and Wang Jian?"

"Reporting to King Gao, Wang Shi and Li Yangchun are both camped more than 30 li north and east of the city, and have not found Cao Mao and Wang Jian's troops."

Gao Qin answered respectfully, while Wang Zhongren guessed, "Perhaps Wang Jian ordered them to hold the line in Lingxi."

"Hmm!" Gao Pian nodded in response. He had long anticipated that Wang Shi would not sit idly by and watch Lingxi be occupied by the Southern Barbarians, which was why he urged Lu Ruyue and Gao Jie to withdraw their troops.

Although such actions were indeed inappropriate, at least they tied down 50,000 Han troops, which is something to be happy about.

The combined forces of Wang Shi and Li Yangchun would have a maximum strength of no more than 120,000, while they had nearly 80,000 men.

This battle is not without a chance of victory...

Lost in thought, Gao Pian's mind had already flown to Wang Shi's camp. Wang Jian, who had just ordered the army to set up camp and entered the tent, also learned about Gao Pian's arrangements in the South China Sea through the garrison soldiers.

He and his generals surrounded the sand table, then pointed to the stone fort on Baiyun Mountain and said, "This stone fort on Baiyun Mountain can hide more than 3,000 soldiers. It was obviously set up to prevent our army from occupying Baiyun Mountain."

"If our army were using catapults, we would naturally have to occupy Baiyun Mountain. But our army has ninety cannons, so we don't need to occupy Baiyun Mountain at all. We can directly break through Gao Pian's military camp in the north of the city and then conquer the city."

"Qie Biao's troops have already set up camp more than 30 miles east of Nanhai City. At that time, we will launch the main attack and use them as a flanking force to contain them."

"There are still 36 days until the start of summer. In these 36 days, our army must take control of the South China Sea and defeat Gao Pian."

"Yes!!"

The generals nodded in agreement. Then Wang Shi gave a detailed account of Gao Pian's troop strength and deployment. The generals left satisfied as darkness fell.

However, after they left, Wang Shi and Chen Jingchong remained seated in the tent. After drinking a cup of tea to moisten their throats, Chen Jingchong asked, "What are your plans for the matters concerning Lingxi and Annam?"

In response to his question, Wang Shi put down his teacup and slowly explained, "I have ordered Wang Jian to lead 30,000 troops to garrison Lingxi, and at the same time sent Commander Cao's 20,000 troops to continue south to Annam, along with my letter."

“I have a long-standing relationship with Cai Xi, and he certainly will not listen to Gao Pian’s advice to abandon Annam. He is probably still holding out in Annam right now.”

"As long as he sees my letter and Governor Cao's 20,000 reinforcements, he will surely submit to the court. At that time, Lord Cao can defeat You Shilong with his 30,000 troops in Annam, and even reclaim the territory that the court lost for several years with the help of the twenty cannons in the army."

Thinking of the lost territories, Wang Shi couldn't help but sigh.

All of Annan's defensive measures were left by him, and even from his current perspective, these measures are flawless and impeccable.

If it weren't for Cai Jing's slander in Lingxi back then, and Li Cui's refusal to heed advice, Cai Xi's situation wouldn't have been so dire.

Fortunately, Cai Xi survived, and after more than ten years apart, they finally met again.

For Wang Shi, taking Annam wouldn't require a single soldier; the real challenge was repelling the invading army of You Shilong.

However, as long as Cao Mao leads his troops to Annam, given You Shilong's experience of being thwarted in Huichuan, he will certainly not continue to invade Annam. Instead, he will begin to strengthen the territories of the various states that he has plundered and reclaimed.

Now it remains to be seen whether Cao Mao can join forces with Cai Xi to recover lost territory.

While they reclaim their lost territory, all I need to do is defeat Gao Pian and end the chaos.

Thinking this, he quickly looked at Chen Jingchong: "The army will rest for two days, and then break camp to attack the South China Sea in three days."

"I have already submitted a memorial to Your Highness, hoping that Your Highness will recruit 40,000 soldiers from southern Hunan and southern Jiangxi to garrison Lingnan. I just don't know if Your Highness will agree."

"His Highness will surely agree," Chen Jingchong replied without hesitation, but quickly added:
"However, this would make our army too large. Your Highness will probably have to cut some of the old and weak and convert them into state soldiers to guard the state and county."

If another 40,000 soldiers are recruited, the country will have a total army of 560,000, all of whom will be recruited.

This number is comparable to that of the Kaiyuan era, but what the world needs now is not territorial expansion, but rather recuperation, protection of the borders, and peace for the people.

For this reason, Chen Jingchong and Wang Shi both thought that after Liu Jilong pacified the country, he would reduce his military strength by cutting the old and weak, and invest more money and grain in the production recovery of various prefectures and counties.

Wang Shi didn't respond. He felt he shouldn't be discussing this topic because the old and weak in the army were mostly recruits from Longyou.

By eliminating the old and weak, Liu Jilong was effectively weakening the Longyou faction. He would have to relinquish some of his interests to settle them, otherwise it would certainly cause dissatisfaction among the Longyou faction.

Even if he could get involved in such a topic, he wouldn't.

He is already sixty-three years old and is gradually feeling his strength waning. Now all he wants to do is promote his children to a relatively high level so that he can leave in peace.

Seeing that Wang Shi did not respond, Chen Jingchong understood his thoughts, and then got up and left the tent.

For the next two days, the Han army adapted to the environment of Guangzhou, and it was not until the third day that they began to break camp and head south.

While they were resting and setting up camp to head south, many foreign merchants in Guangzhou suffered misfortune.

Although Gao Pian did not kill them, he confiscated most of their money, which was the only way he could barely raise enough funds for the army.

Upon learning of the Han army's departure, Gao Pian led over 5,000 horse-drawn carriages and more than 20,000 boxes of copper coins into the military camp.

Under his orders, the Southern Tang army began to receive pay. Once the heavy paychecks were in their hands, the previously low morale of the Southern Tang army was immediately revitalized, and their morale soared.

The originally oppressive military camp became vibrant as military pay was continuously distributed.

Gao Pian observed the changes in his soldiers, took a deep breath, and said, "In that case, we will be confident tomorrow!"

While the Southern Tang army continued to pay its soldiers, 120,000 Han troops continued to approach the South China Sea.

As the army marched into the afternoon, the two armies set up camps one north of Nanhai City and the other eight miles east of the city.

The arrival of the Han army dampened the joy of receiving pay in the Southern Tang army camp, but before they could calm down, Gao Pian issued a new military order.

"By order of King Gao! A reward of ten thousand coins will be given for every Han soldier killed!"

"Imperial decree from King Gao..."

Countless fast horses shuttled back and forth within the military camp, shouting the military orders issued by Gao Pian.

Of course, if it were simply a matter of rewarding Han soldiers with money, that would be underestimating Gao Pian.

After the fast horses passed by, the soldiers of each army assembled in their respective regiments, and the colonel explained Gao Pian's complete military orders to them.

On the battlefield, the front, middle, and rear armies were used as units. The reward money for the Han soldiers killed by the front army was divided equally among the entire army.

While this might discourage a few brave warriors, it would prevent soldiers from fighting over heads and causing internal strife.

For ordinary soldiers, as long as the reward money is paid, it doesn't matter how much or how little they receive.

For this reason, Guangzhou was unusually quiet tonight. It wasn't until the sound of drums and horns at dawn that everyone solemnly left their tents and proceeded to the fortifications that Gao Pian had set up outside Nanhai City.

A dense network of trenches appeared in the north of the military camp, along with other defenses such as chevaux-de-frise and trenches. There was even a moat about ten feet wide that stretched across the front of the two armies.

The side of both the camp moat and the city moat facing the Southern Tang army was constructed of bluestone with sheep and horse walls, effectively eliminating any possibility for the Han army to cross the river by bridge.

However, given the power of the Han army's artillery, even a wall of sheep and horses made of bluestone would probably not be able to stop a five-pound iron cannonball.

While they were thinking, the Han army's ninety cannons, escorted by the Han army, were being pulled by horse-drawn carts to a place less than a mile away from the Southern Tang army's camp.

Gao Pian ordered the construction of a five-zhang-high platform, and then ordered the construction of a four-zhang-high watchtower on the platform.

Therefore, at this moment, he seemed to be standing on a small hill, overlooking the movements of the Han army two miles away.

Upon seeing ninety cannons arrayed before the enemy lines, Gao Pian's expression grew solemn. At that moment, a fast horse galloped across the camp from afar, arriving at the foot of the high platform and bowing to Gao Pian, saying:

"King Gao, Li Yangchun is leading his troops in formation in the east of the city, and is launching a strong attack on our army's eastern camp with artillery."

"The emperor is ordered to take on the important task and hold the position; he must not send troops to engage in battle!"

Without hesitation, Gao Pian looked down at the fast horse and gave it instructions.

With nearly 80,000 troops, Gao Pian deployed 50,000 troops to the north of the city and the rest to the east.

If he could hold out for a month, by the time summer arrived, Wang Shi's troops from the Jianghuai region would surely be unable to endure the environment of Lingnan and would be forced to retreat. Compared to the Han army's Jianghuai troops, Gao Pian's troops from Lingnan, Hunan, Jiangxi, and other places seemed much more at ease.

"put!"

"Rumble--"

A muffled cannon shot rang out, and ninety cannonballs hurtled through the air. A few hit the sheep and horse wall, leaving cracked walls and fallen shells, while most hit behind the sheep horn wall, some hitting soldiers and others piercing through tents.

Cries for help and screams of agony rang out continuously, but the number of wounded soldiers was very limited.

"continue……"

Without hesitation, the commander of the artillery battalion spoke up and then continued to direct the artillery to bombard the Southern Tang army.

Not only were they shelling, but Li Yangchun in the east of the city was also directing fifty cannons in his army to continuously bombard the city.

These fifty cannons were all salvaged from Geng Ming's ship and are now serving their purpose on land.

Facing the Southern Tang camp that had been bombarded, Li Yangchun, standing under an umbrella, would occasionally glance at the sun not far away, silently counting the time in his mind.

Two hours passed quickly, and both sides seemed to have gotten used to this kind of battle.

The Southern Tang soldiers hid in the trenches, while the Han soldiers sat on the ground, waiting for the cannons to break through the sheep and horse wall.

The situation seemed to have reached a stalemate, which made Gao Pian's lips curl into a smile.

Wang Shi glanced at the time, then stroked his beard: "It's about time..."

"Boom!"

Suddenly, a fierce cannon shot came from the south of the city, which made Gao Pian on the high platform turn around to look.

At the same time, fast horses appeared from the direction of Nanhai County, galloping towards the high platform.

"really……"

Gao Pian's expression changed slightly. He had long anticipated that Wang Shi would use the navy to attack Nanhai City, not only to quickly breach the city but also to cut off his retreat to the sea.

"Your Majesty, over a hundred warships have appeared in the South China Sea and are attacking the city walls with arquebuses. Your Excellency requests permission to retaliate!"

"Agreed!" Gao Pian responded without hesitation, and then the horse turned around and galloped towards the city.

Half an hour later, as the fast horse arrived, Gao Qin, who was stationed in the south of the city, immediately stood up and walked out of the courtyard.

But outside the courtyard, the houses near the southern city wall had all been demolished, replaced by hundreds of catapults and tens of thousands of laborers eagerly waiting.

"Order the entire army to counterattack!"

At Gao Qin's command, tens of thousands of laborers began operating catapults to retaliate. Meanwhile, in Guangzhou Bay, hundreds of warships rose and fell with the tides, while the eight leading warships were already anchored in Guangzhou Port, bombarding Nanhai City, which was more than 300 paces away, with cannons.

"Boom bang bang..."

In an instant, hundreds of stones, each weighing over ten kilograms, were hurled out and attacked the Han army warships in the harbor.

"Beep--"

A piercing whistle sounded, and countless stones were thrown at the warships in the harbor, damaging the hulls but not penetrating them or injuring any sailors.

On his ship in the waters behind, Geng Ming saw that none of the eight warships ahead had suffered any casualties and couldn't help but praise them:
"Qie Biao's recommendations are quite good; Yang Xingmin and Li Shenfu are indeed a perfect match."

The eight warships that have entered the harbor are commanded by Yang Xingmin and Li Shenfu.

After witnessing firsthand the power of the eight warships' cannons, even Li Shenfu, who was hiding in the cabin, couldn't help but find Yang Xingmin and exclaim in astonishment:
"Thanks to Huayuan, you let us pledge our allegiance to the imperial court. If we had pledged allegiance to Gao Pian, we would be the ones being attacked by cannons right now!"

Despite Yang Xingmin’s calm demeanor in the face of Li Shenfu’s astonished reaction, he was inwardly shaken.

Although he had long thought of using the fireworks of Huainan to attack the city, who could have imagined that fireworks would be so powerful?
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but think of the Prince of Han, who was praised by the world, and wanted to see him and ask him how he came up with the idea of ​​using fireworks to attack the city.

"Your Highness, the Prince of Han, truly is a man favored by Heaven!"

In short, Yang Xingmin marveled at the power of the cannons, then watched as hundreds of sailors operated them in the ship's hold, aiming them at the city walls and firing continuously.

The eight ships, armed with nearly ninety cannons, continuously returned fire. Many of these cannons were newly cast, making them lighter, more powerful, and thinner.

"Rumble--"

The cannons unleashed their power once more, with ninety cannonballs piercing the air and striking the city wall, while Gao Qin behind the city wall continuously directed the catapults to retaliate.

At the same time, the Southern Tang army on the horse path also began to fix the winch crossbows, and had laborers pull them from behind the city wall to wind them up, so that they could launch a counterattack against the Han army warships in the harbor.

"Bang!!"

More than thirty chisel-shaped arrows hit ships in the harbor, but only two hit the Han army's warships, without penetrating them.

After arriving in Chaozhou, Geng Ming reinforced the sides of the eight large Fujian ships, each with a capacity of 2,000 liang, with ironwood. Although this slowed them down, it made them better able to defend against sudden attacks from chisel arrows.

Even if the chisel arrow hits the bottom of the warship, the bottom is divided into more than ten independent watertight compartments by bulkheads. Hitting only three or five of them will not cause the warship to sink.

Moreover, chisel arrows usually pierce through the hull, with the shaft stuck inside, leaving very little room for water to leak out.

Even if the ship leaks for a whole day and night, it won't sink, not to mention there are sailors ready to repair it at any time.

"put!"

"Rumble--"

Half a cup of tea later, the Han army's arquebuses fired again, and the south wall of Nanhai City was constantly hit. Occasionally, cannonballs would fall to the ground or into the city.

Regardless, each time the Han army bombarded the city, eight or nine, or even more than a dozen, shells would hit the city wall on the east side of the city gate. Every time this section of the wall was hit, countless fragments and dust would fall down, and the cracked area would grow larger and larger.

The war lasted from dawn to dusk. As the day ended, most of the sheep and horse walls in the north and east of the city were destroyed, and the south city wall was in complete disarray, with bricks and debris falling half a foot high at the base of the wall.

On the first day of the battle, the Southern Tang army suffered more than 270 casualties, which may seem like a small number, but this was only a long-range engagement.

If the fighting continues for another month, the number of dead and wounded could reach several thousand.

They did not attack, and the Han army did not take the initiative to fight them. Instead, they used artillery to continuously attack them and demoralize them.

If that were all, Gao Pian wouldn't be so angry. What angered him was that he saw the people of Guangzhou actively transporting fruits and vegetables to the Han army's camp during the fighting between the two sides...

"Bastard!"

Gao Pian didn't think about why the people of Guangzhou supported the Han army instead of them; he was just angry that the people didn't support him.

"If this continues, it might not last until summer..."

Wang Chongren, sitting at the left seat in the yamen, spoke with a grim expression, while the other generals all lowered their heads.

Clearly, they did not believe they could hold out the Han army until summer, because the methods the Han army had displayed today far exceeded their expectations.

They were bombarded from three directions, but could only concentrate their catapults and crossbows on one side and barely managed to fight the enemy to a draw.

If things continue like this, let alone a month, even half a month would be considered a great time.

Thinking this, the generals in the yamen, whose morale had been high just yesterday because of the paychecks, were now all dejected.

Gao Pian looked at them, feeling extremely distressed.

He finally managed to pull himself together, but reality proved to be cruel; the Han army was superior to him in both manpower and tactics.

Although Wang Shi was not as good as him, he would not expose any major problems, which rendered his combination of orthodox and unorthodox methods ineffective.

"Keep holding on..."

After a long silence, Gao Pian could only utter these four words, which immediately deflated everyone's spirits.

They originally thought it would be 80,000 against 120,000, with both sides fighting back and forth, but now they are being unilaterally suppressed.

For now, they can only wait for the Han army to take the initiative to engage them in close combat and regain their morale in the process.

"We take our leave..."

The generals all rose to take their leave, and Gao Pian sighed after they left, then got up and walked outside.

However, before he could even leave the government office, he saw Li Ye, dressed in the emperor's everyday clothes and only seven years old, waiting for him with Tian Yun and Tian Lingzi.

"Your subject, Gao Pian, Prince of Bohai, pays his respects to Your Majesty..."

Although he didn't think much of the young emperor he had supported, Gao Pian still showed the proper courtesy.

"Prince of Bohai, there's no need for this. I simply want to know when the court will be able to defeat the rebels?"

Seven-year-old Li Ye asked Gao Pian, his small face full of worry.

Upon hearing this, Gao Pian couldn't help but chuckle to himself; he also wanted to know the answer to this question.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, I will soon defeat the rebels."

Gao Pian returned the greeting respectfully, and Tian Lingzi smiled and said, "Your Majesty need not worry. Today, this servant bought a ponies from a foreign merchant. Your Majesty can go and try them out."

"Okay!" Upon hearing that there were ponies to ride, Li Ye nodded quickly.

Although he changed his name to Li Ye, in his heart he was still Li Yan, still the Tang Xizong who loved dog fighting and horse playing in history.

Upon learning of the new invention, he immediately forgot all concern for the safety of the city's inhabitants.

Under Gao Pian's watchful eye, he quickly left the Guangzhou government office and headed to the temporary palace, led by Tian Lingzi.

Watching their retreating figures, Gao Pian couldn't help but shake his head: "Are all the emperors of the Tang Dynasty like this...?"

"If that's the case, then what's the point of the Tang Dynasty continuing to exist?"

He sighed, his back hunched as he walked towards the inner courtyard. The atmosphere in the entire South China Sea City gradually sank as the city suffered a defeat in today's battle.

As time passed and the sky brightened again, the Han army continued to awaken the soldiers and civilians of the entire South Sea City from their slumber in their own way.

"put!"

"Rumble--"

The dull, thunderous sound of cannon fire continued to emanate from three directions simultaneously.

The sound of cannons rang out from dawn to noon, and then from noon to dusk, almost all day long.

Even though the Southern Tang army retaliated with catapults and winch crossbows, and even used the few gunpowders available in the city called "Ten Thousand Enemy", they still could not stop the cannons.

Even if their warships were severely damaged, the Han army would take advantage of the night to retreat to the sandbars in Guangzhou Bay, where they would use wooden slings to transfer the cannons to other warships and continue to bombard them.

As the battle progressed into March, the morale of the Southern Tang army continued to decline, and eventually they even stopped repairing the sheep and horse fences protecting the camp.

Gao Pian saw this, but could only keep stalling for time.

As March arrived, many Han soldiers outside the city did indeed contract malaria and schistosomiasis.

While arranging for military doctors to treat these soldiers, Wang Shi also placed them in separate locations.

Wang Shi's arrangements were observed by Gao Pian, and it was now the tenth day that Nanhai City had been besieged.

"Father, the city wall on the south side probably won't hold for more than a few days..."

On the high platform, while Gao Pian observed the situation of the Han army, Gao Qin spoke with a grim expression about the situation in the south of the city.

His voice sounded weak amidst the occasional cannon fire, but Gao Pian remained calm.

"It's almost time. The weather these past few days has been so bad that even our soldiers have been complaining, let alone them."

“I observe that Wang Xiaonian has set up a separate camp, which clearly indicates that someone in the army has contracted malaria.”

"We only need to continue to hold our ground and wait for the malaria to spread throughout the army, then we can defeat these 120,000 rebels."

Gao Pian's words rekindled the confidence of the generals who had previously looked grim. Meanwhile, inside the Han army camp, Wang Shi held a list of soldiers infected with malaria and couldn't help but rub his temples.

"More and more soldiers are contracting malaria, and it seems that the soldiers from Jianghuai will not be able to stay in Lingnan for long."

"If that's the case, then we have no choice but to launch a full-scale attack on South Sea City ahead of schedule."

In response to Wang Shi's words, Chen Jingchong calmly stood up and said, "It should have been done long ago."

“Our army has set up a separate camp, which Gao Pian must have already noticed. We should take advantage of the fact that he thinks our army is busy dealing with malaria and launch a surprise attack.”

"Hmm!" Wang Shi nodded in agreement, then stood up and said to Chen Jingchong:
"Order Commanders Geng and Li to launch a full-scale attack at dawn tomorrow, and make sure to capture the south city wall and seize the rebel camps in the east and north."

"The navy must blockade the port; we must not allow Gao Pian to leave Guangzhou with the false emperor Li Ye and the imperial seal!"

"Yes!" Chen Jingchong agreed without hesitation, and then sent a fast horse to deliver the order to Li Yangchun and Geng Ming.

When Li Yangchun received the military order, it was already two hours later. He left the order behind and then summoned his generals.

Liu Song, Deng Yan, Tan Kai, Ge Congzhou, Zhang Guiba, Zhang Guihou, Pang Shigu and others stood in the tent, while Li Yangchun raised the military order in his hand.

"Lord Wang has ordered the three armies to launch a general attack on Nanhai City at dawn tomorrow. Our army must seize the rebel army's camp in the east of the city and assist the navy in capturing Nanhai City."

"General, I am willing to be the vanguard!"

In an instant, Ge Congzhou, Tan Kai, and Zhang Guiba stepped forward one after another. Tan Kai thought that Li Yangchun would choose him, but unexpectedly, Li Yangchun looked at Ge Congzhou and Zhang Guiba.

"Ge Congzhou will be the general, and Zhang Guiba will be the deputy general. Tomorrow, you two will lead the vanguard of 10,000 men in a strong attack. The central army, led by Tan Kai and Pang Shigu, will assist you in attacking the camp. The rear guard, led by Liu Song and Deng Yan, will remain stationary."

"Your subordinates obey!" Ge Congzhou, Zhang Guiba, and the others raised their voices and accepted the military order.

After they received the military order, Li Yangchun waved his hand to signal them to leave, but Tan Kai, puzzled, stayed behind until everyone had left. Only then did he bow to Li Yangchun.

"Qie Biao, am I not as good as those two surrendered generals?"

"There is no such thing as a surrendered general in the army." Li Yangchun frowned slightly, clearly displeased with Tan Kai's statement.

Tan Kai belatedly realized that his words were somewhat ambiguous, so he quickly said, "I just want to know, why not the vanguard!"

"If you wish to remain in Lingnan after the war, then you shall be the vanguard."

Li Yangchun's words left Tan Kai speechless; he hadn't expected Li Yangchun to have thought so far ahead.

The climate of Lingnan was like a slow poison to him, who was from Guanzhong. Naturally, he was unwilling to lead his troops to search the mountains and seas in Lingnan. Instead, he preferred to lead his cavalry across the desert in the north.

"I understand."

Tan Kai was somewhat embarrassed, while Li Yangchun waved his hand dismissively, signaling him to step back.

After he left, Li Yangchun couldn't help but laugh.

In fact, regardless of whether Ge Congzhou and his men were the vanguard, it did not affect their possibility of leading troops to garrison Lingnan.

After all, they had spent a considerable amount of time in Lingnan and Hunan when they were still under Huang Chao's command.

This experience was outstanding even among the Han army, so Li Yangchun guessed that Lingnan after the war would likely need Ge Congzhou and others to be in charge.

As for making Ge Congzhou the vanguard, it was because Ge Congzhou was more capable than Tan Kai, and he couldn't say that outright, so he could only deceive Tan Kai.

Fortunately, Tan Dalang was still the same Tan Dalang, and he managed to fool him with a few words.

Thinking of this, Li Yangchun chuckled to himself for a moment. Only after the laughter subsided did he get up and walk out of the tent, looking at the clear sky in the distance.

Despite the still humid and sticky air, Li Yangchun was in a very cheerful mood.

"After tomorrow, the world will be at peace."

He thought of many things, including the experiences Liu Jilong had had teaching them in Linzhou.

Recalling what he had learned in class, he turned around and walked back to the tent, tidying up the messy desk.

"Once the world is at peace, Your Highness should perhaps take action..."

(End of this chapter)