Late Han Zhao Tang

The second year of Shenwu, the first month.

At the foot of Linzi City, a large group of Tang soldiers carrying large shields surged forward like a tide, and under the stirring beat of drums, they pushed their siege weapons to attack the city.

"Whoosh!"

The rain of arrows from the city walls was incredibly dense. Even with the protection of large shields and weapons, how could every Tang soldier possibly have adequate cover on the noisy battlefield? In just a short while, hundreds of men screamed in agony from being struck by arrows. Fortunately, their armor protected them, preventing them from dying beneath the city walls.

Following the previously filled-in moat, a carriage carrying Lü Gong, surrounded by thousands of people, finally made it to the edge of the city. At that moment, large stones came crashing down from the city walls, killing several unfortunate men without a sound; even their armor was useless.

"boom!"

Lu Gong's carriage was leaning against the city wall, its leather body making a dull thud as it collided with the wall.

"Rocket!"

Seeing this, the Qi soldiers on the city wall, under the command of their officers, took out flaming arrows and fired them at Lü Gong's chariot in an attempt to set it ablaze. However, let alone igniting the leather-covered chariot, even leaving the flaming arrows on the body was a difficult task.

"kill!"

Dozens of armored soldiers thrust their spears out from the wagon railings, while archers on both flanks unleashed a volley of arrows. The Qi soldiers on the city wall dared not be outdone; using the parapet for cover, they too extended their long spears, the sound of arrows ringing in their ears.

"Pfft!"

With each thrust of the spear, someone was wounded and cried out in agony, blood splattering everywhere. Under the dense barrage of arrows, someone would suddenly be struck by a stray arrow at any moment.

Lu Gong had seven chariots, and 20,000 Tang soldiers launched a fierce attack on the three sides of Linzi, with the sounds of agony echoing throughout the city.

On a high platform three miles away, Man Chong gazed at the battlefield, his expression unmoved by the fierce fighting.

“General, with the chariots that our army has built over many months, Linzi will surely be difficult to defend for long,” Xianyu Yin said.

Man Chong said, "Yuan Tan is a cornered beast, fighting with his last legs, and should not be underestimated. Whether we can break through the city depends on whether our soldiers give their all!"

"Before we went into battle today, I gave orders that whoever was the first to scale the walls would be ennobled and rewarded with gold. The morale of the soldiers and officers has soared, and we might just be able to win this battle today," Xianyu Yin said.

With the political situation now stable, the morale of the non-direct Tang troops in Youzhou soared, and their fighting prowess became even more formidable. After all, if they didn't strive to achieve merit, they feared they wouldn't even be able to afford a hot drink in the future.

Of course, this was largely due to the logistics support provided to the Tang army and Man Chong's strict military discipline.

"boom!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the small gate on the west side of Linzi suddenly opened wide, and hundreds of cavalrymen rushed out.

The galloping warhorse charged straight into the Tang soldiers beside Lü Gong's chariot, slashing left and right. Under the powerful impact, the Tang soldiers were defeated and forced to retreat.

In a short time, the two chariots of Lü Gong, with a total of five or six thousand soldiers, were slaughtered by several hundred Qi soldiers, and the cowardly ones retreated early.

Fortunately, the Tang soldiers were experienced on the battlefield. With the encouragement of their officers, they formed ranks and launched a counterattack, barely managing to withstand the Qi cavalry's charge. The fighting lasted for about an incense stick's time before reinforcements arrived. Seeing the situation was dire, the Qi cavalry hastily retreated to the city at the sound of bugles.

Some daring Tang soldiers tried to enter the city through a small gate, but they were riddled with arrows from the city tower!

The sudden charge by the Qi cavalry greatly boosted the morale of the defending soldiers, while causing a setback in the morale of the Tang army.

Man Chong narrowed his eyes, his expression growing increasingly cold and stern. He ordered, "Order all troops attacking the city, except for those at the north gate, to use their spears as flanks and to keep an eye on the cavalry inside the city. Meanwhile, secretly deploy five hundred elite cavalry to lie in ambush at the north gate. If the enemy makes any unusual moves, they should launch a surprise attack."

"promise!"

The key to defending a city lies not in simply holding it, but in how to use the city to launch a counterattack and use every means to kill the enemy. If a city is simply defended, it will eventually fall. Therefore, if you want to launch a counterattack, it is of paramount importance not to close the city gates.

Yuan Tan launched a surprise cavalry counterattack, catching the Tang soldiers off guard and causing them a minor loss. To suppress the Qi army's counterattack, Man Chong deployed elite cavalry, specifically to dig traps and wait.

By noon, the Tang soldiers, relying on Lü Gongchariots, were locked in a fierce battle with the Qi soldiers on the city walls. Several brave warriors managed to scale the walls first, but were all driven back by the Qi soldiers, making the battle extremely intense.

In the midst of the tense situation, the north gate was opened wide, and the Qi cavalry, repeating their previous actions, attempted to charge the Tang soldiers besieging the city.

However, when the cavalry charged out, the five hundred elite cavalry who had been waiting for a long time were already prepared. Taking advantage of the Qi cavalry's scattered fighting, they suddenly charged out and met the Qi cavalry. They fought repeatedly, and the Qi cavalry could not compete with the Tang cavalry in hand-to-hand combat. With the help of the archers on the city wall, they had no choice but to leave behind nearly a hundred corpses and flee back into the city.

The failure of the Qi cavalry raid greatly boosted the morale of the Tang army, and the various units attacking the city fought even harder. However, the defeat of the Qi cavalry was a real blow to Yuan Tan, who had no choice but to abandon his order to send his cavalry out of the city to charge.

The fighting lasted from morning until noon, and then from noon until afternoon. The battle was extremely fierce, with the Tang army suffering heavy casualties, yet they were still unable to breach the city.

Man Chong's expression gradually revealed helplessness. The siege had lasted for several months, and his troops were exhausted. If they could not break through the city now, it would surely damage morale.

"Governor, our army has suffered heavy losses today, and it is getting late. We should return to camp to rest and regroup, and attack Linzi another day."

"This is not advisable!" Hao Zhao said in a deep voice, "Our army first fought Yuan Shang, then Yuan Tan, and has been fighting for months. Now we have penetrated deep into Linzi. If we cannot advance and defeat the enemy, we will lose our military prestige if we retreat. Moreover, our troops are exhausted and cannot sustain this for long. Although the enemy is like a cornered beast, if we open the south gate to let them escape, why would they fight us to the death? I have been supervising the battle and have seen that there are few enemies at the east gate. If we can mobilize our elite troops for a rapid attack, we will surely defeat the enemy today."

Man Chong frowned and pondered for a moment, then said, "We have already covered eighty or ninety paces of the hundred-pace distance. It is not yet dark. If we must mobilize our strong troops to attack, we will surely defeat the enemy."

"I beat the drum, and Bo Dao personally led the attack, conquering Linzi and bringing peace to the seashore."

"promise!"

Hao Zhao bowed and accepted the order, then hurried down the high platform, mustered his elite troops, and rushed to the East Gate.

Previously, a total of seven chariots were used to attack the city, two each at the west and north gates, and only one at the east gate. Therefore, Yuan Tan focused his defenses on the west and north gates, leaving the east gate with fewer troops. Hao Zhao's intention was to launch a sudden and fierce attack on the east gate with elite troops. If the east gate could not withstand the Tang army's burst of fighting power, it might be able to capture the east gate.

"Boom!"

As the sun began to set, Man Chong sounded a powerful drumbeat. Hao Zhao, clad in armor, personally led his soldiers onto Lü Gong's chariot and launched a fierce attack on the soldiers on the city wall.

"kill!"

With a roar, the Tang soldiers launched a fierce attack. Instead of the previous spear-toss exchanges, dozens of heavily armored soldiers, shields and swords in hand, charged forward. Shields blocked spears as they advanced relentlessly. Behind them, dozens of soldiers armed with crossbows emerged, undeterred by enemy arrows, unleashing their crossbow bolts upon the Qi infantry.

Taking advantage of the Qi infantry's injuries, dozens of heavily armored infantrymen leaped onto the city wall and charged into battle, disrupting the enemy formation as much as possible. The Qi soldiers, caught off guard, surrounded and killed the heavily armored infantrymen.

At the same time, Hao Zhao led his armored soldiers onto the short bridge and launched a new fierce attack amidst the chaos on the city wall.

The soldiers of Qi and Yuan were of mixed quality to begin with, and since following Yuan Tan in his military campaigns, they had suffered almost repeated defeats, resulting in low morale. While trapped in Linzi, Yuan Tan went to great lengths to boost morale before finally allowing his soldiers to hold Linzi with him.

The two armies fought from morning till afternoon, and both sides were exhausted. Hao Zhao suddenly launched a desperate attack, and the Qi army was routed after only a few attempts to resist.

The number of Tang soldiers on the eastern city wall increased, and the Qi soldiers were slaughtered and routed. The Qi soldiers' fleeing on the city wall caused even more people to lose their order, and the disorderly soldiers were even less troublesome than pigs.

Soon, the flags of the Tang army were raised over the eastern city, and Hao Zhao led his armored soldiers toward the fiercely contested northern gate. With Hao Zhao's charge, the Tang soldiers who had been blocked by Lü Gong's chariots climbed over the wall and reached the city tower. Under the combined attack from both inside and outside, the Qi soldiers at the northern gate collapsed, and the fall of Linzi was only a matter of time.

Seeing that the city tower had been captured by his own troops, Man Chong, who was beating the drum, laughed loudly, handed the drumsticks to his left and right, and said, "Linzi has fallen, Yuan Tan will not escape."

"Men, quickly order your cavalry to intercept them at the south gate. If you see any Qi soldiers fleeing through the south gate, be sure to capture and kill them."

"promise!"

The strategy of surrounding three sides while leaving one open was essentially intended to allow the trapped soldiers to escape through the unoccupied gate. However, Man Chong would not actually let those people escape; he would certainly have methods to intercept them. Cavalry would be the best weapon for pursuit, and anyone who tried to escape through the south gate would almost certainly be hunted down by the Tang cavalry.

When the Tang army besieged and breached the city, Yuan Tan knew that the situation was hopeless. He led several hundred personal cavalrymen to escape through the south gate, intending to follow the example of Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang and surrender to Cao Cao.

"kill!"

As soon as Yuan Tan stepped out of the south gate, he was surrounded and attacked by a Tang army of eight hundred cavalry. After a fierce battle, Yuan Tan abandoned half of his personal riders before finally escaping the pursuers.

They hadn't gone more than a few miles when another Tang cavalry force charged at them, also a squad of men. After a fierce battle, the Qi cavalry was no match for them and was decimated. Yuan Tan even had his helmet knocked off, and with disheveled hair, he fled in panic.

Several Tang cavalrymen, with their keen eyesight, recognized Yuan Tan's fine armor and determined he was no ordinary man. They then shouted to each other and gave chase.

Seeing the pursuing cavalry, Yuan Tan panicked and spurred his horse to gallop through the mountains and fields.

Suddenly, due to the ruggedness of the path and Yuan Tan's poor riding skills, he stumbled and fell off his horse.

Yuan Tan, clutching his injured thigh, saw the Tang cavalry pursuing him too closely and cried out, "Gentlemen, let me go, and I will bestow wealth and honor upon you all!"

Before he could finish speaking, the leader of the Tang cavalry swung his sword and slashed at him. Before Yuan Tan could finish speaking, the sharp blade sliced ​​through his neck, his head flew off, blood spurted out like a fountain, and then his body fell to the ground.

"Ah Diao, you acted too quickly!"

Qiu Lang rode up and saw that Hui Diao had chopped off Yuan Tan's head with a single stroke. He said regretfully, "This man must be no ordinary person. If we could have spared his life, our rewards might have been much greater."

All the trainees of the Zhongtiao Army have been assigned to serve in the army. For example, Qiu Lang was appointed as a Colonel Sima because of his meritorious service in the Hanzhong relief battle and his outstanding performance during his studies. He was assigned to assist the Colonel and command two hundred cavalry.

"hey-hey!"

Hui Diao, a fellow student of the Zhongtiao Army, looked apologetic.

"Bring this man's head back and hand it over to the surrendered soldiers for identification!"

Qiu Lang waved his hand and led his cavalry back.

Before nightfall, the Tang army had already taken control of Linzi and its surrounding areas, and generals such as Man Chong, Zhang Yan, and Hao Zhao had all entered the city. Qiu Lang handed over Yuan Tan's head, and Man Chong was overjoyed, immediately ordering word to spread the news that Yuan Tan had been killed in battle. (End of Chapter)